User blog:Plasmaster/Smash Study Hall: Charizard

Hey Smashers! Welcome back to the Super Smash Bros. strategy guide blog series, Smash Study Hall! Plasmaster here.

So...Charizard...remember when I said Ryu was the hardest character for me to write a guide on (which is why Nyan helped me write it)? Well, Charizard has officially topped that. He was not easy to make a guide about, and considering that I wrote it in such short time makes it all the more...impressive? Not to toot my own horn or anything.

All right, so let's get this over w--I mean, let's get into it!

Charizard's jab is a good combo finisher. Charizard's forward tilt is good for spacing, and if spaced correctly so that the flame on his tail hits the opponent, it will deal more damage. The up tilt is great for deterring enemy aerial approaches and can combo into up smash; because it has disjointed hitboxes, it has high priority. Charizard's down tilt, though slow, has great range to it and can keep an opponent out if they are making a frontal approach. Charizard's dash attack can combo into his forward aerial and neutral aerial.

Forward smash is a good kill move but has high ending lag, so only use it if it is a guaranteed hit. Up smash can cover Charizard from above pretty well, combos out of up tilt and down throw, and is a kill move. Charizard's down smash can cover rolls nicely and can break shields.

Charizard's aerials are all quite slow, but powerful. Neutral aerial deals more damage when the flame on the tail hits and it combos out of down throw. Forward aerial combos out of down throw and is a good edge-guarding tool. Back aerial deals more damage when the flame on the tail hits but is not a very good combo move. Down aerial is a powerful meteor smash and combo finisher. Up aerial is good for juggling and killing off of the ceiling, and it combos out of up throw.

Charizard's throws only have a small number of moves they can combo into. Forward and back throw are only good for getting opponents off-stage. Up throw can combo into Flare Blitz up aerial and up special. Down throw can combo into up smash, neutral aerial, and forward aerial.

Now for Charizard's special moves.

Flamethrower is a good tool for spacing and edge-guarding; using it on the edge can prevent opponents from recovering and grabbing the edge and can cause them to fall and die.

Flare Blitz is a move that you should SPAM AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE--nah, I'm just kidding. Spam this move and Charizard will rack up damage on himself really quickly. Flare Blitz can combo out of up throw at low percentages if the opponent doesn't DI, air dodge, or jump out of it. Flare Blitz is good for horizontal recovery and as a kill move, but you need to wait for a golden opportunity before you use this move to hit an opponent. The move also possesses Super Armor.

Fly is an average recovery, but is better as a combo finisher and kill move. Since it has Super Armor it is not easily gimped or interrupted when used to kill an opponent off the ceiling.

Rock Smash is great on shields and as an escape tool; use it while an enemy is using a combo on you and the Super Armor on the move will prevent Charizard from being launched, end their combo, and possibly attack them with a high-damaging move.

Yeah...so this guide didn't seem all that in-depth, but truth be told Charizard just isn't a combo-heavy character. He has high ending lag on most of his moves which makes it very hard to combo much. Charizard is a character that focuses on getting up close, dealing some big damage with two or three attacks, and then blocking the enemy attacks or retreating and then repeating the process until they are at the right percentage to be hit with a good kill move.

I hope you enjoyed this guide on Charizard! I also hope this helped you to improve your Charizard game!

If you have any questions, please let me know down in the comments. While you're at it, let me know what other characters you'd like to see!

Next time, grab your exercise balls, your fitness mats, and your balance boards, because it's time to get fit! The Wii Fit Trainer guide is next!

Until next time, keep on smashing and leave it to Heropon!