New Villager main (and new to competitive smash), lots of questions

[Jugs.]

(WARNING: LONG POST)

Hey guys. So as you can probably tell by the title, I want to main Villager, but have a lot of questions. First, a little backstory: I played brawl some, but never competitively or at a high level at all, so this is my venture into competitive smash territory. I’ve played Smash 4 at a friend’s house some (I’m getting it with the Wii U bundle on Black Friday), and Villager is a character that really appeals to me and I like playing.

Now for the questions: What is the best controller setup? I know that tap jump should be turned off and the c-stick should be set to attack, but other than that I’m lost. I’ve heard things about using L, R, or Z as jump. This seems a lot better than the regular X and Y, which makes it awkward to have to move my thumb all the way down to the c-stick after pressing the jump button to perform aerials. I end up using A+direction to use aerials when jumping with X/Y, because it feels more natural. I haven’t played smash competitively before, so I should be able to adjust pretty easily to a new controller setup.

How do I practice/get better at shielding? As of now, I am awful at utilizing shield, and will instead roll way too much. This is obviously something that I need to fix, but how do I practice it?

What is the best way to practice playing? I know that I’ll have to keep on practicing to get better, but how should I go about doing it? CPU’s? A leveled up amiibo? Or just online for glory? I know that practicing the fundamentals (which is something I will definitely need to work on) can be done in training mode, but I’m not sure how to practice putting them into action. That’s pretty much it, or atleast what I can think of right now. When I get the game, and practice enough to the point that my gameplay isn’t pitiful, I’ll upload a video to get some feedback on what I need to improve on. Sorry for the tl:dr, but thanks to anyone who helps me out.

 

[BlazikenGod]

For controller Setup, i use the Pro Controller with ZL and L as jump, R and ZR as shield, Y as grab and the rest as their defaults. I use the pro controller as it's easier to use Fair, Bair, Uair and Dair, and Y as grab as i don't use Villy's grab often unless i'm near the edge and i need to Back Throw for kills.
For rolls and Shield, just try to utilize it more often, keep at it and attempt to practice Powershielding if you can.
For practice nothing beats practicing with a friend in person as For Glory and online can be quite laggy and you'll probably become Early days Mew2King if you use CPUs. (Not very good) For amiibos i don't practice with them often though so far it'll be an alright practice partner.

 

[Moosseff]

Well theres three different types of playstyles, Zoneing the use of projectiles to either force opponents to
approach or keep them at bay. A good zoneing character would be duck hunt. Spacing which is keeping your opponent at a set distance away from you. A good example is marth benifiting from the tipper effect. And finally rushdown. A good example would be fox with his fast speed and strong aerial and combo game. The key to being a good villager is zoneing with random spurts of rushdown/aggresion. Villager is for the most part an aerial character. He will use more of his aerials in match rather than his moves on the ground. If youre going to main villager you have to know how to utilize your down b, side b, and nuetral b. You limit peoples options with loid A LOT. Youre pretty much winning the second you shoot a loid out. Its that big a deal lol. For controls I would use whatever feels comfortable. Try things out, maybe youll like em. Also about rolling its just a very bad habit. Rolling is goodin certain situations but if youre going toroll away constantly to begin to become predictable and in any fighting game, thats very bad. Just learn when its OK to do a defensive option. Get good at realizing when you can punish a move and when you cant punish a move because if you try to punish and youre way off? For some chars, like ganon it doesnt meanmuch but with some chars like ZSS it can mean your stock. Good luck to you and welcome to smashboards (Also sorry thispost kinda long xD)

 

[Mtn64]

As for controller setup, it honestly doesn't matter much. I always see people making big deals about it, but honestly as someone who just started getting into his local scene and is consistently placing top 3, I don't have any control changes past tap jump off.
In terms of utilizing shield, imagine the roll button isn't in existence, and try to use movement options instead. In Smash 4 especially, knowing how to empty hop, option selects out of shield, and being able to use pivot options effectively is important, so practice those along with learning shield. Practice shielding projectiles in matches, and try to perfect shield as often as possible. This is a good starting point for learning shields.
Finally, in terms of practicing, just play. I can't stress enough that there isn't a "loophole" or a "fast way" to get good at smash. It's all about playing; the more you play, the more you learn, and the more you learn, the better you get. I'd recommend not thinking about it too hard, because at the end of the day, we all started playing Smash because it was fun. Lab things, play against people, seek out good players, etc, but don't put yourself down or get angry because you aren't amazing at the game. Experience will get you there.

 

[lbonrom19]

*SORRY FOR THE ESSAY IN ADVANCE*
I'd like to review some of Villager's moves/tools to help you learn his play style.

Anyway, Villager is a character that excels at mid-range. His play style consists mainly of zoning and spacing correctly using f-air and b-air. You don't want to approach much, unless you follow your gyroid. His side-b is an amazing pressure tool, and you should use it in the neutral. Usually, opponents tend to shield (in which case you should go for a grab if you're quick enough) or jump (leaving them vulnerable to the slingshot) after you release the gyroid. Don't try grab too often, as it is laggy and you WILL get punished. Instead, try to force your opponent into their shield with a gyroid, or if you're lucky you might get a read. In which case, down-throw is your friend at low to mid percents. It combos into n-air at low percents and can start an u-air juggle at mid percents. If they DI away, though, follow them with a f-air.

N-air is a great out of shield move. You might want to short-hop n-air away if you find yourself too close to your opponent. D-tilt has surprising range, is fast and kills at high percents if you sweetspot it. If you get the weaker hitbox, it puts opponents into the air and sets them up for slingshot chains which is useful.

Another one of Villager's great moves is u-tilt. It kills (at high percents), combos into u-air at low percents and is an awesome anti-air. It can interrupt an approach if it catches opponents running towards you, so you should use it if you feel you need space. Spotdodge to u-tilt works most of the time and is a great mix up option.

Villager's forward smash should be used sparingly. Only use it if you predict an immediate approach in front of you or you can read your opponent's roll. However, near the ledge, it is an amazing edgeguard tool. Drop it over a recovering opponent to potentially get rid of their stock, as the bowling ball has ENORMOUS kill power. Down smash, on the other hand, is the main way to set up for kills at high percents. If you bury your opponent at lower percents, d-tilt quickly before they jump out and start a f-air chain. At 120%+, charge an up-smash for a little bit then release before they escape. This is an almost guaranteed kill, especially with enough rage.

Lastly, I'd like to talk about timber. The tree is a key part of Villager's game. It gives him stage control as most people are afraid to go near it. However, you don't want to grow it immediately. Instead, "half-water" the sapling (by watering it a bit and jumping quickly) and leave it there until your unsuspecting opponent goes near it. When you water it again, it will grow almost instantly and has huge kill power. The axe is great and fast too but you can get punished if you whiff the hit.

I've already written A LOT considering this is just a beginners guide, so I don't wanna go into more complicated stuff. I hope you enjoy the character because when you master him, it is very very rewarding and fun! Good luck!

 

[Darklink401]

Not sure if its been said, since I wont read others things as its...very late right now as Im seeing this xD

But

1. Controller setup is person-specific, what works for you, works. I for one, have c-stick set to smash, for example xD

2. To improve, play the game a LOT. Just, play. Play a lot and you'll get better. Ideally, save your replays each time and criticize afterwards, stuff you did wrong. Also no Amiibos. they're fun, but they will give you distorted ideas on characters damage outputs and things like that, as amiibos have better stats than regular fighters.

3. Experience will teach you to shield more. Worked for me. Just give is time