Daftatt
"float like a puffball, sting like a knee"
So i'll try and update this post... yeah...
Let me prefaces this thread with the beauty that is Nair, squirtle's nair will be useful in almost every MU (besides jiggs) almost all the time. It has armor, it has long lasting hit boxes, and most importantly it sends you in a tangential direction to it's spin, meaning it's nearly impossible to DI correctly, as well as being able to send your opponent any direction you want. It is gimp-tastic, often it is possible to combo into itself with weak hits (very useful for off stage, below edge, spacies beware).
Squirtle Matchups
Current Draft: FOX
Summary:
Get ready to be moving, constantly - just like fox. Wavedashing, perfect wavelands, shellshifting, shellslinging, withdraw; all of these are incredibly important to use and mix up during a match. Fox's air game is definitely a lesser threat in this MU, as squirtle possesses unrivaled movement and positioning through the air thanks to shell slinging, as well as an armored Nair, and armored airborne approach with Withdraw.
On the ground, fox has superior shield pressure, thankfully squirtle slides away on hit, keeping you from the worst of space opression. Bubble, either with a short hop or during a wavedash, is a great way to interrupt fox's ground game, as well as wavedash to watergun spacing; after a positive hit with watergun you can either cue up a second watergun, bubble, withdraw in for a combo start, grab, or retreat. Retreating being a key word, squirtle can be nearly unkillable if he doesn't want to engage, crouching can avoid laser spam to keep your % down, withdraw has armor (and is useful only in short bursts or tech chases) and can help you get around the stage, but don't rely on it too heavily or you will get up-smashed. Retreating to ledge is dangerous, because of shine spike, solid options to move from ledge back on to the stage include hopping upwards and backwards away from the ledge and then bubble, watergun can also provide just enough hitstun to withdraw over the top of most opponents, nairing into them can also work if your armor frames are used effectively.
While fox can jab-up-smash like a *******, and can also shine gimp you unless you master your waterfall sweet spot, squirtle has a number of other tools at his disposal that can just as easily prevent fox from recovering, and his own up-smash ain't too shabby for getting the kill, assuming you forward shellshift under the fast faller at above 90%, otherwise you might have a hard time getting the kill with it. Your main kill move will be off-stage Nair however, not U-smash like most matchups.
Neutral Game and Retreat:
While squirtle doesn't quite have a solid traditional dash-dance, you still need to be able to keep them guessing even while staying in the same area of the stage. Dashing out of a shellshift back into a shellshift is definitely squirtle's alternative to dash dancing. Squirtle can shellshift into a massive stage spanning grab by jump canceling the ending momentum, then grab canceling the jump. Down-smash coming out of shell shift is also an option, however actually doing the move on the right frame to slide a large distance is nearly impossible to time, and you are honestly better off just perfect-wave dashing into a down-smash. Shell-shifting an F-smash is also a great surprise, since you can slide very very fast across the full length of any stage with it, and the armor frames at the beginning of move can save you in a potential trade, still, this is an incredibly advanced technique and always difficult to pull off.
Short hop Dair is a great option to penetrate defenses, most don't see it coming, if you manage to hit with all the frames, then they can also pop out at a nice trajectory for U-air/F-air/N-air. D-tilt clashes with a lot of stuff, but it has a nice hitbox (reminds me of G&W's d-tilt), but crouch canceling will all but kill it's spammability. Against a fast faller it doesn't set you up for combos quite like usual (you will be relying on your grab for combos)...
Approach and Ground Combos:
Juggles and Air Combos:
Grab Game:
Edge Guarding:
If fox is aiming for the ledge with either his up-B or side-B you can D-smash if you think they won't overshoot, this can either pull them into the D-smash, allowing for a follow up, or it can knock them straight downwards, which can gimp if they don't immediately up-B, and even if they do you can simply D-smash again, you can do this indefinitely and there is nothing the Fox can do about it, if he stalls his up-B he dies so he will be easy to predict so getting a D-smash rhythm going is simple.
You can also F-smash if they don't sweetspot the edge, you can aim your F-smash up or down and you will get heavy armor at the beginning so it's a pretty good edge guard.
If you are feeling adventurous, as soon as fox is off stage he is either going to up-B (most likely directly towards the ledge), or jump and side-B straight into the ledge. You can shell sling off stage if you are far away and will usually make it in time to Nair, which will gimp fox out of any point in his up-B or side-B as long as you hit with the armor frames.
Counter Edge Guarding:
Let me prefaces this thread with the beauty that is Nair, squirtle's nair will be useful in almost every MU (besides jiggs) almost all the time. It has armor, it has long lasting hit boxes, and most importantly it sends you in a tangential direction to it's spin, meaning it's nearly impossible to DI correctly, as well as being able to send your opponent any direction you want. It is gimp-tastic, often it is possible to combo into itself with weak hits (very useful for off stage, below edge, spacies beware).
Squirtle Matchups
Current Draft: FOX
Summary:
Get ready to be moving, constantly - just like fox. Wavedashing, perfect wavelands, shellshifting, shellslinging, withdraw; all of these are incredibly important to use and mix up during a match. Fox's air game is definitely a lesser threat in this MU, as squirtle possesses unrivaled movement and positioning through the air thanks to shell slinging, as well as an armored Nair, and armored airborne approach with Withdraw.
On the ground, fox has superior shield pressure, thankfully squirtle slides away on hit, keeping you from the worst of space opression. Bubble, either with a short hop or during a wavedash, is a great way to interrupt fox's ground game, as well as wavedash to watergun spacing; after a positive hit with watergun you can either cue up a second watergun, bubble, withdraw in for a combo start, grab, or retreat. Retreating being a key word, squirtle can be nearly unkillable if he doesn't want to engage, crouching can avoid laser spam to keep your % down, withdraw has armor (and is useful only in short bursts or tech chases) and can help you get around the stage, but don't rely on it too heavily or you will get up-smashed. Retreating to ledge is dangerous, because of shine spike, solid options to move from ledge back on to the stage include hopping upwards and backwards away from the ledge and then bubble, watergun can also provide just enough hitstun to withdraw over the top of most opponents, nairing into them can also work if your armor frames are used effectively.
While fox can jab-up-smash like a *******, and can also shine gimp you unless you master your waterfall sweet spot, squirtle has a number of other tools at his disposal that can just as easily prevent fox from recovering, and his own up-smash ain't too shabby for getting the kill, assuming you forward shellshift under the fast faller at above 90%, otherwise you might have a hard time getting the kill with it. Your main kill move will be off-stage Nair however, not U-smash like most matchups.
Neutral Game and Retreat:
While squirtle doesn't quite have a solid traditional dash-dance, you still need to be able to keep them guessing even while staying in the same area of the stage. Dashing out of a shellshift back into a shellshift is definitely squirtle's alternative to dash dancing. Squirtle can shellshift into a massive stage spanning grab by jump canceling the ending momentum, then grab canceling the jump. Down-smash coming out of shell shift is also an option, however actually doing the move on the right frame to slide a large distance is nearly impossible to time, and you are honestly better off just perfect-wave dashing into a down-smash. Shell-shifting an F-smash is also a great surprise, since you can slide very very fast across the full length of any stage with it, and the armor frames at the beginning of move can save you in a potential trade, still, this is an incredibly advanced technique and always difficult to pull off.
Short hop Dair is a great option to penetrate defenses, most don't see it coming, if you manage to hit with all the frames, then they can also pop out at a nice trajectory for U-air/F-air/N-air. D-tilt clashes with a lot of stuff, but it has a nice hitbox (reminds me of G&W's d-tilt), but crouch canceling will all but kill it's spammability. Against a fast faller it doesn't set you up for combos quite like usual (you will be relying on your grab for combos)...
Approach and Ground Combos:
Juggles and Air Combos:
Grab Game:
Edge Guarding:
If fox is aiming for the ledge with either his up-B or side-B you can D-smash if you think they won't overshoot, this can either pull them into the D-smash, allowing for a follow up, or it can knock them straight downwards, which can gimp if they don't immediately up-B, and even if they do you can simply D-smash again, you can do this indefinitely and there is nothing the Fox can do about it, if he stalls his up-B he dies so he will be easy to predict so getting a D-smash rhythm going is simple.
You can also F-smash if they don't sweetspot the edge, you can aim your F-smash up or down and you will get heavy armor at the beginning so it's a pretty good edge guard.
If you are feeling adventurous, as soon as fox is off stage he is either going to up-B (most likely directly towards the ledge), or jump and side-B straight into the ledge. You can shell sling off stage if you are far away and will usually make it in time to Nair, which will gimp fox out of any point in his up-B or side-B as long as you hit with the armor frames.
Counter Edge Guarding:
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