Q&A The Barracks - Robin Q&A Thread [ASK GAMEPLAY QUESTIONS HERE]

[Raziek]

Sry if I overlooked this or if it's something obvious, but is there a way to consistently use the Leven(I think I misspelled that lmao) sword in your aerials or is it just a % chance thing?

Input the aerial as if you would a Smash attack.

 

[Ralph Cecil]

Ooooooh kk. That's really interesting. Thanks! :D

 

[kalem333]

Sry if I overlooked this or if it's something obvious, but is there a way to consistently use the Leven(I think I misspelled that lmao) sword in your aerials or is it just a % chance thing?

Pretty sure they're arial smash attacks. You've got to have the sword though.

 

[Opana]

Would a Nosferatu tech chase be possible/viable?

Maybe through the use of platforms like Snake in Brawl? I feel with the ability to heal, his would have fantastic potential if possible. I'd love if someone could give me an idea of whether this would likely work or not, if so thanks in advance.

 

[Hong]

@ Opana Your thread just seems to be a simple question, so I moved it to the Q&A thread.

 

[sunfallSeraph]

I just thought of something while watching ZeRo's stream... Is there any visual indication, either for tomes or the Levin Sword, of when regeneration occurs? I've never noticed anything, so I expect the answer is no, meaning we'll all have to get accustomed to watching the clock if we don't want to whiff those Arcfires hard...

 

[Raziek]

I just thought of something while watching ZeRo's stream... Is there any visual indication, either for tomes or the Levin Sword, of when regeneration occurs? I've never noticed anything, so I expect the answer is no, meaning we'll all have to get accustomed to watching the clock if we don't want to whiff those Arcfires hard...

There is, yes. There's a little flash of light, and the new tome/sword appears in Robin's hand.

 

[sunfallSeraph]

There is, yes. There's a little flash of light, and the new tome/sword appears in Robin's hand.

Huh, I've really never managed to notice. That's a relief though, counting tome uses is already gonna be distracting enough, ha ha.

 

[Opana]

@ Opana Your thread just seems to be a simple question, so I moved it to the Q&A thread.

Sorry, still adjusting to the forums lol.

Thank you.

 

[shane3x]

So the tomes have usages, once they are all used it takes some time for them to come back. What happens if say you've used all of the wind tome and Robin needs to use his recovery, is he essentially dead in the water or does he still recover but none of the Elwind magic comes out to hit/hurt anything?

 

[Raziek]

So the tomes have usages, once they are all used it takes some time for them to come back. What happens if say you've used all of the wind tome and Robin needs to use his recovery, is he essentially dead in the water or does he still recover but none of the Elwind magic comes out to hit/hurt anything?

Dead in the water. Just a puff of smoke, no height gain.

 

[Hong]

So the tomes have usages, once they are all used it takes some time for them to come back. What happens if say you've used all of the wind tome and Robin needs to use his recovery, is he essentially dead in the water or does he still recover but none of the Elwind magic comes out to hit/hurt anything?

Dead in the water. Just a puff of smoke, no height gain.

Just to add to this: Robin only goes into freefall/helpless state when you can actually cast Elwind.

 

[Hayzie]

What.

https://v.cdn.vine.co/r/videos/8483...p4?versionId=Bx1YLE6CSoXhfoFsFeI7_tv3kPb5c7Ko


Reflect against the trail of the magic effect? If so, why didn't it effect Mario? Seems like it had already passed Mario so how could he have reflected it?

Or am I missing something.

 

[TeaTwoTime]

The end of the cape hit a hitbox near the end of Thoron's tail, which caused the whole thing to be reflected. This doesn't necessarily mean Mario is a counter; Robin will just have to use Thoron carefully.

 

[Hong]

Moved @ Hayzie 's query into the Q&A thread. As we discussed in detail on this forum, Thoron is simply a long projectile. You reflect some of it, you reflect all of it. You can't reflect half of Fox's laser, for example.

 

[.Shìkì]

Moved @ Hayzie 's query into the Q&A thread. As we discussed in detail on this forum, Thoron is simply a long projectile. You reflect some of it, you reflect all of it. You can't reflect half of Fox's laser, for example.

I imagine the reason why Mario was able to reflect it that far back was because he "fell into it" though. I doubt he is able to reflect it if any part of the Thoron hits him first, he should be in hitstun making him unable to use his cape. That poses the question if Mario is unhittable while he is doing his cape though (like villager pocketing), because otherwise he should have gotten hit out of his cape animation.

 

[Hong]

I imagine the reason why Mario was able to reflect it that far back was because he "fell into it" though. I doubt he is able to reflect it if any part of the Thoron hits him first, he should be in hitstun making him unable to use his cape. That poses the question if Mario is unhittable while he is doing his cape though (like villager pocketing), because otherwise he should have gotten hit out of his cape animation.

He possessed it before he fell into it. Mario's cape has always had generous height. It's only Dr. Mario's sheet that looks vaguely as narrow as it actually is.

 

[Fluggerson]

How do you choose which element you are gonna use for your jab? i've been curious about this since his/her reveal and i was extremely curious when i saw gameplay of him. Can someone explain? At first, i thought it would be the last color tome you used between fire and thunder, but i saw some videoes where it didn't follow that rule...

 

[Hong]

How do you choose which element you are gonna use for your jab? i've been curious about this since his/her reveal and i was extremely curious when i saw gameplay of him. Can someone explain? At first, i thought it would be the last color tome you used between fire and thunder, but i saw some videoes where it didn't follow that rule...

Merged your thread into this one, since it's just a simple question.

Your rapid jab combo (mash A) results in the Excalibur (wind) jab combo.
If you hit A, A, and A (or A, A and hold) results in the fiery explosion.

They are merely just two variation of a character jab combo. This is no different from earlier variable jab combos, such as how Link could end his with either a multiple thrust attack, or just one mighty thrust in the past. The only difference is the element of the jab attack draws upon that tome's resource pool, so if you use the fire jab, you expend a use of Arcfire in the process.

 

[Funkermonster]

Best thing to do when trying to recover back so I don't get edgeguarded?

 

[Fex13]

does robin have any true combos?

 

[BigOrb]

i'm struggling to find kill moves with Robin. I can rack up the % fine, but finishing them off is a bit rough because I don't know what moves are actually kill moves. Advice?

 

[~ Valkyrie ~]

i'm struggling to find kill moves with Robin. I can rack up the % fine, but finishing them off is a bit rough because I don't know what moves are actually kill moves. Advice?

LS-B-Air and LS-U-Air are very hard-hitting attacks, especially B-Air. U-Air has a mighty range as well.

I suggest saving spells like ArcThunder or Thoron on 140% if you're going to kills using the default configuration.

 

[Hong]

Best thing to do when trying to recover back so I don't get edgeguarded?

Welcome to the realm of Melee Falcon, where recovery is a virtual tour of purgatory.

You just need to learn to be unpredictable as possible, because Robin is very exposed from above. Try to mind game them as much as possible, like pretending to recover high and then going low, or if they go low, go reeally low and take advantage of Elwind's distance.

does robin have any true combos?

Aside from utilt-> utilt or Arcfire/Arcthunder into an attack, not really. Not much of a combo character. Apparently dthrow can combo some of the really big and heavy characters at low %, though. Will require testing with vectoring.

i'm struggling to find kill moves with Robin. I can rack up the % fine, but finishing them off is a bit rough because I don't know what moves are actually kill moves. Advice?

Stale moves will affect Robin drastically, because fair is both a good kill move, and a good general aerial combat move. Thus the solution is to RAR a bair when they are at a high % instead of using a fair. It has basically the same frame properties as a fair, but won't share the same diminishing returns. If they are getting seriously high in % (180%+), you can try a fire jab combo or bthrow, too.

For those unfamiliar with what a "RAR" is, it's a Reverse Aerial Rush. If you are dashing one way, suddenly hit the other way and jump, you'll turn around for your jump. Thus you can use this to have quick access to your bair (back aerial) attacks, which works great on an Arcfire confirm.

 

[Robertman2]

How is Robin against DHD, Bowser and Lucina?

 

[Delzethin]

I'm having a little more trouble than anticipated. Guess I'm a little too used to playing rushdown characters. >_>

So for starters...when are the best situations to use Arcfire?

 

[~Radiance~]

I wont lie im totally TL;DRing right now so if this info is in here tell me to look please

I was noticing that with the nerf to air dodging im having a lot of trouble getting back on stage when getting hit vertically. This is probably more of an in general thing but how are people getting back onto the stage safely given that our options for attacks that go down are relatively limited and i feel like dair is jut a bad option. Im guessing melee players would know how to do this since the air dodge wasnt the same back then, im just having issues getting safely on stage now.

 

[Voltampt]

You're right, everyone has trouble recovering vertically. It's just mixing it up when you land in order to not get hit.

Anyways, does anyone have problems with other characters with their projectile game? It seems to me that Robin sorta struggles against people like Shiek with her needles just because her projectiles come out faster, or characters that can just get into Robin's zone like Little Mac. Of course I've been playing online, so the matchup will change with stages like BF or w/e has platforms, but it just seems hard for Robin to do much unless he able to perfectly shut down or zone the enemy.

 

[TurtleLags]

How do I kill with robin? Also, can someone explain how Robin's moves work?
I feel like half the time I do things I don't expect. Sometimes levin sword or thorton book will appear and go poof. Also, should I always charge up with Nspecial whenever I can? Also, people seem to say Fspecial -> Fair is a good combo, but for some reason I can never get the Fair to connect after I trap them.

Kinda frustrated bc I love Robin but I am tired of losing lol... Please help!

 

[Loki]

There are quite some very detailed threads around this sub-forum that contain all the info you request. I suggest you to take a look around to find what you need. However, been specific, I suggest you the following (Cant post links yet >:L):

Raziek's Robin research room
Contain detailed info on what does what, how they work and how much they do. Also has info on how Robin's unique mechanics work (durability of weapons) as well as custom moves

The Barracks
For all info and questions related to Robin's gameplay such as techniques and stuff. Also, this thread kind of should go there... so dont be surprised if a mod moves it.

There are a handful other threads that contain really intersting and helpful stuff, so as I said before, take a stroll trough the forum.

As for move that kill... I can recomend a few. The most important ones being USair (or LS Uair, as you feel like calling it) and also Robin's Down smash. Those two are the main kill-moves we have. Other options (altough not as effective) are Front smash, Up smash and BSair.

As for specials, Arc-thunder and Thoron can kill, altough not that early. Elwind can spike if you time it correctly. And I think that's as far as Robin's killing moves go.

 

[Funkermonster]

^ I disagree with Lilttle Mac being able to get into his zone, if anything I'd say the matchup is against Mac's favor. I've beaten a ton of Little Mac's online just by counterpicking with Robin and I find it rather easy to keep him out with Arcfire and Thunder to rack up damage on him. Once I get him off stage, its not hard to edgeguard him when his recovery and aerial attacks are soooo bad, nothing a little Bair and Fair can't handle. In a match on Youtube with some pros of past Smash games in the same matchup, Mac was still struggling and defeated, and the commentators say that Robin will likely be a matchup Little Mac will have an uphill battle with.

But then again, I've beaten almost every Mac player I've faced.

 

[MMurph27]

So does anyone have a practical usage for Nosferatu? The range on it seems... deceptively bad? Is there something I'm missing about this move or should I just figure to play this character figuring that Down B is largely unusable?

Is there something you can completely combo out of Arcfire, other than Arcthunder? Does Fair work for sure, and if so can you do it on reaction to the Arcfire hitting or do you need to start jumping forward basically upon casting the Arcfire and hope it hits?

Does Dsmash have a reliable enough hitbox that it can hit enemies jumping at you from that above-forward angel or is Utilt the best bet?

Does Robin have a reliable way to punish rolls or roll heavy characters? I was fighting a very roll heavy Marth yesterday and realized I was truly struggling to punish. Having a hard time catching with jab and the grab range is so bad that getting into position for that usually results in a costly whiff. If someone gets within roll/grab attack range should I just do my best to create distance or could you read a roll and punish with a short hop bair(smash)?

Sonic... how do I even fight this character? It seems like if I try to set up and stage control with Fire or anything he can be ontop of me before the animation is over. What's the best options against this character?

 

[Ultimastrike]

Hey guys. I'm new to the Smash Forums, but I think I might need help learning how to use Robin. I did read through a few things here, but I'm already have trouble executing a few things such as Arcfire -> FAir. Anyone mind giving me a hand?

 

[Loki]

You need timing and speed to pull that. The window is rather close and a factor to consider is how close or far you are from your opponent when you cast arcfire. As for mentoring... there´s only so much mentoring we can do given that Smash 4 has less barelly 3 days out and Robin is a newcomer in this game, pretty much we are all on the same spot were we are learning how to use her.

Robin is a quite special character in many senses, from his unique mechanic (weapon durability) to how fast-falling his aerials in general is a bad idea. My suggestion is for you to take a stroll around the forum, learn the techniques and character-specific abilities, practice some on training and some other more on online.

 

[[ & ]]

So does anyone have a practical usage for Nosferatu? The range on it seems... deceptively bad? Is there something I'm missing about this move or should I just figure to play this character figuring that Down B is largely unusable?

Personally I find Nosferatu has the greatest use when your percentage is a lot greater than your opponents. As shown by Raziek's research thread, Nosferatu will heal more when your opponent is at a lower percentage than you. It's a risky move because it leaves you open to attacks if you miss, but I think it's worth it when you're getting dangerously close to death percentage and need a quick heal. On top of that, Nosferatu has an abnormally long regeneration time, so even the game seems to imply you shouldn't be spamming it.

 

[.Shìkì]

So does anyone have a practical usage for Nosferatu? The range on it seems... deceptively bad? Is there something I'm missing about this move or should I just figure to play this character figuring that Down B is largely unusable?

Is there something you can completely combo out of Arcfire, other than Arcthunder? Does Fair work for sure, and if so can you do it on reaction to the Arcfire hitting or do you need to start jumping forward basically upon casting the Arcfire and hope it hits?

Does Dsmash have a reliable enough hitbox that it can hit enemies jumping at you from that above-forward angel or is Utilt the best bet?

Does Robin have a reliable way to punish rolls or roll heavy characters? I was fighting a very roll heavy Marth yesterday and realized I was truly struggling to punish. Having a hard time catching with jab and the grab range is so bad that getting into position for that usually results in a costly whiff. If someone gets within roll/grab attack range should I just do my best to create distance or could you read a roll and punish with a short hop bair(smash)?

Sonic... how do I even fight this character? It seems like if I try to set up and stage control with Fire or anything he can be ontop of me before the animation is over. What's the best options against this character?

I don't get the complains over the Nosferatu range... if you can grab (or the enemy is very slightly out of robins grabrange), you are close enough to use it. Simple. And the vertical hitbox is relatively generous so hitting it on airborne opponents, punishing an airdodge, should work fine.

 

[Ultimastrike]

Does anyone have any tips on how to fight Sheik? She seems to be a bad match-up for Robin in most cases because needles and speed. Most of the time I keep getting hit with her superior aerial game, unable to pull out a Levin Sword.

 

[Hong]

How is Robin against DHD, Bowser and Lucina?

Duck Hunt: If they want to play on BF (which they probably will), use it to your advantage. They will probably want to setup shop underneath a platform. Use those same platforms to charge up Thoron and replenish your equipment. Don't need to be aggressive.
Lucina: Both Marth and Lucina have issues when they lose centre stage control. Bait them into the air, since I find their landing options are easy to punish. Spam quick Thunders as necessary. Beat Counter with hard reads.
Bowser: Play extremely lame. Never roll near a good Bowser. just move away, and watch out for those uairs on your jump.

So for starters...when are the best situations to use Arcfire?

Best learn the concept of leading your shots. The first use of Arcfire is direct attacks, and to do that, you need to predict where your enemy will be by the time it lands.

The second use is stage control. Throw it onto ledges when your foe is grabbing it. You can also throw it on the stage as you fade away to buy some time to charge up your Thunder tome.

Anyways, does anyone have problems with other characters with their projectile game? It seems to me that Robin sorta struggles against people like Shiek with her needles just because her projectiles come out faster, or characters that can just get into Robin's zone like Little Mac. Of course I've been playing online, so the matchup will change with stages like BF or w/e has platforms, but it just seems hard for Robin to do much unless he able to perfectly shut down or zone the enemy.

Against fast characters, i find the best you can do when they get in close is rely on those ftilts. It's hard to punish and comes out really fast.

Sheik will force you to approach, but don't be eager to hit that A button on landing. If you see them shield, go for Nosferatu.

Does Robin have a reliable way to punish rolls or roll heavy characters? I was fighting a very roll heavy Marth yesterday and realized I was truly struggling to punish. Having a hard time catching with jab and the grab range is so bad that getting into position for that usually results in a costly whiff. If someone gets within roll/grab attack range should I just do my best to create distance or could you read a roll and punish with a short hop bair(smash)?

Punishing rolls should be simple enough. Tilts and your grab should have no problem catching people who roll close enough to you, and if they roll away, use Arcfire or jump away and charge your Thunder.

On hard reads, I find the elongated hitbox of the LS dsmash absolutely crushes rolls.

Hey guys. I'm new to the Smash Forums, but I think I might need help learning how to use Robin. I did read through a few things here, but I'm already have trouble executing a few things such as Arcfire -> FAir. Anyone mind giving me a hand?

I merged your thread into this one.

You just need to act faster. If you make a good read and you're certain your Arcfire will connect, be ready for the followup.

Does anyone have any tips on how to fight Sheik? She seems to be a bad match-up for Robin in most cases because needles and speed. Most of the time I keep getting hit with her superior aerial game, unable to pull out a Levin Sword.

For her aerial combat, just try not to be too close to her from the front. Your sword has more reach than her slap and nair. Sheik is fast on the ground, but her horizontal aerial movement speed is not as impressive.

 

[TeaTwoTime]

I've been playing pretty much nothing but Robin since getting the game. Hopefully I can help a little.

Nosferatu is fantastic against people who have a habit of rolling behind you to go for a grab or attack. Just turn around and smack them in the face with your dark magicks. Outside of that, you can also use it to punish airdodge landings effectively. It's not especially worth using unless you're at high enough percent for it to scale up and your opponent is high enough for it to not be easy to mash out of, though.

Charge up your Thunder tome at any time where it won't put you into a disadvantaged position. Having a fully charged Thoron to punish airdodge landing is really powerful. Remember to hold down B for the extra kill power.

I find that Arcfire is really effective as a retreating aerial move if you can time it just right for it to still hit the ground. You need to use it just before landing back down for that to work. It's definitely possible to combo into FSair, but it also requires the move to connect properly and for you to follow up quickly. In many cases it's worth using FSair on the space just above where Arcfire has them trapped - if you aren't quick enough to FSair them while they're trapped, by the time you get there, that's probably where they'll be.
As has been said, using Arcfire to prevent advances also gives you a lot of time to charge up your Thunder tome. This can totally screw over characters Little Mac if you use Arcfire's limited uses wisely.

The spike on Elwind is risky, but also really good if you learn to position it properly. Use it on people who like to recover low and right next to the stage for quick KOs. The spike on DSair is better on opponents that recover higher, though.

Comboing out of Arcthunder is difficult as the move has rather long recovery, but it's definitely possible if the opponent is up close. Personally, I've been using Elthunder and Thoron the most - the former for edgeguarding and the latter for both edgeguarding and landing lag punishes - but Arcthunder is definitely strong. Others probably know its use cases better than I do.

Popping people off of the ledge quickly enough will put them in a good position for you to follow up with a BSair. Definitely a viable way to kill if they're at high percent. It's also rather safe for Robin to chase people off the stage with FSair; it's got a really nice hitbox and plenty of power and Robin can easily make it back to the stage with Elwind.

I prefer Robin's fire jab in pretty much every situation - the first jab comes out quickly and it's a great way to get people off of you - but it also means that Arcfire uses will be even more limited. It's probably true that the wind jab is better at low percentages, but I'm not too sure here as I don't use it much.

Robin's down-tilt comes out and recovers really quickly. Because of this, it's rather safe on shield and good at pushing enemies into Arcfire territory.

I could probably go on, but for now that's probably the bulk of what I've picked up so far. All the best.

 

[Moonlighter]

Something that I've been wondering is whether or not you could punish shielded smash attacks with Nosferatu. I'm pretty adverse to using the move most of the time thanks to the start-up (and in most cases would prefer the more reliable Levin Sword), but it's a bit of a shame to ignore it when it's conceivably a pretty useful tome. It sounded like a good idea when someone suggested it to me, but the start-up is pretty intense, so my major concern is someone shielded or spot-dodging away if they get out of endlag faster than Nosferatu can come out. Practical or no?