Tails (Smash Plus)

Tails is a playable character in Super Smash Brothers Plus for the Nintendo Switch Plus. Representing the Sonic the Hedgehog universe, Tails is listed as Fighter #64 in Smash's modified numbering system, and is classified as a Lightweight Fighter. He is hidden at the start of the game, but can be unlocked through random encounters in Versus Mode or by defeating Classic Mode with Sonic. He is also a new character, as this is his first playable appearance in a Smash game.
Tails operates similar to that of his idol Sonic: A fast lightweight fighter who relies on combos to rack up damage. The main difference between the two is that Tails isn't nearly as fast as Sonic (while still being one of the faster fighters in the game), limiting his ground control options. Tails makes up for this with his more versatile air controlling moves, as he can use his Neutral Air to stall in the air briefly and is up air allows him to fly and descend easily in the course of recovery or attack. That isn't to say he's a slouch on the ground either, as Tails can use his Magic Hand invention to give himself additional attack options as well. His biggest weaknesses though are exacerbated versions of Sonic's weaknesses, namely his lack of true KO power and his susceptibility to projectile fighters. As long as Tails can control the air, though, he'll have a good chance at victory. Tails has two normal jumps and can crawl.
==Moveset==
===Basic Attacks===
*Neutral Jab- Tails performs a two hit punch combo, followed by flailing his arms about several times, hitting opponents up to 5 times and then launching on the final hit. The flail comes out slower than the initial two punches, giving a brief window where the jab can be interrupted.
*Side Tilt- Tails performs a powerful clapping attack directly in front of him. It lacks range, but does a good amount of damage for a tilt attack.
*Up Tilt- Tails will balance himself on his two tails and kick directly upwards, sending opponents straight upwards to allow for followup aerial combos.
*Down Tilt- Tails will crouch down and swipe his tails in front of himself, potentially hitting twice (once with each tail) and launching on the second hit.
*Dash Attack- Tails jumps into the air, flying forwards with his tails spinning, and hit with two fists pointed forwards. While the fist strike does more damage, the tail motion can do damage to any enemy who tries to attack from above.
*Grab & Pummel- Tails holds the opponent with both hands and pummels with a foot stomp attack.
*Forward Throw- Tails grabs the opponent and flies upward, before tossing them forward a good distance. Enemies nearby can be minorly hurt by Tails' flying animation as he lifts the opponent.
*Back Throw- Tails grabs the opponent and flies upward briefly, before doing a back flip in mid air and tossing them behind himself, adding a slight kick for additional damage.
*Up Throw- Tails picks the opponent up while flying and then drops them from a decent height onto the ground, popping them back up into the air for additional aerial combos. Unlike his forward or back throws, Tails can double jump into his aerial attacks once releasing the held foe, allowing for immediate followup.
*Down Throw- Tails slams the opponent on the ground and then jumps on their back, damaging them with his spinning tail before launching them forward on the final hit.
*Neutral Air- Tails will spin around pirouette style, his tails hitting opponents twice. This move can be used up to three times in the air, and each time it is used it will stall Tails' falling animation, which also allows Tails to move slightly left and right while in this stall animation, giving him more mobility in the air.
*Forward Air- Tails will spin around and whip with his tails forward at a downward angle, hitting opponents twice and potentially spiking opponents on the second hit if it sweetspots.
*Back Air- Tails spins around and calls upon his Magic Hand invention and performs a hook punch directly behind him. Tails most powerful aerial attack in terms of knockback, but it can sourspot if it hits late.
*Up Air- Tails performs a sideways flip kick in midair, spinning his tails as he does so. The tail strikes combo into the more powerful kick, making this a good combo with built in finisher.
*Down Air- Tails will stall in the air briefly before launching into a direct downward stomp with both feet. Like Sonic's down air, if used over the blast zone it can potentially result in self-destructs, but Tails has a better chance of survival due to his better recovery.
===Smash Attacks===
*Side Smash- Tails will pull out his Magic Hand invention and fire the spring loaded boxing glove in a right cross motion around himself, decking foes straight in front of him. The move will also hit anyone behind him at full charge as the boxing glove spins around himself before retracting, but the back hits do far less damage and knockback.
*Up Smash- Tails winds up his punch, similar to Sonic's forward smash, only this time he launches foes with a powerful wind up uppercut that launches foes straight up into the air. The move has less startup lag than Sonic's forward smash, but much less power and less range overall, making it more of a combo setup move than a reliable KO option.
*Down Smash- Tails performs a breakdance like move on the ground, spinning his tails around five times at maximum charge. Unique to Tails, while in this motion he can move slightly right and left, allowing for slightly greater coverage and combo potential to foes on the ground. While the moves have good coverage and decent damage, they lack substantial knockback until very high percentages.
===Special Moves===
*Neutral Special: Homing Blast- Tails pulls out a small arm cannon and, if the special button is pressed, fires a single energy projectile forward that targets the nearest enemy, homing in on their last known position. However, if players hold down the special button, then Tails will fire a laser sight and target any foe caught by it. Directional input can aim the laser sight up or down slightly and multiple targets can be acquired. Releasing the special button with targeted enemies (indicated by the reticule that appears on the enemy) will fire a single projectile per target, with these projectiles moving slower but doing more damage and homing in directly on the targeted opponents, only missing if blocked by a shield or platform.
*Side Special: Spin Dash- Similar to Sonic's Spin Dash, holding the special button will cause Tails to spin in place. Releasing it launches Tails in a spinning attack forward which operates exactly like Sonic's, only able to jump higher at the expense of moving slower along the ground. It also takes Tails slightly less time to reach full charge versus Sonic, at the expense of doing slightly less damage as an attack.
*Up Special: Propeller Tails- Pressing Up Special will put Tails into a Flight Mode, where he will ascend up into the air a short distance as he spins his tails repeatedly above himself before slowly descending. Button Mashing the special button will cause Tails to fly slightly higher on the initial ascent, and he will not exit his descending motion unless Tails attacks or is attacked while in midair. Players have full horizontal coverage while in the descent mode, giving Tails one of the best recovery moves in the game.
*Down Special: Robot Buddy- Tails summons a mini robot that he controls with the Miles Electric handheld. Once activated, the robot can move across platforms at the player's control, while Tails remains motionless. If attacked, or if Tails shields or dodges, the robot will self destruct on the spot. Otherwise players can steer the robot into opponents, pressing the attack button to cause a much larger explosion. There is no time limit on the robot, but only one robot can be out at a time and there is a 4 second cooldown before another robot can be summoned once one is destroyed.
*Final Smash: Tornado 2- Tails summons his biplane, the Tornado, onto the stage. Any player hit by the Biplane will be sent into a cinematic where they are falling from the sky. Tails then appears flying the Tornado 2, a transforming plane, which he will change into a mech and begin firing a barrage of artillery at the opponents, launching them when the cinematic ends.
===Miscellaneous===
*Entry Animation- Tails will jump out of the Tornado as it flies by ready for battle.
*Idle Animation 1- Tails will stand there, slowly nodding off before quickly waking himself up.
*Idle Animation 2- Tails tosses a crescent wrench into the air and catches it.
*Side Taunt- Tails pulls out a robot buddy and tinkers with it before putting it away. If attacked while doing this taunt, the robot will explode, dealing damage to both the attacking opponent and Tails.
*Up Taunt- Tails does a flip and then finishes with a fist pump into the air.
*Down Taunt- Tails flies in place by jumping up and hovering off the ground with his tails swinging underneath himself. He waves to the opponent before landing back on his feet.
*Victory Animation 1- Tails spins around a couple times and then gives a thumbs up to the camera, saying "Looks like training paid off!"
*Victory Animation 2- Tails flies into the scene with his propeller tails spinning, giving a fist pump and ending on a pose.
*Victory Animation 3- Tails lands the Tornado biplane on screen, jumping out of it and giving a thumbs up while saying "It Worked Perfectly!"
==How to Unlock==
Tails can be unlocked any of the following ways:
*Playing versus matches until he randomly shows up as a "Challenger Approaching" fight. Defeat him to unlock him.
*Defeat Classic Mode with Sonic on starting difficulty 3.0 or higher.
*Unlock him in the Finale of World of Light by defeating him.
*Pay 1,000 gold in a shop, where he can randomly appear (though rarely.)
Category:Super Smash Bros. Characters
Category:Super Smash Bros. (series)
Category:Smash Plus Characters