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Ivysaur (PM): Difference between revisions
→Attributes: This should cover everything; Ivysaur's gotten enough changes that it deserves a main series-length attributes section.
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(→Attributes: This should cover everything; Ivysaur's gotten enough changes that it deserves a main series-length attributes section.) |
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==Attributes== | ==Attributes== | ||
In | In the transition to ''Project M'', Ivysaur was significantly buffed and modified to function as a mid-range zoning and anti-air character. It no longer depends on the Pokémon Trainer, losing its stamina system and crippling weakness to fire moves. It also now fights with self-healing moves and status effects befitting the Grass/Poison typing it has in its home series. | ||
Ivysaur's ground moves have all received buffs. Its up-smash remains the most powerful in the game and comes out more quickly, making it a more viable KO option, and its down-smash is a strong semi-spike useful both for relieving pressure and for edgeguarding. All of its other ground moves were reworked for speed and combo potential, and its jab now consists of two strong hits useful for keeping foes at a distance. | |||
In the air, Ivysaur's buffed air speed gives it greater mobility for combos. Combined with its new combo option in neutral-air, its reworked forward-air designed for wall of pain combos, and its back-air – formerly one of the worst moves in the game – which can easily gimp foes offstage, foes approaching from the air are at significant risk of being comboed or simply pushed offstage. Its up-air now shoots it to the ground faster, and its down-air provides enough of a momentum boost to serve as a much more reliable tool for horizontal recovery; when used offensively with Ivysaur's new air speed, they can also serve as a juggling move and an offstage meteor smash, respectively. | |||
Synthesis, its new neutral special, allows Ivysaur to heal itself for as long as the special button is held down, and its slight ending lag can be landing-cancelled. This gives Ivysaur a completely unique camping option, as some characters that rely on projectiles to force an approach can be outplayed if Ivysaur can heal itself quicker than damage can be tacked on. Characters like Falco who have reliable flinching projectiles can still lock down Ivysaur from a distance, but Ivysaur can easily force an approach from slow or non-flinching zoners like Toon Link and Fox, as Synthesis is nearly sufficient to outpace the damage they deal. Even if Ivysaur cannot completely undo damage received while using Synthesis, the move can force an approach anyway because it also charges up Ivysaur's second neutral special. | |||
Once it's healed 22 percentage points of damage, Ivysaur's next neutral special will become a one-time SolarBeam, a long-ranged energy beam that travels at a 45º angle from Ivysaur's bulb all the way to the upper blast line on most stages. With a SolarBeam, Ivysaur can deal a powerful finishing blow to opponents otherwise out of reach, and the move's lingering hitbox can stick around if the target airdodges too early. However, a SolarBeam charge can also serve as an effective zoning threat, as the glow of a full charge is easily visible to opponents. As a result, opponents aware of the charge will often try to recover low or approach in ways that don't put them at risk of being hit, enforcing predictable behavior that the player can take advantage of. | |||
Ivysaur can alternatively heal itself through some direct attacks, like its pummel (1%), its up-throw (6%), and the sweetspots on its up-smash (9%), up-air (7%), and down-air (7%). The latter four will also flower any opponents they hit, and outside of its up-smash, they can all chain into themselves reliably. Using these moves in quick succession can self-heal Ivysaur at a startling rate while also building the rate of damage the flower deals, often forcing the target to button-mash and remove the flower instead of readying a counterattack. | |||
Razor Leaf was reworked for consistency and combo ability, giving Ivysaur a more reliable mid-range projectile, while Vine Whip's buffed damage and speed let it function as a great KO option out of a down-throw or even to punish foes on platforms. Ivysaur's new down-special, Seed Bomb, is perhaps its best tool to keep foes in the air; as the projectile rises higher, so does its knockback, which serves the same purpose as its forward-air in steadily walling foes to the blast line. Additionally, Seed Bomb has awkward but effective potential for zoning on the ground, as it will stun any foe it lands near, providing opportunities for punishment. | |||
Despite Ivysaur's numerous buffs, it still has some weaknesses from ''Brawl'' that can be exploited. Ivysaur's power and flexibility in mid-range situations do not extend to close-range or long-range fights; Ivysaur's moves all have some startup that close-range combatants can take advantage of, especially out of shield, while Razor Leaf and Seed Bomb aren't enough to reach ranged fighters like Pit. While previously a middleweight in ''Brawl'', Ivysaur is now a lightweight, worsening its survivability and forcing it to use its self-healing moves to stick around. Its grab, while still as laggy as before, was shortened, making setups off of its throws much harder to achieve. And despite ''Project M'''s improved tether recovery mechanics, Ivysaur can still be knocked out of a Vine Whip mid-animation. | |||
However, if players can consistently keep foes at mid-range or in the air, Ivysaur's plethora of combo and KO options can easily carry it to victory. | |||
==Changes from ''Brawl'' to PM== | ==Changes from ''Brawl'' to PM== | ||