Choice Scarf
Smash Journeyman
Discuss Pikachu's custom moves here: properties, applications, combinations, even move names (until the English release comes out).
This first post aims to have as much info on the moves as possible, though it's still recommended to try out the moves yourself and get a feel for what your preferences are. Assume that most info about the standard move will apply to the custom moves as well unless otherwise stated. If anyone info regarding the custom moves let the thread know and I'll update the OP. Pics, gifs, and vids are all helpful too! Anything in italics can appreciate some more confirmation.
Shout-outs to XQuoteX for pretty much all of the preliminary information and visuals!
Also shout-outs to NinjaLink for the video on all of Pika's custom moves!
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Neutral B
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An electric projectile that bounces along the ground as an arc, Thunder jolt is unique in that it hugs surfaces and can ride up walls or under platforms, allowing the player to hit an opponent hanging at the edge from a safe distance. It travels at a steep diagonal angle downward in the air and will switch to the same properties it has when used from the ground upon surface contact. 5% damage, low knockback and hitstun. It travels about 2/3 the length of FD before petering out. Using it from the air then hitting the ground resets this distance, allowing Pikachu to full hop, jolt, and land in time to chase after it as an approach tool (This method is the most efficient considering its relatively longer endlag). It's also useful for zoning and edgeguarding. B-turnaround and B-reverse can help with mindgames. It can be absorbed and reflected.
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A variation of the Thunder Jolt that stuns opponents much like ZSS's gun. The stun time depends on the opponent's damage percent (low vs high) and they can escape out of the stun faster by mashing. The jolt itself does 3% damage and has about less than half the range of a regular thunder jolt. It also has a lot of lag when using it on the ground so it's hard to capitalize when getting a stun off. However it's still highly recommended for set-up potential, which only gets better with increasing percent. It's best to use just after the apex of a full hop when in the air.
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A large, electric ball that shoots out straight forward from Pikachu, losing its surface hugging properties for a more traditional projectile. It's a lot larger than his other neutral B variations, with medium range in between the first two - shorter than thunder jolt, longer than stun jolt. When used from the air it still shoots out horizontally and does not fall diagonally like the other jolts. It's benefit is it's damage, it does 3% with a 10% sweet spot on the tip of its range, which has good, potentially KO level knockback unlike the other jolts. However, it has the most endlag of all of the jolts, so it's harder to follow up especially when grounded, and only the sweetspot deals enough knockback for the kill, so it must be correctly spaced for proper use.
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Side B
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Pikachu flies horizontally at opponent. Uncharged deals 7% and 10% damage when stick is tilted and smashed respectively, can be charged for a short time (90 frames?) for a maximum of 22% damage. Uncharged travels a little over half the length of FD, while full charge travels the full length of FD. It's launch speed and knockback also increase with charge. It has a great deal of endlag but can be acted out of, so it is useful for augmenting Pikachu's recovery. It can also sweetspot the ledge, though it is a riskier method when Quick Attack is safer. Its hitbox now properly covers Pika's head, so can eat up some projectiles instead of being beaten by them, though this stops Pika's momentum so it is not recommended doing this unless far enough away.
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Pikachu flies horizontally at opponent like Skull Bash but locks opponents in a multi-hit attack with the final attack hitting with some hard knockback. It's like a beefed up Pika Fair but with HUGE ending/landing lag, so it's very risky. It does about 7-9 hits of 1-2% damage with the final hit doing 3-4% and the knockback. It still can be charged for better damage and distance. For now, needs more testing, but I'd assume it works well in FFAs.
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Pikachu flies horizontally at opponent just like the others, but after entering the button sequence, Pikachu blasts forward at a blinding speed. This makes it great for catching opponents by surprise or punishing rolls. Charging takes less time and now only increases damage, as the range is now fixed (see here), so while it doesn't travel as far (being the shortest of all three bashes) it makes spacing and tricks like sweetspotting the ledge from stage more consistent. It has same landing lag as Skull Bash, which considering it's capacity of both damage AND speed is not bad at all. The knockback starts about the same as Skull Bash for the most part but becomes a kill move option at above 100%. Damage varies based on distance from opponent (perhaps it's a timed hitbox), doing 15% up close, then with increasing distance 10%, 5%, and then 2%. Full charge does 32% point blank, then 21%, 10%, and 4% max distance. Be warned that if you use the bash out of a walk, run, dash jump, pivot, or skid, it only does 6% up close, 4% midrange, 2% far. So for max damage use when still or going in the opposite direction of your initial movement (So you can side B out of a dash in the opposite direction but pivot cancelling will result in lower damage). You can charge the bash out of movement back to max damage, but the charge time will take longer, comparable to regular skull bash. The move appears to have a beneficial glitch where the distance covered is tripled if it is the first action you take out of hitstun (see here). This would make it both an amazing horizontal recovery option and a great punish/KO move (kills Mario from FD center at 124% uncharged, 44% full charge), so it's a highly recommended choice.
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Up B
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Pikachu zips through the air at tremendous speed in any direction. As in previous games it can be done twice by moving the control stick to a direction different from the original direction (22 degrees apart?), so (for now) it can't be used in the same direction twice. First QA (QA1) deals 2% damage, second QA (QA2) deals 3% damage with greater knockback and enough hitstun to potentially follow up at mid percents. One QA travels about a third of the length of FD. Pikachu cannot Quick Attack Cancel (a la Brawl) on horizontal surfaces but can on sloped surfaces and can Quick Attack Edge/Ledge Cancel. The lag when quick attacking into the ground is slightly faster than lag from special fall. It's inherent mix-up potential, speed, and distance covered makes it one of the best recovery moves in the franchise.
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Pikachu zips through the air in any direction twice like standard Quick Attack but at a slower speed and shorter distance. It is considerably more difficult to pull off as it seems there is a precise timing to input the second direction. It also has more startup lag than normal Quick Attack. It's utility is the meteor smash effect if you hit the opponent at the very beginning of either of the zips. If you hit in the middle of a zip, it still sends them downwards, but not nearly as strong as the meteor smash sweet spot. It seems more successful when hitting the opponent at a downward, diagonal zip, though it can spike when hitting at the tip/max distance of the first or second zip, be it horizontal, vertical, or diagonal. This makes it a very potent edgeguarding tool for players used to using Quick Attack from the ledge to steal opponents' jumps. It has slightly more knockback that the regular Quick Attack. As it does not cover as much distance, so recommend pairing with regular skull bash for adequate recovery. (NOTE: need damage)
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Pikachu zips through the air at tremendous speed in a single direction. It can be only done once and the range is like two individual zips of Quick Attack if not more (half the distance of FD). Though the viabiity of the second direction is lost, the quickness and end lag are the same as regular Quick Attack, so just remember that the user must commit to the first zip. It does 5% damage with the same knockback as QA1 and has increased hitstun, so it can potentially be good for long distance rushdown. When zipping diagonally downward towards the stage, instead of just landing, the zip will continue horizontally across the stage for the remaining distance you have (think of the "Nike" check mark logo).
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Down B
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PIKA! Pikachu calls on a thunderbolt from the sky. It has massive disjoint, though distance nerfed from previous games. Bolt deals 9% damage and sends opponent diagonally upwards. If Pikachu hits itself with the bolt, it generates a "splash" hitbox that deals 15% damage and greater knockback, with less endlag and air stalling properties. The top most portion of bolt is a meteor, which can combo into the thunder splash for a quick damage builder but makes Thunder spiking more difficult to pull off. B-reverse thunder can be used for edgeguarding, though as the bolt itself is shorter its effective timing is stricter. A frame 1 activation means that the bolt itself cannot be stuffed. The bolt can go through top plaform (but not side platforms) of Battlefield.
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This move forgoes the bolt and instead discharges electricity from around it. It has three hits, the first two do 2% each, and the last hit does 15%. The last hit has considerable knockback, with the greatest knockback when used right next to the opponent. When used from the air the discharge does not follow Pika down as he falls, so it could possible work as an anti-air punish. It is possible to KO Mario from center FD at 92%, so it seems to be a potent kill move. However, it has great start and end lag, so use to punish rolls and spotdodges, don't use offstage unless you are high up, and the first two hits make it SDIable, so use it sparingly.
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The bolt starts higher and deals more damage at the cloud than near Pikachu. The cloud is extremely high up, so the bolt takes a while to hit Pikachu. Seemingly still a Frame 1 move, though more than likely less effective at combo breaking since it has to travel longer. It is very similar to Pikachu's Thunder from previous games since it looks designed to kill off the ceiling with it. But it's easily dodged and punished, so it is probably only good for following up Up smash and for platform heavy stages like Battlefield. Unsure if meteor hitbox is still near cloud, though if it was it would be even less practical. Essentially need more testing
This first post aims to have as much info on the moves as possible, though it's still recommended to try out the moves yourself and get a feel for what your preferences are. Assume that most info about the standard move will apply to the custom moves as well unless otherwise stated. If anyone info regarding the custom moves let the thread know and I'll update the OP. Pics, gifs, and vids are all helpful too! Anything in italics can appreciate some more confirmation.
Shout-outs to XQuoteX for pretty much all of the preliminary information and visuals!
Also shout-outs to NinjaLink for the video on all of Pika's custom moves!
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Neutral B
An electric projectile that bounces along the ground as an arc, Thunder jolt is unique in that it hugs surfaces and can ride up walls or under platforms, allowing the player to hit an opponent hanging at the edge from a safe distance. It travels at a steep diagonal angle downward in the air and will switch to the same properties it has when used from the ground upon surface contact. 5% damage, low knockback and hitstun. It travels about 2/3 the length of FD before petering out. Using it from the air then hitting the ground resets this distance, allowing Pikachu to full hop, jolt, and land in time to chase after it as an approach tool (This method is the most efficient considering its relatively longer endlag). It's also useful for zoning and edgeguarding. B-turnaround and B-reverse can help with mindgames. It can be absorbed and reflected.
A variation of the Thunder Jolt that stuns opponents much like ZSS's gun. The stun time depends on the opponent's damage percent (low vs high) and they can escape out of the stun faster by mashing. The jolt itself does 3% damage and has about less than half the range of a regular thunder jolt. It also has a lot of lag when using it on the ground so it's hard to capitalize when getting a stun off. However it's still highly recommended for set-up potential, which only gets better with increasing percent. It's best to use just after the apex of a full hop when in the air.
A large, electric ball that shoots out straight forward from Pikachu, losing its surface hugging properties for a more traditional projectile. It's a lot larger than his other neutral B variations, with medium range in between the first two - shorter than thunder jolt, longer than stun jolt. When used from the air it still shoots out horizontally and does not fall diagonally like the other jolts. It's benefit is it's damage, it does 3% with a 10% sweet spot on the tip of its range, which has good, potentially KO level knockback unlike the other jolts. However, it has the most endlag of all of the jolts, so it's harder to follow up especially when grounded, and only the sweetspot deals enough knockback for the kill, so it must be correctly spaced for proper use.
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Side B
Pikachu flies horizontally at opponent. Uncharged deals 7% and 10% damage when stick is tilted and smashed respectively, can be charged for a short time (90 frames?) for a maximum of 22% damage. Uncharged travels a little over half the length of FD, while full charge travels the full length of FD. It's launch speed and knockback also increase with charge. It has a great deal of endlag but can be acted out of, so it is useful for augmenting Pikachu's recovery. It can also sweetspot the ledge, though it is a riskier method when Quick Attack is safer. Its hitbox now properly covers Pika's head, so can eat up some projectiles instead of being beaten by them, though this stops Pika's momentum so it is not recommended doing this unless far enough away.
Pikachu flies horizontally at opponent like Skull Bash but locks opponents in a multi-hit attack with the final attack hitting with some hard knockback. It's like a beefed up Pika Fair but with HUGE ending/landing lag, so it's very risky. It does about 7-9 hits of 1-2% damage with the final hit doing 3-4% and the knockback. It still can be charged for better damage and distance. For now, needs more testing, but I'd assume it works well in FFAs.
Pikachu flies horizontally at opponent just like the others, but after entering the button sequence, Pikachu blasts forward at a blinding speed. This makes it great for catching opponents by surprise or punishing rolls. Charging takes less time and now only increases damage, as the range is now fixed (see here), so while it doesn't travel as far (being the shortest of all three bashes) it makes spacing and tricks like sweetspotting the ledge from stage more consistent. It has same landing lag as Skull Bash, which considering it's capacity of both damage AND speed is not bad at all. The knockback starts about the same as Skull Bash for the most part but becomes a kill move option at above 100%. Damage varies based on distance from opponent (perhaps it's a timed hitbox), doing 15% up close, then with increasing distance 10%, 5%, and then 2%. Full charge does 32% point blank, then 21%, 10%, and 4% max distance. Be warned that if you use the bash out of a walk, run, dash jump, pivot, or skid, it only does 6% up close, 4% midrange, 2% far. So for max damage use when still or going in the opposite direction of your initial movement (So you can side B out of a dash in the opposite direction but pivot cancelling will result in lower damage). You can charge the bash out of movement back to max damage, but the charge time will take longer, comparable to regular skull bash. The move appears to have a beneficial glitch where the distance covered is tripled if it is the first action you take out of hitstun (see here). This would make it both an amazing horizontal recovery option and a great punish/KO move (kills Mario from FD center at 124% uncharged, 44% full charge), so it's a highly recommended choice.
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Up B
Pikachu zips through the air at tremendous speed in any direction. As in previous games it can be done twice by moving the control stick to a direction different from the original direction (22 degrees apart?), so (for now) it can't be used in the same direction twice. First QA (QA1) deals 2% damage, second QA (QA2) deals 3% damage with greater knockback and enough hitstun to potentially follow up at mid percents. One QA travels about a third of the length of FD. Pikachu cannot Quick Attack Cancel (a la Brawl) on horizontal surfaces but can on sloped surfaces and can Quick Attack Edge/Ledge Cancel. The lag when quick attacking into the ground is slightly faster than lag from special fall. It's inherent mix-up potential, speed, and distance covered makes it one of the best recovery moves in the franchise.
Pikachu zips through the air in any direction twice like standard Quick Attack but at a slower speed and shorter distance. It is considerably more difficult to pull off as it seems there is a precise timing to input the second direction. It also has more startup lag than normal Quick Attack. It's utility is the meteor smash effect if you hit the opponent at the very beginning of either of the zips. If you hit in the middle of a zip, it still sends them downwards, but not nearly as strong as the meteor smash sweet spot. It seems more successful when hitting the opponent at a downward, diagonal zip, though it can spike when hitting at the tip/max distance of the first or second zip, be it horizontal, vertical, or diagonal. This makes it a very potent edgeguarding tool for players used to using Quick Attack from the ledge to steal opponents' jumps. It has slightly more knockback that the regular Quick Attack. As it does not cover as much distance, so recommend pairing with regular skull bash for adequate recovery. (NOTE: need damage)
Pikachu zips through the air at tremendous speed in a single direction. It can be only done once and the range is like two individual zips of Quick Attack if not more (half the distance of FD). Though the viabiity of the second direction is lost, the quickness and end lag are the same as regular Quick Attack, so just remember that the user must commit to the first zip. It does 5% damage with the same knockback as QA1 and has increased hitstun, so it can potentially be good for long distance rushdown. When zipping diagonally downward towards the stage, instead of just landing, the zip will continue horizontally across the stage for the remaining distance you have (think of the "Nike" check mark logo).
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Down B
PIKA! Pikachu calls on a thunderbolt from the sky. It has massive disjoint, though distance nerfed from previous games. Bolt deals 9% damage and sends opponent diagonally upwards. If Pikachu hits itself with the bolt, it generates a "splash" hitbox that deals 15% damage and greater knockback, with less endlag and air stalling properties. The top most portion of bolt is a meteor, which can combo into the thunder splash for a quick damage builder but makes Thunder spiking more difficult to pull off. B-reverse thunder can be used for edgeguarding, though as the bolt itself is shorter its effective timing is stricter. A frame 1 activation means that the bolt itself cannot be stuffed. The bolt can go through top plaform (but not side platforms) of Battlefield.
This move forgoes the bolt and instead discharges electricity from around it. It has three hits, the first two do 2% each, and the last hit does 15%. The last hit has considerable knockback, with the greatest knockback when used right next to the opponent. When used from the air the discharge does not follow Pika down as he falls, so it could possible work as an anti-air punish. It is possible to KO Mario from center FD at 92%, so it seems to be a potent kill move. However, it has great start and end lag, so use to punish rolls and spotdodges, don't use offstage unless you are high up, and the first two hits make it SDIable, so use it sparingly.
The bolt starts higher and deals more damage at the cloud than near Pikachu. The cloud is extremely high up, so the bolt takes a while to hit Pikachu. Seemingly still a Frame 1 move, though more than likely less effective at combo breaking since it has to travel longer. It is very similar to Pikachu's Thunder from previous games since it looks designed to kill off the ceiling with it. But it's easily dodged and punished, so it is probably only good for following up Up smash and for platform heavy stages like Battlefield. Unsure if meteor hitbox is still near cloud, though if it was it would be even less practical. Essentially need more testing
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