Pika Q&A/FAQ Thread: Ask a Quick Question, Get a Quick Answer!

[[FBC] ESAM]

Is U-Air good?

Please stop posting. Seriously. If you REALLY have to ask that question, drop Pikachu and never come back to these boards again. It isn't even me being condescending since I'm good, that's ****ING BASIC, LIKE PH 14 TYPE **** *****

 

[Mr.Pikachu]

I'm stuck on how to QAC! The way I do it is input up-b>QA downright/downleft>jump>aerial. Most of the time I end up getting the end lag of it...

 

[Angiance]

It's because canceling QA by jumping, or ledge snapping with QA2 gives us carry over lag, which is extra frames on any landing (it goes away after you land)

 

[Mr.Pikachu]

Confused...o.O so jumping gives pika lag?

 

[Angiance]

Jumping during QAC gives us extra landing frames on everything, not jumping in general.

 

[Mr.Pikachu]

Does anyone know some QAC mindgames with opponents?

 

[PZ]

On the WHOBO stream I swear you said top 25 Warios. Lol that makes more sense. Freaking every tournament down here is ALWAYS JNig vs Denti in GFs. Plus JNig has an assload of pika exp thanks to gunner. Man it really sucks to be a pika in the south because Texas knows Pika from Kprime, LA from Gunner, and Florida from that Pika that no one knows about Kappa. Other than that it's Vegas from Z and Canada from Captain L. Anyway Jnig knows the MU very well although I know you're going to beat him. It's like you're the best pikachu or something. Btw who all from Florida are going to apex? I assume you, Justin, Jessie, Ryo, Sebrik, 8bit, and Shakey.

Oh yeah and MI because if anther

North Carolina because of LDPK but he also is done smashing. Hmm you said south...this post is irrelevant.

 

[Angiance]

Here's a few, assuming we're grounded, facing right: right > down-left (an offensive mix for if the opponent is used to us going right > down-right); left > down-right (a strategic mix, for if the opponent is used to chasing our fleeing QA); offstage, QAC through the opponent to the stage/ledge (it can REALLY throw them off); ledge cancel QA > U-Air (surprises the opponent if they're offstage and leaves us ready to attack); QA down directly into the ground (good for use if the opponent is used to Pikachu actually GOING somewhere via QA)

 

[Mr.Pikachu]

Here's a few, assuming we're grounded, facing right: right > down-left (an offensive mix for if the opponent is used to us going right > down-right); left > down-right (a strategic mix, for if the opponent is used to chasing our fleeing QA); offstage, QAC through the opponent to the stage/ledge (it can REALLY throw them off); ledge cancel QA > U-Air (surprises the opponent if they're offstage and leaves us ready to attack); QA down directly into the ground (good for use if the opponent is used to Pikachu actually GOING somewhere via QA)

Thanks! This really helped plus I just figured out how to do a bunch of QAC's just by inputing up-b>downright/left>repeat in any direction. I don't know what it's good for but it seems to throw off my friends attacks on me cause he gets confused by it.

 

[TxB | Ramsaur]

Eric, I swear to god he's delusional. Can we just start a pika back room and invite all the pikas that have actually been to tournament and will post smart things like Kprime, Z, Gunner, and me?

 

[Hoenn]

Eric, I swear to god he's delusional. Can we just start a pika back room and invite all the pikas that have actually been to tournament and will post smart things like Kprime, Z, Gunner, and me?

I was in angiance's spot. Not being able to go to tournaments, but I still followed the competitive scene without any real people to play against... I went to my first tournament and got 2nd place... Going to a tournament does not make you better than everyone that doesn't

 

[Angiance]

Ramsaur, I've never been to a tournament, but is that really a reason to say "I swear to god he's delusional?" Cause this is gettin' kinda personal right now...hatin' someone over a damn video game :s

 

[Thor]

Please stop posting. Seriously. If you REALLY have to ask that question, drop Pikachu and never come back to these boards again. It isn't even me being condescending since I'm good, that's ****ING BASIC, LIKE PH 14 TYPE **** *****

Dude I'm gonna call you out. You're better than me by a lot but don't be stupid. This is a question/answer forum. It was like a page of like "Who's who in Smash" and begging people to MM stuff and Angiance was like "Let's ask something to get on track." And when you need something to ask, ask something obvious. It was desperate but whatever.

Not related to Angiance, but if someone genuinely thought uair wasn't useful (probably low range/damage output compared to nair would be a concern), explicating or directing them to a Pikachu guide is much more helpful than cursing them out. Everyone starts somewhere.

Eric, I swear to god he's delusional. Can we just start a pika back room and invite all the pikas that have actually been to tournament and will post smart things like Kprime, Z, Gunner, and me?

Same issue I have with Esam's post.

Also it was probably for opinions on WHY it's good [like, asking why a move is good is usually eh, but asking properties that makes it good is worthwhile - people's uses for it] - well uair has eh landing lag (if you hit while using it) but it's fast, good for juggling, damage isn't huge but it helps change the flow and has specific zoning purposes, also has uses OoS. I'm probably missing a bunch too (combos into nair). Maybe if you weren't demanding an MM on a Q/A forum he wouldn't post stuff like that.

Back to the topic:

What percents does utilt reliably link to Thunder? (We can use MK as a basis if someone thinks they have to dig out old charts for that otherwise.)

What's the best way to deal with QAC landing lag - hit the opponent so you have recovery time, or just land, or AD into the ground? Or does fair actually reduce landing lag? [Please don't make jokes about dair being the best way to reduce landing lag...]

 

[PZ]

@Thor Utilt doesn't reliably link to thunder if the other person DI's well but I would say around 70 and onward depending on character weight and so on.
As for QAC landing lag, I would nair although some people would prefer uair. There is no viable option out of the landing lag since you will suffer the same amount even when land cancelling any aerial but nair and uair are our best ones so give those a try I guess. Platform cancelling gets rid of it too but is not as common assuming stage choice.

 

[Ookami Hajime]

Let's all calm down guys.
Tourneys definitely give experience, but we don't we don't need to get all lame over someone's question. Angiance supplies some of the most information to anybody who asks questions on this forum so if he asks something that you deem obvious, you really can't hold it against him.
Goodness, I hate when people turn something like this into one of these stupid hate-forums. Calm the heck down down. When you guys answer in a hateful, stupid way it only makes you seem like you're looking for a fight and only a fool is going to go searching for one on Q/A forum; this is a place for debate, questions, and answers, rather than argument. Why bother looking at this if you can't answer the simplest of questions?

I agree with Thor completely that you guys are being a bit overboard with this. I'm done with this little pseudo rant though for now because I'm too tired for this :I

Oh, and massive respect gain for Thor~

 

[Angiance]

The front area of U-Tilt strings into things fairly well since Pikachu is already through half of the attack frames by time it connects; I'd say front area of U-Tilt > Thunder @ 120% (assuming it's fresh). For QAC's RCO lag, I'd say QA to a spacious postion, or land with F-Air (it has less RCO for some reason)

 

[Thor]

Goodness, I hate when people turn something like this into one of these stupid hate-forums. Calm the heck down down. When you guys answer in a hateful, stupid way it only makes you seem like you're looking for a fight and only a fool is going to go searching for one on Q/A forum; this is a place for debate, questions, and answers, rather than argument. Why bother looking at this if you can't answer the simplest of questions?

Sorry. I should just point it out instead of flinging insults (even though they are an extremely damaging item, like heavy ball damage).

Also I'd heard you can use an aerial and suffer landing lag of that aerial + 50% instead of normal landing lag for getting rid of RCO lag (lag of QA and Dolphin slash, among other things) [which is why I mentioned fair - it's Pikachu's lowest lag aerial upon hitting the ground). So fair? Or can we try to perfectly autocancel something? Or is there no way to reduce RCO lag? [I also usually try to QA to a better position first, but if we have to hop away and using another QA might get us nailed...].

EDIT: Oh wait I reread stuff. So does (not from the ledge) QAC NO JUMP give us lag? Or just QAC jump give us lag? If it's only the latter, that would explain a LOT to me. [Then I was just confused.]

 

[TxB | Ramsaur]

If I go off on you again then Kprime is gonna give me another infraction. Let me summarize it. You claim to be a knowledgeable pika but ask questions left and right. You're annoying and a hypocrite which is why I want to stomp you in a MM

 

[Thor]

He asks questions left and right because it's a Q/A forum. If you don't want him asking questions don't look on this forum (there are other forums where he's not asking questions - I've seen them dude).

Also, he answers a lot of stuff and tries to drag the forum back on topic (it's somewhat dead because most of us know a lot of stuff so questions are specific or hard to pin down and it's random questions which makes sense and explains why it goes off topic but still...). He asks really random stuff because [this is my speculation] A) It makes it look like "basic" questions are okay to ask for newer people [and they darn well should be - need help, ask, it's why the thread is here] and B) He's looking for things he hasn't asked and/or getting things on topic, so generic "why is X good" is a good idea.

Also Angiance, ask about random MUs if that's your goal - actually probably relevant and I never got as much Olimar info as I would have liked, but not really important right now so whatever.

My question from above still applies (about RCO lag and QAC jump vs QAC no jump - does QAC no jump still cause RCO? If so, how to avoid it/best mitigate it? I've heard conflicting things and am curious if anyone knows for sure).

 

[TxB | Ramsaur]

Ignorance cannot be argued with. I'm gone again. Angiance be ready.

 

[Thor]

If you're saying Angiance is ignorant I hardly think that's appropriate for a thread about LEARNING STUFF but I'll leave it at that. (It's also probably a conflation with bad methods to a goal vs actually being unintelligent).

If you're saying I'm ignorant, try again.

Can someone other than Ramsaur post so I can get an answer to my QAC question? Please?

 

[Angiance]

QAC only gives RCO lag if we jump | Yeesh, Ramsaur seems determined to beat me up. Guys, don't worry about him, I already accepted the challenge. If he beats me he'll cool his jets, if I beat him he'll cool his jets; it's a win-win~

 

[Thor]

Pretty sure if you beat him he'll john, but whatever.

Cool to know about RCO lag - explains why I've dsmashed out of it faster than Kirby's uncharged fsmash.

So does fair reduce RCO lag out of a jump or not (I know, it's a different question)?

 

[Angiance]

Yes, I believe F-Air has less RCO frames added to it's LANDING, but it doesn't take away RCO frames by just straight up using it

 

[Thor]

Wait, so then... it has landing lag + some RCO frames? Okay, that's consistent with the RCO mechanics I know of (also consistent with Marths landing with fair to reduce RCO).

What do we do to deal with Ike? I know the MU chart says +1 cuz we're fast, do I have to abuse that [more]? His jab is mildly annoying but his nair is actually annoying and his smashes and bair hurt a lot... I don't have serious Ike troubles but I feel lucky and I'd rather feel like I know what I'm doing.

 

[Blubolouis]

Spam T-jolts like there's no tomorrow, Ike's only response is to shield or jab them. If his positioning is wrong, you can punish him for both of these, just make sure to not get yourself in a wrong position, stage-control wise. Space w/ dtilt, mix-up your shield pressure with full-hop retreating jolts, which beat Ike's oos jab. Learn the cg, learn to edgeguard him, especially on his upB (invincinair, thunder, jolts, fsmash, dair from the top... pikachu has it really easy there).

random swf journey over, bye

 

[Angiance]

Very nicely said. Adding to that, we can clash with Ike's F-Smash using our U-Smash. Speed is, without a doubt, our BEST trait by the way, Thor, abuse it. Ike's N-Air is a pretty sexy spacing/stringing move; use OoS play against it...well actually, the MU is basically: break Ike's spacing via speed > go offensive, try to never let him get away BUT if needed, reset the spacing. Also, offstage, if Ike is coming towards the stage and HAS to Aether to the ledge, use QA to snap the ledge, we won't get hit and he'll SD. KOing is mostly gimps and U-Tilt > Thunder

 

[Ookami Hajime]

Thor, I had nothing against what you said, so I hope that's not what you thought.
Let Ramsaur say whatever he wants, we already know that he's not contributing to the thread at the moment.
I'd help explain the Ike MU but it's been explained much better than I would've put it already, haha

 

[Angiance]

How is the pressure in-tourney? Anyone?

 

[Ookami Hajime]

For me, it's intense. I shiver as I walk around the venue. I'm shy, I'm younger than most tourney-goers, and I feel super out of place. But after you find that person to play some casuals with, you'll be absolutely set, hype, and ready to go by the time the tournament starts. Basically, you should go early to get used the environment (and scope out the opponents~). Most of all, have fun with it! The real pressure is before you play, but once you're playing, it evaporates completely.

 

[Mr.Pikachu]

Does anyone play pikachu online? If you do can we brawl?

 

[Angiance]

I'm ALWAYS online...when I have a Wi-Fi signal, but we'll play when I get the chance :3

 

[Thor]

How is the pressure in-tourney? Anyone?

Maybe Smash tourneys are different but I've used a pair of strategies depending on how I feel to make myself somewhat calmer in other types of tournaments I've been in [debate tournaments among others]. These are mindsets that can help to remove pressure, and they often work for me. All of this is personal experience - results may vary.

1) I'm already going to lose - badly. Anything better is a pleasant surprise, so I'll give it my all and walk away pleased with what I did or at least I met expectations. The money I put in the pot is my fee for getting to meet people who play a game I like and getting to have some. [This mindset works even better if you play lots of friendlies]. That said, always give 100% in a match, no matter how bad you're losing - you should never leave the console feeling like you could have given more to the match. I noticed I sort of drop this if I get into elim type stuff (ex: more than like two matches into bracket type stuff - if you get far yes you've exceeded expectations but a lot of the time I start to want even more...) Also, I like to win, but I'm here to have fun - throwing a fit if I lose is antithetical to that, so don't do it. Be gracious in losing and look to improve - then I can get better and eventually can start to expect to win.

2) I am there to win and I will win. There's not a question of if I'll win, only one of how. Know what I need to do to achieve victory and do so. I almost always win if you make fewer errors than your opponent, and I have practiced so it's time to execute and take home the prize. If I lose it doesn't mean I'm bad, it's only a reason I need to practice even more so I can go out and dominate next time. This doesn't work as well if I was using the first mindset and made it far, but it is exceptional for me against people I have beaten/know I can beat - I know I can win, and I will, so I make up the how as I go using techniques I know to get the job done.



That said, this is all contingent upon A) pressure affecting you negatively and B) your ability to apply these mindsets to yourself. But if you have (A) and can do (B), this could help when you get to serious tournaments.

 

[[FBC] ESAM]

Pressure in tournaments only exists in your mind. Nobody outside of yourself cares about how well you do (except maybe some friends/crew members). Just don't think about where you are playing or who you are playing, just focus on the game

@Ramsuar tournament experience doesn't matter for how good a player is.

@Thor: My problem with Angiance is that he will post really REALLY stupid questions like that but then answer stuff about QAC and spacing and options in certain situations like he knows what he is talking about and argue with me...when he doesn't. If the guy needs to ask "Is up-air good" why THE **** should people trust him answering questions about QA mindgames for example (ALthough i'm not disagreeing with his answer). If you are asking a SPECIFIC question about upair, ASK THE SPECIFIC QUESTION!! Don't make it vague and expect others to figure out what question YOU were asking.

It also isn't the first time he's done this crap. Like he'll say HEY RESPECT ME JUST BECAUSE I CAN'T GO TO A TOURNAMENT DOESN'T MEAN I'M BAD and then ask a question that SHOWS they are bad.

#iswearpeopledidntusetobethisstupid

 

[Angiance]

What button is "Jab?" Also, how is QAC done? I just don't know this stuff man @___@

 

[Hoenn]

I'll wifi the midwest players here... I dislike out of region wifi
not worth the lag
The midwest has more character diversity than any other region IMO
I get all my matchups right here <3

 

[TheGrunyan]

What button is "Jab?" Also, how is QAC done? I just don't know this stuff man @___@

When you do that you're only gonna rustle their jimmies.

I'll wifi the midwest players here... I dislike out of region wifi
not worth the lag
The midwest has more character diversity than any other region IMO
I get all my matchups right here <3

Hit me up sometime. I'm in the Midwest.

Does anyone play pikachu online? If you do can we brawl?

I'll play you sometime.

 

[Mr.Pikachu]

When you do that you're only gonna rustle their jimmies.
Hit me up sometime. I'm in the Midwest.

I'll play you sometime.

So can we brawl sometime today or tomorrow? And I'll brawl Angiance too if he has time

 

[Ookami Hajime]

What do you guys think of Pika's offstage game? Do you guys think it's a good idea to challenge most characters offstage to wrap up a kill when the momentum is all yours?

 

[Angiance]

Well most Pikachu don't really believe we should go offstage because "ooooo, we have projectiles, we should revolve HALF of the metagame on them," or we're better off staying onstage for edgeguarding with Thunfail; our offstage metagame needs more development. Our recovery is just ridiculous, and U-Air/Rising N-Air are lightning fast...