Although no-one is ever going to make a deck based on
Raichi GL, it is a card that deserves a slot of two in
any SP deck that is based around spreading damage to the
opponent’s benched Pokémon.
Luckily, there are a few SP Pokémon that do this pretty
well. Yesterday’s review card, Infernape 4, Palkia G,
and (the one you will be seeing most of) Gallade 4 all
come to mind.
For an astonishingly cheap [C], Raichu GL will do 10
damage to two benched Pokémon, putting the opponent
under pressure from T1, and setting up nicely for future
spread attacks and Spiritomb drops. If that was all that
Raichu GL did, though, it would be barely average. It is
the second attack (which has such great synergy with the
first) that makes Raichu worth its place in spread
decks. For [L][C], Raichu will do 30 damage, plus 10
more for each of your opponent’s benched Pokémon that
has damage counters on it. That is a possible 80 for 2,
although in practice, 60-70 for 2 is more realistic.
That’s still an undercosted attack for an SP Basic, and
more than enough to secure a KO or two after spreading
damage, or against Lightning Weak Pokémon like Palkia G
and Kingdra. Free Retreat makes it all the sweeter.
Of course, Raichu has some popular enemies in Rising
Rivals, like Nidoqueen, whose PokeBody allows her to
heal the bench between turns, and Flygon who is
Resistant to Lightning. Even so, expect Raichu GL to be
popping up in most spread-based SP decks from now on.
Rating
Modified: 3.5 (very useful tech with two good attacks)
Limited: 4 (it can survive long enough to be an absolute
beast here)
Steel_Winger
Welcome back to the Pokemon COTD!
Today's featured card is Raichu GL, one of the 2
electric Rares from Rising Rivals. This card seems to be
getting almost as much attention as Luxray GL and its
LV. X does. It has 80 HP, which is about average for SP
Pokemon right now. Snowpoint Temple boosts it up to a
good 100 HP. However, some well-placed atacks will send
it to the discard pile before long. Its Lightning-type
gives it an advantage against any Water-type Pokemon,
Kingdra, Blastoise, and Palkia G to name a few. A x2
Weakness to Fighting-type Pokemon... any decent attack
from one of them that does at least 40 damage will KO it
in one shot. A -20 Resistance to Metal-types... seen on
almost all Lightning-type Pokemon. It's like earplugs
against Dialga G's Deafen attack. Retreat cost... WHAT
retreat cost? Raichu can retreat with the best of them
whenever he wants.
Now for its 2 attacks. The first, Thunder Throw, does 10
damage to 2 Pokemon on the opponent's Bench for the low
cost of 1 Energy of choice (an even lower cost of 0 with
an Energy Gain attached!). Weaker sniping than Infernape
4 can do, but more cost efficient.
Thunder Throw is really a lead-in to the second attack,
Repeat Lightning. For 2 Energies, one of which must be a
Lightning Energy (or just the Lightning Energy itself
with Energy Gain attached), the attack does a base 30
plus an extra 10 damage for every opposing Benched
Pokemon that's been damaged already. Depending on how
many damaged Benched Pokemon your opponent has out. That
can become a max of 80 damage for just 2 Energy, or even
just 1! Even after first using Thunder Throw, it'll most
likely be 50 damage from the start!
...Now I see why this card is hyped so much.
So, how do you utilize Raichu GL to its full potential?
Spread a lot of damage around with the likes of
Infernape 4, Gallade 4 LV. X, Crobat G, or even Raikou
(SW) and watch Raichu's power surge upwards. Worried
about resistance? Use Sunyshore City Gym. Just watch out
for Flygon, that guy wrecks places and does it well.
Counters? Fighting-type Pokemon. And other type Pokemon
with powerful attacks. Machamp can KO it instantly, even
if Raichu GL has an Unown (G) equipped to prevent the
instant KO, it's STILL an instant KO due to the x2,
unless you have Sunyshore City Gym in play. Manetric's
Electric Barrier Poke-Body prevents damage done to the
bench, limiting Raichu GL's power from the get-go if
it's already set up. Any card that can heal a Pokemon
back to full health, from Bertha's Warmth to Poke Healer
+ or even some Potions for light injuries from Crobat G
can mitigate Raichu GL's power.
But you know, I think I might attempt to get a playset
of these to try them out myself.
Ratings:
Modified: 3.5/5 It's powerful under the right
conditions. Just make sure it's going to do some damage
before you unleash it. It's like a glass cannon,
powerful, but not that hard to destroy.
Limited: 4.5/5 It'll be worth your while to spread
damage around here. This guy has amazing power for cheap
energy costs which rival Luxray GL LV. X. Combined with
the Gym if you can get it, this guy can be a powerhouse.
This is Steel_Winger, until next time!
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