- Game Versions
- Smash 3DS, Smash Wii U
Welcome to my Ike guide. This guide will run through frame data. Ike's moveset and each moves damage. It will also go through Perfect Pivot lengths and a general look on the length of his Jump Cancel Glide Toss. We will start with Frame data.
Frame Data
Ike is a generally slow character. His smash attacks can range from 40 to 80 frames. This forces the Ike player to get creative. I will leave a download link for the frame data spreadsheet which also includes damage etc.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1LXBY5_fkP7kHsvPyahOONYSfgHf2O5Toluo8u-XOC6U/edit?usp=sharing
Perfect Pivot Length/Applications.
Ike's Perfect Pivot game is not one of the best. Due to his slow tilts and smashes it will take a hard-read to hit. However, perfect pivot into grab is a good option. Also perfect pivot into 1-2-3 jab is a good tool. He has a Perfect Pivot of 3.
Jump Cancel Glide Toss applications.
When playing a Diddy Kong, Toon Link, or any character with a items, Ike needs to be precise. Smash attacks are not an option. However, with hitstun involved f-tilt and d-tilt are good options. When against Diddy Kong, banana tripping could potentially lead into d-smash and if you read the roll, a perfect pivot f-smash.
Generally, what you want to do with Ike's Jump Cancel Glide Toss is tilts.
Combos
Ike has amazing combo potential. With two moves (n-air and d-tilt,) he can easily rack up seventeen damage. While the rest of his moves are basically punishes. I should mention that his n-air autocancels, which leaves tons of opportunities. I will leave a more in-depth guide by TheSkuxxedOne
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zu4vOmapsBA
Bans, Counterpicks, and Stage Picking.
When playing Smash 4 competitively, choosing which stage to ban, go to first, and counterpick is a huge deal. I will be basing this off of the CEO 2015 ruleset which I see as optimal. Link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/11X7WE44OaMUL3zUTwdN2Qog-18crGVv-WKaKH3JjWOI/edit
With Ike, you will want to choose a stage with platforms. His u-tilt and u-smash can reach above the platforms of Dreamland 64, Battlefield, and the Miiverse stage. If your opponent bans Battlefield he/she also bans Miiverse. Then opt to go to Dreamland. However, if your opponent does not ban Battlefield/Miiverse then opt to go to Miiverse. Ike will struggle on Battlefield due to the jank edges. If you go to Miiverse though, this will not be a problem.
So for stage-picking, always opt to go Miiverse, Battlefield, or Dreamland.
(Note, that if you win on one of these stages you will not be able to pick them again unless your opponent agrees to it.)
Bans
Ike has high kill potential. He is also a heavy character. This means you want to avoid stages with high/wide blast zones. Stages like Palutena's Temple (Omega,) and Final Destination should be avoided. Luckily in the CEO ruleset these are basically the only neutrals with high ceilings and wide blast zones.
Counterpicking
With Ike counterpicking is a complicated process. Stages like Duck Hunt have high ceilings but slim blast zones. This limits the Ike player to f-smash and f-tilt.
Lylat Cruise is the Ike player's best option. It has a low ceiling and decently sized blast zones. This allows the Ike player to use all of their options. Beware of the stage's jankness though. The stage tilts, this means it is an angle shift. Moves like f-smash can benefit because it will send opponents at a 45-50 degree angle. However, d-smash will become less effective due to the fact that the opponent can DI easily because the move will send the opponent horizontally at a 35 degree angle.
Omega Stages. (Note: If Final Destination is banned, all Omega stages will be banned.)
Omega Stages are a no, no. Hopefully you have already banned Final Destination.
In general Ike, will want to go to stages with low ceilings and decently sized blast zones.
Matchups
Ike has many good matchups and many bad matchups. Due to this I will only go over a few good ones and a few bad ones. Since I like to bring the bad news first and comfort with the good news. I will explain each matchup.
Ike's top 3 bad matchups: Marth, Ryu, Rob.
Ike struggles against Marth for a few reasons. One, is that Marth has range. He can outspace Ike with f-air and generally play an amazing keep away game. His roll is fast and not as punishable. His moves are also faster than Ike's. Ike will have a hard to punishing Marth due to his amazing foxtrot, his sidestep, and his roll. Ike's moves are just not fast enough.
Ike struggles against Ryu a lot. For one Ike is not fast enough. Ryu is not fast either but has one amazing mobility option. Ryu can cancel his focus attack into a dash. I will refer to this as Focus Attack Dash-Cancel. This just makes the Ike player run around for no apparent reason. Ike's moves are also one hit and generally laggy. This means that his only option to cancel Ryu's focus attack is jab. That is not even guaranteed for one reason. It only works on the ground.
Ryu can also outspace Ike with Hadouken. He also has a heavy weight making him harder to kill.
Rob has a huge advantage over Ike. Rob can constantly control space with his Gyro and lasers. However, if you are precise enough a Jump Cancel Glide Toss with the Gyro can be a great pressure tool if thrown upwards. This creates a wall of pressure. You can then apply more pressure with n-airs which autocancel.
Ike's top 3 good matchups: Palutena, Charizard, Wario.
Ike has an amazing advantage over Palutena. Most of Palutena's moves are weak. Ike can play a complete rush down game. Approaching with side special and attacking with n-air. Palutena does not handle rush down well though. In order to gain this advantage start of slow. Shield and avoid all of Palutena's moves. Then once you see an opportunity dash or side special in for a punish. Make sure to make it long lasting because these mistakes can potentially lead into kills.
Due to Charizard's large size Ike has a good advantage. Charizard's n-air also autocancels but Ike can beat out Charizard's options. Ike can play full on rush-down with Charizard. It is insanely easy to deal damage due to Charizard's large size. There is one problem though. Charizard has super-armor on some of his moves, notably down-special and up-special. Ike will want to play rush-down sometimes and sidestep and roll instead of shield in this matchup.
Ike has a huge advantage over Wario. Mainly being his counter. Ike has a good n-air. Baiting out a Wario's aerials will be what you want to do. When Wario has his Waft run in and counter. If you feel ballsy that is. You will want to keep your shield up and the Wario will probably approach with motorcycle. With good timing spot-dodge and punish with n-air which will leave you to a world of options.
Is their anything else I should add? Customs? More matchups? Leave your suggestions in the comments.
Frame Data
Ike is a generally slow character. His smash attacks can range from 40 to 80 frames. This forces the Ike player to get creative. I will leave a download link for the frame data spreadsheet which also includes damage etc.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1LXBY5_fkP7kHsvPyahOONYSfgHf2O5Toluo8u-XOC6U/edit?usp=sharing
Perfect Pivot Length/Applications.
Ike's Perfect Pivot game is not one of the best. Due to his slow tilts and smashes it will take a hard-read to hit. However, perfect pivot into grab is a good option. Also perfect pivot into 1-2-3 jab is a good tool. He has a Perfect Pivot of 3.
Jump Cancel Glide Toss applications.
When playing a Diddy Kong, Toon Link, or any character with a items, Ike needs to be precise. Smash attacks are not an option. However, with hitstun involved f-tilt and d-tilt are good options. When against Diddy Kong, banana tripping could potentially lead into d-smash and if you read the roll, a perfect pivot f-smash.
Generally, what you want to do with Ike's Jump Cancel Glide Toss is tilts.
Combos
Ike has amazing combo potential. With two moves (n-air and d-tilt,) he can easily rack up seventeen damage. While the rest of his moves are basically punishes. I should mention that his n-air autocancels, which leaves tons of opportunities. I will leave a more in-depth guide by TheSkuxxedOne
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zu4vOmapsBA
Bans, Counterpicks, and Stage Picking.
When playing Smash 4 competitively, choosing which stage to ban, go to first, and counterpick is a huge deal. I will be basing this off of the CEO 2015 ruleset which I see as optimal. Link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/11X7WE44OaMUL3zUTwdN2Qog-18crGVv-WKaKH3JjWOI/edit
With Ike, you will want to choose a stage with platforms. His u-tilt and u-smash can reach above the platforms of Dreamland 64, Battlefield, and the Miiverse stage. If your opponent bans Battlefield he/she also bans Miiverse. Then opt to go to Dreamland. However, if your opponent does not ban Battlefield/Miiverse then opt to go to Miiverse. Ike will struggle on Battlefield due to the jank edges. If you go to Miiverse though, this will not be a problem.
So for stage-picking, always opt to go Miiverse, Battlefield, or Dreamland.
(Note, that if you win on one of these stages you will not be able to pick them again unless your opponent agrees to it.)
Bans
Ike has high kill potential. He is also a heavy character. This means you want to avoid stages with high/wide blast zones. Stages like Palutena's Temple (Omega,) and Final Destination should be avoided. Luckily in the CEO ruleset these are basically the only neutrals with high ceilings and wide blast zones.
Counterpicking
With Ike counterpicking is a complicated process. Stages like Duck Hunt have high ceilings but slim blast zones. This limits the Ike player to f-smash and f-tilt.
Lylat Cruise is the Ike player's best option. It has a low ceiling and decently sized blast zones. This allows the Ike player to use all of their options. Beware of the stage's jankness though. The stage tilts, this means it is an angle shift. Moves like f-smash can benefit because it will send opponents at a 45-50 degree angle. However, d-smash will become less effective due to the fact that the opponent can DI easily because the move will send the opponent horizontally at a 35 degree angle.
Omega Stages. (Note: If Final Destination is banned, all Omega stages will be banned.)
Omega Stages are a no, no. Hopefully you have already banned Final Destination.
In general Ike, will want to go to stages with low ceilings and decently sized blast zones.
Matchups
Ike has many good matchups and many bad matchups. Due to this I will only go over a few good ones and a few bad ones. Since I like to bring the bad news first and comfort with the good news. I will explain each matchup.
Ike's top 3 bad matchups: Marth, Ryu, Rob.
Ike struggles against Marth for a few reasons. One, is that Marth has range. He can outspace Ike with f-air and generally play an amazing keep away game. His roll is fast and not as punishable. His moves are also faster than Ike's. Ike will have a hard to punishing Marth due to his amazing foxtrot, his sidestep, and his roll. Ike's moves are just not fast enough.
Ike struggles against Ryu a lot. For one Ike is not fast enough. Ryu is not fast either but has one amazing mobility option. Ryu can cancel his focus attack into a dash. I will refer to this as Focus Attack Dash-Cancel. This just makes the Ike player run around for no apparent reason. Ike's moves are also one hit and generally laggy. This means that his only option to cancel Ryu's focus attack is jab. That is not even guaranteed for one reason. It only works on the ground.
Ryu can also outspace Ike with Hadouken. He also has a heavy weight making him harder to kill.
Rob has a huge advantage over Ike. Rob can constantly control space with his Gyro and lasers. However, if you are precise enough a Jump Cancel Glide Toss with the Gyro can be a great pressure tool if thrown upwards. This creates a wall of pressure. You can then apply more pressure with n-airs which autocancel.
Ike's top 3 good matchups: Palutena, Charizard, Wario.
Ike has an amazing advantage over Palutena. Most of Palutena's moves are weak. Ike can play a complete rush down game. Approaching with side special and attacking with n-air. Palutena does not handle rush down well though. In order to gain this advantage start of slow. Shield and avoid all of Palutena's moves. Then once you see an opportunity dash or side special in for a punish. Make sure to make it long lasting because these mistakes can potentially lead into kills.
Due to Charizard's large size Ike has a good advantage. Charizard's n-air also autocancels but Ike can beat out Charizard's options. Ike can play full on rush-down with Charizard. It is insanely easy to deal damage due to Charizard's large size. There is one problem though. Charizard has super-armor on some of his moves, notably down-special and up-special. Ike will want to play rush-down sometimes and sidestep and roll instead of shield in this matchup.
Ike has a huge advantage over Wario. Mainly being his counter. Ike has a good n-air. Baiting out a Wario's aerials will be what you want to do. When Wario has his Waft run in and counter. If you feel ballsy that is. You will want to keep your shield up and the Wario will probably approach with motorcycle. With good timing spot-dodge and punish with n-air which will leave you to a world of options.
Is their anything else I should add? Customs? More matchups? Leave your suggestions in the comments.
