Alakazam (Analysis)

[bugmaniacbob]

This analysis is now written and ready for GP checks. Probably.

 

[Eraddd]

Status: Skeleton, awaiting QC approval.

As much as I hate increasing the OU backlog when we're both so close to clearing out the subforum and so close to GenV OU, if stuff like Nidoqueen is getting an OU analysis I don't see why this beast shouldn't.

Stamps:

(panamaxis)

(Megan_Fox)

(Philip7086)

(Setsuna)

QC Approved (4/4)

Read me for a more thorough bit of reasoning

http://www.smogon.com/dp/pokemon/alakazam
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[Overview]

<p>Alakazam’s back, and he’s angry. Four generations have passed by since Alakazam's glory days in RBY, and each generation has brought something new to spite him, while giving him almost nothing back in return. GSC's special split not only ruined Alakazam's special bulk but also made Snorlax a more potent foe, as well as adding Blissey and Tyranitar to the fray. ADV added abilities, which essentially improved every Pokemon in the game except Alakazam, and also gave us Choice Band to increase the strength of the physical attackers that Alakazam hates. But it was DPP that gave Alakazam the final push into obscurity - the introduction of Choice Scarf to undermine Alakazam's godlike Speed, the physical/special split to make both Pursuit and the elemental punches physical, and of course the rise of the ubiquitous Technician Scizor, in which Alakazam can be said to have at last met its match. But we can go even further than that - for the first time since its introduction, Alakazam was close to being outclassed by a non-Uber Pokemon - Azelf has an arguably better movepool, most importantly including Nasty Plot. While its old rivals Gengar and Starmie can get by on their slightly larger movepools and better offensive and defensive typings, to put it simply Alakazam lacks notable resistances, priority moves, or powerful setup abilities, so cannot be effective as a special sweeper any longer. It is as frail as a glass thimble, its STAB is resisted by half the OU metagame, and it just isn't half the threat it used to be.</p>

<p>However, we cannot be so hasty to condemn it to disuse for good. While the metagame seems to have surpassed it, Alakazam still has everything that made it so good back in the day. Its titanic base 135 Special Attack stat, the highest of any non-Uber Pokemon, is backed up by its equally impressive base 120 Speed stat, which allows it to outrun just about the entirety of the unboosted OU metagame. This is backed up by a large offensive and support movepool, as well as plenty of little tricks to annoy the opponent to no end, such as Encore, Trick, and Taunt, which Alakazam is infamous for. So much raw power is begging to be used, and when played right, Alakazam can become as threatening as any offensive Pokemon ever could be. He may have fallen from grace, but popularity is by no means a definition of power.</p>

[SET]
name: OU Offensive
move 1: Psychic
move 2: Focus Blast
move 3: Hidden Power Fire / Signal Beam
move 4: Substitute / Encore
Item: Life Orb / Leftovers
Nature: Timid
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>While Alakazam has lost its grace as an offensive Pokemon, it does not mean Alakazam lacks the potential to be a threat. It is still one of the strongest special attackers in the game, and thanks to its high Speed stat, it can actually outrun Jolly Choice Scarf Tyranitar, unlike its fellow Psychic-types Starmie and Azelf, meaning that not only can it bypass a supposedly rock-solid check to Psychic-types, it can also act as an excellent lure, removing these problematic Pokemon with a combination of Substitute and one of its coverage attacks.</p>

<p>Substitute enables Alakazam to scout its opponent, allowing Alakazam to hit its appropriate switch-in very hard indeed. This also allows it to block status attacks from Blissey and escape from Pursuit traps by opponents such as Weavile. Thanks to the power of its attacks and its Speed, Alakazam has a tendency to force plenty of switches, making it relatively easy to get a Substitute up; however, remember that Alakazam will be losing a great deal of health to passive damage, so Substitute should generally be used sparingly lest Alakazam be dispatched prematurely. Psychic is a good, reliable STAB, which has the power to 2HKO Offensive Suicune, defensive Rotom-A, and generally just about everything that does not resist it, besides Blissey and Snorlax of course. Focus Blast is necessary to get rid of the Dark-types who are immune to Alakazam's STAB attacks, as well as the Steel-types who also cause some problems. It easily OHKOes Tyranitar and Heatran with Life Orb, two Pokemon that Azelf generally struggles with, and does a fair amount to Blissey and Snorlax (though admittedly not significantly). However, many of the common Steel-types of OU, such as Scizor, Metagross, and Skarmory, are actually neutral to Focus Blast, and given how dangerous these Pokemon are to Alakazam, it becomes necessary to have a way to beat them too. Hidden Power Fire easily OHKOes Scizor and also gets a clean 2HKO on Jirachi, Celebi, and Metagross with Life Orb.</p>

<p>On the other hand, if you are not particularly concerned about Scizor or are happy to rely on Focus Blast for all Steel-types, then Signal Beam is worth considering in the third slot. Not only does it enable Alakazam to hit Psychic-types, particularly Starmie, who walls Alakazam lacking Signal Beam very effectively, as well as Azelf and Celebi, both of whom are OHKOed regardless of entry hazard damage, but also, it also allows you to get a more reliable hit on Dark-types [Editor's Note: This sentence is grammatically sound. However, I would definitely divide this sentence for the sake of coherence. Up to you. This is important since a poorly timed miss from Focus Blast against a weakened Tyranitar can be your doom, a flaw that Signal Beam rectifies. Furthermore, the fact that Alakazam is one of the few Pokemon faster than Azelf and Starmie allows it to be a very effective answer to them with Signal Beam in tow. However, the loss of Hidden Power Fire is a crippling blow to Alakazam's effectiveness against Steel-types, particularly Scizor, Jirachi, and Metagross.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>If you dislike Substitute's residual damage, there are a number of other options that are worth mentioning in the last slot. Encore and Taunt are both useful stall-killing moves that can hinder any secondary attacks that the opponent may try to use, which Alakazam hates, while Protect can be a useful option to predict an attempt at trapping by Choice-locked Scizor, enabling you to plan your next move accordingly. Lastly, if you cannot decide between Hidden Power Fire and Signal Beam in the third slot, you can also choose an offensive route and use both attacks on the same set, with all four moveslots dedicated to attacking moves. You could also run Shadow Ball over Signal Beam, not only for coverage on Psychic-types but also to smack Ghost-types super effectively, enabling you to OHKO Choice Scarf Rotom-H with Stealth Rock. However, remember that without Substitute or Protect, Alakazam is much more susceptible to revenge killing. If you do not mind losing out on a bit of type coverage, you can drop an attack and run Encore in the third slot, which gives Alakazam a set of Substitute/Encore/Psychic/Focus Blast. This allows Alakazam to more easily take advantage of Encore with lower risk, as Alakazam can now Encore attacking moves with the protection of Substitute; just be aware that the loss of a third attack massively reduces Alakazam's type coverage and therefore its offensive capabilities, which can be troubling if you are worried about Scizor and Metagross.</p>

<p>Generally, in terms of EVs and nature, the best thing to do for Alakazam is to first maximise its Speed and then Special Attack, as these are really the only two stats it will be using. A Timid nature is recommended as Alakazam simply cannot afford to be hit first by anything. The remaining EVs can just be pushed off into HP. However, with the IV drop from Hidden Power, you cannot tie with other base 120s. Therefore, you may wish to lower your sights and hit the next-lowest Speed benchmark. Timid and 228 Speed is advised as a minimum to beat out Jolly Choice Scarf Tyranitar, who is the biggest threat you will face around this area. Of course, if you are not running Hidden Power, or simply want to Speed tie with other Alakazam and Sceptile who also use Hidden Power Fire and beat other Pokemon looking to just beat Choice Scarf Tyranitar, it is sensible to maximise your Speed regardless, as those extra 28 HP EVs are not doing much. They may come in handy in taking attacks from weaker offensive threats such as Tentacruel or Blissey, but have no use otherwise. For the item, Life Orb is highly recommended as the item of choice despite Alakazam's weakness to passive damage, as it gives Alakazam the power necessary to OHKO dangerous threats such as Tyranitar and Heatran. Thus, Leftovers would seem like a waste of space on Alakazam, but on the plus side, it reduces Alakazam's weakness to passive damage by a considerable amount, and helps offset Substitute damage. However, the loss to power is quite crippling, so it should only really be used if you either intend to use Alakazam as a hit-and-run attacker or supporter with Encore.</p>

[Team Options]

<p>Entry hazard support is extremely useful to wear down counters as they switch in, especially as Alakazam will be causing a lot of switches, racking up plenty of passive damage. Toxic Spikes support is also immensely useful in order to break down any walls that may try to stall you out, such as Blissey. With this in mind, Forretress is an excellent choice to pair with Alakazam as it can come in on various Pokemon that Alakazam dislikes, such as Weavile, Scizor, and Tyranitar, and has access to all three entry hazards, allowing it to be customised to any specifications. It even has access to Rapid Spin, which helps Alakazam in switching in and out, since it lessens Alakazam's weakness to passive damage. Skarmory also works similarly, but it lacks Toxic Spikes and Rapid Spin in return for Roost. On the other hand, if you are hoping to run Alakazam on a more offensive team, Aerodactyl and Azelf are both excellent choices to set up a fast Stealth Rock, and Roserade can do the same with Spikes and Toxic Spikes.</p>

<p>If you think Alakazam is going to provide any kind of defensive help whatsoever, then you are out of luck. So, primarily, good teammates will consist of those with offensive synergy, or the ability to take on and beat each other's counters. Hence, you will want to remove your opponent's answers to Alakazam to give it the best chance to cause as much damage as possible. As Steel-types inevitably top the list of Alakazam's counters, Steel-type counters will be very effective in allowing Alakazam to live up to its potential. A Steel-trapper such as Magnezone or Dugtrio can therefore be a powerful ally. Dugtrio can trap and defeat weakened Steel-types with the combination of Arena Trap and STAB Earthquake, and can even trap Tyranitar and Blissey for you as well. However, it lacks any sort of capacity to switch in, is too weak to outright KO anything, is outrun by Choice Scarf Jirachi, is Bullet Punched by Scizor, and is ineffective against Skarmory and Bronzong. On the other hand, Magnezone can switch in much more easily and can destroy nearly any Steel-type with the combination of STAB Thunderbolt and Hidden Power Fire; however, it must watch out for various attacks such as Jirachi's Fire Punch, Scizor's Superpower, Heatran's Fire Blast, Lucario's Close Combat, and Metagross' Earthquake. If you are not looking to trap these foes, Pokemon such as Heatran or Swampert are also acceptable substitutes. Swampert makes a good partner for Alakazam, as it can take on both Tyranitar and Metagross and also check Scizor to an extent. Heatran works in much the same way but forfeits the ability to beat Tyranitar in exchange for the ability to maul just about every Steel-type that exists. Lastly, you will also want some physical offense on your team, for Blissey if nothing else, and a way to beat down Pursuit-users. Thus, Fighting-types such as Machamp make good partners.</p>

<p>On the other hand, there are many ways in which Alakazam can actually support the team offensively, allowing you to build your team around this idea. For example, by using Substitute Alakazam makes an excellent lure for many problematic Pokemon, such as Scizor, Tyranitar, and Heatran, all of whom are OHKOed by one of its coverage attacks. Non-Choice Scarf Jirachi and Celebi can also be removed similarly. With this in mind, you can elect to use a setup sweeper that will benefit from the weakening of these Pokemon to take advantage. For example, Breloom greatly appreciates the removal of all of these threats, as all of them are either counters or potential revenge killers, and can hence turn the battle to your advantage. It can also support Alakazam through Spore and being able to frighten away Blissey. The idea is further accentuated since Alakazam forces many switches, and through a plethora of entry hazards, weakens the opponent's team. Gyarados is another good option as a late-game sweeper since it can set up on a Choice-locked Bullet Punch and Iron Head from Scizor and Jirachi respectively. Similarly, Tyranitar and Lucario can set up very easily on a Choice-locked Pursuit. Lastly, Tyranitar or Scizor could be a helpful ally to an Alakazam running encore; by encoring moves such as Softboiled on Blissey, Alakazam can allow Tyranitar and Scizor to trap it with Pursuit, similar to how Tickle Wobbuffet is played in the Ubers. Tyranitar and Scizor are also helpful in beating Psychic-types such as Starmie who may cause Alakazam trouble. Set-up sweepers also benefit from the free switch [Editor's Note] What free switch and the potential free set-up.</p>

[Optional Changes]

<p>Alakazam is true strength lies in its versatility, carrying a massive number of tricks up its sleeve that can be very appealing in OU. The aforementionedTaunt and Encore are just the tip of the iceberg of Alakazam's moves. Alakazam is the fastest user of Reflect and Light Screen in the metagame, and as such can easily set up both with the help of Taunt and other such moves. Trick is an excellent move and is useful on Choice sets, although Rotom-A performs this set much more effectively; furthermore, it makes Alakazam become Pursuit bait.. Although, the power from Choice sets and the ability to cripple Blissey is appealing, the inability to switch attacks is costly. Thunder Wave is another useful move in supporting the team, though thanks to Alakazam's blistering Speed, it's rendered ineffective. Knock Off may seem useful in depriving Scizor and Tyranitar of their Choice items; however, apart from this, it has no further use.. Of all the field effects it gets, Gravity is perhaps the most notable, improving the accuracy of Focus Blast and supporting the team. However, it is mainly used as a gimmick. Lastly, Magic Coat can cripple a Blissey or Vaporeon trying to spread poison and can also reflect support moves back at their users.</p>

<p>On the offensive side, Calm Mind is a very useful setup move that can be useful on Alakazam's sweeper set in place of (or even in addition to) Substitute, but sweeper Alakazam is generally stopped too easily for Calm Mind to be used effectively. Alakazam gets a couple of low-power attacks with pretty good coverage for its offensive sets – Signal Beam hits Dark- and Psychic-types simultaneously while Shadow Ball hits Ghost- and Psychic-types[Editor's Note: You mentioned these moves in the set above. It's redundant to mention them again. These moves may be used over Focus Blast or Hidden Power Fire but generally Psychic-types are not too common; the specific Steel-type targets of the two advised moves are far more important, and the loss in power weakens Alakazam's offensive abilities. Generally, only use these if you have reliability concerns over Focus Blast’s horrible accuracy. Lum Berry lets you absorb status attacks, which are pretty crippling for Alakazam, but the loss in power from Life Orb is considerable. Lastly, Recover can offset lost health from Substitute, Life Orb, and other residual damage, but compromises Alakazam's type coverage and is an ineffective choice anyways.</p>

[Counters]

<p>One of the biggest reasons for Alakazam's fall was the fact that the metagame consisted of mainly Dragon- and Steel-types and powerful physical attackers, all of which counter Alakazam effectively. Of all its potential counters, Blissey is by far the best, as it is able to take even a Choice Specs Focus Blast with ease, and recover off the damage with Softboiled or Wish. However, Alakazam can employ a number of tricks to beat its number one counter, including Trick, Taunt, Recover, and Encore, so be on your guard. Snorlax can also take most special attacks and has access to Pursuit and Return, but may be 2HKOed from Focus Blast, so beware.</p>

<p>In terms of the ubiquitous Steel-types, Scizor is a massive problem for Alakazam. If Scizor switches in and Alakazam does not have a Substitute up, it essentially traps Alakazam – if Alakazam stays in, it gets KOed by Bullet Punch; if Alakazam switches out, it can be KOed by Pursuit. Furthermore, Scizor can also use U-turn to KO Alakazam, while escaping from its counters, most notably Magnezone. Similarly, Choice Scarf Steel-types such as Jirachi and Heatran can switch in to revenge kill, but risk being hit by a super effective attack on the switch, or from behind a Substitute. Metagross works similarly but does not run Choice Scarf, relying instead on Bullet Punch in addition to its trademark Meteor Mash.</p>

<p>Without Shadow Ball or Signal Beam, Alakazam is effectively walled by Starmie. Weavile is another nasty threat, as it is immune to Psychic and is one of the few Pokemon naturally faster than Alakazam, allowing it to beat it with Pursuit regardless of whether Alakazam stays in or not. Tyranitar also deserves a mention in this regard since it can act as a last-minute check if Focus Blast misses. Lastly, Dugtrio deserves a mention for being able to trap and OHKO Alakazam with Sucker Punch, but beware of Substitute. Alakazam will generally take massive damage, if not be KOed, by any strong attack. Thus, any monster can act as a potential revenge killer, as long as it can outspeed Alakazam. </p>

<p>The only absolute counters to Alakazam are Underused or Borderline Pokemon, some of which are worth mentioning. Spiritomb is just about the best Alakazam counter possible, being immune to Focus Blast and Psychic and able to use Sucker Punch, Shadow Sneak and Pursuit. In a similar vein, Cresselia resists Focus Blast and Psychic and has such titanic defensive stats that even Shadow Ball does little to it. However, Cresselia can be crippled by Encore or Taunt and can do little back to Alakazam.</p>

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Post-critique changes:

- EV shuffle on Dual Screen set
- Merged Life Orb and Encore sets
- EV shuffle on Offensive set
- Hidden Power Fire / Signal Beam on Offensive set
- Added comments relating to Substitute + Encore on Offensive set
- Removed Dual Screen set
- Wrote up analysis

I find the introduction very excessive and very unnecessary; how does the description of Alakazam (with much detail) have any factor into its usage in the metagame. The introduction is nice, but very unnecessary. I would rather it be shorter in order to allow the reader to get a brief overview of Alakazam's strengths and weaknesses, rather than read a narration about Alakazam's push into obscurity.

You go on too much detail about the set; a general guideline with few examples can suffice. A set description describing each and every counter and situation will be too tedious for the reader to read.

 

[Aeron Ee1]

dangit >_> beaten to the punch... ehh, here's just the overview:

Hide

[Overview]

<p>Alakazam’s back, and he’s angry. Four generations have passed by since Alakazam's glory days in RBY, and each one has brought something new to spite him, while giving him almost nothing back in return. GSC's special split not only ruined Alakazam's special bulk but also made Snorlax a more potent foe, as well as adding Blissey and Tyranitar to the fray. ADV added abilities, which essentially improved every Pokemon in the game except Alakazam, and also gave us Choice Band to increase the strength of the physical attackers that Alakazam hates. But it was DPP that gave Alakazam the final push into obscurity - the introduction of Choice Scarf to undermine Alakazam's godlike Speed, the physical/special split to make both Pursuit and the elemental punches physical, and of course the rise of the ubiquitous Technician Scizor, it can be said that Alakazam has at last met its match. But we can go even further than that - for the first time since its introduction, Alakazam was close to being outclassed by a non-Uber Pokemon - Azelf, who has similar Speed and Special Attack, but an arguably better movepool, which most importantly includes Nasty Plot, a potent setup move with which to sweep. While its old rivals Gengar and Starmie can still get by on their slightly larger movepools and better offensive and defensive typings, to put it simply Alakazam lacks the necessary traits to be an effective special sweeper any longer. It is as frail as a glass thimble, its STAB is resisted by half the OU metagame, and it just isn't half the threat it used to be.</p>

<p>However, we cannot be so hasty to condemn it to disuse for good. While the metagame seems to have surpassed it, Alakazam still has everything that made it so good back in the day: its titanic base 135 Special Attack stat, the highest of any non-Uber Pokemon, is backed up by its equally impressive base 120 Speed stat, which allows it to outrun just about the entirety of the unboosted OU metagame. Matched with a large offensive and support movepool, as well as plenty of little tricks to annoy the opponent to no end (such as Encore, Trick, and Taunt), which Alakazam is infamous for, so much raw power is begging to be used, and when played right, Alakazam can become as threatening as any offensive Pokemon ever could be. He may have fallen from grace, but popularity is by no means a definition of power.</p>

I was at Team Options already T_T It was a great read though, I hardly felt the length =P

EDIT: Also, a change that Eradd missed out on:

Hide

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>If you dislike Substitute's residual damage, there are a number of other options that are worth mentioning in the last slot. Encore and Taunt are both useful stall-killing moves that can hinder any secondary attacks that the opponent may try to use, which Alakazam hates, while Protect can be a useful option to predict an attempt at trapping by Choice-locked Scizor, enabling you to plan your next move accordingly. Lastly, if you cannot decide between Hidden Power Fire and Signal Beam in the third slot, you can also choose an offensive route and use both attacks on the same set, with all four moveslots dedicated to attacking moves. You could also run Shadow Ball over Signal Beam, not only for coverage on Psychic-types but also to smack Ghost-types super effectively, enabling you to OHKO Choice Scarf Rotom-A with Stealth Rock. However, remember that without Substitute or Protect, Alakazam is much more susceptible to revenge killing. If you do not mind losing out on a bit of type coverage, you can drop an attack and run Encore in the third slot, which gives Alakazam a set of Substitute/Encore/Psychic/Focus Blast. This allows Alakazam to more easily take advantage of Encore with lower risk, as Alakazam can now Encore attacking moves with the protection of Substitute; just be aware that the loss of a third attack massively reduces Alakazam's type coverage and therefore its offensive capabilities, which can be troubling if you are worried about Scizor and Metagross.</p>

 

[Rising_Dusk]

Just at a glance, you've used endashes where you should be using emdashes, and you've got some apostrophe issues. Be careful with those, and do a search to pick them out and fix them before the mod upload stage since most GP checks ignore such things. (Don't use curly apostrophes!) That said, this is slightly long as is typical of you, but I think it's tolerable and I've added it to the queue.

I will ask that the GP checks work to shorten it a bit by condensing information/removing unnecessary stuff, though.

 

[Echo.]

Add
Remove

Hide

[Overview]

<p>Alakazam’s back, and he’s angry. Four generations have passed by since Alakazam's glory days in RBY, and each generation has brought something new to spite him, while giving him almost nothing back in return. GSC's special split not only ruined Alakazam's special bulk but also made Snorlax a more potent foe, as well as adding Blissey and Tyranitar to the fray. ADV added abilities, which essentially improved every Pokemon in the game except Alakazam, and also gave us Choice Band to increase the strength of the physical attackers that Alakazam hates. But it was DPP that gave Alakazam the final push into obscurity - the introduction of Choice Scarf to undermine Alakazam's godlike Speed, the physical/special split to make both Pursuit and the elemental punches physical, and, of course, the rise of the ubiquitous Technician Scizor, in to which Alakazam can be said to have at last met its his match. But we can go even further than that: - for the first time since its his introduction, Alakazam was close to being outclassed by a non-Uber Pokemon. - Azelf has an arguably better movepool, most importantly notably including Nasty Plot. While his old rivals Gengar and Starmie can get by on their slightly larger movepools and better offensive and defensive typings, to put it simply Alakazam lacks notable resistances, priority moves, or powerful setup abilities, so he cannot be effective as a special sweeper any longer. It He is as frail as a glass thimble, ; its his STAB is resisted by half the OU metagame, and it he just isn't half the threat it he used to be.</p>

<p>However, we cannot be so hasty as to condemn it to disuse for good. While the metagame seems to have surpassed it him, Alakazam still has everything that made it him so good back in the day. Its His titanic base 135 Special Attack stat, the highest of any non-Uber Pokemon, is backed up by its his equally impressive base 120 Speed stat, which allows it him to outrun just about nearly the entirety of the unboosted OU metagame. This is backed up reinforced by a large offensive and support movepool, as well as plenty of little tricks to annoy the opponent to no end continuously, such as Encore, Trick, and Taunt, which Alakazam is infamous for. So much raw power is begging to be used, and when played right correctly, Alakazam can become as threatening as any offensive Pokemon ever could be. He may have fallen from grace, but popularity is by no means a definition of power.</p>

[SET]
name: OU Offensive
move 1: Psychic
move 2: Focus Blast
move 3: Hidden Power Fire / Signal Beam
move 4: Substitute / Encore
Item: Life Orb / Leftovers
Nature: Timid
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>While Alakazam has lost grace popularity as an offensive Pokemon, that doesn't mean it he doesn't still have the potential to be a threat. It He is still one of the strongest special attackers in the game, and thanks to its his high Speed stat, it he can actually outrun Jolly Choice Scarf Tyranitar, unlike its his fellow Psychic-types Starmie and Azelf. , meaning This means that not only can it he bypass a supposedly rock-solid check to Psychic-types, but it he can also act as an excellent lure, removing these problem Pokemon with a combination of Substitute and one of its his coverage attacks.</p>

<p>Substitute enables Alakazam to scout the opponent, which in turn allows it him to hit the appropriate switch-in very hard indeed for considerable damage. This also allows it him to block status attacks from Blissey and escape from Pursuit traps by opponents such as Weavile. Thanks to Because of the power of its his attacks and its Speed, Alakazam has a tendency to force plenty of switches, making it relatively easy to get a Substitute up; however, remember that Alakazam will be losing a great deal of health to passive damage, so Substitute should generally be used sparingly lest Alakazam be dispatched faint prematurely. Psychic is good, reliable STAB, which has the power to 2HKO Offensive offensive Suicune, defensive Rotom-A, and generally just about everything that doesn't resist it, besides Blissey and Snorlax of course. Focus Blast is necessary to get rid of the Dark-types who are immune to Alakazam's STAB attacks, as well as the other Steel-types who also cause some problems. It easily OHKOes Tyranitar and Heatran with Life Orb, two Pokemon that Azelf struggles with, and does a deals fair amount damage to Blissey and Snorlax (though, admittedly, not a significant amount). However, many of the common Steel-types of OU, such as Scizor, Metagross, and Skarmory, are actually neutral to Focus Blast, and given how dangerous these Pokemon are to Alakazam, it becomes necessary to have a way means to beat them, too. Hidden Power Fire easily OHKOes Scizor and also gets a clean 2HKO on Jirachi, Celebi, and Metagross with Life Orb.</p>

<p>On the other hand, if you aren't particularly concerned about Scizor or are happy to rely on Focus Blast for all Steel-types, then Signal Beam is worth consideration in the third slot. Not only does it enable Alakazam to hit Psychic-types, particularly such as Starmie, who walls Alakazam very effectively without it, as well as Azelf and Celebi, both of whom are OHKOed regardless of entry hazard damage, but it also allows you to get a more reliable hit on Dark-types. This is important since vital, because a poorly timed miss[COLOR="Purple][B]ed[/B][/COLOR] [COLOR="red"]from[/COLOR] Focus Blast against a weakened Tyranitar can be your doom. , and Signal Beam rectifies this, while and the fact that Alakazam is one of the few Pokemon faster than Azelf and Starmie allows it to be a very effective answer to them with Signal Beam in tow. However, the loss of Hidden Power Fire is a crippling blow to Alakazam's effectiveness against Steel-types, particularly Scizor, Jirachi, and Metagross.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>If you don't like Substitute's residual damage, there are a number of other options that are worth mentioning in the last slot. Encore and Taunt are both useful stall-killing moves that can hinder any secondary attacks that the opponent may try to use, which Alakazam hates, . while Protect can be a useful option to predict an attempt at trapping by Choice-locked Scizor, enabling you to plan your next move accordingly. Lastly, if you cannot decide between Hidden Power Fire and Signal Beam in the third slot, you can also choose an offensive route and use both attacks on the same set, with all four moveslots dedicated to attacking moves. You could also run Shadow Ball over Signal Beam, not only for coverage on Psychic-types, but also to smack Ghost-types super effectively, enabling you to OHKO Choice Scarf Rotom-H with Stealth Rock support. However, Remember that without Substitute or Protect, you are much more susceptible to revenge killing. If you don't mind losing out on a bit of type coverage, you can drop an attack and run Encore in the third slot, which gives you a set of Substitute/Encore/Psychic/Focus Blast. This allows you to more easily take advantage of Encore with lower risk to Alakazam, as you can now Encore attacking moves with the protection of Substitute;. just Be aware that the loss of a third attack massively reduces Alakazam's type coverage, and therefore, its offensive capabilities, which can be troubling if you are worried about Scizor and Metagross.</p>

<p>Generally, in terms of EVs and nature, the best thing to do for Alakazam is to first maximize its his Speed and then Special Attack, as these are really the only two stats it will be using. A Timid nature is recommended, as Alakazam simply cannot afford to be hit first by anything. The remaining EVs can just be pushed off into HP. However, with the IV drop from Hidden Power, you cannot tie with other base 120s. Therefore, you may wish to lower your sights and hit the next-lowest Speed benchmark. Timid and 228 Speed is advised as a minimum to beat out Jolly Choice Scarf Tyranitar, who is the biggest threat you will face around in this area. Of course, if you are not running Hidden Power, or simply want to Speed tie with other Alakazam and Sceptile who also use Hidden Power Fire and beat other Pokemon looking to just beat Choice Scarf Tyranitar, it is sensible to maximize your Speed regardless, as those extra 28 HP EVs aren't doing much. They may come in handy to take attacks from weaker offensive threats, such as Tentacruel or Blissey, but that's about it. For the item, Life Orb is highly recommended as the item of choice, despite Alakazam's weakness to passive damage, as it gives you the power necessary to OHKO dangerous threats such as Tyranitar and Heatran. Thus, Leftovers would seem a waste of space on Alakazam. but On the plus side, however, it Leftovers reduces Alakazam's weakness to passive damage by a considerable amount, and helps offset Substitute damage. However, The loss to power is quite crippling, though, so Leftovers should only really be used if you either intend to use Alakazam as a hit-and-run attacker or supporter with Encore.</p>

[Team Options]

<p>Entry hazard support is extremely useful to wear down counters as they switch in, especially as Alakazam will be causing a lot of switches, which allows it to rack up plenty of passive damage. Toxic Spikes support is also immensely useful in order to break down any walls that may try to stall you out, such as Blissey. With this in mind, Forretress is an excellent choice to pair with Alakazam as it can come in on various Pokemon that Alakazam dislikes, such as Weavile, Scizor, and Tyranitar, and has access to all three entry hazards, so can be customised making Forretress customizable to any your specifications. It Forretress even has access to Rapid Spin, which helps Alakazam sustain less damage while in switching in and out, since it lessens Alakazam's weakness to passive damage. Skarmory also works similarly, but it lacks Toxic Spikes and Rapid Spin in return for Roost. On the other hand, if you are hoping to run Alakazam on a more offensive team, Aerodactyl and Azelf are both excellent choices to set up a fast Stealth Rock, and Roserade can do the same with Spikes and Toxic Spikes.</p>

<p>If you think Alakazam is going to provide any kind of defensive help whatsoever, then you're out of luck. So, primarily, good teammates will consist of those with offensive synergy, or the ability to take on and beat each other's counters. Hence, you will want to remove your opponent's answers to Alakazam to give it the best chance to let him cause as much damage as possible. Steel-types inevitably top this list, so if you want Alakazam to function effectively, you will need to find a way to be get rid of them. A Steel-trapper such as Magnezone or Dugtrio can therefore be a powerful ally. Dugtrio can trap and defeat weakened Steel-types with the combination of Arena Trap and STAB Earthquake, and can even trap Tyranitar and Blissey for you as well. However, it lacks any sort of capacity to switch in, is too weak to outright KO anything, is outrun by Choice Scarf Jirachi, is Bullet Punched by Scizor, and is pointless against Skarmory and Bronzong. On the other hand, Magnezone can switch in much more easily and can destroy nearly any Steel-type with the combination of STAB Thunderbolt and Hidden Power Fire, but has to watch out for various attacks such as Jirachi's Fire Punch, Scizor's Superpower, Heatran's Fire Blast, Lucario's Close Combat, and Metagross's Earthquake. If you’re not looking to trap these foes, a Pokemon such as Heatran or Swampert is also an acceptable substitute. Swampert makes a good partner for Alakazam, as it can take on both Tyranitar and Metagross and also check Scizor to an extent. Heatran works in much the same way, but forfeits the ability to beat Tyranitar in exchange for mauling just about virtually every Steel-type that exists. Lastly, you will also want some physical offense on your team, for Blissey, if nothing else, and a way to beat down Pursuit-users. Thus, Fighting-types such as Machamp make good partners.</p>

<p>On the other hand, there are many ways in which Alakazam can actually support the team offensively, and you can also choose to build your team around this idea. For example, by using Substitute Alakazam makes an excellent lure for many problematic Pokemon, such as Scizor, Tyranitar, and Heatran, all of whom are OHKOed by one of its coverage attacks. Non-Choice Scarf Jirachi and Celebi can also be removed in this way. With this in mind, you can elect to use a setup sweeper that will benefit from the weakening of these Pokemon to take advantage. For example, Breloom greatly appreciates the removal of all of these threats, as all of them are either counters or potential revenge killers, and can hence turn the battle to its his advantage. It can also support Alakazam through Spore and being able to frighten away Blissey. This is further accentuated since Alakazam is going to be forcing a lot of switches, and you will hopefully be packing plenty of entry hazards, hopefully greatly weakening your opponent's team. Gyarados is another good option as a late-game sweeper since it can set up on Choice-locked Scizor's Bullet Punch and Jirachi's Iron Head. Similarly, Tyranitar and Lucario can set up very easily on Choice-locked Pursuit. Lastly, if running Encore, Tyranitar or Scizor could can be a helpful ally should you manage to Encore Softboiled on Blissey, or similar, and trap with Pursuit, similarly to Tickle Wobbuffet in Ubers. Tyranitar and Scizor are also helpful to beat Psychic-types such as Starmie who may cause Alakazam trouble. Set-up sweepers also benefit from the free switch and potentially free set-up.</p>

[Optional Changes]

<p>Alakazam is nothing if not versatile, and it has a massive number of tricks up its sleeve that can be very appealing in OU. Taunt and Encore have already been mentioned, but that's just the tip of the iceberg. Alakazam is the fastest user in the game game's fastest user of Reflect and Light Screen, and as such can easily set up both with the help of Taunt and other such moves. Trick is an excellent move and is of good use on Choice sets, though as this is no longer Alakazam’s trademark, as Rotom-A does this sort of set better, plus the fact that a switch at the wrong time makes you Pursuit bait for Tyranitar and Scizor, means that everything isn’t so rosy. Although the power from Choice sets and the ability to cripple Blissey is useful, the loss in the ability to switch attacks is a high price to pay. Thunder Wave is another useful move, though thanks to because of Alakazam's blistering Speed, it rarely has much application. Knock Off is much the same, but and as fun as it may be to deprive Scizor and Tyranitar of their Choice items, the move is generally it is not worth it using. Of all the field effects it he gets, Gravity is perhaps the most notable, improving the accuracy of Focus Blast and supporting the team, though as the benefits for Alakazam itself are minimal, it is almost always a waste of time. Lastly, Magic Coat can cripple a Blissey or Vaporeon trying to spread poison and can also reflect support moves back at their users.</p>

<p>On the offensive side, Calm Mind is an very useful interesting setup move that can be useful on a sweeper set in place of (or even in addition to) Substitute, but sweeper Alakazam is generally stopped too easily to be of great use over a generic offensive set. Alakazam gets a couple of low-power attacks with pretty good coverage for its offensive sets – Signal Beam hits Dark- and Psychic-types simultaneously, while Shadow Ball hits Ghost- and Psychic-types. This can make them of use over either Hidden Power Fire or Focus Blast, but generally Psychic-types aren’t too common anyway,. The specific Steel-type targets of the two advised moves are far more important, and the loss in power is depressing troubling. Generally, only use these if you have reliability concerns over Focus Blast’s horrible accuracy. Lum Berry lets you take status attacks, which are pretty crippling for Alakazam, but the loss in power from Life Orb is considerable. Lastly, Recover can offset lost health from Substitute, Life Orb, sandstorm, and entry hazards, but generally this compromises type coverage and that moveslot has many, many better choices for it.</p>

[Counters]

<p>One of the biggest reasons for Alakazam's fall was [COLOR="purple][B]is[/B][/COLOR] the fact that the metagame it [COLOR="Red"]abided[/COLOR] lives in includes everything it couldn't can't handle, revolving almost entirely around Dragon- and Steel-types and powerful physical attackers. Of all its potential counters, Blissey is by far and away the best most threatening, as it is able to take even a Choice Specs Focus Blast with ease, and can recover off the damage with Softboiled or Wish. However, Alakazam can employ a number of tricks to beat its number one counter, including Trick, Taunt, Recover, and Encore, so be on your guard. Snorlax can also take most special attacks and has access to Pursuit and Return, . However, Snorlax but takes heavy damage from Focus Blast, so Alakazam has a reasonable chance to 2HKO.</p>

<p>In terms of the ubiquitous Steel-types, Scizor is a massive problem for Alakazam, which is never a good thing. If Scizor switches in and Alakazam does not have a Substitute up, it essentially puts Alakazam in a checkmate position – if it he stays in it he gets KOed by Bullet Punch, if it he switches out it he can be KOed by Pursuit, and Scizor can also use U-turn to escape a Magnezone trap while annihilating Alakazam in the process. Similarly, Choice Scarf Steel-types such as Jirachi and Heatran can switch in to revenge kill, but risk a super effective attack on the switch or meeting a Substitute. Metagross works similarly but does not run Choice Scarf, relying instead on priority Bullet Punch in addition to its trademark Meteor Mash.</p>

<p>Without Shadow Ball or Signal Beam, Starmie effectively walls it Alakazam to high heaven, between Recover and its attacking options. Weavile is another nasty threat, as it is immune to Psychic and is one of the few Pokemon naturally faster than Alakazam, allowing it to beat it Alakazam with Pursuit regardless of whether it stays in or not. Tyranitar also deserves a mention in this regard since it can act as a last-minute check if Focus Blast misses. Lastly, Dugtrio deserves a mention for being able to trap and OHKO Alakazam with Sucker Punch, though if Alakazam runs Substitute this can turn out badly. Alakazam will generally faint the moment it is hit by anything, so if you have a faster Pokemon, they will almost always be a viable revenge killer, though Pokemon actually faster than Alakazam are few and far between rare outside of Choice Scarf users.</p>

<p>The only absolute counters to Alakazam are Underused or Borderline Pokemon, which is not terribly helpful, but some are worth mentioning. Spiritomb is just about the best Alakazam counter possible, immune to Focus Blast and Psychic and able to use Sucker Punch, Shadow Sneak and Pursuit. In a similar vein Similarly, Cresselia resists Focus Blast and Psychic and has such titanic defensive stats that even Shadow Ball does little to it. However, it can be crippled by Encore or Taunt and can do little back to Alakazam.</p>

 

[bugmaniacbob]

Please try not to grammar check at the same time, or indeed before I have a chance to update the OP...

That being said thanks to all those offering changes, and particularly to Rising_Dusk for adding this to the GP queue without requesting concision (though for posterity I would like to state that I counted three endashes and two curly apostrophes on running through the whole thing which I feel is hardly 'issues'. Thanks for letting me know, though.)

 

[Seven Deadly Sins]

I actually AM going to request concision. I don't want this to become another Claydol.

The overview contains a lot of interesting but irrelevant history, and should focus more on what's good/bad about the Pokemon itself rather than a lot of stuff about previous generations.

I think the bit about Focus Blast, HP Fire, and Signal Beam can be condensed somewhat- it basically boils down to "what are you most scared of- psychic-types that you outspeed or fighting-neutral steels".

You spend a hell of a lot of time on talking about a simple 4 / 252 / 252 EV spread. I think that can largely be cut down into "Alakazam's other stats are pretty terrible so you want to capitalize on your good stats". Also, LO vs. Lefties is basically "Life Orb allows you to OHKO Heatran and Tyranitar with Focus Blast as well as deal more damage to other Pokemon, but Leftovers helps deal with the life loss from Substitute, as well as compensate for damage from entry hazards."

In Team Options, you want to focus mainly more on what the Pokemon do for Alakazam; the Magnezone one is especially egregious, as it has no business whatsoever switching into at least half of those Pokemon- Luke, non-Scarf Jirachi, Heatran of any kind, most Metagross, etc. so talking about what specifically those Pokemon can do to ruin your day is largely unnecesary. I also find the Dugtrio mention questionable in general, as it's not an especially effective option, and is also doubly uninteresting in OU.

Fixing those issues would go a long way to condensing this analysis effectively.

 

[bugmaniacbob]

@SDS - Firstly, this analysis is 3000 words long overall, whereas Claydol was 5600 words long. That's a pretty big difference. Admittedly Claydol was a much better read than Alakazam (loads more to talk about) but I don't think there's any danger of this turning into a repeat event unless people want it to be. I think that this analysis is of decent length. As for what you consider to be 'irrelevant', I consider it to be 'interesting'. If you don't want to read it, then don't. I'm pretty sure that's what the Additional Comments are for. The overview, I think, would be rather dry without some sort of opening. There doesn't seem to be much point to an overview if you're not giving it some context.

Secondly, I believe that I have to make sure that the information I am giving is absolutely clear. If I'm condensing information, there's a very great danger of clarification being lost in translation. I'll leave that to the GP team to sort out, since I am perfectly aware of what I'm writing about, so what may be quite clear to me is not necessarily taken for granted by somebody else. Hence why I am not the best person to be concising things, and if the GP team sees fit to do so, they can concise it if they want. I think you all know how I feel about cutting out information.

I have cut some of what I see as unnecessary fluff in the OP. However, since this has been accepted for GP checking, unless I'm expressly told to do so by a C&C moderator or member of the GP team who intends to check it, I do not intend to do any more concision work of my own. I'm not being lazy, I simply took part of my own free time to write this and don't want to waste that time, now or in the future.

Sorry to be extremely blunt, but yeah.

 

[Eraddd]

@SDS - Firstly, this analysis is 3000 words long overall, whereas Claydol was 5600 words long. That's a pretty big difference. Admittedly Claydol was a much better read than Alakazam (loads more to talk about) but I don't think there's any danger of this turning into a repeat event unless people want it to be. I think that this analysis is of decent length. As for what you consider to be 'irrelevant', I consider it to be 'interesting'. If you don't want to read it, then don't. I'm pretty sure that's what the Additional Comments are for. The overview, I think, would be rather dry without some sort of opening. There doesn't seem to be much point to an overview if you're not giving it some context.

Secondly, I believe that I have to make sure that the information I am giving is absolutely clear. If I'm condensing information, there's a very great danger of clarification being lost in translation. I'll leave that to the GP team to sort out, since I am perfectly aware of what I'm writing about, so what may be quite clear to me is not necessarily taken for granted by somebody else. Hence why I am not the best person to be concising things, and if the GP team sees fit to do so, they can concise it if they want. I think you all know how I feel about cutting out information.

I have cut some of what I see as unnecessary fluff in the OP. However, since this has been accepted for GP checking, unless I'm expressly told to do so by a C&C moderator or member of the GP team who intends to check it, I do not intend to do any more concision work of my own. I'm not being lazy, I simply took part of my own free time to write this and don't want to waste that time, now or in the future.

Sorry to be extremely blunt, but yeah.

I was compelled to reply to this message. I'm not a member of the GP team, nor am I in any authority to actually make decisions, but I honestly think your analysis delves too deeply into specifics that could be cut down into more general statements.

I noticed that you give many examples in how the variations of moves affect Alakazam's ability to function in the metagame. I believe that rather than giving many specific examples, it would be more effective to give a general statement. I'm gonna use this sentence here:

Substitute enables Alakazam to scout its opponent, allowing Alakazam to hit its appropriate switch-in very hard indeed. This also allows it to block status attacks from Blissey and escape from Pursuit traps by opponents such as Weavile.

I would condense this information into this:

Substitute not only enables Alakazam to scout its opponent, and ease prediction, it also allows Alakazam to block status attacks that cripple Alakazam, and escape Pursuit traps.

Just by that, I was able to get rid of approximately 1/4 of the word count, and still not lose any meaning over it. I believe that the usage of Blissey and Weavile is not needed; most readers will be familiar with status users such as Blissey, Celebi, and etc, and will also be familiar with Pursuit users such as Weavile and Scizor. I believe that if needed, you could mention some of these counters in the "Counters" section. Generally though, you delve too much into specific situations that Alakazam faces, while a general statement may suffice.

When I look at past analyses, these analyses focus on covering general situations, not on specific situations (except when the set is specialized to cover a myriad of threats, which this Alakazam is not). I am with SDS in terms of shortening this analysis to a maximum of 1500-2000 words only.

 

[Seven Deadly Sins]

Don't think of it in word counts, guys. Think of it in terms of "you don't need to specifically state everything". The most egregious part is the EV spread bit: let's face it, a 252/252 EV spread is "not that interesting" and most definitely not worth a paragraph of the size that you gave it. You're not aiming for any specific benchmarks, and the bit about the 28 HP EVs even mentions how throwaway those EVs are, yet you spend 3 sentences talking about it.

Then again, since you like word counts so much, here you go.

<p>Generally, in terms of EVs and nature, the best thing to do for Alakazam is to first maximize its Speed and Special Attack, as these are really the only two stats it will be using. A Timid nature is recommended as Alakazam simply cannot afford to be hit first by anything. The remaining EVs can just be pushed off into HP. However, with the IV drop from Hidden Power, you cannot tie with other base 120s. Therefore, you may wish to lower your sights and hit the next-lowest Speed benchmark. Timid and 228 Speed is advised as a minimum to beat out Jolly Choice Scarf Tyranitar, who is the biggest threat you will face in this area. For the item, Life Orb is highly recommended as the item of choice despite Alakazam's weakness to passive damage, as it gives Alakazam the power necessary to OHKO dangerous threats such as Tyranitar and Heatran. Thus, Leftovers would seem like a waste of space on Alakazam. On the plus side, however, Leftovers reduces Alakazam's weakness to passive damage, and helps offset Substitute damage. The loss to power is quite crippling, though, so it should only really be used if you intend to use Alakazam as a hit-and-run attacker or supporter with Encore.</p>

<p>Alakazam's EVs are simple: since its only decent stats are Special Attack and Speed, they should be mazimized first. A Timid nature allows Alakazam to outspeed such threats as Gengar, Azelf, and Choice Scarf Tyranitar, which is very important for Alakazam in OU. If you want, you can move 24 Speed EVs into HP, leaving you with enough speed to outspeed Choice Scarf Tyranitar and making it a little easier to take weak special attacks. Life Orb is the preferred item for raw power, and allows OHKOs on Heatran and Tyranitar with Focus Blast. However, passive damage quickly takes its toll on Alakazam, especially with Substitute, so Leftovers are definitely a viable choice.</p>

There we go. 94 words cut, with no missing information, making it MUCH more readable. It's really not that hard.

 

[Colonel M]

While I appreciate the personality from the analysis... I must admit that the length of this kind of makes me want to gouge my eyes out. "In moderation" is how I like to view things, and this just seems over excessive.

So yes, I request this to be shortened up. Please.

 

[bugmaniacbob]

Wrote long post and the token expired.

Essentially, I'm not writing this for the benefit of those people who aren't interested in reading the analysis, and I hate general statements. They are pointless and irrelevant, much more so than any inane drivel in the analysis at present.

Regardless, I have shortened it. But I'm not going to respond to this again.

 

[Oglemi]

We are Sex Bob-omb! and we're here to watch Pilgrim kick your teeth in! 1 2 3 4!

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[Overview]

<p>Alakazam's back, and he's angry. Four generations have passed since Alakazam's glory days in RBY, and each one has brought something new to spite him it, while giving him almost nothing back in return. GSC's special split not only ruined Alakazam's special bulk but also made Snorlax a more potent foe, as well as adding Blissey and Tyranitar to the fray. ADV added abilities, which essentially improved every Pokemon in the game except Alakazam, and also gave us Choice Band to increase the strength of the physical attackers that Alakazam hates. But it was DPP that gave Alakazam the final push into obscurity—the introduction of Choice Scarf to undermine Alakazam's godlike Speed, the physical/special split to make both Pursuit and the elemental punches physical, and of course the rise of the ubiquitous Technician Scizor, in which Alakazam has at last met its match. But we can go even further than that: for the first time since its introduction, Alakazam was close to being outclassed by a non-Uber Pokemon. Azelf has slightly lower Speed and Special Attack, but an arguably better movepool, which most notably includes Nasty Plot. While its old rivals Gengar and Starmie can still get by on their slightly larger movepools and better typings, Alakazam lacks the necessary traits to be a special sweeper in this new DPP metagame. Primarily, it lacks notable resistances, priority moves, and usable setup moves. Furthermore, it is as frail as a glass thimble, its STAB is resisted by half the OU metagame, and it just isn't half the threat it used to be.</p>

<p>However, we cannot be so hasty as to condemn it to disuse. While the metagame seems to have surpassed it, Alakazam still has everything that made it so good back in the day: its titanic base 135 Special Attack stat, the highest of any non-Uber Pokemon, which is backed up by its equally impressive base 120 Speed stat, which allows it to outrun nearly the entirety of the unboosted OU metagame. Matched with plenty of little tricks to annoy the opponent continuously, which Alakazam is infamous for (such as Encore, Trick, and Taunt), so much raw power is begging to be used, and when played correctly, Alakazam can become as threatening as any offensive Pokemon. He may have fallen from grace, but popularity is by no means a definition of power.</p>

[SET]
name: OU Offensive
move 1: Psychic
move 2: Focus Blast
move 3: Hidden Power Fire / Signal Beam
move 4: Substitute / Encore
Item: Life Orb / Leftovers
Nature: Timid
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>While Alakazam has lost its popularity as an offensive Pokemon, it does not mean that Alakazam lacks the potential to be a threat. It is still one of the strongest special attackers in the game, and thanks to its high Speed stat, it can actually outrun Jolly Choice Scarf Tyranitar, unlike its fellow Psychic-types Starmie and Azelf. This means that not only can it bypass a supposedly an otherwise rock-solid check to Psychic-types, but it can also act as an excellent lure, removing these problematic Pokemon with a combination of Substitute and one of its coverage attacks.</p>

<p>Substitute enables Alakazam to scout its opponent, and thus allow Alakazam to hit its switch-in with the appropriate attack. This also allows it to block status attacks from Blissey and escape from Pursuit traps set by opponents such as Weavile and Scizor. Alakazam has a tendency to force plenty of switches, making it relatively easy to get a Substitute up; however, remember that Alakazam will be losing a great deal of health to passive damage, so Substitute should generally be used sparingly. Psychic is a good, reliable STAB, which has the power to 2HKO just about everything that does not resist it, besides Blissey and Snorlax of course. Focus Blast is necessary to get rid of the Dark-types who are immune to Alakazam's STAB attacks, as well as the Steel-types who can cause problems. It easily OHKOes Tyranitar and Heatran with Life Orb, and does a fair amount to Blissey and Snorlax. However, many of the common Steel-types of OU, such as Scizor, Metagross, and Skarmory, are only neutral to Focus Blast, and given how dangerous these Pokemon are to Alakazam, it becomes necessary to have a way to beat them too. Hidden Power Fire easily OHKOes Scizor and also gets a clean 2HKO on Jirachi, Celebi, and Metagross with Life Orb. On the other hand, Signal Beam is worth considering as well, since it enables Alakazam to hit Psychic-types, such as Starmie, Azelf, and Celebi, and also allows you Alakazam to get a more reliable hit on Dark-types. However Unfortunately, the loss of Hidden Power Fire is a crippling blow to Alakazam's effectiveness against Steel-types, particularly Scizor, Jirachi, and Metagross.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>If you dislike Substitute's residual damage, there are a number of other options that are worth mentioning in the last slot. Encore and Taunt are both useful stall-killing moves that can hinder any secondary attacks that the opponent may try to use, which Alakazam hates. Protect can be a useful option to predict an attempt at trapping by Choice-locked Scizor, enabling you to plan your next move accordingly. Lastly, if you cannot decide between Hidden Power Fire and Signal Beam in the third slot, you can also choose an offensive route and use both attacks on the same set, with all four moveslots dedicated to attacking moves. You could also run Shadow Ball in the third slot, not only for coverage on Psychic-types but also to smack Ghost-types super effectively, enabling Alakazam to OHKO Choice Scarf Rotom-A with Stealth Rock support. Remember that without Substitute or Protect, Alakazam is much more susceptible to revenge killing. If you do not mind losing out on a bit of type coverage, you can drop an attack and run Encore in the third slot. This allows you to more easily take advantage of Encore with lower risk, as Alakazam can now Encore attacking moves with the protection of Substitute. Be aware that the loss of a third attack massively reduces Alakazam's type coverage and therefore its offensive capabilities, which can be troubling if you are worried about Scizor and Metagross.</p>

<p>Generally, in terms of EVs and nature, the best thing to do for Alakazam is to first maximize its Speed and Special Attack, as these are really the only two stats it will be using. A Timid nature is recommended as Alakazam simply cannot afford to be hit first by anything. The remaining EVs can just be pushed off into HP. However, with the IV drop from Hidden Power, you cannot tie with other base 120s. Therefore, you may wish to lower your sights and hit the next-lowest Speed benchmark. Timid and 228 Speed is advised as a minimum to beat out Jolly Choice Scarf Tyranitar, who is the biggest threat you will face in this area. For the item, Life Orb is highly recommended as the item of choice despite Alakazam's weakness to passive damage, as it gives Alakazam the power necessary to OHKO dangerous threats such as Tyranitar and Heatran. Thus, Leftovers would seem like a waste of space on Alakazam. On the plus side, however, Leftovers reduces Alakazam's weakness to passive damage, and helps offset Substitute damage. The loss to power is quite crippling, though, so it should only really be used if you intend to use Alakazam as a hit-and-run attacker or supporter with Encore. is only useful to offset Substitute and residual damage.</p>

[Team Options]

<p>Entry hazard support is extremely useful to wear down counters as they switch in, especially as Alakazam will be causing a lot of switches. Toxic Spikes support is particularly useful in order to break down any walls that may try to stall you out, such as Blissey. With this in mind, Forretress is an excellent choice to pair with Alakazam as it can come in on various Pokemon that Alakazam dislikes, such as Weavile, Scizor, and Tyranitar, and has access to all three entry hazards, making Forretress customizable to your specifications. It even has access to Rapid Spin, which helps Alakazam sustain less damage while switching in and out. Skarmory works similarly, but it lacks Toxic Spikes and Rapid Spin in return for Roost. On the other hand, if you are hoping to run Alakazam on a more offensive team, Aerodactyl and Azelf are both excellent choices to set up a fast Stealth Rock, and Roserade can do the same with Spikes and Toxic Spikes.</p>

<p>If you think Alakazam is going to provide any kind of defensive help whatsoever, then you're much mistaken. So, good teammates will be those with offensive synergy with Alakazam, or the ability to take on and beat each other's counters. For Alakazam, Steel-types are generally the biggest threats about obstacles to overcome. Thus, a Steel-trapper such as Magnezone or Dugtrio can therefore be a powerful ally. Magnezone can destroy dangerous Steel-types such as Scizor and Jirachi locked into their STAB moves with ease, thanks to its STAB Thunderbolt and Hidden Power Fire. However, beware of Steel-types that also have super effective STAB moves, such as Lucario and Heatran. Dugtrio is much weaker both offensively and defensively, but can also trap Tyranitar and Blissey into the bargain. If you are not looking to trap these foes, Swampert is a good choice, as it can take on both Tyranitar and Metagross and also check Scizor to an extent. Heatran works in much the same way but forfeits the ability to beat Tyranitar in exchange for the ability to maul just about every Steel-type that exists. Lastly, you will also want some physical offense on your team, for Blissey if nothing else, and a way to beat down Pursuit-users. Thus, Fighting-types such as Machamp make good partners.</p>

<p>On the other hand, there are many ways in which Alakazam can actually support the team offensively. For example, Substitute Alakazam makes an excellent lure for many problematic Pokemon such as Scizor, Tyranitar, and Heatran, all of whom are OHKOed by one of its coverage attacks. Non-Choice Scarf Jirachi and Celebi can also be removed by the same principle. With this in mind, you can elect to use a setup sweeper that will benefit from the weakening of these Pokemon. For example, Swords Dance Breloom greatly appreciates the removal of all of these threats, and it can also support Alakazam through Spore and being able to frighten away Blissey. This is further accentuated since Alakazam forces a lot of switches, weakening your opponent's team if you have entry hazards down. Dragon Dance Gyarados is another good option as a late-game sweeper since it can set up on a Choice-locked Scizor's Bullet Punch and Jirachi's Iron Head. Similarly, Tyranitar and Lucario can set up very easily on Choice-locked Pursuit. Lastly, Tyranitar or Scizor can be a helpful ally to an Alakazam running Encore; should you manage to Encore a non-offensive move such as Blissey's Softboiled, the aforementioned Pokemon can take the opportunity to trap it with Pursuit. Tyranitar and Scizor are also helpful in beating Psychic-types such as Starmie who may cause Alakazam trouble. Using Encore at the right time can also give a set-up sweeper the perfect opportunity to sweep. (This last sentence has been acknowledged multiple times already.)</p>

[Optional Changes]

<p>Alakazam is nothing if not versatile, and it has a massive number of tricks up its sleeve that can be very appealing in OU. Taunt and Encore have already been mentioned, but that's just the tip of the iceberg. Alakazam is the fastest user of Reflect and Light Screen in OU, and as such can easily set up both with the help of Taunt and other such moves. Trick is an excellent move and is useful on Choice sets, though this is no longer Alakazam's trademark, as Rotom-A does this better, plus it makes you Pursuit bait for Tyranitar and Scizor. Thunder Wave is another useful move to support the team with, though because of Alakazam's blistering Speed, it rarely has much application. Knock Off is much the same, but as fun as it may be to deprive Scizor and Tyranitar of their Choice items, generally it is not worth the moveslot. Of all the field effects it gets, Gravity is perhaps the most notable, improving the accuracy of Focus Blast and supporting the team. Lastly, Magic Coat can cripple a Blissey or Vaporeon trying to spread poison and can also reflect support moves back at their users. (I'm not entirely sure that Alakazam gets Magic Coat as there was that Announcement saying that multiple Pokemon have it listed on their moves list, but don't actually get it.)</p>

<p>On the offensive side, Calm Mind is an interesting setup move that can be useful on Alakazam's sweeper set in place of (or even in addition to) Substitute, but sweeper Alakazam is generally stopped too easily for Calm Mind to be used effectively by phazers and Blissey to be used effectively. Lum Berry lets you absorb status attacks, which are pretty crippling for Alakazam, but the loss in power from Life Orb is considerable. Lastly, Recover can offset lost health from Substitute, Life Orb, sandstorm, and other residual damage, but generally this compromises type coverage and that moveslot has many, many better choices for it.</p>

[Counters]

<p>One of the biggest reasons for Alakazam's fall was the fact that the metagame it abided in included everything it couldn't handle, revolving almost entirely around Dragon- and Steel-types and powerful physical attackers. Of all its potential counters, Blissey is by far the most solid, as it is able to take even a Choice Specs Focus Blast with ease, and can recover its health with Softboiled or Wish. However, Alakazam can employ a number of tricks to beat its number one "counter", including Trick, Taunt, Recover, and Encore, so be on your guard. Snorlax can also take most special attacks and has access to Pursuit and Return. However, Focus Blast has a chance to 2HKO with a little residual damage.</p>

<p>In terms of the ubiquitous Steel-types, Scizor is a massive problem for Alakazam, which is never a good thing. If Scizor switches in and Alakazam does not have a Substitute up, it essentially traps Alakazam entirely – if Alakazam stays in it gets KOed by Bullet Punch, but if it switches out it can be KOed by Pursuit. Furthermore, Scizor can also use U-turn to annihilate Alakazam and escape from its counters all in one stroke. Similarly, Choice Scarf Steel-types such as Jirachi and Heatran can switch in to revenge kill, but risk a super effective attack on the switch, or from behind a Alakazam's Substitute. Metagross works similarly but does not run Choice Scarf, relying instead on priority Bullet Punch in addition to its signature Meteor Mash. (unneeded)</p>

<p>Without Shadow Ball or Signal Beam, Starmie effectively walls Alakazam to high heaven, between Recover and its attacking options. Weavile is another nasty threat, as it is immune to Psychic and is one of the few Pokemon naturally faster than Alakazam, allowing it to OHKO Alakazam with Pursuit regardless of whether it stays in or not. Tyranitar also deserves a mention in this regard since it can act as a last-minute check if Focus Blast misses. Lastly, Dugtrio deserves a mention for being able to trap and OHKO Alakazam with Sucker Punch, but beware of Substitute. (Dugtrio is rare in OU) Alakazam will generally faint the moment it is hit by anything, so if you have a faster Pokemon, they will almost always be a viable revenge killer, though Pokemon actually faster than Alakazam are few and far between outside of Choice Scarf users.</p>

<p>The only absolute counters to Alakazam are Underused or Borderline Pokemon, which is not terribly helpful but some are worth mentioning. Spiritomb is just about the best Alakazam counter possible, immune to Focus Blast and Psychic and able to use STAB Sucker Punch, Shadow Sneak, and Pursuit. In a similar vein, Cresselia resists Focus Blast and Psychic and has such titanic defensive stats that even Shadow Ball does little to it. However, it can be crippled by Encore or Taunt and can do little back to Alakazam.</p> (unneeded)

I didn't too a whole lot of editing. It was a little wordy in places, but not too much so. It's definitely not as bad as the pre-concision days.

I also love love love the Overview. To me, as long as the Overview isn't 3 paragraphs long, it's fine.

GP 1/2

 

[bugmaniacbob]

OK I'm collectively stamping the checks made by Eraddd and Echo. as GP check 2 since apparently we can do that now

I think this means that this is ready for upload unless a mod says otherwise.

 

[Rising_Dusk]

I only just noticed this now that it's marked as done:

I'd particularly to Rising_Dusk for adding this to the GP queue without requesting concision

I love your work, but your analyses are too fucking long and they make even me not want to read them. That is all. ;)

I think this means that this is ready for upload unless a mod says otherwise.

I guess I can do this.

EDIT:
All done. I cut down a lot of verbosity from some sections and fixed a lot of areas where you were unnecessarily redundant. Regardless, it's now at a length that I am happy with and still has all of the necessary information. Speaking of necessary information, I added a few sentences here and there where useful. Good job on the whole!