Like I said guys, this is a work in progress. Your input is encouraged and appreciated.
Without further delay...
Isn't techchasing great? Ganon gets an opportunity for a free hit, which is often all he needs to finish off a stock. Well, I guess it feels free after you've earned it, lol. Let's talk about how we can get more of these "free hits", and how we can make them even cheaper, shall we?
Before I get into anything specific, here are some general things that may seem like common knowledge to some, but these are mistakes that tons of Ganon mains make. First of all, ALWAYS COVER A TECH OPTION. I really can't say this enough. You want to have an idea as to where he will tech as soon as you toss out a move that could force him to do so, and have at least a broad idea of what both his and your options would be in that situation. In any techchase opportunity, especially from a grab (where you are able to control more accurately where your opponent techs, and when), AT LEAST one of these options must be covered, if not more. I have to say this from the amount of tech options that go uncovered, which leads to techs that go unpunished (obviously). If you are extremely fast reacting, you can start off going for a hard read, and as soon as you see it didn't work in your favor, fastfall, waveland (basically abort mission), or do whatever you can to at least apply hard pressure to the tech option he chose (and you didn't cover). This is possible, and you can profit from it, but if you are guessing wrong often, you are either not picking up on your opponent's teching habits, or he is truly good at mixing them up. It also may be time for multiple option coverage. If you make this mistake, literally all of your opponent's options are safe (wtf?). You must also be constantly aware of your position on the stage, as well as your opponents, in regard to platform location (relative to where you and your opponent are located) and how close both of you are to the ledge. You must also be aware of your opponent's damage percent and the information this gives you, which is quite a bit.
Now that we've covered that, let's talk about forcing Fox, Falco, and Falcon to tech.
1. Creating techchasing opportunities
Making the best of every techchase opportunity seems like a fairly decent plan right? It is obviously (and so is planning on 18 holes-in-one during a round of golf), but such opportunities don't really fall from the sky at high level play, so creating them begins with having a solid neutral game. More specifically, it requires precise timing, quick reactions, knowledge of hitbox priority/ranges, and usually involves a read or a well-spaced attack. Reaction time is vital, so you want to be focused on your opponent as much as possible without sacrificing any control of Ganon.
.....a) Grabs (dthrow/uthrow)
Grabs may not be a large part of the neutral game, but they are one of the most common ways to force a tech out of your opponent. You have more control over where your opponent techs when a throw is used than any other move. The more grabs you get, the more free chances you have to knock your opponent into next week. You also have a choice to either dthrow or uthrow once you've grabbed them. Either throw will give them a different set of options while teching (including DI'ing your throw), so it is up to you to choose which throw will limit their safest options the most.
dthrow
This is the go-to throw for Ganon, period. This thread is primarily about techchasing, but don't forget your chaingrabbing options and when they should be used. I have said in the past that one's use of the chaingrab should completely depend on one's level of mastery of the chaingrab. This is absolutely true, but the rabbit hole gets deeper (discussed later).
Remember for chaingrabbing..........
For Falco, you must pivot dash jc grab for DI behind starting at 65%.
For Fox, you must pivot dash jc grab for DI behind starting at 70%.
..........that stuff's crucial.
One great thing about dthrow is that you can use jab/pivot jab to interrupt their ability to tech (a fresh jab knocks down Fox at 38%, Falco at 39%, and C. Falcon at 45%). If you wait until the last possible moment to jab them, they will most likely have already hit R to tech the dthrow, in which case, they will miss the tech from the jab. This is a great time for a dair since it is given (when is a dair given?), and since this usually takes place at low%. Then you can follow up with another grab, platform techchase, ftilt, or whatever the situation calls for.
uthrow
Uthrow is a very useful tool in techchasing. You can uthrow onto platforms, situationally chaingrab with it, punish with an aerial, or use it alongside dthrow as a mix-up. If there isn't a platform in front of you, and your opponent is a med% or higher, DI'ing the uthrow away is safe for your opponent. When they DI the uthrow away, they can travel far enough before teching so that you cannot punish techroll away by dashing and SHFFL'ing a fair. But if there is a platform in front of you, DI away is no longer safe, as you will get a free techchase (when techchasing on a platform, you can uair on reaction if nothing else, it always works). Usmash is also a good choice if they are laying there and haven't tech'd yet, as you can cover standup AND techroll if they are near the end of the platform, and at lower percents you can combo into uair). If they are at high%, up-b is also a great option. Now, if they DI behind, depending on their damage and position on stage, you can ftilt, bair, pivot uair, pivot fair, or regrab. Opting for an additional grab is essentially only a bad choice if another move guarantees the KO; other than that, it's great.
Using both throws properly
So, we all know by now that Ganon has a legitimate 0-death chaingrab on Fox and Falco starting at low%. Falco is much easier, and you must be fully aware of your own level of mastery of the chaingrab so that you can set a limit on yourself regarding when it is time to chaingrab versus techchase (even chaingrabbing falco is extremely difficult below 50%). Again, this based on risk versus reward potential. If you miss a regrab while trying to chaingrab, you have not only missed out on a KO opportunity, but you most likely haven't dealt much damage either. I have said this before, but the best way to react to your opponent's DI off the dthrow is to stare directly at Ganon while monitoring you opponent's DI with your peripheral vision. This is not difficult to do, as Ganon is holding your opponent, lol. As you begin to dthrow, shift your focus from the center of Ganon slightly up, to the level where falco/fox will be popped up from the dthrow. This way you can react to falcos location more quickly. The heavier the character you are dthrowing, the slower Ganon's dthrow animation becomes, so muscle memory has no place here (chaingrabs are important vs almost all characters Ganon is capable of chaingrabbing, so you want to develop a method of practice that will work for all of those matchups). If unrestricted by platforms or obstacles, continue chaingrabbing until they are over 130% and wizards foot if they DI anything but fully behind. For full DI behind you can either continue chaingrabbing, or ftilt. If platforms are nearby, you must be able to recognize when their damage is high enough so that they land on the platform. The last thing you want is to whiff a regrab attempt as you watch your opponent tech safely on the platform above you. By the time they have enough damage to tech on the platform, you should be able to get them offstage (save the super low platforms on FoD) and create an edgeguard opportunity.
You can also chaingrab falcon if he DI's your dthrow anything but full away, or your uthrow behind. With this, you can use platforms to force him into deciding between getting regrabbed (free damage, frustration factor), or either DI'ing either towards the platform (where you get a free hit) or offstage (possible edgeguard opportunity). All it takes is for a platform to be in front of you or for you to be close to the ledge (and be facing it). Most falcons aren't even aware of Ganon's ability to situationally chaingrab him because no one really does it. Simple traps like this translate into guaranteed damage, as well as possible KO opportunities.
.....b) Jabs, tilts, and dash attack.
A strong ground game is often Ganon's first line of defense when dealing with opponent's approaches. This is where your timing, reaction speed, and spacing skills are put to the ultimate test, as you will be dealing with approaches from characters much faster than Ganon, and ideally you want to stuff their approach without trading hits (this gets much easier the more mobile/agile you remain during the neutral game, the more you SDI moves to change your position, and the faster you are dashing or wavedashing out of shield, lag, or stun.... it makes it much more difficult for your opponent to properly space his approaches). This requires a precise understanding of the range of your jab, ftilt, and dash attack (among other moves).
Ftilt and dash attack are slightly more disjointed at the outermost portion of the hitbox (tipper) than jab is. Jab is faster, but you are likely to trade hits unless you time the jab for maximum spacing, and even then you can trade, which will render your opponent's tech unpunishable. Dash attack is almost as fast and has good range due to its speed, but depending on your opponent's DI and damage percent, it may not force a tech that is easily punished due to it's unique angle of knockback. It is, however, excellent at winning exchanges, and it surprises your opponent, which can lead to random follow-ups, as it is rarely DI'd properly. Jab and ftilt are best however for holding your ground, and continuing to pressuring/walling/cornering your opponent... and in today's metagame, your pressure HAS to be heavy to succeed. You must find the fine line between being safe (being able to react appropriately to incoming approaches) and still being able to capitalize on small mistakes. If someone does not tech, charge dsmash if he is close to the ledge. If not, bait him with a brief DD, empty jump into perfect wL, or jump to platform and shield drop/drop through aerial.
Knockdown Percentages (all moves fresh)
*************JAB****FTILT****DTILT****DA
Fox**********38%****22%******17%*****12%
Falco********39%****23%******18%*****12%
C. Falcon****45%****28%******22%*****18%
^^ thanks to @Locke Robster
.....c) Dair, nair, and other aerials
Aerials are a good way of creating techchase opportunities and extending combos through techchasing. Slightly more situational than Ganon's ground game, but very important nonetheless.
Dair has it's place in the neutral game when you read an approach or sneak one out of shield. When intercepting an approach with a full hop dair, you force a tech immediately when they hit the ground. In this situation, you can dj and wait to see what they do. While in mid-air during your dj, you can waveland on a platform into aerial as a follow-up, or if there are no platforms nearby, dj away (out of getup attack range) and perfect waveland back in to regrab/pressure. If you sneak a dair OoS and hit a grounded opponent, be sure to land the L-cancel. You will have hit them with an early dair, so remember to delay your fastfall timing as well. Players love to techroll in this situation (when dair at low% pops them up, but they fall back to the ground before you could follow up) because they fear multiple dairs. Use this to your advantage.
When you pop someone up with a dair, if they have enough damage, nair becomes a great way of turning a simple combo into a KO by creating an additional techchase situation (in which case, players seem to love to tech in place) on nearby platforms. You want to use the weak knockback of the first hit of nair, and fastfall/L-cancel immediately so that the techchase situation you create is a free punish. You want to use nair for this when you know their damage isn't high enough for a simple dair + fair combo to send them offstage.
2. Making the best of each opportunity
.....a) Understanding your opponent's options
In any given situation, we know what our opponent's tech options are. It's more important to immediately recognize when this set of options has been altered. Platforms, obstacles, and the ledge are the main things that will cause this. Knowledge of your opponent's options in these situations is the foundation of having a solid techchasing game, and the sooner you can realize that a situation is out of the ordinary, and what that entails, the better. I will go into this more later.
.....b) Decision making (HUGE)
..........i) Recognizing your opponent's habits
Many people have obvious habits when it comes to DI and teching, and not a single thing your opponent does throughout the set should be ignored. There is a lot of room to express yourself as a player in melee. The neutral game is intricate and full of options for all characters, especially the fastfallers. Every move your opponent makes can tell you something about how he will react in a techchasing situation, so it's best to focus on your opponent's movement and decision making as hard/often as possible without sacrificing the level of control you have over Ganon. Many players have a lazy habit of DI'ing a throw in a certain direction, and then techrolling in the same direction. You need to be able to determine whether or not they have this habit very quickly. If you are proficient at edgeguarding (which you should be), you want them to techroll. Some people techroll too often (usually away) being afraid of Ganon, and some people tech in place too often (a general bad habit amongst most melee players). There are other habits but these are the most common.
If you are playing a campy fox player, for example, even if you have never seen the player tech before, it is a relatively safe bet that he will techroll away the first chance he gets, in an attempt to get away from Ganon and reset the neutral game to a situation where he is more comfortable (being far away lasering). If you know very little about your opponent's habits thus far, but you can see that he is NOT a campy player, be ready for the tech in place. Some players like to tech in place because it's fast and they can regain control of their character more quickly. Generally, players panic a little bit when they are unable to control their character, and thus, the neutral game (the length of the roll makes them nervous, they hate being close to Ganon, they hate being chaingrabbed, etc). When they get nervous they tend to techroll more often unless you have conditioned them to believe otherwise. Good falcons and spacies are used to Ganon being fairly free since they are usually able to control the pace of the neutral game. If you can sense them beginning to fear your punishment game, you can start getting them to do what you want them to do.
..........ii) Multiple option coverage versus hard reads: when and why
Multiple option coverage sounds like a great idea, doesn't it? If you can double, or even triple your chances of guessing correctly, why not go for it? Well, there are some drawbacks to Ganon's methods of achieving this, so you want to know which situations call for it, and which situations would be better suited for a hard read (typically techchasing with dair/fair).
If you force your opponent to tech in the center of FD, there is no way to effectively cover every tech option. In this case, since his options are not limited by the stage, it's time for some raw guess work. Your opponent's damage percent should affect your decision making, as should any habits of your opponent you have observed, and whether or not your opponent possesses the knowledge to limit Ganon's methods of covering multiple options.
Ganon has several ways to make 2-3 tech options unsafe for his foe. Some of these are limited to tech situations created by a throw, as your positioning has to be precise in order to cover all the options (you must be basically touching your opponent when you input side-B, for example).
There is side-B, which can cover no tech, tech in place, and techroll away. You must be familiar with the range of this attack to cover techroll away. You want to input B the instant your opponent hits the ground initially. The drawback of side-B is that it can be CC'd (if they tech) and you can be punished. Luckily a decent amount of players are either unaware of this, or forget, so it is undoubtedly a legitimate mix-up. Another drawback, however, is that they can DI behind you and be safe from any follow-up unless there is a platform behind you and their damage percent isn't too high. If their percent is really high, forget about side-B.
When their damage is high and you really want to close out the stock, wizards foot is another great way to punish no tech, tech in place, and techroll away. You can also time the down-B so that if your opponent were to tech in place, he will be sent backwards. The knockback of this move, however, is not very deadly when DI'd appropriately. It can also put you in a horrible position if you miss, especially if you go offstage. Nonetheless, your opponent will rarely expect this (you shouldn't be using this often enough for them to do so) and players often DI it incorrectly and die.
Dsmash is another way to cover several options (no tech, tech in place, techroll behind). The only way to escape this is for your opponent to techroll in the same direction they DI'd the throw, so it serves as a conditioning tool also. If your opponent escapes your dsmash more than once, you can potentially be leading him to believe that DI'ing away and teching away is actually safe, and this is not bad at all. Dsmash is also more versatile than the B moves, as you can charge it, or (better in most situations) wait to see their DI from the throw and then hit C-down (you dthrow, he DI's behind, you turnaround and dsmash). If you choose to charge the dsmash in hopes that he will tech in place right in front of you, and he DI's behind you, you must release the charge in time for the second hit to cover a tech in place (if he DI's behind you and proceeds to techroll in the same direction though, he's escaped you). If he DOES tech in place, the second hit of the dsmash will usually pop him up and he'll land right in front of you. In this situation people love to tech in place. Resist temptation to try to hit him mid-air, as you usually won't have enough time. Either wait for the tech, or try to grab him mid-air (great option). A drawback of using dsmash is that the first hit can be CC'd and you can be punished, but it flat out doesn't happen very often. Dsmash is a very good mix-up and the punishment potential at low% is wild.
Ganon can also use AC bairs to cover no tech, tech in place, and techroll through you. If you position yourself so that you will punish no tech/tech in place, you are guaranteed a dash + jc grab if he rolls through you instead. The drawbacks of this involve difficulty in achieving proper positioning soon enough to execute it correctly (depending on the situation), and the difficulty of getting a follow-up after landing a bair (med%).
If you are on a platform, land a grab, and are positioned so that if he were to DI a dthrow behind you he would be of the platform, you essentially have him trapped. If he techs on the platform, his options are obviously limited by how short the platform is. If he DI's behind, you can drop through with a bair/uair, depending on his damage percent, which is great if your back is also facing the ledge.
..........iii) Hard reads: How to make an educated guess when you must guess
In theory, nothing is better than dair and fair when techchasing. You get guaranteed damage, a guaranteed follow-up (although it may not always be easy), and both moves are free of your opponent's ASDI/crouch cancel shenanigans. If your opponent is seasoned in the Ganon matchup, the more gimmicky ways to cover multiple options start to lose effectiveness, where the effectiveness of dair and fair remain essentially the same (very effective).
Basically, you must guess whenever your opponent's options are unrestricted. You must use the stage (ledge, various platforms, obstacles, etc) to your advantage in order to increase your chances of punishing his tech. Remember that when your opponent techs, he is guessing also. He will be looking for either the tech option that is most difficult for you to cover given the situation, or whichever option you have failed to punish earlier in the set, as he sees it as safer than the others at the current time. It is important to be able to recognize how much attention your opponent is paying to the techchasing game (don't give a scrub the same treatment as you would a high level player). Is he truly good at mixing up DI and techs? Is he on autopilot at all? If so, in what situations does he lose focus? Is he aware that you are noticing his tech habits and adapting? How capable is he of adapting to the changes you have made? How does he differ from other players that main his character? What situations does he always try to avoid? All of these are great questions to be asking yourself in-game, and finding the answers requires a solid level of focus and understanding of how certain situations typically unfold.
If you have no idea what he's going to do, and he's at low%, I recommend covering the option of him rolling close to the ledge. See if he's actually that dumb. Simply put, the closer your opponent is to the ledge, the easier it is to turn a techchase situation into a KO. Gimps frustrate people and often swing the momentum of the match in your favor abruptly. Once you get the KO, chances are your opponent took a mental note of the danger involved in techrolling away. It's times like this where I like to use a dsmash in the next situation, if it calls for it (or a dair if his options are limited, or you are in his head enough that you are fairly certain as to what option he'll choose. The way you get him to start techrolling again is punishing the living **** out of him near the center of the stage. You may not take his stock, but a 40-60% combo is often enough to get them to refrain from teching near you (as if the combo you just dealt him even compares to the KO he suffered from techrolling to the ledge previously) next time around.
What I'm getting at here, in part, is you are not always looking for the tech you believe he will most likely choose. You must also consider the reward potential. If you guess wrong, it may have been a blown opportunity, but the neutral game is reset and you should not be in immediate danger.
..........iv) Conditioning your opponent: leading them into a false sense of security to influence their decision making
Here, your goal is to lead your opponent to believe that the tech option you want him to choose (the one you just can't wait to punish) is actually the safest option for him to choose. Use your wrong guesses to your advantage by observing what happened and why. In many cases, you want him to techroll toward the ledge, so that you can fair him offstage and edgeguard him, but how do you get him to do something that puts his stock in immediate jeopardy? Well, they don't always think of it that way. Some people have a fear of rolling toward Ganon simply because this is a big "no no" in the neutral game. Others find teching in place to be scary as well. They fear Ganon. They fear the dair, and they fear grabs. It is your job to punish your opponent SO HARD when they tech in place or roll toward the center of the stage, that they actually think rolling to the ledge is the safest option (when in reality, it is what you would prefer). This can be achieved through multiple option coverage. Guessing correctly on hard reads is best, but if you are not in your opponent's head yet, you won't always be guessing correctly, and if you are not punishing techs, you will not be able to condition your opponent as they have little reason to fear you. However, you can even use this to your advantage. If your opponent chooses the exact same tech option two times in a row, and you do not punish it either time, you're going to see that option used again at some point, as he may see it as relatively safe. It may even be the very next time. It's surprising how many players don't have a problem teching the same way 3 times in a row. Not everyone does it though (especially later in the set after the most obvious of habits have already been exploited), and this is yet another thing of which to take a mental note and to be ready for.
.....c) Maximizing punishment
Ok, let's take a second to imagine a hypothetical world where you always know what tech option your opponent will use, and all that's left is your 1 chance to turn a free hit into a KO (because, well, that's what we're trying to do here). Maximizing punishment has everything to do with your position on stage. The most efficient KO's come from using a fair (or bair) to send your opponent offstage, and then successfully edgeguarding them. One successful techchase followed by one successful edgeguard is all you need for a KO (unless you fair them at 5% damage in the center of the stage, lol). So, by now you can see that punishing a techroll toward the ledge with a fair is Ganon's "bread and butter" techchase. But what if he's at the center of the stage? Or on a platform?
When the option of creating an edgeguard opportunity is not immediately available, you must orchestrate a combo that brings such an option to the surface. At the very least, you should try to maximize the amount of damage percent you deal to your opponent, but this should seldom be your goal (dealing tons of damage helps, but it doesn't win games). It is always best to have a specific method of taking his stock in mind, and calmly carrying out the sequence, while remaining ready to adapt if something goes wrong. This is not difficult to achieve when you fully understand your opponent's options and how to cover them. When your opponent techrolls to the center of the stage, you must be able to recognize immediately whether or not you can get him offstage with one hit. If his % is too low, it is best to dair. Dair to grab is Ganon's fiercest opener in a ton of situations and matchups. Remember that in NTSC you can hit Fox with a fresh dair at 0% and jc grab every time, so after you've forced him to tech (and he has some damage), this is no problem. Once you have the grab, it's best to consider taking the most guaranteed route towards getting a KO (whatever requires the least amount of guessing). Uthrow onto platform is a great choice here, followed by multiple option coverage out of dthrow. Also, if they are around 30-40% and do not DI the dair, you can nair them onto a platform for a free techchase, and that one WILL send them offstage. If they are not effectively escaping the dsmash, this is a great mix-up as it can lead to dairs and more grabs. Have a plan to get them on a platform with your first techchase, and create an edgeguard opportunity with the next one. On FD, techchase with either dair or whichever MOC method you believe he is the least ready for/will earn you the most profit. In this case you are waiting for the magic % where that fair will send him offstage regardless of where he is on stage. Racking up damage from techchases is more important on FD and DL64 (where platforms help less) than the other stages because of this.
Without further delay...
Isn't techchasing great? Ganon gets an opportunity for a free hit, which is often all he needs to finish off a stock. Well, I guess it feels free after you've earned it, lol. Let's talk about how we can get more of these "free hits", and how we can make them even cheaper, shall we?
Before I get into anything specific, here are some general things that may seem like common knowledge to some, but these are mistakes that tons of Ganon mains make. First of all, ALWAYS COVER A TECH OPTION. I really can't say this enough. You want to have an idea as to where he will tech as soon as you toss out a move that could force him to do so, and have at least a broad idea of what both his and your options would be in that situation. In any techchase opportunity, especially from a grab (where you are able to control more accurately where your opponent techs, and when), AT LEAST one of these options must be covered, if not more. I have to say this from the amount of tech options that go uncovered, which leads to techs that go unpunished (obviously). If you are extremely fast reacting, you can start off going for a hard read, and as soon as you see it didn't work in your favor, fastfall, waveland (basically abort mission), or do whatever you can to at least apply hard pressure to the tech option he chose (and you didn't cover). This is possible, and you can profit from it, but if you are guessing wrong often, you are either not picking up on your opponent's teching habits, or he is truly good at mixing them up. It also may be time for multiple option coverage. If you make this mistake, literally all of your opponent's options are safe (wtf?). You must also be constantly aware of your position on the stage, as well as your opponents, in regard to platform location (relative to where you and your opponent are located) and how close both of you are to the ledge. You must also be aware of your opponent's damage percent and the information this gives you, which is quite a bit.
Now that we've covered that, let's talk about forcing Fox, Falco, and Falcon to tech.
1. Creating techchasing opportunities
Making the best of every techchase opportunity seems like a fairly decent plan right? It is obviously (and so is planning on 18 holes-in-one during a round of golf), but such opportunities don't really fall from the sky at high level play, so creating them begins with having a solid neutral game. More specifically, it requires precise timing, quick reactions, knowledge of hitbox priority/ranges, and usually involves a read or a well-spaced attack. Reaction time is vital, so you want to be focused on your opponent as much as possible without sacrificing any control of Ganon.
.....a) Grabs (dthrow/uthrow)
Grabs may not be a large part of the neutral game, but they are one of the most common ways to force a tech out of your opponent. You have more control over where your opponent techs when a throw is used than any other move. The more grabs you get, the more free chances you have to knock your opponent into next week. You also have a choice to either dthrow or uthrow once you've grabbed them. Either throw will give them a different set of options while teching (including DI'ing your throw), so it is up to you to choose which throw will limit their safest options the most.
dthrow
This is the go-to throw for Ganon, period. This thread is primarily about techchasing, but don't forget your chaingrabbing options and when they should be used. I have said in the past that one's use of the chaingrab should completely depend on one's level of mastery of the chaingrab. This is absolutely true, but the rabbit hole gets deeper (discussed later).
Remember for chaingrabbing..........
For Falco, you must pivot dash jc grab for DI behind starting at 65%.
For Fox, you must pivot dash jc grab for DI behind starting at 70%.
..........that stuff's crucial.
One great thing about dthrow is that you can use jab/pivot jab to interrupt their ability to tech (a fresh jab knocks down Fox at 38%, Falco at 39%, and C. Falcon at 45%). If you wait until the last possible moment to jab them, they will most likely have already hit R to tech the dthrow, in which case, they will miss the tech from the jab. This is a great time for a dair since it is given (when is a dair given?), and since this usually takes place at low%. Then you can follow up with another grab, platform techchase, ftilt, or whatever the situation calls for.
uthrow
Uthrow is a very useful tool in techchasing. You can uthrow onto platforms, situationally chaingrab with it, punish with an aerial, or use it alongside dthrow as a mix-up. If there isn't a platform in front of you, and your opponent is a med% or higher, DI'ing the uthrow away is safe for your opponent. When they DI the uthrow away, they can travel far enough before teching so that you cannot punish techroll away by dashing and SHFFL'ing a fair. But if there is a platform in front of you, DI away is no longer safe, as you will get a free techchase (when techchasing on a platform, you can uair on reaction if nothing else, it always works). Usmash is also a good choice if they are laying there and haven't tech'd yet, as you can cover standup AND techroll if they are near the end of the platform, and at lower percents you can combo into uair). If they are at high%, up-b is also a great option. Now, if they DI behind, depending on their damage and position on stage, you can ftilt, bair, pivot uair, pivot fair, or regrab. Opting for an additional grab is essentially only a bad choice if another move guarantees the KO; other than that, it's great.
Using both throws properly
So, we all know by now that Ganon has a legitimate 0-death chaingrab on Fox and Falco starting at low%. Falco is much easier, and you must be fully aware of your own level of mastery of the chaingrab so that you can set a limit on yourself regarding when it is time to chaingrab versus techchase (even chaingrabbing falco is extremely difficult below 50%). Again, this based on risk versus reward potential. If you miss a regrab while trying to chaingrab, you have not only missed out on a KO opportunity, but you most likely haven't dealt much damage either. I have said this before, but the best way to react to your opponent's DI off the dthrow is to stare directly at Ganon while monitoring you opponent's DI with your peripheral vision. This is not difficult to do, as Ganon is holding your opponent, lol. As you begin to dthrow, shift your focus from the center of Ganon slightly up, to the level where falco/fox will be popped up from the dthrow. This way you can react to falcos location more quickly. The heavier the character you are dthrowing, the slower Ganon's dthrow animation becomes, so muscle memory has no place here (chaingrabs are important vs almost all characters Ganon is capable of chaingrabbing, so you want to develop a method of practice that will work for all of those matchups). If unrestricted by platforms or obstacles, continue chaingrabbing until they are over 130% and wizards foot if they DI anything but fully behind. For full DI behind you can either continue chaingrabbing, or ftilt. If platforms are nearby, you must be able to recognize when their damage is high enough so that they land on the platform. The last thing you want is to whiff a regrab attempt as you watch your opponent tech safely on the platform above you. By the time they have enough damage to tech on the platform, you should be able to get them offstage (save the super low platforms on FoD) and create an edgeguard opportunity.
You can also chaingrab falcon if he DI's your dthrow anything but full away, or your uthrow behind. With this, you can use platforms to force him into deciding between getting regrabbed (free damage, frustration factor), or either DI'ing either towards the platform (where you get a free hit) or offstage (possible edgeguard opportunity). All it takes is for a platform to be in front of you or for you to be close to the ledge (and be facing it). Most falcons aren't even aware of Ganon's ability to situationally chaingrab him because no one really does it. Simple traps like this translate into guaranteed damage, as well as possible KO opportunities.
.....b) Jabs, tilts, and dash attack.
A strong ground game is often Ganon's first line of defense when dealing with opponent's approaches. This is where your timing, reaction speed, and spacing skills are put to the ultimate test, as you will be dealing with approaches from characters much faster than Ganon, and ideally you want to stuff their approach without trading hits (this gets much easier the more mobile/agile you remain during the neutral game, the more you SDI moves to change your position, and the faster you are dashing or wavedashing out of shield, lag, or stun.... it makes it much more difficult for your opponent to properly space his approaches). This requires a precise understanding of the range of your jab, ftilt, and dash attack (among other moves).
Ftilt and dash attack are slightly more disjointed at the outermost portion of the hitbox (tipper) than jab is. Jab is faster, but you are likely to trade hits unless you time the jab for maximum spacing, and even then you can trade, which will render your opponent's tech unpunishable. Dash attack is almost as fast and has good range due to its speed, but depending on your opponent's DI and damage percent, it may not force a tech that is easily punished due to it's unique angle of knockback. It is, however, excellent at winning exchanges, and it surprises your opponent, which can lead to random follow-ups, as it is rarely DI'd properly. Jab and ftilt are best however for holding your ground, and continuing to pressuring/walling/cornering your opponent... and in today's metagame, your pressure HAS to be heavy to succeed. You must find the fine line between being safe (being able to react appropriately to incoming approaches) and still being able to capitalize on small mistakes. If someone does not tech, charge dsmash if he is close to the ledge. If not, bait him with a brief DD, empty jump into perfect wL, or jump to platform and shield drop/drop through aerial.
Knockdown Percentages (all moves fresh)
*************JAB****FTILT****DTILT****DA
Fox**********38%****22%******17%*****12%
Falco********39%****23%******18%*****12%
C. Falcon****45%****28%******22%*****18%
^^ thanks to @Locke Robster
.....c) Dair, nair, and other aerials
Aerials are a good way of creating techchase opportunities and extending combos through techchasing. Slightly more situational than Ganon's ground game, but very important nonetheless.
Dair has it's place in the neutral game when you read an approach or sneak one out of shield. When intercepting an approach with a full hop dair, you force a tech immediately when they hit the ground. In this situation, you can dj and wait to see what they do. While in mid-air during your dj, you can waveland on a platform into aerial as a follow-up, or if there are no platforms nearby, dj away (out of getup attack range) and perfect waveland back in to regrab/pressure. If you sneak a dair OoS and hit a grounded opponent, be sure to land the L-cancel. You will have hit them with an early dair, so remember to delay your fastfall timing as well. Players love to techroll in this situation (when dair at low% pops them up, but they fall back to the ground before you could follow up) because they fear multiple dairs. Use this to your advantage.
When you pop someone up with a dair, if they have enough damage, nair becomes a great way of turning a simple combo into a KO by creating an additional techchase situation (in which case, players seem to love to tech in place) on nearby platforms. You want to use the weak knockback of the first hit of nair, and fastfall/L-cancel immediately so that the techchase situation you create is a free punish. You want to use nair for this when you know their damage isn't high enough for a simple dair + fair combo to send them offstage.
2. Making the best of each opportunity
.....a) Understanding your opponent's options
In any given situation, we know what our opponent's tech options are. It's more important to immediately recognize when this set of options has been altered. Platforms, obstacles, and the ledge are the main things that will cause this. Knowledge of your opponent's options in these situations is the foundation of having a solid techchasing game, and the sooner you can realize that a situation is out of the ordinary, and what that entails, the better. I will go into this more later.
.....b) Decision making (HUGE)
..........i) Recognizing your opponent's habits
Many people have obvious habits when it comes to DI and teching, and not a single thing your opponent does throughout the set should be ignored. There is a lot of room to express yourself as a player in melee. The neutral game is intricate and full of options for all characters, especially the fastfallers. Every move your opponent makes can tell you something about how he will react in a techchasing situation, so it's best to focus on your opponent's movement and decision making as hard/often as possible without sacrificing the level of control you have over Ganon. Many players have a lazy habit of DI'ing a throw in a certain direction, and then techrolling in the same direction. You need to be able to determine whether or not they have this habit very quickly. If you are proficient at edgeguarding (which you should be), you want them to techroll. Some people techroll too often (usually away) being afraid of Ganon, and some people tech in place too often (a general bad habit amongst most melee players). There are other habits but these are the most common.
If you are playing a campy fox player, for example, even if you have never seen the player tech before, it is a relatively safe bet that he will techroll away the first chance he gets, in an attempt to get away from Ganon and reset the neutral game to a situation where he is more comfortable (being far away lasering). If you know very little about your opponent's habits thus far, but you can see that he is NOT a campy player, be ready for the tech in place. Some players like to tech in place because it's fast and they can regain control of their character more quickly. Generally, players panic a little bit when they are unable to control their character, and thus, the neutral game (the length of the roll makes them nervous, they hate being close to Ganon, they hate being chaingrabbed, etc). When they get nervous they tend to techroll more often unless you have conditioned them to believe otherwise. Good falcons and spacies are used to Ganon being fairly free since they are usually able to control the pace of the neutral game. If you can sense them beginning to fear your punishment game, you can start getting them to do what you want them to do.
..........ii) Multiple option coverage versus hard reads: when and why
Multiple option coverage sounds like a great idea, doesn't it? If you can double, or even triple your chances of guessing correctly, why not go for it? Well, there are some drawbacks to Ganon's methods of achieving this, so you want to know which situations call for it, and which situations would be better suited for a hard read (typically techchasing with dair/fair).
If you force your opponent to tech in the center of FD, there is no way to effectively cover every tech option. In this case, since his options are not limited by the stage, it's time for some raw guess work. Your opponent's damage percent should affect your decision making, as should any habits of your opponent you have observed, and whether or not your opponent possesses the knowledge to limit Ganon's methods of covering multiple options.
Ganon has several ways to make 2-3 tech options unsafe for his foe. Some of these are limited to tech situations created by a throw, as your positioning has to be precise in order to cover all the options (you must be basically touching your opponent when you input side-B, for example).
There is side-B, which can cover no tech, tech in place, and techroll away. You must be familiar with the range of this attack to cover techroll away. You want to input B the instant your opponent hits the ground initially. The drawback of side-B is that it can be CC'd (if they tech) and you can be punished. Luckily a decent amount of players are either unaware of this, or forget, so it is undoubtedly a legitimate mix-up. Another drawback, however, is that they can DI behind you and be safe from any follow-up unless there is a platform behind you and their damage percent isn't too high. If their percent is really high, forget about side-B.
When their damage is high and you really want to close out the stock, wizards foot is another great way to punish no tech, tech in place, and techroll away. You can also time the down-B so that if your opponent were to tech in place, he will be sent backwards. The knockback of this move, however, is not very deadly when DI'd appropriately. It can also put you in a horrible position if you miss, especially if you go offstage. Nonetheless, your opponent will rarely expect this (you shouldn't be using this often enough for them to do so) and players often DI it incorrectly and die.
Dsmash is another way to cover several options (no tech, tech in place, techroll behind). The only way to escape this is for your opponent to techroll in the same direction they DI'd the throw, so it serves as a conditioning tool also. If your opponent escapes your dsmash more than once, you can potentially be leading him to believe that DI'ing away and teching away is actually safe, and this is not bad at all. Dsmash is also more versatile than the B moves, as you can charge it, or (better in most situations) wait to see their DI from the throw and then hit C-down (you dthrow, he DI's behind, you turnaround and dsmash). If you choose to charge the dsmash in hopes that he will tech in place right in front of you, and he DI's behind you, you must release the charge in time for the second hit to cover a tech in place (if he DI's behind you and proceeds to techroll in the same direction though, he's escaped you). If he DOES tech in place, the second hit of the dsmash will usually pop him up and he'll land right in front of you. In this situation people love to tech in place. Resist temptation to try to hit him mid-air, as you usually won't have enough time. Either wait for the tech, or try to grab him mid-air (great option). A drawback of using dsmash is that the first hit can be CC'd and you can be punished, but it flat out doesn't happen very often. Dsmash is a very good mix-up and the punishment potential at low% is wild.
Ganon can also use AC bairs to cover no tech, tech in place, and techroll through you. If you position yourself so that you will punish no tech/tech in place, you are guaranteed a dash + jc grab if he rolls through you instead. The drawbacks of this involve difficulty in achieving proper positioning soon enough to execute it correctly (depending on the situation), and the difficulty of getting a follow-up after landing a bair (med%).
If you are on a platform, land a grab, and are positioned so that if he were to DI a dthrow behind you he would be of the platform, you essentially have him trapped. If he techs on the platform, his options are obviously limited by how short the platform is. If he DI's behind, you can drop through with a bair/uair, depending on his damage percent, which is great if your back is also facing the ledge.
..........iii) Hard reads: How to make an educated guess when you must guess
In theory, nothing is better than dair and fair when techchasing. You get guaranteed damage, a guaranteed follow-up (although it may not always be easy), and both moves are free of your opponent's ASDI/crouch cancel shenanigans. If your opponent is seasoned in the Ganon matchup, the more gimmicky ways to cover multiple options start to lose effectiveness, where the effectiveness of dair and fair remain essentially the same (very effective).
Basically, you must guess whenever your opponent's options are unrestricted. You must use the stage (ledge, various platforms, obstacles, etc) to your advantage in order to increase your chances of punishing his tech. Remember that when your opponent techs, he is guessing also. He will be looking for either the tech option that is most difficult for you to cover given the situation, or whichever option you have failed to punish earlier in the set, as he sees it as safer than the others at the current time. It is important to be able to recognize how much attention your opponent is paying to the techchasing game (don't give a scrub the same treatment as you would a high level player). Is he truly good at mixing up DI and techs? Is he on autopilot at all? If so, in what situations does he lose focus? Is he aware that you are noticing his tech habits and adapting? How capable is he of adapting to the changes you have made? How does he differ from other players that main his character? What situations does he always try to avoid? All of these are great questions to be asking yourself in-game, and finding the answers requires a solid level of focus and understanding of how certain situations typically unfold.
If you have no idea what he's going to do, and he's at low%, I recommend covering the option of him rolling close to the ledge. See if he's actually that dumb. Simply put, the closer your opponent is to the ledge, the easier it is to turn a techchase situation into a KO. Gimps frustrate people and often swing the momentum of the match in your favor abruptly. Once you get the KO, chances are your opponent took a mental note of the danger involved in techrolling away. It's times like this where I like to use a dsmash in the next situation, if it calls for it (or a dair if his options are limited, or you are in his head enough that you are fairly certain as to what option he'll choose. The way you get him to start techrolling again is punishing the living **** out of him near the center of the stage. You may not take his stock, but a 40-60% combo is often enough to get them to refrain from teching near you (as if the combo you just dealt him even compares to the KO he suffered from techrolling to the ledge previously) next time around.
What I'm getting at here, in part, is you are not always looking for the tech you believe he will most likely choose. You must also consider the reward potential. If you guess wrong, it may have been a blown opportunity, but the neutral game is reset and you should not be in immediate danger.
..........iv) Conditioning your opponent: leading them into a false sense of security to influence their decision making
Here, your goal is to lead your opponent to believe that the tech option you want him to choose (the one you just can't wait to punish) is actually the safest option for him to choose. Use your wrong guesses to your advantage by observing what happened and why. In many cases, you want him to techroll toward the ledge, so that you can fair him offstage and edgeguard him, but how do you get him to do something that puts his stock in immediate jeopardy? Well, they don't always think of it that way. Some people have a fear of rolling toward Ganon simply because this is a big "no no" in the neutral game. Others find teching in place to be scary as well. They fear Ganon. They fear the dair, and they fear grabs. It is your job to punish your opponent SO HARD when they tech in place or roll toward the center of the stage, that they actually think rolling to the ledge is the safest option (when in reality, it is what you would prefer). This can be achieved through multiple option coverage. Guessing correctly on hard reads is best, but if you are not in your opponent's head yet, you won't always be guessing correctly, and if you are not punishing techs, you will not be able to condition your opponent as they have little reason to fear you. However, you can even use this to your advantage. If your opponent chooses the exact same tech option two times in a row, and you do not punish it either time, you're going to see that option used again at some point, as he may see it as relatively safe. It may even be the very next time. It's surprising how many players don't have a problem teching the same way 3 times in a row. Not everyone does it though (especially later in the set after the most obvious of habits have already been exploited), and this is yet another thing of which to take a mental note and to be ready for.
.....c) Maximizing punishment
Ok, let's take a second to imagine a hypothetical world where you always know what tech option your opponent will use, and all that's left is your 1 chance to turn a free hit into a KO (because, well, that's what we're trying to do here). Maximizing punishment has everything to do with your position on stage. The most efficient KO's come from using a fair (or bair) to send your opponent offstage, and then successfully edgeguarding them. One successful techchase followed by one successful edgeguard is all you need for a KO (unless you fair them at 5% damage in the center of the stage, lol). So, by now you can see that punishing a techroll toward the ledge with a fair is Ganon's "bread and butter" techchase. But what if he's at the center of the stage? Or on a platform?
When the option of creating an edgeguard opportunity is not immediately available, you must orchestrate a combo that brings such an option to the surface. At the very least, you should try to maximize the amount of damage percent you deal to your opponent, but this should seldom be your goal (dealing tons of damage helps, but it doesn't win games). It is always best to have a specific method of taking his stock in mind, and calmly carrying out the sequence, while remaining ready to adapt if something goes wrong. This is not difficult to achieve when you fully understand your opponent's options and how to cover them. When your opponent techrolls to the center of the stage, you must be able to recognize immediately whether or not you can get him offstage with one hit. If his % is too low, it is best to dair. Dair to grab is Ganon's fiercest opener in a ton of situations and matchups. Remember that in NTSC you can hit Fox with a fresh dair at 0% and jc grab every time, so after you've forced him to tech (and he has some damage), this is no problem. Once you have the grab, it's best to consider taking the most guaranteed route towards getting a KO (whatever requires the least amount of guessing). Uthrow onto platform is a great choice here, followed by multiple option coverage out of dthrow. Also, if they are around 30-40% and do not DI the dair, you can nair them onto a platform for a free techchase, and that one WILL send them offstage. If they are not effectively escaping the dsmash, this is a great mix-up as it can lead to dairs and more grabs. Have a plan to get them on a platform with your first techchase, and create an edgeguard opportunity with the next one. On FD, techchase with either dair or whichever MOC method you believe he is the least ready for/will earn you the most profit. In this case you are waiting for the magic % where that fair will send him offstage regardless of where he is on stage. Racking up damage from techchases is more important on FD and DL64 (where platforms help less) than the other stages because of this.
