Ladder (stage element)

Yoshi on a ladder in Brawl

Bayonetta on a ladder in Smash Wii U

Ladders are present in certain stages in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Characters are able to use ladders to quickly move vertically without jumping.

When next to a ladder's base, pressing up on the control stick/d-pad will cause the character to grab onto the ladder; the same happens if standing at the top of the ladder and pressing down. While on a ladder, characters are considered to be in the air, so they are immune to sleep and other such effects. Characters can climb up or slide down ladders by moving the control stick up or down; all characters have the same speed on ladders. Multiple characters can occupy the same space on a ladder.

To release the ladder, a character can either reach its end (and dismount) or tap sideways.

Characters can grab ladders when passing by one in the air, even while helpless. This is done by pressing up or down; the character will grab the ladder and start climbing/descending. Ladders cause characters to regain all their jumps (with the notable exception of Pac-Man, the reason for this is unknown).

While on a ladder, in Brawl and for Wii U, characters cannot do anything other than climb, descend, or let go, which leaves them vulnerable to attacks if they remain on the ladder. Starting in Ultimate, however, they can also use aerial attacks while remaining stationary on the ladder, a property known officially as a ladder attack, giving them a means of fending off attackers.

However, the following aerial attacks will case the character to let go of the ladder:

• All stall-then-fall down aerials (except Bowser's down aerial)
• Link's down aerial
• Young Link's down aerial
• Ivysaur's down aerial
• Lucario's down aerial
• R.O.B.'s back and down aerial
• Mii Gunner's forward aerial
• Steve's down aerial (with enough materials)

Additionally, certain aerial attacks function differently when used as a ladder attack:

• Bayonetta cannot use the Bullet Arts version of either her neutral or up aerial (due to being separate animations).
• Bayonetta cannot perform forward aerial's follow-ups attacks.
• Min Min cannot perform a follow-up attack when using either her forward or back aerials. Additionally, she remains stationary while attacking.
• Steve remains stationary when using his down aerial with insufficient materials (or if an anvil is already out).

Ladders appear in the following stages:

• Rumble Falls
• 75m
• PictoChat
• Stage Builder stages (Brawl and Ultimate only)
• The Subspace Emissary
  • Sea of Clouds
  • The Lake
  • The Ruined Zoo
  • The Battlefield Fortress
  • The Forest
  • The Ruins
  • The Swamp
  • The Research Facility II
  • The Glacial Peak
  • Battleship Halberd Interior
  • The Great Maze
• Wrecking Crew
• Palutena's Temple

Trivia

• Even though Bowser can climb ladders in Brawl, he cannot do so in his playable appearance in Super Paper Mario, which was released before Brawl.
• Diddy Kong's climbing animations are a reference to the animation of climbing up and down vines in Donkey Kong Jr., except Diddy Kong is turned around.
• Mewtwo, Rosalina, and Bayonetta don't actually climb the ladders, let alone touch them. Instead they use their powers to rise up or float down.
• Oddly, R.O.B doesn't move his arms at all when climbing up the ladders.
• Steve is the only fighter to not have animations while climbing.

See also

• All character's ladder animations