Charizard (SSB4)

Charizard in Super Smash Bros. 4
Universe	Pokémon
Other playable appearance	in Brawl
Availability	Starter
Final Smash	Mega Evolution
Tier	I (49)

“	Charizard Fires It Up!	”
—Introduction Tagline

Charizard (リザードン, Lizardon) returns as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4. It was revealed alongside Greninja in a trailer during the April 8th, 2014 Super Smash Bros. Direct. Charizard is once again voiced by Shinichiro Miki, who re-recorded Charizard's grunts and roars to match its voice in the Pokémon anime rather than the more bestial sounds it had in Brawl.

Charizard is ranked 49th out of 56 on the tier list, placing it in the middle of the I tier and making it the third lowest ranked heavyweight. This is a significant drop from Pokémon Trainer's standing in Brawl, where he has been ranked 29th out of 38. Now an individual character, Charizard no longer has to contend with stamina reducing its power and has a more consistent moveset, but is unable to switch out with other Pokémon in order to cover its significant weaknesses. Charizard is a fast character for its weight class, boasting a decent walk speed, one of the fastest dash speeds, below average but usable air speed as of update 1.1.5, and several moves with reasonable speed and combo ability. It also benefits from an array of high-power KO options, high durability thanks to its weight, and a grab game that can either lead into further combos or KO set-ups. In addition, Charizard's grab game is particularly notable for its up throw, which is the strongest in the game, although its KO power is most effective on stages with platforms and its knockback can be mitigated via directional influence. Additionally, its special moveset is more consistent than in Brawl and is useful both for punishment and defensive purposes.

However, Charizard has some very exploitable weaknesses, most notably a horrendous out of shield game. Furthermore, despite having better frame data than other characters of its weight class, Charizard's attacks are still laggy and punishable compared to the many combo-oriented characters prevalent in the metagame. Additionally, its recovery is merely average despite being a partial Flying-type Pokémon; Fly's vertical range has increased, but since gliding has been removed, Flare Blitz is now used as an alternative for horizontal recovery. Finally, Charizard suffers from a vulnerability to combos, a common problem among heavyweights. Characters such as Ryu are able to zero-to-death it outright due to it lacking options to break out of faster combos, with even Rock Smash coming out too slowly for its launch resistance to activate if Charizard is already trapped in a combo.

As a result, Charizard has very poor tournament representation, which is even worse than some characters ranked lower than it, such as Samus and Ganondorf. However, while widely viewed as an even poorer character in the early SSB4 metagame, game updates have significantly improved Charizard both in playstyle and in perception. Aside from actually achieving mild competitive success due to its subsequent buffs, the relevancy of Charizard's current tier position is now under debate as a result, particularly due to the buffs brought about by update 1.1.5.

Attributes

Unlike the other playable Pokémon, which are almost all lightweights, Charizard fits the archetype of a "lightning bruiser"; it is a strong and sturdy super heavyweight with very good mobility and decently fast attacks compared to other characters heavyweights weight. It has the fifteenth fastest walk speed (which is tied with Mewtwo) and the eighth fastest dash speed, but has below average air speed (albeit much higher than in previous versions of SSB4). Additionally, Charizard has decent frame data for a character of its weight class, with some moves that combo fairly easily, such as its neutral attack and forward aerial. One of Charizard's strengths is its KOing ability; it possesses numerous KOing options (Flare Blitz, Fly, Rock Smash, its smash attacks, its sweetspotted forward tilt, its up, back, and down aerials, and its post-update 1.0.8 up throw), all of which become even more lethal courtesy of the rage mechanic that SSB4 introduced. As of update 1.1.5, Charizard's back aerial in particular is one of its most fearsome moves, as it has significant range and KO power and is safe on shield due to its relatively low landing lag.

Charizard's special moves are all very useful for its general playstyle. Flamethrower is a short-range projectile that can inflict massive damage, interrupt approaches, and gimp recoveries, and is overall more versatile than Bowser's Fire Breath because it has less ending lag and can cause flinching more easily. It is also decent at recovery, as Flare Blitz, though somewhat situational, covers a large amount of horizontal distance quickly while providing respectable damage and very high knockback. Flare Blitz is also devastating as a long-range and relatively fast punishing move, although it leaves Charizard in a very vulnerable state if it is shielded or otherwise avoided. As such, it is a high-risk, high-reward move that is easier to use and time than other punishing moves, such as Warlock Punch and most smash attacks, although it should not be used recklessly due to the risk involved. Fly covers a decent amount of vertical distance while providing super armor and high base knockback. Finally, Rock Smash is an essential move as it provides Charizard with super armor while causing high damage and knockback itself, allowing Charizard to avoid being launched or juggled by all but the fastest moves while shifting momentum in its favor.

Another of Charizard's best assets is its grab game: its grab's reach is one of the longest for a non-tether grab in SSB4, its up throw can potentially KO below 95%, and its down throw is a good combo starter. Its very high dashing speed additionally allows it to land dash and pivot grabs more easily than other super-heavyweights, leading into its combo and KO set-ups.

However, Charizard has noticeable flaws. One flaw is its lack of a very useful projectile; despite Flamethrower's strengths, its sub-par range and moderately fast decay can prevent it from aiding Charizard significantly. Charizard also is easy to combo and generally hit due to its size and weight. Additionally, Charizard's frame data, while better overall than other heavyweights (even Bowser), is still generally poor compared to most of the cast. While Charizard's air speed has been greatly improved and is no longer among the lowest in the game, it is still below average overall. Arguably, its biggest flaw is its out of shield game; despite having some of the best out of shield options available, like Fly and its up throw, they are hindered by Charizard's exceptionally poor traction, which is the second worst in the game after Luigi's.

Custom moves address some of Charizard's shortcomings. Dragon Rush is arguably its best custom, as it is a pressuring and rushdown option that has less lag, no recoil and cannot be blocked by opponents when recovering. Fly High slightly improves its vertical recovery, although it loses one of its fastest punishing moves in the process. The other up special alternative, Rising Cyclone, sacrifices some recovery height for very high launching power that can KO most characters towards the upper blast line around as low as 56%.

Overall, Charizard is a surprisingly quick yet sturdy character that, in spite of its impressive power, must be defensive more often than not. While it can catch opponents off guard with its speed, combos and diverse moveset, it lacks the tools for all-out offensive play and is easily overwhelmed by the faster and more combo-oriented characters prevalent in the metagame, such as Ryu and Zero Suit Samus. Optimal play with Charizard requires extensive use of reads and mindgames, although it is not as singularly dependent on them like Ganondorf and Jigglypuff are, thanks to its other assets. While Charizard ranks in the bottom tier and has generally poor tournament representation, its current tier placement is under debate due to numerous factors, such as its various competitive successes under Mew2King, Bloodcross, Trela and ANTi, its frequent and consistent buffs up to and including update 1.1.5 and the fact that the current tier list only reflects the metagame up to and including update 1.1.3. Some players, including Mew2King, argue that Charizard's status as of update 1.1.5 could result in it rising from being a bottom-tier character to being a low-tier or even low mid-tier character.

Changes from Brawl

Charizard has received a mix of buffs and nerfs from Brawl. As of update 1.1.5, it is unclear how Charizard fares compared to its Brawl self, but it is overall a less potent character than Pokémon Trainer was, as it can no longer switch to other Pokémon better suited for specific match-ups. Most notably, the removal of gliding has made Charizard's recovery much worse. Additionally, its new side special, Flare Blitz, is situational in regards to recovery, unlike gliding in Brawl. The rest of its moveset has been re-balanced in other ways: its faster attacks (such as neutral attack, neutral aerial and forward tilt) are slightly weaker, many of its KOing options are stronger at the cost of some speed, and its grab game is stronger both in terms of combos and KOing. As a heavyweight character, Charizard benefits greatly from the addition of the rage mechanic; in fact, the recoil from Flare Blitz can act as a positive due to it bringing Charizard closer to utilizing rage sooner. Additionally, many of its moves (most notably its special moves) grant it super armor. Its independence from Pokémon Trainer improves it as an individual character, but harshly reduces its options compared to the Trainer's; while Charizard does not have to contend with running out of stamina and its learning curve is much lower than that of Pokémon Trainer, it can no longer switch to other Pokémon to cover its weaknesses, as previously mentioned. Charizard is said to work best as a punishment-oriented character, using its stronger yet slower attacks to take advantage of openings and flaws in the opponent's play.

Despite the large amount of buffs, they are not enough to compensate for the intensity of the few major nerfs received, as Charizard's overall damage output has decreased and some of its attacks are less reliable, such as its down tilt. While Charizard has not improved significantly from its changes in SSB4, its status as an individual character and corresponding changes in its moveset and attributes require it to be played differently from how it did in Brawl.

Aesthetics

• Due to the brighter aesthetic used in SSB4, Charizard's skin is a brighter shade of orange. Additionally, its fangs are smaller and its proportions are more in-line with its recent 3D appearances in the Pokémon franchise.
• Dash animation has slightly changed. It now flaps its wings while dashing.
• Charizard's victory poses have changed due to being separate from Pokémon Trainer.
• Charizard is now ambidextrous.

Attributes

• Charizard is heavier (110 → 116), which improves its endurance, but makes it easier to combo.
• Charizard walks faster (0.7 → 1.2).
• Charizard dashes faster (1.8 → 2).
• Charizard's air speed is slower (0.987 → 0.92).
• Charizard's jumpsquat is 1 frame longer (frame 6 → 7)
• Charizard falls faster (1.35 → 1.4).
• Charizard's traction has decreased (0.055 → 0.04), which makes it the second worst in the game after Luigi's.
• Charizard's item throw is stronger (1.198 → 1.208).
• Charizard is no longer affected by stamina due to being separate from Pokémon Trainer.
• Type effectiveness has been removed, thus removing Charizard's water weakness and grass resistance.
• Charizard can no longer glide.

Ground attacks

• Neutral attack is significantly faster.
• Neutral attack deals 1% less damage (14% → 13%).
• Sourspotted forward tilt deals 3% less damage (10% → 7%).
• Forward tilt is slightly faster and one of its previous sourspot hitboxes is now a sweetspot hitbox.
• Down tilt deals 2% less damage (12% → 10% (head), 8% → 6% (neck)), is slower and has lost its KO potential.
• Down tilt now has a windbox that pushes opponents away from Charizard.
• Dash attack has decreased ending lag (44 → 39).
• Forward smash deals 5% less damage (22% → 17%).
• Forward smash is stronger, has increased horizontal range and now consists of a single hit attack instead of multiple hits.
• Up smash no longer has transcendent priority.
• Up smash has increased knockback.
• Down smash is stronger and now launches opponents horizontally, which improves it as a set-up option for edge-guarding.

Aerial attacks

• Neutral, forward, up and down aerials have decreased landing lag (22 → 20 (neutral), 32 → 22 (forward), 22 → 20 (up), 35 → 33 (down)).
• Back aerial has increased landing lag (22 → 24).
• Neutral aerial's damage output is now consistent throughout its duration and is significantly faster, to the point that it can now auto-cancel from a short hop.
• Forward aerial deals more damage (2%-4% → 12% (early, clean arm), 13% (clean tip)) and knockback.
• Forward aerial's animation has changed. Charizard now slashes with its right arm instead of breathing a cone of fire.
• Back aerial deals more damage (9% → 16% (flame), 7% → 14% (tail), 5% → 11% (wing)), has greater reach and is significantly stronger, KOing earlier than some smash attacks.
• Back aerial's sweetspot is larger (4.5u → 5u).
• Back aerial no longer auto-cancels from a short hop.
• Up aerial deals 3% more damage (10% → 13% (clean), 7% → 10% (late)), provides partial intangibility, and is significantly stronger.
• Up aerial has increased start-up and has lost its lingering hitbox.
• Up aerial's animation changed. Charizard now headbutts upward instead of biting upward.
• Down aerial has an added lingering sourspot that is significantly weaker with horizontal knockback. This gives Charizard a new edge-guarding option and a few more follow-up options when aerially fighting opponents, but makes it easier to punish at lower percents.

Throws/other attacks

• Up throw's animation has changed. Charizard now soars toward the upper blast line while clutching the opponent and dive-bombs them at a considerable speed, instead of holding the opponent above itself and slamming them down with its head. This new animation bears a strong resemblance to Seismic Toss when used by Ash's Charizard in the Pokémon anime.
• Up throw's knockback has increased to the point where it has become one of the strongest throws of any kind in the game, especially on stages with high platforms.
• Down throw's knockback has decreased to the point that is a much better combo starter at the cost of losing its ability to reliably KO, although this was compensated for with the buff to up throw.
• Down throw has decreased ending lag (80 → 70).

Special moves

• Charizard has a new side special, Flare Blitz. It is an extremely powerful but laggy attack that deals recoil damage regardless of whether or not Charizard hits an opponent. Aside from being another KOing option, it also helps Charizard's horizontal recovery.
• Rock Smash is now Charizard's down special instead of its side special.
• Starting on frame 5, Rock Smash now grants Charizard 22 frames of launch resistance.
• Rock Smash deals less damage (18% → 14% (headbutt), 5% → 3% (fragments)) and knockback.
• Fly's vertical distance has increased. Its initial hits also connect together better and the last hit is much stronger.
• Charizard has a new Final Smash, Mega Charizard X. Charizard undergoes Mega Evolution to become Mega Charizard X, which results in it being able to fly freely across the screen (instead of being forced into a stationary position like Triple Finish did), launch fiery attacks similarly to Yoshi's Super Dragon and gain resistance to both flinching and launching. In addition to Fire Blast, Mega Charizard X can also perform Dragon Rush instead of Flare Blitz, regardless of whether custom moves are on or off. However, Mega Charizard X's duration is not fixed like Triple Finish's, as Mega Charizard X will end earlier if Charizard takes damage while Mega Evolved.

Update history

Initially considered one of the worst characters in the game and arguably the worst among the cast, Charizard has been noticeably buffed via game updates, making it faster and improving its combo game. Notably, update 1.0.8 drastically improved two of Charizard's most useful moves as well as its grab game. Its neutral attack connects more reliably and its neutral aerial is much faster, so much so that it can auto-cancel from a short hop, which greatly increases its utility in spacing. Its up throw now has far more knockback, making it the strongest up throw in the game and one of the strongest throws overall in the game. However, it is easier to mitigate with DI due to its launching trajectory. Additionally, its down throw has been re-purposed into becoming Charizard's best combo starter, which can occasionally lead into a KO when followed up with its up aerial.

In spite of Charizard's horrendous out of shield game, changes to shield mechanics brought about by updates 1.1.0 and 1.1.1 also help it due to its moves' high hitlag and damage outputs. Update 1.1.5 provided the most significant buffs of all, by increasing Charizard's air speed to a passable level, increasing the damage outputs and reducing the landing lag on its aerials (especially its forward and back aerials), and giving Flare Blitz an additional hitbox that can allow it to punish a wider variety of maneuvers.

1.0.4

• Charizard's head has received five frames of intangibility in certain situations.
• Dragon Rush deals 4% less damage: 15% → 11%.
• Some properties of what appear to be the headbutt in Rock Hurl and Flamethrower have been adjusted.

1.0.6

• Up throw's damage increased: 6% (hit 1), 2% (throw) → 8% (hit 1), 3% (throw).
• Flare Blitz deals 1% more recoil damage: 4% (no collision), 9% (collision) → 5% (no collision), 10% (collision).
• Forward aerial's sweetspot and sourspot hitbox positions switched.
• Fly's knockback increased.
• Down tilt's start-up and ending lag decreased.

1.0.8

• Neutral attack has been improved. Its hits connect together better and the first hit has increased weight-based knockback.
• Forward aerial's hitbox size and duration increased.
• Up throw's knockback increased, making it both the strongest up throw in the game and a viable KOing option.
• Down throw's knockback and ending lag decreased: 80 → 72, making it Charizard's best combo starter at low percents. Although it is less reliable as a KOing option, this is completely mitigated due to the same update's aforementioned buff of Charizard's up throw.

1.1.0

• Sweetspotted forward tilt deals 1% more damage: 10% → 11%.
• One of forward tilt's three sourspot hitboxes has become a sweetspot, which essentially makes its sweetspot larger overall.
• Down tilt has received a windbox that pushes opponents inward. This allows it to connect better.
• Back aerial's landing lag decreased: 36 → 33.
• Down throw's ending lag decreased: 72 → 70.

1.1.1

• Sinking Skull's damage increased: 10% → 12% (ground), 9% → 10% (air).
• Sinking Skull's ending lag decreased by 5 frames.

1.1.3

• Dash attack has less ending lag (FAF 45 → 40).
• Dash attack launches opponents at a lower angle: 70°/80° (near/far) → 50° (near clean)/60° (near late/far clean)/75° (far late)).
• Up smash has received several minor tweaks.
• Down smashhas higher knockback scaling (76 (far)/82 (near) → 79/85), improving its KO potential.

1.1.4

• First hit of up smash's hitbox placements modified significantly and have angle modifications and/or increased knockback.
• Second hit of up smash deals more knockback.
• Trip invincibility and all trip followups except floor attack have one less frame of invincibility.

1.1.5

• Air speed: 0.87 → 0.92
• Weight: 115 → 116
• Neutral (22 → 20), forward (31 → 22), back (33 → 24), up (22 → 20), and down air (35 → 33) all have less landing lag.
• Neutral aerial deals 2% more damage: 10%/7%/7%/7% → 12%/9%/9%/9% but with knockback compensated (90 → 78).
• Forward aerial deals 1% more damage: 11%/12% → 12%/13%.
• Back aerial deals 1% more damage: 15%/13%/10%/10% → 16%/14%/11%/11% and has a larger sweetspot (4.5u → 5u).
• Flare Blitz explosion knockback growth: 78 → 84
• Flare Blitz has an additional hitbox that extends its reach to behind Charizard.
• Max Walk speed with heavy items increased: 1.198 → 1.208

Moveset

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			3%	Slashes twice with its claws followed by striking with one of its wings. The last hit has high knockback and the inner part of the wing launches opponents vertically, while the tip launches opponents horizontally. Can be jab cancelled into a grab or Fly.
			4%
			5%
Forward tilt			11% (flame), 7% (tail)	Sweeps its tail forward. Sweetspot is at the tip of Charizard's tail, which has a flame effect. Useful for spacing and can KO at 148% when sweetspotted.
Up tilt			8%	Thrusts both of its wings upward. Charizard's wings are intangible as long as the hitbox is active.
Down tilt			10%	Headbutts forward at the ground in front of it. Good horizontal knockback, though not as much as in Brawl.
Dash attack			11% (clean), 8% (late)	A running side kick. Can be used to catch landing opponents.
Forward smash			17% (clean, late body), 14% (late head)	Rears its head back and then performs a powerful headbutt. Charizard is invincible during the active frames of this attack, even when hitting explosive items, though it has high ending lag. A clean hit can KO at 91%.
Up smash			5% (hit 1), 11% (hit 2)	Bats its wings upward, hitting twice. First hit does not connect together very well with the second, requiring the attack to have initiated with the opponent in front of Charizard to reliably connect. It has the lowest ending lag of all of Charizard's smash attacks. Can KO at 115%.
Down smash			16%	Stomps the ground once with both feet, causing the ground to erupt from either side of it. As its hitboxes are mostly grounded, it can be difficult to hit an aerial opponent with it. It also has high ending lag. Can KO at 132%.
Neutral aerial			12% (flame), 9% (tail)	Somersaults forward and attacks with its tail. Sweetspot is at the flaming tip of Charizard's tail, which has a flame effect. Can auto-cancel from a short hop.
Forward aerial			12% (early, clean arm), 13% (clean tip)	Slashes with its right arm. Good knockback, relatively quick and also auto-cancels from a short hop. However, it has somewhat high landing lag.
Back aerial			11% (body), 14% (tail), 16% (flame)	Swings its tail backward. Very strong, with power on par with King Dedede's dash attack, but has somewhat high landing lag.
Up aerial			13%	An upward headbutt. Very strong, though it has thin horizontal range. Charizard's head is intangible during its active frames.
Down aerial			14% (clean), 8% (late)	Stomps with one of its feet. A very powerful meteor smash on the first three active frames, with its lingering hitbox launching opponents either vertically or at the Sakurai angle. Has high landing lag.
Grab			—	Grabs its opponent with its mouth. Good range.
Pummel			2%	Bites the opponent. A fairly fast pummel.
Forward throw			10%	Spins the opponent once with its mouth, then throws them forward. Fairly high knockback and can KO near the edge at 147%. Can be used as a mix-up while facing the edge with its up throw, if the opponent DIs away, it can potentially KO earlier than up throw.
Back throw			10%	Throws the opponent backward with its mouth, launching opponents at the Sakurai angle. Does not have much ending lag, meaning that at low percents, Charizard can pursue a thrown opponent with a dash immediately after or even with a short hopped or jumping Flare Blitz in some cases. It has fairly high knockback like its forward throw, but due to its launching angle, it KOs later (at 155%) than the former while near the edge.
Up throw			8% (hit 1), 3% (throw)	Soars to the upper blast line with the opponent in tow, then zooms back down and slams them against the floor. It appears almost identical to Kirby and Meta Knight's up throws and may have been inspired by the anime's depiction of Seismic Toss. As of update 1.0.8, its knockback has been drastically increased, making it the strongest up throw in the game, especially on stages with high platforms, as well as the second strongest overall throw in the game, only behind Ness's back throw. Although DI is more effective in lowering its killing power than Mewtwo's up throw, which is the second strongest up throw in the game, Charizard's up throw still reliably kills at around 130%. It can also kill even sooner on stages with platforms, such as Battlefield, KOing reliably at round 95% at most. While its knockback is best suited for KOing, it can also act as a set-up for Flare Blitz, which deals 30% altogether. However, this combo can only be used on an opponent that is at 0% and can be air dodged by a particularly vigilant opponent.
Down throw			1% (flames, continuous), 1% (throw)	Pins the opponent on the floor and then breathes fire on them. Charizard's weakest throw in regards to damage output. Prior to update 1.0.8, it had high knockback and could KO enemies at high percents near the edge, starting at 125%. As of update 1.0.8, its knockback has been drastically decreased, which is not actually a nerf due to it now being re-purposed into a very good combo starter at low percents. Notable follow-ups include forward aerial, which can be performed on most characters until about 60%, and up aerial, which can score a KO around 80% and especially if the opponent DIs vertically.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	Swings its tail backward, then headbutts forward.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	Gets up and performs a semi-circular slash.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Similar to the back floor attack.
Edge attack Edge getups			8%	Gets up and headbutts.
Neutral special	Default	Flamethrower	2% (clean), 1% (late)	Expels a stream of flames from its mouth that gradually weakens if the attack is held, similarly to Bowser's Fire Breath. Unlike Fire Breath, Flamethrower's long-ranged hitboxes will make the opponent flinch.
	Custom 1	Fire Fang	2% (flames), 8% (finish)	A short-range, fire breathing attack that hits quickly. Releasing the button finishes the move with a small explosion.
	Custom 2	Fireball Cannon	3% (clean), 2% (late)	Expels fireballs that travel far and will only weaken slightly over time, though they deal less damage than Flamethrower. In addition to having more start-up, Charizard must fire three fireballs before the move can end.
Side special	Default	Flare Blitz	4% (collision), 15% (explosion)	Performs a corkscrewing tackle while engulfed in flames. Causes recoil damage at the beginning of the move and again on contact. Has heavy armor (14%).
	Custom 1	Blast Burn	4% (collision), 5% (explosion loop), 9% (explosion last)	A slower, short-ranged version that deals more damage to both Charizard and its opponent. Has heavy armor (14%).
	Custom 2	Dragon Rush	1.2% (per hit)	Hits multiple times and deals less power overall, but Charizard takes no recoil damage and will not stop moving if it hits an opponent, improving its recovery. Generally considered the most versatile of Charizard's side special variants, as it cannot be interrupted unlike Flare Blitz or Blast Burn, and is a good KOing option near the edge when used against opponents that have high recoveries.
Up special	Default	Fly	5% (hit 1), 2% (loop hits), 4% (last hit)	Flies upward while corkscrewing. The final hit has great knockback and can KO opponents at medium to high percents near the upper blast line. Grants super armor at the start of the move.
	Custom 1	Rising Cyclone	4% (hit 1), 2% (loop hits), 6% (last hit)	Recovery distance is reduced, but Charizard can suck in opponents and launch them. The final hit is also noticeably stronger. Like the default version, it grants super armor at the start of the move.
	Custom 2	Fly High	0%	Deals no damage, but covers more vertical distance. Like the default version, it grants super armor at the start of the move.
Down special	Default	Rock Smash	14% (headbutt), 3% (fragments)	Pulls out a boulder and headbutts it, breaking it into pieces. Grants Charizard super armor before breaking the boulder (on frames 5-22).
	Custom 1	Sinking Skull	10% (ground), 12%/9% (air)	A headbutt without involving a boulder. If landed, it causes them to get buried. It meteor smashes opponents below Charizard if it hits them with its head.
	Custom 2	Rock Hurl	8% (headbutt), 2% (fragments)	The boulder fragments fly farther, but deal less damage. Like the default version, it grants super armor.
Final Smash		Mega Charizard X	2% (charge loop), 10% (charge last hit), 5% (blast collision), 1% (blast loop), 5% (blast last hit)	Charizard Mega Evolves into Mega Charizard X from Pokémon X and Y. Mega Charizard X consistently hovers around the stage, similarly to Super Dragon. As Mega Charizard X, it has two attacks: Fire Blast, a powerful projectile, and Dragon Rush, a powerful corkscrewing tackle. Unlike the Dragon Rush custom move, Mega Charizard X's Dragon Rush can move in any given direction.

On-screen appearance

• Charizard is released from a Poké Ball, then stomps.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Stomps and roars to the sky while flapping its wings.
• Side taunt: Faces the camera and stomps and growls while flapping its wings once.
• Down taunt: Stomps violently while facing the camera.

Up taunt	Side taunt	Down taunt

Idle poses

• Leans back and stomps the ground.
• Turns its head to the side and quickly spits an ember onto the ground.

Crowd cheer

	English	Japanese
Cheer
Description	Char-izard!	Liz-ar-don!
Pitch	Group chant	Group chant

Victory poses

A small excerpt of the music that would play on the title screen of Pokémon Red, Blue and Green Versions.

• Roars and does a pose.
• Stomps forward, then roars upwards with flames coming out of its mouth and then poses.
• Uses Flare Blitz into the ground and then poses.

In competitive play

Official Custom Moveset Project

Character	Custom sets available
Charizard	1311	1313	1331	1333	1113
	1211	1213	3311	2311	1321

Notable players

Active

•  ANTi
•  Bloodcross
•  Chompy

Inactive

•  Mew2King
•  Trela

Trophies

Charizard

The iconic Fire/Flying-type Pokémon. Charizard's scorching breath can melt anything in its path. It soars through the air, seeking only worthy foes to test itself against. In Smash Bros., Charizard unleashes the destructive Flare Blitz special move— a move so strong, it even injures the user!

Charizard, a Fire- and Flying-type Pokémon, can burn through anything with the flames it breathes. It is constantly on the lookout for powerful opponents. And where better to find them than in this game? Its huge build and special moves mean it can inflict massive damage, and its Flare Blitz is so powerful, it even hurts Charizard itself!

: Pokémon Red and Pokémon Blue (09/1998)

: Pokémon X and Pokémon Y (10/2013)

Charizard (Alt.)

Charizard's Flamethrower attack can be sustained by holding the button. The flames will gradually die, but a short break will recharge them. Charizard's down special Rock Smash crushes a rock and hits foes with the pieces. Charizard won't flinch while crushing, but others can break the rock...

When using Charizard's Flamethrower move, hold the button to keep breathing fire. The flames gradually die down, but you just need to rest for a bit before doing it again. If you get hit while you're using the down special Rock Smash, you won't flinch, but someone else can break the rock instead, making your attack fail.

: Pokémon Red and Pokémon Blue (09/1998)

: Pokémon X and Pokémon Y (10/2013)

Mega Evolution (Charizard)

In this powerful Final Smash, Charizard Mega Evolves into Mega Charizard X and takes to the air. In this form, it can charge violently in any direction or shoot horizontal blasts of fire that launch foes. Mega Charizard X isn't invulnerable, though-in fact, taking damage will actually reduce the time you can stay transformed.

For this powerful Final Smash, Charizard Mega Evolves into Mega Charizard X and takes to the air. In this form, it can charge violently in any direction and shoot horizontal blasts of fire that launch foes. Mega Charizard X isn't invulnerable, though - taking attacks will reduce the length of time it stays transformed.

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  Classic (3DS)

• CharizardAllStarTrophy3DS.png

  Alt. (3DS)

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  Classic (Wii U)

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  Alt. (Wii U)

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  Mega Charizard X

In Event Matches

Solo Events

• All-Star Battle: Brawl: Charizard is one of the opponents fought in this event. All of the opponents debuted in Brawl.
• Fire-Type Frenzy: Charizard must defeat Greninja, Lucario, and Pikachu all appearing after another.
• Pokémon Battle: Greninja must defeat a team of Pikachu, Charizard, and Lucario in a one stock battle.
• The Falchion's Seal: Robin must defeat a giant Charizard using his Final Smash, Pair Up. Defeating it any other way causes it to respawn.

Co-Op Events

• Poisonous Planet: Olimar and Samus (under the flowering effect) must defeat a team of two Charizard in a 200HP battle before their health is depleted.
• Pokémon Multi Battle!: Pikachu and Charizard must defeat a team of Lucario and Greninja, then a team of Pikachu and Charizard each appearing after one opponent is defeated.
• Robots vs. Dragons: Mega Man and R.O.B. must defeat a team of giant Yoshi, giant Charizard and Ridley in a stamina battle.
• The Ultimate Battle: Two players select characters and must defeat the entire roster.

Reveal trailer

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Alternate costumes

Gallery

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  Charizard's splash art.

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  Charizard's amiibo.

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  Charizard and Pikachu atop a cliff, overlooking various Pokémon.

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  Using its new forward aerial against Mario.

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  Using Flare Blitz, its new side special.

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  Landing after using its back aerial.

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  Using forward tilt against Mario's F.L.U.D.D.

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  Footstool jumping on Yoshi.

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  Sidestepping Little Mac's Jolt Haymaker.

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  Being attacked by Greninja's Water Shuriken.

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  Striking a pose.

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  Charizard and Lucario under the sleep effects of Bellossom's Sweet Scent.

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  Glaring at Kirby after copying Charizard's Flamethrower.

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  In front of the Prism Tower in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

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  With Pikachu.

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  Using Mega Charizard X, its new Final Smash.

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  Lucario, Charizard, Greninja, and Pikachu.

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  Using Flare Blitz and suffering from its recoil.

Trivia

• Charizard's idle pose of turning its head to spit out an ember is based on how Ash's Charizard would do the same, although Ash's did so in a nonchalant or cocky manner during its initially disrespectful phase.
• Charizard is the only Pokémon character to receive new voice clips while retaining its voice actor.
• Charizard is the only character able to use two types of specialized (i.e. non-badge) equipment within the same category, having both access to X Attack and Fake Nails in the attack category.
  • This also makes it the only Pokémon that can use something other than badges and the Pokémon equipment.
• Charizard knows eight official Pokémon attacks in SSB4, which is impossible in the Pokémon core series, where the maximum is four.
  • Apart from having Flamethrower, Flare Blitz, Fly and Rock Smash as its standard special moves, it can also use Fire Fang and Blast Burn as custom moves, Fire Blast as part of its Final Smash and Dragon Rush as both a custom move and as part of its Final Smash.
• In the PAL version of Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, one of the tips about Rock Smash refers to Charizard using masculine pronouns: "Right before smashing a rock, Charizard gets super armor, meaning he won't even flinch if he's attacked!"
• All five of Charizard's air attacks only hit once. It is the only Pokémon with this behavior.
• Charizard is the only character to have one of its special move inputs changed between games outside of SSB.
• Charizard is the only Pokémon in SSB4 without a chargeable special move.