I. Introduction
If you are a fan of water-type Pokémon in the popular franchise, you might want to consider evolving Basculin into one of its unique forms. Basculin is a dual-type water Pokémon that evolves into Blue-Striped or Red-Striped Basculin, depending on its catch location. This article will be a step-by-step guide on how to evolve Basculin, which moves to teach the evolved forms, the benefits and drawbacks of evolving Basculin, how to breed the optimal evolved forms, and how to use them effectively in competitive play.
II. Step-by-Step Guide on How to Evolve Basculin
Before we start, it’s essential to know that there are two forms of Basculin: Blue-Striped and Red-Striped. Blue-Striped Basculin can only be caught in Black 2 and Red-Striped Basculin in White 2. Each form has unique features and stats, so choose the one that best suits your needs. Here are the steps on how to evolve Basculin:
- Catch a Basculin in either Black 2 or White 2 depending on the form you want to obtain.
- Train Basculin up to level 31.
- After reaching level 31, Basculin will evolve into Blue-Striped Basculin if caught in Black 2 or evolve into Red-Striped Basculin if caught in White 2.
It’s important to note that the evolved forms have different base stats, moves, and abilities. Take this into account when choosing which form to evolve.
There are some tips to evolve Basculin more efficiently, such as using an Exp. Share to accelerate the process. It’s also recommended to train Basculin against Pokémon that give higher EXP to minimize the time spent on leveling up.
III. Best Water-Type Moves to Teach Evolved Basculin
After evolving Basculin into Blue-Striped or Red-Striped, you may want to teach it some water-type moves to maximize its strengths in battle. Here are some recommended moves:
- Waterfall: It has high base power and can cause flinching after succeeding, making it a great option for your primary attacking move.
- Scald: It has a chance of inflicting burns on the opponent, weakening its physical attack, which is useful against physical attackers in particular.
- Ice Beam: It’s a strong icy move that deals heavy damage to grass, ground, and dragon-types.
- Hydro Pump: It has one of the highest base powers among water-type moves but has lower accuracy.
- Rain Dance: This move boosts the effectiveness of water-type moves while lowering the accuracy of fire-type ones. It’s useful when you want to strengthen your team’s water attacks.
Since Blue-Striped Basculin has high attack stats, it’s recommended to teach them physical moves, while Red-Striped Basculin has high special attack stats, so teach them special moves.
Remember that move choices should depend on your Basculin’s particular build. If you’re facing a lot of ground or rock-types, for example, using an ice-type move should come in handy.
IV. The Benefits and Drawbacks of Evolving Basculin
Evolving Basculin has its pros and cons that you should be aware of.
Advantages of evolved Basculin include higher HP, attack, and defensive stats, as well as improved learnset – the moves available to it. For example, Blue-Striped Basculin’s ability Adaptability increases the effectiveness of moves that share the same type as the Pokémon using them. Red-Striped Basculin’s ability Rock Head prevents it from taking recoil damage from its strongest moves.
The disadvantages include lower speed and reduced versatility, which could limit its effectiveness against other Pokémon types. For example, Basculin is weak to electric, grass, and dragon types, so it’s important to create a balanced team to counter these types.
Before deciding whether or not to evolve Basculin, make sure to evaluate your overall game strategy and your team’s weaknesses.
V. How to Breed Basculin to Get the Best Evolved Forms
When breeding Basculin, you want to create the most optimal evolved forms. This involves taking into consideration the Individual Values (IVs) and breeding abilities.
IVs are hidden stats that determine a Pokémon’s potential across its different stats. When breeding, you want to ensure that the evolved Basculin has high IVs to maximize its potential. The higher the IV, the better the stats, making evolved Basculin more proficient in battle.
Breeding abilities can also impact the evolved form you obtain. Blue-Striped Basculin can have either Reckless or Adaptability as their abilities, while Red-Striped Basculin can have either Rock Head or Adaptability. Reckless boosts the power of the Basculin’s moves that cause recoil damage. Meanwhile, adapting increases the power of the Basculin’s moves that share its same type.
It’s important to note that breeding takes longer than catching evolved Basculin in the wild. However, breeding lets you control your Basculin’s stats and abilities with a bit more precision. Breeding involves leaving your Basculin at the daycare with a compatible Pokémon, which may take some time to hatch an egg.
VI. The Role of Evolved Basculin in Competitive Play
If you decide to use evolved Basculin in competitive play, you need to create a strategy that plays to their strengths. Here are some tips:
- Use Blue-Striped Basculin as a physical attacker: Teach them physical moves like Waterfall or Head Smash to make the most of their high attack stats, leveraging their ability to boost moves of the same type.
- Use Red-Striped Basculin as a special attacker: Teach them special moves like Ice Beam or Surf to maximize their special attack stats, considering their ability to apply recoil-less damage.
- Build your team around Basculin: Basculin is limited in what Pokémon types it can handle well, so you need team compositions that balance its weaknesses. For example, it makes a great sweeper when paired with a weather team.
Remember, team building comes down to your specific playstyle and strategy. Experiment with different Pokémon combinations to find what works best for you.
VII. Conclusion
Basculin stands out as a potent water-type Pokémon with two unique forms, providing players with different options to meet their needs. Evolving Basculin either into Blue-Striped or Red-Striped forms requires specific steps, and each form has its advantages and disadvantages. Choosing which form to evolve, moves to teach, and breeding can affect evolved Basculin’s characteristics and stats. Making the most of evolved Basculin in competitive play comes down to careful team building and leveraging its unique abilities.
Now that you have a better understanding of how to evolve Basculin, go out there and put these strategies to use! A powerful evolved Basculin can be an exciting addition to any team.