Q&A Olimar Q&A thread.

[Blue Banana]

Hey, I have been rotating a few characters in order to find the play style I enjoy the most and Olimar/Alph is one of the characters I have the most fun with. I have a few questions for long time Olimar/Alph players. Thank you in advance!

1. What would you say are Olimar/Alph pros and cons?

2. Is Olimar/Alph supposed to excel at zoning/keeping the opponents away from them?

3. What does one need to have to be a good Olimar/Alph player, other than lacking a heart (because of the countless cute Pikmin who die during matches)?

1. Olimar's main strength is his damage potential. Side B can build up a lot of damage in neutral if the opponent isn't actively trying to kill the Pikmin, especially with whites. This is complemented by his Dthrow combos when he gets a grab; at low percentages, Dthrow to purple Usmash can deal 20+ damage, for example. His primary zoning tools are Fsmash and purple side B. Non-purple Fsmash covers a large distance and is useful for edgeguarding, while purple side B is a fast projectile that is very useful to keep your opponents out.

His main weakness is that if he gets knocked off the ground or off-stage, he has few tools to get back onto the stage compared to other characters. That is because every attack that involves using a Pikmin (aerials and smashes) are considered to be projectiles. This means that they will clash with any attack with no damage dealt to the opponent, but the opponent will still be able to hit Olimar. This means that Olimar will generally lose to most aerial trades, leaving the multi-hitting Nair as his only option.
He also has trouble securing the KO. Olimar is not lacking in KO options--smashes, Bair, blue Uthrow--the problem is that he doesn't have many ways to confirm a KO off a hit. Smashes require the opponent to be near the opponent to hit at full strength, and the opponent will have at least one option that can hit Olimar first or clash with his smash attack. Bair has the aforementioned problem of being a projectile attack. Going for grabs comes with the risk of being vulnerable for at least 1/3 of a second; that is why the retreating pivot grab is used a lot because it has the least ending lag of the grabs while still taking advantage of Olimar's above-average(?) grab range. Olimar does have a KO combo in red Dthrow to purple Uair, but it tends to work mostly on fastfallers only.

2. Generally, Olimar is able to enforce his zoning game as long as he gets and holds stage control. This is important for him because it gives him space for maneuvering on the ground and for retreating pivot grabs. Hanging around the ledge tends to mess up the Pikmin AI, leaving you potentially vulnerable. From there, it becomes matchup specific:
- Players who try to combat with projectiles aren't too much of a problem, as Pikmin stuff most of them and purple side-B/Fsmashes clash most while still being to hit the opponent. Dedicated zoners tend to be a war of attrition until one player decides to approach.
- Fights with rushdown characters tend to be volatile, as they often have the advantage of speed to not care about most of your projectiles and fast dash attacks/dash grabs to get you first before you use your smashes or purple side B, and generally use short hops or some confusing dash patterns to get you off guard. On the other hand, most of these characters are fastfallers and are more vulnerable to Dthrow combos than other characters. I personally have trouble dealing with this type of character because I'm not used to reacting this quickly.
- Reflectors mess up your ability in neutral because many of your essential tools are projectiles. A reflected smash will KO you very early, around as early as the 40s. Because of this, you will need to either condition the opponent to using the reflector too much and/or play around by being more conservative with your tools.
- Heavies generally go down to keeping them away from you and landing the KO safely while not getting KO'd early yourself. Since most of them don't have projectiles and generally rely on giant hitboxes, you need to rely on spacing and learning your opponent's behavior while not being too predictable.
- Some characters, like Wario and Metaknight, tend to wait for an opening to hit you and will often not approach you unless it's safe, especially if they have the lead. You want to apply the same thinking with heavies, except replace "large hitboxes" with "good mobility".
- There are some special cases where a character's playstyle doesn't adhere to a specific one. Shiek is one example, as she has good approaching abilities while being able to combat Olimar's camping w/ needles.

3. You're going to need to learn your opponent's behavior and whatever adaptations they do to combat you. If you do this effectively, then you'll be able to condition the opponent to leave them vulnerable. This is important for going for standing/dash grabs and KOs.

Pikmin management is also important. Knowing the strengths/weaknesses of each color allows you to maximize damage potential and go for potential early KOs. Know what situation you are in, and cycle through the colors to get a suitable Pikmin for the situation when it's safe to do so. Don't throw all your Pikmin at once, or else you leave yourself vulnerable if the opponent kills all of them.

Try not to be too passive. Although side B allows you to build up damage in neutral, it also can pressure your opponent into getting rid of the Pikmin, leaving them potentially vulnerable. Try to play passive-aggressively; punish your opponent if they're messing around with your Pikmin and you know that you'll be able to punish them. This will also help from not spamming side-B too much.

Any input from other Oli users is appreciated, since I'm not very experienced in playing him yet.

 

[lokt]

Hi guys, I'm primarily a melee player but I'm trying to better understand olimar to beat a friend in a money match. I played olimar in brawl so I have a few questions to clarify the olimar changes from brawl:
1. what are the basic comboes? in brawl it was just dthrow usmash or dthrow fair; do these still work? Does uthrow usmash work?
2. how bad is the sheik matchup?
3. who should I watch? It seems like dabuz plays mostly rosalina now; do nietono or rich brown still play olimar?
4. is pikmin sorting still a thing?
5. since usmash is weaker how does olimar kill?
6. does small step fsmash a mechanic in smash4?

 

[Reila]

1. Olimar's main strength is his damage potential. Side B can build up a lot of damage in neutral if the opponent isn't actively trying to kill the Pikmin, especially with whites. This is complemented by his Dthrow combos when he gets a grab; at low percentages, Dthrow to purple Usmash can deal 20+ damage, for example. His primary zoning tools are Fsmash and purple side B. Non-purple Fsmash covers a large distance and is useful for edgeguarding, while purple side B is a fast projectile that is very useful to keep your opponents out.

His main weakness is that if he gets knocked off the ground or off-stage, he has few tools to get back onto the stage compared to other characters. That is because every attack that involves using a Pikmin (aerials and smashes) are considered to be projectiles. This means that they will clash with any attack with no damage dealt to the opponent, but the opponent will still be able to hit Olimar. This means that Olimar will generally lose to most aerial trades, leaving the multi-hitting Nair as his only option.
He also has trouble securing the KO. Olimar is not lacking in KO options--smashes, Bair, blue Uthrow--the problem is that he doesn't have many ways to confirm a KO off a hit. Smashes require the opponent to be near the opponent to hit at full strength, and the opponent will have at least one option that can hit Olimar first or clash with his smash attack. Bair has the aforementioned problem of being a projectile attack. Going for grabs comes with the risk of being vulnerable for at least 1/3 of a second; that is why the retreating pivot grab is used a lot because it has the least ending lag of the grabs while still taking advantage of Olimar's above-average(?) grab range. Olimar does have a KO combo in red Dthrow to purple Uair, but it tends to work mostly on fastfallers only.

2. Generally, Olimar is able to enforce his zoning game as long as he gets and holds stage control. This is important for him because it gives him space for maneuvering on the ground and for retreating pivot grabs. Hanging around the ledge tends to mess up the Pikmin AI, leaving you potentially vulnerable. From there, it becomes matchup specific:
- Players who try to combat with projectiles aren't too much of a problem, as Pikmin stuff most of them and purple side-B/Fsmashes clash most while still being to hit the opponent. Dedicated zoners tend to be a war of attrition until one player decides to approach.
- Fights with rushdown characters tend to be volatile, as they often have the advantage of speed to not care about most of your projectiles and fast dash attacks/dash grabs to get you first before you use your smashes or purple side B, and generally use short hops or some confusing dash patterns to get you off guard. On the other hand, most of these characters are fastfallers and are more vulnerable to Dthrow combos than other characters. I personally have trouble dealing with this type of character because I'm not used to reacting this quickly.
- Reflectors mess up your ability in neutral because many of your essential tools are projectiles. A reflected smash will KO you very early, around as early as the 40s. Because of this, you will need to either condition the opponent to using the reflector too much and/or play around by being more conservative with your tools.
- Heavies generally go down to keeping them away from you and landing the KO safely while not getting KO'd early yourself. Since most of them don't have projectiles and generally rely on giant hitboxes, you need to rely on spacing and learning your opponent's behavior while not being too predictable.
- Some characters, like Wario and Metaknight, tend to wait for an opening to hit you and will often not approach you unless it's safe, especially if they have the lead. You want to apply the same thinking with heavies, except replace "large hitboxes" with "good mobility".
- There are some special cases where a character's playstyle doesn't adhere to a specific one. Shiek is one example, as she has good approaching abilities while being able to combat Olimar's camping w/ needles.

3. You're going to need to learn your opponent's behavior and whatever adaptations they do to combat you. If you do this effectively, then you'll be able to condition the opponent to leave them vulnerable. This is important for going for standing/dash grabs and KOs.

Pikmin management is also important. Knowing the strengths/weaknesses of each color allows you to maximize damage potential and go for potential early KOs. Know what situation you are in, and cycle through the colors to get a suitable Pikmin for the situation when it's safe to do so. Don't throw all your Pikmin at once, or else you leave yourself vulnerable if the opponent kills all of them.

Try not to be too passive. Although side B allows you to build up damage in neutral, it also can pressure your opponent into getting rid of the Pikmin, leaving them potentially vulnerable. Try to play passive-aggressively; punish your opponent if they're messing around with your Pikmin and you know that you'll be able to punish them. This will also help from not spamming side-B too much.

Any input from other Oli users is appreciated, since I'm not very experienced in playing him yet.

Thanks a lot for responding. You helped me a lot and I think I will stick with Olimar. Out of all the things you said, the only thing that might annoys me is fighting against characters that have reflectors. Anyways, last question for now: What is the best way of Pikmin cycling?

 

[Blue Banana]

Thanks a lot for responding. You helped me a lot and I think I will stick with Olimar. Out of all the things you said, the only thing that might annoys me is fighting against characters that have reflectors. Anyways, last question for now: What is the best way of Pikmin cycling?

If you want to manually cycle through w/o attacking, you can do a short hop and use an aerial before you land on ground before the hitbox is active. This will auto-cancel the aerial lag, but the Pikmin that you would have used for the attack goes to the end of the line, bringing up the next in line to the first.

You can intentionally whiff short hop aerials far from the opponent to also cycle through, but AC aerials can make it harder for your opponent to notice that your line of Pikmin is changing.

Sorry for responding very late!

 

[Blue Banana]

Hi guys, I'm primarily a melee player but I'm trying to better understand olimar to beat a friend in a money match. I played olimar in brawl so I have a few questions to clarify the olimar changes from brawl:
1. what are the basic comboes? in brawl it was just dthrow usmash or dthrow fair; do these still work? Does uthrow usmash work?
2. how bad is the sheik matchup?
3. who should I watch? It seems like dabuz plays mostly rosalina now; do nietono or rich brown still play olimar?
4. is pikmin sorting still a thing?
5. since usmash is weaker how does olimar kill?
6. does small step fsmash a mechanic in smash4?

1) Dthrow to Usmash at low percents, Dthrow to Fair or Uair at mid to mid-high percents. Some fastfallers can be hit by Uair again after Uair at mid percents. Red Dthrow to purple Uair is an somewhat reliable KO combo.
Combos w/ Uthrow are possible, but using it stales the KO potential of blue Uthrow.
2) Shiek can outcamp you with needles, and fair can easily juggle you off the stage. She is easy to combo because of her fall speed, and if you get the stock lead, it makes it harder for her to equalize it because of her mediocre KO potential. It's a hard matchup, but it's winnable as long as you can outplay your opponent.
3) SoCal has three Olimars on the current PR: Rich Brown, Angbad, and ImHip. This channel hosts weeklies every Thursday, and you may be able to see some of them play live.
There's also Myran, who's the moderator of this subforum.
4) I don't know what you're referring to.
5) There's the aforementioned red Dthrow to purple Uair, but it's not totally reliable. Often, you're going to KO using any of your smashes, Bair, or blue Uthrow. Gimping w/ purple side B is possible if your opponent isn't paying enough attention to you or you can outsmart your opponent.
Conditioning your opponent is going to be important to securing KOs, since that is one of Oli's weaknesses.
6) see (4)

 

[Reila]

If you want to manually cycle through w/o attacking, you can do a short hop and use an aerial before you land on ground before the hitbox is active. This will auto-cancel the aerial lag, but the Pikmin that you would have used for the attack goes to the end of the line, bringing up the next in line to the first.

You can intentionally whiff short hop aerials far from the opponent to also cycle through, but AC aerials can make it harder for your opponent to notice that your line of Pikmin is changing.

Sorry for responding very late!

No worries. Thanks for responding!

 

[alexthepony]

what's the best way to practice spacing with olimar?

 

[Blue Banana]

what's the best way to practice spacing with olimar?

The first thing to do to practice spacing is to go to Training and observe how far his ranged attacks go--smashes, side B, and grabs. Those will be your primary zoning tools, so it's a good idea to know how far each Pikmin color goes when using them. Note that smashes and purple side B clash with most attacks because they're projectiles.

After that, you just need to get experience on what works on which characters/playstyles, and that just comes from playing a lot. You want to observe your opponent's effective attack range and play accordingly. Say for example, your opponent's dash attack covers a lot of distance. You don't want to use Fsmash a lot because you will probably get hit while the opponent clanks with Fsmash. What if your opponent has fairly quick aerials and does a lot of short hopping? Wait until the opponent commits to an approach and pivot grab. There are a lot more situations where you need to consider either what zoning tool works best for you, or what can you do if none them are optimal.

 

[alexthepony]

The first thing to do to practice spacing is to go to Training and observe how far his ranged attacks go--smashes, side B, and grabs. Those will be your primary zoning tools, so it's a good idea to know how far each Pikmin color goes when using them. Note that smashes and purple side B clash with most attacks because they're projectiles.

After that, you just need to get experience on what works on which characters/playstyles, and that just comes from playing a lot. You want to observe your opponent's effective attack range and play accordingly. Say for example, your opponent's dash attack covers a lot of distance. You don't want to use Fsmash a lot because you will probably get hit while the opponent clanks with Fsmash. What if your opponent has fairly quick aerials and does a lot of short hopping? Wait until the opponent commits to an approach and pivot grab. There are a lot more situations where you need to consider either what zoning tool works best for you, or what can you do if none them are optimal.

I tend to have a bad habit of just standing still and using an attack once the opponent gets close how can I get out of doing this.

 

[Blue Banana]

I tend to have a bad habit of just standing still and using an attack once the opponent gets close how can I get out of doing this.

You don't have a lot of fast attack options available to you once they're close to you; you're usually limited to jab, Utilt, and Dtilt. If you're intending to stand still and wait for an attack, try to powershield or spotdodge it. Powershield especially helps in getting an opening in most cases, such as jab -> grab.

However, you generally don't want to stay still and just keep moving around your area of control. I usually do this by foxtrotting (if it's called that), or moving around with repeated initial dashes but no actual running. You want to keep yourself moving as unpredictably as possible since while Olimar's mobility is mediocre, it makes you less vulnerable than standing idly and potentially provoke unsafe approaches from your opponent, which can be caught by pivot grab.

 

[alexthepony]

You don't have a lot of fast attack options available to you once they're close to you; you're usually limited to jab, Utilt, and Dtilt. If you're intending to stand still and wait for an attack, try to powershield or spotdodge it. Powershield especially helps in getting an opening in most cases, such as jab -> grab.

However, you generally don't want to stay still and just keep moving around your area of control. I usually do this by foxtrotting (if it's called that), or moving around with repeated initial dashes but no actual running. You want to keep yourself moving as unpredictably as possible since while Olimar's mobility is mediocre, it makes you less vulnerable than standing idly and potentially provoke unsafe approaches from your opponent, which can be caught by pivot grab.

do you mean pivot grab or perfect pivot grab? what are the differences between the two? or if they are the same. thanks for the help man already.

 

[Blue Banana]

do you mean pivot grab or perfect pivot grab? what are the differences between the two? or if they are the same. thanks for the help man already.

Normal pivot grab. You don't want to do perfect pivot grabs because you'd go through the same amount of lag of a normal grab, which is more than that of a pivot grab.

 

[alexthepony]

Normal pivot grab. You don't want to do perfect pivot grabs because you'd go through the same amount of lag of a normal grab, which is more than that of a pivot grab.

do you think I should fox trot instead of run with olimar? do I ever use dash dancing with olimar? I assume running then turning around and skidding a little bit is a regular pivot? You are really helping me with olimar.

 

[Blue Banana]

do you think I should fox trot instead of run with olimar? do I ever use dash dancing with olimar? I assume running then turning around and skidding a little bit is a regular pivot? You are really helping me with olimar.

Your choice of movement depends on what you're trying to do. Do you want to keep moving around in neutral? Is your opponent left vulnerable enough for a dash grab/dash attack? Is your opponent approaching, and if so, how?

For your third question, there's no special name for that animation. If I remember correctly, you can't do pivot attacks when you're in that animation; you need to be at least walking to do pivot attacks and running for pivot grabs.

 

[alexthepony]

what do you all like to do at certain percents with this character.
like 0-20
20-50
60-90

 

[howbadisbad]

Who are some top olimars I can watch recent (this patch) vids on?

Also where can I get general percents for uthrow kills and combos/frame traps

 

[Blue Banana]

Who are some top olimars I can watch recent (this patch) vids on?

Also where can I get general percents for uthrow kills and combos/frame traps

I think VGBootCamp should have Top 8 of Smash the Record '15 in a few days. Two of the sets features Myran's Olimar against saj's Peach and 8bitman's R.O.B.

For Uthrow KO percentages, generally your opponent should be around ~130%-170% before going for Blue Uthrow, depending on weight. This lowers down to around 110%-150% if you're around 100%.


Speaking of Uthrow, I feel like I've been relying on it way a lot more than I should be. I tend to dance around in neutral too much fishing for grabs rather than trying to condition the opponent into getting hit by the strong part of F/Usmash. What can I do to fix this?

 

[miniada]

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...mEQhIVdwdLLj5dg&sig2=2QqvSt193nWr40Kk-klQ5Awe are discussing olimar at the mario boards and would love your input.

 

[Blue Banana]

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...mEQhIVdwdLLj5dg&sig2=2QqvSt193nWr40Kk-klQ5Awe are discussing olimar at the mario boards and would love your input.

I think you posted in the wrong thread.

 

[Icy_Eagle]

So is there any point in keepin yellow pikmin around? The seem to me to be outclassed by the other pikmin in one way or the other. The small added range doesn't really seem worth it (and it doesn't even have added range on fsmash as far as I can tell)

Was thinking I could use them to stuff pikachu's electric jolt, but their throw arc tends to just fly over the jolts :I

 

[Blue Banana]

I think yellows are useful in Olimar dittos because since Pikmin not in line have their own hurtbox, using a yellow Fsmash on them extends the duration of the Fsmash's hitbox more than other colors due to electric properties, acting as a way of killing your opponent's Pikmin safely and zoning out your opponent.

Assuming the larger hitboxes apply to smashes as well, yellows also are useful for edgeguarding certain characters. Some characters that recover under the lip of the ledge could get hit by yellow Dsmash because they extend hurtboxes enough to get hit by it (ex.: Pit's UpB, Rosalina's UpB, Yoshi double jump). The yellows' larger hitbox would theoretically make it easier to hit these characters while they're recovering from below, again assuming it applies to smashes.

 

[RosalinaSGS]

Does the damage suffered by Pikmin remain throughout the match till they die?

 

[Blue Banana]

Does the damage suffered by Pikmin remain throughout the match till they die?

Yes.

 

[Angbad]

Does anyone know purple bair kill percents?

 

[Masonomace]

Hello Olimar boards. Could be my first time posting but I bring a question:

Olimar's Dthrow usually deals 1% for the first hit, but deals an X amount of damage for the second hit based on the Pikmin's damage throw multiplier. However, when I Dthrow with every pikmin color, I get 1% with them all except for White for it deals ~0%. Why is this the case? Kuroganehammer's site for Olimar has the multipliers for the Attack & Throw, but I look at the damage meter slowed down in Training Mode & do not see White dealing 1%.

As a bonus question, I'd like to know the exact Training Mode damages for Olimar's Dthrow. Thanks in advance!

 

[Deleted member]

Hello Olimar boards. Could be my first time posting but I bring a question:

Olimar's Dthrow usually deals 1% for the first hit, but deals an X amount of damage for the second hit based on the Pikmin's damage throw multiplier. However, when I Dthrow with every pikmin color, I get 1% with them all except for White for it deals ~0%. Why is this the case? Kuroganehammer's site for Olimar has the multipliers for the Attack & Throw, but I look at the damage meter slowed down in Training Mode & do not see White dealing 1%.

As a bonus question, I'd like to know the exact Training Mode damages for Olimar's Dthrow. Thanks in advance!

I did some testing (On 3DS) and I think the Pikmin's attack multiplier is applied to the first hit of down throw and the throw multiplier is applied to the second hit.
Using the multipliers on kuroganehammer, my calculating matches what actually happens in the game for every Pikmin except for reds, which don't seem to use the attack multiplier for the first hit, but still use the throw multiplier for the second. So to answer your question, white Pikmin's first hit appears as 0 because it is really 0.8, and smash does not display decimals.

To answer the bonus question, as far as I can tell, these are the exact damage amounts:
Red is 1, then 5.6
Yellow is 1, then 7
Blue is 1, then 11.2
Purple is 1.4, then 7
White is 0.8, then 7

 

[Nagu]

Are there any tournament-legal stages on Wii U that give Olimar an advantage/disadvantage, and why?

 

[Dalxp26]

Haven't been around the boards recently but i started to pick up the game again (got a ps4 for black friday which took most of my attention for a while) ....

How do you guys deal with characters that jump multiple times and spend of the time off the ground (pit, DDD, kirby, jiggly etc).

What's your approach on them?
Seeing how Olimar does not have the best air moves/priority and smash attacks don't cover 45 degree angles

 

[koken]

Just try to abuse of side B often against those. If they are super jumping player, they will take off the latched pikmin making you get your purples pikmin easily and safely.
When you have those purples, you can try to do something with them.

Olimar's aerials are awful so keep your feet on the ground for your own good.

 

[Dj.D]

I have a question on the Pikmin. What causes them to sometimes not be close to Olimar at all times? Sometimes when I try to do a smash attack or grab, the pikmin that's next in line isn't close by to do so and leaves you open. Sometimes they are too far away when I am just walking or running and you have to wait for them to come running back close to you or use your whistle before you can safely attack again. I don't remember having that problem when using Olimar in Brawl. It seemed in that game, your pikmin stuck close to you at all times.

 

[koken]

I have a question on the Pikmin. What causes them to sometimes not be close to Olimar at all times? Sometimes when I try to do a smash attack or grab, the pikmin that's next in line isn't close by to do so and leaves you open. Sometimes they are too far away when I am just walking or running and you have to wait for them to come running back close to you or use your whistle before you can safely attack again. I don't remember having that problem when using Olimar in Brawl. It seemed in that game, your pikmin stuck close to you at all times.

It's a programming issue, poor AI and (in my opinion) intentional desync to give olimar a little nerf.

 

[C0rvus]

Couple questions I guess.
1. How strong do you guys think Olimar is in the current meta? What characters gatekeep his viability if any?

2. Do you find that whistling to re-arrange your lineup is useful? Or is it not worth it? Instead just react to whichever Pikmin is next in line and use it properly.

3. How would you describe Olimar's playstyle? Is he just hard camping and punishing approaches or is he more about pressure and zoning?

 

[Dalxp26]

How do you guys deal with characters that like to jump a lot? I always seem to have trouble getting in aside from throwing pikmins.

 

[The Abusive Botanist]

I heard something about Yellow Pikmin dealing more knockback than reds. Is this true?

 

[The Abusive Botanist]

How do you guys deal with characters that like to jump a lot? I always seem to have trouble getting in aside from throwing pikmins.

Bait an attack in the air, and punish their landing lag.

 

[AncientBaby]

I'm not a top player by any means, but I'll do my best to answer some of your questions based only on my experience and what I've seen from other players. Disclaimer: My opinion is something to consider, but it should not be taken as unquestionable fact.

Couple questions I guess.
1. How strong do you guys think Olimar is in the current meta? What characters gatekeep his viability if any?

2. Do you find that whistling to re-arrange your lineup is useful? Or is it not worth it? Instead just react to whichever Pikmin is next in line and use it properly.

3. How would you describe Olimar's playstyle? Is he just hard camping and punishing approaches or is he more about pressure and zoning?

Spoiler: My Answer

1. First off, I think Olimar (like many other characters) has a while to go before he gets closer to his full potential. If you want a tier list/ranking number, I would personally put him around 30ish at the moment, but I think he has potential to reach to maybe top 20. Which in this game, I think is very good and viable, but will need work to do well with. I don't think any other characters specifically prevent him from being viable, but he does have a few matchups that require work to be successful with.

2. While being able to work with any lineup if you don't have time to rearrange is an incredibly important skill with Olimar, I think that his maximum potential lies in an ability of the player to manipulate his (or her) order to fit his needs. For example, different characters are more susceptible to different playstyles (pressuring/approach with purples, camping out with DOT damage from whites/others, etc) and rearranging your lineup to fit your needs is a crucial skill in order to play as Olimar optimally.

3. I think Olimar has a lot of variety in how he can play, though in most cases, will lean towards a more defensive end. Depending on the matchup and situation, you may want to camp out and wait for their approach, or maybe in a different one, you want to pressure them with purples and do (safe) approaches and baits on your own. One important thing is to make sure that you do your best to control the pace of the match, whether you like it fast or slow. If your opponent has control of the pace, it's very hard to get what you need at that point. Purples do come in very handy in general for controlling pace and pressure.

How do you guys deal with characters that like to jump a lot? I always seem to have trouble getting in aside from throwing pikmins.

Spoiler: My Answer

When playing against people who do a lot of something, it's very important to ask yourself why and when they do those things and what they do afterwards. For example, do they jump over you when you approach? Then ask if they tend to cross you up or stay on the same side they were at before. Then do they attack with an aerial? Double jump? Land with a command grab if they bait your shield (if their character has one)? Land and then grab? Shield? Just jump over and then run away?

There's a lot of questions that it helps to ask yourself. Always ask follow-up questions to yourself and try to identify what they do often and how you can stop that. Sorry I can't really give you a specific answer to your question because I don't know all of the details, hopefully that gives you an idea of what to think about.

I heard something about Yellow Pikmin dealing more knockback than reds. Is this true?

Spoiler: My Answer

Reds do more damage (and therefore more knockback) on any hits, but they have weaker throws than yellows. In most cases, reds are better for kills, as yellow throws aren't any stronger than other colors besides reds.

I don't know if you're a numbers person, but this website can help you out a lot with questions like that.

Hopefully I was able to answer your questions at least partially and give some help. Again, I'm not a top player, so it's reasonable if you disagree with some of my thoughts, but based on my experience with the character (I've been playing him as my main since around January 2015, a couple months after launch), most of these hold true.

Good luck, everyone!

 

[koken]

I was going to answer this until I saw the excellent answer that AncientBaby gave you.

But I want to correct this:

I heard something about Yellow Pikmin dealing more knockback than reds. Is this true?

You misunderstood the information.

At air, yellow has more range.
At floor, red has more knockback right after purples.

 

[Cat8752]

Does Olimar ever want to dthrow with blue? Or does the added knockback hinder combos?

 

[AncientBaby]

Does Olimar ever want to dthrow with blue? Or does the added knockback hinder combos?

It's fine to do that, just make sure you keep percentages in mind, as it's hard to follow up once they're at higher damage. It does add a couple extra percent during the early part of a stock, though.

If they're at later percents that you know you won't be able to follow up with and you decide to grab them with a blue, it's probably better to throw them offstage (assuming they're not at high enough damage to kill with a throw) and then re-organize your pikmin, take stage control, get into an edgeguard position, etc.

 

[Zoom!]

Here's a question for you rare and annoying mains (lol jk)

Why is it when you throw a pikmin onto me, some moves get rid of it but some don't? I main , whose nair instantly gets them off them, however my secondary is , whose nair is similar but doesn't seem to always get rid of them? What is the actual mechanics behind this? Just wondering really