[OVERVIEW]
In UU, Kadabra might be even better than Alakazam is in OU. With 105 Base Speed it outspeeds all wrappers in the meta. Combination of STAB Psychic (coming of ex-aequo 2nd highest special) and Thunder Wave allows it to either threaten to 2HKO (Cruel, Bel) or paralyse which nullifies wrapping potential. It also makes it an excellent revenge killer, probably the best one after Dugtrio. However its combo of ultra low HP and defence makes it very vulnerable to physical moves. Keep Kadabra healthy and status free and it will prove its usefulness.
[SET]
move 1: Psychic
move 2: Thunder Wave
move 3: Recover
move 4: Seismic Toss
[SET COMMENTS]
Since Kadabra has the same limited movepool Alakazam has, it comes at no surprise it utilizes pretty much the same moveset. Psychic deals solid damage to everything that doesn't resist it or isn't named Articuno, Moltres or Vaporeon. 30% to lower Special is always nice and can often change a 3HKO into a 2HKO. Combine that with Thunder Wave and you have a Pokemon that is extremely hard to switch into. Recover keeps Kadabra HP high and gives it a chance to win 1-1 against even the best special attackers that has otherwise has to rely on Rest. Seismic Toss is a standard 4th move, allows to deal any significant damage to opposinig Kadabra (3HKO) or Hypno. It also helps to spare precious pp of Psychic if you're engaged in a long, stally battle.
[USAGE TIPS]
Kadabras main utility lies in the ability to stop wrappers, Tentacruel in particular. In order to successfully do that Kadabra has to stay free from paralysis so until you manage to paralyse your opponents Tentacruel keeping Kadabra paralysis-free should be your priority (unless you also have another answer to Tentacruel like Raichu or Electabuzz). Usually you’re the best off using Psychic against Tentacruel but after Thunder Wave you will have more options to deal with the most dangerous mon in the tier. Keep in mind though that some Tentacruels run Rest.
Using Kadabra as a lead can give you a nice momentum from the start of the battle since it has very good matchups against a lot of other leads such as Tentacruel, Haunter, Venusaur, Victreebel. Keep in mind though a non-crit Psychic doesn't OHKO any of them and you may end up getting statused (also beware of Haunter Explosion). Hypno is also amongst the most popular leads and starting game with Kadabra vs Kadabra isn't uncommon either. In general leading with Kadabra makes it much harder to keep it status-free. It's somewhat of a high risk-high reward game. If you decide it is worth it your team should be ready to deal with Tentacruel while having a paralysed Kadabra.
Most of the time you shouldn’t switch-in on attacks with Kadabra, because of its low HP even special ones can do a lot of damage, and in gen1 you always have to take crits into account. This can force you to use recover early and give your opponent a free move.
Kadabra is excellent at finishing off opponents, and most of the time they don’t have to be that low on HP. Just a few examples of how much damage non-super effective Psychic deals against some of the most popular mons in the tier:
-Dodrio 46.7 - 55.1%
-Kangaskhan 45 - 53%
-Electabuzz 36.6 - 43.2%
-Raichu 36.8 - 43.6%
Kadabra outspeeds all of them apart from Electabuzz which is a speed-tie. The damage output is considerably lower when you face a bulky special mon like Vaporeon or Articuno but even against them Kadabra has some advantages: higher speed and crit rate, instant HP replenish option in form of recover, Special drops from Psychic.
[OTHER OPTIONS]
Reflect can work well to enable Kadabra to take physical attacks better when trying to sweep mid to late-game (providing opposing Hypno is out). Be aware though that almost any crit coming of a physical move will OHKO Kadabra. Other options most of the time are nothing more than a gimmick. Toxic can be used against Dragonite or bulky special mons if they don't run rest. Counter may surprise an unprepared opponent but taking any physical hits with Kadabra is a very risky game.
[CHECKS & COUNTERS]
Hypno walls Kadabra almost completely. Psychic doesn't bothers it even with Special drops, seismic toss is only a 4hko so it can heal of any damage and eventual status with rest. Also since Hypno doesn't rely on speed nearly as much as Kadabra being paralysed is not such a big deal for it. On the other hand it can paralyse Kadabra in return and with some parahax 3HKO it with seismic toss. Opposing Kadabra also deals with it pretty good but the usual effect of Kadabra vs Kadabra is that both get paralysed which nullifies most of the qualities they bring to the meta.
Kangaskhan and Dodrio have a sure OHKO with their STAB Hyper Beam, provided it doesn't miss. Dugtrio deals “only” 62.5 - 73.4% damage with Earthquake but it outspeeds Kadabra and can’t be paralysed with Thunder Wave. You cannot forget about its high crit rate either. Persian, although not nearly as popular as previously mentioned, is also faster than Kadabra and take more than ¾ of Kadabras HP with Slash (not to mention 7.7% to OHKO with Hyper Beam).
Bulky special mons such as previously mentioned Vaporeon and Legendary Birds can be troublesome to Kadabra as well, especially when faced at full HP. Psychic deals less than 30% to them while their special attacks anywhere from 34.2% (low roll Vaporeon Surf) to 56.1% (high roll STAB Blizzard/Fire Blast). Vaporeon can also paralyse Kadabra with Body Slam while Articuno/Moltres can finish off Kadabra with Hyper Beam which deals 65.3 - 77% (Articuno) or 72.4 - 85.1% (Moltres).
Gyarados and Dragonite are almost as bulky as Legendary Birds (Psychic is only a 4HKO) and OHKO it with Hyper Beam on a max roll. Dragonite sometimes run Thunder Wave instead of Agility. Neither likes getting paralysed themselves though, Dragonite in particular since it really screws up its wrap game.
PS. This is my 1st attempt to write an analysis, I tried my best but I realise it's far from perfect.
Edit: Added paragraph about Kadabra as a lead in "UT".
Mentioning toxic is down to 1 sentence in ""OO".
Added paragraph on Gyara and Nite in ""CC".
In UU, Kadabra might be even better than Alakazam is in OU. With 105 Base Speed it outspeeds all wrappers in the meta. Combination of STAB Psychic (coming of ex-aequo 2nd highest special) and Thunder Wave allows it to either threaten to 2HKO (Cruel, Bel) or paralyse which nullifies wrapping potential. It also makes it an excellent revenge killer, probably the best one after Dugtrio. However its combo of ultra low HP and defence makes it very vulnerable to physical moves. Keep Kadabra healthy and status free and it will prove its usefulness.
[SET]
move 1: Psychic
move 2: Thunder Wave
move 3: Recover
move 4: Seismic Toss
[SET COMMENTS]
Since Kadabra has the same limited movepool Alakazam has, it comes at no surprise it utilizes pretty much the same moveset. Psychic deals solid damage to everything that doesn't resist it or isn't named Articuno, Moltres or Vaporeon. 30% to lower Special is always nice and can often change a 3HKO into a 2HKO. Combine that with Thunder Wave and you have a Pokemon that is extremely hard to switch into. Recover keeps Kadabra HP high and gives it a chance to win 1-1 against even the best special attackers that has otherwise has to rely on Rest. Seismic Toss is a standard 4th move, allows to deal any significant damage to opposinig Kadabra (3HKO) or Hypno. It also helps to spare precious pp of Psychic if you're engaged in a long, stally battle.
[USAGE TIPS]
Kadabras main utility lies in the ability to stop wrappers, Tentacruel in particular. In order to successfully do that Kadabra has to stay free from paralysis so until you manage to paralyse your opponents Tentacruel keeping Kadabra paralysis-free should be your priority (unless you also have another answer to Tentacruel like Raichu or Electabuzz). Usually you’re the best off using Psychic against Tentacruel but after Thunder Wave you will have more options to deal with the most dangerous mon in the tier. Keep in mind though that some Tentacruels run Rest.
Using Kadabra as a lead can give you a nice momentum from the start of the battle since it has very good matchups against a lot of other leads such as Tentacruel, Haunter, Venusaur, Victreebel. Keep in mind though a non-crit Psychic doesn't OHKO any of them and you may end up getting statused (also beware of Haunter Explosion). Hypno is also amongst the most popular leads and starting game with Kadabra vs Kadabra isn't uncommon either. In general leading with Kadabra makes it much harder to keep it status-free. It's somewhat of a high risk-high reward game. If you decide it is worth it your team should be ready to deal with Tentacruel while having a paralysed Kadabra.
Most of the time you shouldn’t switch-in on attacks with Kadabra, because of its low HP even special ones can do a lot of damage, and in gen1 you always have to take crits into account. This can force you to use recover early and give your opponent a free move.
Kadabra is excellent at finishing off opponents, and most of the time they don’t have to be that low on HP. Just a few examples of how much damage non-super effective Psychic deals against some of the most popular mons in the tier:
-Dodrio 46.7 - 55.1%
-Kangaskhan 45 - 53%
-Electabuzz 36.6 - 43.2%
-Raichu 36.8 - 43.6%
Kadabra outspeeds all of them apart from Electabuzz which is a speed-tie. The damage output is considerably lower when you face a bulky special mon like Vaporeon or Articuno but even against them Kadabra has some advantages: higher speed and crit rate, instant HP replenish option in form of recover, Special drops from Psychic.
[OTHER OPTIONS]
Reflect can work well to enable Kadabra to take physical attacks better when trying to sweep mid to late-game (providing opposing Hypno is out). Be aware though that almost any crit coming of a physical move will OHKO Kadabra. Other options most of the time are nothing more than a gimmick. Toxic can be used against Dragonite or bulky special mons if they don't run rest. Counter may surprise an unprepared opponent but taking any physical hits with Kadabra is a very risky game.
[CHECKS & COUNTERS]
Hypno walls Kadabra almost completely. Psychic doesn't bothers it even with Special drops, seismic toss is only a 4hko so it can heal of any damage and eventual status with rest. Also since Hypno doesn't rely on speed nearly as much as Kadabra being paralysed is not such a big deal for it. On the other hand it can paralyse Kadabra in return and with some parahax 3HKO it with seismic toss. Opposing Kadabra also deals with it pretty good but the usual effect of Kadabra vs Kadabra is that both get paralysed which nullifies most of the qualities they bring to the meta.
Kangaskhan and Dodrio have a sure OHKO with their STAB Hyper Beam, provided it doesn't miss. Dugtrio deals “only” 62.5 - 73.4% damage with Earthquake but it outspeeds Kadabra and can’t be paralysed with Thunder Wave. You cannot forget about its high crit rate either. Persian, although not nearly as popular as previously mentioned, is also faster than Kadabra and take more than ¾ of Kadabras HP with Slash (not to mention 7.7% to OHKO with Hyper Beam).
Bulky special mons such as previously mentioned Vaporeon and Legendary Birds can be troublesome to Kadabra as well, especially when faced at full HP. Psychic deals less than 30% to them while their special attacks anywhere from 34.2% (low roll Vaporeon Surf) to 56.1% (high roll STAB Blizzard/Fire Blast). Vaporeon can also paralyse Kadabra with Body Slam while Articuno/Moltres can finish off Kadabra with Hyper Beam which deals 65.3 - 77% (Articuno) or 72.4 - 85.1% (Moltres).
Gyarados and Dragonite are almost as bulky as Legendary Birds (Psychic is only a 4HKO) and OHKO it with Hyper Beam on a max roll. Dragonite sometimes run Thunder Wave instead of Agility. Neither likes getting paralysed themselves though, Dragonite in particular since it really screws up its wrap game.
PS. This is my 1st attempt to write an analysis, I tried my best but I realise it's far from perfect.
Edit: Added paragraph about Kadabra as a lead in "UT".
Mentioning toxic is down to 1 sentence in ""OO".
Added paragraph on Gyara and Nite in ""CC".
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