So I've found.
*recalls the many times his cousin got a tipper*
What would you recommend I do, since I don't fight people very often?
Most people don't approach me, or if they do it's just a dash attack that I shieldgrab.
I've never really experienced shield pressure, and I've hardly had any time to inflict the pressure since nobody I know uses their shield.
When they DO use it, they usually let go after the dair, and they get shined.
I've no idea how I would be able to simulate a fight against an actual person.
Should I just not practice against CPUs and go alone in practicing tech skill?
It seems that it's all I really can do.
If that's what you guys suggest, I won't have any need for posting here anymore (besides uploaded matches).
Keep practicing against CPU's, that will continue to yield technical improvement. Wavedashing faster, waveshining more comfortable, wavelanding smoother. It won't give you any mindgaming, but your fingers will get faster.
Also since you can fight your cousin, the best way to get the most out of it is to predict every single movement he makes.
Is he going to roll back? Foward? Dash into u smash.
Techchase into ****.
Read his recoveries from the ledge and punish accordingly. When you can slow the game down in your mind so much that you can anticipate every single move, you practically own the match. He's panicking because you're so pro, while you just calmly predict his frantic smashes.
Now as you fight new people mindgames and strategies will fluctuate, and that is the game of Smash
Anyways as for approaching a marth, especially a smash happy one, try incorporating empty shorthops. Run up to him SH and waveland backwards, you have no idea how many Marths wouldve F Smash by instinct. Then you can punish the horrible lag by running at him.
However at higher levels of play Marth's tend not to F-smash, expecially the lag-punishing foxes.
Make your movements obscure and it'll look like your in light speed, it'll seem like you'll attack, but you retreat instead, then you attack (or will you?)
As for your drill, it's a status changing attack, meaning you can't CC it or (wall)tech it in anyway, so you can drill grab --> u-air (very sexy), drillshine, and since shine comes out immediately the game registers it as a true combo so no reaction is possible. Only way is to SDI out of the drill, but that's hard. Nair however can be CCed, but marth's dont have much options if you nair and land behind him. If he CC's your shine, great! he just made reaching him much easier, continue the waveshine or grab him out of his CC.
If you get a grab, always go for the u-air, it wrecks havoc on marths, cuz they're so floaty, just be sure to watch for the counters or dair, just fake them out and nail them after.
For pressuring, keep Shffl->shine->JC shffl. Just be sure not to waveshine onto them if they shield, that's just asking for a SG. The timing, of course matters, because they can buffer a roll or spot dodge, but you'll learn it over time.
If you don't have humans to play, try watching videos, and analyze the gameplay. Like predict what one person is going to do, and a way to punish. Just imagine yourself in the spot of a player, only this time you can pause and redo your strategies.
Or watch your own videos and pick out little things when you fight your cousin/friends. Like you should've did this instead of that. Plus , since you're not focusing on the battle you can zone in on what you do is predictable, and what your opponent does is predictable and kill him for it next time you play.
This is one of the reasons why some people hold out against others in friendlies, so their true playstyle isn't learned and countered, called sandbagging.
Edit: oh and i almost forgot, one way you can simulate shielding, and therefor the timing of pressuring is to give them a super star, yay for items!
