Kino
Smash Cadet
- Joined
- Aug 28, 2006
- Messages
- 63
How to win... with Captain Falcon
I'm Kino and Im a proud Captain Falcon mainer, I pride myself in playing Captain Falcon to a high level (by my standards, im not a very competitive player as i live in the UK, where Smash isnt as huge as america). However, this topic isn't about me, its about your favorite character, the manliest character; Captain Falcon.
Furthermore, this topic is about exactly what the topic title says it is, its a topic created to help struggling Captain Falcon mainers to learn what it feels like to win games. To accomplish this, and to avoid copying topics already created and stickied in this forum, I will only post game play strategies, this does not include matchups, or statistical information already covered in other stickies, so before reading this thread, it may be a smart idea to read the other stickies in this forum.
To be frank, I'm sick of seeing nothing but topics complaining about either something to do with the speed-demon's moveset, or about the abundance of Captain Falcon mainers posting on this forum. Hopefuly a thread like this will make it easier for new brawlers to pick up this manly character, and even possibly perform at a high level with him!
So without further a due, I present to you How to win... with Captain Falcon!
Contents
S. How can you help? (updated regularly)
A. Strategies revolving around CF's moveset
-Ground Moves
-Aerial Moves
-Special Moves
-Throws
B. Strategies revolving around stages
C. Miscellaneous strategies (strategies that do not fit into any of the above)
S. How can you help?
Post strategies as clearly as you possibly can in this topic, and i'll add them and give full credit. you can help CF's metagame evolve!
Currently needing:
-Anti-camp strategies
A. Strategies revolving around CF's moveset
Ground moves
Jab (neutral A)
This move is best used because of its speed, after an opponent attacks, if unsuccesful in some way (if you shield them, or they miss by a tiny bit, maybe by you jumping back at the right time to space yourself) you can whip out this baby faster than he can say "CF is so manly"
Jab -> shieldGrab -> Throw combo
Like i mention above, jab to grab is amazing, a great punish, i usualy only hit A once because the second hit will make the enemy bounce further away than Falcons tiny arms can reach. Check out the throws section to get some ideas on how to follow the grab up!
Ftilt
Range, this is a spacing move, which means it is best used when you have to use all of the range of the kick to hit with it, so aim to hit the metaknight you are pwning with CF's foot, not his leg
Dtilt
Decent range, i dont really use this move often at all, most Dtilts can sometimes trip the opponent, but i dont like taking the gamble so i prefer to use a ftilt, However, Dtilt combos very nicely so if you are playing aggressivley this is where it shines.
Utilt
Use this if the enemy is on a platform above you, or in the air above you, it hits them in a nice direction and has some sweet damage
Dsmash
Great finisher, use when the opponent is infront of you for a finish because he kicks forward then backwards, hence making it a much faster move used from the front, its also a roll-punisher, like most Dsmashes, so if you predict them to roll behind you, bust out the Dsmash and if they dont get killed by it, go for the techchase/gimp
Fsmash
startup lag is shoddy, range and power and knockback doesnt make up for it. keep away from this move unless you know its going to hit, or if you know the opponent cant punish you for it. I primarily use this move to finish if my Dsmash has gone stale due to diminishing returns
Usmash
I believe most of the time Utilt is better.
However, Majora_younglink reccomends using this move from a dashcancel. to perform this technique, dash at the opponent and smash the c-stick down to use your dash attack, then immediatley press Z+up, this is the best way to perform a dashcanceled upsmash. (You need tap jump set to off for that method to work)
Aerial Moves
Nair
First hit has bad knockback, but this means the second hit of the nair hits more often at higher percents. utilising the first hit of nair alone as a combo move is your best bet, so short hop fast fall this aerial for more success.
SHFF Nair -> Grab
Thanks to highandmightyjoe for this combo, Remember this is effective if the opponent thinks you are gonna hit them, so if they play defensivley and shield a lot, use this combo to get around that shield. if they shield the fastfalled nair this will still work well
Uair
Maybe the best aerial he has. Great range speed and priority. great for comboing at low percents, and awesome at finishing an opponent whos rather high in the air already for a star ko.
Fair
When the enemy is at low percents if you do not sweetspot this move you may force them to trip, but i believe this is far too situational to bother with, instead, just try to get the sweetspot in, if the character is too small, use the Dair instead of fair. the sweetspotted fair can kill at ridiculous percents however, but be careful, the range is shockingly bad.
Bair
Great edgegaurd because its really fast and strong, surprise your opponent when there recovering with this for a great gimping move
Dair
Spike, Hitting with the legs will spike the opponent, hitting with the upper body will send them up. on small and light characters a spike will kill them at as low as 40-50% if they are off the stage, so this is a floater killer. If the enemy is really high up in the air (floaters may do this sometimes) double jump and dair, if you hit with the upperbody of CF you will send them up and KO them at crazy percents also.
Special Moves
Falcon Punch (Neutral B)
This move is pretty **** hard to hit with, so you should be using it as a mindgame, mixing up normal falcon punches with reversed falcon punches. to reverse the falcon punch just fulljump, press b, then jam the direction your back is facing. if its fast enough he will turn around. remember that you are very fast in the air while doing this, so DI carefully and strategically
Falcon Dive (UpB)
There are many combos involving this move spread around the guide. so i won't list many combos here. Instead ill give some handy information to read through
From the Shield
Highandmightyjoe reccomends Using this move from the shield. which means when holding shield, do not release shield but press up+b and you will use it instantly.
Edgegaurding with UpB
This move can also be a great edgegaurd, but is very risky, so be very careful and practice edgegaurding with it alot.
Stagespiking with UpB
The most useful thing about this move in my opinion is its stage spike capabilities, if the opponent is hogging the ledge, or heading to the ledge from off-stage, If you hit them with an UpB you will slam them into the stage and most characters will not be able to recover from the lowest percentages. Remember this and keep an eye out for openings
Raptor boost (SideB)
What a great move, its totally different in the air or from the ground, so mixing up aerial ones with ground ones can be very effective
Asing as a launcher
If you sideB from the ground, you will hit them up, so chase them with an aerial combo whenever possible
Using as a spike (while recovering with this move)
If the opponent is offstage the aerial version of this move hits them down, then falcon jumps a little up, so if an opponent trys to gimp you, wait for them to be below you by a tiny ammount and use this, If they don't see it coming they lose a stock instead of you, saucy.
Falcon Kick (downB)
The aerial version of this move lags too hard for it to be worth it really, only use if you can gaurantee a hit. The ground version however has some nice knockback if you hit with it in the opening frames, which is nice seeing as its priority is terrible so this move shouldnt be used when really far away as you can be shieldgrabbed or bust out of it with many simple moves.
Throws
Uthrow
Not a bad throw, if your opponent isnt great in the air then this is an awesome way to start combos
Uthrow -> Utilt
This is for racking up damage at low percents, you may be able to hit them after the utilt lands, so keep on your toes.
Uthrow -> Uair -> Uair
Easy combo, if they airdodge the first one just bang em with the second, if they dont airdodge, tough luck to them.
Fthrow
this follows into another fthrow or two at very low percents, but apart from that only use it if your opponent is by the stage to get them into a possible gimping position
Fthrow (opponent must be sent of the edge) -> Fair (sweetspot this, but instead of jumping out, it may be smart to just run of the ledge and hit them, the jump may slow you down.
DThrow
His best throw, really versatile, opens up into aerial combos like the Uthrow but for a higher percentage opponent
Dthrow -> Uair
Dthrow -> SideB -> Sh Uair/ Sh Fair
This is an awesome combo, if the opponent is at mid percent the sideb will catch them while they are falling, the range of the move should be good enough to stop them if they try Di'ing away, after the sideB launches them up, quickly smash in another great hit
Dthrow -> Sweesspotted Fair
If used on a big character at around mid-high percents, the Dthrow is an awesome way to line up the knee of justice in all its glory. if it hits on the percentage i reccomended, get ready for the gimp/edgegaurd.
Bthrow
Same damage as Fthrow but not as easy to set up a combo
Bthrow -> FH reverse Falcon Punch
If they are on mid percents and the opponent is trying to attack you after they have been thrown, simply full jump while facing away from them still and perform the 180 punch, more often than not this will hit if they try to attack you
B. Strategies revolving around stages
Stages with Platforms
Characters Predominant in aerial moves should always love platforms. CF is no exepetion, unless the opponent is far better in the air. However, no matter what happens you should always use the platforms to open up aerial attacks, so read some of the combos posted below to help get an idea of how to that
Fall through platform -> Sweespotted Fair
When you are on a platform and the opponent isnt, more often than not they will hit you with an aerial, so try and be quicker, get on a platform, wait a split-second and then quickly drop through the ledge and try and hit the Fair at the right time, it takes a lot of practice but as long as you dont accidently fastfall the knee you should get it if you practice hard enough. This is a great way to hit with the sweetspot, which can finish at ridiculous percents
Spot the opponent stood on a platform -> UpB (Aerial UpB is the platform is quite high up)
If the opponent is standing on the platforms during a game, UpB is an awesome way to get in some damage, and if they are hurt already, send them off the stage, try and convince them you like to attack with your aerial moveset when they are on the ledge before you do this, so theyll try and shieldgrab you.
-> Uair -> Chase
If you hit the opponent up a little, get ready to techchase them with an uair if you think they plan to land on a platform, remember you can be under the platform and still hit them with some move, so try and space it well. If you manage to hit with the Uair follow up. continue the chase.
C. Miscellaneous strategies
Using the edge
The edge is usualy where people will wait and stall, which makes these strategies so terrifying, Thanks to CF's versatile aerial game, we can use ledgehopping to attack from the ledge, making us seem a lot more aggressive than the opponent will be used to. I personally use the ledge to attack nearly all the time, exept when it becomes predictable.
To ledgehop just tap back while holding the ledge then quickly jump, as soon as you tap that jump button, you can follow it up with a host of different combos, I will list some below. Remember to mix these up, otherwise you will become easy to punish.
Ledgehop -> sweetspotted Fair
This is currently the most popular way to attack from the edge, and its because using the edge makes it less difficult to sweetspot with the knee, the timing is a lot more simple than from a short hop because the height of the character makes a huge difference to how you should time it. So i reccomend to use this move as much as you can before your enemy gets used to it, as long as you can sweetspot with it, otherwise your asking to be shieldgrabbed.
Ledgehop -> Uair -> Chase
At mid-low percents the Uair will combo into another aerial if you use your double jump after hitting with the ledgehopped uair, around 30-40% on some characters will be about right to chase them with another uair, but due to diminishing returns it may be more effective to try and hit with a sweetspotted Fair, but if your not up to the sweetspotting business, it may be worth trying to use your double jump after the uair and try and get a dair in. as long as you dont Fastfall the move you should be able to use that combo consistently against a number of characters. But if the enemy is a large character, or you are confident in your "sweetspotting Fair" abilities, i reccomend chasing down with the knee.
Ledgehop -> upB
This is the most important combo for your edge-game, simply because it is unshieldable, use the upB when your opponent predicts one of the above two combos to make them feel like a fool, and to rack up some saucy damage. Sounds good? read below.
Ledgehop -> upB -> DI back to ledge
My personal favorite, this can make things very frustrating for the opponent, my only piece of advice is to be careful with the DI because CF is much faster in the air after he has done the upB than he normally is, i have killed myself a few times trying to sweetspot the ledge the upB, but practice makes perfect.
I'm Kino and Im a proud Captain Falcon mainer, I pride myself in playing Captain Falcon to a high level (by my standards, im not a very competitive player as i live in the UK, where Smash isnt as huge as america). However, this topic isn't about me, its about your favorite character, the manliest character; Captain Falcon.
Furthermore, this topic is about exactly what the topic title says it is, its a topic created to help struggling Captain Falcon mainers to learn what it feels like to win games. To accomplish this, and to avoid copying topics already created and stickied in this forum, I will only post game play strategies, this does not include matchups, or statistical information already covered in other stickies, so before reading this thread, it may be a smart idea to read the other stickies in this forum.
To be frank, I'm sick of seeing nothing but topics complaining about either something to do with the speed-demon's moveset, or about the abundance of Captain Falcon mainers posting on this forum. Hopefuly a thread like this will make it easier for new brawlers to pick up this manly character, and even possibly perform at a high level with him!
So without further a due, I present to you How to win... with Captain Falcon!
Contents
S. How can you help? (updated regularly)
A. Strategies revolving around CF's moveset
-Ground Moves
-Aerial Moves
-Special Moves
-Throws
B. Strategies revolving around stages
C. Miscellaneous strategies (strategies that do not fit into any of the above)
S. How can you help?
Post strategies as clearly as you possibly can in this topic, and i'll add them and give full credit. you can help CF's metagame evolve!
Currently needing:
-Anti-camp strategies
A. Strategies revolving around CF's moveset
Ground moves
Jab (neutral A)
This move is best used because of its speed, after an opponent attacks, if unsuccesful in some way (if you shield them, or they miss by a tiny bit, maybe by you jumping back at the right time to space yourself) you can whip out this baby faster than he can say "CF is so manly"
Jab -> shieldGrab -> Throw combo
Like i mention above, jab to grab is amazing, a great punish, i usualy only hit A once because the second hit will make the enemy bounce further away than Falcons tiny arms can reach. Check out the throws section to get some ideas on how to follow the grab up!
Ftilt
Range, this is a spacing move, which means it is best used when you have to use all of the range of the kick to hit with it, so aim to hit the metaknight you are pwning with CF's foot, not his leg
Dtilt
Decent range, i dont really use this move often at all, most Dtilts can sometimes trip the opponent, but i dont like taking the gamble so i prefer to use a ftilt, However, Dtilt combos very nicely so if you are playing aggressivley this is where it shines.
Utilt
Use this if the enemy is on a platform above you, or in the air above you, it hits them in a nice direction and has some sweet damage
Dsmash
Great finisher, use when the opponent is infront of you for a finish because he kicks forward then backwards, hence making it a much faster move used from the front, its also a roll-punisher, like most Dsmashes, so if you predict them to roll behind you, bust out the Dsmash and if they dont get killed by it, go for the techchase/gimp
Fsmash
startup lag is shoddy, range and power and knockback doesnt make up for it. keep away from this move unless you know its going to hit, or if you know the opponent cant punish you for it. I primarily use this move to finish if my Dsmash has gone stale due to diminishing returns
Usmash
I believe most of the time Utilt is better.
However, Majora_younglink reccomends using this move from a dashcancel. to perform this technique, dash at the opponent and smash the c-stick down to use your dash attack, then immediatley press Z+up, this is the best way to perform a dashcanceled upsmash. (You need tap jump set to off for that method to work)
Aerial Moves
Nair
First hit has bad knockback, but this means the second hit of the nair hits more often at higher percents. utilising the first hit of nair alone as a combo move is your best bet, so short hop fast fall this aerial for more success.
SHFF Nair -> Grab
Thanks to highandmightyjoe for this combo, Remember this is effective if the opponent thinks you are gonna hit them, so if they play defensivley and shield a lot, use this combo to get around that shield. if they shield the fastfalled nair this will still work well
Uair
Maybe the best aerial he has. Great range speed and priority. great for comboing at low percents, and awesome at finishing an opponent whos rather high in the air already for a star ko.
Fair
When the enemy is at low percents if you do not sweetspot this move you may force them to trip, but i believe this is far too situational to bother with, instead, just try to get the sweetspot in, if the character is too small, use the Dair instead of fair. the sweetspotted fair can kill at ridiculous percents however, but be careful, the range is shockingly bad.
Bair
Great edgegaurd because its really fast and strong, surprise your opponent when there recovering with this for a great gimping move
Dair
Spike, Hitting with the legs will spike the opponent, hitting with the upper body will send them up. on small and light characters a spike will kill them at as low as 40-50% if they are off the stage, so this is a floater killer. If the enemy is really high up in the air (floaters may do this sometimes) double jump and dair, if you hit with the upperbody of CF you will send them up and KO them at crazy percents also.
Special Moves
Falcon Punch (Neutral B)
This move is pretty **** hard to hit with, so you should be using it as a mindgame, mixing up normal falcon punches with reversed falcon punches. to reverse the falcon punch just fulljump, press b, then jam the direction your back is facing. if its fast enough he will turn around. remember that you are very fast in the air while doing this, so DI carefully and strategically
Falcon Dive (UpB)
There are many combos involving this move spread around the guide. so i won't list many combos here. Instead ill give some handy information to read through
From the Shield
Highandmightyjoe reccomends Using this move from the shield. which means when holding shield, do not release shield but press up+b and you will use it instantly.
Edgegaurding with UpB
This move can also be a great edgegaurd, but is very risky, so be very careful and practice edgegaurding with it alot.
Stagespiking with UpB
The most useful thing about this move in my opinion is its stage spike capabilities, if the opponent is hogging the ledge, or heading to the ledge from off-stage, If you hit them with an UpB you will slam them into the stage and most characters will not be able to recover from the lowest percentages. Remember this and keep an eye out for openings
Raptor boost (SideB)
What a great move, its totally different in the air or from the ground, so mixing up aerial ones with ground ones can be very effective
Asing as a launcher
If you sideB from the ground, you will hit them up, so chase them with an aerial combo whenever possible
Using as a spike (while recovering with this move)
If the opponent is offstage the aerial version of this move hits them down, then falcon jumps a little up, so if an opponent trys to gimp you, wait for them to be below you by a tiny ammount and use this, If they don't see it coming they lose a stock instead of you, saucy.
Falcon Kick (downB)
The aerial version of this move lags too hard for it to be worth it really, only use if you can gaurantee a hit. The ground version however has some nice knockback if you hit with it in the opening frames, which is nice seeing as its priority is terrible so this move shouldnt be used when really far away as you can be shieldgrabbed or bust out of it with many simple moves.
Throws
Uthrow
Not a bad throw, if your opponent isnt great in the air then this is an awesome way to start combos
Uthrow -> Utilt
This is for racking up damage at low percents, you may be able to hit them after the utilt lands, so keep on your toes.
Uthrow -> Uair -> Uair
Easy combo, if they airdodge the first one just bang em with the second, if they dont airdodge, tough luck to them.
Fthrow
this follows into another fthrow or two at very low percents, but apart from that only use it if your opponent is by the stage to get them into a possible gimping position
Fthrow (opponent must be sent of the edge) -> Fair (sweetspot this, but instead of jumping out, it may be smart to just run of the ledge and hit them, the jump may slow you down.
DThrow
His best throw, really versatile, opens up into aerial combos like the Uthrow but for a higher percentage opponent
Dthrow -> Uair
Dthrow -> SideB -> Sh Uair/ Sh Fair
This is an awesome combo, if the opponent is at mid percent the sideb will catch them while they are falling, the range of the move should be good enough to stop them if they try Di'ing away, after the sideB launches them up, quickly smash in another great hit
Dthrow -> Sweesspotted Fair
If used on a big character at around mid-high percents, the Dthrow is an awesome way to line up the knee of justice in all its glory. if it hits on the percentage i reccomended, get ready for the gimp/edgegaurd.
Bthrow
Same damage as Fthrow but not as easy to set up a combo
Bthrow -> FH reverse Falcon Punch
If they are on mid percents and the opponent is trying to attack you after they have been thrown, simply full jump while facing away from them still and perform the 180 punch, more often than not this will hit if they try to attack you
B. Strategies revolving around stages
Stages with Platforms
Characters Predominant in aerial moves should always love platforms. CF is no exepetion, unless the opponent is far better in the air. However, no matter what happens you should always use the platforms to open up aerial attacks, so read some of the combos posted below to help get an idea of how to that
Fall through platform -> Sweespotted Fair
When you are on a platform and the opponent isnt, more often than not they will hit you with an aerial, so try and be quicker, get on a platform, wait a split-second and then quickly drop through the ledge and try and hit the Fair at the right time, it takes a lot of practice but as long as you dont accidently fastfall the knee you should get it if you practice hard enough. This is a great way to hit with the sweetspot, which can finish at ridiculous percents
Spot the opponent stood on a platform -> UpB (Aerial UpB is the platform is quite high up)
If the opponent is standing on the platforms during a game, UpB is an awesome way to get in some damage, and if they are hurt already, send them off the stage, try and convince them you like to attack with your aerial moveset when they are on the ledge before you do this, so theyll try and shieldgrab you.
-> Uair -> Chase
If you hit the opponent up a little, get ready to techchase them with an uair if you think they plan to land on a platform, remember you can be under the platform and still hit them with some move, so try and space it well. If you manage to hit with the Uair follow up. continue the chase.
C. Miscellaneous strategies
Using the edge
The edge is usualy where people will wait and stall, which makes these strategies so terrifying, Thanks to CF's versatile aerial game, we can use ledgehopping to attack from the ledge, making us seem a lot more aggressive than the opponent will be used to. I personally use the ledge to attack nearly all the time, exept when it becomes predictable.
To ledgehop just tap back while holding the ledge then quickly jump, as soon as you tap that jump button, you can follow it up with a host of different combos, I will list some below. Remember to mix these up, otherwise you will become easy to punish.
Ledgehop -> sweetspotted Fair
This is currently the most popular way to attack from the edge, and its because using the edge makes it less difficult to sweetspot with the knee, the timing is a lot more simple than from a short hop because the height of the character makes a huge difference to how you should time it. So i reccomend to use this move as much as you can before your enemy gets used to it, as long as you can sweetspot with it, otherwise your asking to be shieldgrabbed.
Ledgehop -> Uair -> Chase
At mid-low percents the Uair will combo into another aerial if you use your double jump after hitting with the ledgehopped uair, around 30-40% on some characters will be about right to chase them with another uair, but due to diminishing returns it may be more effective to try and hit with a sweetspotted Fair, but if your not up to the sweetspotting business, it may be worth trying to use your double jump after the uair and try and get a dair in. as long as you dont Fastfall the move you should be able to use that combo consistently against a number of characters. But if the enemy is a large character, or you are confident in your "sweetspotting Fair" abilities, i reccomend chasing down with the knee.
Ledgehop -> upB
This is the most important combo for your edge-game, simply because it is unshieldable, use the upB when your opponent predicts one of the above two combos to make them feel like a fool, and to rack up some saucy damage. Sounds good? read below.
Ledgehop -> upB -> DI back to ledge
My personal favorite, this can make things very frustrating for the opponent, my only piece of advice is to be careful with the DI because CF is much faster in the air after he has done the upB than he normally is, i have killed myself a few times trying to sweetspot the ledge the upB, but practice makes perfect.
