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Social Lower Norfair

IsmaR

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Generally people tend to look at weaknesses before potential/anything positive, as you should always expect and be prepared for disadvantage. Heavies have always been on the lower end of most player's perception, because in a game like Smash that favor fluidity/movement, speed/combos are everything, while survivability is only ever worth it if you can capitalize on making a comeback (Snake shows this exceptionally well, as did heavies with kill combo throws + rage when it was busted in Smash 4). Being floaty/combo food is never a good thing, nor is being a large glass cannon (Mewtwo/Rosalina had enough things in their favor that people saw it as worth it to use them in previous games, but now they're looked at with much lower regard this game, though the patch helps them).

High risk/high reward is done easier (and therefore smarter to most) when you have oppressive options that force opponents to respect you almost always (Pichu, Ganondorf, etc.) while Ridley has specific advantages (edgeguarding/trapping/walling with his disjoints and fear of command grab) that don't let him contend as easily in rough match ups (zoners, rushdown, etc.) as others do. Ridley has the potential to destroy, but lacks the consistency people want since he'll get murdered if he slips up even once (exaggeration obviously, but that's how the majority views it). Even consistently good players like Tweek/Trela/Overlade can only do so much to mitigate this. Though it also goes to show even horrendous match ups don't keep them from getting that far when you put enough time into the character.
 

Firox

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Generally people tend to look at weaknesses before potential/anything positive, as you should always expect and be prepared for disadvantage. Heavies have always been on the lower end of most player's perception, because in a game like Smash that favor fluidity/movement, speed/combos are everything, while survivability is only ever worth it if you can capitalize on making a comeback (Snake shows this exceptionally well, as did heavies with kill combo throws + rage when it was busted in Smash 4). Being floaty/combo food is never a good thing, nor is being a large glass cannon (Mewtwo/Rosalina had enough things in their favor that people saw it as worth it to use them in previous games, but now they're looked at with much lower regard this game, though the patch helps them).

High risk/high reward is done easier (and therefore smarter to most) when you have oppressive options that force opponents to respect you in almost (Pichu, Ganondorf, etc.) while Ridley has specific advantages (edgeguarding/trapping/walling with his disjoints and fear of command grab) that don't let him contend as easily in rough match ups (zoners, rushdown, etc.) as others do. Ridley has the potential to destroy, but lacks the consistency people want since he'll get murdered if he slips up even once (exaggeration obviously, but that's how the majority views it). Even consistently good players like Tweek/Trela/Overlade can only do so much to mitigate this. Though it also goes to show even horrendous match ups don't keep them from getting that far when you put enough time into the character.
I must say, an absolutely flawless summary.
 

Predatoria

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I've been trying to improve my combo game a bit with Ridley lately, but have been struggling a bit to replicate a couple combos I've seen in this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzexmBOoA9U

In particular, the very first one, nair into grab, or the third one, fair into grab. When I try to execute them, typically my opponent will be able to perform an action prior to my grab.

Does anyone have any tips on properly executing these? Is there something I may be missing that could be disallowing me from properly doing these. They seem quite nice to start much longer combos, since you no longer need to start with dtilt or grab down throw to begin a string of moves.
 

Ultomato

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Anyone else noticed a full charged plasma breath jeeted into Rebels Guard is about a full Arsene charged for free?
Because honestly, I may Just not touch the B button at all in this matchup because he Just uses us
 

Ridley_Prime

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Go figure.

I've been trying to improve my combo game a bit with Ridley lately, but have been struggling a bit to replicate a couple combos I've seen in this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzexmBOoA9U

In particular, the very first one, nair into grab, or the third one, fair into grab. When I try to execute them, typically my opponent will be able to perform an action prior to my grab.

Does anyone have any tips on properly executing these? Is there something I may be missing that could be disallowing me from properly doing these. They seem quite nice to start much longer combos, since you no longer need to start with dtilt or grab down throw to begin a string of moves.
The first one just takes good timing into dash grab I think, where there's kind of a tight window for you to dash grab right after nair, but can be done. Same with the f-air one I guess, though wasn't able to pull that one off as easily.

Compared to the landing u-air combos shown later in the video, the first ones are easy to pull off.


Never denied that Ridley could use some buffs, but I hate sometimes seeing people so buff starved/greedy to the point they're just unhappy with their character (in the case of like Ridley I guess), and when turns out they didn't get a direct buff with said patch, they kinda just give up hope on their character... Though true mains/space pirates never falter, yadayada.
 

Predatoria

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Go figure.


The first one just takes good timing into dash grab I think, where there's kind of a tight window for you to dash grab right after nair, but can be done. Same with the f-air one I guess, though wasn't able to pull that one off as easily.

Compared to the landing u-air combos shown later in the video, the first ones are easy to pull off.


Never denied that Ridley could use some buffs, but I hate sometimes seeing people so buff starved/greedy to the point they're just unhappy with their character (in the case of like Ridley I guess), and when turns out they didn't get a direct buff with said patch, they kinda just give up hope on their character... Though true mains/space pirates never falter, yadayada.
Ahhh, I see. I just got back from a session with a couple friends, and practiced these during the matches. Most of the time, I failed to get the grab in time after the nair before they could perform an action, but I did manage to get it off a few times and it was super satisfying to do. One time I got a down throw, nair, grab, down throw, up tilt, up tilt, short hop up air, back air off on a fresh Snake stock and it put him at like 80 or something, and I think it was a true combo.

It definitely seems to be related to positioning, the angle at which you hit them with the nair, the swiftness of your actions, you need to fastfall, etc. It's not just a freebie combo that you can do without being quick about it. I'll keep practicing at it!
 

meleebrawler

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Never denied that Ridley could use some buffs, but I hate sometimes seeing people so buff starved/greedy to the point they're just unhappy with their character (in the case of like Ridley I guess), and when turns out they didn't get a direct buff with said patch, they kinda just give up hope on their character... Though true mains/space pirates never falter, yadayada.
Case in point:

I have a problem with Sakurai & Co. because instead of doing anything about Samus' CQC, he and his team decided to screw her over. By this point, perfect shielding may as well just come back, especially with how parrying has been nerfed regarding multi-hit attacks. Next, they'll slow Samus down because of how evasive and defensive she can be. I have fought people who either had no reflector, or who did and didn't have to use it because they knew how to get around my projectiles.

Sakurai & Co. don't know how to balance. Olimar got buffed when he needed to be toned down a bit. Bayonetta got nerfed again. Isabelle, in spite of me loathing that match-up, also got nerfed when fans have complained that she needs buffs. Like I said, instead of balancing and fixing Samus' flaws, they decided to just nerf her. This only confirms my belief that Metroid is a franchise they don't care about. Hell, Ridley got nerfed and he needs buffs!
Lots of people are of the mindset that low tiers (bump it up to mid if that character is their main) should never receive nerfs of any kind and vice-versa. Even when it's fixing bugs like Olimar's smashes not getting a power increase when charged (only two characters have something like this and it's to compensate for special functionality: Ness's yo-yo traps and Snake increasing the range of his mortar) or Lucina missing her dash grabs on R.O.B for no reason at all, or jank like Luigi's 0-death dthrow combo. Or when the nerf is inconsequential in the grand scheme of functionality. Plasma Breath never did a lot of shield damage in the first place, it's best use was just locking them in place for pressure, or a free grab at the right range. If anything, if less shield damage equates to less shieldstun, that might actually make the move trickier to block as the opponent could release shield too early.
 

Ridley_Prime

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*fixes bugs with characters*

“Waah, they don’t know how to balance!”


Forgot those people existed too. The post example you quoted was particularly dramatic though. Honestly, shields needed to have a bit more sustainability again, and the only way to do that was with the patch we got. Also kinda made parries easier for me as far as the timing.

If people have a one-track mind when it comes to characters getting buffs/nerfs and not seeing the bigger picture, that’s their problem. The plasma breath “nerf” for instance is indeed inconsequential.
 
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Ridley_Prime

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There was a problem fetching the tweet

This will unironically be the first custom stage I'll try to play on later when I have more time.
 

meleebrawler

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*fixes bugs with characters*

“Waah, they don’t know how to balance!”


Forgot those people existed too. The post example you quoted was particularly dramatic though. Honestly, shields needed to have a bit more sustainability again, and the only way to do that was with the patch we got. Also kinda made parries easier for me as far as the timing.

If people have a one-track mind when it comes to characters getting buffs/nerfs and not seeing the bigger picture, that’s their problem. The plasma breath “nerf” for instance is indeed inconsequential.
The weird thing with this person specifically is how he/she correlates competitive Smash viability with care for the franchise. Such concerns frankly should be secondary for the devs at first, being focused mainly on making sure the characters are fun and functional to use and go up against (how are they supposed to have a perfect handle on who's too weak or strong when players don't always agree on this? Same deal with people wanting a fixed ''legal'' stagelist for online). Said that the Belmonts having a bad CQC and recovery was a huge disservice to Castlevania... even though getting knocked into pits by tiny Medusa Heads getting all up in your grill is one of the most memorable/infamous aspects of the franchise.
 
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slamallama

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There was a problem fetching the tweet

This will unironically be the first custom stage I'll try to play on later when I have more time.
I really wish there were a cave background and a especially a metal background. I made a pretty great Tourian stage back in Brawl and would love to be able to do it again with actual lava (instead of spikes as placeholders)
 
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meleebrawler

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I really wish there were a cave background and a especially a metal background. I made a pretty great Tourian stage back in Brawl and would love to be able to do it again with actual lava (instead of spikes as placeholders)
You could just place a sheet of steel in the far background, then add details in the near one.
 

Ridley_Prime

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After playing a bit of that posted stage, wonder how doable it is to recreate the room in the Ceres Station of the Super prologue where you first encounter Ridley with stage builder. Might try to make it during more off time at some point, unless someone beats me to it.
 

slamallama

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You could just place a sheet of steel in the far background, then add details in the near one.
I tried that, but the upper area where the background is visible still bothered me too much.
After playing a bit of that posted stage, wonder how doable it is to recreate the room in the Ceres Station of the Super prologue where you first encounter Ridley with stage builder. Might try to make it during more off time at some point, unless someone beats me to it.
That, however, might be doable while being aesthetically pleasing, since there is a pretty neutral space backdrop.
 

Predatoria

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Ahhh I have always wondered what Ridley's T pose looked like. The wings look a bit smaller than they do in-game, though maybe it's just the angle. Where did you find this?
 

AndreaAC

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:3 I am back with my computer in one piece and running. That means I can go back into doing commission and drawing Rids from time to time. I plan into getting a new laptop because this one won't last much longer. And after that, a Switch to finally enjoy playing Riddles and play with you all! :D
 

Predatoria

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It's gotten a bit quiet in here lately, but I figured I'd post some pretty interesting stats about Ridley and his tier placement, and can make an argument here that he is, quite literally, the most under-rated character in Smash Ultimate at this time.

Look at this:

Here is a really cool spreadsheet I found online that collects tournament data and compiles it into a rankings for each character.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1AJs-mj5TTdkmkl7nhj4twJymVPTLTUdT0MBToL1cxDs/edit#gid=0

Here is another spreadsheet that compiles the tier lists of many top players that have posted public tier lists.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...cz7Tza8MqyZU9gZVJIa25T2qo/edit#gid=1193204896

I was curious. I noticed that Ridley appears significantly higher on the tourney list than he does on the top players lists. #30 versus #57 (note that I combined the dittos and removed Squirtle, Ivysaur, and Charizard from the list), a huge difference.

I created my own spreadsheet that takes both of these lists and compares where a character sits in tourney rank versus on the collective pros tier list. Ridley came up as the character with the largest difference between the two lists, with 30-57 = -27 difference in rank.

Here's the total list.

Fellow space pirates, WE WILL RISE!!!
 

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AndreaAC

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SUCCESS.png


"Alright fellows, the one who defeats me the fastest will-"

*Ridley nonchalantly goes to stab the Hand repeatedly*

*Master Hand literally dies*

"What the **** are you looking at?" *Ridley glares*

*Bowser and K.Rool stay speechless*

I missed going these... :>
 
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ScarletShepherd24M

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Anyone else noticed a full charged plasma breath jeeted into Rebels Guard is about a full Arsene charged for free?
Because honestly, I may Just not touch the B button at all in this matchup because he Just uses us
you should always be cautious with full charges anyway. Besides landing even 1-3 fireballs on rebel guard almost guarantees you a grab from close enough range cause of the extended active and cooldown frames joker goes through when it's being used. Also I rarely see jokers just throwing rebel guard in neutral anyway for what I'm guessing is a similar reason (grabs/stalls). Yeah it has the super armor and charges gauge. But it's still just as risky as other counters when whiffed. It's similar to how surprising it is to land even 1 fireball on recovering ness players, and then being free to rush off and nair them during the active frames of the shield recovering health. Like a pseudo shield stun that catches people off guard sometimes.
 
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Ridley_Prime

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Did what I could I suppose with the tools that were currently available. Tried drawing the baby in the background at first, but that proved a bit tough with just my finger and a touch screen.

thumbnail
D56n3OtU0AA-zE1.jpg_large.jpeg

Image I used as reference.

index.jpg


The stage ID is 1PGD3S67 if anyone wants to play it sometime.

edit: Ridley with super mushroom for extra homage.

thumbnail
CFF93BBB-2E0B-4FD0-B21B-8DCC6A4FBF07.jpeg
 
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soviet prince

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I am starting to doubt this game the buffer system ruins it for me, this is the only game were I don't even fill in full control of my character can not tell me how much games it cost me because it did a move i did not press or blast off in the wrong direction when recovering, if it was occasional it would not be a problem but it seems to happen very often and it ruins my play experience. There is one thing losing to a better opponet, then losing because the stupid buffer wants to go a different way.

They made ridley way to slow it does not matter how much power it does if the opponent gets there hit off first every single time. The buffer system makes it worse because a simple missed move and your stuck doing an animation that your opponent will punish.


Then there is ness, lucas, and to a lesser extent charizard who game plane is spam the same move over and over until you win. Win or Lose it makes playing the game not fun and more work and it even grinds my gears when they teabag like they done something great.

The bad thing is I don't think a buffer system is changeable or if it is they wont mess with it so I will be stuck with it until the next 5 to 10 years.
 

Ridley_Prime

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Screenshot_20190508-025050_Twitter.jpg


Just practiced this, first with Sheik and then with Ridley, and wow it works to a charm. This is foxtrot on steroids I guess you could say. This way of approaching (to make up for Ridley's initial dash speed) will be a real gamer changer I think if people make a habit of utilizing it, though requires the tilt stick I believe, which I've been using anyway.
 

Sean²

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Hey Ridley folks, I dunno how often anyone here looks at the main Ridley subforum, figured here would get more attention. But I'm looking for some decent Ridley wifi practice if anyone at all is interested in beating the snot out of someone who struggles in this matchup.
 

Thermithral

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Yeah, Im going to need to ask for help too. It seems no matter what I do I am stuck at forever jumping between 2m and 3m gsp. I start doing well, then a Ness, Lucas or ROB shows up, and I go back down. It is very discouraging...
 
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Predatoria

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Yeah, Im going to need to ask for help too. It seems no matter what I do I am stuck at forever jumping between 2m and 3m gsp. I start doing well, then a Ness, Lucas or ROB shows up, and I go back down. It is very discouraging...
What do you think you're struggling with in particular? Is there a way you could post a sample gameplay video online? Is it just these matchups, or is it just gameplay.
 

Thermithral

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What do you think you're struggling with in particular? Is there a way you could post a sample gameplay video online? Is it just these matchups, or is it just gameplay.
Ness: PK Fire to death. I have tried shielding, I get grabbed. I have tried jumping, I get carried off the stage by fairs. I have tried dodging, we just stay where we are until something else happens.

Lucas: Similar to Ness, but PK Freeze.

ROB: I have no idea why ROB gives me problems, to be honest.

I dont have any replays to upload that have those characters as opponents.
 
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Predatoria

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Ness: PK Fire to death. I have tried shielding, I get grabbed. I have tried jumping, I get carried off the stage by fairs. I have tried dodging, we just stay where we are until something else happens.

Lucas: Similar to Ness, but PK Freeze.

ROB: I have no idea why ROB gives me problems, to be honest.

I dont have any replays to upload that have those characters as opponents.

You should be able to punish Ness pretty hard if he frequently uses PK Fire. If you're shielding the PK Fire, try spot dodging it and then punishing him. My preferred punish is a grab, though forward tilt, down tilt, and short hop nair or fast falling fair all work quite well in punishing PK Fire use. The move has a lot of end lag on it and is very well telegraphed. If you get hit with it, make sure you're DI'ing out of it asap, as some Ness players like to grab out of this, leading to a kill.

I know next to nothing about ROB. You may want to spend an hour or two playing ROB. I learned a lot about how to fight Ness better by playing Ness. It helps you learn a character's moveset, strengths, and weaknesses a bit just by playing in their shoes.
 

Garo

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Does canceling Space Pirate Rush present any more worthwhile reward than maybe getting a jab when the opponent escapes the drag? I just realised I haven't canceled it in an actual match pretty much ever.
 

Predatoria

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Does canceling Space Pirate Rush present any more worthwhile reward than maybe getting a jab when the opponent escapes the drag? I just realised I haven't canceled it in an actual match pretty much ever.
I may be wrong, and am not 100% certain on this but,

You don't ever want to let SPR cancel mid-stage. The jab isn't safe and players can shield out of it.

You're also missing out on the damage of the toss if it cancels on the stage.

You're also not putting your opponent in the air, which is a great place for them to be for follow up aerials on your end.

If I think they're going to break out, I cancel it. Unless I'm going for a kill with it, I usually cancel right before the stage edge anyways.
 

UserKev

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I still find myself watching the Ridley E3 reveal reactions because their so satisfying. Every time is so timeless. The whole (wait is over) emphasis. I can't get enough of it in a sense.
 

AndreaAC

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rayman popsicle.png

xD I have been seeing the whole Frozen Rayman on Battlefield theory quite a lot...so I doodled Ridley taking a closer look, and not believing it one bit. xP
 

Cosmic77

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View attachment 220607
xD I have been seeing the whole Frozen Rayman on Battlefield theory quite a lot...so I doodled Ridley taking a closer look, and not believing it one bit. xP
Ridley: "Those fools. They still think it's Rayman. How long will it take before they finally realize that I froze Sylux on Battlefield two years ago so Sakurai would have no other choice but add me as the new Metroid rep?

Samus: "Wait, what?"

Ridley: "Mind your own business, Sammy!"
 

IronTed

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Interesting video. It's been a while since I've seen one of his videos, he's changed it quite a bit since then, in a good way.


This is off topic I suppose but I recently learned (from Wikitroid) that in the early drafts of Metroid Prime 1.5 they were considering making a mode where a player controlled the Omega Pirate. It was basically the boss fight against other players and had various rules and what not. Learning this could have been real is depressing to me, and as much as I love Echoes I wish Prime 1.5 had been a fully realized game too.
 
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