Pokemon Sword and Shield

Kingdra - Moveset & Best Build for Ranked Battle

Kingdra -  Movesets and Counters.png

This is a strategy guide for using Kingdra in competitive play for the games Pokemon Sword and Shield. Read on for tips on the best Nature, EV spreads, Movesets, and Held Items to use with Kingdra, as well as its strengths and weak points.

Kingdra - Related Guides
Pokemon SWSH - Kingdra Evolution and LearnsetEvolution and Learnset Pokemon SWSH - Kingdra Best BuildBuild for Ranked Battle

Basic Information for Kingdra

Types and Abilities

Pokemon Type 1 Type 2
Pokemon Sword and Shield - Water Type Pokemon Sword and Shield - Dragon Type
Abilities
Swift Swim Boosts the Pokemon's Speed in rain.
Sniper Powers up moves if they become critical hits.
Damp (Hidden) Prevents the use of self-destructing moves.

Kingdra Weaknesses and Resistances

Type
Takes 4x damage
-
Takes 2x damage
Pokemon Dragon Image Pokemon Fairy Image
Takes 0.5x damage
Pokemon Steel Image
Takes 1/4x damage
Pokemon Fire Image Pokemon Water Image
Takes 0x damage
-

What is Type Effectiveness?

Base Stats

HP Attack Defense Sp. Atk Sp. Def Speed
75 95 95 95 95 85

Best Nature for Kingdra

Best Natures
Modest
(+SpAtk, -Atk)
Timid
(+Spd, -Atk)

What are Natures?

Singles Movesets for Kingdra

Choice Specs Moveset & Best Build

Choice Specs Kingdra.png

Nature Modest
(+SpAtk, -Atk)
EV Spread HP 4 / Sp.Atk. 252 / Spd 252
Final Stat Values HP 151 / Def 115 / Sp.Atk. 161 / Sp.Def. 115 / Spd 137
Ability Swift Swim
Held Item Choice Specs
Moveset Hydro Pump
Draco Meteor
Ice Beam
Hurricane

This build increases Kingdra's damage output with Choice Specs. If it is raining, not only it will double Kingdra's Speed stat because of its Swift Swim ability, but it will also cause Kingdra's Water-type moves to deal heavy damage, even if not super effective.

Other Viable Moves

Dragon Pulse Alternative for Draco Meteor. Use it if you prefer a Dragon-type move with higher accuracy.
Surf Alternative move for Hydro Pump. Use it if you prefer a move with higher accuracy and more PP.
Flash Cannon Good alternative for Hurricane. Use this as a coverage move if you are facing a team with a couple of Fairy-types.

Zoom Lens Moveset & Best Build

Nature Modest
(+SpAtk, -Atk)
EV Spread HP 4 / Sp.Atk. 252 / Spd 252
Final Stat Values HP 151 / Def 115 / Sp.Atk. 161 / Sp.Def. 115 / Spd 137
Ability Sniper
Held Item Zoom Lens
Moveset Hydro Pump
Draco Meteor
Hurricane
Focus Energy

This build focuses on getting critical hits in with Kingdra. With the combination of Sniper, and Focus Energy, Kingdra can deal heavy damage with moves like Hydro Pump, Hurricane, and Draco Meteor. Zoom Lens also allows these moves to hit with higher accuracy.

How to Use Kingdra Effectively

Rain Ace Attacker

Kingdra is an ace attacker during Rain, as it can boost its speed with the Swift Swim ability while also increasing the damage dealt by its Water-type moves. When Dynamaxed, it can use Max Geyser to create rain and gain the Speed boost from Swift Swim, while also making its Water-type moves more powerful.

Can Be Used Against Dragon-types

Kingdra is different from other rain attackers such as Seismitoad and Drednaw since it can get STAB on Dragon-type moves to deal super effective damage against Dragon-type opponents.

However, be careful as a Dragapult holding a Choice Scarf can outspeed Kingdra even with Swift Swim in effect.

Teams Featuring Kingdra

All our Teams are available for free rental, and usable in Ranked Battle with no EV Training necessary.
All Best Teams for Ranked Battle

Sample Rain Team for Ranked Battle

Sample Rain Team for Ranked Battle
Pokemon SWSH - Kyogre ImageKyogre Pokemon SWSH - Poliwrath ImagePoliwrath Pokemon SWSH - Kingdra ImageKingdra
Pokemon SWSH - Dracozolt ImageDracozolt Pokemon SWSH - Starmie ImageStarmie Pokemon SWSH - Celesteela ImageCelesteela

With the re-introduction of Legendaries in the Crown Tundra DLC, Kyogre returns as the premier Rain-setting Pokemon surpassing Pelipper. With the offense that Kyogre brings, the entire team is built around dealing damage in strong, decisive blows.

The rest of the team comprises of Pokemon that support Kyogre, such as Dracozolt and Celesteela who do well against Kyogre's weaknesses. While the other members are attackers who benefit from rain; Poliwrath and Kingdra get a speed boost thanks to Swift Swim. Read on for insights about this team that might give you new insights to the metagame as a whole.

Sample Rain Team for Ranked Battle

Counters for Kingdra

Kingdra
Weakness Pokemon Dragon Image Pokemon Fairy Image

Counter Using Pokemon with Type Advantage

It is recommended to use a Dragon-type or Fairy-type Pokemon against Kingdra to exploit its type weakness. Using a Fairy-type Pokemon would be more efficient since it can completely negate Dragon-type moves and Fairy-type moves deal high damage to Dragon-types like Kingdra, especially if it has STAB.

Best Pokemon to Use

Pokemon Description
Pokemon SWSH - Dragapult ImageDragapult Ranking: ★★★★★
・With Choice Scarf, you can surpass Kingdra's Speed even when Swift Swim is activated
・Bombard Kingdra with Dragon-type moves to exploit its weakness.
Dragapult - Moveset & Best Build for Ranked Battle
Pokemon SWSH - Lapras ImageLapras Ranking:★★★★★
・Immune to Water-type moves with Water Absorb, strong against special attackers
・Gets STAB with Freeze-Dry
Lapras - Moveset & Best Build for Ranked Battle
Pokemon SWSH - Primarina ImagePrimarina Ranking: ★★★★★
・Other than being able to nullify Dragon-type moves, it is also resistant to Kingdra's other moves
・Fairy-type moves can be used to exploit Kingdra's weakness.
Primarina - Moveset & Best Build for Ranked Battle

Related Links

Pokemon Sword and Shield - Best Builds for Ranked Battle

All Competitive Builds for Ranked Battle

Competitive Guides for Pokemon Sword and Shield

Competitive Pokemon Battle Guides
Pokemon SWSH - Tier ListTier List Pokemon SWSH - Best BuildsBest Builds Pokemon Sword and Shield - Ranked Battle Series 10 Contenders.pngSeries 10 List of Contenders
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