Simikins
Nerfed
Footstool Down Air on Stage Combos & Kill Setups
If Sheik spaces a down air so that only the spike hit connects and not the ground hit, then the opponent will be bounced upwards off the stage. This is techable, but if the opponent misses the tech Sheik can get many combos from this, and most work on every character.
Very long GIF be warned
It’s very unlikely however, that you’ll land a straight up dair on a skilled opponent. A way to set up for this more safely, is with footstools.
When Sheik footstools a grounded opponent she can immediately follow up with a down air before their animation ends.
https://gfycat.com/FlamboyantMassiveAmericanbobtail
Using this, it is possible to do a variety of combos and kill setups. What’s great about the kill setups this can provide, is that not only does it allow for earlyish kills by Sheik standards, but also allows for kill setups that work at very high percentages.
Down Air Information
Sheik’s Dair has 2 hitboxes.
The first hitbox deals 8% damage and is active on frames 15 - 33 of the dair animation. On frames 15 - 18 it spikes at a 280 degree angle, and on frames 19 - 33 or until Sheik hits the ground it hits the opponent away at a 70 degree angle.
The second hit is the landing hit, which deals 2% damage and is active on frames 1-2 of sheik’s landing.
We care about the spike hit.
Dair first hit only
For any combos to work, the meteor hit must connect right before Sheik lands, so that the opponent is sent upwards. Normally the landing hit would combo from the meteor hit
GIF
but at certain percentages (which vary between characters) the spike hit will send the opponent too far upwards for the landing hit to connect. The percentage is different depending on where you are in relation to the opponent, so the percentages shown are for buffered dair after a footstool.
GIF
It is possible to fade forward slightly and still get the guaranteed down air and space better for the spike hit only (GIF), but that takes a lot of accuracy and timing, and it’s much easier to buffer the down air.
Many combos are possible from this, some not as useful as others. These combos are most effective on fast fallers. Combos listed are in order of usefulness.
Most characters are bounced off the stage at a 100 degree angle from the dair spike (normal angle is 280 degrees, take off 180 degrees when it bounces on the flat stage and it’s 100 degrees). For some reason, some characters are sent the other direction, at ~80 degree angle. With most combos you can easily react, but with a couple of them you have to be prepared, so which way they are sent will be listed by the character for the combos which require it.
Dair > UpSmash - Footstool into a down air, then immediately UpSmash
Dair > UpAir - Footstool into a down air, then jump and up air
Dair > Bouncing Fish - Footstool into a down air, then immediately bouncing fish
Dair > Bair - Footstool into a down air, then jump and back air
Dair > UpTilt - Footstool into a down air, then immediately up tilt
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Pretty much useless ones (Either there is always a better option or they don’t work on enough characters)
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Teching Sheiks Down Air
The spike hit of Sheiks down air can be teched. The small amount of invincibility during the tech animation is enough for the opponent to avoid the landing hit, and so if they tech the first they will be safe from the second. Because of how laggy down air is, if the opponent techs they have frame advantage, and can punish if they’re fast.
GIF of both players holding shield
In Mario’s case, if he techs the down air he has about 6 frames of advantage, and so if they’re prepared they can get in a jab (or if they buffer, even a dsmash)
Generally, all teching will do is keep the opponent safe.
A recently discovered tech, grounded spike cancelling can also be done when hit by Sheik’s down air, but luckily for Sheik she has a landing hitbox on her down air. If the opponent successfully grounded spike cancels sheiks down air, the grounded hit will hit them anyway. Hurray.
Getting the Footstool
These combos rely on footstooling the opponent onstage, and this is something that you’ll have to practice a lot before trying in game.
This video by Beefy Smash Doods has a lot of information about footstools.
The safest ways to get it are:
Punish whiffed grabs with footstool
GIF
and
Footstool out of shield
Footstooling out of shield allows you to get very strong punishes on moves you would normally have to respect or only get a small punish on.
Another tricky way to get this is by doing ledge jump get up and mashing jump, but use this vary sparingly.
GIF
I hope these combos can help you in some way.
An example of a time this could have been used by a top player was when VoiD played Marss at Apex, and Marss whiffed a grab at a percent where he may have been able to combo dair into upsmash.
Void vs. Marss at Apex 2016
- Simikins
If Sheik spaces a down air so that only the spike hit connects and not the ground hit, then the opponent will be bounced upwards off the stage. This is techable, but if the opponent misses the tech Sheik can get many combos from this, and most work on every character.
Very long GIF be warned
It’s very unlikely however, that you’ll land a straight up dair on a skilled opponent. A way to set up for this more safely, is with footstools.
When Sheik footstools a grounded opponent she can immediately follow up with a down air before their animation ends.
https://gfycat.com/FlamboyantMassiveAmericanbobtail
Using this, it is possible to do a variety of combos and kill setups. What’s great about the kill setups this can provide, is that not only does it allow for earlyish kills by Sheik standards, but also allows for kill setups that work at very high percentages.
Down Air Information
Sheik’s Dair has 2 hitboxes.
The first hitbox deals 8% damage and is active on frames 15 - 33 of the dair animation. On frames 15 - 18 it spikes at a 280 degree angle, and on frames 19 - 33 or until Sheik hits the ground it hits the opponent away at a 70 degree angle.
The second hit is the landing hit, which deals 2% damage and is active on frames 1-2 of sheik’s landing.
We care about the spike hit.
Dair first hit only
For any combos to work, the meteor hit must connect right before Sheik lands, so that the opponent is sent upwards. Normally the landing hit would combo from the meteor hit
GIF
but at certain percentages (which vary between characters) the spike hit will send the opponent too far upwards for the landing hit to connect. The percentage is different depending on where you are in relation to the opponent, so the percentages shown are for buffered dair after a footstool.
GIF
It is possible to fade forward slightly and still get the guaranteed down air and space better for the spike hit only (GIF), but that takes a lot of accuracy and timing, and it’s much easier to buffer the down air.
Footstool Down Air CombosPercentages that the landing hit will not combo from the spike hit
Character | Facing towards Sheik | Facing away from Sheik
Mario | 150% | 170%
Rosalina & Luma | 40% | 40%
Shulk (Jump Art) | 105% | 105%
Shulk (Speed Art) | 115% | 115%
Shulk (Shield Art) | 145% | 145%
Shulk (Buster Art) | 115% | 115%
Shulk (Smash Art) | 100% | 100%
Many combos are possible from this, some not as useful as others. These combos are most effective on fast fallers. Combos listed are in order of usefulness.
Most characters are bounced off the stage at a 100 degree angle from the dair spike (normal angle is 280 degrees, take off 180 degrees when it bounces on the flat stage and it’s 100 degrees). For some reason, some characters are sent the other direction, at ~80 degree angle. With most combos you can easily react, but with a couple of them you have to be prepared, so which way they are sent will be listed by the character for the combos which require it.
Dair > UpSmash - Footstool into a down air, then immediately UpSmash
Even without DI, some characters will be sent in slightly different directions by the dair. Because of this, against some characters you will have to dash > upsmash, and against others you do a stationary upsmash.
GIF
To get this to work at the highest percentages possible you have to slightly delay the UpSmash, so that they fall further towards you. You also have to take note of which part of their hurtbox goes lowest while they are in midair, and aim for that part. An example would be captain falcon, whose legs dangle down below his body as he falls.
This combo kills at all percentages that it combos.
Works on:
Character | Direction sent | Percentage
Wario | Sent behind sheik | 125% - 140%
Link | Sent behind sheik | 115% - 125%
Ganondorf | Sent behind sheik | 115% - 130%
Zero Suit Samus | Sent backwards from their POV | 95% - 110%
Ike | Sent behind sheik |110% - 135%
King Dedede | Sent behind sheik | 125% - 160%/180%*
Falco | Sent backwards from their POV | 90% - 115
ROB | Sent backwards from their POV | 140%
Captain Falcon | Sent behind sheik | 130% - 140%
Shulk | Sent behind sheik | 115%
Megaman | Sent forwards from their POV | 115% - 140%
Cloud | Sent backwards from their POV | 110% - 125%
Bayonetta | Sent forwards from their POV | 105% - 115%
Donkey Kong | Sent Backwards from their POV | 130%
Corrin | sent backwards from their POV | 125%
GIF
To get this to work at the highest percentages possible you have to slightly delay the UpSmash, so that they fall further towards you. You also have to take note of which part of their hurtbox goes lowest while they are in midair, and aim for that part. An example would be captain falcon, whose legs dangle down below his body as he falls.
This combo kills at all percentages that it combos.
Works on:
Wario | Sent behind sheik | 125% - 140%
Link | Sent behind sheik | 115% - 125%
Ganondorf | Sent behind sheik | 115% - 130%
Zero Suit Samus | Sent backwards from their POV | 95% - 110%
Ike | Sent behind sheik |110% - 135%
King Dedede | Sent behind sheik | 125% - 160%/180%*
Falco | Sent backwards from their POV | 90% - 115
ROB | Sent backwards from their POV | 140%
Captain Falcon | Sent behind sheik | 130% - 140%
Shulk | Sent behind sheik | 115%
Megaman | Sent forwards from their POV | 115% - 140%
Cloud | Sent backwards from their POV | 110% - 125%
Bayonetta | Sent forwards from their POV | 105% - 115%
Donkey Kong | Sent Backwards from their POV | 130%
Corrin | sent backwards from their POV | 125%
Dair > UpAir - Footstool into a down air, then jump and up air
Footstool into an immediate down air, then jump and up air. Depending on the opponents percentage you will have to either use a short hop, a full hop, or a grounded and then a double jump.
GIF
Make sure to follow their DI with your jumps. It is often best to dash a small distance on the ground so that your first jump has forward momentum.
This combos for a very long time (Up to 190% on Mario).
This begins to kill Falco on 3DS FD at 135%.
Works on everyone except:
Diddy Kong
Kirby
Metaknight
Pikachu
Jigglypuff
Greninja
Olimar
GIF
Make sure to follow their DI with your jumps. It is often best to dash a small distance on the ground so that your first jump has forward momentum.
This combos for a very long time (Up to 190% on Mario).
This begins to kill Falco on 3DS FD at 135%.
Works on everyone except:
Diddy Kong
Kirby
Metaknight
Pikachu
Jigglypuff
Greninja
Olimar
Dair > Bouncing Fish - Footstool into a down air, then immediately bouncing fish
Footstool into an immediate down air, then bouncing fish. Depending on the opponents percentage you will have to either do a stationary BF, use a short hop, a full hop, or a grounded and then a double jump.
GIF
You will not need to follow the opponent’s DI as BF can cover the distance. It is best to just jump directly upwards and BF in the needed direction. Make sure to lengthen/shorten the BF when necessary, and activate the hit as early as possible.
This combos for a very long time (Up to 180% on Mario).
This begins to kill Falco from the spawn point of 3DS FD at 120%.
Works on everyone except:
Diddy Kong
Kirby
Metaknight
Pikachu
Jigglypuff
Greninja
Olimar
GIF
You will not need to follow the opponent’s DI as BF can cover the distance. It is best to just jump directly upwards and BF in the needed direction. Make sure to lengthen/shorten the BF when necessary, and activate the hit as early as possible.
This combos for a very long time (Up to 180% on Mario).
This begins to kill Falco from the spawn point of 3DS FD at 120%.
Works on everyone except:
Diddy Kong
Kirby
Metaknight
Pikachu
Jigglypuff
Greninja
Olimar
Dair > Bair - Footstool into a down air, then jump and back air
Footstool into an immediate down air, then jump and back air. Depending on the opponents percentage you will have to either use a short hop, a full hop, or a grounded and then a double jump.
GIF
Make sure to follow their DI with your jumps. You will normally not need to dash before your first jump, as most characters are sent behind sheik by the down air.
At very high percents, only the late hit of bair will combo, so it is best to go for an up air instead.
This combos for a very long time (Up to 200% on Mario).
This begins to kill Falco from the spawn point of 3DS FD at 145%.
Works on everyone except:
Diddy Kong
Kirby
Metaknight
Pikachu
Jigglypuff
Greninja
Olimar
GIF
Make sure to follow their DI with your jumps. You will normally not need to dash before your first jump, as most characters are sent behind sheik by the down air.
At very high percents, only the late hit of bair will combo, so it is best to go for an up air instead.
This combos for a very long time (Up to 200% on Mario).
This begins to kill Falco from the spawn point of 3DS FD at 145%.
Works on everyone except:
Diddy Kong
Kirby
Metaknight
Pikachu
Jigglypuff
Greninja
Olimar
Dair > UpTilt - Footstool into a down air, then immediately up tilt
Footstool into an immediate down air, then up tilt the moment your landing lag ends. At later percentages you will have walk forward a very small distance before doing the up tilt.
GIF
Even without DI, some characters will be sent in slightly different directions by the dair. The characters that I show that this works on below, are characters that are sent directly upwards, or slightly forwards from the down air. It is possible to combo into an up tilt on characters who are sent slightly behind you, using a perfect pivot before the down air. Those characters are not listed, and using PPs can make this combo on all of the characters that Dair > UpSmash works on.
Works on:
Zero Suit Samus 70 - 75
Falco 70 - 110
Samus 85 - 100
Cloud 110 - 115
GIF
Even without DI, some characters will be sent in slightly different directions by the dair. The characters that I show that this works on below, are characters that are sent directly upwards, or slightly forwards from the down air. It is possible to combo into an up tilt on characters who are sent slightly behind you, using a perfect pivot before the down air. Those characters are not listed, and using PPs can make this combo on all of the characters that Dair > UpSmash works on.
Works on:
Zero Suit Samus 70 - 75
Falco 70 - 110
Samus 85 - 100
Cloud 110 - 115
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pretty much useless ones (Either there is always a better option or they don’t work on enough characters)
Dair > Nair - Footstool into a down air, then jump and neutral air
Footstool into an immediate down air, then jump and neutral air. Depending on the opponents percentage you will have to either use a short hop, a full hop, or a grounded and then a double jump.
Make sure to follow their DI with your jumps. It is often best to dash a small distance on the ground so that your first jump has forward momentum.
At very high percents, only the late hit of nair will combo, so it is best to go for an up air instead.
This combos for a very long time (Up to 190% on Mario).
This begins to kill Falco from the spawn point of 3DS FD at 155%.
Works on everyone except:
Diddy Kong
Kirby
Metaknight
Pikachu
Jigglypuff
Greninja
Olimar
Dair > Fair - Footstool into a down air, then jump and forward air
Footstool into an immediate down air, then jump and forward air. Depending on the opponents percentage you will have to either use a short hop, a full hop, or a grounded and then a double jump.
GIF
Make sure to follow their DI with your jumps. It is often best to dash a small distance on the ground so that your first jump has forward momentum.
This combos for a very long time (Up to 190% on Mario).
This begins to kill Falco from the spawn point of 3DS FD at 150%.
Works on everyone except:
Diddy Kong
Kirby
Metaknight
Pikachu
Jigglypuff
Greninja
Olimar
Dair > Ftilt - Footstool into a down air, then immediately forward tilt
Footstool into an immediate down air, then instantly ftilt once your landing lag ends.
GIF
Even without DI, some characters will be sent in slightly different directions by the dair. Because of this, against some characters you will have to ftilt behind you, instead of in front of you.
At later percentages you will have to slightly delay the ftilt, so that the opponent falls slightly downwards towards you.
Works on:
Link 80 - 95
Ganondorf 80 - 110
Samus?
Zero Suit Samus 70 - 90
King Dedede 85 - 130/145
Falco 70 - 100
Megaman 95 - 120
Dair > Dtilt - Footstool into a down air, then immediately down tilt
Works on:
Falco 70
Dair > Jab 1-2 - Footstool into a down air, then immediately jab
Footstool into an immediate down air, then instantly do jab once your landing lag ends. Against some characters you will have to turn around before the jabs.
Works on:
Link 75 - 85
Ganondorf 75 - 90
Zero Suit Samus 55 - 85
King Dedede 75 - 105
Falco 70 - 85
Megaman 95 - 100
Footstool into an immediate down air, then jump and neutral air. Depending on the opponents percentage you will have to either use a short hop, a full hop, or a grounded and then a double jump.
Make sure to follow their DI with your jumps. It is often best to dash a small distance on the ground so that your first jump has forward momentum.
At very high percents, only the late hit of nair will combo, so it is best to go for an up air instead.
This combos for a very long time (Up to 190% on Mario).
This begins to kill Falco from the spawn point of 3DS FD at 155%.
Works on everyone except:
Diddy Kong
Kirby
Metaknight
Pikachu
Jigglypuff
Greninja
Olimar
Dair > Fair - Footstool into a down air, then jump and forward air
Footstool into an immediate down air, then jump and forward air. Depending on the opponents percentage you will have to either use a short hop, a full hop, or a grounded and then a double jump.
GIF
Make sure to follow their DI with your jumps. It is often best to dash a small distance on the ground so that your first jump has forward momentum.
This combos for a very long time (Up to 190% on Mario).
This begins to kill Falco from the spawn point of 3DS FD at 150%.
Works on everyone except:
Diddy Kong
Kirby
Metaknight
Pikachu
Jigglypuff
Greninja
Olimar
Dair > Ftilt - Footstool into a down air, then immediately forward tilt
Footstool into an immediate down air, then instantly ftilt once your landing lag ends.
GIF
Even without DI, some characters will be sent in slightly different directions by the dair. Because of this, against some characters you will have to ftilt behind you, instead of in front of you.
At later percentages you will have to slightly delay the ftilt, so that the opponent falls slightly downwards towards you.
Works on:
Link 80 - 95
Ganondorf 80 - 110
Samus?
Zero Suit Samus 70 - 90
King Dedede 85 - 130/145
Falco 70 - 100
Megaman 95 - 120
Dair > Dtilt - Footstool into a down air, then immediately down tilt
Works on:
Falco 70
Dair > Jab 1-2 - Footstool into a down air, then immediately jab
Footstool into an immediate down air, then instantly do jab once your landing lag ends. Against some characters you will have to turn around before the jabs.
Works on:
Link 75 - 85
Ganondorf 75 - 90
Zero Suit Samus 55 - 85
King Dedede 75 - 105
Falco 70 - 85
Megaman 95 - 100
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Teching Sheiks Down Air
The spike hit of Sheiks down air can be teched. The small amount of invincibility during the tech animation is enough for the opponent to avoid the landing hit, and so if they tech the first they will be safe from the second. Because of how laggy down air is, if the opponent techs they have frame advantage, and can punish if they’re fast.
GIF of both players holding shield
In Mario’s case, if he techs the down air he has about 6 frames of advantage, and so if they’re prepared they can get in a jab (or if they buffer, even a dsmash)
Generally, all teching will do is keep the opponent safe.
A recently discovered tech, grounded spike cancelling can also be done when hit by Sheik’s down air, but luckily for Sheik she has a landing hitbox on her down air. If the opponent successfully grounded spike cancels sheiks down air, the grounded hit will hit them anyway. Hurray.
Getting the Footstool
These combos rely on footstooling the opponent onstage, and this is something that you’ll have to practice a lot before trying in game.
This video by Beefy Smash Doods has a lot of information about footstools.
The safest ways to get it are:
Punish whiffed grabs with footstool
GIF
and
Footstool out of shield
Footstooling out of shield allows you to get very strong punishes on moves you would normally have to respect or only get a small punish on.
Another tricky way to get this is by doing ledge jump get up and mashing jump, but use this vary sparingly.
GIF
I hope these combos can help you in some way.
An example of a time this could have been used by a top player was when VoiD played Marss at Apex, and Marss whiffed a grab at a percent where he may have been able to combo dair into upsmash.
Void vs. Marss at Apex 2016
- Simikins
Last edited:
