Stock

A selection of stock meters from Melee.

Stock is the term the Super Smash Bros. series uses to describe what many other games call lives. In the Solo modes, such as Classic Mode, using up all the players' stocks brings them to the Game Over screen, where they may be offered the option to Continue. In Versus Mode, it describes the mode won on the basis of which player is KO'd the fewest number of times, either up to a maximum number or to a time limit.

In single-player modes

Classic Mode

Players can choose to begin with between one and five stocks, with three as the default number. This cannot be increased after starting and before quitting or receiving a "Game Over", although their damage percentage resets between matches as well as after using up a stock. Stocks remaining are displayed as small icons-icons of their character's face (in SSB and Melee) or dots (in Brawl) above the damage percentage. If the player can complete the mode without losing a single life, they will receive a bonus, whose value varies depending on the game.

Self-destructing in the Bonus Stages of Classic Mode does not cost the player a stock, nor does it count for the loss of the No-Miss Clear bonus.

Will the player use up all of their stock, then the option is given to allow a Continue. If the player chooses "No", then the game ends, and the player is sent back to the Character Select screen. If the player chooses "Yes", then the game restarts at the stage that they were KO'd in. However, the player's score is cut in half, and in Melee and Brawl, the player must pay a small compensation price with coins they have collected. The amount varies on the difficulty; higher difficulties require more coins. Additionally, in all three games, the player is given a significant point deduction of 20000 points for continuing.

All-Star Mode

Each player has only one stock to complete the entire mode, with their damage percentage carrying over between matches, although they can use up to three Heart Containers (five in two-player mode) which lie in the All-Star Rest Area to help maintain their single stock.

Continues function the same way in this mode as they do in Classic Mode.

Adventure Mode (Super Smash Bros. Melee)

The player can choose their number of stocks (one to five only), similar to Classic Mode.

Continues also function the same way in this mode as in Classic Mode and All-Star Mode.

The Subspace Emissary (Super Smash Bros. Brawl)

An example of a stock display in Brawl's Adventure Mode.

Players are assigned a set number of stocks to complete a level, which they can supplement by finding Stock Balls. This does not carry over between levels.

Stock count is displayed on the left-hand side of the screen, as a head icon of each character remaining in their current party. In the event of the player holding more stocks than their current party size, the headshots are supplemented by Smash Bros. icons and the order of play repeats (i.e., a player with five stocks and a party consisting of, in order, Mario, Link, Samus and Donkey Kong would automatically use Mario again on their fifth stock.) This can only occur if the player has fewer characters available to choose from for their party than the number of stocks for the level or if they pick up a Stock Ball during it - players cannot choose one character to be placed in two spots in the order. If a second player enters a game in progress, they use up one of the available stocks and take the next character in the sequence - this means that if player 1 has no spare stocks, the second player cannot join.

Icons representing the subsequent character controlled upon death.

When a player reaches a cutscene and is at the point where the player can select what characters to play as in their party, their stock is reset to the default number. After the level is completed, replays do not play these cutscenes, which can significantly reduce the number of stocks a player has to complete the level and thus substantially increases the difficulty of replaying long levels such as The Subspace Bomb Factory II.

In the event of a player losing all their stocks, they are sent to the Continue screen.

Event matches

The amount of stock given to the player varies from event to event; they are displayed in the same way as Classic Mode.

Stadium

The Stadium encompasses the following modes, which vary in the amount of stock given.

Target Test/Smash!!

This mode grants the player only one stock.

Home-Run Contest

Home-Run Contest does not use stocks, as it is impossible to get KO'd in the mode.

Multi-Man mode

All versions of Multi-Man Melee in Melee and Brawl have the player use only one stock.

Boss Battles Mode

Gets one stock in a similar way to All-Star Mode, including damage carrying over between matches and Heart Containers in the Rest Area, but without the option to Continue after dying and using up your stock.

Training Mode

Training mode does not use stocks, as the mode operates via a never-ending Time match.

In versus modes

Stock is a mode that is playable in versus mode. It can be chosen from 1 to 99 lives. In this, the game acts as a "last man standing" game, where a player/team wins once all the other players/teams have lost all of their stocks. If a time limit is set in addition, then the player who has the most stocks remaining (and the lowest percentage on that stock in the case of a tie) wins. As with all modes, a player who has lost all their stocks cannot participate in the match, and can only merely watch. However, it is possible to share stock, allowing fallen teammates to take stocks from an active team member should they have at least one extra in reserve. While time mode is the default setting of the game, in tournaments and most serious matches, the mode is set to stock match due to the orderly, set fashion that it creates. Usual amounts of stock that are set in tournament matches are five for Smash 64, four for Melee and three for Brawl. The number of stocks is due to gameplay differences between the three games; gameplay and movement is generally faster and more combos are used in Smash 64 and Melee, resulting in a shorter amount of time for players to be KOed, while in Brawl, KOs occur more slowly due to the lack of true combos at higher percents and generally slower movement speed. The different number of stocks is a balance of the amount of time in each match.

In the Smash community, there are terms used to describe the margin of victory a player wins by. The term "X-stocked the opponent" is used to describe the number of stocks a winner ended a match with, where X is the number of stocks the winning player has. For example, a 2-stock victory means that the victor defeated their opponent with 2 stocks remaining at the end of a match. The term "JV" refers to winning with a fresh stock at 0%; a "JV 2-stock" means the victor defeated their opponent with 1 stock remaining at 0%. Other descriptions, such as "low percent" and "high percent" are also used. This is often used for varying levels of bragging rights for skill. For example, 3-stocking an opponent shows a greater difference of skill than if the player "merely" 2-stocked them. Furthermore, a "JV 5/4-stock" (winning with all 4/3 stocks remaining without taking any damage in Melee and Brawl, respectively) is considered a perfect game, and successfully performing one shows an extreme difference in skill level, as the loser failed to land even a single hit on the opponent.