What is a good moveset for Basculegion?

Question

If you have a good competitive moveset for Basculegion, post an answer below and upvote the best ones. Movesets for any of its pre-evolutions can also be shared on this thread.

Be sure to include full set details in your post, e.g. items, abilities, natures and EVs. Some explanation, including the intended game mode for your set, is also appreciated. Access the full list of guidelines here.

Basculegion Pokedex & learnset for reference.

Comments

Male basculegion is way better than female, male has a base attack of 112, it would make much more sense if the female has a base special attack of 112 but no, its base 102 with an attack of 92, having both offences good is bad as it wastes points for bulk, Male Basculegion's stats are much more surperior

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Male Basculegion is definitely better for its versatility, but Female Basculegion can use its higher Special Attack and Adaptability to take advantage of its near-unresisted Ghost STAB in Shadow Ball.

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Basculegion can still know last respects from breeding which is incredibly op

Answer 1

Gen 9 OU

Basculegion @ Choice Band
Ability: Swift Swim / Adaptability
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Wave Crash
- Flip Turn
- Aqua Jet
- Psychic Fangs / Head Smash

• Basculegion-Male is a niche pick on rain teams in the OU metagame, despite being outclassed by the faster Barraskewda it boasts greater power with Wave Crash abd can surprise opponents with an Adaptability set (Swift Swim 99% of the time is the best option though). It can be used as a way to weaken Barraskewda's checks so it can have an easier time cleaning up. Basculegion boasts useful defensive traits such as a immunity to Dragonite's Extreme Speed and Weavile's Ice Shard, however it is hindered by more glaring flaws such as a weakness to way more common priority in the form of Rillaboom's Grassy Glide, Raging Bolt's Thunderclap, and Kingambit's Sucker Punch, which hold it back from being a truly viable pick and make it only good on some specific rain teams.
• Wave Crash is a very powerful move under Rain, most offensively inclined resists like Dragapult and Kyurem are not at all safe and get OHKOed or 2HKOed.
• Flip Turn allows it to pivot out of bad matchups like Raging Bolt and Rillaboom as they switch in, and is boosted by STAB and rain.
• Aqua Jet can pick off faster threats like Booster Energy Iron Moth and Iron Valiant, and outprioritizes Kingambit's Sucker Punch causing it to fail.
• Psychic Fangs neutrally hits rain checks like Walking Wake, Ogerpon-Wellspring and Volcanion and is super effective against Toxapex. Head Smash deals more damage to them at the cost of its longevity, and also KOes Dragonite and Kyurem after a little bit of chip damage.

Recommended teammates

• Pelipper is mandatory for rain teams.
• Basculegion can weaken targets for other rain teammates to clean up. Pokemon commonly found on these teams are Barraskewda, Raging Bolt, and Kingambit. Iron Treads is also very popular on rain for its immunity to Electric and its part Steel typing, as well as its ability to set Stealth Rocks and use Rapid Spin.

Answer 2

Gen 9 Monotype Mixed Choice Scarf (Water)

Basculegion-F (F) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Adaptability
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Shadow Ball
- Ice Beam
- Wave Crash

A Mixed Choice Scarf set Basculegion-F can use on Rainless Water teams in Gen 9 Monotype. Hydro Pump is used for a powerful Water STAB that gets boosted by Adaptability. Shadow Ball is for a Ghost STAB that lets it hit Pokemon such as Walking Wake and Baxcalibur for decent nuetral damage. Ice Beam provides coverage against Pokemon such as Dragonite, Garchomp, Amoonguss, and Hydreigon. Wave Crash might seem like a weird and useless option on Basculegion-F, but Wave Crash with Adaptability allows Choice Scarf Basculegion-F to get a guaranteed OHKO against Flutter Mane. This is useful because using Choice Scarf means Basculegion-F gives up the power from Choice Specs, meaning Adaptability boosted Shadow Ball has to have a high damage roll to OHKO Flutter Mane. Here are the calcs for comparison for OHKOing Flutter Mane:

4 Atk Adaptability Basculegion-F Wave Crash vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Flutter Mane: 260-308 (103.5 - 122.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO

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252 SpA Adaptability Basculegion-F Shadow Ball vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Flutter Mane: 224-268 (89.2 - 106.7%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO

Answer 3

Male Form: Gen 9 NU Choice Specs

Basculegion (M) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Adaptability
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Shadow Ball
- Ice Beam
- Flip Turn

A Choice Specs set Male Basculegion can use in Gen 9 NU. Yes, I know Male Basculegion has better attack, yes, I know Inteleon and Chandelure exist. There are reasons to why Specs Basculegion Male is actually decent in Gen 9 NU. (See second paragraph) Hydro Pump is used for a powerful Water STAB, with Adapatability and the boost of Choice Specs compensating its base 80 Special Attack. Shadow Ball is used for a Ghost STAB that is useful to hit Pokemon who resist Water moves such as Tauros-Paldea-Aqua and Qwilfish, and can OHKO Galarian Slowbro provdied it's not Assault Vest (though Shadow Ball can break past Assault Vest Glowbro). Ice Beam is used for coverage against Dragon- and Grass-types such as Tsareena, Hisuian Decideueye, Dragalge, Flygon, Altaria, Alolan Exeggutor, Brute Bonnet, and Vileplume. Flip Turn allows Basculegion to switch out against Pokemon such as Registeel, Florges, Umbreon, and Sylveon. Tera Water is used for a slight boost to Hydro Pump due to how Tera and Adaptability interact. Do keep in my that when you Tera, Shadow Ball doesn't get boosted by Adaptability, though realistically you're more likely to use Tera on another Pokemon lol.

Why use Choice Specs Basculegion (Male) over Physical or another Special Wallbreaker?

Before you start asking why you should use Choice Specs Basculegion in NU, read this paragraph (if you couldn't be bothered to read the entire thing, at least read the bolded stuff lol) for the justification. Physical Basculegion doesn't have a good Ghost STAB outside of Tera Blast Ghost. Using Choice Specs actually allows Basculegion to have a decent Ghost STAB without using Tera. Choice Specs Basculegion does face competition from Inteleon as a Special Water-type wallbreaker and Chandelure, but Basculegion does have its perks over them. Adaptabilty Choice Specs Hydro Pump does more damage than Inteleon's Hydro Pump. (Without Tera, both don't really want to use their Tera unless they have to.) Basculegion's secondary STAB move in Shadow Ball lets it break past Pokemon such as Galarian Slowbro, a Pokemon Inteleon can struggle with should Galarian Slowbro Tera into a Water-type. You also have a better matchup against Tauros-Paldea-Aqua than Inteleon, as Basculegion resists its Water STABs, immune to Close Combat, and 68.8% chance to OHKO Tauros-Paldea-Aqua, which is nice to immediately get rid of Tauros-Paldea-Aqua. Basculegion can also live hits from Choice Scarf users that would revnge kill Inteleon and threaten them with an OHKO. Specs Basculegion also serves an alternative over Chandelure. Unlike Choice Specs Chandelure, Choice Specs Basculegion isn't weak to Stealth Rock. This means that Specs Basculegion doesn't die to hazards as quickly as Chandelure. Basculegion also has an advantage over Chandelure when it comes to Porygon2, as you can actually deal damage to Trace Porygon2, whereas Chandelure has to predict a Trick, which is all it can really do against it.

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So, uummm, yeah. Even though Choice Specs Basculegion Male is far from its standard sets, it has its perks in NU over Special Wallbreakers such as Inteleon and Chandelure.

Answer 4

Gen 9 Monotype/National Dex Monotype Choice Specs (Water)

Basculegion-F (F) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Adaptability / Swift Swim
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest / Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hydro Pump
- Surf
- Shadow Ball
- Ice Beam

This a Choice Specs set for Rain teams that Female Basculegion can use in the Monotype formats on Rain Water teams. Hydro Pump is used for a powerful Water STAB in rain and with a Choice Specs boost. If you go Adaptability and Modest Nature, Hydro Pump can become a nuclear Water move when rain is up. Surf is used for a more consistent Water STAB that is useful late game so you don't have to worry about whether or not you land Hydro Pump. Shadow Ball is used for a Ghost STAB that can 2HKO Pokemon such as Baxcalibur and Walking Wake. Ice Beam is a useful coverage move against Dragon-types such as Dragonite and Hydreigon, as well as Pokemon such as Amoonguss. The Ability you use depends on what you want Basculegion Female to do. Adaptability lets Basculegion-F have more powerful STAB moves, while Swift Swim allows Basculegion-F to outspeed faster Pokemon while rain is up. Modest Nature is used for more firepower, while Timid Nature is used for more speed.

Answer 5

Gen 9 Monotype Substitute (Water)

Basculegion-F (F) @ Metronome / Leftovers
Ability: Adaptability
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Substitute
- Surf
- Shadow Ball
- Ice Beam

A Substitute set Basculegion-F can use on Rainless Water teams in Gen 9 Monotype. This set is like Substitute + Metronome Gholdengo, where Pokemon may switch out vs it thinking that is a Choiced set, allowing you to have an opportunity to use Substitute. Substitute can be used against opposing Pokemon that can't do much to Basculegion-F such as Toxapex and Corviknight. Having a Substitute up eases Basculegion-F from making a lot of predictions and works well with the item Metronome since you can pretty much spam 1 move of your choice should there be no immunity or resists to that move on opposing teams. Surf is used for the Water STAB due to it being consistent. Shadow Ball is used for a Ghost STAB. Ice Beam is used for coverage against Pokemon such as Hydreigon, Dragonite, Amoonguss, and Garchomp. Metronome may sound like a useless item on this set, but like I said, having a Substitute up can let Basculegion-F get an opportunity to spam a move, making an attack powerful enough to break through bulky Pokemon such as Corviknight and Toxapex. Leftovers is an option if you prefer to get a little HP recovery since this set has Substitute. Adaptability is used for the Ability to power up Basculegion-F's STAB moves.

Answer 6

Male Form: Gen 9 NU Substitute + 3 Attacks

Basculegion (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Adaptability
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 140 HP / 252 Atk / 116 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Substitute
- Phantom Force
- Liquidation
- Aqua Jet

A Showdown player (quizel) made this set. It looked really cool, so I'm posting it here. This is a Substitute + 3 Attacks set for the Male Basculegion to use in Gen 9 NU. Substitute is neat to take advantage of the switches Basculegion forces. It also helps Basculegion use its only physical Ghost STAB that can be used in NU that isn't Last Respects or Tera Blast Ghost: Phantom Force. Phantom Force usually isn't good of a Ghost STAB. However, should Basculegion have a Sub up, Phantom Force can be used at a very low risk. Even if the opponent switches out to something that resists or is immune to Phantom Force one the turn it attacks, Basculegion would still have its Substitute up. Liquidation is used for the Water STAB since its 20% chance to drop the defense stat of opposing Pokemon can let it break past teams more easily. Aqua Jet is used for a priority STAB that allows it to pick off faster Pokemon that are put in range of Aqua Jet picking them off. Leftovers is used to give Basculegion some HP recovery. Adaptability is used to make Basculegion's attacks more powerful. Tera Water is used to give a slight boost to Basculegion's Water STABs. Do keep in mind that Phantom Force will do less damage when you Tera Water due to how Tera and Adaptability interact.

252 Attack EVs is used with an Adamant Nature to give Basculegion as much power as possible. 116 Speed EVs allow Basculegion to outspeed Adamant Grimmsnarl and Pokemon using enough speed to outspeed Grimmsnarl. The rest of the EVs are used in HP for bulk.

Answer 7

Male Form: Gen 9 NU Choice Scarf

Basculegion (M) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Adaptability
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Wave Crash
- Liquidation
- Flip Turn
- Psychic Fangs

A Choice Scarf set Basculegion can use in Gen 9 NU. Choice Scarf allows Basculegion to outspeed Pokemon it usually wouldn't be able to. Wave Crash is Basculegion's powerful STAB move, being boosted by Adaptability to make it more scary to switch into. Liquidation is used for a Water STAB Basculegion can use to clean through teams without having to take recoil damage from Wave Crash. Flip Turn lets Basculegion switch out against Pokemon it cannot beat and is useful since there aren't Water immunities in the tier at the time of this post. The last slot is honestly a filler move since Basculegion's coverage options aren't really great. Psychic Fangs allows Basculegion to deal super effective damage to Pokemon such as Qwilfish, Tauros-Paldea-Aqua, Dragalge, and Vileplume super effectively. You could probably do something like Aqua Jet to pick off faster Choice Scarf Pokemon. Tera Water is used to give Basculegion's STABs a slight boost.

Answer 8

Gen 9 NU Mixed Attacker

Basculegion (M) @ Spell Tag
Ability: Adaptability
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 172 Atk / 128 SpA / 208 Spe
Lonely Nature
- Wave Crash
- Flip Turn
- Shadow Ball
- Aqua Jet

(Credit goes to Showdown/Smogon users Diamonds_Realm and LessThanThreeMan for making this set)

Are you using Basculegion in NU, and you hate Slowbro being able to wall you? Do you like bluffing sets? Do you like using mixed sets in general? If any of these apply, then here is a Mixed Basculegion you can use in Gen 9 NU. The idea of this set is to bluff as a Choice Scarf set so you can bait in Slowbro. Basically, have Basculegion against a Pokemon it can force out. You'll want to use Wave Crash when Slowbro comes in on the predicted Wave Crash, so you can follow up with Shadow Ball to send Slowbro to the deepest realm of the shadow realm. Flip Turn allows Basculegion to pivot and bring in a teammate. Aqua Jet allows Basculegion to have a priority move to revenge kill weakened Pokemon. Spell Tag is used to give Shadow Ball some extra power. Tera Water is used to give Basculegion's Water STABs a slight boost, but do keep in mind that when you Tera, Shadow Ball doesn't get boosted by Adaptability.

172 Attack EVs with Lonely Nature allows Basculegion's damage output for its physical moves to closely resemble the damage of Jolly Choice Scarf Basculegion. 128 Special Attack EVs is used to allow Wave Crash into Shadow Ball to take out Slowbro, as shown in these calcs.

172+ Atk Adaptability Basculegion Wave Crash vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Slowbro: 82-97 (20.8 - 24.6%) -- guaranteed 5HKO

128 SpA Spell Tag Adaptability Basculegion Shadow Ball vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Slowbro: 320-380 (81.2 - 96.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

Shadow Ball isn't just useful for Slowbro. It's also useful for other physical walls such as Vileplume and Avalugg, as well as Cloyster.

128 SpA Spell Tag Adaptability Basculegion Shadow Ball vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Vileplume: 146-174 (41.2 - 49.1%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

128 SpA Spell Tag Adaptability Basculegion Shadow Ball vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Avalugg: 246-290 (62.4 - 73.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

128 SpA Spell Tag Adaptability Basculegion Shadow Ball vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Cloyster: 248-294 (102.9 - 121.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO

The rest of the EVs are used in Speed, having enough speed to outspeed Max Speed Timid Magnezone. So, there you have it. Mixed Basculegion set that lures in Slowbro and defeats it. Enjoy!

Answer 9

For use in doubles with a Pokemon that knows After You, and in rain

Basculegion (M) @ Leftovers/Shell bell
Ability: swift swim
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 128 Spe / 128 Atk / 252 HP
Serious Nature
- last respects
- Aqua jet
- final gambit
- Wave Crash

This is fairly random, but it’s an idea my friend had while we were on the train. You alternate between aqua jet and wave crash, or last respects. Then you troll after you and final gambit, so you’re on higher hp that turn to maximise damage. I know it’s pretty weird, but it works surprisingly well.

Comments

Final gambit isn’t as good with Wave Crash, Basculegion isn’t that tanky to be running Lefties/Shell Bell, the nature and EV’s are kinda messed up, and try and test your sets before telling(it’s getting kinda annoying showing gimmicky strats that don’t work we have RMT for that). Rest of the set is fine.