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Q&A Ask about Pikachu! Hosted by Axe and N64! feat. dkuo!

AXE 09

Smash Master
Joined
Dec 3, 2006
Messages
3,825
Location
Avondale, AZ
aw that sux man.... N64 please go to pound 4!!!!!! we all need you there! we should make a pikachu crew and MM other crews or something =)
 

DtJ Jungle

Check out my character in #GranblueFantasy
BRoomer
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Jul 29, 2008
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Grancypher
lol Axe gettin off.

I'm beginning to liek this character, he's fun.
 

AXE 09

Smash Master
Joined
Dec 3, 2006
Messages
3,825
Location
Avondale, AZ
HECK YEAH! that's the spirit, guys! XD

random fact:

at one point in my smash career.... i was about to drop pikachu and only main fox/falco

very glad that i didn't =) i decided to drop fox instead lol
 

N64

Smash Champion
Joined
Oct 18, 2004
Messages
2,158
Location
Stalking Skler
I was originally a sheik main.

Then a pichu main.

Then a mario main.

Then I found pikachu.

Man, old me was so lame.

As far as pika/fox team goes, I've teamed plenty of times with kwan and lately he plays Fox in teams. Usually I'm pretty aggressive regardless, but I find with Fox I'll usually just try to be a disrupter. Fox has the tendency to run around destroying stuff until someone taps him up, then his fastfalliness means he just gets owned. So, as pikachu, I'll always be watching him and trying to stay relatively close in case i need to come in and break things up, let fox recover, and then go back to priority ******. Uair is fantastic as it just pops people into the air so fox can be like "ooo, they're airborn now, time to own them.

Another thing about pika in teams in general is that he's fast. His runspeed and aerial mobility mean you can exercise decent stage control from like anywhere. Fox is similar, so a fox pika team needs to really use this and always be watching out for eachother. You're both so fast that the ability to be by eachother's sides in an instant is very valuable. Sheik cging you? Fox usmash time. Falco pillaring fox? Go nair him.

Also, fox's recovery is predictable and relatively easy to edgeguard if he falls below the stage in teams. But good uairs can save him, and edgeguarding pika is a bit trickier, so almost always try to save him off the edge.
 

toasty

Smash Hero
Joined
Nov 3, 2006
Messages
6,110
Location
Norfolk/Virginia Beach, VA - IT'S SOVA, BABY! <
When it comes to saving a recovering space animal, I think fair is also really good since they can upB immediately after the fair [at no risk of being semi-spiked by a mistimed uair >_>]

fair helps disrupt combos as well and is especially more useful than nair if your partner is at mid-high/high percents. See a Puff grab a Fox? Just run over there and fair like a madman. I've had my partners get rested many times and be saved by a fair [and then I full-charge usmash the sleeping Jiggs ^_^]

it's pretty awesome since there's a set knockback [...none XD]

Again...N64 - go to Pouuuunnnddd....sell yourself! Something!

OR! You can sell those epic foot-massages @_@ omg...so good haha
 

LAX_

Smash Apprentice
Joined
Nov 10, 2009
Messages
186
Location
BEAST COAST--MD
lol@pic

yeah i play doubles with a cpu on my team against 2 cpus (yeah, i'm so lonely) and when i am trying to save them i sometimes reverse tail spike them haha. that probably wouldn't go too well with actual people on my team...
i'll try fair next time. seems pretty legit. same with quickattack, though its a lot more risky.
 

AXE 09

Smash Master
Joined
Dec 3, 2006
Messages
3,825
Location
Avondale, AZ
dude that's such an epic pic lol! i love it!

holy crap scumfever, you have sooooo many posts.... wtf man! how?????

dude i've been around since 06 and it seems like everyone has significantly more posts than me lol


hey..... you know what bothers me??

whenever i go out of state, some people tell me that my pikachu is the most amazing thing they've ever seen

while others say that i should drop him for falco, they think my falco's better....

for some reason, my pikachu just doesn't work on some people. does anyone else experience this???

when i play falcomist (a very good falco player), he WRECKS my pikachu, but i can beat him most of the time in a falco ditto...... what's up with this??????? i have the same results with forward, whether he's using fox or falco

when i play other people, i can wreck them with pikachu, but my falco fails horribly. for example, Lucky ***** my falco hardcore, but i nearly 4 stocked him with pikachu. same went with Jman. he killed my falco in a MM, but in the bracket, my pikachu was able to beat him.

i just don't understand :/ it's hard for me to say which character of mine is better.

1 thing's for sure though.... i love using pikachu a lot more than falco =)
 

D. Disciple

Smash Master
Joined
Aug 2, 2005
Messages
4,202
Location
Cottage Grove, Minnesota
It's because of character match up and player match up that this happens to you. Forward, Falcomist can wreck your Pikachu, because they play you more than Jman and Lucky does and know your habits.

Jman and Lucky probably don't play a lot of pikachu mains or at all. So you have the advantage there, and it's just cause you're too good and nice letting Falcomist and Forward beat your pikachu.

Edit -
* Total Posts: 9,311
* Posts Per Day: 18.76
* Find all posts by Scumfever
* Find all threads started by Scumfever

Yeaaaahhhhhhh, mine is like maybe 1 or 2 a day.
 

AXE 09

Smash Master
Joined
Dec 3, 2006
Messages
3,825
Location
Avondale, AZ
DUDE I KNOW OMFG i'm watching them right now! i dunno why but i'm really nervous to watch them lol!
 

N64

Smash Champion
Joined
Oct 18, 2004
Messages
2,158
Location
Stalking Skler
Replying to ICG: So I started on a new matchup guide, and started with sheik, and this is the first part of it. I don't know how much if any of it applies to pichu, and this is also only vs. sheik while there are plenty of other chars with brutal grabs in pika, but yeah. Hope it helps:

Don't get grabbed:

Getting grabbed in this matchup really sucks for pikachu. Not all sheiks are willing to chaingrab you, and some don't quite know the timing/positioning for it, but regardless you should still avoid being grabbed at all costs, as she can still reliably dthrow->ftilt>fair or just dthrow->fair and now you're recovering against a sheik. So, how can pika not get grabbed in this matchup? None of this is foolproof and it relies on your own judgement and reacting to what the sheik does (or what you believe she'll do), but here are your main options.

Sheik has a few ways of getting a grab. Primarily, she will try to just sheildgrab you. You want to never be immediately in front of sheik unless you're grabbing her or punishing her lag/tech. Even if you are spaced a little bit she can often wd out of shield->grab, so you always want to stay at just the right distance against sheik unless you are sure that either she cannot grab you or if you are trying to lure a grab and punish her when she misses it. If you do, however, end up directly in front of her, you still have a couple panic options. First is downdodge. Pika's downdodge is pretty fast and can be pretty useful. If sheik tries to grab as you downdodge, it will whiff and her animation will end long enough after yours that you can almost always (depending on how soon you started the downdodge) grab or usmash before she can do anything. Relying on this makes you very predictable, however, and if sheik waits half a second instead of going for the immediate grab then she can grab you at the end of your dodge anyway. Another option is rapid jab, just mash A and all your troubles go away. Continue this until sheik is far enough away from you that she can't just grab. She can still wd grab or dash grab, so be ready to downdodge/run away in case. The last options are rolling, running away, or grabbing her first. All of these are slower than her grab if she goes for it immediately, so use them only if you think she'll wait or try something other than grab.

The second most common way she'll get a grab is by just dashing up to you and grabbing. Always watch what sheik's doing and where she is in relation to you. If she has a grab opportunity, she's very likely going to take it as the reward for getting that grab is huge. If you don't have a jolt already going towards her, then ftilt or dtilt can work well to hinder her approach. Also a properly timed usmash will hit her before she gets in grab range (but if she shields it, you'll probably get grabbed). The main way to prevent this, however, is just staying mobile. She can't grab you if you're in the air (though admittantly her aerial game is really good too) and if you're constantly changing position it's difficult for her to position a grab. And any time she whiffs one, you'll often have the opportunity to punish. Try to stay close enough that grabs seem possible, but maintaining just enough distance and alertness to avoid the grab and punish. Pika's punish game on sheik is actually decent, but I'll get into that later.

The next most common way she'll get a grab is with aerial pressure. Sheik comes down on your sheild with a fair, and then grabs you right afterwards. To my knowledge this isn't guaranteed, sheildstun from fair doesn't last quite long enough, so buffer a roll (preferably), downdodge, or sometimes you can usmash out of shield (if the fair hits your shield high) to avoid the grab. Related to this, she can also get grabs from falling needles->grab. To avoid this you kind of have to just avoid being in front and slightly below her. Always watch her position, you are fast enough to reposition yourself accordingly. Use your speed and don't get caught!

So, you got grabbed:

It's bound to happen, regardless of how careful you are. But not all hope is lost when it does. Depending on what percent you're at, there are a few things you can try to either escape the grab or at least not die from it.

At low percents (0-15%): Mash out. You should be trying to mash out regardless, but you're most likely to actually get out around here. It rarely happens, but if it does then yay! you're out of the grab.

At low-mid percents (0-70%): So, if she dthrows immediately and you can't mash out, you need to try to DI out of the grab. The first thing you should do is check to see if the sheik player actually knows how to (or wants to) chaingrab you. DI up and slightly behind, and if you do it just right pika should end up right behind her head. Mash jump rapidly, and if they don't do the chaingrab just right, she'll whiff the regrab and you can jump out and away to (relative) safety. Now, if this doesn't work, assume the player does know how to chainthrow pika, and pick the direction that the closest edge is. DI that direction until you either get to about 80%, or until you reach the edge. Then refer to the next section.

At mid-high percents (80-140%): Ok, luckily the chaingrab ends here with proper DI. Unluckily, she can still follow up after the dthrow with a fair. So, you want to still DI away and in front of her (NEVER go above her at this percent, it's a free usmash/uair for a guaranteed kill) and then as she jumps to hit you, DI up and towards. This is your best chance of surviving the fair.

At high percents (140%+): Now, she can't follow up out of the dthrow any more unless you let her. DI away and jump asap and you should avoid whatever she tries to follow up with. Unfortunately, now you're in the air without your second hump, but you just have to maneauver around via fastfalling and/or quickattack and try to get to the ground/edge safely.
 

elvenarrow3000

Smash Master
Joined
Jul 22, 2007
Messages
3,308
On the topic of Sheik's fair, doesn't it seem like you should DI straight up or even up and away? The natural trajectory seems to be horizontal, if not horizontal and down.
 

DtJ Jungle

Check out my character in #GranblueFantasy
BRoomer
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That should be the general rule fo thumb for sheiks fair, or so i always thought

up or up and slightly in

as in like if the control stick is 360 degrees, like 350.

Also Elven: I believe that only part fo the hitbox has that downward trajectory, otherwise it hink its more of an arching motion.

I'm not 100% sure on that though.
 

N64

Smash Champion
Joined
Oct 18, 2004
Messages
2,158
Location
Stalking Skler
Just watched the matches axe. Goooood ****.

How are your feelings on the Link v Pika matchup? It feels advantage Link to me, but that may be just because my only real link experience is Skler's link ****** me lol.
 

DtJ Jungle

Check out my character in #GranblueFantasy
BRoomer
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OMG AXE YOU COULD TOTALLY DO IT.

wtf why are you so not conifident.
 

toasty

Smash Hero
Joined
Nov 3, 2006
Messages
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Location
Norfolk/Virginia Beach, VA - IT'S SOVA, BABY! <
Dude...I totally ****ed up at ROM.

Our team name definitely should have been "Bomberman 64"

LOLLLLL

Related: I found a teammate for Pound!

We'll see how Pika/Falcon goes XD [it's me and I'veJihadIt. And I'll call us "Bombermen" which is what made me realize what the ROM name should have been haha]

Axe...watching your set now =D



EDIT:

OMMMMMMMMG....wow.

Axe, did you ever look at the hitbox stuff for Pika [forgot the name of it] because like...sometimes you'll hit with something that I didn't know could hit from that spacing but you're juuust barely getting that extra hit in [mostly with uairs]...gah I'll stop talking, it's mad late and I don't even know if I'm rambling or not

*steals lots of stuff from your vids* =D
 

AXE 09

Smash Master
Joined
Dec 3, 2006
Messages
3,825
Location
Avondale, AZ
Just watched the matches axe. Goooood ****.

How are your feelings on the Link v Pika matchup? It feels advantage Link to me, but that may be just because my only real link experience is Skler's link ****** me lol.
haha thanks so much man ^^ hmmm... well honestly, i never really fight any links. on the rare occasion that i do fight a link, the only reason why i like fighting them is for the SWD on their boomerang lol! but overall.... i kinda feel like it might be a 50/50, mango's just incredibly smart and really good

OMG AXE YOU COULD TOTALLY DO IT.

wtf why are you so not conifident.
dude you always make me really happy with the things you say haha! man i dunno... it's freakin mango, and just wait till you see what happens to me in crews. to sum it up, mango slaps my lil pika in the face with a 3 stock ='( he kinda figured me out... lol but... idk. even if i SOMEHOW were to beat his falco, his jiggs could probably 4 stock me easily

He needs to work on his gimps a bit more, at low percents after bthrow, nair-uair bro. Nair-uair
i admit.... gimping is actually my weakness haha. back in the day, i used to rely mostly on gimps. i spent a lot of time working on my on-stage game because i was tired of relying on that. now it's kinda to the point where i rarely gimp at all, i just try to combo to death. i'm gonna try to start working on my gimps again ^^


Toasty: dude you're amazing! lol that's the best team name ever.

haha as for the hitbox stuff.... actually, i've never looked at anything like that. i guess i've just played the little guy so much that... i know (for the most part) exactly how far a move's range is, and all of the different hitboxes it has and stuff. all just by experimenting and stuff ^^


on a side note, vids will be up sometime today (tuesday) of me vs V3ctorman :) he visited me this weekend after being in the airforce
 

V3ctorMan

Smash Champion
Joined
Jun 25, 2006
Messages
2,261
Location
Sierra Vista AZ
haha thanks so much man ^^ hmmm... well honestly, i never really fight any links. on the rare occasion that i do fight a link, the only reason why i like fighting them is for the SWD on their boomerang lol! but overall.... i kinda feel like it might be a 50/50, mango's just incredibly smart and really good



dude you always make me really happy with the things you say haha! man i dunno... it's freakin mango, and just wait till you see what happens to me in crews. to sum it up, mango slaps my lil pika in the face with a 3 stock ='( he kinda figured me out... lol but... idk. even if i SOMEHOW were to beat his falco, his jiggs could probably 4 stock me easily



i admit.... gimping is actually my weakness haha. back in the day, i used to rely mostly on gimps. i spent a lot of time working on my on-stage game because i was tired of relying on that. now it's kinda to the point where i rarely gimp at all, i just try to combo to death. i'm gonna try to start working on my gimps again ^^


Toasty: dude you're amazing! lol that's the best team name ever.

haha as for the hitbox stuff.... actually, i've never looked at anything like that. i guess i've just played the little guy so much that... i know (for the most part) exactly how far a move's range is, and all of the different hitboxes it has and stuff. all just by experimenting and stuff ^^


on a side note, vids will be up sometime today (tuesday) of me vs V3ctorman :) he visited me this weekend after being in the airforce

heh yeah, it was awesome.. besides your 7 dollar cereal store..WTF!.. anyway here you go jeff.. jus some Pokemon ^^

EDIT: loser already posted the links lol..

No JOHNS! you would've got worked either way SON! lol j/k Jeff <3
 

Zephyr

Smash Lord
Joined
Apr 30, 2006
Messages
1,639
Location
SD, CA
Dude, Axe, you are amazing. I am picking up Pikachu and becoming good with him because of you.
 

INSANE CARZY GUY

Banned via Warnings
Joined
May 14, 2008
Messages
6,915
Location
Indianapolis
kindof late but thanks n64 I know only a little of that also I feel you should have said something about the fact if sheik misses she can just tech chase the holy crap out of you and pikachu/pichu have the best N-tech tech in the game they can N-tech and jab with only 3 frames they can be grabed on I think it's a frame better than N-tech shine so it's safer The only way I could see this punished is rapid jab or down-smash or chain of needles but they really wnat grabs you could also buffer a roll it's just as safe as the jab
 

toasty

Smash Hero
Joined
Nov 3, 2006
Messages
6,110
Location
Norfolk/Virginia Beach, VA - IT'S SOVA, BABY! &lt;
Oh and Axe, you're really good at punishing in-place techs and baited getup attacks, but, along with gimping, just a friendly reminder: JAB RESET, SON! USE IT!

Small detail but considering what you've managed to pull out of a low-damage usmash, you could use another opportunity to get one XD




anyone here ever get nervous CG-ing a FFer on FD and mess up the uthrow or the regrab at some point :( :( :(

only really happens when I play better people...which is DUMB because I could've just had a STOCK...*sigh* I need to play more...
 
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