All Gens Electric-types throughout the ages

[PK Gaming]

Hi!

I've been working towards writing an Electric type (type) analysis for the Smog, and I've hit a snag in regards to what to do with the overview. See, the idea is that you briefly go over what the type was like in each of the gens.

I'm okay on the gen VI front, and i'm somewhat intimate with gens V and IV, but i'm at a complete loss when it comes to gen III, II or I. At best, I can make a guestimate of what the type was like via the viability ranking threads or analyses, but I'd like to get a firsthand account from players who are experienced with those gens, you know?

This is where I need you guys come in. I was hoping you could give me your thoughts on the Electric-type as a whole in your gen of choice. Here are some ideas to help you get started:

-I want to know about the type itself: The Electric-type's offensive effectiveness against the metagame & Electric-type's defensive effectiveness in the metagame. (IE: It doesn't take a genius to realize that Electric was somewhat of a weaker type in gen I due to prevalence of Ground-types, Chansey and Exeggutor)

-I want to know about some key Electric-types and their effects on the metagame (ie: Raikou and Zapdos were superstars in gen II)

who knows, if this goes well maybe "x-type" throughout the ages can be a thing

 

[Jellicent]

RBY Electrics are pretty hot atm. Golem and Rhydon usage has been going down with Body Slam's nerf, which really lets dudes like Jolteon and Zapdos shine. Exeggutor's not a huge issue; Zapdos packs Drill Peck, so it can 2HKO Eggy about half the time (or OHKO about 28% with a crit.) Jolt runs Pin Missile, which can do some hefty damage as well, though it's more luck reliant. Eggy doesn't really want to switch into either of them unless it's sure a TWave or Tbolt is coming. Chansey takes more wearing down before they can get past it, though. Snorlax (which can even run Surf for Rocks) and Exploders make useful teammates for that reason~

Raichu probably deserves a small mention for its access to Surf, meaning it's got nothing to fear from Rocks. Eggy is a much bigger (and more common) problem, however. Chansey doesn't have to worry about 4HKOs, either (which can add up when switching in against the better Electrics considering high crit rates + potential full para)

 

[Ortheore]

Confirming what Jellicent said, but I just want to add that prior to Crystal's mechanics discoveries they were a little niche. They were absolutely significant threats, but they weren't something you saw every game. Like Jellicent said, this can be attributed to Golem and Rhydon being much more popular/good at that time. As of right now, they're very popular and very good- Jolteon and Zapdos are the only really relevant ones to talk about. One thing worth noting is that Zap's overall bulk and power make it generally preferred to Jolteon, but Jolteon's speed and lack of Flying typing (it walls Zap) give it a distinct niche.

GSC- I'm not very good at GSC, but Electrics are absolutely dominant- Zap and Raikou are second only to Lax in terms of how good they are- Zap is the more offensive of the two, with Thunder/HP[Ice] there aren't too many pokemon willing to take it on- with Spikes support even Lax gets worn down fast if it's switching in on Thunder. Raikou is more defensive, being an effective wall to Zap and many special attackers while also being great at abusing spikes with Roar (it beats everything immune to Spikes which is cool). Then there's Jolteon, which is good at baton pass shenanigans, making it a very distinct threat to the other two electrics. Though it's possible to go without an Electric type, it's very uncommon to see teams lacking an Electric, and you will see two electrics on the same team from time to time as well.

 

[Cowboy Dan]

ADV brought one very dominant force that really hindered the effectiveness of electric types, and that force was dugtrio. Dugtrio prevented all but a couple electrics from providing any real defensive value to a team. Those couple electric types became some of the more common pokemon of that type in the tier.

Zapdos thanks to its flying type is immune to arena trap and is really the only electric type that can be relied on defensively. It is the only electric that really dominates the metagame, and it is considered by many to be top 5 or 6. Defensive zap often runs restalk, tbolt and either roar, toxic or hidden power in the last slot, sometimes it will run something like light screen or twave but these are less common. Restalk zap stands out as one of the sturdiest phazers in the game, and one of the best abusers of pressure. It is very good in stall matchups due to its ability to 1v1 a number of walls just by stalling them out. In more offensive match ups its stab tbolt comes in handy punishing switches. More recently offensive zap has become more prominent. It can use its very powerful attacks and access to baton pass to create a lot of tempo, and can either spread status or pass subs/agilities to powerful attackers.

Jolteon is able to escape dugtrio thanks to its high speed and access to baton pass. Unlike zap it's too frail to be relied on defensively so other than a few niche sets it is almost always seen as a baton passer. Like zapdos it is great at grabbing tempo, and can make a number of already dangerous attackers that much more dangerous by passing subs/agilities. The decision between jolteon and zap on a baton pass team usually comes down to the rest of the team. Jolteon loses out on zap's greater bulk and slightly greater power but trades it for speed and volt absorb which allows it to act as a nice check to things like gengar, as well as allowing it to restore hp from subs. The pure electric typing can also be nice as it isn't ice weak like zap is.

The two exceptions to the dugtrio rule are raikou and magneton. Raikou makes up for its vulnerability thanks to its great speed and power, as well as its access to calm mind. Being an insane late game sweeper kind of balances out this weakness. That being said, unlike the gsc days, defensive variants of raikou are almost non existent and raikou often takes advantage of things like porygon2 or a combination of something like celebi or heracross + your own dugtrio to remove opposing dug. Magneton makes up for it by being able to get rid of one of the most dominant walls in the tier, skarmory. Magneton makes physical offense much more useful and can act as a spikes deterrent thanks to its ability to trap the two most common spikers. The fact that magneton itself isn't usually critical to a team's success once the appropriate steels are removed kind of offsets its duggy problem. Magneton is sometimes relied on defensively to deal with gengar, but its dugtrio weakness makes this pretty shaky, and teams with it will often employ a backup method. When using either of these pokemon be weary of dugtrio.

 

[Bedschibaer]

Ortheore covered it pretty nicely about the gsc part but I might want to add some things: the legendary electrics aren't just dominant, they are pretty much neccessary for a big variety of teams to work in gsc. It's the mix between their offensive capabilities and the enormous amount of defensive roles they can fulfill that makes them so good and needed. Zapdos is pretty much the flagship of offense for the simple fact that it wins most matchups that aren't raikou, blissey, snorlax and a ground that came in for free, the latter two being pretty shaky matchups that can go either way depending on the conditions. What's also impressive is how it synergizes very well with many other offensive threats, most notably the more common exploders. It also got access to several support moves most notably Screens and Whirlwind, usually Zapdos gets away perfectly with running a resttalk set with 2 attacks. Raikou on the other hand might just be the best special wall in the tier and unlike Blissey it's not just a blob that sits there passively most of the day, Raikou does pack quite a punch, as well as a variety of support moves such as Roar to stop setup and trapping shenanigans as well as abusing residual damage with spikes and toxic support. Reflect is also quite commonly seen to cover up it's shakier defenses on the physical side as well as providing team support for things like Drumlax. If it wasn't for Snorlax the two electrics would just flat out be the best things in the tier and nowadays they are seen on pretty much every team. Double electric is not as commonly seen because it can get rather cloggy at times, but it is a potent strategy nonetheless.
The "other" electrics would be Jolteon and Ampharos. Jolteon has quite a big niche in baton passing stats quickly and reliably in the tier. Agility, Growth and Substitute are all things that when passed onto the right thing can win you games. Jolteon might not be the most bulky mon though and you will not be able to pull off passes all day. Being cold stopped by roar raikou as well as Steelix (unless you pack hp water) does hurt quite alot though. The pairing of Joltwak is pretty well known still, despite being too predictable and well, shitty, for most players tastes.
Ampharos is interesting but generally outclassed. It still packs quite a punch but lacks the speed and defensive capabilities of the other electrics. Access to Fire Punch, Dynamic Punch, Thunder Wave, both screens, etc can make it a surprise threat, generally underwhelming though. Electabuzz kinda fits that niche too which can threaten out special walls with Cross Chop. But I guess that goes too far into the lower tiers now.

 

[no longer here]

Basically they said everything but I want to add my two cents

'bout RBY: With new mechs, Electric type became really strong because lack of Gol/Don. They are shining as they never did in their "life" because basically only Chansey/Electric types themselves can do something against them. Zap, as always, is an incredible Mixed Sweeper that can put a lot of pressure with his double stab, punishing in both Special and Physical ways while Jolteon became a good cleaner in the endgame (due to a very good Special and the higher speed stat after Electrode, tieing with Mewtwo/Aerodactyl). Exeggutor can't really do something because of Drill Peck/Pin Missile(luck reliant n_n). Paralysis support is always welcome in RBY and the offensive pressure they put atm is cool and useful to get your win. two cents on Raichu that can easily put pressure against Chansey (Raichu Submission vs. Chansey: 294-346 (41.8 - 49.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO), Gol/Don (Raichu Surf vs. Golem: 364-428 (100.2 - 117.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO // Raichu Surf vs. Rhydon: 405-476 (98 - 115.2%) -- 87.2% chance to OHKO) and even Exeggutor (Seismic Toss on the switch-in) too, but its frailty is probably the major issue.

'bout GSC: Electric type is always present in a good GSC team. Both Raikou and Zapdos do two differents job well: the electric cat is a defensive key in stall teams doing good job as Electric/Vaporeon/Gutor[hpice/crunch-sleeptalk] and a lot of other threats while the electric bird is an offensive key, putting pressure (as in RBY) with its good stats (generally Snorlax come in to take a Thunder, forgetting that: Zapdos Thunder vs. Snorlax: 143-169 (27.3 - 32.3%) -- guaranteed 4HKO after Spikes and Leftovers recovery + Paralysis%). In Italy we have a different banlist in which HP is banned for Zapdos and Raikou, making them basically walled by Golem/Rhydon and setup field for Marowak but this is another story (that's probably why we preferr to play stallish things! ahah). While Raikou and Zapdos are high rank pokemons, Jolteon is a p good support for BPassing strategies batonpassing Agility to good 'n slow mons (as JoltWak or the less common JoltZard) or even Growth (but honestly I preferr Vaporeon/Espeon as growthpassers)!.

'bout ADV: ahah goodbye Skarm/Bliss, Magneton is here! With trait mechs, Magneton is basically a stall slayer thanks to Magnet Pull, trapping spikers/spinners (as Skarmory/Forretress) and even Steelix (if you want to try HP Fire to OHKO Forre and 2HKO Steelix - even if generally Magneton preferr HP Grass to put pressure against Water/Ground mons like Swampert or the less common Quagsire!). Magneton is a good support mon too thanks to Toxic/Thunder Wave and can do a nice job as SleepTalker. Jolteon is generally a good support for a bpass team but can do a good job as Phazer, thanks to Roar or a sort of "Cleric" with Wish. Adv is probably the tier which Raikou loves more: this thing can easily smash you after 1 CMind if you are not prepared. It can be a good PHazer too (roar again) and a good Pressure+SleepTalk user, winning 1v1 against Seismic Toss Blissey, using her as a setup field. Probably main issue for Raikou is the Four Moveslot Syndrome because if you run HP Grass, Flygon became a threat while if you run HP Ice, Swampert became a problem.
Zapdos got a lot of good sets in Adv as SUB+3atk, classic Restalk, Metalsound (a really good and underrated set), Agility Passer and a lot of others. Zapdos is also the only Electric mon not trapped by Dugtrio.


I gtg, maybe I'll finish later, I hope this is useful for you :)

 

[Lord Ninjax]

Hm, I only really play Gen 3 but might as well: Electrics in Gen 3 are pretty strong and each brings different value to a team:
Zapdos is imo a top level-utility mon, who can be a Special Wall/Phazer with ResTalk, a heavy hitter with a Modest Nature (as TBolt switchins are few and every one of them hates Toxic (aside from maybe Steelix and Celebi but Celebi hates HP Ice and Steelix is really uncommon)), and a utility player by Toxicing Ground types, SubPassing, and scouting with usable bulk even if uninvested.
Jolteon plays fairly similarly to Zap, but can switch into less (basically only a few Special attackers once or twice), however it can use its higher speed stat to force out Gengar and check the flavour of the month Offensive Starmie (currently my favourite thing about it, that thing shreds a ton). This speed stat makes it also more suited to a late game cleaner role than Zapdos, who hits hard in the early-middle game.
Raikou is also a late game cleaner, but higher Bulk forces it to boost with CM and get kills via TBolt. It works against certain teams, but the presence of Pert/Gon and Pert/Cele cores are annoying as they will always wall it, while it does really nothing against Dugtrio, still, underestimate this beast at your own peril.
Lastly is Mag, who's niche is mainly trapping Steels via Magnet Pull, which is great as everyone hates Spikes (and Skarm to a lesser extent). It can also fulfil some other roles like checking Aero and Gar, which can be threatening to Offensive teams, Toxicing Perts and Zappers that see it as setup bait, or using EndSalac to own the Dugtrio trying to revenge it, but yeah Trapping is the main one, everything else is only with certain sets (still dumb not to use one of those).

Overall value: Offensively you force every team to run a Ground type so they don't straight up lose. Also makes Blissey common. Defensively has few resists so not really a lot of type-based defense, still though one weakness is nice for just switching around in general.

 

[Mr.E]

Not that I'm really gonna say anything new probably but I love talking about GSC Electrics.

Gen 1 Electrics are strong. It's a strong typing with but one crippling weakness. Quite honestly, Golem/Rhydon aren't all that special and their presence in OU is more on their ability to hard counter Zapdos/Jolteon than their own merits. Our newfound Body Slam mechanics might've impacted their usage numbers recently but I don't think it's made them significantly worse; they were never that good in the first place. I mean, they're not garbage like Onix but they might be treading the border of OU-UU like Sandslash if Zapdos/Jolteon simply didn't exist.

Gen 2 Electrics are so ridiculous that a mono-Electric team is almost as good as a normal OU one. (Just can't get past Snorlax...) Zapdos in particular is notable since it was already a known quantity in RBY: it's a premier threat whose only fault is Golem/Rhydon hard countering it. Well, with Hidden Power now allowing it to blast through those counters, there's pretty much no stopping it now except the now-buffed Snorlax (and its fellow, grounded Electrics). Zapdos is an offensive juggernaut and it's no slouch defensively either, having few type weaknesses to exploit and just enough raw defensive stats to Sleep Talk its way through most neutral attackers.

What applies to Zapdos also applies to the Electric typing in general though. What was once kept in check by Ground-types suddenly isn't, so they basically have free reign over the metagame. Obviously Zapdos is still king of the mountain, because it can actively switch into Grounds, but it's still tough sledding against Jolteon and friends when they can chunk you on the switch. If RBY was a contest of Psychics and Normals, GSC is a contest of Electrics and Normals (mostly Snorlax). It's a very strong neutral typing with but a single, tenuous weakness and it doesn't hurt that it got a second Legendary. Raikou's pretty good too, at more than just countering Zapdos, and their typings don't compromise their high BST like Articuno / Moltres / Entei.

 

[Aerodactyl Legend]

Not much I can add on GSC that hasn't been said, but also note of Zapdos back a long time ago often opted for Thunderbolt over Thunder for reliability, but the extra damage on Snorlax has made it the secondary option for a minute. You miss more, but it's Snorlax you're dealing with, so it's worth it. And it's not like Zapdos can't swallow a miss or two with its bulk.


For DPP, offense over defense for the most part right now. Zapdos ran defense most of the time in the old days (and still does now) though.

 

[cookie]

why are golem/rhydon so unpopular with the new mechanics changes?

 

[McMeghan]

Freezing Chansey/spreading paralysis is more important → More Ice Spam (and thus Special Attackers, especially Starmie) → Less GolDon
Altho I'd argue the prevalence of Special Attackers (especially Lapras/Slowbro/Starmie) gives a lot of traction to Zapdos/Jolteon, which means GolDon still rock (hehe).

It all goes full-circle!

PS: I'm not a RBY specialist, but that's how I see things. Isa, who is definitly a RBY specialist, shares the same views and posted about this on the PO forum.

 

[Isa]

it should also be said that rhydon in particular has become really bad. while previously you could use body slam to create your own paralysis support, this is no longer the case when up against chansey, snorlax or tauros. tauros switches in on rhydon and wins regardless of what move rhydon chooses now, unless if it crits before tauros does. chansey isn't really the main target for body slam, but in a straight 1v1 you need to use it, and it helps to paralyze snorlax a lot if you were to mispredict an egg switch.

golem has explosion as his claim to fame so he isn't as reliant on body slam, but it still stings.

 

[Borat]

so while zapdos is the more offensive of the two, it's certainly not fair to say that's his only claim to fame. zapdos is INCREDIBLE defensively, and only worse than raikou in walling other electrics. in fact, it's probably a better all-around defensive pokemon; spikes immunity is huge. you can stay in vs most physical attackers where raikou has to run. raikou specializes in walling things on the special side, which is important if you plan on running a more offensively snorlax (ie without sleep talk and/or curse). there's a reason why zapdos has a strong hold on #2 and raikou is a somewhat distant #3.

also, because the two electrics serve such different functions, it makes perfect sense for top-tier teams to double up on both. i don't know why it's so taboo that you're forced to "pick one". you absolutely don't have to pick just one. in fact, in a meta with less blissey/raikou and more exploders (egg/gengar/cloy), using both owns.