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This article is about Yoshi's appearance in Super Smash Bros. For other uses, see Yoshi.
"Yoshi is the cute dinosaur who lives on a tropical island. You'd be surprised what he can do with a simple egg."
Super Smash Bros.'s instruction manual

Yoshi (ヨッシー, Yoshi) is a starter character in Super Smash Bros.

Yoshi ranks 5th on the current tier list, for many unique combos and strategies with him, including his infamous deadly down aerial, and Egg Lay. However, despite having a large double jump, Yoshi lacks a third jump, resulting in easy edge-guards.

Attributes[]

SSB64 Yoshi

Yoshi is a surprisingly heavy character (third heaviest character in Smash 64), yet is relatively quick, with the fastest air speed in the game, with a moderately fast dashing speed and fast walking speed to complement this. He has an average falling speed and fast falling speed. Unlike other characters, Yoshi's shield is not a bubble, but a Yoshi egg, which lasts slightly longer than other shields. It is also immune to shield stabbing due to the shield covering his whole body and not shrinking (rather, it becomes darker to indicate how close it is to breaking). However, it takes slightly longer to get out of than other shields. Yoshi has a rather sluggish roll, limiting his out-of-shield options (though he can jump out of his shield, unlike in Melee and Brawl). Yoshi lacks a third jump, but his double jump is very large and also gives him a special type of launch resistance during most of the animation. The unique properties of his double jump allow him to "double jump cancel counter", which enables him to escape combos and counterattack.

Yoshi has many KO moves, such as his forward smash and forward aerial (the latter of which can meteor smash). He has a huge amount of combo moves, such as his forward tilt and up tilt. The former has high hitstun and can easily combo into itself or a forward aerial. The latter hits opponents vertically with set knockback, allowing it to easily lead into aerials such as back aerial and up aerial. This is also an effective KO setup at higher percentages. His up tilt can also juggle fastfallers at low percentages, which can also be done in conjunction with an up aerial. Yoshi's down tilt also has set knockback, and sends opponents on a semi-spike trajectory, making it a useful gimping move. Yoshi can use a well-known glitch-tactic called double jump cancel, allowing him to use aerials quicker and combo with aerials more reliably. It's especially effective with his down aerial, which can rack up a huge amount of damage (maximum of 56%) somewhat quickly. Yoshi can parry attacks by timing a shield correctly (within 4 frames of being hit), which allows him to use an attack out of his shield immediately; and while the foe still has freeze frames to endure. In high level play, Yoshi is known for being able to break shields quickly using his Z-cancelled neutral aerial while using DJC. This is known as a shield break combo. His DJC'd down aerial can also break a shield if used correctly.

Yoshi also has a projectile in his up special move, Egg Throw. It is difficult to control, however, due to the arc that it travels in, and it is too slow and short-ranged to be as effective as some of the other projectiles in the game. The explosion does have good range and power, though.

Yoshi has a number of weaknesses, however. He has a lot of trouble dealing with pressure, especially from characters tiered higher than him. While his recovery can travel a decent distance due to his very high air speed, getting hit out of his double jump basically leaves him helpless, as he lacks a third jump to use. Even weak projectiles such as Fox's Blaster can cause Yoshi to lose his double jump. Yoshi's grab is slow, laggy and lacks range compared to other ranged grabs (Link and Samus's grabs). Yoshi is also fairly vulnerable to some combos due to his tall size and heavy weight. In addition to this, his reliable approach options lack range, giving him large trouble dealing with moves like Kirby's up tilt and Ness's down smash while approaching.

Yoshi has very average matchups overall. Against characters tiered higher than him, he is heavily countered by Pikachu and Kirby, and also has trouble against Captain Falcon and Fox. Overall, Yoshi does well against the lower tiers and poorly against the higher tiers, granting him a spot around the very middle of the tier list.

Moveset[]

  Image Name Damage Description
Neutral attack Yoshi Neutral attack SSB   3% Yoshi performs two short-ranged kicks, with each foot he strikes with enlarging as he does so.
4-5%
Forward tilt Yoshi Forward tilt SSB   10-13% Yoshi thrusts one foot out, dealing below-average knockback. Desptie this, this move is referred to as the best forward tilt in the game due to its very fast speed and good power. The attack itself can be angled up or down.
Up tilt Yoshi Up tilt SSB   9-12% Yoshi swings his head upwards that deals set knockback. A great for setting up combos.
Down tilt Yoshi Down tilt SSB   8-10% Yoshi swings his tail around to sweep opponents off their feet. This attack has set knockback and semi-spikes, making it a great move for edge-guarding.
Dash attack Yoshi Dash attack SSB   9-12% (clean), 6-8% (late) Yoshi jumps and performs a running headbutt. This attack punishable due to a small bit of ending lag.
Forward smash Yoshi Forward smash SSB   14-18% Yoshi winds back before hurling his head forward to deliver a powerful headbutt. Deals above-average horizontal knockback. Can be used to intercept linear and/or predictable recoveries.
Up smash Yoshi Up smash SSB   14-18% Yoshi jumps and performs an upwards headbutt. Deals good horizontal knockback when hit from behind-to-top and average upwards knockback when hit near the end.
Down smash Yoshi Down smash SSB   11-14% A double tail sweep that hits on both sides of Yoshi. Deals weak horizontal knockback for a smash attack, and has some ending lag.
Neutral aerial Yoshi Neutral aerial SSB   11-14% (clean), 9-11% (late) Yoshi sticks one foot out in midair. A sex kick that deals below-average horizontal knockback.
Forward aerial Yoshi Forward aerial SSB   14-18% Yoshi reels back and quickly swings his head downward. A meteor smash that deals great knockback despite its quick speed, being able can KO at medium percentages and combos into other aerial attacks at lower percentages, as well as having some use as a combo starter when used against a grounded opponent.
Back aerial Yoshi Back aerial SSB   12-16% A reverse dropkick attack with both feet that deals good horizontal knockback.
Up aerial Yoshi Up aerial SSB   12-15% Yoshi strikes upward with his tail. This attack very powerful in combos using DJC, and can KO vertically, notably from an up tilt, at high percentages.
Down aerial Yoshi Down aerial SSB   42-56% if all hits connect Yoshi goes flutters while in the air, dealing multiple hits on anyone he comes in contact with. Out of all moves in Super Smash Bros., this has the highest damage output, being able to deal a whopping 56% if all hits connect, being especially effective on characters with large, vulnerable hurtboxes such as Donkey Kong. This attack is capable of meteor smashing at high percents.
Grab Yoshi Grab SSB.png   Yoshi uses his tongue to grab an opponent and pull them into his mouth. Yoshi, along with Link and Samus, Are the only characters in the game that has an "extended grab". The grab range is notably shorter than Link and Samus's.
Forward throw Yoshi Forward throw SSB   9-12% Yoshi reels back with the opponent in his mouth and spits them out forward, dealing good horizontal knockback.
Back throw Yoshi Back throw SSB   12-16% Yoshi turns around, and spits the opponent out backwards, containing better knockback than the forward throw.
Floor attack (front) Yoshi Floor attack (front) SSB   5-6% Yoshi gets up and does a headbutt on both sides.
Floor attack (back) Yoshi Floor attack (back) SSB   5-6% Yoshi gets up and does a quick spin kick that hits on both sides.
Edge attack (fast) Yoshi Edge attack (fast) SBB   5-6% Yoshi leaps onto the stage and strikes with his tail.
Edge attack (slow) Yoshi Edge attack (slow) SBB   5-6% Yoshi Steadily climbs up, reels his head back, and headbutts forward.
Neutral special Egg Lay (SSB) Egg Lay 4-5% Yoshi sticks out his tongue to grab opponents, swallows them, and turns them into eggs. The higher percentage the opponent have, the harder it will be for them to break free out of the egg. Tilting the control stick rapidly back and forth will help the opponent escape the egg more quickly. Opponents trapped inside the eggs will receive less damage than usual.
Up special Egg Throw (SSB) Egg Throw 11-14% (egg) Yoshi throw an exploding egg which trajectory can be altered with directional inputs. How long you hold the special button determines whether Yoshi will perform a light throw or a heavy throw.
Down special Yoshi Bomb (SSB) Yoshi Bomb 14-18% (body), 3-4% (stars) When used on the ground, Yoshi jumps before slamming himself down to the ground, emitting stars on both sides that can hit nearby enemies. When used in the air, Yoshi will only plummet downward—minus the leap. This attack is mainly used to intercept linear recoveries that end up onstage, such as Fox's Fire Fox and Donkey Kong's Spinning Kong.

Taunt[]

  • Spins 450 degrees and looks to the left while waving both arms and jumping, saying "Yoshi!"

On-Screen Appearance[]

  • Breaks out of a Yoshi egg.

Matchups[]

Super Smash Bros. Character Matchups
  SSBIconPikachu SSBKIconKirby SSBIconCaptainFalcon SSBIconFox SSBIconYoshi SSBIconJigglypuff SSBIconMario SSBIconSamus SSBIconDK SSBIconNess SSBIconLink SSBIconLuigi Avg.
SSBIconYoshi 35:65 40:60 40:60 45:55 Mirror match 50:50 50:50 60:40 60:40 50:50 60:40 50:50 50:50

In 1P Game[]

Yoshi appears as an opponent in the second stage of Single Player mode. The stage takes place in Yoshi's Island without cloud platforms and pits the player against a team comprised of 18 Yoshis. Each of the 18 Yoshis are of a different alternate costume. Keeping this in mind, if the player manages to defeat them in the order they appear, he will be awarded the 50,000-point bonus "Yoshi Rainbow".

Strategies[]

Special Combos[]

  • Up Tilt with a Down Aerial to a finishing move. It should rack a large amount of damage and KO at low percentages. This can be DI'd out of however, due to it being a drill.
  • Up Tilt with a Forward Aerial towards the edge of a stage. Great knockout, great spike.
  • Egg Lay to a Down Aerial. Racks up less damage due to the Egg absorbing half of the damage.
  • Spam Up Tilt and Up Aerial for juggling.
  • Up Tilt to an Up Smash to KO.
  • Up Tilt to DJC Aerials
  • Egg Lay, jump, and Yoshi Bomb. Unavoidable when timed correctly.

Recovery[]

Yoshi's lack of a third jump is a major hindrance for beginner players, who often steer clear of him. However, Yoshi arguably has one of the best recoveries in the game. This is due to the fact that Yoshi gains knockback resistance during his midair jump, and that it can be canceled. The method of recovery then goes as follows: Yoshi uses his midair jump at the last possible moment and then does an Aerial Attack right when he's above the ground, minimizing the time in which he is vulnerable of being edgeguarded. It is also important to note that while Yoshi only gets a second jump, he can cover much more distance than many other characters.

Character description[]

Yoshi is the friendly dinosaur of Yoshi's Island. He began as Mario's partner, but has since built his own identity, and now appears in many games. He uses his unique ability to turn whatever he swallows into an egg as his foremost attack. Yoshis come in a rainbow cloud of colors and are said to have a high IQ from a very early age.
Works:

Alternate Costumes[]

Alt-yoshi

Yoshi's changeable palette swaps in Super Smash Bros.

Trivia[]

  • Yoshi is the only character to boast completely unplayable variants, a regular Blue Yoshi and a Pink Yoshi, seen when the player fights the Yoshi Team in the 1P Game.
  • If the player uses Yoshi against the Yoshi Team, all colored Yoshis still appear, and in exactly the same shade as the player's Yoshi.
  • Yoshi takes after his look in Super Mario 64, but because Super Smash Bros. came out a while after that game, and animation techniques were improved in that time, his appearance was slightly updated.
  • Yoshi is the only character who has a different shield (an egg).
  • Yoshi, along with Donkey Kong, is one of two characters in Super Smash Bros. to never be portrayed with head wear in-game.
  • Yoshi, Kirby, and Jigglypuff are the only characters without a helpless state.
YoshiSymbol Yoshi universe
Characters Yoshi (64  · Melee  · Brawl  · 3DS/Wii U  · Ultimate)
Side Characters Mii Fighter Costumes Yarn Yoshi  · Shy Guy
Background characters Fly Guy  · Pak E. Derm  · Chain Chomp  · Kamek
Enemies Shy Guy  · Fly Guy
Stages Super Happy Tree  · Yoshi's Island (Super Smash Bros. Melee)  · Yoshi's Story  · Yoshi's Island (Super Smash Bros. Brawl)  · Woolly World
Item Yoshi's Egg
Music List of Music (Yoshi series)
Collectibles Trophies Melee Trophies  · Brawl Trophies  · 3DS Trophies  · Wii U Trophies
Stickers List of Stickers (Yoshi's Island series)
Spirits List of spirits (Yoshi series)
Masterpiece Yoshi
Related universes Mario  · Donkey Kong  · Wario  · Wrecking Crew
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