Shield jump
- Not to be confused with Shield break jump, or jump out of shield.
Shield jump is an aspect of every character's shield in each Super Smash Bros. game.
Overview
Every attack in the Super Smash Bros. series can damage a shield. As the shield gets attacked, its size is gradually reduced until the shield eventually breaks, after which a shield jump occurs. The character is sent a small distance upward, then falls back to the ground; upon getting up, the character is also stunned for some time, leaving them completely vulnerable to any and all attacks. In Smash 64 only, the character also gives their Star KO scream. Shield break jumps cannot be cancelled out of in any capacity. Furthermore, if a character stands close to a ledge when their shield breaks, it is also possible for them to fall off the stage as they fall back down, leaving them completely helpless.
In Melee, having one's shield broken by an opponent will reward them with the Shattered Shield bonus, worth −1000 points, while breaking their own shield will reward them the Shield Stupidity bonus, worth −2000 points. Breaking another opponent's shield will reward the character the Shield Buster bonus, worth 2500 points. All of these bonuses can stack, and performing the required tasks multiple times will proportionally increase their value.
Jigglypuff's shield jump
Jigglypuff has the most notable shield jump of all the characters in the series. In all four of its appearances, breaking Jigglypuff's shield will cause it to shield jump extremely high, due to incurring a large amount of knockback from the break. Under most circumstances, Jigglypuff will invariably pass the upper blast line and be KO'd. The only way to prevent this is to either have a ceiling stop Jigglypuff's shield jump or for another character to inflict knockback as it is being sent flying away; the extreme speed of Jigglypuff's jump, however, makes the former a more likely possibility for stopping the self-destruct. If the shield jump is stopped by a ceiling, it cannot be teched.
Due to changes the upper blast line's behaviour in Smash 4, Jigglypuff cannot be Star KO'd or Screen KO'd by a shield jump due to its speed when jumping and is instead always Blast KO'd.
The reason for Jigglypuff's high shield jump has never been explained within the games or related material.
Advantages
The first noticeable advantage became clear in Melee's Adventure Mode, when the player has to escape the exploding Brinstar. Consisting of a vertical climb, the time taken to complete the level can be reduced greatly by using the shield jump. However, as this technique requires shield breaking, the Shield Stupidity bonus, worth -2000 points, is awarded to the player. The shield jump can also allow Jigglypuff to reach places in Brawl's Subspace Emissary few others could, and complete stages, such as Glacial Peak, in record time.
Custom stages in Brawl
Brawl's introduction of custom stages created a new use for shield jumping: a platform high above the main battlefield that provides Jigglypuff with a camping spot that few other characters can reach or even hit with ranged attacks. Only Pit and R.O.B. can reach a similar height normally, although Meta Knight and Kirby, using their throws, and other characters, using bomb jumps can also potentially threaten Jigglypuff.
The Super Jiggly Jump
When Jigglypuff's shield breaks, there is a period of time while it is flying upwards when it is in its hitstun animation, and it is during this period that Jigglypuff can be KOed from the upper blast zone. If, for any reason, Jigglypuff does not reach the upper blast line until after this period, it will continue flying upwards beyond the blast line as if it had simply jumped really high. This is easiest to do with a ceiling that Jigglypuff will only be stuck on for a short period of time, or by pushing it away from the ceiling at the right time.
One easy way of doing this is on the Super Smash Bros. Brawl stage New Pork City. For this to be executed, Jigglypuff must stand along the right side of the floating structure closest to the middle and shield until it jumps. If Jigglypuff is close enough to the right wall, it will skim the wall and continue flying without getting KOed. If either mushroom is used during this time, escaping the stun when turning back to normal size is possible, thus enabling the player to move freely during the fall.
It can also be performed while standing under certain blocks in the Mushroomy Kingdom stage.
Gallery
Captain Falcon breaks Jigglypuff's shield in Smash 64, causing it to do an extremely high jump and get Star KO'd.
Jigglypuff can be seen in the top-right corner, high above the other fighters.
Jigglypuff's shield jump's usefulness in the Brinstar Escape Shaft in Super Smash Bros. Melee's Adventure Mode.
Videos
Smash 64
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Melee
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