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Guide Guide to Weilding the REAL Triforce of Wisdom

So, how good/bad is my FAQ?

  • It roxorz my soxorz

    Votes: 201 45.1%
  • It's good

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  • It's decent

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  • Dude, this sucks

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  • Total voters
    446

DoH

meleeitonme.tumblr.com
Joined
Jul 1, 2004
Messages
7,618
Location
Washington, DC
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Guide to weilding the Triforce of Wisdom

Version 1.0

Written by DaRkNeSsOfHeArT

<quietwyatt87@yahoo.com>



Disclaimer: I do NOT own Nintendo , Zelda, SSBM, or any other property of Nintendo.


I. Introduction
________________________
Hey, it's me, DaRkNeSsOfHeArT, or DoH for short. This is my first ever FAQ, but that doesn't mean that it will be bad. If you read whats in here and practice, you can become a lot better with Zelda. I've learned alot from the board at Gamefaqs, and if you listen to them they'll teach you some amazing things. I became obsessed over the fact that many people played Sheik, Zelda's alter ego, while completely ignoring Zelda. This disturbed me because ignoring Zelda
is ignoring what makes Sheik so unique; the ability to have 2 movesets, and an answer for every situation. Over time I have become alot better at the game; a result of hard work, effort, and patience.

Zelda is one of two token princesses in the Nintendo world. Constantly rescuedby Link from the clutches of Ganon, Zelda rarely sees any action. Until SuperSmash Bros. Melee. Here, Zelda can use an extent of her magical prowess that she showed in LoZ: OOT. Not too fast, but very powerful, Zelda's magic can guide you to victory from the clutches of defeat. Don't expect her alter ego Sheik to be in here; a) she's almost a completely different character, and b) Xif has already written an awesome FAQ on how to use her. I suggest you go there to learn both sides of this unique character.

II. Why the **** be the princess?
__________________________
Zelda is, by general consensus, mid-tier in the current metagame. She's really slow, can't wavedash very far, can't jump high, and has some lag on her powerfulattacks. But Zelda is an untapped resource. For those of you who play MTG,
Zelda is like a blue control; you have to predict what your opponents are going to do and then counter and punish. This new way of playing Zelda will hopefully lead to an increase in popularity for her. It's a way of playing defensive and
playing some serious mind games with your opponents. And she does have her pros.

III. General Vocab
________________________
There are some terms, and even techniques you are probably not familiar with.
Some of these things are crucial for a good player. So please pay close
attention to this section (Big thanks to DarkPhoenix87 for help on this section)

Rolling - Left or Right while shielding. Zelda actually has a quick roll, an offset
to her low footspeed.

Sidestep - aka, Spotdodging. Down while sheilding. This allows Zelda to dodge attacks
or projectiles. It lasts a long time, which can be a blessing and a curse.
very useful

Air Dodging - L or R while in the air. Useful for dodging projectiles or
getting past edguarders. Zelda has one of the longest air dodges out there.

L-cancel- When L, R, or Z is pressed right before you hit the ground, you
reduce the normal recovery time after an aerial attack.

Shffl'd- This is an acronym meaning "Short-hopped, Fast-falled, L-cancelled."
It is basically the most effective way certain aerial attacks can be pulled off,
and is a must in competitive play.

Shield grab- Hitting A or Z while L or R shielding. If someone tries an
aerial (that's not shffl'd) use this to counter

Sheild shifting- Using the control stick to angle the shield to prevent shield-
stab, or provide extra protection in a given direction.

Shield-stab- Attacking a shielded opponent where the shield's leaving a part of
the character vulnerable, allowing them to bypass the shield's defense.

Wavedash- Air-dodging diagonally toward the ground, as close to the ground as
possible, will result in a movement that abuses the games physics by allowing a
player to make themself slide across the ground. Most obvious with Luigi, Marth,
Roy, Mewtwo, and Ice Climbers. You can turn around more quickly by
wavedashing in the opposite direction of your run, then picking up on the
momentum.

Wavedance- Wavedashing back and forth.

Wavesmash- A wavedash, then a c-stick direction

Teching- When you are tumbling in the air after being hit, you can press L, R,
or Z near the ground or a wall/ceiling, with or without a direction, to recover
faster than usual. Holding left or right on a ground tech will result in a roll
in the direction.

Knockback- Refers to how far a character is sent after being hit by an attack.

Priority- If an attack has a lot of priority, if it hits another attack at the
same time it will over power the attack and the opponent will be the only one
to receive damage. The more priority the better.

Sex Kick- This term refers to any neutral aerial A kick that does damage after
the actual movement of the foot is over. The attack gets weaker and has less
knockback the longer it is out. The only exception is Dr. Mario. His sex kick
attack actually gets stronger, and has more knockback the longer it is out.
Fox and Falco's aerial backwards A are also considered sex kicks.

Tilt attack- Holding any one of the four control stick directions, and hitting A.
Some <, > tilt attacks can be aimed to the diagonal.

Smash attack- "Smashing" any of four directions on the control stick plus the A
button. The C-Stick is used for smash attacks too.

Wall-jump- Hitting the opposite direction when your character is near a wall,
and not tumbling. Works only with Mario, Samus, Young Link, Fox, Sheik, Falco,
Pichu, and Captain Falcon. Peach can wall jump using the wallbombing strat.

Chain-throw- Continually throwing another character in such a manner as to
prevent them from landing. Sheik can do this with her down throw on a lot of
characters.

Dash-cancelling- During a run, pressing down will stop the run.

Dash-Dancing- Quickly alternating left and right on the control stick, so the
character only does the opening animation of the run. This is to be used for
mind games, or feinting the opponent.

C-Sticking- Used to describe the act of using the c-stick to do aerials, smash
attacks, and other things in multiplayer mode. This will be used EVERY TIME you
dash cancel into a smash attack.

Edge-guarding- Using attacks to prevent the enemy from recovering to the stage.

Edge-hogging- A character holding onto an edge will not permit another
character to do the same. This is useful in preventing an enemy's recovery.
The best way to edge-hog is to either wave dash or short-jump backwards onto
the ledge.

Edge-hop- A jump quickly following a press of down from an edge-hang will let
characters do a short edge-hop. Most, if not all characters can do attacks out
of this.

Fast-falling- Pressing down while in the air will make your character fall
faster than usual. You can fast-fall out of aerial attacks, air dodges,
and failed ^B attacks. Young Link, however, is nearly unaffected by this.

Hyper/Power Shielding- Shielding at the exact instant an attack or item hits
your character. Will result in a white flash and the attack not hitting.
Projectiles will be reflected.

Directional Influence- holding left or right on the control stick while falling
or going up to change the direction at which you are falling. (Abbreviates into
"DI")

Crouch Canceling- If you are crouching and you are attacked, you do not go flying
and recovery from the attack almost instantly, it is a good way to allow yourself
to counter attack the opponent by using down tilt immediately afterwards.

Bat-drop- This is a technique done in Home-run Contest. If you jump or double
jump, drop the bat with Z, and spike it down right after the bat hit's the bag,
it does between 25 and 35 damage. Doing this repeatedly can get very high
records. We use BD for short.

No-Ping hit- Another Home-run contest term. If you stand underneath the sandbag,
and face away, and smash the bat, if it hits with the back it will be sent flying
the other direction further than a regular hit. It doesn't work at damages in the
120% range and above however.

Tipper- A term mainly for Home-run contest. Hitting with the tip of the bat will
send the sandbag further than any other part of the bat, and still further than a
no ping after the 120% range.


IV. General Movelist
________________________

A Moves

On the ground:

A - Short Flash
Damage: 5%
Knockback: Next to none
Speed: High-Mid
Range: Low-Mid
Description: A basic A move, but it also can stun an opponent, relatively fast, but I prefer the forward tilt A. Best used as a suprise stifle to begin your offense.

Tilt Forward/Backward A - Mystic Swipe
Damage: 13%
Knockback: Medium
Speed: Mid-High
Range: Mid-High
Description: Short and sweet, like a quick jab to the ribs. Used to push the enemy into the air for a KO. Can be tilted into a diagonal up/down in a 45 degree angle. Use it to start combos or to go on the offensive after CCing. Works great if you can combo into a kick from it; try two or three of these on Sheik/Fox/Falco/Falcon. Also sets up for bair if they DI behind you. use the diagonals to cover where up tilt and up smash won't.

Tilt Down A - Trip
Damage: 7%
Knockback: Little
Speed: Med
Range: Med
Description: Not that strong, but it can be used on the edge of a cliff as a meteor smash! It takes some time to get used to, but it can catch opponents off guard. It will stifle your opponents recovery if you weild it well.The spike is dependant on where you can hit the opponents body. Hit with itat either their chest, feet or head. It can be used repeatedly over and over on some opponents, like the CPU does. End it with the down smash. Decent for CCing. At higher percents, you can use this into a fsmash.

Tilt Up A - Protective Sweep
Damage: 11%
Knockback: Med-High
Speed: Med
Range: Mid
Description: A move that can set opponents up for an aerial finish, stifle advances, and if their damage is high enough, even KO. This has great priority. Use it repeatedly on fast fallers. Cover spots where upsmash doesn't with this.

SMASH Forward A - Shining Palm
Damage: Sweetspotted, 20%
Knockback: High
Speed: Fairly quick
Range: Mid
Description: Zelda shoots electricity from her palm; a very powerful smash and an effective ground-based KO move...but only if you can learn it's sweetspot. It's right at the base of her palm. Otherwise, she'll do about 1%, and your
opponents will laugh in your face. For best results, use a down tilt into thisat high percents. This will connect 99.9% of the time if you're in range in version 1.0. Awesome in teams; don't use this on Jiggs/Kirby in any version other than 00, as they can duck under it.

SMASH Down A - Compass Spin
Damage: 15%
Knockback: High
Speed: Fairly Quick
Range: Mid-low
Description: You can use this as an alternative to a throw to get them off of the stage, since it sends opponents at a downward angle. Otherwise, use it out of the downtilt combo. Since it hits low, it can be used as an effective attack. The fastest smash in the game, use it as a clearout move since it comes out in 4 frames.

SMASH Up A - Power Sweep
Damage: 15%
Knockback: Med
Speed: Fast
Range: Med
Description: Catch an opponent in the center of this smash, and Zelda will juggle them with electricity. If you catch an opponent on the side of the attack, they'll be likely to escape. Combo into this with a Tilt Up A. Works wonders on fast fallers, but can be DI'ed out of kinda easily...you can catch attacks like Link's dair with it if you can time it right, and it looks **** cool.

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Aerial Moves

Nair - Magic Spin
Damage: 4%-13%
Knockback: Last hit will send flying, if not, then very little
Speed: Realatively quick
Range: Small
Description: Uh, not much to say, would be alot better if it had Peach's nair's god-like priority. Not very useful. Only used as a last defense, though Nayru's Love is generally better. However, you can follow it up with either fair/bair, or fast-fall and l-cancel into a fsmash, or a tilt. You can use it as a sheild in the air, since it has decent priority. However, due to the nerfness of it, you can often miss the last hit (which like Zelda's other moves, contains all the knockback), leaving you to be a sitting duck. However, you can combo it into something useful, like dash or a follow up kick.

Fair/Bair - Lightning Kick/Reverse Lightning Kick
Damage: 5%-20%
Knockback: High
Speed: Fairly quick
Range: High
Description: Zelda's best aerial, you had better learn where the sweetspot, at the base of her heel or toe, is. This is a powerful finisher, and if you're quick, it can be used reapeatedly at low percentages for high damage. Fair has more range, but Bair is faster by 2 Frames... Learn to use it well. You can use a non sweet spotted one to fake out an opponent and make them think you're open, then use another when they get close. Shuffled bairs are HELL for most characters.

Uair - Condensed Blast
Damage: 13%
Knockback: High
Speed: Med
Range: Med
Description: Okay, I used to hate this move. Really, I did. Then I found it to actually be useful. The timing is really difficult though. It can even stop Link's dair in it's tracks. When you and your opponents are at around 80%, you can drop down from a ledge you're hanging on, use this, fast-fall a little then teleport back up directly on the ledge and repeat.

Dair - Meteor Heel
Damage: 8%
Knockback: Med
Speed: some delay
Range: small
Description: Zelda's other Meteor smash. Doesn't send people flying straight down, just stifles their recovery. I use it out of spite and contempt, but only at over 100%. If only it was as godly as Ness' dair from SSB64. On fast fallers
it can work at around 70%.

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Special Moves

B - Nayru's Love
Damage: 4%-12%
Knockback: Medium
Speed: Med
Range: Med
Description: Zelda's reflector. Also an extremely useful move. It's main use is of course deflection, but it is also an invaluable tool in edgeguarding; however you must learn to hit with the side corner edges. This will stop attempts to grab the ledge. It also has invincibility frames, so you can use it as a shield.

B Forward - Din's Fire
Damage: 7%-12%
Knockback: Med
Speed: Slow
Range: High
Description: Zelda's projectile. Possibly the easiest to dodge in the game. If you use it as a projectile. You can use it as they're coming at you, and release it in their face. Don't use it in the air, it will take away your 3rd jump. Hitting opponents with Din's Fire behind will cause them to fly forward, while hitting them from the front or the center of their body will cause them to fly back. Only use it for setting up people to be edgeguarded, at higher damages to be set up for fair. Sometimes it can disrupt special horizontal recoveries like Samus or Marth. You can jump, then use Din's Fire forward, and you'll drift backwards, which can mess up your opponents anticipations.

Zelda's Din Fire - 34-72 (0.566666-1.2 sec)
---Explosion Starting Time (short range) is frames 60-62 (takes 1 sec to start)
---Explosion Starting Time (long range) is frames 98-100 (takes 1.633333 sec to start)
---If you start it and it hits a wall instantly, it can start as soon as frame 34
---If Zelda is hit on frame 12 of the move, then the fireball comes out of her but
never explodes
---If Zelda is hit frame 26 + of the move, then the fireball comes out of her and explodes
on frame 98. This (frame 26) is the TRUE starting time of Din's Fire, or at least what
I'm counting as it's starting time
---Starts in 23 frames if you release B while the fireball is moving in the air
---Explosion lasts for 3 frames


B Down - Transform
Damage: 0%
Knockback: None
Speed: Fairly quick
Range: None
Description: The best down B ever. You turn into Sheik. Read Xif/Me Frog's FAQ on how to use her. You can hold down A before a melee starts to start the battle as Sheik. But you don't need top tier, do you?

B Up - Farore's Wind
Damage: 4%
Knockback: Little
Speed: Med
Range: High
Description: Zelda teleports in the direction of your choice. Has extreme range for a recovery move. You can deal damage to people if you touch them with the yellow wind things. Very useful for mindgames. EX, someone is coming at you. You use FW. They turn around, but you reappear exactly where you were. Learn how to control it. Keep in mind that you'll only be gone when you fully disappear. Teleport cancelling to exploit the invincibility frames of ledges makes Zelda impervious.

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Grabs and throws

Grab & Attack
Damage: 3%
Knockback: None
Speed: Slow
Range: ...kinda horrid, use the dash grab, twice the range, with the same lag as the normal grab
Description: Zelda shocks the opponent. Use it for extra damage. Great for teams, as you can stun the opponent while your partner charges up something deadly (Peach's downsmash, anyone?)

Forward throw - Levitation
Damage: 12%
Knockback: Med
Speed: N/A
Range: N/A
Description: Zelda throws the opponent forward. Use it to get people off of the stage. Doesn't really KO, but gets them off for a pursuit.

Back Throw - Reverse Levitation
Damage: 11%
Knockback: High
Speed: N/A
Range: N/A
Description: A Powerful throw, can KO characters with poor recovery at realatively low percentages. Zelda's most powerful throw. Also use this to set up for edgeguarding. At low percents with fastfallers, can be combo'd to a kick, then to an edgegaurd.

Down Throw - Plasma Beat
Damage: 9%
Knockback: Small
Speed: N/A
Range: N/A
Description: Excellent use for set ups at mid percentages for either fair/bair or the d-tilt spike. Also can be comboed with the dash attack.

Up Throw - Levitation Launch
Damage: 11%
Knockback: Med
Speed: N/A
Range: N/A
Description: Shoot an opponent directly into the air. Again, use it for an aerial set up. With fast fallers at low percents, use in combination with the up tilt, and at mids, uair.
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Misc. Moves

Dashing A - Magical Push
Damage: 12% sweet spotted, 8% not
Knockback: Med
Speed: Fairly quick
Range: Med
Description: A great dash attack. At low damages it can be used repeatedly, at high damages, it can be used to set up for an aerial KO

Ledge Attack Below 100%
Damage: 6%
Knockback: Med
Speed: Med
Range: Med
Description: Okay, not as good as her over 100% one. It's better to roll or ledge hop into a fair instead.

Ledge Attack Above 100%
Damage: 10%
Knockback: Med
Speed: Faster than the other one, but not by much
Range: Med
Description: It's better to roll or ledge hop into a f/uair, especially if you're already over 100%

On the Floor Attack
Damage: 6%
Knockback: Med
Speed: Fairly quick
Range: Med
Description: Standard among floor attacks. Hits on both sides and is fairly fast. Either use this or a roll is you miss a tech.

Up on the D-Pad - Taunt
Damage: 0%
Knockback: N/A
Speed: N/A
Range: NONE
Description: Zelda has the worst taunt in the game. It's so subtle, they won't even notice. Anyway, she just closes her eyes and clasps her hands. Instead of doing something cool, like juggling magic from her hands. It's one of the
shorter taunts in the game though, not that your opponent is actually going to notice you taunted >.< It's also known as the prayer for the dead, for obvious reasons; lasts a second and a half.
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Defensive Moves

Big thanks to Mew2King for some stats info!

Shield- Not much to say, except it covers most of her body unlike some people. You should try to shield more than anything else, because with a shield comes a shield grab, and you can throw back for a KO at a ledge or down throw into a fair/bair, or you can jump out of the shield and suprise them with a fair.

Roll- Zelda has a fairly fast and simple roll, good to average compared to othercharacters. Often it can be better than her run. You can spam it to get away in a pinch.

Side step dodge- It's somewhat fast, but lasts a long time for a dodge. If you're good at it, you can predict when attacks are going to happen and then punish the attacker. Some characters, like Captain Falcon and Zelda, start their invincible part of the dodge on the 3rd frame. Note that for 99% of attacks, Zelda is invincible for the 2nd frame + (but certain explosion moves can hit her on the 3rd frame of the move so it still counts as starting it on the 3rd frame)

Air dodge- Zelda has an amazing air dodge, if you're in the air and your opponent is in the air, don't be afraid to use it. Also use it for recovery if you're close enough to the stage. Especially for projectile attacks, Peach/Zelda dodge them longer than anyone (and 1 frame earlier than normal too).There's also how long the air dodge keeps them in air, like how Zelda/Peach's is MUCH quicker than the other characters, as when those 2 princesses air dodge they fall back
down to the ground almost right away (I bet you didn't know that Zelda's Air Dodge goes FARTHER/HIGHER than Zelda's aerial jump, which is really weird)

Ledge Roll- Its better than her ledge attacks, and better then the ledge hop if the opponent can take you in the air. Zelda has the 3rd longest roll at under 100%, and the 4th longest at over 100%.

Ledge Hop- One of your two primary things to do while on a ledge, use it to get yourself into the air for a fair/bair.

Wavedash- It's really too short to be used effectively for wavesmashes, ect because of Zelda's high traction. You can use it upon landing for a small get-away, but on the ground her roll is longer. Can also be used to distance yourself for the forward smash. A must use at higher levels of play.

Superwavedash - Okay, I lied by saying that Zelda has a superwavedash to get you in here. But you can make her wd go longer by airdodging at more of a horizontal angle than normal (almost 90 degrees). It'll increase your wavedash distance at least 1.5x, about as long as Sheik's, instead of moving an inch.

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Character Matchups

General character strategies. Remember that this isn't a Bible (or in my case, a Torah) on how you should run your Zelda or that their character is always going to be like this; this is just general advice per character based on my experiences. Remember to be flexible also; this is one of Zelda's strengths and weaknesses, so don't be caught up just throwing out kicks randomly.

--------------
Doctor Mario
--------------

It's like Mario...but fat and on steroids...so that's whats in the megavitamins...

His approach tactic is Pill Rushing, where he'll throw megavitamins in your face, stunning you and allowing him to follow up with whatever he wants. Nayru's Love will deflect the pills back at him and push him away if he's too close for comfort. Or if he's at higher damages, shield the pill and shield grab to down throw to fair/bair... The Doc's fair will send you upwards instead of spike, but it's more powerful; don't get hit with it, since you're easily KO'd by vertical attacks. Shield grab it too if you're on land.

His smashes are great on you; dont let him use it. He can combo you into them from a down throw. Like Mario, the Doc's recovery sucks horizontally, so, either dair or fair/bair him back to the ER. Remember, his fsmash has as much range as
Pikachu's grab, so he'll have to get close to use it; WD backwards and then follow up.

The Doc also has a great bair and amazing throw. His Sex Kick is unusual; it'll get stronger the longer it's out, which is inconvienient because he has to hit at the last possible moment. His throws are also pretty good; watch out for the down throw to up/down smash kill. His back throw is more a problem for other characters, but with your amazing recovery it shouldn't be too much of one unless you're near the edge of a stage with a close blast zone (Flatzone, ect.), unless you're at pretty high percents.

----------------
Mario
----------------

Good Mario's are total air whores. That's where they like to attack from. Shffl'ing their aerials...so Shield grab them. If you start to get hit by a string of them, tech roll out so you can't be strung. His down and forward smashes are great, yet they don't have much range; so stay out of it and then counter with a follow up attack, or use your forward smash, since it moves you in the start up. His Fireballs can't stun you like Docs, so he'll be using them mainly for a distraction. His recovery falls prey easily to either one of your meteors, so take advantage of that as much as possible. Make sure you avoid his fair, as it is also a meteor smash. Meteor cancel it if you get hit by it (jump as soon as you're hit). Watch out for his bair, as it's one of his KO moves. Otherwise, you'll be fine.

He has a sex-kick too, and it's better than Doc's. Your uair can go through it if he's coming in from above, or you can use your long legs and kick him in the face. His fsmash has alot more range than Doc's, so be careful. His WD is pretty
sweet, though not like Luigi's. Alot of times he'll try to edgeguard you with bair or uair; teleport to the stage before he's in range.

------------------
Luigi
------------------

Floaty McFloaterson. Normally very slow, but in the hands of an expert, he's suddenly wavedashing around. Sheild grab his aerials, though it may be hard since they're fast and have great priority. When you take him on the ground, dodge the wavesmash, and he'll probably still be sliding, so follow up with a forward smash or dash attack to a fair.

His vertical recovery is horrid, but he's got decent horizontal. His recovery follows the pattern of forward b, then up b, so try and catch him before he gets back. If he gets you off he'll start charging the down smash for when you return to the stage. Try to get him with fair/bair before he can get you with the sex kick. Exploit his horrid vertical recovery by pursing with a dair or fair.

Nayru's can be used to stop his wavesmashing advantages too.

------------------------------
Bowser
-----------------------------

You can take Bowser to school. He's easily comboed as either one of your forms. At low percents, you can up throw into an up tilt combo. He's a huge target for your F smash and fair/bair, as well as you d tilt and dair. Since his vertical recovery sucks, you can get him low very easily for a kill, and with your recovery you can easily make it back to the stage.

Bowser likes to come after you with shffl'd fairs, and he also has the shell shifting going on. He'll use his recovery move to disrupt combos and also juggle you for a bit. If he's using the 'Fortress try dodging out of it and punish him
with a fair/bair. They also like to finish you with either the F smash or the uair. If they're coming at you for the uair kill, you've got only a few options. One is to try and out prioritize him with the dair. The second is to use Farore's wind and try to either pass him or make it to a ledge for protection. One of the best things about FW is that he won't know where the **** you'll end up, so don't be repetitive. You have to control the round, so confuse him. And remember...NEVER LET BOWSER (or anyone) KEEP YOU ABOVE HIM! If you try to shield grab him, he might Koopa Klaw you and then you'll be grabbed, so sheild grabbing him is risky.

If you're playing a dumb Bowser or a CPU (oh, wait, same thing), they'll probably try to do the Bowser Bomb (down b). Avoid and punish. However, good Bowsers can use it right next to a ledge, reducing all of the lag. If you're fast,
you can roll away and grab them out of the air. If not, then avoid and continue.

-----------------
Princess Peach
-----------------

This wench is your main rival for main Nintendo gal, and she's despised by most players. She's so special she has her own way of eliminating lag off of her aerials; float cancelling.

Shield grabbing is going to be very tough here. Your throw to aerial setups will work wonders here, and never try to KO for a throw, because Peach has amazing recovery. The other golden rule is to NEVER EVER EVER EVER CROUCH CANCEL AGAINST HER. Like don't even think about pressing down either. She'll do her downsmash...and you'll take about 60-70+% in the face.
That down smash has insane speed and priority, don't every try
to compete with it. Dodge/Roll out of the way then punish with either F smash or fair/bair.

Peach can also "Turnup Rush" like Doc. Watch out, sometimes she'll pull out the Grandpa veggie that does like 36% per hit, or even a bob-omb, or a beam sword >_<. Like Samus, it is best to rack up damage and either go for a vertical kill or an all out kill. Beware taking her on in the air, because most of her moves (especially the nair) have disturbing priority.

She's probably gonna come after you with an aerial, and if you sheild, she'll dair (which will eat your sheild) into a down smash which will hurt. She can immediately down smash out of any aerial except her fair.

One advantage that you have is that Peach's physics are almost exactly like yours; however, not many people have played Zelda, so you'll know how she moves, and she might not know how you move. You can totally out range her in the air, your main problem is dealing with her absurd priority. If she comes in for an aerial, try
rolling back, then superwavedashing forward into an fsmash or into a rising fair. Since Zelda moves her lower body back wards for the fsmash and the fair keeps you off the ground, you'll hopefully avoid the downsmash.

Your kicks take out her main advantage of superb recovery, so you can get low percent kills; reflect turnips back in close quarters, and keep her on the defensive.

-----------------
Yoshi
-----------------

Yoshi's are somewhat odd; he's got a projectile instead of a recovery move. He can control it's trajectory, and it's got good priority, though if you Nayru's Love it it'll explode. Yoshi also has the DJC thing going on like Ness, though Yoshi's has more lag. Yohsi's second jump is also invincible; he'll take damage but it won't do anything, like the opposite of having the cloaking device on. His invincibility will stop after his groan does, so wait for the opportune moment. So you back throw him, then either down smash or edge hog when he gets near. Or you could pursue him with the fair/bair, but that's somewhat risky, as he could try and take you out with his fair as a last ditch effort.

Good Yoshi's HAVE to wavedash like Samus to compensate for their horrid roll. Like Bowser, Yoshi can use his down B near a ledge and grab on to eliminate the lag. Watch out for his dair; it's a meteor smash and if he gets in all the hits, you'll have taken 56%. Just exploit his weight and lack of mobility, and especially his almost abscence of a recovery.

--------------------------
Donkey Kong
--------------------------
Donkey Kong has two advantages; one being his strength, and the second being that his limbs are extremly stretchy, like Jigglypuffs. This creates some sort of a problem because an aerial approach becomes difficult. The thing to remember is that even though he's got range, his priority is so-so.

Once DK is in range, he is like Bowser; combo-able. He's a big target for fairs, fsmashes and your other strong attacks. Once hes at higher damages, back throw off the ledge and pursue; his Bowser-esque recovery makes him a great target for the dair. Go ahead, use it out of spite.

-------------------
Captain Falcon
-------------------

This match can go either way. On one hand, Zelda can do some pretty nasty things to the Capt. On the other, he can do some stuff back and it's the fastest character in the game vs the slowest.

He falls like the Space animals, so edgeguard him like them and treat his aerials like you do Ganon. His fair is like yours, but with less range. He'll also like to edgeguard with the Falcon Punch. Sheild grab, throw, spike, and you're done. Try to stay grounded for about 3/4 of the time to avoid his knee, since I believe it out prioritizes your kick.However your kick will always out range him; Your shine can also work wonders on him. You'll usually be able to see him coming in for the knee.

Since he's a fast faller, up throw to repeated up smashes will work great, especially on version one. His fast falling speed and poor recovery make him suspect to edgeguarding; fair, spike, or shine will send him back to the track.

--------------------------
Ganondorf
--------------------------

A good Ganon player can take you to the cleaners if you're not careful. Most people think that he can use his Up B to cancel out you fair advantage; but you can control what height you're use the fair, whereas Ganon can only grab you at the height of his jump. Therefore, sffl'd fairs can give you an edge there. other than going for shffl'd fairs or dairs off the stage, I would advise staying out of the air. The air is where (RHYME TIME!) Ganon's combos happen. This is where Sheild Grabbing becomes your best friend. They usually either come to start a combo with a Gerudo Dragon (Forward B), Thunder Drop (Dair), or a grab.
Sidestep for the Gerudo and catch him in the lag. Smart Ganons will will L-cancel the dair, eliminating the lag on the move, so you'll have to try and sheild grab him out of the air, which will be a difficult task, considering the speed of his aerials.

Don't get hit with the Wizard's Foot (down b) off the stage, as it's a spike. He also might use the Warlock Punch (B) for edgeguarding, but sweetspotting the ledge with Farore's Wind should take care of that; if you're close to the stage, air dodge behind it, fast fall and catch him in the lag with a throw. If you try
rolling behind Ganon, he'll probably do his annoyingly powerful down smash.

-------------------------
Falco Lombardi
-------------------------

One of Zelda's closest matchups, next to Fox. You'll have to be on your toes the entire time, don't grow discouraged, and never be afraid to win this.

Falco's going to approach with his SH(B/L) {Short Hopped Blaster/Laser}; this allows him to make an approach while stunning you. Unfortunantly, Nayru's isn't as effective as it seems, as he'll just tag you with the laser as soon as it ends.
Nayru's will be effective in disrupting combos and KOing Falco, however. You'll have to sheild, and then combinations of jumps, Nayru's and sheilding to get close. On FD, you can mess with his preset rythm by sh Nayrus, as it'll reflect both of his shots at him.

Falco is a fastfaller, so he can be chain grabbed at low percents with the up throw. The up smash proves to be rather effective also. Once he's off the stage however, he's practically dead, due to his extremely sucky recovery. Nayru's, spike, or kick him to
finish him off; however, don't get caught under his forward b, as you'll get spiked.

When you're recovering, you'll have two options; either sweetspot the ledge, which is risky due to Falco's spike (if you miss), or teleport beyond him, avoiding the spike. Another even riskier option is to try and intercept the spike with Nayru's. His
vertical KO power isn't like Fox's, but his horizontal is just as strong; cut through the fsmash with Nayru's, and then punish.

Try to never be off the stage for long; and don't pursue if he can recover with his forward B, as you'll get spiked...to the ma><orz

Use the hex to your advantage.

-------------------------
Fox McCloud
-------------------------

I hate Fox. Zelda does too. Fox will eat you and your babies with his shine combos. Both Zelda and Sheik can be infinately comboed by Fox, so I suggest you try to keep your distance, which, due to Zelda's slow speed, is easier said than done.

For fighting Fox, you've got a few tricks. He's edguarded with your Down smash as well as Nayru's, and also his fast falling speed helps you out; make sure you take advantage of this on Fox and Falco. This fast falling speed also will disrupt your down throw to fair combo, but his light weight makes him an easy target for fair/bair and back throws. Once he's off the edge,
he's all yours to either fair/bair/dair, basically anything that will knock him further horizontally or further downwards will be a quick KO. Never let Fox get below you, as his uair and up smash are disturbingly powerful. Even his up tilt is capable of Koing you at higher percents.

In a strange twist of fate, the space animals are eaten alive by your Nayru's Love. It absolutely ruins their recovery attempts. Stop his Fox Illusion recovery with this.

Zelda can also chain throw Fox with her up throw at lower percents.

Just like Falco, keep on your toes; this match can go either way, no matter what the tiers say (RHYME!!!)

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Ness
------------------

I think even Zelda is fast enough to dodge Ness' projectiles. At best he's going to PK Fire you, which is not going to do much, and you can see it coming enough to Nayru's Love/Powersheild him if you want to. If someone is dumb enough to use PK Flash, get to them and punish. Unfortunantly, you'll almost never be able to sheild grab him from an aerial. A good Ness (though few and far between) will be using DJC (Double Jump Cancels). When you attack in the middle of Ness's double jump, you stop any vertical movement, so if they do a quick double jump, aerial attack, and land, and they can do it quickly, Ness gets practically zero lag when he lands. You can outrange him in the air, because he has stubby arms and you have adult size legs. Generally he's slower to attack then you, but he can move faster. His dash attack is sheild grab-able because of it's afterlag, but it's fairly quick.

If Ness is forced to rely on his Third Jump, he's screwed. You can dair him because he's almost like Fox/Falco recovering, a sitting duck. You can fair/bair him. ****, you can even jump into the PK thunder before it hits him, effectively screwing him over. However, if he does manage to recover and hit you with it, expect pain, in the form of about 25% damage...so move out of the way, and if he doesn't grab the ledge immediately, catch him in the lag of the end of the move.

Some Ness' like to guard with PK Flash, but sweetspotting the edge should keep you out of the fireworks.

------------------
Ice Climbers
------------------

Strangely awesome when they're desynched, the first thing on your list is to seperate them and KO Nana (or in some cases Popo, but whoever the lackey is). I've heard Nana has some sort of resistance meter since she doesn't take damage, and the less that is the easier it is to KO her. After you get rid of the lackey,
down throw to fair or back throw work best in getting Popo off the stage. Mostly they'll use the Squall hammer to recovery horizontally; but it's somewhat limited vertically, but their jump has awesome vertical power. Standard edguarding techniques
will work here.

If you need to seperate them fast, kick them, then do a follow up kick on Nana; then go after her, and fend off Popo, as he'll try to save her.

Stay away from them. They have one of the best grab games, and currently there's a bunch of grab combos at their disposal (not the mention the freezing glitch and the down tilt infinite combo thing O_O). Usually you won't be able to escape until you're at least 25% more damaged.

Just remember to try and keep them seperated, and take advantage of the CPU's stupidity...Nana can be very dumb. Since she's CPU controlled, she can't DI out of your FSmash ^.^

Don't Nayru's Love the ice shot unless there's only one; they'll just cancel each other out and leave you open for mashing. Sheild instead.

And don't let them get a fan, or they can infinately combo you :(

If they grab you at around 80% you can pretty much expect to be KO'd.

------------------
Kirby
------------------

Severely depowered from the other game, Kirby still has a decent aerial game. Shield grab. He also has an amazing crouch cancelling game, so watch out for it, it's usually followed by a down smash or down tilt. After you knock him off you can either pursue for a fair/bair kill or wait on the ledge with a down smash then pursuit.

He'll usually follow his down throw with an up smash, so watch out for that. Also, his uair is pretty good, but you should never ever let a character get under you.

Like other characters with good recovery, usually go for an all out kill. Standard floaty tactics apply. However, you've got to kick before he attacks, otherwise his priority will eat through your kicks.

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Samus Aran
------------------

Ever heard of when Wes gets beaten by Mow and Mike M? Think it's easy? Well you're wrong; this match is going to be extremely tough.

I loathe and abhorr Samus. Why? Because she doesn't die horizontally, and Zelda's vertical KOing abilities are somewhat limited. Samus has a sweet projectile game, but projectiles need space to be effective. Most Samus players wont anticipate an offensive Zelda, so use that to an advantage. When you're in her face, take care to avoid her down smash and her aerials (especially her sex kick). The sex kick has a disjointed hitbox, which makes them un-shield grabable and gives it insane priority. Her down smash is also amazing. Her falling speed is floaty, but she's also like the 3rd heaviest character o_O...

You're probably going to be constantly be dodging missiles, so an aerial approach is a safe bet. Because of Zelda's low jump, you can jump over the missiles and attack with a fair/bair. Samus has the best CC in the game, but she can't CC out of your forward smash ^_^

When you manage to grab her, either go for a back throw at ledges or a down throw to aerial setup. Sffl'ing aerials on her shouldn't be a big problem because of her slow and laggy grab. Once you get her off the edge, she'll probably come after you with bomb jumps...which, unless you're playing an expert Samus is fine, because your projectile can be controlled to hit her,
disrupting the bombs and not allowing her to get close enough to grab the ledge or grapple the stage. If they can outmaneaver your Din's Fire, try racking up damage to KO with an up tilt or a fair/bair, or even pursue them for a fair/bair kill off the stage, then using your massive recovery to get back safely. ^.^

------------------
Zelda
------------------

Ah, the ditto match. This is going to be a battle of mindgames, and whoever can land the fair/bairs first. Zelda's somewhat floaty in the way she falls, so she's suspect to the down throw fair combo. You can shield grab her fair/bairs; then go in for a kill. Edguarding and KO throws are generally useless, due to Zelda's insane recovery; but she cannot travel up the stage like Fox & Sheik while teleporting. Like Peach and Jiggs, it's better to go for an all out KO at around 100% with the Kick. This match is one of those where you'll be sweating at the end.

----------------
Sheik
----------------

Hey, it's part of you! The Sheik n00bs will probably be "tilt spamming, down throw using, slap whoring transvestites" as Xif said. However, the good Sheik players will go beyond that, into even more ***-kickery. So your best bet is to really fight fire with fire. Sheik, by general consensus of the community, is the best character in the game, seeing as she has no glaring weaknesses and almost every advantage in the book. Zelda isn't a match for her at all :(

Not so great Sheiks are a different story. Both of you are relatively the same weight, so you'll know when a move will KO. Her aerials are amazing, but they don't have as much damage as yours do, but they're just as deadly, if not more. Her main assets are her down smash, fair, and down throw. The d-smash comes out quick, lasts long, and has great range and priority. Your best bet is probably to sheild grab her aerials, and use set ups for your aerials. Her recovery is somewhat exploitable, but it's risky to pursue her since she can always edgehog to prevent your return if you miss... not like you would, right?

There's also another strategy. Start the match as Sheik, and then chain throw her to high percents. Then transform back, leaving her to deal with the percent advantage you have.

Alot of Sheiks use Needle setups to get their aerials in; they'll short hop, start charing needles, and then they'll have several options. A)Fire the needles, then land (needle canceling elminates the lag) then follow up with a grab or smash, B)Cancel and follow up with an aerial, C) Cancel and dodge and catch you up in your attack lag. It's like 'paper, scissors, stone' but the odds are seriously tipped in their favor. I'd roll backwards, then use Zelda's superwavedash forward, and then fsmash. Or wavedash backwards into another backwards roll to escape.

To win this, you must not get tilted, you must tilt her and kill her at low percents; fsmash can kill at the edge at 60%! You've got to beat out her aerials with your range too.
------------------
Link
------------------

Hey look, it's the ex-boyfriend. Link is slow AND heavy. A great combination for you. Alot of his combos start with either the hookshot or the bomb. You can do the whole Nayru's Love thing to reflect projectiles back or just shield (though shielding leads to sheild grabs and is much faster). You can even shield the bombs and throw them back at him or catch them in mid air. Watch
out for the Spin Attack; it's got great prirority and range. That and his dair are the two moves the Link worshipping n00bs SPAM over and over. If he's using it on land, watch for it to die down and then strike. Because of his weight, he's succeptible
to back throws, and if you can dair/fair/bair him before he can use the spin attack, he's so dead. Your Nayru's Love can also seriously screw with his recovery. His shield grab, like Samus, is horrid; use fair/bair freely here.

After the Spin Attack, aim for the head; also, if he tries to take you to the top, DI out of the Spin, then kick, as it should KO him off the top.

------------------
Young Link
------------------

Much faster than his older incarnation, Young Link will try and combo more than use clear out attacks. He's much more reliant on projectiles to get this through though. The Boomerang can hit with more angles and you have to dodge it twice, the arrows stun more, and the bombs are comboable, as well with an improved spin attack. When you hit him, hit him hard, and don't give him a chance to start his own combo.

If he hits you with the hilt of the sword on his dair, you'll get lit on fire, and be spiked; it's meteor cancable, however

------------------
Pichu
------------------
Don't worry about the Thunder Jolt approach; he'd hurt himself more than you. He's got good aerials, but little range makes him an easy target for sheild grabbing. Watch out for his up throw to Thunder combo at higher percents; he also has great vertical KO power. I've never encountered a good Pichu player, though I'm interested in his more advanced techniques. I guess I have to wait until Pictish finishes his FAQ for more info.

Most of Pichu's game is heavily reliant on evasion. On stages like Final Destination, this is near impossible; exploit that.

This is going to be somewhat hard due to the fact that most of your kill moves have very specific hitboxes; try fsmashing him in the air to negate his heighth advantage.

-----------------
Pikachu
-----------------

He can apporach like Doc with the Thunder Jolts, so remember your tactics. Watch out for Pika's up/down smashes. Pika also has INSANE vertical KO power, that is easily exercised on your light frame. The up smash is one of (if not the) most powerful in the game, and it's probably going to be his primary KO move.

Once he's at a high damage you can finish it with either a tilt to a kick (or in some cases, just a tilt will murder the rat) or the down throw to kick. Remember to watch your below, or the Pokemon will juggle you to death. His ground game is pretty good, so try and take it to the air; but avoid his uair, it's a pseudo spike that can sometimes beat out even your amazing recovery.

Stay away from his down smash, which will keep you in the air and above him. Also watch out for the 'Thunderflip' combo, his up smash into thunder, it's nasty. Also, don't let him grab you, as you'll get thrown down/up into either an up smash to thunder or just thunder.

--------------------
Jigglypuff
--------------------

This little gal gives most charcter's alot of trouble, even Zelda
and her amazing fair/bair. Jiggs has the best aerial game in the game, so stay on the ground. If she starts doing the Wall of Pain (WoP), the key is not to try and out prioritize her, but to attack her in between her attacks. Since she's really floaty, down throw to fair/bair is a good option. If you cannot escape the WoP, then turn into Sheik and use da bairs. She can recover from extremly long distances, though, but the key is patience. And NEVER let Jiggs get a Screw Attack, and try to keep your distance from her because of the powerful rest; though if she misses, she's a sitting duck for a forward smash or a fair.

The rest is a powerful tool, and she's got several ways to execute it. Usually it'll be Pound, drift back into rest. If they miss it, always kick, as they can crouch out of fsmash.

Just like Peach and Samus, either go for a vertical Ko with the uair or just an all-out power KO. And like Kirby, strike before them to avoid their priority.

-----------------
Mewtwo
-----------------

Mewtwo suffers from "bad guy syndrome" just like Bowser. He's really floaty and light, and very slow, and is also a very big target. You can deflect the Shadow Ball since it's so slow, and some M2's will use confusion to pull you through platforms if you're near the edge. Advanced Mewtwos have great wavedashes, and some will often WD/SH into Disable...a nasty trick mind you. Just kick the crap out of him, he's alot lighter than you. His overall aerial game is pretty good. Watch out for his fair, it's freakishly fast for him, as well as his nair, it's both fast and has high priority. His up throw is pretty strong, and his back
throw may give you some trouble. Watch out for his spike too.

Mewtwo players have to have amazing mind games due to his severe weaknesses. They'll try to mess things around by using a combination of Teleports and air dodges, so be on your guard. At high percents don't go for the kick if he's on the ground, as he'll
up throw you and you'll die.

Mewtwo als has a great tilt game; it's almost on par with Sheiks. He may try to get you far away from the platform and pseudo-WOP you with his bair, but kick and return. Just remember your general floaty tactics and you'll do fine.

Try to take him to stages with alot of walls, so he can't escape as much and he'll be easier to combo.

------------------
Mr. Game & Watch
------------------

Utterly bizzarre.

His main killing move is his nair, and sometimes he'll get lucky with the Judgement after a down throw. His crouch cancel goes really low so you can't grab him, and he'll be using the spot dodge and wavedash for evasion. His uair is good for juggling, but it can't be l-canceled, so catch him in the lag. He's got a weak ground game and his paper weight will make him an easy target for fair/bair. Also watch out for his down tilt, as it's pretty good.

I haven't really played a good Geedubya, so I'll get updates on this later.

---------------------
Marth
---------------------

Link wonders why Zelda left him for Marth. Marth has it all; range, speed, power, and he's as gender confused as you...and pictish. If you're Zelda and playing a good Marth he'll be kicking your *** from here to kingdom come if you don't transform
into Sheik. Sheik's game is fast enought to be able to take Marth out.

Other than that, try staying as close to him as you can; he'll deal more damage with the tip of his sword. Press him hard, and use your decent range with the Lightning Kicks to gain an edge. His main star KO move, the up tilt, can be completely avoided if you crouch next to him ;D.Back throw off the stage, and edgeguard. His fair is good, watch out for it. His grab is really good too, but his throws are weak (damage wise). However, they can be chained, and he can throw you forward then combo into a tipped forward smash. Ouch.

If he's coming after you, it'll generally be with either a foxtrot or a wavedash.

And remember the golden rule about Marth; there comes a point where if you're at high enough damage, he can no longer combo you for a KO, or KO effectively for that matter. Exploit this on him whenever possible, especially if on Hyrule Temple with the 'Cave of Life' (although it's banned in tourneys >.<)

If he's coming in for an attack, spot dodge then immediately fsmash or Nayru's. His floatyness makes him a prime target for alot of your combos, so exploit that. Try to keep him into the air, as it's there where you'll have a decent range.

To approach, you must triangle jump. Remember, you can chain bairs on him, so do so, frequently. And always edge hog him, then do a ledge dropped bair.

-----------------
Roy
-----------------

Alot easier to deal with than Marth, Roy's sweetspot is in the middle of his sword; hitting there will increase the damage and knockback, so on that note try to press the distance between the two of you. He still has the disjointed hitbox though. He's also alot slower and falls faster than Marth. At low percents you can try the down throw near the ledge with the down tilt combo for a meteor KO. His horizontal recovery sucks compared to Marth; so hit him hard or throw him far. Remember he's got a decent ground game, but his aerial game is severely lacking. His uncharged Flare Blade has a ton of priority and power; watch out for his counter too, especially if he's countering your fair/bair, it'll do about 30% to you instead.

Take him to the air, then fair/bair; his lack of an aerial game allows you to own him hardcore: be wary of his sweetspot, as you have to be in it's range to lightning kick.

_____________________
General Strategy
_____________________

While not the combo king Sheik is, Zelda has a few tricks up her sleeve...er, glove.

- Tilt to Kill - Zelda's tilts are generally used to set up for a powerful attack. Use her down tilt into her forward smash. At higher percentages, the up tilt and forward tilts are great setups for the fair/bair KO. Sometimes the tilts will outright
KO an opponent; the tilt KO's work best on lightweights. Heavyweights are easy prey for Zelda's tilt too. Your down tilt will usually be unsuspected; use this advantage for spiking.

- Use the Force, er, your throws - Zelda's throws are pretty good, so use them. Her back throw has strong KOing power, and at low percentages sets up your opponent to be edgeguarded. Her forward throw won't KO, but it also allows easy edguarding.
Her up throw will set your opponents up for your aerial finish, and can be chained on fast fallers. Her down throw, while not chainable, is great for sending opponents at an angle perfect for your fair/bair. Always use her dash grab, since it offers twice the reach with the same lag. And don't worry about being cheap; throw your foes into low ceilings for KO's (ie, Termina)

- Be Agressive B E...- Zelda's defensive game isn't as great as her Aggro-control. You must either learn to be agressive and always relentless, or predict what your oppoenents are going to do then counter. Playing a full defensive game will get you killed. Learn when your opponent is vulnerable, not just their character. Part of playing defensive is Zelda's dodging and rolling game. She can make up for her slow foot speed with her roll. Dodging and disrupting opponents attacks can set them seriously off balance, allowing you to take control. If you see an opening
you should then pursue with a string of attacks for the KO.

- Punish the Impudent - Zelda has a great game for punishing people who dodge. Her forward smash has to be almost dodged frame to frame. You can also use her down smash to hit people after they've dodged as well.

- Timing is Everything - Most of Zelda's powerful attacks have specific sweetspots that must be learned. Her fair/bair and forward smash are perfect examples. They have incredible knockback and damage, but if you miss the sweetspot, you're opponents will crush you. For her fair/bair, you must learn when and where to kick. Find any and every opportunity to use this. And some opponents sheilds don't cover their entire body; you might be able to pinpoint an unsheilded location for a KO.

- Shake that ***, but watch yourself - Zelda cannot cover her below. It's a fact of life. Always try to keep the opponent either level or above you. She is extremely vulnerable to attacks from below. Try to avoid attacks that will leave you open; Zelda's
lightweight makes it easier to send flying than other characters. If someone does manage to get you in an upward juggle, try using Farore's Wind from the air onto a ledge, then hop up into a fair. Simple, yet effective.

- Wronski Feint? - Zelda's defensive game needs serious mind games to back it up. Try faking going for a fair, then counter the opponents response by fast falling into a wavedash. Then your opponent is probably suffering some lag from whatever they tried to do. Also, if you sense that Mario/Doc is going to use the cape on your fair, use the bair instead. Also, since fairs and bairs can be used in rapid sucession, kick, then when your opponent thinks you're open, kick them during their approach.

- Open Range - Zelda shouldn't have too much of a problem getting to her opponents. Really, only Marth can outrange you, but you'll generally want to be Sheik for that match.

- SPIKE TO THE MA><ORZ!!! - Both of Zelda's spikes are deadly at 70%. Try to connect as low as possible with the down tilt. Either on their feet or the characters head for best results; there are some characters you can't spike while recovering, such as Zelda/Sheik, Mewtwo, Jigglypuff, Roy, Pi(ka)chu, Ice Climbers, the Links, and Yoshi. You can also use the down throw to combo into the down tilt spike. Her dair isn't like Mario's meteor or Falco's spike, but is still deadly in it's own right. It can even spike through the platform. Not many people are going to suspect a spike from Zelda, so use it to your advantage.

- Set Ups & Combos - Always find a way to set your opponents up. You can use tilts, dash attack, up smash or up throw to get your opponents into the air for a finish. A favorite combo of mine (though created by umbreonmow) is up smash, wavedash backwards, then forward smash. Another created by him is down throw, nair, jump and spike.

- Know Your Limits - Know how far you can go. Know how long your roll is, your wavedash is and the general range on all your attacks. Also know how far you can recover from

____________________________________
Killing, Edgeguarding, and Recovery
____________________________________

Zelda has a few killing moves, but her main ones are her fair and bair. These can kill lightweights and those with poor recovery very easily at low percents. They also will send people far away from the stage, allowing you to edgeguard them.

Once they're off the stage, your first option is pursuit. Since you have incredible recovery, you can travel rather far from the stage and still make it back. The first thing that comes to mind is your fair/bair. This will knock the opponent even further away from the stage or even ko them outright. The second option for
pursuit is your spike. Though meteor cancel-able, it can also force them to use their jump at a point where they wouldn't want to; it also completely screws fast fallers. When recovering from the pursuit, try grabbing the ledge, just in case.

Another standard edgeguarding tactic is the downsmash, which will send characters at a downward angle. You can also use your down tilt for spiking. Use these and Nayru's to prevent them from grabbing the ledge. You can also edgehog to prevent them from grabbing on. Wavedash backwards onto the ledge for fastest results.

If they do manage to grab the ledge, you can forward smash through their roll.

If you land on the edge from these edgeguarding tactics, you open up a whole new list of options. Do the drop down jump AWAY from this stage this time. Use a bair, and use Farore's Wind to get back. AS you should always do, use the first small jump
to hang from the ledge, not the second half of the attack.

When recovering, Keep two things in mind. Farore's Wind is a linear move, meaning you will travel in a straight line to your destination. There are 16 different angles that you can travel with it. Unlike some recoveries, such as Fire Fox, Farore's Wind will NOT allow you to curve up and follow the stage. You
also can't maneavuer around obstacles, unless you can fall through them normally (exceptions are the DK 64 stage and the stage with the DK rap, you can teleport up directly through the bottom of the stage). You also must learn how to sweetspot
the ledge; this will allow you more options when returning and doesn't leave you open. If someone is edgehogging you, learn how to land directly on the stage too.

Another great way to make it back onto the stage is to kick them and then get to the ledge. This will knock your opponent away from you (duh) and allow you to freely recover.

__________________________________________________
Legal Stuff
__________________________________________________

This FAQ belongs to DaRkNeSsOfHeArT(Wyatt Halliwell). The only sites that are allowed (so far) to use this FAQ are Gamefaqs and Qwester's. If you wish to use it, let it be for personal use only. My time and effort have been put into this so we could have a
decent Zelda FAQ out there; stealing it is a major disrespect, so please don't. If you do, I'll eventually find it and then exercise my law degree. Or sic the Massad on you. Either way, you'll loose.

__________________________________________________
Contact Info
__________________________________________________

If you'd like to email me, please do so at [email quietwyatt87@yahoo.com[/email]. Try to put something along the lines of 'Zelda FAQ' in the subject so I don't delete it as spam.
I already get enough of it, so don't send me spam. You are however, free to send in a critique or something; I enjoy feedback, just not hate mail. You can probably also
catch me at the Gamefaqs message board, and also at the SWF board.

AIM: If you need to IM me with a question, my AIM is j00ish shogun. Please don't waste my time; I'm usually talking to my friends or helping other people out. And if you cannot use correct spelling or grammar, please try to. I may live in Texas, but
I'm only used to interpreting hick. And if you ask me if I want to date your sister, I will block you. And if you don't get an immediate (say, 5-10 minutes) then try e-mailing me; I'm probably out and was too lazy/buzy to put up an away message.

___________________________________________________
Useful Sites
___________________________________________________

www.smashboards.com - Also called SWF, the place to find tournies in your area. Very helpful people; also topics by character.

www.qwester.supersheep.org - Qwester's site, with many useful FAQs, including, but not limited to Xif's Sheik & Doc FAQ's, Magus17's Luigi FAQ (which were formatted by MeFrog), Xif's tier FAQ, and the DC++ connect guide.

http://ee.1asphost.com/thephoenixrealm/ssbmterms.htm - Part of
darkphoenix87's site, has many, many useful terms in it.

___________________________________________________
Credits
___________________________________________________

First off, I'd like to say a big, big thanks to Xif for telling me
the HRC, BTT, and MMM strats that were developed by Senju and Skeeto. Thanks alot.

Secondly, I'd like to thank DarkPhoenix87 for his terms list; hopefully you learned a thing or two from it.

Third, I'd like to thank all the guys at SWF for teaching me alot of stuff that made this FAQ alot better than it would have been if I'd made it without them. Individual shout-outs go to; EvilEvincar, who's FAQ helped out greatly, especially on the info about the tilts and spiking. UmbreonMow, for the more advanced combos that appear here. GoBolt for some more info on Zelda's meteors.

Fourth, a very special shout-out to Warrior of Zarona, Decadent One, Xif, and Qwester for help keeping up with the great FAQ plan. Without them, I probably wouldn't have written this FAQ. Go thank them for me too.

Fifth, to the gamefaqs community, for teaching me stuff and also entertaining me on all those nights I stayed up until 8 in the morning writing this.

Sixth, to Silas Elias, DrDrewtheDragon, Chang-sta, 7s, and all the other Dkrew; you guys have taught me alot.

Also, to Mew2King for alot of the statistical info on framerates, ect.

Big, big, big thanks to MMarell, who is extremely awesome and Zelda-knowledgeable, as well as my tutor, and hopefully my GS2 partner.

LordBowser99, for getting me into Smash, as well as suggesting me to use Zelda/Sheik...I bet you're regretting that suggestion after our last bout, eh?
 

CaliburChamp

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Good guide. You should of described n-air more, its more of a comboable move than you described. Like it is perfect to use when your opponent is under you after you missed a lightning kick on them, n-air to start another combo string. N-air, dsmash, n-air to f-smash, n-air to jump to spike, n-air to d-tilt spike. It all depends where your opponent DI's to. Zelda's best stage are on platforms, and she does great in team battles cause her death kicks lead to many assists.
 

JesusFreak

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Well, I voted the first choice. :p I think this is a very well written guide, and i you can play Zelda as well as you can talk about her you'll probably **** me at MOAST, but we'll see. I can talk a lot about Kirby, but I suck with him. :p Anyway, this is really good. Keep it up, and I'll see you at MOAST3.:D
 

CaliburChamp

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Oops my bad. Next time you should say for example...
EDITED N-air section 11/25/04. So we know where to read the new updated info.
 

DoH

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CC - maybe later, as I am far too lazy to write up version history....

Ink - you didn't learn a single thing from the FAQ?:crazy:
 

VilNess

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I liked it, nice to know what zelda can do!
that superwavedash thing was funny...
One thing I didn´t like (the thing I almost always first check :) )
is your Zelda vs. Ness part.
You concentrated on talkin about gettin over his projectiles... It´s like telling you how to avoid sheiks chain. My point is, Ness projectiles are situational and aren´t the base of his game. He´s mostly super-aerial boy with great tilts and excellent throws.
Although you did mention abou Djc:ing nice for that.
Zelda loses the speed competition with Ness but can beat him in air if he gets predictable... when Ness is above or under you it can get scary.


...Overall good guide! you´ve put a lot of effort in it, thanks!
 

DoH

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Yeah, I'm not experienced in fighting Ness, so I just kinda made stuff up...>.>

Though now I'm starting on this kick where I'm going to learn the basics of all characters...
 

Leverkuhn

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Clearly the best Zelda guide thus far; nice work DoH. Now I finally know exactly what the differences are between the forward and reverse lightning kicks. My sinking suspicion that reverse is (usually) better seems to be confirmed.

I wish that you had included more combos, but the ones you have are good, and maybe Zelda just doesn't have many that work. Sometime I'll have to put together a list of the ones I use I post them to see if they're actually effective or if they work for me only because my competion doesn't DI well.
 

DoH

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Thanks!

Zelda can't really combo effectively due to her huge knock back; the best you can hope for are kick set ups or fast faller combos, like the Tetsuya one for space animals;

Up throw> up smash> dash attack > f tilt > f tilt > dash (sweet spotted to send up) > kick

If you want to test a combo, try it on the cpu in training mode set to evade if you don't have competition.
 

dan smith

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It was good.

iGtOwOaDs

I also didn't learn anything...but I have spent a long time learning all this, if I had your guide before...I would have had more time to spend with my WIFE and maybe she wouldn't have DEVORCED ME....

****!!!
 
D

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what's wrong with an offensive Zelda? Works fine for me :confused:
 

soberfox

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Nice job. As dan smith said, I wish I would have had this to read when I first picked up Zelda.

This will be a must read for every new Zelda player.
 

DoH

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Expect an update sometime after MOAST3...which is in two weeks to be exact. More on my new offensive Zelda, wding, maybe a few more setups....depends on what I learn at MOAST and if I'm willing to share...
 

soberfox

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I just noticed that we both have the same bad *** Zelda picture in our signatures. I don't know where Jamo found it, but it's heavenly.
 

MookieRah

Kinda Sorta OK at Smash
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I dunno about what you said about Roy's matchup with Zelda.

He's also alot slower and falls faster than Marth.
Roy's running speed is just a tad slower than Marth's. Other than that his attacks have the same speed. When I play Marth, I don't even notice the running speed difference O_o.

His horizontal recovery sucks compared to Marth
Marth cannot tilt his up B recovery(dolphin slash), but Roy sure can. Roy's DED isn't as good at gaining horizontal recovery, but his Blazer makes up for that.

but his aerial game is severely lacking
Heh, while it's not as good as Marth, it's still good. People don't seem to realize this. Also, Roy can juggle the heck out of Zelda with uair.

his lack of an aerial game allows you to own him hardcore.
Heh, you make it sound like Zelda is a Roy counter. Zelda is a pain in the ***, but she isn't a counter. I would say the match is roughly even.

I skimmed over most of the guide, and other than that it seems quite nice. I really think you should have a combo section though, cause there are combos that she can do :-P.
 

DoH

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Heh, I say Roy is slow, meaning comparatively to Marth and Zelda. Her good attacks have like no lag, and Marth is freaking fast.

It doesn't matter how good Blazer is; kick sends far horizontal, Roys horizontal recovery sucks, since DED gets him no where. Blazer won't send him high enough to make it back from the bottom of the stage, and his jump isn't that stellar.

Roy can combo her with the up aerial; once Zelda gets out of it (which Nayru's and nair get people out of her personal space, and he doesn't have Marth's range to keep her at bay), she can combo him to death.

Eh, I MOASTly (^.^) consider Zelda almost a counter, at least to the Roy's around here. Hopefully we can make the MOAST of the match in the next few weeks.

Psh...post good combos? On smashboards? NEVAR!!!

And sober, I asked where Jamo got our pictures...but he never answered...but mines better, lol
 

MookieRah

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Heh, I say Roy is slow, meaning comparatively to Marth and Zelda. Her good attacks have like no lag, and Marth is freaking fast.
Comparitively Marth and Roys lag times are virtually the same. The ONLY exception that I can think of is the forward smash. There is a tad bit more lag at the end of Roy's smash than Marth's. I think it's only by a few frames at that.

It doesn't matter how good Blazer is; kick sends far horizontal, Roys horizontal recovery sucks, since DED gets him no where. Blazer won't send him high enough to make it back from the bottom of the stage, and his jump isn't that stellar.
The gap isn't as large as you make it. On FD a direct hit to the chest with Marth without DI can knock him too far to come back if he is above 80%. Roy's is only slightly lower, at stuff above 70%. This is a pretty rough estimate, because I had to control both players, but I spent a good 15 minutes to make sure I got it as accurate as possible.

Roy can combo her with the up aerial; once Zelda gets out of it (which Nayru's and nair get people out of her personal space, and he doesn't have Marth's range to keep her at bay)
The range difference between Marth and Roy is miniscule. Also, at lower percents it's fairly easy for upair to chain to F-smash. I checked the hitbox of both Naru's love and her nair. Naru's love doesn't hit below the blue neat looking part of the attack, and her nair only extends down to Zelda's crotch (O_o). Roy's uair definitely outranges both attacks at it's sweetspot. It is possible for the Roy to mess up and get inside her range pretty easily at low percent, but I wouldn't try for juggling as much as setting up for an f-smash at that point.

Don't get me wrong, Zelda is a ***** for Roy, but she is far from a counter.
 

DoH

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On the recovery, Zelda gets Roy up to 80% with four kicks; that doesn't leave Roy alot of room for error.

Anyway, perhaps, I did overexagurrate how hard she is for Roy...>.>
 

Ragnarok503

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I just wanted to say that this is a great guide. I play Zelda all the time now, I suck with her but its still very fun. Its all worth it just to see the look on someones face when you don't automatically switch to Sheik in the beggining :p
 
D

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I like being the random that doesn't pick sheik as well. It's nice to pick zelda and watch the other player try to counter my 'sheik' with falco or samux.

Heh.
 

RyokoYaksa

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I used to be one of those Zelda-only weirdoes, but lately I've been seeing the need to use Sheik. I get hit hard by those stupid version differences. I use Sheik most of the time now except against certain characters. Zelda imo has better edgeguarding options when except when needles and Peach have to be thrown out.

Speaking of which, you have to emphasize the version differences and how much they will affect Zelda's game. fmash, usmash, nair, and Naryu have all been adversely affected by the animation freezing. fsmash, usmash, and Naryu can be DI'd out of on reflex. nair refuses to combo even more in later versions.

Dsmash - one of Zelda's most useful moves. It's actually her quickest attack of all, hitting on frame 4. Her attacking leg is invincible during its hit window. Vulnerable to shield grabs and CC due to low stun.

Uair - would be an excellent move if it were stronger. Sheik's uair has more KO power than this... However, this is one of the best extended hitboxes there are to speak of. Ultimate priority if it hits, but the attack has a tiny hit window and major wind up/lag.

Do not: have name tags active on Zelda/Sheik if you plan to use Up+B at all, for obvious reasons.
 

CaliburChamp

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In my experience Zelda does good against Marth and Roy but she doesnt counter them, counter is too strong a word. lol.

I think its a wise decision to be good and experienced with both Zelda and Sheik if you play one or the other.

And Zelda is good offensive and defensive. Its so hard for characters to get in through Zelda's lightning kick range.
 

DoH

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I would consider a defensive character as one that can easily counter and escape an attack or can play hit and run. Zelda can do neither. Sheik, Peach, and Fox all have fast moves that hit all around them (downsmash, downsmash, and shine) that can get people off their backs, and also the ability to camp. Zelda doesn't have those luxuries; her fast moves (down smash, fsmash) don't cover her all the way and her moves that do (Nayrus, kinda Nair) are too slow. Plus her running speed is THE SLOWEST in the game, her teleport is as fast as her run, wavedash doesn't go far enough fast enough, and rolling gets you punished. So unless you plan to move entirely in the air, don't play a defensive Zelda. Plus her power makes her alot better at offensive.

Playing an offensive Zelda requires alot of things, but mainly being able co-ordinate your timing and spacing, since her attacks are fast and must be precise, especially kicking, fsmashing, upsmashing, and hexing to a certain extent.

The problem against Marth is that although you can get in his range with a few tricks like triangle jumping, he also can juggle you from below, and since Zelda can't cover her ***, she's so screwed. Plus tipper range is barely longer than kick range, so its pretty **** risky to try for the kicks. I'd suggest a solid ground game, taking to the air only when you can get those three kicks in a row on him, or if you're out of combo percent; and make sure once you're out of his 'Marth Zone' that you stay alive as long as possible to deal damage and frustrate.

The problem against Roy (mainly due to my inexperience fighting them) is that they don't care about precision as much as Marth does. They can combo each other, depending on percents.

But I'm probably not the best one to give advice, since I hate playing vs swords....I usually whorenado them.
 

Cyphus

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DOH...i ****ING HATE YOU!...I just made my own zelda guide recently...and went to go post it...then i see yours...and think "hey..i'll check his out"..and BAM...mine is instant crap! thanx alot......thanx alot!
lmao..just messin'...its cool XD
but anyway..ur guide is exellent!
though theres no real reason to add mine, since yours practically covered everything i had plus more...maybe you could add...
Stage advantages for zelda? in a tourney style situation where u can pick a stage..i think its very important to know if theres a stage that zelda can dominate in...
anywho...this is just my opinion....but here's my thoughts. If you like it, i think it'd be sweet if you used it, or your own thoughts on stage help!


she is able to perform better in an area where the death zones are nearby...where she can sneak in low damage KOs. She also really isn't manueverable enough to fair well in projectile wars.
Introducing....Green Greens. Great recoveries get little props, balancing out your lame one. Very close deathzones make the lightning kick crush everyone at low percents. Platforms and blocks making combos and projectiles very hard to work! Therefore, again limiting the oponent while not affecting you. I mean..not to mention you can just F.Tilt, UpTilt, Lighting Kick KO many characters right under 100%...or even BackThrow someone at like 60! or UpThrow a floaty! I'd go as far as say its hell-a difficult to beat a good Zelda on Green Greens she's like the frickin' KO Monster on the level.
 

DoH

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It all depends on your apponent really; I take Peach to like GG, Corneria, or Yoshi's Story, and Capt, Marth to DL. But GG is my official IC's counter.
 

Alucard258

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I use GG as a counter stage for anyone but Fox. Hes so fast, but of course, I hate playing Foxes in general. I never go to FD because its just too big for Zelda and unless your kinda close to the edge, her attacks wont kill at a lower damage like it would on GG or somewhere else. But, I dont use GG for a couner stage because Zeldas recovery sucks, because it doesnt. Alot of people dont know how to edgeguard Zelda, unless theyve played a good one before. Another trick that most people(for some reason dont expect) is a fair/bair out of a shield. Take Marth for example. If Marth is in perfect tipper range to hit Zelda, and you shield, jump out of it, and fair/bair to hit Marth. Marths sword out ranges Zeldas kick barely, so when you fair/bair it has a perfect hit on him. I think you can do the same against Links up-b.
 

Silver Sytos

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Good guide, I like to use Shiek most of the time, but it's still useful to use Zelda once in a while, or to switch in the middle of a fight. XD

Also, which characters are Zelda good against and bad against, and which characters shouild Shiek cover?
 

DoH

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It all depends on the 'archtype' of Zelda you play, defensive or offensive. Offensive Zeldas can deal with Capt, Fox and Falco (note, you will need to play defensive until you get that first hit, but I mean offensive as you need to keep the pressure on them), while pure 'defensive' Zeldas will get ***** by them.

Sheik should mainly handle (unless your opponent is inexperienced vs Zelda ::cough:: pillpusher's opponents ::cough:: ) Ganon, Marth, other Sheiks, edgeguarding Samus' bomb recovery, Jiggs, and Young Link. Zelda can usually take the other characters.

Remember the motto: If at first you don't succeed, press down + b

Check out my vids on the hub. I'll be called Darkness.

Alucard: You'll most likely be combo'd into a tipper until the 100%, so trying to sheild it when you're getting combo'd into isn't going to work; try Nayruing for the invicibility frames.

EDIT: Maybe I should actually follow up on my word and update this biznatch...Someone bug me this weekend to do it...
 

DoH

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Because you can use Nayurs in the air, and you're not trying to land it, you're trying to block with the 8 invincibility frames, duh
 

Silver Sytos

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Originally posted by DaRkNeSsOfHeArT
Because you can use Nayurs in the air, and you're not trying to land it, you're trying to block with the 8 invincibility frames, duh
I always get the timing of aerial b wrong, it always stops her, but I'm afraid that if I don't use it fast enough then the opponent will use fair..
 

DoH

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I updated it like a week ago...though I need to redo character strats, I'm gonna wait until after GS2, so I can get a lot more experience
 
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