Captain Falcon (Super Smash Bros. Melee)


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

Captain Falcon (, Kyaputen Farukon) is a starter character in Super Smash Bros. Melee, famous for his running speed, falling speed, combo ability, and the knee. Announced at E3 2001, Falcon currently ranks 6th place on the tier list tied with Jigglypuff. He ranks high due to a superb punishing game and combo ability.

Attributes
Captain Falcon is well known for his extreme speed and combo ability. His dash speed is the fastest in the game, his air speed is fast, and his falling speed is very fast. His fast falling speed allows him to SHFFL very well, and it gives him resistance to vertical KOs. However, it also shortens his recovery and makes him easy to combo and chaingrab (especially since he is heavy and large). His running speed and high lateral air speed give him the game's longest and fastest long jump, allowing him to close great distances with short hop aerials and edge-guard faraway enemies. He also has the best dashdance and moonwalk in the game. He has one of the fastest backwards rolls in the game and a good forward roll, but his techrolls are slow. Captain Falcon has some powerful attacks (e.g. Falcon Punch), but these moves are slow. Captain Falcon's forward aerial (the knee) is a powerful, low-trajectory finisher, but he is reliant on it to gain early KOs. The trajectory of Captain Falcon's low lag aerials complement his speed, allowing him to effectively combo all characters. On the downside, Captain Falcon has small hitboxes, no projectile, or a reliable way to deal with opponents' projectiles. Captain Falcon has one of the best out-of-grab games available and the ability to wall jump. In recovery, Falcon Dive can't grab edge-hoggers, leaving him extremely vulnerable to them. To help this problem, Falcon Kick lets Captain Falcon regain his second jump.

Changes from N64 to Melee

 * New voice samples, even though his voice actor still remains the same.
 * Available as a starter
 * Third hit of Neutral Combo gives more knockback.
 * Falcon Dive has much slower start-up, has smaller grab range and grab attack has lost much of it's KO power, but gains a little more distance.
 * New Forward Smash
 * Dair has a slower start-up and the hitbox lasts a much shorter time.
 * Falcon Punch has slower start-up and no longer is a good recovery move due to the lost of the effect of slowing down Captain Falcon's falling speed.
 * New Down Smash
 * Forward aerial is now the Knee Smash. His Front Aerial in N64 is now his Neutral Aerial.
 * New Up Smash.
 * Now regains a double jump when Down B is used in the air.
 * Has a side special move, the Raptor Boost.

Normal

 * Neutral Attack- Jabs twice then knees opponent, followed by several fast jabs. First two jabs do around 2-3% each, the "gentlemen" kneeing does 8%, and each jab after does 1% each. A fast and somewhat short-ranged jab-attack, this move is good for stopping close-up opponent's approach.
 * Dash Attack- Shoulder tackle. 10%
 * Down Tilt- Does a quick round kick. 12% damage.
 * Forward Tilt- Kicks his foot out in front of him. Fast with decent range. 11% damage.
 * Up Tilt- puts his foot up and brings it down in a very similar fashion to Samus's up tilt. 11% damage.

Smash Attacks

 * Side Smash- Reels his elbow back and thrusts it forward. Excellent knockback even when uncharged with good horizontal and vertical launching power, making it hard to DI. Somewhat fast as well. 20% uncharged, 27% fully.
 * Up Smash- Fastly thrusts both his feet upwards. A fast and powerful move, though short range. When both hits connect, 19% uncharged, 27% fully charged. This is Falcon's most powerful move damage-wise (When fully charged).
 * Down Smash- Kicks in front then back of him. Good speed and knockback. 18% front, 16% back uncharged, 24% front and 21% back fully charged.

Aerial Attacks

 * Forward Air- "The Knee". An extremely powerful hit when sweetspotted, and often regarded as one the the most powerful and useful moves in the game. Captain Falcon fastly sticks out his knee, which, when sweetspotted, will electrocute the foe for an impressive 18%, and do 5-6% damage with little knockback later in the move.
 * Neutral Aerial- His forward aerial from SSB, kicks twice in front of him. First hit does 6%, second hit 7% damage.
 * Back Aerial- A quick punch behind him. Good power and speed. 14% damage.
 * Down Aerial- Stomps below him for good downwards knockback. Can Nipple spike, making it even more powerful. 16%.
 * Up Aerial- Does a backflip in mid-air and sticks his feet out. Knockback depends on what angle the move hits the foe. (though still strong nonetheless). 13% damage.

Other Attacks

 * Ledge Attack- Picks himself up and kicks. 10% damage.
 * 100% ledge attack- Somewhat slowly gets up and punches in front of him. 8% damage.
 * Floor Attack-Gets up and flips while kicking. 6% damage.

Grabs & Throws

 * Pummel- Knees opponent. 2-3% damage per pummel.
 * Forward Throw- Punches foe forward. Oddly, has two hits, the first hit doing 5% damage, second 4%.
 * Back Throw- Kicks foe behind. Also has two very small and hardly noticeable hits, 5% first, 4% second.
 * Up Throw- Punches foe upward. Yet another mysterious throw where Falcon supposedly only hits the foe once, although has two seperate hitboxes. 4% then 3%.
 * Down Throw- Crushes foe to the floor. Only one hitbox unlike his other throws, 7% damage.

Speed Options

 * Captain Falcon has the fastest dash speed in the game. Reaching an item before your opponent shouldn't be a problem unless he or she is significantly closer to the item.


 * Captain Falcon's aerial game is very fast, making performing combos fairly easy. His knee is a good KO move at medium-high damage. He also has one true spike. Use that as a follow-up in case the knee doesn't work, or to continue comboing.


 * Because Falcon's Falling Speed and weight are so high, He is the character that is most resistant to vertical knockouts.


 * Since he is a heavy character and a fast faller, attacks like Peach's down smash can be horrible against Falcon.

Ground Options

 * Captain Falcon's ground attack's have some lag, but, in return, they generally have good knockback and damage. Captain Falcon's up smash hits twice which can KO at low percentages. His side smash is a little laggy, but has great range and knockback. His down smash is two kicks which hit both sides of Falcon so opponents on either side of him will be hit so long as they are within range. In addition, his down smash has a very good reach and priority.
 * Falcon's tilts include his forward tilt, a long ranged kick with decent damage and knockback, his down tilt, a sweeping kick which sends opponents upwards, and his up tilt, where he lifts his leg in the air and smashes it down. The up tilt is frequently used for edgeguarding.

Air Options

 * Forward Aerial "The knee" - Captain Falcon's forward aerial is a great finisher. Timed at the end of grab and aerial combos, it can KO opponents at about 60%. However it requires precise timing to land, since a non sweetspotted hit will be very weak.
 * Back Aerial - A backhand hit with a fair amount of startup lag. Falcon's Bair is excellent, especially for edgeguarding. While an opponent is off stage it is common to hop backwards and intercept them with a Bair for the KO.
 * Neutral Aerial - Two fast kicks. The Neutral aerial is good for racking up damage.
 * Up Aerial - A quick back-flip kick. Good for attacking airborne opponents as it is fast and relatively strong, and has a long duration making it comparatively easy to land.
 * Down Aerial - An airborne stomp. Falcon's Dair has a considerable amount of startup lag. It is, however, a good spike when timed correctly, and is also good for use on the ground where it will send opponents upwards, sometimes knocking them off at high percentages. It can also nipple spike.

Projectile/Protecting

 * Although Captain Falcon is good in the air and ground, he has no projectiles or ways to effectively deal with projectiles, which makes him vulnerable to campers with long range. Items like Ray Guns can help, but you shouldn't become overly reliant on items because they will run out of juice.


 * Using Falcon's Raptor Boost is a good way to dodge oncoming projectiles like Samus's Missile or Mario's Fireball.


 * Falcon has a quick, long backwards roll, arguably the best in the game. His forward roll is good too, so he can easily roll right past attackers.

Grabs

 * Captain Falcon has some good grabs that are used to start chains and combos, most notably into his fair, which can allow for quick kills.


 * His up throw is an excellent combo starter.


 * His forward throw and down throw are his best chain starters. They are usually followed by a quick Raptor Boost or a series of forward throws followed by a Dair or Fair.

Trophy Descriptions
In addition to his normal trophy, there are two trophies about him as a fighter, unlocked by completing the Adventure and All-Star modes respectively with Captain Falcon on any difficulty:


 * Captain Falcon (Smash Red)
 * Falcon's style is a balanced combination of raw power and speed. His attacks are slow, but when combined with Falcon's high mobility, he's a formidable combat force. The Falcon Punch packs the highest degree of destructive power, while the explosive Raptor Boost can be used to smash airborne foes into the depths. (B: Falcon Punch, Smash B: Raptor Boost)


 * Captain Falcon (Smash Blue)
 * The Knee Smash, used in midair on foes in front of you, is slow and has a short reach, but if it connects, it'll send foes flying a long way on a low trajectory. Falcon uses his Falcon Dive to grab an enemy in midair and fling them away with an explosive blast. He can do this technique repeatedly without landing, so it can also be used as a recovery move. (Up & B: Falcon Dive, Down & B: Falcon Kick)