Pokémon Scarlet Violet 7-Star Pikachu Tera Raid Guide Strategies Counters

Pikachu faces a seven-star challenge in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, where rare Terastal power reshapes battles and rewards await the swift and savvy.

Right off the bat, Pikachu will also get a full shield, requiring you to Terastilize to deal substantial damage to it. Annoyingly enough, it will steal your Tera Orb charge frequently. Have no fear, there are quite a few good builds to take it out with ease using grass-type Pokémon and moves.

Pikachu with the water Tera Type and Mightiest Mark is only in raids from Feb. 23 at 7 p.m. EST until Feb 27 at 9:59 a.m. EST.

Pikachu Tera Raid rewards

Pikachu Tera Raid rewards include exclusive 7-star Pikachu variants, powerful battling items, and valuable in-game currency, all earned by completing challenging phases and weathering timed events.

Upon defeating Pikachu, you’ll be able to catch one, but only one. After you capture your first one, you will not be able to catch any more, even if you defeat it again. You’ll also get TM123 (Surf) and a guaranteed Ability Patch for your first victory.

The caught Pikachu has its Hidden Ability, Lightning Rod, which renders it immune to electric-type attacks and raises its Special Attack when hit by them. It also comes with the Mightiest Mark, just like the Pokémon from earlier seven-star raids. It also has complete perfect IVs.

Similarly to other Tera Raids, you can get other drops, like Exp. Candy, Tera Shards, Bottle Caps, and treasure items to sell for money. Serebii.net has a complete drop table. Pikachu raids do not drop Herba Mystica.

Pikachu Tera Raid best counters

Pikachu Tera Raid best counters: Use rock- or ground-type moves to exploit Pikachu’s weakness to Ground and Rock, while prioritizing fast, high-damage hits from strong Electric-resistant Pokémon to weather its special attacks; bring teammates who can set up shields or debuffs to curb its speed and power, and aim for a coordinated finish before its Terastal boosts magnify its electric assaults.

As of this writing, there a few good counters we’ve seen around: Arbolivia, Lurantis, and Clodsire.

Pikachu is at level 100 with a water Tera Type. It knows Thunder, Surf, Play Rough, and Iron Tail, along with Rain Dance. It’ll start the battle with Rain Dance and Surf right off the bat. As mentioned before, Pikachu will start with a full tera shield, making any damage you do negligible until you can Terastilize. To top it off, it’ll also steal your Tera Orb charge frequently, making this a bit of a stalling survival game. You’ll need to stay alive long enough to Terastilize. Once you get that far, defeating Pikachu with grass-type moves is easy enough.

Because of its Lightning Rod ability, avoid using electric-type moves, as they won’t have any effect. Leave your Iron Hands at home, folks. Stick to grass-type moves to neutralize this rat (derogatory).

As usual with these raids, there are quite a few strategies going around to use, including Protean Meowscarada and other grass-type builds. Below we list the ones that we saw used in battle and can give our personal thumbs up to.

Pikachu Arbolivia Tera Raid build

• Nature: Modest
• Ability: Seed Sower
• Tera Type: Grass
• EVs: 4 Special Defense/252 HP/252 Special Attack
• IVs: Maxed HP, Defense, Special Defense, Special Attack
• Held item: Covert Cloak
• Moveset: Giga Drain (TM111), Sunny Day (TM49), Energy Ball, Terrain Pulse

At the start of battle, use Sunny Day to override the Pikachu’s Rain Dance. You’ll want to negate the rain early or else Pikachu’s Thunder will hit with 100% accuracy. Spam Energy Ball until you have enough Tera Orb charge to Terastilize.

Use healing cheers if you and your party mates get too low. Once you can Terastilize, use Giga Drain and Terrain Pulse to knock the Pikachu out.

Pikachu Lurantis Tera Raid build

• Nature: Modest
• Ability: Contrary (hidden ability)
• Tera Type: Grass
• EVs: 4 Special Attack/252 HP/252 Special Defense
• IVs: Maxed HP, Defense, Special Defense, Special Attack
• Held item: Shell Bell or Covert Cloak
• Moveset: Giga Drain (TM111), Sunny Day (TM49), Leaf Storm (TM159), Synthesis

This strategy is similar enough to the above. Start with Sunny Day to override the Rain Dance (you don’t want Pikachu’s Thunder on 100% accuracy) and then use Leaf Storm to lower Pikachu’s Special Attack until you can Terastilize.

If you get low, use Synthesis or healing cheers. Once you can finally Terastilize, do it and use Giga Drain to take Pikachu out.

Pikachu Clodsire Tera Raid build

• Nature: Modest
• Ability: Water Absorb
• Tera Type: Grass
• EVs: 4 Special Defense/252 HP/252 Special Attack
• IVs: Maxed HP, Defense, Special Defense, Special Attack
• Held item: Shell Bell
• Moveset: Mud-Slap (TM5), Helping Hand (TM130), Chilling Water (TM22), Tera Blast (TM171)

Clodsire is a great pick as it’s immune to Pikachu’s electric- and water-type moves. All it can do is use Play Rough and Iron Tail against you, none of which is super effective.

Start off by spamming Chilling Water and Mud-Slap to lower the Pikachu’s attack and accuracy. You should be able to use the moves enough that Pikachu’s damage is no longer a threat to the rest of your party.

Best EV spreads and natures for Arboliva in Pikachu raid

Arboliva shines in the Pikachu 7-star Tera Raid due to its Grass-type moveset, bulk, and ability to counter rain with Sunny Day while exploiting Pikachu’s Water Tera weakness.

Recommended Nature

Modest (+Sp. Atk, -Atk) is the top choice for maximizing damage output from Energy Ball and Giga Drain, as Arboliva’s role prioritizes special sweeping over physical stats.

Optimal EV Spreads

Focus on bulky offense to survive Pikachu’s Thunder and Surf while building Tera charge-max HP and Sp. Atk are standard, with leftover EVs in Sp. Def for special bulk against Electric moves.

Builds Comparison

These leverage Modest nature, Grass Tera Type, and items like Covert Cloak or Shell Bell for sustainability.

Best held items for Arboliva in Pikachu raid

Covert Cloak stands out as the premier held item for Arboliva in the Pikachu 7-star Tera Raid, blocking secondary effects from Pikachu’s status-inflicting moves like Thunder (paralysis) and Play Rough to ensure uninterrupted Grass-type damage output.

Top Held Items

Shell Bell offers solid recovery on every hit, synergizing with Giga Drain’s healing to maintain bulk through Pikachu’s rain-boosted assaults, though it lacks status protection.​

• Metronome: Boosts move power (up to 200%) on repeated Grass moves like Energy Ball, ideal for solo clears if you avoid interruptions.​

• Big Root: Amplifies Giga Drain/Strength Sap healing by 30%, favoring support roles in groups.​

Item Comparison

Prioritize based on playstyle-solo favors prevention, teams lean recovery.