What it does
Wild Charge is a high-power Electric physical move that deals 1/4 of the damage done back to the user as recoil. Compared to special Electric moves like Thunderbolt, it converts physical Attack investment into damage output — but every hit costs you HP from your own side.
Electric coverage is primarily useful against Water and Flying types. For physical attackers that need to threaten those common types, Wild Charge is one of the few Electric moves that uses Attack rather than Special Attack.
The recoil math: if you deal 100 damage, you lose 25 HP. Three uses is roughly 75 HP in self-damage, before the opponent has landed a single hit on you. That adds up faster than it looks.
Who runs it
Luxray (38%) uses it as its primary Electric physical attack. Luxray is a physical Electric attacker and doesn't have many better options for Electric output — Wild Charge is the move that lets it actually threaten Water and Flying types. The recoil is a real constraint on its longevity, so coordinating Protect turns and not blindly using it three times in a row are both important.
Arcanine (9%) uses it for coverage. Arcanine is Fire-type, so against Water types that would otherwise absorb its STAB, Wild Charge is the answer. The low adoption rate (9%) signals that not every Arcanine set has room for it — four moveslots fill up quickly, and only configurations that need specific Electric coverage carry it.
How to use it
Target Water and Flying: That's the primary use case. When an opponent brings in a Water type to counter your Fire-type attacker, Wild Charge is the direct answer. Same against Flying threats.
Track your HP budget: Every use costs you recoil. If the target is already at low HP, one hit likely ends it and the recoil is acceptable. If you're grinding through something bulky and using Wild Charge three turns in a row, you might KO yourself before finishing the job. Pick your shots.
Doubles support: Luxray and Arcanine benefit from partners that can absorb hits (Follow Me) on the turns they're using Wild Charge — less incoming damage combined with outgoing recoil is a better HP situation than both at the same time.
Tips & strategy
Ground-type immunity: Ground types are completely immune to Electric moves. Wild Charge won't hit them — and unlike most misses, the recoil doesn't trigger either (if it misses or is immune, no recoil). Still, clicking into an immune target wastes the turn entirely.
Don't use it at low HP: Below roughly 25% HP, a recoil hit from Wild Charge can be enough to KO yourself. At that point, either switch out or find a non-recoil move to finish the job. Dying to your own recoil while the target survives is one of the worst outcomes possible.
Arcanine coverage decision: Arcanine has many viable fourth-slot options. Only include Wild Charge if your team specifically needs it to handle Water types that would otherwise go uncontested. If another teammate covers Water, that slot is better used elsewhere.