Foreword

Note: I am trying to find time to make this into a video guide. I have already created a menu for it.

Also note that I am one of the proud supporters of the term "Slide" instead of "wave dash." A couple guides now use this term instead of wave dash. It's about time.



1) Short Hop

2) Fast Fall

3) L-Cancel

4) Jump Cancel

5) Power Slide​ B) Character Match-ups

1) Fast-Fallers

2) Floaties

3) Heavy Weights

4) Medium Weights

5) Light Weights​ A) Movement & Techniques for the BeginnerB) Character Match-ups



B) Approaches

C) Leads & Combos

D) Edge, Ledge, & Air Positions

1) Living Life on the Edge

2) Edge-Guarding

3) Air-Guarding

4) Edge-guarding Tactics (Character Specific)​ E) Recovery

1) Air Recovery

2) Ledge Recovery​ A) PositioningB) ApproachesC) Leads & CombosD) Edge, Ledge, & Air PositionsE) Recovery

F) KOing​



B) Landing Slide

C) Ledge Slide

D) Meteor Cancel

E) Wall Tech

F) Rocket Cancel

G) Quick Attack Dash

H) Johns & Anti-Johns

I) Tricky & Cheap KO’s

1) Grab n’ Bag

2) Grab n’ Drop​ J) Pichu Mind Games - Feinting, Drawing, and Distracting

1) Dash Games

2) Jump Games

3) Slide Games

4) Dodge Games

5) Air-Dodge Games

6) Quick Attack Games​ A) Power ShieldB) Landing SlideC) Ledge SlideD) Meteor CancelE) Wall TechF) Rocket CancelG) Quick Attack DashH) Johns & Anti-JohnsI) Tricky & Cheap KO’sJ) Pichu Mind Games - Feinting, Drawing, and Distracting



B) Up+B Lag Frames

C) Basic Uses of Agility

1) Trickchu

2) Platform Pass

3) Quick-Hog​ D) Advanced Quick Attack Techniques

1) Quick-Stall

2) Stagechu

3) Quick-attack Dash (QaD)

4) Wallchu

5) Trick Attack

6) Advanced Quick-Hog (I should name this to something more charming)​ A) OverviewB) Up+B Lag FramesC) Basic Uses of AgilityD) Advanced Quick Attack Techniques

A) Team Pichu​

i. Glossary

I. Movement & Techniques for the Beginner

II. Fundamentals

Standing

Crouching

Walking (with varying speeds)

Dashing

Jumping (short-hop/full-jump, forward/backwards/in-place)

Falling (fast-falling)

Dodging (rolling, or in place)

Lying (prone/supine)

Attacking

Grabbing

Ledging

Stun (hit-stun/shield-break stun)

Teching

Sliding​

Walking

Running

Dashing

Dodging

Sliding

Jumping

Quick Attack​

=> Jab

=> Forward-Tilt

=> Down-Tilt

=> Grab​

=>D-tilt

=> Jab

=> Grab​

=> Jab

=> Grab

=> D-tilt​

=> U-tilt

=> U-smash

=> Grab

=> D-tilt

=> Jab

=> F-tilt

=> F-smash

=> U-air

=> F-air​

=> U-smash

=> U-tilt

=> F-air

=> Grab

=> Forward-Tilt

=>Down-Tilt​



=> F-tilt

=> D-tilt

=> Grab

=> N-air​



=> U-tilt

=> F-tilt

=> D-tilt

=> Grab

=> N-air

=> Jab​

=> U-tilt

=> F-tilt

=> D-tilt

=> Grab

=> U-smash

=> U-air (if opponent is in the air)

=> N-air (if opponent is in the air)​

=> U-air

=> U-smash

=> U-tilt

=> Grab​

=> Forward-throw => Grab => Forward-Throw*

=> Up-throw => Grab/U-air/N-air/F-air

=> Down-throw => U-tilt

=> Down-throw => U-smash

=> Back-throw => Edge-guard​

=>U-tilt

=>F-tilt​

=> Grab

=> F-tilt

=> D-tilt

=>U-tilt

=> Jab​

*Note: When Forward-Throwing against a wall this may be inescapable to some characters like Peach, Marth, and Zelda up to 50% at which point they can Tech. So, Chain-throw up to 50% and then end with an U-Smash.

Pichu's only attacks that could be commonly used to KO

* denotes an edge-guard is most likely needed to make this useful.

** denotes an air-guard is most likely needed to make this useful.

1)

2)

3)

4 & 5)

6 & 7)

III. Advanced Techniques

IV. An In-depth Look at the Quick Attack

V. Pichu in Teams

VI. Afterword & End

By: t0mmy of the Super Smash Twins, t1mmy & t0mmyI have only posted this on Smashboards (www.smashboards.com) if this appears anywhere else, please email me: I_am_T0MMY@Yahoo.com This guide is focused mostly on Pichu in a competitive scene, there's not much info about the history of Pichu's name, Pokemon in general, or other fluff, if you want more information on topics I do not cover you may find it on NGCXX's Pichu Guide: http://www.smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=61375 --------------------------------------------------------------------------i.GlossaryI. IntroductionII. FundamentalsIII. Advanced TechniquesIV. An In-depth Look at Agility (Pichu's Quick Attack)V. Pichu in TeamsVI. Afterword & End-------------------------------------------------------------------------Those new to competitive SSBM should familiarize themselves to terms and techniques used in this guide. The following is a short write-up of terms, but for more details please go to:There are a few things that you'll want to learn how to do fluidly and intuitively with Pichu. Practice the following in Training Mode until you have it down well enough to use in real matches. From there you will have to incorporate movement techniques into your game until they are intuitive.Execution: Push the Jump button lightly/quickly. Pichu has one of the most difficult short hops to perform. It, like many other techniques, demands perfection.Benefit: Pichu's jump is noticeably shorter. The less time in the air between techniques means more time for executing other techniques.Note: Pichu's landing frame lag is only 2 frames, which is faster than any other character. That means he can technically move the fastest if you kknow how to use him.Execution: Push down on the joystick while in the air at the appropriate downfall time.Benefit: Speeds your descent - less time between attacks means more time for other actions.Execution: Push the L, R, or Z-button right before landing after executing an Aerial attack. If using the L or R buttons, make sure to click them all the way.Benefit: Cuts your landing lag in half. Usually performed as a Short Hop, Fast Fall, L-cancel (SHFFL) when performing Aerial attacks.Execution: Dash then use a Jump to cancel the Dash animation and immediately hit the Z-button before leaving the ground to cancel the Jump into a Grab.Benefit: Allows you to grab immediately as though you were standing still. Pichu's standing Grab has less lag when you miss than his dashing grab.Sliding is a very helpful technique to perfect.Execution: Immediately after executing a jump, Air Dodge (L or R button) toward the ground. Holding diagonal down-forward will result in a forward slide, down-back will be a backward slide. You can vary the distance by how far to the left or right you hold the joystick; directly down will keep you in place. If done correctly, you will not leave the ground, but instead Pichu will appear to slide with a puff of smoke.Benefit: Sliding will allow you to move a small distance quickly which will help you distance yourself properly with the opponent.Note: I prefer to call it "Sliding" over the more popular “wave dash” because that sounds really dumb. It’s a slide, not a wave.It is a sad, but true fact: Pichu has practically no favorable match-ups. All characters will have an advantage against Pichu in every category except possibly speed. The one thing going for Pichu is that most players won't know how to deal with a Pichu. Many of their combos will fail because they are not used to such a light weight or they will be surprised when you take advantage of all the benefits Pichu has to offer. Early in the match don’t let your opponent think and be spontaneous, don’t let them expect what will come next.Unlike many guides I will not list each character by how difficult or easy it is for Pichu to play against. Nearly every match-up gives Pichu problems. Instead, I will focus on how to Edge-guard each one of them. See below for Edge-guarding techniques.An offensive move that usually causes Damage and Knockback to your opponent.Where Pichu starts in a given instance; the location of Pichu in a specific instance of animation.Movement or sequence of Techniques that get Pichu in an advantageous position for an Attack.Techniques that are followed by another technique, usually a string of attacks and movements which are called “combos.”Your positioning in regards to your opponent is a necessary skill for both defense and offense. These are the Positions you can be in:The reasons Pichu must take offensive measures:1) Pichu is a close-range fighter. You aren’t likely to KO your opponent with a thunderjolt…2)When your opponent sees how powerful you really can be they will be wary to get near you.There are two fundamentals for offense:1) Approaches2) LeadsApproach ExampleYou know a up-smash will KO your opponent. But he won’t just walk up to you and allow you to up-smash him (under normal circumstances). So you must walk up to him and up-smash.The approach was walking toward your opponent.Lead ExampleLet’s say the above mentioned up-smash only KO’s your opponent at 100%. You notice your opponent is at 95%. You approach your opponent, up-tilt them into the air and bringing them up to 100%, and then up-smash scoring a KO.The up-tilt was the lead into the up-smash.Now that the basics are out of the way, we can move on to advanced techniques.ApproachesTheoretically any Position or Attack can lead to another Position or Attack. Stringing together your Approach into an Attack, which leads to another Position or Attack creates a Combination -- a series Attacks that cannot be avoided or has very limited escapes/counters.To use this schematic, find the attack you want to perform and see which attack it leads into, but be aware that it is circumstantial. For instance, Falco, at a low damage percent, will fall quickly from an Up-smash, and from a short distance--you will not be able to U-smash => U-smash. However, you can U-smash => U-tilt => Grab. Remember, it is up to you to act quickly, spontaneously, and with superior technical skill to pull some of this off, utilize Movement/Dashes/Slides.Note: Do not read straight down, this is designed in such away for you to Mix & Match your attack and see where it leads.Pichu should lure his opponent over to the ledge to maximize his KO’ing potential. The reason you want to be at the ledge is because he can edge-guard so well that even at 0% your opponent may easily be KO’d.Facing the ledge with your opponent’s back to the chasm you should use a Forward-Smash to send them flying off.With your back to the chasm you should use a Down-Smash to send your opponent behind you and downwards--if this does not KO’s them outright it’s also a good setup for an Edge-guard.Pichu has so many options for keeping your opponent from recovering, I would be so bold to say he is the best character at edge-guarding if you know what to do. His attacks are so low to the ground you can keep opponents from sweet-spotting the ledge. If your opponent gets past your guard, don’t hesitate, quickly execute a Grab & roll them back off the side to set them up for another guard; if you have the time, execute a Forward-Smash, Down-Smash, or Up-Smash for a KO or another guard setup.F-smashThis is by far one of the most useful edgeguarding tools on many characters; it is difficult to tech because it of its multi-hit, hits low to the ground, and has great knockback potention. In addition, if it hits correctly, it can go from a powerful attack to an incredibly weak attack, which your opponent may not expect and will tumble to his death. Use this against characters coming upwards like Captain Falcon, Mr. G&W, Falco, and Fox using their Up-BD-tiltAnother great edge guarding tool. Use this against characters who recover horizontally in a straight path like Falco & Fox using their Forward-BF-tiltI prefer to use the Down-Tilt most of the time, but a Forward-Tilt can be angled downwards so it could be useful against characters recovering diagonally upwards.Standing-AUseful on opponents that are not attacking while recovering. For instance, if an opponent pulls himself up from the ledge instead of using a ledge attack. This attack is so quick in some instances it will hit the opponent before he can execute a ledge attack. I have used this to kill quite a few recoveries because they don’t expect to be “tapped” off so quickly.Neutral+BThis is mostly used for opponents far from the edge who take their time recovering (eg Samus or Peach) or against opponents down below the lip of the edge. When the Thunderjolt hits the ground it follows it in arcs and can zap someone below the lip. If anything it is useful for sending out while you are too far away to edge-guard effectively, chances are it won’t KO the opponent, but it can grant you that extra moment you need to get over there and hit them with something that will. Note: The spark when it does not hit the ground has more powerful knock-back.D-smashThis can be used, but I usually prefer the Forward-Smash, it hits low and the D-smash is easier to tech.N-airWhen hanging onto the Ledge you can quickly Ledge-drop and Jump to N-air to knock opponents on their Recovery. Time it just right for its sweet-spot for more power.Also, when you time this just right you can hit opponents hanging onto the ledge. Use this if you find yourself in the air racing over to edge-guard. It takes expert timing, but if you find yourself unable to reach the ground in time it’s one of your only optionsU-airThis isn’t that great of an attack to use when on the Stage and Edge-guarding, however, using it from an Edge-hog position could be useful for when they go over you. It’s low knockback potentially gives you the opportunity to hit them upward then go for a more powerful attack such as a N-air.D-airIf you paused the game when you do the D-air, you'll see his head can actually go through the platform with this attack, so it could be useful to hit through the Stage.It's also of use to use from an Edge-Hog position and Jump to D-air if they try to go over you. This attack can knock them back onto the Stage, however.F-airNot usually very good to use when Edge-guarding from the Stage, but if you move to Edge-Hog Position you may be able to F-air to Grab and Throw them backwards off the Stage for a better Edge-guard opportunity.Down+BUsually used to hit opponents who have made it up above you (eg Peach, or Jigglypuff) and there’s no other way of hitting them. Usually does not KO, but if you can time it just right you can hit a recovering opponent with the charge that touches Pichu for much more knock back. It’s usually risking attempting this because it takes practice or precise timing and if you mess up you’re left open for a good hit at the edge of the platform, which is very bad for Pichu.Air-guarding is an Air-game specifically focused on keeping your opponent from reaching the Stage upon recovery. This is an especially good tactic to use on opponents that can get past Pichu’s edge-guarding like Zelda or Mewtwo’s teleport. Dash, jump, and execute an attack before your opponent knows what hit them and they’ll be KO’d if you get a good hit on them, even with lower damage.N-airA very good choice to use because it has decent priority and good knock back, so chances are it will KO them off the side of the screen. Should mostly be used on opponents who are not attacking with a recovery otherwise something like a Firefox could hit you before you hit them.D-airGood knock back and if hitting from above it has a good chance of out-prioritizing an opponent’s attack.F-airThis attack has terrible knock-back, but sometimes all you need is that little tap to keep your opponent from recovering. This is a great choice in attack against moves like Firefox to ensure you do not get hit by it and Fox falls quickly, so disrupting his recovery sends him down quickly. If you have expert timing try a Forward-Air to disrupt your opponent‘s recovery, and when you jump back to the platform, execute a Neutral-Air to KO.Guarding Tactics (Character Specific)Now that you know what edge-guarding tools are available for you to use, here is the basic idea of how to edge-guard with Pichu against each character:Dr. Mario, Mario, & LuigiAir-guard: B-air on top of his head, or a well-timed N-air. Air-gaming his Up+B will usually result in you getting hit but if you find yourself doing this, aim for his head, not his fistLedge-guard: F-Smash the Up+B recovery when he tries to sweet-spot. The D-tilt will hit, but he’ll keep coming back until he sweet-spots with his long reaching ledge-grab, which gets past the D-tilt. There’s not much you can do if Luigi misfires, but be prepared ahead of time and hit him with Thunder if he is high above you or race over and try to get him off the edge again before he can recover from it.BowserAir Guard: Dair his Up+B to out-prioritize it, a Nair should be used after or right before he uses his Up+B.Ledge Guard: Try to time a F-smash when he’s recovering. If he attempts a Down+B from high up you can safely do a Thunder attack, or if you want to risk it, F-smash at the ledge to go for a KO, but chances are you’ll also take a hit.PeachAir Guard: Try to hit her with a N-air when you have the chance for a KO.Ledge Guard: There’s not much you can do if she floats up over your head other than a well-timed Thunder. If she’s under the ledge throw down Thunderjolts to disrupt her recover and hope she misses her Up+B.YoshiAir Guard: It’s useless to air-guard Yoshi unless you can get a decent hit on him before he can do his 2nd jump. During his 2nd jump he will just shrug off any attack you give him.Ledge Guard: The best you can do is a F-smash when he’s meeting you at the ledge, hope that the strongest hit will have just enough knockback so he will miss grabbing the ledge. Sometimes a N-air will even be enough if hit at the right time, but the best you can try for is an edge-hog, because he doesn’t have a recovering Up+B he has to rely on air-dodging over to grab the side. When Yoshi has 2nd jumped high and is coming down rather helplessly you can multi-jab him away from the ledge and he’ll plummet to his doom.Donkey KongAir Guard: Trying to hit DK with aerial attacks is risky because his Up+B will hit you about the same time you hit him. Try to hit him before he does an Up+B, but if you think you will hit when he does his Up+B try your D-air and hope for the best.Ledge Guard: Forward Smash when he recovers with his Up+B horizontally to the ledge. This will pop him up and away so it might not kill him, so go for another or an edge-hog to follow it up. D-tilt & F-tilts will out-prioritize his Up+B, but he can keep making it back to the ledge, so go for an edge-hog as soon as possible.Captain Falcon & GanondorfAir Guard: Captain Falcon is rather easy to air-guard, just smack him halfway out with a N-air and he won’t be able to make it back to the ledge.Ledge Guard: F-smash his Up+B and get ready to do it again if he Techs it or a fast D-tilt if he Techs to an Up+B to a grab too fast for you to pull out another F-smash.Falco & FoxAir Guard: If you jump out to hit them, remember that their Up+B could hit you when you go out there, so go for a D-air to out-prioritize it. If you find yourself in front of them when they are executing their Up+B, shoot them down with a F-air.Ledge Guard: F-smash their Up+B, D-tilt their Forward+B. Simple as that. Remember, you can throw in some Thunderjolts to disrupt their recovery.NessAir Guard: Neutral+B to disrupt his recovery and force him to use his Up+B recovery. When he uses his Up+B recovery, jump down quickly and steal his PK Thunder to drop him to his doom. You must be behind him where the thunder comes in, if you’re in front you have a good chance at getting hit by his attack and that will most likely mean you’ll get KO’d. If he is not using his Up+B to recover you can jump out with a N-air to knock him back.Ledge Guard: If he is not using his Up+B to recover use your F-smash to send him back off. Make sure to get the hit in, because he can grab the ledge from quite a distance.Ice ClimbersAir Guard: Any time the Ice Climbers get knocked back they have a good chance at recovering. You must go for a KO off the side of the screen more often than not. At lower damages expect to keep hitting them back time and time again.Ledge Guard: F-smash when you can, they’ve got a good edge-grab, so make it count.KirbyAir Guard: Jump out quickly and N-air him back. It could be enough to keep him from coming back.Ledge Guard: Send Thunderjolts at him to disrupt his recovery, if he tries to Up+B, hit him with a F-smash. If he goes over your head, try to knock him back with an aerial attack or hit him with Thunder.SamusAir Guard: A quick Down-Air when she grapples will push her from the edge and steal her grapple-beam. If you have the skills, go out and hit the bombs while she is bomb recovering, stealing her bomb-jumps. It’s a risky maneuver, but Pichu needs every option he can get.Ledge Guard: Neutral+B when she is bomb-recovering.ZeldaAir Guard: Try to hit her in mid-air with a N-air before she can teleport back to the stage.Ledge Guard: Judge where she’ll be teleporting to and Forward-Smash that spot. As Sheik, try an Edge-Hog, and from that position U-air her if she teleports onto the platform above you and try to knock her back off with a N-air.Link & Young LinkAir Guard: Jump down from above with a D-air, this will hit through is Up+B and do considerable knockback so he will probably not be able to recover.Ledge Guard: Fire Thunderjolts down on him when you can. Chances are if you sit at the lip of the ledge he will hit you with his Up+B when recovering. Take a leap of faith and hit him with a D-air.PichuAir Guard: Might as well take a chance and try to hit him with a N-air or D-air.Ledge Guard: He’ll zip right pass you with his Up+B, try to figure out where he’s going and hit him hard.PikachuAir Guard: He’s slower than Pichu and does not recover as well, so you should have an advantage when meeting him out in the air. Smack him before he has a chance to Up+B or try to connect with him when he does. Since you have a better recovery you should make it back and he should not.Ledge Guard: Try to guess where he’ll end up and hit him back off.JigglypuffAir Guard: Jump for it and try to land a solid hit, this is a good way to get a KO on Jigglypuff. Careful not to get smacked off because she can air game well.Ledge Guard: Jigglypuff isn’t very difficult to predict where she’ll end up. Try to hit her back off or get a good hit on to KO her. If she Forward+B over your head, try to jump up and N-air her back, or zap her with some Thunder and go chase her down.MewtwoAir Guard: A quick N-air before he has a chance to teleport could be the KO you need.Ledge Guard: Try to predict where he’ll teleport to and get a good Up-smash or Forward-smash on him for a KO.Mr. Game & WatchAir Guard: N-air him well and you should get a quick KO.Ledge Guard: You can toss down Thunderjolts to disrupt his recovery. When he Up+B upwards, wait for the chance and F-smash him right back off and then edge-hog if needed. If he gets past you he’s very susceptible to an Up-smash, which KO’s him at moderate damage.Marth & RoyAir Guard: Try to beat out his sword slashing recovery with aerial attacks, if you score a hit you will most likely get the KO.Ledge Guard: Send down Thunderjolts when he’s within range, one of those could score you a KO. Standing at the ledge to launch an attack will usually get you knocked back from his Up+B. Move to edge-hog position and try a B-air or D-air from there. It’s a good idea to keep that edge occupied because he’ll want to grab it.What do you do when you’re the one knocked off the stage and are trying to recover? Don’t fret, Pichu has what some argue to be the best recovery in the game, beating out Samus, Peach, and Jigglypuff. The reason Samus is considered the best is she has infinite horizontal recovery with her bomb-jumps. But so does Pichu! On top of this, Pichu also has a better Up+B recovery because it is hard to discern where he will be, it’s quick and spans a good distance. Samus’ Up+B only goes straight up, is predictable, and doesn’t have as much distance.When knocked far back from the ledge, tilt towards the stage, press B, hold it for as long of a charge as you want, and when you release Pichu will propel himself towards the stage. It is useful to note you can Forward+B multiple times, so you can start out with a couple of those and then go into a 2nd jump. After the 2nd jump you can Up+B to recover further.The Up+B recovery is great; it’s quick, and it’s confusing to your opponent. Try to vary your recovery, sometimes go high, sometimes go low… but I must warn you not to try to go near your opponent or you will most likely get nailed with a charged Smash Attack. Because your opponent doesn’t know what you are going to do they more than likely will just stand there charging a Smash Attack. Make sure to stay away from your opponent who is doing this. It is always better to make sure you do not get hit on your recovery, Pichu is very likely to get KO’d by a solid hit while at the edge of the stage.Skilled Pichu players will be able to sweet-spot the ledge of the lip. Don’t go for it if they are edge-hogging. More than likely they will just stay there until after you’ve fully recovered or fallen to your death. If you think they will pull themselves back up when they see you can easily reach the stage, think again! Don’t assume your opponent knows what you’re doing, it is always better to get back to that stage than to risk getting edge-hogged when you could have recovered with ease.When you find yourself hanging onto that ledge and your opponent standing ominously above you… what do you do?Pichu has some of the worst ledge abilities. He lacks a good amount of invincibility frames, his roll is short, and his attack while pulling himself up is terrible.But don’t panic, Pichu still has a lot of tricks he can pull while hanging on to dear life.Ledge Dropping/HoppingTap away or down on the Control Stick while hanging on the ledge to release your grip (Ledge-Drop). Drop down just enough so Pichu’s jump doesn’t make him too much of a target before he gets his attack out, this way his start-up animation on his attack can take place below the ledge and then jump up (Ledge-hop). This maneuver will give you more options to use in such cases as being Edge Guarded or whatever. You can use Aerials, Special Attacks, Air Dodges, Slides, or drop back onto the ledge again.After you have released from the ledge you can quickly jump and perform a slide by pressing L or R and a downward angle on the analog stick. This will let Pichu slide up onto the stage ready to move into a defense or offense.AerialsLedge-Hopping a F-air is an excellent choice since it has better reach than his generic ledge attack. From the F-air, L-cancel into a Grab and score a quick juggle or throw them backwards and turn the tables on them… and nobody wants a Pichu edge guarding them!D-airs are also a good attack from the ledge, but make sure you’ve Ledge-Dropped down enough to start up the attack so it will hit your opponent without the start-up time. From the D-air, go for a Grab.U-air can be useful if your opponent is right above you, ready to hit you as soon as they can. A quick U-air can pop them up, get them away from you, and set them up to be juggled. Try to knock them off the ledge after you popped them up, and then turn things around and edge-guard them.N-airs aren’t as good, but when they’re closer to the ledge you have a chance at sweet-spotting the attack for good knockback.B-airs aren’t entirely useful because it is slower and will probably get you hit back from a fast-reacting opponent.Special Attacks (B-button attacks)If an opponent is some distance away you may want to consider a Ledge-Hop to a Neutral+B attack or maybe even a Forward+B (though it may not be very effective).But one of my favorite things to do to an opponent who is some distance away is to Ledge-Drop by pressing back on the stick so you don’t drop too far, and then Up+B into a Quick Attack that glides over the surface of the stage. If done correctly you zip over to your opponent with only 1 frame of lag, which means you can move into a quick Jab or Grab.To really mix things up, you can Ledge-Drop down and wall-jump up then move into an attack or the Up+B glide.Pichu Recovery Tip #1Whenever you're hit horizontally, you'll want to DI up and against the attack with the control stick. This will send you in an upward direction so that if you survive Pichu will be able to use his floaty characteristic to cover more horizontal distance. When hit upward, you'll want to DI to one side and down.Pichu Recovery Tip #2Pichu's Neutral+B gives Pichu an offensive approach with his recovery that can greatly discourage opponents from jumping out and attacking. If you have the height, send out a Thunderjolt as you drop in toward the ledge. It can distract or outright stun an opponent just long enough for you to make your recovery complete.Pichu Recovery Tip #3Don’t neglect your Air-dodge! Pichu’s Air-dodge is quick and covers a good amount of distance. If your opponent is edge guarding with a bit or reach, like Marth or Roy’s sword, you can Air-Dodge past their attack quickly onto the ledge, then get a grab on them to send them off.Air Dodges can work against Air-Guarders too. If an opponent jumps out to hit you, they might not even expect you to Air Dodge. This, of course, works best when the Air Dodge takes you just far enough to reach the ledge. You will now be in a good position to go offensive while your opponent is now in prime position to be KO'd.1) U-Smash (light/floaty or high damaged chars)2) F-Smash*3) D-Smash*4) D-air**5) N-air**6) D-tilt*7) F-tilt*________________________________________________________________________-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Indepth look at above KOing attacks:Terrible range, the amount of timing/spacing it takes to pull this off will test your skill considerably.Good luck pulling this short-ranged attack off. Pull it off with a quick slide DI-chase after a Launcher (U-air, U-tilt, U-throw, etc.), or Tech-chase after a D-throw and hit 'em when they get up.---------------------Everyone seems to DI out of this attack. It starts up with a multiple amount of hits, then ends with a final powerful hit. The problem is every one of these attacks can be DI'd. Even when I play against the noobiest of noobs they seem to be accidentally getting out of this. The more people play against me the sooner they find out ways to get out of the F-smash, until it becomes a tactic where they recover to the stage and make me continually F-smash them, DI out, recover, and back to another F-smash with each time me self-damaging myself until I finally just edge-guard with another attack (that can most likely be teched easier).Good for edge-guarding people who don't know what to do against it. But this will be one of the only ways to score a KO while on the stage, even then it most likely wouldn't KO, but at least it'll get them off the stage for an Air-guard.----------------------This is almost useless until you get a decent amount of damage on your opponent. If you don't, most likely they will be hit behind you and punish you while you're in lag. Even if they have a decent amount of damage on them, they tend to just CC and punish me while I'm in lag. Thus, only use this attack when they are near 100% damage and you are at the edge of the stage, you will most likely shoot them off the side downwards with little chance of recovery (edgehog ASAP!)too corner-case, and you need MAJOR mind-games to pull off the semi-spike off the stage. More than likely if you've positioned yourself for a KO they will stay back and hit you with ranged attacks. Use it as an edge-guard--face away from your recovering opponent, with good timing you'll pull them into the stage, knocking them against the stage. More than likely they will be stunned considerably from hitting the stage and will be stage-spiked (that is, hit downwards) to their doom.----------------------These attacks are generally only good to KO while Air-guarding, that is, getting them off the stage and hitting them on their recovery. I always use the D-air opposed to the N-air for an edge-guard unless timing dictates otherwise (D-air has start-up lag, and N-air tends to last longer so I can just give them a "tap" back down and recover to an edge-hog using Agility). Just keep it simple, sometimes all you need to do is Throw and then D-air Air-guard FTW.Probably will be the most common way you take out faster falling characters or those who cannot recover as easily. You have to have good timing and know where your opponent will be to get that D-air on them... of course, just by trying to win with Pichu means you need to excel at everything just to hope to keep up with the higher-tier chars.----------------------These are rather short-ranged as well, but useful as Edge-guarding. Against Fox's Illusion, for example, I usually just time a good D-tilt and send him flying back down. Don't bother trying to KO anyone with these attacks not as an edge-guard. It'll most likley just bump them back and then they punish you.Just use it as an edge-guard, nothing special. It'll take good reflexes/timing to pull it off against tricky opponents. But, as I always state, you must be a 100 times better with Pichu than your opponent's top-tier.----------------------Other KOing TechniquesYou can actually KO someone with this if you have sent them up high enough (like after an U-smash). More common than not I don't score a KO after an U-Smash, despite it's power. This is exceedingly frustrating because it really gets your hopes up when you finally get that U-smash on someone. It just came naturally to SHT (Short Hop Thunder) and knock them back up a little more, and that little extra room usually does the trick. I Short-hop for two reasons; one, it gets me away from the Thunder, if it doesn't hit me I won't take self-damage from it; and secondly, it ensures a hit if the ceiling is a little high, sometimes the opponent might get above it, not usually a problem, but always good to be safe.read my comments/reflections on this in the Skullbash thread. Anyone who is bad or even mediocre with Pichu will tell you just to forget about it. I say otherwise, but I'm just that good ;^Dsometimes, just sometimes, you can edgeguard with a jab and send them back down before they know what's going on and a simple edge-hog seals the deal. Or sometimes rapidly headbutting over the edge of Battlefield will cause them to keep falling back down until they accidentally recover under the stage for a KO. You're Pichu, you have to play tricky.And finally, my favorite rare KO:Nobody but me uses this from what I know. And I use it with other characters as well, but I developed it out of frustration for lack of KOing attacks. Basically, when your opponent is at the VERY edge of the stage, like after a tech-roll or an Escape-roll (rolling dodge), you charge them like you've lost your mind, shout a war cry (PICHUUUUUU!!!!) and right when they time an attack to hit you, Escape-roll at them and Elbow Room them off the stage. Most likely they will be stuck in a N-air animation and be so confused they won't react to recover fast enough or they will simply die on a low-floored stage (like Yoshi's Story), press the D-pad up and laugh at them as Pichu taunts.Like I said before, you're playing Pichu, you have to play tricky to earn those KO's.Effect: Your Shield reflects Projectiles or stops a melee attack with less Shield Stun.Execution: Push the L or R-button right as an attack is about to hit you instead of using a regular shield.Benefit: Reflects projectiles, causes less Shield Stun, makes you look like a God to some players. Practice this endlessly, it is that good.Effect: Upon landing onto the ground you Slide left/rightExecution: Air-Dodge downward as you are about to land from a jump. Use left/right on the analog stick to angle your direction.Benefit: Allows additional horizontal movement as you land. This is an extremely useful technique to enhance your Positioning.Effect: From a Ledge-grab Position, you move immediately to a Power Slide onto the Stage.Execution: Ledge-Drop, Jump towards the Stage, and immediately perform a Landing-Slide (see above).Benefit: This will get you up from the Ledge quickly combined with a quick advance which could move you into position for an attack or just to cover that much more ground. This technique could take some time to practice, take it to Training Mode until you’ve perfected it.Effect: When being Meteor Smashed downward you cancel the downward trajectory and recover upwards with pretty sparkles around you.Execution: Jump or Up+B when hit with a Meteor Smash.Benefit: Cancels the downward velocity when hit with a Meteor Smash. This is a life saver for the most part!Note: Be aware that some downward attacks are True Spikes and cannot be canceled. Falco’s D-air and Marth’s D-air (in most versions of the game) are True Spikes and will most likely KO you with no hope of recovery (but don’t give up hope, if Pichu is at low damage he may be able to Recover with his awesome Up+B if he is not KO‘d outright). Also take note that some downward hits may have multiple hits that can be Meteor Canceled (Kirby‘s D-air). If you Meteor Cancel the first one, the next may spike you down anyway. Timing is everything.Effect: When you are hit against a wall you tech off of it like you would when you are knocked to the ground.Execution: Press the L or R-button within 20 frames of getting hit when adjecent to a wall or ceiling.Benefit: Cancels the knockback when you "tech" off the wall or ceiling. This can be a life-saver!Effect: When you are Rocketing upwards to be KO’d off the top of the screen you immediately stop and fall back down.Execution: I’m not 100% sure on how to do this yet. But I’ve done it a few times enough to have some good guesses. When I know for sure I’ll explain how to do it.Benefit: Saves your life! This is really helpful against certain broken characters like Fox, haha.See the In-Depth Look at Pichu’s Quick Attack sectionWhen you beat your opponent with your awesome Pichu skills (and trust me, you will), you will hear many complaints and “johns.” You will hurt their pride so much they will feel the need to retaliate with insults and excuses. As a Pichu player, don’t let this discourage you. Take delight in every john someone utters and every usage of the word “cheap.” Don’t confront them in an argument but simply state something like “I’m playing Bottom-Tier, anything goes.” or “there is no such thing as cheap with bottom tier.” Or simply “No Jonz.” Come up with your own Anti-John ahead of time, make it simple and to-the-point to discourage them, but not to infuriate them any further.Grab n’ Fling KOTo quickly KO an opponent quickly is on certain levels where you can walk off the side of the stage (Flatzone, Mushroom Kingdom I&II, etc), camp near the edge, lure opponent to you, and when you see your chance, Grab them, Throw them backwards and earn yourself another cheap KO. Again, prepare your anti-john ahead of time.Grab n’ Drop KOAnother way to quickly KO an opponent is if you grab a character with poor vertical recovery (Bowser & Donkey Kong) or a fast-faller (Falco & Captain Falcon, but not Fox because he has a good vertical recovery) at the very tip of a ledge, don’t throw immediately, tap the A button to shock, encouraging a break-out. Chances are during the struggling the character will break out of your grip and will fall too far down to recover, sneaking in a cheap KO. If they complain about this, let them have it with your prepared anti-john see “Anti-John section.”Mind Games are any kind of feint or disruption to your opponent(s) that coerce a moment of vulnerability in their defense. Pichu has some of the best movements and techniques for mind games because he is quick and sporadic.An opponent can react to a mind game in an offensive or defensive manner. Offensive is when a counter attack is used. Defensive is a shield or evasive movement (e.g. dodge).The following is how to instigate a mind game and how to react to your opponents’ mind games.Execution: To illicit a reaction from your opponent with a dash, dash at them, then alter your forward movement immediately before you can be hit by your opponent’s counter-attack.Alterations of movement: Crouch-cancel, Jump, Power-Slide (forward/backwards), Stomp (a non-moving Power-Slide).Notes: Crouch-canceling is laggy compared to the Stomp technique. If you attempt to dash the opposite way Pichu will Skid Out, which is a laggy about-face animation and should be avoided in competitive play.Offensive MannerBe mindful of fast attacks they can recover from before you can connect with your own attack (e.g. a jab). You may want to consider Crouch-canceling the Dash when you are at lower damage and taking the light jab so you can counter.Defensive Manner-Against a Shield: Continue the Dash into a Grab. Or Jump and use an aerial attack (I suggest a F-air because the multi-hit could cause them to drop their shield too soon expecting only one hit) in case they want to Grab you out of their Shield at the last moment, which means they will get F-aired. If you F-air into a shield, Fast-fall & L-cancel it into your own grab.-Against a standing Dodge: Slide backwards and move in with a Grab right before they can react. Or move into a Jump and hit them with an Aerial. N-airs, D-airs & F-airs are good in general, and U-airs are good on the Fast-fallers to pop them up into a juggle.-Against a Power-Slide, you may want to call off the feint if they Slide backwards, or if you’re feeling gutsy, try to continue the Dash into a dash-canceled Grab or any kind of attack and hope they don’t F-tilt or Jab you. I have been able to Grab from a surprising distance when my opponent attempted to counter-attack, most likely from them extending their Hitbox for me to Grab.Execution: Jump at your opponent, usually after a Dash, and then Double-jump back or fall short (usually with a Landing-slide backwards). This technique can tell you what your opponent is likely to do when you attempt an actual aerial attack.Offensive MannerUsually it will be countered by an F-tilt, U-tilt, F-smash, or U-smash. Sometimes a Jab will be used, especially with long reaching Jabs such as with Marth and Roy. If they attack, a simple double-jump to N-air, F-air, or D-air should be likely to land a hit. If they perform a fast attack in which they can recover from you can pull back or continue with the Air-attack and try to shield stun them or out-prioritize them.Defensive MannerIf your opponent Standing-dodges, this should give you ample time to retaliate. If they Roll or Slide backwards you can attempt to pull back as well, or continue with an actual attack, such as landing, Sliding forward, and moving into a Grab or Tilt. If they Roll behind you, try to hit them with a B-air.Execution: Perform a Power-Slide at your opponent just within range of their attack. If he reacts fast enough you can Slide backwards or Dodge to avoid getting hit. To further confuse your opponent, try this with a Jump Game, Short-hop at them, Slide backwards; Short-hop away, Slide forward. Mix it up.Offensive Manner: Usually it will be countered by a fast attack or Grab. If they go for a Grab, perform a Standing-Dodge and get them before they can recover. If they go for an attack, you can Slide backwards out of range and move in while they are lagging from their attack. If it is a fast attack, such as a Jab, you might not have enough time to react.Defensive Manner: If your opponent Standing-dodges, this should give you ample time to retaliate. If they Roll or Slide backwards you can Power-slide or Dash along with them and continue with an attack. If they Roll behind you, turn quickly and Grab or U-tilt them.Pichu has an awesome Rolling-dodge. It’s fast, it moves him far, and it’s unexpected. This is a great technique to exploit for Mind Games.Execution: Combine the Roll with the Dash Game for effective results.-Forward Roll: Dash at your opponent and right when Pichu is within their attack range, Roll behind them. This has you facing their back and they are usually lagging from an attack. From here move to a Tilt, Smash, or Grab.-[Backwards Roll: This can be effective to read how they react to a sudden Dash without getting hit. Pichu’s Roll will get you away from most every attack. Next time you Dash at them they will be hesitant to strike at you, thinking it will miss and that’s when you execute a real attack.-Standing Dodge: Dash at your opponent and then Dodge in place using the Shield and the C-stick down (using the C-stick will automatically dodge on the first available frame), if they attempt to counter-attack you should evade it and your position will stay close. This is very useful because it is the only technique that will keep you in a close position to your opponent. From here you can Tilt, Smash, or Grab depending on the circumstance.Offensive MannerIf they attack you, Roll behind them or Standing-dodge and retaliate.Defensive MannerIf your opponent Standing-dodges you‘ve got plenty of time to counter after the invincibility frames run their course . If they Roll or Slide backwards with you, you are right there ready to counter their defense. If they Roll or Slide forward away from you, Dash at them and try to nab them. If they put up their Shield, Grab them out of it.Execution: Jump at your opponent, usually after a Dash, and then Air-dodge to evade any counter attack. It is most effective to Air-dodge downwards so you can landing-cancel it and move into a counter-attack. However, this takes precise timing and distancing. You may want to try to Air-dodge behind your opponent, but that is also risky.Offensive MannerIf they throw an attack at you, hopefully you’ve Dodged through it and have time to counter.Defensive MannerIf your opponent Standing-dodges, this should give you ample time to retaliate. If they Roll or Slide backwards you may want to pull back. If they Roll or Slide forward and you got behind them you might have time to retaliate. If they Shield, try to grab them from it.See Chapter IV. An In-depth Look at the Quick Attack (below)At first glance, the Quick Attack (Up+B) seems like a simple Recovery move. To the novice it is taxing to keep controlled and usually ends up in a self destruct if used for anything more complicated than going straight up and then horizontally to fall on the ledge. However, there are far more benefits the Quick Attack can provide for you, and why it really does live up to its name as an “attack“. Here is where I will help you take a closer look as to how to use it in advanced gameplay.But before we get into the advanced uses, I should start from the basics.Up+B will simply move Pichu in an upwards direction, this in itself is good enough for a recovery move because it has modest range and is fairly quick.In addition, pressing in another of 16 directions immediately after pressing Up+B will make Pichu travel in that direction. So, for example, you could Up+B:right and Pichu will travel to the right instead of Upwards. In addition to this, you also get a second Quick Attack in another of 16 directions (including the same direction a second time), doubling the distance you can travel.Obviously, the drawback to using the Quick Attack is it deals 1% damage to Pichu on its first Jaunt and 3% damage to him on the second Jaunt. Using it twice will cause a total of 4% damage… which is quite costly when you remember Pichu can die at a very low damage percent.Here is where some good info comes in. Quick Attack only has 1 frame of landing lag animation! With this ability Pichu can take on quick, top-tier characters like Fox. But there’s a trick to this. You must distance yourself perfectly when you land, or else you can pick up a whole lot more lag. Go to Training Mode and practice the Up+B to get this down perfectly. It is imperative you know how to distance yourself perfectly from any angle of the Quick Attack.Basic Uses of the Quick AttackThis is the Up+B equivalent of Mind Games. With the Quick Attack knowledge you have you are now able to use it more effectively in an actual battle. Because it is such a unique move you may need to develop a habit to remember to use itEffect: Pichu Quick Attacks to become less predictable.Execution: Up+B when you feel the time is right.Benefit: Simply traveling in an arc behind your opponent or going up & down will show just how unpredictable you are. Remember to use this whenever the opportunity arrives.The Quick Attack can travel past a platform on its first jaunt. There are quite a few benefits you can reap from this.Effect: From a Standing Position on a Platform, Pichu zips down to the ground below, or upwards to another Platform.Execution: Up+B:downwards and quickly get to the ground below or Up+B:upwards to get to another platform above.Benefit: It’s a lot quicker than jumping and it helps prevent the undesireable crouching when you want to drop down from a platform. Again, take this to Training Mode and perfect it on all the stages with platforms to increase your gameplay.Effect: You grab the ledge on Recovery.Execution: Press Up+B when near enough to the ledge to grab onto it instead of bypassing it and landing on the stage.Benefit: When your opponent is waiting at the Ledge to Edge-guard you, you can avoid his attacks by grabbing onto that ledge and gaining invincibility frames. This can also draw a slow attack from your opponent (they usually want a powerful attack to make sure you don’t come back, and powerful attacks are usually slow), in which case you may have enough time to leap from the Ledge and counter.Note:Although this takes some practice, you should be able to Quick Attack straight up, straight right, straight down, diagonally down, and diagonally up to perfection or else you will most likely drop to your death. So go to Training Mode and spend a couple hours Recovering from all the angles. Perfect this technique.Now that you know the ropes of Quick Attack, you can start practicing the more advanced techniques I use in competitive tournaments.Effect: Pichu stalls for time at the ledge and gains invincibility frames as well.Execution: While on the Ledge, simply Ledge-drop and immediately Quick Attack away and back to the ledge. This can be done at any of the Quick Attack angles, for instance you can Ledge-drop, Up+B:down, Up+B:up and the effect will be a very quick drop to Ledge-grab. Perfect every angle, even the incredibly fun, yet incredibly dangerous, diagonally-downright Stallchu.Benefit:When you have grabbed onto the Ledge you can take advantage of stalling in some cases. And what more fun is it to show off your Quick Attack skill than by Stallchuing?Effect: When recovering back to the stage, instead of Quick-Edging you can bypass the grab and go horizontally onto the ground, picking up the quick 1 frame lag.Execution: Usually this is done when going from down to up and distancing yourself just above the ledge on the first Up+B Jaunt. Then, on the second Jaunt go to the right and you should glide right over the ledge. Another way to execute this is to skip the first step and Up+B:right when falling towards the ledge.Benefit: When your opponent is at the ledge, you can use this technique to quickly zip behind them and counterattack (usually a F-Smash). It is also good to have another technique for recovery to quick your opponent guessing where you’ll be.I had to create this technique on my own through many years of studying Pichu lore. The knowledge is now being passed onto you, use it wisely.Effect: Quick Attack from Standing Position and glide across the ground with only 1 frame of lag. WTF? Pichu 4TW!Execution: Press Up and immediately when Pichu leaves the ground, press the B button, then press left/right on the analog stick. The effect should look like a super Dash.Benefit: This is faster and has further distance than a Slide and only has 1 frame of landing lag! With this you can cover ground quickly to attack before your opponent knows what hit him, or get behind them. In effect, it is a unique movement to Pichu that can get you into the position you want to be in.Note: For a video example of this, you can see it used a couple times in Chain Lightning - a Pichu Combo Vid: http://www.nsmadhouse.com/ps/ssb/ssbm/chainlightning.htm Effect: While hanging on the Ledge, Pichu drops, Wall-jumps, and Stagechus onto the Stage.Benefits: Not only does this get you past your opponent quickly, which can lead to a Trick Attack (see below), or covers more ground than a Ledge-Slide (see Chapter IV: Advanced Techniques, above)Execution: When performing a Stagechu or QaD (see above) through/past your opponent & Immediately turn around & execute an attack.Benefit: While you’ve confused your opponent as to where you are (behind him) you might as well take advantage of your advantageous position and attack. I’d suggest a F-Smash for the most part, but if you’re in a good position and depending on damage you can sneak in an U-tilt, Grab, D-tilt, F-tilt, U-Smash, or N-air.(I should name this to something more charming)This is similar to the Quick-Hog technique described above, but it is very tricky and needs a bit of practice to get perfected or you will most likely Self-Destruct.Effect: Pichu zips off the Stage in what looks to be a suicidal maneuver, but then quickly zips back and performs and Edge-hog (hopefully taking out his opponent on their recovery).Execution: Up+B:right/left and immediately press the analog stick diagonally downward and backwards as you are off the stage for a second Jaunt to turn back and grab the Ledge.Benefit: This is a quick way to get you into an Edge-hog position so that you can Edge-hog an opponent looking to grab the edge on recovery. However, this can also be used if you wish to be in an Edge-hog position for whatever reason. This is the quickest way to Edge-hog from a considerable distance away from the ledge… and not just with Pichu, WITH ANY CHARACTRER! Pichu is awesome, isn’t he?Note: For a video example of this, you can see it used a couple times in Chain Lightning - a Pichu Combo Vid: http://www.nsmadhouse.com/ps/ssb/ssbm/chainlightning.htm Team PichuPichu can make an excellent ally in Doubles tournament play. He is small and weak, which makes it unlikely for him to KO or be KO'd by his partner. Anyone who has been hit by Ganondorf, smashed by Marth, or shot by Samus can attest how useful this is. Additionally, Pichu's evasive maneuvers can make him especially hard to hit when there are three other fighters in the fracas.With Team Attack On (default for Teams tournaments) Pichu can rescue his partner from falling to their doom effectively because he is quick enough to get over to them and has weak attacks that can pop them up.Which characters are good to pair up with Pichu?That’s a good question.Thanks to t1mmy for letting me steal this awesome format from his Kirby guide and giving my Pichu a variety of characters to fight against, from Space Furries to desynced Ice Climbers.Thanks for reading - feedback is appreciated!This guide is authored by t0mmy. Any use of this document in part or in whole is a violation of copyright laws. If you would like to use this guide in any way, please contact the author. (SWF members, please send Private Message)© 2006 t0mmy - www.nsmadhouse.com--------------------------------------------------------Download the .wps of this text here with more content: http://www.nsmadhouse.com/ps/ssb/ssbm/text/pichuguide.wps