Charizard (SSB4)

Charizard in Super Smash Bros. 4
Universe	Pokémon
Other playable appearance	in Brawl
Availability	Starter
Final Smash	Mega Charizard X
Tier	E (45)

“	Charizard Fires It Up!	”
—Introduction Tagline

Charizard (リザードン, Lizardon) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4. Charizard's return to the series was confirmed as part of the April 8th, 2014 Super Smash Bros. Direct, during which its fellow Pokémon representative Greninja was also confirmed. Charizard is once again voiced by Shin'ichirō Miki, who re-recorded Charizard's grunts and roars to match how it sounds in the Pokémon anime, rather than redo its coarser grunts and roars from Brawl.

Charizard is currently ranked 45th out of 58 on the current tier list, placing it in the middle of E tier and making it the third highest ranked super heavyweight. This is a slight improvement from Pokémon Trainer's standing in Brawl, where he had been ranked 29th out of 38. Now an individual character, Charizard no longer has to contend with stamina reducing its power and has a more consistent moveset, but is unable to switch out with other Pokémon in order to cover its significant weaknesses. Charizard is a fast character for its weight class: its boasts a decent walking speed, one of the fastest dashing speeds, and several moves with reasonable speed and combo potential.

Charizard also benefits from an array of strong KOing options, high durability thanks to its weight, and a grab game that allows for combos, KO set-ups or KOing outright. Its up throw is particularly notable due to being the strongest in the game, although its KO power is most effective on stages with platforms and its knockback can be mitigated via directional influence. Additionally, its special moveset is more consistent than in Brawl and is useful both for punishing and defensive purposes.

However, Charizard has some exploitable weaknesses. Despite having better frame data than its fellow super heavyweights, some of Charizard's attacks are still laggy and punishable compared to the many combo-oriented characters prevalent in the metagame. Charizard also suffers from a vulnerability to combos, a common problem among heavyweights and super heavyweights; although its escape options are assorted, they can be easy to exploit.

In the early metagame, Charizard endured very poor tournament representation and results, to the point of being considered the single worst character among the cast. However, thanks to consistently receiving very useful buffs via game updates over the game's lifespan, Charizard's tournament success (particularly in regional tournaments and the international scene) has seen considerable improvement, albeit very gradually. As a result, it has managed to rise from initially being at the middle of the bottom-tier to currently being in the upper portion of the low-tier, which reflects the general consensus on its success even prior to its tier reassessment.

Attributes

Unlike the other playable Pokémon, who are either lightweights or middleweights, Charizard is a super heavyweight. As such, its moveset and playstyle can be compared to Bowser's in numerous ways: both possess a number of moves with similar uses, heavily rely on throw-initiated combos, and possess near-identical projectile options. Charizard fittingly possesses impressive power and survivability, yet deviates from its weight class' archetype in a few ways. Its most atypical attributes are its grounded mobility and versatile recovery: Charizard boasts very good grounded mobility, with its walking speed being tied with Mewtwo's for the fifteenth fastest in the game, and its dashing speed being the ninth fastest in the game, whereas its recovery covers good distance and possesses armor. Charizard's frame data is also decently fast, making it arguably the fastest of the super heavyweights and thus results in it fitting the "lightning bruiser" archetype. Despite its impressive grounded mobility, Charizard is burdened with low traction, which is tied with Mewtwo's as the second lowest in the game. Lastly, Charizard is one of the only two heavyweights that has multiple double jumps, with the other being King Dedede.

One of Charizard's strengths is its KOing ability: it possesses numerous KOing options in the forms of Flare Blitz, Fly, Rock Smash, its smash attacks, its sweetspotted forward tilt, its forward, up, back, and down aerials, and its post-update 1.0.8 up throw, all of which become even more lethal courtesy of the rage mechanic. As of update 1.1.5, Charizard's back aerial in particular is one of its most fearsome moves, as it deals outstanding knockback and has excellent range. Another of Charizard's strengths is its grab game. Its overall grab range makes it one of the longest non-tether grabs in the game, its up throw can potentially KO below 95%, and its down throw is a reliable combo starter. Its very fast dashing speed further complements its grab game by allowing Charizard to land dash and pivot grabs easier than other heavyweights.

Charizard's special moves are all useful for its general playstyle. Flamethrower is a short-ranged projectile that can rack up damage, intercept projectiles, interrupt approaches, and gimp recoveries. Compared to Bowser's Fire Breath, it boasts better versatility due to having less ending lag and causing flinching more easily. Rock Smash is an essential move due to its offensive and defensive capabilities. In addition to dealing high damage and knockback, it provides Charizard with high amounts of armor, which allows it to avoid being launched or juggled by all but the fastest moves and functions as a somewhat safe landing option.

Flare Blitz and Fly are highly protective recovery options. Flare Blitz grants a great amount of horizontal distance quickly, deals respectable damage and knockback, and can be used as a punishment option due to its armor. However, it deals recoil damage and is highly punishable due to its lag, making it a situational recovery option. Fly grants a decent amount of vertical distance, and, like Flare Blitz, provides armor and deals high knockback, making it a risky move for opponents to intercept.

However, Charizard has noticeable flaws. One of which is its lack of a very useful projectile; despite Flamethrower's strengths, its sub-par range and moderately fast decay can prevent it from aiding Charizard significantly. Charizard is also easy to combo and generally hit due to its size and weight, although this factor can be overcome with the use of defensive moves such as Rock Smash, Fly, dodging, and even Flare Blitz to escape from foes. Additionally, while Charizard's frame data is better overall than other heavyweights (even Bowser's), it is still generally poor compared to most of the cast, although this is not necessarily a glaring problem depending on the moves used. While Charizard's air speed has been greatly improved and is no longer among the slowest in the game, it is still below average overall. Its out of shield game is considered a weakness as well; despite having some of the best out of shield options available, such as Fly and its up throw, they are hindered by Charizard's aforementioned poor traction. Lastly, Flare Blitz is a highly situational move, as it damages Charizard even when used for recovery and is so telegraphed that it can be avoided and exploited by more competent players when used as an attack.

A few of Charizard's custom moves address some of its shortcomings. Dragon Rush is arguably its best custom move, as it is a pressuring and rushdown option that has less lag, no recoil and cannot be blocked by opponents when recovering. Fly High slightly improves its vertical recovery, although it loses one of its fastest punishing moves in the process. Rising Cyclone sacrifices some recovery height for very high launching power that can KO most characters around as low as 56% while near the upper blast line. Rock Hurl, while sacrificing damage output, provides increased range, speed and super armor, the latter of which starts on frame 1.

Overall, Charizard is well-rounded for a super heavyweight: it has a potent grab game, yet is less reliant on grappling compared than Bowser and Donkey Kong, while it is not burdened with polarized attributes like Ganondorf and King Dedede. As a result, its strengths are on par with its weaknesses; whether one outweighs the other depends on the opponent it is facing and the player's style. Charizard can be considered a variation of Bowser that exchanges out of shield options, balanced aerial mobility and raw power for fast grounded mobility, usable defensive tools, better frame data and better recovery. As such, Charizard's playstyle is similar to Bowser's: it requires patience, yet deviates from Bowser by also requiring an appropriate balance offensive and defensive tactics, instead of mainly defensive tactics. Purely offensive play exposes Charizard to harsh punishment, whereas purely defensive play fails to exploit Charizard's main advantages (namely its frame data and grounded mobility) over its fellow super heavyweights. Like its fellow super heavyweights, Charizard should not be afraid to exchange blows with the opponent, as a few strong hits from it can give it the advantage in many cases. Reads and mindgames can be pivotal for Charizard's best punishment options, such as Flare Blitz and its smash attacks, although it is not as singularly dependent on them like Ganondorf and Jigglypuff are thanks to its other assets.

From a competitive standpoint, Charizard is ranked in the E tier on the current tier list, placing it in upper portion of the low-tier. While Charizard had been previously regarded as a bottom-tier character and even the worst character in the game prior to version 1.0.6, it consistently received substantial buffs, which lead it to be widely regarded as a potential low-tier or mid-tier character even before its improvement in results and official tier reassessment. Despite being well-rounded for a super heavyweight, many players cite Charizard as one of the more complex heavyweights to utilize, which has been reflected in its generally below average tournament representation in North America. Nevertheless, Charizard has managed to achieve sparse, but notably successful results in tournaments outside of North America, including placing first in some regional tournaments.

Changes from Brawl

Charizard has received a mix of buffs and nerfs in the transition from Brawl to SSB4. Direct comparisons to its Brawl self are somewhat abstract due to the fact that it could not be played as an individual character; however, it is generally agreed that Charizard, on its own, has been buffed. Charizard's playstyle is drastically different from that of Pokémon Trainer as a whole: in general, the loss of Charizard's teammates (especially Squirtle) makes it easier to play and manage than Pokémon Trainer was, but less capable of covering its weaknesses and adapting to different foes and situations.

Charizard has received some notable buffs, such as no longer having to contend with running out of stamina due to now being an individual character. Additionally, its already fast dash speed has become even faster, now being the ninth fastest in the game, while its walking speed has also become drastically faster, having gone from being the slowest in Brawl to being tied with Mewtwo's as the fifteenth fastest in SSB4. Charizard's down throw is also better for combos at low to medium percentages, while up throw is now a reliable KOing option. Flare Blitz and Rock Smash also grant super armor, which can help Charizard start or escape from combos. Lastly, Charizard greatly benefits from the rage mechanic, which allows its wide array of KOing options to become even more potent.

Charizard has also received nerfs, however. Its heavier weight, faster falling speed and slower air speed make it more vulnerable to combos, while the removal of gliding has greatly weakened its recovery. Its new side special, Flare Blitz, is not as flexible for horizontal recovery like gliding was, and also deals damage to itself. Some of Charizard's moves deal more knockback, making it it easier for Charizard to KO but more difficult to combo opponents past medium percentages. Its grab range has also been nerfed and is slightly slower, although it is still rather wide in its range. The most notable change Charizard has underwent is that it now lacks other Pokémon as teammates that are better suited for specific matchups, making it less adaptable than Pokémon Trainer.

Aesthetics

• Due to the aesthetic used in SSB4, Charizard is a more vibrant shade of orange and it is sleeker overall. Additionally, its proportions are more akin to its appearances in the Pokémon core series as of generation VI. This includes slightly smaller fangs, a slightly less pronounced snout, and the metacarpal joints on its wings being slightly larger. Lastly, Charizard is more expressive overall and is now ambidextrous.
• Charizard's has new voice clips. Its grunts and roars now match how they sound in the Pokémon anime.
• Dash's animation has slightly changed. Charizard now flaps its wings while dashing.
• Due to being separate from Pokémon Trainer, Charizard has a new victory pose that replaces the one that involves Pokémon Trainer petting it. Its new victory pose consists of Charizard using Flare Blitz to descend from the air and crash into ground before striking a pose.

Attributes

• Charizard is heavier (110 → 116). This improves its endurance, but makes it more susceptible to combos.
• Charizard walks faster (0.7 → 1.2), going from being tied for the slowest in Brawl to being tied for the fifteenth fastest in SSB4.
• Charizard dashes faster (1.8 → 2.0).
• Charizard's air speed is slower (0.987 → 0.92).
• Charizard falls faster (1.35 → 1.4).
• Charizard's traction is lower (0.055 → 0.04), going from being average in Brawl to being tied for the second lowest in SSB4.
• Rolls have decreased ending lag (IASA 35 (forward)/36 (backward) → 33).
• Sidestep has increased ending lag (IASA 25 → 28).
• Air dodge has decreased ending lag (IASA 39 → 34).
• Rolls and sidestep have decreased intangibility frames (frames 4-19 → 4-18 (rolls), frames 2-20 → 3-18 (sidestep)).
• Charizard's jumpsquat is slower (frame 6 → 7).
• Charizard's item throw is stronger (1.198 → 1.208).
• Charizard is no longer connected to Pokémon Trainer via Pokémon Change or menu input usage.
• Due to being separate from Pokémon Trainer, Charizard is no longer affected by stamina. The removal of type effectiveness also removes Charizard's water weakness and grass resistance. Although it is extremely minor, it is a buff nonetheless due to five characters having water-based attacks, most notably Greninja, while the loss of its grass resistance is inconsequential due to no characters having grass-based attacks.
• The removal of gliding significantly hinders Charizard's recovery.

Ground attacks

• Neutral attack's last hit deals 1% less damage (6% → 5%).
• Neutral attack transitions significantly faster and its last hit has increased knockback (40 (base)/110 (growth) → 60/130).
• Sourspotted forward tilt deals 3% less damage (10% → 7%).
• Sweetspotted forward tilt has increased base knockback (35 → 40), slightly improving its KO and spacing potentials.
• Forward tilt has decreased start-up lag (frame 12 → 11), a longer duration (frames 12-13 → 11-13) and one of its previous sourspots is now a sweetspot.
• Forward tilt has increased ending lag (FAF 41 → 43).
• Up tilt has increased ending lag (FAF 33 → 34) and a shorter duration (frames 9-15 → 9-13).
• Up tilt's animation has slightly changed. Charizard now very slightly fans out its wings while thrusting them upward.
• Down tilt deals less damage (12% (head)/8% (neck) → 10%) and has altered knockback (40 (base)/100 (growth) → 60/60) due to its sweetspot being removed, removing its KO potential. It also has increased start-up (frame 8 → 9) and ending lag (FAF 27 → 31).
• Down tilt has received a windbox that pushes opponents inward, making it unable to whiff at point-blank range.
• Down tilt's animation has slightly changed. Charizard now performs a headbutt, rather than a bite.
• Dash attack has decreased ending lag (FAF 44 → 40).
• Forward smash deals less damage (22% → 17% (clean, late body)/14% (late head)) due to its initial hitbox being removed. It also has increased ending lag (FAF 68 → 70).
• Forward smash has altered knockback (40 (base)/98 (growth) → 60/94) and has increased horizontal range.
• Up smash has increased ending lag (FAF 48 → 49) and no longer has transcendent priority.
• Down smash has increased knockback growth (75 → 79/85), improving its KO potential. Its angle has also been altered (80° → 33°/46°), improving its edge-guarding potential.
• Down smash has increased ending lag (FAF 60 → 61).
• Down smash's animation has slightly changed. Charizard now stomps the ground with one foot, rather than both feet.

Aerial attacks

• Neutral, up and down aerials have decreased landing lag (22 frames → 20 (neutral, up), 35 frames → 33 (down)).
• Neutral aerial has increased start-up (frame 8 → 9) and ending lag (FAF 59 → 60), a shorter duration (frames 8-28 → 9-25) and its hitboxes are smaller (4u/4u/4u/4u → 3.5u/3u/1.5u/3.5u).
• Charizard has a new forward aerial, a slash with its claws. Compared to the previous forward aerial, it deals more damage (2%-4% → 12% (early, clean arm)/13% (clean tip)) and knockback, making it significantly better at KOing. It also has less start-up (frame 9 → 8) and landing lag (32 frames → 22).
• Back aerial deals more damage (9% (flame)/7% (tail)/5% (wing) → 16%/14%/11%), significantly improving its KO potential. Its sweetspot is also larger (4.5u → 5u) and its other hitboxes have been re-positioned outward, improving its range.
• Back aerial has increased ending (41 frames → 46) and landing lag (22 frames → 24). It also lost its ability to auto-cancel from a short hop.
• Up aerial deals more damage (10% (clean)/7% (late) → 13%) and base knockback (20 → 30), improving its KO potential. It also grants 4 frames of partial intangibility beginning on frame 11.
• Up aerial has increased start-up (frame 6 → 12) and ending lag (FAF 45 → 46). Its lingering hitbox has also been removed.
• Up aerial's animation has slightly changed. Charizard now performs a headbutt, rather than a bite.
• Down aerial has received a lingering sourspot that deals 8% and launches at 55°/361°. This slightly improves its follow-up potential while in midair and grants it edge-guarding potential, but makes it more susceptible to punishment at low percents.
• Down aerial has increased ending lag (FAF 51 → 52).
• Down aerial's animation has slightly changed. Charizard now performs a stomp with one foot, rather than a double foot stomp.

Throws/other attacks

• All grabs have decreased ranges.
• Dash and pivot grabs have increased start-up lag (frame 8 → 10 (dash), frame 10 → 11 (pivot)).
• Charizard has a new up throw, a dive-bombing slam, similar to Kirby and Meta Knight's up throws. Compared to the previous up throw, it has altered knockback (70 (base)/140 (growth) → 50/220), making it significantly better at KOing.
• Down throw has altered knockback (40 (base)/300 (growth) → 70/130) and decreased ending lag (80 frames → 70), significantly improving its combo potential at low to to medium percents. Although this removes its KO potential, this is completely mitigated by up throw's improved KO potential.

Special moves

• Flamethrower has increased ending lag (FAF 67 → 71).
• Charizard has a new side special, Flare Blitz. It is a flaming, corkscrewing tackle that deals respectable damage and knockback, making it a KOing option. It also propels Charizard horizontally and grants 30 frames of armor, making it a recovery option.
• Flare Blitz deals recoil damage regardless of whether or not Charizard hits an opponent. It is also laggy overall.
• Due to the addition of Flare Blitz and the removal of Pokémon Change, Rock Smash is now Charizard's down special, rather than its side special.
• Rock Smash now grants 22 frames of armor beginning on frame 5.
• Rock Smash deals less damage (18% (headbutt)/5% (fragments) → 14%/3%) and knockback, hindering its KO potential. It also has increased ending lag (FAF 61 → 72).
• Fly's covers more vertical distance, improving its recovery potential. Its first and loop hits also connect together better, while its last hit has increased knockback, improving its KO potential.
• Charizard has a new Final Smash, Mega Charizard X. Charizard undergoes Mega Evolution to become Mega Charizard X, which enables it function similarly to Super Dragon in that it can fly freely across the screen instead of being forced into a stationary position like with Triple Finish, launch fiery attacks, and gain resistance to both flinching and launching. In addition to Fire Blast, Mega Charizard X can also perform Dragon Rush instead of Flare Blitz, regardless of whether or not custom moves are enabled. However, Mega Charizard X's duration is not fixed like Triple Finish's, as Mega Charizard X will end earlier if Charizard takes damage while Mega Evolved.

Update history

Initially considered one of the worst characters in the game and arguably the worst among the cast, Charizard has been drastically buffed via game updates. Notably, update 1.0.8 drastically improved two of Charizard's most useful moves, as well as its grab game. Its neutral attack connects more reliably and its neutral aerial is much faster, so much so that it can auto-cancel from a short hop, which greatly increases its spacing potential. Its up throw now has significantly more knockback, making it the strongest up throw in the game and one of the strongest throws overall in the game. However, it is easier to mitigate with DI due to its launching trajectory. Charizard's down throw has also been re-purposed into becoming its best combo starter, as it can now lead into short, but impressively damaging combos.

In spite of Charizard's below average out of shield game, changes to shield mechanics brought about by updates 1.1.0 and 1.1.1 also help it due to its attacks' high hitlag and damage outputs. Lastly, update 1.1.5 increased Charizard's air speed to a more usable speed, increased the damage outputs and decreased the landing lag on its aerials (especially its forward and back aerials), and gave Flare Blitz an additional hitbox that can allow it to punish a wider variety of maneuvers.

1.0.4

• Four frames of intangibility have been added to Charizard's head for its shielding animation. This leaves Charizard less susceptible to shield stabbing, as its head is not covered by the shield during these first frames even at full health, and could therefore be hit prior to the change.
• Dragon Rush deals less damage: 15% → 11%.
• Some properties of what appear to be the headbutt in Rock Hurl and Flamethrower have been adjusted.

1.0.6

• Down tilt's start-up: frame 11 → 9 and ending lag decreased: FAF 33 → 31.
• Forward aerial's sweetspot and sourspot's positions switched.
• Up throw deals 3% more damage: 8% → 11%.
• Flare Blitz deals 1% more recoil damage: 4% (no contact)/9% (contact) → 5%/10%.

1.0.8

• Neutral attack's first hit's weight-based knockback increased: 15/10 → 26/22 and it transitions faster into its second hit.
• Neutral aerial's start-up lag increased: frame 8 → 9, its duration decreased: frames 8-28 → 9-25 and its hitboxes' sizes decreased: 4u/4u/4u/4u → 3.5u/3u/1.5u/3.5u.
• Forward aerial's duration: frames 8-10 → 8-11 and hitboxes' sizes increased: 4.3u (clean)/4.5u (late) → 4.6u/4.8u.
• Back aerial's sweetspot's size increased: 4u → 4.5u and its other hitboxes re-positioned outward, improving its range.
• Up throw's knockback growth increased: 160 → 220 and its angle altered: 60° → 70°, significantly improving its KO potential.
• Down throw's knockback altered: 40 (base)/300 (growth) → 70/130 and ending lag decreased: FAF 80 → 72, significantly improving its combo potential at low to medium percents. Although this removes its KO potential, this is completely mitigated by up throw's improved KO potential.

1.1.0

• Sweetspotted forward tilt deals 1% more damage: 10% → 11%.
• One of forward tilt's three sourspots has become a sweetspot.
• Down tilt received a windbox that pushes opponents inward, making it unable to whiff at point-blank range.
• Back aerial's landing lag decreased: 36 frames → 33.
• Down throw's ending lag decreased: FAF 72 → 70.

1.1.1

• Sinking Skull deals more damage: 10% (grounded)/9% (aerial) → 12%/10% and its ending lag decreased.

1.1.3

• Dash attack has less ending lag (FAF 45 → 40).
• Dash attack launches opponents at a lower angle: 70°/80° (near/far) → 50° (near clean)/60° (near late/far clean)/75° (far late)).
• Up smash has received several minor tweaks.
• Down smashhas higher knockback scaling (76 (far)/82 (near) → 79/85), improving its KO potential.

1.1.4

• First hit of up smash's hitbox placements modified significantly and have angle modifications and/or increased knockback.
• Second hit of up smash deals more knockback.
• Trip invincibility and all trip followups except floor attack have one less frame of invincibility.

1.1.5

• Air speed: 0.87 → 0.92
• Weight: 115 → 116
• Neutral (22 → 20), forward (31 → 22), back (33 → 24), up (22 → 20), and down air (35 → 33) all have less landing lag.
• Neutral aerial deals 2% more damage: 10%/7%/7%/7% → 12%/9%/9%/9% but with knockback compensated (90 → 78).
• Forward aerial deals 1% more damage: 11%/12% → 12%/13%.
• Back aerial deals 1% more damage: 15%/13%/10%/10% → 16%/14%/11%/11% and has a larger sweetspot (4.5u → 5u).
• Flare Blitz explosion knockback growth: 78 → 84
• Flare Blitz has an additional hitbox that extends its reach to behind Charizard.
• Max Walk speed with heavy items increased: 1.198 → 1.208

Moveset

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			3%	Two alternating slashes with its claws, followed by swinging one of its wings upward. The last hit has very high knockback growth, with the wing's inner portion launching opponents vertically, while its tip launches horizontally. It can be jab canceled, with its most notable follow-ups being Fly and a grab.
			4%
			5%
Forward tilt			11% (flame), 7% (tail)	Swings its tail forward. Its sweetspot is at the tip of Charizard's tail, which has a flame effect. Useful for spacing and can KO at 148% when sweetspotted.
Up tilt			8%	Thrusts both of its wings upward. Charizard's wings are intangible as long as the hitbox is active. It has decent vertical knockback and KOs around 135%.
Down tilt			10%	A low-angle headbutt. It is a semi-spike, which makes it suitable for edge-guarding.
Dash attack			11% (clean), 8% (late)	A side kick. It can be used to catch landing opponents.
Forward smash			17% (clean, late body), 14% (late head)	Rears its head back and then performs a headbutt. It is very strong, as it can KO at 91% when sweetspotted, but has high ending lag. Charizard is also invincible throughout its duration.
Up smash			5% (hit 1), 11% (hit 2)	Bats its wings upward. It has the lowest ending lag of all of Charizard's smash attacks, but the first hit requires the attack to be initiated with the opponent in front of Charizard to reliably connect. Despite this, it can act as a jab reset if they are not behind it. It can KO at 115%.
Down smash			16%	Stomps the ground to cause a small earthquake. It hits in front of and behind Charizard, and is a fairly powerful semi-spike, as it can KO at 132%. However, its hitboxes are mostly grounded, which can make it difficult to hit an aerial opponent. It also has high ending lag.
Neutral aerial			12% (flame), 9% (tail)	Somersaults to strike with its tail. Like forward tilt, its sweetspot is at the tip of Charizard's tail and has a flame effect. Can auto-cancel with a short hop.
Forward aerial			12% (early, clean arm), 13% (clean tip)	Slashes with its claws. Deals good knockback, which can enable it to KO early if hits with the tip. It is also relatively quick and auto-cancels with a short hop. However, it has moderate landing lag.
Back aerial			11% (body), 14% (tail), 16% (flame)	Swings its tail backward. Like forward tilt, its sweetspot is at the tip of Charizard's tail and has a flame effect. Its sweetspot's power is on par with a sweetspotted Knee Smash, which enables it to KO at 105% from center-stage. It also has relatively low landing lag for its range, making it safe on shield when spaced properly.
Up aerial			13%	An upward headbutt. It is very strong, as it KOs at 107% from a short hop, and also renders Charizard's head partially intangible during its active frames. However, it has minimal horizontal range.
Down aerial			14% (clean), 8% (late)	A stomp. It is a very powerful meteor smash from frames 1-3, while its lingering hitbox launches opponents either vertically or at the Sakurai angle. However, it has high landing lag.
Grab			—	Clinches the opponent with its arms and mouth. Despite having been decreased since Brawl, Charizard's grab ranges are still above average.
Pummel			2%	A bite. A fairly fast pummel.
Forward throw			10%	Sways its head with the opponent in tow and then flings them forward. Fairly high knockback and can KO some middleweights near the edge at 147%. Can be used as a mix-up while facing the edge with its up throw, though it can potentially KO earlier than up throw if the opponent DIs away from Charizard.
Back throw			10%	Flings the opponent backward. Has very low ending lag, meaning that at low percents, Charizard can pursue a thrown opponent with a dash immediately after, or even with a short hopped/jumping Flare Blitz in some cases. It has fairly high knockback like its forward throw, but due to it launching at the Sakurai angle, it KOs later (beginning at 155%) while near the edge.
Up throw			8% (hit 1), 3% (throw)	Soars to the upper blast line with the opponent in tow, then dive-bombs them onto the stage at a blinding speed, similarly to Kirby and Meta Knight's up throws. As of update 1.0.8, its knockback has been drastically increased, making it the strongest up throw in the game. It is also the second strongest throw of any kind in the game, being surpassed only by Ness' back throw. Although directional influence is more effective in hindering its KO potential than Mewtwo's up throw, which is the second strongest up throw in the game, Charizard's up throw still reliably KOs beginning at 130%. It can KO even earlier on stages with platforms, such as Battlefield, beginning at 95%. While its knockback makes it best suited for KOing, it can also act as a set-up for Flare Blitz, which deals 30% altogether. However, this combo is very situational due to requiring the opponent to be at low percents, as well as the fact that it can be acted out of.
Down throw			1% (hits 1-5), 1% (throw)	Pins the opponent to the ground and then expels embers from its mouth onto them. Prior to update 1.0.8, it had high knockback and could KO beginning at 125%. As of update 1.0.8, its knockback has been altered, which is beneficial to Charizard due to it now being re-purposed into a very good combo starter at low to medium percents. Notable follow-ups include a dashing up smash, a neutral aerial (which can be potentially followed up with another grab or up smash), a forward aerial (which can be performed on most characters until around 60%), and an up aerial (which can KO beginning at 80% and especially if the opponent DIs vertically).
Floor attack (front)			7%	Swings its tail backward, then headbutts forward.
Floor attack (back)			7%	Gets up and performs a semi-circular slash with its claws.
Floor attack (trip)			5%	Gets up and performs a slash with its claws.
Edge attack			8%	Performs a headbutt while climbing up.
Neutral special	Default	Flamethrower	2% (clean), 1% (late)	Expels a stream of flames from its mouth. It gradually weakens if used, similarly to Fire Breath. Unlike Fire Breath, Flamethrower's farthest hitboxes will make the opponent flinch.
	Custom 1	Fire Fang	2% (embers), 8% (explosion)	Expels a short-ranged stream of embers from its mouth that hit quickly. Releasing the special button results in a small explosion.
	Custom 2	Fireball Cannon	3% (clean), 2% (late)	Expels fireballs that travel far and weaken slightly over time, though they deal slightly more damage. In addition to having more start-up lag, Charizard must expel three fireballs before it concludes.
Side special	Default	Flare Blitz	4% (collision), 15% (explosion)	A fiery, corkscrewing tackle. Deals 5% recoil damage both at its beginning and on contact. KOs at 110% from center-stage and grants heavy armor that can withstand a maximum of 15%. However, it is very unsafe on shield due to its extreme amount of overall lag. Additionally, the move travels a long distance, which could give Charizard an inevitable self-destruct if it uses it near a stage ledge.
	Custom 1	Blast Burn	4% (collision), 5% (explosion loop), 9% (explosion last)	A slower, short-ranged version that concludes with a fiery explosion. Deals noticeably more damage, but more recoil damage as well, with 6% at its beginning and 10% on contact. Like the default version, it grants heavy armor that can withstand a maximum of 15%.
	Custom 2	Dragon Rush	1.2% (hits 1-6), 4% (hit 7), 11.2% (all hits connect)	A corkscrewing tackle that hits multiple times, similarly to Fly. It deals less damage and knockback overall, but it does not deal recoil damage. In addition, it will not stop moving if it hits an opponent, which makes it a better recovery option. It is generally considered to be Charizard's best custom move due to its aforementioned recovery potential, its inability to be interrupted like Flare Blitz or Blast Burn, and having KO potential near the edge. The move's travel distance is also shorter, which can help avoid accidental self-destructs when used near stage ledges.
Up special	Default	Fly	5% (hit 1), 2% (loop), 4% (last)	Flies upward while corkscrewing. The last hit deals powerful knockback and can KO at 115% from center-stage. Grants super armor at its beginning.
	Custom 1	Rising Cyclone	4% (hit 1), 2% (loop), 6% (last)	Covers less distance, but Charizard can vacuum opponents and launch them. The last hit is also noticeably stronger and like the default version, it grants super armor at its beginning.
	Custom 2	Fly High	—	Deals no damage, but covers more vertical distance. Like the default version, it grants super armor at its beginning.
Down special	Default	Rock Smash	14% (boulder hit 1), 6% (boulder hit 2), 3% (fragments)	Pulls out a boulder and headbutts it, breaking it into pieces. Grants super armor on frames 5-22 before breaking the boulder. KOs at 139% from center-stage.
	Custom 1	Sinking Skull	10% (grounded), 12%/9% (aerial)	A headbutt. Deals less damage, but it buries grounded opponents and meteor smashes aerial opponents.
	Custom 2	Rock Hurl	8% (boulder hit 1), 4% (boulder hit 2), 2% (fragments)	Deals less damage overall, but the boulder fragments fly farther and it grants super armor beginning on frame 1.
Final Smash		Mega Charizard X	2% (Dragon Rush loop), 10% (Dragon Rush last), 5% (Fire Blast collision), 1% (Fire Blast loop), 5% (Fire Blast last)	Mega Evolves into Mega Charizard X. Mega Charizard X consistently hovers around the stage, similarly to Super Dragon. Unlike Super Dragon, Mega Charizard X has infinite super armor rather than invincibility, and dealing damage to Mega Charizard X will shorten its duration. As Mega Charizard X, it can use Fire Blast, a powerful projectile, and Dragon Rush, a powerful corkscrewing tackle. Unlike the Dragon Rush custom move, Mega Charizard X's Dragon Rush can move in any given direction.

On-screen appearance

• Emerges from a Poké Ball, then stomps once.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Stomps once and then rears back to roar upward while flapping its wings.
• Side taunt: Faces the camera while stomping once and growling while flapping its wings once.
• Down taunt: Violently stomps twice while facing the camera.

Up taunt	Side taunt	Down taunt

Idle poses

• Leans back and then stomps once.
• Turns its head to the side and quickly spits an ember onto the ground.

Crowd cheer

	English	Japanese
Cheer
Description	Char-izard!	Liz-ar-don!
Pitch	Group chant	Group chant

Victory poses

An orchestral excerpt of the title theme from Pokémon Red, Blue and Green Versions, which has since become the main theme of the Pokémon series.

• Roars and then strikes a pose.
• Stomps forward, then roars upward with flames coming out of its mouth and then strikes a pose.
• Descends from the sky while using Flare Blitz to crash into the ground and then strikes a pose.

In competitive play

Official Custom Moveset Project

Character	Custom sets available
Charizard	1311	1313	1331	1333	1113
	1211	1213	3311	2311	1321

Notable players

Active

•  Angis
•  Aposl
•  Bloodcross
•  Blue
•  chaoszard
•  Chuck Nasty
•  Draquaza
•  Fire
•  Jeese
•  RIP Shadow
•  Serge
•  Sharpy
•  SilentDoom
•  Steeler
•  Tosshi - Placed 13th at Single Game Championships: Umebura X Single-Chu and eliminated Ranai at said tournament.

Inactive

•  Trela

Tier placement and history

Upon the initial release of SSB4, Charizard was poorly perceived by the majority of players due to its very sluggish moveset, predictable and exploitable recovery, very slow air speed and susceptibility to combos. Its negative perception led some players to view it as being heavily nerfed since Brawl even when not including Squirtle and Ivysaur, and many considered it to be the single worst character in the game up until update 1.0.6, with its representation throughout most of SSB4's lifespan being notoriously poor in spite of its consistent popularity within its home series. However, Charizard began to receive a consistent amount of substantial buffs in game updates starting with update 1.0.8, which noticeably improved its KO potential, combo game, frame data, and mobility. While some players argued that Charizard had become somewhat viable, it was still widely attested that these buffs were not sufficient enough to significantly improve its representation and results. As a result, Charizard was ranked 49th on the first 4BR tier list, perpetuating its perception as a bottom-tier character.

Despite its low rankings, Charizard's viability had been heavily contested ever since update 1.1.5 due to its sporadic results and overall strengths as a character. Numerous professionals, including ZeRo and ESAM, believed Charizard to be somewhat viable and labeled it as a potential low-tier to mid-tier character. While this perception persisted into the second tier list, where it was ranked at 51st place (as the highest-ranked bottom-tier character), many smashers would keep arguing in its favor. MKLeo, in particular, has even claimed that Charizard can fare well against top-tier characters such as Cloud, and Charizard's tournament results began to slowly but notably improve, with dedicated players such as Chuck Nasty, Sharpy and Hitomoshi even winning regional tournaments while exclusively using Charizard.

This is reflected in Charizard's current tier status, as it is now ranked 45th on the third and current tier list, a rise notable in two ways: Charizard became the only character to rise out of the lowest tier in the transition, and it is also no longer within the bottom 10 on the tier list, in a similar vein to Samus' and Palutena's placements over time. While Charizard's results in North America continue to be sparse, it also fares better in the international scene; aside from the aforementioned smashers above, players such as Tosshi, Fire and SilentDoom have achieved significant wins and results while using Charizard.

Trophies

Charizard

The iconic Fire/Flying-type Pokémon. Charizard's scorching breath can melt anything in its path. It soars through the air, seeking only worthy foes to test itself against. In Smash Bros., Charizard unleashes the destructive Flare Blitz special move— a move so strong, it even injures the user!

Charizard, a Fire- and Flying-type Pokémon, can burn through anything with the flames it breathes. It is constantly on the lookout for powerful opponents. And where better to find them than in this game? Its huge build and special moves mean it can inflict massive damage, and its Flare Blitz is so powerful, it even hurts Charizard itself!

: Pokémon Red and Pokémon Blue (09/1998)

: Pokémon X and Pokémon Y (10/2013)

Charizard (Alt.)

Charizard's Flamethrower attack can be sustained by holding the button. The flames will gradually die, but a short break will recharge them. Charizard's down special Rock Smash crushes a rock and hits foes with the pieces. Charizard won't flinch while crushing, but others can break the rock...

When using Charizard's Flamethrower move, hold the button to keep breathing fire. The flames gradually die down, but you just need to rest for a bit before doing it again. If you get hit while you're using the down special Rock Smash, you won't flinch, but someone else can break the rock instead, making your attack fail.

: Pokémon Red and Pokémon Blue (09/1998)

: Pokémon X and Pokémon Y (10/2013)

Mega Evolution (Charizard)

In this powerful Final Smash, Charizard Mega Evolves into Mega Charizard X and takes to the air. In this form, it can charge violently in any direction or shoot horizontal blasts of fire that launch foes. Mega Charizard X isn't invulnerable, though-in fact, taking damage will actually reduce the time you can stay transformed.

For this powerful Final Smash, Charizard Mega Evolves into Mega Charizard X and takes to the air. In this form, it can charge violently in any direction and shoot horizontal blasts of fire that launch foes. Mega Charizard X isn't invulnerable, though - taking attacks will reduce the length of time it stays transformed.

• 

  Classic (3DS)

• CharizardAllStarTrophy3DS.png

  Alt. (3DS)

• 

  Classic (Wii U)

• 

  Alt. (Wii U)

• 

  Mega Charizard X

In Event Matches

Solo Events

• All-Star Battle: Brawl: Charizard is one of the opponents fought in this event. All of the opponents debuted in Brawl.
• Fire-Type Frenzy: Charizard must defeat Greninja, Lucario, and Pikachu all appearing after another.
• Pokémon Battle: As Greninja, the player must defeat a team of Charizard, Pikachu and Lucario in a one stock battle.
• The Falchion's Seal: As Robin, the player must defeat a giant Charizard using his Final Smash, Pair Up. Defeating it in any other way causes it to respawn.

Co-Op Events

• Poisonous Planet: Olimar and Samus must defeat two giant Charizard in a Stamina Battle before their own health is depleted due to being flowered.
• Pokémon Multi Battle!: Charizard and Pikachu must defeat a team of Lucario and Greninja, then a team of Pikachu and Charizard each appearing after one opponent is defeated.
• Robots vs. Dragons: Mega Man and R.O.B. must defeat a team of a giant Charizard, a giant Yoshi and Ridley in a stamina battle.
• The Ultimate Battle: Two players select characters and must defeat the entire roster.

Reveal trailer

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Alternate costumes

Gallery

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  Charizard's splash art.

• 

  Charizard's amiibo.

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  Charizard and Pikachu atop a cliff, overlooking various Pokémon during Charizard's trailer.

• 

  Using its new forward aerial on Mario.

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  Using Flare Blitz, its new side special, alongside Diddy Kong.

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  Landing after using its back aerial.

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  Using its forward tilt against Mario's F.L.U.D.D.

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  Footstool jumping on Yoshi.

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  Sidestepping Little Mac's Jolt Haymaker.

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  Being hit by Greninja's Water Shuriken.

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  Using its down taunt.

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  Charizard and Lucario sleeping due to Bellossom's Sweet Scent.

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  Teetering while Kirby is in the foreground after copying it.

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  Crouching on Prism Tower in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

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  Alongside Pikachu.

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  Using Mega Charizard X, its new Final Smash.

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  Taunting alongside Lucario, Greninja and Pikachu.

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  Using Flare Blitz on Diddy Kong and Wii Fit Trainer and suffering from its recoil.

Trivia

• Unlike in Brawl, Charizard draws inspiration from Ash's Charizard, Red's Charizard and Alain's Charizard:
  • The animations of its neutral attack's first two hits are similar to Red's when repeatedly using Slash against Mewtwo.
  • The animations of its neutral and forward aerials are identical to Ash and Alain's when they use Dragon Tail and Dragon Claw, respectively.
  • The animation of its up throw is similar to Ash and Red's when they use Seismic Toss.
  • It can use Fire Blast and Blast Burn like Red's and Alain's, respectively.
    • However, it can only use Fire Blast while Mega Evolved.
  • It can Mega Evolve into Mega Charizard X like Red and Alain's.
  • It has an idle pose that sees it turn its head and spit out an ember like Ash's did during its disobedient phase.
  • It is voiced by Shin'ichirō Miki, who voiced both Ash and Red's.
• Due to having access to both X Attack and Fake Nails in the attack category, Charizard is the only character capable of using two types of specialized/non-badge equipment within the same category.
  • This also makes it the only Pokémon that can equip something other than badges and Pokémon equipment.
• Charizard knows eight official Pokémon moves in SSB4, all of which it can learn legally in the Pokémon core series. In addition to Flamethrower, Flare Blitz, Fly and Rock Smash, it can also use Fire Fang and Blast Burn as custom moves, Fire Blast as part of its Final Smash and Dragon Rush as both a custom move and as part of its Final Smash.
  • As Squirtle did not return from Brawl, Charizard is now the only Pokémon in SSB4 to know at least one HM move, due to it knowing Fly.
• In the PAL version of Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, one of the tips about Rock Smash refers to Charizard using masculine pronouns: "Right before smashing a rock, Charizard gets super armor, meaning he won't even flinch if he's attacked!"
• Charizard is the only Pokémon without a chargeable special move and the only one that lacks an aerial attack that hits more than once.
• Charizard is the only character to have one of its special move inputs changed between games outside of SSB.