Pros and cons of dual maining

[Gearitz]

I've heard varied opinions on dual maining and I want to hear a list of pros and cons of dual maining characters.

 

[EPsilon933]

Pros
Better match up coverage, some skills can transition to other characters, a deeper way to learn the game


Cons
Divides skill among multiple characters, you're only as good as your best character, difficult match ups can be overcome but they have to be fought through not won through relying on better tools


I'm on the 1 main only side of the argument. I have a huge bias

 

[Codey]

I'm a noob but I agree with EP. I like to jump on another character when I'm numb from staring at Sheik, but that is completely in fun, not me legitimately trying to learn 2 characters. There are SO many nuances to each character, you aren't doing either one justice by halfassing 2 different characters. Not only do you have to learn twice as many techniques that are character specific, you have to teach your hands how to do things slightly differently. If you main 1 character, your wavedash will be way more consistent for example. Not only is it more simple on a thinking level to only use 1, but I think it really helps develop your muscle memory for specific timings only learning 1 character.

 

[Sage_]

Obviously it takes more effort to have two characters, and have skill with both of them, especially between switching in between the set. For instance if I switch from a spacie to say sheik, if accidentally try to input shine, i'll be ****ed. Now there is always upsides, like what EP said about character match ups. Jigglypuff struggles with spacies, but if I change to say samus, then I have an inherent match up benefit. But there is always the factor of counter picks, vs. knowledge. It is definitely way better to stick with a character you say have 50 hours of practice on, rather than a character you only have a few hours of practice. If you have more knowledge than just pure counter pick advantage, you'll have more comfortable and knowledgeable with your plays. No its also good to consider that counter picks don't mean everything. Character match up is simply defined by options. Hungrybox has explained on multiple occasion that when he plays against fox, they are able to K.O. him off pretty much every stage with an up smash at 50%. This does not mean he should switch character. Although it will help, if he's more comfortable with puff then he can fight against the unfavorable match up by adjusting his play style to cover the weaknesses that fox try's to expose against he puff. This strategy doesn't make the puff insta win because there are no more weaknesses, but it gives him a better chance than playing full agro instead of being rather defensive and camping. This is just one example of how character knowledge trumps everything about match ups. It is also important to remember that even though one character would still be at disadvantage, because they are always limited in one field due to strategy varying, Melee is a game about creativity. It wasn't until Kings of Cali 4 where the idea and theory that fox is the best character in the game and only meta should be played that aMSa, the red yoshi (ranked 18 on the current tier list: http://www.ssbwiki.com/List_of_SSBM_tier_lists_(NTSC)) was able to trump M2K, one of the most dominant players in ssbm for years and years (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDnKE5J7ki8). The reason aMSa was able to do so? His knowledge. Yoshi can't just do whatever he wants against fox, he's gonna get rekt. However like any match up, the player has to use their tools and knowledge to work and dominate against any player. There is no greatness in character but simply the player who controls their character. in summary maining two characters gives you an edge in your main's bad match ups, but if it requires too much focus away from your main then there is always the alternative to practicing your main to heart and learning all their in and outs to beet these match ups. If you would rather play two characters to win a match up, then there is nothing wrong with that, if you would rather dedicate your time to learning on character in depth and becoming a master with that character, there is nothing wrong with that either.

 

[Zodiac]

Everyone should main three characters, the character they want to main, the character for bad match ups, and the character they have the most trouble against.

 

[MagicScrumpy]

Everyone should main three characters, the character they want to main, the character for bad match ups, and the character they have the most trouble against.

No.

It may help to mess around with the character you struggle the most against to help you really find out how and where the character struggles, but maining him/her just because you struggle against him/her is bad.

And the way you worded the post kind of shows that you don't quite understand what a main is. A "character for bad match ups" to use secondarily to the "character they want to main" is a secondary. I'm a Peach main who sometimes likes to use Samus for certain matchups, but that doesn't mean I'm a Peach/Samus dual main.

I see where you're coming from. though. But character you play in friendlies or character you're exploring to find weaknesses =/= a main. It's totally normal to play six or seven different characters in friendlies; that doesn't mean you main those six or seven characters. But if you want to improve drastically and quickly, playing six or seven characters in friendlies is not an option.

I think dual maining is not a very good idea. If your main really struggles with a matchup or two, maybe a secondary is okay to have, but unless the matchup is actually terrible you're probably better off learning the tough matchup with your one, best character.

 

[Twinkles]

Obviously...

Future advice, break down your paragraphs with linebreaks everywhere and make your posts readable. I like seeing people's opinions read, and no one is gonna read your post the way it is now (no offense).

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IMO Don't dual main until you reach a high level of play. If you want to dual main, you better be attempting to learn every matchup with both characters. Struggling against a MU you don't initially understand is a great of way of gaining deeper understanding of the game.

Playing around with multiple characters will probably slow your growth just by the fact that time you put into other characters is time you could've spent working on your main.

I do it anyway because it's fun.

 

[Zodiac]

No.

It may help to mess around with the character you struggle the most against to help you really find out how and where the character struggles, but maining him/her just because you struggle against him/her is bad.

And the way you worded the post kind of shows that you don't quite understand what a main is. A "character for bad match ups" to use secondarily to the "character they want to main" is a secondary. I'm a Peach main who sometimes likes to use Samus for certain matchups, but that doesn't mean I'm a Peach/Samus dual main.

I see where you're coming from. though. But character you play in friendlies or character you're exploring to find weaknesses =/= a main. It's totally normal to play six or seven different characters in friendlies; that doesn't mean you main those six or seven characters. But if you want to improve drastically and quickly, playing six or seven characters in friendlies is not an option.

I think dual maining is not a very good idea. If your main really struggles with a matchup or two, maybe a secondary is okay to have, but unless the matchup is actually terrible you're probably better off learning the tough matchup with your one, best character.

Yes

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[MagicScrumpy]

Awesome post. You did a very good job showing your understanding and why you think it's good to have three mains. This is the kind of high-quality discussion we should be having on this site.

 

[Brinzy]

Everyone should main three characters, the character they want to main, the character for bad match ups, and the character they have the most trouble against.

You would be far better served learning the bad matchup unless it was completely unwinnable. Even then, what you're talking about is a main and a secondary.

 

[Sage_]

Future advice, break down your paragraphs with linebreaks everywhere and make your posts readable. I like seeing people's opinions read, and no one is gonna read your post the way it is now (no offense).

---

IMO Don't dual main until you reach a high level of play. If you want to dual main, you better be attempting to learn every matchup with both characters. Struggling against a MU you don't initially understand is a great of way of gaining deeper understanding of the game.

Playing around with multiple characters will probably slow your growth just by the fact that time you put into other characters is time you could've spent working on your main.

I do it anyway because it's fun.

Thanks for the advice man, I apreciate it

 

[_BETA_]

Dual maining can help you when one of your mains can't handle your opponent's main.

I'm a DK/Doctor Mario dual main

 

[Dolla Pills]

A really interesting perk of dual maining I realized the other day because my friend plays Falcon/Marth:

In a 2/3 set against a space if he wins game one with Falcon he can ban FoD, and then there's a good chance the spacy will take him to FD and he can go Marth. Not a perfect plan but it's interesting

 

[MurphyPrime]

There is a big difference between maining a character with a pocket character and dual maining. If you dual main for the singular purpose of handling matchups that your other character can't you are severely hindering both mains. If you still struggle to perform tech with a character, dual maining is not the way to go. I want to dual main Luigi and Yoshi because I love those characters, but for now I'm not confident enough with either character to start dual maining. So I practice Luigi for 80% of my time. My other time spent is just messing around with other characters. I should note that it takes less effort to make a character acceptable than it does to make a character that is acceptable into an amazing character.

 

[SAUS]

Honestly, the pros are very minimal. Until you are winning money, your tournament placement almost doesn't matter (as in, being + or - a few spots doesn't really matter).

The potential cons can be much worse, but they also might not affect you. Just to list off some (and remember, they are only potential problems and may not affect you):
- Slower learning of the game (much more important than beating maybe one more opponent by using a different character)
- More learning required since you have two characters to learn
- Those moments where you have to play the wrong matchup (due to opponent's counterpicking)
- Those moments when you switched for game 3 and lost (can be bad for mentality)
- Those moments when you didn't switch for game 3 and lost (same thing)
- Playing friendlies (without full set friendlies) can be awkward if you are always counterpicking people or stages (or they are wasteful where you are practicing for an unintended matchup or character + stage combo)
- Thinking more about character counterpicking which leads to less thinking about the actual game (especially when trying to choose two characters to complement each other - it leads to lots of theorycrafting when you might not know enough about the game)
...

There is a large portion of the game that must be understood before character choice even matters (except maybe with really bad characters) and dealing with all the character choice problems while you don't have a good understanding of the game is only going to hurt your progress.

While it's been noted in here, remember that there is a difference between maining and testing a character out. Experimenting with other characters can improve learning and can also be fun once in a while (very important factor).