New player trouble beating Marth

[MrSplean]

A friend and I just picked up melee not long ago and ever since he figured out Marth I've been having a hard time. I primarily use falco/fox, cpt falcon, and shiek. Problem is, I can't get aggressive because he down-b's and kills my momentum with reflect. Similarly his sword seems to find its way through my shield frequently (not sure if that's something I'm doing) and he guards the ledge with his cheap b charge spam. Any thoughts on how to deal with this? Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[roflJumper]

I think your best bet would be to try reading him. You say his down-b messes you up. Try faking with shorthops and if he down-b's you run up to him and punish it. The edgeguarding I'm not sure how to deal with. Trying to drop of the ledge and airdodging it might be an option. Marths neutral-b is a shieldbreaker. If it is that one that breaks your shield, try make him miss it.

Not sure if these tips are good. If someone more experienced sees this feel free to correct me or add something.

 

[ArtehFX]

just go for a wavedash back

 

[WWGenesis]

Get in on Marth - go for more grabs, they beat out counter.
Whenever you shield, try to Wavedash OOS and grab him to punish him. Punish him by dashing in and grabbing him OR by smashing him whenever he whiffs a move.
Dance dash a lot to cause these whiffs.

 

[MrSplean]

Alright, thanks for the feedback. Sounds like I'm gonna have to practice wave dashing more. Any preference you guys have towards the L or R button when wave dashing? Also for short hopping, are you tapping lightly up on the joystick or the jump button?

 

[Alexo30]

You're gonna want to use the X or Y buttons to jump. Whatever shoulder you prefer, I think the usual is R for shield and L for wavedashing and L-cancelling. But I use L only for everything lol. It's personal preference.

 

[bearsfan092]

Don't worry about it too much. Marth is probably the best beginner slayer in the game (not that he isn't good at higher levels). General rule of thumb for any character is that if you can make them miss, you can work off of it. It's even better with Marth since a lot of Marths will go for a grab. If they miss with that, punishing isn't too difficult.

 

[WWGenesis]

L/R doesn't matter for wavedashing, though ensure that you're using one of them to shield BUT THE OTHER to wavedash (This is gonna make Wavedash OOSing a lot easier, trust me).

Use Z to L Cancel - You aren't gonna lose your tech and don't have to worry about hitting the button too hard unlike L or R.

Use Y or X to shorthop (Y if spacie). Short hopping works based on how many frames you hold onto the button - Not by how lightly you tap it. Sliding or pushing it both works, though sliding is superior.

 

[Subrava]

Shield grabs are devastating against rookie players. You can probably beat your friend by that alone.

 

[HMWii22]

The advice already given covers mostly everything, I just want to add that empty hop grabs would also be an excellent counter to the counter strategy.

 

[4 Aces]

You're gonna want to use the X or Y buttons to jump. Whatever shoulder you prefer, I think the usual is R for shield and L for wavedashing and L-cancelling. But I use L only for everything lol. It's personal preference.

Actually, I think it's the other way around; L for shield, R for wavedash is more common, due to SSB64 being only able to shield with your left index finger.

But ultimately doesn't matter. Just make sure that you do one with one finger and the other for wavedash. Just makes life simpler when you try and learn Wavedash out of Shield.

X/Y doesn't really matter, but Y is technically closer to all the other buttons, so use that, especially if you're gonna main Fox or Falco.

I don't agree that sliding is superior to simply tapping the button, but that's me; sliding techniques tend to put your finger even further away from buttons. >.> Again though, do what's comfortable. Short hop is all about letting go of the button/stick fast enough. Doesn't matter how light or hard you press. Just let go fast.

To get around counter, bait it or run in and grab. Or empty hop grab. Or randomly miss. lol I have a tendency of accidentally messing up as I try to attack, and end up whiffing my attack or barely missing them. Always drives one of my friends insane, cuz I only seem to mess up, when he tries to Counter with Marth. XD

 

[Alexo30]

Actually, I think it's the other way around; L for shield, R for wavedash is more common, due to SSB64 being only able to shield with your left index finger.

Well, I guess that makes me even more unorthodox.