Lucas (SSBB)

Lucas (, Lucas) is a playable character and newcomer in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, becoming the second fighter from the EarthBound series. He is the main character of Mother 3, the Japan-only sequel to . He was revealed on September 1, 2007. Lucas' special moves are similar to ', but his physical attacks are mostly all completely different. He relies on his PSI powers far more than Ness, using them for all but his forward smash, up aerial, down tilt, and standard combo attacks. Lucas is voiced by Lani Minella, who also voices.

Lucas uses 's Rope Snake from Mother 3 to perform a tether recovery. The Rope Snake is also a taunt, where Lucas looks at the snake and argues with it. Lucas also utilizes Duster's Rope Snake for his grabs, giving him a ranged grab, much like, , , and. Like Ness, all of his special moves, as well as his Final Smash, derive from in-game attacks that are instead learned by another character, in his case, Kumatora, not Lucas himself.

Lucas ranks 30th on the tier list, at the very bottom of lower-mid tier, making this his worst placement in the series. Lucas possesses above average speed and mobility, as well as some of the most powerful smash attacks in Brawl, with fast start-up (his forward smash) or very large disjointed hitboxes (his up and down smashes); powerful throws with great KO potential; a decent zoning option in PK Fire; a great and versatile recovery with several options; fast attacks; and multiple attacks that can setup additional blows effectively. However, Lucas possesses an unremarkable aerial game with some problematic aerial moves (such as his B-air) or aerials that are just inferior compared to what other characters possess, a nearly useless projectile with little utility in PK Freeze, a lack of reliable KO moves outside his smash attacks and throws (limiting his versatility in being able to finish off an opponent), and a rather poor grab game outside of KO'ing, possessing a low reaching tether grab (relative to his peers like Olimar) and lacking any effective setup throws outside of low percents. His most major flaw, though, which is often cited as the reason for his low mid-tier placement, is the 10 additional frames of lag he suffers when grab released on the ground, similar to the character he is partially cloned from,. This makes him vulnerable to grab release followups from nearly every character, as well as a 0-death grab release and an infinite grab release from and  respectively. Overall, Lucas has generally poor matchups (with four especially terrible ones, due to serious grab release issues from Marth,, Donkey Kong, and , giving him several hard s, while being even with the lower-tiered due to the aforementioned problem), and poor tournament results.

Attributes
Lucas is a character with some slow but strong attacks that have large hitboxes and an average dashing speed. His aerials are generally quick and disjointed (most notably his forward and down aerials), and his back and down aerials can meteor smash opponents. Note that both of his two aerial meteor smashes are hard to hit with in the fact that they can only meteor smash an enemy downwards at a certain point of the attack (the tip of his foot for his back aerial and the fourth and final kick for his down aerial, which is easier to land but weaker).

His smash attacks are extremely strong: his up smash can be charged for massive damage and vertical knockback, as well as having a gigantic hitbox; his forward smash is a strong and reasonably quick smash attack that also reflects projectiles (like Ness's forward smash); and his down smash is also among the strongest and can hit three times, but has some of startup lag. Two of his smash attacks (up smash and down smash) tend to have enough ending lag to be easily punished in most situations, leaving him using only his forward smash for easy on-stage kills, which becomes too predictable for KO use. However, his down-smash is among the highest damaging in the game, alongside the ', but all three hits would only typically connect if the opponent has some form of knockback resistance. If an opponent is on the platform in Smashville and is vulnerable, the up smash makes a very easy and quick KO.

Two of his special moves, PK Freeze and PK Thunder, can be controlled. This means that these attacks both leave Lucas very vulnerable because he cannot move or attack when controlling these projectiles, except for using the projectiles themselves to defend him. PK Thunder is Lucas’s main recovery move. If it hits Lucas, it will shoot him in an angle depending on which part of Lucas's body which it hits, and will deal a large amount of damage if most or all of its hits connect. It also deals reasonable knockback, but is a bad approach. PK Thunder normally goes through enemies and objects, but it can still be interrupted by certain attacks, hurting recovery. PK Freeze can be controlled from side to side and can freeze opponents. It also does a good amount of damage if "charged". However, it is extremely predictable and avoidable against skilled players, does not freeze opponents for very long, has weak knockback, and has a vertical nature, all limiting its use and making it an incredibly ineffective projectile. His side special, PK Fire, is a single hit move that pushes Lucas back a little, making it great for Wavebouncing. It can also be used to Zap Jump, which gives Lucas’s recovery a substantial boost. His down special, PSI Magnet, can absorb energy based projectiles, such as Ray Gun bullets, Fire Breath and even Pikachu's, and if it used right after PK Fire, can push him back even further (a technique called the Magnet Pull), giving him a great horizontal recovery. His grab range is great and is far longer than many characters' range since it is a tether, but it is quite laggy if it misses. However, his Pivot Grab has much less lag. His throws are also powerful, with good KO potential (relative to other throws), most notably his down throw (though his up throw KOs soon after and comes out faster, and back throw can be dangerous if the opponent is too slow to react). In addition, his second jump is the 3rd highest in the game, falling a little shy of Ness, who is exceeded by Yoshi. As stated above, the jump can be significantly lengthened by performing a PK Fire one frame after a midair jump has been inputted.

Lucas's aerial game is essentially average at best. His neutral aerial can be an effective comboing and damage-racking move, but it can be SDI'd out of fairly easily. His forward aerial is fast and can chain into itself repeatedly, but lacks range. His back aerial very strongly meteor smashes if sweetspotted, but it has very little utility if sourspotted, making it a rather situational move. His up aerial has decent coverage and deals powerful vertical knockback, but has considerable ending lag and short range. Lastly, his down aerial deals high damage and is also capable of meteor smashing, but its low power prohibits it from being very useful outside of setting up at low percents and gimping characters with poor vertical recoveries.

Lucas is known for having a good lock setup; if a grounded opponent is hit with the last two hits of his down aerial, it becomes incredibly hard to tech the last hit. This allows for a quick down tilt lock, and then a finisher, which is often an immediate forward smash, the most common. Up and down smashes also work, and all of them are guaranteed if performed correctly. However, the forward smash is easier and has almost no risk of failure. This adds to Lucas's limited reliable KO possibilities.

Overall, Lucas benefits from a high double-jump, some of the strongest smash attacks in the game, long-range grabs, strong throws, the best pummel (damage-wise), a good recovery move in PK Thunder 2 (which, when used correctly, gives good recovery distance and a very versatile angle of recovery), and advanced techniques such as Magnet Pull, Zap Jump, Z-Air Jump, Wave zap and Thundersliding. However, being a victim of 0-death grab releasing by is a major flaw in his game (not to mention 's infinite). He, like Ness, suffers from 10 additional frames of lag when he escapes from grabs, enough to be dash re-grabbed by many characters (although the timing is strict) or open for certain attacks (some, but not many, characters can easily followup with a strong attack, especially Marth, Donkey Kong, and, among others). He is fairly floaty, and two of his smash attacks are slow. However, his recovery is hard to gimp, since his PK Thunder can travel through opponents and requires less space. He also has many more options, including Zap Jump, Magnet Pull, and Z-air or Z-air jump (done by buffering a jump after an aerial's lag time, then air dodging as soon as possible and using Z-air immediately after).

Notable players

 * See also: Category:Lucas players (SSBB)


 * - Known as a top Lucas main in the U.S.
 * - Considered the best Lucas in the world. Also known for his impressive doubles results with the character, placing high at nationals while teaming with a variety of different teammates, earning the nickname "The Doubles God".
 * - Known as a top Lucas main in the U.S.
 * - Considered the second best Lucas in the United States after Mekos.
 * - The best Lucas in Japan.

Tier placement and history
Lucas' 10 extra frames of lag while being grab released, and the extensive chain grabbing it allowed, was discovered very early on in Brawl competitive play. As a result, Lucas perpetually floundered between 27th-30th on the tier list in the low tiers, with minimal tournament results and a small playerbase, since the very beginning of Brawl. Lucas had a few dedicated and highly notable players, however, most significantly Mekos, who managed to get unusually high tournament placings with a perceived low tier character; the pinnacle of such being Mekos placing 9th at SKTAR, which was only the second time (after at Apex 2010) that a player would place in the top twelve at a national using a perceived low tier character (and this would be the last time in Brawl that a low tier player would place that high at a national).

The propensity of the aforementioned Lucas players to place significantly higher than their low tier brethren and the best players of some higher-ranked characters, as well as occasionally taking sets off of big name players using high tier characters, led to many players believing Lucas was underrated and not the low tier he was always ranked as. While the BBR would finally formally move Lucas out of the low tier in their latest tier list after having ranked him a low tier for five years, they didn't actually increase his placing, and he remains only one spot removed out of their low tier at his perpetual 30th ranking. The Japanese, however, rank Lucas a bit higher on their tier list, ranking 24th there in their middle tiers.

Role in The Subspace Emissary
Lucas is seen walking alone in an abandoned zoo, until several Primids show up. Then, suddenly, the gigantic Porky Statue appears and chases after Lucas. Lucas runs from it, until he gets caught in a snag and just when Pig King Statue almost has him, comes to his rescue by attacking the statue with a PK Thunder. Ness blows up the Porky Statue with his PK Flash, which reveals Porky Minch himself (based on his Mother 3 appearance). Lucas and Ness defeat him, but no sooner do they do so when shows up and attempts to shoot Ness with his Dark Cannon. Ness dodges each time, so Wario eventually aims at Lucas and shoots. Ness pushes Lucas out of the way and gets turned into a trophy himself. Terrified, Lucas runs away as Wario cackles in the rain.

Later on, Lucas runs into the as more Primids show up. After they are defeated, the Pokémon Trainer leaves, but Lucas decides to join him after remembering what happened to Ness. Lucas and the Trainer encounter and defeat Wario in the desert wastelands outside of an abandoned temple, but Lucas gets depressed when Ness is still nowhere to be seen. Along the way, the Pokémon Trainer catches and. After Charizard is caught, Galleom falls into the ruins, having been knocked down there by, , and. A battle ensues between Lucas, the Pokémon Trainer, and Galleom.

After the battle, Galleom grabs Lucas and the Pokémon Trainer, jumping high into the sky and out of the ruins. Galleom then attempts to detonate a Subspace Bomb as a last-ditch effort. Lucas, finally gaining his courage, uses PK Thunder to sever Galleom's arm, causing the two to plummet to the ground. Just before they hit the bottom, Meta Knight grabs the two and takes them to Marth and Ike. Galleom's Subspace explosion engulfs the Ruins along with Wario's trophy. When there, Lucas shakes hands with the Trainer as a sign of their friendship.

Later on, Meta Knight leaves the group and climbs The Glacial Peak to retake his ship, the Halberd. The fall into The Canyon soon after. The group is then ambushed by a horde of Subspace foes. Luckily, and 's group arrive to assist. The groups then merge and camp out for a while. Then Lucas and the others witness the huge Subspace explosion engulf The Isle of the Ancients. Then the Falcon Flyer lands with, , , , , , and on it. Alongside it is the Halberd having been retaken by Meta Knight along with, , , , , , and.

Lucas and the other heroes confront the Subspace Gunship, and then journey into subspace to battle Tabuu. Lucas is turned into a trophy by Tabuu's Off Waves, but is later revived by Ness and his companions. He accompanies the heroes into the Great Maze, and can be used to defeat Tabuu at the final battle.

Playable appearances
After The Ruined Hall is completed, Lucas, the, and  make brief cameo appearances in The Glacial Peak, The Canyon & The Subspace Bomb Factory (Part II)


 * The Ruined Zoo
 * Path to the Ruins
 * The Ruins
 * The Ruined Hall
 * Entrance to Subspace
 * The Great Maze (if rescued in Subspace (Part I)

Exclusive stickers
Lucas can use any sticker that has a PK attack bonus, similar to, which covers all but his forward smash, down tilt and up aerial. He can also use ice, fire, and electric attack bonuses for his special moves, though Indirect Attack would likely be more effective as using three stickers separately would be inefficient. Lucas's physical attacks are mainly composed of Leg attacks, though his forward tilt is Arm, up aerial is Head and forward smash is Weapon.

In Classic Mode, Lucas can appear as an opponent or ally in Stage 4 along with, , and on Castle Siege or New Pork City. Lucas can also appear as an opponent in Stage 11, but only if he hasn't appeared in Stage 4.

All-Star Mode
In All-Star Mode, Lucas is fought in Stage 10 alongside on New Pork City.

Solo Events

 * Event 20: All-Star Battle x1: Lucas is one of the eight opponents fought in this event along with, , , , , , and the.
 * Event 21: Visit to Onett: The player controls Lucas and must defeat on Onett.

Co-Op Events

 * Co-Op Event 3: Fastest, Shortest, Sudden Death: and  must survive for 10 seconds against Lucas and  on WarioWare Inc. All players start at 300% for this event.
 * Co-Op Event 9: Those Who Wait in Onett: Lucas and must defeat  and  on Onett.
 * Co-Op Event 16: Jigglypuff's Great Comeback: and, who are tiny, must defeat Lucas and , who are giant, on Castle Siege. As the stage changes to different backgrounds, Jigglypuff will grow and Lucas and Ness will shrink.
 * Co-Op Event 21: The True All-Star Battle: Both players select a character and take on the entire roster on.

Trophies
Lucas's main and Final Smash trophies can be obtained by clearing and All-Star mode respectively with Lucas.

Trivia

 * Masahiro Sakurai chose Lucas as a playable character for Brawl under the assumption that Mother 3 was going to be released outside Japan. Had Sakurai known during Brawl's development that Mother 3 would never be released outside Japan, he would not have included Lucas as a playable character.
 * Ironically, while Lucas' game (Mother 3) was released only in Japan, his in-game voice in Brawl speaks with an American accent, whereas Ness, whose game (EarthBound) was released in North America and takes place in a stand-in for America, speaks using a Japanese accent.
 * Even though Lucas trips over a root in The Subspace Emissary, his foot is seen under it.
 * Oddly, when the Rope Snake is used against a ledge at 1/4 speed, it jerks around while it clings to the ledge and while Lucas is being pulled up. At other speeds, it only jerks around while Lucas is being pulled up (it is unnoticeable at normal speed and 1.5 speed).
 * Also, when Lucas uses the Rope Snake when standing on a ramp or angled platform, his hair will flatten out.
 * Brawl is the only game where Lucas is a starter character.
 * Lucas is also the first clone archetype to be a starter character.
 * Brawl is Lucas' only appearance where he uses his own idle animation while holding a small item.
 * It is also the only game where Lucas has animations of his own for general actions rather than reusing Ness's animations, most notably his clapping animation.