Q&A FALCON ASK !! Q&A and FAQ

[Killtrox]

Hey folks, highly considering picking up Falcon as my main after I played some friendlies and lost as my current main, Sheik, but won after switching to Falcon. I also played him on For Glory for ****s and giggles and did surprisingly well in lag-free matches. To avoid having to search through pages, which matchups would you say definitely benefit CF and which would you say definitely benefit the opponent?

Hullo, Falcon mains! I'm a Ness main to my core, but I've been considering seconding the good Captain for a while now. I've perused the boards for some basics but I wanted to ask; are there any habits newer Falcon mains fall into that I should watch out for? For example, new Ness mains tend to roll a lot and rely entirely on PK Fire to set up combos and pretty much nothing else. Anything like this I should be aware of for Falcon? Thanks!

Head to the VoD of Smash 4 and watch a player named "Fatality." His Falcon is pretty solid and landed him in top 32 (the only Captain Falcon I saw ranked that high). It's somewhere in here: http://www.twitch.tv/vsgc/b/612885171

 

[BigLord]

@-Fatality- has also posted a few videos on the videos thread here in the Falcon boards!

I can't say for sure right now, but bad match-ups for Falcon include characters with good projectiles and/or faster than him.

 

[moreside]

Hey folks, highly considering picking up Falcon as my main after I played some friendlies and lost as my current main, Sheik, but won after switching to Falcon. I also played him on For Glory for ****s and giggles and did surprisingly well in lag-free matches. To avoid having to search through pages, which matchups would you say definitely benefit CF and which would you say definitely benefit the opponent?

Others here have disagreed with me, but I'm a firm believer that Falcon loses to Pikachu and Ness. Fun fact: at Final Battle last Saturday, ESAM called the Pikachu matchup 7-3 in Pikachu's favour. May not be that drastic, but it's definitely tough.

 

[teluoborg]

Just because you have to change your gameplan don't mean it's a disadvantage. The pikachu matchup is tough that's for sure, but ness is totally manageable as long as you don't use your usual dash routine.

 

[Killtrox]

I've always had trouble with Ness, especially as Sheik. He's stronger than he seems and he has a lot of aerial priority.

 

[Lanzoma]

If you want to see the matchup, Bwett and Awestin pretty much end up in Grand Finals every week at Shockwave. They're both extremely aggressive players though, which is great to watch but is not the only way the match can go.

I've mentioned before what traits make Ness a troublesome character for us. As for how to fight him:

- Approach Ness from below in the air. He doesn't have an answer to u-air from there.
- Bait PK-Fire and dash SH it into falling u-air or grab.
- Dash attack whiffed / spaced f-airs in neutral, if the timing is right he shouldn't be able to do much about it.
- Only try to gimp his recovery from below or from the side, never from above / diagonally. His recovery is MUCH better this time around, the PKT won't disappear if it hits you for some frames at the start (not sure how many) and will instead combo you into PKT2, most likely killing you. He is also invincible for the initial frames of PKT2.
- Approaching with b-air can sometimes beat his f-air depending on spacing.
- Be on the lookout for b-throw once you're 80%+, less if he has rage. He will be fishing for it hard...but that also means his approach will be more predictable.
- PKT2 is predictable. Ledge trump him and b-air to close stocks.

I also think Ness has the advantage here, mostly because he has very strong kill options and great aerial game.

The more I play Falcon, the more I fear players with good offstage game / characters that can force low recoveries. Everything else I feel you can play around, but those gimps man.

 

[Killtrox]

So for Falcon, what fundamentals can I practice in training mode that will make me a better player overall? I'm discovering that I ****ing SUCK and am trying to improve. I've always been pretty good at a few things but I'd like to excel at one of them for a change, you know?

Also, who is a good secondary for Falcon's bad MUs? I was considering picking up Diddy since my Sheik has been kinda bad lately.

 

[Lanzoma]

Training mode? That's a bit limited (edit: maybe not, apparently...), but you could practice:

- RAR for both fast b-airs and ledge guarding.
- Spacing b-air, u-air and n-air to avoid OOS punishes (grab mostly).
- Turning around and jabbing / grabbing quickly, without going into dash by accident. Really useful during scrambles and to punish hits on shield while facing the other direction, rolls, etc. Practice dropping shield to grabbing behind you.
- Jab -> grab and jab -> jab -> grab
- Spacing f-tilt and d-tilt. IIRC f-tilt has less range but can be angled and comes out faster, but d-tilt is great to poke shields with and the horizontal knockback is just amazing.
- There's a blind spot for grabs where both standing grab and dash grab fail. You can fix it by doing walk-up grab or dash pivot grab. Learn to recognize this space and adjust accordingly.
- Learn the distance of dash -> shield, avoid embarrassing punishes by running face-first into things.
- Learn to cancel dash (first few frames) into f-smash and pivot f-smash. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. This is probably the #1 way I get kills, by spacing an f-smash correctly to punish. It's also safer in case of shield or dodge.
- Recognize and react to d-throw DI at low (0-15) percentages. Against fast-fallers and fatties, it's very tempting to go for 1-3 n-airs -> 1-2 u-airs because it does SO MUCH DAMAGE, but good players will DI out of your range, or you might be too close to the edge, and that's free damage left on the table. Use tackle or 1-2 u-airs for those scenarios.
- I need to test this, but I think b-air is our best option vs ledge snapping vulnerability. It has 6 active frames (2 sweetspot, 4 sourspot), and I THINK the sourspot is still good enough to stage spike. If not, b-air is probably our best move anyway to intercept vertical recoveries, I just need to check if we're punishable on whiff or not. How do rising b-air and drop from ledge b-air compare? Which one is better when?
- Get the timing down for instant ledge-trumping, and for b-air punishes out of it. Some characters can escape this, so what's out best option to punish regrabs? I don't know if f-smash angled down and/or d-tilt hit, and between those I don't know which one is better when.

I like lists.

 

[Killtrox]

That's a great list, thank you. Also, what's RAR?

 

[Lanzoma]

Reverse aerial rush. Basically run -> turn around (starts skid animation) -> jump (cancel skid) -> return stick towards. If done correctly you jump with your back facing the opponent and retaining most of the momentum.

This lets you use b-air, which is usually a strong kill move / good spacing tool in more situations. It's also useful for edgeguarding, because since you're facing the ledge, you can stage spike them with more moves (u-air, n-air) and you can also grab the ledge (to trump them) by just jumping instead of using up-b.

 

[Killtrox]

Reverse aerial rush. Basically run -> turn around (starts skid animation) -> jump (cancel skid) -> return stick towards. If done correctly you jump with your back facing the opponent and retaining most of the momentum.

This lets you use b-air, which is usually a strong kill move / good spacing tool in more situations. It's also useful for edgeguarding, because since you're facing the ledge, you can stage spike them with more moves (u-air, n-air) and you can also grab the ledge (to trump them) by just jumping instead of using up-b.

Ah alright, I already did that but didn't realize that's what the abbreviation meant. Thank you, though.

 

[Lanzoma]

Can we talk about stage selection? I tend to default to Battlefield because those platforms are at like perfect height for combos, and it makes zoners easier to deal with, but what benefits us most?

I tend to avoid FD, unless I know I can out-neutral the opponent, and in that case I'll go with Omega Willy Castle (walljumps + dat music).

Low ceilings are useful if the opponent doesn't rely on up-kills, mainly for really high u-airs and raptor boost. Halberd comes to mind, which also allows some sneaky sharked u-airs / u-bs (gimmicky but sporadically useful).

Since getting thrown offstage is very risky, and Falcon combos can carry horizontally for quite a bit, long stages are good options. I'm not familiar with the Wii U stages, but I heard Town and City is pretty long.

I absolutely hate Lylat. Stage tilting can make f-smashes cancel randomly and gimping Falcon there is so easy it makes me salty.

Any thoughts?

 

[teluoborg]

Agree with all you said. I personally prefer SV over BF but that's a matter of preference. I also like TC because of the the high platforms that can allow some sick tech chases and follow ups, and if I have to go on FD I'll take a walled FD like YI or wooly world.

I hate the original FD and whenever I play on it I never forget to yell "SOLAR FLARE" during the blinding part.

 

[Killtrox]

Is it just me or is Kirby a pain in the ass to fight? It seems like half of the attacks go over his head, as does dash-grab. His aerials also have some priority on them.

 

[Captain Farukon]

Why is Captain Falcon so awesome in every aspect? what was miyamoto´s idea when he imagined him?

 

[BigLord]

Why is Captain Falcon so awesome in every aspect? what was miyamoto´s idea when he imagined him?

He had a FALCON BRAINSTORM!

Agree with all you said. I personally prefer SV over BF but that's a matter of preference. I also like TC because of the the high platforms that can allow some sick tech chases and follow ups, and if I have to go on FD I'll take a walled FD like YI or wooly world.

I hate the original FD and whenever I play on it I never forget to yell "SOLAR FLARE" during the blinding part.

Doesn't that solar flare part disappear if you play FD on omega mode?

 

[teluoborg]

Who the heck plays on omegva fd when you can choose every other stage ? (save for gamer )

 

[TheGreatBrawler]

Why is Captain Falcon so awesome in every aspect? what was miyamoto´s idea when he imagined him?

KNEE

 

[BigLord]

Who the heck plays on omegva fd when you can choose every other stage ? (save for gamer )

Actually some tournaments don't allow omega stages, for some reason. Happened on the worldwide sm4sh tournament.

 

[XCounter]

Any tips on landing a Raptor Boost meteor smash more reliably? I know there are better options to get a meteor while edge-guarding, but in the effort to make my approaches more unpredictable I'd like to add aerial side-B's to my game as well.

It seems like it'll only meteor if he hits with the bottom part of his fist, but I'm not sure about it. The hitbox seems really small.

 

[BigLord]

You're correct, @ XCounter . It IS really hard to hit with the spiking hitbox. To be precise, it only works when the opponent is directly below Captain Falcon.

You do well in trying to mix-up your recovery options, but don't think you'll get a lot of spiking aerial RB this way :\
It mainly depends on your opponent. How will he react to you flying off the stage? Will he give chase? Will he throw projectiles at you? Will he try to intercept you high? Or low? Or just do nothing at all?

Only when he tries to intercept you low is when you have the best chance to nail a spiking aerial raptor boost.

 

[Killtrox]

Any tips on landing a Raptor Boost meteor smash more reliably? I know there are better options to get a meteor while edge-guarding, but in the effort to make my approaches more unpredictable I'd like to add aerial side-B's to my game as well.

It seems like it'll only meteor if he hits with the bottom part of his fist, but I'm not sure about it. The hitbox seems really small.

To be honest, I don't think it's worth the risk. If you miss with it your recovery is most likely flubbed and you dead. As you said, the hitbox is pretty tiny for meteors, so it's up to you if you're willing to take that risk. I usually prefer to either get behind them and create some distance, or use a Falcon Kick if they've shown that they like to rush the ledge upon recovery.

 

[XCounter]

You're correct, XCounter. It IS really hard to hit with the spiking hitbox. To be precise, it only works when the opponent is directly below Captain Falcon.

You do well in trying to mix-up your recovery options, but don't think you'll get a lot of spiking aerial RB this way :\
It mainly depends on your opponent. How will he react to you flying off the stage? Will he give chase? Will he throw projectiles at you? Will he try to intercept you high? Or low? Or just do nothing at all?

Only when he tries to intercept you low is when you have the best chance to nail a spiking aerial raptor boost.

Thanks for the tip. I've worked on the spacing in Training to hit it on the ground, so I can get it pretty frequently. Definitely won't be relying on it as an on-stage option, though.

To be honest, I don't think it's worth the risk. If you miss with it your recovery is most likely flubbed and you dead. As you said, the hitbox is pretty tiny for meteors, so it's up to you if you're willing to take that risk. I usually prefer to either get behind them and create some distance, or use a Falcon Kick if they've shown that they like to rush the ledge upon recovery.

This was mostly just curiosity about the viability of the move, but you're right, it isn't worth the risk as an edgeguard or as an intended recovery in most cases.

The guaranteed meteor is the one thing I actually miss from Brawl Falcon haha

 

[BigLord]

Well, to be fair, the guaranteed meteor in Brawl was rather weak, it was more like a downwards knockback than anything. But yeah I miss that awesome feeling too

 

[TheGreatBrawler]

You have to be above the opponent to meteor smash, so if the opponent is hit right when Falcon finish his raptor boost by hitting downwards. That will meteor smash, if before then no it won't. That's what I saw from training at least.

 

[sucram]

Any Falcons here change the c-stick to attack instead of smash? Was thinking of utilizing it with perfect pivots, but not sure how well it works. I'm not near my Wii U and thought I'd ask here.

 

[TheGreatBrawler]

Any Falcons here change the c-stick to attack instead of smash? Was thinking of utilizing it with perfect pivots, but not sure how well it works. I'm not near my Wii U and thought I'd ask here.

I use my c-stick for attack instead of smash, much easier to do up tilt. (I use tap jump on, can't stand not having it on)

 

[XCounter]

Any Falcons here change the c-stick to attack instead of smash? Was thinking of utilizing it with perfect pivots, but not sure how well it works. I'm not near my Wii U and thought I'd ask here.

I have it set to smash, mainly so I can punish rolls easier with a forward smash.

 

[teluoborg]

If you can reliably perfect pivot then yes, you should use your C stick to make the most out of it.

 

[Jeronado]

Anyone have any tips for taking on DeDeDe. I find I do really poorly against him.

 

[Killtrox]

Any Falcons here change the c-stick to attack instead of smash? Was thinking of utilizing it with perfect pivots, but not sure how well it works. I'm not near my Wii U and thought I'd ask here.

Yeah, makes tilts more reliable.

 

[Smog Frog]

some questions regarding the good captain:

-is he easy to play once you get the crazy combos down?

-is he top 10/15 material?

-does he require a secondary for bad matchups?

 

[TheGreatBrawler]

some questions regarding the good captain:

-is he easy to play once you get the crazy combos down?

-is he top 10/15 material?

-does he require a secondary for bad matchups?

What I can tell you is that you shouldn't main someone just because they are top characters. It should be based on your play style. Captain Falcon may be top 10 or 15, but don't play him just because of that.

 

[Smog Frog]

i know capt falcon fits my playstyle because i'm super aggressive, so thats why i'm asking the other questions

 

[XCounter]

I feel like there are easier characters to play, but he's not too difficult to use. Knowing his combos and his KO percents are really helpful, though.

It might be a bit early to have a solid opinion on placing. I'd personally say if he's not in the top 10, he's just outside it. He's a viable character, either way.

Most if not all characters in the game have at least one difficult matchup, so it's useful to have a secondary regardless.

 

[Killtrox]

some questions regarding the good captain:

-is he easy to play once you get the crazy combos down?

-is he top 10/15 material?

-does he require a secondary for bad matchups?

He's definitely high-tier due to the minimal lag on many of his moves, but he definitely has some bad matchups. Rosalina is pretty annoying because she counters his aerials, as is Ness. Diddy is annoying if you can't stay below him and control the stage completely. Sheik is probably the worst overall from my experience simply because despite Captain Falcon's speed, she has more options and her Fair can really halt our momentum.

The most crucial aspect of playing a good Captain is spacing, which I learned the hard way at a tourney last night. It's really easy to land a Nair or Uair and continue your DI into the opponent, which absolutely does not work against good Sheik players. You need to spend time in the lab and, like Puff, essentially determine just how far away all of your attacks will hit, and then be sure to use them at that distance as consistently as possible. While Captain is an aggressive character, that can definitely work against him.

Another bad MU for Falcon is Mega Man. Even with good spacing, Mega Man's playstyle revolves around it entirely, and he has numerous options to completely gimp Falcon's already not-very-good recovery, and his spacing potential can easily get you on the edge of the map, where you don't want to be. If recovering low, Mega Man's Dair is an insanely easy spike to pull off, and it trumps Falcon's Uair and Up+B, so don't try using those expecting to make it back. If you recover mid, Mega Man's magnetic Utilt will get you, and if you recover high, his Uair will catch your recovery. I'm not sure if it's been discussed yet, but MM might be a counter to CF.

Another matchup that isn't fun is Mario, as he's really annoying and has deceptive range. He's difficult to edgeguard because his Up+B goes through the edges of the stage.

All-in-all, at the end of the day Captain Falcon is amazing, but your hardest matchups are going to rely heavily upon knowing the spacing techniques of your matchups and understanding your own safe ranges. For some matchups I would highly consider picking up a secondary, just based on who you seem to have a lot of trouble beating. Maybe a character has too many projectiles for you to play either rush-down or defensively, or maybe you want a pocket Rosalina to deal with annoying cast like Diddy.

tl;dr He's a very solid-feeling character. Good weight, solid KO potential, ridiculously fast, good combos. He's probably top 15. I would recommend having a solid secondary.

 

[KentaKurodani]

While I agree with your feelings, the recent discussion at the megaman boards between us and them actually ended with a general consensus that WE win the matchup, not megaman. This being that he has to GET us offstage to use those amazing gimps. He has a relatively hard time doing that, as we are quite heavy, and we can dash attack right through the lemons unlike a lot of characters. The way they put it is that while they can punish us more easily, they need 3 punishes just to make up for one of ours, as a dashgrab to uair chain can easily do 40~%

 

[Lanzoma]

If that was the general consensus, I missed it. It seems to me that opinion is divided, actually.

You can't dash attack through lemons, as DA will only cancel one of the three. I also don't buy the 3-for-1 punish argument, because Falcon can be comboed just as hard with f-air and u-air (Falcon is one of the few characters for which grounded u-air to u-air is a true combo, which does 40%, for example), and b-air / b-throw have both very good knockback to put us off-stage.

It's dicey because the strenghts of one character are the weaknesses of the other. The only place I feel is even is onstage-aerial, everywhere else it's an advantage to one or the other. I feel it comes down to the players and not the characters.

 

[Killtrox]

If that was the general consensus, I missed it. It seems to me that opinion is divided, actually.

You can't dash attack through lemons, as DA will only cancel one of the three. I also don't buy the 3-for-1 punish argument, because Falcon can be comboed just as hard with f-air and u-air (Falcon is one of the few characters for which grounded u-air to u-air is a true combo, which does 40%, for example), and b-air / b-throw have both very good knockback to put us off-stage.

It's dicey because the strenghts of one character are the weaknesses of the other. The only place I feel is even is onstage-aerial, everywhere else it's an advantage to one or the other. I feel it comes down to the players and not the characters.

I will say flat-out that recovering was near impossible. Mega Man also has a pretty solid grab, which trumps Falcon's in this case simply because there are so many projectiles to dance around. There's not much room for his amazing dash-grab.

Even Captain's Uair isn't as safe as normal because Mega Man's Fair can hit near the bottom of its swing. Captain's Fair can't land, Dair is possible but unlikely, and Falcon's Bair has less range than Mega Man's Fair or Bair.

I think that Captain Falcon is the better character, but this is a difficult MU for sure.

 

[Humanity]

What's the trick to stringing short-hop fast fall up aerials? Is it just the timing on the downward input? I've been trying to figure this move out for ages, but I always wind up with some combination of accidental forward airs, regular short-hop up airs sans the fast fall, and those infuriating jump-cancelled up smashes.