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. For information about Captain Falcon's clone, see Ganondorf (SSBM).

Template:FA-articleCaptain Falcon
Universe	F-Zero
Also appears in	Super Smash Bros. Super Smash Bros. Melee Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Availability	Starter
Tier	A (7)

Captain Falcon (キャプテン・ファルコン, Kyaputen Farukon), announced at E3 2001, is a starter character in Super Smash Bros. Melee, famous for his running speed, falling speed and combo ability.

Falcon currently ranks 7th place on the tier list. He ranks high due to a superb punishing game and combo ability, in addition to the powerful Knee Smash. However, he is a fast faller and one of the heavier characters of Melee, making him vulnerable to various combos and chaingrabs.

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 edgeguard faraway enemies. He also has the best dash dance and moonwalk in the game. He has one of the fastest backward rolls in the game and a good forward roll, but his techrolls are slow. The trajectory of Captain Falcon's low lag aerials complement his speed, allowing him to effectively combo all characters. Captain Falcon has one of the best out-of-grab games available, as well as the ability to wall jump.

Captain Falcon does have his drawbacks, however. Captain Falcon has some powerful attacks, but these moves are slow, especially for some of his grounded moves. Captain Falcon's Forward Aerial is a powerful, low-trajectory finisher, but he is reliant on it to gain early KOs. Many of his moves have very small hitboxes, meaning that it can sometimes be hard to hit opponents, especially small characters, due to their lack of lower hitboxes. Captain Falcon also lacks projectiles and a reliable way to deal with opponents' projectiles. In recovery, Falcon Dive can't grab edgehoggers, leaving him extremely vulnerable to them. To help this problem, Falcon Kick lets Captain Falcon regain his second jump. While a Captain Falcon player must be cautious of his weaknesses, he can use his power, speed and combo ability to overcome them.

Moveset

Ground Moves

Normal

• Neutral Attack - Jabs twice then knees opponent, followed by several fast jabs. First two jabs do around 2-3% each, the knee 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. Strongest when it comes out, weaker afterward. Pretty fast, this move is good for knocking the foe away from the ledge to follow with an aerial attack or edgeguard, with proper mindgaming/prediction. 10% damage.
• Down Tilt - Does a quick sweep kick. A great launcher, but difficult to land. It has a long lag and therefore is not one of C.F.'s preferred setups. However, it can combo at most percentages and almost every DI into a SHFFLed neutral aerial, which can further combo. Fox and Falco can often be regrabbed from a Down Tilt at medium percents, and their Forward B attacks can be intercepted by Falcon's Down Tilt if they try to sweetspot the ledge. It can also combo into the Knee, and the Up Aerial, depending on knockback and DI. 12% damage.
• Forward Tilt - Kicks his foot out in front of him. Fast with decent range. There are not a significant amount of combo options from an Forward Tilt because of its horizontal hit trajectory, low knockback and stun time, and wind-down lag. One can try to follow up with a Up Aerial or a Jump Canceled grab, and even a dash-canceled Down Tilt or Raptor Boost, but they are not true combos and can be countered by every character. It may be a good idea to wavedash slightly forward to maintain pressure and enter a defensive stance, or used after a pivot as a surprise attack to keep enemies away. An angled up Forward Tilt is known to stun enemies long enough from an Up/Down Throw that it can lead to a Knee. 11% damage.
• Up Tilt - Turns as he brings his leg up and brings it down in an axe-like way. It has horizontal knockback as well, and, like the Forward Tilt, is difficult to combo from. Due to its low trajectory, one can often follow off the edge of a platform or stage with a falling Neutral Aerial or a non-sweetspotted Forward Aerial edgeguard, but this is not a true combo. It may be a good idea to wavedash slightly forward to maintain pressure, and enter a defensive stance. Most players use Up Tilts as an edgeguard technique, since the heel can extend below the platform. 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. Uncharged usually kills around 100%+. Can also be aimed down and up: 19%, 20% or 21% uncharged, 25%, 27% or 28% fully. It is notable that the "reeling back" part of this attack, along with many other Falcon's special attacks, happens nigh immediately, and in many situations can be used as a pseudo counter-attack against characters who are keeping proper range. In fact, this effect is so fast that it can dodge and counter many moves even if started after the other character has initiated their attack.
• Up Smash - Quickly thrusts both his feet upward in circular motions. A fast and powerful move, though with a short range with vertical reach. The second hit sometimes has difficulty connecting, as with Ganondorf's. When both hits connect, 19% uncharged, 27% fully charged.
• Down Smash - Kicks in front then back of him. Small noticeable startup, but good speed and knockback. 18% front, 16% back uncharged, 24% front and 21% back fully charged.

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.

Aerial Attacks

• Neutral Aerial - Kicks twice in front of him. A good two-hit combo starter or ender. First hit does 6%, second hit 7%.
• Back Aerial - A quick backfist behind him. Good power and speed, often used as an edgeguarding move. 14% damage.
• Forward Aerial - "The Knee". Captain Falcon sticks out his knee, which, when sweetspotted, will electrocute the foe, otherwise there is little knockback later in the move. An extremely powerful move when sweetspotted, it is often regarded as one the the most powerful and useful moves in the game. This move is the usual end to most of Falcon's aerial combos, or even to use against grounded foes in an aerial assault. Easily KOs at percents as low as 60% offstage. Impressive 18% when sweetspotted, and does 5-6% otherwise with terrible knockback.
• Down Aerial - Stomps below him for good downward knockback. Minor startup and ending lag. Can Nipple spike, meaning Meteor Canceling it is impossible, making it even more dangerous. 16%.
• Up Aerial - Does a backflip in midair and sticks his feet out. Knockback direction depends on what angle the move hits the foe, though strong nonetheless. Very fast and good for juggling. 13% damage.

Grabs & Throws

• Pummel - Knees opponent in the groin. 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. Knockback is usually hard to follow-up or combo with unless over a ledge. Throw does 5% first, 4% second.
• Up Throw - Punches foe upward. Yet another mysterious throw where Falcon supposedly only hits the foe once, although has two separate hitboxes. Foes usually fall straight down afterward, at lower percents can lead into Raptor Boost and aerial follow-ups. 4% then 3%.
• Down Throw - Crushes foe to the floor. Only one hitbox unlike his other throws. This knocks the foe to the floor, and this can easily lead into his Side Special. At lower percents, following his Down Throw and Side Special, an Up Smash or Tilt is possible. Can chain throw Fast-Fallers and characters who take high amounts of hitstun (Donkey Kong, Roy, Kirby, Pichu, etc) up to high percentages. At higher percents, can be followed with a Neutral Aerial, depending on the foe's DI reaction. Throw does a single-hitting 7% damage.

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

Matchups

Super Smash Bros. Melee Character Matchups

Avg.

Changes from SSB to Melee

Captain Falcon has a slight buff overall from SSB to Melee. Here are the changes:

• New, higher quality voice samples, though his voice actor still remains the same.
• Available as a starter.
• Air Speed has increased significantly (went from the 3rd slowest to the 3rd fastest)
• Rapid combo is faster, has more hitboxes and does more damage.
• Third hit of Neutral Combo gives much more knockback, and can even KO at very high percents.
• Falcon Dive has much slower start-up, has smaller grab range and grab attack has lost much of its KO power, but gains much more distance, both vertically and horizontally.
• Down aerial has a slower start-up and the hitbox lasts a much shorter time, but can Nipple Spike and has more reach and power.
• Falcon Punch has slower start-up and no longer is a good recovery move due to the loss of the effect of slowing down Captain Falcon's falling speed, but is stronger and has much more range.
• Forward aerial is now the Knee Smash. His Front Aerial in N64 is now his Neutral Aerial and it is altered so it hits at an upper angle.
• Falcon Kick now lets him regain his midair jump if previously used(one of his major buffs).
• Has a new special move, the Raptor Boost.
• Has his stance altered from SSB with a new idle action included with his default one, which was also altered.
• All smash attacks are were changed and are much more powerful. The downfalls are that his F-Smash has a bit less range and now has a sourspot added, U-Smash is slower and has drastically reduced utility, and his D-Smash is slower and now has a harder time hitting smaller characters who have very low crouching (Kirby and Jigglypuff).
• Down tilt has more range and combo ability.
• His Up Aerial has less range and the latter half of the hitbox is much weaker than hitting with the initial part of the attack, making semi spiking much less effective.
• Up Tilt now hits only once.
• Sourspot added to his Back Aerial and Forward Smash.
• Forward Tilt much less useful, although it has more power.
• Faster walking and running speed.

Strategies

Speed Options

• Captain Falcon has the fastest dash speed in the game. Reaching an item before the opponent shouldn't be a problem unless he or she is significantly closer to the item. This, of course, is meaningless in tournament play, where items are turned off.
• 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 devastating against Falcon.

Ground Options

• Captain Falcon's ground attacks have some lag, but in return, they generally have good knockback and damage. Captain Falcon's Up Smash hits twice, but has little horizontal reach. 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, it 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. It is frequently used for edgeguarding.

Air Options

• Forward Aerial "The Knee" - Captain Falcon's Forward Aerial is a great, if not Falcon's best, finisher. Timed at the end of grab and aerial combos, it can KO opponents at about 60%. Although the move does require precise timing to land, since a non sweetspotted hit will be very weak, the sourspot can be used as a form of Wall of Pain that can combo into another knee.
• Back Aerial - A backhand hit with a fair amount of startup lag. Falcon's B-Air 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 D-Air has a considerable amount of startup lag. It is good for use on the ground, where it will send opponents upward, sometimes Star-KOing at high percentages or creating a setup for a Knee. Hitting opponents with the upper hitbox (above Falcon's waist) will result in a Nipple spike.

Projectile/Protecting

• Although Captain Falcon is good in the air and on the 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 overreliance on items is not advised, because they will run out.
• Using Falcon's Raptor Boost is a good way to dodge oncoming projectiles like Samus's Missile or Mario's Fireball.
• Falcon is equipped with one of the best roll dodges in the game, as it is one of the fastest and longest. Both left and right roll dodges are quick and long.
• Falcon has the best dash-dance in the game, so if timed right, he can dash away from an attack and quickly dash back to retaliate.

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.

Down Throw

• Can chain-grab many characters with average falling speeds and weights at various percents. Simply down-throw, follow the opponent's DI with a dash, and use a Jump Cancelled Grab to grab again. If the opponent DIs towards the player, a re-grab in place or turning and re-grabbing may be possible.
• combos into N-air at most percents and DIs against non-fastfallers.
• Can combo into a F-Air at medium to high percents against non-fastfallers. This may be escapable at some percents with DI. This is also an option at very high percents against fast-fallers.
• Tech-chasing chain grabs are possible as well against fast-fallers. Additionally, one can Tech-chase with Raptor Boost. Down Smash is additionally useful, as it hits in front of and behind C.F., hitting 2/3 tech-rolls and hitting non-techs if properly timed.

Up Throw

• Combos into an N-Air, U-Air, and F-Air at various percents and DIs against virtually every character. The higher the percent, the more chance opponents have to break free.
• Combos into D-Tilt at low-medium percents against fast-fallers.
• Combos into F-Smash and D-Smash against fast-fallers at medium percents, depending on DI. Against fast fallers at low percents, does not combo directly but leads to Tech-chasing.
• Combos into a Up Smash against fast-fallers that do not DI to a side. Against large, heavy characters, can be wavedashed into at several DIs.
• Can combo into an angled F-Tilt depending on DI. Useful for catching awkward DIs and percents.
• If an opponent bounces, it is possible to hit them with any SHFFL'd aerial, a Down Smash, Raptor Boost, Falcon Kick, Falcon Punch, and any tilts out of the bounce.
• Raptor Boost is always an option, and directly combos against many characters at low percents and against most DIs, however is known to be very touchy and avoidable. Can be used to tech-chase as well.
• U-Throw can lead to a dashing, jump-cancelled re-grab against Fox at very high percents (approximately 110%) if the opponent DI's away. This is possible due to to Fox's light weight and high downward acceleration.

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 (Trophy #28)

Usually a relentless bounty hunter, Captain Falcon shifts gears to become a race pilot once the F-Zero Grand Prix begins. His beloved racer, the Blue Falcon, can exceed the speed of sound, and he knows how to drive it; he'll go down as one of the all time-greats. Now 36 years old, Captain Falcon wears his F-Zero X visor.

Captain Falcon (Smash Red) (Trophy #29)

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) (Trophy #30)

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

#28

#29

#30

Costume Gallery

Captain Falcon's changeable clothing in Super Smash Bros. Melee.

Trivia

• Falcon is one of the few characters to have a true spike in Melee, that being his Nipple Spike.
• Captain Falcon's Knee Smash has become very famous among the Smash community, for its incredible killing power and the fact that it can be easily comboed into. As such, it has gained many nicknames, including "The Knee".
• Falcon is the only character to have every single Smash Attack changed from Super Smash Bros. to Super Smash Bros. Melee.
• The Knee is the 3rd strongest aerial overall, behind Bowser's Up Aerial and Ganondorf's Down Aerial.

External links

• Captain Falcon combo video
• "One Hundred Billion Knees"