FrozenRoy
Smash Lord
Rattata
"Miss me?"
"Miss me?"
Rattata. The rat pokemon. But you probably know it better as that pest that always shows up at the start and was only useful in a few generations. And created the starter rat phenomenon.
Still, Rattata is not as useless as it first appears, especially with it's signature move "Super Fang", which always halves the foe's HP. In fact, in the first generation, Rattata's evolution Raticate was almost OU on this move alone, due to Ghost not being immune to it!
Let's see how this little survivor lasts in Brawl, though.
Ratistics
Rattata is a small little guy and the fact he stands as a quadraped only accentuates that. Rattata keeps it's tail curled up and close to it when standing still and it can dodge a fair amount of projectiles like this, such as Falco's Lasers. Even some physical attacks won't be able to connect, going right over his head!
It also moves quite fast, though not quite to the speed of Captain Falcon, this allows it to run around the field like the spry little creature it is, going to and fro'. Unfortunately, it's tail will uncurl and hang a bit high while running or walking, thus causing it's height to be raised enough to be hit more. Can't dodge Falco lasers like that!
Rattata can, however, crawl. While it can't move as fast like this, it will keep it's tail low to the ground, giving it an approach to projectile campers.
Rattata is also quite light, though heavier than Jigglypuff, but lighter than everyone else in the game. You will need to play smart with your speed, as you are quite light, your second jump is pretty bad though your first jump is actually fairly good and spoilers: Your recovery isn't anything great.
As far as the air, Rattata is not particularly adept in it, but is not bad either. It is a bit floaty and blunt to control, but has decent movement. It's traction is entirely average.
Onto the moveset!
Specials
Neutral Special: Super Fang
Super Fang is Rattata's signature move. Its bread and butter. Its coup de grace. So it shouldn't be surprising it is so important to Rattata, despite being a simple move.
In the games, Super Fang deals damage equal to half the current HP of the foe. Unfortunately, we do not have HP here, we have damage...or is it so unfortunate?
When Rattata uses Super Fang, it will do a visibly STRONG bite in front of it, targetting the most critical area of the opponent's body to rend a vicious blow on the opponent. Not only will this attack leave an actual bite mark on the foe, but it will do a lot of damage if used right. In fact, the damage it does is equal to half of the foe's current damage.
So if your opponent has 10% damage, this moves does 5% damage. If they have 50%, this move does 25%. And if they have 100%, this moves does an amazing 50%. And so on. It's knockback is not so greatly scaled, set at a set knockback of one Battlefield platform away.
Needless to say, this move is an amazing boon for Rattata, as it has little to know true "KO moves", so you need to rack damage to truly ludicrous extremes...and Super Fang will let you do it fast. Indeed, as the match goes on, the foe and Rattata can get in a game where each must be very careful, lest Rattata land this and put them right into KO range or the foe hit Rattata and send it flying right off.
This move starts very quick with variable ending lag, depending on if it hit or whiffed. If it hit, the end lag leaves Rattata in a frame neutral situation with the foe from their knockback, but it has some really bad ending lag, as Rattata chomping down strong actually hurts itself visibly and causes it to flinch, in addition to taking 5% damage. It's range is also almost non-existant, due to Rattata's small frame and just biting in front of it. This move requires the utmost of preciseness to use and not get punished, in exchange for massive rewards.
Side Special: Run Away
Run Away is one of Rattata's abilities, which allows it 100% fleeing against wild pokemon.
Fittingly, Run Away is one of Rattata's spacing moves, and a crucial one in its arsenel. When this move is used, Rattata will either jump back or leap forward one Battlefield platform, depending on if you inputted the way Rattata was facing or not, quickly. The key thing about this move is that it can be used in the attack lag of any move or DURING any move.
This move gives Rattata an amazing mobility option, leaping around during the lag of it's moves, though it should be noted Rattata still suffers the move's lag. In addition, Rattata is never dodging or anything, so the only way you'll dodge something is with speed and prediction.
This move has a extra thing it can do, in that if you hit the B button when you land, Rattata will either do a quick skidding turn or flip in place, changing the direction he is facing quickly. This allows you to move forward but face backwards, for example.
This move has almost no starting or ending lag, though the lag of any move you interrupt on this is still taken when Rattata lands, making it more of a get away move than anything in those instances. And of course, you can combine this with starting lag or even during a move to mess around with your hitbox. It's an interesting move, for sure.
Down Special: Hustle
Hustle is another ability of Rattata's. In the game, it increases the power of all of Rattata's moves by 50%, but reduces their accuraccy to 80% of what it was.
In Brawl, activating this move causes Rattata to hustle. Its speed increases to a bit faster than Captain Falcon's, start and end lag is very lightly reduced and, most importantly, all of Rattata's moves deal 50% more damage from Rattata expending the extra effort. Just like the actual ability, though, Hustle has a downside. In fact, it has two. First off, Rattata's trip chance is doubled, including attacks with a chance to trip, because of the fact it is running so hard it gets easily messed up. Finally, since Rattata is pushing its body past its limit, it takes 1/4th the damage of any move it uses as recoil damage. These effects last a long ten seconds before wearing off, whereupon Rattata is too tired to activate it for another five seconds, though it maintains enough energy to not be adversely affected when it wears off.
This move has little lag on either end of the move, so you can enter it in a ton of situations, maybe even flinging yourself at the foe with Run Away and using both of their low lags to have them have to deal with a souped up Rattata nearby. Still, it's drawback is notable, so you have to choose when to use Hustle correctly.
Up special: Hyper Fang
Rattata and Raticate used to have Hyper Fang as a signature move, though never as much as Super Fang.
The move itself is relatively simple, as Rattata thrusts up in a jump that goes about the height of Marth's Dolphin Slash, biting at it's apex. This move is actually Rattata's best KO move, starting to KO reliably at an amazingly early...150%. It's really awkward to hit with, though, so you'll rarely be using it for that purpose and mostly for recovery. It does a keen 15% damage, making it an awesome damaging tool as well, and you hear a satisfying little crunching noise if you manage to hit with. It's recovery range is slightly deceptive as well, as Rattata will be extending to bite as high as it can, so it can actually catch ledges with it's teeth that would normally be just out of reach. Doing so causes him to grab on to the ledge in a laggy and vulnearable animation, however, so you almost always would prefer to sweetspot it or recover high. Like most recoveries, it causes you to go into helpless.
The fact it does not go all that far, combined with Rattata's light weight and bad second jump, means try to avoid getting hit off the stage as much as possible. Rattata might be a survivor, but it's not because it's a tank, it is because it's a cunning, fast rodent who avoids getting hit.
Ground Game
Jab: Tackle
Tackle is a move Rattata pretty much always knows. It's very common to see a ton of Rattata with Tackle at the start of the game.
Here, Tackle is a very simple jab. Rattata will tackle forwards a very small bit in an infinitely repeatable jab much like Pikachu's. This move does 2% damage and is extremely fast, it's not unsurprising to get off two or maybe even three if you're lucky before you can expect much retaliaition, though it has more lag when it hits a shield. This move does not actually cause any any or knockback, so the fact it's so fast is required to really hit with it. Plus, it'll do 3% if used with Hustle, making it even better, for minimal problem to you.
A good idea is to weave in and out with Tackle and Run Away to rack up some small damage, but it's easy to get whacked, especially out of the shield, if you get too predictable with this.
Forward Tilt: Tackle Rush
Not a move, but it's a good descriptor of it.
When you input this, Rattata will tackle forwards, leaping ahead 3/4ths of a Battlefield platform. This move starts up quick, though not always as quick as Rattata's other moves, with some decent ending lag. It deals 8% damage and low knockback, but it's a good mix-up move with the jab, mostly because of the fact that when used at an appropriately close range, you'll go right past shields, unlike the obvious shielding solution to Tackle.
This move also has two cool interactions with Run Away, as you can either use it during the start lag of this to cause Rattata to go an absolutely large length and essentially be a flying tackle, or use Run Away during the end lag, either allowing you to retreat very far or even mindgame the foe by going back the way you came and ending up just a bit further than you were before, especially if they turn around.
Down Tilt: Tail Slap
Tail Slap is not a pokemon move.
Rattata swipes its tail forward in front of it. As far as Rattata attacks go, this actually has good range, especially since Rattata's tail will get larger in Brawl fashion. The move deals 8% damage and the most knockback of any of Rattata's tilts, KOing at about...240%. Which is not entirely unrealistically reachable with Super Fang. The knockback is straight-up, too, making it a bit of a setup.
This move has two primary uses. One, it's one of Rattata's few decent reaching moves that does not move Rattata, giving it one his few decent ranged moves, and that since Rattata is so damn small, it can shieldpoke well. It starts up very fast, even if not quite as much as the jab, but it has deceptively long ending lag. As sad as it sounds, it is also one of Rattata's KO moves, so you might not want to stale it too much.
Up Tilt: Bite
Bite is yet another common move for Rattata's. It was originally a normal type move Rattata got STAB off of, but was changed to Dark in Generation II.
Unsurprisingly, Bite is a pretty simple move, as Rattata will make a very short hop and, at the apex of it, bite with it's small mouth. The bite itself does 8% damage and deals knockback that goes straight down, albeit weak knockback, throwing foes to the turf or, if you are right next to the ledge, weakly spiking them. This move can actually hit grounded foes that are large enough, such as Bowser and Ganondorf, and if so will produce weak upwards knockback. This move, compared to Rattata's other moves, has a bit of a startup lag as it prepared to hop, though it is still fast as far as tilts go, and has the least ending lag of any of Rattata's tilts. This move will move you forward 1/4th of a Battlefield platform from the hop, as well.
This move occupies a simple part of Rattata's tilt game, as the one that hurts the least to whiff with. It also provides a way to move just a bit forward while also producing a hitbox, compared to Tackle Rush moving you a good distance, giving you more combinations with Run Away.
Forward Smash: Double-Edge
Double-Edge is one of the stronger Normal-type moves in the game and, indeed, can be learned by Rattata at the relatively low level of 31. However, it also causes the user to take recoil damage.
This life-risking tackle is one of Rattata's strongest KO moves, even if it is not really too strong. When used, Rattata will rear up for a moment before leaping head-first an entire Battlefield platform, flinging itself forward with all the strength it can muster. This strong tackle does an awesome 16-20% damage and great knockback...for Rattata. It actually only kills at around 170% unless you edgeguard, making it a poor KO move compared to others, but great for Rattata. Combined with the damage and the fact that while it's startup is not as quick as others of Rattata's moves, it is quick for a smash, it seems like a perfect move, except for two things that make it sort of terrible.
First off, you will take 1/4th of the damage you deal as recoil damage, adding it to Rattata's damage %. Uncharged, this means Rattata takes 4% when he hits with this, or 5% fully charged. When you are as light as Rattata with a poor recovery, that is a big deal. And secondly, this move has some bad ending lag, a bit above average for a smash period, as Rattata hits the ground a bit hard and has to scramble back into a fighting position. This makes the move extremely punishable, seeing as hitting with it damages you and missing or even hitting at very low %s will leave you vulnearable for what is likely a smash or, in MYM Brawl, some super powered move that'll slaughter ya.
Of course, you can use Run Away to fling yourself around during the end lag, but you'll still have to take it...and if you just always go the same way, it's not hard to just follow you and still smash you. Indeed, the key to avoiding getting punished is either using this solely as a killer or mixing up your Run Aways, sometimes flinging yourself back right where you were to confuse an opponent chasing the other way. Hustle can also be used both to boost this move to obscene damage %s(24-30%!) and lower the lag...but note that if you DO hit with it and Hustle, you'll be taking 1/2 recoil damage, meaning 12-15%. That is a lot of self-inflicted damage, so be careful.
Up Smash: Headbutt
Headbutt is a Pokemon move that Rattata was once able to learn and, more importantly, a very accurate description of what this move is.
Rattata rears up a bit, quicker and not as much as Double-Edge, before leaping headfirst into the sky, going about as high as Falco's first jump in a full-body hitbox. This move does 12-16% damage and knockback that KOs at 210%, which also happens to be almost purely vertical. The end lag is about average, perhaps a bit quick, but will leave Rattata in the air, where he can either jump away or try to pursue for an aerial assault, or maybe come down faster with his down aerial. It's also, as far as Rattata moves go, a decent killer. The key thing is that it functions as a good anti-air move and lets you jump even higher than your normal first jump, at the cost of a little lag at the end of it. Just like Bite, this can hit tall characters that are near you when you jump.
Down Smash: Tail Sweep
Tail Sweep is not a Pokemon move.
Rattata does a really quick spin with it's tail fully extended, which just like the Down Tilt expands a little(though not as much), clearing out both sides right near it. Since it is attacking with it's tail, this move has more range than most of Rattata's moves, without actually moving Rattata. It's also the quickest of Rattata's smash attacks, starting quickly and having little end lag for a smash attack. It deals 12-16% damage and knockback that KOs around 210%, which has a diagonal angle to it and thus makes momentum cancelling a bit less effective.
This is your quickest killing move and it lets you clear out the space on both sides of you, which makes it really good. It's also one of your few ranged moves, so you'll be seeing Tail Sweep a lot if you main Rattata.
Dash Attack: Pursuit
Rattata learns this dark type move at Level 13.
In a keep-dashing attack, Rattata will slightly slow it's dash but gain a determined look in it's eyes as it charges forward, not attacking until it gets close to it's opponents, where it will leap forward a little and try to get off a quick gnawing bite. The bit itself does little damage, 8%, and no knockback, but it does have pretty good hitstun and Rattata can continue dashes when it lands behind the opponent. This also makes the move hard to shieldgrab, as you need to grab Rattata before it reaches you or you won't have time.
This move is not called pursuit for nothing, though. After landing from this attack, an almost lagless affair, you can press the A button to have Rattata almost laglessly turn right around and, if you want, continue the dash attack! Since Rattata will fire off this attack even against a rolling or spot-dodging foe, this allows Rattata to relentlessly pursue the foe through their dodges. The lag for it matches well with the hitstun from when it hits as well, leaving you and the foe in an almost frame neutral situation and from there, the mindgames on if you'll charge right back in, Run Away in a direction or just plain stop using the attack shall begin. Vary it up and the foe will be dodging right into you ready to pursuit again, gaining valuable spacing through Run Away and getting in the valuable damage you need.
Run Away in particular has a lot of fun with this. You can turn around, then immedietely leap backwards to fake out the foe, not turn around and Run Away backwards to do the opposite or even Run Away right towards the foe when you turn around as a switch-up. The fact this move has an almost lagless ending lag and not a great deal of starting lag helps with that.
Aerials
Down Aerial: Body Slam
Rattata has been able to learn Body Slam for a while now, usually by TM or Move Tutor. So yeah.
As you may have guessed from the name, this is a stall than fall, though there is very little stall, as Rattata quickly turns it's back downwards while pushing the same way, sending it plummeting to the ground at about the speed of the Ice Climber's dair. This move deals a low 6% damage and low diagonally upward-forward knockback, really more serving to get the foe out of the way than for knockback purposes. Indeed, this move's primary purpose is to get Rattata to the ground faster, given it's floaty nature, and for being a decent move to hit people under you.
This move is actually pretty controllable as you descend, allowing you to better choose where to land. When Rattata lands on a solid surface, and just like Toon Link and Zamus' stall than falls this won't stop until you do or you grab a ledge, it'll actually pop up as it lands on it's back and flips onto its legs. Rattata will pop in whatever direction you are holding at the time, about half a Battlefield platform, or you can let the control stick stay in the middle and pop in place. Indeed, this move allows a good little ground movement once you get there.
Forward Aerial: Tail Slam
Tail Slam ain't a Pokemon move.
Rattata flips in place, slamming downwards as hard as it can with it's tail. This doesn't amount to a particularly strong move, but it does do the most damage of any of Rattata's aerials, 10%, and produces a quite weak meteor smash. You won't really be KOing too many people with this until very high %s(300% or so?), but it is a decent enough way to get someone in the air back down to the ground and at low %s you can combo with this from the down tilt, albeit not a true combo past anything but meager %s. Overall though, this is mostly just for the spike and to help get people where you want them to be, where you can use Run Away and Pursuit and your much better ground agility. As far as the lag goes, it's pretty fast as far as aerials go, but nothing special compared to your other aerials go.
Neutral Aerial: Tail Spin
Also not a Pokemon move.
Rattata itself curls into a ball, extending out it's tail to try and hit anyone around it. Hitting with Rattata's body deals a meager 2% non-flincing, non-knockback causing damage, but will most likely only cause them to get hit by the tail, which deals 6% damage and knockback that can start KOing at around...oh...320%. However, it has decent base knockback, it's more that it's knockback scaling is pretty bad. The tail will make three revolutions around you for a pretty long duration move, but it's unlikely to hit with more than one.
This generally be your somewhat generic aerial GTFO move, as it hits all around you pretty fast and deals enough knockback to be a good GTFO move. It has some fast startup, but somewhat uncharacteristically long end lag, as Rattata has to right itself after spinning, especially if it hits the ground. So it's sort of punishable.
Up Aerial: Tail Swipe
Nope, not a Pokemon move either.
Rattata swiftly swipes above it with it's tail, dealing a quick 6% damage with almost non-existant knockback, but similiarly almost non-existant hitstun. This can actually combo into itself pretty easily at almost any %, but only at most you'll get two hits with this due to aerial movement and the severe lack of meaningful hitstun. Think like Pikachu's UAir. This move also leaves Rattata in the somewhat disadvantageous situation of being under a foe who most likely outranges it, outdamages it and outprioritizes it. You'll need to be careful in combining this possibly great damage racking tool, especially at higher %s, with the downsides of possible retaliation. It might not be a bad idea to try and Body Slam right out of the air after this.
It starts the quickest of any Rattata aerial and has the least ending lag.
Back Aerial: Crunch
Crunch is a Pokemon Move which Rattata learns naturally at Level 22.
When this move is used, Rattata will quickly turn around and deliver a HARD crunching chomp. This causes 9% damage and the most knockback of any Rattata aerial, killing at around 270%, but has the flaw of the fact that its range is extremely short, especially since Rattata has to turn around and can't really get any extension. If the opponent is anything more than a token distance away, expect to whiff, meaning this move needs to be used very carefully. It starts up deceptively quick, but its end lag is sort of bad, moreso if it misses, as Rattata chomping down so hard causes it to flinch a little, though unlike Super Fang it is not hard enough to cause any self damage.
This move has another use to it too, albeit a small one. If you hit A after this move is finished and during the end lag, Rattata will actually turn around, allowing you to change direction easily in the air. Nifty, eh?
This is your primary killing aerial, as Tail Slam only works with spiking and Tail Spin takes longer and is a bit less reliable. Just be very careful about how you use it, because it can't just be thrown out at will. Wall of paining is right out. You can also use it to turn around, but this might not always be a good idea, though it CAN be used to threaten a foe hit by it near the edge with a FAir meteor smash.
Grab Game
Grab: Gnaw
Gnaw is not a Pokemon move, but Rattata can use Gnaw in the Pokemon TCG.
Rattata has a very odd grab. When the grab is used, Rattata will hop forward just a tad. Normally this does nothing, but if it hits a foe during this, Rattata will swiftly run onto the foe. While Rattata is on the foe, you can move on them with the control stick, up and down causes you to move up and down the foe, while left and right allow you to move around them, such as to the sides. During this same time, the character is unable to move, but moving the control stick causes the character to move their hands or whatever they would grab Rattata with. If they hit A over Rattata, they'll grab it and fling it off. Miss and take lag. There is a very slight delay between the button press and actually grabbing Rattata, so you need to catch Rattata either gnawing you for damage, which it does by pressing A while on you and deals rapid 3% damage, or trick Rattata on where to go.
Rattata, as mentioned, can hit A to gnaw on the foe for rapid 3% damage, which is a mostly quick animation but will cause the foe to at least someone catch up to you. After ten seconds of this grab, if Rattata has not been caught, it will automatically jump off half a Battlefield platform in front of the foe. Rattata has no throws. If the foe grabs Rattata, they will now have Rattata in their grab, where they can do whatever throwgame they might have. If they have some special grab game that would not work, such as another Rattata, they will throw him away one Battlefield platform, dealing 10% damage. Rattata can, at any time, press B to exit this grab by jumping off the foe half a Battlefield platform in front of them, leaving Rattata and the foe in a frame neutral situation. This deals 2% damage.
I am pretty sure this grab is actual a horrible abomination to grabs, but YOU try and come up with something for Rattata! It's just not suited to any kind of grab game whatsoever. Sad. It's at least unique, I guess?
Final Smash: Rattatarmy
Rattata has managed to somehow grab a Smash Ball! When you unleash this move, a whopping 19 Rattata will frantically run onto the stage. These Rattata act as the main Rattata at 40% damage and have it's full moveset and will rampage across the stage for an amazing 20 seconds, acting as enemies to anyone not Rattata as CPU characters with a CPU level of 7. They can be knocked off the stage to get rid of them, but as there are 19 of them, it is quite hard. It can also be hard to find the main Rattata if you wished to hit it, as the summoned Rattata are always the same color/costume of it.
After 20 seconds, the Rattatas will run off the stage, each one having found a Chilan Berry. I guess they only came because they smelled it. There's no honor among Rattata, is there?
Playstyle of The Rat
Rattata is all about quick attacks, damage racking and mobility. Rattata cannot win in a heads-on fight with the foe, as it's attacks low % and bad range means it's priority is garbage, plus it's general lack of a KO move and, indeed, it's grab rendering it's defensive options out of it somewhat poor. This is not counting it's bad weight and terrible recovery!
But fret not, as Rattata are spry creatures, and they have to catch you before they can wail on you. Your speed will serve you well here, as will your mind, as Run Away becomes a centerpiece, allowing you unparallelled mobility options on the ground and even able to use your short lag to move around. Once you've gotten the foe to a decent %, somewhere around 80-100% depending on the weight, the threat of Super Fang will loom above the foe's head, threatening to do 50% damage and bring them closer to the percentage where Rattata can finally score the KO it so dearly wants.
Hustle also provides Rattata a high-risk, high-reward option, especially when COMBINED with Super Fang. After all, it does increase attack power by 50%...and Super Fang can deal a TON of damage. Landing Super Fang on a foe with just 80% means an amazing 60% damage(40% from Super Fang + 20% more from Hustle), almost doubling their damage right then and there! The drawback, however, is severe, as you will be taking MASSIVE recoil to your already small frame. That 60% you just did? It also means you just dealt yourself 15% damage. And no matter how good you are at dodging, if the foe has 80%, you'll have taken some damage yourself. Considering Rattata has little survivability, this is quite bad. Hustled Super Fang, while an incredibly dangerous tool, is also an incredibly dangerous risk. And if you miss, you still take 5% and that bad end lag, even if you can place yourself around with Run Away.
Hustle's other use is to turn Rattata's moves into more legitimate damage rackers. For example, Rattata's up aerial combo now gives you a solid 18% on the foe. D-Tilt to F-Air early on with Hustle will give you a great 25% damage on the foe early on. Your fast tilts are upgraded to legitimate damages and even your smashes start looking like a true powerhouse's! Just remember this all comes at the cost of Rattata's small survivability: That up aerial combo is going to cost you about 8% damage to do. D-Tilt to F-Air? That'll be about a solid 8-9% too. And your foe WILL be able to last longer than you.
Indeed, Rattata is an uphill battle, and perhaps a bit underpowered.
Rattata also has some mindgames to it, really somewhat required to play Rattata. All the times you can use Run Away and change direction with it mean that tricking the foe as to what way you will go with it is really needed to use it truly effectively, otherwise it can be chased down and you'll be exterminated, given no invincibility frames. Pursuit allows you some too, such as the short but important mental battle when it hits on how you will proceed, or how to proceed when you miss your foe. Turn around for another pass? Turn around and Run Away backwards to maybe trick a foe? Maybe you won't turn around, but Run Away backwards to get behind a foe who was charging a predicted backwards Run Away. Varying up how you go about it will keep the foe confused for the most simple follow-up of charging at them. Maybe even mix in a few of the same to make the opponent think they've got a pattern on you, before pulling the rug out from under them?
Be spry, be nimble and you've got a chance, little Rattata.
Author's Note: So here it is, Rattata. How did we not have a set for this guy before? I thought making a somewhat simple set would be good for me, as it would let me avoid frustration if I was unable to post it due to my issues. I actually quite like it, even if I imagine that the average MYMer will find it horribly bland, and that the grab isn't very good. But I spent hours trying to figure out a good grab! Rattata having a normal grab simply did not work mentally picturing due to it's size. In the end, though, I think I made something good enough to satisfy me. +1 to the Generation I Pokedex and another step towards it's completion! And that's not counting when I can finally post Alakazam...
)
The time travel thing is pretty amusing though. The up special seems like it could be spammed to just obnoxiously throw off rhythm with a lot of very brief time freezes, though. I dunno, it seems like that could be a thing. I will say that everything seems to work to the chaotic playstyle pretty nicely though, good job.
