Forward aerial

Captain Falcon using Knee Smash, his forward aerial attack, in Brawl.

Jigglypuff's forward aerial attack in Melee.

The forward aerial (abbreviated as "fair", "FAir", or "AFA", referred in the Brawl manual as "Front air" and as AttackAirF internally) is an aerial attack that is performed in midair by pressing the attack button and tilting the control stick/d-pad in the direction the character is facing. Its official term varies between titles, where it is known as a front midair attack in Melee, and a front air attack in Brawl and Smash 4. Forward aerials are usually not as strong as back aerials, though they have larger hitboxes most of the time, making them useful for edgeguarding.

List of forward aerials in Super Smash Bros.

Character	Description	Damage
Captain Falcon	Does two kicks. Will become Falcon's neutral aerial in future Smash Bros. iterations. First hit combos into up smash. 2nd hit has enough shield stun to forward throw out of it.	22% if both hits connect.
Donkey Kong	Punches downwards. A good spike move for edgeguarding. Combos into giant punch and into another forward aerial at middle to high percentages. Most known for its ability to be used vs. shields into a dash grab or down special.	16%
Fox	Does a drill kick in front of him. Another good aerial move of Fox's Combos into up smash and virtually all of his aerials. Good approaching and baiting tactics.	12%
Jigglypuff	Kicks in front of itself. Good range. Can "wall of pain" similar to Melee but to less of an extent. Combos into a Rest.	8-13%
Kirby	Does a drill kick in front of him. A very useful combo move. Down aerial→up tilt→short hop→forward aerial→forward smash is one of Kirby's staple combos.	20% if all hits connect.
Link	Swings his sword in front of him. Link's strongest aerial in terms of knockback. His main combo ender outside of up special move and forward smash.	20% if both hits connect.
Luigi	Luigi kicks forward while spinning. Good edgeguarding tool. Good range compared to Luigi's other aerials. Combos into the Hyrule tent into an up special.	16%
Mario	It is similar to Luigi's move. It is good versus certain characters like Jigglypuff. It has good range.	16%
Ness	Throws his hands out forcefully, knocking the opponent backwards. Similar to his dash attack.	12%
Pikachu	Thrusts its head forward, doing electric damage. Would be a very useful combo move if it was more difficult to DI out of drills. Combos into up smash and all other aerial attacks. Not as heavily disjointed as Pikachu's other aerials.	21% if all hits connect.
Samus	Bursts out fire out of her arm gun. A useful combo move. It has high damage and is good at breaking down shields. Combos into down aerial.	20% if all hits connect.
Yoshi	Thrusts its head downwards. A useful edgeguarding move and both a combo starter and a combo ender. Combos into his down special move on the ground. It can meteor smash an opponent.	18%

List of forward aerials in Super Smash Bros. Melee

Character	Description	Damage
Bowser	Claws forwards. Good for edgeguarding.	9-14%
Captain Falcon	The Knee Smash. Very powerful when sweetspotted.	18% when sweetspotted, 5-6% when sourspotted.
Donkey Kong	Clutches his hands together and punches down. Meteor smashes at the end of the move.	16%
Dr. Mario	Similar to Mario. Good for KOing.	17% sweetspotted, 16% sourspotted.
Falco	Similar to Fox. Five kicks in front.	27% if all hits connect.
Fox	Kicks forward five times.	17% if all hits connect.
Ganondorf	Nicknamed the "Skull Crusher." Punches downwards. Great KO move.	17%
Ice Climbers	Swings their hammer down. Meteor smashes if timed well.	10% both, up to 20%.
Jigglypuff	Kicks forward with its legs.	12%
Kirby	Kicks forward three times.	16% if all hits connect.
Link	Horizontally spins twice while slashing with his sword.	13% first hit, 7% second hit.
Luigi	A quick karate chop. High horizontal knockback and is one of his primary KO'ing aerial attacks.	12%
Mario	Punches downwards. Meteor smashes.	15%
Marth	Slashes forwards.	9% (base), 10% (middle), 13% (tip)
Mewtwo	Slashes forwards with its claw infused with darkness.	14%
Mr. Game & Watch	Swings a box forwards.	16% first few frames, 6% later frames.
Ness	Shoots multiple PSI shots out of his hands.	15% if all hits connect.
Peach	Slaps forward with her crown.	8-15%
Pichu	Similar to Pikachu. Spins forward emitting sparks.	7% damage if all hits connect. Pichu will do 4% damage to itself when using this move.
Pikachu	Twirls forward while emitting sparks.	8% if all hits connect.
Roy	Similar to Marth.	8%
Samus	Shoots with her cannon in an arc in front of herself.	23% if all hits connect.
Sheik	Does a quick karate chop. Semi-spikes.	13%
Yoshi	Swings head downwards while flipping. Meteor smashes powerfully.	17%
Young Link	Similar to Link.	12% first hit,
Zelda	The "Lightning Kick". Zelda kicks forward. Powerful if sweetspotted.	20% sweetspotted, 9% sourspotted.

List of forward aerials in Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Character	Description	Damage
Bowser	A quick downward slash forward. Decent knockback with surprising speed.	13% (hand), 12% (arm), 11% (shoulder)
Captain Falcon	Known as the Knee Smash. Very powerful when sweet spotted, which is difficult.	19% (clean sweetspot), 6% (clean sourspot), 3% (late)
Charizard	Covers itself with its wings and breaths fire outwards with good horizontal knockback and range. Oddly, if the opponent is far enough away from Charizard, they will not take any knockback or hitstun from this attack - just damage.	2-4%
Diddy Kong	Kicks out both legs and spins around. Similar to Mario's and Luigi's old forward aerial in Super Smash Bros..	14% (clean), 11% (late)
Donkey Kong	Puts his fists together above his head, and then does an ax-handle swing downwards. A slow yet powerful move that can meteor smash when sweetspotted.	16%
Falco	Turns horizontally and spins, hitting multiple times with his beak. This move has a long duration with landing lag.	2% (hits 1-4), 3% (hit 5)
Fox	Performs five rapid kicks in succession. Fox "hovers" whenever he performs all five kicks.	6% (hit 1), 5% (hits 2-3), 4% (hit 4), 3% (hit 5)
Ganondorf	Punches his fist downward, known as the "Skull Crusher." Deals great knockback, but has some ending and landing lag.	17% (fist), 15% (arm)
Ice Climbers	Holds their hammers up and bring them downward. The partner can meteor smash opponents when sweetspotted.	Leader: 12% Partner: 12% (sweetspot), 7% (sourspot)
Ike	Performs a downward overhead swing with Ragnell. Has great range, but has long startup.	13%
Ivysaur	Whips forward with its vines. Deals vertical knockback.	12% (vine), 10% (tip)
Jigglypuff	Kicks both its feet out in front of itself. Can be used for wall of pain techniques.	12%/10% (clean), 6% (late)
King Dedede	Swings his hammer upwards.	15%
Kirby	Performs three quick spinning kicks forward. When combined with a jump, this move gives Kirby a slight horizontal recovery.	4% (hit 1), 3% (hit 2), 5% (hit 3)
Link	Swings sword forward and spins around, then swings it again. Its second hit is more powerful, but the first hit only combos into the second hit at low percentages.	9% (hit 1), 12% (hit 2)
Lucario	Kicks forward, radiating aura at the tip of its foot. Inflicts little damage, but can used to combo into other attacks. It can be used twice in one short hop.	5%
Lucas	Kicks forward with PSI energy at the end of his foot.	12% (clean sweetspot), 10% (clean sourspot), 8% (late)
Luigi	Karate chops forward. Quick and weak though it can still KO at 150% (unless edgeguarding).	10%
Mario	Raises his fist then punches downward. Can meteor smash opponents if the move is sweetspotted.	12% (early), 13% (clean), 10% (late)
Marth	Swings his sword downwards in front of himself. Can fit two in one short hop, useful for edgeguarding.	10% (base), 13% (tip)
Meta Knight	Slashes in front of himself three times. The first two hits can be ground-canceled, which can lead to almost any move.	3% (hits 1-2), 4% (hit 3)
Mr. Game & Watch	Swings a box forward. Deals strong horizontal knockback when it first comes out. Originates from Mario Bros.	16% (clean), 6% (late)
Ness	Sticks his hands out and creates small bubbles of PSI energy in front of himself. Good for combos.	2% (hits 1-4), 3% (hit 5)
Olimar	Swings a Pikmin in front of himself.	15% (R), 12% (Y), 13% (B), 5% (W), 14% (P)
Peach	Takes crown off her head and strikes forward with it. Deals good knockback and is often considered her most reliable KO move.	15%
Pikachu	Drills forward in the air with electricity. Deals multiple hits with the final hit dealing minimal knockback. The attack itself has little landing lag, which can potentially set up a follow-up attack.	2% (hits 1-4), 3% (hit 5)
Pit	Thrusts both blades forward and quickly brings them apart, slashing horizontally. Has some startup lag.	14%
R.O.B.	Extends both his arms forward. Good for starting up aerial combos and for edgeguarding.	10% (clean), 6% (late)
Samus	Fires five small blasts with her arm cannon in a downward arc. This move overall has no landing lag.	4% (hit 1), 3% (hits 2-4), 5% (hit 5)
Sheik	Leans forward and swipes forward. Launches opponents at a semi-spike trajectory.	9%
Snake	Lifts his left leg over his head then axe-drops it down. Has slow start-up and high ending lag, but it's a very powerful meteor smash if the attack connects with Snake's leg.	14% (body), 15% (leg)
Sonic	Spins in a horizontal corkscrew, drilling with his head. Has high landing lag.	1-2% (hits 1-5), 4% (hit 6)
Squirtle	Quickly sticks both its feet forward. Has fast startup and a good edgeguarding move.	12% (clean), 6% (late)
Toon Link	Swings his sword upward. Good for edgeguarding in terms of leaving the stage to intercept a recovering enemy.	13%
Wario	Sticks his foot a short distance forward. Has very little range and damage, but fast and lasts a long time. Good for "wall of pain"-style of attacking.	7% (clean), 5% (late)
Wolf	Slashes forward with his left arm. Has decent horizontal reach and delivers a moderately high amount of vertical knockback, making it one of Wolf's best aerial finishers.	11%
Yoshi	Winds up then swings his head downwards. Can meteor smash opponents when the head connects, while the body deals horizontal knockback.	16% (body), 15% (head)
Zelda	Lightning Kick: Quickly kicks in front of herself, dealing great damage and knockback if the opponent is hit at the beginning of the move at just the tip of her boot.	20% (clean foot), 4% (clean leg, late)
Zero Suit Samus	Two quick forward kicks, with the second kick being stronger and slightly faster than the first. The first kick is weaker and often cannot combo onto the second hit.	6% (hit 1), 10-11% (hit 2 clean), 7% (hit 2 late)

List of forward aerials in Super Smash Bros. 4

Character	Description	Damage
Bowser	Slashes forward in a diagonal arc.	13% (hand), 12% (arm), 11% (body)
Bowser Jr.	The Junior Clown Car swings a wrecking ball in front of Bowser Jr.	11%/9% (clean), 8%/6.5% (mid), 5%/4% (late), 2% (landing)
Captain Falcon	Knee Smash: Jabs his left knee forward. It has very high knockback when sweetspotted, but has a large landing lag.	19% (clean sweetspot), 6% (clean sourspot), 3% (late)
Charizard	Slices the air with its talons.	11% (arm), 12% (tip)
Dark Pit	Identical to Pit's.	1.5% (hits 1-2), 4% (hit 3)
Diddy Kong	Quickly kicks both feet forward while spinning.	10% (clean), 8% (late)
Donkey Kong	Thrusts his fists in front of him, bringing them down from over his head.	16% (fists early), 15% (fists meteor), 13% (arms)
Dr. Mario	Identical to Mario's but does not meteor smash opponents.	11.2% (early), 16.8% (clean), 10.08% (late)
Duck Hunt	The dog thrusts the duck forward, who attacks with its beak.	6% (early), 10% (tip clean), 7% (tip late)
Falco	Turns horizontally and spins, hitting multiple times with his beak. All attacks chain well into each other, with the final hit dealing considerable knockback.	1% (hits 1-5), 4% (hit 6), 3% (landing)
Fox	Performs five rapid kicks in quick succession. Good for building up damage, as foes will "stick" to Fox for the duration of the attack.	2% (hit 1), 1% (hit 2), 0.6% (hit 3), 0.8% (hit 4), 3% (hit 5)
Ganondorf	Unleashes a poweful overhead punch in a downwards arc. Has great knockback, but a lot of landing lag.	17% (fist), 16% (arm)
Greninja	Slashes forward with a water katana in reverse grip. It has some start up lag.	14%
Ike	Performs a downward overhead swing with Ragnell. Has great range, but has long startup.	12%
Jigglypuff	Kicks both its feet out in front of itself. Deals weak knockback but can be used for wall of pain techniques.	9% (clean), 6% (late)
King Dedede	Swings his hammer in front of himself downwards.	12%
Kirby	Quickly kicks in front of himself three times.	4% (hit 1), 3% (hit 2), 5% (hit 3)
Link	Swings his sword forward and then spins around, swinging it a second time. Difficult for both hits to connect at higher percentages.	8% (hit 1), 10% (hit 2)
Little Mac	Performs a very weak uppercut with very low knockback.	5% (hand), 4% (arm)
Lucario	Kicks forward in a slight upwards tilt. Damage and knockback scale with aura.	6%
Lucas	Kicks in front of himself with PSI energy surrounding his foot.	11.5% (sweetspot), 8% (sourspot)
Lucina	Identital to Marth's.	8.075%
Luigi	Chops in front of him horizontally with his hand, has extremely low end lag, being able to use this attack twice out of his short hop.	9%
Mario	Raises his fist above his head and swings his it downward. Meteor smashes opponents when sweetspotted.	12% (early), 14% (clean), 10% (late)
Marth	Quickly swings his sword downwards in front of himself. A good edgeguarding technique.	7% (base), 10% (tip)
Mega Man	Flame Sword: Quickly summons a flaming sword to his hand and swings it downwards in front of himself. Based off Sword Man's weapon from Mega Man 8.	8%
Meta Knight	Quickly slashes in front of himself three times. Very quick for a multi-hitting move.	2.2% (hits 1-2 for grounded opponents), 1.5% (hits 1-2 for aerial opponents), 3% (hit 3)
Mewtwo	Quickly swipes his hand forward. The comes out very quickly and has high knockback.	13%
Mii Brawler	Two kicks in front, similar to Zero Suit Samus.	3% (hit 1) 5% (hit 2)*
Mii Gunner	Fires a single energy shot. The force slightly pushes back the Mii Gunner.	5% (close), 3% (far)*
Mii Swordfighter	Stabs forward multiple times.	3% (hits 1-2), 5% (hit 3)*
Mr. Game & Watch	Swings a box forward dealing, strong horizontal knockback when it first comes out. Originates from Mario Bros.	11.5% (clean), 6% (late)
Ness	Releases a pulse of PSI power with his palms, hitting multiple times. Excellent for linking into combos.	1% (hits 1-3), 4% (hit 4)
Olimar	Swings a Pikmin in front of himself.	R: 10.2% YB: 8.5% W: 6.8% P: 11.9%
Pac-Man	Does a quick hoizontal kick in front of himself.	5.3%
Palutena	A very quick jump with considerable ending lag.	7%
Peach	Takes her crown off her head and strikes with it in a vertical arc. Has some startup but deals a large amount of damage and knockback.	15%
Pikachu	Spins forward surrounded by electricity, dealing multiple hits.	1.7% (hits 1-4), 3% (hit 5)
Pit	Spins his bow horizontally in front of himself, slashing foes multiple times before launching them diagonally.	1.5% (hits 1-2), 4% (hit 3)
R.O.B.	Swings both arms forward in a clobbering strike.	7%
Robin	Uses his bronze sword or Levin sword and sweeps the area beneath him, dragging the sword up. The Levin sword has much more knockback and damage.	Bronze: 6% Levin: 11% (clean), 5% (late)
Rosalina & Luma	Rosalina: Backflips in the air, creating a miniature galaxy at her feet. Deals multiple hits. Luma: Headbutts forward.	Rosalina: 1% (hits 1-3), 4% (hit 4) Luma: 5%
Roy	Performs a downward slash in front of himself while holding his sword in a reverse grip.	11% (base), 7% (tip)
Ryu	Performs a classic Street Fighter flying kick, based on Ryu's jumping heavy kick.	15% (clean sweetspot), 13% (late sweetspot), 9% (clean sourspot), 8% (late sourspot)
Samus	Blast her arm cannon in a downward arc in front of herself. The first four shots have set knockback with the final shot dealing considerable knockback.	3% (hit 1), 1% (hits 2-4), 5% (hit 5)
Sheik	A quick downward swipe. Deals low knockback, but has great combo potential and very low landing lag.	5.5% (arm), 4.8% (body)
Shulk	Swings the Monado directly downwards in front of himself. Has good range and can be used to edgeguard, especially when using the Jump Art.	7.5% (blade), 6% (beam)
Sonic	Spins around horizontally, hitting the opponent multiple times with his head.	0.8% (hits 1-5), 3% (hit 6)
Toon Link	Swings his sword in front of himself ina horizontal arc. Good as a finishing move in the air.	13%
Villager	Fires a pellet from a slingshot. The pellet deals moderate knockback at point blank range, which is deadly especially offstage.	7% (close), 4% (mid), 2.5% (far)
Wario	Quickly thrusts his leg out. It has very quick start up and combos very well into other attacks.	7% (clean) 4.5% (late)
Wii Fit Trainer	Performs the Single-Leg Extension pose. The outstretched leg can meteor smash opponents.	10% (clean), 6% (late)
Yoshi	Winds up then performs a headbutt downward. The head can meteor smash.	15% (body), 14% (head)
Zelda	Kicks forward with an extremely powerful pulse from her extended foot with great knockback, yet a terrible sourspot.	20% (sweetspot) 4% (sourspot)
Zero Suit Samus	Two quick kicks forward with her jet boots. The second hit is often difficult to chain into after the first hit.	5% (hit 1), 7% (hit 2)

* This assumes the Mii is default height and weight.

Notable forward aerials

• In Melee, Brawl, and SSB4, Captain Falcon's forward aerial is the famous Knee Smash and has very high KO potential if sweetspotted. It is considered more useful in Melee than Brawl and SSB4.
• Ganondorf's forward aerial is nicknamed the Skull Crusher and has high KO potential, although it is not as powerful or fast as the Knee Smash.
• Snake's forward aerial is the most powerful forward aerial meteor smash in Brawl.
• Zelda's forward aerial is known as the Lightning Kick, and is a powerful finisher at high percents when sweetspotted.
• Marth's forward aerial is considered one of the best in its respective games, due to its fast startup and low ending lag, good range, its edgeguarding capabilities, and versatility.
• In Brawl, Falco's forward aerial is often considered the worst in the game, due to its poor range, high ending lag, and inferiority to similar attacks, such as Pikachu's and Sonic's. In SSB4, it was drastically buffed, given massive knockback with its final hit, reliably KOing offstage around 100% while not being particularly hard to land, making it arguably one of the best forward aerials in the game.
• Jigglypuff's forward aerial is useful in performing the wall of pain, especially in Melee.