Samurott

Hisuian Samurott achieves 5.87% usage at 1760 ladder (rank 31), establishing it as a top-tier singles presence. Its Sharpness ability boosts all slashing moves by 50%, making Ceaseless Edge a dual-purpose entry hazard and damage tool, Sacred Sword ignores stat boosts, and Razor Shell chips defense. Despite its Smogon B- tier, top players have carved out a clear niche: a bulky Black Glasses attacker partnered with Mega Starmie, OHKOing Basculegion and Kingambit while beating defensive Archaludon. It appeared on 11 ladder top-300 teams.

Playstyle：Two main sets dominate: (1) Choice Scarf or Focus Sash (full Attack/Speed EVs, Adamant or Jolly) as a fast cleaner with Ceaseless Edge / Sacred Sword / Sucker Punch / Razor Shell; (2) Black Glasses (31.8% item share) as a bulky attacker alongside Mega Starmie — the expert-cited niche is OHKOing Basculegion and Kingambit while beating defensive Archaludon with the Sharpness-boosted kit. Smogon notes it is hard-stopped by Primarina and Corviknight, requiring partner support. A Sitrus Berry pivot variant also appears for Dragonite and Lucario coverage.

✅ Favorable matchups6

EspathraBasculegionGlimmoraStarmie-MegaGengar-MegaAegislash

⚠️ Unfavorable matchups5

Meganium-MegaPrimarinaVenusaur-MegaFloette-MegaSneasler

Hisuian Samurott sits at 0.72% usage in doubles (rank 81), a niche role. Its value here centres on Sucker Punch priority disruption, Ceaseless Edge setting up Spikes to punish switching cycles, and Protect synergy with partners. A 0.514 win rate suggests it holds its own in specific team archetypes, though its overall presence is substantially smaller than in singles.

Playstyle：Doubles sets lean on Adamant with full Attack/Speed EVs (23% spread). Items split between Black Glasses (25%), Choice Scarf (24.2%), and Scope Lens (19.2%). Night Slash (13.8%) replaces Ceaseless Edge for more consistent single-target output; Sacred Sword + Sucker Punch + Protect (13.2%) form the core. Common partners include Sneasler (8.8%) for additional priority and Whimsicott (4.5%) for Tailwind.

✅ Favorable matchups4

KingambitAegislashGarchompSinistcha

⚠️ Unfavorable matchups3

BasculegionSneaslerCharizard-Mega-Y

Samurott is completely absent from the high-ladder singles format — zero appearances in 1760+ tier with 0.19% usage across all ranks. Its reliance on team support and modest damage output are poorly suited to the resource-constrained 6v6→3v3 draft format, where independent performance is critical.

Samurott is even more marginal in doubles — 0% at high ranks and just 0.03% overall with limited sample size. Its single-target water-type moveset (Hydro Pump, Ice Beam, Vacuum Wave) lacks the spread coverage doubles demand, and Protect alone cannot offset mediocre bulk in a team-dependent format.