Vine Whip
| Vine Whip | |
|---|---|
 When used as an attack, Vine Whip has a powerful sweetspot. | |
| User | Ivysaur |
| Universe | Pokémon |
| Article on Bulbapedia | Vine Whip (move) |
| “ | Flick its vines forwards diagonally. Do it near an edge and Ivysaur will latch on. | ” |
| —Brawl's instruction manual | ||
Vine Whip (つるのムチ, Vine Whip) is Ivysaur's up special move.
Overview
Ivysaur lashes a vine from its flower, which functions as both an attack and a tether recovery. On the ground, Vine Whip hits at a forty-five degree angle in front of and above Ivysaur, with a powerful sweetspot at the end of the whip. In the air, in addition to granting Ivysaur a little height Vine Whip gains a deceptively long range, capable of nabbing the edge with a length far beyond the ground-based Vine Whip.
Like Olimar's Pikmin Chain, Vine Whip will cause helplessness if used in the air. If left hanging on its vine for long enough, Ivysaur will panic & automatically retract to the ledge. Unfortunately, Ivysaur can easily be edgehogged while attempting to use the Vine Whip to recover.
Origin
Vine Whip is a physical Grass-type attack introduced in Generation I, which involves hitting the foe with an outstretched vine. It is a rather weak move, learned by the Bulbasaur family and several other Grass-type Pokémon at a low level. In the Pokémon animated series, some Grass-type Pokémon (including Bulbasaur) are sometimes depicted using their vines to grab and manipulate objects.
Trivia
- Vine Whip is the only purely tether recovery up special in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
- A small electric shock will be heard when the sweetspot of the vine hits another character. However, the sweetspot is still considered a grass attack and not an electric attack: this unusual sound was likely chosen to simulate more closely the cracking sound of an actual whip, especially one striking an object.
- If used from far enough away, grabbing the front end of the Pirate Ship will cause Ivysaur to swing into the hull of the ship, which will deal 10% damage to Ivysaur and meteor smash it, resulting in a guaranteed self-destruct.
- Vine Whip is the sole remaining Up-B Tether recovery in Super Smash Bros Ultimate as Pikmin Chain and Plasma Wire were changed in Super Smash Bros 4 and Belay can function as a standard recovery. It is not Ivysaur's sole method of recovery however, as Pokemon change can now be done in mid-air, enabling use of Squirtle and Charizard's recovery options.
