Nataku's Short Guide to Pichu

[Shadow Nataku]

I've decided to make a short guide on our favourite pre-evolution Pokemon Pichu! Its so cute I can't believe nobody has bothered with it well anyway heres goes.......


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Pichu
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Content

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1. Introduction to Pichu
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2. Pichu Overlook
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3. Pichu's Movelist
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4. Training Guide
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5. Battle Guide
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6. Comboes and other fun stuff
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7. The end stuff
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1. Introduction to Pichu
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He's not my favourite character but I still love the little guy he is very underestimated his blinding speed and heavy knockback can be lethal against someone who knows how to abuse him and I'll be trying to teach you how to do it.
Pichu is Pokemon #172 a baby pokemon and the pre-evolution of the evil Pikachu, in SSBM he is basically a clone of Pikachu as some people like to call him but in reality he is far from that. His main characteristics are he is incredibly CUTE, smallest character in the game and lightest but also the second fastest character if you don't take into account his size even if you do he still ranks a pretty nifty 4th/5th.
He can be unlocked by completing Event 37 which then he'll challenge you and you have to unfortunately beat his poor little furry face to the ground.

Trophy Bio: "A Baby Electric-Type Pokemon recognizable by its big ears, Pichu evolves into Pikachu. It's not very skilled at storing up
electric energy and will sometimes discharge it if jarred. Although
it's small, it has enough electrical power to give even an adult quite a shock. It's often startled by its own power."

First Appearance: Pokemon Gold/Silver (October 2000)

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2. Pichu Overlook
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Pros:-
- Excellent speed
- Great combo ability
- Powerful Smashes
- Small and can dodge many attacks
- Cute
- The only character who actually has 2 different taunts
- Great aerial ability
- Good recovery
- Fast dodges
- Good juggler

Cons:-
- Very light
- Damages himself with electric attacks
- Very restricted to attacks
- Horrible reach/range (practically non-existant)
- Small size takes out some of his speed
- Lots of counter characters


Speed: 7/10

Damage: 7/10

Knockback: 8/10

Weight: 1/10

Combo: 7/10

Range: 2/10
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3. Pichu's Movelist
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-----------A attacks--------------

A: Forward Headbutt 1%
Up+A: Tail Whip 6%
Forward+A: Heel Kick 8%
Down+A: Tail Spin 5%
Run+A: Running Headbutt: 8%

His neutral A is blindingly fast but has no range at all and very weak so should be avoided. His tail whip has excellent juggling potential and Heel kick is his best tilt attack. Overall the horrible range of most of his basic attacks make them not worth using. His running attack is pretty good as it has little lag unlike Pika's and can allow you to chain a quick smash attack.

-------------Smash Attacks-------------

Forward+A: Thundershock 13-20% (2% Damage to Pichu)
Down+A: Spin Kick 13-17%
Up+A: Headbutt 15-17%

This is probably one area where Pichu is pretty good in, his up and side smash attacks have very high knockback and KO ability .
I wouldn't suggest using Pichu's forward smash very much as its a combo hit and has bad range if you don't strike right it can leave you open for a counter attack but its not bad as an finisher. His noggin comes in useful as his up smash is very, very lethal this will be your main KO attack. His down smash isn't very good with its bad range but is a good damage racker when used in comboes and at least is easier to land than Pikachu's down smash.


-----------Special Attacks (B)-----------

B: Thunderbolt 7-10% (1% Damage to Pichu):-

When used in air or up close does 7-10% damage when from distance does 7% but because of the recoil damage factor it must be used sparingly.


Up+B: Agility 0% (1% Damage to Pichu for the first warp, 3% for the second warp)

A great recovery move Pichu being light needs a good recovery move like this although it he does damage to himself this move covers some long distance a bit slower than Pikachu's but more controllable. Since Pichu is light you'll find yourself using this alot try conserve it though you have to learn to judge the distance needed to recover and if you can only use the first one as 3% can rack up alot of damage quickly.


Foward+B: Skull Bash 5-39% (1-2% Damage to Pichu)

Pichu's strongest and most devastating move, fully charged which takes about 1 second more than Pikachu's it has more power than a Falcon Punch or PK Flash! Even when used uncharged or moderately charged it still has some good stun and little lag. Although this is a good move you should use this sparingly and only to catch your opponent off guard or edge guard. If you use it regularly you'll find yourself being sheild grabbed constantly.


Down+B: Thunder 2-24% (3% Damage to Pichu)

A very good clearance move but far too slow to be used with somebody like Pichu. Its different from Pikachu's as the actual Thunder hits multiple times and can combo and will send them straight up leaving them open for juggling and other possibilities. If you hit yourself it'll have the same effect as Pikachu's except you get 3% damage for your trouble. A good trick with this is to combine it with a short jump over the opponent that way the Thunderbolt won't strike you and you won't take any recoil damage plus will combo the opponent.


---------Throws----------

Z+Forward/Thundershock: 9% (+1% Damage to Pichu)
Z+Back/Rolling throw: 9%
Z+Up/Headbutt: 5%
Z+Down/Body Slam: 5%

Eww....Pichu easily gets my vote for one of the worst froward throws in the game. It damages yourself does laughable damage and also has zero combo potential and bad knockback, avoid using.
His back throw is pretty strong and very good for setting up some edge guarding, on levels like Great Bay it even has good KO potential. His down and up throws are both very good as combo starters as they keep them very close to you and sets up for an immediate smash and even easier so with a C-stick smash. Just think Sheik's up and down throw except with less lag and doesn't knock them away and stuns longer.


-----------Aerial Attacks--------------

A: Body Slam 12%
Up+A: Tail Whip 3%
Down+A: Electric Headbutt 12% (2% Damage to Pichu)
Forward+A: Spinning Headbutt 1-6% (4% Damage to Pichu)
Back+A: Reverse Headbutt 8%

Okay lets get something straight first.....NEVER EVER USE THE FOWARD A!!! Reason being its awful it has the most recoil of any of his moves, pitiful stun and knockback and also isn't even that strong plus all the hits have to connect for a pitiful 6% damage MAXIMUM.
Up A is a very good juggling move very strong but because of his small size it has bad reach and you may want to use this sparingly. Down A wouldn't be too bad if there wasn't recoil at least it has nowhere near as much lag as Pikachu's and has pretty much the same or slightly less knockback.
But his Neutral A.....I cannot stress how important it is to abuse this move with your short jumps........it has good knockback and KO ability at high damage. Good priority and is very, very fast with zero lag, plus does quite good damage and also is one of the few moves he has with no recoil. Also his back A is also very quick, with good knockback just think it as Pichu's quicker equilvilant of Jigglypuff's aerial back A.


-----------Dodging-------------

Aerial Dodge (R in air):
Very quick but has some pretty bad lag but since Pichu is a quick if you use this in triangle jumping by short jumping and dodging down to the ground it can be great for a offguard catcher.

Sidestep (R+down):
Very quick with little lag will be a very good move once you've practiced it.

Roll (R+side):
Very quick and efficient but unfortunately due to his size it covers little distance so you'll have to get right close to your opponent to use it, be very careful.


----------Taunt-----------------

Left+D-Pad: Jumps up and down yelling "PI-CHU!"
Right+D-Pad: Falls on floor in happy spasms again yelling "PI-CHU!"

So adorable and annoying and only character to have 2 unique taunts. Also quick so you seriously won't be able to resist using them at every turn.


To Be Continued

 

[Shadow Nataku]

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4. Training Guide
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Now we've covered which are the good moves which are the treats and which are to be left behind. Heres how you should be training........


Short Jumping and Starting Attack:
It should already be an essential part of any game but with Pichu it may take slightly more work. Due to his fast nature it requires a very light touch on X/Y to short jump but you should practice till you can consistantly do it as it will take up a big part of your game plan. When you jump don't ever use a normal jump until later on
Also practice back jumping and running jumping this will help alot with your game, after you have got the hang of short jumping just naturally with Pichu we can start attacking.
First main attack you have to practice is running short jump and a aerial neutral A. This will lead into many of your attacks and also the best thing is that it recovers so quickly L-Canceling is not needed and theres also a short period when you land and recovering where you can still stun your opponent. The main thing is to get used to the timing this attack comes out very fast so it should be used when you are about to touch them for max efficiency.
The best thing afterwards is then to follow up with a few more short jump and neutral A as they will be wasting time teching or falling flat on their face and backwards short jump or roll out when they are about 30-40% damage. (lets call this technique the 'hit and run' start for short)
Another way you can start is to keep using quick bakwards jumps and short jumps and throw 1 or 2 Thunderbolts trying to hit while its still in ball form for better damage and knockback in an early stage like this. Thats the easy bit you also have to practice then fast falling and running at your opponent and choose either a running roll or a running attack or even the 'hit and run' start so you'll be covered by the last Thunderbolt when you charge.
We'll call this the 'substitute' start for short.


In the Midst of a Rumble:

Now its time to practice our damage racking techniques, after following through with either the 'hit and run' or the 'substitute' starts you should gained some short distance. Practicing backward short jumping and rolling should be good. now to follow through this is the point where it will differ alot in an actual battle. Chances are by now they will be coming at you for revenge your main choices are rolling and trying a shield grab, counter-attack or retreating. Retreating is the worse idea maybe a short back jump but nothing major as you need to stay close to your opponent because of Pichu's bad range. Main thing now is to try getting a grapple on your opponent once you do you'll open up many combo possibilities. Once you do follow up with a down or up throw and a Thunder or Smash attack.
This will get them distance but now you'll be wanting to use the 'hit and run' approach again. But this time with slightly less aggression you'll want to bring your aerial back A into the game now as well as using your neutral A still.
This is now the time to also bring your down smash into the game if your opponent attempts to rush you try using your down smash and it'll just toss them aside. Leaving them open to more abuse.
Once you have your opponent at around 75-90% now is the time to be thinking about whether to go for a kill or continue damage racking if a kill its simply a grab and a up or side smash and away they go. Up is wisest because if they don't go you can follow up with some aerial up+A Tail whips to finish the job or damage further.
If you wish to play safe and damage rack which is probably the best idea just continue a aerial Thunderbolt and 'hit and run' tactic. Also if they ever try a counter attack just use down smash to sweep them away and up smash as an anti-air. You can also start bringing in Skull Bash the power and little recovery time will add insult into injury. Once you get them off the edge its just edge guarding now, either charge up a Skull Bash, throw Thunderbolts at them or just jump off and spike them with your aerial back A.

To Be Continued

 

[T0MMY]

To Be Continued

This has been to be continued since 2002... come on, we've been waiting for six years now, how much longer do we have to wait?

 

[ihavespaceblondes]

Amazing topic 10/10 would necro again.