Electric Type Pokemon: Why They’re Special
The Electric type Pokemon has one of the easiest type weaknesses in the basic type chart: Ground. It’s a type that is powerful against Water and Flying Pokemon, but Electric moves fail against Ground and do poor damage against Electric, Grass, and Dragon types.
So why would anyone want to study Electric? Because the Electric type seems simple on the surface, but abilities, secondary types, Speed, and immunities can totally alter an Electric Pokemon.
So when you need an Electric Pokemon, form a team, or use a Random Pokemon Generator by Type tool, consider the following.
What makes Electric stand out from the rest?
The Electric type Pokemon has a unique balance of advantages and disadvantages.
In terms of offense, Electric moves are very effective against only Water and Flying types. They don’t work at all on Ground types and are countered by Electric, Grass, and Dragon.
For defense, Electric is weak to only Ground types when it is a pure Electric type.
It resists Electric, Flying, and Steel attacks.
This allows an Electric type to have a rather simple defensive stat spread but take the Ground type seriously.
However, it has one notable exception – the abilities.
What does Electric work well against?
Moves of the Electric type are super-effective against:
- Water
- Flying
That’s all.
However, it is useful for battling since Pokemon of these types tend to be popular on most Pokemon teams and serve quite diverse purposes.
It is particularly intriguing to use Electric moves against Water/Flying Pokemon since the move is super-effective against both of the types, and the effectiveness doubles up for 4× damage. You may find the relevant matchup shown on Pokemon Database’s Electric double-type chart.
That is why Gyarados, for example, will be a much different enemy compared to a pure Water type Pokemon if you have an Electric move at hand.
When picking a move during a battle, knowing both types of your opponent can give you much more information than considering just the first one.
Why are Electric moves unable to hurt Ground Pokemon?
Here is likely the first Electric matchup that needs remembering.
Electric type pokemon moves cannot do any harm to Ground-type Pokemon.
So if your Electric type Pokemon fights against a Ground-type Pokemon, Electric attacks won’t be useful there.
What is important here is that this isn’t only a resistance, which would mean the Pokemon takes some reduced damage from those moves.
No, an immunity means that an attack of that type does zero damage according to the standard table.
Ground is thus the type you have to remember in case you use Electric attacks intensively.
What are the weaknesses of Electric Pokemon?
A pure Electric Pokemon has only one standard weakness:
Ground.
It looks like an easy-to-remember fact, but the secondary type can affect how that Pokemon defends itself.
For example, an Electric/Flying Pokemon doesn’t have the same relation to the Ground type as a pure Electric Pokemon because Flying is immune to Ground-type attacks.
It is another reason why typing has to be checked together.
Don’t be limited by the fact that your Pokemon is Electric.
Which types resist Electric attacks?
Electric type moves have low effectiveness against:
- Electric
- Grass
- Dragon
They have no effect on Ground.
This creates a nice juxtaposition.
Electric types are good for Water and Flying, but once you meet a Ground, Grass, or Dragon, the same attack becomes bad.
It means that Electric coverage is especially susceptible to what other moves you have.
Another type of attack in your Pokemon will help you in the situations when Electric types are useless.
Is every Electric Pokemon purely Electric type?
Not really.
Pokemon can either be Electric types only or mixed with another one.
Pokemon Database provides us with information about 91 Electric-type Pokemon, consisting of 41 single-type Pokemon and 50 dual-type Pokemon.
Here are some examples:
Pikachu is Electric.
Alolan Raichu is Electric/Psychic.
Rotom has multiple forms and is Electric with another type.
Luxray is Electric.
Magnezone is Electric/Steel.
Although all these Pokemon are Electric, the typing of each one is distinct.
And this is exactly the reason why Pokemon-by-type search should be the starting point of your research.
Which Electric Pokemon are worth considering?
There is a wide range of well-known Electric Pokemon, yet there is no reason to consider any one of them “the best.”
The name everyone immediately thinks of is Pikachu. Raichu, Jolteon, Ampharos, Electabuzz, Electivire, Luxray, Zebstrika, Galvantula, Vikavolt, Toxtricity, and Bellibolt are some other Electric Pokemon.
Then you have unique type combinations, which make the type more varied.
Magnezone is Electric & Steel. Alolan Raichu is Electric & Psychic. Rotom changes its secondary type depending on the form.
The idea isn’t to make any kind of a ranking.
It is to demonstrate how two Pokemon of the same Electric type may be totally different from each other in battle.
Why is Speed characteristic for many Electric Pokemon?
The Electric Pokemon tend to be fast, and this aspect is demonstrated by the Pokemon Database type average stats: the average Speed of Electric Pokemon is 82.8, making it the second type on that list. Electric Pokemon have an average Special Attack stat of 86.2, also the fourth on that list.
Those numbers refer to Pokemon in the database, listed according to their type statistics. It does not mean all Electric Pokemon will be fast or specially offensive.
For instance, Pikachu and Jolteon function quite differently from other, slower Electric Pokemon.
Therefore, do not assume that the type designation means anything in place of the Pokemon’s own statistics.
If you have several Electric Pokemon to choose between, compare the individual Pokemon themselves, rather than the type alone.
Why are Electric/Flying combinations unique?
Understanding Electric/Flying combinations is useful, as it shows how types can counter each other in some way.
The Electric type Pokemon are weak against Ground.
However, Flying types do not have any weakness to Ground.
As such, combining the two eliminates the weakness of Electric Pokemon to the Ground type.
It is not to say that every Electric/Flying Pokemon would be better because of this. Every additional type adds its own weaknesses.
However, it proves one simple rule regarding Pokemon, which is easily forgotten:
A secondary type can override a weakness entirely.
Something worth remembering, every time you use a Pokemon by Type tool or list.
How is a matchup changed by an ability?
Abilities can also make Electric Pokemon way cooler than the type chart makes them seem.
Pokemon Database also lists abilities like Volt Absorb, Motor Drive, and Lightning Rod, which affect how the Pokemon is affected by Electric-type attacks.
Volt Absorb will allow the Pokemon to regain health rather than lose it whenever it gets hit by an Electric-type attack.
Motor Drive increases the Pokemon’s Speed after being hit with an Electric-type attack.
Lightning Rod attracts Electric-type moves to the Pokemon with the ability and increases its Special Attack rather than damaging it.
All of this is just a nice reminder that the type chart does not show you everything there is to know about the battles between your Pokemon.
The type chart only shows you the general idea of what will happen in battle. Abilities can make things very different.
What makes Eelektross special?
The Pokemon that has an amazing ability is Eelektross.
According to Pokemon Database, Eelektross has Levitate as its ability, making it immune to Ground-type attacks.
This means that Eelektross is a perfect specimen when it comes to studying how types and abilities interact with each other.
The Electric type gives you certain information.
The ability modifies it.
Remember to consider both.
What should you take into account when selecting an Electric Pokemon?
Don’t just select an Electric Pokemon because you need “a Electric type.”
Think first about what your team lacks.
Do you need a speedy attacker? Compare Speed values. Do you require a certain resistance? Look at the typing. If Ground attacks are ruining your life, check whether it has any secondary type or ability that will change this matchup.
You may also take into account the Pokemon’s movepool.
A Electric Pokemon doesn’t necessarily have to use only Electric-type moves. The movepool of this Pokemon can give it an opportunity to counter Pokemon resistant or immune to Electric attacks.
It is in the movepool and other factors when individual Pokemon starts to become more important than type.
How can such type-based random Pokemon generator be useful?
Sometimes you don’t need to select a Pokemon yourself.
That’s all you care about right now.
A random Pokemon generator by type will allow you to limit your pool to Electric and then pick a random Pokemon from this group.
Here’s how:
- Pick Electric as the type.
- Generate a random Pokemon.
- Review its full typing.
- See its weaknesses and resistances.
- Learn its abilities and moves.
- Decide if it suits the team or task at hand.
The random selection is just the beginning. You learn how to use this particular Pokemon from all the other information about it.
It can be helpful when you get tired of using the same Pokemon again and again. An Electric-type random Pokemon might provide you with something different.
Which Gym Leaders are Electric-type?
Electric has been represented by some famous Gym Leaders and one Trial Captain in Pokemon games.
Lt. Surge, the classic character from the first games, is an example of an Electric-type specialist. Further Electric specialists include such characters as Wattson, Volkner, Elesa, Clemont, and Iono. Sophocles was the Electric-type Trial Captain in the 7th Generation.
It also illustrates how the Electric-type has evolved through different generations.
If you want to examine Pokemon by generation, then games and their regions can be one more option to discover Electric Pokemon.
Does Electric Terrain make Electric moves stronger?
Yes.
Pokemon Database claims that there will be a 30% boost in attack power when Electric Terrain is active for Electric moves.
However, there are many other effects of Electric Terrain besides making the Electric moves stronger.
In case it’s a general Pokemon type article, you won’t have to know everything about Terrains since it’s enough to understand that they do influence the battlefield. However, if you are going deeper into the study of Electric Pokemon, it would be useful to know about Terrain mechanics, since it gives you an idea how the battlefield conditions can impact the type.
How about Electric-type moves in older Pokemon games?
Pokémon Database states that all Electric-type moves in Generations 1–3 were classified as Special. In the newer generations, however, the modern distinction between Physical and Special was created, taking into account individual moves rather than their type.
Thus, when comparing an Electric Pokemon from an old game to one from a new game, keep in mind that there might be some differences in terms of mechanics.
The above applies not only to Electric moves but also to the type chart as a whole – Pokémon Database currently features a modern chart while the previous generations had their differences.
How can you find an Electric Pokemon easily?
If you know which Pokémon you want, just search by name.
But if you only want an Electric Pokémon and do not have a particular one in mind, filter the Pokedex by type.
To get a purely Electric Pokémon, use the filter and generate one from the Electric category.
Then, take a look at the secondary type and ability to see how to proceed. And this small thing will totally change your approach to using the Pokemon.
Because the useful information about Electric is not in the damage chart alone
Electric seems simple in that its weaknesses are easy to memorize.
However, the type becomes a lot more complex when you factor in the chart with secondary types and abilities.
While Electric moves hurt Water and Flying types and fail against Ground, pure Electric types have only one weakness and combinations like Electric/Flying types can alter the defensive capabilities. Abilities like Levitate, Volt Absorb, Motor Drive, and Lightning Rod alter it even further.
Thus, when you’re exploring Electric Pokemon, don’t be satisfied with looking for an entry in the type chart.
Just pick one randomly, look through its secondary types, its ability and its actual role.
Now you know how to research the type much better than using another chart.