Analysis
Basculin-W is a very strong threat in the context of 35 Pokes. At the surface, Basculin seems weak, with none of its stats being over 100. The key to its success is the other factors affecting it. The first good thing about Basculin is its access to Adaptability, making its STAB have a 2x bonus rather than a 1.5x, and since it is a water type, it gains this strong power boost to the already strong 120 Base Power Wave Crash.
However, Wave Crash gets even stronger. Politoed was rolled in this month as well, meaning that its Wave Crashes get even further boosted through the Rain that Politoed sets. Additionally, with an item like Choice Band, Wave Crash gets boosted to ludicrous levels. The combination of Adaptability, Choice Band and Rain boosts Wave Crash by a whopping 450%, and all of a sudden it’s power doesn’t look so bad no more. Basculin also gets an Adaptability and Rain boost on its Flip Turn, which is also surprisingly strong.
Basculin does have it's flaws though. Basculin has 70/65/55 bulk, which is outright horrendous. Basculin needs to come in after a teammate dies or a slow pivot move, or else it can be KOed while trying to switchin. And while Basculin is definitely strong, it can sometimes miss out on killing targets, and if that is so, Basculin is 100% dying on the same turn.
Basculin can also struggle with Dry Skin Toxicroak and Water Absorb Clodsire, although a Psychic Fangs predicting the switch can very well solve this issue, or choosing mold breaker over adaptability, but then you are losing more wallbreaking power.
Despite its low stats, Basculin finds itself as a staple of this meta, with power levels through the roof, and a good player can make Basculin a very threatening Pokemon.
Written by OceanicGamer