Jerodak
Smash Lord
Hi, welcome any and all Bowser mains or anyone at all who is interested in learning a bit more about the big guy, to the Encyclopedia of Bowser. This thread is meant to be an up-to-date reference on all things relating to Bowser's Metagame as well as how game mechanics relate personally to him. As you read on please keep the following things in mind.
Firstly this thread is not intended as either a beginner's guide, though it may still be helpful to beginners as it will contain a lot of useful information that may help them in picking up the character. This is also not a thread that is intended for the discussion of metagame breakthroughs and discoveries.What this is, is a reference of all known facts about Bowser, every gimmick all the stats if possible, and every currently known Bowser mechanic. This is meant to serve two major purposes. First, it puts everything into one place where everyone can clearly see it and be directed to before making posts about "new" AT's that they simply could find documentation on already. Secondly, with everything being in one place, the information on Bowser becomes infinitely more accessible than it is now. I may be linking other guides here, or in the case of a few guides, merely take the most useful snippets of data from them and just post that directly while being sure to give credit to all parties involved.
I'm going to try to keep this thread as clean and organized as possible, if something seems out of place and you have suggestions on how to possibly format things more efficiently please let me know via PM. Should anyone wish to have something added to the reference then I suppose you could post a reply or PM and I'll add the data with credit to you if it's anything relevant to Bowser's gameplay in brawl.
That's about all, I hope everyone find this thread to be at least somewhat useful, Think of it as a final love-letter to Brawl's incarnation of the big guy with the coming of Smash 4 and all.
For example, while Bowser himself can be easy to punish, he is also built very well for punishing. His forward smash can punish good habits and his fortress used out of shield will punish bad ones. Bowser does lack combos he can make up for it in other ways, he has the Air Klaw which outspaces a lot of other moves and and very low landing lag which makes it a pretty strong approach and mix-up option when when spaced well. Then there's Bowser's grab release game which can be used to rack up damage and refresh your moves as well.
Another good thing about Bowser is the sheer number of his attacks which can actually K.O the opponent. Some of these options are also quite quick but they K.O a bit later than the slower higher risk options. Because Bowser is so heavy, it also means he's harder to K.O because you must get him to a higher percentage than the smaller and lighter characters before he is in K.O range, especially for characters like Jigglypuff and Peach who have very few reliable kill options under their belts.
Bowser is also good at edgeguarding and it can be very difficult to get back on stage against a good Bower player. With tools like fire breath and forward tilt as well as back air, forward air and even neutral air. Getting players offstage and keeping them there is another effective strategy with Bowser against most of the cast.
Finally, while he does have laggy moves, many of them come out very fast for their range and power and quite a few of them are disjointed. Furthermore, as long as you are not being predictable, which you shouldn't do with any character anyway, you will not find yourself being punished often. By the way, Bowser himself is actually very maneuverable for his size and weight thanks to koopahopping in tandem with his decent ground speed and air control. Any more experienced Bowser mains are more than welcome to check me on any of this or add more.
(I'm currently taking a break. Haven't given up on this yet, I'll get back into it when the inspiration strikes me again.)
Firstly this thread is not intended as either a beginner's guide, though it may still be helpful to beginners as it will contain a lot of useful information that may help them in picking up the character. This is also not a thread that is intended for the discussion of metagame breakthroughs and discoveries.What this is, is a reference of all known facts about Bowser, every gimmick all the stats if possible, and every currently known Bowser mechanic. This is meant to serve two major purposes. First, it puts everything into one place where everyone can clearly see it and be directed to before making posts about "new" AT's that they simply could find documentation on already. Secondly, with everything being in one place, the information on Bowser becomes infinitely more accessible than it is now. I may be linking other guides here, or in the case of a few guides, merely take the most useful snippets of data from them and just post that directly while being sure to give credit to all parties involved.
I'm going to try to keep this thread as clean and organized as possible, if something seems out of place and you have suggestions on how to possibly format things more efficiently please let me know via PM. Should anyone wish to have something added to the reference then I suppose you could post a reply or PM and I'll add the data with credit to you if it's anything relevant to Bowser's gameplay in brawl.
That's about all, I hope everyone find this thread to be at least somewhat useful, Think of it as a final love-letter to Brawl's incarnation of the big guy with the coming of Smash 4 and all.
This section is mostly for people who are new to the game and don't know any of the commonly used abbreviations and terminology. Here are some that are often used by Bowser players though many of them do not pertain specifically to Bowser.
OOS: You'll see this one a lot, it means Out of shield which refers to any attack or action you take while you are in your shield. Actions such as jumping, grabbing, and performing specials or even dropping the shield then jabbing or tilting (Commonly referred to as shield-dropped actions.) count as part of a character's OOS options. OOS options are a cornerstone of Brawl's gameplay and a major aspect of Bowser's game and are very important to master for every Bowser player.
Power Shielding: When you shield an attack just before it hits you the shield make a metallic clink sound, this is known as power shielding. When you power shield, you do not take shield damage or block stun which lets you react a lot faster OOS than with normal blocking. You will still be pushed around in your shield though so be careful when shielding near edges of platforms and ledges. As this can lead to you being pushed off the edge and can lead to some unfavorable situations.
PSC: Power shield cancelling which is buffering an attack or grab during the end of the shield-drop animation to have the attack come out sooner than it would without the technique. I don't recall seeing this term too often but it might come up so this is more of a just in case.
GR: Grab releasing, this is allowing the character to escape from your grab instead of throwing them. For some characters this offers some advantages. In Bowser's case specifically he has 11 frames of advantage on everyone that isn't Donkey Kong (1 frame advantage) or PK kids (21 frame advantage) when they ground release meaning the dropped down out of the grab. However, he has a 31 frame advantage when they jump out of the grab or Air release with the exception of Jigglypuff in which case he only has 30 frames of advantage. I'd like to thank Flayl for that information by the way. Anyway, this means that there is a limited amount of time in which Bowser can perform certain moves and the other character is unable to do anything to stop it. This is not as easy as it sounds, Bowser's grab release game takes a lot of practice to get used to the timing and feeling out when the character with break free.
Klaw: This just refers to Bower's Side-B move
Koopa hopping: Also known as Klaw hopping or, in some cases the Infinite second jump recovery or ISJR for short. This is using the interesting properties of the side-b to constantly spam Bowser's second jump as long as you have something solid underneath you. There are other characters with an ISJR but Bowser is seen doing it the most often as his is easiest to perform and perhaps the most versatile.
OOS: You'll see this one a lot, it means Out of shield which refers to any attack or action you take while you are in your shield. Actions such as jumping, grabbing, and performing specials or even dropping the shield then jabbing or tilting (Commonly referred to as shield-dropped actions.) count as part of a character's OOS options. OOS options are a cornerstone of Brawl's gameplay and a major aspect of Bowser's game and are very important to master for every Bowser player.
Power Shielding: When you shield an attack just before it hits you the shield make a metallic clink sound, this is known as power shielding. When you power shield, you do not take shield damage or block stun which lets you react a lot faster OOS than with normal blocking. You will still be pushed around in your shield though so be careful when shielding near edges of platforms and ledges. As this can lead to you being pushed off the edge and can lead to some unfavorable situations.
PSC: Power shield cancelling which is buffering an attack or grab during the end of the shield-drop animation to have the attack come out sooner than it would without the technique. I don't recall seeing this term too often but it might come up so this is more of a just in case.
GR: Grab releasing, this is allowing the character to escape from your grab instead of throwing them. For some characters this offers some advantages. In Bowser's case specifically he has 11 frames of advantage on everyone that isn't Donkey Kong (1 frame advantage) or PK kids (21 frame advantage) when they ground release meaning the dropped down out of the grab. However, he has a 31 frame advantage when they jump out of the grab or Air release with the exception of Jigglypuff in which case he only has 30 frames of advantage. I'd like to thank Flayl for that information by the way. Anyway, this means that there is a limited amount of time in which Bowser can perform certain moves and the other character is unable to do anything to stop it. This is not as easy as it sounds, Bowser's grab release game takes a lot of practice to get used to the timing and feeling out when the character with break free.
Klaw: This just refers to Bower's Side-B move
Koopa hopping: Also known as Klaw hopping or, in some cases the Infinite second jump recovery or ISJR for short. This is using the interesting properties of the side-b to constantly spam Bowser's second jump as long as you have something solid underneath you. There are other characters with an ISJR but Bowser is seen doing it the most often as his is easiest to perform and perhaps the most versatile.
-Overview-
Well the first thing that someone should know about Bowser is the basics, obviously he's the largest character in the game and by extension he is also the heaviest, this comes with a few obvious weaknesses which I'll go ahead and get out of the way now. First off, his moveset has some lag in it, anyone looking to pick him up should learn to get used to that, especially if you're switching from a character that has a moveset with little lag in it. This means, unfortunately, that Bowser can be very easy to punish and it also means that he does not have a lot going for him in the way of combos like many other characters do. Furthermore, out of all characters he is one of the easiest to juggle if not the easiest thanks to his large size and a blindspot directly under him when he's in the air or on a a platform. This can lead to taking lots of damage very fast and lead to being K.O'd quickly even with his impressive weight. On top of that, he can also have a very hard time versus anyone with good projectiles and is vulnerable to practically every most annoying chaingrab ever. Of course, none of that should matter too much when Bowser is played correctly; for every glaring weakness there is an appropriate strength.For example, while Bowser himself can be easy to punish, he is also built very well for punishing. His forward smash can punish good habits and his fortress used out of shield will punish bad ones. Bowser does lack combos he can make up for it in other ways, he has the Air Klaw which outspaces a lot of other moves and and very low landing lag which makes it a pretty strong approach and mix-up option when when spaced well. Then there's Bowser's grab release game which can be used to rack up damage and refresh your moves as well.
Another good thing about Bowser is the sheer number of his attacks which can actually K.O the opponent. Some of these options are also quite quick but they K.O a bit later than the slower higher risk options. Because Bowser is so heavy, it also means he's harder to K.O because you must get him to a higher percentage than the smaller and lighter characters before he is in K.O range, especially for characters like Jigglypuff and Peach who have very few reliable kill options under their belts.
Bowser is also good at edgeguarding and it can be very difficult to get back on stage against a good Bower player. With tools like fire breath and forward tilt as well as back air, forward air and even neutral air. Getting players offstage and keeping them there is another effective strategy with Bowser against most of the cast.
Finally, while he does have laggy moves, many of them come out very fast for their range and power and quite a few of them are disjointed. Furthermore, as long as you are not being predictable, which you shouldn't do with any character anyway, you will not find yourself being punished often. By the way, Bowser himself is actually very maneuverable for his size and weight thanks to koopahopping in tandem with his decent ground speed and air control. Any more experienced Bowser mains are more than welcome to check me on any of this or add more.
There have been a few movesets discussions on the forum and I will probably link some of them here for further reference but first I'll go over each of Bowser's moves for now, I think I'll give each attack it's own subsection with a brief overview of the attack and then further outline any significant uses for the attack after that. I also highly recommend checking out the frame data and Hitbox threads. They both contain very valuable data on how Bowser's moveset functions and if you're switching from a different character it's a good way to compare how their attacks differ.
(Frame Data) http://smashboards.com/threads/bowser-frame-data-in-depth-and-accurate.206219/
(Hitboxes) http://smashboards.com/threads/the-other-castle-bowsers-hitbox-repository.305686/
(Frame Data) http://smashboards.com/threads/bowser-frame-data-in-depth-and-accurate.206219/
(Hitboxes) http://smashboards.com/threads/the-other-castle-bowsers-hitbox-repository.305686/
Jab is the most basic attack in the game, every character has one, and Bowser's is really good. Each hit of a jab from any character with the exception of multi-hitting stages where the button can be tapped or held (Such as with pit, or captain falcon.) Count as separate attacks, not separate hits. This means that unlike other attacks in Bowser's arsenal such as Down tilt, Forward smash, Down air, and Down smash. Both hits of Bowser's jab each hit independently of each other. This means that when Stale move negation comes into play, your hit one of jab does not stale hit two of jab. This is pretty important to know because of how the stale moves mechanic works but I will go into more detail on that in it's own section later on.
Being Bowser's fastest attack, Jab's hitbox comes out on frame six, also, among jabs it's one of the further reaching jabs and can easily out-space the attacks of several cast members if they approach from the ground, this will often force the other character to jump and approach you from the air where the jab will not hit them.
Each jab does 5% when it hits fresh and the arm that Bowser is swinging with becomes intangible while the hitbox is out. This means that it's impossible to deal damage to Bowser by attacking his outstretched claw.
However, it is very possible to hit Bowser's massive head which extends out during the animation especially when connecting to jab two. This makes spacing the attack very important, especially if you try using jab to pressure a shield. The first jab's range is certainly far enough to out-space certain OOS options but it also has a 14 frame disadvantage on shield, meaning anything that can reach you within 14 frames is guaranteed to connect. The second jab has even further range but the disadvantage is even higher at 17 frames assuming that you connected without hitting the shield with jab 1 beforehand which would give a 12 frame disadvantage, still plenty enough to be punished hard for poor spacing.
However, while it is possible to punish OOS options with jabs there are much better options against shields like the air claw which ignores shielding, Fsmash and Dtilt may not ignore shield but they have strong properties against them and Dair will shield-stab the opponent. Jab can easily beat spot-dodging however, by simply delaying the attack, you can create a simple but effective frame trap by swinging the second hit of jab when the invincibility of spot dodge wears off.
Another good use for jab is versus projectiles, because Bowsers arms cannot be injured during the jab and because of the jab's priority it will clank with and cancel out most projectiles in the game. You can use jabs to clear out
-Pikachu's thunder jolts
- Weak charge shots and weak aura sphere from Samus and Lucario
- Link and Toon Link arrows and boomerangs
- Pit's arrows
- Samus missiles
- Any turnip thrown my peach that isn't stitch-faced
- Fireballs thrown by Mario and Luigi.
You can also use this attack against popgun peanuts but it's not recommended because you'll break the peanut instead of clanking with it, which means you're stuck finishing the jab while another peanut probably hits you, of course if you go to jab and catch one you can throw it back but it's not worth it; It's far more useful to be holding a banana. Also, when you clank projectiles with jab, you'll slide back a little bit so most players use Ftilt instead so they do not lose ground while approaching.
Space animal lasers are of transcendent priority and simply go through the jab and hit you anyway, do not try clanking these.
One final thing about jab that I'll put here is that the second hit of Jab hits not only further out but it also hits higher and lower than the first jab. If you space it properly, it will even hit anyone that hangs out on the ledge so long as they are not invulnerable. It will also hit anyone trying to reach the ledge if they come at it from certain angles, like from straight on. The fact that it hits a bit higher means it could also be used against short-hopped attacks if they are low enough but even the straight Ftilt hits higher than jab 2 and is the better option by far in the long run.
Oh, and the second Jab has K.O potential, but it's so miniscule that you will probably never see it unless you somehow manage to grab release chaingrab someone to 300%.
Being Bowser's fastest attack, Jab's hitbox comes out on frame six, also, among jabs it's one of the further reaching jabs and can easily out-space the attacks of several cast members if they approach from the ground, this will often force the other character to jump and approach you from the air where the jab will not hit them.
Each jab does 5% when it hits fresh and the arm that Bowser is swinging with becomes intangible while the hitbox is out. This means that it's impossible to deal damage to Bowser by attacking his outstretched claw.
However, it is very possible to hit Bowser's massive head which extends out during the animation especially when connecting to jab two. This makes spacing the attack very important, especially if you try using jab to pressure a shield. The first jab's range is certainly far enough to out-space certain OOS options but it also has a 14 frame disadvantage on shield, meaning anything that can reach you within 14 frames is guaranteed to connect. The second jab has even further range but the disadvantage is even higher at 17 frames assuming that you connected without hitting the shield with jab 1 beforehand which would give a 12 frame disadvantage, still plenty enough to be punished hard for poor spacing.
However, while it is possible to punish OOS options with jabs there are much better options against shields like the air claw which ignores shielding, Fsmash and Dtilt may not ignore shield but they have strong properties against them and Dair will shield-stab the opponent. Jab can easily beat spot-dodging however, by simply delaying the attack, you can create a simple but effective frame trap by swinging the second hit of jab when the invincibility of spot dodge wears off.
Another good use for jab is versus projectiles, because Bowsers arms cannot be injured during the jab and because of the jab's priority it will clank with and cancel out most projectiles in the game. You can use jabs to clear out
-Pikachu's thunder jolts
- Weak charge shots and weak aura sphere from Samus and Lucario
- Link and Toon Link arrows and boomerangs
- Pit's arrows
- Samus missiles
- Any turnip thrown my peach that isn't stitch-faced
- Fireballs thrown by Mario and Luigi.
You can also use this attack against popgun peanuts but it's not recommended because you'll break the peanut instead of clanking with it, which means you're stuck finishing the jab while another peanut probably hits you, of course if you go to jab and catch one you can throw it back but it's not worth it; It's far more useful to be holding a banana. Also, when you clank projectiles with jab, you'll slide back a little bit so most players use Ftilt instead so they do not lose ground while approaching.
Space animal lasers are of transcendent priority and simply go through the jab and hit you anyway, do not try clanking these.
One final thing about jab that I'll put here is that the second hit of Jab hits not only further out but it also hits higher and lower than the first jab. If you space it properly, it will even hit anyone that hangs out on the ledge so long as they are not invulnerable. It will also hit anyone trying to reach the ledge if they come at it from certain angles, like from straight on. The fact that it hits a bit higher means it could also be used against short-hopped attacks if they are low enough but even the straight Ftilt hits higher than jab 2 and is the better option by far in the long run.
Oh, and the second Jab has K.O potential, but it's so miniscule that you will probably never see it unless you somehow manage to grab release chaingrab someone to 300%.
Forward tilt, or "Ftilt" for short, is a fundamental tool in Bowser's ground game. The attack comes out on frame 10, deals 11% when fresh, has K.O potential, though not as much as most other K.O possible moves, and possesses a slightly lingering hitbox that can hit people who spot or airdodge incorrectly It also possesses intangibility the instant the arm comes out. However, since it's very easy to react to this move if you see it coming, it helps to not be too over-reliant or predictable when you are using it. The attack's range is much better than that of Jab and it can be angled up and down which make it a pretty versatile tool. Unfortunately, the arm lingers long enough for it's intangibility frames to disappear, this means that if you hit a shield, and get caught in hitlag, the opponent has plenty of time to shield-grab you and there's nothing to be done about it unless you happened to push the shield far enough away to cause the grab to whiff but try not to count on that happening too much. You can actually make forward tilt safer on some character's shields by actually spacing the up-angled version against them instead of the straight version, this usually raises Bowser's arm up high enough to cause the grab to whiff even if you may have somewhat improper spacing but do not count too much on this method either, the opponent may get wise to you and merely duck or use an attack that puts them lower to the ground to punish you.
When you angle the forward tilt down, it has a 40% chance to trip opponents when they are at low enough percent. At higher percent it has too much knockback for the trip to matter and the opponent will just get sent flying. So do not rely on this, down angled forward tilt has very few uses on stage anyway; it will mainly be used to edge-guard. When you're on the stage, standard and up-angled forward tilt will see much more use as they often are a better fit for the situations that you encounter onstage.Standard forward tilt has the furthest horizontal range of each version and will be used most often against grounded opponents. If you're going on the offensive, then it's best to hit with the tip of the attack where it is safest. You will also use this version most often against projectiles that can be clanked with and you will not slide back at all when you clank projectiles this way.
The up angled version will stop aerial approaches very well and will be a standard anti-air attack. It's the highest reaching version of the move obviously and can also clank with projectiles that come in from awkward angles. Down tilt is Bowser's lowest reaching attack on the ground which makes it ideal as an edge-guarding tool, it can also hit taller characters from platforms if they are at the right angles.
I'll close this section with a little fun-fact about Forward-tilt.
All versions of Forward tilt use the same start-up animation which has an instant wind-back which lasts until the attack comes out. This makes Forward tilt a great tool to use for Bowser's reactive anti-offensive game. When used to full effect in this manner, Forward tilt will out space a great deal of attacks, including ones which have more range. For instance, let's look at R.O.B's forward tilt which out ranges ours by a significant amount. If you try to stand in the tip of Bowser's forward tilt range and space the attack from there, you will most likely be hit by R.O.B's own forward tilt before you get there because it's range is further.
However, if you space yourself at the tip of R.O.B's Forward tilt, you can bait it out. Then when you respond to his forward tilt by throwing forward tilt, the instant wind-back will duck the attack, then you will hit R.O.B immediately after. For experienced Bowser mains, this technique is not unlike the use of Forward Smash to punish attacks in the exact same way. (I like to call this "Origami Koopa" or "Hurtbox Manipulation" lol)
Oh, and this attack can clank Din's Fire.
When you angle the forward tilt down, it has a 40% chance to trip opponents when they are at low enough percent. At higher percent it has too much knockback for the trip to matter and the opponent will just get sent flying. So do not rely on this, down angled forward tilt has very few uses on stage anyway; it will mainly be used to edge-guard. When you're on the stage, standard and up-angled forward tilt will see much more use as they often are a better fit for the situations that you encounter onstage.Standard forward tilt has the furthest horizontal range of each version and will be used most often against grounded opponents. If you're going on the offensive, then it's best to hit with the tip of the attack where it is safest. You will also use this version most often against projectiles that can be clanked with and you will not slide back at all when you clank projectiles this way.
The up angled version will stop aerial approaches very well and will be a standard anti-air attack. It's the highest reaching version of the move obviously and can also clank with projectiles that come in from awkward angles. Down tilt is Bowser's lowest reaching attack on the ground which makes it ideal as an edge-guarding tool, it can also hit taller characters from platforms if they are at the right angles.
I'll close this section with a little fun-fact about Forward-tilt.
All versions of Forward tilt use the same start-up animation which has an instant wind-back which lasts until the attack comes out. This makes Forward tilt a great tool to use for Bowser's reactive anti-offensive game. When used to full effect in this manner, Forward tilt will out space a great deal of attacks, including ones which have more range. For instance, let's look at R.O.B's forward tilt which out ranges ours by a significant amount. If you try to stand in the tip of Bowser's forward tilt range and space the attack from there, you will most likely be hit by R.O.B's own forward tilt before you get there because it's range is further.
However, if you space yourself at the tip of R.O.B's Forward tilt, you can bait it out. Then when you respond to his forward tilt by throwing forward tilt, the instant wind-back will duck the attack, then you will hit R.O.B immediately after. For experienced Bowser mains, this technique is not unlike the use of Forward Smash to punish attacks in the exact same way. (I like to call this "Origami Koopa" or "Hurtbox Manipulation" lol)
Oh, and this attack can clank Din's Fire.
Bowser's up tilt is a powerful K.O move with quick start-up and a pretty solid hitbox that extends mostly above and behind him. The attack is also disjointed making it completely safe against high-priority air to ground attacks when it's properly spaced and well-timed. The hitbox is also active for a while which allows this move to be used as a useful frame trap in specific situations. The end lag on this move is quite high, which makes it very punishable if you miss. However, overall this move is about the same speed as Up smash (When you compare the "rate of fire")
As far as K.O power, this move is only one step behind up smash in it's ability to K.O and will easily Star or Screen K.O most middle and lightweights near the 100% mark. It can also be used as a juggler to keep the opponent in the air when they attempt to land and can punish certain characters if they use a ledge jump to get back on the stage.
If you reverse the up tilt, you can make great use of the hitbox behind Bowser against grounded opponents and opponents in the air who are not directly above you, it can also be used to punish anyone who attempts to roll behind you. Up tilt hits as early as frame 8 and it can hit in front of Bowser but only in certain areas inside and above his head. It can actually clank fireballs from Luigi when he attempts to jump shoot them at Bowser's head.
You can also turn around and clank Yoshi's eggs this way which covers more angles than forward tilt can. but it's not as fast to reach the areas you may want to to be when clanking eggs which makes the timing somewhat awkward.
It's wise to never throw this move as your lead-in unless you know for sure that it will hit. It's actually better to lead with an up smash in most scenarios where you need to hit above you because you can react significantly faster out of an up smash than you can out of an up tilt. Even though both moves are about the same speed overall. It is is still very important to know because it means you are more likely to cover an up smash than you are to cover cover an up tilt. In most scenarios, this makes it the safer lead-in. Furthermore, the knock back against shields is much better on up smash and it's more likely to cause edge-slipping against a shielding opponent on a platform which would open up the opponent instead of leaving you punishable. Up tilt cannot be delayed via charging either, so keep that in mind as well when leading in this way.
Of course, in the scenarios where it's appropriate, Up tilt outperforms up smash splendidly. Such as against air to ground attacks with good priority or disjointed hitboxes. It can also frame trap air dodgers if they land behind you due to them following the arc the hitbox on the way down. When an attack is whiffed overhead or the opponent is punishable at all for any reason and you need to hit them right away, up tilt will do that for you better than anything in virtually every such situation. It's also an amazing surprise K.O move and will make most opponents think twice before fooling around above or behind you.
As far as K.O power, this move is only one step behind up smash in it's ability to K.O and will easily Star or Screen K.O most middle and lightweights near the 100% mark. It can also be used as a juggler to keep the opponent in the air when they attempt to land and can punish certain characters if they use a ledge jump to get back on the stage.
If you reverse the up tilt, you can make great use of the hitbox behind Bowser against grounded opponents and opponents in the air who are not directly above you, it can also be used to punish anyone who attempts to roll behind you. Up tilt hits as early as frame 8 and it can hit in front of Bowser but only in certain areas inside and above his head. It can actually clank fireballs from Luigi when he attempts to jump shoot them at Bowser's head.
You can also turn around and clank Yoshi's eggs this way which covers more angles than forward tilt can. but it's not as fast to reach the areas you may want to to be when clanking eggs which makes the timing somewhat awkward.
It's wise to never throw this move as your lead-in unless you know for sure that it will hit. It's actually better to lead with an up smash in most scenarios where you need to hit above you because you can react significantly faster out of an up smash than you can out of an up tilt. Even though both moves are about the same speed overall. It is is still very important to know because it means you are more likely to cover an up smash than you are to cover cover an up tilt. In most scenarios, this makes it the safer lead-in. Furthermore, the knock back against shields is much better on up smash and it's more likely to cause edge-slipping against a shielding opponent on a platform which would open up the opponent instead of leaving you punishable. Up tilt cannot be delayed via charging either, so keep that in mind as well when leading in this way.
Of course, in the scenarios where it's appropriate, Up tilt outperforms up smash splendidly. Such as against air to ground attacks with good priority or disjointed hitboxes. It can also frame trap air dodgers if they land behind you due to them following the arc the hitbox on the way down. When an attack is whiffed overhead or the opponent is punishable at all for any reason and you need to hit them right away, up tilt will do that for you better than anything in virtually every such situation. It's also an amazing surprise K.O move and will make most opponents think twice before fooling around above or behind you.
Down tilt is one of Bowser's safer and more reliable kill options not only because of the speed at which it comes out but also because of it's utility and the fact that it will most likely always be fresh. It is also not incredibly hard to use and Bowser has a few very simple set-ups that can easily lead into this. It's a very useful tool that is important for any Bowser main to learn to use properly.
Down tilt's first hit comes out on frame 10-11 the second on frame 20 this means that there is a 9-10 frame gap between each swipe this allows the attack to be used against spotdodgers as a frame trapping attack which is one way to score a K.O with this move if the opponent is at K.O percentage.
It also has some interesting properties against shields, if you look at the frame data on this attack you'll see that there's only a 4 frame disadvantage on shield when linking from hit one to hit two. This means that when you connect with the first hit there is a 4 frame gap where your opponent can act freely. This is actually pretty good in most scenarios and here's why.
The fastest possible grabs in the game are 6 frames, Down tilt wins.
Shield dropping takes 7 frames, or 17 frames for Yoshi, before being able to do anything else, Down tilt wins.
The fastest possible spotdodge executed frame-perfect would leave the opponent with an advantage of 3 frames. There are five characters with this option but only
Below within the spoilers is some frame data of everyone's evasive options and some additional information related to each option.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyFtJDxsqMs
Down tilt's first hit comes out on frame 10-11 the second on frame 20 this means that there is a 9-10 frame gap between each swipe this allows the attack to be used against spotdodgers as a frame trapping attack which is one way to score a K.O with this move if the opponent is at K.O percentage.
It also has some interesting properties against shields, if you look at the frame data on this attack you'll see that there's only a 4 frame disadvantage on shield when linking from hit one to hit two. This means that when you connect with the first hit there is a 4 frame gap where your opponent can act freely. This is actually pretty good in most scenarios and here's why.
The fastest possible grabs in the game are 6 frames, Down tilt wins.
Shield dropping takes 7 frames, or 17 frames for Yoshi, before being able to do anything else, Down tilt wins.
The fastest possible spotdodge executed frame-perfect would leave the opponent with an advantage of 3 frames. There are five characters with this option but only
Below within the spoilers is some frame data of everyone's evasive options and some additional information related to each option.
+3
Link
Pikachu
Falco
Yoshi
Toon Link
+1
Marth
-2
King Dedede (Of course, because of his Z axis this might null out the already small advantage there.)
-5
Donkey Kong
-7
Bowser (lol)
Everyone not listed above has a frame advantage of 0 when performing a perfect spot dodge vs the frame gap.
The least framed roll forward is Meta knight's. But if he tries this at all he will get hit because his invulnerable frames start on frame 5.
Anyone other than Jigglypuff that can safely roll will have a disadvantage of anywhere from 2 - 19 frames of disadvantage depending on who does it. Also, they will need to be frame perfect.
Link
Pikachu
Falco
Yoshi
Toon Link
+1
Marth
-2
King Dedede (Of course, because of his Z axis this might null out the already small advantage there.)
-5
Donkey Kong
-7
Bowser (lol)
Everyone not listed above has a frame advantage of 0 when performing a perfect spot dodge vs the frame gap.
The least framed roll forward is Meta knight's. But if he tries this at all he will get hit because his invulnerable frames start on frame 5.
Anyone other than Jigglypuff that can safely roll will have a disadvantage of anywhere from 2 - 19 frames of disadvantage depending on who does it. Also, they will need to be frame perfect.
-2
Lucario
Pit
Zero Suit Samus
-4
Diddy Kong
Squirtle
-6
Kirby
Donkey Kong
Fox
Pikachu
Luigi
Zelda
Shiek
Falco
Peach
Ganondorf
Ice Climbers
Wolf
Sonic
Ness
Captian Falcon
Lucas
-7
Jigglypuff (Can be -8 if roll was initiated as late as possible.)
Mario
Ivysuar
King Dedede
Olimar
-8
Ike
R.O.B
Yoshi
-9
Charizard
Marth
Mr. Game and Watch
Snake
-11
Wario
Link
Toon Link
-19
Samus
Then there's backwards rolling, the fastest of which belongs to Lucario at 27 frames which means he's at a 2 frame disadvantage. It also must be frame perfect.
Lucario
Pit
Zero Suit Samus
-4
Diddy Kong
Squirtle
-6
Kirby
Donkey Kong
Fox
Pikachu
Luigi
Zelda
Shiek
Falco
Peach
Ganondorf
Ice Climbers
Wolf
Sonic
Ness
Captian Falcon
Lucas
-7
Jigglypuff (Can be -8 if roll was initiated as late as possible.)
Mario
Ivysuar
King Dedede
Olimar
-8
Ike
R.O.B
Yoshi
-9
Charizard
Marth
Mr. Game and Watch
Snake
-11
Wario
Link
Toon Link
-19
Samus
Then there's backwards rolling, the fastest of which belongs to Lucario at 27 frames which means he's at a 2 frame disadvantage. It also must be frame perfect.
-2
Lucario
-4
Diddy Kong
Squirtle
-6
Kirby
Donkey Kong
Fox
Pikachu
Luigi
Zelda
Shiek
Falco
Lucas
Wolf
Ness
Sonic
Ganondorf
Ice Climbers
Captian Falcon
-7
Jigglypuff
Mario
King Dedede
Ivysuar
Olimar
Pit
-8
Snake
Meta Knight
-9
R.O.B
-10
Marth
Mr. Game and Watch
-11
Charizard
-11
Wario
Ike
Link
Zero Suit Samus
Yoshi
Toon Link
-19
Samus
In the forward and back roll lists anyone not listed will get hit for trying those options at all.
Lucario
-4
Diddy Kong
Squirtle
-6
Kirby
Donkey Kong
Fox
Pikachu
Luigi
Zelda
Shiek
Falco
Lucas
Wolf
Ness
Sonic
Ganondorf
Ice Climbers
Captian Falcon
-7
Jigglypuff
Mario
King Dedede
Ivysuar
Olimar
Pit
-8
Snake
Meta Knight
-9
R.O.B
-10
Marth
Mr. Game and Watch
-11
Charizard
-11
Wario
Ike
Link
Zero Suit Samus
Yoshi
Toon Link
-19
Samus
In the forward and back roll lists anyone not listed will get hit for trying those options at all.
.Bowser: Obviously because of the invincible 5 frame start-up which completely outlasts the frame gap and hitbox.
Metaknight: Shuttle loop is invincible on frames 5-8 so it will work if frame perfect.
Marth: frame 1 invincible, fast, and has plenty of range, it'll work.
These are just a few examples, I'll add more when I have more data.
Otherwise it's likely that the attack will either lose or, perhaps in some cases, trade with the hit.
Finally, if they decide to just wait in the shield you get a disadvantage of 22 frames.
For the set-ups that lead into Down tilt. All of them are simple and straight forward so I'll just list them here.
The first method is simply using it as a jab mix up by doing first jab -> D tilt. Keep in mind this isn't a true combo but it's pretty quick and not that hard to pull off as long as you aren't predictable. This is easier to use on some character than others. It's best to use this when the character pops up from the jab hit so that they fall down into the tilt when you use it. Also, be sure to mind the range so you don't whiff the hits.
Next up is the Grab release to down tilt set-up which works on a good number of the cast, unfortunately quite a few characters land too far away and it will not reach them. Refer to Flayl's Grab release thread for more details.
Finally, if someone is shielding above you on a platform, you may up smash to down tilt on most of the cast for free. The video below explains this in more detail so please check it out when you have time.
For more information on edge slip, including a visual demonstration, please refer to this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyFtJDxsqMs
Metaknight: Shuttle loop is invincible on frames 5-8 so it will work if frame perfect.
Marth: frame 1 invincible, fast, and has plenty of range, it'll work.
These are just a few examples, I'll add more when I have more data.
Otherwise it's likely that the attack will either lose or, perhaps in some cases, trade with the hit.
Finally, if they decide to just wait in the shield you get a disadvantage of 22 frames.
For the set-ups that lead into Down tilt. All of them are simple and straight forward so I'll just list them here.
The first method is simply using it as a jab mix up by doing first jab -> D tilt. Keep in mind this isn't a true combo but it's pretty quick and not that hard to pull off as long as you aren't predictable. This is easier to use on some character than others. It's best to use this when the character pops up from the jab hit so that they fall down into the tilt when you use it. Also, be sure to mind the range so you don't whiff the hits.
Next up is the Grab release to down tilt set-up which works on a good number of the cast, unfortunately quite a few characters land too far away and it will not reach them. Refer to Flayl's Grab release thread for more details.
Finally, if someone is shielding above you on a platform, you may up smash to down tilt on most of the cast for free. The video below explains this in more detail so please check it out when you have time.
For more information on edge slip, including a visual demonstration, please refer to this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyFtJDxsqMs
One of Bowser's most noteworthy moves, the Forward Smash is a force to be reckoned with, out of all forward smashes in the game it deals the greatest amount of damage. Among all of Bowser's attacks, this one also packs the most K.O power and can easily K.O light to middleweight characters quite early if they don't respect it.
Thanks to the incredible range on this move, including a generous disjoint near the head, this attack can punish even Ike's perfectly spaced forward air which has the most horizontal range of any normal aerial in the game. This is not only because of Forward smash's impressive range but also thanks to the start-up animation in which Bowser winds back when preparing the attack. This wind-back is well known for it's pseudo spotdoging capabilities and forces the opponent to space improperly against the character to ensure damage where they are vulnerable to the whirling fortress, shield grabs, and any other punishing options that Bowser has available out of shield.
Thanks to it's high damage, this attack also possesses a great deal of priority, for instance, when used fresh against Peach if she tries to use Toad the first hit will trigger the spore blast only to have the hitboxes from the spores rendered completely useless by the second hit which stays active and hits her anyway. This attack deals 31-33% when fresh depending on what part of the attack you connect with. The first hit comes out oh frame 26, the second on frame 28 and the entire move is 65 frames in length.
Forward Smash has some decent properties against shields, while it does not possess a great amount of actual shield damage, the raw damage from the attack itself is so high that it can deal considerable damage to shields anyway. It also has a frame advantage of 1 when connecting linking the hits together on shield meaning that there is nothing at all that the opponent can do while the attack is connecting with their shield. The shield push of this move is also impressive, and if properly spaced, can easily prevent shield grabbing unless the range of the opponent is quite far. Unfortunately, you are still left with a disadvantage of 32 frames after the attack concludes which still leaves you vulnerable to being punished.
The attack also hits pretty low, and can be used while edge guarding if the opponent is hanging on the ledge for a surprise K.O. of course it can also punish get-up attempts pretty well as long as the opponent is still in range when the hitbox comes out. Use the windback to duck a get-up attack and hit them when the invincibility has worn off. You can also use it against ledge-drop jump tech and instant returns to great effect depending on the character. As always, do not be predictable. You will get punished if the other player sees through this.
If the first hit of forward smash hit's the opponent's shield and causes an edgeslip, the second hit is guaranteed. Essentially, this means that under the right circumstances, the attack is unblockable unless the opponent power shields.
Thanks to the incredible range on this move, including a generous disjoint near the head, this attack can punish even Ike's perfectly spaced forward air which has the most horizontal range of any normal aerial in the game. This is not only because of Forward smash's impressive range but also thanks to the start-up animation in which Bowser winds back when preparing the attack. This wind-back is well known for it's pseudo spotdoging capabilities and forces the opponent to space improperly against the character to ensure damage where they are vulnerable to the whirling fortress, shield grabs, and any other punishing options that Bowser has available out of shield.
Thanks to it's high damage, this attack also possesses a great deal of priority, for instance, when used fresh against Peach if she tries to use Toad the first hit will trigger the spore blast only to have the hitboxes from the spores rendered completely useless by the second hit which stays active and hits her anyway. This attack deals 31-33% when fresh depending on what part of the attack you connect with. The first hit comes out oh frame 26, the second on frame 28 and the entire move is 65 frames in length.
Forward Smash has some decent properties against shields, while it does not possess a great amount of actual shield damage, the raw damage from the attack itself is so high that it can deal considerable damage to shields anyway. It also has a frame advantage of 1 when connecting linking the hits together on shield meaning that there is nothing at all that the opponent can do while the attack is connecting with their shield. The shield push of this move is also impressive, and if properly spaced, can easily prevent shield grabbing unless the range of the opponent is quite far. Unfortunately, you are still left with a disadvantage of 32 frames after the attack concludes which still leaves you vulnerable to being punished.
The attack also hits pretty low, and can be used while edge guarding if the opponent is hanging on the ledge for a surprise K.O. of course it can also punish get-up attempts pretty well as long as the opponent is still in range when the hitbox comes out. Use the windback to duck a get-up attack and hit them when the invincibility has worn off. You can also use it against ledge-drop jump tech and instant returns to great effect depending on the character. As always, do not be predictable. You will get punished if the other player sees through this.
If the first hit of forward smash hit's the opponent's shield and causes an edgeslip, the second hit is guaranteed. Essentially, this means that under the right circumstances, the attack is unblockable unless the opponent power shields.
Up Smash has some major differences from Up-tilt. I have detailed this to some length in the Up tilt section already but to elaborate further let's look at the attack's basic properties. It has more K.O power than up tilt for one, though the difference is only about 10%. It has a bit more vertical range than Up tilt, and also does more damage but it also lacks the disjointed hitbox of up tilt and will lose against high priority air to ground moves. Or air to ground moves with disjoints. The attack does not have as much horizontal range though and only hits in the general area where Bowser is standing. It's a slower attack on start-up but ends significantly quicker which allows you to act sooner after performing this attack. This actually makes it the safer of the two moves because there's less time for the opponent to follow up after you finish the attack, and it's much easier to cover if you whiff a move. Overall this attack and up tilt are about the same speed; they have the same rate of use.
This attack has a few different hitboxes which you can connect with to various effects, the spot you'll most want to hit with is the very center shell where the spike that sticks straight up is. This part of the attack does 21% and knocks the opponent straight into the air with powerful knock back. There are also hitboxes on either side of this one, one towards the head and one towards the tail. The the one near the tail knocks the opponent upwards at a diagonal angle towards where Bowser is facing, it deals 15% the forward box also does 15% and possesses no special properties. The fourth and final hitbox is the landing box which all has similar properties to strong part of the rising hit but with less damage. This part of the attack only hits grounded foes. If timed properly or used at the right moments it can create a frame trap with the first hit that beats rolling and airdodging. It may also surprise people who are shielding if they drop the shield as the second hit comes out.
By canceling a dash into this attack, Bowser will slide forward a little. You can use this for positioning and punishing telegraphed short-hopped attacks. The crouch from the start up animation may help to avoid attacks in certain situations where you could have avoided by simply crouching.
This attack has a few different hitboxes which you can connect with to various effects, the spot you'll most want to hit with is the very center shell where the spike that sticks straight up is. This part of the attack does 21% and knocks the opponent straight into the air with powerful knock back. There are also hitboxes on either side of this one, one towards the head and one towards the tail. The the one near the tail knocks the opponent upwards at a diagonal angle towards where Bowser is facing, it deals 15% the forward box also does 15% and possesses no special properties. The fourth and final hitbox is the landing box which all has similar properties to strong part of the rising hit but with less damage. This part of the attack only hits grounded foes. If timed properly or used at the right moments it can create a frame trap with the first hit that beats rolling and airdodging. It may also surprise people who are shielding if they drop the shield as the second hit comes out.
By canceling a dash into this attack, Bowser will slide forward a little. You can use this for positioning and punishing telegraphed short-hopped attacks. The crouch from the start up animation may help to avoid attacks in certain situations where you could have avoided by simply crouching.
Among all of Bowser's smash attacks, this one produces a hitbox the fastest. It first hits on frame 14. However, it also has the most frames of any of Bowser's smash attacks. It's also Bowser's second most powerful smash, as well as the fourth most powerful attack in his arsenal in terms of K.O ability. This is mostly thanks to how the attack works, where other attacks will hit the opponent and deal the damage and knockback at the same time, Down smash deals damage, then delivers it's knockback blow which allows it to get the opponent into it's last hit's K.O range before it connects with them. The range on this attack is very low, so keep in mind it'll only work if they are practically in the same area where Bowser is standing already.
While the attack being long-lasting has obvious drawbacks, it's also beneficial. For example, it makes the attack very effective at punishing rolls, and it's also rather impossible to spotdodge or shield the attack. There may be instances when the character's hurtbox isn't in the attack but their shield is, in these cases the shield appears to have protected the character even though it really didn't. If the character's hurtbox is inside the attack and they shield or spotdodge they will get hit. This makes it useful as a trapping move but it's hitboxes aren't the best and you may find the opponent falling out of the attack where they can punish it. It's also possible to SDI out. That shouldn't happen incredibly often as long as you aren't predictable unless your opponent has incredible reaction.
The start-up for this attack resembles the wind-up animation for Forward smash which makes it possible to use this attack in tandem with forward smash to create a high-risk mindgame where whoever guesses wrong is going to get K.O'd or receive a large amount of damage. Of course, if the player is able to recognize the subtle differences in each attack then they can easily see through the tactic. As always, don't be predictable.
While the attack being long-lasting has obvious drawbacks, it's also beneficial. For example, it makes the attack very effective at punishing rolls, and it's also rather impossible to spotdodge or shield the attack. There may be instances when the character's hurtbox isn't in the attack but their shield is, in these cases the shield appears to have protected the character even though it really didn't. If the character's hurtbox is inside the attack and they shield or spotdodge they will get hit. This makes it useful as a trapping move but it's hitboxes aren't the best and you may find the opponent falling out of the attack where they can punish it. It's also possible to SDI out. That shouldn't happen incredibly often as long as you aren't predictable unless your opponent has incredible reaction.
The start-up for this attack resembles the wind-up animation for Forward smash which makes it possible to use this attack in tandem with forward smash to create a high-risk mindgame where whoever guesses wrong is going to get K.O'd or receive a large amount of damage. Of course, if the player is able to recognize the subtle differences in each attack then they can easily see through the tactic. As always, don't be predictable.
The official name might be "Flying Slam" but among Bowser mains and most other competitive smashers it's often called "The Klaw" likely in reference to the melee version of side b "Koopa Klaw" which had similar properties to this special but for the most part is entirely different. This attack is most noted for it's aerial hitbox which is twice the size of the one on the ground. Also, when in the air, this attack can grab airborne opponents unlike the grounded version which will ignore opponents in the air entirely much like the second hit of Up smash.
Another thing that makes this attack unique is that it's an air grab. It also has only three frames of landing lag when soft-landed. Because it's a grab attack, this means it ignores shield entirely these properties make this attack an effective mix-up against defending opponents because the safest option against it is to either try attacking before getting grabbed or to roll away from Bowser as he lands. This is because with only three frames of landing lag you are likely to have the frame advantage after a spotdodge or roll. Even attacking can be unsafe as well thanks to grab armor which may allow you to simply soak the hit if the attack is timed or spaced improperly. Rolling away from Bowser gives him the least amount of punishment options and avoids the RPS game that comes from trying most other options and avoids the risk of hitting grab armor. It's far from being unstoppable however, if the opponent gets wise to you then they can find ways to avoid it or punish if they see it coming.
The grab comes out on frame 8 when this attack is grounded and on frame 17 in the air (Jump = 9 frames + 8 frame grab = 17 frames.) Like all other grabs, there is grab armor the moment the grab connects with someone. Also it helps to keep in mind that this attack does not deal any damage until the moment the opponent pops out from under Bowser after he lands on them. This is something to keep in mind for team battles since getting hit anytime before that is likely to cause damage to Bowser only and let the victim escape for free.
One popular use for this special is to let Bowser land on the bottom blastline off the stage, this is known as "Bowserciding" and is also another reason to be careful when using this special. If your percentage is higher than your opponent's and they are up a stock they may decide to force you to do a Bowsercide. In either scenario, whether it's intentional or not, you are able to jump out of a Bowsercide the instant the opponent's hitbox touches the blast zone. This is not very easy to do and takes practice, also in most situations you will not be able to recover but it could be good to know anyway on the few places where you could use this to come back. There are also some alternate scenarios where you can land this move normally to basically get a kill while still recovering.
Of course, this section would not be complete without mentioning Klaw hopping. This is really easy to perform and is yet another reason why this special is so good. You need only perform the special as you are landing then jump anytime during the animation as you reach the ground. You can also drop through a platform as you are using the klaw which will also refresh your double jump. During a klaw hop you can use any aerial that isn't down air without losing momentum. You are also able to move around with increased mobility, this gives Bowser a slight edge in his match-ups especially against characters with inferior aerial mobility or who have punishable moves which could be easily punished.
Watch out for characters with superior aerial attacks or with good anti-air attacks however as they can space these to punish you if you aren't being careful. Even when he's at his most mobile, Bowser is still a large target, do not forget this when using the technique. Also, remember that it takes away your second jump, so if you go offstage with this remember that you only have fortress to get you back.
Another thing that makes this attack unique is that it's an air grab. It also has only three frames of landing lag when soft-landed. Because it's a grab attack, this means it ignores shield entirely these properties make this attack an effective mix-up against defending opponents because the safest option against it is to either try attacking before getting grabbed or to roll away from Bowser as he lands. This is because with only three frames of landing lag you are likely to have the frame advantage after a spotdodge or roll. Even attacking can be unsafe as well thanks to grab armor which may allow you to simply soak the hit if the attack is timed or spaced improperly. Rolling away from Bowser gives him the least amount of punishment options and avoids the RPS game that comes from trying most other options and avoids the risk of hitting grab armor. It's far from being unstoppable however, if the opponent gets wise to you then they can find ways to avoid it or punish if they see it coming.
The grab comes out on frame 8 when this attack is grounded and on frame 17 in the air (Jump = 9 frames + 8 frame grab = 17 frames.) Like all other grabs, there is grab armor the moment the grab connects with someone. Also it helps to keep in mind that this attack does not deal any damage until the moment the opponent pops out from under Bowser after he lands on them. This is something to keep in mind for team battles since getting hit anytime before that is likely to cause damage to Bowser only and let the victim escape for free.
One popular use for this special is to let Bowser land on the bottom blastline off the stage, this is known as "Bowserciding" and is also another reason to be careful when using this special. If your percentage is higher than your opponent's and they are up a stock they may decide to force you to do a Bowsercide. In either scenario, whether it's intentional or not, you are able to jump out of a Bowsercide the instant the opponent's hitbox touches the blast zone. This is not very easy to do and takes practice, also in most situations you will not be able to recover but it could be good to know anyway on the few places where you could use this to come back. There are also some alternate scenarios where you can land this move normally to basically get a kill while still recovering.
Castle Seige: First transformation as the floor rises up for the transition and the third transformation during the floor rise. In both cases you'd want to K.O the opponent and jump out of the Bowsercide right before the floor begins to rise so that you will land on it after K.Oing them instead of simply landing on it and ending the move normally. You can also land on the invisible floor as it's lowering in both cases and cause the opponent to bounce off the lip of the stage and land on the floor where they will most likely die unless they tech.
Yoshi's Island: If you jump out just as the ghost rises up near you then you may be able to land on it and recover.
For non-legal stages this will work on Brinstar and Norfair because you can land in the lava or acid if you K.O the opponent just before it begins to rise, then you just use the acid or lava to recover. You can also use the lava wall in Norfair to recover by allowing it to continually hit you out of Up B or just letting it hit you all the way up since the knockback is vertical.
This also works on spear pillar during the low-gravity effect but only on the lowest platform.
Yoshi's Island: If you jump out just as the ghost rises up near you then you may be able to land on it and recover.
For non-legal stages this will work on Brinstar and Norfair because you can land in the lava or acid if you K.O the opponent just before it begins to rise, then you just use the acid or lava to recover. You can also use the lava wall in Norfair to recover by allowing it to continually hit you out of Up B or just letting it hit you all the way up since the knockback is vertical.
This also works on spear pillar during the low-gravity effect but only on the lowest platform.
Of course, this section would not be complete without mentioning Klaw hopping. This is really easy to perform and is yet another reason why this special is so good. You need only perform the special as you are landing then jump anytime during the animation as you reach the ground. You can also drop through a platform as you are using the klaw which will also refresh your double jump. During a klaw hop you can use any aerial that isn't down air without losing momentum. You are also able to move around with increased mobility, this gives Bowser a slight edge in his match-ups especially against characters with inferior aerial mobility or who have punishable moves which could be easily punished.
Watch out for characters with superior aerial attacks or with good anti-air attacks however as they can space these to punish you if you aren't being careful. Even when he's at his most mobile, Bowser is still a large target, do not forget this when using the technique. Also, remember that it takes away your second jump, so if you go offstage with this remember that you only have fortress to get you back.
The fortress is a vital part of Bowser's moveset, it's a frame 6 attack that is invincible during all 5 frames of start-up, can move at Bowser's full speed, and is also part of Bowser's recovery. When onstage, this is mostly used out of shield against poorly spaced attacks. It can also be used as a somewhat risky alternative to rolling thanks to the distance and speed that it travels at as well as the invincible start-up. Also, unlike rolling, it is capable of rolling off of platforms. When near the ledge, it it's possible to cancel fortress by ledge grabbing to make it safer.
It's important to not become too reliant on the fortress, not only will you cause it to go stale, you may also find yourself being baited into using it which leads to being punished. Furthermore, there are scenarios in which this move is actually a sub-optimal punish. It's important to recognize these situations and use the most appropriate punishing option.
When hitting with fortress, only the first two hits have significant knockback and it's possible for the first two hits to link together, remaining hits will not link and have weak knockback which will not K.O. It's also important to mix-up your movement so that it's harder for the opponent to follow you. Do not let the attack end near the opponent if you can help it, if you do you'll get punished.
When in the air, you will get some vertical height but the movement is mostly horizontal, it also snaps to the ledge but only when you are facing it, despite the move being a spin you do not actually change the direction you are facing, this is why it's hard to fortress hog when you were facing away from the center of the stage because the attack does not grab the ledge from behind until it's gone into special fall state. This is also a multi-hitting move in the air after the initial high knock-back hit but it can be SDI'd out of and is not very safe due to the cooldown on landing. When landing this after using it in the air, as long as you land before entering special fall state the lag will be the same as the grounded cooldown instead of the special cooldown which is significantly longer.
Also, if you connect with all of the hits in the air, a fresh fortress dishes out a whopping 35%
It's important to not become too reliant on the fortress, not only will you cause it to go stale, you may also find yourself being baited into using it which leads to being punished. Furthermore, there are scenarios in which this move is actually a sub-optimal punish. It's important to recognize these situations and use the most appropriate punishing option.
When hitting with fortress, only the first two hits have significant knockback and it's possible for the first two hits to link together, remaining hits will not link and have weak knockback which will not K.O. It's also important to mix-up your movement so that it's harder for the opponent to follow you. Do not let the attack end near the opponent if you can help it, if you do you'll get punished.
When in the air, you will get some vertical height but the movement is mostly horizontal, it also snaps to the ledge but only when you are facing it, despite the move being a spin you do not actually change the direction you are facing, this is why it's hard to fortress hog when you were facing away from the center of the stage because the attack does not grab the ledge from behind until it's gone into special fall state. This is also a multi-hitting move in the air after the initial high knock-back hit but it can be SDI'd out of and is not very safe due to the cooldown on landing. When landing this after using it in the air, as long as you land before entering special fall state the lag will be the same as the grounded cooldown instead of the special cooldown which is significantly longer.
Also, if you connect with all of the hits in the air, a fresh fortress dishes out a whopping 35%
This is Bowser's strongest K.O special and third strongest K.O attack. Unfortunately it also has the highest end lag of all specials and of any of Bowser's moves. The start-up is fairly quick however and it leads with a first hit which lifts the opponent into the air where the second hit can crash down on them. These hits do not link as a true combo as it's possible to escape by airdodging. Which will leave you punishable during the end lag while Bowser takes his time standing up. This special can be considered part of Bowser's recovery because it sweetspots the ledge, allowing Bowser to perform a bomb cancel to the ledge in order to recover quickly from being launched high. He can also ledge cancel just to make the attack safer or for edgeguarding.
This attack has a total of 103 frames when used from the ground and hits on frame 11, and in the air the hitbox is frame 32. The hitbox on the falling hit is situated mostly at the bottom of Bowser but it's still possible to space for the edge of the shell, the knockback is much weaker but it may be more likely to trade through or avoid any attacks which may be used to catch you on the way down.
The main purpose of this attack is to be used for surprise K.Os as an option with the other player was not expecting. This must be timed properly however as the attack's knockback is very low when used at early percents and is easily punishable on hit unless it was ledge canceled. Even with a whopping 20% damage this is usually not worth it. It's wise to only use this attack at K.O percents or at least when the knockback will be high enough for you not to be punished for using it.
This attack has a total of 103 frames when used from the ground and hits on frame 11, and in the air the hitbox is frame 32. The hitbox on the falling hit is situated mostly at the bottom of Bowser but it's still possible to space for the edge of the shell, the knockback is much weaker but it may be more likely to trade through or avoid any attacks which may be used to catch you on the way down.
The main purpose of this attack is to be used for surprise K.Os as an option with the other player was not expecting. This must be timed properly however as the attack's knockback is very low when used at early percents and is easily punishable on hit unless it was ledge canceled. Even with a whopping 20% damage this is usually not worth it. It's wise to only use this attack at K.O percents or at least when the knockback will be high enough for you not to be punished for using it.
Firebreath is more of a utility attack than anything else, the damage potential for it is fairly low thanks to how easily opponents can SDI out of it and it has a lot of start and end lag as well. The range is good when it's fully charged and it can be angled up and down. In the air it can be wavebounced, which causes you to turn around while reversing your momentum, b-reversed where you turn around and don't reverse momentum, then it can also be b-reverse wavebounced, (recoiled?) which reverses momentum without turning around. Thanks to this, it's very possible to use this as a mix-up for aerial approaches and landings.
B-reverse: Flick the stick back and hit B within 20 frames.
Wavebounce: Press B then flick the stick back within 4 frames.
Recoil: Flick the stick back then perform a wavebounce within 20 frames.
Bowser will mostly be using firebreath in bursts while spacing for the tip of the flame. This is the safest way to use the attack because spacing otherwise is very punishable. It can stop approaches force the opponent into the air to avoid having to DI through it. At the edge of the stage, this is an effective gimping tool, when throwing out spurts of flame, you can eat up the opponent's jumps and stuff their recovery specials. When gimping with fire, it's good to avoid simply holding the button down as a smart opponnent will actually use the fire to recover by using sdi to move through it. If the player is used to you using just bursts though then it may be wise to occasionally hold the button down just a bit to add a little extra damage.
Firebreath is most effective against large characters and characters that fall quickly, it's also good against characters without projectiles unless they are able to maneuver around or SDI though it easily. It can be used in most matches as a poke or move refresher or gimping tool but it's wise to look out for these things. To avoid punishment. It's especially wise to be careful against PK kids or anyone with a reflector as well at Mr.Game and watch and his bucket. Even if it's not the strongest oil panic projectile, the fewer weapons he has available the better.
B-reverse: Flick the stick back and hit B within 20 frames.
Wavebounce: Press B then flick the stick back within 4 frames.
Recoil: Flick the stick back then perform a wavebounce within 20 frames.
Bowser will mostly be using firebreath in bursts while spacing for the tip of the flame. This is the safest way to use the attack because spacing otherwise is very punishable. It can stop approaches force the opponent into the air to avoid having to DI through it. At the edge of the stage, this is an effective gimping tool, when throwing out spurts of flame, you can eat up the opponent's jumps and stuff their recovery specials. When gimping with fire, it's good to avoid simply holding the button down as a smart opponnent will actually use the fire to recover by using sdi to move through it. If the player is used to you using just bursts though then it may be wise to occasionally hold the button down just a bit to add a little extra damage.
Firebreath is most effective against large characters and characters that fall quickly, it's also good against characters without projectiles unless they are able to maneuver around or SDI though it easily. It can be used in most matches as a poke or move refresher or gimping tool but it's wise to look out for these things. To avoid punishment. It's especially wise to be careful against PK kids or anyone with a reflector as well at Mr.Game and watch and his bucket. Even if it's not the strongest oil panic projectile, the fewer weapons he has available the better.
It gets a bad rap among Bowser mains and most smashers in general, and it's understandable why. While this aerial has quick start-up, being only 8 frames which is the same as Forward air, and a good number of active frames, it also does not have an auto-cancel window on short-hop and has a good deal of end lag in the air. It's also slightly ambiguous and can be somewhat tough to tell when the attack has actually finished which could throw off timing a bit with a lack of experience but is something that one comes to get used to with time and probably will not present a huge problem for most players anyway. The landing lag is about the same as Forward air when you do not auto-cancel it and the range of the attack, by Bowser's standards, is very small but still greater than Down smash. This attack is useful for a few things and will see more use than the still more disliked Down Air but is not going to be a major part of Bowser's game as far as actually dealing damage.
While the damage isn't horrible (13% with a clean hit and 9% with a late hit when fresh.) and the priority of the attack is fairly decent (Clanks out boomerangs and Yoshi eggs safely if you hit with the right part of it. And can clank the tip of ZSS up-b) This attack is still relatively blind from below, and while you may fastfall it to get through some annoying situations, it's base knockback is fairly low. (To the point where it even posseses jab-locking.) This makes this attack rather unsafe against anyone who is at low percents (Up till around 20% or so). Also, because of the low range of the attack and lack of a disjoint, it can be easily outspaced in the air by pretty much anyone. Also, the only place this can be used safely is from a full-hop which is generally considered a bad idea for Bowser.
Instead, of damage and aerial pressure and approaching like most characters use a lot of other aerials, Neutral air is best viewed as more of a utility aerial or a defensive aerial. Its much better at breaking pressure than applying it and functions well as a means to deal with juggling or get the other player out of Bowser's space. When moving through the air, while Neutral air is active, Bowser is also a "smaller" target. Tucking into the shell makes him flatter which could help against pursuers in the air. Unfortunately Bowser also seems a bit wider than he appears when tucked in and is a bit more vulnerable at either side as a result but when attempting to escape air pressure tucking into the shell and simply moving away using your momentum instead of attempting to engage may just get Bowser out of a few situations that would normally have led to more damage. Naturually this will not always work, so it's wise to mix it up with all of Bowser's other options to escape air pressure and juggling.
Also, while it's not normally used for Offense, this aerial can be used when edgeguarding, It will beat a fair number of recovery specials and can be fast fell out of a full hop from the edge of the stage to create what is basically a large anti-projectile for opponents to navigate around. Of course this does not work so great on everyone, but where it does work, it can be put to use decently. This attack can stage spike.
While the damage isn't horrible (13% with a clean hit and 9% with a late hit when fresh.) and the priority of the attack is fairly decent (Clanks out boomerangs and Yoshi eggs safely if you hit with the right part of it. And can clank the tip of ZSS up-b) This attack is still relatively blind from below, and while you may fastfall it to get through some annoying situations, it's base knockback is fairly low. (To the point where it even posseses jab-locking.) This makes this attack rather unsafe against anyone who is at low percents (Up till around 20% or so). Also, because of the low range of the attack and lack of a disjoint, it can be easily outspaced in the air by pretty much anyone. Also, the only place this can be used safely is from a full-hop which is generally considered a bad idea for Bowser.
Instead, of damage and aerial pressure and approaching like most characters use a lot of other aerials, Neutral air is best viewed as more of a utility aerial or a defensive aerial. Its much better at breaking pressure than applying it and functions well as a means to deal with juggling or get the other player out of Bowser's space. When moving through the air, while Neutral air is active, Bowser is also a "smaller" target. Tucking into the shell makes him flatter which could help against pursuers in the air. Unfortunately Bowser also seems a bit wider than he appears when tucked in and is a bit more vulnerable at either side as a result but when attempting to escape air pressure tucking into the shell and simply moving away using your momentum instead of attempting to engage may just get Bowser out of a few situations that would normally have led to more damage. Naturually this will not always work, so it's wise to mix it up with all of Bowser's other options to escape air pressure and juggling.
Also, while it's not normally used for Offense, this aerial can be used when edgeguarding, It will beat a fair number of recovery specials and can be fast fell out of a full hop from the edge of the stage to create what is basically a large anti-projectile for opponents to navigate around. Of course this does not work so great on everyone, but where it does work, it can be put to use decently. This attack can stage spike.
Much like Neutral Air, this is another aerial which is not used in the same way as most other aireals. Unlike Neutral air, which at least has some utility, Down air has a very specific set of viable uses, so while this means that Down air may perform well in these scenarios (Though even in these situations many players tend to sleep on it.); it also means that it's horrible in virtually every other situation.
First let's look at the issues with this aerial, to start off it doesn't have the best hitbox, while it does have the ability to clank projectiles, the part of the attack which does is really awkward, it's pretty much only the green part of the shell at the bottom of the attack.
Most projectiles do not fly from this angle and among the ones that will, all of the clankable variety can also be clanked out by Bowser bomb which is probably the better option if you were to clank through the projectile and the opponent is at high percents, at low percent Down air is "safer" because the way the attack knocks the opponent away leaves you less vulnerable than Bowser bomb. However, at high or K.O percents Bowser bomb is generally better.
Next there's the attack's start-up frames and recovery frames, both are rather high which makes this a laggy attack. Not to mention the landing lag which is very punishable. Also, while there are a decent number of active frames, even if someone is hit by this attack, it's not that hard to use SDI to get out and sometimes they may even just fall out on their own if you hit with the wrong part of the attack which isn't hard to do at all. The last hit is a weak spike which isn't too useful and is rather gimmicky.
However, this attack is not completely useless, thanks to the amount of active frames and multi-hitting properties of the attack, if this attack hits a shield then it will very easily shield stab the opponent which makes it a safe attack on shield provided you're not just hitting with only a few hits of the attack. For this same reason, it's also not a good idea to spotdodge as it's most likely that the attack will just hit them the moment invincibility wears off. So you're looking at an aerial that is strong against shielding and spotdodging. Futhermore, this attack, is capable of dealing a great deal of damage, up to 23% when you connect with all hits while fresh. On smaller characters the max is more likely to be around 17% which is only a 6% difference, obviously this is most effective on larger characters who are less likely to fall out of the attack. The chance of the opponent falling away is lower if they moved into where you are attacking as opposed to moving the attack into the opponent.
Because of the way he flips, it's easier to hit opponents behind you with this attack, the flip is also useful for vertical momentum canceling, because it effectively folds the topmost part of Bowser's hurtbox away from the blastline, if you do this while fastfalling, it's possible to survive a bit longer when launched vertically.
First let's look at the issues with this aerial, to start off it doesn't have the best hitbox, while it does have the ability to clank projectiles, the part of the attack which does is really awkward, it's pretty much only the green part of the shell at the bottom of the attack.
Most projectiles do not fly from this angle and among the ones that will, all of the clankable variety can also be clanked out by Bowser bomb which is probably the better option if you were to clank through the projectile and the opponent is at high percents, at low percent Down air is "safer" because the way the attack knocks the opponent away leaves you less vulnerable than Bowser bomb. However, at high or K.O percents Bowser bomb is generally better.
Next there's the attack's start-up frames and recovery frames, both are rather high which makes this a laggy attack. Not to mention the landing lag which is very punishable. Also, while there are a decent number of active frames, even if someone is hit by this attack, it's not that hard to use SDI to get out and sometimes they may even just fall out on their own if you hit with the wrong part of the attack which isn't hard to do at all. The last hit is a weak spike which isn't too useful and is rather gimmicky.
However, this attack is not completely useless, thanks to the amount of active frames and multi-hitting properties of the attack, if this attack hits a shield then it will very easily shield stab the opponent which makes it a safe attack on shield provided you're not just hitting with only a few hits of the attack. For this same reason, it's also not a good idea to spotdodge as it's most likely that the attack will just hit them the moment invincibility wears off. So you're looking at an aerial that is strong against shielding and spotdodging. Futhermore, this attack, is capable of dealing a great deal of damage, up to 23% when you connect with all hits while fresh. On smaller characters the max is more likely to be around 17% which is only a 6% difference, obviously this is most effective on larger characters who are less likely to fall out of the attack. The chance of the opponent falling away is lower if they moved into where you are attacking as opposed to moving the attack into the opponent.
Because of the way he flips, it's easier to hit opponents behind you with this attack, the flip is also useful for vertical momentum canceling, because it effectively folds the topmost part of Bowser's hurtbox away from the blastline, if you do this while fastfalling, it's possible to survive a bit longer when launched vertically.
Back air is another example of an aerial with a very specific use which works differently from most other similar aerials. This is Bowser's second strongest Aerial in K.O power. It also has impressive range and is actualy pretty fast to come out, the hitbox appears on frame 9, and it's even active for a brief period of time though not as long as it might appear. This attack also hits on both sides of Bowser though the front hitbox is smaller. The knockback is pretty much the same, so careful spacing this as an edgeguard, if you space poorly it's possible to hit people back onstage if they move into the front hitbox.
Because of it's poor recovery however, it's not possible to short-hop this move without being subjected to the horrible landing lag, this makes it a very high-risk attack. If short-hopped you will experience landing lag, if full hopped, you're up in the air. Both scenarios put Bowser at at disadvantage in most situations. However, because it's such a powerful aerial, you can still use it onstage for some decent results. It'll usually knock the opponent offstage where you can start edgeguarding. When used offstage using this to gimp an opponent's second jump typically puts them in a position where recovery is very difficult or even impossible depending on the character.
Because of it's poor recovery however, it's not possible to short-hop this move without being subjected to the horrible landing lag, this makes it a very high-risk attack. If short-hopped you will experience landing lag, if full hopped, you're up in the air. Both scenarios put Bowser at at disadvantage in most situations. However, because it's such a powerful aerial, you can still use it onstage for some decent results. It'll usually knock the opponent offstage where you can start edgeguarding. When used offstage using this to gimp an opponent's second jump typically puts them in a position where recovery is very difficult or even impossible depending on the character.
The most popular Bowser aerial, most used, and most versatile of Bowser's Aerials, it has good stuff going for it all around and not a great deal of glaring weaknesses boging it down. It's easy to use, and fairly safe in most match-ups as long as you space properly and aren't predictable. One of the most noted features of this attack is that it's auto cancelable. This means that when you land during certain frames of the attack, it'll cancel it self on landing and you do not experience the attack's landing lag. Simply doing a rising forward air during a short-hop will demonstrate this.
However, there is one thing which does not seem to get much mention, and that is that you can fast fall a short-hopped Bowser Forward air and still get the auto-cancel. To time for this, simply wait about half a second or so after Bowser's inactive hand, the one that isn't doing the swiping, sticks straight up into the air, landing from any point after that will auto cancel the attack, however Bowser is usually near the peak of his shorthop when this point in the attack has been reached, so that usually means that you waste a good number of frames simply landing after using an attack, when you could have done a fast fall, buffered a dash, and continued pressuring the opponent with tech chases and other Bowser stuff. I don't know the difference frame-wise of a non-fast fall forward air vs a fast fall forward air but any extra frames that we can get in our favor are a major boon. Keep in mind that the timing of the fastfall is different on whiff and on hit so when landing the forward air, the fast fall is delayed compared to an empty forward air due to hitlag.
Offstage, and at the ledge, this can be used to gimp recoveries and punish ledge jumps. It also stage spikes very nicely if you manage to set it up. Onstage, aside from spacing it can be used to help Bowser land thanks to the wide arc that hits a little bit beneath him and because it also hits above Bowser, it functions decently as a psuedo up-air. This is useful for when you'd rather keep up air fresh for later and it can pressure opponents into air-dodging which actually sets-up Bowser's Up, back, and neutral aerials depending on the situation.
Bowser's attacking arm is intangible during the attack! It cannot be injured while he is swiping, also, it klanks a good number of projectiles much like jab and forward tilt.
However, there is one thing which does not seem to get much mention, and that is that you can fast fall a short-hopped Bowser Forward air and still get the auto-cancel. To time for this, simply wait about half a second or so after Bowser's inactive hand, the one that isn't doing the swiping, sticks straight up into the air, landing from any point after that will auto cancel the attack, however Bowser is usually near the peak of his shorthop when this point in the attack has been reached, so that usually means that you waste a good number of frames simply landing after using an attack, when you could have done a fast fall, buffered a dash, and continued pressuring the opponent with tech chases and other Bowser stuff. I don't know the difference frame-wise of a non-fast fall forward air vs a fast fall forward air but any extra frames that we can get in our favor are a major boon. Keep in mind that the timing of the fastfall is different on whiff and on hit so when landing the forward air, the fast fall is delayed compared to an empty forward air due to hitlag.
Offstage, and at the ledge, this can be used to gimp recoveries and punish ledge jumps. It also stage spikes very nicely if you manage to set it up. Onstage, aside from spacing it can be used to help Bowser land thanks to the wide arc that hits a little bit beneath him and because it also hits above Bowser, it functions decently as a psuedo up-air. This is useful for when you'd rather keep up air fresh for later and it can pressure opponents into air-dodging which actually sets-up Bowser's Up, back, and neutral aerials depending on the situation.
Bowser's attacking arm is intangible during the attack! It cannot be injured while he is swiping, also, it klanks a good number of projectiles much like jab and forward tilt.
Up Aerial has the most K.O power of any of Bowser's attacks in the air and is also has the second highest K.O power of any move in his arsenal. This aerial is deadly, not just because of it's K.O power however, but also because of it's ability to punish airdodge attempts, it's also worth noting that his head is intangible while he's swinging at them, which is pretty good, considering that Bowser's head is pretty big. This allows it to hit or trade through a few other aireals. Also, because this attack has an arc, it has some horizontal range which can be put to use. Unfortunately, while it's faster than it's melee counterpart, it also has less range than it did in melee and it also has pretty low range for Bowser in general. Also, this aerial is another example of an attack which has a specific use. Up air lacks versatility, and will usually require a good set-up or hard read to land successfully. It's certainly not an aerial that will see much use throughout the match and is wise to only use it at the right moments.
The recovery frames of this attack are much less in the air than on the ground, so it's generally wise to not short-hop this aerial unless you know for sure it'll hit and that the hit will K.O. It's also worth noting that if the opponent is on a high enough platform that sharking with this attack can work pretty well, Bowser is not Jigglypuff or Metaknight however, so this should be used mainly as a mix-up or with a hard read. The same can be said for using this attack from the ledge, while it's certainly doable, it's also quite risky because it wouldn't be hard for the opponent to anti-plank or just beat the start-up with a tilt or aerial.
The recovery frames of this attack are much less in the air than on the ground, so it's generally wise to not short-hop this aerial unless you know for sure it'll hit and that the hit will K.O. It's also worth noting that if the opponent is on a high enough platform that sharking with this attack can work pretty well, Bowser is not Jigglypuff or Metaknight however, so this should be used mainly as a mix-up or with a hard read. The same can be said for using this attack from the ledge, while it's certainly doable, it's also quite risky because it wouldn't be hard for the opponent to anti-plank or just beat the start-up with a tilt or aerial.
Because each individual throw by itself does not need it's own section I'm just going to cover Bowser's grab itself as it's own move. There are a few things to be said about Bowser's grab, for one, the range. It's not exactly the best among grabs and it's not hard to be above the box where it'll miss. The grab box actually comes out pretty much where Bowser's mouth is, so keep in mind that the tip of the box is just barely in front of his face. Just try to invision that he chomps down on them to pull them into his claws or something if that helps, but in either case the range could be better. The range is not the worst in the game however, so that's a plus, if anything the range is just below average. It gets better if you pivot, and even reaches higher, so pivot grabbing is good if the opponent is flitting about in the air and it's able to grab Marth out of his forward air which is pretty good considering the range on that attack. Keep in mind, I don't mean that when you grab him that he'll hit grab armor and get grabbed, I mean that pivot grab will snatch him out of the air without Bowser taking any damage.
Once Bowser has successfully grabbed the opponent he is in his element, there are many viable options from here, the most common is to pummel the opponent at 128 BMP. (Shoutout to Flayl for finding the timing for us!)
This does a few things outside of just stacking damage. First, each pummel counts towards stale move negation which means that each hit of pummel with freshen up all of your other moves. Second, this is the easiest and most common way to force a grounded grab release as Bowser. A "Grab Release" is when you do not throw the opponent, and merely allow them to break free. The reason you would do this is because of Bowser's frame advantage when releasing his opponent. He has 11 frames of advantage against most of the cast when they release on the ground, then he has 21 frames of advantage on most of the cast when they release into the air. However, because most characters air release on trajectories that are unfavorable to Bowser for follow-ups, grounded release typically yields the greatest number of options including a grab released regrab; this can be done on most of the cast.
For more information on the specifics of grab-releasing, you can check the frame data thread for a post by Flayl on timing the pummel properly, and his grab release guide which lists the options Bowser has on each character out of a grab release.
(Grab release thread) http://smashboards.com/threads/updated-bowser-grab-release-thread.297972/
(Frame data) http://smashboards.com/threads/bowser-frame-data-in-depth-and-accurate.206219/
For Bowser's throws, i'll put the basics.
Up, forward, and back throw all deal 10%.
Forward and back throws have the same trajectory and knockback.
Down throw deals 12% and has fixed knockback, Up throw also has fixed knockback.
Forward and back throws have variable knockback, but are not powerful enough to K.O well even at the edge of the stage unless the stage has a section with a walk-off.
I'd like to put more on throws but the info that I want to put down will need to go through some testing for verification, if anyone has anything to add then feel free to post.
Once Bowser has successfully grabbed the opponent he is in his element, there are many viable options from here, the most common is to pummel the opponent at 128 BMP. (Shoutout to Flayl for finding the timing for us!)
This does a few things outside of just stacking damage. First, each pummel counts towards stale move negation which means that each hit of pummel with freshen up all of your other moves. Second, this is the easiest and most common way to force a grounded grab release as Bowser. A "Grab Release" is when you do not throw the opponent, and merely allow them to break free. The reason you would do this is because of Bowser's frame advantage when releasing his opponent. He has 11 frames of advantage against most of the cast when they release on the ground, then he has 21 frames of advantage on most of the cast when they release into the air. However, because most characters air release on trajectories that are unfavorable to Bowser for follow-ups, grounded release typically yields the greatest number of options including a grab released regrab; this can be done on most of the cast.
For more information on the specifics of grab-releasing, you can check the frame data thread for a post by Flayl on timing the pummel properly, and his grab release guide which lists the options Bowser has on each character out of a grab release.
(Grab release thread) http://smashboards.com/threads/updated-bowser-grab-release-thread.297972/
(Frame data) http://smashboards.com/threads/bowser-frame-data-in-depth-and-accurate.206219/
For Bowser's throws, i'll put the basics.
Up, forward, and back throw all deal 10%.
Forward and back throws have the same trajectory and knockback.
Down throw deals 12% and has fixed knockback, Up throw also has fixed knockback.
Forward and back throws have variable knockback, but are not powerful enough to K.O well even at the edge of the stage unless the stage has a section with a walk-off.
I'd like to put more on throws but the info that I want to put down will need to go through some testing for verification, if anyone has anything to add then feel free to post.
Most players know what this is already but for those who do not, it's a mechanic that lowers the damage and knockback of a move as it is used during a game. The more this move is consecutively used the staler it gets. This is the stale move mechanic. There are ways to prevent this such as mixing your attacks up regularly or reusing attacks that you do not care much about to refresh important attacks that will be more useful the fresher they are.
When keeping track of stale moves the game basically keeps a list, for visual aid we'll say the list probably looks something like this
{Attack 1}
{Attack 2}
{Attack 3}
{Attack 4}
{Attack 5}
{Attack 6}
{Attack 7}
{Attack 8}
{Attack 9}
[Attack 10]
[and so on]
Now, imagine each time you use jab 1; it adds itself to the list, like this.
{Jab 1}
{Attack 2}
{Attack 3}
{Attack 4}
{Attack 5}
{Attack 6}
{Attack 7}
{Attack 8}
{Attack 9}
[Attack 10]
Then you land jab 2.
{Jab 2}
{Jab 1}
{Attack 3}
{Attack 4}
{Attack 5}
{Attack 6}
{Attack 7}
{Attack 8}
{Attack 9}
[Attack 10]
Now jab 1 and jab 2, being separate attacks and not just separate hits, will each take up a slot and can actually freshen each other up. So, jab 1 is not as stale as it was when it was the only move on the list, but it's not fresh yet either. This is because it's still in the first 9 slots which is why those slots have the fancy brackets. Some of Bowser's moves, Forward smash for instance, go fully stale in more than just 9 hits so for the purpose of that, the slots past nine are used to calculate how much staler a move gets. However, the first nine are used to determine if the move is stale at all. once a move is completely off that part of the list, it becomes fully refreshed.
Of all of Bowser's attacks, 13 of them work on some level for scoring a K.O this means that 4 of these attacks will be totally fresh at any given time, this is the lowest number of 100% fresh K.O moves that Bowser could possibly have available at a time, and this is only possible if you only used those 13 moves in the match, alternating between them each time. Also, the moves which weren't fresh wouldn't be that stale either and would still K.O reliably anyway.
Anyway, here is a list which shows the number of hits in which Bowser's attacks go stale, and how stale they will get after each attack, this assumes you began when each of his moves were completely fresh. Also, I did not include D-smash, Firebreath, and Air fortress. If someone else wants to get those moves to add to the list the be my guest.
Alright, so there are his moves as they go stale but what about making them fresh? Well there are a few ways, grab releasing will work, each pummel fills a slot, so Bowser can grab release chaingrab just to pummel his moves back to freshness. He can also poke with fire, it doe snot matter if fire becomes stale because that shouldn't hurt it's gimping capability, and overall utility. Also, it's never going to cause a direct K.O anyway. Why keep it fresh? Just keep in mind that for fire to count multiple times, you must release the button and press it again. Using dash attacks works as well, when applicable much for the same reasons as using jabs and firebreath to refresh Bowser's attacks. Also, hitting any destructible object in a stage, such as castle seige statues, shyguys, and even the balloon in smashville will count as using the attack that you hit them with just as if you'd hit the opposing player. The same goes for certain player created instances such as waddledees/doos and ice blocks. It also counts for Diddy kong's peanuts. So you can attack these things with moves you don't care about to freshen up your important moves which maximizes Bowser's damage output.
Blocked and klanked attacks do not count towards stale moves, so klanking projectiles will not stale your forward tilt, feel free to go nuts there.
When keeping track of stale moves the game basically keeps a list, for visual aid we'll say the list probably looks something like this
{Attack 1}
{Attack 2}
{Attack 3}
{Attack 4}
{Attack 5}
{Attack 6}
{Attack 7}
{Attack 8}
{Attack 9}
[Attack 10]
[and so on]
Now, imagine each time you use jab 1; it adds itself to the list, like this.
{Jab 1}
{Attack 2}
{Attack 3}
{Attack 4}
{Attack 5}
{Attack 6}
{Attack 7}
{Attack 8}
{Attack 9}
[Attack 10]
Then you land jab 2.
{Jab 2}
{Jab 1}
{Attack 3}
{Attack 4}
{Attack 5}
{Attack 6}
{Attack 7}
{Attack 8}
{Attack 9}
[Attack 10]
Now jab 1 and jab 2, being separate attacks and not just separate hits, will each take up a slot and can actually freshen each other up. So, jab 1 is not as stale as it was when it was the only move on the list, but it's not fresh yet either. This is because it's still in the first 9 slots which is why those slots have the fancy brackets. Some of Bowser's moves, Forward smash for instance, go fully stale in more than just 9 hits so for the purpose of that, the slots past nine are used to calculate how much staler a move gets. However, the first nine are used to determine if the move is stale at all. once a move is completely off that part of the list, it becomes fully refreshed.
Of all of Bowser's attacks, 13 of them work on some level for scoring a K.O this means that 4 of these attacks will be totally fresh at any given time, this is the lowest number of 100% fresh K.O moves that Bowser could possibly have available at a time, and this is only possible if you only used those 13 moves in the match, alternating between them each time. Also, the moves which weren't fresh wouldn't be that stale either and would still K.O reliably anyway.
Anyway, here is a list which shows the number of hits in which Bowser's attacks go stale, and how stale they will get after each attack, this assumes you began when each of his moves were completely fresh. Also, I did not include D-smash, Firebreath, and Air fortress. If someone else wants to get those moves to add to the list the be my guest.
Bowser's stale attack data
How to read this list: the move's hitbox or stage of the attack will be labled in [] and the number of times it takes to fully stale the move is listed in (). Pretty straightforward, I aimed to make it as simple as possible.
-------Dash--------
Dash Attack [Early] (8)
11, 9, 8, 8, 7, 6, 6, 5...
Dash Attack [Late] (6)
8, 7, 6, 5, 5, 4...
------Specials-------
Fortress [Box 1] (8)
11, 9, 8, 8, 7, 6, 6, 5...
Fortress [Box 2] (7)
6, 5, 4, 3, 3, 3, 2...
Klaw (9)
18, 16, 14, 13, 11, 10, 9, 9, 8...
Bowser Bomb [Rising] (9)
4, 3, 3, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 1...
Bowser Bomb [Falling] (9)
21, 18, 16, 15, 13, 11, 10, 10, 9...
-------Smashes--------
Forward Smash [Hit 1] (8)
10, 9, 8, 8, 6, 6, 6, 5...
Forward Smash [Hit 2 Sourspot at the very tip] (10)
22, 18, 17, 15, 13, 12, 11, 10, 10, 9...
Forward Smash [Hit 1 Sweetspot] (10)
24, 20, 18, 16, 15, 13, 12, 11, 11, 10...
Up Smash [Early Sweetspot] (9)
21, 18, 16, 14, 13, 11, 10, 10, 9...
Up Smash [Early Sourspot] (9)
15, 13, 12, 10, 9, 9, 8, 8, 7...
Up Smash [Late] (9)
12, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 6, 6, 5...
------Grab------
Pummel (5)
3, 2, 2, 2, 1...
Up Throw (9)
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 5, 5, 4...
Forward Throw (9)
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 5, 5, 4...
Back Throw (9)
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 5, 5, 4...
Down Throw (9)
12, 10, 9, 8, 7, 7, 6, 6, 5...
------Aireals--------
Nair [Early] (10)
13, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 7, 6, 6, 5...
Nair [Late] (8)
9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 5, 4...
Up Air (10)
17, 15, 13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 8, 7...
Back Air [Early] (10)
15, 13, 12, 10, 9, 8, 8, 7, 7, 6...
Back Air [Late] (8)
7, 6, 5, 5, 5, 5, 4, 3...
Forward Air [Sweetspot] (11)
13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 8, 7, 6, 6, 5...
Forward Air [Sourspot] (9)
12, 11, 10, 9, 7, 7, 7, 6, 5...
-------Tilts------
First Jab (6)
5, 4, 4, 3, 3, 2...
Second Jab (6)
5, 4, 4, 3, 3, 2...
Down Tilt [First] (9)
14, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 7, 6...
Down Tilt [Second] (8)
12, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 6, 5...
Up Tilt (9)
12, 10, 9, 8, 7, 7, 6, 6, 5...
Forward Tilt (8)
11, 9, 8, 8, 7, 6, 6, 5...
-------Dash--------
Dash Attack [Early] (8)
11, 9, 8, 8, 7, 6, 6, 5...
Dash Attack [Late] (6)
8, 7, 6, 5, 5, 4...
------Specials-------
Fortress [Box 1] (8)
11, 9, 8, 8, 7, 6, 6, 5...
Fortress [Box 2] (7)
6, 5, 4, 3, 3, 3, 2...
Klaw (9)
18, 16, 14, 13, 11, 10, 9, 9, 8...
Bowser Bomb [Rising] (9)
4, 3, 3, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 1...
Bowser Bomb [Falling] (9)
21, 18, 16, 15, 13, 11, 10, 10, 9...
-------Smashes--------
Forward Smash [Hit 1] (8)
10, 9, 8, 8, 6, 6, 6, 5...
Forward Smash [Hit 2 Sourspot at the very tip] (10)
22, 18, 17, 15, 13, 12, 11, 10, 10, 9...
Forward Smash [Hit 1 Sweetspot] (10)
24, 20, 18, 16, 15, 13, 12, 11, 11, 10...
Up Smash [Early Sweetspot] (9)
21, 18, 16, 14, 13, 11, 10, 10, 9...
Up Smash [Early Sourspot] (9)
15, 13, 12, 10, 9, 9, 8, 8, 7...
Up Smash [Late] (9)
12, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 6, 6, 5...
------Grab------
Pummel (5)
3, 2, 2, 2, 1...
Up Throw (9)
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 5, 5, 4...
Forward Throw (9)
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 5, 5, 4...
Back Throw (9)
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 5, 5, 4...
Down Throw (9)
12, 10, 9, 8, 7, 7, 6, 6, 5...
------Aireals--------
Nair [Early] (10)
13, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 7, 6, 6, 5...
Nair [Late] (8)
9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 5, 4...
Up Air (10)
17, 15, 13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 8, 7...
Back Air [Early] (10)
15, 13, 12, 10, 9, 8, 8, 7, 7, 6...
Back Air [Late] (8)
7, 6, 5, 5, 5, 5, 4, 3...
Forward Air [Sweetspot] (11)
13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 8, 7, 6, 6, 5...
Forward Air [Sourspot] (9)
12, 11, 10, 9, 7, 7, 7, 6, 5...
-------Tilts------
First Jab (6)
5, 4, 4, 3, 3, 2...
Second Jab (6)
5, 4, 4, 3, 3, 2...
Down Tilt [First] (9)
14, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 7, 6...
Down Tilt [Second] (8)
12, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 6, 5...
Up Tilt (9)
12, 10, 9, 8, 7, 7, 6, 6, 5...
Forward Tilt (8)
11, 9, 8, 8, 7, 6, 6, 5...
Alright, so there are his moves as they go stale but what about making them fresh? Well there are a few ways, grab releasing will work, each pummel fills a slot, so Bowser can grab release chaingrab just to pummel his moves back to freshness. He can also poke with fire, it doe snot matter if fire becomes stale because that shouldn't hurt it's gimping capability, and overall utility. Also, it's never going to cause a direct K.O anyway. Why keep it fresh? Just keep in mind that for fire to count multiple times, you must release the button and press it again. Using dash attacks works as well, when applicable much for the same reasons as using jabs and firebreath to refresh Bowser's attacks. Also, hitting any destructible object in a stage, such as castle seige statues, shyguys, and even the balloon in smashville will count as using the attack that you hit them with just as if you'd hit the opposing player. The same goes for certain player created instances such as waddledees/doos and ice blocks. It also counts for Diddy kong's peanuts. So you can attack these things with moves you don't care about to freshen up your important moves which maximizes Bowser's damage output.
Blocked and klanked attacks do not count towards stale moves, so klanking projectiles will not stale your forward tilt, feel free to go nuts there.
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