Down aerial

Sonic's down aerial in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.

Lucario's down aerial in Brawl.

Animation of Marth's down aerial in Melee.

The down aerial (下空中攻撃, Down/lower/under midair attack; commonly abbreviated as Dair or d-air, and referred to as AttackAirLw internally) is an aerial attack that is performed in midair by pressing the attack button while tilting the control stick downward. Its official term varies between titles, where it is known as a down midair attack in Super Smash Bros. Melee, and a down air attack from Super Smash Bros. Brawl onward. Many of these moves are meteor smashes, and typically either are single or multi-hit attacks directly below the character, or are stall-then-falls where the character briefly hovers in the air, then rockets downwards.

List of down aerials

Unless stated otherwise, all down aerials are assumed to have the ability to meteor smash, with most of them requiring a clean hit or sweetspot to be landed.

Character	Description
Banjo & Kazooie	Performs the Beak Buster, where Banjo flips upside-down and Kazooie pounds the ground with her beak.
Bayonetta	Somersaults and performs a falling axe kick with her legs split. Possesses a landing hitbox.
Bowser	Retreats into his shell and spins horizontally with his spikes pointing downward, hitting multiple times. Possesses a landing hitbox. Retreats into his shell and rises slightly with his spikes pointing downward, then performs a spinning dive. Possesses a landing hitbox.
Bowser Jr.	Rotates a drill from the Koopa Clown Car below himself, hitting multiple times. Cannot meteor smash conventionally. Possesses a landing hitbox.
Byleth	Swings downward with Aymr.
Captain Falcon	Stomps with both legs.
Charizard	Stomps with both legs. Stomps with one leg.
Chrom	Performs a two-handed takedown slash.
Cloud	Performs a lingering downward thrust with the Buster Sword.
Corrin	Transforms both legs into spears and does a diving kick, hitting multiple times. Possesses a landing hitbox.
Daisy	Rapidly kicks at a diagonally downward angle four times. Cannot meteor smash.
Dark Pit	Slashes downward in an arc starting from the front.
Dark Samus	Turns upside down and swings her Arm Cannon in an arc starting from the back.
Diddy Kong	Performs a double axe handle swing.
Donkey Kong	Stomps with both legs. Stomps with one leg.
Dr. Mario	Performs a drill kick at a slight diagonal angle. Possesses a landing hitbox but cannot meteor smash. Stretches his body and stomps with both legs.
Duck Hunt	The dog turns towards the screen and performs a somersaulting headbutt, then thrusts his lower back to propel the duck downward, who performs a somersaulting peck.
Falco	Performs a single-hitting drill kick at a slight diagonal angle.
Fox	Performs a multi-hitting drill kick at a slight diagonal angle. From Smash 4 onward, it possesses a landing hitbox, but cannot meteor smash conventionally.
Ganondorf	Stomps with both legs, producing an electric effect on hit.
Greninja	Performs a diving kick with both legs, bouncing off upon hitting an opponent.
Hero	Thrusts his sword downward with one hand.
Ice Climbers	Perform a lingering downward thrust with their hammers. Cannot meteor smash. Perform a diving thrust with their hammers. Cannot meteor smash.
Ike	Performs a two-handed takedown slash.
Incineroar	Stomps with both legs.
Inkling	Thrusts the Splattershot downward.
Isabelle	Thrusts two turnips downward.
Ivysaur	Turns upside down and blasts pollen from its bulb, stalling briefly in midair afterwards.
Jigglypuff	Performs a drill kick at a slight diagonal angle, hitting multiple times. Cannot meteor smash conventionally from Melee onward.
Joker	Turns upside down and slashes in an arc starting from behind. If active, Arsene stomps with one leg after Joker's attack. Only Arsene's attack can meteor smash.
Kazuya	Performs Demon Scissors, a somersault before swinging his leg downward, landing on his back. Cannot meteor smash.
Ken	Throws out a cross at a diagonally downward angle.
King Dedede	Twirls his hammer below himself, hitting multiple times. Cannot meteor smash. Swings his hammer downward.
King K. Rool	Stomps with both legs.
Kirby	Performs a drill kick at a slight diagonal angle, hitting multiple times. Possesses a landing hitbox.
Link	Performs a lingering downward thrust with the Master Sword. Upon hitting an opponent, Link bounces off and can hit them again. Cannot meteor smash prior to Smash 4.
Little Mac	Weakly punches downward.
Lucario	Stomps with one leg after the other, releasing aura from its feet and stalling briefly in midair. Cannot meteor smash.
Lucas	Performs four consecutive stomps, releasing PSI sparks from his feet.
Lucina	Somersaults horizontally and slashes in an arc starting from behind.
Luigi	Performs a multi-hitting drill kick at a slight diagonal angle. Performs a single-hitting drill kick at a slight diagonal angle.
Mario	Performs a multi-hitting drill kick at a slight diagonal angle. In Melee, it possesses a landing hitbox, but cannot meteor smash. Performs the Mario Tornado, previously his down special; he spins horizontally with his arms extended, hitting multiple times, then fully outstretches his body for a final hit. It possesses a landing hitbox, but cannot meteor smash.
Marth	Slashes downward in an arc starting from the front. Somersaults horizontally and slashes in an arc starting from behind.
Mega Man	Uses the Hard Knuckle, firing one fist as a projectile below himself.
Meta Knight	Slashes downward in an arc starting from the front. Cannot meteor smash.
Mewtwo	Somersaults horizontally and stomps with one leg. Somersaults horizontally and stomps with one leg, releasing a small blast of dark energy from its foot.
Mii Brawler	Performs a double axe handle swing.
Mii Gunner	Thrusts their arm cannon downward and releases a blast from it.
Mii Swordfighter	Turns upside down and performs a twirling stab, hitting multiple times. Possesses a landing hitbox.
Min Min	Performs a diagonal divekick.
Mr. Game & Watch	Thrusts a key downward. Possesses a landing hitbox. Performs a diving thrust with a key. Possesses a landing hitbox.
Mythra	Slashes the Aegis Sword below herself in a wide arc starting in front of herself. Cannot meteor smash.
Ness	Stomps with one leg. Stomps with one leg after a spin, releasing a PSI spark from his foot.
Olimar	Grabs his leading Pikmin by its stem and swings it downward. If no Pikmin are following Olimar, he still performs the move, but it has no effect.
Pac-Man	Performs four consecutive stomps. Cannot meteor smash.
Palutena	Performs a roundhouse kick downward.
Peach	Rapidly kicks downward four times. Cannot meteor smash.
Pichu	Turns upside down and spins in a corkscrew, releasing electricity from its head. Causes recoil damage to Pichu, and possesses a landing hitbox. Cannot meteor smash in Melee.
Pikachu	Turns upside down and spins in a corkscrew, releasing electricity from its head. Possesses a landing hitbox. Cannot meteor smash prior to Ultimate.
Piranha Plant	Thrusts its pot downward.
Pit	Slashes downward in an arc starting from the front. Cannot meteor smash in Brawl.
Pyra	Slashes the Aegis Sword below herself in a wide arc starting in front of herself.
R.O.B.	Points his base at a slight diagonal angle and activates his thrusters, rising slightly afterwards.
Richter	Performs a diagonal divekick, bouncing off upon hitting an opponent.
Ridley	Performs a divekick straight downward with both legs.
Robin	Slashes downward with either the Bronze Sword or Levin Sword. Meteor smashes if the Levin Sword is used.
Rosalina & Luma	Rosalina: Summons a falling planetary ring below herself with a stomp. Luma: Stomps with one leg. Cannot meteor smash.
Roy	Slashes downward in an arc starting from the front. Performs a two-handed takedown slash. Performs a two-handed takedown slash with the Binding Blade set ablaze.
Ryu	Throws out a cross at a diagonally downward angle.
Samus	Turns upside down and swings her Arm Cannon in an arc starting from the back.
Sephiroth	Performs Hell's Gate, a diving thrust with Masamune.
Sheik	Performs a lingering kick at a diagonally downward angle. Cannot meteor smash. Performs a diagonal divekick. Cannot meteor smash in Brawl, and possesses a landing hitbox from Smash 4 onward.
Shulk	Thrusts the Monado downward, then activates its beam blade for a second hit.
Simon	Performs a diagonal divekick, bouncing off upon hitting an opponent.
Snake	Performs four consecutive stomps, rising slightly upon its use. Cannot meteor smash conventionally.
Sonic	Performs a diagonal divekick. Cannot meteor smash in Brawl.
Sora	Performs Hurricane Blast. Moonsaults downwards with the Keyblade multiple times. Cannot meteor smash.
Squirtle	Thrusts its tail downward and spins horizontally, hitting multiple times. Cannot meteor smash.
Steve	Places anvil below him and descends downwards, which can be escaped. Cannot meteor smash.
Terry	A downward punch. Has a meteor effect if sweetspotted, launching opponents at a very diagonal angle akin to a spike.
Toon Link	Performs a diving thrust with the Master Sword. In Brawl, upon hitting an opponent, Toon Link bounces off and can hit them again.
Villager	Thrust one, two, or three turnips downward, with the amount being random. Can only meteor smash with three turnips in Smash 4.
Wario	Turns upside down and spins horizontally, hitting multiple times with his head. Cannot meteor smash conventionally. Turns upside down and spins horizontally with his hands below his head, hitting multiple times. Cannot meteor smash conventionally.
Wii Fit Trainer	Assumes the Chair pose to stomp with both legs.
Wolf	Swings both arms downward simultaneously, slashing with his claws.
Yoshi	Performs a flutter kick with both legs, hitting multiple times. From Smash 4 onward, it possesses a landing hitbox, but cannot meteor smash conventionally.
Young Link	Performs a lingering downward thrust with the Kokiri Sword. Upon hitting an opponent, Young Link bounces off and can hit them again. Cannot meteor smash in Ultimate.
Zelda	Stomps with one leg.
Zero Suit Samus	Performs a diagonal divekick. Possesses a landing hitbox.

Notable down aerials

• The down aerials of Banjo & Kazooie, Bayonetta, Bowser, Corrin, Greninja, Ice Climbers, Kazuya, Min Min, Mr. Game & Watch, Richter, Ridley, Sephiroth, Simon, Sheik, Sonic, Sora, Steve, Toon Link, and Zero Suit Samus all function as stall-then-falls, except in Melee (and Brawl for Bowser).
• The down aerials of Link, Toon Link (in Brawl only), and Young Link cause them to bounce a short distance up and away from the opponent upon hitting them or their shield. The hitbox remains active when this happens and he is able to hit the opponent again for extra damage.
  • Similarly, Greninja, Simon, and Richter's down aerials cause them to jump off the opponent upon hitting them or their shield with their down aerials. Unlike the Links' down aerials, these jumps end the move and allow them to perform any action, including combos into other attacks.
• The down aerials of Mega Man and Steve are the only ones that are projectiles, and thus can be reflected or Pocketed.
• Lucario, Ivysaur, and R.O.B.'s down aerials stop their movement in the air, unless they were experiencing knockback before their use.
• In Melee, the down aerials of Captain Falcon, Falco, Fox, and Marth can all spike opponents.
  • Captain Falcon's down aerial possesses a hitbox in his upper body that powerfully spikes opponents, colloquially known as the nipple spike.
  • Falco's down aerial is very fast for a spike (coming out on frame 5), and a vital component to his pillar combos. However, it was nerfed in the PAL version of the game, as only the clean hit spikes instead of the entire move, making it less effective for edgeguarding and beating crouch canceling.
  • Fox's down aerial is additionally notorious for its use in his waveshine infinite combo.
• Ganondorf's down aerial is the strongest meteor smash among playable characters in Brawl, as well as one of the strongest meteor smashes and down aerials as a whole in the series, dealing particularly high damage and enough knockback to KO reliably onstage. In SSB4, it is one of the only two meteor smashes that cannot be teched on the ground, due to its high amount of freeze frames.
• Marth's down aerial, specifically in Melee, is possibly the most feared with its speed, range, and ability to spike. Its effectiveness has been reduced in the PAL version, and later in Brawl, where it can be meteor canceled, though it still retains a large part of its utility. In SSB4, however, it was severely nerfed with reduced range, weaker sourspots, increased startup, meteor smashing only at the middle of the swing, and having a reversed animation (starting from behind Marth rather than in front of him), making it significantly harder to land.
• Yoshi's down aerial is the most damaging in all of its appearances, dealing a maximum of 56% in Smash 64, 53% in Melee, 35% in Brawl, 32.2% in SSB4, and 28% in Ultimate. This allows it to easily bring opponents to KO percentages, especially those with large hurtboxes. In Smash 64, it comes out on frame 4 and it deals enough damage to shields to outright break them if all hits connect, making it highly effective. Although it deals the least damage in Ultimate, it connects much more reliably than in previous games to its looping hits using the autolink angle.
  • In Melee, it is also a simple way to win the Paper Mario trophy in Home-Run Contest, as it can easily rack up a lot of damage on the Sandbag without the need of bat dropping.
• Ivysaur's and Pyra's down aerials in Ultimate are both notorious for their large, disjointed hitboxes and their ability to consistently meteor smash opponents, making both of them excellent for edgeguarding.
• Snake's down aerial is notable for its extremely fast startup and high power. It comes out on frame 3, making it the fastest down aerial in the series, and deals 28% in Brawl and 20% in Ultimate if all of the hits connect while it also possesses strong knockback, making it a potential KO move. Although its power and knockback were considerably toned down from Brawl, the move is much more effective in Ultimate due to its linking hits connecting much more reliably as well as its lower landing lag, being able to autocancel in a short hop, and Snake's significantly faster jumpsquat, the latter making it very reliable as a fast and highly damaging out of shield option.

Gallery

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  Mario's down aerial in Melee.