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{{ArticleIcons|series=y|competitive=y}}
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A player's '''alternate character''' (often called '''secondary character''', or shortened to "'''alternate'''", "'''secondary'''", or "'''alt'''") is a [[character]] he or she uses often, but not as commonly or as seriously as his or her [[main character]]. Most players stick with one or two [[main character]]s, but experienced players can often play multiple characters near the level of their main character. The smasher {{sm|Mew2King}} is well known for using the entirety of the melee cast as seen in his two 26 character crew battle such as vs. Mango at Smash the Record. These alternates are most often used in specific counterpick situations when that character would have an advantage, or where the player's main would have a disadvantage, that would outweigh the loss of skill. For instance, {{sm|ChuDat}} in ''Melee'' withholds his main {{SSBM|Ice Climbers}} against {{SSBM|Peach}}, a strong [[counter (match-up)|counter]], instead opting to use {{SSBM|Young Link}} against her, a secondary who matches more evenly with Peach.


A player's '''secondary character''', usually just shortened to '''secondary''' (sometimes also called '''alternate character''', or shortened to "'''alternate'''" or "'''alt'''"), is a [[character]] they use often, but not as commonly or as seriously as their [[main character]]. Most players stick with one or two main characters, but experienced players can often play multiple characters near the level of their main character. These secondaries are most often used in specific [[counterpick]] situations when that character would have an advantage, or where the player's main would have a disadvantage, that would outweigh the loss of skill. For instance, {{sm|ChuDat}} in ''[[Melee]]'' withholds his main {{SSBM|Ice Climbers}} against {{SSBM|Peach}}, a strong [[counter (match-up)|counter]], instead opting to use {{SSBM|Jigglypuff}} against her, a secondary who matches more evenly with Peach.
Secondaries are also sometimes known as "pocket characters", mainly when it's a top/high tier character a player doesn't really practice with but brings out when the character has a significant advantage over their opponent's character, or after they lose with their lower tier "main". {{SSBB|King Dedede}} in ''Brawl'' is known to be a common "pocket character", as he hard counters many characters while having a perceived low learning curve. {{SSBB|Meta Knight}} in ''Brawl'' has also gained infamy as a common "pocket character", as his arguably [[broken]] capabilities while having a lower learning curve has allowed most players to play him nearly as well as their mains despite lack of real practice with him (or even better if their opponent's character is not well suited to handle Meta Knight), and the fact he beats every character in the game makes him more easily able to cover the bad matchups of a player's main than any other character. Many high level ''Brawl'' players are known to have a "pocket Meta Knight" they bring out in matchups they don't like rather than a specialised secondary character (such as {{Sm|DEHF}}, who is known to use Meta Knight instead of {{SSBB|Falco}} against the {{SSBB|Ice Climbers}} and {{SSBB|Pikachu}}). "Pocket characters" are known to usually lose however to equivalent or greater skilled opponents regardless of significant matchup advantage, as they're not properly practiced with.


Secondaries are also sometimes known as "pocket characters", mainly when it's a top/high tier character a player rarely practices with but brings out when the character has a significant matchup advantage over their opponent's character, or after they lose with their lower tier "main". {{SSBB|King Dedede}} in ''[[Brawl]]'' was known as a common pocket character, as he hard counters many characters while having a perceived low learning curve, especially as his easy-to-perform [[chain throw]] is the primary reason he  countered so many characters. {{SSBB|Meta Knight}} in ''Brawl'' also had infamy as a common pocket character, as his arguably [[broken]] capabilities and perceived low learning curve allowed most players to play him nearly as well as their mains despite lack of real practice with him (or even better if their opponent's character is not well suited to handle Meta Knight). As a result, many high level ''Brawl'' players are known to have a "pocket Meta Knight" they bring out in matchups they don't like rather than a specialised secondary character (such as {{Sm|DEHF}}, who is known to use Meta Knight instead of {{SSBB|Falco}} against the {{SSBB|Ice Climbers}} and {{SSBB|Pikachu}}). {{SSB4|Cloud}} in ''[[Smash 4]]'' was similarly infamous for being a very common pocket character, with it being a common joke within the competitive community that "everyone has a pocket Cloud". "Pocket characters" are known to usually lose, however, against equivalent or greater skilled opponents even if they have a significant matchup advantage, as their players lack the fined tune experience to play the character beyond the level of their fundamentals and their opponents are often much more experienced in the matchup, especially as they likely have already faced many other players trying to counterpick them with said pocket characters.
More uncommonly, players may have secondary characters they use not for specific matchup advantages, but to cover stages their main does poorly on or simply when they lose confidence with their main in a match. {{Sm|Vinnie}} for example, after picking up the Ice Climbers as his main in ''Brawl'', would still occasionally use his former main {{SSBB|Mr. Game & Watch}} when the opponent would [[counterpick]] a stage the Ice Climbers do poorly on such as [[Rainbow Cruise]], or after losing a particularly bad match with the Ice Climbers.


More uncommonly, players may have secondary characters they use not for specific matchup advantages, but for either themed matches (such as {{uv|Fire Emblem}} only matches), to cover stages their main does poorly on, or simply when they lose confidence with their main in a match. {{Sm|Vinnie}} for example, after picking up the Ice Climbers as his main in ''Brawl'', would still occasionally use his former main {{SSBB|Mr. Game & Watch}} when the opponent would [[counterpick]] a stage the Ice Climbers do poorly on, such as [[Rainbow Cruise]], or after losing a particularly bad match with the Ice Climbers.
Sometimes, secondaries aren't characters a player will use for practical purposes in tournaments, but rather are lower tier characters they enjoy playing but can't play as well as their higher tier main (and thus would achieve the player lesser tournament success). Such characters are often played for fun, to [[sandbagging|sandbag]], in non-standard [[money match]]es, and in [[low tier tournament|tier restricted side tournaments]]. {{Sm|Ally}}'s {{SSBB|Captain Falcon}} in ''Brawl'' is one of the most noteworthy examples of a lower tier secondary used for such purposes. {{Sm|Vex}} is another professional smasher known to have especially competent low tier secondaries in {{SSBB|Bowser}} and {{SSBB|Ganondorf}}.
 
Sometimes, secondaries aren't characters a player will use for practical purposes in tournaments, but rather are lower tier characters they enjoy playing but can't play as successfully as their higher tier main. Such characters are often played for fun, to [[sandbagging|sandbag]], in non-standard [[money match]]es, and in [[low tier tournament|tier restricted side tournaments]]. {{Sm|Ally}}'s {{SSBB|Captain Falcon}} in ''Brawl'' is one of the most noteworthy examples of a lower tier secondary used for such purposes. {{Sm|Vex}} is another high level smasher known to have especially competent low tier secondaries in {{SSBB|Bowser}} and {{SSBB|Ganondorf}}.
 
Some players may use a specific character even less frequently to be considered a secondary. This character is often referred to as a '''tertiary''', with this naming format theoretically continuing as long as the character roster.


[[Category:Terms]]
[[Category:Terms]]
[[Category:Competitive play]]
[[Category:Competitive play]]

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