Perfect shield: Difference between revisions

 
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[[File:Peach Powershield Laser.gif|thumb|220px|In ''Melee'', during the first two frames of shield activation, powershielding will reflect any projectile, even ones that have already been powershielded.]]
[[File:Peach Powershield Laser.gif|thumb|220px|In ''Melee'', during the first two frames of shield activation, powershielding will reflect any projectile, even ones that have already been powershielded.]]
A '''perfect shield''' ({{ja|ジャストシールド|Jasuto shīrudo}}, '''Just shield''') (officially called the '''Power Shield''' in ''Melee'') is a technique introduced in ''Melee'' where one activates a full [[shield]] (or drops their shield as of ''Ultimate'') such that it connects with an incoming [[attack]] on the first few frames. In order for the technique to be executed, one must rely on timing and skill. When the opponent is ready to strike, the player must quickly use their shield. If done correctly, the [[character]] takes no [[shield damage]] and they can immediately perform any action when dropping their shield without having to wait for their drop shield animation to end (alternatively known as [[powershield canceling]] in games prior to ''Ultimate''). The powershield technique in ''[[Melee]]'', ''[[Brawl]]'', ''[[Smash 4]]'', and ''[[Ultimate]]'' is comparable to a parry in traditional fighting games, as it results in little to no knockback and freezes the opponent for a couple frames.
A '''perfect shield''' ({{ja|ジャストシールド|Jasuto shīrudo}}, '''Just shield''') (officially called the '''Power Shield''' in ''Melee'') is a technique introduced in ''Melee'' where one activates a full [[shield]] (or drops their shield as of ''Ultimate'') such that it connects with an incoming [[attack]] on the first few frames. In order for the technique to be executed, one must rely on timing and skill. When the opponent is ready to strike, the player must quickly use their shield. If done correctly, the [[character]] takes no [[shield damage]] and they can immediately perform any action when dropping their shield without having to wait for their drop shield animation to end (alternatively known as [[powershield canceling]] in games prior to ''Ultimate''). The perfect shield technique in ''[[Melee]]'', ''[[Brawl]]'', ''[[Smash 4]]'', and ''[[Ultimate]]'' is comparable to a parry in traditional fighting games, as it results in little to no knockback and freezes the opponent for a couple frames.


Perfect shielding up until ''Smash 4'' is done by quickly pressing the shield button as an attack is about to connect (the exact window to perfect shield depends on the game). If done correctly, there will be a significant flash on the shield and a distinctive "chlink" sound. Because it is technically a shield, it is ineffective against [[grab]]s and [[unblockable attack]]s. In ''Melee'', powershielding can [[reflect]] [[projectile]]s during the first two frames, although they deal half their usual damage (unlike other reflectors, which increase their damage), and [[Poké Ball]]s reflected this way retain the ownership of the character that threw them. In ''Brawl'' and ''Smash 4'', perfect shielding merely redirects projectiles at an angle without changing their ownership.
Perfect shielding up until ''Smash 4'' is done by quickly pressing the shield button as an attack is about to connect (the exact window to perfect shield depends on the game). If done correctly, there will be a significant flash on the shield and a distinctive "chlink" sound. Because it is technically a shield, it is ineffective against [[grab]]s and [[unblockable attack]]s. In ''Melee'', powershielding can [[reflect]] [[projectile]]s during the first two frames, although they deal half their usual damage (unlike other reflectors, which increase their damage), and [[Poké Ball]]s reflected this way retain the ownership of the character that threw them. In ''Brawl'' and ''Smash 4'', perfect shielding merely redirects projectiles at an angle without changing their ownership.
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One final thing to note about powershielding is that {{SSBM|Yoshi}}'s powershield functions quite differently compared to other characters due to his unique shield. During the first two frames of his shield, Yoshi cannot powershield physical attacks. He will instead [[Parry (Yoshi)|parry]] the attacks with his invincible shield startup. Yoshi can reflect projectiles during these first two frames but his powershield to reflect projectiles is very small, often resulting in Yoshi parrying projectiles instead. On frames 3-4 of Yoshi's shield animation, he can powershield attacks if the player attacks him close enough. Yoshi's hurtbox is larger than his powershield bubble though and if Yoshi is hit outside of the bubble, he can parry. Yoshi can uniquely powershield physical attacks at any point while shielding. This is because Yoshi's powershield bubble remains active once Yoshi's shield is fully active and it extends slightly further than his regular shield in areas, allowing opponents to hit Yoshi's constantly active powershield if they hit him at certain ranges/angles.<ref>http://smashboards.com/threads/frame-research-yoshis-parry.262911/#post-9415501</ref>.  
One final thing to note about powershielding is that {{SSBM|Yoshi}}'s powershield functions quite differently compared to other characters due to his unique shield. During the first two frames of his shield, Yoshi cannot powershield physical attacks. He will instead [[Parry (Yoshi)|parry]] the attacks with his invincible shield startup. Yoshi can reflect projectiles during these first two frames but his powershield to reflect projectiles is very small, often resulting in Yoshi parrying projectiles instead. On frames 3-4 of Yoshi's shield animation, he can powershield attacks if the player attacks him close enough. Yoshi's hurtbox is larger than his powershield bubble though and if Yoshi is hit outside of the bubble, he can parry. Yoshi can uniquely powershield physical attacks at any point while shielding. This is because Yoshi's powershield bubble remains active once Yoshi's shield is fully active and it extends slightly further than his regular shield in areas, allowing opponents to hit Yoshi's constantly active powershield if they hit him at certain ranges/angles.<ref>http://smashboards.com/threads/frame-research-yoshis-parry.262911/#post-9415501</ref>.  


Yoshi's powershield does have a rather significant disadvantage in that Yoshi is the only character who cannot powershield cancel. This is especially bad for Yoshi as he cannot jump Out of Shield and his shield grab is extremely slow. Yoshi also often cannot reflect projectiles with his powershield as his pwoershield for projectiles is so small than in most scenarios, Yoshi will simply parry projectiles. In general, Yoshi's parry completely overshadows his powershield as it allows Yoshi to punish Out of Shield faster (as Yoshi skips hitlag when parrying) and it allows Yoshi to jump Out of Shield which he normally cannot do, allowing for much greater punishment and movement than Yoshi would get out of a powershield.  
Yoshi's powershield does have a rather significant disadvantage in that Yoshi is the only character who cannot powershield cancel. This is especially bad for Yoshi as he cannot jump Out of Shield and his shield grab is extremely slow. Yoshi also often cannot reflect projectiles with his powershield as his powershield for projectiles is so small that in most scenarios, Yoshi will simply parry projectiles. In general, Yoshi's parry completely overshadows his powershield as it allows Yoshi to punish Out of Shield faster (as Yoshi skips hitlag when parrying) and it allows Yoshi to jump Out of Shield which he normally cannot do, allowing for much greater punishment and movement than Yoshi would get out of a powershield.


==In ''[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl]]''==
==In ''[[Super Smash Bros. Brawl]]''==
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When powershielding an attack, the shielding player once again goes through the same hitlag and shieldstun as if they shielded a move normally and they once again gain access to powershield canceling once they drop their shield. Powershield canceling has the same benefits as ''Melee'' (albeit to a lesser extent compared to regular shield due to the drop shield animation being sped up to 7 frames) but powershield canceling itself has seen a positive change. In ''Melee'', the player had a one frame delay before they could perform a powershield canceled attack but in ''Brawl'', this one frame of delay has been removed, allowing the player instant access to their entire moveset. This speeds up powershield canceled punishes even further, allowing for more punishment opportunities.  
When powershielding an attack, the shielding player once again goes through the same hitlag and shieldstun as if they shielded a move normally and they once again gain access to powershield canceling once they drop their shield. Powershield canceling has the same benefits as ''Melee'' (albeit to a lesser extent compared to regular shield due to the drop shield animation being sped up to 7 frames) but powershield canceling itself has seen a positive change. In ''Melee'', the player had a one frame delay before they could perform a powershield canceled attack but in ''Brawl'', this one frame of delay has been removed, allowing the player instant access to their entire moveset. This speeds up powershield canceled punishes even further, allowing for more punishment opportunities.  


The player is capable of buffering their desired powershield cancel punish to punish as soon as possible but in order to do so, the player has to let go of shield during shieldstun. The player can buffer their attack during the universal 10 frame buffer window but they have to let go of shield during shieldstun in order for the buffered input to go through. Letting go of shield too early will result in the buffered input not going through and letting go too late will naturally result in the player keeping their shield up. Due to Brawl's low or even non existent shieldstun depending on the attack used, this means that buffering a powershield cancel punish is very strict despite the game's otherwise generous buffer window. A powershield cancel forward smash and down smash also have to be buffered in order to be performed on the first possible frame. If the player tries to manually forward/down smash powershield cancel on the first possible frame, the player will roll or spot dodge respectively. These options can be done manually but without buffering, they have to be delayed in order to avoid rolling/spot dodging. Once again, as powershielding does not reduce shieldstun, non powershield canceled punishes are still the same speed as they would be  
The player is capable of buffering their desired powershield cancel punish to punish as soon as possible but in order to do so, the player has to let go of shield during shieldstun. The player can buffer their attack during the universal 10 frame buffer window but they have to let go of shield during shieldstun in order for the buffered input to go through. Letting go of shield too early will result in the buffered input not going through and letting go too late will naturally result in the player keeping their shield up. Due to Brawl's low or even non existent shieldstun depending on the attack used, this means that buffering a powershield cancel punish is very strict despite the game's otherwise generous buffer window. A powershield cancel forward smash and down smash also have to be buffered in order to be performed on the first possible frame. If the player tries to manually forward/down smash powershield cancel on the first possible frame, the player will roll or spot dodge respectively. These options can be done manually but without buffering, they have to be delayed in order to avoid rolling/spot dodging. Once again, as powershielding does not reduce shieldstun, non powershield canceled punishes are still the same speed as they would be when shielding regularly (grabs, up smashes/up specials and aerials).


Perfect shielding projectiles has also significantly changed. One significant change is that perfect shielding no longer reflects projectiles; should a projectile connect during perfect shield frames, it will either disappear or rebound off the shield at an angle instead of back in the direction it came from. A projectile that bounces off a character's shield can no longer affect that character unless it is a multi-hit attack. Powershield also no longer removes shieldstun from projectiles with the player going through the same shieldstun as if they shielded a projectile normally. This overall makes powershielding a less powerful option against projectiles, especially in comparison to regularly shielding. However, the window to powershield projectiles has been increased to 3 frames and the player can now powershield cancel after powershielding a projectile, giving the player better punishment opportunities against close range projectiles in particular.  
Perfect shielding projectiles has also significantly changed. One significant change is that perfect shielding no longer reflects projectiles; should a projectile connect during perfect shield frames, it will either disappear or rebound off the shield at an angle instead of back in the direction it came from. A projectile that bounces off a character's shield can no longer affect that character unless it is a multi-hit attack. Powershield also no longer removes shieldstun from projectiles with the player going through the same shieldstun as if they shielded a projectile normally. This overall makes powershielding a less powerful option against projectiles, especially in comparison to regularly shielding. However, the window to powershield projectiles has been increased to 3 frames and the player can now powershield cancel after powershielding a projectile, giving the player better punishment opportunities against close range projectiles in particular.  
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Overall, perfect shielding has become more effective than in ''Brawl'' on paper with powershield cancels becoming easier to perform with their more generous buffer window and with perfect shield reducing shieldstun although in practice, powershielding is less effective due to the universally increased shieldstun compared to ''Brawl''. Despite this, it still remains one of the most powerful techniques in the game being hard yet rewarding to master.  
Overall, perfect shielding has become more effective than in ''Brawl'' on paper with powershield cancels becoming easier to perform with their more generous buffer window and with perfect shield reducing shieldstun although in practice, powershielding is less effective due to the universally increased shieldstun compared to ''Brawl''. Despite this, it still remains one of the most powerful techniques in the game being hard yet rewarding to master.  


{{SSB4|Yoshi}}'s perfect shield now functions like every other character with Yoshi being able to powershield cancel. This is naturally a large benefit to Yoshi as it greatly improves Yoshi's ability to punish attacks Out of Shield, especially since he can now jump Out of Shield and his drop shield animation was normalised to match the rest of the cast. {{SSB4|Ryu}} has a unique property with his perfect sheild, as his perfect shield has a unique sound effect based on the parry in ''Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike''.
{{SSB4|Yoshi}}'s perfect shield now functions like every other character with Yoshi being able to powershield cancel. This is naturally a large benefit to Yoshi as it greatly improves Yoshi's ability to punish attacks Out of Shield, especially since he can now jump Out of Shield and his drop shield animation was normalised to match the rest of the cast. {{SSB4|Ryu}} has a unique property with his perfect shield, as his perfect shield has a unique sound effect based on the parry in ''Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike''.


One final note is that certain [[equipment]] has special effects for perfect shields. The Easy Perfect Shield effect widens the window for performing a perfect shield, while the Explosive Perfect Shield effect causes them to create a small, damaging explosion.
One final note is that certain [[equipment]] has special effects for perfect shields. The Easy Perfect Shield effect widens the window for performing a perfect shield, while the Explosive Perfect Shield effect causes them to create a small, damaging explosion.
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