All Usual/Unusual Mac Things I Know Of ATM

[NarayanK]

Hello, I just want to list and post out some things I've seen and tried.

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Grab Setups

"Jab (1) -> Grab"

"Jab (2) -> Grab" (useful if opponent used double jump)

"D-Tilt -> Grab"

"Run -> Pivot Jab (1) -> Dash Grab"

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String Setups

"Jab (1) -> D-Tilt -> F-Air -> *Counter or Jolt Jaymaker" (decent vs light characters at medium percentages) (*: this part may not be used at all during string, especially if opponent usually tries to escape out of string)

"Jab (1 or 2) -> Rising Uppercut"

"B-Air -> *Jolt Haymaker" (*: on missed tech only)

"Jab (1) -> U-Smash"

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Combo Setups

"D-Tilt -> F-Air -> ???"

"D-Tilt -> F-Tilt" (may whiff vs some characters)

"D-Tilt (very close to opponent) -> U-Tilt"

"D-Tilt -> Pivot U-Tilt"

"D-Tilt -> Jolt Haymaker"

"D-Tilt -> Dash Attack"

"D-Tilt -> Jab Animation"

"D-Tilt -> Sour-Spot U-Smash"

"D-Tilt -> Grab -> D-Throw -> Rising Uppercut (upon missed DI)"

"N-Air -> Jab"

"Dash Attack -> KO Punch"

"Dash Attack -> F-Tilt"

"Dash Attack -> Sour-Spot U-Smash"

"Dash Attack -> F-Air"

"Dash Attack -> Jolt Haymaker"

"Dash Attack (near edge & close to opponent) -> Rising Uppercut" (the edge positions Mac for an Up B at low percentages)

"Dash Attack (near edge & close to opponent) -> U-Air"

"Dask Attack -> Dash Attack"

"Dash Attack -> Running Grab (preferably roll-cancelled grab) -> Pummel -> D-Throw -> KO Punch"

"U-Air (near ground) -> U-Tilt -> Rising Uppercut"

"U-Air (near ground) -> F-Tilt"

"U-Tilt -> U-Air"

"U-Tilt (backside) -> B-Air"

"U-Tilt (backside) -> F-Air"

"U-Tilt -> U-Tilt -> *Rising Uppercut" (on low percentages) (can combo into Rising Uppercut when opponent misses DI)

"U-Air (near ground) -> Jolt Haymaker"

"U-Air (near ground) -> Rising Uppercut"

"F-Smash (Up version) -> U-Tilt -> Rising Uppercut"

"F-Smash (Up version) -> Rising Uppercut"

"F-Smash (Down version) -> Run -> D-Air (near ground) -> Any Smash Attack" (upon missed tech)

"N-Air -> Footstool -> ...(repeat)... -> Rising Uppercut" (works better the bigger the opponent)

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Bait-Outs

"Run -> Jump Cancel F-Smash" (baits out grabs and can be charged a fair amount)

"Fox-Trot/Run -> Empty Hop -> *Fox-Trot/Run OR U-Smash/F-Smash" (baits out long grabs)

"Empty Hop -> Landing KO Punch"

"Shield -> Dodge -> D-Tilt"

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Recovery

- Jolt Haymaker
- Rising Uppercut
- "Wall Jump -> Rising Uppercut"
- "KO Punch -> Rising Uppercut"
- "KO Punch -> Jolt Haymaker" (from high angles)
- "Wall Jump -> Jolt Haymaker"
- "Tech Wall Jump -> Rising Uppercut / Jolt Haymaker" (prevents stage spike; stay AWAY from the platform so you have enough frames to tech from B-Airs and F-Airs alike, but position yourself away from D-Airs)


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KO Punches

KO Punch - Regular KO Punch. Moves forward and has similar hitboxes to an upsmash. It moves forward and shouldn't be used for its insanely short superarmor, but for hard reads.

Airborne KO Punch - Airborne KO Punch. Moves forward even in the air. Could be used for a last resort recovery, as well as a punish to those who get baited by empty hops. Kills around 150% against heavyweights well away from the ground.

Turning KO Punch - Mac turns around and KO Punches. Could be used with the back part of Down Smash to play mindgames with opponents.

D-Tilt KO Punch - Works at early percentages. Mac down-tilts and KO Punches. Works as long as the character isn't a flyweight (ie. Rosalina) that could DI out of it.

D-Tilt Airborne KO Punch - Works at most percentages before 50%. Mac down-tilts before jumping and doing an airborne KO Punch. Does not have much of a use other than racking up damage.

U-Tilt KO Punch - Mac up-tilts and KO Punches. Works best VS fast-fallers.

U-Tilt B-Reverse KO Punch - Mac hits the opponent with the backside of the uptilt before doing a B-Reversed KO Punch. Mostly hits at the very tip of the punch. Works best VS fast-fallers.

F-Air KO Punch - Best used when the opponent used their double jump. Mac forward-airs the opponent while moving forward low in the air before KO Punching, landing the KO Punch as he approaches the ground extremely closely.

B-Reverse KO Punch - Mac turns around and KO Punches. Key difference between this and a regular Turning KO Punch is that you can run while doing B-Reverse KO Punch, making it a very fast punish move in some cases.

Running KO Punch - A Jump Cancel KO Punch. Fast punish but could kill Mac if he does this near the edge and fumbles.

Gazelle Punch - A ledge getup KO Punch. Fastest edge punish Mac has. Mac cancels his jump-from-ledge animation into KO Punch. Performs grounded KO Punch when done correctly.

Landing KO Punch - Letting go of the ledge and jumping, Mac quickly KO Punches and uses his forward momentum to get him on the ground immediately. When timed correctly, Mac does a grounded KO Punch instead of an airborne KO Punch. An alternative to Gazelle Punch. Landing KO Punch can also simply be used by Mac when he is falling towards the ground and times his KO Punch correctly to initiate a grounded version of the move. Good for mindgames.

Platform KO Punch - Mac jumps and KO Punches, using his forward momentum to get on a platform without any grabbable ledges and punch opponents in his way. A good punish of the opponent misses techs in stages like Battlefield or Halberd.

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Random Mac Tips

-Bait characters with long, chain-like grabs (ie. Samus, Link, Pac-Man) by running up to them and jumping and punish via fast fall to a fast move Mac has.

-Don't roll towards people who get grabby- mix up roll-aways and spot-dodges to make yourself unpredictable and safe from grabs.

-Mac's D-Air is useful vs characters' Up Bs such as Falco's or Fox's. It kills them at higher percentages.

-VS (Bad) Falcons who grab all day long, hold A to charge your laser keep jabbing.

-VS Campers who stay at the edge, run up to them and bait out fully-charged projectiles. Once you're close, run up to them before either empty hopping, rolling away, or stopping abruptly and D-Smashing. Mix these approaches and create your own approach that discourages camping.

-Timing D-Smash perfectly can edge-guard nearly every characters' recovery (especially against himself). Never B-Air and stage-spike them unless they cannot do anything other than recovering.

-Bait out Counters under the right circumstances. Use simple attacks such as F-Tilt or D-Tilt to approach characters with counters until they make a clear mistake. F-Tilt eventually kills anyway.

-Do not Jolt Haymaker over Robin's Neutral B magic. It's too high up for Mac's invincibility frames during grounded Jolt Haymaker to ignore. Practice run-to-shield and know Elthunder's frame data to be fully effective in approaching Robin without getting damaged. You can counter Elthunder's fully charged form if you use Slip Counter on the ground, but not in the air.

-Control walking and running. Walking makes the enemy paranoid over your next move, running gives them less time to think and may cause them to perform a rash action you can punish. Keep pressuring Campers, though.

-Mac's U-Tilt is one of the most underused moves in his arsenal solely because most Mac's use the C-Stick to smash attack. I use C-Stick for Tilts due to combo-ability, but setting C-Stick to Smash makes it easier for Mac to punish with moves such as U-Smash or Forward-Up-Smash.

-Don't dash attack unless the foe is either about to land or they are beginning to jump.

-Mac is actually better in offline gameplay than online gameplay due to his frame data. Memorize the noises your opponent's buttons make to perform optimal edge-guarding and getup-punishing.

- Forward-Down-Smash can damage shields by a considerable amount, the fully charged version almost being able to instantly break all shields (Mewtwo's breaks for sure). D-Smashing foes who get close to you after a FD-Smash will hit them below their shields, and hitting the shield with another FD-Smash will break it.

- U-Air can occasionally be your combo-crazy friend. Use it sparingly.

- F-Tilt is NOT a safe move versus grabby fighters due to Mac's lack of shield stun and pushback. Find a different way to approach grab-reliant fighters such as Palutena, Doctor Mario, and Link.

-Don't make Slip Counter a habit while recovering. Don't ever try to counter chargeable special attacks that can kill you if you whiff Slip Counter.

-Slip Counter gives Mac a bunch of invincibility frames only on the ground. Be wary when you use this in the air.

-You can use Rising Uppercut to edge-guard opponents who recover from above rather than below. Bait out an air-dodge and time Rising Uppercut's first frame of attack against them.

-N-Air to Jab, Straight Lunge and Rising Uppercut can allow Mac to escape Jab Animations due to their instant availability. Catch opponents off-guard with this, and it may KO them at higher percentages + rage effect.

-Characters who have slow recovery can be gimped harshly by Mac's aerials when timed correctly (ie. Roy, Olimar, Bowser, DK). Don't be afraid to gimp characters with D-Air or F-Air, but never ever U-Air or B-Air to gimp, as it leaves Mac vulnerable for too long.

-In places such as Halberd, Mac's wall jump becomes his best friend once he and his opponent arrive on Meta Knight's ship.

-You can Counter Shulk's Recovery, Air Slash, by using Slip Counter. It's up to Shulk to time his Air Slash correctly so that he does not hit Little Mac.

-VS Rosalina, rack up damage on her Luma with F-Tilt before F-Smashing it off. Rosalina may be able to protect herself, but she can't shield her Luma. Mac is one of the fastest fighters who can deal with the Luma; take advantage of this and kill her combo setup potential.

-VS Ness, rack some damage as safely as possible until Ness hits 20%. At this point, if he spams PK Fire, punish him with Jolt Haymaker. If he tries to spam grabs, hold A and let him get hit by a Jab Animation. If he tries to do both, since it's impossible to mix up PK Fire and grabs without performing obvious actions (run to grab, run->stop->pk fire to pk fire), punish him accordingly.

-You can Counter Ness's Recovery, PK Thunder, by using a Slip Counter offstage. Position yourself slightly above his path to the stage ledge if he tries to recover diagonally. Position yourself right below (and away!!! from Ness) the stage ledge if Ness tries to recover vertically. The reason you go a bit away from the platform is to prevent yourself from hitting nothing and flying away from the stage. Best done when he has high damage percentages. You may actually get hit by Lucas's version, so get ready to Jolt Haymaker or Rising Uppercut in the case that you do get hit. You can generally recover from Slip Countering vertical recovery by using Mac's wall jump.

-D-Air kills DK in air.

-In Mac dittos, grabs become monstrous for both sides. Bait out attacks and grab Mac if you can, as nearly ALL listed string/combo setups work on himself.

-Learn how to Pivot. There are different forms of pivoting, so my suggestion is to find the one that most affects your playstyle in a positive way. Mac is affected by pivoting in a very positive way, as connecting pivots with moves such as his F-Tilt greatly increases his range.

-Like most characters, Mac can perform roll-cancelled grabs. Perform roll-cancelled grabs successfully and you may actually catch more people thanks to a noticeably extended grab range.

-If you're going to airdodge, don't go onto the platform; go for the platform's ledge. Mac can be affected by this negatively due to his lack of long-ranged aerials.

-VS characters who spam inhaling abilities (ie. Kirby, Dedede), position yourself right in front of where you can get dragged towards the character before charging up a painful-looking smash attack. The trick is to use your opponent's windbox to deliver your F-Smash (which already goes forward on its own) towards them without getting caught in it. If you get inhaled and they try to walk off and spit you out, mash your buttons (NOT B, L or R) before escaping with a Wall Jump or a Rising Uppercut.

-Dededes that spam Gordos can be countered by spamming back F-Tilts until they run out of shield. Don't be afraid to time them out; they'll worry a lot if they go to sudden death, as they can't wall jump like Mac.

 

[uns4fe]

amazing post

 

[jet56]

while i do know most of this, it still is nice to have a reference OP to go back to as a refresher, or to help mix up mac gameplay, and helps even advanced mac players. detailed and well thought out. how long have you been playing mac? personally, i have logged like 5000 battles with him. also, you can use jump cancel rising uppercut to extend combos, like down tilt, u tilt, or p pivot u tilt, even u smash, or up angled f smash. for example, on fox, you can do the following combo (or any fast faller for that matter)
jab 1 2>d tiltx2>p pivot u tilt>jc up b.
also i should ask: do you know the terms perfect pivoting, dash cancels/dempsey rolls/ foxtrot, and roll boosted grabs? movement tech is half the gameplay to mac, and i wasn't sure if you knew this or not. again, love your post, it sums up a lot about mac.
Edit: my bad you do mention the movement techs briefly, just didn't notice it. Bravo!

 

[itsmeMOB]

 

[sleepy_Nex]

I think you forgot that mac can dash under ryu's neutralb.

 

[Wokonex]

Dtilt to up angled fsmash seems to be a kill setup for fastfallers, in this video fox gets dtilted at 97%, can anyone confirm this?https://youtu.be/n_B2Kf6nS_k?t=41s

 

[Pyrofishy]

This is beautiful.

 

[TheLegendaryFoxFire]

Super nice. Thanks for this visual reference for us Little Mac players can come and look back on.
If I may drop a tip I learned. If you ever catch yourself shielding right next to an opponent who is also shielding. A very nice trick is to not drop your shield and grab since his grab is slow. But do a Roll Cancel Pivot Grab. It will place Little Mac right behind every character in the game.

 

[NarayanK]

while i do know most of this, it still is nice to have a reference OP to go back to as a refresher, or to help mix up mac gameplay, and helps even advanced mac players. detailed and well thought out. how long have you been playing mac? personally, i have logged like 5000 battles with him. also, you can use jump cancel rising uppercut to extend combos, like down tilt, u tilt, or p pivot u tilt, even u smash, or up angled f smash. for example, on fox, you can do the following combo (or any fast faller for that matter)
jab 1 2>d tiltx2>p pivot u tilt>jc up b.
also i should ask: do you know the terms perfect pivoting, dash cancels/dempsey rolls/ foxtrot, and roll boosted grabs? movement tech is half the gameplay to mac, and i wasn't sure if you knew this or not. again, love your post, it sums up a lot about mac.
Edit: my bad you do mention the movement techs briefly, just didn't notice it. Bravo!

I pick Little Mac for 95% of my games. I play a bit often, but not too often.

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I am surprised a fair amount of people enjoyed this post. I will update this so that it looks prettier.

Also, I have some information on Mac VS DLC matchups, along with additional vanilla matchups.

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- VS Mewtwo, do not attempt to Jolt Haymaker over his Shadow Ball. The Shadow Ball moves erratically, making it impossible to actually hit Mewtwo if the Ball is charged at least slightly.

- You have a severe advantage over Lucas in terms of ground game, but you will need to avoid setting up strings and combos in the air due to Lucas' lingering aerials. Stick close to the platform ledges when you are sent into the air, and do not be afraid to Jolt Haymaker over his PK Fire if he has about 20% damage inflicted to him.

- Predictable Lucas players tend to spam grabs, Forward-Smash, and random aerials. Bait out grabs with empty hops or a Backward Foxtrot -> Jump Cancel Forward-Smash. Lucas can also get killed by Mac's counter as he is recovering (see the first post on the tip against Ness' Recovery)

- Ryu's Shakunetsu breaks through Mac's Smash Attack Super Armor because it lingers. Run underneath it. Do not Jolt Haymaker over it.

- Mac's Forward-Up-Smash directly counters Ryu's Tatsumaki Senpuu Kyaku.

- Forward-Tilt is a great annoyance to a Ryu who needs to rely on his Focus Attack, as it hits twice in a single direction unlike most of Mac's attacks. Take advantage of this, as Ryu's grab range is not that impressive.

- Do not Forward-Tilt Mewtwo when he can shield. Use Down-Tilts and rolls to keep yourself safe from his grabs. Keep in mind that his shield is much weaker than every other characters', and that you can break it instantly with a fully charged Forward-Down-Smash.

- Do not challenge Mewtwo's recovery offstage. When he gets up a ledge, watch his getup animation. Many players forget that Mac could grab a recovering opponent, and that he could also empty hop preemptively to catch them off guard. This is useful against Mewtwo considering that Mac does not have that many methods to create a kill opening against him aside from punishing.

- Mewtwo's Shadow Ball is actually an ineffective ledge guard tool against Mac since he has a Counter. If a Mewtwo has a fully charged Shadow Ball ready while you are reaching a platform ledge, do not immediately get up. If he throws a fully charged Shadow Ball when you get on the ledge, do not panic and simply let go of the ledge. Recover once more when the Shadow Ball goes off the platform or if it disappears on the stage itself. If he waits for you to climb onto the platform first, let go of the platform and immediately jump to get on the platform quickly. If he times his Shadow Ball correctly right as you jump onto the platform, simply use Slip Counter. You can then confront Mewtwo without having to worry about getting finished off at the ledge.

- If Mewtwo has a charged Shadow Ball and does not do anything with it, stick close. If you are afraid he is going to throw the Shadow Ball while you are running up to him, utilize fox-trotting to be able to shield quickly if you are not confident in power shielding the projectile.

- Ryu can be gimped easily like Roy. If he Tatsumakis his way from afar, he will probably be forced to Shoryuken. Use Down-Smash in this case. If he Tatsumakis from a moderate range, however, F-Air him away. If he Tatsumakis to the ledge at a close range, Down-Smash or Forward-Smash him based on his position's angle.

- Do not try to grab Mewtwo for Grab Combos. He is too light for Grab Combos to be efficient against him. You can still throw him off of the stage.

- KO Punch knocks out Mewtwo much earlier than the other lightweight characters. Rack up to about 15% damage before KO Punching him.

- When Ike is using his Up B to recover, if his airborne blade spins above the platform, time a Forward-Smash / Forward-Up-Smash. Forward-Up-Smash covers more distance than the regular Forward-Smash, giving Mac a higher chance of absorbing the attack and hitting Ike. Alternatively, if Ike is slightly underneath the stage, just Down-Smash him right as he is in the middle of rising. This works because his hitbox sticks directly to the stage, and Mac's Down-Smash slightly goes through the ground. (Note: The front part of his Down-Smash covers more vertical distance, but the back part of his Down-Smash covers more horizontal distance. Depending on how the ledge of the stage is designed, pick your side and respond accordingly.)

- Olimar and Duck Hunt are the only characters that can be B-Aired safely during their recoveries. Do not B-Air them if they are able to maneuver their characters well.

- All fast-fallers fall like rocks when they are hit by Mac's Down-Air. If you think you can time your D-Air correctly, go for broke. Never ever B-Air them, though.

- Ganondorfs may try to connect a chain of command grabs (ie. Side B). This can only happen if they are close to you. Space yourself well, and if a Ganondorf Side Bs from a moderate distance, you can spot dodge at the tip of his grab. Alternatively, you can roll away if you feel like you can find another opening aside from Side B whiffs that is safer.

- Predictable Ganondorfs use Wizard's Foot as soon as you land. If they do this, punish them with a fast-falling Slip Counter. If they use this on the ground while you are on the ground as well, use a Forward-Up-Smash or Forward-Smash to punish them.

 

[Tino]

This is a nice post here.

 

[NarayanK]

This is a nice post here.

Thank you.

 

[Tino]

Thank you.

You're welcome, homie.

 

[inconspikuous]

i'm seeing some terminology in this thread that i'm not familiar with. what is:

1. JC f-smash? are you saying you can JC f-smash out of a run (without foxtrotting it)? what are the inputs?
2. roll cancel pivot grab? afaik you can only roll cancel grab in one direction -- what are the inputs to pivot that?

 

[NarayanK]

i'm seeing some terminology in this thread that i'm not familiar with. what is:

1. JC f-smash? are you saying you can JC f-smash out of a run (without foxtrotting it)? what are the inputs?
2. roll cancel pivot grab? afaik you can only roll cancel grab in one direction -- what are the inputs to pivot that?

Jump-Cancel Smash Attacks exist for most, if not all, characters. Its reliability depends on how the character can use them. Many Dr. Marios used this before his Up-Smash got buffed (wider range).

A Jump-Cancel Smash Attack basically allows you to run to a direction before suddenly changing your Smash Attack's direction. Here is the easiest example I can find:

It is still possible to use Jump-Cancelling with running, but it's less effective in that it causes your character to slide. Fox-Trotting is better for it.

I never heard or saw a roll cancel pivot grab before either. Even if it is possible, I doubt people would use it due to how demanding the regular roll cancel grab is.

 

[inconspikuous]

Jump-Cancel Smash Attacks exist for most, if not all, characters. Its reliability depends on how the character can use them. Many Dr. Marios used this before his Up-Smash got buffed (wider range).

A Jump-Cancel Smash Attack basically allows you to run to a direction before suddenly changing your Smash Attack's direction. Here is the easiest example I can find:

It is still possible to use Jump-Cancelling with running, but it's less effective in that it causes your character to slide. Fox-Trotting is better for it.

I never heard or saw a roll cancel pivot grab before either. Even if it is possible, I doubt people would use it due to how demanding the regular roll cancel grab is.

pretty sure those aren't jump cancelled. in fact, i asked japan what his inputs are for those (ie. forward, pause/return to neutral, smash forward; or >, >+A). no jump required. afaik you can only jump cancel up-smashes (and up-B etc.), not f-smashes or d-smashes.

and if a roll cancel pivot grab is possible, people would definitely use it. but i have never seen anything about it before, and i'm pretty sure it's not possible.

EDIT: so apparently roll cancel pivot grab is possible... here's sol doing it twice in a row... @Solreth what are the inputs for that?

EDIT 2: here's my lab video of only roll cancelled pivot grabs:

input is: right (or left), shield then immediately A then immediately left (or right). try to think of it as if each input has to be one frame after the other.

 

[NarayanK]

pretty sure those aren't jump cancelled. in fact, i asked japan what his inputs are for those (ie. forward, pause/return to neutral, smash forward; or >, >+A). no jump required. afaik you can only jump cancel up-smashes (and up-B etc.), not f-smashes or d-smashes.

and if a roll cancel pivot grab is possible, people would definitely use it. but i have never seen anything about it before, and i'm pretty sure it's not possible.

Oh yeah, I named them incorrectly lol

The thing I'm talking about is what you mentioned (fox trots + smash). I will fix the first post later.

Actual jump-cancels are best connected with up-smashes and up-Bs.

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More tips

- When approaching Villager, if his tree is fully set up, use Mac's large roll distance to bait the attack out.

- Mac's Airborne KO Punch actually has less priority than certain attacks (ie. Game-and-Watch Up-Smash, Palutena dash attack). Avoid using Landing KO Punches against characters with said attacks unless they are clearly vulnerable.

- When you are recovering and your opponent is charging a Smash Attack, if you do not have a KO Punch ready, you can still perform the input for the Gazelle Punch, the only difference being that you are pressing Down-B instead of Neutral-B. Punish opponents who mindlessly wait for you to jump right into a silver platter.

- When played correctly, Zelda can counter most of Mac's actions. When played correctly, so can Mac. Use your Forward-Up Smash to directly counter any predictable Forward-Airs, and fast-fall to the ground as much as you can. Avoid whiffing airdodges, as this can get you hit by her Up-Air, and do not fall towards the ledge as much as you do with your usual opponents. This is a relatively fair matchup compared to most aerial fighters Mac has to deal with, so keep your eyes peeled and judge your attacks based on what kind of strategy the Zelda prefers to use (ie. aerial-reliant neutral game or projectile spamming)

- An easy way to recover out of Tumbling/Reeling is to N-Air.

- If you are recovering and Sheik blindly attempts to use Bouncing Fish on you, just counter it with a Slip Counter as quickly as possible. Make sure you control your distance from Sheik, as your Slip Counter can send you flying away from the platform.

 

[ShiroSSB]

Little Mac's KO punch has an electric effect hitbox..I'll post it later today.

Edit: Here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jo9PVs5yM0I

 

[NarayanK]

The recent 1.1.1 patch gave all characters shield stun (Mac's rapid jab and smash attacks are now safer, and his shield-breaking potential increases through his Forward-Down Smash). This means that some of the tips here will become outdated. I will be cleaning this place up later.

 

[jet56]

eh, this patch could be the buff we have been looking for for mac, as it makes his fast grounded playstyle more difficult to deal with, cause you can't punish his tilts anymore.

 

[hi im dennis]

Remember that counter gives a lot of horizontal distance if they activate it. It's a great anti-air while offstage, much better than side b.

 

[NarayanK]

A new update to an old thread. Some things cover the techs Solreth performs and the new DLC. Note that the first post has some outdated information.

- It's very easy to B-Reverse KO Punch. When you tilt the control stick very slightly and make Mac walk/move under a certain speed, he will always use Neutral B no matter what when the Special Attack button is pressed- he will NOT perform a Jolt Haymaker. This means that both Straight Lunge and KO Punch can be activated this way when you tilt the control stick just a bit. To be able to use this move in Battlefield and similar platform stages, practice mixing up fast-falling and the B-Reverse KO Punch. Do NOT slam the control stick as hard as you can to attempt a B-Reverse because you really can't do that with the KO Punch.

- Up-B can be buffered extremely easily out of D-Tilt and U-Tilt, if not too easily. Avoid throwing out a buffered Up-B against an opponent who successfully DIs out of your way without giving yourself time to run and Jump Cancel Rising Uppercut.

- Jab -> Up-B is a very useful string (not sure if this is a combo) against characters who do not have instant aerials.

- Leaping off and using Jolt Haymaker against a recovering Cloud to the stage not only forces the Cloud to tech in the case that he hits the stage, but also puts you into some danger. A short hop -> fast fall -> Side B near the ledge can help reduce the danger of trying to gimp Cloud this way, though if you want to play safe, just Down-Smash and try to get the 2-frame punish.

- The back part of Mac's down-smash lets him recover faster from ledge-guarding attempts. The only tradeback comes from that he needs to time his down-smash punish even better. This is very easy to use against himself and certain other characters who cannot snap to the ledge quicky.

- Right before Bayonetta's rapid jab attack begins during her standard jab attack, Mac can activate Straight Lunge and tank every bit of damage from the entire rapid jab. If you do not want to risk Bayonetta stopping her jab right before the rapid jab to Smash Attack you, keep in mind that you can SDI from rapid jabs at around mid, mid-high, and high percent. Get in the habit of jumping out of her rapid jab at that point.

- Though Corrin's counter is very intimidating, such is the case against all heavy hitters. Fortunately for Mac, Corrin also doesn't have approaches that are legitimately safe against him. When Corrin uses his D-Air while you are on the ground, you can either choose to Counter or shield it before jabbing/f-tilting him out of his landing. Perfect pivot (away) forward-up smash and regular up-smash can technically counter the move as well when pulled off at the right time.

- Get in the habit of shield-running whenever Corrin is in the air and you approach him quickly. He may throw out a random Dragon Lunge to poke you, but getting the attack blocked will let Mac counter-attack too easily.

- VS Bayonetta, get in the habit of using jabs as your primary weapon of choice (along with regular techs and movement manipulation) against her superior grab and combo game. As powerful she may be, one of her key problems is the fact that none of her moves are thrown out instantly. Take advantage of this with your weakest and fastest attacks. If she whiffs her Witch Time, do not be afraid to punish her with a Smash Attack if she whiffs it again- at that point, the window for its activation will be gone due to how constant activation of the move makes its window shorter and shorter.

- Clouds will almost always use N-Airs to gimp Little Macs. When you're high up, just focus on getting to the ledge. You may be able to mangle (missed angle) with your Jolt Haymaker to recover successfully in the case that Cloud would immediately leave the ground to gimp you. When you are not that high up, get ready to air dodge. The back side of Cloud's N-Air is the thing you have to be careful of- watch out.

- Cloud has a higher chance of getting combo'd into a KO Punch when he has his limit break simply because he is heavier at that point. When he glows and you're surely at early percent, throw it out.

- When Cloud uses his Limit Break Cross Slash against you, SDI towards the ground and roll-tech away from him. This can lead to an easy Jolt Haymaker. Keep in mind that there is very little endlag to the move so you'll have to act fast. The reason this move works is because the first hit of Cross Slash automatically drags you down, and the other hits of Cross Slash has very little knockback. This does not work as well against the regular Cross Slash (though it is still possible to SDI out of the first hit) because there is more knockback, though you can just jump out of that easily at higher percents.

- Against Bowser Jr., if you D-Tilt his Up-B recovery at the ledge, there is a high chance he won't get his Koopa Clown Kart back.

I really need to update the first post. I'll do that later (but then again I said that last time and it never changed).

 

[inconspikuous]

A new update to an old thread. Some things cover the techs Solreth performs and the new DLC. Note that the first post has some outdated information.

- It's very easy to B-Reverse KO Punch. When you tilt the control stick very slightly and make Mac walk/move under a certain speed, he will always use Neutral B no matter what when the Special Attack button is pressed- he will NOT perform a Jolt Haymaker. This means that both Straight Lunge and KO Punch can be activated this way when you tilt the control stick just a bit. To be able to use this move in Battlefield and similar platform stages, practice mixing up fast-falling and the B-Reverse KO Punch. Do NOT slam the control stick as hard as you can to attempt a B-Reverse because you really can't do that with the KO Punch.

i didn't realize you could 'walk/tilt-reverse' ko punch. very cool. not sure when/how you would pull that off, but it is an interesting option that i hadn't covered in my reversal thread. however, just to be clear, you can absolutely B-Reverse a KO punch. timing is very strict, so in many cases it has to be buffered OoS or something, but it is possible, and you can see that in the thread lol.

 

[NarayanK]

i didn't realize you could 'walk/tilt-reverse' ko punch. very cool. not sure when/how you would pull that off, but it is an interesting option that i hadn't covered in my reversal thread. however, just to be clear, you can absolutely B-Reverse a KO punch. timing is very strict, so in many cases it has to be buffered OoS or something, but it is possible, and you can see that in the thread lol.

Tilted KO Punch works just like a B-Reverse, and is basically a B-Reverse KO Punch. You can perform Solreth's get-off-platform B-Reverse KO Punch just by tilting the control stick to the other side very slightly before pressing the B button as you fast fall off a platform.

Just to clarify, the Walk/Tilt KO Punch option is basically how you perform B-Reverse KO Punch in the first place; it's just done in varying speeds, and the fastest version of the Tilt KO Punch is the B-Reverse KO Punch most people see. This can be pulled off on both the ground and the air, and even when you're doing the Gazelle Punch (which leads to an automatic death if you pull it off). You can perform in instantly when you have enough precision without accidentally Side-B'ing.

I can record what I'm talking about with my iPhone and my 3DS if I have the time to do so, but I can confidently say that

 

[inconspikuous]

Tilted KO Punch works just like a B-Reverse, and is basically a B-Reverse KO Punch. You can perform Solreth's get-off-platform B-Reverse KO Punch just by tilting the control stick to the other side very slightly before pressing the B button as you fast fall off a platform.

Just to clarify, the Walk/Tilt KO Punch option is basically how you perform B-Reverse KO Punch in the first place; it's just done in varying speeds, and the fastest version of the Tilt KO Punch is the B-Reverse KO Punch most people see. This can be pulled off on both the ground and the air, and even when you're doing the Gazelle Punch (which leads to an automatic death if you pull it off). You can perform in instantly when you have enough precision without accidentally Side-B'ing.

I can record what I'm talking about with my iPhone and my 3DS if I have the time to do so, but I can confidently say that

nice! for me, the easiest way to do a reversed ko punch in the air like the one from that solreth video is actually to u-turn it (while in air, smash control stick in reverse direction, release to neutral, press B), but if you're precise enough to do the tilt version, by all means. i'm not that good at subtle execution, so i prefer the 'smash' style, vs the 'tilt-slightly' style.