S-Critical
Smash Cadet
Fox vs Sheik Matchup Analysis
Introduction
For as long as Smash 4 has existed, the Fox vs Sheik matchup has been seen as one heavily based on momentum, quick decision making, and the ability to outwit your opponent. Many Fox players ask for help in this matchup, due to how oppressing Sheik can be. However, describing the matchup in just a few notes felt like we missed out a lot of vital information, therefore we wrote a detailed analysis of the matchup so everything about it can be explained well, from frame data, to application and even set analysis.
Before we begin to talk about what happens in the match, it’s important to know what Sheik’s tools are, and how to avoid/punish them in general.
Frame Data Analysis
Fox’s Frame data
Sheik’s Frame data
From viewing the frame data, we can see that, in terms of ground moves, they have very similar frame data, in terms of first frame of the active hitbox and the FAF (Fox has some moves faster than Sheik, and vice versa). In terms of aerials, Sheik tends to have faster attacks (except for Dair). Their frame data for rolls, spot dodges and airdodges are practically the same. Overall, their frame data is pretty similar.
Explaining Sheik’s Moveset
Getting to understand Sheik’s moveset and what it allows her to do gives us a good idea on what the matches may be like, especially in neutral. Furthermore, we explain how they can be punished if said move was used, and some other tips, if any.
Jab
First jab comes out frame 2-3, second jab comes out frame 2-4. It is -12 on shield assuming that Sheik does not do the rapid jab. It is very good for mixups and has some cool techs with it. At low percent, it is important to know that you can simply just jab your way out of there due to how fast you fall and recover at said percent. Don't try to shield when you can jab and win (until 95%, in which jab 2 finally starts to have a hit advantage of +1). It starts to become effective for mixups at mid percent. In this case, you get put in a Rock, Paper, Scissors (RPS) situation of attacking, grabbing and shielding. Be aware of your options and what the Sheik might try to use. Some combos that Sheik has would include:
Dash attack
Comes out frame 5-8 (late hitbox frames 7-8) with a FAF of 41. It is -30 on shield. Not too much about this apart from the fact that it can be used as a quick punish that can give Sheik stage control and start her oppressing advantage state vs Fox. Though nothing true comes out of it (similar to our dash attack... somewhat), she can read the options you do in order to land on the stage or grab the ledge. If shielded, you can punish it pretty hard with smash attacks, Utilt etc
Ftilt
Comes out frame 5-8 with a FAF of 25. It is -15 on shield .Very good for covering space, racking up damage and punishing reckless movement. At 0%, Sheik's Ftilt has a hit advantage of 0 with no rage. 100% rage= +2 and 150%= +3. Technically, any followup isn't true but you are put in a RPS situation once again. From around 15% onwards she can start to do a good amount of Ftilt combos on you. Her combos include things like:
Utilt
First hit comes out frame 5-8, second hit comes out frame 19-23 with the FAF being 36. It is -11 on shield It is a very good anti-air option that can beat out aggressive landing options (except AC Dair) and is a good combo tool. Mostly used for combo extension, but can also be used as a combo starter. Her Utilt is very good at covering both neutral and jump getups, so seeing Sheik especially close to the ledge may give you a sign that they may be trying to cover those options. Obviously they may stay further away and then react to the getup with walk up>utilt or PP Utilt.
Dtilt
Comes out frame 5-6 and has a FAF of 30. It is -19 on shield. She reduces her hurtbox height and it is a long reaching move, so it is good for spacing. It is a good combo extender and combo starter. Has combos like:
First jab comes out frame 2-3, second jab comes out frame 2-4. It is -12 on shield assuming that Sheik does not do the rapid jab. It is very good for mixups and has some cool techs with it. At low percent, it is important to know that you can simply just jab your way out of there due to how fast you fall and recover at said percent. Don't try to shield when you can jab and win (until 95%, in which jab 2 finally starts to have a hit advantage of +1). It starts to become effective for mixups at mid percent. In this case, you get put in a Rock, Paper, Scissors (RPS) situation of attacking, grabbing and shielding. Be aware of your options and what the Sheik might try to use. Some combos that Sheik has would include:
- Jab 1-2>Boost Grab
- Jab 1-2>Crouch Cancel > Jab 1-2
- Jab 1-2>Tipper Dtilt > Follow Up
- Jab 1-2>Ftilt > Follow Up
- Jab 1-2>Tipper Dtilt > Tipper Usmash
- Jab 1-2>Dtilt/Ftilt>Uair (is a good kill confirm that will work at high percent, so be careful)
Dash attack
Comes out frame 5-8 (late hitbox frames 7-8) with a FAF of 41. It is -30 on shield. Not too much about this apart from the fact that it can be used as a quick punish that can give Sheik stage control and start her oppressing advantage state vs Fox. Though nothing true comes out of it (similar to our dash attack... somewhat), she can read the options you do in order to land on the stage or grab the ledge. If shielded, you can punish it pretty hard with smash attacks, Utilt etc
Ftilt
Comes out frame 5-8 with a FAF of 25. It is -15 on shield .Very good for covering space, racking up damage and punishing reckless movement. At 0%, Sheik's Ftilt has a hit advantage of 0 with no rage. 100% rage= +2 and 150%= +3. Technically, any followup isn't true but you are put in a RPS situation once again. From around 15% onwards she can start to do a good amount of Ftilt combos on you. Her combos include things like:
- Ftilt strings (with PP Ftilt coming into play)
- Ftilt>PP Utilt> more followups
- Ftilt>Boost Grab
- Ftilt>Dtilt> more followups
- Ftilt>Nair
- Ftilt>Utilt > Bouncing Fish
- Ftilt>Fair > Bouncing Fish (kills near the edge at mid-high percent, so be careful)
- Ftilt>Uair (50/50 for Double Jump)
- Ftilt>Vanish (50/50 for Air Dodge)
Utilt
First hit comes out frame 5-8, second hit comes out frame 19-23 with the FAF being 36. It is -11 on shield It is a very good anti-air option that can beat out aggressive landing options (except AC Dair) and is a good combo tool. Mostly used for combo extension, but can also be used as a combo starter. Her Utilt is very good at covering both neutral and jump getups, so seeing Sheik especially close to the ledge may give you a sign that they may be trying to cover those options. Obviously they may stay further away and then react to the getup with walk up>utilt or PP Utilt.
Dtilt
Comes out frame 5-6 and has a FAF of 30. It is -19 on shield. She reduces her hurtbox height and it is a long reaching move, so it is good for spacing. It is a good combo extender and combo starter. Has combos like:
- Tipper Dtilt>Dtilt
- Tipper Dtilt>Ftilt
- Tipper Dtilt>Grab
- 2-Frame Dtilt>Ftilt>Rising Fair>Bouncing Fish
- Tipper Ledge Dtilt>JC Tipper Usmash
- Tipper Dtilt>Uair/Usmash (kill confirm)
Fsmash
Comes out frame 12, 2nd hit on frame 26-27 with a FAF of 51. It can be used as a kill move, but you may or may not see it used often depending on the Sheik player. This is a good move for them to use in order to cover landings by being just out of reach, then punishing where you will land (works especially well when the Fox is trying to land with attacks). It's also good for calling out spot dodges, so be careful about your defensive options. Because it can sometimes miss the 2nd hit, you should always be looking out for any whiffs. You can potentially punish hard for them.
Usmash
The first hit is the sweetspot, coming out frame 11, and the sourspot coming out frame 14-15. This move has arm intangibility between frame 8-15, so challenging it in the air is not recommended. It does have a FAF of 53, so you can punish hard if you shield it. This move is great as it can hit with the sweetspot under platforms and is good for catching predictable landing options and airdodges. Mixing up how you land is vital to avoiding dying early due to Usmash.
Dsmash
1st hit comes out frame 11-12. 2nd hit comes out frame 18-19, with a FAF of 55. It is a good smash attack in terms of power so do not underestimate it. It's a smash attack most commonly used to punish spot dodges, rolls and whiffed grabs. This could be something they may use if you have predictable defensive patterns or offensive options, so always mix it up and do not get too impatient. FF Uair>Dsmash is a true combo and a kill confirm at high percent, so always aim to mix up your aerial landing options and your ledge options too.
Comes out frame 12, 2nd hit on frame 26-27 with a FAF of 51. It can be used as a kill move, but you may or may not see it used often depending on the Sheik player. This is a good move for them to use in order to cover landings by being just out of reach, then punishing where you will land (works especially well when the Fox is trying to land with attacks). It's also good for calling out spot dodges, so be careful about your defensive options. Because it can sometimes miss the 2nd hit, you should always be looking out for any whiffs. You can potentially punish hard for them.
Usmash
The first hit is the sweetspot, coming out frame 11, and the sourspot coming out frame 14-15. This move has arm intangibility between frame 8-15, so challenging it in the air is not recommended. It does have a FAF of 53, so you can punish hard if you shield it. This move is great as it can hit with the sweetspot under platforms and is good for catching predictable landing options and airdodges. Mixing up how you land is vital to avoiding dying early due to Usmash.
Dsmash
1st hit comes out frame 11-12. 2nd hit comes out frame 18-19, with a FAF of 55. It is a good smash attack in terms of power so do not underestimate it. It's a smash attack most commonly used to punish spot dodges, rolls and whiffed grabs. This could be something they may use if you have predictable defensive patterns or offensive options, so always mix it up and do not get too impatient. FF Uair>Dsmash is a true combo and a kill confirm at high percent, so always aim to mix up your aerial landing options and your ledge options too.
Nair
Early hitbox comes out frame 3-8 and the late hitbox comes out frame 7-30. It can autocancel on frame 1-2 and after frame 31. It's FAF is 50, assuming they don't land first. It is a move commonly used as an anti-approach tool, stuffing out approaches, as it is fast and lasts a long time. It is a great OoS option to punish multiple things and is good for pressuring shields if spaced. It is a combo starter for various percents, with combos including:
Fair
Sheik's signature aerial in her moveset. Coming out on frame 5-7 with a FAF of 35 (assuming she doesn't land). The move can autocancel between frame 1-4 and after frame 11, and has 10 frames of landing lag. It is one of, if not, her safest move to use. It cannot be punished when spaced well (even with landing lag, the only OoS option you can do that can punish the end lag is a standard grab, which will whiff if spaced well. No shield drop moves will be able to punish Fair) and is an amazing combo starter and edgeguarding tool. This move can be punished if they do a rising Fair instead of a falling Fair. The initial jump can also be called out by your aerials, such as RAR Bair, Nair and even FF Fair, and even Usmash. Sheik can get a lot of combos out of Fair:
Bair
Early hit comes out frame 4-6, late hit comes out frame 7-14. It has a FAF of 38, assuming they do not land, otherwise it has 12 frames of landing lag and has an autocancel window between frames 1-3 and after 31. It is a good OoS option to punish attacks and is great for edgeguarding (it is important to know that the early and late hit will stage spike you at different percents). It is a decent combo tool as well. It can be punished by quick tools like a shieldgrab, but if spaced, it will miss. It is commonly used to crossup on shields, limiting what options you can do that would be safe. Bair is -6 to OoS options on shield, but +1 on shield drop options, which is why you see many Sheiks being able to get conversions off it, as the opponent would try to punish it, not knowing that Sheik has a frame advantage, or they tried to punish with a shieldgrab. Technically, Fox can punish it with Utilt IF Sheik were to try and do a move slower than frame 4, such as Ftilt or turnaround grab. However, a turnaround jab would catch you out, so you must be careful in those RPS situations. Play not only against the character, but the player behind the controller too.
Uair
Hits 1-4 come out from frame 4-15, with the final hit coming out frame 23-24. It is the best move for vertical killing (alongside Usmash) and even can start combos. Sheiks will use it to juggle you if you burn your jump when trying to escape their strings and 50/50s, so mix up how you land and what you use to land. Your own moves won't be able to beat the hitbox itself unless it trades, with the only option being to hit them before their hitbox comes out. They can punish airdodges with FF Uair>followups, such as:
Dair
A move that you won't see too often due to how easily punished it can be (30 frames of landing lag). The early/spike hitbox comes out frame 15-18, with the late hitbox coming out frame 19-33. This move is very good at punishing airdodges and recoveries. Be very careful when grabbing the ledge without invulnerability, as Dair can be used to spike you, leading to your stock being taken. Dair can be used to trade with firefox, so if you anticipate this, you should try to adjust the angle in a way to make the Sheik miss and SD. Dair can also be used as a mixup when Sheik is trying to get out of your combos (double jump away>immediate Dair). If you see this coming, shield and punish. Dair does have a landing hitbox, so do not let go of shield early.
Early hitbox comes out frame 3-8 and the late hitbox comes out frame 7-30. It can autocancel on frame 1-2 and after frame 31. It's FAF is 50, assuming they don't land first. It is a move commonly used as an anti-approach tool, stuffing out approaches, as it is fast and lasts a long time. It is a great OoS option to punish multiple things and is good for pressuring shields if spaced. It is a combo starter for various percents, with combos including:
- Nair>Grab
- Nair>Ftilt/Dtilt/Jab
- Weak Nair>Bouncing Fish (a kill confirm at high percent)
Fair
Sheik's signature aerial in her moveset. Coming out on frame 5-7 with a FAF of 35 (assuming she doesn't land). The move can autocancel between frame 1-4 and after frame 11, and has 10 frames of landing lag. It is one of, if not, her safest move to use. It cannot be punished when spaced well (even with landing lag, the only OoS option you can do that can punish the end lag is a standard grab, which will whiff if spaced well. No shield drop moves will be able to punish Fair) and is an amazing combo starter and edgeguarding tool. This move can be punished if they do a rising Fair instead of a falling Fair. The initial jump can also be called out by your aerials, such as RAR Bair, Nair and even FF Fair, and even Usmash. Sheik can get a lot of combos out of Fair:
- SH FF Fair>Ftilt
- SH FF Fair> Fair > Fair strings
- Full Hop Fair > Nair
- Fair > Bouncing Fish
- Fair > Full Hop Rising Needles > Double Jump Fair > Bouncing Fish (can kill at the ledge at mid percent)
Bair
Early hit comes out frame 4-6, late hit comes out frame 7-14. It has a FAF of 38, assuming they do not land, otherwise it has 12 frames of landing lag and has an autocancel window between frames 1-3 and after 31. It is a good OoS option to punish attacks and is great for edgeguarding (it is important to know that the early and late hit will stage spike you at different percents). It is a decent combo tool as well. It can be punished by quick tools like a shieldgrab, but if spaced, it will miss. It is commonly used to crossup on shields, limiting what options you can do that would be safe. Bair is -6 to OoS options on shield, but +1 on shield drop options, which is why you see many Sheiks being able to get conversions off it, as the opponent would try to punish it, not knowing that Sheik has a frame advantage, or they tried to punish with a shieldgrab. Technically, Fox can punish it with Utilt IF Sheik were to try and do a move slower than frame 4, such as Ftilt or turnaround grab. However, a turnaround jab would catch you out, so you must be careful in those RPS situations. Play not only against the character, but the player behind the controller too.
Uair
Hits 1-4 come out from frame 4-15, with the final hit coming out frame 23-24. It is the best move for vertical killing (alongside Usmash) and even can start combos. Sheiks will use it to juggle you if you burn your jump when trying to escape their strings and 50/50s, so mix up how you land and what you use to land. Your own moves won't be able to beat the hitbox itself unless it trades, with the only option being to hit them before their hitbox comes out. They can punish airdodges with FF Uair>followups, such as:
- FF Uair>Grab
- FF Uair>Dsmash (is a kill confirm at high percents)
Dair
A move that you won't see too often due to how easily punished it can be (30 frames of landing lag). The early/spike hitbox comes out frame 15-18, with the late hitbox coming out frame 19-33. This move is very good at punishing airdodges and recoveries. Be very careful when grabbing the ledge without invulnerability, as Dair can be used to spike you, leading to your stock being taken. Dair can be used to trade with firefox, so if you anticipate this, you should try to adjust the angle in a way to make the Sheik miss and SD. Dair can also be used as a mixup when Sheik is trying to get out of your combos (double jump away>immediate Dair). If you see this coming, shield and punish. Dair does have a landing hitbox, so do not let go of shield early.
Neutral B
Depending on whether fully charged or not, the FAF and active frames of the move is different. If fully charged, the move comes out frames 11, 14, 17, 20, 23 and 26 with a FAF of 54. If not charged, they will come out frames 5, 7, 9, 11 and 13 with a FAF of 48. When Sheik is in midair, she will shoot them in a steep, diagonal trajectory downwards. Both can be heavily punished if you are close enough, though. Sheik's needles can be used to condition the opponent to doing certain things, as well as identifying what the opponent likes to do in different situations. For example, Fox's reflector can nullify needles, and the Sheik can use that to condition the Fox to always use Shine, which she can punish the end lag of the reflector. Needles can be annoying to deal with, and can start to cause the other player to get impatient.
There's a lot of things that Sheik can do with needles, from needle canceling into other moves, needle fidgeting to throw the opponent off, using needles as an edgeguard and to gimp recoveries and get kill confirms at high percent (FH Needles > Bouncing Fish). You have options to beat needles (i.e. shield, reflecting, jumping over, rolling etc), but be aware on how and when you use them, and always mix them up so the Sheik has a harder time trying to download your motives in neutral. The closer you are to Sheik, the less of a threat that needles can potentially be, the more likely you can punish Sheik for using them, and the less likely that Sheik will use needles in the first place.
Side B
Though not used often, this move can be used to create pressure at the ledge, limiting the amount of options that you can use to get back onto the stage. Sheiks also tend to use this move when running to the ledge, limiting the options you have to cover while the Sheik can safely get on. Pay close attention to what Sheik may try to cover alongside what has already been covered and remember what options you have. Finally, this move can be punished hard if used carelessly by the Sheik.
Up B
Arguably one of the best recoveries in the game. It is intangible from frame 19 of its startup, and the hitbox/windbox comes out frame 36-38, with the reappear hitbox coming out frame 55-57. Although it is possible to 2 frame punish at the ledge using Utilt and Dtilt, it is very difficult, especially if they recover low. This move can be used to punish predictable approaches and airdodges from Sheik's 50/50 setups, as well as potentially being used as an edgeguarding tool. Keep in mind that it auto cancels from the ground if directed up in a 45º angle and then tilted toward the stage, auto cancels from a full hop when used horizontally, and auto cancels from double jump when used at an 45º angle downward.
Down B
The early hitbox can come out between frame 17-24, while the late hitbox can come out frame 26-33. It is a great move to finish combos and get kills offstage and at the ledge. Bouncing fish is able to 2 frame punish opponents at the ledge, so mixing up your timing to grab the ledge (or mixing up where you recover in general) will help you survive against it. Furthermore, Sheiks may purposely use Bouncing Fish offstage to force an airdodge, and punish the airdodge with an aerial, which is a powerful frame trap. Jumping/jump + airdodge should be used if you see this frame trap coming. Some Sheiks may also rebound on the wall/slant of the stage in order to catch you with bouncing fish. Time your airdodge and jump if you have to. Moreover, Sheiks may use Bouncing Fish at a certain height in order to have a much faster landing animation, which can be used as a mixup and can even punish certain options, depending on the situation. Finally, spotdodging Bouncing Fish is a great way to avoid it and to punish it afterwards, otherwise, shield the move and either get closer to the Sheik, or punish the move, depending on where Sheik drifts away.
Depending on whether fully charged or not, the FAF and active frames of the move is different. If fully charged, the move comes out frames 11, 14, 17, 20, 23 and 26 with a FAF of 54. If not charged, they will come out frames 5, 7, 9, 11 and 13 with a FAF of 48. When Sheik is in midair, she will shoot them in a steep, diagonal trajectory downwards. Both can be heavily punished if you are close enough, though. Sheik's needles can be used to condition the opponent to doing certain things, as well as identifying what the opponent likes to do in different situations. For example, Fox's reflector can nullify needles, and the Sheik can use that to condition the Fox to always use Shine, which she can punish the end lag of the reflector. Needles can be annoying to deal with, and can start to cause the other player to get impatient.
There's a lot of things that Sheik can do with needles, from needle canceling into other moves, needle fidgeting to throw the opponent off, using needles as an edgeguard and to gimp recoveries and get kill confirms at high percent (FH Needles > Bouncing Fish). You have options to beat needles (i.e. shield, reflecting, jumping over, rolling etc), but be aware on how and when you use them, and always mix them up so the Sheik has a harder time trying to download your motives in neutral. The closer you are to Sheik, the less of a threat that needles can potentially be, the more likely you can punish Sheik for using them, and the less likely that Sheik will use needles in the first place.
Side B
Though not used often, this move can be used to create pressure at the ledge, limiting the amount of options that you can use to get back onto the stage. Sheiks also tend to use this move when running to the ledge, limiting the options you have to cover while the Sheik can safely get on. Pay close attention to what Sheik may try to cover alongside what has already been covered and remember what options you have. Finally, this move can be punished hard if used carelessly by the Sheik.
Up B
Arguably one of the best recoveries in the game. It is intangible from frame 19 of its startup, and the hitbox/windbox comes out frame 36-38, with the reappear hitbox coming out frame 55-57. Although it is possible to 2 frame punish at the ledge using Utilt and Dtilt, it is very difficult, especially if they recover low. This move can be used to punish predictable approaches and airdodges from Sheik's 50/50 setups, as well as potentially being used as an edgeguarding tool. Keep in mind that it auto cancels from the ground if directed up in a 45º angle and then tilted toward the stage, auto cancels from a full hop when used horizontally, and auto cancels from double jump when used at an 45º angle downward.
Down B
The early hitbox can come out between frame 17-24, while the late hitbox can come out frame 26-33. It is a great move to finish combos and get kills offstage and at the ledge. Bouncing fish is able to 2 frame punish opponents at the ledge, so mixing up your timing to grab the ledge (or mixing up where you recover in general) will help you survive against it. Furthermore, Sheiks may purposely use Bouncing Fish offstage to force an airdodge, and punish the airdodge with an aerial, which is a powerful frame trap. Jumping/jump + airdodge should be used if you see this frame trap coming. Some Sheiks may also rebound on the wall/slant of the stage in order to catch you with bouncing fish. Time your airdodge and jump if you have to. Moreover, Sheiks may use Bouncing Fish at a certain height in order to have a much faster landing animation, which can be used as a mixup and can even punish certain options, depending on the situation. Finally, spotdodging Bouncing Fish is a great way to avoid it and to punish it afterwards, otherwise, shield the move and either get closer to the Sheik, or punish the move, depending on where Sheik drifts away.
Fthrow
This throw will be most commonly used when getting grabbed by Sheik, as it has the most guaranteed followups and followups from airdodges. It’s most common combos are:
Bthrow
This move is mainly used as a DI mixup with Fthrow in order to confirm into Bouncing Fish and potentially other followups. It does not true combo into Bouncing Fish if DI’d away from mid percent.
Dthrow
A very similar throw from Fthrow. Some Sheiks may use this in case they don’t have as much room to combo Fox or if they DI in on the throw, which gives them very easy followups. Can also be used to set up edgeguards at the ledge.
Uthrow
A throw that is not used too often, but can setup juggle situations and even airdodge read punishes if you aren’t careful. The Uthrow>Uair 50/50 does not work on Fox.
This throw will be most commonly used when getting grabbed by Sheik, as it has the most guaranteed followups and followups from airdodges. It’s most common combos are:
- Fthrow > Jumping Bouncing Fish
- Fthrow > Fair if used quickly
Bthrow
This move is mainly used as a DI mixup with Fthrow in order to confirm into Bouncing Fish and potentially other followups. It does not true combo into Bouncing Fish if DI’d away from mid percent.
Dthrow
A very similar throw from Fthrow. Some Sheiks may use this in case they don’t have as much room to combo Fox or if they DI in on the throw, which gives them very easy followups. Can also be used to set up edgeguards at the ledge.
Uthrow
A throw that is not used too often, but can setup juggle situations and even airdodge read punishes if you aren’t careful. The Uthrow>Uair 50/50 does not work on Fox.
Sheik’s kill options
Sheik has a plethora of different kill options in various situations. We have named as many as possible that may be used to seal your stock.
Ftilt>Uair/Vanish 50/50
This particular 50/50 works on Fox from 114-137%. After around 137%, you can simply jump out without getting it called out by Uair. This range, of course, is dependent on rage and the stage. This 50/50 will no longer work if you DI away the Ftilt.
Tipper Dtilt>Uair
It is a true kill confirm if they tipper the Dtilt. With optimal DI (which is away), it can start to kill Fox from around 116% (this is with no rage on Final Destination).
FH Needles>Bouncing Fish
This is a kill confirm that can work for a long time on Fox (from roughly 85-180%). This is especially effective offstage when intercepting Fox’s illusion. This kill confirm is only possible when Sheik has a full stack of needles, meaning she must fully charge it. This can be a cue to suggest that they may use it at the percent that it might kill. Always be careful on what you do in neutral and how you recover to reduce your chances of getting hit by this.
Ledge trump>Bair
A ledge mixup that Sheik can use to take stocks. I can work on Fox from around 115%, so be aware of being at the ledge when this is an option.
Weak Nair/Bair>Bouncing Fish
Another reliable kill confirm from Sheik, which works similarly to our Weak Nair/Dair>Usmash, except it can work even if the Nair/Bair launches us offstage. Bair>Bouncing Fish tends to work from 55-105% (they must hit you with the early Bair in order to confirm into Bouncing Fish at mid percent). Weak Nair>Bouncing Fish can work from 110-125%. If you DI away from the Nair or Bair, it gives you a greater chance of them whiffing the Bouncing Fish.
Dtilt>Sweetspot Usmash/Uair/Bouncing Fish (at the ledge)
If you have grabbed the ledge with no intangibility, then you are susceptible to these kill confirms at high percent (They tend to work from around 100% onwards, with Bouncing Fish working from around 80%).
Fthrow>Bouncing Fish
This is a true combo if you do not DI it correctly (DI in or no DI will lead to it being a true combo). You can react to it. You can use the auditory cue of the Bouncing Fish sound effect to time when to airdodge. It can be used to kill at the ledge from around 115% onwards.
FF Uair>Dsmash
This can catch you if you are airborne in order to confirm into Dsmash at high percent. Dsmash will start to kill from around 130% with no rage.
This particular 50/50 works on Fox from 114-137%. After around 137%, you can simply jump out without getting it called out by Uair. This range, of course, is dependent on rage and the stage. This 50/50 will no longer work if you DI away the Ftilt.
Tipper Dtilt>Uair
It is a true kill confirm if they tipper the Dtilt. With optimal DI (which is away), it can start to kill Fox from around 116% (this is with no rage on Final Destination).
FH Needles>Bouncing Fish
This is a kill confirm that can work for a long time on Fox (from roughly 85-180%). This is especially effective offstage when intercepting Fox’s illusion. This kill confirm is only possible when Sheik has a full stack of needles, meaning she must fully charge it. This can be a cue to suggest that they may use it at the percent that it might kill. Always be careful on what you do in neutral and how you recover to reduce your chances of getting hit by this.
Ledge trump>Bair
A ledge mixup that Sheik can use to take stocks. I can work on Fox from around 115%, so be aware of being at the ledge when this is an option.
Weak Nair/Bair>Bouncing Fish
Another reliable kill confirm from Sheik, which works similarly to our Weak Nair/Dair>Usmash, except it can work even if the Nair/Bair launches us offstage. Bair>Bouncing Fish tends to work from 55-105% (they must hit you with the early Bair in order to confirm into Bouncing Fish at mid percent). Weak Nair>Bouncing Fish can work from 110-125%. If you DI away from the Nair or Bair, it gives you a greater chance of them whiffing the Bouncing Fish.
Dtilt>Sweetspot Usmash/Uair/Bouncing Fish (at the ledge)
If you have grabbed the ledge with no intangibility, then you are susceptible to these kill confirms at high percent (They tend to work from around 100% onwards, with Bouncing Fish working from around 80%).
Fthrow>Bouncing Fish
This is a true combo if you do not DI it correctly (DI in or no DI will lead to it being a true combo). You can react to it. You can use the auditory cue of the Bouncing Fish sound effect to time when to airdodge. It can be used to kill at the ledge from around 115% onwards.
FF Uair>Dsmash
This can catch you if you are airborne in order to confirm into Dsmash at high percent. Dsmash will start to kill from around 130% with no rage.
When our kill moves/setup start to kill Sheik
It’s already known that we also have our various confirms, but for those who especially struggle in the MU, knowing when your moves start to kill may help you. These percentages are assuming that the Sheik uses optimal DI, as well as the kill move being fresh. We also include rage, with the formation of 0% rage/100% rage/150% rage.
Usmash
Stage | 0% rage | 100% rage | 150% rage
Battlefield | 96% | 85% | 77%
Final Destination | 92% | 82% | 74%
Smashville | 92% | 82% | 74%
Town and City | 90% |80% | 72%
Lylat Cruise | 92% | 82% | 74%
Dreamland 64 | 92% | 82% | 74%
Average % | 92% | 82% | 74%
Fsmash (at the ledge)
Stage | 0% rage | 100% rage | 150% rage
Battlefield | 104% | 92% | 84%
Final Destination | 100% | 88% | 71%
Smashville | 90% | 79% | 72%
Town and City | 93% |82% | 75%
Lylat Cruise | 96% | 84% | 77%
Dreamland 64 | 103% | 91% | 83%
Average % | 97% | 86% | 78%
Dsmash (at the ledge)
Stage | 0% rage | 100% rage | 150% rage
Battlefield | 110% | 103% | 93%
Final Destination | 106% | 98% | 89%
Smashville | 93% | 87% | 79%
Town and City | 101% | 93% | 85%
Lylat Cruise | 98% | 91% | 83%
Dreamland 64 | 109% | 101% | 92%
Average % | 102% | 95% | 86%
Fsmash (at the centre of the stage)
Stage | 0% rage | 100% rage | 150% rage
Battlefield | 126% | 113% | 104%
Final Destination | 123% | 110% | 101%
Smashville | 115% | 102% | 94%
Town and City | 119% | 106% | 97%
Lylat Cruise | 119% | 106% | 97%
Dreamland 64 | 125% | 112% | 103%
Average % | 121% | 108% | 99%
Utilt (strong hitbox)
Stage | 0% rage | 100% rage | 150% rage
Battlefield | 166% | 148% | 137%
Final Destination | 159% | 142% | 131%
Smashville | 159% | 142% | 131%
Town and City | 156% | 139% | 128%
Lylat Cruise | 159% | 142% | 131%
Dreamland 64 | 159% | 142% | 131%
Average % | 160% | 142% | 131%
Utilt strings:
Utilt>Uair
Dthrow>RAR Bair is NOT a true combo vs Sheik if they DI away. However, you can catch her jumps, but the timing is very strict.
Nair/Dair>Usmash
Tipper Jab 1>Jab 2>Usmash
Dash attack>Uair 50/50
- Strong>Aerial Utilt is not true until 16%
- Aerial>Aerial Utilt is true from 30% onwards. She can trade with Nair from 22-27%
Utilt>Uair
- Utilt>Uair is true from 43% onwards (if they DI in, it can ruin the combo. You’d have to space the Utilt to still be able to connect the Uair, assuming it is the strong Utilt)
- The Utilt>Uair 50/50 starts from roughly 78%, kills from 83% (DI in ruins the combo)
- You can no longer connect the Uair after 109%
Dthrow>RAR Bair is NOT a true combo vs Sheik if they DI away. However, you can catch her jumps, but the timing is very strict.
Nair/Dair>Usmash
- Nair>Usmash stops being true from 141% onwards
- Dair>Usmash stops being true from 161% onwards
- Both kill confirms can be ruined with DI away. However, it then puts the opponent in a tech chase situation (75% of the time, anyway. If they get the reel animation, it is still technically true, as they cannot tech)
- Only at percents where Nair/Dair will not send the opponent in tumble can the kill confirm work with “DI” (If the move does not put the opponent in tumble, then DI is non-existent). Nair=92%, Dair=93%
- Dair>Usmash put the opponent in a tech chase if they DI away up to 163%
- It is possible to still make it true with Dair>Usmash, even if they DI away. How you hit with Dair determines your chances of making it true. You have the greater chance if you get more hits of Dair in, including the landing hit, and if you are moving towards the direction in which they are launched
Tipper Jab 1>Jab 2>Usmash
- True from 107% onwards
Dash attack>Uair 50/50
- On FD, this 50/50 will start to kill from 88%
- From roughly 118% onwards, the 50/50 no longer works
Neutral can be difficult to talk about, especially the goals and the tools in which both characters use in order to achieve said goals will differ at various percents. Let’s break down how neutral is like in general, and what they may be trying to achieve at various percents.
This will likely happen at the beginning of the match, or when either character loses a stock. The main objective for Sheik is to land a grab, or a hit confirm into a grab, and if possible, do a combo that will carry you offstage, so that she immediately gets the advantage in terms of being able to edgeguard you at your weakest point. The easiest way that Sheik can do that is by landing a Fair>grab, or to simply get a dash grab in there, and she has many ways that can lead to getting that confirm to start low percent combos on you.
Sheiks can use baiting and punishing in order to make you whiff a commitment and get punished for it. The best example of this would be for them to empty hop backwards while you try to go in with a dash attack, only leading to you getting punished by falling Fair, leading to a grab. They may also use needles to identify how you deal with certain situations, so they know how and when to punish you (I go into this in detail in our set analysis section later on). Just them charging the needles may trigger some kind of response from you. You may shield in anticipation, approach in the air, distance yourself, even rush in. By needle fidgeting, they may be able to condition you to do certain things, and then punish you for doing it later in the game. This is why mixing up the way you approach Sheik, when they resort to these methods, would be a good way to approach. The more unpredictable you are, the harder it is for the other player to understand your motives.
It is important to understand that needles, at this low of a percent, cannot do much to you, and you can easily punish them if you are close enough. Her needles only work in a safe manner at a far distance, due to it not putting you in much hitstun at this percent range. You will see that they’re not used for “camping” that much in this MU against Fox, due to how fast he can be, and how risky it is shooting the needles at close range, especially at low percent. Alternatively, you can be so far away that you can shoot lasers and outrange Sheik’s needles. This may make them stop shooting needles and start crouching, shielding, or force some kind of approach. Some may even ignore it and continue charging. See how they deal with it, and make the appropriate decisions based on it. For example, if a Sheik were to approach you for shooting lasers, you could bait and punish their approach.
However, your own bait and punishing is also vital in this matchup. You should aim to dance just outside her threat bubble, provoking some kind of aggressive option, or any other option that can be punished. Her more punishable moves that will be used often in neutral will be rising Fair, rising Nair and grabs/dash grabs. Sheiks may use rising Fair/Nair as anti-approaches, as they are quick and have decent range. It can stop Foxes simply running in and trying to attack. Grabs can catch you out if you’re doing movement without a purpose, running>shielding a lot (or staying in shield in general. You cannot play scared). If you can provoke these options using options such as empty hops, perfect pivoting, extended dash dancing etc, you can punish one of these moves and begin your own grab combos and strings. However, due to the fact that Sheik is fast faller, your Utilt strings, as stated above, will not work at very low percents, so jabs or Dthrow frame traps may be the way to go (unless you have a lot of rage).
Retreating Fair can be hard to deal with, especially if they they are using it to stuff approaches or create shield pressure. Falling Fair can only be punished if spaced poorly with quick moves, like jab or shield grab (these are some of Fox’s quickest moves out of shield or shield drop). Running up and shielding the Fair at a range in which you can get a shield grab punish can be a good option, but you are prone to tomahawk grabs if you end up being predictable with your approaches. Another way to deal with it is to punish the short hop beforehand. You have quick enough moves to do this, such as Nair, Fair and Bair, and even Usmash (though I do not recommend using Usmash at this percent range. You will get punished as it is very negative on hit, and you can get more from your other moves). Nair can be faded back for safe punishes, Fair can lead to jab lock or tech chase scenarios, and Bair can combo into other moves at low percent. However, pay attention to how the Sheik is playing, because some may start to adapt to this, and mix up their neutral game. Whiff punishing Fair is possible, but the window you have to do it is very small. Always be trying to gather data and be one step ahead of your opponent. Finally, you can simply avoid getting hit by it all together and keep your distance until you are able to punish something else.
In the event that they do use Fair for Shield pressure, you need to understand what your options are in order to get away from the pressure. Fair is -6 on shield, assuming that the Sheik lands 1 frame after landing (-5 if they autocancel). You can roll out or jump out before Sheik is able to act again. However, do mix up your options, as they can get read and they will be punished if you are not careful. Staying in Shield means that you are vulnerable to empty hop fakeouts, jab pressure, crossups with Bair, grabs, and more. Those can be very hard to deal with, and can open up your defense.
Sheiks can use baiting and punishing in order to make you whiff a commitment and get punished for it. The best example of this would be for them to empty hop backwards while you try to go in with a dash attack, only leading to you getting punished by falling Fair, leading to a grab. They may also use needles to identify how you deal with certain situations, so they know how and when to punish you (I go into this in detail in our set analysis section later on). Just them charging the needles may trigger some kind of response from you. You may shield in anticipation, approach in the air, distance yourself, even rush in. By needle fidgeting, they may be able to condition you to do certain things, and then punish you for doing it later in the game. This is why mixing up the way you approach Sheik, when they resort to these methods, would be a good way to approach. The more unpredictable you are, the harder it is for the other player to understand your motives.
It is important to understand that needles, at this low of a percent, cannot do much to you, and you can easily punish them if you are close enough. Her needles only work in a safe manner at a far distance, due to it not putting you in much hitstun at this percent range. You will see that they’re not used for “camping” that much in this MU against Fox, due to how fast he can be, and how risky it is shooting the needles at close range, especially at low percent. Alternatively, you can be so far away that you can shoot lasers and outrange Sheik’s needles. This may make them stop shooting needles and start crouching, shielding, or force some kind of approach. Some may even ignore it and continue charging. See how they deal with it, and make the appropriate decisions based on it. For example, if a Sheik were to approach you for shooting lasers, you could bait and punish their approach.
However, your own bait and punishing is also vital in this matchup. You should aim to dance just outside her threat bubble, provoking some kind of aggressive option, or any other option that can be punished. Her more punishable moves that will be used often in neutral will be rising Fair, rising Nair and grabs/dash grabs. Sheiks may use rising Fair/Nair as anti-approaches, as they are quick and have decent range. It can stop Foxes simply running in and trying to attack. Grabs can catch you out if you’re doing movement without a purpose, running>shielding a lot (or staying in shield in general. You cannot play scared). If you can provoke these options using options such as empty hops, perfect pivoting, extended dash dancing etc, you can punish one of these moves and begin your own grab combos and strings. However, due to the fact that Sheik is fast faller, your Utilt strings, as stated above, will not work at very low percents, so jabs or Dthrow frame traps may be the way to go (unless you have a lot of rage).
Retreating Fair can be hard to deal with, especially if they they are using it to stuff approaches or create shield pressure. Falling Fair can only be punished if spaced poorly with quick moves, like jab or shield grab (these are some of Fox’s quickest moves out of shield or shield drop). Running up and shielding the Fair at a range in which you can get a shield grab punish can be a good option, but you are prone to tomahawk grabs if you end up being predictable with your approaches. Another way to deal with it is to punish the short hop beforehand. You have quick enough moves to do this, such as Nair, Fair and Bair, and even Usmash (though I do not recommend using Usmash at this percent range. You will get punished as it is very negative on hit, and you can get more from your other moves). Nair can be faded back for safe punishes, Fair can lead to jab lock or tech chase scenarios, and Bair can combo into other moves at low percent. However, pay attention to how the Sheik is playing, because some may start to adapt to this, and mix up their neutral game. Whiff punishing Fair is possible, but the window you have to do it is very small. Always be trying to gather data and be one step ahead of your opponent. Finally, you can simply avoid getting hit by it all together and keep your distance until you are able to punish something else.
In the event that they do use Fair for Shield pressure, you need to understand what your options are in order to get away from the pressure. Fair is -6 on shield, assuming that the Sheik lands 1 frame after landing (-5 if they autocancel). You can roll out or jump out before Sheik is able to act again. However, do mix up your options, as they can get read and they will be punished if you are not careful. Staying in Shield means that you are vulnerable to empty hop fakeouts, jab pressure, crossups with Bair, grabs, and more. Those can be very hard to deal with, and can open up your defense.
Neutral is relatively the same, except that most of what Sheik will be doing is to get combos into Bouncing Fish, and keep you in a disadvantage state, while you are trying to do the same with your own combos into Uair. Sheik’s Ftilt and Nair start to be used more as combo starters. Needles start to gradually become more effective as it puts Fox in more hitstun. Sheik will be racking up percent until you are at the percent where 50/50s and other kill setups will begin to work, otherwise, she will still try to gimp you offstage. Your plan does not necessarily change here. PP Utilt is now a good way to punish the short hop of falling Fair, as it can lead to true Utilt strings and Uair.
This is the point in the match in which both players are looking for ways to kill, whether it be in a kill confirm, at the ledge, juggling or edgeguarding. Nair, Ftilt, Dtilt, and (to a degree) Bair can all confirm into Bouncing Fish, which can kill. You want to look out for these moves and bait them out with your movement, as they can be punished that way. Needles can become a hassle to deal with, now that they send you into tumble, and makes it harder to approach Sheik if you are far away. This leaves you prone to mixups as well, so as stated before, mixup the way you approach (and approached based on what they think you will do, and surprise them with another option). Nair and Bair can launch Sheik offstage, or even kill her if you call out the short hop, giving you stage control, the lead, or even the game.
When it gets to the percent where none of Sheik’s setups work anymore, it’s a matter of getting a stray hit to kill, which is more likely to happen if you are at a disadvantage (needles>Bouncing Fish works for a very long time, so they still have that option, as long as they have a full stack of needles). Fox has more kill power than Sheik, so punish her attempts and kill her first before she kills you. If you are able to survive at very high percents, rage can make this job easier for you.
When it gets to the percent where none of Sheik’s setups work anymore, it’s a matter of getting a stray hit to kill, which is more likely to happen if you are at a disadvantage (needles>Bouncing Fish works for a very long time, so they still have that option, as long as they have a full stack of needles). Fox has more kill power than Sheik, so punish her attempts and kill her first before she kills you. If you are able to survive at very high percents, rage can make this job easier for you.
Being at a disadvantage vs Sheik can be very troublesome, as a lot of her options can beat your your attempts to reset neutral or to aggressively take the advantage against her.
You will enter disadvantage from the moment that you are grabbed and combo’d, launched offstage or in the air, or if Sheik has stage control. During Sheik’s combos, panic airdodges and jumps can lead to you being in a worse position. It may be better for you to take the damage (as most of her combos are true, anyway), and conserve all of your options when you are at disadvantage, so you can at least increase your chances of resetting neutral. Panic airdodges can lead to even more deadly combos, which may result in a stock being taken. Best example of this would be Ftilt>Tipper Usmash if you airdodge.
In terms of being offstage, the situation is somewhat different depending on the percent you are at. At low/mid percent, their plan is dependent on keeping you offstage or gimping you, while at high percent they are trying to put you in a series of 50/50 mind games and see how well you can do under that much pressure before you break and die. Past roughly 140%, 50/50s do not work anymore. Now it is a game of how well they can keep you offstage until they can kill you with something strong, whether it be an Fsmash, FF Uair>Dsmash, Uair, or Fair/Nair at very high percents. Due to Fox’s limited options and linear recoveries, it is very easy for Sheik to capitalise in this scenario. However, you have options and mixups, nonetheless.
For instance, if Fox was thrown offstage far enough to have to side B/Up B back, Sheik can intercept our side B very easily. Fair, Nair, jab, Bair, upB, and bouncing fish all seem like the best options to do so. If you're trying to side B back, it's important to know what Sheik is trying to cover because she can cover both options, but not at the same time. If you were to side B towards the ledge, Sheik's aerials and Dtilt (and grenade and vanish, but they are less seen in matches) can hit you. They'll either commit with the aerial and drift a bit further than usual offstage before attempting to jump back or they'll do a drop zone aerial (Drop zone being right where the ledge is and jump and use an aerial as they rise back onto the stage). The deep aerial with drift can be avoided with good use of your double jump and shine since they're going to go quite deep. If they do this, you can jump and side B over them. Also, shine stalling can screw up their timing, then you can side b/ jump and side b. This does tend to work but bouncing fish can beat shine stalling and jumping, though you can react to bouncing fish with air dodge. Sheiks can use this to set up the Bouncing Fish>Fair frame trap if you airdodge correctly, but as long as you keep drifting away from you, they will not be able to reach you.
Suppose they are doing the drop zone aerial. if you do jump and side b over them, they'll simply punish you and throw you offstage and reset the edge guard situation. How would you counter this? Again, shine stalling and smart use of double jumps/airdodges can get you through it, but that is assuming the Sheik is predicting what you go for instead of reacting, which is how they should be doing it. An alternative option is to not recover with side B at all, and instead recover low, but be aware of your vulnerabilities doing this. Dair spike is an option they can use if you do. It can trade with firefox so they don’t always have to sacrifice stocks to get it. If you are not directly below the stage and have to firefox straight up, you can angle your firefox in a way to actually avoid the dair spike
You can be put in a situation where you are being edgeguarded and you think that the move is going to put you in tumble, but it doesn’t and you buffer air dodge and fall to your doom (and vice versa)? Here are some percentages to help avoid that.
Move | 0% rage | 100% rage | 150% rage
Fair | 21% | 11% | 5%
Bair (early) | 39% | 29% | 23%
Bair (late) | 89% | 77% | 69%
Nair (Early) | 46% | 37% | 32%
Nair (late) | 72% | 60% | 52%
Bouncing Fish | 27% | 20% | 15%
Needles | 85% | 73% | 66%
Now, what makes it difficult are the semi-techable vertices that some stages have and the difference in hitlag experienced between getting hit by her aerials and getting hit by bouncing fish. For comparison purposes, say you get hit by a Sheik with either fair or Bouncing Fish when she has no rage. Fair has 5 frames of hitlag, while Bouncing Fish has 8 frames. This may not seem like much but it can potentially throw your timing off. Unless you are above this %, do not try to tech. Instead, immediately try to firefox.
It is essential that practice your consistency in teching. You will need it now more than ever when you are being edge guarded by Sheiks. An example of what they like to do is using needles to gimp you and/or screw up your tech timing, so please be cautious.
Sheiks will most likely be grabbing the ledge multiple times, so their invulnerability may disappear. If you manage to get back onstage and they are hanging on the ledge, take advantage of it and punish.
At high percent, Sheiks may start to use Bouncing Fish offstage to kill you off, especially with the Needles>Bouncing Fish kill setup. This can easily punish the startup of side B if you intend to use it, so do not make your recovery obvious. You have mixups that will allow you to avoid the use of Bouncing Fish and Needles.
For instance, if Fox was thrown offstage far enough to have to side B/Up B back, Sheik can intercept our side B very easily. Fair, Nair, jab, Bair, upB, and bouncing fish all seem like the best options to do so. If you're trying to side B back, it's important to know what Sheik is trying to cover because she can cover both options, but not at the same time. If you were to side B towards the ledge, Sheik's aerials and Dtilt (and grenade and vanish, but they are less seen in matches) can hit you. They'll either commit with the aerial and drift a bit further than usual offstage before attempting to jump back or they'll do a drop zone aerial (Drop zone being right where the ledge is and jump and use an aerial as they rise back onto the stage). The deep aerial with drift can be avoided with good use of your double jump and shine since they're going to go quite deep. If they do this, you can jump and side B over them. Also, shine stalling can screw up their timing, then you can side b/ jump and side b. This does tend to work but bouncing fish can beat shine stalling and jumping, though you can react to bouncing fish with air dodge. Sheiks can use this to set up the Bouncing Fish>Fair frame trap if you airdodge correctly, but as long as you keep drifting away from you, they will not be able to reach you.
Suppose they are doing the drop zone aerial. if you do jump and side b over them, they'll simply punish you and throw you offstage and reset the edge guard situation. How would you counter this? Again, shine stalling and smart use of double jumps/airdodges can get you through it, but that is assuming the Sheik is predicting what you go for instead of reacting, which is how they should be doing it. An alternative option is to not recover with side B at all, and instead recover low, but be aware of your vulnerabilities doing this. Dair spike is an option they can use if you do. It can trade with firefox so they don’t always have to sacrifice stocks to get it. If you are not directly below the stage and have to firefox straight up, you can angle your firefox in a way to actually avoid the dair spike
You can be put in a situation where you are being edgeguarded and you think that the move is going to put you in tumble, but it doesn’t and you buffer air dodge and fall to your doom (and vice versa)? Here are some percentages to help avoid that.
Move | 0% rage | 100% rage | 150% rage
Fair | 21% | 11% | 5%
Bair (early) | 39% | 29% | 23%
Bair (late) | 89% | 77% | 69%
Nair (Early) | 46% | 37% | 32%
Nair (late) | 72% | 60% | 52%
Bouncing Fish | 27% | 20% | 15%
Needles | 85% | 73% | 66%
Now, what makes it difficult are the semi-techable vertices that some stages have and the difference in hitlag experienced between getting hit by her aerials and getting hit by bouncing fish. For comparison purposes, say you get hit by a Sheik with either fair or Bouncing Fish when she has no rage. Fair has 5 frames of hitlag, while Bouncing Fish has 8 frames. This may not seem like much but it can potentially throw your timing off. Unless you are above this %, do not try to tech. Instead, immediately try to firefox.
It is essential that practice your consistency in teching. You will need it now more than ever when you are being edge guarded by Sheiks. An example of what they like to do is using needles to gimp you and/or screw up your tech timing, so please be cautious.
Sheiks will most likely be grabbing the ledge multiple times, so their invulnerability may disappear. If you manage to get back onstage and they are hanging on the ledge, take advantage of it and punish.
At high percent, Sheiks may start to use Bouncing Fish offstage to kill you off, especially with the Needles>Bouncing Fish kill setup. This can easily punish the startup of side B if you intend to use it, so do not make your recovery obvious. You have mixups that will allow you to avoid the use of Bouncing Fish and Needles.
If you find yourself hanging at the ledge and you want to get back onto the stage, you may find that it can be quite difficult vs a competent Sheik player. Sheik can react to neutral getup, using Nair. This can also catch out getup jumps. If you were to getup roll, then they can fade back the Nair and catch your roll with late Nair. This is one way that they can confirm into Bouncing Fish and kill you at high percent. If you do not have intangibility at the ledge, then they can hit you with Dtilt and Bouncing Fish, which can also lead to stocks being taken at high percent (They can also be used to 2 frame punish Fox’s recovery). Alongside using Fair, shielding aggressive ledgedrop and ledge trumping it seems as if there’s not much Fox can do. However, mixing up your recovery actually makes it harder for the Sheik to be able to keep you at the ledge. Varying your time on actually using a getup option (bear in mind that your intangibility might disappear, making you vulnerable to attacks). With good positioning, you can use side B to get past Sheik’s attacks using the dead zone (have no idea on what we are talking about? Click this link that explains Fox’s side B in detail). It is all about picking the right option at the right time. Be creative with what you have and use it to get past Sheik’s ledge trapping options.
The same thing can be said about being juggled by Sheik. Her aerials are fast and can keep you in the air or offstage, especially Uair. Uair is her best aerial for vertical killing, and she can use it when she has made you burn jumps from combos and throws. Do not forget that you have other options that can help you mix up your landing options. Shine stalling, airdodging, landing with attacks and changing where you drift to land can all be used to mix up your landing options, potentially making it harder for the Sheik to keep you in the air and potentially kill you. Again, which options are the right ones for the right time is based on what the Sheik is looking out for and what they are trying to punish.
By doing this, you will be able to avoid all of Sheik’s gimping tools and kill confirms, allowing you to live at ridiculously high percents. In this scenario, make sure that you do not corner yourself, as it will be much easier for Sheik to kill you at the ledge than at the centre of the stage. Use your rage and build momentum when you get a hit confirm, allowing you to have more devastating punishes, as well as you having a greater chance of killing Sheik before she kills you.
By doing this, you will be able to avoid all of Sheik’s gimping tools and kill confirms, allowing you to live at ridiculously high percents. In this scenario, make sure that you do not corner yourself, as it will be much easier for Sheik to kill you at the ledge than at the centre of the stage. Use your rage and build momentum when you get a hit confirm, allowing you to have more devastating punishes, as well as you having a greater chance of killing Sheik before she kills you.
When keeping Sheik in combos, it is important to understand what tools she has in order to escape them. Her Nair comes out on frame 3, meaning that it is good for breaking out of strings. We have already stated the percents in which different elements of Fox’s Utilt strings are true, so keep a mental thought of them (they shift to lower percents as your rage increases, as usual). Alternatively, you can shield in between your Utilt strings, allowing them to hit it with their Nair, and you punishing it with more Utilt strings, or another move. This does not work as well if the Sheik uses Fair to break the string, as Fair will be safe on shield against shield drop actions. In which case, punishing with shield grabs would be perfect (as long as you turnaround before you shield. You will have enough time). Be sure to stick to combos at percents in which they are true so you do not end up trading with Sheik so much (this will happen very often, as a lot of Sheik’s moves extends her hurtboxes).
When juggling Sheik, alongside her double jump and airdodge, she has other tools that she can use to throw your juggle game off so that she can land safely. One common strategy that is used is to use Bouncing Fish to get away from the juggles. Bouncing fish can be B-reversed, and the distance travelled can be varied. Reacting to the Bouncing Fish and chasing after the Sheik is the best way to increase your chances in punishing her landing options. Some try to predict what the Sheik will do with Bouncing Fish. While this can work and can even lead to heavier punishes, one miscalculation and you end up giving Sheik a free ticket back to the ground, allowing neutral to be reset. Sheik’s aerials also allow her to land more safely compared to other characters, due to how quick and how little lag they can have. However, most of her aerials can still be punished if shielded, but it is recommended that you punish any attempts of Sheik landing with Fair using a shieldgrab. In general, make sure that you are directly under Sheik at all times when trying to juggle her. This is easier than some think when you consider that Fox has the 3rd fastest walking speed. Running>Shield can make you waste frames that you could be using for more precise positioning with walking. Walking is less committal, and can go into into a run when needed. If you can take away their double jump, juggling Sheik becomes a lot easier, and she may drift towards the ledge in order to try and reset neutral.
When Sheik is at the ledge, she has a few mixups that can throw you off guard if you are not paying attention. Firstly, she can use Bouncing Fish at a specific height, which will allow her to land with much less lag, and can result in you reacting too late and getting punished due to dropping your shield at the wrong time, or staying in shield. Sheik’s ledge drop>double jump airdodge>aerial can also be a great way for them to get past you, especially if you have the tendency to shield a lot when at the ledge. If you are close enough to the ledge, Sheiks can cross you up using Bair and put you at a frame disadvantage, which can result in them not only resetting neutral, but winning neutral all together and most likely throwing you offstage. Positioning yourself at the ledge is vital to making yourself less vulnerable to Sheik’s mixups, as well as her general options. You want to make sure you are not too close to the ledge. This makes it harder for the Sheik to do aggressive options that will land, as they will have to move further.
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This kind of position is perfect, as it will be more difficult for Void to hit Eon with Fair, and Eon is still in the range to react and punish his generic getup options.Some Sheiks may use Vanish above the ledge when recovering if you are too close to the ledge, which can catch Foxes off guard who are not shielding. You can jump, roll away, or simply position yourself further away from the ledge to avoid the hitbox.
When you have Sheik in the corner in general, you want to use your moves to pressure her shield and control space with your hitboxes. When you mix your usage of hitboxes with dashing in and out of her zone with deceptive movement, you can bait and punish any form of retaliation that the Sheik may use in order to turn the tables around. From rolls to attacks, baiting and punishing their responses will allow you to maintain your stage advantage, allowing you to kill Sheik easier at the ledge.The more time you keep Sheik at a disadvantage, the easier time you will have to kill.
This kind of position is perfect, as it will be more difficult for Void to hit Eon with Fair, and Eon is still in the range to react and punish his generic getup options.Some Sheiks may use Vanish above the ledge when recovering if you are too close to the ledge, which can catch Foxes off guard who are not shielding. You can jump, roll away, or simply position yourself further away from the ledge to avoid the hitbox.
When you have Sheik in the corner in general, you want to use your moves to pressure her shield and control space with your hitboxes. When you mix your usage of hitboxes with dashing in and out of her zone with deceptive movement, you can bait and punish any form of retaliation that the Sheik may use in order to turn the tables around. From rolls to attacks, baiting and punishing their responses will allow you to maintain your stage advantage, allowing you to kill Sheik easier at the ledge.The more time you keep Sheik at a disadvantage, the easier time you will have to kill.
Stage Choices
Sheik and Fox will have stages that they will either perform better or worse in the matchup, due to the nature of the stage. Let’s discuss how much each stage can benefit them, and from there recommend which ones to select and which ones to ban in the matchup.
Battlefield
Battlefield is commonly known to be one of Fox’s best stages, and in this matchup, it gives Fox plenty of movement options, due to the extra platforms. Fox’s combos become even stronger because of the platforms being able to allow Fox to true combo multiple Uairs together. Needles may be less useful now, as the platforms can easily be used to avoid them. However, Sheik can get a tipper Usmash from under the platforms, which can catch you off guard if you are on the platform. Battlefield has the largest blastzones, which means that killing can be harder for both characters. However, with Fox having more kill power than Sheik, it benefits Fox more, as he is not only able to survive even longer than usual, but his rage can make up for the larger percentage needed to kill Sheik. Finally, the platforms give Fox the edge in terms of juggling and sharking Sheik in the air, giving him more chances to. It is recommended that you play on this stage, if given the opportunity to.
Final Destination
Final Destination can make punishes from Sheik more deadly, especially at low percent, due to the flat stage giving Sheik lots of room to do extended combos that launch you offstage. With less ways to avoid them (no platforms), needles do become more of a threat, and makes needles>Bouncing Fish more threatening. Moreover, no platforms means that, although platforms give Sheik fewer options, the open space and her already good options does not make too much of a difference when Sheik is trying to land safely, which she can do with the right mixup. Fox can still hold his own, especially when he has the advantage, but neutral may be more difficult on this stage.
Smashville
Generally seen as Sheik’s best stage for, not only this matchup, but for Sheik in general. Because the side blastzones are much closer than usual, Sheik can get kills offstage easier, and with the fact that Fox being offstage is one of his worst positions, you can expect a lot of Sheiks to get kills this way. The moving platform gives Sheik the opportunity to safely charge needles, especially if the platform is far from the stage itself. You may even get grabbed on this platform and get killed at very early percentages with Bouncing Fish if you are not careful. The platform can also serve as an extra recovery option and a ledge mixup to escape Fox’s pressure. Although Fox benefits from the small horizontal blastzones, he can struggle against Sheiks advantages on Smashville. It is not recommended that you play on this stage, and to ban it if given the opportunity.
Town and City
With lots of room to run around, and platforms from various positions to aid both characters in terms of combos, juggling, and even killing, this stage is usually seen as the most neutral stage in the matchup. The low ceiling means that both characters’ vertical kill potential increases (although Fox benefits more from it). The stage will always cycle from being completely flat, to having stages in the centre, near the ceiling, and near the horizontal blastzones. You may find yourself going to this stage very often in this matchup.
Lylat Cruise
Another stage that is considered neutral between the two characters. The 3 platforms benefit Fox with bigger combos and better juggling and sharking potential. If the stage is tilted downwards, and Sheik is on the ledge on the side that is tilted downwards, they can use the quick recovery Bouncing Fish mixup to throw you off. However, Sheik’s needles can get nullified by the stage itself when tilted, so they are less of a concern. Be careful about your recovery. Because they are linear, they may fall victim to missing the ledge when Lylat is tilting, potentially causing you to lose your stock.
Dreamland 64
This stage is very similar to Battlefield, except the blastzones are smaller, and the platforms make doing FH AC aerials somewhat harder to do, as they are a little higher than Battlefield’s platforms. Furthermore, Sheik’s tipper Usmash becomes more inconsistent, as it is harder to hit characters on the side platforms. Be careful when being offstage vs Sheik on this stage, especially if you are at the bottom part of the stage. If you tech the bottom part of the stage, make sure you drift out of its way before trying to recover via firefox, so you do not end up getting planked on the bottom part and SDing. This stage is recommended to play the matchup on, if you have the opportunity to.
watch the entire set here:
Timestamp 1
Larry tries to punish Void's Fair with jab, but because it was spaced (and maybe partly due to the tilt at the edge of Lylat), he whiffed the attack, allowing Void to punish. In this situation, you want to punish after the Fair, not the Fair itself. Only punish if they mispace it or if you know they will come in with another attack.
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Example that shows how rising Fair can be punished. You can bait and punish the Sheik doing this by empty hops and deceptive movement.
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An example of Larry winning neutral. In this situation, Larry uses jumps to bait Void into coming in with a rising aerial. Void chooses to come in with a Nair, and Larry fades back, anticipating some kind of approach. He successfully beats the approach with jab, and he launches Void towards the ledge, where he could have started his advantage state game, but Void hits him back with Fair.
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Be careful when you are recovering low offstage. When Sheik's use Bouncing Fish offstage and hit you with it, you are in more hitlag than getting hit by any of Sheik's other aerials (i.e. Fair puts you in 5 frames of hitlag. Bouncing Fish puts you in 8 frames of hitlag). This may end up throwing off your timing of teching, so always be vigillant on what's going on and do not panic.
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Void tries to go for a mixup by sharking Larry with Uair as he recovers. Always try to anticipate this mixup and shield. That way you won't get launched up and give your opponent a free ticket back onstage.
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Larry performed very well at the ledge. He constantly was one step ahead of Void's options at the ledge, eliminating them one by one. Void eventually jumps onto the stage with an attack and Larry kills with a Nair OoS. This is why it is important to keep your opponent offstage as much as possible. You won't always be killing with Bair, Uair and Usmash. The more your opponent is in this position, the easier it is for you to kill.
Larry tries to punish Void's Fair with jab, but because it was spaced (and maybe partly due to the tilt at the edge of Lylat), he whiffed the attack, allowing Void to punish. In this situation, you want to punish after the Fair, not the Fair itself. Only punish if they mispace it or if you know they will come in with another attack.
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Example that shows how rising Fair can be punished. You can bait and punish the Sheik doing this by empty hops and deceptive movement.
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An example of Larry winning neutral. In this situation, Larry uses jumps to bait Void into coming in with a rising aerial. Void chooses to come in with a Nair, and Larry fades back, anticipating some kind of approach. He successfully beats the approach with jab, and he launches Void towards the ledge, where he could have started his advantage state game, but Void hits him back with Fair.
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Be careful when you are recovering low offstage. When Sheik's use Bouncing Fish offstage and hit you with it, you are in more hitlag than getting hit by any of Sheik's other aerials (i.e. Fair puts you in 5 frames of hitlag. Bouncing Fish puts you in 8 frames of hitlag). This may end up throwing off your timing of teching, so always be vigillant on what's going on and do not panic.
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Void tries to go for a mixup by sharking Larry with Uair as he recovers. Always try to anticipate this mixup and shield. That way you won't get launched up and give your opponent a free ticket back onstage.
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Larry performed very well at the ledge. He constantly was one step ahead of Void's options at the ledge, eliminating them one by one. Void eventually jumps onto the stage with an attack and Larry kills with a Nair OoS. This is why it is important to keep your opponent offstage as much as possible. You won't always be killing with Bair, Uair and Usmash. The more your opponent is in this position, the easier it is for you to kill.
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Final Destination is a very good stage for Sheik in this MU, as the flat stage with no platforms gives Sheik the room to do long combos that lead to you being offstage at mid percent, and puts Sheik in an advantage edgeguarding situation. Be aware of this when choosing/being counterpicked to this stage, as one mistake can easily lead to this at 0%.
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Another neutral scenario. Void starts to charge needles, and Larry approaches with AC Dair. He may realise that he doesn't want to deal with needle camping, so he quickly closes the gap dashing into a shield, anticipating any needles and then approaches in the air with AC Dair in case he does throw needles. Instead, Void goes in with a rising Nair. They're still trying to bait and punish each other, with Larry trying to bait Void's approaches with empty hops and trying to punish them with spaced Bairs. He's looking for rising aerials and dash attacks/grabs because he knows he can punish those, and he almost does when shielding Void's rising Nair. He is constantly trying to avoid the falling Fairs with rolls, empty hops and perfect pivots. He finally manages to get a hit, but doesn't get much off it.
They end up being in the same situation with Void charging needles. Larry approaches with AC Dair again, but Void recognises this and punishes with a Nair. This supports how needles can be used to gather information on how players deal with needles in certain situations.
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When Sheiks use Bouncing fish to rebound off the stage (in order to make their recovery safer), this is a good option option to go for if they don't expect it. Larry could have even baited the airdodge if he knew that Void would airdodge and take his stock.
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It seems like Larry will either shield or jump over the needles in order to deal with them. Jumping over them allows him to punish the end lag with a falling aerial (i.e. Nair or Dair), but he decides to bait rising aerials again and punish with Ftilt instead.
Final Destination is a very good stage for Sheik in this MU, as the flat stage with no platforms gives Sheik the room to do long combos that lead to you being offstage at mid percent, and puts Sheik in an advantage edgeguarding situation. Be aware of this when choosing/being counterpicked to this stage, as one mistake can easily lead to this at 0%.
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Another neutral scenario. Void starts to charge needles, and Larry approaches with AC Dair. He may realise that he doesn't want to deal with needle camping, so he quickly closes the gap dashing into a shield, anticipating any needles and then approaches in the air with AC Dair in case he does throw needles. Instead, Void goes in with a rising Nair. They're still trying to bait and punish each other, with Larry trying to bait Void's approaches with empty hops and trying to punish them with spaced Bairs. He's looking for rising aerials and dash attacks/grabs because he knows he can punish those, and he almost does when shielding Void's rising Nair. He is constantly trying to avoid the falling Fairs with rolls, empty hops and perfect pivots. He finally manages to get a hit, but doesn't get much off it.
They end up being in the same situation with Void charging needles. Larry approaches with AC Dair again, but Void recognises this and punishes with a Nair. This supports how needles can be used to gather information on how players deal with needles in certain situations.
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When Sheiks use Bouncing fish to rebound off the stage (in order to make their recovery safer), this is a good option option to go for if they don't expect it. Larry could have even baited the airdodge if he knew that Void would airdodge and take his stock.
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It seems like Larry will either shield or jump over the needles in order to deal with them. Jumping over them allows him to punish the end lag with a falling aerial (i.e. Nair or Dair), but he decides to bait rising aerials again and punish with Ftilt instead.
Timestamp 1
It should be clear on what Larry's motives are vs Void. He likes to use deceptive movement and empty hops to baiting rising aerials and dash attacks/dash grabs, while avoiding getting hit by falling Fair, unless he plans to punish them via shieldgrab or jab. Since Void is in the corner, he uses Bair to punish his attempts to approach with falling Fair, as Larry will have the frame advantage. However, he gets too aggressive and Void baits the dash attack approach and punishes Larry for it.
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This is a very effective way to deal with Sheiks trying to run off and edgeguard you with Bair, as the beefy firefox will catch them as they run offstage. It is a good mixup, but will lose to Sheiks staying onstage and trying to hit you with Dtilt or just shielding.
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Always make sure you know the numbers in which Sheiks attacks actually put you in tumble so that you don't accidently spam airdodge to your death. In this situation, you want to make sure that you use firefox as soon as possible, and not burn your jump straight away like Larry did, otherwise, you give the Sheik the opportunity to steal your jump, making your only recovery even more predictable and easier to gimp.
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This is a good mixups that Sheiks may go for at the ledge if you are shielding and facing towards the blastzone, as you will whiff your shieldgrab, and most of your moves will not be able to punish Sheik. Jab can work, however, but not if you're facing the wrong direction.
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Lastly, be careful about Sheiks using Vanish at the ledge. Some will rise just enough so the hitbox is able to hit you. This is good to catch people offguard who are just standing very close to the ledge. Larry positions himself well enough to not even hit his shield.
It should be clear on what Larry's motives are vs Void. He likes to use deceptive movement and empty hops to baiting rising aerials and dash attacks/dash grabs, while avoiding getting hit by falling Fair, unless he plans to punish them via shieldgrab or jab. Since Void is in the corner, he uses Bair to punish his attempts to approach with falling Fair, as Larry will have the frame advantage. However, he gets too aggressive and Void baits the dash attack approach and punishes Larry for it.
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This is a very effective way to deal with Sheiks trying to run off and edgeguard you with Bair, as the beefy firefox will catch them as they run offstage. It is a good mixup, but will lose to Sheiks staying onstage and trying to hit you with Dtilt or just shielding.
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Always make sure you know the numbers in which Sheiks attacks actually put you in tumble so that you don't accidently spam airdodge to your death. In this situation, you want to make sure that you use firefox as soon as possible, and not burn your jump straight away like Larry did, otherwise, you give the Sheik the opportunity to steal your jump, making your only recovery even more predictable and easier to gimp.
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This is a good mixups that Sheiks may go for at the ledge if you are shielding and facing towards the blastzone, as you will whiff your shieldgrab, and most of your moves will not be able to punish Sheik. Jab can work, however, but not if you're facing the wrong direction.
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Lastly, be careful about Sheiks using Vanish at the ledge. Some will rise just enough so the hitbox is able to hit you. This is good to catch people offguard who are just standing very close to the ledge. Larry positions himself well enough to not even hit his shield.
Watch the whole set here:
Timestamp 1
An interesting neutral exchange right off the bat. Void rushes in and does a pivot Ftilt behind Eon. This could be a good idea for Sheik to do against people who shield a lot and tend to go for shieldgrabs, which can lead to easy grab punishes. This is similar to how Fox can use FTHC (Ftilt Hipcheck) to crossup against players as well. Eon uses lasers to provoke some kind of response from Void, which is a good way to identify how the opponent will deal with lasers in certain situations and stages. In this case, because there are platforms on Town and City, Void decides to jump on the platforms to avoid shielding or running in and taking damage. Eon reacts to this and punishes him with Fair>Uair.
What's important to know is that Sheik can use Bouncing Fish as a way to psyche the other player out, since she can influence where she goes with BF, whether it being in the complete opposite direction, or a shorter distance than normal. Do not predict, but rather, react to where Sheik will land, and then continue to juggle her.
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Eon seems to have a habbit of running up and shielding a lot, and Void has been picking up on this habbit from using neutral tools and analysing how Eon tries to deal with them. In this case, he knew that Eon would run up and shield, trying to anticipate an attack, so Void crosses up with Bair, with Eon reacting with a shield grab. Void punishes this and puts Eon into the corner. At this point, he positions himself far enough from Eon to not only stay out of his threat bubble (he would not be able to react to an instant dash attack if he was in this bubble), but to be able to react to his approaches, whether it be dash attack, side B, AC Dair etc. This allows Void to be able to punish it and potentially get him in a disadvantage state (whether it be offstage or in the air).
In this situation, it's important to consider your bait and punish options. Empty hops, walking back and forth, perfect pivoting, or even using AC Bair to bait a response could allow you to make the Sheik player do a commitment, in which you can punish. Alternatively, you could use this to gather information for late game punishes. A reminder that, just because you identify a habbit within a player, doesn't mean you should punish straight away. It could be more effective to exploit it at a different percent than what the current percent is.
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Eon had the right idea, using SH fade back Nair to apply pressure, which moving away from any retaliation. Void tries to punish with rising Fair, but whiffs, in which Eon tries to punish with Utilt, but misses as well. However, his habbits still show strong, with Void using crawling to anticipate any approaches or shielding, and punishes accordingly by simply walking up and grabbing him. It is vital that you are using movement to make it harder for Sheik to actually catch you out. Your options, as stated before, are great for making Sheik commit to things, and you can adapt based on how the player is using their neutral tools and punish it accordingly at the right time.
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Eon successfully calls out a Short hop in the corner and punishes with Bair, almost killing Void. Believe it or not, this is a common thing for Sheik players to do, as they anticipate any approaches that they can punish. As stated before, be careful with the way Sheiks recover using Vanish, as they can vanish right at the ledge and catch you offguard. Finally, Ftilt strings are not true at very low percent, even with max rage (with max rage, they become true from 5%). It's safe to assume that they generall become true from around 15-20% onwards.
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Sheik players can use the fast recovery as a mixup even on platforms, so be aware that this is an option that they can go for on stages with platforms.
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In this neutral situation, Eon is dashing and empty hopping around Void's threat bubble, trying to bait any commitments, such as dash grabs, other tilts and rising Fairs/Nairs. Though he doesn't capitalise on punishing these options, you can see how he avoids getting hit. Unfortunately, Void chases him down to the point in which he finally gets a hit on Eon due to awknowledging how slippery he is playing, and punishes him.
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You can see some more use of needles in this little interaction here. Void uses needle fidgeting for mindgames and to see how Eon would react to needles being used in the first place. He creates space between the both of them and shoots lasers at void. Void approaches with needle cancels and eventually goes in with a dash grab, but Eon sees an approach coming and decides to roll away, successfully avoiding Void's dash grab. As stated before, lasers are a good way to make the opponent approach you and gather information on how they deal with them. Some Sheiks may use the needles themselves whenever in this kind of situation, whereas others may rush in or try to bait YOUR own responses. Always be looking out for what they do and punish accordingly.
For example, if a Sheik responds by running but then doing a retreating Fair, you can respond to that by calling out the short hop with a Nair, Fair or even Usmash.
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If you DI away from Dthrow at high percent, you can avoid the bouncing fish followup.
Watch the entire set here:
Timestamp 1
Straight away, NAKAT uses lasers to tack on damage and allows him to see what Bedgar likes to respond. At first, he was charging needles, but then he rushes in to the centre of the stage and starts using Fair. He may be trying to bait out approaches, stuffing any aggressive play or even trying to see how NAKAT responds to it. He's immediately got some information that he can use later on in the match to take advantage of.
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Be careful when using double jumps to try and recover, as Sheik is very good at calling them out, using Uair, Fair and Nair. In this scenario, you can see that NAKAT also uses an airdodge to get past Bedgar's attempt to launch him back offstage using Nair. This is a good option to use, but also be aware that it may not work everytime due to adaptation. Always be mixing up the way you recover.
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Just like in this situation, NAKAT uses his double jump to jump out of the needles' way and recover safely, using side B. There are many combinations of mixups that you can do with double jumps, side B, Firefox, shinestalling etc.
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Something very good to know is that falling Bair is at least -6 on shield (assuming they land on the next frame. In this example, Bedgar lands 2 frames after, making it -8 on shield). Like NAKAT did, you can jump out and make the Sheik whiff any attacks. This is how NAKAT was able to get the falling Nair>Usmash kill confirm, as he punished the end lag of Sheik's Ftilt.
Straight away, NAKAT uses lasers to tack on damage and allows him to see what Bedgar likes to respond. At first, he was charging needles, but then he rushes in to the centre of the stage and starts using Fair. He may be trying to bait out approaches, stuffing any aggressive play or even trying to see how NAKAT responds to it. He's immediately got some information that he can use later on in the match to take advantage of.
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Be careful when using double jumps to try and recover, as Sheik is very good at calling them out, using Uair, Fair and Nair. In this scenario, you can see that NAKAT also uses an airdodge to get past Bedgar's attempt to launch him back offstage using Nair. This is a good option to use, but also be aware that it may not work everytime due to adaptation. Always be mixing up the way you recover.
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Just like in this situation, NAKAT uses his double jump to jump out of the needles' way and recover safely, using side B. There are many combinations of mixups that you can do with double jumps, side B, Firefox, shinestalling etc.
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Something very good to know is that falling Bair is at least -6 on shield (assuming they land on the next frame. In this example, Bedgar lands 2 frames after, making it -8 on shield). Like NAKAT did, you can jump out and make the Sheik whiff any attacks. This is how NAKAT was able to get the falling Nair>Usmash kill confirm, as he punished the end lag of Sheik's Ftilt.
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Side B can be a good way to get through a wall of hitboxes if you time it correctly. Though, if anticipated, it can easily be punished, so be careful on how you use it. It's even better to use it in a way that you hit them in the dead zone of Side B.
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A smart move made here. NAKAT ledge trumps Bedgar, limiting his options of recovering lately, and reads the bouncing fish recovery by jumping over it and punishing the end lag of it with Fsmash, taking his first stock. Bouncing Fish has a lot of landing lag, so you can easily get a charged smash attack in there if you successfully bait this out.
Side B can be a good way to get through a wall of hitboxes if you time it correctly. Though, if anticipated, it can easily be punished, so be careful on how you use it. It's even better to use it in a way that you hit them in the dead zone of Side B.
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A smart move made here. NAKAT ledge trumps Bedgar, limiting his options of recovering lately, and reads the bouncing fish recovery by jumping over it and punishing the end lag of it with Fsmash, taking his first stock. Bouncing Fish has a lot of landing lag, so you can easily get a charged smash attack in there if you successfully bait this out.
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From the info that NAKAT got throughout the match, he was able to immediately punish Bedgar's jumping habbit and Fair habbit using AC Dair>Fair>Uair for good damage.
From the info that NAKAT got throughout the match, he was able to immediately punish Bedgar's jumping habbit and Fair habbit using AC Dair>Fair>Uair for good damage.
Watch the entire set here:
Timestamp 1
You can see from the neutral scenario here that both players try to stay just outside of their threat bubble, using empty hops to bait any commitments from each other. They may be using empty hops to condition them to shield, as if they were anticipating an attack, and punish accordingly. Mr. R mixes in rolls with his baiting and punishing, and Larry tries to Side B through the empty hops, only to get punished. The fact that he was near the ledge may have provoked him to go for this, so that he doesn't have to deal with Sheik's corner pressure.
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Trying to hit a fast faller like Sheik at such a low percent will lead to you getting punished. In this case, at 0%, Utilt is -5 on hit, allowing Mr.R to grab Larry and punish him.
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Here you can see the recovery mixups that Larry uses to avoid certain things. He shine stalls in order to throw off Mr.R's timing on needles. However, you must be careful at the ledge when having no invulnerability. Sheik can use Dtilt (like what Mr.R used) to hit from under the ledge, which can result in a stock being taken at high percent.
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Airodging Sheik's Fthrow in situations such as these, in which follows are still true is a bad idea, as you can get punished much harder due to panicing. It would be better to take the true combo's damage and then try to reset neutral afterwards, then to eat a potentially bigger punish and possibly die to it. Mr.R drops his combo, but Larry could have taken a lot more damage than usual. Furthermore, later on this clip, you can see just how easy it is for Fox to make a commitment and die because of it.
Knowing that Mr.R has been constantly trying to bait commitments like these, it's especially effective in corner scenarios, in which you can turn the tables in a single move. Your objective isn't to not make commitments at all, but to make commitments based on what the Sheik player does in certain situations, and to capitalise in said scenarios.
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In this game, Larry, although he has been mixing up his recovery options, did show a habit of using Side B to get onto the stage again. Because of the percent, Mr.R dishes out the most deadly punish taht can kill him, by baiting him to use it by walking towards the ledge, which conditions him to use Side B, as moves cannot hit Fox in the deadzone, which would be very close to Fox. As Larry is about to use Side B, Mr.R rolls back, avoiding the illusion hitbox, and punishes the lag that Fox now has with a Dsmash, resulting in Mr.R taking game 2.
Watch the entire set here:
Timestamp 1
You can see from the neutral exchange here that neither player wants to make any commitment, as both characters can punish them easily. They are both using empty hops and foxtrotting to bait them into something. Javi crouches in order to avoid any lasers being shot straight away, as well as a way to move more precisely, in case Slowjoe does actually try to approach with something. Slowjoe tries to keep his distance so it is harder for Javi to burst in with a quick attack, but he is so far from Javi that Javi starts to use needles to interrupt Slowjoe's movement.
He is at a far enough distance that Slowjoe cannot punish him for it. After some more time in neutral and attempts of approa hing, Slowjoe rolls into the corner and does the mistake of doing a PP laser (may have been a misinput for a side B), and Javi punishes the spotdodge after the move with a pivot grab.
Timestamp 2
Javi punishes Slowjoe's whiffed Utilt with a Bthrow. Fortunately, he DIs away from the Bthrow, limiting the followups that Javi can do. Slowjoe uses shine stalling to avoid Javi's Fair, as he quickly adjusts his position and when he would land, screwing Javi's timing. He even punishes Javi with a Nair. Mixing up how you land is vital for avoiding potential fatal punishes (if Slowjoe was hit, Javi could combo into Bouncing Fish, potentially ending his stock very early).
Timestamp 3
One of the reasons why SV is not recommended is because it gives Sheik access to extra recovery options with the moving platform. In this case, Javi was able to use the Bouncing Fish quick recovery, which Slowjoe could not punish in time. Javi puts himself right at the edge closest to the blastzone. This way, he can not only charge needles safely, but punish any kind of approach that Slowjoe may do, punishing with Bthrow>Bouncing Fish, which would have killed.
Timestamp 4
This showcases just how easy it is for Sheik to take a stock at high percents. Slowjoe's jump was taken from the ledge trump>Bair, leaving him very few options to get back with little mixup potential. There is not much he really could have done in this situation that would allow him to avoid being hit, but maybe there were options that could have kept him alive at least, such as recovering low and teching any stage spike attempts that Javi tries to do.
Timestamp 5
Slowjoe does both a good thing and a bad thing. He uses his options in order to avoid Javi's Fair in order to grab the ledge safely. However, later on he trades with Javi and immediately tries to dash attack afterwards, only to get whiff punished. Reckless dash attacking can easily lead to being whiff punished, especially by Sheik.
Timestamp 6
Being edeguarded by Sheik can be difficult, because although we always say to mixup your options, some of those options simply just need to be reacted to, and it can be punished as long as the Sheik is in the right position. What Slowjoe did well in this situation was that he recovered high, avoiding the Bouncing Fish that could have killed him. However, because Javi uses vanish higher than usual, where the ledge is, Slowjoe jumps straight into it when he was probably thinking of just setting up his ledgetrapping game. You must play close attention on how the Sheik tries to recover so that your stock is not potentially taken like this.
You can see from the neutral exchange here that neither player wants to make any commitment, as both characters can punish them easily. They are both using empty hops and foxtrotting to bait them into something. Javi crouches in order to avoid any lasers being shot straight away, as well as a way to move more precisely, in case Slowjoe does actually try to approach with something. Slowjoe tries to keep his distance so it is harder for Javi to burst in with a quick attack, but he is so far from Javi that Javi starts to use needles to interrupt Slowjoe's movement.
He is at a far enough distance that Slowjoe cannot punish him for it. After some more time in neutral and attempts of approa hing, Slowjoe rolls into the corner and does the mistake of doing a PP laser (may have been a misinput for a side B), and Javi punishes the spotdodge after the move with a pivot grab.
Timestamp 2
Javi punishes Slowjoe's whiffed Utilt with a Bthrow. Fortunately, he DIs away from the Bthrow, limiting the followups that Javi can do. Slowjoe uses shine stalling to avoid Javi's Fair, as he quickly adjusts his position and when he would land, screwing Javi's timing. He even punishes Javi with a Nair. Mixing up how you land is vital for avoiding potential fatal punishes (if Slowjoe was hit, Javi could combo into Bouncing Fish, potentially ending his stock very early).
Timestamp 3
One of the reasons why SV is not recommended is because it gives Sheik access to extra recovery options with the moving platform. In this case, Javi was able to use the Bouncing Fish quick recovery, which Slowjoe could not punish in time. Javi puts himself right at the edge closest to the blastzone. This way, he can not only charge needles safely, but punish any kind of approach that Slowjoe may do, punishing with Bthrow>Bouncing Fish, which would have killed.
Timestamp 4
This showcases just how easy it is for Sheik to take a stock at high percents. Slowjoe's jump was taken from the ledge trump>Bair, leaving him very few options to get back with little mixup potential. There is not much he really could have done in this situation that would allow him to avoid being hit, but maybe there were options that could have kept him alive at least, such as recovering low and teching any stage spike attempts that Javi tries to do.
Timestamp 5
Slowjoe does both a good thing and a bad thing. He uses his options in order to avoid Javi's Fair in order to grab the ledge safely. However, later on he trades with Javi and immediately tries to dash attack afterwards, only to get whiff punished. Reckless dash attacking can easily lead to being whiff punished, especially by Sheik.
Timestamp 6
Being edeguarded by Sheik can be difficult, because although we always say to mixup your options, some of those options simply just need to be reacted to, and it can be punished as long as the Sheik is in the right position. What Slowjoe did well in this situation was that he recovered high, avoiding the Bouncing Fish that could have killed him. However, because Javi uses vanish higher than usual, where the ledge is, Slowjoe jumps straight into it when he was probably thinking of just setting up his ledgetrapping game. You must play close attention on how the Sheik tries to recover so that your stock is not potentially taken like this.
Timestamp 1
Slowjoe starts off game 2 by quickly getting close to Javi and approaching with AC Dair and jabs, but because Javi still had space, he wasn't afraid to simply punish Slowjoe's whiffed jabs and carry him to the other side of the stage. Platforms did not interfere, so he combo'd Slowjoe as if they were playing on FD.
Timestamp 2
For being in such a disadvantage state, Slowjoe does hold his own, effectively using double jumps and airdodges to avoid any upcoming attacks, but he unfortunately gets his side B caught by Javi's Vanish, taking his first stock. This could have been avoided if Slowjoe side B'd close enough so that the vanish would be in the deadzone. That way, Slowjoe would not get hit.
deadzone...? What is that and what does it have to do with Fox's side B? Read here
Timestamp 3
...Like this, for example (again, reckless dash attacks can lead to heavy punishes, especially at the ledge when the Sheik has plenty of room to combo you).
Timestamp 4
Do not be afraid to punish needles if you Shield them close enough to Sheik, like what Slowjoe does here.
Timestamp 5
Sheik can punish you with Bouncing Fish if they predict that you are going to buffer a ledge roll, so make sure that your ledge options are not predictable. Mixing it up is a good way to avoid this.
Timestamp 6
Needles can put you in a worse position offstage, especially if a double jump has been taken, as your recovery options can be severely limited if you are that far offstage. If you suspect a Sheik to do this, then do reflect the needles if you have not got a double jump.
Slowjoe starts off game 2 by quickly getting close to Javi and approaching with AC Dair and jabs, but because Javi still had space, he wasn't afraid to simply punish Slowjoe's whiffed jabs and carry him to the other side of the stage. Platforms did not interfere, so he combo'd Slowjoe as if they were playing on FD.
Timestamp 2
For being in such a disadvantage state, Slowjoe does hold his own, effectively using double jumps and airdodges to avoid any upcoming attacks, but he unfortunately gets his side B caught by Javi's Vanish, taking his first stock. This could have been avoided if Slowjoe side B'd close enough so that the vanish would be in the deadzone. That way, Slowjoe would not get hit.
deadzone...? What is that and what does it have to do with Fox's side B? Read here
Timestamp 3
...Like this, for example (again, reckless dash attacks can lead to heavy punishes, especially at the ledge when the Sheik has plenty of room to combo you).
Timestamp 4
Do not be afraid to punish needles if you Shield them close enough to Sheik, like what Slowjoe does here.
Timestamp 5
Sheik can punish you with Bouncing Fish if they predict that you are going to buffer a ledge roll, so make sure that your ledge options are not predictable. Mixing it up is a good way to avoid this.
Timestamp 6
Needles can put you in a worse position offstage, especially if a double jump has been taken, as your recovery options can be severely limited if you are that far offstage. If you suspect a Sheik to do this, then do reflect the needles if you have not got a double jump.
Want to watch more Fox vs Sheik sets? You can click here for more videos or visit the SSBWorld website.
General advice on improving in the matchup
Although we have included a lot of information in this analysis, it is not guaranteed that the Sheiks that you face will use everything. It is also possible that they may even do certain strategies that are not mentioned here. As the meta develops, more things will be discovered. Not every Sheik will play the same. What they do in neutral, and how they use their tools in various situations, as well as how frequently they use them will differ from player to player. Your objective to figure out what options they seem to use in neutral, and adapt a gameplan that will counter it. This will get easier to do as you get more experience in not only the matchup, but in general as well.
You will most likely forget everything that was written here, unless you practice it regularly, just like any kind of skill. The more you practice, the more everything said here will be remembered and applied into your matches, and over time you will improve. Ask for tips, watch over your own matches and make objectives based on what you need to improve on, and improve on it. This matchup can be very hard to some, but it is doable with enough practice and research!
Last but not least, we know that this was long, and we mean very long. Therefore, we have created a set of TL;DR notes that are perfect for glancing over before that set begins with that one Sheik player at your local. These notes are graphics that fit perfectly on your phone. Please download them and share them with others! Follow the link here.
Conclusion and credits
Thanks so much for reading through this all the way to the end! This is something that we have not done before, so feedback is always appreciated. Obviously, this analysis is massive and isn’t really MU notes, so we created some TL;DR notes in the form of graphics that fit perfectly on phones when you have to face that one Sheik in bracket, and to refresh your memory. Feel free to share this to anyone who struggles against Sheik. We may do more characters in the future, but because of how time consuming this is, we may only do it on the matchups that the majority of Fox players have trouble against. We hope this helped anyone out, til next time~
Fox discord Meta Team
Credits:
Deku Tree- We got most of our information about Sheik’s techs and strategies from watching his videos. Very informative and professional. We recommend subscribing to him!
Blank- Blank is a high level Sheik player, known for her technical play and her great videos, covering many areas of Sheik and Smash 4. Her videos gave us a lot of info that we used for this analysis.
Fyazko- Another Sheik player with good youtube videos that cover a lot of Sheik’s fundementals. We cannot cover every little thing about Sheik (otherwise it might as well be a Sheik guide), so if you want to learn some extra details, go ahead and watch his high quality videos. Don’t forget to subscribe, either
Simikins- Personally helped us out and answered a lot of our questions. He labs just as hard as we do, so go and follow his Twitter and watch his youtube videos for some nice Sheik content. Also, check out his threads on Smashboards!
Jugeeya- Because of his hard work with the new training mode mod, finding percent ranges for everything that we mention here became possible. Please do download the mod! The lab team also has some special things to show in the future, with the help of this mod.
Sheik Discord- Very good discord for learning Sheik and a pretty chill place too. We found a lot of our information from here.
Fox Discord- Liked the information in this analysis? You’ll definitely find even more in the discord. The meta team and lab team were both established here. With nearly 2.4k members and some of the best resources for Fox, your stay here will definitely be worthwhile.
Fox Lab Team Twitter- Thanks to our other team, a lot of the percent ranges were able to be presented here. They work tiredlessly to bring out fresh Fox resources and tech, and have made some very good discoveries. Be sure to follow them on Twitter (You may catch our stuff on there too!).
Ruben’s Sm4sh Calculator- This allowed us to find more technical information about moves and tumble percent. A key essential for anyone who wants to lab. Also follow Ruben on Twitter, too.