Editing Lag

'''Lag''' is a catch-all term used to indicate periods of time where a character is busy initiating or finishing a performed move, being left unable to perform any other action (except for moving through the air with aerial moves). The two main categories of lag that every move in the game has are '''startup lag''' and '''ending lag''', and for [[aerial]]s and certain [[special move]]s when used in the air, there's an additional form of ending lag that can occur called '''landing lag'''. The more lag a move has, the easier it is to evade the move and [[punish]] the user. Typically, powerful moves have more startup and/or endlag, though this is not always the case.

[[File:StartLag.gif|thumb|right|{{SSBM|Ganondorf}}'s [[up tilt]] has a significant amount of start-up lag in ''Melee'']]

'''Start-up lag''', also known as just '''start-up''' and '''windup''', is the delay between a move being initiated and the move having an effect, such as the length of time before a [[hitbox]] is first produced. Examples of moves with extreme start-up lag include [[Ganondorf]]'s [[Warlock Punch]] and [[King Dedede]]'s [[forward smash]]. Examples of moves with no start-up lag include {{SSBM|Fox}}'s and {{SSBM|Falco}}'s [[Reflector]] in ''Melee'' and [[Jigglypuff]]'s [[Rest]]. [[Flinching]] during start-up will prevent the move from being executed, unless the move grants the character [[armor]].

The primary advantage of lower start-up lag is that the attack gives the opponent less reaction time, as well as the ability to hit before other attacks, giving the user greater flexibility in being able to land the attack (making such attacks all-around easier to land). While not always true, characters with fast frame data attacks tend to be more successful in competitive play then those with slow frame data attacks; part of the reason why characters such as [[Pikachu]], [[Fox]], [[Sheik]], and [[Meta Knight]] typically rank in the top or high tiers in ''Smash'' tier lists is that the general start-up lag of their attacks are among the fastest. Conversely, a major part of why characters such as [[Bowser]] and [[Ganondorf]] are typically ranked as low tier characters is that the general start-up lag of their attacks are among the slowest.

Brawl-ZeroSuitSamus-SideSpecial.gif|{{SSBB|Zero Suit Samus}}'s [[Plasma Whip]] has a noticeable amount of start-up lag.

'''Ending lag''', also known as '''cool down''' and '''recovery''' in other fighting games, is the delay between a move's effect finishing and another action being available to begin, such as the length of time after an attack's hitboxes ceases before the character can move again. Almost all attacks have more ending lag than startup lag, though generally, attacks with lower start-up lag tend to have proportionally more ending lag and vice versa. Attacks such as [[Rest]] and [[Ike]]'s forward smash are notorious for having an extreme amount of ending lag. Moves known for having especially low ending lag include Meta Knight's [[up aerial]] and [[Lucario]]'s forward smash. Typically, an attack's ending lag can't be avoided, but some attacks can avoid ending lag without the character being flinched or [[priority|out-prioritised]], such as grabbing a [[ledge]] with a recovery move before it ends, and jump canceling Fox's and Falco's Reflector in ''Melee''. Additionally, aerials can avoid their ending lag by the character landing before completion; despite this inducing landing lag, it can be overall faster if the character lands soon enough and the attack's landing lag is low enough (a prominent example of this is Ike's [[neutral aerial]], which has a huge amount of ending lag, but rather low landing lag, thus landing earlier can be utilised to circumvent the attack's high ending lag). Also, if a character using a standard land attack is no longer on land before the attack finishes (such as from being pushed off by [[wind]] or the [[platform]] underneath them ceasing to exist), the attack will abruptly end with the user free to move, thus avoiding the attack's ending lag (though special moves will continue if this occurs while using them).

The primary advantage of lower ending lag is that the less ending lag there is, the less [[punish]]able the move is, thus the more safe it is to use. Since the attacks end sooner, low ending lag attacks are also more effective at [[combo]]ing, as they allow a greater window to follow-up landed attacks before the opponent can respond properly or respond at all. While having attacks with low ending lag is considered important in competitive play and characters higher up on the [[tier list]] typically have lower ending lag attacks, it isn't held in equal regard to start-up lag. [[Marth]], for example, is considered a top/high tier character in all of his iterations, despite most of his attacks having high ending lag, while there are no characters in any of the games ranked high that have comparatively high start-up lag on their attacks. More attacks can be very effective in spite of high ending lag (Jigglypuff's [[Rest]] in ''Melee'' being the most notorious example of such, as despite its ridiculously high ending lag and small hitbox, its start-up lag of 1 frame makes the move very landable, where its extreme power can be utilised), while there are few attacks that can be very effective in spite of high start-up lag. For example, Ganondorf's up tilt in ''Melee'' and ''Brawl'' is an extreme power attack with a small hitbox that has proportionally low ending lag, but its start-up lag is so ridiculously high that the move is almost impossible to land without the opponent being incapacitated, in a position where they have no choice but to position themselves within its reach (such as attempting to [[recover]] or evade a stage hazard), or having already committed to an action that will put them in the attack's reach (i.e. Ganondorf successfully [[Mindgame#Read|reading]] his opponent), and its extreme power can realistically never be utilised (however, in ''Smash 4'', it has a significantly larger hitbox). Moves that are very effective in spite of high start-up lag have a combination of significant attributes beyond just low ending lag (the aforementioned forward smash of Lucario's is considered to be one of the best forward smashes in ''Brawl'' despite being one of the slowest in start-up, as the move not only has very low ending lag, but also has potential extreme power with great [[reach]], making it one of the few powerful KO moves that can often be used with no repercussions if it fails to land).

When landing under normal circumstances, characters undergo either a "light landing" (also known as a "no-impact land") or a "heavy landing". Light landings incur only 2 frames of lag, whereas heavy landings are character-specific, ranging from 4 to 6. The type of landing that occurs is based on the character's downwards speed upon landing, so landing during the apex of a jump or on an upwards-moving platform tends to be faster than landing from a fastfall or on a downwards-moving platform. ''Brawl''{{'}}s [[air dodge]]s always have normal landing, regardless of the character's height prior to using them.

[[File:Punishment Snake F-air Lag KO Brawl.gif|thumb|right|250px|An example of landing lag, in which an improperly timed aerial attack with noticeable amount of landing lag (such as {{SSBB|Snake}}'s [[forward aerial]]) can lead to a [[punishment]].]]

If a character lands while in the middle of an [[aerial attack]], they go through a unique animation that lasts for significantly longer than a normal landing. A clear example is [[Link]]'s [[down aerial]]; hitting the ground during the attack results in Link's sword getting stuck, and he has to spend a significant amount of time pulling it out before he can do anything else. Each aerial attack has its own amount of landing lag; most [[special move]]s tend to continue execution instead of being interrupted when the user lands while using them, though a few undergo their own unique landing animation if the character lands after initiating them in the air, such as [[Falcon Kick]] and [[Wizard's Foot]]. [[L-cancelling]] will reduce landing lag of aerials (that are not special moves), while [[auto-cancelling]] will avoid it.

In the original ''SSB'', not all aerial attacks have unique landing animations, though they still have unique lag durations.

''Smash 4''{{'}}s air dodges have their own aerial landing lag, being universally 21 frames for all characters. When landing one frame before the end of an aerial or air dodge's animation, aerial landings can be completely cancelled into [[special move]]s, such as after {{SSB4|Ganondorf}}'s forward aerial from the start of a full hop (as Ganondorf is in the air for 44 frames during his full hop and his forward aerial's [[interruptibility|first actionable frame]] is on frame 45).

Characters that land while in their [[helpless]] state undergo a specific amount of landing lag, dependent on the move that initiated it. While the state is known as "LandingFallSpecial" or similar in the games' code, it also applies to air dodges, and thus [[wavedash]]es, in ''Melee''.