Is Samurott worth using in Pokemon GO?

Many trainers will be getting Samurott through Oshawott’s Community Day in Pokemon GO soon, but will it be any good?

Samurott joins a long list of Water-type starter Pokemon that always seem to dominate in either the main series or Pokemon GO. Water, in general, is a phenomenal typing, providing key resistances and only being weak to Grass and Electric. While Samurott may have been a strong option in Generation V, it’s a whole different story in Pokemon GO.

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How well does this Generation V Pokemon perform?

Samurott has a very even stat line. It has no standouts but no poor stats either. Its 216 Attack sits right in between good and mediocre. Samurott can do a decent amount of damage, but it will lag behind other offensive solid Pokemon. It also has 216 Stamina, but unfortunately, only 157 Defense.

This almost makes Samurott comparable to Swampert, who is perhaps the best Water-type starter in the game. They both share similar Attack and Stamina stats, but Swampert also gets more defense (as well as an additional Ground typing) which allows it to tank more hits.

Moveset has been a weak spot for Samurott. All of its charge moves need the full bar to use. Samurott also relies on Fury Cutter as a quick move for the energy gain, so it usually hasn’t done too much damage to the opponent before it can finally use its Hydro Pump.

Things will be turning around for the better for Samurott, though, after the Oshawott Community Day. Any Dewotts that evolve into Samurott during the event (or up to two hours afterward) will receive the charge move, Hydro Cannon. It is highly recommended that every trainer do this to get the best performance out of Samurott.

Hydro Cannon is the quick damage option that this Pokemon needs. This 90 base damage move is bound to hurt many opponents, and Samurott won’t have to wait for it to charge the entire energy bar to use it.

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How good is Samurott in Raids and PvP?

Samurott will get access to Hydro Cannon on the Oshawott Community Day (Image via Pokemon GO Hub)

At the moment, Samurott struggles in Raids and PvP. Once it gets Hydro Cannon, though, it will see better performance. Hydro Cannon will pair nicely with Waterfall to make Samurott a Water-type Raid attacker.

Samurott will also have an exciting role in PvP. Trainers can pair Fury Cutter with Megahorn to make it a Psychic-type counter. It can even beat some Grass-types, which is rare from Water Pokemon.

Considering all these things, it’s fair to say that Samurott will be worth using after the Community Day. Experienced players might not need it if they have a Swampert, Kyogre, or Kingdra on their team. Beginners or players that don’t have legendaries/strong options yet, though, will get lots of value out of Samurott.