User blog:Plasmaster/Smash Study Hall: Kirby

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

Well, it has certainly been a good while since I have done one of these. I know I said recently that I was working on a guide for Bowser Jr., but I've been playing a lot of Kirby lately. A very fun character to play as for sure! Kirby has so many hilarious and hype shenanigans you can do with his moves.

First thing's first, Kirby's standard attacks.

Kirby's jab is fast and can rack up damage on an opponent effectively; it has a strong finisher capable of killing most characters at high percentages. Jab combos out of down aerial and up tilt, and the first two hits of jab can set up for a grab as well as combo into dash attack, forward smash, down tilt, down smash, up smash, down aerial, up tilt, forward tilt, and neutral aerial. Forward tilt is useful for spacing but not much else since it isn't terribly fast and has low launch power; at low percentages it combos into forward smash and dash attack and can set up for a grab; it combos out of down aerial as well. Down tilt has a high chance of tripping an opponent and is quite fast; at low percentages it can combo into itself, jab, forward smash, up smash, down aerial, and dash attack and easily combos out of down aerial; your best bet is to go for the forward smash or grab. Up tilt is one of Kirby's best combo starters on the ground; it combos into itself, up smash, forward smash, forward tilt, back aerial, up aerial, neutral aerial, forward aerial, down smash, and Final Cutter. Dash attack is a poor option for Kirby because it has a good amount of ending lag that makes it easy for opponents to punish if it misses or is blocked; at low percentages it can combo into forward aerial or up aerial but has little other utility, so it is greatly advised that you do not use dash attack as a combo finisher especially at mid-high percentages; it also quite useless as an approach option.

Kirby's smash attacks have low launch power at low percentages but are all great kill moves at higher percentages. Kirby's up smash is a good combo finisher and kill move; it combos out of down aerial, up tilt, down tilt, and the first two hits of jab; at low percentages it can combo into up aerial and forward aerial. Forward smash is perhaps the best out of Kirby's smash attacks for killing opponents; it has a good number of set-ups in the forms of down tilt, up tilt, the first two hits of jab, and down aerial; it does not combo into much of anything. Down smash has good range on it and can punish rolls as well as kill opponents at high percentages; it combos out of up tilt, the first two hits of jab, and down aerial.

Kirby has a lot of jumps that allow him to chain together a good number of aerials, though his poor air speed can make it difficult for him to follow-up sometimes. Neutral aerial is good for edge-guarding, but has low priority, so be sure to watch out for up specials particularly those that deal damage or have Super Armor (or both). Fast falling a neutral aerial can combo into jab, down tilt, forward tilt, forward smash, dash attack, and grab; jab, forward smash, or grab are your best options out of these. Forward aerial has low landing lag which allows it to be used closer to the ground to set up for other moves; forward aerial can set up for a grab or jab at lower percentages or a dash attack; forward aerial is another move that is good for edge-guarding and even for killing opponents off-stage; it combos out of up tilt, dash attack, and forward throw. In the air, forward aerial can combo into and out of itself and up aerial. Up aerial is good for juggling opponents and can kill off of the ceiling of the stage at high percentages; it combos out of up smash, up tilt, forward throw, and dash attack and can combo into forward aerial. Kirby's back aerial is his best kill move in the air; it has high launch on it that makes it good for edge-guarding and can wall out opponents off-stage; it is also safe on shield and therefore an effective spacing tool; back aerial combos out of up tilt, but very little else, so you'll have to just watch for an opportunity to use it. Kirby's down aerial is quite possibly his best aerial move; as I'm sure you are already aware, it is an incredible combo starter; use it on a grounded opponent and once Kirby reaches the ground you can throw out virtually any ground attack and it will combo reliably; the best follow-ups for down aerial are up tilt and down tilt at low percentages since these can combo very easily into many other attacks; forward smash will be your best combo finisher out of a down aerial and down aerial also sets up very nicely for a down smash or forward smash for use as a kill move. Down aerial can meteor smash but must sweetspot in order to do so; it has little use higher up in the air as it doesn't combo into any other aerials, but close to the ground down aerial is an excellent move.

Kirby's grab game is rather versatile; he is also one of the few characters to have a down throw that isn't a reliable combo starter. At low percentages down throw can combo into forward aerial, up smash, or dash attack, unless the opponent jumps away in which case all it is good for is damage. Kirby's back throw is a kill throw at the edge of the stage at high percentages while at other percentages it is good for getting an opponent off stage. Kirby's up throw is a potent kill throw especially on stages that have platforms like Battlefield or Dream Land 64; it doesn't combo into anything but using moves that can set up for grabs when the opponent is at high percentages is a good way to get the up throw. Forward throw is Kirby's best combo throw; it combos into forward aerial at low percentages while at mid percentages it can still combo into forward aerial but requires Kirby to jump once before executing it; at mid percentages it also combos into up aerial.

Now onto Kirby's special moves.

Inhale is an odd move; first, let's go over the options you have. You can spit an opponent back out, swallow them to copy their neutral special, or you can use it for a sacrificial K.O. The sacrificial K.O. option is quite self-explanatory. Kirby can spit out the opponent and then attack them with a forward aerial, up aerial, or down aerial. If Kirby copies the opponent's ability, he can then jump and hit them with a back aerial or up aerial since they end up above or behind Kirby after being swallowed by him. Now as for how to use each of the different copy abilities, I don't want to spend too much time focusing on each one, so let me just cover a few set-ups Kirby can do. Kirby can use his down aerial to combo into some of the powerful projectile attacks he might get such as Charge Shot, Shadow Ball, Aura Sphere, or Robo Beam. Kirby can also use his forward throw to set up for these as well as some other copy abilities such as Shield Breaker or Flare Blade.

Hammer Flip is a slow move that is amazingly good at killing an opponent at early percentages but has few set-ups and can be punished or even interrupted easily by an opponent; it has Super Armor frames during the hammer swing, do it can't be interrupted during the attack itself, but if Kirby is hit while charging it, he will have to charge it up again from the beginning; on top of this, Kirby can only jump once while charging it and moves more slowly along the ground in addition to taking recoil damage if he charges it for too long. Hammer Flip does have some great uses though; breaking an opponent's shield, baiting and punishing a counter or roll, and punishing an opponent's landing lag are all great opportunities that Kirby can take advantage of using the Hammer Flip.

Final Cutter isn't the best recovery since using it too far from an edge can cause Kirby to SD. As an out of shield option it is quite useful since it can launch an attacking opponent away from Kirby for some breathing room. It can combo out of up tilt but doesn't combo into anything. It can meteor smash opponents but it requires good timing to do so, though if pulled off this makes it a good edge-guarding method.

Stone is Kirby's down special. It is not the best move but like Hammer Flip it does have it uses. It can be used as a landing option or to get Kirby closer to the edge after being launched high into the air off stage. Kirby has Super Armor after transforming which protects him from being launched by enemy attacks, though a smart opponent will either grab Kirby or wait until Kirby transforms back. After transforming, Kirby is in the air a very short distance above the ground, so throw out a forward or back aerial is a good way to launch opponents away from Kirby so that they can't punish him. Stone can also kill opponents off the ceiling, which makes it a good answer to opponents who are reckless or consistently juggling Kirby, though you should still be careful as most players will be smart enough to roll, dash, or DI away from you as you drop; if Stone is clearly not going to hit the opponent, cancel it by mashing the special move button. Stone is incredibly effective on shields when used both on the ground and in the air.

I hope you enjoyed this guide on Kirby! I also hope that it helped you to improve your Kirby game!

If you have any questions, please let me know down in the comments. While you're at it, let me know what character you'd like me to do next.

Maybe I'll make a separate guide focusing solely on the different ways Kirby can use the copy abilities? If you'd like to see this, let me down in the comments.

I am also thinking about changing up my format for these guides; for my next character guide I will use the new format and then you guys can tell me which one you like better.

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