Arrow Canceling
Learning Curve:
**
Application Difficulty:
**
Usefulness:
**
Arrow canceling is when Link shoots an arrow without any of the start-up lag. There are a few downsides to arrow canceling. They cannot be charged, they don't go far, and if powershielded at close range, the ending lag can leave you vulnerable. Still, that doesn't mean there aren't many applications for arrow canceling.
To perform it, it's as simple as pressing B right before Link touches the ground. Now, sure it sound simple, but really, the timing is a bit difficult to get consistent with at first. The one way to tell for sure if you arrow canceled or not is to look at Link's right arm. If it's holding both the bow and carrying the Hylian Shield, you arrow canceled. If not, you did it wrong.
The hardest part about learning this consistently is doing it after a short-hop and then fast falling. It's guaranteed that the first few times it is tried, Link will pull a bomb. The timing really has to be precise.
Truth is, it can be done after almost any move in the air. Unfortunately, you
cannot arrow cancel after a Z Air unless the Z Air is full-hopped, in which case it becomes useless. It can, however, be done after a short-hopped back air, a short-hopped bomb throw, a short-hopped boomerang throw, and sometimes a short-hopped forward air. It works well for creating a semi-wall of projectiles when combined with the bomb throws and boomerangs.
Probably the best use for arrow canceling is to stop the opponent from chasing you. Let's say you get hit with some move that sends you into a "tumble" animation and doesn't have much knockback. For example, Link's forward tilt at low percents would do this. Now, if you press B while in that tumble animation (remember, you're flying horizontally and relatively low to the ground), you can arrow cancel straight out of that "tumble." It stops the opponent from chasing you completely.
Reverse
Doing an arrow cancel after a back air doesn't sound too useful. What's the point in hitting the opponent one way and shooting in another? Well, you can actually do what is called a Reverse Arrow Cancel, in which Link will turn around at the last second and shoot the arrow in the same direction as his back air.
To do this, do a back air, then when Link's second kick comes out, press back again on the control stick. Then press B just before landing. Don't do them at the same time because you'll throw the boomerang.
Also, if you press the control stick too late, Link will do a fake-out reverse arrow cancel. He'll turn around, but the arrow won't. In other words, the arrow will shoot out of Link's back.
Here's a video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcODP-_bhrI
