No matter the game, if there’s a mechanic that lets there be special event Pokémon, Pikachu will feature in it eventually. The fourth 7-star Tera raid event is here, and it’s the series mascot themselves this time, bringing in the Water-type moves. This comes after the pre-order bonus for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet was a Flying Tera-type Pikachu, meaning you can slowly start to grow your collection with this raid.
This event is running for just one weekend, starting on Friday, Feb. 24, and ending on Monday, Feb. 27 – also known as Pokémon Day. We’ll go through our predictions for the most likely moveset Pikachu will carry and what the best Pokémon are to counter it.
Pikachu Tera Raid predicted moveset – Pokémon Scarlet & Violet
Given Pikachu’s relative weakness compared to the previous 7-star raids, there’s less to worry about here. On top of that, Pikachu doesn’t have an especially wide movepool, so you can expect to hit with most Electric, Water, and Normal-type attacks. That said, it could cause a little bit of trouble with something like Lightning Rod as an ability or Light Ball as an item.
Remember, these are just a prediction of what the moveset will be, but we’ll make sure you’re prepared for the worst-case scenario.
- Nature – Bold
- Ability – Lightning Rod
- Item – Light Ball
- Tera type – Water
- Likely moves – Surf, Nuzzle, Double Team, Agility, Electro Ball, Rain Dance, Play Rough, Thunder
- Other possible moves – Nasty Plot, Charm, Sweet Kiss, Thunder Wave, Trailblaze, Dig, Eerie Impulse
Gastrodon – 7 star Pikachu counters
This was the first Pokémon to come to the mind of many for this event, and for good reason. Gastrodon’s Ground-typing means it is innately immune to any and all Electric-type attacks, and if you set it up with the Storm Drain ability, then it will be immune to Water-type attacks too, leaving Pikachu with very few options.
The downside is that you don’t have a way to deal super effective damage, but when you’re immune to most, if not all, of Pikachu’s attacks, that won’t matter.
- Nature – Bold
- Ability – Storm Drain
- Item – Covert Cloak
- Tera type – Ground
- Recommended moves – Earth Power, Recover, Yawn, Amnesia/Acid Armor, or Clear Smog
Breloom – 7 star Pikachu counters
If you want something that packs a bit more of a punch, then you can’t go wrong with Breloom. It resists most of what Pikachu can throw at you, and it can even avoid annoying Paralysis with an assist from a Toxic Orb. On top of that, there are status moves like Spore and Worry Seed that can back you up in a pinch, and a quick Sunny Day will get rid of any rain Pikachu might set up.
- Nature – Bold
- Ability – Poison Heal
- Item – Toxic Orb
- Tera type – Grass
- Recommended moves – Leech Seed, Worry Seed, Seed Bomb, Spore, Swords Dance, or Sunny Day
Iron Hands – 7 star Pikachu counters
As a Fighting/Electric-type, Iron Hands is a great choice for a Water Pikachu due to its Water resistance and immunity to Paralysis. This can be especially effective if used in a team alongside the Breloom set discussed above, potentially setting up a super effective Thunder Punch – and of course, you need to bring Belly Drum to the party.
- Nature – Bold
- Ability – Quark Drive
- Item – Big Root
- Tera type – Electric
- Recommended moves – Drain Punch, Belly Drum, Thunder Punch, Iron Defense, or Focus Energy
Written by Georgina Young and Ryan Woodrow on behalf of GLHF.
