goodoldganon
Smash Champion
An In-depth Guide to Ganondorf in Brawl+ and How to Continue Murdering People
Table of Contents
- Updates
- Videos
- What's Changed?
- Moves
- Tips and Strategies
- Matchups
UPDATES
Update 1: Initial Version 4/15/2009
Update 2: Spelling/Grammatical Fixes. Added Setups section 4/17/09
Update 3: Updated Info on the Murder Choke and Wizards Kick as well as new strategies for approaching and edgeguarding. 5/22/09
Update 4: Updated to 7.0 Gold Release and added KO percents 4/19/10
VIDEOS
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbZZuOyIHl8&feature=channel_page
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=acmpaKEIKe0&feature=channel_page
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhskzaVP-qI&feature=channel_page
He has a few clips in here.
What's Changed?
In Original Brawl Ganondorf was considered one of the worst characters in the game, typically barely beating Captain Falcon out on the tier lists. His laggy attacks, slow speed, and difficulties with pressure prevented Ganondorf from truly shining in Original Brawl. Then comes Brawl+
In Brawl+ Ganon gained a lot of buffs, mainly just from the modifications to the games engine. Ganondorf has gained new approach options with auto l-canceling, hit stun has provided him with DEVASTATING combos, dash dancing and momentum to mix up his approaches (especially with the Murder Choke), and a few minor tweaks to his moveset have provided Ganondorf with the buffs he needed to truly shine as The King of Evil!
Here are a list of things Ganondorf is good at in Brawl+
Pros:
- Incredibly Strong, undecayable moves keep his hits with lots of percentage and knockback
- Heavy
- Thunderstorming
- Tech chase game with the Murder Choke as well as the combos it sets up.
- An amazing edgeguarding game
- A great punishment character
Cons
- Has trouble with pressure. Characters can pressure harder in Brawl+ too.
- Slow and easy to combo
- Huge, tallest character in the game
- Has trouble against projectiles
Pressure and projectiles are Ganondorf's worst enemies, but if you can catch an opponent in your grasp, Ganondorf makes sure it counts.
Moves
In the interest of time right now I'm only going to cover moves that have changed since Original Brawl or have new applications.
Jab: Lightning Fist
The only difference between this move now and Original Brawl is that the Brawl+ version has been sped up.This move is a good out of shield option allowing Ganondorf to get some extra space. Also, it is a guaranteed follow-up on the ENTIRE cast after a Murder Choke, allowing Ganondorf to set up an edge guard, something he excels at. Lastly, it is a decent approach when mixed with his F-air (Crotch Punch). Overall, with such a simple speed change, Ganondorf has received a very valuable assest to his moveset.
D-Tilt: ****in' Up Your Shins
This move hasn't necessarily been reworked, but I feel I need to mention two changes to Brawl+ that make this move superior then it was before. The D-tilt has good distance and pokes low making it a decent approach option. Since you can cancel dashes in Brawl+ by pressing down on the control stick, Ganondorf can use the D-tilt as another approach move to poke shields. If you can read techs properly after a D-throw or Choke the D-tilt is a pretty solid aerial combo starter. Though there will usually be better options, mixing things up never hurts.
U-Air: Acro(batic) Murder
U-Air still retains it's strong anti-air properties. The only thing worth mentioning about this move is it is still a good aerial finisher when you can't connect with F-air. Also, RAR-ing and hitting with the tips of his foot make it a VERY formidable edgeguarding tool. In Brawl+ you can also ledge cancel aerials. Ledge canceling is the act of retaining your momentum when you land from aerials.
For Dorf he can now ledge cancel his aerials. Though each aerial is great when canceled I make special not of Ganondorf's U-air due to the semi-spike angle on the tip. Though it takes a lot of practice you can get good enough to run towards an edge, RAR an U-air, ledge cancel as the tip is hitting the edge, fall of the edge, and immediately throw out another U-air. It's a **** flash and very effective edge guard tool.
F-Air: The Crotch Punch
The F-air currently has a 40% Aerial Lag Reduction (ALR) as well as a larger sweetspot allowing for it to be a BRUTAL aerial finisher. Use it as Ganon's primary aerial approach move and use the jab with it if the opponent shields. The Crotch Punch is a valuable tool in any Brawl+ Ganon's toolset. I wouldn't go as far as to say spam it, there is downtime between landing it and connecting with a jab, but it is a very solid move that should be used liberally. The sweetspot hit now has a darkness element to add a certain ****** factor to our favorite Gerudo as well as help newer Dorf players learn how to place the F-air.
D-Air: Thunderstomp/Thundertits/Thunderbeard
Once again, not much new to this move in Brawl+. It is much harder to auto cancel when you play on a lower buffer, so I suggest staying on the 10 buffer for new Brawl+ers. With momentum it is a more viable approach tactic and the move has sick stun on it. The Thunderstomp sets up into many of Ganon's aerial finishers and can be chained together very effectively. I have been able to chain 2 Thunderstomps, read the tech, hit a 3rd one, and then connect with an aerial finisher. Don't get predictable with the Thunderstomp but always be on your toes to use it as a setup for a combo starter or even a kill move.
Specials
Side-B: Murder Choke
After much deliberation the WBR decided to remove all of Ganon's guaranteed follow ups after a murder choke (except for Jab). Though jab is the safe way to build damage, but to really master Ganondorf you will need to master tech reading after a choke or D-throw. You are just gonna have to be a fast thinker and practice a lot. I can not give you really any tips on how to be a good tech chaser.
To build upon that, the Murder Choke is a slighly safer recovery tool now as well. You do not run the risk of someone just jumping into your hands to take both of you down for to your doom. Ganondorf can get the forward momentum he needs to propel him and his opponent BACK onto the stage.
Down-B: Wizard Kick
The Wizard Kick has received a power buff in Brawl+. The Wizard Kick now makes for an excellent spot dodge, shield roll, and tech punisher...figuring of course you can predict your opponent. If you are good at predicting your opponents tech roll, a pretty pimp finisher is: Murder Choke -> Wizard Kick. Certainly not Ganon's strongest finisher but a nasty one still. Also, the Wizard Kick now spikes on both aerial hitboxes, making it one of, if not the strongest base knockback spike in the game.
I should mention it has low growth. That means that it will take the move a while till it will outright kill a person without a thing they can do. Currently, when you try and Wiz Kick spike someone they will travel down till about the end of the Kicks distance. If the opponent didn't meteor cancel in time, you can then footstool them to a timely death. If they do meteor cancel you'll probably eat part of their Up-b. These are things you'll have to consider when going for the spike.
Also, an aerial Wizard's Kick will reset your double jump, giving Ganon good options when returning to the stage and also making him tricky to edgeguard. A missed gimp could result in a stock loss to the Wiz Kick spike.
Up-B: Shadow Shoryuken
The auto-snap ledges from Brawl have been removed in Brawl+ so Ganondorf needs to space his recovery just right. One thing many people did not see much of in Original Brawl was the Purple Uppercut attached to the ending of his Up-B. This move has a very large hitbox and priority making it tough to edgeguard Ganondorf on the stage. It can punch people through the stage! Combine that with Ganondorf's good ledge grabbing range, and it gives Ganondorf some good Anti-gimp tools.
Tips and Strategies
Ganondorf has very visible strengths and very visible weaknesses. As with any fighting game, Ganondorf needs to play to his strengths while leaving little room for people to exploit his weaknesses. Ganon capitalizes on mistakes likes it's no ones business. When Ganondorf gets his hands on an opponent (literally when we talk about the Murder Choke) he can lay the hurt on quite thick. So let's discuss how Ganondorf approaches, edgeguarding, his setups, and playing defense.
Approaching
Ganondorf isn't a master of approaching but when he makes a successful approach he can really lay the hurt on his opponents. Ganondorf's best ground approaches are the D-tilt, dash attack, and Wizard's Kick. Dash cancelled jabs aren't half bad either, but Ganondorf actually moves FASTER in the air then he does on the ground so it's not the best approach he has. Use the D-tilt in conjunction with dash canceling in order to strike low and quick. The D-tilt is also a very solid set-up for his aerial game. The Wizard's Kick has a strange hitbox that hits well above Ganon's dark kick making it tough to jump over. That being said, it is very unsafe on shields and should be used cautiously.
The Dash attack is a pretty self explanatory approach. You can buffer instant dash attacks if you press the C-stick down to attack. Otherwise, nothing new here. Last but not least, the new Wizard's Kick. The Wizard's Kick has a strange hitbox that hits well above Ganon's dark kick making it tough to jump over. That being said, it is very unsafe on shields and should be used cautiously. Use it mostly as an approach to punish rollers.
ALR and momentum have really helped Ganon's aerial approach options, especially the F-air. The F-air with it lower lag makes it Ganondorf's best aerial approach. Hitting the shield is quite safe against a large chunk of the cast thanks to its extreme pushback and shield stun. You can also lead right into a few lightning jabs to stop people from spot dodging in hopes of punishing your unsuccessful F-air approach.
Edgeguarding
Though you wouldn't guess it at first sight, Ganondorf is a monster off the stage. Ganondorf lacks any solid on-the stage edgeguards besides for his U-tilt, but that won't last long after you have landed it on an opponent once or twice. Unless the opponent botches their recovery, you will most likely be chasing your opponent off the stage.
Ganondorf's primary edgeguaring tools are his D-air, Up-air, F-air and Wiz Kick. Most of these moves are self explanatory, but I implore you to see exactly how far Ganondorf can jump thanks to his momentum. He can jump very far out to intercept his opponent. I won't cover the D-air, it hasn't changed since Original Brawl. I also won't cover the Up-air because I mentioned it's changes earlier. The only new moves added to Ganondorf's edgeguarding arsenal is the F-air and Wiz Kick. All that a new Brawl+ player needs to know is that the F-air is faster making it easier to use off the stage without fear of dying. I already discussed Wiz Kick spiking earlier, scroll up if you missed it.
Setups
For being so slow and cumbersome Ganondorf is a beast at comboing people. I would make an argument that Ganondorf is the best heavyweight at comboing, but that is not here or there. But how do we set-up Ganon's combos? Well that's why I'm here to help.
Ganondorf's D-tilt is his best tilt move used to set up combos. Sadly, it's a mediocre approach. Still it has decent range and pokes low not making entirely hopeless to hit with. You can tech chase with it, but it's almost always better to use the Wiz Kick. What the D-tilt is best at is setting up for Ganon's impressive aerial game. The D-tilt has good IASA frames (I believe) so you should be able to jump out of it and into the aerial domination.
Ganondorf's grab is still atrocious thanks to it's terrible range, but if you can grab someone use the D-throw. At low percentages you can tech chase a Thunderstorm or sometimes a Murder Choke with it. When people get into the middle percentages you can follow it up with a F-air or U-air. Once people get into the higher percentages the D-throw won't combo into anything, unless it's on a fast faller.
The Thunderstorm is still a powerful aerial and has a very good amount of hitstun on it. You should be able to combo almost any aerial into it. Auto-canceled D-airs are still a HUGE part of Ganon's game so play on a buffer that you feel most comfortable with.
And of course there is the Murder Choke. It doesn't have any guaranteed setups anymore, so you just gotta be able to predict where your opponent is going. If they tech in place they eat a jab, d-tilt, or F-tilt. I have even gotten F-smashes before! Still, good players will never tech in front of Ganon. If they tech behind you then you can F-tilt or D-smash. In front leads to a dash attack or Wizard's Kick.
Overall, Ganondorf's set ups are tough to connect with, but connecting with one can usually mean combos upwards of 60-70%. Also it helps turn the tide of pressure, something Ganondorf needs to keep in his favor. Ganondorf needs to be able to keep pressure on the opponent all while predicting their next move. It's tough but each hit he connects with is like getting hit by a bus full of fat kids...eating cake.
KO Percentages
Here are the KO percentages for D-air and F-air on the starters. No DI and from the middle of the stage everytime. DK is the average heavy, Lucario the average medium, and Puff the average Light.
http://yfrog.com/3wkopercentsj
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