Summary

Raikou is widely regarded as the premier ADV Draft Pokemon, sporting a win rate approaching 60%. Raikou is limited in ADV OU by a variety of factors: it struggles againast Blissey and Dugtrio, the Raikou player does not know which Hidden Power to use -- Swampert beats Hidden Power Ice, and Celebi and Flygon beat Hidden Power Grass -- and Raikou's high speed also is less important as Jolly Tyranitar cleanly outspeeds it after one Dragon Dance. While Raikou once was in the ADV OU tier, it has lost its status and resides in UUBL alongside many other pokemon that are weak and require specific support in OU, such as Regice, Miltank, and Dragonite. However, all of these pokemon are superb with very limited support in draft due to threatening presences not being widespread, and Raikou is no exception.

Raikou has one primary set, but it works exceptionally well in draft: Thunderbolt, Hidden Power, and Calm Mind is a superb trio of moves that is the primary reason Raikou is so powerful. STAB Thunderbolt hits everything besides Electric resists, and Hidden Power can be chosen to hit anything else, from Grass for Swampert to Ice for Donphan. Calm Mind transforms Raikou into an unstoppable threat as the game goes on. The fourth move is a bit more variable, but the standard is Substitute as it makes Raikou immune to status and generates turns if used right as the opponent switches or tries to use a status move like Toxic or Thunder Wave. Crunch can also be used over Hidden Power to hit threats such as Celebi or Gengar. Raikou's great speed stat of 115 means that against most opponents, you have a turn to boost your Special Attack stat, also 115, as your opponent breaks Substitute. Raikou's high speed also means it will outspeed many drafts entirely or at compete in speed with the a few fast Pokemon your opponent might have such as Starmie or Alakazam. Outside of Substitute, Raikou can run four attacks, Roar to punish setup pokemon that try to set up alongside it, Thunder Wave and Toxic to status opposing pokemon that might otherwise try to prevent your own setup, and Quick Attack to eliminates Reversal or Flail sweepers that may outspeed Raikou after a boost. Rest, in a similar vein to Substitute, prevents status and makes Raikou much healthier if the opponent has limited Ground-type coverage.

Raikou does, however, still have weaknesses. Raikou can't run two Hidden Power types, so it can't beat two pokemon that demand different coverage like Swampert + Meganium or Flygon + Lanturn. This leads to teams often drafting compound checks to Raikou that can abuse it once its Hidden Power type is revealed. Raikou also still struggles with the problems it faces in OU, mainly Blissey (and by extension any other longterm special wall) and Dugtrio. However, Raikou can tech for these poor matchups or leave them to its teammates in ADV Draft. Raikou can run Toxic + Substitute/Protect to chip down Blissey until it can't heal off the damage, or it can use Rest and force a Calm Mind war that Raikou is favored in thanks to its Pressure ability. For Dugtrio, Raikou can try to predict when Dugtrio comes in or try to keep a substitute up at all times such that even when Dugtrio can come in on a fainted Pokemon, they cannot break through the substitute Raikou sets up and live to hit Raikou. Alternatively, if you have teammates that prevent Dugtrio from using Choice Band, you can invest 76 defense EVs into Raikou which allows it to live Jolly Dugtrio's Earthquake without Choice Band. With this bulk, you can either use Hidden Power Ice/Grass to eliminate Dugtrio, or you can use it to enable Salac Berry strategies. You can do the same with the move Endure. With a Salac Berry, you will be faster than Dugtrio and then click Hidden Power risk-free. There are also specific niche sets that are designed to work well into Raikou, such as Bubble + Amnesia Lanturn.

Raikou is a fantastic pokemon, but it can't beat entire teams on its own if they are constructed well via the inclusion of a Raikou check -- compound or otherwise. Raikou usually likes teammates that can deal with problem matchups or patch up defensive holes. Notably, Claydol is its most common partner and one that complements Raikou well: it spins away spikes, Explosion enables an offensive playstyle Raikou prefers, and Ground/Psychic typing with Levitate supports against many of the threats who use Earthquake that Raikou cannot defeat after one Calm Mind. Other fantastic Raikou partners are bulky waters, which help versus physical threats and mixed threats, and Pokemon that can compress into many defensive roles at once such as Steelix or Hariyama. Raikou additionally works well with fast offensive Pokemon such as Aerodactyl or Gengar, which assist in overwhelming offense, and clerics like Miltank and Ampharos to heal status such as Rest or Thunder Wave/Toxic thrown toward Raikou and its teammates. Raikou also appreciates teammates that can eliminate its main threats, Blissey and Dugtrio, such as Machamp and Porygon2.

Raikou is not a versatile pokemon -- most of the time, you will run three of the same moves every single week. Where Raikou excels is that its main set is extremely powerful and, given a few turns of space, will roll over unprepared drafts. Raikou's versatility is in its item slot, which can be Lum Berry, Salac Berry, Petaya Berry, or simple Leftovers, and your fourth move. It is the mascot of ADV Draft for a reason and is very often picked within the first half of the first round, if not first overall, with some tournaments even banning its use.

Summary written by Wraxius

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