Lucas (SSB4)

Lucas in Super Smash Bros. 4
Universe	EarthBound
Other playable appearance	in Brawl
Availability	Downloadable
Final Smash	PK Starstorm
Tier	F (36)

“	Lucas Comes Out of Nowhere!	”
—Introduction Tagline

Lucas (リュカ, Lucas) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4, and is the second downloadable character announced. He was confirmed to be a playable character during the Nintendo Direct presentation on April 1st, 2015 and was released alongside Roy and Ryu on June 14th, 2015. He is once again voiced by Lani Minella, albeit via recycled voice clips from Brawl and with some of the clips slightly sped up to match the general aesthetics.

Lucas currently ranks 36th out of 56 on the tier list, placing him in the F tier. This is a slight improvement from his ranking in Brawl, where he was ranked 30th out of 38. Lucas is no longer plagued by 10 extra grab release frames and early hitstun cancelling, both of which were major detriments to his survival and combo game, respectively. Aside from that, Lucas' own assets are his fast attack speed, disjointed hitboxes, projectiles that can pressure or keep away opponents, and an impressive combo game.

However, while the major issues resulting in his near bottom-tier placement in Brawl have been fixed, he was nerfed due to his overall damage output, knockback, and range all being reduced and the loss of several of his more advanced techniques from Brawl. Lucas also retains slow ground mobility and a recovery that is occasionally susceptible to gimps and edgeguarding. However, subsequent game updates gave Lucas further buffs that have since allowed him some success in competitive play.

Attributes

Lucas' mobility has remained largely unchanged since Brawl; he still has average dashing speed and gravity, above average air speed, below average falling speed, very slow walking speed.

While Lucas' mobility speed is rather unimpressive, his attack speed compensates for it; notable examples include his neutral attack, which comes out on frame 2, and his down tilt, which comes out on frame 3 and is tied with Little Mac, R.O.B., Ness, and Meta Knight's down tilts for being the fastest one in the game. As a result, Lucas's attacks are useful for damage racking and creating combos. To further complement this, a lot of his ground attacks have small ending lag, making them safe in many cases.

Despite his short stature and lack of a weapon, Lucas has good range thanks to his disjointed hitboxes. All of his smash attacks, nearly all of his aerial attacks and some of his ground attacks are disjointed, which can be further supplemented by his projectiles. In addition to their disjointed hitboxes, Lucas' smash attacks are among the strongest in the game. Like in Brawl, his up smash is among the strongest up smashes in the game while also possessing both a large disjointed hitbox and the ability to KO as low as 54% when fully charged. The first hit of his down smash is also one of the strongest in the game and is an intimidating edgeguarding option, while his forward smash has decent speed, can reflect projectiles and has good KO potential, especially when struck at its sweetspot, the tip.

However, Lucas biggest strength is his grab game. His grab, despite being the tether grab with the shortest range, has the least ending lag of all tether grabs and has good range nonetheless. He possesses arguably the best set of throws in the game, with his up, forward and back throws being strong enough to be viable KOing options (his up throw being the third strongest behind Mewtwo's and Charizard's, and also one of his best KO options; and his forward throw being the strongest alongside Bowser, although it is significantly weaker as a KOing option). Also, due to the changes to hitstun canceling and its significantly reduced knockback, his down throw is an excellent combo starter at the cost of its KO potential. Finally, his pummel is quick and good at racking up damage before a throw.

Lucas has a strong zoning game that is essential to his success. PK Fire and grab aerial are both powerful spacing tools with their own specific uses, the latter being able to lead into a grab or forward tilt. Lucas' combo game is also very strong. His down tilt is a good combo starter, as it can combo into itself, neutral attack, and most importantly, his grab. His neutral and forward aerials can combo into themselves at lower percents, while the former can also do so into other aerials (except for back aerial) at low percents. As mentioned, his down throw is excellent for combos; it will combo into neutral and forward aerials from 0% up until high percents (even reaching into the early 90% range for neutral aerial), while down throw to up aerial is confirmed KO until past 100%.

His special moveset comes equipped with versatility. Like Ness, he possesses three PSI-based projectiles. PK Freeze can freeze his opponents, hence the name, has very small cooldown and is viable as an edgeguarding tool, albeit situational. While his PK Fire does not repeatedly hit opponents and potentially trap them like Ness' PK Fire, Lucas' deals decent knockback and can be used to give Lucas some space as it also provides a small bit of recoil, both on the ground and in the air. Lastly, PK Thunder does not disappear like Ness' PK Thunder when it hits opponents, but instead hits them multiple times while also boasting tighter controls and PK Thunder 2 granting Lucas farther distance. Lastly, his PSI Magnet allows Lucas to deal with camping foes that carry powerful, absorbable projectiles like Mewtwo while also allowing him to stall midair.

However, Lucas does have his flaws. With his aforementioned sub-par mobility, fast characters such as Zero Suit Samus and Sonic can give Lucas a difficult time. Another problem is a predictable approach, reliance on his zoning tools (which can be overcome), and occasionally a lack of range in site of his tether grab. Some of his moves require precision at times; his up aerial, whose hitbox is significantly smaller than it was in Brawl, can miss large opponents like Bowser. Another prominent example is his down smash, whose three hits are all mutually exclusive and thus gives opponents a perfect opportunity to punish Lucas if they manage to shield it. Lucas can also have problems scoring KOs despite his smash attacks' impressive strengths, as they mainly require effective reading and should be used wisely as a result. Although Lucas has a reliable tether recovery, his other method of recovery is also gimpable because of its much lower priority than Ness, and it can be still be reflected or absorbed, most infamously by Rosalina & Luma. Like all other DLC characters, Lucas does not have any custom moves, which limits him in tournaments allowing custom specials.

Altogether, Lucas' negatives are slightly more prominent than his positives. While he has excellent damage racking abilities along with some good approach moves, said approach is predictable and can also be faulty at times, while he can also have a hard time KOing opponents outside of edgeguarding, and he is not as effective when his zoning tools can be nullified. Though Lucas's initial tournament representation was poor, it has improved over time after he received buffs in game patches, and he currently has average representation and results.

Changes from Brawl

Lucas received a mix of buffs and nerfs in the transition from Brawl to SSB4, but he was objectively nerfed overall (relative to his Brawl iteration) despite being the lowest ranked newcomer in Brawl. One of the most notable improvements he received was the removal of his 10 extra frame grab release animation, which was one of his most significant flaws and was also shared with Ness. Lucas' recovery, outside of advanced techniques, has been improved, as both PK Thunder 2 and Rope Snake now cover more distance. Rope Snake has also received more utility as a zoning tool due to it receiving a hitbox when used as a grab aerial. Lucas has also been indirectly buffed from the changes to hitstun canceling, which is most evident with the modifications to his down throw having resulted in it becoming by far his best combo starter.

However, the 10 extra frame grab-release was not the only noticeable gameplay-related aspect that Lucas lost. He can no longer use Zap Jump or Magnet Pull, which were his two most pivotal techniques in Brawl. However, the aforementioned buffs to PK Thunder 2 and Rope Snake compensate somewhat for this. In addition to this, many of his attacks have seen their knockback and range reduced, while some of them have had their cooldown increased. This is most notably seen in his forward and back aerials losing their ability to auto-cancel from a short hop (although the landing lag of both is minimal), his down aerial having increased startup and no longer able to reliably set up for the infamous down tilt lock, and his up aerial having notably less range while also being static, all of which significantly hinders his already poor approach and landing options. A number of Lucas' damage outputs have also decreased, though this is made up by his newfound ability to reliably combo. He additionally has a slightly harder time KOing because of his forward smash, up smash, and down throw having reduced knockback alongside the loss of his advanced techniques.

Overall, Lucas has not significantly improved since Brawl when compared to the rest of the cast. However, as of update 1.1.3, he is considered to be slightly better than how he was when he was initially released in SSB4, due to the buffs he received up to and including that update.

Aesthetics

• Due to the vibrant aesthetics used in SSB4, Lucas' overall color scheme is brighter. Like Ness, Lucas has lost the colored hue in his eyes (teal in Lucas' case), he is slightly taller and thinner, has a smaller and more proportionate head and his shirt stripes are now completely horizontal with no partial stripes. He also has slightly rosy cheeks.
• Lucas is more expressive. He has a consistent smile and scowls when performing some attacks.
• Lucas' PSI-based attacks have updated sound effects and visuals.
• PSI Magnet's animation has slightly changed. Lucas now keeps both eyes open instead of closing one while performing it.
• Lucas has the same stance as Ness when holding a light item.

Attributes

• Lucas' air speed is faster (1.05 → 1.1).
• Lucas' fast falling speed is faster (1.918 → 2.192), which makes him less vulnerable to juggling.
• Jumpsquat is 1 frame faster (5 frames → 4).
• The extra 10 frames of Lucas' grab release have been removed.
• Zap Jump and Magnet Pull have been removed.
• The removal of Zap Jump and Magnet Pull significantly hinder Lucas' advanced technical options.

Ground attacks

• Neutral attack deals 1.5% less damage (10% → 8.5%).
• Neutral attack's initial hits launch opponents at a higher trajectory, improving its jab canceling potential.
• Dash attack has decreased start-up (frame 17 → 15) and ending lag (IASA frame 42 → 39). The sweetspot deals 1% more damage (12% → 13%) with horizontal knockback and is now located at the tip.
• Sourspotted dash attack deals 1% less damage (10% → 9%) and decreased knockback.
• Up, down and sourspotted forward tilts all deal less damage (11% → 9.5% (up), 6% → 3% (down), 9% → 7.5% (sourspotted forward)).
• Forward tilt has increased start-up (frame 6 → 7) and ending lag (IASA frame 23 → 26).
• Up tilt has decreased ending lag (IASA frame 40 → 37).
• Down tilt's point-blank hitbox now deals weak vertical knockback, improving its combo potential.
• Down tilt has increased ending lag (IASA frame 14 → 16) and slightly decreased range. It also no longer trips opponents, with only its tipper hitbox locking in opponents.
• Forward smash has decreased base knockback (60 → 50) and has received a sourspot on all untippered hitboxes that deals 1% less damage.
• Forward smash uses an original sound effect instead of using a kick sound effect like it did in Brawl.
• Forward smash's animation has slightly changed, as Lucas' moves his head slightly more.
• Forward smash and down smash no longer have transcendent priority.
• Up smash has decreased knockback (50 (base)/85 (growth) → 48/77) and smaller hitboxes (14u/13u/12u/10u/10u → 12u/11u/10u/8u/6.5u). It can also no longer force ledge hanging opponents into the main hitbox.
• Up and down smashes use charging PSI sound effects.
• Down smash's first hit has increased base knockback (40 → 43).
• Down smash has decreased range (10u/12u/14u → 8u/9.8u/12u) and mutually exclusive hits.

Aerial attacks

• Neutral, forward and down aerials all deal less damage (17% → 12% (neutral), 12% → 11.5% (forward), 20% → 15.5% (down)).
• Neutral, forward and up aerials no longer autocancel from a short hop due to drastically tightened autocancel windows, slightly hindering his approaching and landing options.
• Neutral aerial has decreased base knockback (70 → 40), decreased landing lag (18 frames → 13), its last hit connects reliably and it launches overhead opponents at 60°, making it an effective combo starter.
• Neutral aerial has increased start-up (frame 5 → 7) and ending lag (IASA frame 40 → 45). Its SDI multiplier has also increased (1x → 2x).
• Neutral aerial's animation has been slightly changed. The last hit is now more pronounced.
• Forward aerial has a smaller hitbox (5.5u → 5u) and its late hit has decreased active frames (6 frames → 2).
• Forward aerial has decreased landing lag (15 frames → 12).
• Back aerial's non-meteor sweetspot deals 2% more damage (10% → 12%) and knockback.
• Up aerial has increased start-up (frame 5 → 7), decreased active frames (6 frames → 3) and a much smaller hitbox (7u → 5.2u) that is no longer attached to Lucas' head during its animation. This hinders its range due it becoming static and misleading.
• Up aerial launches opponents at 80°, improving its KO potential despite its knockback values remaining unchanged since Brawl.
• Down aerial has decreased landing lag (28 frames → 24).
• Down aerial has increased start-up (frame 4 → 10), hindering its reliability against smaller grounded targets. It also has decreased autocancel timings (frame 35 → 48), removing its set-up potential for the down tilt lock.
• Grab aerial has received a hitbox that deals damage (4% (clean), 2.8% (late)) and horizontal knockback, making it capable of spacing. It also covers more distance as a tether recovery.

Throws/other attacks

• All grabs have decreased start-up (frame 13 → 12 (standing), frame 16 → 14 (dash), frame 15 → 12 (pivot)) and increased active frames (1 frame → 8).
• Standing and dash grabs have significantly decreased ending lag (IASA frame 70 → 45 (standing), IASA frame 80 → 56 (dash)).
• Pivot grab has increased ending lag (IASA frame 50 → 61).
• Pummel's duration has been reduced (frame 12 → 9), now being tied for the third fastest pummel in the game.
• Pummel deals 1.8% less damage (3% → 1.2%).
• Up throw has increased knockback growth (65 → 69), improving its KO potential and making it the third strongest up throw in the game.
• Down throw has decreased knockback growth (100 → 51) and decreased ending lag. When coupled with the changes to hitstun canceling, it has been re-purposed into a combo starter, allowing Lucas to chain into aerial attacks up to around 150% depending on weight, rage, staleness and DI.
• Down throw deals 0.5% less damage (7% → 6.5%) and its decreased knockback growth has removed its KO potential.
• Down throw's animation has changed. Opponents are now aesthetically buried head first upon being thrown.
• Front and back floor attacks deal 1% more damage (6% → 7%).
• Edge attack now deals consistent damage (6%/8% → 7%).

Special moves

• Fully charged PK Freeze deals 3% more damage (19% → 22%) and travels farther.
• PK Freeze is slightly slower, takes longer to fully charge and now goes lower than Lucas' body, similarly to Ness' PK Flash. Because of this, PK Freeze no longer explodes when it touches the ground. Unlike PK Flash, using the move right before it hits the ground does not count as being fully charged.
• PK Fire deals 1% more damage (8% → 9%).
• PK Thunder 2 deals 15% less damage (58% → 43%).
• PK Thunder is larger and PK Thunder 2 can be used again after bouncing off a wall, similarly to Ness'. PK Thunder's trapping ability has been improved and it is stronger, while PK Thunder 2 covers slightly more distance.
• PK Thunder moves slightly faster. This makes it easier to recover if an opponent goes off-stage attempting to gimp Lucas, but also makes situational mindgames slightly harder to perform.
• PK Thunder is now colored violet.
• PSI Magnet deals 1% less damage (9% → 8%) and its healing multiplier has decreased (2.5x → 1.2x). While PSI Magnet and its hitbox are both larger, the orb only damages opponents in its center, whereas the entire orb dealt damage in Brawl. It has also received a blind spot directly behind Lucas.
• Lucas retains PK Starstorm as his Final Smash. However, like with Ness' version, the falling stars are now fired in a line that can be aimed in a fanning motion from the top-center of the stage. This leaves it with blind spots, but results in a more consistent damage output when the stars do hit.
• Lucas' version of PK Starstorm is now colored blue like Ness' version. However, it is much thicker than Ness' version and it keeps a consistent width of three falling stars throughout rather than the width of one and a half falling stars that Ness' does.
• PK Starstorm now has a flame effect instead of an electric effect.
• PK Starstorm's animation has slightly changed. Lucas now strikes the same pose as Ness when using it.

Update history

Lucas has been buffed via game updates. Update 1.1.0 saw all of his grabs' ending lag decreased and as well as subtle range improvements to his forward and down tilts, though they still do not match up to his range in Brawl. The changes to shield mechanics in updates 1.1.0 and 1.1.1 have been a mixed bag for Lucas; the changes make his sourspotted moves less safe on shield, but his sweetspotted moves safer on shield. Update 1.1.3 gave Lucas a number of noticeable buffs: his standing grab, dash grab, and forward aerial all had their lag decreased, his neutral aerial's damage output was increased, and forward tilt's sweetspot had its size and duration increased. As a result of these buffs, he is considered slightly better than he was when he was initially released.

1.1.0

• Sourspotted forward aerial deals 1% more damage: 8% → 9%.
• Forward aerial's vertical displacement increased: 1 → 2.9.
• Forward aerial's sourspot hitbox size decreased: 3.8u → 3.3u.
• Forward tilt's sweetspot and sourspot hitbox sizes increased: 4u → 4.4u (sweetspot), 2u → 2.2u (sourspot).
• Forward tilt's horizontal displacement decreased: 1.6 → 0.
• Down tilt's far hitbox horizontal displacement increased: 7 → 7.2.
• Down tilt's middle hitbox angle altered: 0° → 40°.
• Down tilt's horizontal displacement increased: 2.7 → 3.
• Down tilt's base knockback increased: 10 → 18.
• Down tilt's knockback growth decreased: 50 → 45.
• Down tilt's close hitbox angle altered: 70° → 76°.
• Down tilt's displacement increased: 0 → 3.5.
• All grabs' ending lag decreased: 56 frames/66 frames/66 frames → 51/61/61.
• Grab range's early and late sizes increased: 2.5u → 3u (early), 2.4u → 2.8u (late).
• PK Thunder's hitbox size increased: 3.5u → 3.8u.

1.1.3

• Forward tilt hitbox size: 4.4 → 4.7.
• Neutral air looping hits damage: 1% → 2%.
• Forward air landing lag: 15 frames → 12
• Standing grab and dash grab had their ending lag decreased by 5 frames: 50/60 → 45/55.
• All grabs have sped up animations.
• PSI Magnet heals half damage from absorbing teammates' projectiles.

Moveset

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			2.5%	A right-legged roundhouse kick followed by a right-legged hook kick followed by a left-legged reverse roundhouse kick. The third kick has slightly more range. Comes out very fast (frame 2) and can combo into a dash attack at low to medium percents.
			2%
			4%
Forward tilt			11% (sweetspot), 7.5% (sourspot)	A palm thrust that launches a small blast of PSI energy that deals more damage in the PSI hexagon he creates. Can be angled and has a disjointed hitbox.
Up tilt			1.5% (hit 1), 8% (clean hit 2), 5% (late hit 2)	Telekinetically tilts himself upside down to perform a vertical kick that launches a blast of PSI energy. It can string into itself, a neutral aerial or an up aerial at low to medium percents.
Down tilt			3%	A legsweep. Although weak, it is fast and reliable for either racking up damage or chaining into itself, a neutral attack or a grab. Hits first on frame 3, making it tied with Little Mac, Meta Knight, Ness and R.O.B.'s down tilts as the fastest down tilt in the game.
Dash attack			13% (sweetspot), 9% (sourspot)	A dashing palm thrust that launches a blast of PSI energy. Has noticeable start-up and deals more damage the farther the opponent is from Lucas.
Forward smash			14% (base), 15% (tip)	Strikes opponents with a stick, which can also be used as a reflector. It is very similar to Ness' forward smash, but has with faster start-up and less ending lag at the cost of dealing less damage and knockback. Deals slightly more damage and knockback at the tip.
Up smash			2% (hit 1); 19%, 18%, 16%, 14%, or 12% (clean to late hit 2)	Releases a large blast of PSI energy above his head. Despite in-game tips saying it is the most powerful up smash in the game and can attack opponents hanging on the ledge, neither of these are true, as it is only the fifth strongest up smash in the game, and completely whiffs most hanging characters unless their head pokes above the ledge. It is a "high risk, high reward" attack; it has a lot of ending lag, which makes it very punishable if missed, but is strong enough to potentially KO very early (80% uncharged and 54% fully charged). It also has other positives, as Lucas is invincible on frames 1-4 and gains intangibility on his head on frame 15-29. The move also possesses a huge hitbox, making it a good anti-air attack if used correctly. It appears to be based on PK Love, Lucas' signature PSI attack from Mother 3.
Down smash			17% (hit 1), 14% (hit 2), 11% (hit 3)	Aims his arm diagonally downward and launches three consecutive blasts of PSI energy towards the ground while holding his hand in a finger gun gesture. With each blast, its range increases at the expense of damage and knockback. The first hit is one of the strongest down smashes, being able to KO as low as 60% near the ledge depending on the opponent's weight and DI, and the move can catch recovering opponents before they grab the ledge if timed well. Has a bit of start-up, but low ending lag. However, despite having three distinct hits, it can only strike an opponent once, making it somewhat unsafe on shield.
Neutral aerial			2% (hits 1-4), 4% (hit 5)	An aerial gyration while releasing a blast of PSI energy around his torso. Good combo potential, despite being susceptible to SDI. Has a lot of freeze frames on every hit.
Forward aerial			11.5% (sweetspot), 9% (sourspot)	A side kick that launches a blast of PSI energy. This move is fast and disjointed, making it a good off-stage option and one of Lucas' better spacing moves. The sweetspot does the most knockback and can KO at high percentages.
Back aerial			12% (sweetspot), 9% (sourspot), 7% (late)	A backflip kick that emits a trail of PSI energy along his feet. It can meteor smash at the tip of his foot. Has disjointed reach and is weakest at the tip.
Up aerial			13%	An upward headbutt with a static hitbox and reasonably high knockback.
Down aerial			3.5% (rapid hits 1-3), 5% (final hit)	A series of alternating stomps with both of his feet that each launch a small blast PSI energy below himself. Like his back aerial, it is disjointed and has a meteor smash hitbox below him on the fourth and final hit. The move itself is also difficult to fully land on smaller grounded opponents such as Pikachu and Kirby.
Grab aerial			4% (clean), 2.8% (late)	Sends Duster's Rope Snake in front of him to damage enemies.
Grab			—	Sends Duster's Rope Snake in front of him. His pivot grab is very slow, while his standing grab is deceptively fast. Can be performed in midair as a tether.
Pummel			1.2%	Headbutts the opponent. Tied with Fox, Kirby, and Ness as the third fastest pummel in the game, but is also the weakest.
Forward throw			10%	Telekinetically hurls the opponent in front of himself. KOs around 100%-160% near the edge, depending on weight and DI.
Back throw			10%	Hurls the opponent behind himself with PSI. It is Lucas' strongest throw, capable of KOing around 100%-130% near the edge.
Up throw			10%	Uses PSI to whirl the opponent around his head, then throws them straight up. One of the strongest up throws in the game and can KO around 120%-180% depending on the opponent's weight and DI.
Down throw			6.5%	Slams the opponent into the ground head first, with burying added as a visual effect. A very good combo starter, it can be followed by either an up tilt, up aerial, forward aerial, or neutral aerial depending on the opponent's weight and DI, with the up aerial combo being capable of KOing at higher percentages.
Floor attack (front)			7%	Gets up and kicks opponents from either side.
Floor attack (back)			7%	Gets up and kicks opponents from either side.
Floor attack (trip)			5%	Gets up and kicks back and forth.
Edge attack			7%	Climbs onto the stage and performs a low-angled kick.
Neutral special	Default	PK Freeze	9%-22%	Releases a blast of blue, snowflake-shaped PSI energy from above his head that freezes opponents. The direction of the blast's path can be controlled, and the attack can be made stronger by holding the special button. Renders Lucas helpless if used in the air. Deceptively quick to end.
	Custom 1	N/A
	Custom 2	N/A
Side special	Default	PK Fire	3% (lightning), 6% (fire)	Releases a lightning bolt-shaped PSI projectile from his hands. Lucas' PK Fire does not result in a pillar of flame like Ness', but rather a small fiery explosion that launches an opponent backward. It is further differentiated from Ness' PK Fire in that it flies straight ahead regardless of whether it is launched on the ground or in midair. Lucas' PK Fire also has recoil, noticeable both in the air and on the ground.
	Custom 1	N/A
	Custom 2	N/A
Up special	Default	PK Thunder	2.5% (projectile head), 0.8% (projectile tail, rapid hits), 8% (PKT2 initial hit), 2% (PKT2 rapid hits 1-5), 1.5% (PKT2 rapid hits 6-10), 10% (PKT2 final hit)	Releases a purple, streaming electrical PSI projectile from his head. Like Ness' PK Thunder, it can be directed into Lucas to launch him. Unlike Ness' version, however, it does not disappear after hitting an opponent and instead hits multiple times. The latter also applies to his PK Thunder 2.
	Custom 1	N/A
	Custom 2	N/A
Down special	Default	PSI Magnet	8% (ending), heals 1.2x the damage of absorbed projectiles	Thrusts his arm forward and creates a blue, glowing orb of PSI energy around his outstretched hand. Any energy-based projectiles it absorbs will heal him, although it no longer absorbs energy projectiles that are launched directly at his back like it did in Brawl. Unlike Ness' PSI Magnet, Lucas' version can be used offensively, as it damages opponents inside of it when it dissipates and allows it to be used as a situational edgeguard or KO option at high percentages.
	Custom 1	N/A
	Custom 2	N/A
Final Smash		PK Starstorm	8% (per hit)	Summons a shower of falling stars. They descend in a column and can be angled in a fanning motion at any time in order to repeatedly hit opponents.

On-screen appearance

• Rides in on a Mr. Saturn-style coffee table, then hops off. The table is based on the one that Lucas rides to Saturn Valley in Mother 3.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Lucas trips, shakes his head, and gets back up.
• Side taunt: Duster's Rope Snake taps him on the shoulder and has a brief conversation with Lucas, as Lucas shrugs towards it.
• Down taunt: Lucas positions his right hand up to his forehead, grunts while generating small bursts of PSI energy from his index and middle fingers, then swings his hand downward.

Up taunt	Side taunt	Down taunt

Idle poses

• Taps the toes of his shoes on the ground.
• Shakes his fists in front of his face in a cowardly motion.

Crowd cheer

	English	Japanese
Cheer
Description	Lu-cas!	Ryuuu-ka!
Pitch	Female	Female

Victory poses

A flourished remix coming directly from Brawl. It is a sped-up remix of a portion of the title theme from the original Mother for the Famicom Disk System.

• With his back towards the screen, Lucas crouches while poking at something on the ground with a large stick before turning his head around towards the screen, saying "Huh?".
• He forcefully pulls one of the Seven Needles out of the ground, sending it flying off-screen with a trail of sparkles while Lucas looks towards the screen. This is very similar to his up smash.
• He bends down on one knee and waves his right arm in from himself while releasing blasts of PSI energy from his index and middle fingers.

In competitive play

Notable players

•  K3H
•  Marss
•  Nakat
•  Pink Fresh
•  SpaceDong
•  Taiheita
•  Xanos

Trophies

While not playable at the release of the game, there has always been a trophy of Lucas in both versions; this trophy matches his appearance in Brawl. Upon his release, he additionally received two (three in the Wii U version) trophies that match the format of the other playable characters. The existing non-fighter one remains unchanged, as with Mewtwo's non-fighter trophy.

Lucas (non-fighter)

Before adventuring, Lucas was a timid, cautious boy. His journey has made him a stronger person. Maybe he met someone to spend his life with... Hang on—we're moving way too fast! For now, remember that Lucas and Ness are favorites in the hearts of EarthBound fans.

Once upon a time, Lucas was a bit of a cry-baby. You might even say he was a wimp. But then, well...he had more than his fair share of rough times and toughened up a bit. Who knows what he's up to now? Whatever he's doing, his story - much like Ness's - lives on in the hearts of all Mother series fans.

: Mother 3

Lucas

The younger of the twin brothers from Nowhere makes his triumphant return to the game of Smash. Hailing from the Japan-only game Mother 3, Lucas's specialty is psychic projectile attacks. He can use these PSI attacks to do things like absorb enemy projectiles and deal supernatural damage!

Lucas, the younger of the twin brothers from Tazmily, comes originally from the Japan-only game, Mother 3, and now makes his triumphant return to Super Smash Bros.! Here he makes great use of his PSI powers with lots of projectile attacks, and can use his faster attacks on anybody who gets too close.

: Mother 3

Lucas (Alt.)

Lucas's up special PK Thunder can hit enemies multiple times, but if you hit yourself with it, you can then tackle and launch opponents! Lucas's up smash has the strongest launch power of any fighter's up smash. The range for this attack is wide, and it's strongest right after Lucas unleashes the attack.

Lucas's up special, PK Thunder, can either hit enemies multiple times, or hit Lucas himself to push him into a powerful charge attack. Meanwhile, his up smash attack is the most powerful launching move in the entire game, so make good use of it! It's a wide-range attack that is most effective right after Lucas unleashes it.

: Mother 3

PK Starstorm (Lucas)

You can adjust the direction of the shooting stars in this attack! Rain stars down on multiple fighters at once, or be mean and pick on a single fighter. The choice is yours! If a star connects, it will deal ongoing fire damage, making it hard for opponents to return to the stage.

Lucas uses his PSI powers to summon a stream of shooting stars, the angle of which you can control. It's good for attacking an entire group during a free-for-all...or if you want to make things tougher for a single person. Even if the attack only hits once, it deals ongoing fire damage, making it harder to get back to the stage.

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  Non-fighter (3DS)

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  Non-fighter (Wii U)

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  Classic (3DS)

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  Alt. (3DS)

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  Classic (Wii U)

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  Alt. (Wii U)

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  PK Starstorm

Alternate costumes

Reveal trailer

<youtube>zwIhEXVRCog</youtube>

Gallery

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  Lucas' splash art.

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  Lucas' amiibo.

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  On Coliseum.

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  Using PK Thunder.

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  Lucas' on-screen appearance.

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  Performing down taunt alongside Ness.

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  Using PK Fire with Ness.

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  Shaking his fists at the Wii Fit Trainer.

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  Healing himself with PSI Magnet.

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  Alternate costumes.

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  On Magicant with another Lucas wearing the Claus alternate costume.

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  Taunting with Rope Snake.

Trivia

• Numerous aspects regarding Lucas' status in SSB4 tied in to a number of significant dates for the EarthBound series:
  • He was confirmed in the same month that his origin game, Mother 3, was first released.
  • The announcement details for Lucas and update 1.0.8 were released on the same day as EarthBound's 20th anniversary.
  • The day he became available to purchase was the same day EarthBound Beginnings was released for the Wii U Virtual Console.
  • His amiibo's release date in Japan was the same day where Mother 3 was released on the Wii U Virtual Console.
• Because of his non-fighter trophy, Lucas is the only character who has both Brawl and SSB4 character models in the same game.
• Lucas is the only starter character and Brawl newcomer to be available as DLC.
• Lucas is the only DLC character with a tether grab.
• Due to Lucas's down throw technically not burying opponents and instead forcing them into a unique position, if the character being thrown flinches lightly, they will snap back to their original position. However, in the cases of Peach, Zelda and Rosalina, their dresses cannot keep up with the velocity change and will stay up. This technical oversight leads to bizarre results.
• Lucas is the only character with no special moves originating from his game that he can actually learn; in Mother 3, all of his special moves are learned by Kumatora instead.
  • A similar case occurs with Ness, where only one of his special moves (PK Flash) is available for him to learn in EarthBound; all of his other specials are taken from Paula and Poo, respectively.
• Lucas is the only veteran DLC character to have recycled voice clips.
  • Lucas is also the only veteran DLC character to not have his voice actress in the DLC credits. His voice actress, however, was in the original credits before his return.
  • Lucas is also the only DLC character to speak English in the Japanese version of the game, though Bayonetta can be included if her "A Witch With No Memories" alternate costume is counted.