Down smash



Down smash (abbreviated d-smash) or down smash attack (, Down/lower/under smash attack) is a smash attack performed by any character by tapping the Control Stick downward and pressing A at the same time or by pressing down on the C-stick. In Super Smash Bros. Melee, the C-stick cannot be used in one-player mode.

Since Super Smash Bros. Melee, all smash attacks can be charged by holding down the A button for up to one second, multiplying damage and knockback by up to 1.4. In Ultimate, with some exceptions, these charges can be held for up to 3 seconds (or 180 frames), but the attack stops increasing in strength after the 1 second mark.

Down smashes are generally the fastest, weakest smash attack in a character's arsenal, and almost all of them hit on both sides of the character, making them useful for coverage or punishing rolls. While not universal, some down smashes hit in front then behind, with the back hit being stronger to reward punishing rolls or dodges, such as Ike's; other down smashes will instead have a first hit which sends at an angle that combos into the second stronger hit, such as Ganondorf's. Many down smashes can be described as "on the ground" attacks (usually abbreviated to OTG), meaning they are specifically designed to hit opponents lying on the ground.

Prior to Ultimate, down smashes were not as flexible to use as the other smash attacks; they couldn't be used out of a dash or out of shield like up smashes can, nor could they be used in the first few frames of a dash or out of a pivot like forward smashes.

Notable down smashes

 * While most down smashes are designed to hit on both sides of a character, there are a small number of characters with one-sided down smashes, including Mewtwo, Zero Suit Samus, Lucas, Ryu, Ken, Bayonetta, Terry, Sephiroth, and Kazuya. In addition, Robin's down smash only hits on one side with the Bronze Sword equipped, but sends out an electric wave which reaches backwards with the Levin Sword equipped. Olimar's down smash also fails to hit behind him if he only has one available Pikmin. Furthermore, as of Ultimate, both of the Ice Climbers individually have one-sided down smashes, but when the climbers are together, they will succeed in covering both sides.
 * From Melee onward, but not in Smash 4, Ness's down smash can hit opponents while charging as the yo-yo comes to rest on the stage behind him. This is especially dangerous in Ultimate, where the yo-yo can fall down and hang off of ledges and hits multiple times, allowing it to lead into the attack properly. It is the only down smash to have a hitbox while charging. Ness's similarly-functioning up smash is the only up smash to have such a distinction, while Corrin possesses the only such forward smash. Also notable is that Ness, and Luma are the only characters with down smashes to hit first behind and then in front, as opposed to first in front and then behind. In Ness's case, this is presumably to give more utility to the charging hitbox, as his up smash already covers his front.
 * In Brawl, 's down smash causes him to plant a mine in the ground. Once planted, it will explode if struck by any hitbox or touched by any character, including Snake, which grants it incredible versatility for stage control. This is the only projectile down smash. Also unique to the move is that, as it is charged, the mine becomes increasingly difficult to see in addition to becoming stronger.
 * Villager and, in Ultimate,, are the only characters whose down smashes can bury opponents.
 * Ridley, Incineroar, King K. Rool and Sora all perform a short upwards hop during the startup of their down smashes, which allow them to dodge certain attacks and punish them heavily. This leads them to sometimes be humorously labeled "spot dodges with hitboxes". Of particular note is King K. Rool's, which possesses his characteristic Belly Super Armor.
 * In Melee, 's down smash is a fearsome attack by any measure. Unlike most multi-hit attacks, all of its hits deal individually high damage and knockback. At low percentages, especially against a crouch cancelling opponent, it can deal astonishingly high damage. Its high semi-spike knockback and fast speed also makes it a great tool for edge-guarding. Since Brawl, however, the attack has been nerfed, and is now a fairly standard multi-hit attack.
 * In Brawl, the 's down smashes are capable of dealing extreme damage. As both Ice Climbers perform their own down smashes and the animation involves them both performing a front and back sweep, the move is capable of hitting up to four times if the opponent is very close, which deals 42% (the second highest out of any down smash in Brawl). This move was nerfed heavily in Ultimate, as the Ice Climbers now individually perform a sweep in each direction, and even if both hits land, it only deals around half the damage of the original attack (22.7%).
 * In Brawl, 's down smash is both among his fastest attacks and strongest KO options, and is notoriously difficult to punish due to its long range and transcendent priority. It comes out on frame 4 and it has a total duration of 33 frames, being tied for the lowest in both categories. In later games, its power and range were reduced in addition to the move receiving more ending lag although it still remains an extremely fast down smash.
 * In Brawl and Smash 4, Meta Knight's down smash has a strange property. If Meta Knight buffers a down smash just before finishing a different animation, the down smash will be performed one frame faster than if he performs a raw down smash. This is because the move starts charging on frame 1 so if he performs it out of an interruptible action, it will charge the move for 1 frame but if he buffers it out of another animation, this charge frame will be skipped. The non buffered version comes out on frame 5 (frame 10 for the second hit) and it has 34 total frames in Brawl and 38 in Smash 4 but when buffered, it comes out one frame faster and ends one frame sooner. This was changed in Ultimate with the move now charging a frame later, on frame 2, making its speed consistent regardless of if the move was buffered or not.
 * Zero Suit Samus' down smash has been a staple of her moveset in all three games she has appeared in. Despite having high startup lag, it has very low ending lag, large hitboxes, and paralyzes the opponent which allows her to follow up with one of her KO options at high percents or start combos at low percents. Although it is very useful in all three games, the move is most effective in Brawl compared to its successors.
 * This is because its Brawl incarnation has the lowest ending lag, the largest hitboxes, the longest paralysis duration, the highest damage and the lowest knockback. The move can easily chain into itself multiple times and much like a projectile, it only applies hitlag to the opponent rather than both fighters (which is still the case in Smash 4, but not in Ultimate where both fighters suffer hitlag). When combined with its very low ending lag, this not only gives Zero Suit Samus minimal lag after hitting the opponent but it also made the move completely safe on shield, especially if charged. The move can also be absorbed, which makes it a very effective tool in doubles when Zero Suit Samus is paired with a teammate with an absorption move. This aspect was nerfed in later games both due to the move's lower damage/higher ending lag and the halved damage when a projectile is absorbed by a teammate.
 * 's down smash in Ultimate is considered one of the best in the game as while it does not have very fast startup, it has low ending lag, long range, it is very safe on shield and hard to punish when spaced due to these points, its sourspot is a strong semi-spike, its sweetspot has strong vertical knockback against aerial opponents and the sweetspot has a long-lasting bury duration against grounded opponents, which can lead into early KOs with forward smash or at the very least, can deal very high damage.
 * It was also a very effective move in Brawl as while it had higher startup lag and lacked a bury effect, it had lower ending lag, a stronger sourspot and a sweetspot with even stronger vertical knockback.
 * 's down smash in Ultimate is also considered to be one of the best in the game due to its large hitbox that hits below the stage, giving it amazing 2 frame punish potential, while its very high power (even when sourspotted, although its sweetspot is still much stronger) allows it to kill at 60% from the ledge. It also has a rather low endlag despite its moderate startup. This makes it one of Wolf's best edgeguarding tools as well as one of his most reliable KO options.
 * 's down smash is notorious for being one of the strongest down smashes in the game as well as dealing massive shield damage. Although this move has much more startup and ending lag, it can be used to set up shield breaks, such as hitting an opponent's shield with any attack and performing an uncharged down smash if the opponent shields more often. This is one of Byleth's best finishers against shielding opponents.
 * 's down smash has the same property, although the move can only connect when the tip of his sword hits the ground and hits in front of him. It is essentially more useful since he can punish shielding opponents or by setting up a fully-charged Shadow Flare which forces opponents to shield an attack.
 * Additionally, Sephiroth's down smash is the only move in the game which has its properties altered depending on whether the hitbox touches the ground or not. Specifically, if the tip of Masamune is planted on the ground, it will be stronger and launch debris into the air, which increases its range. Conversely, if the tip of the sword does not find solid ground (usually if Sepheroth is close to and facing the ledge or on small platforms) the move will be weaker and lack the extra range.