Creating a somewhat competitive item ruleset:

[Predatoria]

I've been wanting to create a ruleset that includes a subset of the items in Smash enabled, just for fun. The items I'm looking to use are ones that are not un-avoidable, require skillful use, and don't overtly disrupt the match.

Items I'm interested in enabling are things like sticky bombs, the green shell, or other items that require timing and finesse to use properly. The items should also be reasonable to avoid by your opponent.

Items I consider too disruptive would be things like assist trophies, pokeballs, or times that you can use that automatically hit, hinder, or kill your opponent without them having any reasonable way to prevent the effects, avoid the item used, or fight back against it.

I'm a bit daunted by just how many items are in Smash Ultimate, and am looking for some suggestions on which items to include!

 

[THE SLOTH]

This is interesting, I don't think I've seen anybody else propose anything else like this, I'll bite.

Green Shells sound fine, but Sticky Bombs I'd personally exclude. Explosive items in general are risky business, it's not unheard of for one to spawn out of nowhere and cause a perfectly safe move to blow up in your face, quite literally. If you wanna use one though, I'd put Motion-Sensor Bombs instead of Sticky Bombs. Sticky Bombs simply turn the match into a game of stalling for several seconds and staying out of reach of the player with the bomb stuck to them, who can't even shield to protect their self from the strong explosion. Motion-Sensor Bombs, however, encourage more interesting gameplay, and have a risk-reward similar to the Green Shell. Setting up the mine and trying to combo your opponent into it while also taking care to not step on it yourself. Such a thing happening would be on you rather than from dumb luck (yes, I realize the irony of accusing an item of involving dumb luck).

I would recommend some Pokeballs if there was an option to disable which ones can spawn from balls, some are not that disruptive and can provide some non-intrusive assistance and stage control (Bellosom, Gardevoir, Spewpa, Swirlix). Otherwise, other items I'd reccomend for your purpose would be Mr. Saturns, Banana Peels, Soccer Balls, and possibly the Star Rod (least strong of the battering items and the projectiles it spawns don't do much knockback) and/or Banana Gun (a one-and-done deal, can't just spam it, produces a Banana Peel after being shot).

 

[Sebas22]

Bumper maybe? It works just like the Motion Sensor Bomb, except it's just knockback instead of damage. Also, the Franklin Badge. It's easy to avoid, since you have to stop using proyectiles for a while. I mean, characters with reflectors are a thing since the 64, and now we have someone that can create his own "Franklin Badge".

 

[Predatoria]

I'm glad you like this idea. I was wondering how people would react to it. It's been admittedly a bit refreshing trying to play with skill-based items enabled for a change of pace over the super strict tourney 1v1s and stuff I usually do with friends I play with irl. I got a really awesome combo kill with the green shell the other night, as I basically used only 'B' moves and comboed it out of Ridley's side B move. My opponent was so paranoid about me throwing the shell he kept hiding in shield, making it very easy for me to grab him instead.

I actually ended up really liking the sticky bombs to be honest. We did have those few occurrences where one spawned and instantly blew up under one of us, but most of the time that didn't happen. I'll probably keep them in.

There's another bomb we had on that incapacitates people when you hit them with it. I forget the name, but I did like that one too.

We have the bunny ears in as well, currently. They're kind of hit-or-miss. I personally avoid getting them, since they actually make me play worse while I'm wearing them. I may take these out, as I find them more of a hindrance to wear than a boon.

I'll certainly try the bumpers, franklin badges, motion sensor bombs, saturns, and the peels!

I've never been a personal fan of the star rod, or any other weapon-based item. I typically find my character's moveset to be more effective, and avoid getting these items.

We had a few more we tried too. I liked the little green sticky healing orb things.

 

[Xelrog]

I love weapon items. Their versatility is what makes them competitively interesting--the option to throw them, not just swing them. I juggle them all over my opponent.

That said, there were more to choose from in the past. Nowadays I find the number of fun and fair items to be so small that it's not worth enabling them. What kind of extra variety does an item pool of five offer?

 

[Call_Me_Red]

I think the collectible items (dragoon and daybreak) would fit really well. It encourages both aggression and passive plays depending on the situation. While these items would likely result in a OHKO, they cannot be obtained with only one good play, it would take multiple instances of out-playing your opponent to get. And even then, landing a hit with the items isn't as easy as it looks.