Alakazam (Full Revamp)+

Bourbon

http://www.smogon.com/dp/pokemon/alakazam

[SET]
name: Trick Specs
move 1: Psychic
move 2: Focus Blast
move 3: Signal Beam
move 4: Trick / Hidden Power Fire
item: Choice Specs
ability: Synchronize
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 6 SpD / 252 Spe


[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Alakazam's signature Trick Specs set is the most effective way to abuse his amazing Speed and high Special Attack. Choice Specs boosted Psychic coming off of base 135 Special Attack is nothing to scoff at, dealing massive damage to anything that doesn't resist it. Focus Blast helps with Dark and Steel-type Pokemon, as well as Blissey. However, Calm Blissey will never be 2HKOed by Focus Blast, but it stills dealt over 40% to most Blissey, allowing you to dispatch a weakened one. Signal Beam hits both Dark and Psychic- types very hard, allowing Alakazam to kill Celebi, Weavile, Starmie, Azelf and more in just one hit, while Cressilia and Tyranitar are easily 2HKOed. Signal Beam is a nice move that will hit almost any Psychic resist, dealing good damage. Hidden Power Fire can be used to nail Scizor switch-ins, as well as hitting Metagross, Bronzong and Jirachi. </p>

<p>If you need a powerful special sweeper, Alakazam is worth consideration. With it's impressive coverage and access to Trick, Alakazam can be incredibly difficult to switch into. Even though it lacks the defenses to switch in safely, Alakazam is a very dangerous Pokemon if you have keen prediction skills. </p>

[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Psychic
move 2: Hidden Power Ice / Hidden Power Electric
move 3: Focus Blast / Signal Beam
move 4: Trick
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Synchronize
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 6 SpD / 252 Spe


[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With a Choice Scarf equipped, Alakazam easily outruns almost everything in the game. Using his high Special Attack stat and huge Speed stat, you can prevent many dangerous Pokemon from sweeping your team, even if you do not have a proper solution for them. Alakazam can outrun Gyarados and Tyranitar after two Dragon Dances, and Salamence after one; acting as an effective check against each of them. All of them are quickly OHKOed by Alakazam if they opt to stay in: Salamence and Gyarados by their respective Hidden Powers, and Tyranitar by Focus Blast. Psychic allows Alakazam a STAB attack, which helps kill things that are not weak to any other moves. It also kills Gengar in one hit who may foolishly attempt to outrun and OHKO Alakazam if it is holding a Choice Scarf itself. Note that if Tyranitar is not a problem, you can run both Hidden Power Ice and Shock Wave to handle both Salamence and Gyarados with the same set. You can also run Signal Beam for good coverage alongside Psychic.</p>

<p>Timid is the recommended nature to outrun Timid Choice Scarf Gengar. Also, maximum Speed Adamant Gyarados will outrun you if it gets up a second Dragon Dance. However, if the drop in power is concerning, a Modest nature is still viable.</p>

[SET]
name: Substitute + Encore
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Encore
move 3: Psychic
move 4: Signal Beam
item: Leftovers
nature: Timid
evs: 24 HP / 252 SpA / 16 SpD / 216 Spe


[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Encore is an interesting move and can be used to allow Alakazam to effectively set up a Substitute. This can also work effectively as a lead allowing you to Encore Stealth Rock or another support move, if you opt to use this as a lead Inner Focus is the recommended ability for the immunity to flinches.</p>

<p>Alakazam can set up a Substitute on status users and then Encore them the next turn. The usefulness does not stop there. If you've got good prediction, Alakazam can ruin many Pokemon who attempt to set up. Sweepers with Calm Mind like Suicune and Jirachi can be Encored on Calm Mind and then threatened with a physical attacker. Substitute users, like Gengar, Breloom, and Magnezone can be forced to keep Substituting rendering them useless against Alakazam. Baton Pass chains can also be crippled by Encore.</p>

<p>Psychic is for obvious STAB and Signal Beam is used on this set because of its ability to hit both Psychic and Dark-type Pokemon. Substitute protects you from Weavile, and you can kill it off if it has taken some prior damage first. Psychics like Starmie, Azelf and Celebi can be revenge killed by Signal Beam as well. The EVs allow you to make four Substitutes without dying, and your Leftovers will restore enough health to make another Substitute in just four turns. Special Attack is maxed, and the Speed EVs and nature provided generate 363 Speed. The surplus is put into Special Defense. </p>

[SET]
name: Dual Screen
move 1: Reflect
move 2: Light Screen
move 3: Encore / Taunt
move 4: Psychic
item: Light Clay
nature: Timid
ability: Inner Focus
evs: 252 HP / 40 SpD / 216 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Alakazam is the fastest user of the Dual Screen strategy in standard play (and only slower then Deoxys-S at this strategy). Because of his high Speed stat, he can set them up on the first turn, likely before the foe can attack. This can open up endless set-up potential for your sweepers waiting in the wings.</p>

<p>Alakazam has clear advantages over other Dual Screen leads such as Azelf. First off, it has Inner Focus to get the jump on Fake Out leads such as Infernape, Weavile, and Ambipom. Secondly, it outspeeds Azelf and possesses the unique move Encore. With it you can make a suicide lead switch out or force them to repeat setting up their Stealth Rock. Psychic can be used in the last slot to get rid of Gengar and not waste Alakazam's impressive Special Attack. However, Counter is great for netting a surprise kill after a Reflect goes up. </p>

<p>Light Clay is the preferred option, but Focus Sash is viable to ensure both screens go up safely. Other options are Taunt over Encore. Both can work quite well. 216 EVs in Speed lets you outrun Azelf not holding a Choice Scarf, maximum HP to better survive attacks, and with 40 EVs in SpD you have a decent chance of surviving Timid Gengar's Shadow Ball. For an idea of it's bulk, after a Reflect Alakazam survives a Choice Band Tyranitar's Pursuit if it doesn't switch, as well as a Weavile's Night Slash. </p>

[SET]
name: Substitute + Calm Mind
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Calm Mind
move 3: Focus Blast / Signal Beam
move 4: Psychic
item: Leftovers
nature: Timid
evs: 152 HP / 176 SpD / 180 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
<p> Alakazam doesn't have access to Nasty Plot like some of his peers, but Calm Mind is usually enough to do the trick. Alakazam can easily set up on Flamethrower/Toxic Blissey, Celebi, Cresselia, and more. Substitute blocks status, while Calm Mind boosts Alakazam's offense and defense. Eventually your Substitutes will be nearly unbreakable by special attacks and you can start sweeping. Psychic and Focus Blast is walled by Psychics, while Psychic and Signal Beam is walled by Steels. </p>

<p> With the given Special Defense EVs, your Substitute will survive a Grass Knot from Celebi or an Ice Beam from Blissey or Cressilia over 95% of the time. This allows you to put up a sub without fear of it being broken before you can Calm Mind a few times. Leftovers is generally the item of choice, but a Salac Berry can also be used, so you outrun everything when you've finished setting up. </p>


[SET]
name: Offensive Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Psychic
move 3: Focus Blast
move 4: Signal Beam
item: Life Orb
ability: Synchronize
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Alakazam may not have access to Nasty Plot like its fellow Psychic-type Azelf, but it boasts the advantages of more Speed and Special Attack and access to the powerful Focus Blast. A single Calm Mind can give Alakazam the extra power it needs to sweep.</p>

<p> The boost provided from Calm Mind and a Life Orb is 1.95x, giving Alakazam over 700 Special Attack after a single boost. When this immense power is paired with Alakazam's high Speed, it is very difficult to take down. Simply bring Alakazam in on something it can scare off, Calm Mind on the switch, and start bringing the pain. </p>

<p>Even with the Life Orb and a Calm Mind boost, Alakazam can only muster 59% to Blissey with Focus Blast. You'll have to either remove it, or weaken it beforehand if you want to have any chance at getting a sweep.</p>

[SET]
name: Starter
move 1: Counter
move 2: Taunt
move 3: Psychic
move 4: Knock Off
item: Focus Sash
ability: Inner Focus
nature: Hasty
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set can counter common offensive leads such as Weavile, Metagross, and Tyranitar because Focus Sash allows you to never be OHKOed, meaning Alakazam can Counter a hit for an easy KO. If Alakazam is facing Tyranitar, it can Counter Pursuit, but thanks to Sand Stream Alakazam will die afterwards. With Inner Focus, this strategy works really well against Fake Out Ambipom and Hitmontop. Taunt stops other leads setting up Stealth Rock or trying to hit Alakazam with status, and also forces them to attack, meaning you can Counter the likes of Bronzong and Swampert if they are bold enough to stay in. Knock Off is listed so Alakazam can rob the likes of Blissey of their Leftovers. After a successful Counter, Alakazam is unlikely to get another chance to come in safely (due to entry hazards, like Spikes and Stealth Rock, and sandstorm), so Knock Off lets it do something useful before dying.</p>

[Other Options]

<p>Alakazam gets Knock Off, Thunder Wave, Snatch, Recover, Recycle and more. Due to his frailty, they are usually better used on another Pokemon, unless you have a very specific purpose in mind. As far as offensive options, Alakazam gets a few notable moves. Charge Beam and Shock Wave are his only Electric attacks. Charge Beam can be used over Calm Mind on the offensive set, but generally Calm Mind is the superior choice. Grass Knot and Energy Ball are his options for Grass attack. Shadow Ball hits Ghosts and Psychics hard, but generally Signal Beam is recommended for hitting Psychics, as it allows you to hit Dark types without relying on Focus Blast. Hidden Power Fighting can be considered if you are worried about the accuracy of Focus Blast; however, the damage output will be disappointing against Tyranitar and Heatran.</p>

<p>Ignore any physical attacks in Alakazam's movepool. Even though he gets some nifty moves like the elemental punches, his attack is so low that it'd be a waste of your time to try using it, even with significant EV investment.</p>

[EVs]

<p> On offensive sets, always run Timid with maximum Speed and Special Attack. On some of the others, you may run 363 or 353 Speed, depending on how much HP you would like. Although tempting, a Modest nature isn't generally your best choice, as there are a great many Pokemon sitting between 339 and 372 that Alakazam can outrun and hit hard with a Timid nature.</p>

<p>Alakazam can also make use of Substitute and Calm Mind to aid in setting up. With an EV spread of 152 HP / 176 SpD / 180 Spe, Alakazam's Substitute will be unbreakable by a Celebi's Grass Knot or an Ice Beam from Blissey or Cresselia over 95% of the time.</p>

[Opinion]

<p>Alakazam is among the fastest and most powerful Pokemon in the game, sporting the highest Special Attack (tied with Porygon-Z) and one of the highest Speed stats of Pokemon allowed in standard play. Combined with its enormous attacking movepool it can ravage through teams if given the chance. Additionally, Alakazam possesses a considerable support movepool, with moves such as Encore complementing its high Speed and Calm Mind boosting its already excellent Special Attack.</p>

<p>Other than that, the game has not been kind to him. Unfortunately, Alakazam has terrible defenses and HP, leaving it prone to being heavily damaged by even relatively weak attacks. Additionally, Alakazam lost the elemental punches this generation, and Focus Blast just isn't enough to cover for it.</p>

<p>All things considering, Alakazam has its flaws but something with 120 base Speed and 135 base Special Attack shouldn't ever be underestimated</p>

[Counters]

<p>Blissey is usually a good counter to Alakazam, soaking up even Focus Blast, but tread carefully as Trick and Encore can be an annoyance. Snorlax is similar, and even has Pursuit, but it can be 2HKOed by a Choice Specs Focus Blast. Heatran similarly can switch into anything but Focus Blast, which will not OHKO if Heatran invests in HP and Special Defense or it Alakazam is without Choice Specs.</p>

<p>Steel-types like Bronzong, Scizor, Jirachi and Metagross are excellent Alakazam counters. Hidden Power Fire will wear you down quickly, but most Alakazam do not carry this attack. Other Psychic types are decent choices, as they resist both Psychic and Focus Blast, but if you switch into a Signal Beam it could hurt quite a bit. Spiritomb isn't weak to any of Alakazam's attacks, and has Sucker Punch and Pursuit to work with. </p>

<p>Alakazam is easily revenge killed, because anything he cannot kill in one hit will severely wound him. If Weavile or Tyranitar switch into a Choiced Psychic, and both can survive any move but Focus Blast, Alakazam is as good as gone as Pursuit will OHKO. Scizor can switch in on just about anything besides Hidden Power Fire and OHKO Alakazam with either Bullet Punch or Pursuit. Dugtrio can easily trap Alakazam and OHKO with Sucker Punch.</p>

<p>Thunder Wave will effectively ruined Alakazam as it relies on its high speed to be effective.</p>
 
Uh, well I posted this in the analysis workshop not thinking there'd be a full revamp for this guy. Here's my set:

[SET]
name: Dual Screen
move 1: Reflect
move 2: Light Screen
move 3: Encore
move 4: Counter / Psychic
item: Light Clay
nature: Timid
ability: Inner Focus
evs: 252 HP / 216 Spe / 42 SpD

[SET COMMENTS]

<p> Now that Deoxys-S is Uber once more, our favorite 1st Gen. Psychic has a better chance to shine. Alakazam is an extremely fast Pokemon, and takes advantage of this by setting up a screen hopefully before the foe can attack. This can open up endless sweeping potential for Pokemon waiting in the wings. </p>

<p> This Psychic has clear advantages over fellow Dual Screen leads such as Azelf. First off, it has Inner Focus to get the jump on Fake Out leads. Secondly, it outspeeds Azelf and possesses the unique move Encore. With it you can make a suicide lead switch out or force them to repeat setting up their rocks. Psychic can be used in the last slot to get the jump on Gengar and not waste Alakazam's godly special attack. However, Counter is great for netting a surprise kill after a Reflect goes up. </p>

<p> Light Clay is the preferred option, but Focus Sash is viable with Counter and a change in EVs. Other options are Taunt over Encore, and Knock Off in the last slot. Both can work quite well. 216 EVs in speed lets you outpace Azelf that lack a Choice Scarf, max Hit Points to better survive attacks, and with 42 EVs in SpD you have a good chance of surviving Timid ScarfGar's Shadow Ball. For an idea of it's bulk, after a Reflect Alakazam survives a CB Tyranitar's Pursuit if it doesn't switch, and a Weavile's Night Slash. </p>

Definately shows what it can do better than Azelf!
 
Sure, I will use that. You don't mind if I "professionalize" it a bit, like changing "rocks" to Stealth Rocks, and whatnot?
 
Change in bold.

<p> Signal Beam is used on this set because of its ability to hit both Psychic- and Dark-type Pokemon. Substitute protects you from Weavile, and you can kill it off if it has taken some prior damage first. Psychics like Starmie, Azelf and Celebi can be revenge killed by Signal Beam as well. The EVs allow you to make four Substitutes without dying, and your Leftovers will restore enough health to make another Substitute in just four turns. You have 363 Speed, and maximum Special Attack. The surplus is put into Special Defense. </p>
Click to expand...

Ho hum.
 
MetaNite said:
I don't mind at all. It has only be edited twice, so feel free to make it a third time.
Click to expand...

I didn't change a lot, just simplified some of the comments. It was a pretty good write-up already. Also making the change suggested by Metric. (lol)

Anyways... any opinions on how the sets should be arranged? I haven't gotten a chance to test the Sub Encore one in Platinum yet, but in D/P it was simply amazing. Choice Specs seems to work OK, and I haven't tried Scarf... I just put it under Specs to keep it neat and clean.

I am going to put more "Blissey beating" gimmicks under Sub Encore. Some ideas I have are Sub/Calm Mind (for beating seismic tossless blissey, like wishbliss) Taunt/Recover (for beating seismic toss blissey... not unlike taunt heatran) and some other weird sets.
 
I'm not really fond of all the "now" references/comparisons to the past ("Trick Specs still works great"). It's not really relevant to strategy. Am I the only one who feels like that?
 
Mekkah said:
I'm not really fond of all the "now" references/comparisons to the past ("Trick Specs still works great"). It's not really relevant to strategy. Am I the only one who feels like that?
Click to expand...
I kind of feel the same way. As well as people talking about 4th gen additions when comparing to Adv, I'd rather have none of that to be honest.
 
Stellar said:
Has the Dual Screen set actually been tested? I'm not really for adding things to the analyses before they have. I just really don't see how Alakazam can effectively use Dual Screen with 55/45/85 defenses. For comparison, Deoxys-e had 50/90/90 to work with and had much, much higher Speed. Azelf at least has 75/70/70 to work with. Alakazam isn't outspeeding anything noteworthy that Azelf doesn't already.

I really just don't see the merit of this set when Azelf does it completely better. Encore really isn't the selling point on this set, because there are other Alakazam sets that make better use of Encore.
Click to expand...

I've tested it a lot. Encore works quite well against Stealth Rock leads.

Alakazam takes special hits pretty well, isn't screwed by Weaviles leads with Fake Out either. That's actually quite a big advantage. It can outspeed Ampibom, and Azelf, not having to worry about a speed tie, same with Starmie. And it's not meant to last very long, just enough to set up its screens and then die... that may actually be beneficial so that way you don't have to switch. It's not like Azelf is going to live very long either.

I usually use Knock Off in the last slot, and that works great. Knocking off Heatran's or Gengar's Scarf early on is quite helpful. (I was told that Counter/Psychic would be better there)
 
Overall, I think all Alakazam needs is the addition of Signal Beam, and maybe the DS lead set, but maybe even that is Other Options material. Azelf has better durability, SR, U-turn and Explosion to abuse. Alakazam has...5 more Spd (handy for Taunting other Azelfs I guess), Recover (bleh) and Inner Focus. I suppose Encore has its merits, but it also involves Stealth Rock being set by the opponent, while the whole point of a suicide lead is to prevent that from happening.
 
Stellar, I have tested the Dual Screens set as well and I can attest to its effectiveness. Azelf may have better defenses than Alakazam but neither of them are great. Alakazam can survive the same attacks that Azelf can after setting up a screeen - things like Gengar Shadow Ball and Tyranitar Pursuit.

What sets Alakazam apart from Azelf is Encore. This move single handedly screws over almost every other lead. It forces Stealth Rock leads to repeat Stealth Rock, set up leads to repeat Dragon Dance or whatever, and X-Scissor-less Ninjask to repeat Substitute, among many other things. The fact that Alakazam can outspeed so many other pokemon and Encore their last move provides it more than enough turns to set up its screens - it gets one turn as the opposing pokemon fruitlessly repeats their last used move and another one as the opposing pokemon switches. I think this is such a defining advantage that Alakazam really does deserve to have a Dual Screen set in its analysis.

Not to mention dual screen Alakazam beats almost all opposing lead Azelfs, so even if Dual Screen Azelf became standard Alakazam could still cripple it and acheive the same result.

LR.

EDIT: What skiddle said =P.
 
Ok, I'm just going to concede here. They both have their advantages it seems.

Then with all the Taunt / Encore confusion going on right now it is probably better to reorganize your set. Taunt should at least be a main option alongside Encore instead of just mentioning it in set comments for its ability to stop Stealth Rock altogether instead of allowing the opponent to set it up.

One problem with your "force Dragon Dance leads to repeat Dragon Dance" is the fact that they are slower than you to begin with. If you are faced with Taunt + Dragon Dance Gyarados, they Dragon Dance on the first turn, outspeed you, and then Taunt on the next before you can Encore the Dragon Dance. So that isn't the best of examples. Just don't include something like that in the set comments and you should be fine.

Just list the set as
- Reflect
- Light Screen
- Encore / Taunt
- Psychic / Counter

I think that if you include Knock Off, it will just conflict with the real aim of the set. You don't want to spend your turn Knocking Off Heatran or Gengar Scarf and taking massive damage when you could be better spending those turns by setting up Light Screen. A description of Knock Off's use isn't even present in the current set comments. If you are going to use it, at least explain it properly.

And I deleted my posts to help unclutter the thread with the needless arguing.
 
[SET]
name: Sub + Calm Mind
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Calm Mind
move 3: Focus Blast / Signal Beam
move 4: Psychic
item: Leftovers
nature: Timid
evs: 88 HP / 204 SpD / 216 Spe


[SET COMMENTS]

<p> Alakazam doesn't have access to Nasty Plot like some of his peers, but Calm Mind is usually enough to do the trick. Alakazam can easily set up on Flamethrower/Toxic Blissey, Celebi, Cressilia, and more. Substitute blocks status, while Calm Mind boosts Alakazam's offense and defense. Eventually your substitutes will be nearly unbreakable by special attacks, and you can start sweeping. Psychic and Focus Blast is walled by Psychics, while Psychic and Signal Beam is walled by Steels. </p>

<p> With the given Special Defense EVs, your Substitute will survive a Grass Knot from Celebi or an Ice Beam from Blissey or Cressilia over 90% of the time. This allows you to put up a sub without fear of it being broken before you can Calm Mind a few times. Leftovers is generally the item of choice, but a Salac Berry can also be used, so you outrun everything when you've finished setting up. </p>

[SET]
name: Offensive Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Psychic
move 3: Focus Blast
move 4: Signal Beam
item: Life Orb
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p> The boost provided from Calm Mind and a Life Orb is 1.95x, giving Alakazam over 700 Special Attack after a single boost. When this immense power is paired with Alakazam's high speed, it is very difficult to take down. Simply bring Alakazam in on something it can scare off, Calm Mind on the switch, and start bringing the pain. </p>

<p> Even with the Life Orb and a Calm Mind boost, Alakazam can only muster 59% to Blissey with Focus Blast. For this reason, you could put Taunt over Signal Beam. This prevents your opponent from phazing or statusing you, but it hurts the type coverage a bit. </p>

EDIT: Removed set three, it kind of sucked.
 
I'm gonna be honest and say that Alakazam shouldn't be wasting it's potential trying to beat Blissey, it just seems pointless when you can kill it with another pokemon and not waste offensive options for things like Taunt. It's probably just me, but the 3rd set seems wierd. I find it really wierd also that Thunder Wave is never in any set. It cripples a good amount of Switch-ins to Alakazam like Ttar, Weavile, and Scarftran. I don't know but maybe it deserves a mention on the 3rd set to make Alakazam a bit of a hard-hitting annoyer.

I like the first set, and the second one is ok, but sadly with the new platinum additions (i'm looking at you scizor) Alakazam can't sweep like it used to. It's better off running support sets imo, and you've done a good job with that in the OP.
 
OK, after testing the sets, I added the Calm Mind ones. Scizor is a huge pain when trying to get Alakazam to sweep, but what can you do? If only there was a special fire type priority move... :P
 
I actually ran a modest nature instead of timid on my scarfzam set with massive success. That extra boost really came in handy many times.
 
Yeah, the only reason I put Timid is to outrun a 2 DD Gyarados... but if you're stupid enough to let it get 2 DDs safely, you deserve to lose anyways. I'll put Modest as an option, even though it's slower than Scarfgar.
 
skiddle said:
http://www.smogon.com/dp/pokemon/alakazam

ATTENTION: If you have any good support sets for Alakazam (knock off, disable, etc etc) I would like to hear about them.

Well, here we go, with Alakazam. Unfortunately, Alakazam gained few notable moves from the move tutors, save Signal Beam. Deoxys-S removal from the metagame makes Alakazam the fastest psychic once more, which is quite helpful. Alakazam's main gimmick, Trick, was given away to almost every Psychic in the game, but it's still as devastating as ever.

Proposed changes:

-Signal Beam over Shadow Ball on most special attacking sets. Also put over Hidden Power Bug on my Sub Encore set.

-Dual Screen lead. Alakazam possesses higher speed than Azelf, allowing it to Taunt Azelf before the Stealth Rocks can be set up. From here, one or both screens can be set up.

-Add a Sub CM set to beat pokemon like Celebi and Flamethrower/Toxic Blissey easier. Thanks to Signal Beam it can now get pretty good coverage with just two moves.

-Remove all mentions of Garchomp and Deoxys-S from analysis. Emphasize Scizor as a counter to Alakazam.

Shifting the mood of the analysis: Many of Alakzam's little gimmicks have been given away to other Pokemon. Tricking a choice item, special sweeping, etc etc are usually done better by something else (mainly Azelf and Gengar). Therefore, I think the analysis should emphasize things that Alakazam's competition cannot do. Using a variety of support moves such as Knock Off, Disable, Encore, and more, Alakazam can do some pretty crazy things that none of the other special sweepers can.

Furthermore, Alakazam is now the fastest psychic pokemon once more, so it's blistering speed should be emphasized and taken advantage of.

[SET]
name: Trick Specs
move 1: Psychic
move 2: Focus Blast
move 3: Signal Beam
move 4: Trick / Hidden Power Fire
item: Choice Specs
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 6 SpD / 252 Spe


[SET COMMENTS]

<p> Alakazam's signature Trick Specs set is the most effective way to abuse his blistering Speed<no comma> and high Special Attack. While the surprise of Trick is lessened, it is still an effective way of crippling a counter. Choice Specs boosted Psychic coming off of base 135 Special Attack is nothing to scoff at, dealing massive damage to most switch-ins. Focus Blast helps with Dark- and Steel-type Pokemon, as well as Blissey. Blissey's new EV spread means that you'll never 2HKO with Focus Blast, but it still deals over 40%, allowing you to dispatch a weakened Blissey. Signal Beam hits both Dark- and Psychic-types very hard, allowing Alakazam to kill Celebi, Weavile, Starmie, Azelf, and more in just one hit, while Cressilia and Tyranitar are easily 2HKOed. Signal Beam is a nice move that will hit almost any Psychic resist, dealing good damage. Hidden Power Fire can be used to nail Scizor switch-ins, as well as hitting Metagross, Bronzong and Jirachi. </p>

<p> If you need a powerful special sweeper, Alakazam is worth consideration. With the addition of Signal Beam, it now gets superb type coverage, and Trick makes it even harder to deal with. Note how it also has higher Speed and Special Attack than Azelf or Gengar. Even though it lacks the defenses to switch in safely, Alakazam is a very dangerous Pokemon if you have keen prediction skills. </p>

[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Psychic
move 2: Hidden Power Ice / Hidden Power Electric
move 3: Focus Blast / Signal Beam
move 4: Trick
item: Choice Scarf
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 6 SpD / 252 Spe


[SET COMMENTS]

<p> With a Choice Scarf equipped, Alakazam easily outruns everything in the game. Using his high Special Attack stat and <omitted> huge Speed stat, you can prevent many dangerous Pokemon from sweeping your team, even if you do not have a proper solution for them. Alakazam can outrun Gyarados and Tyranitar after two Dragon Dances, and Salamence after one. All of them are quickly OHKOed by Alakazam if they stay in: Salamence and Gyarados by their respective Hidden Powers, and Tyranitar by Focus Blast. Psychic allows Alakazam a STAB attack, which helps kill things that are not weak to any other moves. It also kills Gengar in one swift hit. Note that if Tyranitar is not a problem, you can run both Hidden Power Ice and Shock Wave to handle Salamence and Gyarados. You can also run Signal Beam for good coverage with Psychic. </p>

<p> Timid is now recommended, as all Scarfed Gengar are also Timid, and you don't want to be outrun by them. Also, max Speed Adamant Gyarados will outrun you if it gets up a second Dragon Dance. Don't worry too much about the drop in power, as 369 Special Attack is still very high, and will still get the job done. </p>

[SET]
name: Sub + Encore
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Encore
move 3: Psychic
move 4: Signal Beam
item: Leftovers
nature: Timid
evs: 24 HP / 252 SpA / 16 SpD / 216 Spe


[SET COMMENTS]

<p> The Substitute Encore set got a fairly big boost in Platinum thanks to the addition of Signal Beam. Not only is it more powerful than Hidden Power Bug, but it allows for maximum IVs and has a chance of confusion. The core strategy is still the same as before: use Substitute to scout your opponent, and Encore their move if they do not attack. </p>

<p> This set is especially effective at shutting down Blissey. When Blissey comes in to wall you, put up a Substitute in its face. It probably tried to Thunder Wave you. Now you can Encore the Blissey, and it will be stuck using an ineffective move for 4-8 turns. This is absolutely lethal: your opponent will either have to let Blissey die, or switch out and have their next Pokemon sustain a powerful Psychic. It's especially devastatingwhen used with plenty of residual damage, like Stealth Rock and Spikes. </p>

<p> The usefulness does not stop there. If you've got good prediction, Alakazam can mess up all sorts of Pokemon. Sweepers with Calm Mind like Suicune and Jirachi can be Encored<no comma> and then threatened with a physical attacker. Substitute users, like Gengar, Breloom, and Magnezone can be forced to keep Substituting until they die. Baton Pass chains can be messed up by Encoring almost anything. The possibilities are endless. Alakazam's ability to be a dangerous support Pokemon should not be overlooked. </p>

<p> Signal Beam is used on this set because of its ability to hit both Psychic- and Dark-type Pokemon. Substitute protects you from Weavile, and you can kill it off if it has taken some prior damage first. Psychics like Starmie, Azelf, and Celebi can be revenge killed by Signal Beam as well. The EVs allow you to make four Substitutes without dying, and your Leftovers will restore enough health to make another Substitute in just four turns. Special Attack is maxed, and the Speed EVs and nature provided generate 363 Speed.. The surplus is put into Special Defense. </p>

[SET]
name: Dual Screen
move 1: Reflect
move 2: Light Screen
move 3: Encore / Taunt
move 4: Psychic / Counter
item: Light Clay
nature: Timid
ability: Inner Focus
evs: 252 HP / 40 SpD / 216 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p> Now that Deoxys-S is banned from standard play, Alakazam is the fastest user of the Dual Screen strategy. Because of his high Speed stat, he can set them up on the first turn, likely before the foe can attack. This can open up endless set-up potential for your sweepers waiting in the wings. </p>

<p> Alakazam has clear advantages over other Dual Screen leads such as Azelf. First off, it has Inner Focus to get the jump on Fake Out leads. Secondly, it outspeeds Azelf and possesses the unique move Encore. With it you can make a suicide lead switch out or force them to repeat setting up their Stealth Rocks. Psychic can be used in the last slot to get rid of Gengar and not waste Alakazam's impressive Special Attack. However, Counter is great for netting a surprise kill after a Reflect goes up. </p>

<p> Light Clay is the preferred option, but Focus Sash is viable with Counter and a Hasty nature. Other options are Taunt over Encore, and Knock Off in the last slot. Both can work quite well. 216 EVs in Speed lets you outpace Azelf that lack a Choice Scarf, max Hit Points to better survive attacks, and with 40 EVs in SpD you have a good chance of surviving Timid ScarfGar's Shadow Ball. For an idea of its bulk, after a Reflect Alakazam survives a CB Tyranitar's Pursuit if it doesn't switch, as well as a Weavile's Night Slash. </p>

[SET]
name: Sub + Calm Mind
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Calm Mind
move 3: Focus Blast / Signal Beam
move 4: Psychic
item: Leftovers
nature: Timid
evs: 152 HP / 176 SpD / 180 Spe


[SET COMMENTS]

<p> Alakazam doesn't have access to Nasty Plot like some of his peers, but Calm Mind is usually enough to do the trick. Alakazam can easily set up on Flamethrower/Toxic Blissey, Celebi, Cresselia, and more. Substitute blocks status, while Calm Mind boosts Alakazam's offense and defense. Eventually your Substitutes will be nearly unbreakable by special attacks<no comma> and you can start sweeping. Psychic and Focus Blast is walled by Psychics, while Psychic and Signal Beam is walled by Steels. </p>

<p> With the given Special Defense EVs, your Substitute will survive a Grass Knot from Celebi or an Ice Beam from Blissey or Cressilia over 95% of the time. This allows you to put up a sub without fear of it being broken before you can Calm Mind a few times. Leftovers is generally the item of choice, but a Salac Berry can also be used, so you outrun everything when you've finished setting up. </p>

[SET]
name: Offensive Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Psychic
move 3: Focus Blast
move 4: Signal Beam
item: Life Orb
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p> The boost provided from Calm Mind and a Life Orb is 1.95x, giving Alakazam over 700 Special Attack after a single boost. When this immense power is paired with Alakazam's high Speed, it is very difficult to take down. Simply bring Alakazam in on something it can scare off, Calm Mind on the switch, and start bringing the pain. </p>

<p> Even with the Life Orb and a Calm Mind boost, Alakazam can only muster 59% to Blissey with Focus Blast. For this reason, you could put Taunt over Signal Beam. This prevents your opponent from phazing or statusing you, but it hurts the type coverage a bit. </p>

[OTHER OPTIONS]

<p> Alakazam gets Knock Off, Disable, Thunder Wave, Snatch, Skill Swap, Role Play, Recover, Recycle, and more. Due to his frailty, they are usually better used on another Pokemon, unless you have a very specific purpose in mind. As far as offensive options, Alakazam gets a few notable moves. Charge Beam and Shock Wave are his only Electric attacks. Charge Beam can OHKO a Gyarados, has a good chance at nabbing a Special Attack boost. It can be used over Calm Mind on the offensive set. Grass Knot and Energy Ball are his options for Grass attacks. Shadow Ball hits Ghosts and Psychics hard, but generally Signal Beam is recommended for hitting Psychics, as it allows you to hit Dark types without relying on Focus Blast. Hidden Power can be used to enhance type coverage on many of the sets. </p>

<p> Ignore any physical attacks in Alakazam's movepool. Even though he gets some nifty moves like the elemental punches<no comma> and DynamicPunch, his Attack is so low that it'd be a waste of your time to try using it, even with significant EV investment. </p>

[EVs]

<p> On offensive sets, always run Timid with maximum Speed and Special Attack. On some of the others, you may run 363 or 353 speed, depending on how much HP you would like. Although tempting, never run a Modest nature, as there are a great many Pokemon sitting between 339 and 372 that Alakazam can outrun and hit hard with a Timid nature. </p>

[OPINION]

<p> With Deoxys-S removed from the OU metagame, Alakazam is the fastest Psychic-type once more, and he also boasts the highest Special Attack. Other than that, the game has not been kind to him. Alakazam lost the elemental punches this generation, and Focus Blast just isn't enough to cover for it. The move Trick, once reasonably exclusive, has been given to almost every Psychic-type in the game, meaning Alakazam isn't really special using it. Weavile, Scizor, and Shaymin-S are major problems for Alakazam, halting most attempts at a sweep. </p>

<p> On the plus side, Alakazam hits very hard, 2HKOing every pokemon in OU except for Blissey with relative ease. If your Alakazam counters aren't perfectly healthy, he will finish them off in two quick hits. Alakazam is the perfect example of a "glass cannon". Don't waste time with it; every turn Alakazam is that much closer to killing you. </p>

[COUNTERS]

<p> Blissey is usually a good counter to Alakazam, soaking up even Focus Blast, but tread carefully, as almost every set has some method of messing you up. Snorlax is similar, but has Pursuit, and can be 2HKOed by Focus Blast. </p>

<p> Steel-types like Bronzong, Scizor, Jirachi, and Metagross are excellent Alakazam counters. Hidden Power Fire will wear you down quickly, but most Alakazam do not carry this attack. Other Psychic-types are decent choices, as they resist both Psychic and Focus Blast, but if you switch into a Signal Beam it could hurt quite a bit. Spiritomb isn't weak to any of Alakazam's attacks, and has Sucker Punch and Pursuit to work with. </p>

<p> Alakazam is easily revenge killed, because anything he cannot fell in one hit will severely wound him. Weavile and Tyranitar can corner Alakazam and OHKO regardless of if he switches or not. Dugtrio can trap and kill Alakazam, but watch out when using Sucker Punch, as Alakazam might not be choiced and set up a Substitute in your face. Using Earthquake is risking a speed tie. Basically, you'll often find yourself taking big hits from Alakazam, but dealing lethal damage back to it. If you keep up the pressure it won't last long. </p>
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would synchronize + toxic orb work? then when they switch out their poisoned pokemon you can trick the toxic orb to them, and then use a cleric to unpoison zammy. probably not too feasible though.
 
I would definitely keep taunt in the discussion because that way, you can completely screw over roserade leads and other leads that try to status you. With encore, you end up losing your screens since you wind up asleep.
 
Psychic and Focus Blast is walled by Psychics, while Psychic and Signal Beam is walled by Steels. </p>
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Psychic + Fighting is also walled by Spiritomb (entirely really) and I guess Sableye lol.
 
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