Captain Falcon (Super Smash Bros. Brawl)


 * This article is about Captain Falcon's appearance in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. For other uses, see Captain Falcon.

Captain Falcon (キャプテン・ファルコン, Kyaputen Farukon, full name, Douglas Jay Falcon) appears as an unlockable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Originating from the F-Zero universe, Captain Falcon returns again to compete in Brawl. To unlock Captain Falcon, you must either play 70 brawls or beat Classic Mode on Normal difficulty or higher, and after doing either of these, you must defeat Captain Falcon in a brawl match. Alternately, you can have him join your party in the Subspace Emissary, which will unlock him.

Captain Falcon is currently ranked last on the tier list as a result of his abysmal priority, poor moveset, match-ups, and tournament results.

Attributes
Captain Falcon is a heavy character with strong attacks and has the second fastest running speed, behind Sonic. His attacks mostly consist of kicks and punches, including the famed Falcon Punch. Many of his moves have high knockback and damage, lending him considerable power. His standard special, the Falcon Punch, deals high damage and the direction can be reversed, but takes considerable startup time. His Raptor Boost and Falcon Kick send him rocketing forward to deal damage, while- contrary to the name- Falcon Dive sends him upwards with a little horizontal movement. If his Falcon Dive connects, it will deal damage to an opponent and Captain Falcon will get off from them, and he will be able to use Falcon Dive again. Additionally, many of his moves make powerful finishers- for example, his forward aerial (informally known as the Knee of Justice) is known for having extreme knockback, his down aerial makes a powerful spike, and his forward smash deals high damage with high knockback. His throws chain well, and Captain Falcon is also capable of performing the Wall jump. However, many of his moves have considerable startup time, low range, and small sweetspots, and Captain Falcon has no projectiles. His Falcon Dive is also a very slow recovery move, and is easily edgeguarded.

Falcon's critical problem lies in his guttural priority. Many of his ground attacks are easily cancelled by a number of moves from other characters such as certain jabs. Coupled with his lag, Captain Falcon will usually have a difficult time handling most opponents controlled by highly skilled players.

Changes from Melee to Brawl

 * Slighty new design from F-Zero GX, most notably his scarf (from F-ZERO GP Legend).
 * Falcon Punch can be reversed for a short time during the startup.
 * Captain Falcon can no longer Nipple Spike and now has a harder time spiking in general.
 * Raptor Boost makes a "leapfrog" effect when attack connects in the air.
 * The Falcon Dive travels further and is easier to use as an attack.
 * The Knee Smash (forward aerial) is harder to sweet spot and is significantly weaker in terms of knockback (though it is stronger in terms of damage output, if only by 1%).
 * His falling speed is significantly lower.
 * Attacks are slower
 * He no longer gains a second jump after using Falcon Kick in the air.
 * His victory theme changed to the finish from F-Zero GX/AX.
 * The grab-zone of his Up Special has been increased, making it easier to sweet-spot ledges.
 * Like other characters, his Forward Smash with a Home-Run Bat is unique from one used with other Battering weapons. Because of this, he can now properly use a Home Run Bat for a Homerun Contest.
 * Falcon Punch has less startup time, but lower knockback.
 * Raptor Boost is easier to use.
 * Moves have lower priority.
 * Vertical recovery has slightly improved, though his horizontal recovery is much worse.
 * The Falcon Dive can now grab opponents hanging onto the ledge and break targets in "Target Smash!" mode.
 * Has a new "toppling" animation.

Normal

 * Neutral Attack - Punches twice then knees the opponent, which is followed by a series of punches. The first two punches and the kick do 4% and 5% respectively, and the punches at the end do 1% each.
 * Dash Attack - Rams a shoulder into the opponent.. Quick and powerful. 9-12%.
 * Strong Side - Roundhouse kick. 7-10%.
 * Strong Up - An Axe kick with horizontal knockback. 10-13%.
 * Strong Down - Does a sweep kick with vertical knockback. 9-12%.

Smash

 * Forward Smash - Rears back and jabs an elbow forward. High knockback. 19-26%.
 * Up Smash - Kicks into the air twice. First kick does 10-11%, second hit does 10-12%.
 * Down Smash - Kick forward, then backward. High horizontal knockback. 12-15% for each kick.

Other

 * Ledge attack - flips over and brings his foot down. 5-6%
 * 100% Ledge attack -
 * Floor attack -
 * Trip attack -spin kicks his foes

Aerial Attacks

 * Neutral Aerial - Kicks horizontally twice for 10% total damage.
 * Forward Aerial - Knee Smash: Jabs a knee forward. Excellent horizontal killer. 3%, 19% when sweetspotted.
 * Back Aerial - Punches backwards.
 * Up Aerial - Kick flips with good reach. The attack does more horizontal knockback if hit at the tip.
 * Down Aerial - Stomps downward. This is a powerful spike when his boots hit the target.

Grabs & Throws

 * Pummel - Knees the enemy's midsection.
 * Forward Throw - Punches the enemy in the gut and sends them forward.
 * Back Throw - Puts the enemy behind him and kicks them in the stomach.
 * Up Throw -Holds the enemy up and punches them upward with his left hand.
 * Down Throw - Flips opponent and throws them on the ground.

Role in the Subspace Emissary
In Subspace Emissary, Captain Falcon will team up with Captain Olimar and his Pikmin. When Olimar sends his Pikmin to attack a giant ROB, it wakes up the robot, causing it to shake off the Pikmin. Luckily, Captain Falcon drives his F-Zero machine straight towards them, jumps out in mid-motion, and Falcon Punches the ROB, thus destroying it and, upon landing, Olimar's remaining Pikmin (except for 1 red Pikmin.). Once the two get out of the forest, they find a Primid transport platform that is holding the trophied DK hostage. The two watch as Diddy Kong falls from Falco's Arwing, and fires peanuts at the ship. After Diddy Kong revives DK, Captain Falcon grabs Olimar, and jumps off the ledge and onto the ship. Then the four must fight off a horde of Primids. Afterwards, the ship will take them into the secret Subspace HQ, where they will meet up with Samus, Pikachu, and, eventually, a friendly ROB. After fighting off a large army comprising of various Subspace troops with the others, the heroes are unable to stop the ROBs which arm the last remaining Subspace bombs. Captain Falcon presses a few buttons on his wrist, summoning his ship, the Falcon Flyer. Everyone piles into the ship and prepares to escape the doomed base when they are attacked from behind by Meta Ridley. After defeating the monster, they escape the floating island where a giant explosion of subspace engulfs the island. (In fact, the explosion is so fatal, the island doesn't return to normal even after Tabuu is beaten. Instead, a light -shaped like an "X"- is in its place.) Captain Falcon joins with the other heroes and uses his ship to help in the assault on the Subspace Battleship. He continues to help throughout the rest of the story.

Towards the end, Captain Falcon and everyone else glimpse Tabuu. In a single, devastating act, Tabuu turns everyone into trophies. All are brought back to life due to the Dedede Badges and efforts of Kirby, Luigi, Ness, and Dedede. With the aid of Sonic, Tabuu becomes vulnerable, and a final battle between the characters and Tabuu begins. The player may pick Captain Falcon to fight Tabuu.

Exclusive Stickers
The following stickers can only be used by Captain Falcon:
 * Blue Falcon: [Specials: Direct] Attack + 3
 * Capt. Falcon (F-Zero): [Slash] Resistance +23
 * Capt. Falcon (F-Zero GX): [Arm, Leg] Attack + 8
 * Capt. Falcon (F-Zero X): [Specials: Direct] Attack +19
 * Gomar & Shioh:	[Specials: Direct] Attack +10
 * Samurai Goroh:[Arm] Attack +18

Trivia

 * Captain Falcon is one of the few characters to speak during The Subspace Emissary.
 * Captain Falcon is one of the four that has a holstered weapon but does not use it at all. The others are Ganondorf, Snake and Sheik.
 * Captain Falcon's down taunt ("Show me your Moves!") is longer when facing the front of the screen. When his back is turned and he uses his down taunt, its faster.