This was inevitable. I have been playing bowser since the release of 3.0, first as a sandbag, then as a secondary, and now as a full on main (with roy and pikachu still being worked on). He's down pat my best character, and I have him VERY well understood. I can't say I'm better than everybody else, but I do know my knowledge of him is at least notable.





I figured by now, he would have gotten at the LEAST half the love the other "finally good" veterans have gotten. Link, Zelda, ness, and mario have all gotten something of an involuntary spotlight for a while, and they get decent playtime. I'm sad to say that although bowser has players, his potential is sorely underused. He's almost always a secondary or a sandbag. So I decided to bite the bullet and see if I could write a really thorough guide on this monster. It's time for the king of koopa to ****ing shine.





First, let's start off with the format of this guide. Bowser is more than just a gimmick with super armor, he has an incredibly unique and intimidation based playstyle, so I gotta deliver this right.





So let's start off with something every character should know how to do.





**Movement:**





Bowser is bar none the least mobile character in the cast. His ground, air, and attack speed are all universally slow. Outside of walking, you need to take advantage of EVERY movement option that presents itself.



His dash is actually not that slow, and if your opponent is on the ropes, it's a decent way to chase, but you can't misuse it. More importantly, learn to fadeaway, to stop just out of range, how to powershield during it (it's a little slower, you have to compensate), and how to jump on reaction out of ...



Crawl: Bowser's CC game is insane, and the armor his crouch gets works well to punish slow projectiles. A projectile that comes out slow and has lots of endlag, like aura sphere is perfect to crawl through. Fast projectiles can be dealth with by jumping and reading an approach, usually with fair or nair. You can also shield, CC Dsmash, lots of stuff. Don't just STAND UP, afterwards, do SOMETHING. It's not just a fun toy it's a god damn blessing as far as dealing with projectiles goes. Almost everything but stuff like aura bomb, charge shot, and fox's blaster. You know, really scary stuff. He can crouch armor the halberd laser, for reference.



Weak multi hit attacks, or quick jabs as well, and you can take advantage of the hitlag your opponent will suffer.



Wavedash: Nothing to write home about, but you still need to use it. It's only got two serious uses, but they are both important. First off, grabbing ledge. May not be faster, but it IS safer than fortress hogging, because you get more leeway. You can crawl backwards and get ledgehog, but that's only if you're being pressured, and you have 99% or less (you know why, I'll elaborate later on).



Second, not to get stuck on platforms. You can't reliably approach or close distance with it, but it will get you off a platform, if you're on the edge. Fair, and Bair are quick options out of this.



This is important, especially because Bowser has to be on the very edge of everything, if you're going to take advantage of...



Evasion



Overall, Bowser his limited tools just like for movement, but if managed correctly, can still contend. Unless you are applying pressure, you're best bet is to find any loophole out of bowser's endlag issues.



Spotdodge does little compared to the rest of the cast, but it still works. Use this to evade tilts and smashes, but not jabs, and no tether grabs, they are far too long. Spotdodge>Grab is incredibly risky, but still possible. Thankfully there are better options.



Airdodge is an airdodge. Good for getting back on stage, up on platforms, and away from projectiles and smashes, but you MUST land almost immediately afterwards. You shouldn't even have to fastfall. The longer you stay in the air the harder it will be to escape.



Moonwalk technically falls under movement too, but it is more useful for a bit of safety. Many characters have such small to nonexistant moonwalks they don't appear, but bowser's is just itty bitty. The only reason you can see it is because he's so damn slow. His dash animation will activate, but he won't move far forward enough to matter, and you can do a slightly extended dash attack out of it, along with a quick-ish fair.



Roll suprisingly enough, is better than most. It's quick, you can jab and Ftilt out of it pretty quick, and you can Up B-OoS (I call it the koopa squall), along with using it to position Up B OoS by rolling along with the opponent. A great way to punish rolling, and teach your practice partner to ****ing stop that ****.



One last thing before I get into the real meat. Since bowser shine's on stage, the moveset analysis is going to be the onstage breakdown. So I'll leave off with a little...



Offstage Breakdown



Recovery is limited, but has more options than people think. Obviously, fortress is a third jump. Do not rely too much on the vertical lift, and more on the horizontal. Not immune to projectiles, but it does have quite a few hitboxes.



Bowser Bomb can also grab ledge. It can be moved slightly, it travels quick, and it stalls his descent for a bit. It's also one of his best armored moves. You can do it right next to the ledge, so you don't have be an abraham linclon away from the stage to use it. Be cautious, but don't be afraid.







Koopa claw can grab ledge, but it's more of a flashy trick, not as good as bomb or fortress. Show it off at parties, don't rely on it in tournament. The ledge is a good place for bowser. Ledgehop fair is good for a recovery surprise, and bair can edgeguard, but most importantly his getup attack is ****ING AMAZING. It covers over half of yoshi's story, it's quick, has low knockback but decent hitstun, and the endlag isn't all that bad. If you clang with it, you can jab fast enough to clang again, and bowser applying clang pressure (yes, the ************ has clang pressure), is a dangerous bowser. This attack is so ****ing good, you can use it to combo and sometimes approach. Hell, if you can fortress hog, at mid percentage and under, it's nearly guaranteed. If you hit an opponent on the backswing, they'll get knocked off the stage, and the ledge hardly ever gets in bowser's way. Far offstage but still above the ledge, bowser's fair and bair are great tools. Dair is situational at best, uair even worse, and for the love of god, unless you are rising or in ****ing valhalla



DO NOT NAIR OFFSTAGE



You're just giving away stocks at that point.



Okay, finally, the best part. MOVESET ANALYSIS



Overview: Bowser is a punisher, but unlike what people think he is not bait and punish. He cannot bait, as he has minimal approach, little speed, and it's common knowledge you don't rush down bowser in nuetral. Bowser punishes based on quick tiny weaknesses, so instead of trying to make your opponent use an unsafe attack, find an opening in whatever attack they are using. Abuse your armor frames hardcore, along with your gigantic shield. You can recognize patterns and abuse those, but you will likely not be able to make anyone do anything.



Also, he doesn't really have all that many guaranteed second hits. The second step to almost every combo you do is gonna have to be a tech read. Thankfully many of his moves cover at least two options at once.



* Jab – Double swipe: one of his quickest moves bar none, decent reach, low knockback, and you can choose between 1,2, or multiple strung together jabs. It can lead to tilts, a grab if you're close enough, a dash attack, and if you're opponent is kind of jarred by it, koopa klaw. More importantly, it's the best example of his improved shield damage. Four jabs will break almost any shield, save for his own. If they angle the shield forward, it will break. Anything else, you'll shield poke.



This move can continue clang pressure



* Utilt – Flyswatter: Starts low on the ground in front of him, ends low behind him, makes a large arc above him. Great for covering platforms aboce you, and catching opponents directly left or right of you. It can punish things as quick as Lucario's double team, and most non optimal cross ups. On midweights it's a great juggle tool, and on fastfallers at higher percents. It's okaaaaaaaaaay on floaties. It also forces Fastfallers to fall over or tech again on platforms.



This move CAN kill at high percents, and is great on stages with a triangular platform set up.



* Ftilt – Sucker punch: His best option for what little spacing he can do on the ground. At low percents you can combo it out of Dthrow, a well spaced Squall, Jab, and even Dsmash. Has the three standard tilt angles. Up and forward for most of the cast, down for little ones like squirtle and pikachu. Like the rest of his tilts, this move can kill near the edge of the stage



* Dtilt – The meowser special: Bowser swipes at the ground like a cat playing with his food. Great out of crouch, and you can choose between one hit and two. One of his smartest buffs, as a single hit Dtilt can be combo'd out of well. If you're opponent is a low percent and not floaty, both hits will connect, but 9/10, single hit is what you want, and yes it can kill. Off the top. It's ****ing hilarious.



All of his tilts also reach out over the edge, and are a part of his edgegaurd game.



* Dash Attack – Koopa Krash: Bowser trips on virtually nothing and falls forward with his arms extended. A terrible approach, but an excellent second step. It can punish everything but a good airdodge, and it can juggle if done right. Extends offstage as well. Absolutely horrible on shield, so use it sparingly.



* Usmash - Organic spike trap: One of three super armored smash attacks, bowser crouches down and thrusts his back spikes upwards, with armor during the jump, and a small quake hitbox when he hits the ground. A great way to cover platforms, his best option with respawn invincibility, and his second strongest smash attack. Fastfallser will take the initial hit, AND the quake at mid to low percents.



People greatly underestimate the quake on this move, and one other. Bowser seems to be only dangerous as his far as his limbs reach, because flame breath is slow, but he has a general aura of danger around that's sort of invisible. So opponents usually forget about the quakes on Usmash and down B, and the phantom hits on Dsmash. The quake on Usmash are small, but they have a healthy helping of hitstun, and will go under any shield that isn't full or angled. A fullstop>Usmash thrown in every now and then will keep your opponent on their toes, or optimally, off of them.



This moves kill quickly, anything above 70 that isn't samus or D3 is very likely to die outside of dreamland or FoD. Hell even on FoD it's great if the platform config is just right. It also has a spike hitbox if your opponent is under the ledge, but it's hard to land. Worth practicing though.



This move cancels quickly if it clangs, and can be used to start clang pressure.



* Fsmash – Hammerhead: Some of (if not) his strongest armor is on this attack, starting during the headbutt (I think a bit while he's rearing back too), and it will go through almost ****ing anything that's not lightning fast. It comes out pretty quickly after the armor is over, and has a wiiiiiiide hitbox. Extends far over the ledge, hits twice, has an explosion effect, and kills earlier then I get up for work (I get up at 5 am). From ANYWHERE. The obvious tradeoff is that it's painfully slow, and he takes a ****ing fiver after he's done with it. ONLY use it for a guaranteed read, unless hard reading is your specialty. It also guards the ledge pretty well, and is maximum punish for a sleeping puff, or anyone with a broken shield. The only attack it can truly punish is ZSS's grab, if you're behind her. Also warlock punch, but that's ****ing obvious. Also, if your opponent's shield is not 95%, or massive, it'll break it.



* Dsmash – Bowser Vortex: The weakest of his smash attacks, it can still kill at high percents, and is the second best grinder Dsmash under peach. There's a reason squirtle emulates it. Bowser gears up, withrdraws into his shell and starts to spin, letting off sparks. Anyone who rolls toward you, behind you (not away, behind), doesn't sweetspot, or just happens to land near you can be sucked in by it, and it's reasonably hard to escape. A few phantom hits during the spin can also suck in anyone too close, and it goes under the edge too. All the armor is contained during the spin, none on the gearup. My favorite punish tool hands down,



This move cancels immediately if it clangs, and can be used to start clang pressure.Aerials



* Nair- My hero gamera: Bowser instantly withdraws into his shell and spins around quickly. Hits once with decent knockback and damage. The important part of this move is the armor during the spin. That combined with a fastfall is his best aerial combo breaker. But you need some room to do it, so practice that DI. It can combo a bit, and ledgeguard, so don't forget about it.



* Uair – King Cheep Cheep: After a bit of startup, bowser swings his head in an ark opening his mouth wide, baring his impressive fangs. An absolutely brutal aerial if it hits, killing at low percents, but being the second most unsafe. Reading a jump is the easiest way to connect with this, but it can also be used to punish combo breakers like spring jump, and cypher. A great move out of JC Bowser bomb, and the hitstun from any of his quake set ups.



* Fair – Airplane destroyer: One of his best aerials, and by extension his most popular. Too popular, as people seem to think it's his best option and pull it out at the wrong time, all the tie. Regardless, it's still great. Bowser swipes forward in a downward arc, with manageable end and start lag. Sends outward in the direction he swiped, but still has bad landing lag. Using it after a drop off is great, because you can still double jump and Fortress to save yourself. Also great after wavelanding, and it can stagespike. His best aerial out of a ledgehop, and a great killer too, trading the power of his smashes, for a more trustworthy reliability out of any attack that sets opponents upwards. JC Bowser bomb fair is the most popular way to utilize it, but if you over use it, it's not that hard to avoid.



* Bair – BACKING UP!!!!: Bowser folds his body in half at his torso, thrusting his spiny back out, and landing on it if he touches the ground. A good go to for edgegaurding, drop offs, safer platform movements, and the most under utilized JC Bowser bomb option. If you're going to fair you don't want to knock them back INTO the stage, so bair is here for you. It also has a reverse hitbox that's hard to land, but great if you do. Drop off bair from ledge will kill most of the cast, even with their recoveries, but be careful, because it's almost impossible to come back from.



Will kill near the edge.



* Dair – Serrated scrub brush: His most situational aerial, bowser's dair is his most punishable aerial, but it has wonderful uses, with little flex room outside of them. Bowser spins inside his shell, but upside down.



Ledgehop, or better ledgejump, Dair can deter people from trying to start juggles, or land a few hits while you soar past them. The hitstun may lead to combos, but it's best that you shield or try to get out afterwards.



If they are sitting in shield, bear down on them (make sure you land behind them), and then up B-OoS for some scary pressure. Fortress doesn't stop after one hit like link's, so the initial strong hit, followed by a drift away and back towards lets you use the spinning spike hits too.



If they do something stupid near the edge and you're on it, bearing into them can lead to edgeguards.



Otherwise be careful. Do not approach with this move, or try to get back to earth with it (that's what nair is for, and if the opportunity presents itself, Bowser Bomb) If you can, edge cancel this move, it has LOTS of endlag.



It is incredibly unlikely you'll kill with this move.



Get up attacks:



Ground get up. Very standard ground get ups, either a two direction spin, or a wake up slash. Do not use on shields, make sure your opponent is a healthy distance before using it.



Ledge get up < 100%: ****ing amazing. Bowser withdraws into his shell, rockets across the stage, and returns about halfway through the spin distance after turning around. Low knockback, and low scaling, this move can set up for combos, is incredibly safe compared to the rest of his toolkit, can knock opponents away on the backswing, and as mentioned, can start clang pressure. Be careful, as it CAN be punished. Use your better judgement.



Ledge get up > 100%: Useless. A slow rising slash. Any smart opponents will watch you as you helplessly give up a stock to a smash attack. Use your ledgehop options if you're above 100, please. Even if it hits, you won't be getting much off of it. Specials



* Nuetral B – Flame breath: Bowser's signature red hot flame breath is his most misused attack. Don't just ****ing PRESS B, unless your opponent is offstage, and even then you have better options for edgeguarding. If you're not flame canceling, you're doing it wrong, they brought it back for a reason.



Pressing B RIGHT before you hit the ground will cause bowser to immediately start breathing fire, no start lag. The stream is big, but diminishes very quickly, and there's a chomp at the end that can start combos. It's also a fun mindgame, as it catches your opponent offguard, It's decent for opponents that are staying a “safe” length away from the edge as well.



For example, if you start on PS2, and they rush forward off the platform, a flame cancel usually catches them, either for some damage, or that great bite. Practicing flame canceling to combat swords, and characters with irritating projectiles.



Also you can B-reverse it. B reverse flame cancel confuses the **** out of everyone, I promise you.



It's one of his fastest options, but it MUST be used appropriately, because it requires you to be doing nothing on your way down.



There is a use for regular or aerial Flame breath. If you can get ONE fireball out in response to a grab, it will break the grab.



* Up B – Whirling Fortress: The best out of shield option in the game is bowser's sad third jump. LEARN UP B OOS FOR THE LOVE OF GOD PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEASE. It weaves, it bobs, it's quick, it ****ing SMARTS NEIGHBOR. You can use it to fortress hog then getup attack, stave off pressure, approach sometimes, it'll combo fastfallers, it makes your roll useful, and it can also kill.



This is the only move I consider Bread and Butter for Bowser.



LEARN IT SON



* Side B – Koopa Klaw: Just like melee, bowser swings his claw, grabbing if he's near enough, and doing slash damage with good knockback if they're on the outskirts. Great tech punisher, shield punisher, unsafe move punisher, it might as well be called the ****ing punisher. If you grab with it you get two throws. Backwards, he discards you like an annoying cat, and it can kill. Forward, he headbutts you and you fly upwards, great for combos. This is FAR more useful as the second step to a combo, especially if you've knocked the opponent down. There were some shenanigans in melee you could pull on fast fallers, but bowser's size might be a hindrance to it.



* Down B – Bowser Bomb: His most flexible special in my opinion. On the ground, he hops up with a hitbox on the ground, then moves into position, and slams straight down until he hits the ground. He has armor on descent, does insane knockback, and has another amazing quakebox on landing.



You can jump cancel the ascent, giving bowser a quick way to chase aerial opponents. All of his aerials outside of Dair have a use with JC Bowser bomb (okay Imma just call it JCBB, for short)



You can also Wavedash out of JCBB, allowing you to quickly travel to platforms like the top of norfair and yoshi's island.



If the height is optimal, you can fastfall and flame cancel out of it, and the descent is just great for chasing character's that try to escape combo's vertically.



You can control bowser slightly while he's waiting to descend, so you can grab the ledge with it rather quickly.



In fact, if you're not under the stage, but you are off of it, you should just about always use Bowser Bomb to grab ledge. It's just ****ing good man. You can do it out of a dropoff if you press back and not down, and again, you don't have to be right above it for to work.



You can get it out of throws, but be careful. It's demoralizing if you do, but it's nowhere near reliable.



In the air, it's still damn good. Surprise jugglers with it, get back to earth (only if you'll hit the opponent on the way down), grab ledge of course, and you can even shorthop it, for a quicker quake. TONS OF HITSTUN on that quake, that can get you a Uair very often.



If you drop through the ledge and down B soon enough, you'll end up back on the platform. Throws



* Uthrow: Bowser sets you up on his back and takes you for a ****ing ride. Vertical knockback, good for juggles and setting up into aerials. Combo's into Usmash at low percents, and on fast fallers.



* Fthrow: Bowser seats you on his horns and catapults you forward. Decent knockback, can combo at low percents. Great for getting opponents offstage.



* Bthrow: Bowser heaves you behind him with the force of an angry turtle king. Almost exclusively a kill move as it does not combo. Will set up for edgeguards.



* Dthrow: Bowser gently lays you down and cuddles you aggressively. Low knockback angle, good for combos, and makes falco players really ****ing mad.



Okay, that's all I got for right now. All of this information was gathered strictly through play, so there may be slight inaccuracies. I'm just exhausted seeing bowser be releaged to a sandbag and I hope this guide sheds some light on how awesome he is. He requires WORK, like a lot of PM character's, so I can see why he'd be unnatractive. But he has some of the best rewards hands down, and he deserves serious play. PMBR put a LOT of ****ing work making bowser REALLY FEEL like bowser.