- Intro
- Perspective
- Fix
- Q&A
- Final Note
Guide version: 1.0 Light.
intro
Hello everyone, my name is Alhi. We are about to do a Q&A for Mii Swordfighter focused on the 2213 set. Before that I will go over some perspective sharing right away.
Perspective.
Mii Swordfighter is a heavy midweight sharing the same weight class as Cloud. Mii Swordfighter isn’t too fast either at 65th in speed. While survivability is what this weight class can do- this character design is destined to be countered by fast rush-down characters such as Shiek.
With this perspective in mind we see Mii Swordfighters biggest weakness is his speed vs fast characters and Mii Swordfighter struggles to kill with his basic moves. Both of these weaknesses are dealt with and fixed in this guide. I can guarantee you a higher level of stock claiming power and a dramatic increase in speed and survivability in this guide.
I am a former pro smash melee player who spent much time writing past guides which helped my community. My goal here is to spread awareness of this powerful set and see more players use it in tournaments.
Observation Perspective. Popular builds using Chakram and Tornado rely on frontloading the responsibility of taking the opponents stock onto Mii Swordfighters regular moves.
Tornado and Chakram have ZERO KO power - they give you ‘advantage state’ you can sometimes use to claim a stock.
The move set we will discuss here is 2213: Shuriken of Light, Gale Stab, Stone Scabbard & Power Thrust.
Q&A time
Q: Why did you choose away from Skyward Slashdash, it’s omnidirectional and does a lot of damage. It can even steal stocks.
It’s true Skyward Slashdash does great damage and situationally can steal stocks but inherently it still holds you back because it doesn’t KO. You might think Hero’s Spin is the obvious choice because it nets you an out of shield option that KO’s and KO’s even better in the air replacing Up Air but Hero’s spin has its own issues: It is our worst recovery. Stone Scabbard is the choice that wins out with its absurdly strong vertical recovery range with decent horizontal drift, its invulnerability frames during startup 5-12 provide a safer OoS, its ability to take stock, ability to scoop, twice hitting, and provides VERY powerful off-stage presence allowing Down Air to be more lethal. Do NOT challenge a mii swordfighter off the edge if they are running Stone Scabbard: They have no fear.
Q: Chakram is too good to give up. How did you choose Gale Strike over it?
A: Gale Strike has a very strong air-borne velocity. Using it in the air really moves you around the stage and helps get you into position, chase or keep neutral. This alone upgrades MiiSF’s overall speed and stage presence. This also becomes a fast and lethal recovery with priority over many other attacks. In Neutral this move is so quick it keeps your conditioned and smart opponents at range because they have to respect it–its too fast, and out prioritizes many attacks. These benefits easily beat out Chakram, and even more easily when you include Shuriken of Light which replaces both Tornado and Chakram.
Q: How do you use Shuriken of Light, it sux lol!
A: Shuriken of light is our fastest most repeatable projectile. It has longer range, knock-backs at mid to long range. It is reliable and powerful because it is safe to use without being commital. It replaces what chakram and tornado do–lead into regular attacks. On top of this, it is a pressure stage control tool which is invaluable for any character. Nothing in the game is like this move. It is simply overwhelming.
Use Examples
-Shuriken of light at midrange, run up, grab, downthrow, up air.
-Shorthop Shuriken of Light at midrange drifting backwards or forwards, avoid charge with drifted use, punish.
-Shuriken of Light, read jump, Gale Strike or Up Air/Stone Scabbard.
-Opponent recovering to platform, Shuriken of Light to bait airdodge, Up-Air
-Opponent gets hit by Shuriken of Light, Power Thrust (truecombo)
-Use while recovering to punish edge-guard strategies and allow safe return to stage.
Other benefits.
-Hits crouching Kirby
-Cannot be Absorbed by Ness/Lucas
-Can prevent camping/timeout strategies
Q: How do you get KO’s with this build?
A: By including special attacks with KO power that also move the character around fast it solves Mii Swordsmans issues of being slow and not being able to claim stocks. Power Thrust KO’s, Stone Scabbard KO’s, Gale Stab KO’s.
Notable video references: Lookup Peanuts use of Mii Swordfighter a few months ago where he played as Sans Mii Swordfighter against Marth. Also see Sriks vs Shishyo. Esam sometimes shows off this set as well.
Post Q&A Guide
Learning the moveset
Level 1
Practice makes perfect, start practicing Shuriken of Light. Your goal during practice in the beginning is to simply put as many shuriken of lights out into the air as possible and evade your opponent.
-Hitting doesn’t matter. This is all about evading and keeping your stage control during neutral. Use of Gale Stab in the air as a mobility tool is important here.
Level 2
Begin KO training. Hit with Shuriken of Light, run up, Downthrow, Up Air to kill. Repeat. Practice other attacks besides grab, IE down tilt. Landing Back Air to Gale Stab.
-Incorporate movement while still performing the combo by B-reversing shuriken of light or use from ledge, creativity is key.
Level 3
Add both trainings together. Avoid your opponent while maintaining stage control, sneak in shuriken of lights and Punish.
Stone Scabbard specific training.
Level 1
Hang on Ledge, drop down and use Up B. Try to find the sweet spot under the stage where you gain the most protection and most horizontal movement from traveling along the stage going up.
Get used to how far down you can go.
Level 2
Hang on Ledge, use Down Air, double jump, Down air, Recover. If possible, have someone or a computer help you feel out how the recovery can out-do other recoveries and still provide an advantage state even over the edge.
Level 3
While opponent recovers - Use Shuriken of Light over the edge while falling. Fall down deep following your opponent to ensure your attack can hit, do its knockback, and cheese a stock. If your shuriken of lights did not hit, recover and Down Air.
That is all!
Good luck with your future games!
Final important note …
In 2006 I began my journey as a tournament player up and down the west coast for 3 years. And during that time I wrote a 27 page guide that brought me my greatest smash bro’s accomplishments–seeing others emulate and improve on what I had started. One of the most important things I've learned is this.
The Smash Bro’s franchise is a nintendo product from Japan. In no way is this game designed or meant to be supported to be an olympic or professional sport. While we care about the integrity and life of the game far more than the outside community, we tend to forget that putting effort into this game does not always give us the meaningful turnaround we might have expected. To me, being the most friendly, and putting in the most concern and care for others, provides the most meaning and has the most possibility for fun. We should be honest with each other: This game has brought us together, but it is how we treat one another that determines it’s worth, and the worth for future generations of players.
-Alhi