*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
|                                         |
|   Super Smash Brothers                  |
|   Kirby FAQ                             | 
|   Version 1.0                           |
|   11/04/00                              |
|                                         |
|   Author: cyper (cyper32@hotmail.com)   |
|                                         | 
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Table of Contents:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1. Revision History
2. Legal Stuff
3. Introduction to Super Smash Brothers
4. Introduction to Kirby
5. How to play as Kirby
6. Basic Moves
7. Kirby's Special Moves
8. Items
9. Arenas
10. One Player Walkthrough*
11. Multiplayer Tips & Tricks^
12. General Strategies*^
13. Combos^
14. Credits

* Still under construction
^ Needs reader input!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1.   Revision History
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
Version 1.0 (11/04/00)

Good to go. Most of this FAQ is complete, but there are a few sections that 
are incomplete and a few that can be expanded on. Anyway, look for updates 
soon, and enjoy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
2.   Legal Stuff
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

      This FAQ is Copyright (c) 2000 cyper. If you want to post this FAQ on 
your website, just E-mail me (my address is at the top of the document) for 
permission. If you do post this on your website, please give me credit, and 
please don't alter any part of the FAQ (you can change the formatting, divide 
the FAQ up, add color, etc., as long as you don't change the actual text). 
Basically, just don't steal or plagiarize my work, m'kay? So, this FAQ isn't 
a masterpiece. But, I did spend a lot of time working on it and I'd 
appreciate it if I got credit for it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
3.   Introduction to Super Smash Brothers
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

      Super Smash Brothers is a fighting game for the Nintendo 64. When 
released in April 1999, it made a huge splash both in the United States and 
Japan, and showed the world that the N64 could support a great fighting game. 
It also went against many people's conceptions of a "typical" fighting game. 
Super Smash Brothers is a totally unique game; not only is it one of the few 
4-player fighting games on a system that excels mainly in First Person 
Shooters and platformers, it also has a simple, 2-D fighting style that takes 
only half-an-hour or so to get used to. 
      
      While the moves are simply executed (at most, with only a combination 
of a movement of the control stick and a button), giving the impression of it 
being a shallow, kiddy game, Super Smash Bros. possesses a lot of depth and 
involves using strategy rather than mashing buttons. This is one of the 
features that attracts so many gamers, sick of traditional, mindless 
fighters, to SSB.
      
      The plot of Smash Bros. is not complicated. Some kid gets all of his 
favorite Nintendo mascots and puts them together in "The Fight of the 
Century". They must compete for the status of "favorite toy", blah blah 
blah... So anyway, you've got four Nintendo characters (there are eight 
chooseable, along with four hidden ones) duking it out on an arena closely 
fashioned to one of the characters' home worlds. The object of the game is 
not to kill the opposing fighters (Nintendo mascots killing each other? Lord, 
no!) but to knock them off the arena. This can be accomplished by launching 
them into the air; if the character can't get back onto the arena using their 
jumps and their comeback moves, they die--er, I mean, are knocked off. The 
more damage a character has, the farther they're launched with each move, and 
the easier it will be for them to be knocked off. In addition, there are 
horizontal "boundaries" on each side of the arena, and a vertical boundary at 
the top of the arena; any character that hits these invisible boundaries 
automatically dies (otherwise, characters with very good jumping abilities 
would hardly ever die). 

      In addition to a fairly good, but easy, single-player "quest", there 
are two multiplayer modes in SSB: Time and Stock, both of which can be played 
with teams. Time is, obviously, a timed match, and the winner is whoever has 
the highest score, the score being the number of times you knocked others 
off, minus the number of times you were knocked off. Time rewards mostly 
aggressive playing, and seems to lead to an all-out brawl in the last 30 
seconds or so as everyone tries to kill everyone else and score points. This 
makes for an interesting fight, but IMHO, there is less strategy and more 
craziness than in the other mode. Speaking of which, the other mode, Stock, 
is my personal favorite (most other people seem to favor it, too). The last 
person standing wins; thus, Stock rewards a more conservative combination of 
offensive and defensive play.

      So that's the basic premise. If, for some reason, it doesn't sound like 
insanely fun action, trust me, it is.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
4.   Introduction to Kirby
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~	
      
      If you've never heard of Super Smash Brothers, or the Kirby's Dreamland 
series for the Super Nintendo (where have you been all these years?!) then 
you might not know about the awesome fighter that is Kirby. Kirby is an 8-
inch tall alien from a distant planet. While he's small, round, cute, and 
looks basically like a pink marshmallow, don't underestimate his fighting 
prowess. Easily one of the best, or even THE best, fighter in Super Smash 
Brothers, Kirby can copy opponents' abilities, drop like a brick onto any 
unsuspecting opponents, and pull off a variety of other moves. Kirby is also 
quick, especially when it comes to executing Smash Attacks, and has the 
ability to pull off devastating combos. Being the puffy little guy that he 
is, Kirby has six jumps, which gives him awesome aerial abilities and lets 
him stay in the air for long periods of time.

      The downside to Kirby's puffiness is that, being light, Kirby can 
easily be knocked off the stage. While his jumps will usually get him back up 
safely, Kirby will hit the side and upper "boundaries" (meaning that he dies) 
at a lower damage than most other characters.

      However, Kirby's few disadvantages are hugely outweighed by his 
advantages; Kirby mastered will be extremely hard to beat. Hopefully, this 
FAQ will give you a nudge in that direction.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
5.   How to play as Kirby
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
	
      The key to playing well with Kirby is understanding his particular 
style. Each character in Super Smash Bros. has his or her own style; while 
switching between characters it's important to switch styles, too. For 
example, you wouldn't want to use the same style you'd use for a quick, 
light, aggressive fighter like Kirby, on a big, slow, powerful character like 
Donkey Kong.
	
      The key to winning with Kirby is: stay on the offensive! This may sound 
weird, considering that Kirby is knocked off easily and so you'd probably 
want to not get into the mix too much. This kind of defensive playing is 
actually better for beginners and intermediates, who need more time to 
experiment with various moves and projectiles; however, staying away from the 
action is a cue for experts to instantly focus their attacks on you. Since 
Kirby has few defensive moves  his moves mostly are damage dealing or 
launching moves, and he has few "keep-away" moves  you'll want to stay on 
the offensive. This is something that Kirby is good at; his drill kick and 
Stone can affect many people and deal a lot of damage, and Kirby has a 
variety of quick, damaging, and powerful moves. His dash and throw are also 
quick moves that can catch an opponent by surprise. Kirby does not have any 
one hugely powerful move, like DK's Giant Punch or Falcon's Falcon Punch; 
however, Kirby is a character who utilizes his variety of moves to adjust to 
almost any situation and keep any opponent guessing.
      
       This is not to say that Kirby sucks at defense; he has a nice, quick 
roll that is very handy in tight situations, and if prospects look dangerous 
you can always take to the air. No character can equal the flight powers or 
endurance of Kirby, with the exception of Jigglypuff, whose lack of a 
functional Up, B comeback move makes her extremely vulnerable. If anyone 
tries to challenge Kirby in the air, drill kick them and they'll think twice 
about it next time.

      Kirby's biggest weakness, apart from his lightness, may be his low 
priority. Priority means how a move will match up with another of similar 
strength; since Kirby generally has low priority (remember, he is a 
marshmallowy guy) he will sometimes be hit by the other move, even if he 
himself executes a move at the same time. This is less apparent with 
Forward+A moves, but more apparent with land vs. air or air vs. land attacks. 
Bottom line: use Kirby's speed, combos, and variety of moves, rather than his 
outright strength, to win.
      
      That's a general overview for using Kirby. Keep in mind that some of 
what I've said may seem weird at first; after all, it is my opinion, based on 
my own experience. However, read the moves list and other parts of the FAQ, 
and play the game, and you'll probably see what I'm talking about. There are 
other strategies for use against different opponents and in individual 
arenas; I'll cover some of them here, but experience is the best teacher!
   
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
6.   Basic Moves
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

      In case you are a total beginner at Super Smash Brothers, here is a 
_very_ basic control scheme. It's not very complicated, but, then again, the 
controls of SSB aren't all that complicated either. Anyway:

------------------------------------------------
|                                              |
|   Control Stick - move around                |
|   Tap Left/Right - dash (run)                |
|   C-buttons/Tap Up - jump                    |
|   A - normal attack/pick up item             | 
|   B - special attack                         | 
|   L - taunt                                  |
|   Z+A/R: throw*                              |   
|   R + Control Stick direction  throw item   |
|   Z/Hold R  block                           |
|   Tap Left/Right while blocking  roll       |
|   Start  pause                              |
|                                              |
------------------------------------------------
     
* When holding an item, you cannot use any throws. You can, however, use 
projectiles (with the exception of Link's bomb).

NOTE: during this FAQ I will be referring to Control Stick directions as 
Left, Right, Up, and Down. I will refer to the L and R shoulder buttons on 
the controller as L and R. Don't be thrown off because I sometimes use 
Left/Right, and sometimes use L/R; they stand for different controls.

      When doing a strong attack or a special move, the control stick should 
be TILTED, or held in the particular direction. When doing a smash attack, 
rolling, or dashing, the control stick should be TAPPED, or tilted at the 
same time as the corresponding button (if any) and very quickly let go. The 
abbreviations: 

   ,   TILT and hold direction, then press button
   +   TAP direction and tap the button simultaneously

      Try varying your moves (this works especially well with Kirby) to make 
your opponent stay on guard. If you can corner them, either throw them if 
they're blocking, or try to execute a combo. Corners are great places to 
execute combos since the enemy will simply bounce off of the wall... into 
your hands (Kirby plays tennis like an ace). If your opponent is blocking but 
has little shield left, either execute a string of attacks (in hopes of 
breaking their shields and making them momentarily dizzy) or throw them. If 
you're really sneaky, you might try hitting them by doing an attack that hits 
a part of the body that their reduced shield doesn't cover.
      
      A last note: There is a difference between a move's "damage" and its 
"power". Damage refers to how many percent damage it deals, and power refers 
to how far it launches. While the power is usually proportional to the 
damage, and vice versa, this is not always true. For example, some combos 
(like the Drill Kick) do a lot of damage, but don't launch the opponent far. 
Also, each move will do its maximum damage (the damage that I've listed here) 
only if you use it sparingly and only if you hit the opponent with the 
strongest part of the move (this only applies to some moves). If you use a 
particular move two or three times in a row, then that move's damage dealt 
will decrease significantly. Just another benefit of varying your moves.

***********************************************
UNIVERSAL MOVES (ones that all characters have)
***********************************************

Dash ~ Tap Left/Right

The character will start running in the direction you've tapped in. Press A 
during a dash to execute a dashing attack, which is usually some sort of 
lunging attack that has good range/priority and does moderate damage.

Block ~ Hold Z

The character puts his or her shield up. Obviously, this is an important 
move, so you had better master it.

Roll ~ Hold Z, then tap Left/Right

The character will roll quickly in the direction pressed. Holding Z 
throughout the roll will make the character put up its shields immediately 
after it has finished rolling. Handy for getting out of tight situations.

Throw ~ R

A throw is a very short to short-range move, depending on the character. It 
will launch the opponent a moderate distance and do a moderate to good amount 
of damage. Don't underestimate throws, as they are unblockable and very handy 
in tight situations. Each character has two different throws; the forward 
throw is simply R, then tap R again (if you don't tap R again, you'll hold 
the opponent in your arms for a few seconds, then execute the throw 
automatically). The backwards throw is R, then Back.

Taunt	~ L

The character will do a (usually) cute, annoying finishing pose; pisses the 
hell out of opponents. Kirby's taunt has him say, "HIIiiiI!" and wave his 
arms around in an endearing manner. Fun to use and abuse. Just don't use them 
on people who are better fighters than you.

Note: Kirby's taunt will also release any powers he has absorbed. This is 
useful if you want to release a crappy power that you've absorbed. 

**************
KIRBY'S MOVES:
**************

<<<<<
LAND:
>>>>>

Tap ~ A; 3% damage

Speed: good
Damage: terrible
Power: terrible
Priority: average
Overall: crap

It sucks more than a White House intern. What more can I say?


Double Tap Combo ~ A, A; 7% damage (3%, then 4%)		  

Speed: fair
Damage: poor
Power: terrible
Priority: fair
Overall: crap

Not useful.


Flurry Punch (infinite combo) ~ Tap A repeatedly; 1%/hit 

Speed: good
Damage: varies (generally poor-average)
Power: terrible
Priority: good
Overall: poor

It's cheap, annoying, and nothing makes you look more like a beginner. Plus, 
it sucks because you can inflict a ton of damage in the time it takes for you 
to rack up damage from the infinite combo.


Vertical Kick ~ Up, A; 14% damage

Speed: good
Damage: fair
Power: average
Priority: poor
Overall: average

It may come in handy in situations where speed is more important than brute 
strength (it's good in sudden-death situations). If someone's doing an aerial 
attack, block or use a stronger move to counter instead of this one.


Low Kick ~ Down, A; 8% damage

Speed: good
Damage: poor
Power: below average
Priority: poor
Overall: below average

Usually won't help much; it does very little offensively. 


Spin Kick ~ Forward, A; 10% damage		

Speed: good
Damage: average
Power: below average
Priority: poor
Overall: below average

Doesn't do much by itself. However, this move can be somewhat effective if 
you hit an opponent with it and immediately follow with a smash attack. Why? 
Because the spin kick will send the opponent just a bit into the air  
perfect height for say, a Lunge Kick or other smash attack. Plus, the spin 
kick comes out pretty fast and can be surprising.


Running Kick ~ Press A while dashing; 10% damage

Speed: good
Damage: average
Power: below average
Priority: good
Overall: good

A pretty useful move: it has good range and comes out fast. Useful for 
setting an opponent up for a combo.

Flip Kick ~ Up + A; 16% damage

Speed: average
Damage: good
Power: good
Priority: good
Overall: good

A good move, and one that can be repeated several times for a combo. The Flip 
Kick is easy to incorporate into other combos  be creative. A successful 
Flip Kick requires good timing so you'll be able to hit your opponent on the 
"bounce"  don't expect your opponent to be just standing there, waiting for 
you to flip kick them. Only thing is, it's a bit slow, and most Down, A 
aerial moves have better priority. Still, it's still a valuable part of your 
arsenal.


Split Kick ~ Down + A; 18% damage 		

Speed: good
Damage: good
Power: good
Priority: good
Overall: very good

Very useful, as it does good damage and comes out fast. Can be good as an 
edge-guarding move.


Lunge Kick ~ Forward + A; 17% damage		

Speed: good
Damage: good
Power: very good
Priority: good
Overall: excellent

This, along with the drill kick, has got to be Kirby's most useful move. It 
comes out fast, has good priority, is a good combo-er (and sets up 
opportunities to connect with other moves) and has pretty good power. Its 
speed is its biggest asset; repeat several times for an easy combo (30 - 50% 
or more), or mix with other moves. This should be a staple of combos and your 
ground game.


Piledriver ~ R; 13% damage

Speed: good
Damage: average
Power: good
Priority: average
Overall: good

Get used to throwing  Kirby has nice throws with good range (especially if 
executed while dashing), and throws are one of the staples of Kirby's game. 
For example, if an opponent is blocking because they see a combo coming (or 
if they've already been sucked into your combo and are blocking to stop any 
additional hits), use your throw - it's unblockable. Anyway, for his 
Piledriver, Kirby grabs the opponent, goes up into the stratosphere (almost) 
and comes down, sending the flying diagonally (upwards and forwards). You'd 
figure that the move would do more damage, but oh well. 


Kirby Suplex ~ R then Back; 16% damage

Speed: good
Damage: good
Power: average
Priority: average
Overall: good

Kirby will flip the opponent over his back, sending them flying. Good as a 
damage raiser. As with his Piledriver, don't be afraid to use this often.
		
<<<< 
AIR:
>>>>

Karate Kick ~ A; 15% damage				

Speed: good
Damage: average
Power: average-good
Priority: good
Overall: good

Useful as a way of hitting your opponent out further without compromising 
much air time (it's safer than spiking). This move is best when used as a 
finisher, while the other character is jumping and trying to recover. Just 
remember that most Up, B recovery moves will go through this move and hit 
you.


Spin Kick ~ Up, A; 8% damage  			

Speed: good
Damage: below average
Power: poor
Priority: average
Overall: poor

Lots of people seem to like this move (the computer does) but I've never 
found it to be anything more than annoying. It's hard to time right, does 
very little damage, and doesn't send your opponent far at all. Plus, when you 
reach the ground there'll be a little recovery time, so you can't use this 
move to set up for a combo. Oh well  at least it looks good.


Drill Kick ~ Down, A; 3%/hit; up to 30% damage	  		

Speed: good
Damage: excellent
Power: poor
Priority: very good
Overall: excellent

If you want to be even remotely good with Kirby, you'll have to master this 
move. This is great in combos, and deals a hefty damage (typical range is 
from 18-24% damage, but if you're good you can connect with the full 30% 
pretty often). Not only is this good over land, but it's great as a spiking 
move (see "Tips and Tricks") as anyone hit by this move over the air will 
plunge downwards, and it will be very hard for them to recover. Since Kirby 
has so many jumps, he is an excellent spiker. Utilize this move. A lot. 


Forwards Drill Kick ~ Forward, A; 3%/hit; up to 21% damage	

Speed: good
Damage: good
Power: poor
Priority: average
Overall: good

Another drill kick, although not as useful as its downwards counter-part. 
Why? Because it can't spike, it doesn't do as much damage, it doesn't have 
the duration of the downwards Drill Kick, it doesn't have as good a priority, 
and for some reason it seems harder to connect with (the range seems a bit 
shorter). It's still good, though.
Backwards Kick ~ Back, A; 16% damage
		
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
7.   Kirby's Special Moves
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

      These are Kirby's trademark moves. There are three special moves for 
each character; each character has an Up, B move, a Down, B move, and a B 
move. Learn to use all of these well, as they are vital to your success as a 
Kirby player. Don't neglect your normal moves in favor of these; while 
Kirby's special moves might look cooler, they are also more predictable 
(especially the stone, which has a half-second or so start-up delay) and have 
longer recovery times.
 
*******
Swallow ~ B, then B to copy; 5% damage
******* ~ B, then A to spit out; 10% damage

Kirby inhales any character within a few feet in front of him. Once 
swallowed, press B to copy them (you get their B attack) or press A to spit 
them out. Anyone hit by the unfortunate character being spit out will take a 
good amount of damage and fly back a ways; it's a good finishing move if you 
can do it. 				

************
Final Cutter ~ Up, B; 13% damage 
************   (the move has three parts of 8%, 2%, and 3% damage each)

Kirby will pull out his little sword thing, and jump up with his sword in his 
hand (part 1); he'll then come down, his sword creating a slight arc as he 
somersaults to go from his up phase to his down phase (part 2); and finally, 
his sword will send a little shockwave forward when he lands (part 3). In 
Kirby's case, as with most other characters, the Up, B move also serves as a 
final jump, so if you can't get back onto the platform with your regular 
jumps, use your Up, B move. Note that once you execute the Up, B move that 
you cannot do anything else until you touch land; so your Up, B move should 
be a move of last resort (except when used as a weapon). 

Kirby's Final Cutter is a good defensive weapon, as most characters will be 
hit, or at best, trade hits, if they try to edge guard Kirby while he is 
executing his Final Cutter. The Final Cutter is also an offensive weapon; if 
someone is over the abyss, execute your Final Cutter right to the side of 
them, so that Kirby will hit them right as he is somersaulting, hitting them 
with the downwards arc of his sword and sending them straight downwards. You 
can do this while still over land, since Kirby's "somersaulting" part of the 
Final Cutter has a little horizontal arch. It takes a bit of practice, but 
it's a deadly move, especially in arenas with "gaps" where someone can fall 
to their doom (e.g. Saffron City).

As a Kirby player, I'd say your most important special is the Final Cutter. I 
hear you saying, "What?! It only does 13% damage!" Yes, but it's an important 
recovery move with very good priority. It also sets up combos very well. 
Finally, it's an excellent spiker. Sure, it's not as damaging as the Stone, 
but it's not as easily blocked or countered. 

*****	 
Stone ~ Down, B; 20% damage		
*****

Kirby will transform into a brick-like form, and drop like... well, like a 
stone. Anyone in its way will be hit diagonally upwards and take a good 20% 
damage (this is Kirby's most powerful one-hit move, apart from spitting out 
DK onto opponents). This is a very good move against computers and 
beginners/intermediates, but experts will see this coming from a mile away as 
it has some start-up delay while Kirby is transforming. Also, a good player 
on the ground will often see your stone dropping and block, then throw you as 
the stone hits the ground (you can be thrown while in stone form).

However, there are tactics you can use that will make stone much more 
effective. Pressing B at any time during the time in which you're "stoned" 
will make you un-transform immediately. So, if you've hit the ground and a 
player is running at you, trying to throw you, press B to un-transform 
faster. This is also true if you've hit the ground and the stone is sliding 
down the ramp, about to go off the edge of the arena. Also, if you see anyone 
blocking and waiting as you are dropping, press B in mid-air to untransform, 
and execute a drill-kick or another combo, either hitting them or forcing 
them to block and setting up a combo. If you have quick fingers, you can 
actually execute stone, untransform (at which point your opponent may stop 
blocking and try to attack you or counter you) and then execute stone again, 
surprising your opponent. Oh, and one last thing: the stone can defend 
against anything other than Electroide's blast, repeated hammer blows or 
throws. This means it's basically an unlimited shield against all other moves 
and projectiles. So, if you see, say, an Arwing coming at you, instead of 
blocking and getting shield broken, use stone instead. This also applies to 
some Pokemon (the stone can guard against Snorlax's coming-down move). Just 
remember that you can be thrown while you're in stone. Also, keep in mind 
that stone only lasts about three seconds or so on the ground.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
8.   Items
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

      There are many items in Super Smash Bros., and they do a nice job of 
further spicing up the action. Some are very cool and require lots of skill 
and/or strategy to use; others are just plain cheap. There are lots of items 
to choose from, so whether you like the heavy-hitting baseball bat, the cool, 
Star Wars-esque Beam Sword, the delightfully devious Motion Sensor Bombs, or 
something else, you'll probably have the item you want.

      When you first get the game, you won't be able to choose items; they'll 
be set on default (all items, Medium occurrence). However, play 50 
multiplayer games, and you'll earn Item Switch, which lets you turn on and 
off any and all items. It also lets you choose from None, Very Low, Low, 
Medium, High, and Very High levels of occurrence. This'll make battles more 
interesting, as you can turn off the items you don't want, and leave the rest 
at Very High occurrence, or do whatever suits your fancy.
      
      I'll describe each item's type (clobbering, health, etc.) as well as a 
rating of its speed (how long it takes to use that item), power, and 
cheapness. You may not agree with me on the "cheapness" factor, and but just 
remember that this is IMHO. And if you're really interested, you can read the 
item's description.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Crate

Type: container
Speed: slow
Power: good
Cheapness: N/A

I don't really recommend using this as a weapon, as it takes a few seconds to 
pick it up and then throw it. Plus, while you are holding the crate above 
your head, you are totally vulnerable for those few seconds; you can't attack 
or even move (DK excepted) except for turning left or right. If you do hit 
someone with it, they will be launched pretty far and take moderate damage, 
more so if the crate happens to be booby-trapped and it contains, instead of 
items, a nasty explosion.

The crate is primarily a way of getting items. If it is broken open, it will 
release one to three items, usually three. I recommend that you simply 
execute a smash attack into it to break it; however, if you have heavy 
damage, you might want to execute the Stone move into it, or pick it up and 
throw it, just in case the crate is booby trapped. Booby-trapped crates are 
rare, but they seem to come about at the most inopportune times.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Barrel

Type: container
Speed: slow
Power: good
Cheapness: N/A

The barrel is similar to the crate, only slightly smaller. As with the crate, 
only DK can carry it around. To break it and reveal its contents, just 
execute a smash attack (a barrel isn't quite as strong as a crate, so a weak 
smash attack or even a combo will do) or pick it up and throw it. As with the 
crate, you're vulnerable when you pick it up, so use attacks to break it open 
instead. Inside will be one to three items, usually two or three. Be careful, 
though, since barrels can also be booby-trapped.

Throw a barrel and it will roll along the stage, not stopping until it goes 
uphill and loses momentum (at which point it will roll back and forth), it 
goes off the edge of the stage, or it hits somebody. Hey, you never know, 
maybe someone will be dumb enough to walk into it.

----------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Chansey Egg

Type: container
Speed: N/A
Power: none
Cheapness: N/A

It's just a little egg that Chansey throws. Chansey can appear either from a 
Pokeball or as a wild Pokemon in Saffron City. These eggs will break open 
when hit (you cannot pick them up or throw them) and reveal an item... or an 
explosion.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Capsule

Type: container
Speed: fast
Power: weak
Cheapness: N/A

Similar to the Chansey Egg, except that it can appear anywhere and can be 
picked up and thrown. It also releases either an item or an explosion. If you 
see one, either break it open immediately or throw it at someone else. If you 
throw it at someone else (capsules fly at a pretty good speed) the person 
will be hit, taking weak damage (unless of course the capsule is booby-
trapped), and the capsule will break. Sometimes, if you do this, the person 
who's been hit will recover and take the item... not always good. So, if you 
want to make sure you keep the item, break it yourself. I recommend jumping 
up and throwing it down. This way is quick and won't result in any harm if 
the capsule turns out to be booby-trapped. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Beam Sword 

Type: clobbering
Speed: medium
Power: strong
Cheapness: low-medium

This is one of my favorite weapons. It is a cool, glowing sword (basically, 
it's a lightsaber) that takes the place of your A-attacks, like all 
clobbering weapons. A smash attack will send the opponent flying and will do 
about 25% damage in the process. 

The sword is undoubtedly a handy weapon, yet it's not too cheap since it 
requires a degree of skill to use it well. A well-handled beamsword is a 
deadly weapon. As Kirby, pressing just A will make Kirby just "wave" his 
sword in front of him; little damage, but a good keep-away-er. Strong and 
Smash attacks are big swipes, handy as edge-guarding or finishing moves. You 
can also do a dashing attack with the sword by pressing A while running; 
Kirby will lunge with the sword, doing only moderate damage but often 
catching opponents off guard. The sword can also be used to block projectiles 
(although I wouldn't rely on it). Two people with swords can have a 
lightsaber battle, which can look quite impressive. Another thing to note is 
that the sword goes a long way, upwards or forwards, when thrown, and does 
pretty good damage if it hits somebody in the air (it even does some damage 
if it hits them on the bounce). If you see this weapon, go out of your way to 
get it.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Home Run Bat 

Type: clobbering
Speed: slow
Power: very strong
Cheapness: medium-high

True to its name, the Home Run Bat will send any opponent out of the arena, 
should they be hit by a smash attack from it. This applies no matter how much 
damage they have, and no matter who your opponent is. The only exceptions are 
if they are in that dip in Hyrule Castle, surrounded by a little tower on one 
side and a wall on the other; an opponent with very little damage standing 
there may survive if hit, as they'll bounce off the two walls, which will 
absorb most of the impact. Also, if a player is hit downwards or bumps hard 
into an obstacle on their flight up, they may survive.

Amongst beginners this weapon is extremely cheap, as most beginners aren't 
adept at blocking/rolling, and they may not see it coming. More experienced 
players, however, will recognize the telltale sparkle of the bat and 
instinctively roll; it's hard to hit an experienced player. So, if you're 
facing good players, throw the bat and catch them off guard; you probably 
won't catch them with a Homer, and in other attacks the bat does little 
damage.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Hammer

Type: clobbering
Speed: fast
Power: Strong-Very Strong
Cheapness: extreme

Anyone who picks up a hammer will immediately be sent into a clobbering 
frenzy, where they'll keep hammering with the hammer for ten to fifteen 
seconds. Anyone hit by the hammer will sustain 30% damage and fly upwards; 
two or three hits will kill you. It's not hard to see why this item is so 
cheap.

There are a few downsides to using a hammer, however: the hammering person 
can only jump once, and cannot do anything but hammer. Sometimes, if a 
character with a low first-jump (like Kirby) gets the hammer, it will be 
hard, if not impossible, for him/her to get to the topmost platform. You 
should take advantage of this fact if your opponent has the hammer. Also, a 
hammering person is NOT invincible; any attack with higher priority than the 
hammer (Kirby's stone is one) will send the person reeling. Sometimes they'll 
lose the hammer (at which point anyone else can get it), sometimes not; but 
it's a good way to buy time. Also, if they fall of the edge while they've got 
the hammer, they won't be able to get back, since you can't use any recovery 
moves while you have the hammer. The hammer cannot be canceled. The only way 
it will end is if time runs out or if the person is hit by a strong attack.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Fan

Type: clobbering
Speed: very fast
Power: weak
Cheapness: high

The fan is very weak; even a smash attack from it will only do 8% damage, and 
less if you use the fan too much. Its primary function lies in its power to 
combo and break shields. One smash attack from a fan will break most shields, 
at which point the opponent will be dizzy and vulnerable for a few seconds. 
At this point, Kirby should use his Stone, or Drill Kick. Also, a fan's smash 
attack is very fast, especially with Kirby, who has good speed on all of his 
smash attacks. The fan also has a vacuum effect, so once you hit someone with 
the fan, they'll be drawn towards you, at which point you can hit them again 
and again. Very annoying, and the damage will mount up.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Motion Sensor Bomb

Type: placement
Speed: fast
Power: strong
Cheapness: low-medium

Remember those Proximity Mines from Goldeneye, the ones we all know and love? 
Of course you do! Well, these are the same things. Pick 'em up, and throw 
them somewhere. In a few seconds, they'll become active, and from then on 
whoever steps on them... KABOOM! Place them in dark corners, on the very 
sides of arenas (good for players trying to come back... he, he) or places 
where they blend into the surroundings. Use them strategically  taunt an 
opponent till they come after you, not knowing that a proxy mine is between 
you and him; place them on the clouds on Yoshi's Island; put them right next 
to valuable items; Whatever. In any case, I don't regard these as cheap as it 
takes strategy to place them well  any retard can see a proxy mine placed 
right in front of them. By the way, as you are playing, listen for the 
"thblapp" sound of a proxy mine being placed; conversely, if you're the one 
placing them, talk or distract your opponents so they won't hear you placing 
the mine. It's all about deviousness.

One last thing: don't forget where you put your proxies. There's nothing 
worse  and I mean nothing  than being killed by your own proximity mines.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Bumper

Type: placement
Speed: fast
Power: pathetic
Cheapness: medium

It's just a little circular thing emblazoned with the "cross" logo that's 
everywhere in Super Smash Brothers (I think it's the logo of the company that 
worked with Hal Laboratories in developing SSB, but I'm not sure). Anyway, 
throw it and it will implant itself somewhere. If it hits someone while it's 
in the air, that player will receive slight damage and fly back a bit. While 
the bumper is on the ground, whoever hits it will receive a whopping 1% 
damage and fly a good five feet. The bumper will last on the ground for 
several seconds. Basically, all it's good for is putting it on the edge and 
hoping that someone gets hit by it while they're coming back.

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Pokeball

Type: throwing
Speed: varies
Power: varies
Cheapness: varies

Throw it and a Pokemon will be unleashed. The Pokemon will come out, do its 
thing, and disappear. The best way to use the Pokeball is to throw it at 
somebody. The Pokeball'll hit them, and when they get up, the Pokemon that 
comes out will unleash its attack for a one-two punch. Note that you cannot 
kill the Pokemon; if you try, its body will only damage you (the wild 
Charmander and Chansey that appear in Saffron City are the exceptions; they 
can be killed with a smash attack). The Pokemon range from useless to 
extremely damaging, and include: (sorry if I misspell names or whatever, I'm 
not into Pokemon)

*******
Beedril
*******

An initial Beedril will come out (the initial one is the most powerful), and 
then a whole swarm of Beedril will follow, dealing 12% per hit. If you're 
caught in the wrong place at the wrong time, it could be painful.

*********
Blastoise
*********

A big turtle thing; it comes out and shoots rays of water. One of the Pokemon 
whose attacks can't be reflected. Anyway, while the attack won't do much 
damage, it can be useful for edge guarding. Blastoise will slowly back away 
with each shot it fires, and often falls off the edge before it disappears.

*******
Chansey
*******

A cute little... thing... that comes out and sends out several eggs. They can 
be broken open to reveal an item. (see "Chansey Egg", above)

*********
Charizard
*********

A great dragon (or whatever it is) that comes out and spews fire in both 
directions. The body itself is quite harmful and will dish out lots of 
damage, so stay away. Also stay away from the fire, obviously. One of the 
best Pokemon to have.

********
Clefairy
********

A Pokemon that will come out, and imitate another Pokemon. Its attack will be 
similar to that of the Pokemon it imitates (Clefairy will behave like the 
Pokemon it's imitating when it comes out of the Pokeball; look carefully so 
you know which one it's imitating), except that the attack will be shorter 
but come quicker.

*******
Goldeen
*******

It's supposed to be a fish, or something like that. It just flops around 
pathetically for a while. It can't damage anyone.
 
******
Meowth
******

Potentially, the best Pokemon. It spews coins, which have about the same 
affect on you as Mario's uppercut. The difference is that, each coin of 
Meowth's does 3% damage, which is absolutely incredible when you consider 
that there are several coins in each stream, and Meowth is spewing out four 
streams of coins (in each direction) at all times. Ouch. Luckily, Kirby is 
light, and will usually be batted away with the first few coins. This also 
happens with most other characters, causing only 20-30% damage, at most. 
However, with big, heavy characters like DK, the coins will do much more 
damage, especially in the very rare case that the character actually gets 
trapped under Meowth. In these cases, the damage supposedly can get to 999%, 
although the best I've witnessed is about 150-200%.

***  
Mew
***

A very rare Pokemon, Mew comes out and glitters nicely, slowly rising to the 
sky. It does nothing other than giving you points in single-player, and 
making Pokemon fans shout, "Oh my God, Mew! Mew!"

**** 
Onix
****

A huge rock snake, whatever that is. It shoots upward to the sky, doing heavy 
damage and usually killing whoever's in its upwards path. It then sends a 
stream of boulders downwards in a small section of the arena, which do pretty 
good damage and can occasionally cause a heavily-damaged player to "rise to 
heaven", as each boulder knocks the player upward.

******* 
Snorlax
*******

A big fat Pokemon, Snorlax will rise to the top of the screen and then come 
down a few seconds later, only immensely fattened (and very pixilated  the 
developers used the "small Snorlax" sprite for the big Snorlax). It will do 
moderate to heavy damage to anyone caught under it, as well as knocking them 
pretty far. As Kirby, you can simply do your Stone move and it will protect 
you from Snorlax's ass.

******* 
Starmie
*******

It'll come out, and home in on the nearest player, flying until it's 
sufficiently close and at the same level as that player. It will then send a 
stream of... stars (I think) towards that player, each of which will do 3% 
damage. The easiest way to escape Starmie is to simply fly up (especially 
easy with Kirby) or drop down to another level. I think that if you crouch 
with Kirby, you can avoid the shots, but I'm not sure. Anyway, if you do get 
caught, you'll probably take moderate damage, as each shot knocks you up 
slightly and puts you in position to be hit by the next shot.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Bob-omb

Type: throwing
Speed: fast
Power: very strong
Cheapness: low-medium

It's just your standard little bomb. Only twist is, leave it alone for five 
seconds or so, and it'll start walking around. Anyone who hits it will 
detonate it, and if no one hits it within ten or so seconds if it walking 
around, it will stop, start flashing, and detonate itself. The best way to 
use the Bob-omb, though, is to pick it up (before the five seconds is up) and 
throw it at an opponent. Don't worry, the Bo-bomb's time fuse won't go out in 
your hand; however, if someone hits you hard while you're carrying the Bo-
bomb, it'll fall out of your hands and most likely be detonated by the 
attack. (Link, in particular, has many moves that can do this.) So, it's best 
for you to get rid of the Bo-bomb as quickly as possible, preferably by 
"handing" it to someone else. Anyone who gets hit by the Bo-bomb will take up 
to 40% damage and fly away home.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Red Shell

Type: throwing
Speed: medium-fast
Power: weak-medium
Cheapness: medium-high

Pick it up and throw it, and on whatever platform it lands, it will travel 
back and forth. It won't skip platforms, as it can't travel through the air, 
and it won't fall down onto another platform. It'll just move along that one 
platform at a pretty good speed, homing in on players and doing 10% damage. 
Not too useful, except to occasionally edge-guard weak characters.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Green Shell

Type: throwing
Speed: medium-fast
Power: strong
Cheapness: low

Pick it up and throw it at someone. Depending on with how much force you 
throw it (press A to throw it weakly, Forward, A to throw it with some force, 
and Forward+A to throw it with pretty good speed), it will either land and 
stay there, or keep rolling for a while. Unlike the red shell, the green 
shell will fall off platforms. Anyway, a player hit while the green shell is 
still in the air will take good damage; a player hit by the green shell as 
it's rolling along will still take moderate damage. Careful not to throw the 
green shell into walls or obstacles, as it may bounce back and hit you while 
you're still in your "throw" animation.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Ray Gun

Type: projectile
Speed: fast
Power: weak-medium
Cheapness: extreme

Pick it up, and shoot someone with its lightning fast shots. Note how each 
shot knocks the other player back and up a little bit, right in line for the 
next shot... hmmm, since I have sixteen shots, I might as well... y'see, 
that's why this weapon is so cheap. You just keep shooting and shooting, and 
with 8% damage per shot, it'll add up to a lot of damage, as well as one 
mightily pissed opponent. In fact, if you can catch someone at the edge of 
the arena, you can keep juggling them until they actually hit the horizontal 
boundary!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Star Rod

Type: clobbering/projectile
Speed: slow-medium
Power: medium-strong
Cheapness: low

One of the most under-rated weapons in the game. The Star Rod can be used to 
hit people, much like a sword, only not quite as powerful. The cool thing is, 
though, execute a strong/smash attack, and in addition to a powerful swipe of 
the Rod, it will send out a star that will do pretty good damage if it hits 
someone. The Star Rod holds twenty stars, which is a lot; if you do run out, 
though, you can still use it as a clobbering weapon. Quite useful.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Fire Flower

Type: stream
Speed: slow-medium
Power: strong
Cheapness: high-extreme

The Fire Flower sends streams of fire at your opponent. Each time you press A 
 and keep in mind that there is a slight start up delay  it will fire five 
"shots" of fire, each doing 3% damage. Now take into account that the Fire 
Flower has a vast depository, and you've got a recipe for major damage. In 
fact, if you can corner someone and you keep blasting away with it, they'll 
easily sustain 100% + damage, occasionally rising into the 150% + range. 
Shielding doesn't work much, as the steady stream of fire will not let you 
put your shield down, until it breaks or you're hit by the fire. If the fire 
flower runs out of ammo, it can be thrown, dealing moderate damage to 
whoever's hit by it. Bottom line: try to stay away.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Maxim(um) Tomato

Type: healing
Speed: N/A
Power: N/A
Cheapness: high

I never really liked Healing items, mostly since they seem a bit unfair. 
Anyway, eat a Maxim Tomato and up to 100% of your damage will be taken away. 
Basically, it's health. The only thing to take into account is that, if you 
are hit during the few seconds it takes to heal, you will still fly and you 
can still die. (It's pretty funny to send someone into the background, as you 
watch their damage go down and as they're sparkling.)

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Heart

Type: Healing
Speed: N/A
Power: N/A
Cheapness: very high

It's the same as a Maxim Tomato, except it will take off all your damage. 
Ugh, yuck.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Star

Type: Invincibility
Speed: N/A
Power: N/A
Cheapness: medium-high

In theory, the star should be quite cheap and make a difference in hard-
fought battles. Well, it is quite cheap, and it can make a difference, except 
that it only lasts ten seconds, which is much too short of a time span to 
really accomplish anything significant, especially since anyone in their 
right mind will be running away and dodging your attacks.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
9.   Arenas
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

      There are eight arenas that you can play in in Multiplayer, plus a few 
other one-player only arenas. There's also a hidden arena. Anyway, you should 
know about the arenas, their layout, dangers, helps, and other miscellaneous 
info. The arenas vary widely in size, as well as in layout: some float, some 
are actually made of a series of rooftops, and some are on the ground. 
Anyway, I'll rate the arena's size, its fun level (out of five), and how it 
suits Kirby, as well as tell you of any hazards/helps in the arenas. I'll 
also give a brief description. Happy?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Peach's Castle

Size: small - medium
Fun: ***
Kirby Rating: **
Hazards: Bumper
Helps: Moving platform, Ramps

Well, it's a medium sized floating arena, with the real Peach's Castle in the 
background. The main platform is rather short, with two little rope bridges 
leading off to each side. Below the main platform  and you can drop down to 
it or jump up from it  is a smaller platform, which is handy for unleashing 
surprise attacks on those on the upper platform (most Up+A or Up, B moves 
will hit a person on the platform above you). At the bottom of the arena 
there is a moving platform that's quite long (longer than the arena itself). 
The platform moves left and right across the arena, and can be useful if 
you're trying to get back onto the arena and it is on your side of the arena. 

Above the main platform of the arena is a bumper that slowly moves in a short 
left-right path; while it only does 1% damage when you hit it, it is quite 
annoying and can break up your moves. This is especially true with Kirby, who 
possesses many vertical moves (his jumps, drill kick, final cutter, stone, 
etc. can all be screwed up by the bumper). The bumper also restricts aerial 
movement, or makes it a bit harder to get around. Not a big deal, but it's 
there, and it's annoying. To both sides of the bumper are two ramps; these do 
nothing aerodynamical other than sometimes slowing down your flight if you 
are hit into their sides and bottom. They come in handy, sometimes.  

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Yoshi's Island

Size: medium
Fun: **
Kirby Rating: ***
Hazards: None
Helps: Clouds

The arena itself is small, but there is one cloud to the left of the arena 
and two clouds to the right. The second cloud on the right is quite a 
distance from the arena; not only does this extend the right boundary (making 
it harder for a character to die), it also gives characters coming back a 
chance to get back on. Beware, though, that the clouds will disappear about 
three seconds of someone stepping on them, so if you feel like simply shying 
away from the action by hiding on the clouds (not advised  all characters 
can get onto the clouds; some, like Kirby, just have an easier time of it) 
you'll have to constantly jump to avoid the cloud disappearing at you feet. 
If a cloud does disappear, it reappears several seconds later.

The arena is fashioned in the shape of Yoshi's Storybook (how cute!). The 
main platform is shaped like a book  lower in the middle and higher at the 
sides  with little platforms above the main platform and a longer platform 
at the top. Pretty standard stuff. Usually, the only reason I play in Yoshi's 
Island is to have fun with the clouds  put proxies on them, taunt from them, 
whatever. Still, the arena's pretty good for Kirby, since the clouds make for 
lots of aerial action.

Note: there is one good trick that you can do with Kirby (actually with any 
character, but Kirby does it easiest) relating to the clods on this level. 
It's pretty funny and I guarantee it'll work the first time, and probably 
many times after that. See "Tips and Tricks" for details.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Congo Jungle

Size: small-medium
Fun: **
Kirby Rating: **
Hazards: None
Helps: Barrel

Well, its got a remix of the classic DK music, but even that is a little 
restrained and not as catchy as the real tune. The rest of the level is also 
rather bland. Amongst a nice jungle background, with birds in the distance, 
is a relatively small stage. The stage has a main platform, which is not 
uniform in height (it rises at the ends). Above the main platform are two 
little platforms, on either side, that are tilted downwards. In the middle of 
arena there are a couple of floating platforms that go around in a loop.

The problem is that this arena is quite small, and the platforms limit aerial 
moves, so you (and every other character) will have to rely mostly on ground 
attacks. Kirby has good attacks, but his arsenal of moves is shortened a bit. 
One good thing is that you can actually jump off the stage, and jump back up 
through the bottom of the stage. It can sometimes surprise people. Another 
good thing is the fact that there's a barrel moving left and right below the 
stage, so if you can't quite make it back onto the stage, you can always try 
for the barrel. Note that you can't stay in the barrel too long, or it will 
spit you out, in a random direction (i.e. almost always downwards). The 
barrel seems to benefit other characters more than Kirby, since Kirby has 
good enough flight ability to need the barrel only very rarely.  

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Dream Land

Size: small
Fun: ****
Kirby Rating: *****
Hazards: Tree
Helps: None

Now we're talkin'! Welcome to Dream Land, the home of Kirby. It's the 
smallest arena in Super Smash Brothers, and it's a rather plain one at that. 
It's a little island with a nice path going through it, as well as a pond and 
some pretty flowers. There are three platforms, two near each end of the 
arena and one higher platform in the middle. The only other feature is that 
tree from the Kirby games (I forgot its name) that blows characters... off 
the arena, that is. Actually, it's very weak and does very little to impact 
the game.

However, don't judge the arena to be bad because of its small size and simple 
layout. It's definitely one of the best in the game. Not only is it fun, but 
its small size and plain layout guarantees all-out fighting, with no hiding 
or running away. Beginners mightn't like this, but it's heaven for experts 
who want a serious battle. Plus, the music is very cool, kind of bouncy and 
cute, but not too cute. Just like Kirby.

This arena is very good for Kirby. There's plenty of room above the platforms 
for aerial attacks, and the small size guarantees a lot of blocking, rolling, 
nasty combos, edge-guarding, and spiking, all of which Kirby excels at. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Hyrule Castle

Size: large
Fun: *****
Kirby Rating: ****
Hazards: Tornado
Helps: None

Another one of my favorite stages. In fact, almost everyone, regardless of 
who they play as, likes this stage. Why? Simply, because it's a good looking 
stage that's well designed, has a nice background, and offers different 
venues of fighting.

Hyrule Castle is a stage where you're basically fighting on the roof of a 
castle. I would have liked it if there were parapets and towers or what not, 
but instead you've got more of a linear stage. A few spiked towers are there 
for cosmetic purposes in the foreground, and forests and streams can be seen 
in the background, far below the castle. (This is probably one of the coolest 
and most impressive backgrounds. Zoom in while you are jumping in the air for 
an even better effect.)

Anyway, on the far-left part of the stage is a little sloping roof that drops 
off a bit from the main platform of the stage. It's a good place for Kirby to 
be, as it's good for aerial stuff and edge-guarding. The main platform is to 
the right, and is just a moderately long stretch of flat ground. In the 
middle of the main platform is a tower (it's actually only there in the 
background  it cant be interacted with) with platforms going up; jump up 
onto the upper platform and you'll get items (it's one of the places where 
many items seem to appear), as well as be in a good position for jumping and 
launching aerial attacks. To the right of the main platform is another small 
platform, which also drops down from the main platform. At the place where 
the right platform drops from the main one, a little wall is formed, perfect 
for "playing tennis" and executing ground based combos. In the middle of this 
platform is a small tower, which can be interacted with (i.e. you can go 
through it, jump up onto it, etc.) A sneaky place to put mines is in the dark 
spot underneath the tower.

So that's the layout. Overall, it's a cool arena, and a good one for 
beginners and experts alike. It offers many cool places to fight and use 
items, so if you're an item-phile, seek out Hyrule. One last thing: there is 
a tornado that periodically appears for a while on any of the three main 
platforms; stay away from it or you'll be thrown high (sometimes too high) 
and take damage. It usually moves slowly, but sometimes erratically speeds up 
 a real pain. It will kill Kirby at only 90% damage or so, so be careful!  

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Sector Z

Size: very large
Fun: *****
Kirby Rating: ****
Hazards: Arwing
Helps: None

Another great arena. You're fighting in outer space, on the top of Great Fox 
(that's Fox's starship). The arena is huge, and spans from the front of Great 
Fox's spine through to its tail and the little section after its tail. In the 
background is a big nebula of sorts, as well as stars and some floating crap. 
The main platform at the left (the spine of the ship) is very long and 
slightly slanted upwards, good for all-out fighting and item using. The main 
platform slopes up into the tail, which drops down onto a small, lower 
platform. This lower platform is a cool place for Kirby to be because, as in 
Hyrule Castle, you can use the wall formed by the tail to play tennis with 
other characters (except the other characters aren't playing with you  
they're being played by you and the wall, if you know what I'm saying). Also, 
drop off of the tail and you'll have plenty of air space to perform cool 
combos (this applies to the whole stage).

The hazard in this stage is the Arwing, a little plane that zooms by every 
now and then. It flies horizontally across either of the two platforms (the 
main platform and the little tail platform) and starts shooting the shirt out 
of anyone in its way, using its front-mounted laser blasters. Each laser shot 
does 16% damage, and, since two shots come out at the same time, you'll 
probably be hit by both and receive a good 32% damage. Ouch. If you block, 
your shield will be broken after only two volleys of shots (the Arwing fires 
a total of four volleys, or eight shots per appearance) so it's better to use 
Stone to guard. Still, it's better to be shield broken than dead. The Arwing 
also does quick diving attacks, where it quickly (and without warning) flies 
across the screen, targeting characters and launching blaster shots at them. 
If you hear the sound of the blasters being fired, quickly jump (I don't 
think you can block these shots, and you definitely cannot block them with 
Kirby's shield). Just be careful  the Arwing is by far the most dangerous 
"single-encounter" stage hazard.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Planet Zebes

Size: medium-large
Fun: *****
Kirby Rating: ***
Hazards: Acid
Helps: Vertically moving platform

A lotta people hate this stage. They complain that the acid screws up their 
playing, and the stage sucks because you can't really spike, and overall the 
stage is too hard. Well, screw them. This stage has to be one of the most fun 
stages in the game. Maybe not the most fair  if you had a dispute over who's 
a better player, this might not be your preferred stage  but definitely one 
of the most challenging.

Anyways, Planet Zebes is home of Samus Aran. It's a little floating world, 
with a sea of acid below (yeah, that's the yellow stuff). The acid can 
actually help, because if you fall off the stage and you can't get back on, 
at least you won't fall to your death: you might be singed by the acid, but 
not necessarily killed by it. The only complication is, that the acid has a 
habit of moving up and engulfing the stage at the most inopportune times 
(i.e. when you're fighting). So, when you fight on Zebes, don't just pay 
attention to your opponents; also pay attention to the acid, because at 16% 
damage a hit, it'll hurt ya. Luckily, the acid gives you fair warning; 
whenever it's about to rise, the planet rocks back and forth, an indication 
for everyone to scramble onto the highest platforms. Of course, this is when 
the fighting gets... interesting, with everyone trying to kill everyone else, 
but still trying to stay on. Note that the acid sometimes rises only a bit 
and sometimes rises a lot; however, it never rises to the highest platform, 
so seek refuge there, just in case. Lastly, there's a moving platform to the 
right of the arena that goes up and down. It may be risky to stay on it, but 
at least you'll avoid all the other players scrambling to the one top 
platform.    

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Saffron City

Size: large
Fun: ****
Kirby Rating: *****
Hazards: Wild Pokemon
Helps: Vertically moving platforms

This is one of the more... unique arenas. Basically, you're fighting on 
several rooftops, some being rather small, and some (like the main "platform" 
in the middle) being of medium size. As usual, there are abysses on both 
sides of the arena, but there are also gaps between the buildings, where you 
can also fall to your doom. Undoubtedly, this is good spiking country for 
Kirby.

There are some vertically moving platforms on the left of the arena (buoyed 
up by fans from the buildings... cool!) that may add an element of luck to 
your recovery. On the right side of the arena is just a little rooftop, 
painted out to be a helipad, from which you can have immense amounts of fun 
spiking and edge guarding. One of the most important features of the stage is 
the Pokemon. Yes, Pokemon in their home stage  how very weird. Anyway, wild 
Pokemon will pop out of that little door in the main platform, surprising 
(and usually damaging) whoever's on the main platform. You'll get some 
warning, though, because the door will open and light will shine through. The 
Pokemon will then come out after ten or twenty seconds, or when they're 
triggered (by some idiot walking into the door). The Pokemon are:


Electroide

A bomb of some sorts. It comes out, shakes for a few seconds, and explodes, 
doing a lot of damage to whoever's near it. Note that shields (including 
Stone) cannot protect you from Electroide, so if you see him, get away.

Charmander

Whatever it is, it comes out, sometimes blasting a stream of fire that will 
do moderate damage. If it doesn't blast fire, its body will still do 
damage... although you can change that by smash-attacking the stupid Pokemon 
and sending him flying.

Venosaur

Comes out, shoots leaves (or whatever they are), doing some damage and 
annoying whoever's hit.

Chansey

Throws a few eggs onto the main platform. Yummy, protein! Also, if you walk 
into the door while Chansey is there, and touch Chansey, you'll recover by 
5%. Hey, y'never know, it might just come in handy. (Note: this only applies 
to the wild Chansey.) After you've recovered, thank Chansey... by smash-
attacking it out of the box. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Mushroom Kingdom (secret arena)

Size: medium-large
Fun: *****
Kirby Rating: ***
Hazards: Piranha Plants
Helps: Tubes

Well, if this doesn't make you nostalgic, nothing will. It's the old Super 
Mario Bros. all over again, with its piranha plants (emerging from those 
classic green tubes, of course), POW block (hit it and anyone on land gets 
thrown up and takes 20% damage) and balancing scale on the middle (don't stay 
too long, or the scale will tip over). Even the background, with paratroopers 
bouncing on spring blocks, is a trip to the past.

Other unique parts of the arena include the fact that you cannot fall off, 
except for the middle gap, which has the balancing scale over it. Even the 
balancing scale gives ample warning that it's about to drop, so very few 
(human) players will drop off in this arena. Unfortunately, the balancing 
also makes it a little hard for Kirby to spike successfully. Other cool 
things are the piranha plant tubes. Press Down while standing over them (of 
course, while the piranha plants aren't popped up) and you'll transport to 
the second tube. That, or the sewer tube, that leads out in the middle of one 
of the sides of the gap. Don't worry, though, since it's easy to jump back up 
onto the stage (especially with Kirby). Just think of the tubes as a creative 
way to escape an attacker, or at least gain time. Another cool part of the 
level is to the bottom right of it; there is an overhanging wall covering 
that whole section of level  perfect for combos.

Finally, one last note: you can walk off the edge of the stage if you walk to 
the left or right too far  so be careful. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
10.   One-player Walkthrough
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

      Super Smash Bros. is meant to be a multi-player game. Hell, even if 
you're alone, you can play multiplayer with the computer-controlled 
opponents. Because of this, the one-player mode is not as fun, nor as 
replayable, as the multiplayer; however, it's still not bad, and if you're 
good at Smash Bros. and you're looking for a challenge, try getting high 
scores in single player. And, you'll have to beat single player under various 
conditions (see "Secrets") to get the hidden characters and access secret 
stuff, so, like it or not, you'll have to play through the one-player mode a 
few times, at least.
      
      The one-player mode is made of fourteen different stages, each with one 
or more opponents. Sometimes, you will have allies, too. The object of the 
one-player game is to survive (obviously) to the end of the quest, and pick 
up points along the way. You can choose between five difficulties: 

********************************************************************

Very Easy: recommended for temporarily blind players.

Easy: you might have to actually pick up your controller on this mode.

Normal: The equivalent of the "Easy" setting on most games.

Hard: A challenge, to say the most. Try this after you've trained a bit or 
have played the CPU a little.

Very Hard: If you're pretty good at this game, you'll be able to get      
through this difficulty with a fair amount challenge. It's no cakewalk, but 
it's definitely not Perfect Agent, either.

***********************************************************************

      You also have to choice of setting your stock (lives) from one to five; 
obviously, you'll have an easier time if you set the stock to five. There is 
no penalty for doing this, so it'll always benefit you if you set your stock 
higher (unless you're solely trying to challenge yourself). If you use up all 
of your lives (shame on you), you can always continue, but your score will be 
cut in half.

      Speaking of your score, you get points for the amount of time left on 
the timer (which is set to 5:00 for each stage), the amount of damage 
inflicted on your opponent, and special bonuses. You can get special bonuses 
for using only a few particular moves (Hawk if you only use aerial moves, 
Judo Warrior if you use only throws, Smash-less if you don't use smash 
attacks, etc.), for beating a stage under 30 seconds, for killing multiple 
opponents in order, and for pure luck/coincidence (you get a bonus if the 
opponent kills him/herself without you hitting them; you also get a bonus if 
your opponent dies just before you are about to). With these special bonuses, 
you can get your score to around 1.5 million points (the highest I've heard 
of is 1.4 million). With Kirby, I can score around 1.4 million if I'm very 
lucky and get many bonuses. Many of the bonuses are mostly luck, so even if 
you play with the goal of trying to get a good score, and play well, you'll 
probably only get 1.0 to 1.2 million points without luck.

      Anyway, for this walkthrough, I'll be concentrating mostly on survival 
and playing well, rather than luck and special bonuses. However, if there is 
a particularly valuable or notable special bonus in a stage, I'll tell you 
about it. 

      On with the walkthrough!

<<<STILL UNDER CONSTRUCTION>>>

I.    Link

II.   Yoshi Team

III.  Fox

IV.   Bonus 1: Break the Targets 

V.    Mario Brothers

VI.   Pikachu

VII.  Giant DK

VIII. Bonus 2: Board the Platforms

IX.   Kirby Team

X.    Samus

XI.   Metal Mario

XII.  Bonus 3: Race to the Finish

XIII. Fighting Polygon Team

XIV.  Master Hand

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
11.   Tips & Tricks
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

- EDGE-GUARD! If you see someone in the air trying to make it back onto land, 
go to the edge and wait until they are almost on land. Then, BAM! Unleash a 
smash attack on them (for Kirby the best choices would probably be Forward+A 
or Down+A) and make sure that they never come back, edge-guarding repeatedly 
if necessary, and not stopping till they fall to their doom (or hit you over 
the head with their controller). Do be careful when edge-guarding, since 
experienced players controlling characters with Up, B moves which have good 
priority (like Samus, Captain Falcon) may be able to override your edge guard 
move and hit you instead. Still, edge guarding is NOT cheap; it is effective 
and smart. 

- Spike! A type of edge-guarding move, except that spiking occurs in the air. 
To spike, use a character's aerial Down, A move (in Kirby's case, his Drill 
Kick) to hit an opponent downwards while they are in the air, and into the 
abyss below the arena. To spike someone, jump off the edge after them, 
execute your spike on them, and then jump back onto the edge. Usually, a 
player who's been spiked won't be able to get back up on land. Kirby is 
probably the best spiker there is, in part because of his many jumps and 
great spike (it only takes one hit from his many-hit drill kick to spike a 
player). Kirby's only weakness is that a character with good priority may 
execute an aerial move that nullifies the spike and may sometimes even hit 
Kirby! However, as long as you spike from above, and not from the side, this 
shouldn't be much of an issue. Spiking is one of Kirby's strengths! 
Capitalize on it!

- Know Kirby's style! Like I said, Kirby is meant to be an offensive 
character. Even though Kirby has a wonderful form of blocking (the Stone 
move), you should still play aggressively, since Kirby is a good combo-er and 
his moves can do a lot of damage. However, do not play TOO aggressively or 
else you may well get knocked off early. If you want a defensive character, 
then you may want to try using another character instead. Samus is an example 
of a good defensive character.

- Do not overuse Kirby's shield  it is one of the smallest ones in the game. 
If you do not want to get your shield broken, you can use Stone to act as a 
shield to everything except the Hammer and throws.  

- Roll. Kirby has a great, quick, roll that is extremely useful in getting 
out of tight situations. Because it is so fast, and since Kirby is invincible 
during most of the roll, you'll almost never be hit out of a roll (unless 
someone launches a projectile at you). Also, since Kirby's roll is so fast, 
most players won't be able to respond quickly enough to prepare a 
counterattack (for example, they probably won't be quick enough to run over 
to you and throw you when you block as you are coming out of the roll).  

- Use items well. This can mean using them as bait, throwing them at the 
right time, and knowing when to keep the item and use it. Oh, and by the way, 
if you have a Motion Sensor Bomb, put it against a wall  it is virtually 
invisible there, and will give anyone a nasty little (or big) surprise!

- Use throws a lot, especially against turtle players who block all of your 
attacks (throws are unblockable). Kirby has a pretty fast dash and a quick 
throw, so it's good to have an itchy R-button.

- Use Kirby's regular throw (R, then R again) to get to a higher platform, if 
needed. This can also make it easier to kill an opponent with that throw.

- You may already know this from other videogames, but tapping down when 
you're on a platform will make you drop off that platform. Also, tapping down 
in the air will make you fall faster. This can actually have a practical 
purpose other than speeding you up. For instance, if you're in the air and 
your opponent expects you to fall down slowly and execute an attack, tap down 
to fall faster, surprising your opponent.

- Suicide, if need be (I'm talking about in the game, folks). By suiciding, 
and taking down another player with you, you can do yourself a world of good. 
For example, let's say you're playing a Stock match. You and your opponent 
have the same number of stock, but you have 150% damage while your opponent 
has 20% damage. Suicide! You're gonna die pretty soon anyway, so why not take 
your opponent (who should be able to last a while longer) with you! Kirby has 
two suicide moves that can take the other person down, too:

1.	Fly over the edge while your opponent is standing on the edge.
Use Swallow to suck your opponent in with you, and both of you will 
fly over the edge. If you have only used one or two of your jumps, 
spit your opponent out while you two are going down; Kirby may be 
able to fly back up onto land, but your opponent probably won't be 
able to.
      
      2. Use Kirby's primary throw (R, then R again) while you and your
opponent are really close to the edge, and facing the edge. Believe 
it or not, the throw actually has a tiny bit of horizontal range, so 
if you're close enough to the edge when you execute the throw, 
you'll come down... into the abyss. A very cool way to let it all 
go.

- This is the funny Yoshi's Island trick that I was talking about. Basically, 
you get a person very, VERY annoyed at you while you are on the second cloud 
on the right (the one farthest from the arena). Actually, you can do this 
trick on any cloud, but the farthest cloud works best. 

Anyway, for this trick, absorb a cheap power (Mario's fireball, Pika's 
electricity thing, etc.) and continuously use it while you're on the cloud. 
Sometimes, the projectile won't even make it to the stage, but it will annoy 
your opponent(s). Or, if you can't absorb an annoying power, just taunt on 
the cloud. Remember that you have to be constantly jumping up and down, or 
else the cloud will disappear under your feet, and you don't want that to 
happen... yet. So, just jump and throw projectiles, or taunt, jump, taunt, 
jump, and so on. 

Try to get one of your opponents to come towards you; if they are reluctant, 
a little goading, teasing, and boasting on your part will make up their 
minds. As they leave the platform, instead of jumping up and down, *stay* on 
the cloud. You want the three seconds that the cloud is present to run up 
right when your opponent is getting ready to attack you. When this happens, 
you'll be ready, and you can use your jumps to get onto the main platform or 
the first cloud. However, your opponent will probably have used most or all 
of his jumps as he's coming over to pummel you, so he'll be planning his 
attack on you when, suddenly... poof! The cloud disappears. Unless they are a 
very flighty character, or they're very lucky, they won't be prepared enough 
to make it back on.

- The above trick too long? Just throw a proxy mine on a cloud, and watch the 
fireworks.

- Dream Land and Peach's Castle are small enough arenas for Kirby to actually 
fly under and come up on the other side. I've found that Dream Land is 
slightly easier to do this in, since it seems to be smaller. Nonetheless, 
it's a hard feat and requires good timing and concentration. To do it, you 
have to face *away* from the edge of the arena, jump backwards and off the 
arena, and use your five other jumps to move yourself horizontally under the 
arena (use your next jump only when you're starting to drop below the 
vertical level of the last jump; you wanna stay at a constant height slightly 
below the arena). Then, use your Final Cutter to get back up onto the other 
side once you've made it to the other edge of the arena. It's good for a 
surprise, and if you can do this you're pretty good at jumping. Note: the 
only other character that can do this is Pikachu, using his double-agility.

- Feeling cruel? Note that the acid in Planet Zebes and the tornado in Hyrule 
Castle both send the unfortunate player upwards. So, when you see a person 
falling into the acid, or spinning around in the tornado, get above them and 
Stone them, or, even better, drill kick them... right back into the 
acid/tornado. This is basically spiking over ground/acid. Similarly, if 
someone gets into the barrel in DK's stage, follow the barrel around as best 
as you can. Then, when they launch themselves upwards, execute your Split 
Kick (Down+A  I've found that this works best in that situation) and they'll 
be sent flying.

- Jump over someone who keeps using Samus, Yoshi, or Link's long-range throw, 
then stone or downward drill-kick them while they are still in their throw 
animation. This'll make them think twice about using those horrible (IMHO), 
slow, throws.

Well, those are all the tips and tricks I have for now. I'll try to add more 
soon. If you have good tips or tricks, send them in! You'll get credited, and 
you'll be able to share your gem of information with the whole world!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
12.   General Strategies
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
      
      Here you'll find general strategies for battling it (using Kirby, of 
course) against each of the other characters. If there is a specific combo or 
strategy that Kirby can use against a particular character, I'll try to list 
it too, if I can find/remember one (or if you send it in). Anyway, most of 
these will work on Computers and Humans, unless specified, although it takes 
a little more intelligence and planning to defeat a skilled human player than 
an equally skilled computer player.

<<<STILL UNDER CONSTRUCTION>>>

Captain Falcon

Donkey Kong

Fox

Jigglypuff

Kirby

Link

Luigi

Mario

Ness

Pikachu

Samus

Yoshi

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
13.   Combos
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

      These can all be used against humans, not just computers; in some 
cases, they may work better against humans. You won't see any combos that 
require ridiculous amounts of chance and/or stupidity on the part of the 
opponent to pull off. Damage figures are for the typical range of damage 
inflicted by the move in the particular situation. Anyway, the combos:

*   Drill Kick (Down, A/air) Combo   

Use Down, A in the air, then do the same and repeat on the ground. 
    
Damage: 21-30 in the air; 9-15 for each ground combo.

*   The... other... Drill Kick (Forward, A/air) Combo

Same as the Drill Kick Combo, only use your aerial Forward, A move to start 
the combo instead of your drill kick. 

Damage: 12-21 in the air; 9-15 for each ground combo.

*   Kirby's Infinite Combo

Keep tapping A after cornering someone against a wall (works well in Great 
Fox and Hyrule Castle). This is about as cheap a tactic as you'll find in 
this FAQ, and most experts will find a way out of it; but, you never know 
when you'll need it. If you can start this, you can usually get 20% + damage; 
just watch your back!

Damage: 1/hit.

*   Lunge Kick (Forward+A) Combo

This only works with characters with low damage (they are the only   ones who 
only go a short distance when kicked, thus enabling you to continue the combo 
by executing another move that hits them on their "bounce"). This combo will 
only work up to about 50 to 70% damage; after this, the opponent will be 
launched too far and will be able to roll away from your attacks.

Damage: 17 for the first hit, 7 for each thereafter.

*   Flip Kick (Up+A) Combo

Just keep on using your Flip Kick. It's quite tricky to get the timing right, 
and after your enemy has passed 40% damage they will be sent high enough to 
easily escape the combo; however, it makes for a good combo if you can catch 
someone with low damage in it. Also, once you start the combo, it's almost 
impossible for the opponent to get out of it until they have been sent high 
enough that they can fall out. They probably won't be quick enough to hit you 
(for example, with an aerial Down, A move) while you are executing the combo. 

Damage: 16 for the first hit, 6 for each one thereafter.

*   The Mighty Great Fox Combo
 
OK, this takes a bit of practice: isolate your opponent so that no one else 
will bother you. Start fighting on the tail of Great Fox. Ideally, your 
opponent should have around 60% damage, depending on the character. Now, hit 
them with Kirby's Forward+A smash attack (the Lunge Kick). This is the 
hardest part of the combo -- finding an opening.  
 
When you hit them with the smash attack, you should be standing about 1/3 of 
the tail-length from the end of the tail (i.e. the right side of the tail; 
the edge of the arena). It's hard to say, in measurements, exactly where, but 
it comes with practice. If you smash attack them, and you're in the right 
place, they should be hit down and right by the tail, right into you. 
 
Now, do another Lunge Kick, and again, you want them to bounce very slightly 
ahead of you, or even fly a bit over your head. When they do, do a Lunge Kick 
going right, or _away_ from the tail. Sometimes, if you time it wrong, the 
opponent will actually be hit right, but if you execute it right, they'll be 
hit left by your smash attack. Wait for the bounce and hit them with another 
smash attack going left this time, and then after that bounce a smash attack 
going right, and so on. So the whole time your position should be roughly 
stationary, but smashing leftwards and rightwards, alternately. Your opponent 
should be hit left, into the tail, each time, and what's good about this 
combo is that, if you have good timing and don't screw up, you can keep them 
in the air -- they'll never touch the ground.  
 
Trust me - this is a good, albeit hard to understand, combo. I usually get 
the opponent from 60% to 100-120% damage, or more (to 150% + damage is not 
too hard) and once you get the opponent to that level, pause a little, and 
smash them right, this time making them actually go right, off the arena.

Damage: usually around 35-60; 60-100+ is possible if you're lucky. 



This is just a start; I'll be putting up more combos as I remember them. Send 
your cool, USEFUL combos in, and I'll post them. Just remember that combos 
that work on both humans and CPUs, not just CPUs, are preferred.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
14.   Credits
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

      If you'd like to make a contribution to this FAQ, E-mail me with your 
contribution and a name or alias that I can attribute it too. Spot any 
mistakes? If so, let me know. If you have any constructive criti-cism or 
praise, sure, I'd love to hear what you have to say. Just keep it coherent 
and meaningful. If you're bored and just wanna say hi, drop me a line. I'll 
try to answer any questions or thank you for your contributions ASAP, but 
keep in mind I only check my E-mail a few times a week. Please  no hate mail 
or spam. I welcome your criticisms, but not your ranting and abuse. Thanks.

      I'd like to thank everyone who helped and supported me when I was 
writing this FAQ  my parents, for giving me the freedom to write it in the 
first place and getting me this game; my friends, for being my opponents and 
supplying me with hours of fun; and finally, Nintendo and Hal Laboratories, 
for making such a cool game.

peace
