Captain Falcon (SSB18)

**Captain Falcon** (キャプテン・ファルコン, *Captain Falcon*) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. OC 2018. He is the first of the original 4 secret characters to be added in and the seventh of the original 12 (Following Mario, Link, Kirby, Pikachu, Samus and Donkey Kong).

## Attributes

Captain Falcon has a unique combination of traits. He has the 2nd fastest dash speed, 4th fastest falling speed, and 12th fastest air speed, though his walking speed is rather slow. At the same time, he boasts remarkable KO power, and his heavy weight, combined with his falling speed, grants him excellent endurance.

Despite lacking a projectile, Falcon has an overall effective neutral game, thanks to his mobility. His dash grab covers a long distance, making it a reliable approach option, and his back aerial is quick, has good range, and autocancels in a short-hop, allowing it to lead into his grab. From there, he has many tools with which to rack up damage. His pummel is quick, and his down and forward throws are effective combo-starters, with his combo ability being arguably his greatest strength. His down throw leads into multiple up aerials, or his neutral aerial, and his forward throw combos into his dash attack or even his neutral air at low percents. Falcon's up aerial demonstrates the versatility of his combo game. At a wide range of percents, it can chain into any aerial including itself. Starting at mid-percents, it can even lead into his down air meteor smash on grounded foes, which can either extend combos onstage, or finish opponents near the ledge. Alternatively, Falcon can chain his up aerial into some his deadliest finishers, which include his down air meteor smash and the famed Knee Smash forward air, and end his opponent's stock below 100%.

Captain Falcon also boasts excellent KO power, as well as a formidable edgeguarding ability. His smash attacks and back aerial deal high knockback, and his aforementioned Knee Smash is an extremely powerful semi-spike that KOs at early percents offstage. His down aerial is relatively fast, has a large hitbox, and its sweetspot is one of the most powerful meteor smashes in the game, while its sourspot deals high horizontal knockback. His down tilt is a semi-spike, being useful for putting opponents offstage. His back and forward throws are good for starting edgeguards, and KOing at high percentages. Due to his heavy weight, he is a proficient user of rage, boosting his already strong KO power.

However, he has his weaknesses. Though he has numerous hard-hitting moves, most of them are difficult or slow to land, some prominent examples being his smash attacks. His Knee Smash is faster than those moves, but it suffers from a small sweetspot that lasts for only one frame, making it hard to land without an air dodge read or setup off of an up aerial. As a result, he often has to rely on edgeguarding to score his kills. Though his neutral game is good overall, his lack of a projectile leaves him susceptible to camping, especially against characters like Villager. Falcon suffers from a poor out of shield game and, while his dash grab has a long range, his standing grab range is average at best. His dash grab is also very easy for players to whiff should they use it carelessly, especially since Captain Falcon's overall high mobility may make him a bit difficult to control properly. His high weight and fast falling speed give him endurance, but they also leave him especially vulnerable to combos, and he has no fast options with which to break them.

Captain Falcon's greatest problem lies in his recovery, despite having an impressive air speed. His two recovery options, Falcon Dive and Raptor Boost, are linear and do not grant enough distance, making them predictable and easily intercepted, and they have small ledge sweetspots. These two moves do not have hitboxes above him, leaving him open to meteor smashes, which he usually cannot survive due to his short recovery and falling speed. To his merit, he can reuse Falcon Dive if it connects with an opponent, and even stage spike them, though this is easily teched. Although he has a wall jump, he will be in danger offstage without his double jump.

## Moveset

### On-screen appearance

* Arrives in the blue falcon and hops out.

### Taunts

* Up: Charges himself up with a fiery aura, similar to when using the Falcon Punch.
* Side: Holds out his hand and gestures his opponent to come closer, exclaiming "Come on!".
* Down: Faces the camera, salutes and exclaims "Show me your moves!" (The animation is different and faster if he is facing left).

### Idle poses

* Leans forward and thrusts his arm out.
* Similar to his other idle pose, but this time crouches slightly and thrusts his elbow out.

### Victory poses

* Performs two jump kicks, then does a pose.
* Charges up fiery energy, similar to one of his Melee poses, but with fire added.
* Does three roundhouse kicks and then strikes a pose.