Raichu [QC: 3/3]

[Bazi]

Dedenne pls

Overview
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• Great speed and decent attacking stats allow it to out speed a lot of the meta game and get a good hit off.
• Nice coverage options along side electric STAB including Grass Knot, Focus Blast and Surf(?).
• Can build up momentum with a fast Volt Switch.
• Access to Nasty Plot allows it to clean up weakened teams.
• Encore and Lightingrod can create set up opportunities.
• Block to Thunder Wave and Volt Switch for offensive teams.
• Really frail especially on the physical side, struggles to live any decently powered STAB attack.
• Typing leaves it with a small number of resistances.

Nasty Plot
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name: Nasty Plot
move 1: Nasty Plot
move 2: Thunderbolt
move 3: Grass Knot / Hidden Power Ice
move 4: Encore / Focus Blast
ability: Lightingrod
item: Life Orb
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
nature: Timid

Moves
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• Nasty Plot doubles Raichu's special attack allowing it to hit rather hard.
• Thunderbolt is Raichu's most reliable STAB move.
• Grass Knot hits ground types that are immune to electric attacks, works well because most are heavy. Note that using Grass Knot over HP Ice will leave Raichu walled buy the likes of Vileplume, Exeggutor, and Roselia.
• Hidden Power Ice is an option to hit Grass and Dragon types as well as Ground types, however it won't KO a lot of them even with a boost because of its low base power. Also misses out on doing big damage to Rhydon and Seismitoad.
• Encore works well because of Raichu's high speed, it enables set up opportunities.
• Focus Blast is nice to hit certain Pokémon with high Sp.Def super effectively like Audino, Probopass, Ferroseed and Cryogonal.

Set Details
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• EVs allow as much speed and special attack as possible.
• Life Orb is essential to increase power given that Raichu's special attack is only average.
• Timid is necessary to get the jump on threats like Pyroar, Liepard and Mismagius.

Usage Tips
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• Should only attempt to use Nasty Plot once counters are removed/weakened, otherwise you're just wasting momentum.
• Boosts can be easily acquired on things that are forced out be electric STAB.
• Encore should be used on non attacking moves such as Stealth Rock and Substitute.
• Raichu should not be recklessly switched in to any potential electric move as it is predictable and can result in Raichu's death. It is better to weigh up the outcomes of each possible move and decide if the risk is worth the reward.

Team Options
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• With Focus Blast Raichu can defeat common special walls, so team mates who apriciate these walls removed like scarf Typhlosion and Ludicolo work well.
• Raichu can bait in rock types such as Rhydon and remove them with Grass Knot/Focus Blast, cleaning a path for Normal and Flying types such as Swellow and Kangaskhan.
• Offensive Ice types such as Cryogonal and Sneasel can put pressure on the likes of Vileplume and Dragalge, both can also do a lot of damage to Lanturn with Freeze Dry and Knock Off Respectively.
• Stealth Rocks are nice to confirm certain KOs like on Lickilicky at +2. Regirock and Seismitoad are good users.
• Pokémon with a Flying type or Levitate ability can take Ground attacks aimed at Raichu.
• Flying types also bait in electric moves for Lightingrod, Water types do this too.

All Out Attacker
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name: All Out Attacker
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Volt Switch
move 3: Grass Knot
move 4: Focus Blast
ability: Lightingrod
item: Choice Specs / Life Orb
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
nature: Timid

Moves
========

• Thunderbolt is Raichu's most reliable STAB move.
• Volt Switch is great for gaining momentum as counters switch in or getting off damage on something you can't take out with your other moves.
• Grass Knot hits ground types that are immune to electric attacks, works well because most are heavy.
• Focus Blast provides good coverage along side electric STAB.

Set Details
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• EVs are straight forward.
• Choice Specs allow Raichu to hit hard and give it a greater chance of cleaning late game once resistances to Thunderbolt have been removed/weakened.
• Life Orb requires less predilection to use but lowers power and causes recoil.
• Timid is essential.

Usage Tips
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• Volt Switch should be used early game to escape and wear down counters.
• Volt Switch is a good tool for revenge killing weakened threats because if they try to save it, you gain momentum.
• Beware of Ground types and Pokémon with certain abilities such as Volt Absorb and Motor Drive coming in on Thunderbolt and Volt Switch, especially if using Specs.

Team Options
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• Team mates with the move U-Turn and other Volt Switch users make good partners to form a Volt-Turn core. Users include Primape, Liepard, Probopass and Uxie.
• Hazards are great to have as they damage counters coming in on Volt Switch even more. Rhydon, Ferroseed and Accelgor are reliable setters.
• It is just as important to keep hazards of your side of the field so Raichu can Volt Switch more freely. Cryogonal, Sandslash and Kabutops make good spinners while Xatu can bouce hazards back.
• Frail sweepers that need a safe switch in to be effective like Zangoose and Vivillon appreciate Raichu's support.

Other Options
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• Physical set although its best two physical moves (Volt Tackle and Extreme Speed) are illegal with each other.
• Choice Scarf but weak as hell.
• Signal Beam to hit Grass Types harder.
• Hidden Power Ice on the all out attacker set to hit Grass types and Dragon types, although better just to Volt Switch as they come in.
• Hidden Power Grass over Grass Knot to hit Lanturn among others a bit harder.
• Rain Dance + Thunder but there are better rain setters.

Checks & Counters
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**Lanturn** Stands out as Raichu's best counter, blocks Volt Switch thanks to Volt Absorb, not 2HKO'd by a +2 Grass Knot and can wear down with scald.

**Dragalge** Takes little from Raichu's moves bar the +2 Hidden Power [Ice], which only has a chance to 2HKOs defensive variants and can do major damage back.

**Camerupt** Thanks to Fire typing it doesn't take much from Grass Knott / Hidden Power [Ice] and can KO with Earth Power/Quake.

**Revenge Killers** Common Scarfers such as Primeape and Tauros can KO with ease. Pokémon with a higher base speed like Swellow and Sneasel can do massive damage.

**Priority** Leipard's Sucker Punch and Feraligatr's Aqua Jet can kill with prior damage thanks to Raichu's low defence

 

[Minus]

I'm no one to make calls, but scarf should deserve a set since it out speeds and KOs all shell smashers at +2, giving raichu a notable niche

Will write more if needed, on phone

 

[Bazi]

I'm no one to make calls, but scarf should deserve a set since it out speeds and KOs all shell smashers at +2, giving raichu a notable niche

Will write more if needed, on phone

Raichu only really beats one out of the four main shell smashers that other, better, scarfers like Jynx and Rotom can't. You die to Jolly Carracosta's Aqua Jet after Stealth Rock and Gorebyss and Omastar are outsped by the above scarfers. This means you're only using scarf Raichu for Barbaracle, which I think is kind of a waste because there are better ways to deal with Barb like Seismitoad or Gurdurr. Scarf defiantly has a niche but doesn't deserve a main set imo but I'm open to change my mind if there are other things scarf can do that I'm missing.

 

[Ares]

I agree scarf is to niche to deserve its own set. Will check more later after I eat.

 

[Raseri]

Make sure to remove Spiritomb mentions!

I would make Encore the primary slash on the NP set, because it just eases set up a lot, and is one of the few things Raichu has to stand out.
Mention Kabutops as a spinner teammate :D

Otherwise, I'm ok with approving this. So QC 1/3

 

[Blast]

I would mention that HP Ice also loses out on Seismitoad and Rhydon

Expand on TO for the NP set. Right now, the only offensive teammates listed are ones that benefit from Focus Blast variants, which is only a secondary slash. Too lazy to give any examples atm but I trust you've used Raichu enough to know.

Do this and I'll check back later Bazi

 

[Punchshroom]

Well I wouldn't downplay HP Ice too much, considering Raichu is pretty helpless against the likes of Vileplume, Exeggutor, Dragalge, and Roselia without it.

 

[Bazi]

How's this looking now?

 

[Blast]

I think HP Ice is too weak when unboosted vs Grass-types and Dragalge to be worth a slash. It lets you at least apply more pressure to them so it's worth OO but it doesn't 2HKO the majority of its targets and you can just Volt Switch out

Speaking of which the format for Hidden Power is Hidden Power Ice > Hidden Power [Ice] just for reference

QC 2/3

 

[Ares]

I feel like there should be a section in C&C that is just general special walls /bulky mons. Pretty much anything that can take a hit from Raichu and KO it back, which is a lot iirc, and special walls can take multiple hits although pink blobs don't like Focus Miss.

Other than that looks good.

[QC 3/3]

Have fun writing ^.^

 

[eden]

Note this is one of the few Pokemon that gets both Knock Off and Volt Switch! You may want to list a set noting that. A physically attacking Raichu wouldn't be out of place either.

 

[Ares]

It would just be severely outclassed. Just because something gets knock off does not mean it should use it lol.

 

[Martin]

A physically attacking Raichu wouldn't be out of place

Even with access to Knock Off a physically attacking set simply isn't worth it as you're forced to forgo one of E-Speed or Volt Tackle for Fake Out/Quick Attack or Wild Charge, respectively, as they are incompatible with each other. I guess you could run Wild Charge, but it is just too weak for the targets that physical Raichu aims to lure. Also, it has to run the unreliable Natural Gift for Grass- or Ice-type coverage and its only somewhat viable Fighting-type moves are Brick Break, Reversal and Focus Punch. Reversal is out of the question due to its unreliability combined with Raichu's frailty meaning that it would have to forgo Natural Gift for it to work effectively, Focus Punch suffers from glaringly obvious flaws and Brick Break is just lol-tier power-wise.

tl;dr version: physical Raichu is not set-worthy because it has to run a set of Volt Tackle/Wild Charge, ExtremeSpeed/Fake Out/Quick Attack, Natural Gift, Brick Break - and that set is flawed on so many levels as Volt Tackle and E-Speed are incompatible, Wild Charge is too weak for what it lures, Natural Gift is unreliable and Brick Break is lol-tier power-wise, with its only niche being playing around Dual Screens.

Seeing how i'm criticising the fully physical set, you could actually mention Volt Tackle in Moves for the all out attacker set as it lures things like def Cryogonal (standard is OHKO'd after SR without any investment) and mention that it can 2HKO SpD Audino after SR with 8 positive so that you don't have to rely on Focus Miss to beat it, and when your saying why it isn't slashed make sure to say that it still has difficulty dealing with bulky Normal-types without losing its great speed tier. At least Volt Tackle isn't manditory so that it can get around Audino at all because GF forgot to make this thing a fairy (thank god)

 

[Raseri]

dropped