We round up all the best Water type Pokémon in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet to help you choose the best aquatic Pokémon for your team.
Pokémon come in all shapes, sizes, and personalities. They also have their powers and moves, which are dictated by their elemental types. One of the most useful and strongest types of Pokémon is the Water type. Water type Pokémon are handy because they can learn a lot of useful moves such as Surf, Dive, and Waterfall, which help to traverse around the Paldea region.
Furthermore, they’re strong (both in Defense and offense) and reliable in battle because Water type Pokémon are effective against many other types and have a few weaknesses. Hence, you can always use them in battle under most circumstances to grab a victory with versatility. For example, Water type weakness, Grass, can easily be defeated by teaching your Pokémon an Ice-type move.
Water Type Pokémon are Strong against:
- Offensive (Damage given):
- Rock (2x)
- Fire (2x)
- Ground (2x)
- Dragon (1/2x)
- Grass (1/2x)
- Water (1/2x)
- Defensive (Damage taken):
- Fire (1/2x)
- Ice (1/2x)
Steel (1/2x) - Water (1/2x)
- Electric (2x)
- Grass (2x)
Since there are many Water-type Pokémon in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, this guide lists out all the Water types available in the game and the best ones you should keep in your team.
As you play more of the game, you’ll realize that it’s always a good idea to keep more than one Water-type Pokémon in your primary team. At least keep one or two well-trained and stored in the PC.
Read more: Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: Things To Do After Beating The Game
All Water type Pokémon in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet
- Quaxly
- Quaxwell
- Quaquaval
- Marill
- Azumarill
- Surskit
- Buizel
- Floatzel
- Wooper
- Psyduck
- Golduck
- Chewtle
- Drednaw
- Wingull
- Pelipper
- Magikarp
- Gyarados
- Arrokuda
- Barraskewda
- Basculin
- Barboach
- Whiscash
- Vaporeon
- Paldean Tauros
- Wiglett
- Wugtrio
- Finizen
- Palafin
- Palafin (Hero Form)
- Wash Rotom
- Slowpoke
- Slowbro
- Slowking
- Shellos
- Gastrodon
- Shellder
- Cloyster
- Qwilfish
- Luvdisc
- Finneon
- Lumineon
- Bruxish
- Alomomola
- Skrelp
- Clauncher
- Clawitzer
- Mareanie
- Toxapex
- Veluza
- Dondozo
- Tatsugiri
- Iron Bundle
From these 52, we list out the best 12 Water-type Pokémon in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet.
12 Best Water-type Pokémon
12. Slowking
- Type: Water, Psychic
- Abilities:
- Oblivious: Cannot be infatuated, taunted, or intimidated.
- Own Tempo: Cannot be confused or intimidated
- Hidden Ability:
- Regenerator: Regenerates some HP when withdrawn.
- Leveling Rate: Medium Fast
- Strong Against: Fighting, Steel, Fire, Psychic
- Weaknesses: Ghost, Dark, Grass, Electric, Bug
Slowking will always be the slowest Pokémon in your team, ever since the good old Kanto days, but it compensates well with its high Special Defense, Special Defense, and HP. Being a Psychic/ Water duo, Slowking becomes stronger against a ton of Pokémon and also can learn a variety of powerful moves such as Surf and Psychic. On the other hand, due to its Psychic-type affinity, it also has more weaknesses than a normal Water type.
Acquiring a Slowking is not easy as it needs to be evolved through trading. Make a Slowpoke hold a King’s Rock and trade it to make it evolve into a Slowking.
11. Azumarill
- Type: Water, Fairy
- Abilities:
- Thick Fat: Damage taken from Ice or Fire type moves is reduced by 50%.
- Huge Power: Sometimes doubles the Attack.
- Hidden Ability:
- Sap Sipper: Grass type moves have no effect and instead increase the Attack.
- Leveling Rate: Fast
- Strong Against: Fire, Fighting, Dark, Ice, Bug
- Weaknesses: Poison, Grass, Electric
Azumarill is as strong as it is adorable. Although it lacks Attack, it has a moderate balance between HP, Defense, and Special Defense. Furthermore, its Huge Power ability doubles Attack, and Thick Fat, Sap Sipper reduces damage taken. Utilizing these abilities can easily balance off the lower stats of Azumarill.
Azumarill also learns some powerful moves like Bubblebeam, Aqua Tail, Play Rough, and Aqua Ring. They can also learn a variety of other useful moves, such as Bounce, and Superpower, which can stand against the Pokémon’s weaknesses.
Azumarill can be obtained by evolving Marill at level 18, and can also be found in the wild in numerous locations. Some include Tagtree Thicket, Asado Desert, South Paldean Sea, and North Province.
10. Dondozo
- Type: Water
- Abilities:
- Oblivious: Cannot be infatuated, taunted, or intimidated.
- Unaware: The changes to other Pokémon’s stats are ignored when the Pokémon attacks or is attacked
- Hidden Ability:
- Water Veil: Immune to Burn.
- Leveling Rate: Slow
- Strong Against: Steel, Fire, Ground, Rock.
- Weaknesses: Grass, Electric.
You can already tell by its size that Dondozo packs a lot of punch and can also withstand. It has very high HP, Attack, and Defense while low Speed. Making it a good choice for tanking. It learns all the common but strong Water moves, such as Wave Crash and Aqua Tail. It also can learn Heavy Slam and some Ground and Rock type move through TMs, which can help it to defeat Electric Pokemon easily.
Dondozo’s Order Up can also be combined with a Tatsugiri’s Commander to boost your stats in double battles.
Dondoza can be found in Casseroya Lake in Titan form.
9. Whiscash
- Type: Water, Ground
- Abilities:
- Oblivious: Cannot be infatuated, taunted, or intimidated.
- Anticipation: Lets you know if the opponent has any super-effective move.
- Hidden Ability:
- Hydration: Heals status effects during rain.
- Leveling Rate: Medium Fast
- Strong Against: Electric, Fire, Ground, Rock, Steel.
- Weaknesses: Grass, Psychic
Whiscash is a great Pokémon to use in any Pokémon game. Its Water/ Ground combo means it can easily resist Water type weaknesses such as Electric type attacks and instead overpower them. Although it looks similar to Dondozo, it has much different stat combinations. Such as, Whiscash has very high HP but a moderate Attack, Speed, and Defense.
Whatever the case, Whiscash’s main utility comes from the great moves it learns. The best ones are Muddy Water, Earthquake, Fissure, and Future Sight.
Whiscash evolves from Barboach at level 30.
8. Veluza
- Type: Water, Psychic
- Abilities:
- Mold Breaker: When the Pokémon attacks, any abilities that nullify status effects and conditions are negated.
- Hidden Ability:
- Sharpness: Boosts the power of slicing moves.
- Leveling Rate: Fast
- Strong Against: Fighting, Steel, Fire, Psychic.
- Weaknesses: Ghost, Dark, Grass, Electric, Bug.
Another Water and Psychic-type Pokémon in our list, Veluza, is a pure attacker. If you’re looking to deplete enemy health quickly, then Veluza’s moveset, stats, and ability combine to do just that.
Veluza boasts high Speed and Attack, in addition to good Health. Moreover, its Sharpness stats boost the slicing attack, which goes well with Veluza because most of the moves it learns are physical: either stab or slicing. The most valuable moves for it are Aqua Cutter, Fillet Away, Night slash, Psycho Cut, and Liquidation.
Veluza is also easy to catch as they reside in the coastal regions of Paldea.
7. Golduck
- Type: Water
- Abilities:
- Cloud Nine: Eliminates weather effects.
- Damp: The Pokémon dampens its surroundings, preventing all Pokémon from using explosive moves such as Self-Destruct
- Hidden Ability:
- Swift Swim: Boosts Speed stat in the rain.
- Leveling Rate: Medium Fast
- Strong Against: Fire, Steel, Ground, Rock, Bug
- Weaknesses: Electric Grass.
At first glance, you may avoid Golduck because of so many options, but don’t be fooled. Golduck is an amazing balanced fighter with all stats equally distributed with a focus on Special Attack. Although it only learns most of its Special Attacks at lower levels below its evolution level. So you’re better off teaching it TMs unless you catch a wild Golduck. Some of its best moves are Hydro Pump, Psych Up, Aqua Tail, Surf, Psyshock, and Zen headbutt.
Golduck evolves from Psyduck at level 33. Furthermore, Wild Golduck can be found in areas like East Province, South Province, North Province, Casseroya Lake, Area Zero, Tagtree Thicket, etc.
6. Gyarados
- Type: Water, Flying
- Abilities:
- Intimidate: Lowers opponent’s Attack stats.
- Hidden Ability:
- Moxie: If you knock out a Pokémon, Attack is boosted.
- Leveling Rate: Slow
- Strong Against: Fighting, Bug, Steel, Fire, Ground.
- Weaknesses: Rock, Electric.
Gyarados is always a top pick. Apart from its Special Attack, it boasts high stats in all other aspects, making it a complete monster. It has a massive Attack and a Special Defense of 155 and 130, respectively. Other attributes are also exceptionally high.
Gyarados’ diverse moveset even allows it to stand against enemies that are its weaknesses easily. Some of its strongest moves include Dragon Dance, Hyper Beam, and Thrash. It can also learn other Dragon and Fire, and Electric moves through TM. So with the right decisions, your Gyarados can become invincible.
Gyarados evolve from Magikarp at level 20 and can be found in the wild around the Secluded Beach, East Paldean Sea, South Paldean Sea, and Casseorya Lake. The only downside is that you need to grind a lot, as it has very slow growth.
5. Floatzel
- Type: Water
- Abilities:
- Swift Swim: Boosts Speed stat in the rain.
- Hidden Ability:
- Water Veil: Immune to Burn.
- Leveling Rate: Medium Fast
- Strong Against: Steel, Fire, Ground, Rock
- Weaknesses: Grass, Electric
If you’re looking for a fast attacker with overall balanced stats, then Floatzel is also a great choice. Floatzel has very high attack and even higher speed but falters in Defensive capabilities. It learns all the usual powerful Water attacks such as Aqua Jet, Aqua Tail, and Wave Crash but it can also be taught Fighting Type moves if you’re looking for some variety.
Combine Floatzel’s attacking potential with its Swift Swim ability, using Rain Dance or so to boost its speed even further.
Floatzel evolves from Buizel at level 26 and can also be found in areas such as the East Paldean Sea, East Province, Tagtree Thicket, and Casseroya Lake. Basically, near water bodies.
4. Cloyster
- Type: Water, Ice
- Abilities:
- Skill Link: Multi-strike moves always hit 5 times.
- Shell Armor: Prevents from taking a Critical Hit.
- Hidden Ability:
- Overcoat: Negates damages and effects from weather conditions such as Sandstrom, Hailstorms, Spores, etc.
- Leveling Rate: Slow
- Strong Against:
- Weaknesses:
Cloyster is another defensive powerhouse in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. It has insanely high Defense. Meaning it can even withstand attacks that it’s weak against. Moreover, Cloyster also has high Attack and Special Attack and a moderate Speed. On the other hand, you have to accommodate for its very low HP. Otherwise, Cloyster is a powerful pick from the early to end game.
Cloyster excels in counter-attacking since its Ice type abilities allow it to counter weaknesses such as Grass type. It also learns some of the strongest moves in the game. This includes Ice Beam, Hydro Pump, Icicle Spear, and Razor Shell.
The downside is that Cloyster learns these moves at Level 1 to Level 5 and Icicle Spear during Evolution. Hence, you can only get them if you evolve a level 1 Shellder with a Waterstone. It can only be achieved through breeding.
3. Vaporeon
- Type: Water
- Abilities:
- Water Absorb: When hit by a Water type move, its HP is recovered by a quarter of its Maximum HP.
- Hidden Ability:
- Hydration: Cures any status condition in rain.
- Leveling Rate: Medium Fast
- Strong Against: Steel, Fire, Ground, Rock
- Weaknesses: Grass, Electric
Vaporeon is a true Water type fighter in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet thanks to its high Special Attack and Special Defense as well as HP. In other aspects, it falls a bit short. But its abilities and strong moveset can more than compensate for it. Train your Vaporeon to increase its Defense and Speed a bit, and you’re good to go or make sure your Vaporeon has a few moves that give it stat buffs.
Moreover, learns plenty of game-changing moves such as Aqua Ring, Aurora Beam, Muddy Armor, and Acid Armor. You can also teach it Trailblaze to withstand Grass Pokemon.
Vaporeon evolves from Eevee using a Waterstone.
2. Quaquaval
- Type: Water, Fighting
- Abilities:
- Torrent: Powers up Water-type moves when the Pokémon’s HP is low.
- Hidden Ability:
- Moxie: If you knock out a Pokémon, Attack is boosted.
- Leveling Rate: Medium Slow
- Strong Against: Rock, Bug, Steel, Fire, Dark, Ice.
Weaknesses: Flying, Grass, Electric, Fairy, Psychic.
The last evolution of Quaxly, one of the starters, Quaquaval, is a powerful Pokémon at every stage. It has good HP, Special Attack, Special Defense, Speed, and an insane amount of Attack.
This high attack can further be amplified when using both abilities. Quaquaval can learn all the usual Water-type moves that do huge damage but also learn powerful Fighting and Flying Attacks. These can be utilized to counter weaknesses such as Grass type with Flying moves.
Therefore, Quaquaval is an excellent start choice in addition to a Water type choice due to its all-rounded capabilities.
1. Palafin (Hero Form)
- Type: Water
- Abilities:
- Zero to Hero: The Pokémon transforms into its Hero Form when it switches out and is again called out.
- Leveling Rate: Slow
- Strong Against: Steel, Fire, Rock, Ground
- Weaknesses: Grass, Electric
Palafin is the only Pokémon in the game with a unique gimmick that makes it crazy strong. Its normal form is the Zero form which has a good distribution of stats with a focus on Speed and HP. But when it transforms into its Hero Form, Palafin becomes unstoppable. Attack, Defense, Special Attack, and Special Defense are boosted immensely.
Combine this with the high variety of moves it can learn and be taught, and Palafin will be a game-winner in every circumstance. It can learn Wave Crash, Acrobatics, Aqua Tail, Zen Headbutt, Aura Sphere, Outrage, and Close Combat. These are only some of the power-hitting moves this Dolphin Pokémon can learn.
So consider Palafin as one of the main damage dealers in your team in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Also, keep the move Flipturn to let your Palafin switch out while doing damage.
Obtaining a Palafin requires some effort. You need to join a Union Circle with a Finizen and level it up to 38 with another player to evolve it to a Palafin. So it’ll take some time and patience, but it’s all worth it.
This was our 12 best Water type Pokémon in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. If you’re looking for more guides on Pokémon, take a look at these: Where to Find all TM Materials, All In-Game Trades, How to Ride Miraidon, and Koraidon.
