Slowbro, The Hermit Crab Pokémon. A Shellder bite set off a chemical reaction with the spices inside Slowbro's body, causing Slowbro to become a Poison-type Pokémon. If this Pokémon squeezes the tongue of the Shellder biting it, the Shellder will launch a toxic liquid from the tip of its shell.
Overview
Galarian Slowbro is interesting and probably not what people expected from Galarian Slowpoke. It takes the base stats of Slowbro but tries to make it more offensive, but still maintains some bulk. What this makes is a Pokémon that is a little more bulky than average sweepers, but it does not have base offensive stats to really hit hard. This with Psychic/Poison being worse than Psychic/Water makes it overall inferior in a lot of situations to its Kanto form, but it's still saved due to how large Slowbro's movepool is.
Positives
Access to Nasty Plot and a wide movepool allows Galarian Slowbro to patch up its 100 base Special Attack.
With access to Flamethrower and Fire Blast, Galarian Slowbro has full neutral coverage due to its STAB combo only being resisted on paper by Steel types.
Negatives
Poison/Psychic doesn't have many resistances, especially compared to Kanto Slowbro's typing. This limits the chances of Galarian Slowbro of getting in without assistance and then grabbing its boost.
Going hand in hand with its typing, Galarian Slowbro is very slow and while Quick Draw can help it, it's still very RNG based. Quick Draw could end up activating 3 out of 5 times or 0 out 5 times, you never know.
Abilities
Own Tempo - Immune to confusion and Intimidate - Not great again especially since Galarian Slowbro has access to Regenerator.
Quick Draw - Has a 30% chance of going first - a buffed up Quick Claw is a great idea and can give Regenerator a run for its money as the best ability Slowbro has, though it's not something you can rely on saving you.
Regenerator - Heals 33% maximum health when switching out - As with Kanto Slowbro, Regenerator is often just far too good to pass up on.
Movesets
Nasty Plot
-Nasty Plot
-Psychic
-Sludge Bomb
-Flamethrower
Item Attached: Choice Specs / Black Sludge
Ability: Regenerator
EVs and Nature:
212 HP / 252 SpAtk / 44 Speed
Modest Nature
Nasty Plot is a big move for Galarian Slowbro as it allows it to be a decent late game cleaner. Psychic is one of 2 STAB moves of the set hitting Poison and Fighting types, and Galarian Slowbro has quad resistance against them as well. Sludge Bomb is the primary STAB hitting Fairies for super effective damage and a decent amount of threats for neutral, while also having a 30% chance to inflict poison. Flamethrower rounds out the set to hit Steel type threats that resist both of Galarian Slowbro's STABs.
Galarian Slowbro wants as much offense as possible, though it invests more into HP than Speed since Slowbro will often be attacking last anyway. However, 44 Speed EVs allows Slowbro to outspeed Toxapex which is an important target for Galarian Slowbro to outspeed. Black Sludge gives Galarian Slowbro some extra longevity while avoiding Item Clause restrictions whenever they're a factor.
Partners
-Mantine is a nice option due to its good bulk and ability to answer threats that are a pain for Galarian Slowbro, such as the aforementioned Krookodile, while spreading some status around, mostly Scald burns but it will help Galarian Slowbro stay alive.
-Sticky Web support is excellent for Galarian Slowbro as it can give it a chance to outpace more threats, thus increasing its chances of a full sweep instead of acting as a wallbreaker. Araquanid is a nice option as it's quite bulky and can check big threats such as Incineroar, as well as can trap threats with Infestation to try and remove them.
Countering Slowbro
-Heracross is an excellent option as it can revenge kill Galarian Slowbro if using a Choice Band, and threaten the next Pokémon with a Moxie boosted Megahorn. However, it can't switch into Slowbro easily due to Psychic and Flamethrower.
-Krookodile is a nice answer as it resists both STABs only concerned with Flamethrower, and threatens powerful Earthquakes against Slowbro. Krookodile can also turn this into sweep with a Choice Scarf and Moxie creating a momentum swing against Galarian Slowbro.
Slowbro, The Hermit Crab Pokémon. Slowpoke became Slowbro when a Shellder bit on to its tail. Sweet flavors seeping from the tail make the Shellder feel as if its life is a dream. Being bitten by a Shellder shocked this Pokémon into standing on two legs. If the Shellder lets go, it seems Slowbro will turn back into a Slowpoke.
Overview
Slowbro is an interesting Pokémon throughout competitive history as its always been in a niche spot within the top tiers of play. However, access to Regenerator in BW2 gave Slowbro the tools it needed to make a true impact in competitve as this ability allows it to pivot in and heal as it switches out. This in combination with its good typing allows it to check many common threats such as Gyarados, Terrakion, and Keldeo, and combines well with Amoonguss for a solid defensive core.
Positives
-Good defensive stats allow Slowbro to be a great pivot for balanced and defensive teams.
-The lack of Pursuit now makes it safer for Slowbro to switch out, allowing more chances to get the heal from Regenerator if there's not a chance to use Slack Off.
-Slowbro has excellent typing with Psychic/Water, and with its good stats it can pivot into many threats. That being said with Single Strike Urshifu and Dragapult around this does does hurt it a bit.
Negatives
-Average Special Defense means Slowbro can be ruined by mixed wall breakers or Pokémon that can bluff a physical set, such as Dragapult.
Abilities
Oblivious - Immune to Attract, Taunt, and Intimidate - Attract is never used in Singles in any serious capacity and while being immune to Taunt is nice, Slowbro does not run a lot of non-damaging moves. Slowbro also doesn't care about Intimidate and well, Regenerator is just better.
Own Tempo - Immune to confusion and Intimidate - As confusion is rare and not a consistent status, this is very situational. And of course Regenerator is just better, so this one should be avoided.
Regenerator - Restores 33% of the Pokémon's max health when switching out - This is one of the best abilities in the game and works extremely well with Slowbro's stats, complementing its bulk very well.
Movesets
Bulky Pivot
-Scald
-Iron Defense / Teleport
-Slack Off
-Thunder Wave / Psyshock
Item Attached: Black Sludge
Ability: Regenerator
EVs and Nature:
252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpDef
Relaxed Nature
Scald is the primary damage move of the set as it has 80 base power and can burn the target, and as Slowbro tends to switch into the physical attackers this can hinder them for the match. Teleport was buffed in Let's Go to also switch out the user but with -6 priority, which can be used to bait-and-switch in against threats and get the heal from Regenerator at the same time. However, Teleport requires transferring from a previous game so it's not allowed on ranked battles, which is fine because Iron Defense is a powerful choice anyway to immediately bolster Slowbro's Defense against dangerous physical attackers. Slack Off allows Slowbro to heal without switching out and can be used to stall out threats. Thunder Wave rounds out the set for Speed control, though a Psychic-type move can be used instead for coverage and a secondary STAB. Psyshock is nice to hit threats on their physical defense while Future Sight has 120 base power for a delayed attack.
Slowbro just wants to be as physically bulky as possible, so maximum HP and Defense investment is ideal. Leftovers gives Slowbro extra longevity though Heavy-Duty Boots is useful for preventing hazard stacking teams from wearing it down too easily. Rocky Helmet is another item option that lets Slowbro punish physical attackers more directly.
Teammates
-Amoonguss - An old combo, Amoonguss is able to pivot into many of Slowbro's checks such as Urshifu, Zeraora, and Rotom Cut, while providing Spore support and potentially more Speed control with Stun Spore. Amoonguss also has access to Regenerator to make it difficult to KO.
-Tangrowth - Similar to Amoonguss but more offensive, Tangrowth also has access to Regenerator to make a healing core but tends to make use of Assault Vest instead of Leftovers or Black Sludge. This allows Tangrowth to better check threats such as Dragapult and Urshifu Single Strike due to its great Defense as well.
Checks & Counters
-Dragapult resists Scald and if it's making use of Hex it doesn't care a lot about being burned. Hex Dragapult is also threatening with Ghost STAB on Slowbro's weaker Special Defense and can easily fish for a OHKO if Slowbro is hit by status.
-Single Strike Urshifu is immune to Slowbro's Psychic moves and can just threaten with powerful Dark moves. However, Urshifu can't secure an OHKO unless it's using a Choice Band, but it will deal a lot of damage to Slowbro regardless. Just be careful of the burn from Scald.
Locations in Games
Red/Blue/Yellow:
Route 23, Cerulean Cave, Seafoam Islands (Red/Blue)
Route 12, Route 13, Seafoam Islands (Yellow)
Gold/Silver/Crystal:
Slowpoke Well
Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald:
Trade from LeafGreen
FireRed/LeafGreen:
Pokémon Mansion (FireRed)
Trade from LeafGreen (FireRed)
Colosseum/XD:
Trade from LeafGreen
Diamond/Pearl/Platinum:
Evolve Slowpoke (Pearl/Platinum)
Trade from Pearl/Platinum/HeartGold/SoulSilver (Diamond)
HeartGold/SoulSilver:
Slowpoke Well, Seafoam Islands, Safari Zone
Black/White:
Abundant Shrine
Black 2/White 2:
Evolve Slowpoke
X/Y:
Evolve Slowpoke
Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire:
Evolve Slowpoke
Sun/Moon:
Kala'e Bay
Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon:
Kala'e Bay
Let's Go, Pikachu!/Let's Go, Eevee!:
Seafoam Islands
Sword/Shield:
Evolve Slowpoke
Animé Appearences
