Now, many Pokémon fans have been playing since the height of 90s Pokémania. Maybe you collected the cards, played Pokémon Red and Blue, watched the anime and ate from the limited-edition lunch box. Some younger players, however, will only have developed a liking for the series recently, and won’t be familiar with its hidden depths yet.
The fact is, Pokémon battling is much more complex than you may think, especially competitive-wise. Abilities are just one thing to consider. Today, we’re taking a look at a common Ability, Water Absorb, which heals a Pokémon for up to one quarter of its maximum HP when it’s hit by a Water-type move. 22 different species have access to this Ability and we’ve picked out 10 of them (either fully-evolved or non-evolving, to keep things as ‘even’ as possible) to rank.
10 Politoed
Now, Politoed isn’t a bad Pokémon by any means. It’s relatively tanky, it can deal some decent damage, it also has access to a nice range of rare utility moves (Helping Hand and Perish Song, for instance). As a Water Absorb user, though, it’s really not the best pick around.
Why’s that? Because it also has access to the much-coveted Drizzle, that’s why. This Hidden Ability causes rain to automatically fall when Politoed enters battle. Rain is one of the simplest and hardest-hitting archetypes to build a team around, which is why the vast majority of Politoed you see are going to be rocking this instead.
9 Quagsire
The Water Fish Pokémon, Quagsire, is similar to Politoed in a lot of ways. It deals passable damage, has quite high HP and decent defences, meaning it serves nicely as a tank. The trouble is, in a lot of situations, another Ability is preferred instead.
Quagsire also has access to Unaware, which is just so good as a means of dealing with troublesome setup sweepers. Unaware allows you to complete negate the effects of their boosts while Quagsire is on the field. It’s tough to pass up. On the other hand, Water Absorb is a little better here than on Politoed, because Quagsire is a Water/Ground Pokémon that doesn’t resist Water.
8 Seismitoad
Rounding out the three very similar Pokémon we’re kicking off this list with, it’s Seismitoad. Another tanky Water/Ground Pokémon, this forgotten Generation V addition actually got a little buff to its offenses recently. What a time to be a Seismitoad.
Currently languishing in the lower tiers of competitive play, it has another slight advantage over the Pokémon we’ve already covered. Generally, it’s more offensively-inclined, meaning that it’s always grateful for the free switch-in Water Absorb can often provide. It also has a neat alternative option in Swift Swim. Having said all of that, it’s still Seismitoad.
7 Lanturn
There are a lot of more obscure Pokémon that just don’t have a niche for themselves, because they try and do a little bit of everything. The result is usually that they’re overlooked in favor of something more specialized. We don’t know why the adorable little Lanturn always looks so happy, because it’s a perfect example of this.
It does bring some interesting assets to the table, true enough. With its unique Water/Electric typing, choice of Water Absorb or Volt Absorb and range of interesting move options, it can perform quite well. Sadly, though, it won’t rise any higher on our list, because its stats are sub-par and Volt Absorb tends to be a more consistent pick.
6 Cacturne
Coming in right at the middle of our run-down, we have one of very few Water Absorb Pokémon that isn’t a Water-type: Cacturne. The Scarecrow Pokémon is a Grass- and Dark-type that usually has Sand Veil as an Ability, but also has Water Absorb as a Hidden Ability.
It’s an absolute middle-of-the-road pick, which is why it was a great choice for the fifth slot on the list. It’s quite a powerful mixed attacker (base 115 Attack and Special Attack isn’t bad at all), but its middling Speed definitely lets it down and it can’t take a hit to save its life (which it will instantly lose if it does take a hit). Cacturne can do very well in the right circumstances, but it’s tough to use.
5 Lapras
Lapras is a Pokémon that needs no introduction. This great, noble, benevolent creature has been happily ferrying people around on its back since the days of Red and Blue. It’s an icon of the series.
It doesn’t exactly set the competitive world alight, but it’s fully capable of absorbing hits and returning them with gusto, thanks to its balanced above-average stats and excellent HP. It suffers, however, from being an Ice-type, which gives it lots of common exploitable weaknesses. Water Absorb is a nice bonus and Lapras is a good user of it, but not in the top tier.
4 Vaporeon
Water Absorb, as you’re probably starting to notice, tends to be found on tankier Water-type Pokémon. For old-school players, Lapras’s fellow first-generation Pokémon, Vaporeon, tends to be a tanky Water-type of choice.
Vaporeon is deceptively powerful, with that base 110 Special Attack. It has very high HP and nice Special Defense, too, though its Defense is lackluster. It lacks a reliable recovery move, but clever switching mitigate this a bit, thanks to Water Absorb. All of this is very positive, but the factor that prevents Vaporeon from rising any further on the list is its access to its Hidden Ability: Hydration. This allows it to fully heal itself with Rest and awaken at the end of the turn, as long as it’s raining. Lapras also has this as a Hidden Ability.
3 Araquanid
Now, Araquanid is a tough one to place. It with introduced in Pokémon Sun and Moon, soon becoming popular in competitive play for its prowess both offensively and defensively. It has a great movepool and access to the newly-buffed Leech Life, which is a huge boon for it.
As a bulky Water-type, it’s up there with some of the best just now, certainly warranting its high place on our list. The only issue is, Water Absorb is its Hidden Ability, and it’s tough to pass up its default Water Bubble for it.
2 Jellicent
Here’s a rare bulky Water that has actually solved its reliable recovery problem: Jellicent learns the super-useful Recover naturally. Suicune’s crying into its magnificent purple mane in jealousy.
Jellicent is a unique Water/Ghost Pokémon that has all the right stats in all the right places, a great special wall (you can shore up its weaker Defense by spreading burns around with Will-O-Wisp and Scald) that can even take the Choice Specs route. If you don’t want to roll the dice with Cursed Body, Water Absorb gives you the potential for even more healing.
1 Volcanion
Finally, we have Volcanion, an intriguing Mythical Pokémon from Generation VI. It’s currently the only Fire/Water Pokémon (though we don’t yet know everything that Pokémon Sword and Shield will bring to the table), which would immediately make it one of the most interesting Water Absorb users of all. There’s much more to Volcanion, however.
It has a devastating exclusive move, Steam Eruption (which also has Scald’s burn chance). It has great mixed offenses and the most powerful Water and Fire moves to take advantage of them. It boasts one of the most unusual designs in recent Pokémon history. This rare offensively-based Water Absorb Pokémon gets our vote for the best of all.