Darth Meanie and Joe present -- the revenge of the joint Pokeset --
Toxicroak has joined the Brawl! One of the meanest Pokemon to come out of Pokemon Diamond and Pearl, Toxicroak whittles the foe down with poison in his knuckle-claws, dodging attacks with his flexible body to strike at the foe.
Toxicroak is strong, isn't afraid to fight dirty, and is utterly ruthless to his foes. Let's see how exactly he does in Brawl.
Stats
Size - 4/10
He is kind of average in size, being a tad taller than Lucario, but he only weighs in at about Sonic's weight. This makes him a bit easier to knock around than his Steel/Fighting counterpart, but he has other advantages to overcome that.
Speed - 6/10
Such as his speed. He can dash around at a run speed rivaling Donkey Kong or Toon Link, which accompanied by his many moves that move himself automatically, make for quite a mobile threat. He also sports a variety of quick strikes, making him a potent close-range fighter.
Air - 5/10
Being a frog, Toxicroak sports two good jumps, each being about as good as Zero Suit Samus'. He also has a decent air speed to back them up, similar to Game and Watch, but with average fall speed.
Specials
Neutral Special - Poison Jab
Toxicroak leans forward slightly and punches forward with his knuckle-claws with each tap of the special button. He punches rapidly, firing off a jab three times a second, each hit dealing 3.5% damage and light knockback. It's pretty easy to DI out of, but Toxicroak can usually get a couple of hits in, especially since he moves forward with each jab.
When this is performed in the air, Toxicroak punches at a downwards angle, partially canceling his momentum and knocking him upwards slightly with each hit.
Each hit also poisons the foe, causing them to take 1% damage a second for the next five seconds. Each successive hit with Poison Jab while the opponent is poisoned extends the length of the poison for another three seconds.
Poisoning the foe is the first key to Toxicroak's playstyle; by adding a lot of time the opponent is poisoned, he forces them to engage him instead of running off and camping like sissies.
Down Special - Swagger
Toxicroak raises up one of his knuckle claws, chuckling obnoxiously as he waves his middle knuckle-claw back and forth. This takes about a quarter of a second to start up, but for the next three quarters of a second if Toxicroak is attacked, he merely sidesteps the attack coolly, tripping the foe with his leg.
This not only gives Toxicroak a nice frame advantage, it also leaves him free to techchase enemies coming out of their prone state. Especially when you consider his Side Special...
Side Special - Pursuit
Toxicroak leans forward and dashes, covering over a battlefield platform and a half in a blink of any eye as he strikes for 8% damage. It's very quick, and would be a decent approaching move were it not for the low priority and significant end lag on the attack.
However, as the last move foreshadowed, the real meat of this attack is what happens when an opponent tries to roll or spotdodge this attack. Instead of going right past them, Toxicroak pursues them to the background of the stage, striking for 16% damage instead and much more histun, enough to make up for the end lag that would otherwise make this move unsafe to land.
Oh, by the way. This move can also be used as horizontal recovery in the air, but leaves Toxicroak helpless at the end. It can hit enemies during air dodges though, and can even hit enemies who are invincible hanging onto the ledge, spiking them down for a guaranteed kill. Beware though, this also kills Toxicroak.
Up Special - Bounce
As you might imagine, being a frog, Toxicroak leaps into the air with a powerful hop. He kicks down as he leaps, and any foes beneath him are spiked downwards for 12% damage with the same strength as Falco's down aerial. Touching his body at any other point during the beginning animation for 8% damage. During the jump, Toxicroak has knockback resistance similar to Yoshi's second jump to boot, and afterwards he does not enter helpless.
Normally, Toxicroak hops up not quite as high as Marth's Up Special. Unlike most recoveries though, which you only want to use when you've already used all your jumps, Toxicroak jumps even further, using the energy from his midair jump to double the vertical range and greatly increase the horizontal range. Toxicroak can clear three quarters of Final Destination in a single bound!
This means that he can get the distance of both his midair jump and his recovery, along with knockback resistance, when used in the air, and quickly traverse most of the stage when used on the ground. Be careful though; jump too far, and you'll end up falling off the stage without a recovery. That would be very bad.
Standards
Jab - Sucker Punch
Toxicroak throws out a quick two hit punch, one from each side for 6% damage each. It's not particularly fast, about the speed of Mario's jab, and nothing too impressive.
However, Toxicroak has the unique ability to do this move while spotdodging. During his spot dodge, he can throw out the first hit of Sucker Punch, and come out of the attack to land the second hit, which has average knockback.
It gives Toxicroak the unique incentive to spotdodge instead of shielding, as he has a very unique and effective answer to those moves with extended hitboxes. Just make sure you have the timing right; it'd be a shame for the opponent to stay out of range only to hit you as you come out of the dodge.
Down Tilt - Poison Fang
Toxicroak crouches down like a frog about to jump, and reaches forward, chomping down on the foe. This deals 8% damage and has a grab hitbox.
While Toxicroak's preferred method of poisoning foes is through his knuckle-claws, his strongest poison is in fact carried in his mouth. If the foe is already poisoned, Poison Fang makes them badly poisoned, causing them to take 2% damage a second instead of 1% as long as they remained poisoned. If the foe isn't already poisoned, the attack badly poisons the foe for three seconds.
As you might imagine, the opponent doesn't really want to get hit by this attack if you've already racked up some poison damage. And, while it's not particularly fast, the fact that it has a grab hitbox also makes the enemy wary of shielding, as Poison Fang will hit through that.
Forward Tilt - Astonish
Toxicroack very quickly leans forward on one leg, and does a full spin, backhanding opponents on both sides of him with his right hand for 3% damage.
The attack doesn't deal much damage and no hitstun, but it completely turns them around, just like Mario's cape, and the enemy continues their animation as usual.
Done right, this can wreck most attacks that only hit on one side, but can easily be avoided by opponents with attacks that hit in front and behind them. Every Make Your Move moveset ever is screwed though.
Up Tilt - Venom Shock
Toxicroak builds up his venom in diaphragm for a fifth of a second, then shoots it out in a spray that fills an area about the size of a bumper. The poison deals splash damage, with three hits of 3% each.
Opponents who are poisoned take extra damage from this attack, which deals 5% for every hit instead. If the opponent is badly poisoned, the last hit does extra knockback, killing at around 140%.
This is also Toxicroak's best attack to damage shields, with multiple hits, extra damage on shields, and a high angle that allows it to hit after the shield has been damaged some.
Dash Attack - Fake Out
Without warning, Toxicroak dives forward, performing his regular forward roll as he slips into the background. During what would normally be the ending lag of the roll though, Toxicroak turns around claps his hands forward, slapping anyone in range for 6% damage and flinching hitstun.
If Toxicroak whiffs this attack or hits a shield though, he loses his balance, taking about a quarter second of lag. If the enemy shields when it's a real roll though, they're suddenly grab fodder. Mix this attack up, and opponents will be afraid whenever Toxicroak rolls.
Smashes
Forward Smash - Vacuum Wave
Toxicroak holds his arms back, similar to Lucario's Aura Sphere. While charging, he builds up a ball of pure vacuum between his hands, which has a strong pull effect that sucks enemies within a bit more than one and a half battlefield platforms from him towards the blast.
When released, Toxicroak fires the wave forward like a certain ball of energy from a classic fighting game, where it travels just a battlefield platform forward before dissipating. Contact with the projectile deals 10-18% damage, depending on charge, with moderate knockback and hefty hitstun.
Down Smash - Revenge
Toxicroak shudders with anticipation, charging up as he crouches on all fours. When released, he slashes forward with one arm, then slashes behind him with the other. Both hits deal between 12-24% damage.
Similarly to Wario's Forward Smash, when the attack is released, Toxicroak has flinch resistance against attacks under 14% damage. If he is struck while performing Revenge, he adds the damage he took to his attack. The knockback also increases, killing around 120% normally, but from 110-80% if he absorbs an attack during the release.
If Toxicroak baits the foe into attacking, this can be a fantastic way to try to get a kill. Even outside of its utility as a killing move, it's a nice counter attack if you're willing to take some damage, and he shouldn't have too much trouble frustrating the foe into hitting him.
Up Smash - Cross Chop
Toxicroak leans far back to charge this move up, enough to avoid most attacks that would only barely glance him. He holds both of his arms back, and when released, slams forward, bringing both arms down in front of him in a wide radius.
This deals 10-20% damage normally, but has a sweetspot where his arms cross, right in front of his eyes, where it deals 14-26% damage. This move kills at 130% regularly, and 110% sweetspotted.
What makes this attack extremely dangerous is that Toxicroak can use it as a dash attack canceled up smash. Used this way, Toxicroak will roll forward, turn around, lean back, and slam his arms down for a Cross Chop, all in a very short period of time.
Grab-Game
Grab - Toxigrab
Toxicroak leans in forward and grabs the foe. It's slightly slower than most grabs, but it's also fairly long ranged.
Toxicroak also has a nice grab release with a frame advantage, giving him a lot of opportunities to poke at foes with his grabs.
Pummel - Poison Pummel
Toxicroak repeatedly stabs the opponent with his knuckle-claws, dealing .5% damage and adding on a second of poison damage to them. It's a fairly fast pummel; he can hit almost four times a second. At higher percentages, this can add on a whole bunch of poison time, but at high damage you probably don't need that much more poison.
If you need to build up poison though, especially if the opponent is already badly poisoned, you can get several pummels off and still have an advantage after your grab release, which chains directly into Poison Jab.
Every Throw - Faint Attack
Cloned throws? You're both better than that. True, true, but these throws aren't exactly clones.
Whenever you press a direction, Toxicroak drops the opponent to the ground, and just slowly fades away... and the real fun begins.
Essentially, this puts Toxicroak in the perfect position to techchase. If you time it right, Toxicroak follows up any opponent's reaction.
If you throw forward or backward, Toxicroak will slide two battlefield platforms in the direction you pointed. He is completely invincible, and performs a flying kick at anyone in his path for 9% damage.
It knocks enemies diagonally forwards with mediocre knockback, and has a small bit of ending lag. Timed right though, it will guaranteed follow up an enemy's throw. Toxicroak can chase with his aerials though, especially with his horizontal momentum boosted by a Bounce.
Tap the control stick up, and Toxicroak will dive downwards from midair with a vicious drop kick for 12% damage, with invulnerability that ensures he hits foes using their get-up attacks. It only has mediocre set knockback upwards though.
Throw down, and Toxicroak will slide forward, just like with his forward throw, but with no attack. Instead, Toxicroak just slides while completely invulnerable, which offers a slew of different follow-up options, as he's free to perform any move out of the slide.
Aerials
Neutral Aerial - Flying Frog Slam
Toxicroak holds his arms and legs outstretched, each limb dealing 9% with excellent range. This attack is an extended sex kick, which can easily be performed out of a shorthop and is great for midair pokes and cross-ups, pressuring enemies on the ground from the air.
Forward Aerial - Sludge Bomb
Generic projectile filler aerial forced creativity? No sir. In what is clearly Toxicroak's laggiest aerial, he fills up his diaphragm with disgusting poison, which he then wretches in front of him at a slightly downwards angle, dealing 11% damage and knockback that can kill at comfortable percentages offstage.
The bomb bursts right in front of Toxicroak, stalling his momentum in the air and hitting a radius about the size of a bumper. As an approach, it's a mixed bag, but the disjointed range and momentum of the attack can make it a decent surprise for enemies.
Back Aerial - Frog Legs
Toxicroak rapidly kicks out behind him, slapping foes with his legs three times for 4% damage each. It's fast and has a good amount of range, but not too much knockback.
It's a good general aerial attack, and great as an approach out of a shorthop, or a Bounce if you're daring. The multiple hits also makes it good for poking at shields on the ground.
Like Yoshi's back air, it auto-cancels when it hits the ground, perfect for follow-ups.
Up Aerial - X-Scissor
Using his knuckle-claws, Toxicroak makes a cross-slash above him, dealing 9% damage rather quickly, with a surprisingly large hitbox. It's a nice general purpose attack, and can juggle at low pecentages or follow up after knocking a foe away.
Down Aerial - Brick Break
Toxicroak flips upside down, and slams his arm straight down, similarly to Ike's Down Aerial.
His arm deals 11% damage and relatively strong downward knockback, if not quite as strong as Bounce. The hitbox lingers for a while, with a duration of nearly half a second. This move eats shields alive out of a shorthop, as it deals double damage to shields.
The long duration makes it dangerous if he whiffs it in a shorthop though, as the move has horrible landing lag. It pops him upwards slightly if it hits though, which give him enough time to right himself before landing.
Toxicroak has the Smash Ball! To start this all up, Toxicroak performs a big gay dance, and mud rises Kirby's height up from the ground!
Whenever someone other than Toxicroak lands in the Great Marsh, they are instantly pitfalled, and must button mash like fiends in order to escape. Every. Single. Time.
Since Toxicroak obviously isn't tech-chasing while in the Great Marsh, his Side Special and Down Special have been replaced with two new moves.
His Down Special is now Mud Slap. Toxicroak slaps downwards, and a wave of mud splashes out from all sides, dealing 8% damage and strong downwards knockback. Right back into the Great Marsh.
His Side Special becomes Mud Bomb. Toxicroak swipes forward, and a bubble of Mud bursts forward, following the same angle as Yoshi's Egg Toss. Contact with this Mud Bomb deals 13% damage and knockback that kills around 100%.
The Great Marsh lasts for twenty seconds. Have fun!
Playstyle
Toxicroak is a dirty fighter at his core. Poison the foe, build up the pressure, get into their head, and never let them get away.
Poisoning the foe is certainly a core aspect of his game. Poison Jab is fast and can wrack up poison damage very quickly, and as their poison climbs higher, it becomes harder for them to play defensively, and encourages them to play more aggressively... and make more mistakes. With Poison Fang and Venom Shock to add to the poison damage, they can become a very important aspect of Toxicroak's damage racking game. While few attacks of his deal great damage, he has no trouble building damage up.
Toxicroak has a number of approaching options. His Forward Aerial, Neutral Aerial, and Back Aerial are all servicable choices, especially boosted in momentum by Bounce. His Dash Attack is a very good way to quickly get in close, and forces the foe to guess whether you're doing a roll, a dash attack... or your Up Smash...
Once Toxicroak gets in close, he's very, very hard to get rid of. Pursuit makes sure of that, making rolling away easily punished. Vacuum Wave also makes any attempt to escape moot as he sucks them back in range for a projectile that leaves them vulnerable to another attack. Shorthopped aerials can also follow enemies trying to space you, and even if they manage to get away, he's still got enough approaching options to get near again.
To build up the pressure on the foe, Toxicroak has a number of moves all designed to trip enemies up. Dodge and Sucker Punch, counter with Revenge, turn the opponent around with Astonish. Shorthop and chip away at their shield with your Bair... or whack it down with your Dair. Don't forget moves like his Up Smash which can get him just out of range of attacks only to hit right back.
Swagger is also one of Toxicroak's most important moves, as it trips foes and puts them right into Toxicroak's deadly techchase game. Do they roll and risk Pursuit, or do a get up attack and risk Revenge?
Toxicroak's grab game is an excellent extension of all aspects of his character. Guess how they react correctly, and you can get a guaranteed hit in and be in prime position to follow up. His grab release and pummel are also fantastic ways to build up poison length too.
As you may have noticed, Toxicroak has a number of moves that slip opponents up and leave them wide open to attack. None of his attacks are big enough hitters to really get big damage in, but these are prime opportunities to use Poison Jab.
When Toxicroak gets into kill territory, he's got plenty of options. On the stage, Revenge kills at the lowest percentage, but requires being hit in order to use effectively. Venom Shock is a servicable killer against poisoned enemies, and a sweetspotted Cross Chop is effective too.
Off the stage, Toxicroak can spike enemies with Bounce or his Down Aerial, and get kills with his Forward Air too when properly placed. Pursuit can also finish off foes who grab the ledge, but doing so is a suicide attack, so use with caution.
Toxicroak is a very effective character in the right hands. With high pressure, mindgames, a strong techchase game, he's not an easy character to use, but played right, he has an answer to every situation and can take down enemies with ease.
