Plague von Karma
Banned deucer.
Taken over from Sceptross 18th August 2020, approved by xJoelituh.
Sceptross's unfinished analysis can be found here, for reference.
[OVERVIEW]
In a generation where Psychic-type attacks are only resisted by the same type, and because its only weakness may as well not exist, it's not surprising that Alakazam is an incredible threat in RBY OU. Alakazam is most commonly seen in the lead slot due to possessing excellent Speed and access to Thunder Wave; it outspeeds every Pokemon that has access to a sleep move, allowing it to immediately cripple them with paralysis. It also has the strongest Psychic in OU by virtue of its excellent Special and as such can heavily pressure its most common checks. This Special stat also makes it a decent sponge for opposing moves like Psychic, though its HP limits this slightly. It is also good at absorbing sleep, since it resists Exeggutor's Psychic. Unlike Starmie, Alakazam doesn't have a weakness to Thunderbolt, which can come in handy for absorbing sleep from the likes of Gengar and Lapras. Alakazam can also prove to be very effective outside the lead slot, maintaining excellent utility against various threats and potentially turning into a dangerous sweeper if its most common checks have been removed. However, it can be difficult to consistently keep Alakazam safe from paralysis; if paralyzed, Alakazam often finds its low Defense being exploited by strong physical attackers such as Snorlax, Rhydon, and Tauros. It's also very reliant on its Psychic, which means it is difficult to break past Chansey. Overall, Alakazam is a regular presence in RBY OU and one of the best Psychic-types available, but its extreme vulnerability to strong physical attacks and paralysis keeps it firmly below the top of the pyramid.
[SET]
name: Standard
move 1: Psychic
move 2: Seismic Toss / Reflect
move 3: Thunder Wave
move 4: Recover
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Alakazam is one of the best leads in RBY OU. Since it's the fastest lead that regularly sees use, it's almost guaranteed to be able to immediately cripple something from the start of the game, be it through paralysis or serious damage with Psychic. This means Alakazam is great for pressuring opposing leads. Against other Alakazam, one generally wants to paralyze it and try to get a physical attacker like Snorlax in on a predicted Recover. However, be careful to not leave the field too damaged, as Exeggutor can have Double-Edge or Hyper Beam to pressure Alakazam. Generally, you don't want to switch out at less than 80% in order for Alakazam to avoid the 2HKO from Exeggutor's Double-Edge most of the time. Gengar leads generally switch out against Alakazam due to the threat of a 2HKO from Psychic as well as an OHKO with a critical hit. Starmie should generally be approached the same way as an opposing Alakazam. However, one must be wary of Chansey when using Thunder Wave early on; its extreme bulk turns it into a phenomenal sleep blocker when paralyzed. As a result, it becomes very difficult to put anything to sleep until the now-paralyzed Chansey is KOed.
A lead Alakazam's role, besides crippling the opposing lead, is mostly to absorb sleep. If used in this fashion, Alakazam should absolutely be running Seismic Toss. This allows Alakazam to hit Starmie and Exeggutor rather than wasting Psychic's PP. Lead Alakazam can also be used to absorb paralysis from those who propagate it, such as Chansey, Starmie, and other Alakazam. This especially goes for Chansey without Seismic Toss. It's also effective against Starmie without Surf or Psychic, the latter of which can force Alakazam out after a few Special drops. Alakazam also tends to attract physical attackers like Snorlax, Tauros, and Rhydon on a forced Recover turn. If you can correctly predict the switch, you might be able to sneak in a Thunder Wave or Psychic on them. Moreover, due to Alakazam being one of the few pure special attackers that can force Chansey out, it is also an efficient paralysis spreader that can be used as such throughout the course of the battle.
In some situations, you might still resort to using non-lead Alakazam as if it were in the lead slot to check or pressure opposing Pokemon such as Chansey and Starmie. It can also be used to function as a sweeper late-game. This strategy revolves around keeping Alakazam hidden, then attempting to clean up once its checks have been removed. Reflect can be used on sweeper Alakazam to give it a much-needed Defense boost, but it also means Alakazam will only have Psychic to attack with. In addition, Reflect Alakazam can still be taken care of through paralysis, critical hits from Tauros and Zapdos, and Explosion. Explosion is especially pressing if paralyzed, as even if Reflect Alakazam survives, it's still easily revenge killed by threats such as Tauros. However, Seismic Toss remains very usable in this context for beating Starmie and other Psychic-types more consistently.
When using Alakazam as a sweeper, the rest of the team should work on removing Alakazam's checks before it's revealed. These checks include special sponges such as Starmie, Alakazam, and Chansey. Pokemon that resist Psychic, such as Slowbro and Exeggutor, are also important to remove. For maintaining maximum sweeping potential, Alakazam should also try to avoid paralysis as much as possible, as its Speed is the reason it's able to compete with other late-game sweepers for a team slot. Ideally, Tauros should also be put in range of Psychic to avoid its high critical hit rate and Body Slam's paralysis chance. Fortunately, that can easily be accomplished through a Tauros mirror, a common scenario in RBY OU battles, since two Body Slams will leave the opponent's Tauros in said range.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Thunder Wave, Psychic, and Recover should never be dropped. Though the last move is somewhat flexible, Alakazam's movepool is very shallow, so it should generally stick to the options mentioned. Counter has some utility when forcing out threats after the opponent KOed one of your Pokemon with a hard-hitting Normal-type attack from high health, such as Explosion, Self-Destruct, or Hyper Beam. This can be used to force damage against whatever switches in or even outright KO it. It also has situational use in Alakazam mirrors, as countering Seismic Toss can leave the opposing Alakazam severely weakened.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Physical Attackers**: Strong physical attackers such as Tauros, Snorlax, and Rhydon can hit Alakazam through its weak Defense and KO it, especially if it's paralyzed. They should try to switch in on Recover, though, as Psychic will do a big chunk of damage to all of them. Snorlax deserves a special mention for early-game, as it's crippled way less by paralysis and Psychic damage than the other Pokemon mentioned. Rhydon can also switch in on Thunder Wave.
**Psychic-types**: Almost all Psychic-types can check Alakazam, although most of them can be broken through with paralysis and Special drops. Although it generally should not come out early-game, Slowbro is particularly dangerous, as it can set up on Alakazam safely and heal its paralysis with Rest. Starmie and opposing Alakazam can also take Alakazam's Psychic and Seismic Toss and threaten it in return with their own attacks and paralysis, but these matchups can swing either way with repeated full paralysis or Special drops from either side. Surf variants of Starmie are especially dangerous, as they can deal heavy damage to Alakazam. Jynx can be used to check Alakazam in an emergency, but it is passive when doing so, vulnerable to critical hits, and better used for other tasks.
**Chansey**: Alakazam is a special attacker, and like all special attackers, Chansey makes a decent check. Chansey can attempt to paralyze Alakazam and pressure with Seismic Toss and to a lesser extent Ice Beam and Thunderbolt. This can force Alakazam to heal with Recover, allowing the opponent to switch into a physical threat. However, due to Psychic's secondary effect, paralysis, and Alakazam's high critical hit rate, Chansey will eventually be forced to either use Soft-Boiled or switch out. Should it get unlucky with full paralysis when trying to use Soft-Boiled, it can even be KOed. It's common to see Chansey switch in on a lead Alakazam and take a Thunder Wave to block sleep later. It can then attempt to put Alakazam to sleep with Sing on the next turn. Chansey can also attempt to fish for a freeze with Ice Beam if Alakazam isn't paralyzed, though this is risky.
**Exeggutor**: Exeggutor can switch into Alakazam on Turn 1 to immediately try to put it to sleep. However, the opponent would need to be content taking paralysis and getting hit by at least one Seismic Toss, which reduces the longevity of Exeggutor. This makes it much worse at checking Rhydon later in the game. If you try to prevent Alakazam from being paralyzed by switching to Chansey, the opponent gains a huge advantage, as Exeggutor can outspeed Chansey and put it to sleep. In general, though, Exeggutor checks Alakazam well. However, it struggles to pressure Alakazam enough before getting worn down by Seismic Toss, often forcing it to use Explosion.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Sceptross, 123746], [Plague von Karma, 236353]]
- Quality checked by: [[Amaranth, 265630], [FriendOfMrGolem120, 424525]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Estronic, 240732], [A Cake Wearing A Hat, 388157]]
Last edited:
