Frame Traps

[Jpot]

Since our neutral is so weak, we have to rely on a lot of baits and frame traps to set up punishes. What are your go-tos? I catch a lot of people with whiffed fsmash to jab, as it has more range and less endlag than most expect, and even the occasional well-spaced reflector bait into jab. Fair's landing hitbox also catches quite a few people due to its variable timing - it can come out well after the other hitboxes have finished. Of course, uair > uair is a staple for punishing airdodges. Do you guys have any others you like to mix in?

 

[knu_OOKA]

I catch a lot of people with whiffed fsmash to jab, as it has more range and less endlag than most expect, and even the occasional well-spaced reflector bait into jab. Fair's landing hitbox also catches quite a few people due to its variable timing - it can come out well after the other hitboxes have finished.

These really aren't frame traps much as they are baits. Frame traps occur when you force your opponent into a position in which they must get hit. Attacking or grabbing an opponent after they commit to an airdodge is a common way of frame trapping.
Anyway, sometimes when I whiff an upair against an airborne, air dodging opponent, I can sneak in a bair, depending on when they airdodge. Another cool frame trap is forcing the opponent to airdodge into the ground with an upair near the ground then punishing with a dsmash. I've never done, but I've seen it before.

 

[Jpot]

Well, a frame trap generally seems to be a situation where you produce what appears to be a punishable gap in a string of attacks that entices your opponent to a reflexive defensive maneuver that you are guaranteed to punish due to a frame advantage. Nobody must get hit, but it's very difficult to predict and react accordingly. I think a well-timed hit of landing fair can qualify as a frame trap if you catch them just after they drop shield, which happens quite often for me.

I like the bair to punish the uair airdodge, I've done it once or twice but should definitely work on identifying the timing on airdodges that I can punish that way. I'll have to play around with uair to dsmash, too. Thanks!

 

[Goldliner]

One thing I normally do is when opponents are trying to get back on the ground is I short hop bair, forcing them to air dodge into the ground and I punish with a down smash.

 

[Jeffrah]

Not sure if it's a frame trap but if players dodge my U-air, I can go to a Fair or a Bair, or even a nair depending on where they end up.

 

[Float SSB]

using the traditional fighting game definition of frame trap doesn't exactly work in smash since blockstrings don't really work the same way. The more general definition of frame trapping is forcing your opponent into situations where they must choose a particular option to escape the trap. In this sense, falcos uair > uair trap against air dodges is a frame trap as they must have an option to challenge the first uair or get trapped.

I really like challenging landings with fair. Even if they air dodge, you can use fast fall to punish with your landing hitbox of fair. You can often set this up off a dthrow above the normal dthrow>fair combo percentage.

 

[Daybreak502]

Besides the well known up air up tilit frame traps. I love frame trapping into Down smash when they airoddge to the ground while I'm doing nair bair or uair. Especially Nair because it auto cancels so if they airoddges the Nair to the ground I catch them with down smash

 

[Snipnigth]

A good frame trame that may earn you a kill is to up throw and go for a up air if he doges the upaire is a guarateed bair.

 

[BlueBirdE]

Up air to bair is our best frame trap. Sh uair to fast fall to the ground is good to catch opponents right above you. I've also had situations when edgeguarding opponents where I force them to take a hit below the stage where if they airdodged they wouldve touched the blast zone and if they get hit likely not make it back.
Id also say dair is good off stage for its long lasting hit box and possible follow ups from getting the sour spot to hit.

 

[Snipnigth]

Id also say dair is good off stage for its long lasting hit box and possible follow ups from getting the sour spot to hit.

Yeah!, i discovered this by mistake yestarday, I hit the dair offstage with the sour hit almost at the end of it and it allowed me to combo into fair, really cool

 

[BlueBirdE]

I think sour spot dair to bair could be a true combo? I need to test with someone who can spotdodge. Also I remember talking about sourspot dair to nair and how it drags opponents down. Things i need to revisit.