these are just some notes; they don't need to addressed until after the 6 month period:
Larger Grab Range:
With the loss of nana's grab it only makes sense that popo's grab range should be increased to compensate.
Throws:
Dthrow:
As this move stands right now it is waaaaaay too easy for the opponent to DI it. Right now the only way that it can even serve a purpose is if the person being thrown has 0 DI. In a real match this is unrealistic by a long shot. This throw serves as a major setup (dthrow -> dash -> buffered utilt -> utilt -> uair -> ???). however, it does not set up for a kill move like jiggs' (uthrow -> rest). When i get a grab i should actually be allowed to do something with it inside of hoping that they don't just hold away and avoid any of my followups. of all of the changes noted, this is the one that i feel must get in.
Uthrow:
Beign an incredibly grab-centered character, IC's need to be able to use every tool in their depressing arsenal. Even in vbrawl, uthrow was useless due to its knockback/inability to combo into anything. To add viability to this move (and their grab game all together), it needs lower knockback growth so that at lower percents it won't send people as far so you can combo, but as they get higher it send them much farther.
Fthrow:
ICs have lost their CGs. As such, the original angles/knockback for their throws don't translate in the same way to B+. Instead of being used as a setup for a CG, it now needs an alternative use, mainly setting up for combos. To accomplish this, the fthrow needs some adjustments, mainly a lower angle/base knockback. A lower angle forces the opponent to the ground and then lead into follow ups, while adjusting the base knockback means the enemy will be set up in front of the ICs unless they DI/tech roll to escape. This fits perfectly into their trap/punish playstyle.
Bthrow:
Similar to Fthrow, Bthrow no longer serves the purpose of CGing with its transition to melee. Giving it a lower angle (but maintaining knockback) allow it to be a great setup for a bair/nair follow up. as it is now, the angle makes following up unrewarding and unnecessarily difficult. A lower angle adds to their lacking grab game.
Squall Hammer:
As a combo move, this attack is an amazing setup to just about anything. the downside is that when trying to recover, it gets out prioritized by just about everything (mario's bair will go through it ;_; ). I don't know if this was an unintended nerf on the attack, but it forces the ICs to go for the ledge with their tether more so than they really should (easy nana gimps from ledge hogging). Coupled with the new nana properties to avoid the fusion glitch, this attack is now very easy to gimp/out prioritize.
i do, however, understand that it is a fantastic attack on stage for setting up follow ups, so i supposed the lower priority/range is a fair trade off, i just think that it should be looked at again to make it function better for recovering.
As an addition to this idea, i'd like to bring up a major complaint, mainly that solo squall is just god awful. I feel 100% that the move should be bad and entirely punishable, but its transition from vbrawl did not come as well as others. As with the synced squall, the range/priority is just awful, even for a bad move. I do, however, feel that it should keep this aspect, but be compensated in other areas, such as the speed to the animation and how fast nana can react out of hers. As with blizzard, allowing nana to have IASA frames out of her solo squall to help with punishment (which ICs need a LOT of help with) as well as boost their desync game even more. As for popo's solo squall, the speed boost should be enough (i'd need to see how it worked in game).
Blizzard:
Right now, this attack is pretty much useless on hit. in my testing i've found that a person can simply take the blizzard and then attack directly out of the end lag due to its low hitstun (literally, you can tank a double blizzard and are able to attack out of it before the IC's end lag finishes). This is a difficult attack to manage, as i really do like the addition of the "pull" effect in B+. An idea i had is give nana IASA frames as soon as the last blizzard hitbox ends (similar to her grab animation, but she still does the blizzard). This serves the purpose of actually using the blizzard as a lead into a desync, as well as increasing the overall speed of their gameplay.
Sliding:
The entire core of IC playstyle in vBrawl is that they punish. hard. When transitioning to B+ they are pushed to a more aggressive playstyle, which would be fine, but almost impossible to deal with most characters due to the decreased end lag. luigi may suffer from terrible traction, but his aerial mobility/combo make up for this fact by allowing him to function amazingly in the air. ICs, on the other hand, are a primarily ground-based character (hence the much lower shorthop height). Because of this fact, the small traction does not suit them as a character. if they are supposed to be stellar at ground control, then it doesn't make much sense for them to slide everywhere when they shield attacks/get hit. if i shield ike's fsmash from the middle of PS2, i shouldn't be moved almost to the ledge. higher traction plays into their game heavily. without it, they're low mid tier at best.
right now, other than these few notes i don't think they need any other drastic tweaks to their moveset. Again, these don't have to be addressed until after the 6 month period, i'm just noting them now because they're on my mind as necessary/potential changes.
