Luigi's Grab Game(and shield game)

[-Mars-]

One of the things that frustrates me with Luigi is how hard it is to grab with him. His grabs are fantastic. Bthrow kills and has fantastic knockback which sets up for edgeguarding, dthrow combos into pretty much anything you want, and uthrow combos into uair. Now i'm having trouble finding situations to grab. Shield grabbing with Luigi is sometimes impossible because the attack on your shield sends you flying across the floor. dash grabbing with Luigi is also hard, he's not that fast and his traction can throw off your timing. I just need some help from you guys with this. Do you make Luigi's grab game a major part of your game, or do you only do it when it's obvious. Should I be trying to grab a lot with Luigi or should I focus on other things?

Also is upb or fsmash out of shield viable? I need some help on how to counter attack out of shield best with Luigi.

 

[ALiAsVee]

UpB or Fsmash out of the shield is good, though i prefer Fsmash due to its longer range. In general, i use his grab game a lot. Luigi opponents always think you are going to UpB them, so feinting into a grab is great for extra damage. Dash grabbing and shield grabbing requires the finesse of someone who uses Luigi a lot, to be honest. Its a matter of practice. I favor the grab game when i pressure the opponent to air dodge and then grab them before they hit the ground. Not every move can be shield grabbed with Luigi, though he moves less if he is hit with the middle like an attack (from a big hitbox, like marth's sword). Getting tipped usually sends Luigi flying, but its risky enough to challenge a Marth in a spacing contest, unless you know you are better.

Use grab to change the direction or flow of the match. Because its so quick and doesn't get out prioritized usually, you can time your opponent's movements to get him in a grab. Shield grabbing is not the focal point of Luigi's grab game, but opponents usually give Luigi some many chances to grab anyway that I don't think it matters.

 

[WIGI]

i don't find it hard to sheidl grab most characters at all. i use grabs alot. i guess its more just timing than anything.

 

[TheMann]

Sheild grabbing can get REALLY hard at higher levels of play when people start to space very well. I start to not go for them as much because if you miss the grab you get punished big time.

Most of my grabs are from a jab because with Luigi your opponent pretty much HAS to shield after a jab or else they risk losing a stock to an UP+B.

As for his shield game. If you can get really good a power shielding then you can punish easier with grabs or even an up +b. Its all about how you see the opening some people see them easier some have a harder time.

 

[ROFL]

luigi relies on the powershield more than any other character IMO.

up b out of shield is amazing, but unless you powershield you slide away. same with any counter attacking pretty much.

grabbing people is pretty **** hard with luigi because, like you mentioned, he is very slow on the ground. this forces luigi to play a heavy aerial game at higher levels of play, but this goes completely against his 2 best killing moves and his pretty decent throw game.

the solution you ask? mind games man. you just gotta keep trying and learn how to predict your opponent as well as you can.

 

[The Dinkoman]

grabbing people is pretty **** hard with luigi because

err...

No its not... Generally my first attack is a grab then an ariel combo.

 

[hippiedude92]

I'm more of a spotdodger abuser but I still can grab. His shield grab game isn't THAT hard. It takes pratice really. You'll get the rythm of his low traction. Power shielding plays more of a bigger role in luigi's game anyways.

Most of grabs come from jab cancels or dtilt trips

also one good OOS option if their behind you is a upsmash because of how big the hitbox is and the range as well. I don't usually throw Fsmash unless their in kill range so I keep it fresh. Most of the time I throw a Ftilt to space and make'em hop off my nuts

 

[ALiAsVee]

Yep, powershielding is the surefire way of getting any type of shield grab done with Luigi. Again, a mainer should know how luigi slides given a blow to his shield, which can be taken as a means of spacing yourself given how far Luigi moves.

 

[-Mars-]

Yep, powershielding is the surefire way of getting any type of shield grab done with Luigi. Again, a mainer should know how luigi slides given a blow to his shield, which can be taken as a means of spacing yourself given how far Luigi moves.

I admit, sometimes i'm thankful for the long slide because it gets me out of bad situations. I guess powershielding is something i'll have to master if I wanna be competitive with Luigi?

 

[Delvro]

Powershield grabbing is fairly difficult for me, although whenever I shield, I get an irresistable urge to press down to spotdodge, and ftilt. Boo

Some good ways to get grabs is after a jab cancel, great for when they're expecting Fire Jump Punch.
Or you can try airdodging down next to them and grabbing (very risky, don't rely on that one), or the converse, spotdodging an opponent from above and land a grab that way. At high levels of play (not me, but some people I play against) can space themselves well enough to avoid it though.

I hope this helps!

 

[LuigiKing]

Well ya know freaking what TC? Its really hard to grab you, and it frustrates me to no end, but you don't see me complaining or making a topic about it now do you?

 

[ThunderSt0rm]

i attempt to make grabs part of my game to get my opponent in the air for some combos. thats where luigi's game is, so y not make use of it? if my opponent has a low damage %, i can sometimes combo an upb after a dthrow for some nice damage

 

[-Mars-]

Aerial FJP off of dthrow? I really haven't seen anyone even attempt to aerial fjp in a serious match. It doesn't even kill until fsmash percentages so usually your best off not even risking it, because it's awfully hard to land. Once you dthrow, most opponents will just airdodge and you almost have to be right underneath them to get the aerial version. With good DI it's almost impossible to get it off.

 

[ThunderSt0rm]

i dont usually try it, but i have done it in certain situations. i usually just go for an uair after the throw

 

[ALiAsVee]

Aerial FJP off of dthrow? I really haven't seen anyone even attempt to aerial fjp in a serious match. It doesn't even kill until fsmash percentages so usually your best off not even risking it, because it's awfully hard to land. Once you dthrow, most opponents will just airdodge and you almost have to be right underneath them to get the aerial version. With good DI it's almost impossible to get it off.

Thats pretty much it, also its weaker than on the ground, so you are more likely to get punished.

Powershield grabbing is fairly difficult for me, although whenever I shield, I get an irresistable urge to press down to spotdodge, and ftilt. Boo

Some good ways to get grabs is after a jab cancel, great for when they're expecting Fire Jump Punch.
Or you can try airdodging down next to them and grabbing (very risky, don't rely on that one), or the converse, spotdodging an opponent from above and land a grab that way. At high levels of play (not me, but some people I play against) can space themselves well enough to avoid it though.

I hope this helps!

You can buffer a grab from an airdodge to make it almost instant, so it isn't as risky are you make it out to be. Grabbing in general is pretty easy with Luigi because of how jittery people get over the firepunch.

Powershielding is something you have to master to be competitive with any character, its just emphasized more with Luigi than with other characters because of his traction.

 

[ThunderSt0rm]

wat exactly is powershielding? i think i know but im not sure

anyone have tips for getting matched up with G&W? i cant grab at all because even with spot dodging, im still hit by G&W's long attack duration and i slide whenever i shield

 

[-Mars-]

wat exactly is powershielding? i think i know but im not sure

anyone have tips for getting matched up with G&W? i cant grab at all because even with spot dodging, im still hit by G&W's long attack duration and i slide whenever i shield

Lol your sliding when you shield because your not power shielding. Power shielding is shielding at the exact instant the attack or projectile hits you, it doesn't shrink your shield at all and you can instantly perform an attack or whatever you like. You can tell when you powershielded correctly because of the sound that it makes.

 

[ThunderSt0rm]

o ok. i dont tend to do that much for safety reasons, but ill try to practice powershielding

 

[elheber]

To the TC:

Grabbing is a major part of my game for the reasons you stated. Luigi's Down Throw sets up great combos at any % and both Front and Back Throws are great for setting up off-stage WoP.

That being said, I don't EVER Dash Grab, or Dash Pivot Grab, or even Pivot Wave Grab. I rarely ever Shield Grab, even after Powershielding. Luigi's true Grab magic lies in the Jab Grab (and not Jab Cancel Grab, which is actually slower). I am not exaggerating when I say that 95% of my Grabs are Jab Grabs. There's rarely a situation where Jabbing before you Grab is a bad idea: If I'm going to Grab out of a Powershield, I Jab Grab. If I'm going to Grab out of a Spot-Dodge, I Jab Grab. The Jab will cancel upcoming smashes and also brings them a little bit closer to Grab range.

It becomes instinct to continue the Jab combo when they're too far or sheild the first Jab, just as it becomes part of your hand's muscle memory to Grab if they didn't shield and are within range. At higher levels of play as spacing becomes a major issue, opponents with longer range than Luigi will make Grabbing nearly impossible without Powershielding or Spot-Dodging.

In conclusion. Jab Grab (not Jab Cancel Grab) = Win. Just make sure you don't forget to Jab FJP once in a while because I lost my ability to follow the Jab with anything but a Grab for a moment.

 

[hippiedude92]

Lolwut? Dthrow to a AFJ? Wtf is that? I'd rather do a Bthrow because it kills, also Dthrow is made for racking up damage at lower %s, it's useless to aerial fire jump punch at lower %s cause it doesnt kill them and your left wide open.

to the tc

Grabbing is basic. Grabbing with Luigi should be, but its like its advanced shiz or something lol.

invest pivot grabs, it *****,

 

[ThunderSt0rm]

im sry if i dont know all this stuff, but how is a pivot grab done?

 

[ALiAsVee]

im sry if i dont know all this stuff, but how is a pivot grab done?

you dash in one direction, then dash in the other while grabbing. He will do a sharp turn and grab.

 

[elheber]

Your Grab range is supposedly larger with Pivot Grabs. I haven't noticed any/much difference in Grab range with any of the Pivot Grabs including Dash Canceled Pivots. IMO it isn't very smart to run past/through the opponent just to do a Pivot Grab, since you're vulnerable the whole time. Opponents don't like Luigi getting in FJP range of them so they'll rarely let you dash through them anyway.

Invest in the Jab Grab. =)

But yeah, I don't think I've ever tried dThrow to FJP. The FJP is not as strong in the air, and victims of the dThrow tend to DI, Air-Dodge, or Aerial Attack (or some combination) out of it in anticipation of you trying to combo them. But I guess against Bowser and Charizard it could be viable.

 

[hippiedude92]

Actually, pivot grabs is still good for mindgames and retreating purposes. Like when you do a Dthrow at 0%, they'll be in midair and just enough for a airdodge, but if you mindgame them, by running past them with a pivot grab, by the time, they land you grab them already. Think of it as a air-chasing or chaingrabbing in melee except that they can escape it easily.

Also when I meant retreating, people who like to run after you when your running away from them, you can throw a pivot grab too. Always works for me. People will intend to shield if their in your shoryuken range, so that means to free grabs for you, but they'll get the gist at times with jab grabs, so why not mix it up to jabs to pivot grabs?

A aerial fire jump punch is bawlsucks if they oppenent is good at DI-ing. I throw once or twice to throw my oppenent's mind off to make them seem safe.

A good player invests what he has around him. I already got jab cancels, jab grabs, jab pivot grabs and all the other stuff. It's just hard to memorize all of them lol.

 

[ALiAsVee]

Actually, pivot grabs is still good for mindgames and retreating purposes. Like when you do a Dthrow at 0%, they'll be in midair and just enough for a airdodge, but if you mindgame them, by running past them with a pivot grab, by the time, they land you grab them already. Think of it as a air-chasing or chaingrabbing in melee except that they can escape it easily.

Also when I meant retreating, people who like to run after you when your running away from them, you can throw a pivot grab too. Always works for me. People will intend to shield if their in your shoryuken range, so that means to free grabs for you, but they'll get the gist at times with jab grabs, so why not mix it up to jabs to pivot grabs?

A aerial fire jump punch is bawlsucks if they oppenent is good at DI-ing. I throw once or twice to throw my oppenent's mind off to make them seem safe.

A good player invests what he has around him. I already got jab cancels, jab grabs, jab pivot grabs and all the other stuff. It's just hard to memorize all of them lol.

Pivot grabs are really only good for mindgames like you said, or pseudo air-chasing i geuss. jab grab is a mindgame in itself, so i don't typically need to mix up the grab game too much.