Donkey Kong (SSBU)/Dash attack

Hitbox visualization for Donkey Kong's dash attack

Hitbox visualization showing Donkey Kong's dash attack.

Overview

DK's signature rolling attack from the Donkey Kong Country series is also one of his best moves in this game. It is an unreactable burst move that does good damage and combos into all sorts of things. The strong hit on frames 9-12 combos into back air, up air or forward tilt at low percents. The weak hit on frames 13-24 can combo into itself, grabs, tilts, and even fully charged Giant Punch. If it knocks the opponent offstage at low to mid percents, it can lead to forward air spikes if the opponent guesses wrong or isn't expecting it. Dash Attack has very high base knockback, but won't KO until extremely high percentages. The threat of this move can condition the opponent to shield, which opens them up for DK's grab.

Dash attack is -12 to -1 on block depending on how late it hits their shield. Although it can't normally crossup on block, it will if the opponent is right next to the edge. This can trick them into whiffing a shield grab, creating an opportunity to punish them instead.

Dash attack can catch items on frames 1-5, making it a useful approach option against characters that generate items. DK can also cancel the first 3 frames of dash attack into his dash grab or pivot grab (also know as Boost Grabbing). Doing so will slightly extend his grab range, but it barely makes any difference and adds a slight delay to the grab.