Plok!
PLOK!
No idea who Plok is? Dig through your closet, dust off your SNES, then find some used games store that sells the game. It’s one of the most brilliantly designed platform games ever, in terms of mechanics and level design, music choice, visuals, and overall feel.
The basic plot is that Plok is a megalomaniacal self-proclaimed ruler of an island with an obsession for flags, and when his favorite one gets stolen he commits mass genocide of an entire species, ending the game by killing the matriarch who is the only one out of the entire species that has any reproductive capability.
It is awesome and so is its protagonist and so can you. But first of all, he looks kinda like this:
Which kind of illustrates the most unique thing about Plok the character. He doesn’t believe in connecting his arms and legs to his body. That just overcomplicates things and make it take that much longer to punch an enemy in the face. So his head and body are attached and are somehow connected via invisible links to his hands and feet, which move around mostly independently. In the game, his primary form of attack involved him launching his limbs at his opponent, which would boomerang back slowly to him if he missed.
This also applies in Smash, where hitting an enemy causes his limb to teleport back to him instantly, while missing causes them to return more slowly. This has no bearing on his ending lag, but it does leave him missing a limb longer. Having four fast moving projectiles was handy, but if you shot them all out at once and missed you’d end up bouncing around on Plok’s equivalent of a butt, completely defenseless.
Same applies to Brawl. Without arms, he can’t do punch attacks or grabs (even grabbing the ledge), and without 1 leg he can’t run, without the other he bounces around and can’t jump or roll. The character comes built-in with an interesting mechanic that I’ll try to translate to Brawl because it sounds like fun. Here goes:
Stats
Size: Luigi height, Wario width
Speed: 4/10 (average walk speed but rather slow run speed for a light character, and bad air speed as well making it hard for him to chase with aerials)
Power: 6/10
Weight: Slightly light, like 4/10
Fall Speed: 5/10
Jumping: 1st Jump (a simple jump): 3/10, 2nd Jump (spinning somersault): 5/10
Traction: 3/10 (you try stopping on a dime without legs)
Range: 8/10 (dude, he SHOOTS his punches at you)
Grab: 8/10 (yes, he also shoots his grabs at you, with less lag than most grabs that come with a Zair in tandem)
Shield: 3/10 (Plok isn’t small, but his shield kind of is)
Roll: 6/10 (fast because he doesn’t have arms and legs to get in the way of evasion, which also makes it more confusing)
Dodge: 4/10
Ground
A: Punch forward with average range for his size (3%)
AA: Second punch is roughly to the gut, with his other hand (3%)
AAA: A kick arcing upward (4%)
AAAA: A kick with Plok’s last leg, Sparta-style, with the only appreciable knockback of his neutral combo. (4%)
Dash Attack: Plok lunges forward, leaving his feet behind while he is launched parallel to the ground at his foe, fists out in front of him.
With both of his arms, has very good range for a dash attack and has horizontal knockback with a bit of killing potential.
With one arm, still has range but less knockback. Without arms, only his head can hit which does vertical knockback.
Without legs, Plok can’t run so that point is moot. (5% for each punch, 6% for the headbutt
(all three can hit if done at close range, launching the recipient diagonally)
Ftilt: One button press causes him to do two swinging hook punches in quick succession, one arcing upwards and the other downwards.
A second button press causes him to finish with a side kick. The kick must be executed quickly because the second punch does have average knockback for a tilt move, while the kick itself has minor killing potential.
(6% for each punch, 8% for the kick)
Utilt: Tilts his body up and does a punt-kick upward with quick start up, ending lag, and pretty good knockback for a tilt.
If Plok only has one arm, ending lag is increased because he teeters a little. If both arms are missing, Plok falls at the end.
(11%)
Dtilt: Shoots a leg along the ground. Good knockback and incredible range for a tilt (nearly the horizontal range of a crouching Bowser). Ending lag keeps it from being chained, as well as knockback. Not having legs means not having a Dtilt.
(10%)
Fsmash: Plok launches all available limbs at once forward about two character lengths in front of him, where they fan out at the end before boomeranging back to him. Slightly more lag than most Fsmashes.
Bad kill move with 2 limbs, decent with 3, matches up with heavyweights at 4. 1 limb has barely any killing potential.
(each limb does 6%, damage range from 6-24%)
Usmash: Plok’s head and body do a slow flip in the air while all his limbs launch in a circle. Fast startup, bad recovery due to limbs getting back into position.
Same knockback rules apply as from Fsmash, although overall Usmash is weaker and trajectory is according to angle of impact
(4-16%)
Dsmash: Plok’s head and body fall to the ground as his limbs shoot out to their opposite location (right arm shoots to his left downward side, etc). With all limbs, great coverage, range, and knockback. Ending lag is pretty bad though. Strong knockback with all limbs plus a low trajectory.
(5-20%)
Throws
Grab: Plok shoots a hand out. Range nearly that of a tether-style grab, and startup and ending lag is good even for regular grab characters. Downside is that Plok can’t grab if he doesn’t have arms.
Come to think of it, Plok can’t grab the ledge if he doesn’t have an arm, and will lose grip faster with only one. On the plus side, Plok has a ridiculously huge sweetspot on the ledge when he does have both his arms.
Running Grab: Plok needs both hands for this, but has extra range. With only one hand, it’s a weak, long-ranged hit with lag at the end which isn’t very useful and somewhat punishable.
Pummel: All other available limbs do a short-ranged pummel
(1% for each limb, up to 4% per pummel if all limbs)
Fthrow: Plok pushes them forward with his arms, then does a long-ranged kick. Kick does strong horizontal knockback with some killing potential, while the push simply pushes them and does no damage
(Kick does 12%. Without a leg, Plok pushes for no damage)
Bthrow: Plok raises opponent overhead and throws them the other way. Fairly strong knockback if with both hands
(13%)
Uthrow: Plok throws opponent upward. With two hands, better knockback (not very fatal though) and damage, with one hand it does less knockback and produces a spiraling effect (like the kind made when you spike a grounded opponent).
(2 hands: 12%, 1 hand: 8%)
Dthrow: Opponent goes flat on stomach while Plok hovers over and shoots out his limbs downward in rapid succession. Same average vertical knockback irregardless of number of limbs.
(4% for limb, 4-16%)
Aerials
Nair: Mini version of his Dsmash, where all his limbs switch positions but are propelled further outward. Good coverage in diagonal directions, good priority, good range considering the coverage, and knockback comparable to most initial-hit sex-kicks. This is, of course, assuming that all of his limbs are in place
(6% per limb, only two can hit at a time obviously unless character is Giant or something)
Fair: Shoots out an arm and a leg if he can, arm going forward and slightly upward, while the kick goes forward and slightly more downward.
If he possesses the other two, he can do those right afterwards. Great range, Somewhat mediocre knockback.
(Each limb does 7%, but can only hit in pairs of done at close range due to spread)
Bair: Spins around leaning back and lets his arms and legs do a rotation around him. Better than average range, below average knockback for a Bair. Difficult to land all hits.
(limbs do 4% each, 4-16%)
Uair: All of Plok’s limbs stay in place while his head and torso shoot upward a bit. Range is slightly higher than most Uairs, and its one of his attacks that isn’t dependant on his limbs. Knockback is somewhat mediocre.
(10%)
Dair: Same as his Uair, except he goes downward, attacking with his….butt? This is a spike, and it is more powerful the more limbs he has, although damage remains the same. A moderately powerful spike with all limbs.
(12%)
Specials
Neutral B: Amulet: The B button can be pressed rapidly, and each press causes Plok to do something like a headbang while flailing his arms around, with the added effect of greenish-yellowish shells (seashells) being expelled two at a time out of him that arc up and downward like the McDonald arches.
When you do this, Plok starts to get an angry look on his face. The more times you press B, the more he headbangs and the angrier he gets, and the longer it takes for him to return to normal.
If he does a jump while looking angry, he will do a somersault but morphed as a PlokSawBlade, which does multiple hits and a little knockback, and the jumps are also higher (similar to Screw Attack item). However, over time (or if using the jump, Up B, or Down B) Plok will become less angry, and the amount of shells registered as being used decreases. (N/A)
Side B: Limb Launch: Plok shoots out his limbs. Sure he does that with most of his attacks, but the startup lag here is as fast as a jabs’, but his limbs shoot nearly ½ of Final Destination. When used with this attack, Plok’s limbs CAN be reflected, and take much longer to come back due to distance if missed.
If they are shielded, a hanger appears in midair near the enemy with the limb on it (though pretty much at ground level). Any additionally shielded Limb Launches result in the next limb in question appearing on the same hanger. Plok must come in contact with the hanger in order to regain those limbs, otherwise they just stay on the hanger (it’s a puzzle mechanic from the game, and keeps you from abusing this move so much).
They have good enough knockback to be used with timing for a pseudo Wall of Pain. Limbs are faster than most non-Laser projectiles, and better knockback than Laser projectiles as well.
(Limbs do 7% each, but harder to chain them).
Down B: Buddy Hornet Call:
Plok waves his hands in the air as if calling someone from a distance. This can be done as rapidly as the Neutral B. For every two pairs of shells (2 for each headbang motion from Amulet) that Plok used during the Amulet move, he will get one Buddy Hornet, which is about the size of one of his eyes and circles over his head. (not sure about maximum limit, no damage on its own)
Up B: Super Somersault/Sawblade/Hornet Launch: Normally, Plok does a big version of his second jump, which still has mediocre range for a third jump. If he is angry from Amulet use, this will be accompanied by a Sawblade effect which causes damage (1% each hit but can be a lot of hits) and the more Angry and the more shells expended, the higher and farther he goes, allowing for excellent recovery if his Neutral B was used enough.
This move also launches all available Buddy Hornets, causing them to grow to the size of one of Plok’s limbs and gives them semi-homing capabilities (but they can turn around and maneuver) and can hit twice each before dissipating. Each hit of theirs can do 2%, and they last around 5 seconds. If Plok becomes helpless, any Buddy Hornets still on stage will fly towards him and prick him to get him out of his helpless state.
Unsummoned Hornets present while he is helpless will all launch automatically and surround Plok in a manner similar to electron orbital depictions around atoms, giving Plok some very limited flight capability, although the speed and duration is dependant on number of Hornets surrounding him and overall is not very maneuverable. Also, if the hornets run into anything they do 2% damage and dissipate. Doing this move on the ground causes Plok to not jump, but the Hornets are still summoned, letting them swarm and attack the enemy. The hornets can do 2 stings before dissipating, with a little knockback and a lot of stun.
This move has great recovery potential but without any Amulet use it sucks, and if Plok has both summoned and unsummoned hornets the summoned ones will try to prick him while the automatically summoned will try to carry him. Basically, you have to plan ahead before Plok gets knocked off the stage for a considerable distance, otherwise he’ll do anything from a pathetic recovery attempt to gimping his own recovery. (damage variable because move is variable)
Final Smash: Rocket Plok
Plok, like most platformer heroes, had a lot of powerups at his disposal. I chose this one because it’s badass.
See? Yeah, those are all missile launchers. Anyways, when activated, a big present falls out of nowhere onto Plok, stars and a big question mark come out during the transformation, then he has rocket launchers strapped all over him. Pressing and holding the jump button causes him to fly around, flames shooting out of some of the pipes.
Pressing A causes Plok to shoot out multiple missiles (random amount each press) in all directions with infinite range, straight trajectory, and high speed and knockback.
Pressing B causes Plok to shoot out multiple missiles (random still but less than A) in all directions with semi-homing capability, larger explosions, but shorter-ranged and slower, although similar knockback. Both variations can be fired rapidly and Plok can fill the screen with missily death easily and from any position.
Taunts
Up Taunt: Plok pulls out a flag of himself and stretches it so the audience can see while smiling.
Side Taunt: Plok pulls out his harmonica and plays a few bars while tapping his feet.
Down Taunt: Plok looks furious and waves his arms around.
Victory Pose:
1) There is a flagpole on the victory screen and Plok quickly reels a flag of himself upward and smiles and waves his arms around while it flaps in the wind.
2) Plok plays his harmonica while dancing.
3) A hanger is floating in midair, from which all of Plok’s limbs hang on. Plok hops onto the screen view, but the hanger is too high for him and he hops upward at it in a futile manner, trying to get his limbs back.
Victory Music: The Plok theme song of course. It’s all upbeat and harmonicky.
Pros:
+ Crazy range on both attacks and grabs
+ Great projectile. Can kill, harass, hits while returning, is fast, chainable in the right circumstances, and washes the dishes. Also, it’s his best approach.
+ Having all of his limbs present means higher than average damage and knockback on almost all moves
+ Specials give him lots of options, giving him anything from a temporary Screw Attack-style effect to little minions that can cover and assist him.
+ Potentially huge and varied recovery
Cons:
- Without limbs, most moves are less effective, or don’t work at all
- Without preparation, has horrible recovery
- Fairly large size + Light weight is bad
- Reckless use of limbs (especially Side B) can screw him over
- Hitting limbs still hurts him, meaning an opponent can still damage Plok if he’s not careful (causes flinch but no actual knockback to Plok).
- Recovery can backfire or be gimped
- Maneuverability is pretty bad; slow in ground and in air, making it hard for him to keep up pressure without using his Over B
- Due to maneuverability, approach is pretty bad without using projectiles
- A shielded Over-B results in the hanger effect.
- His normal attacks don’t have very good shield stun.
|end moveset|
What is this....my fourth?
Well, I tried to carry over Plok's quirks from the game as much as possible. I'm sure someone out there can say how well I did or if the way I described them was unclear.