[Overview]
Pikachu stands out among the relatively small crowd of Electric-types as a strong, fast wallbreaker and late-game cleaner. This is largely due to Pikachu's exclusive item, Light Ball, which doubles its Special Attack, allowing it to break down defensive staples such as Dewgong and Sableye with ease. Furthermore, Pikachu has near-perfect coverage between STAB Thunderbolt and its variety of Water-, Ice-, and Grass-type coverage moves, essentially allowing it to take on any foe not faster than it, which is hard to come by because only a handful of a Pokemon exceed base 90 Speed. However, the immense amount of offensive pressure Pikachu puts on teams is counteracted by a complete and utter lack of any defensive utility. Pikachu cannot directly switch into anything due to extreme frailty, which makes it feel like playing a game with a Pokemon on your side already down: a huge disadvantage. For comparison, Pikachu's bulk is even less than that of Pokemon such as Zubat and Lotad. Pikachu also necessitates some team support, most notably in the form of Spikes from users such as Glalie and Cacturne, to help assist it in picking up KOs. The looming threat of Diglett also hampers Pikachu's offensive capabilities, as once Diglett is brought in, Pikachu is trapped, outsped, and revenge killed by Earthquake.
[SET]
name: All-Out Attacker
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Surf
move 3: Substitute
move 4: Hidden Power Ice
item: Light Ball
ability: Static
nature: Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Thunderbolt is Pikachu's strongest attack, super effectively hitting Pokemon such as Dewgong, Pelipper, and Pidgeot while neutrally nailing Pokemon such as Sableye and Mawile. Surf is Pikachu's strongest option against Electric-types such as Plusle and the majority of Ground-types such as Piloswine, Graveler, and Pupitar. Substitute shields Pikachu from status and is the only form of protection Pikachu really has due to its paper-thin defenses. Successfully setting up a Substitute allows Pikachu to scout the opponent. Hidden Power Ice covers for Grass-types such as Bellossom and Roselia that resist the combination of Thunderbolt and Surf, rounding out Pikachu's near-perfect neutral coverage.
[ADDITIONAL SET COMMENTS]
Pikachu has extremely low defenses and therefore should not directly switch into anything. Instead, Pikachu should utilize slow Baton Pass support from Pokemon such as Flareon and Mawile or wait until a teammate faints. If it is predicted for the foe to use a non-attacking move or switch out themselves, Pikachu should use Substitute. Pikachu shouldn't worry about lowering its own HP this way, as it is already going to faint to just about any neutral hit. One of Pikachu's biggest threats is Diglett, which outspeeds Pikachu, traps it with Arena Trap, and KOes it with Earthquake. Use Substitute to scout for Ground-type switch-ins such as Diglett and Whiscash as they potentially come in. Grass-types such as Tangela, Cacturne, and Bellossom can check Whiscash for Pikachu, one of its most reliable switch-ins. Pikachu appreciates Spikes support from users such as Glalie and Cacturne, as the chip damage can assist Pikachu in breaking down walls and cleaning later in the game. Physical wallbreakers such as Hitmonchan and Sudowoodo can help demolish specially defensive walls that give Pikachu trouble such as Kecleon, Lickitung, and Flareon. Pikachu's above average Speed tier is considerably helpful for offensive teams, as it ensures Pikachu outspeeds a plethora of threats to clean late-game without needing much additional team support.
[Other Options]
Encore can lock foes such as Bulk Up Hitmonchan and Toxic Flareon into their non-attacking moves, which works great in tandem with Substitute, also allowing Pikachu the chance to utilize two attacks instead of just one. However, Encore also relies on prediction, even more so in the case of frail users such as Pikachu. Locking a foe into an actual attacking move will likely spell disaster for Pikachu. Encore is also incompatible with Surf, an extremely important coverage move Pikachu cannot afford to give up. Hidden Power Grass is another option that nails Whiscash, which would otherwise counter Pikachu. Volt Tackle is an immensely strong alternative to Thunderbolt, picking up several different KOs such as the guaranteed 2HKO on specially defensive Flareon after one layer of Spikes. However, Volt Tackle also causes Pikachu to take an enormous amount of recoil damage, meaning it can only get off about one or two Volt Tackles per game. Pikachu can opt to take out 60 Special Attack EVs and move them into Defense to survive Choice Band Hitmonchan's Mach Punch from full health. However, this lowers the damage output for all of Pikachu's attacks and therefore is not recommended. Pikachu's health is also already compromised by the use of Substitute for scouting.
[Checks and Counters]
Whiscash beats Pikachu variants not carrying Hidden Power Grass, which are extremely rare due to the sacrifice Pikachu would have to make matchup-wise against Grass-types such as Roselia and Bellossom. Bellossom and Roselia check variants of Pikachu by stomaching a Hidden Power Ice and revenge killing it with either the combination of Sunny Day and Solar Beam or just Hidden Power Grass. Specially defensive walls such as Flareon and Kecleon can easily sponge hits from Pikachu and retaliate with Flamethrower and Body Slam, respectively. However, offensively pressuring Pikachu is considerably easier than defensively switching into and checking it. Diglett is able to trap Pikachu with no Substitute up after it picks something off and can revenge kill it with Earthquake, although it cannot safely switch into Pikachu directly. Faster attackers such as Murkrow, Pidgeot, and Yanma can outspeed and OHKO Pikachu. Furthermore, Pokemon that rely on Chlorophyll and Swift Swim to outspeed foes such as Bellossom and Huntail can outspeed Pikachu under the duration of the required weather. Priority move users such as Mach Punch Hitmonchan and Quick Attack Raticate can severely cripple or outright KO Pikachu due to its paper-thin defenses. Knock Off users such as Sableye can remove Pikachu's Light Ball, turning what was once an overwhelming offensive threat into an extremely passive Pokemon that one of Sableye's teammates can capitalize on.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [Aaronboyer, 239454]
- Quality checked by: [[Bughouse, 52547], [Oglemi, 40358]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Estronic, 240732], [The Dutch Plumberjack, 232216]]
Pikachu stands out among the relatively small crowd of Electric-types as a strong, fast wallbreaker and late-game cleaner. This is largely due to Pikachu's exclusive item, Light Ball, which doubles its Special Attack, allowing it to break down defensive staples such as Dewgong and Sableye with ease. Furthermore, Pikachu has near-perfect coverage between STAB Thunderbolt and its variety of Water-, Ice-, and Grass-type coverage moves, essentially allowing it to take on any foe not faster than it, which is hard to come by because only a handful of a Pokemon exceed base 90 Speed. However, the immense amount of offensive pressure Pikachu puts on teams is counteracted by a complete and utter lack of any defensive utility. Pikachu cannot directly switch into anything due to extreme frailty, which makes it feel like playing a game with a Pokemon on your side already down: a huge disadvantage. For comparison, Pikachu's bulk is even less than that of Pokemon such as Zubat and Lotad. Pikachu also necessitates some team support, most notably in the form of Spikes from users such as Glalie and Cacturne, to help assist it in picking up KOs. The looming threat of Diglett also hampers Pikachu's offensive capabilities, as once Diglett is brought in, Pikachu is trapped, outsped, and revenge killed by Earthquake.
[SET]
name: All-Out Attacker
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Surf
move 3: Substitute
move 4: Hidden Power Ice
item: Light Ball
ability: Static
nature: Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Thunderbolt is Pikachu's strongest attack, super effectively hitting Pokemon such as Dewgong, Pelipper, and Pidgeot while neutrally nailing Pokemon such as Sableye and Mawile. Surf is Pikachu's strongest option against Electric-types such as Plusle and the majority of Ground-types such as Piloswine, Graveler, and Pupitar. Substitute shields Pikachu from status and is the only form of protection Pikachu really has due to its paper-thin defenses. Successfully setting up a Substitute allows Pikachu to scout the opponent. Hidden Power Ice covers for Grass-types such as Bellossom and Roselia that resist the combination of Thunderbolt and Surf, rounding out Pikachu's near-perfect neutral coverage.
[ADDITIONAL SET COMMENTS]
Pikachu has extremely low defenses and therefore should not directly switch into anything. Instead, Pikachu should utilize slow Baton Pass support from Pokemon such as Flareon and Mawile or wait until a teammate faints. If it is predicted for the foe to use a non-attacking move or switch out themselves, Pikachu should use Substitute. Pikachu shouldn't worry about lowering its own HP this way, as it is already going to faint to just about any neutral hit. One of Pikachu's biggest threats is Diglett, which outspeeds Pikachu, traps it with Arena Trap, and KOes it with Earthquake. Use Substitute to scout for Ground-type switch-ins such as Diglett and Whiscash as they potentially come in. Grass-types such as Tangela, Cacturne, and Bellossom can check Whiscash for Pikachu, one of its most reliable switch-ins. Pikachu appreciates Spikes support from users such as Glalie and Cacturne, as the chip damage can assist Pikachu in breaking down walls and cleaning later in the game. Physical wallbreakers such as Hitmonchan and Sudowoodo can help demolish specially defensive walls that give Pikachu trouble such as Kecleon, Lickitung, and Flareon. Pikachu's above average Speed tier is considerably helpful for offensive teams, as it ensures Pikachu outspeeds a plethora of threats to clean late-game without needing much additional team support.
[Other Options]
Encore can lock foes such as Bulk Up Hitmonchan and Toxic Flareon into their non-attacking moves, which works great in tandem with Substitute, also allowing Pikachu the chance to utilize two attacks instead of just one. However, Encore also relies on prediction, even more so in the case of frail users such as Pikachu. Locking a foe into an actual attacking move will likely spell disaster for Pikachu. Encore is also incompatible with Surf, an extremely important coverage move Pikachu cannot afford to give up. Hidden Power Grass is another option that nails Whiscash, which would otherwise counter Pikachu. Volt Tackle is an immensely strong alternative to Thunderbolt, picking up several different KOs such as the guaranteed 2HKO on specially defensive Flareon after one layer of Spikes. However, Volt Tackle also causes Pikachu to take an enormous amount of recoil damage, meaning it can only get off about one or two Volt Tackles per game. Pikachu can opt to take out 60 Special Attack EVs and move them into Defense to survive Choice Band Hitmonchan's Mach Punch from full health. However, this lowers the damage output for all of Pikachu's attacks and therefore is not recommended. Pikachu's health is also already compromised by the use of Substitute for scouting.
[Checks and Counters]
Whiscash beats Pikachu variants not carrying Hidden Power Grass, which are extremely rare due to the sacrifice Pikachu would have to make matchup-wise against Grass-types such as Roselia and Bellossom. Bellossom and Roselia check variants of Pikachu by stomaching a Hidden Power Ice and revenge killing it with either the combination of Sunny Day and Solar Beam or just Hidden Power Grass. Specially defensive walls such as Flareon and Kecleon can easily sponge hits from Pikachu and retaliate with Flamethrower and Body Slam, respectively. However, offensively pressuring Pikachu is considerably easier than defensively switching into and checking it. Diglett is able to trap Pikachu with no Substitute up after it picks something off and can revenge kill it with Earthquake, although it cannot safely switch into Pikachu directly. Faster attackers such as Murkrow, Pidgeot, and Yanma can outspeed and OHKO Pikachu. Furthermore, Pokemon that rely on Chlorophyll and Swift Swim to outspeed foes such as Bellossom and Huntail can outspeed Pikachu under the duration of the required weather. Priority move users such as Mach Punch Hitmonchan and Quick Attack Raticate can severely cripple or outright KO Pikachu due to its paper-thin defenses. Knock Off users such as Sableye can remove Pikachu's Light Ball, turning what was once an overwhelming offensive threat into an extremely passive Pokemon that one of Sableye's teammates can capitalize on.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [Aaronboyer, 239454]
- Quality checked by: [[Bughouse, 52547], [Oglemi, 40358]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Estronic, 240732], [The Dutch Plumberjack, 232216]]
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