Raichu

Despite its underwhelming stats, Raichu possesses a solid niche in VGC due to its expansive pool of support options and access to Lightning Rod, which lets it be an excellent support partner for Water-types like Tapu Fini and Pelipper and Flying-types like Mega Charizard Y.

Raichu's good Speed allows it to quickly disrupt foes in various ways with support moves like Fake Out and Encore, letting its teammates safely set up boosts or Tailwind reliably.

These near-exclusive traits set Raichu apart from other Lightning Rod users like Mega Manectric, Alolan Marowak, and Togedemaru.

While Raichu easily handles any relevant Electric-types thanks to Lightning Rod, its horrid bulk leaves it unable to reliably take hits without relying on Focus Sash or its teammates' Intimidate. The fact that Raichu has a hard time justifying Protect in its moveset further worsens its problem with survivability.

Raichu's offensive presence is meager, as it struggles to deal significant damage without resorting to a Z-Move and struggles to effectively deal with common Electric-type checks. Therefore, Raichu functions the best when running a dedicated support set.