Matchup Analysis #4 - Link

[LCC Son-in-Law]

LADIES, GENTLEMAN AND PEOPLE OF ALL GENDERS, WELCOME TO OUR FOURTH LITTLE MAC MATCH-UP DISCUSSION.

IN THIS CORNER, KNOWN FOR BEING KAISER SOZED INTO HIS TIMELESS HEROICS ACROSS THE AGES, POWERING THROUGH DAUNTING ADVERSITY FROM EVERYTHING TO CUCOO'S, OLD MEN IN SUMO WRESTLING TO DEMISE ITSELF, WISELY SOLVING THE PERPLEXING PUZZLES OF THE LOST WOODS AND THE WATER TEMPLE, JOURNEYING BRAVELY TO THE STRANGE LANDS OF TERMINA, LIBERTY CITY AND THE TWILIGHT ZO-REALM, BEING BLESSED BY THE GODDESS, LOVING FAMILIES, FRIENDS, LOYAL STEEDS, AND OLD MEN IN CAVES. PRINCESSES, YOU MAY WISH TO EXCUSE YOURSELVES, THE HERO OF MANY TITLES, IT'S LINK!

CAN LITTLE MAC DEFEAT THIS LEGEND AND PROVE THAT THE PUNCH IS INDEED MIGHTIER THEN THE SWORD? OR IS DOC JUST INSTILLING FALSE CONFIDENCE WORTH A RUPOOR?

MAH BOI, THIS MATCH-UP IS WHAT ALL TRUE SMASHERS STRIVE FOR. DISCUSS!

Opening post intro created by @TakeYourHeart. Thank you for creating this thread opening!
Discussion will end by September 10th.

 

[Champ Gold]

It's a matchup in Link's favor but Mac's crazy Super Armor can run through his projectiles like crazy.

I think the biggest issue is his smash attacks because how deceptively dangerous they are.

 

[Dumbfire]

I played a bunch of friendlies with a Little Mac at a Smashfest (who is top 16 in our country and better than me) who really overwhelmed me at first. Our close range game is rather bad -- it's slow (our fastest move is our frame 7 jab) and sluggish. 'Mac massively outdoes us there, so we always need to keep him at bay, and given his speed it is not too difficult to get in, at which point he has a potent combo game on us and powerful moves. 'Mac also has certain moves which give knockback that will instantly kill Link when he DIs poorly, so he tricked me with DI mix-ups for some early kills.

I was most comfortable on bigger stages, especially with platforms, camping away and getting excellent Dthrow combos. Pivot grabs were my friend. Nair and projectiles were nice gimping tools -- I took advantage of the classic ledgejump Z-drop when I knew he'd go low, resetting my opportunity to gimp him. My kills were usually either in the air after a Dthrow, or from an Uthrow with rage.

Stand by while I tell Quake to play Sol for more input LOL

 

[inconspikuous]

pretty sure link wins this MU. mac's game is footsies, and link's footsies outrange all of mac's options. a good link will annoy you with bombs, empty jumps, projectiles, and wait for you to commit to a move that's slightly out of range, then punish with his disjointed attacks. a bad link will roll in and dsmash. since they extended the hookshot grab range, a good link would be very happy to keep you at the longest grab range (and they can easily test it by zairing), and just space that far away for the entire match. eventually, mac will have to commit and will often get grabbed or swordjabbed while closing the gap.

i haven't quite figured out how to optimize mac play the matchup, but afaik the best way to fight a good link is to not approach. i know that sounds like terrible advice as link has projectiles that can go across the screen, but link's projectiles are more annoying than they are dangerous. you should be able to shield or avoid most of the projectile spam and be able to punish mistakes accordingly. if you get the read on a neutral b (arrows), that's a free jolt haymaker punish. if they start approaching, mac will have a better chance because his frame data is amazing. still, this is a test of patience, and i think the mindset should be that you will get hit by bombs and arrows and boomerangs, but you can't let that get you frustrated so you commit to unsafe approaches -- you will get punished hard for approaching unsafely, so don't lose your composure. accept the 5% damage and wait for a proper opening.

 

[LCC Son-in-Law]

Ok, I gave this more time than I intended to due to the lack of replies (and also due to me being crazy busy as always). Closing this now, I'll try to start the next one up soon. I'll also go about summarizing the previous discussions just as soon as I can.