[OVERVIEW]
With its solid Special Attack, a Speed stat that outpaces nearly the entire metagame, and good special bulk, Raikou is able to make a name for itself as a solid offensive pivot that can check tier staples like Lycanroc-D, Thundurus, and Keldeo. Access to Aura Sphere and Scald along with its STAB Thunderbolt gives Raikou near-perfect coverage against the entire metagame. This coverage, along with its stats and access to Volt Switch, makes Raikou a solid choice for an offensive pivot. Raikou struggles to deal with defensive staples, however, notably Amoonguss and Chansey. It also lacks a form of reliable recovery, which forces it to function mainly as a revenge killer and makes it overly reliant on Heavy-Duty Boots. Raikou also faces strong competition as a fast Electric-type by Thundurus, which has stronger coverage moves, can use U-turn as a pivoting move to prevent being blocked by Ground-types, and can use Knock Off to cripple Pokemon like Assault Vest Tangrowth that Raikou greatly struggles with, though it does have worse special bulk and a worse Speed tier than Raikou. Raikou's subpar physical bulk means that it is easily threatened by several physical attackers it cannot OHKO, like Krookodile and Mamoswine.
[SET]
name: Offensive Pivot
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Volt Switch
move 3: Aura Sphere
move 4: Scald / Toxic
item: Heavy-Duty Boots
ability: Pressure
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Thunderbolt is Raikou's main method of pressuring Pokemon like Thundurus and Scizor. Volt Switch turns Raikou into a fast offensive pivot, allowing it to make progress and bring its teammates onto the field. Aura Sphere is especially useful, as it allows Raikou to hit Zarude, which completely walls it otherwise. Scald allows Raikou to hit Nidoqueen, another Pokemon that completely walls it otherwise. It can also be used to hit Rhyperior for extra damage and spread status to checks like Tangrowth, and it is Raikou's best move against Thundurus-T. Toxic allows Raikou to cripple switch-ins like Tangrowth and Kommo-o that resist both Thunderbolt and Scald, as well as crippling Rhyperior in the absence of Scald. Heavy-Duty Boots prevent Raikou from taking entry hazard damage, increasing its pivoting capabilities.
This Raikou set works best on VoltTurn and bulky offense teams that appreciate Raikou's high Speed tier and its ability to check Thundurus and Lycanroc-D. Flying-types like Salamence, Noivern, and Moltres are excellent partners for this set. The latter two form powerful pivoting cores with Raikou, while the former can overwhelm special walls such as Assault Vest Reuniclus, Assault Vest Galarian Slowbro, and Mew. Powerful wallbreakers, like Keldeo, Nihilego, and Mamoswine, appreciate Raikou bringing them in safely against its checks, such as Chansey and Amoonguss, which they can then pressure. Keldeo is an especially good partner for Raikou, as together they can overwhelm their shared checks, such as Tangrowth and Amoonguss. Pokemon that can pivot into Ground-types, particularly Rhyperior, Seismitoad, and Gastrodon, are greatly appreciated, especially if Raikou is not running Scald. Grass-types, such as Zarude and Tangrowth, are especially good at dealing with these Pokemon. Raikou greatly appreciates entry hazard support from Pokemon like Mew, which allows it to wear down its checks like Tangrowth in combination with Volt Switch.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Substitute and Calm Mind can be used to give Raikou some extra breaking power with either Aura Sphere or Scald (preferably the latter to hit Zarude while still being to hit Rhyperior) as the coverage move, but in a metagame infested with Assault Vest Tangrowth, it is very hard to make this set work. Extrasensory can be used to prevent getting walled by Kommo-o and Amoonguss, but it only hits those Pokemon and thus greatly limits Raikou's coverage.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Grass-types**: Tangrowth only takes neutral damage from Aura Sphere, and can take those well due to commonly running Assault Vest. Amoonguss resists all of Raikou's coverage moves, walling it with ease. Zarude can easily wall most of Raikou's attacks and, if holding a Choice Scarf, easily pivot out on it with U-Turn, though it does have to watch out for Aura Sphere. The former two Pokemon also have Regenerator, which means that they are not punished as hard by Raikou's Volt Switch.
**Ground-types**: Choice Scarf Krookodile, Choice Scarf Diggersby, and Zygarde-10% can all outspeed or Speed tie Raikou and use their super effective moves to OHKO it. Rhyperior can also serve as a major threat and can scare Raikou out if its HP is high enough; however, it does have to be extremely wary of Scald. Gastrodon and Seismitoad are able to completely wall Raikou with ease, though they do fear Toxic.
**Kommo-o**: Kommo-o either resists or is immune to all of Raikou's attacking moves and can easily turn it in into setup fodder if it is running a Clangorous Soul set, although physical and mixed sets do have to worry about being burned by Scald. It also has no reliable recovery, and thus gets worn down easily by multiple Volt Switches as well as Toxic.
**Specially Defensive Walls**: Chansey's enormous special bulk allows it to wall Raikou, even if it has Aura Sphere. However, Chansey does not like switching into Volt Switch, especially when hazards are up. Assault Vest Reuniclus, Mew, and Assault Vest Galarian Slowbro can also sponge Raikou's attacks easily, though the former two do have to watch out for Toxic.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[StarFalcon555, 540058]]
- Quality checked by: [[Estarossa, 461329], [Twilight, 344575], [bb skarm, 235692]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Bandkrook, 301217], [Muk, 33374]]
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