Mario Tornado
| Mario Tornado | |
|---|---|
 Mario Tornado in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. | |
| Users | Mario Dr. Mario ("Dr. Tornado") |
| Universe | Mario |
| Article on Super Mario Wiki | Spin Jump |
| “ | Engulf opponents in a high-speed spin. Tap  while attacking to float up.
|
” |
| —Melee's instruction manual | ||
The Mario Tornado (マリオトルネード, Mario Tornado) is Mario's down special move in Super Smash Bros. and Super Smash Bros. Melee and his down aerial attack in Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Super Smash Bros. 4.
Overview
Mario spins rapidly with his fists outstretched, dealing multiple hits, then finishes with a full-body stretch to bash opponents at the end. By pressing the special move button rapidly, Mario ascends slightly; this can work as a slight recovery.
In Smash 64 only, the last hit can meteor smash and the whole attack has set knockback.
As Mario's down aerial
While in Brawl Mario Tornado was replaced by F.L.U.D.D. as Mario's down special, it in turn replaced Mario's old down aerial, as revealed in a DOJO!! update. Mario still does his signature "Yahoo!", but in a more blunt tone. The attack is quicker, but the damage is actually unchanged; in fact, it can be an effective KO move if the opponent is hit at the very end of the tornado. It does not affect Mario's falling speed, but it can slightly stop his momentum when he is knocked into the air; additionally, it can no longer be used as a recovery option or to move across stages. It now has a landing hitbox that deals 2% damage and low set horizontal knockback, comboing effectively into a down smash.
These changes are retained for Super Smash Bros. 4. However, the returning Dr. Mario retains his old down aerial while keeping the Dr. Tornado as his down special. The last hit now deals 2% less damage (7% to 5%) but has much more knockback growth (80 to 100) and the hits connect much more reliably due to decreased SDI multipliers.
Origin
The Mario Tornado is likely based on the Spin Jump that originated in Super Mario World. The Spin Jump has lower vertical range than Mario's regular jump but deals more damage, offers protection from landing on normally-hazardous objects and enemies, and can break blocks from above if Mario is not small.
Since the move's appearances in SSB and Melee, the spin jump has continued to appear in Mario games. While its higher damage and block-breaking power are now the job of the Ground Pound instead, spin jumping tends to cause Mario to fall slower, is capable of clearing fog, and gives Mario more height upon bouncing off enemies.
In Super Mario Galaxy and its sequel, Mario has access to a Luma-powered variant of the move, which acts as a one-hit attack, physical projectile reflector, and mid-air double jump/stalling technique.
Gallery
Mario Tornado in SSB.
The move's meteor smash properties in SSB.
Animation of the move used in Melee
Trivia
- As Mario Tornado involves Mario leaning backwards out of the plane of gameplay, certain fast and thin hitboxes such as Link's Arrows can be dodged with it.
- In Smash 4, despite still being Mario's down aerial, it deals more damage than the Dr. Tornado, dealing 10% damage (excluding landing) as opposed to Dr. Tornado's 8% damage.
- The Mario Tornado can be used to perform the Green shell glitch in Smash 64.
See also
