Alolan Raichu !! (ライチュウ)

Biology: Raichu has a regional form: Alolan Raichu.

In Alola, Raichu has lighter coloring and more rounded features. Its eyes are blue with yellow half-circles along the bottom. It has large yellow ears with an inner spiral toward the base and brown on the inside. These ears are thicker and less pointed than a standard Raichu's ear. In addition to its white belly, Alolan Raichu has white markings on its paws with bright yellow lines between its digits. The stripes on its back have also turned white, and there is a small, white circular marking on each heel. The lightning bolt-shaped tip of its tail has rounded edges. By collecting its psychic power in its tail, it can ride it like a surfboard and float in the air. While its cheek sacs are still used to store electricity, rubbing them releases a sweet aroma while also getting a light shock. This is also thought to be connected to its Psychic abilities.

Alolan Raichu's origins were initially a mystery at the time. The people of Alola suggested it ate too many sweet and fluffy pancakes, especially those made with a secret Alolan recipe. However, researchers believe the change is related to Alolan Raichu's diet in general. It is also believed the weather and climate of the Alola region played a role in the transformation. Alolan Raichu is capable of unleashing star-shaped thunderbolts. It is also known by the name hodad. While normally found in Alola, it was been seen in the Coastal Biome of the Terarium during rare Mass outbreak events.

Alolan Raichu is the only known Pokémon capable of using the Z-Move Stoked Sparksurfer. It is also the only known Pokémon that can have Surge Surfer as an Ability.

Size: 2'07" tall, weighs 66.1 lbs.

Evolution: In Alola, Raichu has a regional form that evolves from Pikachu and is the final form of Pichu in the Alola region.

Origins: Raichu and Alolan Raichu were designed by Atsuko Nishida. The concept of Alolan Raichu came from Masafumi Nukita, which also involved writing its Pokédex entries. Raichu originally had an evolved form named "Gorochu" (Japanese: ゴロチュウ Gorochū), which would have had two horns and fangs. Ken Sugimori stated that while there was nothing wrong with its appearance, it was nonetheless omitted from Pokémon Red and Green, as the staff found that the game balance was better without it, and the limited game space meant that some Pokémon originally designed to evolve twice were changed to evolve only once. Raichu's legs and long tail resemble those of a jerboa or kangaroo rat. Alolan Raichu may be based on the concept of surfing Pikachu and the sport of surfing itself, which originated in Hawaii (the inspiration for the Alola region), as well as the hodad concept of being a fake surfer; hodad is referred to as another name for Alolan Raichu in its Pokédex entry in Pokémon Ultra Sun. Its design and Psychic typing may have been influenced by Puka, a surfing Pikachu that appeared in Pokémon the Series which had psychic powers and blue eyes. In the Pokémon Stadium series, Colosseum, XD, and Battle Revolution, Raichu rides on its tail when using the move Surf. According to Ken Sugimori, he asked Atsuko Nishida to design Alolan Raichu since she was the one who had worked on the original Raichu design. Nishida insisted that Raichu "has always been cuter than people might think", and designed Alolan Raichu to emphasize Raichu's cuteness; in particular, she designed it with the motif of bread. The in-game lore of people believing that its evolution is induced by eating pancakes was added afterward to play up the concept. The fact that Alolan Raichu was designed after bread may have also inspired the sweet fragrance it can release from its cheeks, as well as the look of its paws which resemble whipped cream decorations, cream puffs, or baozi. Raichu may be a combination of 雷 rai (thunder) and チューチュー chūchū (onomatopoeia for the squeak of a mouse).