Lucas (SSB4)

Lucas in Super Smash Bros. 4
Universe	EarthBound
Other playable appearances	in Brawl in Ultimate
Availability	Downloadable
Final Smash	PK Starstorm
Tier	C (28)

“	Lucas Comes Out of Nowhere!	”
—Introduction Tagline

Lucas (リュカ, Lucas) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4. Initially absent as a playable character, Lucas's return to the series was announced during a Nintendo Direct on April 1st, 2015. He was then made available as downloadable content on June 14th, 2015, alongside Roy and Ryu. Lani Minella reprises her role as Lucas' voice actor; however, she does so via recycled voice clips from Brawl, some of which have been slightly sped up.

Lucas is ranked 28th out of 55 on the tier list, placing him at the bottom of the C tier. In addition to tying him with his fellow EarthBound fighter Ness, this renders both of them as the lowest ranking high-tier characters. This is a significant improvement over Lucas' low tier placement in Brawl, where he was ranked 30th out of 38. Like Ness, Lucas is no longer plagued by 10 extra grab release frames and early hitstun canceling, which were major detriments to his endurance and combo game, respectively. Aside from those gameplay changes, Lucas retains his fast attack speed; disjointed hitboxes; useful projectiles; and impressive combo game.

However, Lucas' overall damage output, knockback, and range were all reduced. When coupled with the loss of several of his more advanced techniques from Brawl, it is it questionable whether his buffs or nerfs are more prevalent. Lucas also retains his slow ground mobility and average frame data, giving him a lackluster neutral game; poor approach options; and a recovery that is occasionally susceptible to gimps and edgeguarding. While his throw game is powerful, his grab is one of the slowest in the game. Finally, Lucas' lack of landing options allows characters with disjointed ranges (such as Marth and Cloud) to give him a hard time landing.

Initially, Lucas was poorly regarded when he was first released, but the buffs he received from game updates have allowed him to achieve decent results. This has been most evident with the efforts of Taiheita, who has many notable placings, such as 17th in singles and 1st in doubles with Lucas at Super Smash Con 2016, along with several high placings at Sumabato and Umebura tournaments. Recently, however, Lucas's declining results in regionals and Japan, Taiheita's recent retirement, and Japanese Ness players earning results in Japan that have surpassed Lucas's achievements recently such as 17th at EVO Japan 2018 and 17th at The Big House 7 being credited to Gackt and taranito led some Smashers to question about Lucas's placement of whether Lucas should retain his position or not.

Attributes

Lucas' attributes remain largely unchanged since Brawl. He is a middleweight that has a very slow walking speed, slightly below average dashing speed, average gravity, above average air speed, and below average falling speed. However, his air and fast falling speeds have become faster since Brawl, both of which somewhat improve his aerial mobility. While Lucas' mobility speed is rather unimpressive, his attack speed compensates for it; notable examples include his neutral attack, which comes out on frame 2, and his down tilt, which comes out on frame 3 and is tied with Ness, Little Mac, R.O.B., and Meta Knight's down tilts for being the fastest down tilt in the game. As a result, Lucas' attacks are useful for damage racking and initiating combos, while several of his ground attacks are safe in many situations due to their minimal ending lag.

Despite his short stature and lack of a weapon outside of his forward smash, Lucas possesses good range courtesy of disjointed hitboxes. All of his smash attacks, nearly all of his aerial attacks and some of his ground attacks are disjointed, which can be further supplemented by his projectiles. In addition to their disjointed hitboxes, Lucas' smash attacks are among the strongest in the game. Like in Brawl, his up smash is among the strongest up smashes in the game while also possessing both a large disjointed hitbox and the ability to KO as low as 54% when fully charged (or 70% for heavyweights). The first hit of his down smash is also one of the strongest in the game and is an intimidating edgeguarding option, while his forward smash has decent speed, good KO potential and can even reflect projectiles.

However, Lucas greatest strength is his grab game. Despite having the shortest-ranged tether grab in the game, his Rope Snake has the lowest amount of ending lag among all tether grabs and respectable range, while he also possesses arguably the strongest set of throws in the game. Lucas' up and back throws are among the most powerful of their kind in the game, making them two of his best KOing options. His forward throw is tied with Bowser's for the strongest of its kind, although it is significantly weaker as a KOing option in comparison to his up and back throws. His down throw benefits significantly from both its considerably reduced knockback and the changes to hitstun canceling, both of which have re-purposed it into a reliable combo starter that can be followed up with his neutral and forward aerials from 0% up until high percents (even up to the early 90% range for neutral aerial), while its combo into up aerial is a confirmed KO set-up until 100%. While these changes have removed his down throw's KO potential, this is completely mitigated due to his up and back throws' aforementioned power. Lastly, his pummel is tied with Ness, Kirby and Fox's as the third fastest in the game, which makes it ideal for quick damage racking before a throw.

Lucas also boasts a strong zoning game that is essential to his success. PK Fire and grab aerial are both powerful spacing tools with their own specific uses, the latter being able to lead into a grab or forward tilt. Lucas' combo game is also very strong. His down tilt is a good combo starter, as it can combo into itself, neutral attack, and most importantly, his grab. His neutral and forward aerials can combo into themselves at low percents, while the former can also do so into other aerials (except for his back aerial) at low percents.

Like Ness, Lucas' special moveset boasts versatility in the form of PSI-based attacks, three of which are projectiles. PK Freeze can freeze his opponents, has very minimal ending lag and is viable, yet situational, as an edgeguarding option. While his PK Fire does not repeatedly hit opponents and potentially trap them like Ness' PK Fire, Lucas' deals decent knockback and can be used to give Lucas some space as it also provides a minimal amount of recoil, both on the ground and in the air. PK Thunder does not disappear like Ness' PK Thunder when it hits opponents, but instead hits them multiple times alongside boasting tighter control, while PK Thunder 2, grants Lucas farther distance. Lastly, PSI Magnet allows Lucas to deal with camping opponents that carry powerful, absorbable projectiles. However, its defensive utility also extends to Lucas' recovery, thanks to its ability to stall his descent. Unlike Ness', it also has offensive utility, thanks to it dealing damage and being a semi-spike.

However, Lucas does have his flaws. With his aforementioned sub-par mobility, fast characters such as Zero Suit Samus and Sonic can give Lucas a difficult time. Another problem is a predictable approach, reliance on his zoning tools (which can be overcome), and occasionally a lack of range in spite of his tether grab. Some of his moves require precision at times; his up aerial, whose hitbox is significantly smaller than it was in Brawl, can miss large opponents like Bowser. Another prominent example is his down smash, whose three hits are all mutually exclusive and thus gives opponents a perfect opportunity to punish Lucas if they manage to shield it. Lucas can also have problems scoring KOs despite his smash attacks' impressive strengths, as they mainly require effective reading and should be used wisely as a result. Although Lucas has a reliable tether recovery, his other method of recovery is also gimpable because of it having much slower priority than Ness, and it can be still be reflected or absorbed, most infamously by Rosalina & Luma. Like his fellow DLC characters, Lucas does not have any custom moves, which limits him in tournaments that allow character customization.

Altogether, Lucas' pros slightly outweigh his cons. He has an excellent damage racking game along with some good approach options, though his approach in general is predictable and can be faulty at times. He can also have a hard time KOing opponents outside of edgeguarding, and he is not as effective when his zoning tools can be nullified. While Lucas' initial tournament representation was poor like most of his fellow DLC characters, it has improved over time after he received buffs in game updates, to the point that he currently has both average representation and results, both of which are fair improvements from how he fared in Brawl.

Changes from Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Lucas received a mix of buffs and nerfs in the transition from Brawl to SSB4, but he was buffed overall. One of the most notable improvements he received was the removal of the 10 extra frames that were a part of his grounded grab release animation, which was one of his most significant flaws. This is further supplemented by the removal of chaingrabbing which was a large part as to why his grab release was extremely exploitable. Lucas' recovery, outside of advanced techniques, has been improved, as both PK Thunder 2 and Rope Snake now cover more distance. Rope Snake has also received more utility as a zoning option due to it receiving a hitbox when used as a grab aerial. Lucas has also been indirectly buffed from the changes to Smash 4's mechanics not only due to the removal of chaingrabbing but also because of the changes to hitstun canceling combined with the weakening of DI, which has giving him a very strong combo game which is most evident with the modifications to his down throw having resulted in it becoming one of his best combo starters. A few of his moves also have improved KO potential (most notably up aerial which also has greater juggling potential) and the introduction of rage only further improves his KO potential.

However, Lucas has seen a plethora of nerfs as well with his direct changes outside of his shorter grab release animation nerfing him overall. He can no longer use the Zap Jump or the Magnet Pull exploits, which were his two most pivotal techniques in Brawl, although the aforementioned buffs to PK Thunder 2 and Rope Snake can somewhat compensate for this off stage, at least in terms of recovery. In addition, many of his attacks have seen their damage, knockback and range reduced, while some of them have had their startup/ending lag increased. This is most notably seen with his aerials: his neutral, forward and up aerials lost their ability to auto-cancel in a short hop (although the landing lag of both is minimal), his down aerial has increased start-up lag and is no longer able to reliably set up for the infamous down tilt lock, and his up aerial has notably less range while also being slower and having static, all of which significantly hinders his already poor approach and landing options. He additionally has a slightly harder time KOing because of various of his previous KO moves including his forward and up smashes as well as his forward tilt and down throw having reduced knockback (although down throw has KO setups to compensate) alongside the loss of his advanced techniques. He is also slower on the ground relative to the cast as he is one of the only returning veterans whose dash (and walk) speed was not increased. His falling speed and gravity are also the same being lower relative to the cast although this has both positives and negatives.

Overall, Lucas has not significantly improved since Brawl as his moveset has seen many direct nerfs. However, he greatly benefits from Smash 4's mechanics and one of his main issues in Brawl was fixed resulting in him fairing better in Smash 4 overall. He was initially worse when he was first released but as of update 1.1.3, he is considered to be moderately better than how he was when he was initially released in SSB4, due to the buffs he received up to and including that update. He also fares better against Bayonetta than a decent portion of the cast which also helps him. By extension, his current placement on the tier list is a reflection of that perception.

Aesthetics

• Lucas' design has changed. He is slightly taller and has a slightly larger head; slightly longer hair; a slightly smaller nose; a sharper jawline; and his eyes no longer have a blue tint. Additionally, Lucas' shoes are smaller, and each of his shirt's stripes are equally horizontal. Lastly, the aesthetic used in SSB4 has resulted in Lucas having a sleeker design, and his overall color scheme being more vibrant.
• Lucas' blue, green, and purple alternate costumes have been updated. The blue costume's white stripes are now orange, instead of white. The green and purple costumes are now jungle green and purple, respectively; feature a sprite of Boney's head and a baby Drago as their designs, respectively; and have a single white stripe on each sleeve. Lucas has also received two new alternate costumes. The first is based on the Masked Man, and the second is based on Duster.
• Lucas is more expressive and, unlike in Brawl, significantly less depressive. He now consistently smiles, and scowls during some attacks.
• Many of Lucas' animations have been changed to match Ness'.
• PK-based attacks have updated visual and sound effects.
• Side taunt's animation has slightly changed. Lucas now keeps his eyes open while using it, instead of closing them.
• Due to the aesthetic used in SSB4, Rope Snake's skin is of a significantly higher visual quality than in Brawl.
• Lucas' previously unused damage yells from Brawl's Sound Test are now heard when taking high knockback.

Attributes

• Lucas' air speed is faster (1.05 → 1.1).
• Lucas' fast falling speed is faster (1.918 → 2.192) although relative to the cast, it has gone from the 19th lowest out of 38 characters to the 16th lowest out of 58.
• Lucas' grounded grab release has less ending lag (FAF 41 → 30), now matching the rest of the cast. When combined with the removal of chain grabbing, this significantly improves his endurance, as he is no longer vulnerable to guaranteed followups or chain grabs after a grab release.
  • Much like the rest of the cast, Lucas' aerial grab releases also has less ending lag (FAF 51 → 40), making him much less susceptible to air release followups.
• Rolls have less ending lag (FAF 32 → 31).
• Rolls have a shorter duration (frames 4-19 → 4-17).
• Air dodge has less startup (frame 4 → 3) and ending lag (FAF 49 → 34).
• Spot dodge has more startup lag with a shorter duration (frames 2-20 → 3-18) and it has more ending lag (FAF 26 → 28).
• Zap Jump and Magnet Pull have been removed, significantly hindering Lucas' advanced technical options.

Ground attacks

• Neutral attack:
  • Neutral attack's first and second hits deal less damage (3% (both) → 2.5% (hit 1)/2% (hit 2)).
  • Their mid and far hitboxes now launch at higher angles (40°/80° → 66°/87° (hit 2), 60°/80° → 70°/88° (hit 3)) with altered set knockback (20/10 → 18/16) improving their jab canceling potential especially the far hitbox.
• Forward tilt:
  • Forward tilt has increased start-up (frame 6 → 7) and ending lag (FAF 23 → 26). Its sourspot also deals less damage (9% → 7.5%) and has much lower knockback scaling (100 → 60). The sweetspot also deals less knockback (12/16 (base), 100 (scaling) → 30/75).
• Up tilt:
  • Late up tilt deals 1% more damage (4% → 5%) and has higher base knockback (10 → 50). Up tilt also has decreased ending lag (FAF 40 → 37) and the sweetspot has a longer duration (frames 7-9 → 7-10).
  • Up tilt's sweetspot has altered knockback (40 (base), 105 (scaling) → 50/100).
  • Up tilt's first hit has a shorter duration (frames 4-6 → 4) and deals less damage (3% → 1.5%). The late hit also has a shorter duration (frames 10-17 → 11-14).
• Down tilt:
  • Down tilt's close hitboxes have altered angles (0° → 76°/40°). This improves its followup potential but hinders its ability to chain into itself as well as removing its ability to lock and trip.
  • Down tilt has increased ending lag (FAF 14 → 16) and slightly decreased range. It deals less damage (6% → 3%) with increased knockback (6 (base), 22 (scaling) → (18/10/8)/(50/45/40)) significantly hindering its damage racking potential. It also no longer has a bonus tripping chance and only its tipper hitbox can lock opponents and even then, it can only lock at lower percents and the 3 hit lock limit further reduces its damage potential.
• Dash attack:
  • Sweetspotted dash attack deals 1% more damage (12% → 13%) and the sourspot has increased knockback scaling (40 → 76), generally improving its KO potential. Its sweetspot has also been re-positioned to the blast's tip, improving its range.
  • Its sweetspot's angle has been altered (75° → 46°).
  • Sourspotted dash attack deals 1% less damage (10% → 9%).
  • Dash attack has decreased start-up (frame 17 → 15) and ending lag (FAF 42 → 39).
• The 19% damage increase to shields and the increase to shieldstun significantly improve clean smash attacks' shield pressuring potentials.
• Forward smash:
  • Forward smash has decreased base knockback (60/55/50/45 → 50), hindering its KO potential. It has also received a sourspot on all of its untippered hitboxes that deals 1% less damage (15% → 14%) although its base knockback was compensated on one of its hitboxes (45 → 50).
  • Forward smash produces a different sound effect when striking opponents rather than a kicking sound.
• Up smash:
  • Up smash has decreased knockback (50 (base), 85 (scaling) → 48/77), hindering its KO potential. It also has smaller hitboxes (14u/13u/12u/10u/10u → 12u/11u/10u/8u/6.5u) and can no longer launch edge-hanging opponents into its main hitbox.
• Down smash:
  • Down smash's first hit has increased base knockback (40 → 43), improving its KO potential.
  • Down smash has smaller hitboxes (10u/12u/14u → 8u/9.8u/12u) and now consists of mutually exclusive hits preventing all of its hits from connecting greatly reducing its maximum damage output (42% → 17%).

Aerial attacks

• All aerials except back aerial auto-cancel later (frame 28 → 37 (neutral), frame 32 → 38 (forward), frame 25 → 38 (up), frame 35 → 47 (down)). Lucas can no longer auto-cancel any of his aerials out of a short hop greatly hinder his neutral and up aerial's safety as well as his forward aerial's spacing and approach potential.
• Neutral aerial:
  • Due to consisting of five hits instead of eight, neutral aerial deals 5% less damage (17% → 12%). Additionally, it has increased start-up (frame 5 → 7) and ending lag (FAF 40 → 45). Lastly, its SDI multiplier has increased (1× → 2×).
  • The final hit has decreased base knockback (70 → 40) and launches opponents at a higher angle (361° → 60°) This grants its combo potential but hinders its KO potential despite dealing more damage (3% → 4%).
  • Due to their angles being altered (105° → 367°), neutral aerial's loop hits connect together better combined with the weakening of SDI. Additionally, It has decreased landing lag (18 frames → 13).
• Forward aerial:
  • Forward aerial's clean hit deals less damage (12% (sweetspot)/10% (sourspot)/8% (late) → 11.5% (sweetspot)/9% (sourspot)) and the move has a shorter duration (frames 9-15 → 9-12). It also has a smaller hitbox (5.5u → 5u).
  • Forward aerial has decreased landing lag (15 frames → 12) and the sweetspot deals more knockback (10 (base), 100 (scaling) → 30/97).
• Back aerial:
  • Back aerial's non-meteor sweetspot deals 2% more damage (10% → 12%) improving its KO potential.
  • The removal of meteor canceling significantly improves back and down aerials' reliability.
• Up aerial:
  • Up aerial has more start-up lag with a shorter duration (frames 5-9 → 7-9) and a smaller hitbox (7u → 5.2u). Its hitbox is also static now, no longer attached to Lucas' head during its animation and introducing blindspots above and in front of Lucas.
  • Up aerial launches opponents at a higher angle (62° → 80°). This improves its juggling and KO potential since its damage and knockback are unchanged.
  • Up aerial has increased hitlag (1× → 1.1×). This makes it safer on shield, but easier to DI.
• Down aerial:
  • Down aerial's first three hits deal 1.5% less damage (5% → 3.5%), which decreases its overall damage output by 4.5% (20% → 15.5%). It also has increased start-up lag (frame 4 → 10) and its worse auto-cancel window significantly hinders its followup potential.
  • Down aerial has decreased landing lag (28 frames → 24).
• Grab aerial:
  • Grab aerial has received a hitbox that deals damage (4% (clean)/2.8% (late)), granting it spacing and combo potential. It also has increased range as a tether recovery.
  • Grab aerial no longer auto-cancels on landing instead having 8 frames of landing lag making it more punishable.

Throws/other attacks

• All grabs have decreased start-up lag (frame 13 → 12 (standing), frame 16 → 14 (dash), frame 15 → 12 (pivot)).
• All grabs have increased durations (1 frame → 8).
• Standing and dash grabs have significantly decreased ending lag (FAF 70 → 45 (standing), FAF 80 → 55 (dash)).
• Pivot grab has increased ending lag (FAF 50 → 56).
• Pummel:
  • Pummel has less ending lag (FAF 13 → 10).
  • Pummel has increased range (y/z offsets: 6/6 → 8/8).
  • Pummel deals less damage (3% → 1.2%), hindering its damage racking potential despite its decreased ending lag.
  • Pummel has decreased set knockback (40 → 30).
• Up throw:
  • Up throw deals more knockback (80 (base), 65 (scaling) → 78/69), slightly improving its KO potential.
• Down throw:
  • Lucas now aesthetically buries opponents headfirst upon performing his down throw.
  • Down throw deals much less knockback (75 (base), 100 (scaling) → 78/51).
    • This combined with the changes to hitstun canceling/DI greatly improves its combo potential. It can lead into devastating aerial/footstool combos at lower percents and at higher percents, it can lead into an up aerial for a KO.
    • However, this also significantly hinders its KO potential, no longer being Lucas' strongest throw.
  • Down throw deals less damage (7% → 6.5%).
• Floor attack:
  • Floor attacks have less startup lag (frame 19 (front)/20 (back) → 17).
    • The second hits also have less startup lag (frame 25 (front)/24 (back) → 21 (both)).
  • Floor attacks have less ending lag (FAF 50 → 46).
  • Floor attacks deal more damage (6% → 7%) and shield damage (1 → 8) per hit, without full compensation on their knockback scaling (50 → 48).
  • Floor attacks launch opponents at a higher angle (361° → 48°).
  • Floor attacks have less intangibility (frames 1-26 (front)/1-25 (back) → 1-23).
  • Floor attacks now use one extended static hitbox rather than multiple normal hitboxes attached to Lucas' body, which covers less range.
• Front floor attack:
  • Front floor attack now starts in front of Lucas, rather than from behind.
• Edge attack:
  • Edge attack has less startup lag (frame 24 → 20) with its total duration subsequently reduced (FAF 56 → 52).
  • As with other edge attacks, edge attack no longer has set knockback (110 (set), 100 (scaling) → 90 (base)/20).
  • Edge attack now deals consistent damage (8%/6% → 7%).
  • Edge attack now uses one extended hitbox rather than multiple normal hitboxes, which gives the move less range.
  • Edge attack has less intangibility (frames 1-26 → 1-17), with Lucas no longer being intangible while the hitboxes are active.
  • As with other edge attacks, edge attack now always launches opponents in the direction Lucas is facing, removing its ability to set up edgeguards.
• Trip attack:
  • Trip attack has less ending lag (FAF 60 → 50), now matching other trip attacks.
  • Trip attack deals more shield damage (1 → 8) per hit.
  • Trip attack now has transcendent priority.
  • Trip attack has less intangibility (frames 1-8 → 1-7).
  • The front hit has more startup lag (frame 28 → 29).
  • Trip attack now uses one extended hitbox rather than multiple normal hitboxes, which noticeably decreases the move's disjoint.

Special moves

• PK Freeze:
  • Fully charged PK Freeze deals 3% more damage (19% → 22%) and travels farther.
  • The 19% damage increase to shields and the increase to shieldstun significantly improve fully charged PK Freeze's shield pressuring potential.
  • PK Freeze travels slightly slower and takes longer to fully charge. It also goes lower than Lucas' body, similarly to PK Flash, which results in it no longer exploding on contact with the ground. Unlike PK Flash, using PK Freeze right before it makes contact with the ground does not count as it being fully charged.
• PK Fire:
  • PK Fire deals 1% more damage (8% → 9%).
• PK Thunder:
  • PK Thunder is larger and travels slightly faster. This improves its recovery potential and, when coupled with the weakening of SDI, makes it significantly more difficult to escape from.
  • PK Thunder's visual effects have changed. It is now violet, instead of blue.
• PK Thunder 2:
  • PK Thunder 2 covers slightly more distance, improving its recovery potential. It can also be reused immediately after Lucas bounces off of a wall, significantly improving its safety. Its final hit also has higher knockback scaling (70 → 74).
  • PK Thunder 2 deals less damage when all hits connect (43% → 35.5%) and it can no longer be used with edge momentum shifting.
• PSI Magnet:
  • PSI Magnet is significantly larger.
  • PSI Magnet deals 1% less damage (9% → 8%) and only the center of its orb deals damage, whereas its entire orb dealt damage in Brawl. These changes hinder its utility combined with the removal of magnet pull. Additionally, PSI Magnet also now swirls healing projectiles for a moment, creating a slight delay before Lucas can actually be healed. Lastly, it has received a blind spot directly behind Lucas, hindering its safety.
  • PSI Magnet's animation has slightly changed. Lucas now keeps both eyes open during it, instead of closing one of them.
• PK Starstorm:
  • PK Starstorm now functions identically to Ness' version. It deals 6% less damage per hit (14% → 8%), but the falling stars are now fired in a line that can be aimed in a fanning motion from the top-center of the stage. While this gives it blind spots, it results in a more consistent damage output when the stars do hit.
  • PK Starstorm now has a flame effect, instead of an electric effect.
  • PK Starstorm's animation and visual effects have changed. Lucas now strikes the same pose during it, and the falling stars are now sky blue, instead of whitish yellow. These changes make it appear virtually identical to Ness' version.

Update history

Lucas has been buffed via game updates. Update 1.1.0 saw all of his grabs' ending lag decreased and as well as subtle range improvements to his forward and down tilts, though they still do not match up to his range in Brawl. The changes to shield mechanics in updates 1.1.0 and 1.1.1 have been a mixed bag for Lucas; the changes make his sourspotted moves less safe on shield, but his sweetspotted moves safer on shield. Lastly, update 1.1.3 gave Lucas a number of noticeable buffs: his standing grab, dash grab, and forward aerial all had their lag decreased, his neutral aerial's damage output was increased, and forward tilt's sweetspot had its size and duration increased. As a result of these buffs, Lucas is considered better than he was when he was initially released.

1.1.0

• Forward tilt's sweetspot and sourspot hitbox sizes increased: 4u (sweetspot)/2u (sourspot) → 4.4u/2.2u.
• Forward tilt's horizontal displacement decreased: 1.6 → 0.
• Down tilt improved. Its displacement increased: 0 → 3.5; its horizontal displacement increased: 2.7 → 3; and its far hitbox's horizontal displacement increased: 7 → 7.2.
• Down tilt's knockback altered: 10 (base)/50 (growth) → 18/45.
• Down tilt's close and middle hitboxes angles' altered: 70° (close)/0° (middle) → 76°/40°.
• Sourspotted forward aerial deals 1% more damage: 8% → 9%.
• Forward aerial's vertical displacement increased: 1 → 2.9.
• Forward aerial's sourspot hitbox size decreased: 3.8u → 3.3u. This makes it easier to land the sweetspot, but hinders its range.
• All grabs' ending lag decreased: frame 56 (standing)/frame 66 (dash/pivot) → 51/61.
• Grab's early and late grabboxes' sizes increased: 2.5u (early)/2.4u (late) → 3u/2.8u.
• PK Thunder's hitbox size increased: 3.5u → 3.8u.

1.1.3

• Forward tilt hitbox size: 4.4 → 4.7.
• Neutral air looping hits damage: 1% → 2%.
• Forward air landing lag: 15 frames → 12
• Standing grab and dash grab had their ending lag decreased by 5 frames: 50/60 → 45/55.
• All grabs have sped up animations.
• PSI Magnet heals half damage from absorbing teammates' projectiles.

Moveset

For a gallery of Lucas's hitboxes, see here.

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			2.5%	A right-legged roundhouse kick, followed by a right-legged hook kick, followed by a left-legged reverse roundhouse kick. The last hit has slightly more range. Hits first on frame 2 and can combo into a dash attack at low to medium percents.
			2%
			4%
Forward tilt			11% (sweetspot), 7.5% (sourspot)	A palm thrust that emits a small blast of PSI energy from his hand. It can be angled and has a disjointed hitbox, although its sweetspot is located inside of the blast. This move's sourspot can lock opponents at low percents.
Up tilt			1.5% (hit 1), 8% (clean hit 2), 5% (late hit 2)	Telekinetically tilts himself upside down to perform a vertical thrust kick that emits a blast of PSI energy from his foot. It can combo into itself, a neutral aerial or an up aerial at low to medium percents.
Down tilt			3%	A legsweep. Although weak, it is fast and reliable for either racking up damage or chaining into itself, a neutral attack or a grab. Hits on frame 3, making it tied with Ness, Little Mac, R.O.B., and Meta Knight's down tilts for being the fastest down tilt in the game. The edge of down tilt can lock opponents at low to medium percents.
Dash attack			13% (sweetspot), 9% (sourspot)	A dashing palm thrust that emits a blast of PSI energy from his hand. Has noticeable start-up and deals more damage the farther the opponent is from Lucas.
Forward smash			14% (base), 15% (tip), 1.5× (reflected projectiles)	Swings a stick in front of himself. The stick's tip deals slightly more damage and knockback, while the move overall functions very similarly to Ness' forward smash, including the ability to reflect projectiles. Compared to Ness' version, it has less start-up and ending lag, but deals less damage, knockback and has a lower damage multiplier when reflecting projectiles.
Up smash			2% (hit 1), 19%, 18%, 16%, 14%, or 12% (clean to late hit 2)	Emits a large blast of PSI energy above his head. Despite in-game tips saying it is the most powerful up smash in the game and can attack opponents hanging on the edge, neither of these tips are true; it is only the fifth strongest up smash in the game, and completely whiffs most edge-hanging characters unless their head pokes above the edge. It is a "high-risk, high-reward" attack; it has an extreme amount of ending lag, which makes it very punishable if missed, but it is strong enough to KO at 80% when uncharged and at 54% when fully charged. It also has other positives, as it renders Lucas invincible on frames 1-4, grants intangibility to his head on frames 15-29 and has a very large hitbox, making it a good anti-air attack if used correctly. It appears to be based on PK Love, Lucas' signature PSI attack from Mother 3.
Down smash			17% (clean), 14% (mid), 11% (late)	Aims his arm diagonally downward and emits three consecutive blasts of PSI energy towards the ground while holding his hand in a finger gun gesture. With each blast, its range increases at the expense of damage and knockback. It is one of the strongest down smashes in the game when clean, as it is able to KO as low as 60% near the edge depending on the opponent's weight and DI. If it is timed well, it can also catch recovering opponents before they grab the edge. Has a bit of start-up lag, but low ending lag. Despite seemingly being composed of three distinct hits, it can only strike an opponent once due to how its single hitbox is coded, making it somewhat unsafe on shield.
Neutral aerial			2% (hits 1-4), 4% (hit 5)	Tumbles while emitting blasts of PSI energy around his torso. Each hit has numerous freeze frames and it has good combo potential, despite being susceptible to SDI.
Forward aerial			11.5% (sweetspot), 9% (sourspot), 8% (late)	A flying kick that emits a blast of PSI energy from his foot. It is is fast and disjointed, making it a good off-stage option and one of Lucas' better spacing options. Its sweetspot deals the most knockback and can KO at high percents. This move's sourspot can lock opponents at early percents.
Back aerial			12% (sweetspot), 9% (sourspot), 7% (late)	A backflip kick that emits a trail of PSI energy from his foot. It can meteor smash at the tip of his foot and has disjointed reach, with its weakest hitbox being at the tip. The last hitbox of this move can lock opponents at early percents.
Up aerial			13%	An upward headbutt. Its hitbox has become smaller since Brawl and is now static and misleading, but it deals respectable high damage and knockback, which make it a viable KOing option near the upper blast line.
Down aerial			3.5% (hits 1-3), 5% (hit 4)	An alternating series of stomps, with each stomp emitting a small blast of PSI energy from his feet. Like his back aerial, it is disjointed and has a meteor smash hitbox below himself on the fourth and last hit. The move itself is also difficult to fully land on smaller grounded opponents, such as Pikachu and Kirby. The last hitbox of this move can lock opponents at low percents.
Grab aerial		Rope Snake	4% (clean), 2.8% (late)	Unfurls Duster's Rope Snake in front of himself. It can damage opponents and act as a tether recovery.
Grab		Rope Snake	—	Unfurls Duster's Rope Snake in front of himself. His standing grab is deceptively fast, although his pivot grab is very slow.
Pummel			1.2%	A headbutt. Tied with Ness, Kirby and Fox's pummels as the third fastest pummel in the game. However, it is the least damaging pummel in the game.
Forward throw			10%	Telekinetically throws the opponent in front of himself. Among the strongest forward throws in the game, behind Bowser's and Wario's. It KOs around 100%-160% near the edge, depending on the opponent's weight and DI.
Back throw			10%	Telekinetically throws the opponent behind himself. It is his strongest throw and the third strongest back throw in the game, being surpassed only by Ness and Villager's, respectively. It can KO even super heavyweights at 158% near the edge without rage.
Up throw			10%	Telekinetically whirls the opponent around his head, then throws them directly overhead. The third strongest up throw in the game, being surpassed only by Mewtwo and Charizard's, as it KOs around 120%-180% depending on the opponent's weight and DI.
Down throw			6.5%	Telekinetically slams the opponent into the ground head first. Lucas' primary combo starter, as it can lead into all of his aerials at a wide range of percentages, depending on DI. His up aerial specifically becomes a viable KO combo after this move. Although the opponent appears buried, this is merely aesthetic.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	Kicks around himself while getting up.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	Kicks around himself while getting up.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Kicks behind himself and then in front of himself while getting up.
Edge attack Edge getups			7%	Performs a low-angle kick while climbing up.
Neutral special		PK Freeze	9%-22%	Emits a snowflake-shaped blast of PSI energy from his head that freezes opponents. The direction of the blast's path can be controlled, it can be made stronger by holding the special button and it can be concluded at a deceptively fast speed. However, it renders Lucas helpless if used in the air.
Side special		PK Fire	3% (lightning), 6% (fire)	Thrusts both of his hands forward to release a lightning bolt-shaped PSI projectile from his hands. Unlike Ness' PK Fire, Lucas' version results in a brief, fiery explosion of PSI energy that launches the opponent backward, rather than a long-lasting pillar of fiery PSI energy. It is further differentiated from Ness' version in that it flies straight ahead regardless of whether it is used on the ground or in the air, as well as causing a minimal amount of recoil both on the ground and in the air, making it more effective as a spacing tool than Ness' PK Fire.
Up special		PK Thunder	2.5% (projectile head), 0.8% (projectile tail, rapid hits), 8% (PKT2 initial), 2% (PKT2 rapid hits 1-5), 1.5% (PKT2 rapid hits 6-10), 10% (PKT2 last)	Emits a streaming, electrical PSI projectile from his head. Like Ness' PK Thunder, it can be directed into Lucas to launch him at a high speed. Unlike Ness' version, it does not disappear after hitting an opponent and instead hits multiple times, giving it damage racking potential. This effect also applies PK Thunder 2, with Lucas hitting an opponent multiple times upon colliding with them.
Down special		PSI Magnet	8% (ending), heals 2.5× the damage of absorbed projectiles (maximum 30%)	Thrusts his arm forward to emit a glowing orb of PSI energy around his outstretched hand. Any energy-based projectiles it absorbs will heal him, although it no longer absorbs energy projectiles that are launched directly at his back as it did in Brawl. Unlike Ness' PSI Magnet, Lucas' version can be used offensively, due to it dealing damage and semi-spike knockback to opponents inside of it when it dissipates.
Final Smash		PK Starstorm	8% (per hit)	Summons a shower of falling stars to repeatedly hit the opponent. The stars that descend in a column from the top-center of the stage and can be angled in a fanning motion throughout its duration.

On-screen appearance

• Rides in on a Mr. Saturn-style coffee table, then hops off. The table is based on the one that Lucas rides in order to reach Saturn Valley in Mother 3.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Trips, shakes his head, and gets back up.
• Side taunt: Duster's Rope Snake taps Lucas on the shoulder and has a brief conversation with him, as Lucas shrugs at it.
• Down taunt: Positions his right hand up to his forehead and grunts while generating small bursts of PSI energy from his index and middle fingers, then swings his hand down to emit a trail of PSI energy.

Up taunt	Side taunt	Down taunt

Idle poses

• Taps the toes of his shoes on the ground.
• Shakes his fists in front of his face in a cowardly motion.

Crowd cheer

	English	Japanese
Cheer	File:Lucas Cheer NTSC SSB4.ogg	File:Lucas Cheer JP SSB4.ogg
Description	Lu-cas!	Ryuuu-ka!
Pitch	Female	Female

Victory poses

A flourished, sped-up remix of a portion of EarthBound Beginnings' theme song.

• With his back toward the screen, Lucas crouches while poking at something on the ground with a large stick. After the camera zooms in, he then turns his head around to face the screen and says "Huh?" while briefly sporting a surprised expression.
• Forcefully pulls one of the Seven Needles out of the ground, sending it flying off-screen while Lucas looks toward the screen in a battle-ready pose.
• Bends down on one knee and waves his right arm in from himself while releasing blasts of PSI energy from his index and middle fingers.

In competitive play

Notable players

Any number following the Smasher name indicates placement on the PGR 100, which recognizes the official top 100 players in Super Smash Bros. 4 of all time.

•  Agehasama - A top Lucas player in Japan, placing 13th at Sumabato 19 and 17th at Sumabato 20. He has wins over Sigma, Oisiitofu, and Gomamugitya.
•  Clade - Placed 17th at B.E.A.S.T 6.
•  Genarog - One of the best Lucas players in Europe. Placed 3rd at Nemiex Pro Tournament II, 5th at ICARUS II and Nemiex Pro Tournament I, and 7th at Respawn 6 and ICARUS IV.
•  Hakadama - Considered as the one of the best Lucas players in Japan and one of the best overall. Placed 5th at Sumabato 24. Has wins over Sigma, Suinoko and komorikiri.
•  JeBB - Formally mained Lucas and is considered one of the best Lucas players in the world before dropping him for Bayonetta.
•  Hakii - Has a win over P2P with Gibus.
•  K3H - Formerly ranked 9th on the Connecticut Power Rankings. Placed 17th at GUMS 6 and GUMS 9
•  Luco - Ranked 10th on the Australian Power Rankings. Placed 3rd at both Battle Arena Melbourne 9 and DI Another Day 2 and has taken sets off of players such as Keitaro and Ghost.
•  Marss
•  Mekos - Considered to the best active Lucas player in the world after Taiheita’s retirement. Placed 13th at MomoCon 2016 and Glitch 2. He has wins over Nairo, Saj, and Scatt.
•  NAKAT - Occasionally uses Lucas in tournaments. Has a win over Captain L using Lucas as one of his characters.
•  NovaPixl - Formerly ranked 8th on the Georgia Power Rankings. He has wins over Pink Fresh, ScAtt, and NickRiddle.
•  Pink Fresh - Played Lucas before switching to Bayonetta.
•  ShiNe - Placed 13th at the 2GG Championship Last Chance Qualifier, 13th at Noods Noods Noods: Melee Edition, 33rd at 2GG: Breakthrough 2, and SwitchFest. Ranked 7th on the Lucas Power Rankings.
•  Sidereus - The best Lucas player in Michigan and Canada. Ranked 13th on the Michigan Smash 4 Power Rankings.
•  SpaceDong
•  Taiheita (#58) - Widely considered to be the best Lucas player prior to his retirement. Placed 17th in singles play at Super Smash Con 2016 and 1st in doubles play at Super Smash Con 2016. Formally ranked 49th on the Panda Global Rankings v2, and currently ranked 28th on the JAPAN Power Rankings. He has wins over Abadango, Marss, 9B, Kameme, T, Earth, Edge, Ranai, and ikep.
•  WhYYZ - Placed 5th at Smash4United, 7th at Smash4United 6, 9th at NHSmash 3, and 17th at Ys. Has wins over Griffith and Patrino.

Tier placement and history

During his release, Lucas was considered to have improved from Brawl due to the changes to the game physics benefiting him. However, it would very soon become clear Lucas had lost most of his benefits from Brawl, and would go on to be considered among his previous game's placement. Following the buffs to his attacks, as well as decent tournament representation and results (the latter point being largely due to Taiheita), he would be ranked 36th in the first 4BR' tier list, as a low-tier character. However, players would prove that Lucas' buffs had indeed benefited him a lot and that he was now a capable character with reliable combo potential and KO power. Due to receiving notable results from Taiheita in 17th place at Super Smash Con 2016, Lucas rose up in the second tier list to 33rd, officially putting him in the mid-tier.

His positive perspective from Taiheita and his potential would led Lucas to a very slight rise to 32nd on the third, and then to 28th on the fourth tier list and current tier list, now tied with Ness for the bottom of high tier. While not having as much tournament representation as other mid-tiered characters, his results have been good enough to secure his current placement. Despite this, Lucas' current placement is still debatable, Lucas's results and representation began to show a series of decline in Japan ever since Taiheita's retirement. Since Taiheita's last tournament, many other players were unable to match Taiheita's success. Towards the end of the metagame, while the Lucas meta in Japan began to decline, his EarthBound counterpart, on the other hand, rose in Japan. Gackt and taranito, two of the top Ness players, have started to place better and achieved milestones. Such achievements include Gackt's 17th placing at The Big House 7 and taranito's 17th placing at EVO Japan 2018 with both of them defeating multiple top players such as Abadango, komorikiri, and ANTi. Due to these factors, players believe that Lucas should be ranked noticeably lower, citing his waning meta combined with Ness's more energetic developments. Other smashers advocate that Lucas's strengths remain potent in spite of these points, and that his placement is accurate.

Trophies

Lucas comes with matching character trophies, which are unlocked as usual. However, his alt. trophy will also be automatically granted upon booting up the version. His existing non-fighter trophy remains in the game, completely unchanged; both it and the Classic trophy are simply labeled as "Lucas" in-game.

Lucas (non-fighter)

Before adventuring, Lucas was a timid, cautious boy. His journey has made him a stronger person. Maybe he met someone to spend his life with... Hang on—we're moving way too fast! For now, remember that Lucas and Ness are favorites in the hearts of EarthBound fans.

Once upon a time, Lucas was a bit of a cry-baby. You might even say he was a wimp. But then, well...he had more than his fair share of rough times and toughened up a bit. Who knows what he's up to now? Whatever he's doing, his story - much like Ness's - lives on in the hearts of all Mother series fans.

: Mother 3

Lucas

The younger of the twin brothers from Nowhere makes his triumphant return to the game of Smash. Hailing from the Japan-only game Mother 3, Lucas's specialty is psychic projectile attacks. He can use these PSI attacks to do things like absorb enemy projectiles and deal supernatural damage!

Lucas, the younger of the twin brothers from Tazmily, comes originally from the Japan-only game, Mother 3, and now makes his triumphant return to Super Smash Bros.! Here he makes great use of his PSI powers with lots of projectile attacks, and can use his faster attacks on anybody who gets too close.

: Mother 3

Lucas (Alt.)

Lucas's up special PK Thunder can hit enemies multiple times, but if you hit yourself with it, you can then tackle and launch opponents! Lucas's up smash has the strongest launch power of any fighter's up smash. The range for this attack is wide, and it's strongest right after Lucas unleashes the attack.

Lucas's up special, PK Thunder, can either hit enemies multiple times, or hit Lucas himself to push him into a powerful charge attack. Meanwhile, his up smash attack is the most powerful launching move in the entire game, so make good use of it! It's a wide-range attack that is most effective right after Lucas unleashes it.

: Mother 3

PK Starstorm (Lucas)

You can adjust the direction of the shooting stars in this attack! Rain stars down on multiple fighters at once, or be mean and pick on a single fighter. The choice is yours! If a star connects, it will deal ongoing fire damage, making it hard for opponents to return to the stage.

Lucas uses his PSI powers to summon a stream of shooting stars, the angle of which you can control. It's good for attacking an entire group during a free-for-all...or if you want to make things tougher for a single person. Even if the attack only hits once, it deals ongoing fire damage, making it harder to get back to the stage.

• 

  Non-fighter (3DS)

• 

  Non-fighter (Wii U)

• 

  Classic (3DS)

• 

  Alt. (3DS)

• 

  Classic (Wii U)

• 

  Alt. (Wii U)

• 

  PK Starstorm

Alternate costumes

Gallery

• 

  Lucas' splash art.

• 

  Lucas' amiibo.

• 

  Using his forward aerial.

• 

  Using PK Thunder against Falco.

• 

  Lucas' on-screen appearance.

• 

  Using his down taunt alongside Ness' down taunt.

• 

  Using PK Fire against Bowser alongside with Ness using PK Fire against Sonic.

• 

  One of Lucas' idle poses alongside Wii Fit Trainer and Villager.

• 

  Using PSI Magnet to heal himself.

• 

  All of Lucas' alternate costumes.

• 

  Lucas on Magicant with another Lucas wearing the Claus alternate costume.

• 

  Using his side taunt.

Trivia

• A few aspects regarding Lucas' status in SSB4 tied in to a number of significant dates for the EarthBound series:
  • He was confirmed in the same month that his origin game, Mother 3, was first released.
  • The announcement details for Lucas and update 1.0.8 were revealed on the same day as EarthBound's 20th anniversary.
  • The day he became available to purchase was the same day that EarthBound Beginnings was released internationally for the Wii U Virtual Console.
  • His amiibo's release date in Japan was the same day that Mother 3 was released on the Japanese Wii U Virtual Console.
• Lucas' dashing animation is similar to his running animation in Mother 3.
• Due to his non-fighter trophy using his character model from Brawl, Lucas is the only character who has both his Brawl and SSB4 character models in the same game.
• Lucas is the only starter character and newcomer from Brawl to be available as downloadable content.
  • He is also the only DLC character with a tether grab.
  • He is also the only character to be initially unplayable in the next installment but then regained playable status due to DLC.
• Lucas and Wario are the only characters not be a starter character who were previously a starter since Wario has to be unlocked and Lucas has to purchased as DLC.
  • Coincidentally, both are Brawl newcomers.
• As Lucas' down throw technically does not bury opponents and instead forces them into a unique position, if the character being thrown flinches lightly, they will snap back to their original position. In Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, the skirts of Peach's, Zelda's and Rosalina's dresses cannot keep up with the velocity change and will stay up. This technical oversight leads to odd results. However, this oversight does not occur in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.
• Lucas' amiibo description on the official amiibo website is a combination of his Classic Mode trophy descriptions from Brawl and SSB4.
  • Oddly, his amiibo description carried over his Brawl trophy's mistranslation of his home, Tazumili Village, rather than its correct translation, Tazmily Village.
• Lucas is the only veteran DLC character to have recycled voice clips.
  • He is also the only veteran DLC character to not have his voice actress in the DLC credits. His voice actress, however, was in the original credits before his return, as Larry, Morton, Wendy and Lemmy, and Lyn use her portrayals from New Super Mario Bros. Wii and Brawl respectively.
  • He is also the only DLC character to speak English in the Japanese version of the game, though Bayonetta can be technically included if her "A Witch With No Memories" alternate costume is counted.
  • Additionally, he is the only DLC character whose Final Smash is not showcased in his reveal trailer.
• Oddly, Lucas' forward aerial has a hitbox that will load, but will then be deleted at the same time it appears. This hitbox deals 6% and has a punching sound effect on contact. However, it can be restored via modding.
• Lucas has unused references to custom moves.
  • Additionally he has unused behavior for his PK Thunder that functions just like Ness' PK Thunder.
• According to an interview with Sakurai, Lucas' alternate costumes were all chosen by one of the game's designers.