dinn3rr
Smash Cadet
Hi! This guide is meant for the newer Falcon players out there, and is aimed on teaching the basics, advanced techs, reading, followups, combos, and (hopefully) matchup information. I, myself, came from Melee to PM already knowing quite a bit about Falcon, so some techs may differ slightly. If anything is missing or needs to be fixed, please don't hesitate to comment on them, so they can be fixed.
Chapter 1: Introduction
Chapter 2: Moveset & (Maybe) Move Frame Data - From Scar's Melee Falcon Guide
Chapter 3: Combos and Followups
Coming soon....
Chapter 4: Tech Chases and Tech Reads
Coming soon....
Chapter 5: Advanced Techs
Coming soon...
Chapter 6: Anything Else...?
Coming soon...
Chapter 7: The End
Coming soon...
Chapter 1: Introduction
Hello! If you're seeing this, you have (probably) made the decision to pick up Captain Falcon. Let's get some things down right now: This guide is for players who know basic techs, like dashdancing, wavedashing, wavelanding, etc. These techs will be briefly be summarized, but will not be in fuller depth like some other techs.
Techs:
Wavedash: Airdodge into the ground, useful for: Spacing, mixups, combos, and mindgames. CF's wavedash isn't the best compared to others, but it's not useless like Peach, for example.
Waveland: Airdodge into a platform from the air. Captain Falcon's double jump is in a ball form, so he is capable of doing a Perfect Waveland.
Dash-Dancing: Moving from right to left in the initial dash animation. Falcon's dashdance is great, so it's useful for mixups, waiting, and baiting out opponents.
Jump-Cancel (JC) Grab: A jump-cancelled grab, executed by jumping, and then, in the initial part of the jump animation, grab. This reduces the endlag of the grab, while keeping the grab range of a dash grab.
Now that you know these techs (hopefully), you now know that falcon is a very mobile character, having the second fastest running speed in the game (right below Sonic). Using these simple techs should help your overall skill with CF, and will lead to better combos, and better playing overall.
Techs:
Wavedash: Airdodge into the ground, useful for: Spacing, mixups, combos, and mindgames. CF's wavedash isn't the best compared to others, but it's not useless like Peach, for example.
Waveland: Airdodge into a platform from the air. Captain Falcon's double jump is in a ball form, so he is capable of doing a Perfect Waveland.
Dash-Dancing: Moving from right to left in the initial dash animation. Falcon's dashdance is great, so it's useful for mixups, waiting, and baiting out opponents.
Jump-Cancel (JC) Grab: A jump-cancelled grab, executed by jumping, and then, in the initial part of the jump animation, grab. This reduces the endlag of the grab, while keeping the grab range of a dash grab.
Now that you know these techs (hopefully), you now know that falcon is a very mobile character, having the second fastest running speed in the game (right below Sonic). Using these simple techs should help your overall skill with CF, and will lead to better combos, and better playing overall.
Chapter 2: Moveset & (Maybe) Move Frame Data - From Scar's Melee Falcon Guide
Falcon's moveset is incredibly versatile, and allows him to deal heavy damage and get ridiculous combos. Here will give the basic of each move, and more will be added as more knowledge becomes available. Keep in mind 3.5 is still relatively new, so new things may pop up.
Ground Moves
Tilts/Dashes
Falcon's tilts are actually pretty good. Just his Ftilt isn’t used that much but his dash is... Well... It's not Samus’. They are both very situational. I’ll cover the situations you can use them in right now.
B- Moves
His B moves are pretty useless except his Forward-B. You're usually looking for combo potential and well.. None of these moves really have any with the exception of the forward B.
Smashes
Falcon's smashes are all very powerful if they land... But they are almost impossible to land on a good opponent. Or if it is possible to land a smash... It most likely has little/no ability to combo. Just... Try to steer clear of them, in most cases with the exception of the occasional Usmash when I see a good opportunity.
Grabs/Throws
Falcons throws are simply fantastic. Uthrow and Dthrow both set up for the knee quite well. Bthrow and Fthrow well... They make for good paperweights.
Aerials
Falcon's aerials are AMAZING. They can juggle, finish, and one even has a spike. I high reccomend fully understanding your aerial moves and aerial game to become a better falcon.
Ground Moves
Yeah... Basic ground... Well, to sum it up... Don't use rapid punch. Use the rest after a SHFFLed aerial to prevent shieldgrabbers. All of these moves are pretty low in damage and knockback. But they make up for that in speed. The only exception is The Gentleman which is has good knockback, decent damage, and is about as fast as a jab.
A
Official name: Jab
KB: None
Range: Low
Damage: 1-2%
-A single punch. I use this after a shffled aerial to prevent shieldgrabbing. The best moves to use it after is a Fair or Nair since when L-canceled they have such low lag. Otherwise it's difficult to get the punch in before getting shieldgrabbed.
AA
Official name: Straight
KB: None
Range: Low
Damage: 2-3%
-Double punch. Use this after a shffled aerial to get an extra hit in, or after an uthrow. Once again, this will only really work after a Nair or Fair because of the low lag times.
Rapid Punch
Official name: Rapid Punch
KB: None
Range: Low
Damage: 1%
- This actually can be used, although that doesn’t make it a very good move. I’ve seen it used all the time in videos (Probably not on purpose) but I’ve never seen one video in which the Falcon player was punished for using this move. I still don’t use it unless I mess up on a gentleman but… I’m just saying. It’s been used well.
Gentleman
Official name: Knee
KB: Above average
Range: Low
Damage: 7-8%
-The gentleman is slang for hitting A twice very rapidly, waiting a moment, and then hitting A again to hit the opponent with your knee, but not go into rapid punches. If you learn to do this very well, I recommend using this after shffled aerials because most people will block the first two punches. If you have difficulty timing this, you can just press AA really quickly, and then press A and Z at the same time. Almost never fails. A gentleman is rarely suspected and it sets up well for the knee.
Note: Gentleman is MUCH easier to execute in PM, thanks to the PMBR. the timing has a much higher window for error.
A
Official name: Jab
KB: None
Range: Low
Damage: 1-2%
-A single punch. I use this after a shffled aerial to prevent shieldgrabbing. The best moves to use it after is a Fair or Nair since when L-canceled they have such low lag. Otherwise it's difficult to get the punch in before getting shieldgrabbed.
AA
Official name: Straight
KB: None
Range: Low
Damage: 2-3%
-Double punch. Use this after a shffled aerial to get an extra hit in, or after an uthrow. Once again, this will only really work after a Nair or Fair because of the low lag times.
Rapid Punch
Official name: Rapid Punch
KB: None
Range: Low
Damage: 1%
- This actually can be used, although that doesn’t make it a very good move. I’ve seen it used all the time in videos (Probably not on purpose) but I’ve never seen one video in which the Falcon player was punished for using this move. I still don’t use it unless I mess up on a gentleman but… I’m just saying. It’s been used well.
Gentleman
Official name: Knee
KB: Above average
Range: Low
Damage: 7-8%
-The gentleman is slang for hitting A twice very rapidly, waiting a moment, and then hitting A again to hit the opponent with your knee, but not go into rapid punches. If you learn to do this very well, I recommend using this after shffled aerials because most people will block the first two punches. If you have difficulty timing this, you can just press AA really quickly, and then press A and Z at the same time. Almost never fails. A gentleman is rarely suspected and it sets up well for the knee.
Note: Gentleman is MUCH easier to execute in PM, thanks to the PMBR. the timing has a much higher window for error.
Tilts/Dashes
Falcon's tilts are actually pretty good. Just his Ftilt isn’t used that much but his dash is... Well... It's not Samus’. They are both very situational. I’ll cover the situations you can use them in right now.
Ftilt
Official name: Round Kick
KB: Average
Range: Above average
Damage: 6-11%
-Good for spacing, because it can't be shieldgrabbed. This cannot be comboed into though, so I rarely use it. It can be used however if you tilt up with forward at the same time. After an Uthrow, you can UFtilt them which sends them slightly more into the air which will open up for more combo opportunities. I don't use that combo often though because there are usually better moves that you can use after an Uthrow... Like a ForwardB or a Usmash, most of the time.
Dtilt
Official name: Crouching Kick
KB: Average (Vertical height)
Range: Average
Damage: 6-12%
-This move is a bit slow due to the time it takes for Falcon to retrieve his leg. Although it does have a fair amount of combo potential, but I still use it sparingly. It can be used against an opponent if you're at a low percentage and just need one knee to win. It's easy to CC an attack, use Dtilt, and knee them out of it. DYC informs me that it can be used to combo into the knee vs characters like Marth or Sheik. I just tested it. I always just Dthrew, but it was hard to reach her with proper DI. Yay for DYC! This move can also be used to disrupt sweetspotters, such as Fox or Falco, which sets up nicely for a knee. Most floaty characters are set up very nicely by the Dtilt for a knee and I’ve discovered myself using this to start combos more and more now that I’ve been experimenting with it.
Utilt
Official name: Wheel Kick
KB: Very good
Range: Average
Damage: 7-13%
-Most people don't think this move is very good, which I disagree with... The start-up time is kind of bad, but if you connect, it is worth it. This move is actually really fast for how powerful it is. A lot of japanese players (Masashi and CJ) use this as a safer edge guard than... Say... Stomping. I'm trying to adapt this as well. I mean, if Captain Jack only uses this move for edgeguarding... I'm going to learn it. This move can disturb people who try to sweetspot the ledge. If you look at the hitbox, you'll notice that the hitbox area extends slightly below his foot after it's reached the ground, allowing you to disrupt sweetspotters.
Dash A
Official name: Turbo Shoulder
KB: Average
Range: Very low
Damage: 3-10%
-Bad move. Waaaaaay too punishable, and even if you do connect (You're more likely to get shieldgrabbed), you can't combo from it very well because of the amount of time it takes to recover. A lot of people are like "But this move is pretty good!" and you know what I say? It's not about what's good... It's about what's best. This move is actually seen pretty often though, unfortunately it’s only if they use the control stick. It’s usually from a throw, they try to jump and knee, but they hit jump too early and just use this piece of crap. If you’re in the habit of doing this, stop now.
(VERY RARE) Turbo Shoulder CAN be used to edgeguard non-sweetspotters, but the reward isn't that great.
Official name: Round Kick
KB: Average
Range: Above average
Damage: 6-11%
-Good for spacing, because it can't be shieldgrabbed. This cannot be comboed into though, so I rarely use it. It can be used however if you tilt up with forward at the same time. After an Uthrow, you can UFtilt them which sends them slightly more into the air which will open up for more combo opportunities. I don't use that combo often though because there are usually better moves that you can use after an Uthrow... Like a ForwardB or a Usmash, most of the time.
Dtilt
Official name: Crouching Kick
KB: Average (Vertical height)
Range: Average
Damage: 6-12%
-This move is a bit slow due to the time it takes for Falcon to retrieve his leg. Although it does have a fair amount of combo potential, but I still use it sparingly. It can be used against an opponent if you're at a low percentage and just need one knee to win. It's easy to CC an attack, use Dtilt, and knee them out of it. DYC informs me that it can be used to combo into the knee vs characters like Marth or Sheik. I just tested it. I always just Dthrew, but it was hard to reach her with proper DI. Yay for DYC! This move can also be used to disrupt sweetspotters, such as Fox or Falco, which sets up nicely for a knee. Most floaty characters are set up very nicely by the Dtilt for a knee and I’ve discovered myself using this to start combos more and more now that I’ve been experimenting with it.
Utilt
Official name: Wheel Kick
KB: Very good
Range: Average
Damage: 7-13%
-Most people don't think this move is very good, which I disagree with... The start-up time is kind of bad, but if you connect, it is worth it. This move is actually really fast for how powerful it is. A lot of japanese players (Masashi and CJ) use this as a safer edge guard than... Say... Stomping. I'm trying to adapt this as well. I mean, if Captain Jack only uses this move for edgeguarding... I'm going to learn it. This move can disturb people who try to sweetspot the ledge. If you look at the hitbox, you'll notice that the hitbox area extends slightly below his foot after it's reached the ground, allowing you to disrupt sweetspotters.
Dash A
Official name: Turbo Shoulder
KB: Average
Range: Very low
Damage: 3-10%
-Bad move. Waaaaaay too punishable, and even if you do connect (You're more likely to get shieldgrabbed), you can't combo from it very well because of the amount of time it takes to recover. A lot of people are like "But this move is pretty good!" and you know what I say? It's not about what's good... It's about what's best. This move is actually seen pretty often though, unfortunately it’s only if they use the control stick. It’s usually from a throw, they try to jump and knee, but they hit jump too early and just use this piece of crap. If you’re in the habit of doing this, stop now.
(VERY RARE) Turbo Shoulder CAN be used to edgeguard non-sweetspotters, but the reward isn't that great.
His B moves are pretty useless except his Forward-B. You're usually looking for combo potential and well.. None of these moves really have any with the exception of the forward B.
B
Official name: Falcon Punch
KB: Your head "esplode"!!!!11
Range: Good
Damage: 16-32%
-Don't use this except in FFA and 2v2. There are rare occasions when you can use it in 1v1. The only real example I can think of in which you can use this is against a Fox or Falco at around 70-80% after a stomp if they don’t DI AT ALL. Still, it’s really awesome/rare to pull off. Just so we’re all clear, this move is called the Tapion Punch Combo developed by a board member named Tapion013.
Up B
Official name: Falcon Dive
vvv This info needs to be checked for PM vvv
Grab: 13-33
Can grab edges as soon as: 38
KB: Average, but they gain their second jump back
Range: Good, but it's hard to land
Damage: I haven't looked yet... Probably crap
-Computers use this a lot... As a human, I recommend never using this. Something neat to remember is that if you connect with it off of the level (Say... if a Fox tries to shine you) you can ricochet them off of a wall and it makes it very difficult for them to recover, especially since you're usually edgehogging afterwards. None of my friends ever tech this, but I'm sure they will eventually learn. If you're playing people who are good at teching, this probably isn't a very reliable tactic. This move also gives your opponent their second jump back, so using it as some sort of kill move is nothing short of completely stupid. I have seen this move used out of desperation against Masashi with CJ. Basically he did an attack, it was shielded, and to prevent getting grabbed he used this move on Masashi's Yoshi. This doesn't make it a reliable move though. He's CJ... He can do these things and make them look good.
Forward B
Official name: Raptor Boost
KB: Very good
Range: Good
Damage: ---
-This move is really good for starting combos, but it is hard to land because of the startup animation (This makes it really predictable, and you will get shieldgrabbed). This move is best used at medium percentage, and just shffl an easy knee for the win... Good times.. Another good time to use this move is if you ever get an aerial shielded and land behind your opponent. This is obviously because you can use this move without being shieldgrabbed. Something handy to know is that this move will penetrate through projectiles when you're in the stage of the move that charges you forward. Using this move near an edge and holding toward the ledge will cause CF to grab the ledge, which is handy, considering it's a method of recovery. AERIAL SIDE-B IS A SPIKE IF LANDED.
Down B
Official name: Falcon Kick
KB: Good
Range: Very good
Damage: I haven't looked yet
CF's Falcon Kick has GREATLY been improved in PM, as it's knockback, aerial landing lag and damage have all been improved. Bidooof used to use this move offstage into a knee, (grounded FC->DJ Knee) but since 3.02, falcon kick's range has slightly been increased. The aerial landing lag is heavily reduced. I use this as a way to pop up your opponent for a regrab, or SHFFL'd aerial, because the aerial knockback is pretty rediculous compared to percentages. This move is a lot better, but it's best to not spam this move.
Official name: Falcon Punch
KB: Your head "esplode"!!!!11
Range: Good
Damage: 16-32%
-Don't use this except in FFA and 2v2. There are rare occasions when you can use it in 1v1. The only real example I can think of in which you can use this is against a Fox or Falco at around 70-80% after a stomp if they don’t DI AT ALL. Still, it’s really awesome/rare to pull off. Just so we’re all clear, this move is called the Tapion Punch Combo developed by a board member named Tapion013.
Up B
Official name: Falcon Dive
vvv This info needs to be checked for PM vvv
Grab: 13-33
Can grab edges as soon as: 38
KB: Average, but they gain their second jump back
Range: Good, but it's hard to land
Damage: I haven't looked yet... Probably crap
-Computers use this a lot... As a human, I recommend never using this. Something neat to remember is that if you connect with it off of the level (Say... if a Fox tries to shine you) you can ricochet them off of a wall and it makes it very difficult for them to recover, especially since you're usually edgehogging afterwards. None of my friends ever tech this, but I'm sure they will eventually learn. If you're playing people who are good at teching, this probably isn't a very reliable tactic. This move also gives your opponent their second jump back, so using it as some sort of kill move is nothing short of completely stupid. I have seen this move used out of desperation against Masashi with CJ. Basically he did an attack, it was shielded, and to prevent getting grabbed he used this move on Masashi's Yoshi. This doesn't make it a reliable move though. He's CJ... He can do these things and make them look good.
Forward B
Official name: Raptor Boost
KB: Very good
Range: Good
Damage: ---
-This move is really good for starting combos, but it is hard to land because of the startup animation (This makes it really predictable, and you will get shieldgrabbed). This move is best used at medium percentage, and just shffl an easy knee for the win... Good times.. Another good time to use this move is if you ever get an aerial shielded and land behind your opponent. This is obviously because you can use this move without being shieldgrabbed. Something handy to know is that this move will penetrate through projectiles when you're in the stage of the move that charges you forward. Using this move near an edge and holding toward the ledge will cause CF to grab the ledge, which is handy, considering it's a method of recovery. AERIAL SIDE-B IS A SPIKE IF LANDED.
Down B
Official name: Falcon Kick
KB: Good
Range: Very good
Damage: I haven't looked yet
CF's Falcon Kick has GREATLY been improved in PM, as it's knockback, aerial landing lag and damage have all been improved. Bidooof used to use this move offstage into a knee, (grounded FC->DJ Knee) but since 3.02, falcon kick's range has slightly been increased. The aerial landing lag is heavily reduced. I use this as a way to pop up your opponent for a regrab, or SHFFL'd aerial, because the aerial knockback is pretty rediculous compared to percentages. This move is a lot better, but it's best to not spam this move.
Falcon's smashes are all very powerful if they land... But they are almost impossible to land on a good opponent. Or if it is possible to land a smash... It most likely has little/no ability to combo. Just... Try to steer clear of them, in most cases with the exception of the occasional Usmash when I see a good opportunity.
Fsmash
Official name: Overheat Elbow
KB: Very good
Range: Disturbingly low
Damage: 11-27%
-This move sends people very far. Due to the startup time, it's very difficult to land though. If you're really good at reading techs, you can just Fsmash people after they tech past you. It's usually a stock if you land it at a reasonable percentage. You can also Uthrow fast fallers at 50-60% and Fsmash them if they flub their DI. If you’re facing an edge, you can Dthrow FFers and expect them to tech into you which leads nicely into a Fsmash for a stock depending on the character and percentage.
Dsmash
Official name: Pinwheel Kick
KB: Above average
Range: Above average
Damage: 12-20%
-If someone is on the edge and you Dthrow them, they're most likely going to tech into you. You can either land a Fsmash or a Dsmash. This move is very useful against people who roll a lot. Other than that, it is a pretty slow move. Slower than the Fsmash and not as powerful. Although it does have more range than his Fsmash, but I would still use his Fsmash over this in most situations. The move is just so slow and gives you no payoff for the amount of time it takes to use. The only time this is especially handy is after Uthrowing a Fox or Falco. They will usually either tech in place or behind you for whatever reason. Either way, they’re light and this almost always lands on them until they start DIing away from you.
Usmash
Official name: Pendulum Kick
KB: Above average
Range: Low
Damage: 15-27%
-This move is tough to land because it only hits slightly above, and slightly in front of you. It does have great combo potential, but it's a bit to unreliable to use consistently. At lower percentages you can Uthrow into this if they don't DI too much. It can also be Forward-B'ed into. As you can see, the damage is really high. It can actually be used as an effective KO move against characters that seem to have problems getting killed horizontally... Like Peach. The fact that it's two hits is also pretty good, because the move is active for a while, giving you a larger window to hit your opponent with it. This can also be a good move to kill with.
Official name: Overheat Elbow
KB: Very good
Range: Disturbingly low
Damage: 11-27%
-This move sends people very far. Due to the startup time, it's very difficult to land though. If you're really good at reading techs, you can just Fsmash people after they tech past you. It's usually a stock if you land it at a reasonable percentage. You can also Uthrow fast fallers at 50-60% and Fsmash them if they flub their DI. If you’re facing an edge, you can Dthrow FFers and expect them to tech into you which leads nicely into a Fsmash for a stock depending on the character and percentage.
Dsmash
Official name: Pinwheel Kick
KB: Above average
Range: Above average
Damage: 12-20%
-If someone is on the edge and you Dthrow them, they're most likely going to tech into you. You can either land a Fsmash or a Dsmash. This move is very useful against people who roll a lot. Other than that, it is a pretty slow move. Slower than the Fsmash and not as powerful. Although it does have more range than his Fsmash, but I would still use his Fsmash over this in most situations. The move is just so slow and gives you no payoff for the amount of time it takes to use. The only time this is especially handy is after Uthrowing a Fox or Falco. They will usually either tech in place or behind you for whatever reason. Either way, they’re light and this almost always lands on them until they start DIing away from you.
Usmash
Official name: Pendulum Kick
KB: Above average
Range: Low
Damage: 15-27%
-This move is tough to land because it only hits slightly above, and slightly in front of you. It does have great combo potential, but it's a bit to unreliable to use consistently. At lower percentages you can Uthrow into this if they don't DI too much. It can also be Forward-B'ed into. As you can see, the damage is really high. It can actually be used as an effective KO move against characters that seem to have problems getting killed horizontally... Like Peach. The fact that it's two hits is also pretty good, because the move is active for a while, giving you a larger window to hit your opponent with it. This can also be a good move to kill with.
Falcons throws are simply fantastic. Uthrow and Dthrow both set up for the knee quite well. Bthrow and Fthrow well... They make for good paperweights.
Fthrow
Official name: Bodyblow
- There are few reasons to use this throw over the Dthrow and Uthrow, since they have infinitely more combo potential over this one. You can occassionally use this throw to get an opponent off of the edge for an Utilt or whatever. It's not completely useless, but most of the time Dthrow or Uthrow are better options. Does about 2-9% damage.
Dthrow
Official name: Throwdown
- Very good throw. Can chainthrow semi-floaties and floaties. You can also shffl knees into people when they hit the ground if they don't tech, or you can just pop them up and shffl a knee. Try to prevent them from teching so you can land knees when they're on the ground. They will stop teching if you tech punish a lot. Does about 3-7% damage.
Bthrow
Official name: Kickback
- Refer to Fthrow... Does about 2-9% damage.
Uthrow
Official name: Rising Palm
- This is what I use to set up fastfallers up for a knee or for a ForwardB. Fox/Falco are even susceptible to this at medium (40-50) percentages. Does about 2-9% damage. This is the main way you’ll want to tech punish fast fallers.
"A" while holding opponent
Official name: Captive Knee
- This is used to tack on a bit of damage before a throw. I always forget to use it, but that doesn't mean you should neglect it. You've got to think about how often Ken did this vs Bombsoldier and how much damage it tacked on each time he threw him... This is definitely a move you should not start to forget. It does between 1-2% damage.
Official name: Bodyblow
- There are few reasons to use this throw over the Dthrow and Uthrow, since they have infinitely more combo potential over this one. You can occassionally use this throw to get an opponent off of the edge for an Utilt or whatever. It's not completely useless, but most of the time Dthrow or Uthrow are better options. Does about 2-9% damage.
Dthrow
Official name: Throwdown
- Very good throw. Can chainthrow semi-floaties and floaties. You can also shffl knees into people when they hit the ground if they don't tech, or you can just pop them up and shffl a knee. Try to prevent them from teching so you can land knees when they're on the ground. They will stop teching if you tech punish a lot. Does about 3-7% damage.
Bthrow
Official name: Kickback
- Refer to Fthrow... Does about 2-9% damage.
Uthrow
Official name: Rising Palm
- This is what I use to set up fastfallers up for a knee or for a ForwardB. Fox/Falco are even susceptible to this at medium (40-50) percentages. Does about 2-9% damage. This is the main way you’ll want to tech punish fast fallers.
"A" while holding opponent
Official name: Captive Knee
- This is used to tack on a bit of damage before a throw. I always forget to use it, but that doesn't mean you should neglect it. You've got to think about how often Ken did this vs Bombsoldier and how much damage it tacked on each time he threw him... This is definitely a move you should not start to forget. It does between 1-2% damage.
Aerials
Falcon's aerials are AMAZING. They can juggle, finish, and one even has a spike. I high reccomend fully understanding your aerial moves and aerial game to become a better falcon.
Nair
Official name: Rotary Kick
KB: Good
Range: Good
Damage: 2-12%
-Great move. I love it because it's two hits and people usually block the first one and get hit by the 2nd one. I suggest learning to retreat this attack, which is basically just using it, but moving backwards so that you cannot be grabbed out of it. The first hit will do nothing, the second one is the one you need to connect with to start a combo. Spacing this move is extremely important. You don’t see good Marth players right next to you spamming their Fair for a reason. Some people say not to shffl this attack because you miss the second hit. It's not very hard to shffl it and land both hits, though. You can actually chain Nairs together against him if he doesn’t DI properly. This is also one of the safest moves to approach with against Fox or sometimes Falco, depending on if he’s lasering you (He probably will be, that son of a *****…) This move the safest aerial you can do vs other fastfallers, in my opinion. It’s pretty easy to juggle certain characters with this move, depending on how they DI. If they want to avoid several Nairs in a row, then they have to DI towards you and up at the same time, which makes Nair useless. However, you can counter this by SHFFLing a Uair to combo them instead. A lot of characters are very susceptible to the Nair – Uair – Nair combo. These characters include, but are not limited to: Peach, Marth, Mario, Dr. Mario, Ganondorf , Link, and Samus. Something else worth noting is Nair is rarely teched. Unless it’s really obvious they’re going to. But most of the time if you use a Nair on a grounded character, they will get hit by the second kick and fall backwards and flub their tech. This allows a huge opportunity for you because flubbed techs are a good Falcon players wet dream. Knee him, stomp him, boost him, hell you can even Falcon kick him. Just be sure to always punish people who constantly flub their techs when they don’t tech Nairs when grounded or even when they’re in the air (Although techs are seen more often here unless in a combo).
Bair
Official name: Reverse Knuckle
KB: Very good
Range: Average
Damage: 4-14%
-A very fast and effective move. Think of it like sex kick, kind of. Except instead of getting gradually weaker, it only has two different possibilities for effectiveness: Suck, and pwnage. I suggest "pwnage" but whatever floats your boat. This is a good move to ledgehop from if your opponent is already off of the stage. If you want to ledgehop really sexily, do a walljump off of the level into a knee… Phew… That’s too much. The bair is such a fast move that you can often chain a few together against semi floaties if you SHFFL them very well. This is also a good way to move characters towards the edge of the level. Unfortunately this move will send people upwards usually if you hit them with the strongest part of the attack. This can make it really easy for them to come back. The main time to use Bairs is when falling off of a platform or just coming down from above your opponent if you need some breathing room. It’s not usually used offensively or as an approaching move. More as a lightning fast move to give you some space if your back is to your opponent and you want to throw something out to keep him off of you for a second. I really don’t use this move that much anymore. It’s all mainly Nairs, Dairs, Fairs, and Uairs now. Sorry Bair. I still love you.
Dair
Official name: Step on It!
Slang name: Stomp
KB: Good
Range: Good
Damage: 8-16%
-This is a really good meteor. Not to send people down with, but more to pop people up for combo opportunities. If shffled against floaties, you can just knee them out of it when they pop up. It's hilarious to do! Something worth mentioning is this moves insane hitbox. You don't even necessarily have to connect with your body to hit them (I'll talk about this later). Also, it seems like you hit your opponent with the upper part of your body, they are spiked at a 45 degree angle. This is a key move against space animals and semi-floaties to get them into knee range. Some characters like Sheik, can really only be set up for a knee through this move (Or Raptor boost). This is one of the safest moves to approach with because momentum will carry you past your opponent and will not allow your opponent to shieldgrab. This move can be tricky to SHFFL for some reason, because the hitlag seems to be longer than all of Falcon’s other aerials. This should be one of your main moves used for approaching safely next to Nair. It really depends on the matchup.
Uair
Official name: Overhead Kick
KB: Average
Range: Above average
Damage: 6-13%
-This move is really good against floaties and semi-floaties. As you can hit them with two if you do not SH. Or 3 if you shffl one, and then full jump to fit another two in. It's great for racking up damage. It comes out so fast too...It's perfect for just jumping around punishing platform *****s. Using late Uairs (Uairs with the C-stick right before you land on the ground) is a great way to surprise enemies. It’s kind of like when Husband always comes down without a move, or so it seems, with his Marth. And at the last second just throws out a Fair. You can do that with Uairs if your opponent starts to predict your empty shorthops. Since this move has such crazy low lag and decent range, it’s not a bad idea to do it once in a while since no one expects it. This move is really good vs some characters that have really weak Dairs like Sheik. You can’t combo her with Nairs like you can with Uairs. Uairs are also much more forgiving and noob-friendly because insane DI is not required like it is when linking several Nairs together. This moves range, speed, and extremely low lag makes it a bread and butter move when it comes to comboing.
Fair
Official name: Knee Smash
KB: Very good
Range: Low
Damage: 8-16%
-This... Is the Knee. I'm sure you already know what the knee is so I probably don't need to say too much. Basically it's CF's finisher. And people know this. They will watch for it often, so you may have to throw some mind games in there. You should not try to just SHFFL knees into people on the ground. Something I'd like to point out to those who don't know is that "The Knee" requires a sweetspot to be effective. The sweetspot is not about where you hit them with the knee, but rather the timing that you land the knee with. Speaking of missing the sweetspot, DYC brought something to my attention. If your opponent is already off of the stage and you weak knee them, you can follow it with a Uair and mess up their recovery still. Not everyone knows that the knee will send you on a downward trajectory if you knee someone on the ground. This can be hard to do as you can only really pull it off if someone has a low shield or is rolling out of a tech, rolling towards you, etc… That’s why it’s usually better to knee someone on the ground than in the air. A knee in the air is worth two in the bush…? If the opponents shield is low and you are in front of them, fricking knee them. It will most likely break through their shield and send them very far away/down very quickly.
Official name: Rotary Kick
KB: Good
Range: Good
Damage: 2-12%
-Great move. I love it because it's two hits and people usually block the first one and get hit by the 2nd one. I suggest learning to retreat this attack, which is basically just using it, but moving backwards so that you cannot be grabbed out of it. The first hit will do nothing, the second one is the one you need to connect with to start a combo. Spacing this move is extremely important. You don’t see good Marth players right next to you spamming their Fair for a reason. Some people say not to shffl this attack because you miss the second hit. It's not very hard to shffl it and land both hits, though. You can actually chain Nairs together against him if he doesn’t DI properly. This is also one of the safest moves to approach with against Fox or sometimes Falco, depending on if he’s lasering you (He probably will be, that son of a *****…) This move the safest aerial you can do vs other fastfallers, in my opinion. It’s pretty easy to juggle certain characters with this move, depending on how they DI. If they want to avoid several Nairs in a row, then they have to DI towards you and up at the same time, which makes Nair useless. However, you can counter this by SHFFLing a Uair to combo them instead. A lot of characters are very susceptible to the Nair – Uair – Nair combo. These characters include, but are not limited to: Peach, Marth, Mario, Dr. Mario, Ganondorf , Link, and Samus. Something else worth noting is Nair is rarely teched. Unless it’s really obvious they’re going to. But most of the time if you use a Nair on a grounded character, they will get hit by the second kick and fall backwards and flub their tech. This allows a huge opportunity for you because flubbed techs are a good Falcon players wet dream. Knee him, stomp him, boost him, hell you can even Falcon kick him. Just be sure to always punish people who constantly flub their techs when they don’t tech Nairs when grounded or even when they’re in the air (Although techs are seen more often here unless in a combo).
Bair
Official name: Reverse Knuckle
KB: Very good
Range: Average
Damage: 4-14%
-A very fast and effective move. Think of it like sex kick, kind of. Except instead of getting gradually weaker, it only has two different possibilities for effectiveness: Suck, and pwnage. I suggest "pwnage" but whatever floats your boat. This is a good move to ledgehop from if your opponent is already off of the stage. If you want to ledgehop really sexily, do a walljump off of the level into a knee… Phew… That’s too much. The bair is such a fast move that you can often chain a few together against semi floaties if you SHFFL them very well. This is also a good way to move characters towards the edge of the level. Unfortunately this move will send people upwards usually if you hit them with the strongest part of the attack. This can make it really easy for them to come back. The main time to use Bairs is when falling off of a platform or just coming down from above your opponent if you need some breathing room. It’s not usually used offensively or as an approaching move. More as a lightning fast move to give you some space if your back is to your opponent and you want to throw something out to keep him off of you for a second. I really don’t use this move that much anymore. It’s all mainly Nairs, Dairs, Fairs, and Uairs now. Sorry Bair. I still love you.
Dair
Official name: Step on It!
Slang name: Stomp
KB: Good
Range: Good
Damage: 8-16%
-This is a really good meteor. Not to send people down with, but more to pop people up for combo opportunities. If shffled against floaties, you can just knee them out of it when they pop up. It's hilarious to do! Something worth mentioning is this moves insane hitbox. You don't even necessarily have to connect with your body to hit them (I'll talk about this later). Also, it seems like you hit your opponent with the upper part of your body, they are spiked at a 45 degree angle. This is a key move against space animals and semi-floaties to get them into knee range. Some characters like Sheik, can really only be set up for a knee through this move (Or Raptor boost). This is one of the safest moves to approach with because momentum will carry you past your opponent and will not allow your opponent to shieldgrab. This move can be tricky to SHFFL for some reason, because the hitlag seems to be longer than all of Falcon’s other aerials. This should be one of your main moves used for approaching safely next to Nair. It really depends on the matchup.
Uair
Official name: Overhead Kick
KB: Average
Range: Above average
Damage: 6-13%
-This move is really good against floaties and semi-floaties. As you can hit them with two if you do not SH. Or 3 if you shffl one, and then full jump to fit another two in. It's great for racking up damage. It comes out so fast too...It's perfect for just jumping around punishing platform *****s. Using late Uairs (Uairs with the C-stick right before you land on the ground) is a great way to surprise enemies. It’s kind of like when Husband always comes down without a move, or so it seems, with his Marth. And at the last second just throws out a Fair. You can do that with Uairs if your opponent starts to predict your empty shorthops. Since this move has such crazy low lag and decent range, it’s not a bad idea to do it once in a while since no one expects it. This move is really good vs some characters that have really weak Dairs like Sheik. You can’t combo her with Nairs like you can with Uairs. Uairs are also much more forgiving and noob-friendly because insane DI is not required like it is when linking several Nairs together. This moves range, speed, and extremely low lag makes it a bread and butter move when it comes to comboing.
Fair
Official name: Knee Smash
KB: Very good
Range: Low
Damage: 8-16%
-This... Is the Knee. I'm sure you already know what the knee is so I probably don't need to say too much. Basically it's CF's finisher. And people know this. They will watch for it often, so you may have to throw some mind games in there. You should not try to just SHFFL knees into people on the ground. Something I'd like to point out to those who don't know is that "The Knee" requires a sweetspot to be effective. The sweetspot is not about where you hit them with the knee, but rather the timing that you land the knee with. Speaking of missing the sweetspot, DYC brought something to my attention. If your opponent is already off of the stage and you weak knee them, you can follow it with a Uair and mess up their recovery still. Not everyone knows that the knee will send you on a downward trajectory if you knee someone on the ground. This can be hard to do as you can only really pull it off if someone has a low shield or is rolling out of a tech, rolling towards you, etc… That’s why it’s usually better to knee someone on the ground than in the air. A knee in the air is worth two in the bush…? If the opponents shield is low and you are in front of them, fricking knee them. It will most likely break through their shield and send them very far away/down very quickly.
Chapter 3: Combos and Followups
Coming soon....
Chapter 4: Tech Chases and Tech Reads
Coming soon....
Chapter 5: Advanced Techs
Coming soon...
Chapter 6: Anything Else...?
Coming soon...
Chapter 7: The End
Coming soon...
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