WickedUMD
Smash Rookie
- Joined
- Dec 5, 2015
- Messages
- 12
Ivysaur 3.6 EV Training Course
So you want to be the master of Ivysaur, do you have the skills to be number one?
Here in Professor Oak's lab, you will learn all the skills that make the best Ivy's. We'll cover everything from movement options, basic combos, and strategies that you should know and implement into your game.
So you want to be the master of Ivysaur, do you have the skills to be number one?
Here in Professor Oak's lab, you will learn all the skills that make the best Ivy's. We'll cover everything from movement options, basic combos, and strategies that you should know and implement into your game.
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Summary
What is this technique/combo?
Difficulty
Is the degree of difficultly beginner, intermediate, or advanced? What makes it challenging?
Uses
How should this be used in a match? What are the best situations?
Practice
What is the best way to practice this tech?
Summary
What is this technique/combo?
Difficulty
Is the degree of difficultly beginner, intermediate, or advanced? What makes it challenging?
Uses
How should this be used in a match? What are the best situations?
Practice
What is the best way to practice this tech?
On Stage
Summary
Ivy has 3 different grabs all with unique properties: jump-cancel grab, pivot grab, and dash grab. Knowing each one situational use can make our strong throw game that much better.
Difficulty
Fairly easy. Jump cancelling just requires a grab input while in the 5 frames of jumpsquat while pivot grab is a quick flick of the stick back and inputing grab in the turnaround animation.
Uses
Standing/JC grab - this has the longest range by a significant margin. It also has the longest startup and cool down so it's most optimal to use at the longest range in safe situations.
Pivot grab - this has the lowest cooldown of all the grabs and is best in tech chase scenarios where you can use it to pick up the tech in place while running to cover the roll away.
Dash grab - this is the fastest and longest duration grab at 3 frames. It's best when you need to get that grab and have an opportunity open after a whiffed attack.
Practice
Run and input grab while in jumpsquat for JC grab or run and input grab while in turnaround for pivot grab.
Summary
One of the most basic Brawl tech which is extremely central to Ivy's game.
Difficulty
Beginner level stuff but you should learn to do this with your eye's closed, it's that important.
Uses
It can be used in neutral to beat out a projectile while sustaining an active hitbox in the face of your opponent. Be warned that it can be easily crouch cancelled and shielded, so control your drift. In addition, it's most common use is for edgeguarding and controlling space. The disjoint will beat out most moves in the game
Practice
Run and jump during the turnaround animation. Input bair and fast fall + l-cancel if necessary.
One of the most basic Brawl tech which is extremely central to Ivy's game.
Difficulty
Beginner level stuff but you should learn to do this with your eye's closed, it's that important.
Uses
It can be used in neutral to beat out a projectile while sustaining an active hitbox in the face of your opponent. Be warned that it can be easily crouch cancelled and shielded, so control your drift. In addition, it's most common use is for edgeguarding and controlling space. The disjoint will beat out most moves in the game
Practice
Run and jump during the turnaround animation. Input bair and fast fall + l-cancel if necessary.
Summary
Being able to juggle fast fallers with uair strings is important to overcoming some of Ivy's toughest matchups.
Difficulty
Somewhat moderate. It requires some quick button pressing and good spacing. Sometimes the sweetspot is not the optimal option when they reach the percent where they can escape. A well placed sourspot uair can keep the combo going or lead into a more powerful finisher.
Uses
This is essential for comboing characters like Diddy, Fox, or Falcon. It can build solarbeam charges extremely quickly while also healing and piling on damage. Once the combo is near complete, a sweetspot uair into a b-reversed solarbeam or sourspot into solarbeam is a great finisher. Sourspot can also be used to more effectively juggle floaties who are harder to juggle with sweetspot.
Practice
Practice the l-cancel timing on the uair. One missed lcancel can give enough time for the opponent to escape the juggle so make sure you know the timing at all different heights. Outside of that, practice uair-ing quickly and then do work on a computer Falcon in training mode to mix up sweet and sour spots.
Summary
Double healing makes Ivysuar regain health/charge slightly faster with synthesis.
Difficulty
Easy. The only challenge comes in taking the stock first and getting the timing right. You shouldn't be using this in the middle of battle or offstage.
Uses
After taking a stock, this is a faster way to recharge. You should always try to use it because why wouldn't you?
Practice
Hit synthesis, midway the the second percent release b and then start healing again. There will be a second flash and percent should rise slightly faster.
Double healing makes Ivysuar regain health/charge slightly faster with synthesis.
Difficulty
Easy. The only challenge comes in taking the stock first and getting the timing right. You shouldn't be using this in the middle of battle or offstage.
Uses
After taking a stock, this is a faster way to recharge. You should always try to use it because why wouldn't you?
Practice
Hit synthesis, midway the the second percent release b and then start healing again. There will be a second flash and percent should rise slightly faster.
Summary
A Steel Kangaroo favorite, wavelanding out of fair can making spacing fairs a much easier task when you can waveland out of a punish.
Difficulty
Kinda difficult. There is a very small window between the SH fair and the ability to waveland. You must input the fair immediately after jumpsquat to give yourself enough time to input a waveland after cooldown.
Uses
It's a fantastic spacing tool for any high level Ivy. Against someone like G&W, spacing fairs is crucial to the matchup, but landing in front of him is dangerous given the range and kill power of his dtilt. By using this tech, you can waveland back to safety.
Practice
Run, jump, fair, waveland. Practice running in both directions as well as wavelanding in both directions. You can practice jumping and fairing in place as well but that is less likely to be used in a match.
A Steel Kangaroo favorite, wavelanding out of fair can making spacing fairs a much easier task when you can waveland out of a punish.
Difficulty
Kinda difficult. There is a very small window between the SH fair and the ability to waveland. You must input the fair immediately after jumpsquat to give yourself enough time to input a waveland after cooldown.
Uses
It's a fantastic spacing tool for any high level Ivy. Against someone like G&W, spacing fairs is crucial to the matchup, but landing in front of him is dangerous given the range and kill power of his dtilt. By using this tech, you can waveland back to safety.
Practice
Run, jump, fair, waveland. Practice running in both directions as well as wavelanding in both directions. You can practice jumping and fairing in place as well but that is less likely to be used in a match.
Summary
Knowing both b-reversing and fast falling will better help you to place razor leaf exactly where you want it.
Difficulty
Intermediate. The tech is not hard and not essential, but includes two important universal tech's you should know.
Uses
B-reverses/wavebounces change your momentum while fastfalling adjust the height at which the leaf comes out. This can be used very frequently out of dash dance.
B-reversing allows us to follow the leaf with our own momentum. It's not always necessary or wanted but can be useful in some situations if you want to approach with an active hitbox in front of you.
Fast falling is much more important here. Some characters (Sheik or Marth for example) duck down when they run so a short hop razor leaf without fast falling with send the leaf over their heads. Other characters like to jump over the leaf so sending it high may be optimal. the key is knowing where you want the leaf and getting it there.
Practice
Dash dance, short hop, razor leaf in the direction you are facing, within like 4 frames mash the control stick in the opposite direction, at the peak of the shorthop press down on the control stick.
Practice getting the leaf to come out at different heights.
Knowing both b-reversing and fast falling will better help you to place razor leaf exactly where you want it.
Difficulty
Intermediate. The tech is not hard and not essential, but includes two important universal tech's you should know.
Uses
B-reverses/wavebounces change your momentum while fastfalling adjust the height at which the leaf comes out. This can be used very frequently out of dash dance.
B-reversing allows us to follow the leaf with our own momentum. It's not always necessary or wanted but can be useful in some situations if you want to approach with an active hitbox in front of you.
Fast falling is much more important here. Some characters (Sheik or Marth for example) duck down when they run so a short hop razor leaf without fast falling with send the leaf over their heads. Other characters like to jump over the leaf so sending it high may be optimal. the key is knowing where you want the leaf and getting it there.
Practice
Dash dance, short hop, razor leaf in the direction you are facing, within like 4 frames mash the control stick in the opposite direction, at the peak of the shorthop press down on the control stick.
Practice getting the leaf to come out at different heights.
Summary
Perhaps the most useful aspect of nair is its landing hitbox which pops opponents upwards for more combo food fun. By fast falling and l-cancelling during the nair animation, you can follow up with more nairs, utilt, jab, or even usmash.
Difficulty
Easy. Just fast fall the nair, l-cancel, and followup.
Uses
Perhaps Ivy's most essential combo extender which has plentiful options to continue combos on characters of all weights and percents. Beware that characters can often CC once they make contact with the ground. This can often be a kill combo on floaty characters at those awkward percents where other setups fail.
Practice
Perhaps the most useful aspect of nair is its landing hitbox which pops opponents upwards for more combo food fun. By fast falling and l-cancelling during the nair animation, you can follow up with more nairs, utilt, jab, or even usmash.
Difficulty
Easy. Just fast fall the nair, l-cancel, and followup.
Uses
Perhaps Ivy's most essential combo extender which has plentiful options to continue combos on characters of all weights and percents. Beware that characters can often CC once they make contact with the ground. This can often be a kill combo on floaty characters at those awkward percents where other setups fail.
Practice
Summary
Vinewhip into solarbeam. You'll be a god among your peers for landing this.
Difficulty
Let's be honest, this is pretty free if you don't need to jump for the vinewhip.
Uses
Killing your opponent in character and spirit.
Practice
You don't need to practice this. You are an Ivy main. You will know when it is time.
Summary
Difficulty
Uses
Practice
Off Stage
Summary
On fast fallers and heavies a fair has fantastic combo potential especially offstage. However it frequently pops up your opponent above you where a uair which sends you flying towards the bottom blastzone seems like the only option.
Well you're in luck, cause today I will talk about the wonders of bairs reverse hitbox.
Difficulty
Fairly easy. This is a simple combo that may be lesser known.
Uses
When the opponent is above you, the reverse hitbox of bair right above Ivy's head will send opponents flying forwards further toward the blastzone. It's a great way to get a gimp on a character who may not be able to recover as well.
Practice
Run and jump near the ledge going offstage, land the fair, double jump if necessary, use momentum to land first and second hits of bair where the opponent is just above Ivy's head.
You can do this on a computer Fox or against a practice partner.
Summary
Simply a fair to dair string off stage, similar to Marth's famous Ken combo.
Difficulty
Easy. One of Ivy's bread a butter combos on heavies and fast fallers.
Uses
Great way to land early kills on floaties and near-certain kills on heavies.
Practice
Take computer Bowser and throw him off stage and practice a fair and space the dair to get the sweetspot. There will be different timing for a range of DI, percent, and characters, but Bowser is a great place to start.
Simply a fair to dair string off stage, similar to Marth's famous Ken combo.
Difficulty
Easy. One of Ivy's bread a butter combos on heavies and fast fallers.
Uses
Great way to land early kills on floaties and near-certain kills on heavies.
Practice
Take computer Bowser and throw him off stage and practice a fair and space the dair to get the sweetspot. There will be different timing for a range of DI, percent, and characters, but Bowser is a great place to start.
Summary
A great way to get gimps on all sorts of characters who don't have hitboxes above them.
Difficulty
Fairly easy. There is a risk in suiciding if you don't use uair at the right height and you are possibly giving up the ledge, creating a forced tether scenario, but it is a pretty solid option you should have in your repertoire of gimps.
Uses
Gimping characters who struggle to put a hitbox above them. This won't work on DK or Fox as they is using his up b due to the uair's negative disjoint, but characters like Diddy that lack reliable hitboxes on their recovery are suceptible. Spacing it around Roy's up b can be effective too.
Practice
The most important part is practicing not SDing. Test out different heights when you activate the uair and find the spot where you can recover from, which is about a full hops height above the stage.
A great way to get gimps on all sorts of characters who don't have hitboxes above them.
Difficulty
Fairly easy. There is a risk in suiciding if you don't use uair at the right height and you are possibly giving up the ledge, creating a forced tether scenario, but it is a pretty solid option you should have in your repertoire of gimps.
Uses
Gimping characters who struggle to put a hitbox above them. This won't work on DK or Fox as they is using his up b due to the uair's negative disjoint, but characters like Diddy that lack reliable hitboxes on their recovery are suceptible. Spacing it around Roy's up b can be effective too.
Practice
The most important part is practicing not SDing. Test out different heights when you activate the uair and find the spot where you can recover from, which is about a full hops height above the stage.
Ledge
Summary
Potential next level tech from Verd. When you burn your two tethers and all you are left with is going on stage and accepting your cruel tether mechanic fate or using the failed tether bounce to land on stage in special fall, well there's on trick you may not know that can get you safely back on stage. That is using a mechanic in the special fall from tether to land with no lag.
Difficulty
Pretty hard. It requires landing on stage near the peak of the tether bump. Too short and you will fall to your death, too high and you will land in a painfully long special landing to await your terrible fate.
Uses
After burning all tethers and seemingly the only option is to go on stage and suffer the heavy lag, this option may be the difference between life and death. It may also work on platforms possibly after a vinewhip, but not positive.
Practice
You need a practice partner or set up another controller to make the opponent hold ledge. Burn your two tethers and fade back. On the third, time it just right so the peak of the failed tether bounce gets you just high enough to land on stage. You will immediately pop up if successful and not suffer a tumble animation.
Summary
This is yet another tether recovery mixup that eliminates the landing lag and works similarly to the no-impact landing, but can be used with out up-b.
Difficulty
Medium. There is still alot of vulnerability and a risk of SDing if your timing is off but you are less likely to get punished making this a worthwhile risk.
Uses
Practice
Summary
By ledgecancelling the forced autohop, Ivy will regain tethers and her jump giving you multiple options to return to stage.
Difficulty
Medium. It is not hard to ledge cancel, but there is a risk in making yourself vulnerable until you hit the ledge so this should mostly be a last resort mixup.
Uses
Practice
By ledgecancelling the forced autohop, Ivy will regain tethers and her jump giving you multiple options to return to stage.
Difficulty
Medium. It is not hard to ledge cancel, but there is a risk in making yourself vulnerable until you hit the ledge so this should mostly be a last resort mixup.
Uses
Practice
Summary
A Drinking Food favorite. It is a way to quickly refresh invincibility by dropping below the ledge or doublejumping above it and retethering. Kinda like Hax Dashing but nowhere near as good.
Difficulty
Easy.
Uses
It serves as a bait and chance to refresh invincibility to get on stage or a way to ledgehog an opponent like Marth.
Practice
A multitude of angles for retethering, ledgedashing after retether, avoiding persistent hitboxes like Wario or Roy recoveries, etc.
Summary
This ledge option can be very potent against characters with non-disjointed recovery hurtboxes. Feigning the ledge invincibility to force a high recovery, you can wavedash on stage (an important universal tech in its own right) and throw out a quick dsmash hitbox which will kill an opponent who doesn't sweetspot.
Difficulty
Intermediate. Ledgedashing is inherently risky but very important to know. Timing it so that you can quickly throw out a move, especially with a few frames of invincibility can make a huge difference. Get the timing down, it is different for every character.
Uses
This is very good against characters like Charizard or Wario or characters with similar recoveries who can struggle to sweetspot and have a little hang time after an up-b. Dsmash is basically death on anyone here at middling percents.
Practice
Ledgedashing of course and then immediately attacking out of it without wavelanding too far from the ledge.
This ledge option can be very potent against characters with non-disjointed recovery hurtboxes. Feigning the ledge invincibility to force a high recovery, you can wavedash on stage (an important universal tech in its own right) and throw out a quick dsmash hitbox which will kill an opponent who doesn't sweetspot.
Difficulty
Intermediate. Ledgedashing is inherently risky but very important to know. Timing it so that you can quickly throw out a move, especially with a few frames of invincibility can make a huge difference. Get the timing down, it is different for every character.
Uses
This is very good against characters like Charizard or Wario or characters with similar recoveries who can struggle to sweetspot and have a little hang time after an up-b. Dsmash is basically death on anyone here at middling percents.
Practice
Ledgedashing of course and then immediately attacking out of it without wavelanding too far from the ledge.
Summary
One of Ivy's bread and butter gimp moves.
Difficulty
Easy. Learn it, live it, love it.
Uses
Practice
One of Ivy's bread and butter gimp moves.
Difficulty
Easy. Learn it, live it, love it.
Uses
Practice
Summary
This is an effective and safe way to extend edgeguards, as well as pressure opponents who get too close to the ledge.
Difficulty
Easy. Simply nair immediately after ledgehopping so that you can regrab the ledge after the nair ends. This can be punished and leave Ivy without a double jump, but the move is fairly effective.
Uses
This will either catch opponents at the ledge or put them in shield. Against tether characters, the back hitboxes of nair will kick them back offstage.
Practice
Simply drop from the ledge, double jump, nair, and regrab on the way down. Do not fast fall or you will need to retether. Practice drifting on stage and returning to the ledge. Ledge cancelling this can also be useful when drifting back as it restores double jump and tethers.
This is an effective and safe way to extend edgeguards, as well as pressure opponents who get too close to the ledge.
Difficulty
Easy. Simply nair immediately after ledgehopping so that you can regrab the ledge after the nair ends. This can be punished and leave Ivy without a double jump, but the move is fairly effective.
Uses
This will either catch opponents at the ledge or put them in shield. Against tether characters, the back hitboxes of nair will kick them back offstage.
Practice
Simply drop from the ledge, double jump, nair, and regrab on the way down. Do not fast fall or you will need to retether. Practice drifting on stage and returning to the ledge. Ledge cancelling this can also be useful when drifting back as it restores double jump and tethers.
Summary
Throw a razorleaf on to the stage to clear space to get off the ledge while still drifting back to the ledge.
Difficulty
Moderate. The challenge is timing to prevent having to use a tether.
Uses
Great way to clear space near the ledge since opponents will normally retreat. Drift away if they are within range to punish, but it's also a way to get back on stage while keeping a hitbox in front of you.
Practice
Practice drifting both forward and back depending on if you are throwing out the leaf offensively or defensively. You must input the leaf early enough so that you do not have to retether. If you drift forward, ledge cancelling will refresh tethers and give you back your double jump.
Throw a razorleaf on to the stage to clear space to get off the ledge while still drifting back to the ledge.
Difficulty
Moderate. The challenge is timing to prevent having to use a tether.
Uses
Great way to clear space near the ledge since opponents will normally retreat. Drift away if they are within range to punish, but it's also a way to get back on stage while keeping a hitbox in front of you.
Practice
Practice drifting both forward and back depending on if you are throwing out the leaf offensively or defensively. You must input the leaf early enough so that you do not have to retether. If you drift forward, ledge cancelling will refresh tethers and give you back your double jump.
Summary
Difficulty
Uses
Practice
Difficulty
Uses
Practice
Summary
One of the trickier Ivy moves which can stun opponents from below the stage.
Difficulty
Tough.
Uses
It's also very situational where a ledgehop nair can also punish an opponent who comes too close, but there is a decent reward off it, most likely being a dair. it does to a cool 10% and leads to a free punish if timed well, but don't expect this trick to work more than once.
Practice
Summary
Throw out a powerful vine whip hitbox while simulatneously grabbing the ledge. This is a very situational edgeguard, but could prove useful here and there.
Difficulty
Intermediate. This move can be risky if you mess it up given that you are looking backwards and are off the stage. Learn the timing.
Uses
It can situationally be used to punish those recovering high, especially to the Smashville platform. Additionally it is a useful way of stalling at the ledge without burning a tether.
Practice
Drop down and then up-b in the opposite direction. The reverse grab box is leniant but find where it can be used safely.
Summary
Another option to get back on stage by forcing the opponent into shield and keeping them there.
Difficulty
Uses
Practice
Another option to get back on stage by forcing the opponent into shield and keeping them there.
Difficulty
Uses
Practice
Platform
Summary
A Sothe favorite. It is a great movement technique to get off the ledge and put out a hitbox.
Difficulty
Uses
Practice
A Sothe favorite. It is a great movement technique to get off the ledge and put out a hitbox.
Difficulty
Uses
Practice
Summary
Verd needed an Ivy tech so here it is. A faster way to heal 2% using an unnecessary b-reverse into a ledge cancelled synthesis!
Difficulty
The most difficult of all Ivy techs. One you learn this, you will ascend to heaven on the spot.
Uses
Healing 2% wicked fast!
Practice
Alot.
Bonus
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