This hasn't been completed, and as a result I am entirely redoing it. Unlike Smeargle, everything here will be my own writing, so sadly the original user will not be accredited. It isn't ready for GP yet, but I'll duly inform the right people when it is.
It's already passed QC, so I'm leaving the writing spaces blank for now.
---
[Overview]
<p>Incredible hype at the beginning of Diamond and Pearl, followed by gut-wrenching disappointment after a few moments of fame has lead to the common idea that Electivire is a failure of a Pokemon. While this mostly holds true in Black and White, Electivire is not a complete sack of terrible. Even though it is outsped and taken down by some immensely popular threats such as Dragon Dance Haxorus and Rock Polish Terrakion, Electivire still has some redeeming factors. The major draw it has over its main rival, Eelektross, is that it has much better Speed, access to Motor Drive, and an incredible movepool allowing it to take down many common walls such as Blissey and Ferrothorn.</p>
<p>However, underwhelming stats, no new toys, and a reliance on Motor Drive really hammers the nails in Electivire's coffin. It will be difficult finding a slot for your team, and there is almost always a better option. His wide movepool and ability to run an effective mixed set just doesn't impress as much when compared to the sheer power of newer threats such as Scrafty or Conkeldurr.</p>
[SET]
name: Mixed Attacker
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Cross Chop
move 3: Hidden Power Ice
move 4: Flamethrower
item: Life Orb / Expert Belt
nature: Mild
ability: Motor Drive
evs: 40 Atk / 252 SpA / 216 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Electivire works best on the premise that low power can be made up for with incredible coverage. This may be true to a point, but in reality, Electivire needs that Life Orb to really eke the most out of its movepool. There are no questions about it - this set either needs Agility or Rock Polish Baton Passed to it, or Electivire needs to be switched in on a Choice-locked Electric-type attack. Without that increase in Speed, Electivire will be taken out by a good chunk of the metagame before it even starts launching attacks.</p>
<p>That isn't to say Electivire is useless - under the right conditions, it has the potential to wreak havoc. With incredible coverage, Expert Belt becomes a viable choice, not that Electivire enjoys the extra bulk. Even though its offensive stats may not be sky-high, they are still good enough to take down many common attackers in the metagame, such as Salamence and Gyarados. It's worth noting that more of the emphasis is on Special Attack, and that's mainly due to the fact that Intimidate, the prevalence of high Defense Pokemon such as Ferrothorn and Gliscor, and quite simply a coincidence in that most big threats of the metagame have a lower Special Defense. However, Cross Chop still has its uses here and there, but in most cases, Thunderbolt is a better option than Thunderpunch. A similar story is with Flamethrower, and Hidden Power Ice.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Electivire needs some serious team support - aside from the obvious problems with its Speed, it also has problems in regards to outright killing its targets. Entry hazards is almost a must, and measures must be taken to keep counters to Electivire's common switch-ins. Latias and Rotom-W in particular will give Electivire some real problems, being able to tank its hits and retaliate with either Dragon Pulse or Will-o-Wisp, respectively. If Electivire is without a Speed boost, then suddenly it becomes a sitting duck for so many sweepers such as Landorus and Salamence, threats it could previously KO with Hidden Power Ice. There are no other real options for moves, apart from Hidden Power Grass to hit Gastrodon and Swampert. Life Orb will give Electivire the power it needs to deal damage, but the difference between it and Expert Belt are negligible; Electivire losing 10% health a turn almost makes up for the fact that he's dealing more damage. The EVs and nature make the set as offensive as possible.</p>
[SET]
name: Physical Attacker
move 1: Wild Bolt
move 2: Ice Punch
move 3: Fire Punch / Earthquake
move 4: Cross Chop
item: Life Orb / Expert Belt
nature: Adamant
ability: Motor Drive
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Electivire may have more success with a mixed set, but its highest stat is Attack, and that's not to say it would be an effective physical attacker. In fact, by focusing all of its offensive prowess into a single stat, it can function more effectively in certain conditions. Of course, Electivire still retains the problem of Speed and sheer force, and in some cases this is emphasized in that a lot more of the tanks in OU are defensive. Whereas a mixed Electivire only has to deal with Blissey through Cross Chop, a purely physical Electivire may have enhanced difficulties breaking through Forretress or Scrafty. Despite this, it can still function with the right support, provided certain menacing threats are taken out, such as Landorus and Gliscor. Wild Charge takes place of Thunderbolt, Ice Punch comes in over Hidden Power, and Fire Punch replaces Flamethrower. Aside from the fact that your KO list has changed, this set plays similarly to the mixed attacker.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>It's worth noting that having shifted to a different attacking stat, any problems with Electivire on your side of play remain the same - subpar Speed, predictability, and lack of power. What does change is the number and types of options your opponent now have. Blissey is no longer a safe switch, and Cloyster now has three moves to switch in on. Conkeldurr is now more questionable, but Metagross is still capable. Electivire simply requires smart play from the player in that you need to know what will give Electivire problems and eliminate those problems before Electivire cleans up. Earthquake becomes an option, as it is always a solid attack, but there isn't much change to be made. Aside from this, Electivire plays just like any other physical sweeper would - max Attack and Speed, power-boosting item, four attacks, and you're done.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Rock Slide can be sneaked in over Ice Punch if used alongside Earthquake for coverage reasons, but the fall in damage against Salamence and Landorus is noticable. Thunder can be used instead of Thunderbolt on the mixed set if Electivire is serving in a Rain Dance team; the Water-typed teammates will also lure Electric-type moves for Electivire to grab his Motor Drive off. Choice Band and Choice Scarf can be effective, but when the main draw is incredible type-coverage, it isn't such a good idea.</p>
<p>Electivire can really do well from a Baton Passed stat boosts, especially from Gorebyss, who can give it its much-needed offensive and Speed Boost with Shell Smash. On top of its, its Water-typing draws Thunder Wave and Thunderbolt from all around, setting Electivire at ridiculous speed levels. In terms of defensive support, anything that resists Earthquake and strong priority is considered a reasonable teammate. The need to eliminate pesky opponents such as Metagross and Salamence still lingers, but a bulky teammate should be able to wear them down so that Electivire can whack them on the switch next time. Apart from this, entry hazards are always useful.</p>
[Counters and Checks]
<p>Due to its insane coverage, Electivire has no real counters, as everything that switches in on it is more than likely suspect to a super effective hit. Toxicroak and Tyranitar can come in on anything that isn't Fire-type or STABed, respectively, and proceed to shred Electivire with their powerful STAB moves. Mienshao and Infernape also prove problems due to their high Speed and strong attacks. Without a Motor Drive boost, Electivire becomes a minor threat, as pretty much everything outspeeds it. If it does accelerate, however, then being able to survive two strikes becomes very important, as outspeeding Electivire without a Choice Scarf becomes near impossible. Latias is capable to holding her own, and most Choice Scarf attackers should be able to weaken Electivire if not outright KO it.</p>
It's already passed QC, so I'm leaving the writing spaces blank for now.
---
[Overview]
<p>Incredible hype at the beginning of Diamond and Pearl, followed by gut-wrenching disappointment after a few moments of fame has lead to the common idea that Electivire is a failure of a Pokemon. While this mostly holds true in Black and White, Electivire is not a complete sack of terrible. Even though it is outsped and taken down by some immensely popular threats such as Dragon Dance Haxorus and Rock Polish Terrakion, Electivire still has some redeeming factors. The major draw it has over its main rival, Eelektross, is that it has much better Speed, access to Motor Drive, and an incredible movepool allowing it to take down many common walls such as Blissey and Ferrothorn.</p>
<p>However, underwhelming stats, no new toys, and a reliance on Motor Drive really hammers the nails in Electivire's coffin. It will be difficult finding a slot for your team, and there is almost always a better option. His wide movepool and ability to run an effective mixed set just doesn't impress as much when compared to the sheer power of newer threats such as Scrafty or Conkeldurr.</p>
[SET]
name: Mixed Attacker
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Cross Chop
move 3: Hidden Power Ice
move 4: Flamethrower
item: Life Orb / Expert Belt
nature: Mild
ability: Motor Drive
evs: 40 Atk / 252 SpA / 216 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Electivire works best on the premise that low power can be made up for with incredible coverage. This may be true to a point, but in reality, Electivire needs that Life Orb to really eke the most out of its movepool. There are no questions about it - this set either needs Agility or Rock Polish Baton Passed to it, or Electivire needs to be switched in on a Choice-locked Electric-type attack. Without that increase in Speed, Electivire will be taken out by a good chunk of the metagame before it even starts launching attacks.</p>
<p>That isn't to say Electivire is useless - under the right conditions, it has the potential to wreak havoc. With incredible coverage, Expert Belt becomes a viable choice, not that Electivire enjoys the extra bulk. Even though its offensive stats may not be sky-high, they are still good enough to take down many common attackers in the metagame, such as Salamence and Gyarados. It's worth noting that more of the emphasis is on Special Attack, and that's mainly due to the fact that Intimidate, the prevalence of high Defense Pokemon such as Ferrothorn and Gliscor, and quite simply a coincidence in that most big threats of the metagame have a lower Special Defense. However, Cross Chop still has its uses here and there, but in most cases, Thunderbolt is a better option than Thunderpunch. A similar story is with Flamethrower, and Hidden Power Ice.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Electivire needs some serious team support - aside from the obvious problems with its Speed, it also has problems in regards to outright killing its targets. Entry hazards is almost a must, and measures must be taken to keep counters to Electivire's common switch-ins. Latias and Rotom-W in particular will give Electivire some real problems, being able to tank its hits and retaliate with either Dragon Pulse or Will-o-Wisp, respectively. If Electivire is without a Speed boost, then suddenly it becomes a sitting duck for so many sweepers such as Landorus and Salamence, threats it could previously KO with Hidden Power Ice. There are no other real options for moves, apart from Hidden Power Grass to hit Gastrodon and Swampert. Life Orb will give Electivire the power it needs to deal damage, but the difference between it and Expert Belt are negligible; Electivire losing 10% health a turn almost makes up for the fact that he's dealing more damage. The EVs and nature make the set as offensive as possible.</p>
[SET]
name: Physical Attacker
move 1: Wild Bolt
move 2: Ice Punch
move 3: Fire Punch / Earthquake
move 4: Cross Chop
item: Life Orb / Expert Belt
nature: Adamant
ability: Motor Drive
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Electivire may have more success with a mixed set, but its highest stat is Attack, and that's not to say it would be an effective physical attacker. In fact, by focusing all of its offensive prowess into a single stat, it can function more effectively in certain conditions. Of course, Electivire still retains the problem of Speed and sheer force, and in some cases this is emphasized in that a lot more of the tanks in OU are defensive. Whereas a mixed Electivire only has to deal with Blissey through Cross Chop, a purely physical Electivire may have enhanced difficulties breaking through Forretress or Scrafty. Despite this, it can still function with the right support, provided certain menacing threats are taken out, such as Landorus and Gliscor. Wild Charge takes place of Thunderbolt, Ice Punch comes in over Hidden Power, and Fire Punch replaces Flamethrower. Aside from the fact that your KO list has changed, this set plays similarly to the mixed attacker.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>It's worth noting that having shifted to a different attacking stat, any problems with Electivire on your side of play remain the same - subpar Speed, predictability, and lack of power. What does change is the number and types of options your opponent now have. Blissey is no longer a safe switch, and Cloyster now has three moves to switch in on. Conkeldurr is now more questionable, but Metagross is still capable. Electivire simply requires smart play from the player in that you need to know what will give Electivire problems and eliminate those problems before Electivire cleans up. Earthquake becomes an option, as it is always a solid attack, but there isn't much change to be made. Aside from this, Electivire plays just like any other physical sweeper would - max Attack and Speed, power-boosting item, four attacks, and you're done.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Rock Slide can be sneaked in over Ice Punch if used alongside Earthquake for coverage reasons, but the fall in damage against Salamence and Landorus is noticable. Thunder can be used instead of Thunderbolt on the mixed set if Electivire is serving in a Rain Dance team; the Water-typed teammates will also lure Electric-type moves for Electivire to grab his Motor Drive off. Choice Band and Choice Scarf can be effective, but when the main draw is incredible type-coverage, it isn't such a good idea.</p>
<p>Electivire can really do well from a Baton Passed stat boosts, especially from Gorebyss, who can give it its much-needed offensive and Speed Boost with Shell Smash. On top of its, its Water-typing draws Thunder Wave and Thunderbolt from all around, setting Electivire at ridiculous speed levels. In terms of defensive support, anything that resists Earthquake and strong priority is considered a reasonable teammate. The need to eliminate pesky opponents such as Metagross and Salamence still lingers, but a bulky teammate should be able to wear them down so that Electivire can whack them on the switch next time. Apart from this, entry hazards are always useful.</p>
[Counters and Checks]
<p>Due to its insane coverage, Electivire has no real counters, as everything that switches in on it is more than likely suspect to a super effective hit. Toxicroak and Tyranitar can come in on anything that isn't Fire-type or STABed, respectively, and proceed to shred Electivire with their powerful STAB moves. Mienshao and Infernape also prove problems due to their high Speed and strong attacks. Without a Motor Drive boost, Electivire becomes a minor threat, as pretty much everything outspeeds it. If it does accelerate, however, then being able to survive two strikes becomes very important, as outspeeding Electivire without a Choice Scarf becomes near impossible. Latias is capable to holding her own, and most Choice Scarf attackers should be able to weaken Electivire if not outright KO it.</p>
