ESAM's Pikachu Guide Discussion

[A10theHero]

So ESAM uploaded the first part of his Pikachu guide. I thought it would be a good idea to have a dedicated thread where we can talk about it as well as have all the links available to new players in one place (once they are put up).


1) The Basics of Pikachu's Moveset
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xf7VqACwG0I&feature=youtu.be

2) Kill Set-ups
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nmzl7AuyF0Y

2a) RAR Thunder Tutorial
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAZJbMo4AmM​

3) Quick Attack
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnAPC1uGi8A

4) Neutral
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzY8HSUfN54




With that being said, let's start discussing!

Overall, I liked this video. There were a few things here and there that I would have added but it is a basic guide after all, so maybe it'll be discussed later.

 

[Shady Shaymin]

I can see Pika gaining more usage as a result of this guide. Esam is a celebrated top player in Smash who has shown the potential of Pika, and I get the impression that his lack of usage has to do with the fact that people don't really know what to do with him.

 

[Emuchu]

I can see Pika gaining more usage as a result of this guide. Esam is a celebrated top player in Smash who has shown the potential of Pika, and I get the impression that his lack of usage has to do with the fact that people don't really know what to do with him.

Not to mention the For Glory environment isn't great for Pika. He's definitely not easy to get into.

 

[Shady Shaymin]

Not to mention the For Glory environment isn't great for Pika. He's definitely not easy to get into.

Pika just can't win in a laggy setting.

 

[The_Devious]

ESAM uploaded part 2 of his pikachu guide.

2) Kill Set-ups

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nmzl7AuyF0Y

Feel free to add this to your first post, a10thehero.

 

[TripSwitchSDA]

I'm really enjoying these videos by esam. Back when I first started getting competitive with an old friend in Brawl, I mained Pikachu (while he mained Sonic). Until recently, I haven't really given him much of a shot in Smash4, but now I have and it's like returning home.

 

[The_Devious]

I'm really enjoying these videos by esam. Back when I first started getting competitive with an old friend in Brawl, I mained Pikachu (while he mained Sonic). Until recently, I haven't really given him much of a shot in Smash4, but now I have and it's like returning home.

esam's just a good youtuber in general. not only do i enjoy watching his videos about pikachu, I enjoy listening to his views on other matters.

 

[Shaymin slicker]

Honestly I never really look at videos like these most of the time because I think I can do well with Pikachu myself (Though in reality I really can't). Watching these videos, however, gave me an example of a better way to play Pikachu. Hopefully I can remember these things when i'm actually playing against someone!

 

[Shady Shaymin]

Part 2 was very informative. The best explanation was for upthrow to thunder, never knew buffering a rar was so useful for chasing DI.

Both guides very informative, though I do look more forward to his neutral, edgeguard and matchup guides.

 

[The_Devious]

Part 2 was very informative. The best explanation was for upthrow to thunder, never knew buffering a rar was so useful for chasing DI.

Both guides very informative, though I do look more forward to his neutral, edgeguard and matchup guides.

He's also doing a seperate video for QA. Experienced pika mains won't need it as much, but it will be good for new ones.

 

[A10theHero]

Added ESAM's RAR Thunder tutorial.

Hey Pikabunz , how does what ESAM suggested compare to what you said about up throw to Thunder?
He said to turnaround and then jump and Thunder while in that other thread you said to input the turnaround and Thunder during the jumpsquat frames. Is it just as fast or slower?

 

[Pikabunz]

The way he does it doesn't seem any different than doing >>+. When he does the diagonal down-back input before the jump, it doesn't actually turn Pikachu around before the jump, so it's still happening after the jump just like as if you're doing the above input.

 

[ClassicJono]

I've been practicing Up-throw to RAR using ESAM method mentioned in his video. Pulling it off successfully is one of the most satisfying things you can do as Pikachu imo. ESAM claims in his video its possible read the DI on reaction.
However, reading the DI from the up-throw based on reaction is very difficult (combined with not screwing up the RAR thunder).

Does anyone have any tips on how to read the DI?/ Or get faster reaction times?
Are there any animation clues or anything of the sort?

 

[TripSwitchSDA]

Just want to say to OP, I'm very grateful that you're compiling these videos in a discussion topic. I've subscribed to his channel but it's nice to have a discussion topic to come and talk over the videos.

I'm taking a lot of his advice and techniques to training mode and improving my pika game. It's nice to have this kind of support.

 

[Shady Shaymin]

How would you guys feel about a combo tutorial video? Knowing how to execute pika's bread and butter combos at different percents seems just as essential as learning his neutral/edgeguard/kill setups, and a guide for that would help. Aside from the easy low percent "jumpman" utilt to aerial strings, most of pika's combos are kinda underutilized in my opinion.

 

[A10theHero]

I've been practicing Up-throw to RAR using ESAM method mentioned in his video. Pulling it off successfully is one of the most satisfying things you can do as Pikachu imo. ESAM claims in his video its possible read the DI on reaction.
However, reading the DI from the up-throw based on reaction is very difficult (combined with not screwing up the RAR thunder).

Does anyone have any tips on how to read the DI?/ Or get faster reaction times?
Are there any animation clues or anything of the sort?

As soon as you throw them up, you'll notice that the path they travel will be different depending on their DI.
Watch this portion of ESAM's video (from 2:05 to 2:14):

(If it helps, click on the "Settings" gear and set the Speed to 0.25)
The red streak is what makes the DI obvious. When performing this, you have to focus more on their movement than on yours. The longer you play as Pikachu, the easier it'll be to know where he'll be without paying much attention to him. Once you get a feel for that, you can concentrate more on where your opponent will be.

Just want to say to OP, I'm very grateful that you're compiling these videos in a discussion topic. I've subscribed to his channel but it's nice to have a discussion topic to come and talk over the videos.

I'm taking a lot of his advice and techniques to training mode and improving my pika game. It's nice to have this kind of support.

Always happy to help.

How would you guys feel about a combo tutorial video? Knowing how to execute pika's bread and butter combos at different percents seems just as essential as learning his neutral/edgeguard/kill setups, and a guide for that would help. Aside from the easy low percent "jumpman" utilt to aerial strings, most of pika's combos are kinda underutilized in my opinion.

A combo tutorial would help a lot. I think ESAM is planning on doing a video on that eventually.

 

[LightswornKing]

I've been practicing Up-throw to RAR using ESAM method mentioned in his video. Pulling it off successfully is one of the most satisfying things you can do as Pikachu imo. ESAM claims in his video its possible read the DI on reaction.
However, reading the DI from the up-throw based on reaction is very difficult (combined with not screwing up the RAR thunder).

Does anyone have any tips on how to read the DI?/ Or get faster reaction times?
Are there any animation clues or anything of the sort?

I would recommend reading some guilds on the matter to improve reaction time. Just look it up. There are many games that measure your reaction time. I would recommend playing them a little bit every day until you are happy.

 

[Alfy555]

What I find weird is that it seems like even Esam can't do RAR thunder on reaction. Here are just two examples from a recent game:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwN0hrZkO0I&feature=youtu.be&t=211
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwN0hrZkO0I&feature=youtu.be&t=565

You would think that this is a very fundamental combo that serious players would have practiced to do on reation, but I have yet to see anyone do RAR thunder consistently. So to be honest, I think it's too hard to do it on reflex.

 

[A10theHero]

Spoiler: My b

What I find weird is that it seems like even Esam can't do RAR thunder on reaction. Here are just two examples from a recent game:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwN0hrZkO0I&feature=youtu.be&t=211
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwN0hrZkO0I&feature=youtu.be&t=565

You would think that this is a very fundamental combo that serious players would have practiced to do on reation, but I have yet to see anyone do RAR thunder consistently. So to be honest, I think it's too hard to do it on reflex.

Up throw to Thunder is hard. There's no doubt about it. Not only do you have to practice the inputs, but you have to practice reacting to the DI as well. The former can be mastered through hours of repetition in Training Mode. But the latter needs hours of practice in a real-time setting. As with many aspects of competitive Smash, the way you get better is by playing under the pressure of a real-life tournament. Because of that, it will be a while before anyone will really master it.

Keep in mind that if you can accurately predict where your opponent is going, then you will have no trouble connecting the Thunder. In the first instance you linked, it seemed that ESAM was trying to read rather than react to Vinnie's DI. Going for the read is a trade-off: Not reacting fast enough is removed out of the equation but it comes at the risk of completely missing the Thunder by a long shot. Consequentially, Up Throw to Thunder can either be guaranteed by reaction or a 33-33-33* by reading.

Spoiler: *

As ESAM mentioned in his video, it can sometimes be a 50-50 if you cover more than one option. It can even be guaranteed if you grab and Up Throw quickly, not giving your opponent a chance to react and DI.

--
Interested in reaction times and this kill confirm, I did some research and here's what I found:
Note that the average reaction time of a human is between .15 - .30 seconds or 9 - 18 frames in Smash. For young people, it's obviously gonna be closer to .15 than .30.
Anyways, now watch this Up Throw to Thunder from a more recent set at 60 fps. On YouTube, you can use the ">" and "<" keys to advance and move back one frame at a time.
I started counting from the moment Meta Knight's percent changed from the Up Throw. This is what I found:
There were 50 frames until Meta Knight's air dodge came out (Meta Knight has a frame 2 air dodge, so it was input at 48 frames).
There were about 26 frames after the red streak showing the opponent's DI from the Up Throw became visible. If we assume that one cannot react to the opponent's DI before the red streak, then this is the number of frames that ESAM had to perform the RAR Thunder.
Based on these findings, if ESAM needed 18 frames to react to the red flash, he would still have 8 frames to perform the rest of the combo.
So to perform this kill confirm, you do not have to be completely frame perfect, but the closer, the better. (Remember though that this is under the assumption that it is impossible to react to DI before the red lighting cue. There are a few frames before the spark that also reveal the opponent's choice of DI.)
--
As I said before, this kill confirm is difficult to perform, and if these results mean anything, then that is definitely true. But it is still very much possible. And remember, as time goes on, we will get faster at inputting and better at reacting with more practice in real matches. ESAM could not read Meta Knight's DI fast enough, so he was just a few frames too slow. But he will get better. He just has to keep trying. And that goes for all of us as well. Over time, this kill confirm will only become easier to do.

 

[Shady Shaymin]

If you want to practice reacting to DI, I suggest hitting the lab and setting the cpu to the run behavior. This way they will always DI out of up throw, in a random direction every time. Be warned though, catching running CPUS with a grab can become tedious, so I suggest picking a CPU opponent with bad mobility.

 

[Brokemon]

One thing I noticed in the kill setups is that he said down tilt into jab lock at certain percents will confirm a kill but I've been noticing while using it that people jump or tech it, does that mean im doing it at too high of a percent? Is the window THAT slim for percents it works?

 

[Pikabunz]

One thing I noticed in the kill setups is that he said down tilt into jab lock at certain percents will confirm a kill but I've been noticing while using it that people jump or tech it, does that mean im doing it at too high of a percent? Is the window THAT slim for percents it works?

There's nothing you can do about them teching it, but as for them jumping out it might be because they're too floaty, their percent is too high, or they're DI'ing in during the dtilt.

 

[Alfy555]

At https://youtu.be/JAZJbMo4AmM?t=147
esam says that for some characters, you can cover two DI options with RAR thunder.
Does anyone know exactly for which characters this is possible or is willing to lab it?

 

[A10theHero]

ESAM released the next installment in his guide. This one's on Quick Attack.

At https://youtu.be/JAZJbMo4AmM?t=147
esam says that for some characters, you can cover two DI options with RAR thunder.
Does anyone know exactly for which characters this is possible or is willing to lab it?

Maybe. I'm gonna be looking into ledge trump options over Spring Break but I'll definitely try and make time for this too.

 

[Alfy555]

Maybe. I'm gonna be looking into ledge trump options over Spring Break but I'll definitely try and make time for this too.

I've tested a bit myself, and I'm pretty sure it's possible on all characters. It's easier to do on big characters, but I was able to do it on kirby and another pikachu. You just need a tighter dash before RAR. I'm not sure if they are the smallest though. I tried searching for a list of characters hurtbox width, but couldn't find it.

 

[A10theHero]

The next part of ESAM's video is up. This one's on the neutral.

 

[Lightsoul]

I've been practicing Up-throw to RAR using ESAM method mentioned in his video. Pulling it off successfully is one of the most satisfying things you can do as Pikachu imo. ESAM claims in his video its possible read the DI on reaction.
However, reading the DI from the up-throw based on reaction is very difficult (combined with not screwing up the RAR thunder).

Does anyone have any tips on how to read the DI?/ Or get faster reaction times?
Are there any animation clues or anything of the sort?

You can actually start reading how someone will DI by using D-Throw at lower %'s. I find that a lot of people tend to hold the Control stick in one direction and you can get a early read into what they are thinking by using D-Throw or Up-Throw sooner in the match. D-Throw can lead into Thunder after Up-Throw starts hitting the opponent to high. Some people know that and sort of freak out when they think you are going to set it up. So far I find that most people like to move towards the left. Make sure to keep your rage, their damage % and if you have stales either Up or Down throw in mind when going for the kill.

 

[ClassicJono]

Personally I'm finding that most people DI away if they can react to it. So at kill percents I'll just pummel a few times and then go for the up-throw RAR thunder in that direction. However, it doesn't work on players who know mix up their DI/know about the trick.

 

[Lightsoul]

As much as a nice kill setup this is, it is not super easy to pull off on good opponents. I find that attempting to go for a short hop, fast fall F-Air to Up Smash works a lot. Tricky part is catching a opponent who has begun to become super defensive since they are looking out for your kill options. Really I think a good discussion we should have is how to close out stocks at high %(Plus 125) since some of the easy kill sets start to not work.

 

[hell-dew]

TBH i find the best thing is to dont force it at 125ish i just keep racking up the damage and use an opening if it provides it. i find more often then not you score kills out of advantage situations anyways then trying to fish from neutral without insanely hard reads which is very impractical against people who arent bad at at like 160 they usually start to die form a regular upthrow off the top which sucks being forced to have to deal with rage but unlike fox we get more kill options at stupid high %s

 

[Lightsoul]

I'll look out for that since I need to find more kill options at high %. Since after 130 alot of people become very spacey, run alot and start to become hard to catch.

 

[AncientCode42]

I'm throughly enjoying these guides by Esam, it's giving me a lot of leverage to look upon when using Pika. I have so much I need to do. Especially with Quick Attack. I'm also going to work on RAR Thunder. I'm looking forward to see more of these guides.

 

[Simperheve]

The stuff about neutral has really helped me enhance my neutral game. I usually get complimented at tourneys for it but now it's even better!

 

[Ya Boy Evee]

Hi I'm a pika main from Singapore, about reading opponents di when up throw + thunder. It's best to wait out and rar thunder in case they air dodge. Not necessarily you have to buffer rar thunder all the time. It is one of pika's most reliable kill confirm even though it's like 1/3 chance (no di, di right, di left havent account air dodge.). Be careful of also picking Battlefield/Dreamland and see the matchups because essentially you are taking away ur up throw to thunder confirm because of the platforms. It's possible but very difficult due to platform obstructing them to fall to u.