Link's bombs

[crugg]

I'm looking to improve my bomb game in PM, and I'm not too sure where to start. I know that there are a lot of ways they can be utilized, but I've never taken full advantage of them. I've got the bomb jump/recovery down, but are there other effective ways of incorporating the aerial glide toss? Or even just some other techniques or combos to master?

 

[ITALIAN N1NJA]

The bomb punt is a useful trick. It's pull out a bomb>SH>move behind it a bit in the air>Zair. It should send the bomb forwards in a slow arc towards the direction you punt it.

Another thing I just started practicing is this. Throw your boomerang behind your opponent and when it comes back it will hit them. While the boomerang is out make sure you have a bomb. Throw the bomb at the boomerang and AGT off of the bomb in the direction you'd like. Great for mind games.

Personally, when I'm on stages with platforms I pull out bombs and leave them on the platforms as traps. Or I'll throw my bombs up to make the opponent worry and then AGT off the bomb when it's coming down if I can get to it.

Link's bombs(from my experience) seem to take about 3 full seconds before coming down(with a hard throw). It's good to learn the timing that the bombs will be in the air because the camera is usually close up(if your approaching your opponent that is), so you'll have to remember where and when you threw the bomb and use that against your opponent to scare him because he won't see it and you'll know exactly where it is. If the bomb hits or he screws up due to fear of not knowing where the bomb is, this will create a perfect opening for you to strike.

 

[crugg]

Thanks, Italian N1nja. I'll definitely start working on those.

 

[ITALIAN N1NJA]

No problem dude. There's plenty of Links besides myself that I'm sure have plenty of useful advice to give. Everyone here seems extremely friendly so feel free to ask whatever you'd like.

 

[SHIP]

I quite like AGT up while throwing the bomb down when I am descending. Sometimes it can even combo into a dair or falling nair.
Throwing the bomb at the boomerang knocks the bomb up at a height that will make it lie on platforms that are mid height (such as the pokemon stadiums and lylat platforms) which is pretty cool.
A lot of people like dropping bombs right on the edge of the stage to make edgeguarding easier but I keep flubbing it and blowing myself up because I'm a scrub.

 

[ITALIAN N1NJA]

I quite like AGT up while throwing the bomb down when I am descending. Sometimes it can even combo into a dair or falling nair.
Throwing the bomb at the boomerang knocks the bomb up at a height that will make it lie on platforms that are mid height (such as the pokemon stadiums and lylat platforms) which is pretty cool.
A lot of people like dropping bombs right on the edge of the stage to make edgeguarding easier but I keep flubbing it and blowing myself up because I'm a scrub.

Time the bombs in the air, and right when you pull them out. That way you'll know when they're coming/when they're going to explode. If you time it right, you can throw a bomb at your opponent. Even if they are skilled enough to catch it, it'll blow up in their hands before they have a chance to throw it back. It's like manipulating the hot potato.

 

[J3f]

Here's a way to do ground glide tossing with Link, or what I call SHAGing: http://smashboards.com/threads/new-link-tech-to-do-grounded-glide-tossing.346341/

I've also been working on bomb canceling, using bombs to cancel Spin Attack lag. It's easy enough to do just wait for the 3-5 red flash and initiate an UP B.

 

[Bravo_10]

Hey, first post!

Not sure how much my opinion is worth, but as a Melee Link main, I very strongly vouch for the bomb waveland. The idea is pretty simple, just short hop a bomb throw and then waveland after it. Link's wavedash is awfully short (though it seems longer in PM than in Melee), so it's not going to give you anything breathtakingly powerful. Still, the little boost forward or backward helps you keep your spacing, and it allows for follow-ups on bomb throws from slightly farther away. I think it can probably be done after a sideways AGT to gain a little bit more distance? Haven't tried it myself.

Also, I second the spin attack cancel. It's not something you can do often because hitting yourself with a bomb is still punishable, but it's a great baiting trick against someone who forgets that a bomb is about to go off (or if you've thrown it up and it's going to come down on your head).

 

[ITALIAN N1NJA]

Hey, first post!

Not sure how much my opinion is worth, but as a Melee Link main, I very strongly vouch for the bomb waveland. The idea is pretty simple, just short hop a bomb throw and then waveland after it. Link's wavedash is awfully short (though it seems longer in PM than in Melee), so it's not going to give you anything breathtakingly powerful. Still, the little boost forward or backward helps you keep your spacing, and it allows for follow-ups on bomb throws from slightly farther away. I think it can probably be done after a sideways AGT to gain a little bit more distance? Haven't tried it myself.

Also, I second the spin attack cancel. It's not something you can do often because hitting yourself with a bomb is still punishable, but it's a great baiting trick against someone who forgets that a bomb is about to go off (or if you've thrown it up and it's going to come down on your head).

If your close enough to the ground in PM with a bomb. When you AGT sideways you will wavedash a bit further than normal but still hold on to the bomb.

 

[crugg]

Definitely helpful, Bravo_10 and J3f! Thanks for all your advice, guys.

 

[BRHD Link]

You can also do a full hop bomb punt, which will send it higher and farther than if you short hop. The mechanics are the same, just do a full jump instead. Also, for AGT you can toss the bomb in the direction you glide, air cancel to catch it again, and throw it if you immediately hit the c-stick or A button when you catch it. The timing has to be pretty solid though. It's good to throw off opponents who react to hearing the bomb throw the first time and then react. You can throw it, catch it, and throw it in whichever direction your opponent goes. I'll use it for mix ups and such. You can also do double and triple bomb punts, but they get really tricky. If you want to see someone who has a really solid Link though, check out Hylian. I'm sure you can find him on here, and if not, he's on youtube. http://youtu.be/Pum74fN6EUA
Mostly, just play around and see what works for you. His bombs are very versatile. so it's easy to be creative.

 

[Bravo_10]

Ah, Hylian is one of my favorite PM Links. In those matches, I'd say his recovery was even more impressive than his bomb tricks. At the end of the first match, I was worried that he was getting too predictable with his tether cancels, but then he immediately adjusted in game 2. Not sure if it was conditioning or just recognizing his own patterns on the fly, but by the middle of game 2, Meta Knight was completely clueless about how to edge guard Link (though there was that one questionable recovery that got f-smashed). There's a lot that I can take away from that video, so thanks for sharing!

 

[Hylian]

Too bad my most viewed match is of me losing . I was playing so well that tournament and for some reason decided to do a lot of unsafe things in neutral like up-b/fsmash that I don't normally do x.x.

 

[ITALIAN N1NJA]

Too bad my most viewed match is of me losing . I was playing so well that tournament and for some reason decided to do a lot of unsafe things in neutral like up-b/fsmash that I don't normally do x.x.

I'm sure you know this. You can't always win. Sometimes I'll lose because I'll be testing out some new techniques during matches to see if they're viable and I can consistently perform them. Experimentation on the battlefield is not a bad thing. Also you can't play perfectly all the time. You win some you lose some. Even Link was defeated in one of the timelines.

 

[Bravo_10]

Too bad my most viewed match is of me losing . I was playing so well that tournament and for some reason decided to do a lot of unsafe things in neutral like up-b/fsmash that I don't normally do x.x.

If it makes you feel any better, one of the recommended videos for me on that link (ha) BRHD posted was a set where you styled on some Peach player.

Ultimately, you've got yourself a pretty amazing Link. Your movement is quite clean, your projectiles always go in smart places, and your really neat use of the AGT makes your recoveries extremely hard to gimp. So I'd say that pretty much everyone can see some serious skill on display in that video, regardless of the match outcome.

 

[BRHD Link]

Too bad my most viewed match is of me losing . I was playing so well that tournament and for some reason decided to do a lot of unsafe things in neutral like up-b/fsmash that I don't normally do x.x.

It's all good, man. It happens. It was still impressive as hell. Besides, if you don't change it up then you can become predictable. I definitely saw some rings that I could work on just by watching that I'm going to try to implement at the next tournament I go to. The bomb mixups were definitely something I've been trying to add in I've been trying to get down the timing for the double bomb punt, but I'm still not very consistent with it. I do like short hop z dropping the bombs then immediately air canceling to catch it and throw it. It doesn't really add on to the trajectory or anything, but it can be used for mind games and mix ups.

 

[Bravo_10]

Kind of back to the topic of this thread, I was wondering what you all think the utility of the bomb punt is. Obviously it's a neat little mix-up, but what's it's worth beyond that? What makes it better than just short-hopping a throw?

I'm also kinda having trouble getting that button input down. I'm not missing anything, am I? It seems like you just drop the bomb in a short hop, then hookshot it.

 

[BRHD Link]

I'll use it o gimp because it has a slightly different trajectory. It kinda floats out instead of going in a relatively straight line. That's just the one of the ways I use it besides for mix ups. You could also bomb punt and while your opponent is distracted by that one, throw another one at them. Since the punt is so slow, it's easy to catch, but if you have the second one then there's not a whole lot they can do besides maybe throwing the first one into the second if they're quick enough. That's kinda the whole idea behind the double punt, I believe. I could be wrong though. I still don't have the double and triple down perfectly.
The input for it would be short hop, z drop, move backwards as you fall, hookshot. I think if you try to fall straight down with it then you miss the hit box so it just falls on the ground. If you can't get it like that, try fast falling after you z drop the bomb. Also, make sure you drop the bomb at the apex of your jump, short hop or full.

Kind of back to the topic of this thread, I was wondering what you all think the utility of the bomb punt is. Obviously it's a neat little mix-up, but what's it's worth beyond that? What makes it better than just short-hopping a throw?

I'm also kinda having trouble getting that button input down. I'm not missing anything, am I? It seems like you just drop the bomb in a short hop, then hookshot it.

 

[GarmWyrda]

Hi all!
New member here, I didn't want to open a new topic just for a quick question!
First I'm playing PM on dolphin at home and sometimes on wii with friends. I can't even drop a bomb without it explodes on the ground when I'm playing on the wii... while I can do it quite easily on dolphin, I can even perform punt bombs on dolphin...
I'm not sure if it is the best topic for such a question but if someone had an idea about this...?

 

[Bravo_10]

Hmm.. so you're saying that you can bomb drop on an emulator, but you can't manage it on the wii? It's likely that there's substantial lag on any emulator you use, so it's possible that your wii's button timing is different than what you're used to. That's really the only obvious thing I can think of.

 

[GarmWyrda]

so you're saying that you can bomb drop on an emulator, but you can't manage it on the wii?

Yes that's it...
But that's weird because even in training mode (on the wii) in "slow mode" I can't perform it! There is no way I can drop a bomb on the floor...
I have a bit more details for people who would have an idea : I have the 3.02 version on emulateur (but the bomb drop thing was do-able in the 3.01 version).
And I should add that I play on a hacked wii (because of the problem european/america games). Maybe it can explains this...

 

[Bravo_10]

Wait, so you can't even drop the bomb at the very last second of a short hop? That should let it sit on the ground I think, without requiring any sort of precise button timing (at least in 1/4 speed). This might be something to post in the PM help and support forum?

 

[GarmWyrda]

Yeah you're right, that's what I'm gonna do! Thanks

 

[Pug]

Seeing as everyone here is so lovely and charming, here are two more questions from a budding Link enthusiast.

1. I've seen Links AGT where they dodge upward but throw their bomb downward. Is this tricky to pull off or am I just doing it wrong?
2. I find myself fast-falling as I pull out a bomb more often than not while trying for an AGT recovery. I try to use more of a "down diagonal" on the analog stick but it doesn't help much (also I've ended up launching a boomerang once or twice).

Any advice for a guy in awe of how much better Link's recovery is in PM would be much appreciated!

 

[Narpas_sword]

For not fast falling, it takes practise, but you want to buffer the 'down' while doing another action. (ie double jumping, or throwing the bomb from the previous AGT)

for throwing forward (or any direction) its just practise again. I assume you know to use C-stick to throw.

 

[Pug]

I'll practice buffering the down, cheers!

I've been using A to throw the bomb during my AGTs and I know about C-stick throws but I never considered using C-stick instead of A. Doy!

 

[EmptySky00]

One that I like to use is full hop > Bomb pull > waveland/AGT. It lets you move away or towards the opponent from a bomb pull and such.

Also, platform drop > bomb plant is good. You can quickly waveland or AGT over them later for an unexpected bomb throw.

One that may or may not be obvious is that when you're dashing in a direction (presumably away from your opponent for the sake of this), you can shield/crouch to cancel your dash then use the C-stick to throw the bomb in any direction. So you can run away then quickly throw the bomb backwards to catch the opponent off guard.

 

[Pug]

I'll add these to my training regimen, thanks EmptySky!

I'm waiting on a GameCube controller adapter for my PC so I can play online using Dolphin, but they don't ship outside the States so I have to wait until it gets to a friend over there and then they'll send it here. Then finally I might be able to play a game or two with you guys!

 

[Dott]

Another thing that it' s very easy it's make a bomb come to the plataform in a slow way and cover the border area of the stage, you make this moving to the border of the stage> throw a boomerang to outside"> short jump and instant agt (move back and throw to the boomerang) to the side.

You'll see the bomb coming to you slowly and going down just right to the border, that way you can cover some tethers and recoveries as well.

 

[Pug]

Another thing that it' s very easy it's make a bomb come to the plataform in a slow way and cover the border area of the stage, you make this moving to the border of the stage> throw a boomerang to outside"> short jump and instant agt (move back and throw to the boomerang) to the side.

You'll see the bomb coming to you slowly and going down just right to the border, that way you can cover some tethers and recoveries as well.

Nice! I've been trying to exploit the way the boomerang doesn't explode bombs on first touch. I can't wait to try this out!

 

[Pug]

Sorry for the double post, but this question really shouldn't go anywhere else.

Does anyone have any videos of the double and triple bomb punt in action? I'm having difficulty pulling them off.

If not, general advice would be much appreciated. Particularly from Italian Ninja and Hylian!

 

[Dott]

Sorry for the double post, but this question really shouldn't go anywhere else.

Does anyone have any videos of the double and triple bomb punt in action? I'm having difficulty pulling them off.

If not, general advice would be much appreciated. Particularly from Italian Ninja and Hylian!

I want to do one, but i don't have a direct recorder or a computer where i can download a video editor, so i can only record with my cellphone and try explain here how to use it.

 

[Pug]

If you could give some pointers here that'd be great!

 

[Player -0]

Reviving dead threads since 2013:

Messing around a bit and found that you can drop through platforms while your Zair is out. This is probably already known but you can reverse your position with your enemy if they're approaching your platform while you're falling.

Edit - Wrong thread, fuuuuu

 

[Super_Primid]

So my question is if link if put on a stage with no platforms what can he do

 

[Pug]

Deploy a projectile barrage that the opponent has great difficulty avoiding. I find it's extremely easy to manage space on stages without platforms.