Guide Pac Attack - Advanced Techniques and Strategy Guide

[WeirdChillFever]

"Fair and Nair are very good at getting the advantage. I try to keep myself hoping around the opponent instead of smashing or tilting because of this. (I don't move a lot while in the air, just space myself in front of them for just enough reach.) If you can't ahead with your ground moves, why not try using these as a strategy"

First, Pac's ground game is not useless and shouldn't be neglected.
Marios are still trying it so we should too for mix-up.
(I just love DTilt, it actually has the range of a short-ranged Smash Attack.
Roll -> DTilt is pretty glorious)

Second, Pac's Nair and Fair are indeed fantastic.
Nair can turn Pac into a hitbox at any time (retreating Nairs, YESH) and Fair lasts long and can combo (retreating Fairs YESH)
And thats looking at it from the basic level, it's gonna be incredible when Default Hydrant comes into play.

 

[Nu~]

Pac-Man's combo game is beauty.
D-throw -- DA -- SH fair -- nair -- ftilt
Amazing combo i've been executing successfully with the pac. For heavy characters like bowser and ganon, this combo is easy as pie but lighter characters can escape at mid percentages. So instead of chasing them witha fair after the DA, try a short hop orange, galaxian, or even key. With the galaxian however, you can keep the combos going!
Who says Pac-man has no rushdown?

 

[Paper Maribro]

Pac-Man's combo game is beauty.
D-throw -- DA -- SH fair -- nair -- ftilt
Amazing combo i've been executing successfully with the pac. For heavy characters like bowser and ganon, this combo is easy as pie but lighter characters can escape at mid percentages. So instead of chasing them witha fair after the DA, try a short hop orange, galaxian, or even key. With the galaxian however, you can keep the combos going!
Who says Pac-man has no rushdown?

I have known this combo for a while, it is such a good one, very satisfying to nail it.

Due to the really low knockback on Fair, it pretty much leads into nair at any non absurd percent. Nair is also a great edgeguard option. Its fast and does decent knockback at higher percents. Its a great tool for so many situations. Never thought about mixing it up with fruit though. Will definitely be charging more galaxians in the future.

What does everyone think of Dair? Does it have any uses? I havent really found any myself, but I was wondering if you guys used it at all. I remember reading a post somewhere in the Pac forums that said hydrant pretty much does everything for Dair so it isnt really that useful.

 

[dragontamer]

What does everyone think of Dair? Does it have any uses? I havent really found any myself, but I was wondering if you guys used it at all. I remember reading a post somewhere in the Pac forums that said hydrant pretty much does everything for Dair so it isnt really that useful.

Short-hop Dair is an excellent mind-game option when your opponent has begun to release his shield after Fair (or after Fair-Nair)

Fair the opponent's shield all day until you're comfortable with switching. (If you're opponent is shield->grabbing, or power-shielding your Fair... it is time). Then mess with your opponent's conditioning with a short-hop Dair. Watch him power-shield the first hit, release the shield on the 2nd hit, and cry as he gets auto-combo'd by Pac-Man's legs.

Retreating Dair can provide safe shield pressure... but it isn't as safe as retreating Fair, and DIing backwards tends to make you miss the combo if your opponent releases his shield. I feel like you have to go "All In" on the Dair if you're gonna do it.


Also, the timing of short-hop Dair is very different than short-hop Fair. You'll want to time it so that the auto-cancel period occurs as you land, otherwise the landing-lag of Dair will utterly own you. Its a tricky move to use, but its important part of SH Fair shield pressure vs tall opponents.

Pac-Man's combo game is beauty.
D-throw -- DA -- SH fair -- nair -- ftilt
Amazing combo i've been executing successfully with the pac. For heavy characters like bowser and ganon, this combo is easy as pie but lighter characters can escape at mid percentages. So instead of chasing them witha fair after the DA, try a short hop orange, galaxian, or even key. With the galaxian however, you can keep the combos going!

Don't forget D-Throw -> Dash Attack -> SH Bell -> Double-jump -> Uair.

 

[Nu~]

SH Dair is also pretty good for punishing DAs and offensive side Bs that ignore sheilds like diddy and ganons. Since it has a lingering hitbox, it can help to keep the monkey flip away without having to spot dodge.

 

[bekindrewind]

Quick hydrant techniques:

z-dropping the galaxian without letting the water push the galaxian away on the hydrant makes it launch if untouched. this is because the galaxian has a hitbox on both bounces when zdropped.

placing a trampoline next to biting range of a hydrant can be a good option. retreating to the trampoline can give a hit on the hydrant, and each jump does 6-7%. if you launch the hydrant with up b it will send it up into the air, but the hydrant will bounce in place, giving basically a pillar of a hitbox! more pac-man mindgames! No other move I believe can do this!

thanks for reading fellow pac-mains!

 

[Revibe]

First, Pac's ground game is not useless and shouldn't be neglected.
Marios are still trying it so we should too for mix-up.
(I just love DTilt, it actually has the range of a short-ranged Smash Attack.
Roll -> DTilt is pretty glorious)

Just as a note, for just in case measures. I don't think Pac's ground game is useless. Actually I have some favorites.

UpSmash. 2 hits, and comes out very quickly.
Dtilt is lovely, I love to use this instantly out of a dash.
Uptilt is another favorite. Helps because it hits on 3 sides of him. (even if just barely.)

 

[bekindrewind]

By the way, you can use Inky to send the hydrant high and behind you! I think doing a bair is best, since PAC-MAN's little uppercut only hits the hydrant and does 3%. Really situational but you could really catch an opponent!

 

[dragontamer]

placing a trampoline next to biting range of a hydrant can be a good option. retreating to the trampoline can give a hit on the hydrant, and each jump does 6-7%. if you launch the hydrant with up b it will send it up into the air, but the hydrant will bounce in place, giving basically a pillar of a hitbox! more pac-man mindgames! No other move I believe can do this!

Bair -> Jab, Bair -> up-tilt, and (if on a stage with extra platforms) Bair -> UAir.

Since the nerf, I've been using Bair->Jab the most.

 

[bekindrewind]

Bair -> Jab, Bair -> up-tilt, and (if on a stage with extra platforms) Bair -> UAir.

Since the nerf, I've been using Bair->Jab the most.

Bair to ftilt is classic too. dtilt is very fast and after something like a dash attack it can really save you from being hit with the hydrant and launching it yourself.

 

[Paper Maribro]

Guys, look what I found

Mindgames ahoy!

To do the Hydrant Reverse, simply hit the hydrant with a fair, land, back roll once, throw your bell and hey presto, your hydrant will now behave like a boomerang and come straight back towards you!

 

[Revibe]

Guys, look what I found

Mindgames ahoy!

To do the Hydrant Reverse, simply hit the hydrant with a fair, land, back roll once, throw your bell and hey presto, your hydrant will now behave like a boomerang and come straight back towards you!

I do believe that is the way the bell hits it from the far side. I have been trying to get my bell breaking hydrant down, especially because the bell can be thrown from any height and still land at x distance.
Also I had weird Hydrant launches, especially if I break it as it spurts with fruit. Cherry once made it roll mad fast behind me.
Thanks for posting this btw! I was just about to report in a trick with Hydrant I performed on accident.

My opponent was all the way on the other end of the field and I was slow running in the hydrant (not enough to pass.) As soon as I was passing, it spurted, and boom faster than sonic. :o!!

 

[bekindrewind]

Guys, look what I found

Mindgames ahoy!

To do the Hydrant Reverse, simply hit the hydrant with a fair, land, back roll once, throw your bell and hey presto, your hydrant will now behave like a boomerang and come straight back towards you!

Epic

 

[dragontamer]

Bair to ftilt is classic too. dtilt is very fast and after something like a dash attack it can really save you from being hit with the hydrant and launching it yourself.

DTilt is 7 frame startup.
Forward Tilt is a 4-frame startup.

DTilt is a higher anti-air arc, so I can see some use. But launching the hydrant ASAP is probably gonna be Forward Tilt (or Bair -> double-jump -> Bair if you're placing the hydrant close to the ledge and fell off)

Honestly though, Fair is the best arc. Slow... but not too slow. Bouncy and erratic. Too bad that Bair -> land -> Fair is so slow to execute though.

 

[WeirdChillFever]

Quick hydrant techniques:

z-dropping the galaxian without letting the water push the galaxian away on the hydrant makes it launch if untouched. this is because the galaxian has a hitbox on both bounces when zdropped.

placing a trampoline next to biting range of a hydrant can be a good option. retreating to the trampoline can give a hit on the hydrant, and each jump does 6-7%. if you launch the hydrant with up b it will send it up into the air, but the hydrant will bounce in place, giving basically a pillar of a hitbox! more pac-man mindgames! No other move I believe can do this!

thanks for reading fellow pac-mains!

I believe Bair -> Jab can do the same.

And note that Meteor Trampoline can do the same when placed on top of the Hydrant, since it has a hitbox at the bottom too

EDIT:
For people that prefer Freaky Fruit, Freaky Strawberry can Reverse Hydrant too

 

[BridgesWithTurtles]

This has probably been well-known since Day 1, but somehow I've never discovered it until recently: grab out of a perfect pivot makes Pac-Man slide while grabbing. This has been extremely useful in actually landing Pac-Man's grab due to it basically having the activation speed of most perfect pivot grabs while having a deceptively long range. Great for mindgames, and especially for psyching out lands and catching the opponent.

 

[Nu~]

This has probably been well-known since Day 1, but somehow I've never discovered it until recently: grab out of a perfect pivot makes Pac-Man slide while grabbing. This has been extremely useful in actually landing Pac-Man's grab due to it basically having the activation speed of most perfect pivot grabs while having a deceptively long range. Great for mindgames, and especially for psyching out lands and catching the opponent.

Now that you mention it...perfect pivoting may patch up pac-man's grab 0w0

 

[Rashid]

http://smashboards.com/threads/instant-ledge-hop-cancel-refurbished-at.381992/
Did you guys know about this?

 

[bekindrewind]

I believe Bair -> Jab can do the same.

And note that Meteor Trampoline can do the same when placed on top of the Hydrant, since it has a hitbox at the bottom too

EDIT:
For people that prefer Freaky Fruit, Freaky Strawberry can Reverse Hydrant too

Jab to launch the hydrant makes it slowly move in whichever direction you launched it. trampoline makes it stay exactly still and just bounces.

 

[mmik]

Trampoline to launch hydrant sounds interesting. I wanna try that. Imagine someone rushing you only to get thrown up into the air and into your hydrant.

 

[WeirdChillFever]

Nair is also fantastic when the opponent is riding the hydrant pulse and comes at you at full speed.

 

[mmik]

Hey I don't want to make a new topic for this, so I'll ask here:

Does anyone want to help me improve my pac game? Either by sparring with me or watching my replays?

You can find me on the Wii at mmikleson , and shoot me a pm if you want.

Against novice players my pac man is good, but I can get wrecked and switch to someone else and manhandle the same person. So I really need practice I think.

 

[Firedemon0]

Hey I don't want to make a new topic for this, so I'll ask here:

Does anyone want to help me improve my pac game? Either by sparring with me or watching my replays?

You can find me on the Wii at mmikleson , and shoot me a pm if you want.

Against novice players my pac man is good, but I can get wrecked and switch to someone else and manhandle the same person. So I really need practice I think.

Life has made me a bit busy to nail down playtime online, but if you post a few videos to the replay thread, I am always willing to help and will try to give some advice.

 

[mmik]

Thanks, I'll look through but most of my saves are against meh players because those look the best. Even still I'm sure I can get some advice

 

[Rashid]

Thanks, I'll look through but most of my saves are against meh players because those look the best. Even still I'm sure I can get some advice

You should try joining the Pac-Man Skype group. It's easier to find people to play with that way.

 

[bekindrewind]

You should try joining the Pac-Man Skype group. It's easier to find people to play with that way.

How do I get invited to said group?

 

[Pacack]

Mew2King just said on his stream that he thinks Pac-Man is high tier, for the record.

 

[Pacack]

He'll be playing Pac-Man momentarily here.

EDIT: It's over.

 

[Paper Maribro]

Mew2King just said on his stream that he thinks Pac-Man is high tier, for the record.

At last, someone has actually noticed all the good things Pac has going for him!

I am sure he will now go up in peoples esteems (I hope so aywyay, as much as I love playing the super Indie characters, at least some recognition would be nice haha).

 

[Pacack]

At last, someone has actually noticed all the good things Pac has going for him!

I am sure he will now go up in peoples esteems (I hope so aywyay, as much as I love playing the super Indie characters, at least some recognition would be nice haha).

I think M2K would agree with me when I say that Pac-Man has all the tools of a high tier character, but no players know how to utilize those tools yet.

 

[Paper Maribro]

I think M2K would agree with me when I say that Pac-Man has all the tools of a high tier character, but no players know how to utilize those tools yet.

Abadango is the sole Pac flag in the competitive scene at the moment. It doesnt help that because he is in Japan, less notice seems to be taken of him.

But I totally agree, could be a while before anyone works this character out completely.

 

[BridgesWithTurtles]

My prediction for Pac-Man's ultimate tier placement is mid-tier, most likely mid or upper mid. You could say it's a...gut feeling.

 

[Paper Maribro]

My prediction for Pac-Man's ultimate tier placement is mid-tier, most likely mid or upper mid. You could say it's a...gut feeling.

I think we should be hungrier for more.

 

[bekindrewind]

Mew2King just said on his stream that he thinks Pac-Man is high tier, for the record.

I asked him before his thoughts on PAC-MAN. he said he was high tier and his nair out of shield is "broken".

So...

 

[WeirdChillFever]

I asked him before his thoughts on PAC-MAN. he said he was high tier and his nair out of shield is "broken".

So...

Nair is definitely broken.

A fast combo or killing move or a button press that turns the entiretly of Pac Man into a hitbox with oomph.

 

[bekindrewind]

Nair is definitely broken.

A fast combo or killing move or a button press that turns the entiretly of Pac Man into a hitbox with oomph.

PAC-MAN isn't broken... stop saying such silly things... >w>

I would agree it's amazing except for the fact it turns sour after it's out for a bit or you hit the sourspot and it only does 3% and little to no knockback.

 

[WeirdChillFever]

PAC-MAN isn't broken... stop saying such silly things... >w>

I would agree it's amazing except for the fact it turns sour after it's out for a bit or you hit the sourspot and it only does 3% and little to no knockback.

And then it ends. Time for a Double Fair!
I said Nair was broken, not that Pac-Man is.

 

[dragontamer]

As far as match-ups go, note that Pikachu has almost exactly the same "broken" Nair as ours.

So be careful vs Pikachu players, especially in regards to our "combos". I'd argue Pikachu has better anti-ground options from the air, while Pac Man seems to have ridiculously good off-stage potential.

 

[Goggalor]

My prediction for Pac-Man's ultimate tier placement is mid-tier, most likely mid or upper mid. You could say it's a...gut feeling.

I'd agree with that. The amazing amount of tools that Pac-Man has at his disposal is more than enough to get him out of low tier, and well into mid tier. However, I think its his lack of being able to kill at a reasonable percentage is what keeps him out of top tier. At best he's got his Key and Hydrant for killing on-stage at a solid percent range, with his Apple and Melon for some higher percentages. Although, while on topic, his off-stage play might slap him into high mid-tier with his aforementioned amazing Nair having a really nice knockback to it that can KO opponents pretty easily when followed up by Fairs and such.

So I think it's hard to say exactly where in mid-tier he will end up once a more solid tier list gets established, or where he'll end up 4-5 months down the road once more of his tricks get utilized some more.

 

[Nu~]

I'd agree with that. The amazing amount of tools that Pac-Man has at his disposal is more than enough to get him out of low tier, and well into mid tier. However, I think its his lack of being able to kill at a reasonable percentage is what keeps him out of top tier. At best he's got his Key and Hydrant for killing on-stage at a solid percent range, with his Apple and Melon for some higher percentages. Although, while on topic, his off-stage play might slap him into high mid-tier with his aforementioned amazing Nair having a really nice knockback to it that can KO opponents pretty easily when followed up by Fairs and such.

So I think it's hard to say exactly where in mid-tier he will end up once a more solid tier list gets established, or where he'll end up 4-5 months down the road once more of his tricks get utilized some more.

I disagree. I see Pac-Man ending up in high tier at least. His grab is the only thing I see that keeps him out of top tier. We may not kill early, but we don't lack as much kill power as sheik (and she's still a perceived top tier) All smashes kill, nair kills, bair kills, side B (when you know how to use it), along with the aforementioned hydrant, key, anf melon (the bell can steal kills for us at mid 80's because of it's hitstun)
I really don't think a small lack of kill moves is enough to push him to mid-tier, when he has some of the the greatest amount of stage control, versatility, and unpredictability in the game.
And just wait, once we discover more techniques and customs are common in tournaments...we are going to be a huge force to be reckoned with.