[OVERVIEW]
Tentacool is used as an utility-focused Pokemon on defensively oriented teams thanks to a few niches that make it unique among specially defensive walls and Rapid Spinners. Tentacool's high Special Defense along with Eviolite and its strong defensive typing allow it to check common special attackers such as Simipour and Floatzel and reliably remove Toxic Spikes, which troubles defensive teams. Tentacool has another niche in its great support movepool with access to moves such as Scald, Knock Off, and Rapid Spin, which make it versatile, threatening even to defensively oriented teams, and not totally passive, along with others such as Haze, which allow it to not be setup fodder. Tentacool also has access to Toxic Spikes, another important utility tool to wear down foes, which gives it a niche over other bulky Water-types such as Pelipper and Frillish; however, Pelipper has access to recovery, so it's preferred most of the time. Moreover, Tentacool's lack of an offensive presence and mediocre Defense mean that it's easy to wear down, loses to every spinblocker, and is not reliable as a wall, so it has to fight for a teamslot and it's still hard to fit on a team.
[SET]
name: Support
move 1: Scald
move 2: Toxic Spikes
move 3: Haze
move 4: Rapid Spin / Knock Off
item: Eviolite
ability: Liquid Ooze
nature: Calm
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
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Scald is Tentacruel's main STAB move and is used mainly to spread burns. Toxic Spikes wears foes down and allows teammates to break through or stall out bulky Pokemon. Haze resets stat boosts, allowing Tentacool to not be setup fodder. Rapid Spin removes entry hazards on your side of the field, which is helpful if a teammate is weak to entry hazards. Knock Off comes in handy to remove items from foes, especially from Eviolite users such as Clefairy and Togetic. Toxic is a valid option to cripple foes and allow Tentacool to deal with Pokemon that take little damage from its moves or are immune to them, such as Poliwrath.
Set Details
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Maximum investment in HP and Special Defense along with a Calm nature allow Tentacool to tank special attacks with ease. Liquid Ooze causes health-draining moves to deal damage to the user instead of recovering it. Liquid Ooze can come in handy against Leech Seed and Giga Drain users such as Tangela and Roselia. Eviolite further increases Tentacool's bulk and makes up a bit for its mediocre Defense.
Usage Tips
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Tentacool should not be switched in against strong physical attackers, as they can easily KO it due to its mediocre Defense. Tentacool should set up only one layer of Toxic Spikes against offensive teams to keep up the pressure, while two layers are needed against bulkier teams to wear down and break through walls. Scald and Knock Off should be used early- and mid-game to spread burns and cripple foes. Tentacool has to switch in and use Rapid Spin mainly against special attackers such as Simipour and Floatzel because of its high Special Defense along with Eviolite. Toxic Spikes have to be used as early as possible to cripple and wear down foes from the start; however, if the opponent carries a grounded Poison-type, it isn't worth setting them up. Tentacool should be preserved to remove entry hazards if its teammates are weak to them, especially against entry hazard stacking teams. If the opponent carries a Ghost-type, Tentacool should use Knock Off on the predicted switch-in to wear it down.
Team Options
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Tentacool fits on defensively oriented and balanced teams because of the amount of utility it can provide and because it provides a check to common special attackers such as Simipour, which trouble defensive teams. Entry hazard stacking teams also benefit from Tentacool's ability to set up Toxic Spikes to further wear down the opposing team. Examples of other entry hazard setters are Stunfisk, Clefairy, and Quilladin. Bulky Grass-types such as Torterra, Tangela, and Gourgeist-XL have decent type synergy with Tentacool and can tank Ground-type moves for it. Ground-types such as Piloswine and Stunfisk are immune to Electric-type moves and can stop VoltTurn cores created by Electric-types such as Zebstrika and Raichu, which trouble Tentacool with their STAB moves. Lickilicky and Hypno can provide Wish support to Tentacool, giving it a way to recover damage taken and allowing it to stay alive for longer. Pokemon that are vulnerable to entry hazards such as Rotom-F and Tangela appreciate Tentacool's Rapid Spin support. Pokemon with high physical bulk, such as Carracosta, Tangela, Stunfisk, Poliwrath, and Gourgeist-XL, can protect Tentacool from physical attacks and absorb Knock Off with relative ease. Poliwrath can also phaze foes thanks to Circle Throw and spread poison from Toxic Spikes. Dark-types such as Mightyena and Pawniard can deal with Ghost-types such as Misdreavus and Dusknoir that find themselves switching in against Tentacool to prevent it from removing entry hazards. Dark-types can also threaten Psychic-types such as Duosion and Grumpig, while Pawniard can trap Ghost-types thanks to Pursuit. Defiant users such as Pawniard and Purugly deter the use of Defog, keeping Toxic Spikes on the field. Ghost-types such as Misdreavus and Dusknoir can prevent Rapid Spin users such as Armaldo and Torkoal from removing Toxic Spikes.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
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A physically defensive spread with a Bold nature can be run to make up for Tentacool's poor Defense while retaining decent Special Defense; however, it will still struggle against strong physical attackers such as Stoutland and Carracosta. Giga Drain can be used to hit Water-types such as Simipour and Poliwrath while recovering some damage, though Toxic already provides a good enough answer to them. Acid Spray allows Tentacool to better deal with bulky Calm Mind-using setup sweepers such as Clefairy; however, most of the time, Haze is preferred.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Psychic-types**: Psychic-types such as Duosion, Grumpig, and Beheeyem can tank a few hits from Tentacool and retaliate with a super effective STAB move or use Tentacool as a setup fodder; however, Haze and Toxic can be annoying. Kadabra finds it difficult to set up because of its frailty, though it still can easily KO Tentacool with Psychic.
**Electric-types**: Electric-types such as Zebstrika and Raichu can threaten Tentacool with their STAB moves and can easily tank Scald, though they won't appreciate getting their item removed by Knock Off or getting burned or poisoned, as they can be easily worn down.
**Ground-types**: Ground-types such as Piloswine, Torterra, and Golem prefer to not switch on Scald, as they risk being burned and it deals solid damage. They can, however, OHKO Tentacool with their STAB moves.
**Strong Physical Attackers**: Strong physical attackers such as Stoutland, Carracosta, and Mightyena can KO Tentacool easily with their STAB moves because of its poor Defense. They hate Scald burns, however.
**Residual Damage**: Because of its lack of reliable recovery, Tentacool is quickly worn down by entry hazards and burns, so it has to be wary when switching into Scald and Will-O-Wisp, as well as when Spikes or Stealth Rock are up.
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