Captain Falcon (Super Smash Bros. Melee)

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

Captain Falcon
Universe	F-Zero
Also appears in	SSB SSBM SSBB
Availability	Starter
Tier	High (6/7)

Captain Falcon (キャプテン・ファルコン, 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 6/7th place on the tier list, along with Jigglypuff.

Overview

Captain Falcon suffers from falling speed that renders him weak to enemy combos, and a poor up B recovery that is easily edge-guarded. Thus, Captain Falcon gets hit hard and dies quickly. Capt Falcon makes up for this with his unparalleled speed and versatile attacks which allow him to confuse, combo and defeat opponents. It is imperative for all Capt Falcon players to be able to SHFFL extremely well and to be wary of when certain knee setups are applicable.

Captain Falcon's matchups are strangely balanced - unlike other characters high up on the tier list, Capt. Falcon lacks "broken" attacks and fares only even matchups against even low-tier characters. There are many claims, for instance, that Captain Falcon is countered by low-tier characters like Ness, Pikachu and Mewtwo. His sixth place position is vindicated by the fact that he matches evenly against most top and upper tier characters, which allows him to fare well in tournaments comprised of these characters.

Falcon's true balance is his versatility as an offensive/counterattacking character. He has an amazing ability to break through defensive strategies with a jump-canceled grab or a well-placed knee (or even a forward-B), and a similarly effective counterattacking game, able to shield-jump into a down-air or neutral air and combo from there. His high speed makes him a threat anywhere, and he can use dash-dancing to simply dodge an attack and return with a JC'd grab before the opponent can react. The effect of this can quickly accumulate, as almost all of Falcon's moves combo into an aerial or a grab, which can lead to additional moves which re-combo into aerials and grabs, although he does not possess anything truly infinite, and proper DI can mitigate the damage. Nevertheless, playing with and playing against Captain Falcon requires an immense amount of technical knowledge, and this makes him a threat in every match.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Fastest dashing speed in the game.
• Powerful attacks
• Fast falling lends speed to his air game.
• 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.
• The trajectory of his aerials complements his speed, allowing him to effectively combo all characters.
• Aerials easily chain into one another on about every character. (Low damage fast fallers an exception)
• Low lag aerials
• Most resistant character to vertical KOs with his combination of weight and falling speed.
• His forward aerial (the knee) is a powerful, low-trajectory finisher
• The best dashdancer in the game
• One of the best out-of-grab games available.
• The game's best moonwalker
• Has one of the fastest backwards rolls in the game and a good forward roll
• Can wall jump
• Down-B lets him regain his second jump which helps his bad recovery.

Cons

• Due to Falcon's fast falling speed, enemies can combo him very easily.
• His up-B cannot attack people hanging on the edge, making him extremely vulnerable to edge-hoggers
• Low range
• Slow and poor ground attacks
• No projectile
• Reliant on his knee to gain early kills.
• Slow techrolls.

Changes from N64 to Melee

• New Side B (Raptor Boost)
• Voice is slightly different, even though his voice actor is the same.
• Available as a starter
• Third hit of Neutral Combo gives more knockback.
• Falcon Dive gains a little more distance.
• New Forward Smash
• 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.

Normal Moves

For a detailed moveset, see AngeloBangelo's Captain Falcon guide on Smash World Forums, at http://www.smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=53471.

Special Moves

Captain Falcon's Special Moves
	64	Melee	Brawl	3DS/Wii U	Ultimate
Standard Special	Falcon Punch
Side Special	—	Raptor Boost
Up Special	Falcon Dive
Down Special	Falcon Kick
Final Smash	—		Blue Falcon

Strategies

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. Therefore, comboing works very well. 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 devastating against Falcon.

Ground Options

• Captain Falcon's grounds attack 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 comboes, 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 ledgeguarding. 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.

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)

Costume Gallery

Captain Falcon's changeable clothing in SSBM