Super Smash Bros./Luigi

Introduction

Luigi is currently 10th on the tier list for his floatiness and overall awkward physics, despite some devastating combos involving his Super Jump Punch. However, at higher level play, Luigi cannot combo as well, as his down aerial, one of his primary combo constituents, is a drill — the easiest type of move to DI out of in Super Smash Bros. Luigi does well against Jigglypuff and Samus however, and has even matchups with Yoshi and Donkey Kong.

Normal Move Analysis

It should be noted that Luigi is the only "clone" character in Super Smash Brothers. He shares almost all of his moves with Mario, albeit with a few minor differences. Thus, his moveset will be somewhat identical to Mario's moveset.

Ground Moves

Normal

• Neutral attack: Jab (2%), punch (2%), then a toe kick (4%). A natural combo.
• Forward tilt: Roundhouse Kick. Decent spacer and KOs at very high damage percentages. 10%.
• Up tilt: Upward Punch. Luigi does an uppercut, and has many of the same uses as Mario's uppercut in that it is a good combo starter, chains into itself, and can KO at high percentages. 10%.
• Down tilt: Low Kick. Low knockback and range. An easily countered move unless there's a good strategy behind it. 7%.
• Dash attack: Flailing Punches. Six hits, 2% per hit. The last hit has no knockback, and coupled with some ending lag, this move is easily punished.

Smash attacks

• Side Smash: Super Punch. The exact same as Mario's, Luigi winds up for a second and punches with an enlarged fist. 15%.
• Up Smash: Headbutt. Lunges head upwards in an arc. Decent knockback. 19%.
• Down Smash: Leg Sweep. Faster than Mario's, and good damage and power. 17%.

Other attacks

• Ledge attack: Gets up and somersaults. 6%.
• 100% Ledge Attack: Slowly gets up and kicks. 6%.
• Floor attack: Leg Sweeps and gets up, similar to his Down Smash. 6%.

Aerial attacks

• Neutral aerial: Luigi does a Sex kick, which gets weaker over time. 14% during first few frames.
• Forward aerial: Spin kick. Luigi sticks his feet out in front, his body aimed forward with them, and spins. 16%.
• Up aerial: Flip kick. Great for juggling or KO-ing, depending on what angle the foe is hit on. 12%.
• Back aerial: Back kick. He thrusts his feet back and flips. 16%.
• Down aerial: Drill kick, 8 hits, 3% per hit. Like Mario's, this is a Meteor Smash. Last hit does not have knockback.

Throws

• Forward Throw: 12-16%. Same as Mario, swings foe once and tosses them in front with good power.
• Back Throw: 9-12%. Swings three times and tosses foe behind with excellent KO power.

Special Move Analysis

Neutral Special

Luigi's green fireballs travel in a straight line and are unaffected by gravity (matching his floaty motif) and drift around in a circle, rather than rolling like Mario's. Also, despite the fact Luigi's fireballs are green, they still make red-orange burn animations upon impact. They can be easily spammed, and can be fired at a slightly faster pace than Mario's. When firing at stage elements, the projectile's path will change based on the contact angle. As such, the move is more useful when used toward upward slopes, continuing on to foes. The move is more difficult to use on downward slopes, passing over enemies. Fireball approach is perhaps more difficult than with Mario, as the attack does not fall when used in the air. In general, Luigi's special attack is contextually less useful than Mario's, as it only travels in only one direction (forward), where Mario's move in two (forward, and downward). It also travels less distance. Luigi's fireballs deal slightly more damage than Mario's.

Up Special

Luigi's sourspotted Super Jump Punch only deals 1 point of damage, and only makes a character flinch very slightly. However, if the attack's sweet spot hits a character, it becomes a powerful Fire Jump Punch which deals around 25% damage with high knockback and can KO an opponent at 60% damage or higher. Luigi can turn around after the initial hitbox, however, its usefulness is questionable. His Super Jump Punch sends him upwards and forwards, but the horizontal movement after the move is performed is low. The Fire Jump Punch if used in the air is slightly weaker than if used on the ground (20% rather than 25%). It is possible to combo with it by small jumping, performing an neutral aerial, and then using a sweetspotted punch at percentages around 40% with many characters. When sourspotted, it can be used to steal KOs, as it will give Luigi the point without changing their trajectory.

Down Special

CycloneThe attack makes Luigi spin around wildly. It can be used as a vertical recovery move by button-mashing the special button, though this works best after a jump because the move carries Luigi's momentum with it. If used while falling, it will be much more difficult to gain height. It is generally perceived as being very difficult to get the full height due to the number of times the player needs to push the special button during the animation. This move does not put Luigi into a helpless mode, so the player can use the Super Jump Punch or Green Missile after.

There are a total of 2 hits, 1 at the beginning of the hit, and one at the end when Luigi sends out his hands (extremely powerful). The Smash 64 one is in the middle of difficulty between Melee and Brawl and has by far the best power of any of the 3 cyclones. It is usually considered Luigi's other main killing move outside of up B. It goes Diagonally in the air instead of vertical only like melee but it is possible to aim the control stick to only send the cyclone vertical.

Advanced Strategy

Cyclone Recovery

Luigi can gain vertical distance during the Luigi Cyclone if the B button is mashed often enough during the attack animation.

Mario Bros. Pseudo Spike

Both Mario and Luigi can "spike" an opponent by repeatedly using their down aerials on the opponent when off the edge and then taking advantage of their huge vertical recoveries to get back to the stage. This does not work against Pikachu, who has a much longer and faster vertical recovery than either Mario or Luigi.

Matchups

Matchups	Pikachu	Fox	Kirby	C.Falcon	Mario	Yoshi	DK	Ness	Puff	Luigi	Link	Samus	Total
Luigi	3	3	4	4	4	5	5	4	6	-	4	6	48	Luigi
	Pikachu	Fox	Kirby	C.Falcon	Mario	Yoshi	DK	Ness	Puff	Luigi	Link	Samus	Total