Walrein PvP IV Deep Dive

Update Log:

12/12/22 - With Icicle Spear’s change from 35 energy to 40, the precise stat goals for the Ultra League Mirror Slayer builds are different (as the 0-0 ends on Icicle Spear). 

The Powder Snow and Def Breakpoints all remain the same, and Icicle Spear’s nerf doesn’t affect Walrein’s ability to straight Earthquake Azumarill, so not much else is different for Walrein. However, Walrein’s Atk has been tightened up to cover new bulk checks due to Icicle Spear being slower.

The Waterfall Walrein section was also cut because no one ever used it to begin with and with Icicle Spear’s nerf, no one should really use it.

Walrein has Powder Snow, as well as Icicle Spear from its Community Day. Given that Icicle Spear's stat-line, Walrein’s Bulk, energy gains in Powder Snow, and perfect coverage with Earthquake, Walrein is a power house in all 3 PvP metas. In fact, you may not want to even bother playing the Ultra League Premier Cup Classic without a Walrein, it’s just that good. 

When it comes to PvP IVs, the general rule of thumb is to pursue the high Stat Product (SP) iteration of the Pokemon (low Atk, high Def/HP). Of course, there may be important Atk Breakpoints (the point in which your Fast Move does 1 extra damage per hit) that are worth pursuing. To help you better navigate these complex PvP IVs, below is the Walrein PvP IV Deep Dive, cataloging Walrein’s most important stat checks for PvP.

If all of this sounds confusing to you, check out this PvP IVs Simplified video.

Walrein has 2 main priorities in the Great League: Having roughly 112.06-112.75 Atk while not thrifting too hard on its bulk

For Atk Breakpoints, the most important are:

• 112.06-112.75, Azumarill 1-1 & 2-2 straight EQ
  • Based on Rank 1 and Rank 18 (0/15/9)
• 113.45, PS Alolan Ninetales 1-2
• 114.11, Whiscash farm down potential
• 114.46, Diggersby farm down potential

For Def Breakpoints, the most important are:

• 113.12-113.9, Sableye 2-2 consistency
  • Based on 5/14/13 and 6/12/13
  • May require 151 HP
• 114.75-115.66, Umbreon 2-2 potential
  • Based on Rank 1 and slightly higher Atk weighted Umbreon
• 115.95, Obstagoon 1-0
  • The recommendation for Obstagoon is significantly higher Atk

For the HP, 151 covers the majority of pertinent matchups. However, 154 HP enables the Toxapex 0-0 and 157 can enable the Bastiodon 2-1 and Swampert 2-2 (full bait). These matchups give credence towards forgoing the Azumarill Atk, and instead focusing on Bulk. Do note that only the Rank 1 can achieve the Bastiodon and Swampert matchups without forgoing the Rank 1 Umbreon Defense Breakpoint for the 2-2. 

All of this suggests that the Best Walrein PvP IVs for the Great League are either the Rank 84 (1/11/2) or the Rank 31 (0/13/2). The former covering Azumarill better, the latter covering Umbreon better. The Rank 23 (2/13/8) is great too. If Azumarill or slightly Atk weighted Umbreon aren’t a concern of yours, the Rank 1 (0/12/15) is also good. 

Great League Walrein IV Tables:

• Azumarill Slayer (112.06 Atk, 114.75 Def, 151 HP)
  • >113 Atk is more consistent for Azumarill
  • >115.66 Def is more consistent for Umbreon
  • 154+ HP is more consistent for Toxapex
• Bulk Focus
  • Only the Ranks 1-3 have enough bulk to be worth it
  • The Rank 1 can 2-1 Bastiodon, the Ranks 2 & 3 have more comfort vs Umbreon

In the Ultra League, Walrein’s only priority is the mirror match. Most mirrors are Charge Move Priority (CMP) based, which suggests that you’ll want as much Atk on your Walrein as possible. However, there is a bulk check in the 0-0 shield scenario which isn’t 100% clear on how much Def or HP specifically you’ll want to have. From repeated testing, it appears that having at least 145.3 Def and 199 HP is significant to either win or tie this mirror match. 201 HP may be even better vs opposing “mirror slayers.” 

This suggests that the Best Walrein PvP IVs for Ultra League may be 0/5/9 (Rank 267), as it has the highest Atk stat while meeting the Def/HP checks for the 0-0 mirror. It should be noted that the 1/8/11 (Rank 156) has precise Atk and Def stats to overtake the 0/5/9 in the 0-0 shield scenario, but has lower Atk causing it to lose Charge Move Priority in other shield scenarios (as well as miss consistency on the Swampert Breakpoints).

Beyond the mirror match, the following Atk Breakpoints stand out: 

• 144.42, Gyarados 0-0
• 144.83+, Virizion 2-2 potential
  • Based on the 3/15/14 Virizion
  • Requires either >147 Def or 200+ HP
• 145.28, Wing Attack Charizard 0-0
• 145.91, Swampert 1-1 consistency

As for Def Breakpoints, only Gyarados and Virizion stand out. For Gyarados, you’ll want 143.89-144.98+ Def to avoid both its Dragon Breath and Dragon Tail Breakpoints, better securing the 0-0, 0-1, and 2-2 shield scenarios. This Def check is mostly important for Walrein that endeavor to go beyond 146.11 Atk in pursuit of the mirror match, as the “ideal” Walrein are already above 145.3 Def. As for Virizion, having higher Def in general potentiates the 2-2 more, with ~147 covering the 11/15/15.  

When it comes to HP, 199 HP stands out the most as a safe minimum. <147 Def Walrein may prefer having 201+ HP due to Charge Move Breakpoints in the mirror and potentially maintaining the Virizion 2-2.

Ultra League Walrein PvP IV tables:

• Mirror Slayer HP focus (145.28 Atk, 145 Def, 201 HP)
  • 267 > 156 = 183
• Mirror Slayer Def focus (145.28 Atk, 147 Def, 199 HP)
  • 127 > 73 > 189=190 > 96
• >146.11 Atk with either 205 HP or 145 Def + 199 HP can be “safe enough” for more CMP based options, but will have a flakier 0-0 mirror and may suffer in other bulk based situations such as the Gyarados 0-1 & 2-2 and Escavalier 1-0.
• Bulk Focus
  • There aren’t any consistent exploits for higher bulk weighted Walrein compared to the Mirror Slayers. However, the Rank’s 1 & 2 specifically may overcome low Akt weighted Venusaur in the 0-0 and Wing Attack Charizard in the 2-2.
  • If you don’t have a “Mirror Slayer” following high SP is fine, just keep in mind the Def and HP checks highlighted in the article. 

Master League PvP IV recommendations are different from the Great League and the Ultra League as you always want the 100% IV 15/15/15. With 4096 possible IV combinations, there’s a good chance that you won’t get the 100% IV. So rather than seeking PvP IV optimization, Master League PvP IV recommendations are seeing which non-15 IVs you can get away with to functionally be the 100% IV.

The following stat checks were found to be notable in the Master League Classic:

• 15 Atk - Kyogre (EQ BP)
• 13 Atk - Tina-O, Groudon, Lando T, Swampert
• 14 Def - Tina-A
• 12 Def - Dragonite, Tina-O, Melmetal, Togekiss
• 12* HP - 2 Icicle Spears Ho-Oh 0-0
  • Has a 1 to 1 relationship with Def IV
  • If you’re 15 Def, 12 HP is good, if you’re 14 Def, you need 13 HP, etc.
  • Due to rounding, 12 Def and 14 HP is also fine

This suggests that if you can’t find the 15/15/15, you’ll at least want the 15/14/13. If you must thrift further, 13/12/14, 13/13/14, 13/14/13, 13/15/12 all appear to be acceptable enough. If you don’t think you’ll want the Ho-Oh tech (Ho-Oh may be getting Sacred Fire soon so, the matchup may change), 13/12/X is also good enough. Of course, you always want to strive to have the 15/15/15 when possible. 

When it comes to Shadows vs Normals, their Atk and Def stats differ so much that you can’t just copy paste IV recommendations unless they’re based on CMP. Given the time crunch and how difficult making these guides can be, we simply didn’t have the time to cover Shadow Walrein’s PvP IVs.

For general performance, Shadow Walrein doesn’t appear to have notable advantages over Normal Walrein in the Great League. Not that you wouldn’t want to evolve at least 2 Shadows for the Great League just to have them, but it doesn’t appear you’ll be “held back” without them. 

It’s a different story in the Open Ultra League, as Shadow Walrein will always have a match flipping Breakpoint on Best Buddy Umbreon and Galarian Stunfisk that Normal Walrein can never achieve. As a result, Shadow Walrein will likely always be marginally better than Normal Walrein in the Open Ultra League. In Ultra League formats that don’t feature Umbreon or Galarian Stunfisk, the Normal and Shadow are back on equal footing. Given that Walrein’s PvP IV recommendations are CMP based for the Ultra League, it wouldn’t be unwise to follow those recommendations for Shadow Walrein.

In the Master League Classic, the Shadow doesn’t appear to have any notable, consistent advantages over the Normal. Once again, you’ll likely want to evolve your best, near 100% IV, Shadow Walrein just in case, but it doesn’t appear to be a priority. 

Between Powder Snow and Icicle Spear, Walrein has gone from a nobody to a top meta threat over night. Walrein may have been the first situation we’ve had where a Shadow version of Pokemon existed prior to their Community Day, which caused some stress in the Community.