Lucario (SSBU)/Techs

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Overview

When receiving enough knockback to be sent tumbling, and right before impact against most surfaces, the player can press a Shield or Grab button to perform a fall break, which is also widely known as a Tech. Most tech options grant frame 1 intangibility, and the specific tech choice is dependent on the surface Lucario braces for. These surfaces include a:

• floor
• ceiling
• wall

The tech result also depends on the player's control stick input at the time of impact. Lucario's tech options can be used to avoid absolute death, or find a way out of a bad scenario. They include:

• neutral tech [a.k.a. tech-in-place / standard tech]
  • no direction necessary. Just press the shield or grab button while tumbling and before touching the floor.
• rolling tech [a.k.a. techroll / front roll tech / back roll tech]
  • during enough hitstun, hold the analog stick left or right while pressing the shield/grab button to perform a ground-orientated tech to help avoid Tech-chasing.
    • when not in enough hitstun, holding the analog stick in a direction while pressing shield/grab can turn into a directional air dodge buffer, which can be a misinput when done improperly.
• wall tech
  • no direction necessary. Is essentially the 'airborne neutral tech'. Must press the shield or grab button while in hitstun. Wall teching is also possible on the very ledge of a stage.
• wall tech jump [a.k.a. wall jump tech]
  • even if Lucario already has a wall jump, a wall tech jump is still nice, especially when done on a stage's lip when wall clings aren't doable.
  • performing a wall tech jump is possible when pressing jump or holding up on the analog stick.
• ceiling tech
  • no direction necessary. The other 'airborne neutral tech'. As it sounds, it's exclusive to when nearing impact to the bottom of a stage, or against a surface that acts as a ceiling within the stage. Must press the shield or grab button while in hitstun.

Teching has been part of the franchise since Super Smash Bros., but many changes have come along the way. From the very beginning to today, techs have evolved and changed by incorporating new additions such as wall techs, wall jump techs, and ceiling techs. As a trait from the very first title, a Meteor smash cannot be teched if they hit a downed opponent, if they're grounded, or even when slightly above the ground. However, the opponent can tech if enough airtime is between the meteor and the floor to reduce the launch speed enough. Unfortunately, this only matters for Lucario when on the receiving perspective..

However, what does matter for Lucario is the overall changes that teching has undergone and how it's handled in Ultimate. Some changes include:

• neutral and directional air dodges can be used for every form of teching during the first 15 frames. After 16 frames of a neutral or directional air dodge, Lucario's no longer able to tech against surfaces.
  • (even a directional downward air dodge can tech a ceiling during the first five frames before slingshotting downward.)
• wall tech jumps used to grant instant intangibility on frame 1, but in Ultimate, not a single character is provided any i-frames at all.
• reeling is now techable.
• buffering a tech during hitlag is now possible again.
• the tech window has been severely reduced, but is slightly increased to 12 frames. When hitstun finishes, a neutral airdodge option within 15 frames of landing will also activate a tech option.
• footstools are techable.
• teching is possible even when making contact with a wall or a ceiling –– just not the ground.
• techs have a built-in knockback-based threshold, where if a move that comes to have a launch speed of 6 or higher, that move will become untechable.

Applications

Lucario excels with a defensive and reactive close-quarters playstyle, as well as zoning with a hint of bait 'n punish. But the times Lucario does get advantage is from moves that can cause tech-chases. Moves that benefit Lucario the most are attacks that can send opponents tumbling at early percents, including:

65% Lucario vs Little Mac Test

Move	Starting %
jab combo	6%
forward tilt	0%
up tilt	6% / 18%
down tilt	32%
dash attack	0%
neutral air	46%
forward air	0%
back air	13%
up air	17%
down air	0%
forward throw	0%
back throw	21%
up throw	0%
down throw	0%
Aura Sphere	13%
Force Palm	20% / 55%
Extreme Speed	0%
Double Team	0%

• • full jab combo.
  • just forward tilt hit 2 can tumble at 0%.
  • up tilt listed is the sweet/sour percents.
  • dash attack at any time, anywhere, still causes tumble at 0%.
  • neutral air listed is just the short hop version. Full hop is earlier tumble percent.
  • back air listed is just the short hop version. Full hop is earlier tumble percent.
  • up air listed is just the short hop version. Full hop is earlier tumble percent.
  • down air is amazing. Even just hit 2 will cause tumble at 0%.
  • Aura Sphere is fired at full charge.
  • Force Palm listing is the projectile flame's sweet/sour percents. The grab causes tumble at 0%.
  • Extreme Speed is with everything –– the hitbox while sliding, and when bonking against the floor.

Neutral air is the highest percent listed in the table, but it's one of Lucario's best moves, so it's still wise not to underestimate its usage. Even on King Dedede who's both a superheavy and a fastfalling brick.. Lucario at 0% can even down the king at 0% or at very early percents with moves like: forward tilt, dash attack, down air, forward throw, and Extreme Speed. And these are all good moves in Lucario's kit.

Timing

Neutral tech

Intangible	1-20
Interruptible	27
Animation length	36

Forward tech

• total frames = animation length, and both are 40. So forward tech would be interruptible on frame 41.

Intangible	1-20
Animation length	40

Back tech

• total frames = animation length, and both are 40. So backward tech would be interruptible on frame 41.

Intangible	1-20
Animation length	40

Wall tech

• Lucario fastfalls on frame 27. Yet, despite that the animation length is 26 frames, Lucario is able to grab ledge earlier like frame 17 somehow(???).
  • See Steve clip on Metal Lucario →
• Inputting a jump or upwards direction on the control stick between frames 1-5 will start the wall jump immediately.

Intangible	1-20
Wall jump tech window	1-5
Interruptible	6
Animation length	26

Continuous

Interrupted

Wall jump tech

• Lucario grabs ledge on frame 39+.
• Lucario fastfalls on frame 39+.

Intangible	0
Interruptible	6
Animation length	39

Wall cling tech

• Because Lucario can cling to walls, it's possible to 'wall cling tech'.
• Input both the direction that's toward the wall(←/→) and either shield or grab before Lucario makes contact with a wall. Thus, Lucario wall cling techs immediately.
• If the first fresh cling is uninterrupted, Lucario may cling for a total of 185 frames.
• Interrupting the cling can occur as early as frame 2.

Intangible	0
Animation length	6

Ceiling tech

Intangible	1-17
Animation length	26

Legend (1 square = 1 frame)

Vulnerable

Intangible

Interruptible

Trivia

• With spirit abilities in mind, the Easier Dodging ability from the World of Light skill tree, and from primary and support spirits do in fact increase the amount of intangibility frames for every tech option Lucario has. The effect is 1.2x with one equipped, and the effect caps at 1.8x.
  • For Lucario outside of World of Light, having a Amazon Pandora primary spirit with two Kapp'n support spirits equipped nets approximately 1.6x more intangible frames. This increases the i-frame windows for neutral tech, forward roll tech, backward roll tech, and wall tech. All of them go from:
    • neutral tech:
      • 1-20 → 1-33
        • note that neutral tech can be interrupted on frame 27. Lucario gets so much extra intangibility, that it almost protects the entire animation length(36). Regardless, this makes neutral tech completely safe.
    • forward / backward roll techs:
      • 1-20 → 1-33
    • wall tech
      • 1-20 → 1-26
      • note that wall tech's entire animation length is fully protected with intangibility. Interrupting the wall tech doesn't grant any additional i-frames nor does the i-frames carry over into the next move.
    • a ceiling tech's i-frame window strangely isn't affected despite that it behaves similarly to a neutral tech and wall tech. The only difference is Lucario teching against a surface above them, rather than below or beside them.
  • In World of Light, found in the skill tree, there is also a Super Easier Dodging skill which further increases the amount of intangibility frames for the following tech options: neutral, forward and backward, and wall. A 1.8x increase to intangibility would likely cause the following:
    • neutral tech's animation length is completely intangible.
    • forward and backward tech rolls' animation lengths would almost become completely intangible.

Lucario's moveset

Neutral attack (1 · 2 · 3) · Forward tilt · Up tilt · Down tilt · Dash attack · Forward smash · Up smash · Down smash
Neutral aerial · Forward aerial · Back aerial · Up aerial · Down aerial
Grab · Pummel · Forward throw · Back throw · Up throw · Down throw
Forward roll · Back roll · Spot dodge · Air dodge · Techs
Floor attack (front) · Floor getups (front) · Floor attack (back) · Floor getups (back) · Floor attack (trip) · Floor getups (trip)
Edge attack · Edge getups
Neutral special · Side special · Up special · Down special · Final Smash