SSBM/Mario

Introduction

Mario appears on rank 13 in the D tier on the current tier list, placing him in the center, along with his brother Luigi and two places below his clone of Dr. Mario. Mario acts as a well-rounded character, with average weight, falling speed and other such attributes. Mario has some good comboing ability, and he has a very versatile grab game, with a powerful back throw that can lead to gimps and an up and down throw that can chaingrab. Mario also is a decent edgeguarder, with Fireball (a solid projectile), and his cape which can easily and efficiently gimp almost every other character's recovery. However, Mario lacks a reliable finisher, and his recovery is decidedly average, though he can extend it with his cape and wall jumps. Despite this, Mario is still easily gimped and can't recover if he is knocked too far away from the stage.

"A" Moves Analysis

Ground attacks

Normal

• Neutral attack- Mario does a weak punch forward, followed by a second weak punch before a stronger kick forward. This entire combo was in Super Mario 64. 2-3%, 1-2%, 4-5% damage respectively
• Dash attack- Mario slides on the ground feet first. Knocks foes diagonally behind him. 9% when it first comes out, 6% after.
• Forward tilt- A fast kick forward. Often throw into Mario's combos. 9%
• Up tilt- Mario punches upwards. Good juggling move, as well as a rather good combo starter. Looks similar to the second hit of Mario's Mega Glove combo in Super Mario RPG. 8% damage.
• Down tilt- Mario kneels down and sweeps his leg low to the ground. Low knockback. At damages below 100%, this move is very weak and barely stuns the foe. Above 100%, however, this move can be easily followed with a forward for a quick kill. 8% damage

Smash attacks

• Forward smash- Mario launches a blast of fire from his palm. The move is relatively quick and has good knockback. Note that if the opponent is very close to Mario, the attack will land on a sourspot on his arm. Sweetspot does 18% damage uncharged, 23% fully. Sourspot does 11% damage uncharged, 15% fully.
• Up smash- Mario headbutts upward. A fast move with more range at the back of his head than in the front. 15% uncharged, 18% full.
• Down smash- Mario does a breakdancing kick. Extremely fast, one of Mario's stronger moves. From Super Mario 64. 16% front, 10% back uncharged, 21% front 12% back full.

Other attacks

• Ledge attack - Does a somersault and then kicks upward. 8% damage
• 100% Ledge Attack - Gets up then does an attack similar to his down-angled forward tilt. 10% damage
• Floor attack -Gets up then punches behind him, then in front of him. 6% damage

Aerial attacks

• Neutral aerial- A sex kick. Mario sticks his foot out in front of him. Like a few of his other moves, this was in Super Mario 64. Peak damage is 12%, gets weaker thereafter.
• Forward aerial- Mario punches in front of him with an enlarged fist. Slow, predictable and has high ending lag, but acts as powerful meteor smash, with no sourspot. 15% damage
• Back aerial- Mario kicks backward. Fast, good for edgeguarding. 10% damage
• Up aerial-Mario flip kicks upward. Good move for juggling and comboing. 11% damage
• Down aerial- Drill Kick: Mario spins. Resembles the Spin Jump from Super Mario World. Does multiple hits instead of one powerful one. Total 10%

Throws

• Pummel- A Clutch Headbutt: Mario headbutts his grabbed opponent. 2-3%
• Forward throw- Mario spins around once, and throws his opponent forward, with decent knockback. 9% damage
• Back throw- Mario spins around three times and throws his opponent backward. Surprisingly high knockback, can hit enemies mid swing. 12% damage
• Up throw- Mario Launch- Mario throws his opponent upward. Good for an up-tilt following, or starting combos at higher percentages. 8% damage.
• Down throw- Mario throws his opponent on the ground. Can be a good chainthrow on certain characters. 6% damage

"B" Moves List

Neutral B

Mario's red fireballs fall to the ground, losing momentum with each bounce. As such, they are more effective when fired from higher locations and toward downward slopes, traveling further. When firing at a wall or upward slope, the balls will bounce backward, a more defensive maneuver for brief protection from oncoming foes, perhaps in the air or from behind. Mario's fireballs can be spammed, though with some difficulty (and at a slower rate of fire than Luigi's), and are a decent approach tactic. The move can be more efficient when used in the air, falling to meet the enemy at ground level, while still moving, and negating lag.

Side B

The Cape deals up to 10% damage (12% for the Super Sheet), has no knockback and doesn't make the opponents flinch unless the cape is used on an opponent attempting a grab (then, knockback increases only slightly, while not enough to KO. Characters hit with the cape while attempting a grab will be sent spiraling a short height into the air). This means that it will not interrupt attacks; rather, it only turns the enemy character around. This can leave recovering characters unable to grab the ledge.

Up B

Super Jump Punch:When Mario uses this attack each hit does 1% damage. Average damage is around 10-13%. Moderate knockback, though seems more powerful in Brawl. It is a poor recovery overall due to its short range and being easily edgeguarded (with the exception of N64's S.J.P. which has a great vertical range and decent horizontal range if aimed forward). However, using Cape will aid Mario's horizontal recovery, making recovering a little easier. Cape, combined with S.J.P.'s some horizontal and mainly vertical range will give Mario a good horizontal recovery, though the attack's normal angle will make it a terrible move to use vertically in some situations below the ledge. It is possible to "aim" both Marios' Super Jump Punches straight up vertically by holding the Control Stick in the opposite direction that they are facing during the "spark" of the Super Jump Punch's animation and can be angled vertically as well by aiming the control stick or d-pad forward.

Down B

Tornado:The move involves him rotating rapidly with his fists outstretched. It is a multi-hit attack, and the last hit can spike in the original Super Smash Bros.. This attack's knockback increases with the opponent's damage. By pressing the Special Attack button rapidly, Mario would rise up in the air slightly and give him a slight recovery chance.

Strategies

Match-ups

Serious Advantage Match-ups

Bowser, Pichu

Advantage Match-ups

Pikachu, DK, Link, Y.Link, Zelda, Roy, Mew2, Yoshi, G&W, Ness, Kirby

Fair Match-ups

Doc, Luigi

Disadvantage Match-ups

Everyone else

Serious Disadvantage Match-ups

None