Maple42
Smash Apprentice
- Joined
- Oct 4, 2014
- Messages
- 150
When I learn to do anything new, I look for a way to do it mathematically; this is because it is the most consistent way to get the same results. When looking for a guide to get better at fighting games, I stumbled upon a video that placed it into three neat steps: understanding your character, match-up knowledge, and opponent knowledge. (I’ll link it later)
Shulk is a rather complicated character; I started writing this paper for self-improvement, and thought perhaps it would help others going through the same process. It is my hope that it may shed light on how great a character he is. ~
Level 1
Understanding your character
Shulk is analogous to Melee Marth's playstyle; you always want to keep the opponent at the tip of your sword. Shulk's goal is to zone out the opponent; despite the seemingly offensive nature of his Buster and Smash Arts, he is a conservative character, and does not appreciate being put in high pressure situations. Speaking of which, his Monado Arts allow him to control the pace of the battle, whether it be increasing the damage output or knockback to both parties, increasing his speed or jump height in exchange for taking more percent, or reducing the former, he gives a sense of extreme tempo control. Knowing the fundamentals of spacing and the inner mechanics of the Monado Arts are key to mastering his toolset.
SPACING TOOLS
THE MONADO ARTS
Shulk's signature ability can be used to grab hold of the game state by its throat and slam it down wherever you please; however, they demand that the Shulk player outspaces the opponent properly, lest they become a fault rather than an asset. The Arts change the property of the spacing moves, but this is a basic guide, so you'll have to look those up yourself :^)
Rather than discussing the actual effects of the Monado Arts (something that can be easily looked up!), we will look at the effects of the Monado Arts on the game state and the opponent's thought process.
~
Other than proper Spacing fundamentals and appropriate use of the Monado Arts, Shulk has a few other inner workings that can further increase his potential. The Monado Art Landing Lag Cancel (or MALLC) can burn Art usage in exchange for various set-up options; B-reversing and Wavebouncing activation of a Monado Art as a movement option; cycling around the Monado Arts to apply offensive pressure.
~
Level 2
Match-Up knowledge
Rather than listing what to do specifically against every single character (that's what the match-up threads are for!), I'll list generic strategies against the three basic fighting archetypes: Rushdown, Zoners, and Grapplers. However, if not looking at every thread, I'd suggest learning these specific interactions:
How Pac Man's Fruit and Hydrant work
How Duck Hunt's Can works
And how to generally use impact items like Bananas or Turnips, like how to JC throw them.
~
Level 3
Opponent knowledge, adapting and counter adapting, and mind games
After this, it's all up to you. Don't worry about winning as much with Shulk, because you won't win all the time.... A better, more realistic goal is to get better. Shulk is intricate, and needs someone who can think proactively; but once you get to level three and beyond, it only gets better from there.
Shulk is a rather complicated character; I started writing this paper for self-improvement, and thought perhaps it would help others going through the same process. It is my hope that it may shed light on how great a character he is. ~
Level 1
Understanding your character
Shulk is analogous to Melee Marth's playstyle; you always want to keep the opponent at the tip of your sword. Shulk's goal is to zone out the opponent; despite the seemingly offensive nature of his Buster and Smash Arts, he is a conservative character, and does not appreciate being put in high pressure situations. Speaking of which, his Monado Arts allow him to control the pace of the battle, whether it be increasing the damage output or knockback to both parties, increasing his speed or jump height in exchange for taking more percent, or reducing the former, he gives a sense of extreme tempo control. Knowing the fundamentals of spacing and the inner mechanics of the Monado Arts are key to mastering his toolset.
SPACING TOOLS
FAIR and NAIR
Shulk's forward and neutral aerials have colossal hitboxes, thus making them our key spacing tool. As mentioned before, you'll want to create a wall with these moves, whether you're approaching or alleviating pressure. Generally, FAir is for aerial approaching opponents, while NAir is for grounded foes; however, both moves reach a enormous lengths around him, so they may be used to hit foes behind him.
These moves can be cancelled by fast falling onto the stage; this is your safest approach option, since the range alongside the diminutive landing lag are arduous to punish; because of this, they can also be used to bait.
These moves also have great synergy; their launching angles lend into the other, so get creative! The most common string is a sine wave-like motion; these include NAir > FAir > NAir and FAir > NAir > FAir. None of this is guaranteed, and as such, caution is paramount; Shulk is defensive, so only go as far as you can make sure that the opponent can't get past your wall.
BAIR
BAir is a completely disparate beast than FAir and NAir; it has a fair amount of landing lag (which can be minimized by clever use of MALLC), and is customarily used for a finishing blow. That is not to say that it doesn't have its spacing utility; it has the longest horizontal range of our aerials, so it can be used to poke at distant foes.
DTILT AND FTILT
Like FAir and NAir, these moves are similar for their ability to space; however, FTilt is much more niche than DTilt. DTilt covers a larger range, and as such, is the go to footsies spacing tool; FTilt can reach higher, of course, and is a decent anti-air when wishing to stay grounded. DTilt is difficult to punish, so it does not require much reading; feel free to throw it out.
UTILT
Criminally underrated; it is the longest vertically reaching move in our arsenal, and solidly places itself as our best anti-air move. While above us, an opponent is forced to air dodge; an aerial will flat out lose against UTilt. Like DTilt, it has enough range to cover its ending lag, so again, throw it out whenever the opponent is in its range.
UP B
Like most of Shulk's arsenal, Air Slash has gargantuan range, along with tremendous knockback. It can be used out of shield, making it perilous to carelessly attack Shulk with aerials.
JAB
Not the fastest jab, but it can be used as a "get off me" attack. His best way to get out of a high pressure situation, it stifles dodge rolls and grab attempts.
Shulk's forward and neutral aerials have colossal hitboxes, thus making them our key spacing tool. As mentioned before, you'll want to create a wall with these moves, whether you're approaching or alleviating pressure. Generally, FAir is for aerial approaching opponents, while NAir is for grounded foes; however, both moves reach a enormous lengths around him, so they may be used to hit foes behind him.
These moves can be cancelled by fast falling onto the stage; this is your safest approach option, since the range alongside the diminutive landing lag are arduous to punish; because of this, they can also be used to bait.
These moves also have great synergy; their launching angles lend into the other, so get creative! The most common string is a sine wave-like motion; these include NAir > FAir > NAir and FAir > NAir > FAir. None of this is guaranteed, and as such, caution is paramount; Shulk is defensive, so only go as far as you can make sure that the opponent can't get past your wall.
BAIR
BAir is a completely disparate beast than FAir and NAir; it has a fair amount of landing lag (which can be minimized by clever use of MALLC), and is customarily used for a finishing blow. That is not to say that it doesn't have its spacing utility; it has the longest horizontal range of our aerials, so it can be used to poke at distant foes.
DTILT AND FTILT
Like FAir and NAir, these moves are similar for their ability to space; however, FTilt is much more niche than DTilt. DTilt covers a larger range, and as such, is the go to footsies spacing tool; FTilt can reach higher, of course, and is a decent anti-air when wishing to stay grounded. DTilt is difficult to punish, so it does not require much reading; feel free to throw it out.
UTILT
Criminally underrated; it is the longest vertically reaching move in our arsenal, and solidly places itself as our best anti-air move. While above us, an opponent is forced to air dodge; an aerial will flat out lose against UTilt. Like DTilt, it has enough range to cover its ending lag, so again, throw it out whenever the opponent is in its range.
UP B
Like most of Shulk's arsenal, Air Slash has gargantuan range, along with tremendous knockback. It can be used out of shield, making it perilous to carelessly attack Shulk with aerials.
JAB
Not the fastest jab, but it can be used as a "get off me" attack. His best way to get out of a high pressure situation, it stifles dodge rolls and grab attempts.
Shulk's signature ability can be used to grab hold of the game state by its throat and slam it down wherever you please; however, they demand that the Shulk player outspaces the opponent properly, lest they become a fault rather than an asset. The Arts change the property of the spacing moves, but this is a basic guide, so you'll have to look those up yourself :^)
Rather than discussing the actual effects of the Monado Arts (something that can be easily looked up!), we will look at the effects of the Monado Arts on the game state and the opponent's thought process.
JUMP
The most tactical of the Monado Arts; the combination of an increased jump and air speed gives a sense of impending attack on the opponent. This Art causes more shielding, and as such, the Shulk player must capitalize on that fear with either an empty hop or a tomahawk. However, each of these options can be beaten out by a grab, so a properly spaced aerial can also be mixed in to keep the threat alive.
Of course, this Art can be used for recovery; it has obvious synergy with Shield, and increases survivability twofold.
An interesting niche for Jump is to stall for other Arts, or to replace them until they return. Notably, it has the defensive capability to space camp, as well as the offensive presence of a quick airspeed; as such, it can replace Shield, Buster, or Smash for their properties until they return.
Alongside Speed, Jump is considered a "mobility" Art, allowing Shulk to open cracks in opposing zoners' projectiles; simply switching between the two is a viable strategy against characters such as Villager, Duck Hunt, and Pac-Man.
SPEED
The second half of the mobility Arts; the increased speed opens up a diverse set of approach options that make this the go-to Art.
Speed does not provoke the fear that Jump does, but it still increases your airspeed enough to prevent your opponent from shielding FAIRs and NAIRs on reaction; as such, the same strategies can be applied. Notably, pivot grabs and tilts become ample defensive options.
While some Shulk mains start the match with Buster (and it is definitely not incorrect to do so!), it seems there is more of a following for starting with Speed, the reason being that it can rack up damage safer than Buster can, due to not taking a hit in knockback. Bread-and-butter approach options include Short Hop NAIR and FAIR and pivot grabbing.
SHIELD
Shield is the most niche Art; it slows down run speed to a crawl, making offensive presence almost non-existent. However, its most obvious use is at high percentage, to reduce the risk of a KO. Combined with Jump, it can be used to drag out a stock to its very limit; again, Buster can be used instead, but it all depends on the match-up.
A more common use for Shield is to minimize damage from a juggle; characters such as Sheik have a low damage output, and as such, Shield denies them even further from rushdown’s kill percentage.
Overall, Shield is the least used Art, but keep it in the back of your mind in the situations where it is optimal.
BUSTER
For beginners, Buster can be a confusing concept; it decreases knockback, but escalates damage to each player. One might understandably think that Buster is a purely offensive endeavor, but it is in fact the complete opposite; Buster demands on-point spacing, lest he be punished greatly.
That is not to say that Buster does not apply offensive pressure; it definitely increases the amount of shield usage, and as such, the same strategy employed with Speed and Buster of tomahawks and empty hops can be applied, but much more cautiously.
Buster is used in two scenarios: at the end of your own stock’s lifespan, or at the mid-percentages of your opponents, both for the same reason - knockback. The knockback nerf may provide your opponent with enough time to punish an attack, even if it hits; as such, on should wait for rage’s fury to increase the knockback for you, or for natural percent’s exponentially increased knockback.
On a minor note, Buster has incredible shield pressure; tilts and smashes eat away at shields, providing further safety to them. However, at a theoretical standpoint, we must assume that all attacks will be perfect shielded, and therefore I do not believe its shield-eating properties to be of much importance.
SMASH
Curiously, Smash changes the opponent’s mindset to one of two completely different mindsets; either to wall up until the Art finishes, or to go completely on the offensive, taking advantage of our increased knockback. This is akin to having Little Mac’s KO Meter active, largely due to having the same result. Once again, what seems to be an offensive option is played in a mostly defensive nature; the increased risk of getting KO’d ourselves further highlights the importance of proper spacing. There is not much to say about Smash, as it is rather self-explanatory; the only other thing worth mentioning is that grabs become extremely powerful, especially towards the edges, where at high percentages, forward throw and back throw become deadly.
The most tactical of the Monado Arts; the combination of an increased jump and air speed gives a sense of impending attack on the opponent. This Art causes more shielding, and as such, the Shulk player must capitalize on that fear with either an empty hop or a tomahawk. However, each of these options can be beaten out by a grab, so a properly spaced aerial can also be mixed in to keep the threat alive.
Of course, this Art can be used for recovery; it has obvious synergy with Shield, and increases survivability twofold.
An interesting niche for Jump is to stall for other Arts, or to replace them until they return. Notably, it has the defensive capability to space camp, as well as the offensive presence of a quick airspeed; as such, it can replace Shield, Buster, or Smash for their properties until they return.
Alongside Speed, Jump is considered a "mobility" Art, allowing Shulk to open cracks in opposing zoners' projectiles; simply switching between the two is a viable strategy against characters such as Villager, Duck Hunt, and Pac-Man.
SPEED
The second half of the mobility Arts; the increased speed opens up a diverse set of approach options that make this the go-to Art.
Speed does not provoke the fear that Jump does, but it still increases your airspeed enough to prevent your opponent from shielding FAIRs and NAIRs on reaction; as such, the same strategies can be applied. Notably, pivot grabs and tilts become ample defensive options.
While some Shulk mains start the match with Buster (and it is definitely not incorrect to do so!), it seems there is more of a following for starting with Speed, the reason being that it can rack up damage safer than Buster can, due to not taking a hit in knockback. Bread-and-butter approach options include Short Hop NAIR and FAIR and pivot grabbing.
SHIELD
Shield is the most niche Art; it slows down run speed to a crawl, making offensive presence almost non-existent. However, its most obvious use is at high percentage, to reduce the risk of a KO. Combined with Jump, it can be used to drag out a stock to its very limit; again, Buster can be used instead, but it all depends on the match-up.
A more common use for Shield is to minimize damage from a juggle; characters such as Sheik have a low damage output, and as such, Shield denies them even further from rushdown’s kill percentage.
Overall, Shield is the least used Art, but keep it in the back of your mind in the situations where it is optimal.
BUSTER
For beginners, Buster can be a confusing concept; it decreases knockback, but escalates damage to each player. One might understandably think that Buster is a purely offensive endeavor, but it is in fact the complete opposite; Buster demands on-point spacing, lest he be punished greatly.
That is not to say that Buster does not apply offensive pressure; it definitely increases the amount of shield usage, and as such, the same strategy employed with Speed and Buster of tomahawks and empty hops can be applied, but much more cautiously.
Buster is used in two scenarios: at the end of your own stock’s lifespan, or at the mid-percentages of your opponents, both for the same reason - knockback. The knockback nerf may provide your opponent with enough time to punish an attack, even if it hits; as such, on should wait for rage’s fury to increase the knockback for you, or for natural percent’s exponentially increased knockback.
On a minor note, Buster has incredible shield pressure; tilts and smashes eat away at shields, providing further safety to them. However, at a theoretical standpoint, we must assume that all attacks will be perfect shielded, and therefore I do not believe its shield-eating properties to be of much importance.
SMASH
Curiously, Smash changes the opponent’s mindset to one of two completely different mindsets; either to wall up until the Art finishes, or to go completely on the offensive, taking advantage of our increased knockback. This is akin to having Little Mac’s KO Meter active, largely due to having the same result. Once again, what seems to be an offensive option is played in a mostly defensive nature; the increased risk of getting KO’d ourselves further highlights the importance of proper spacing. There is not much to say about Smash, as it is rather self-explanatory; the only other thing worth mentioning is that grabs become extremely powerful, especially towards the edges, where at high percentages, forward throw and back throw become deadly.
Other than proper Spacing fundamentals and appropriate use of the Monado Arts, Shulk has a few other inner workings that can further increase his potential. The Monado Art Landing Lag Cancel (or MALLC) can burn Art usage in exchange for various set-up options; B-reversing and Wavebouncing activation of a Monado Art as a movement option; cycling around the Monado Arts to apply offensive pressure.
~
Level 2
Match-Up knowledge
Rather than listing what to do specifically against every single character (that's what the match-up threads are for!), I'll list generic strategies against the three basic fighting archetypes: Rushdown, Zoners, and Grapplers. However, if not looking at every thread, I'd suggest learning these specific interactions:
How Pac Man's Fruit and Hydrant work
How Duck Hunt's Can works
And how to generally use impact items like Bananas or Turnips, like how to JC throw them.
AGAINST RUSHDOWN
(i.e. Sonic, Sheik, Pikachu)
Spacing is paramount in all match ups, but especially these ones! As mentioned before, Shulk doesn't favor high-pressure situations; try to keep the combo characters' thirsty hands away from your hitbox. The usual suspects, FAir and BAir, will have to be spaced even more delicately; specifically trying to whiff them to bait the opponent is not recommended, despite the low landing lag, because the assassins and electric mice will be able to punish even that!
Shield is the obvious goto when we're getting juggled; it can minimize damage, or even drop the combo entirely. Curiously enough, Smash can also be used to escape combos by increasing the knockback.
I'll be saying this alot, but Speed is an asset in rushdown MUs; we can literally outrun many of their attacks, and punish in kind.
Buster... Is a bit iffy. It'll increase chip damage (which is what you'll be going for; play defensively), but at the same time, if the rushdown character gets in, well....
AGAINST ZONERS
(i.e. Mega Man, Pac-Man, Villager)
Zoners are similar to us; they want the opponent to be at a specific range. However, they have the advantage at long range, and us at the short and medium. The mobility Arts (Speed and Jump) allow the closing of a gap to happen in a blink, so switching between those with respect to their projectiles will lead to constant advantage. There isn't much to say about these MUs; they're a question of space, and the mobility Arts hand us that distinct advantage. A mix-up between pivot grabs and smart footsie spacing is key.
Oh, and his NAir cancels a lot of projectiles.
AGAINST GRAPPLERS
(i.e. Bowser, King Dedede)
These characters are quite the special case; you don't want to throw out moves, because grappler characters pack a punch! Make sure to keep your distance; they prey on your mistakes and convert them into powerful 20%+ attacks. NAir and FAir unfortunately don't have enough knockback on them to make these characters budge, so the majority of the games will be based around footsies; your primary attacks will be FTilt and DTilt. Jabs are also generally safe, as they block tomahawks, dash grabs, and command grabs, the basis of the grappler's play.
(i.e. Sonic, Sheik, Pikachu)
Spacing is paramount in all match ups, but especially these ones! As mentioned before, Shulk doesn't favor high-pressure situations; try to keep the combo characters' thirsty hands away from your hitbox. The usual suspects, FAir and BAir, will have to be spaced even more delicately; specifically trying to whiff them to bait the opponent is not recommended, despite the low landing lag, because the assassins and electric mice will be able to punish even that!
Shield is the obvious goto when we're getting juggled; it can minimize damage, or even drop the combo entirely. Curiously enough, Smash can also be used to escape combos by increasing the knockback.
I'll be saying this alot, but Speed is an asset in rushdown MUs; we can literally outrun many of their attacks, and punish in kind.
Buster... Is a bit iffy. It'll increase chip damage (which is what you'll be going for; play defensively), but at the same time, if the rushdown character gets in, well....
AGAINST ZONERS
(i.e. Mega Man, Pac-Man, Villager)
Zoners are similar to us; they want the opponent to be at a specific range. However, they have the advantage at long range, and us at the short and medium. The mobility Arts (Speed and Jump) allow the closing of a gap to happen in a blink, so switching between those with respect to their projectiles will lead to constant advantage. There isn't much to say about these MUs; they're a question of space, and the mobility Arts hand us that distinct advantage. A mix-up between pivot grabs and smart footsie spacing is key.
Oh, and his NAir cancels a lot of projectiles.
AGAINST GRAPPLERS
(i.e. Bowser, King Dedede)
These characters are quite the special case; you don't want to throw out moves, because grappler characters pack a punch! Make sure to keep your distance; they prey on your mistakes and convert them into powerful 20%+ attacks. NAir and FAir unfortunately don't have enough knockback on them to make these characters budge, so the majority of the games will be based around footsies; your primary attacks will be FTilt and DTilt. Jabs are also generally safe, as they block tomahawks, dash grabs, and command grabs, the basis of the grappler's play.
Level 3
Opponent knowledge, adapting and counter adapting, and mind games
This part is where you come in; I won’t be able to teach you how… See the future (yes, I’m one of those people)
However, I can teach you the fundamentals of reading.
The core of all reading is conditioning: the ability to mold the opponent’s mind into a pulchritudinous, chaotic disaster for them. This involves simple natural reactions; say, the last five times you jumped at your opponent, you’ve NAir’d, and they shielded. The next step would be to tomahawk!
The opponent will now know you are aware of their habit of shielding; thus, next time, they will jab to adapt to your knowledge. This is where the Yomi games begin; by performing standard actions, you condition; once you condition, you take advantage; when your opponent adapts, you counter adapt. This is the pinnacle of competitive fighting game play, where both players have reached their character nirvana and dance together in a fantastic mental game. When two players fight that have taken their character to their full potential, they are no longer fighting the character, but rather, each other directly.
….Erhem.
Another example of conditioning is punishing get up options. If the opponent gets off the ledge the same way every time, punish it! It forces them to adapt or perish.
Specifically for Shulk, UTilt can cover a lot of options, as well as FAir.
However, I can teach you the fundamentals of reading.
The core of all reading is conditioning: the ability to mold the opponent’s mind into a pulchritudinous, chaotic disaster for them. This involves simple natural reactions; say, the last five times you jumped at your opponent, you’ve NAir’d, and they shielded. The next step would be to tomahawk!
The opponent will now know you are aware of their habit of shielding; thus, next time, they will jab to adapt to your knowledge. This is where the Yomi games begin; by performing standard actions, you condition; once you condition, you take advantage; when your opponent adapts, you counter adapt. This is the pinnacle of competitive fighting game play, where both players have reached their character nirvana and dance together in a fantastic mental game. When two players fight that have taken their character to their full potential, they are no longer fighting the character, but rather, each other directly.
….Erhem.
Another example of conditioning is punishing get up options. If the opponent gets off the ledge the same way every time, punish it! It forces them to adapt or perish.
Specifically for Shulk, UTilt can cover a lot of options, as well as FAir.
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