| Blaster | |
|---|---|
 Fox's Blaster in Brawl | |
| User | Fox and Falco |
| Universe | Star Fox |
| Article on Lylat Wiki | Blaster |
| “ | Tap File:GCN BButton.png to fire repeated shots of high-speed Blaster beams. (Melee's instruction manual) |
” |
| “ | Fire lightning-quick blasts. If you press the B button repeatedly, you fire in rapid succession. (Brawl's instruction manual) |
” |
The Blaster (called Blaster Shot in Super Smash Bros.) is Fox and Falco's neutral special move throughout the Super Smash Bros. series. The attack consists of firing shots from a laser gun to damage far away opponents. Both fighters have different variations of the Blaster. This is not to be confused with Wolf's attack of the same name, Blaster.
Origin
Fox first uses a blaster in Star Fox 64's multiplayer and is depicted with one in artwork and screenshots. Falco, Slippy, and Peppy also use blasters in the game's multiplayer while on the ground. While the blaster was not an official weapon in every Star Fox game up until Star Fox: Assault, it - such as the reflector (which is Smash Bros.-exclusive) - was popular outside the Star Fox series in all three Super Smash Bros. games. In every game, Fox's blaster design seems to be identical to the one used in Star Fox 64, despite its upgraded appearance in Assault.
Fox
In Super Smash Bros., the Blaster shoots a pink laser beam that travels slower than a standard Ray Gun shot, does 5-6 damage, and has good knockback for how quick it is. The Blaster has increased fire rate while Fox is airborne allowing Fox to short hop double laser. Fox overall is considered among competitive players to have one of the best projectiles in SSB due to its hitstun, speed, and damage. This is one of the main points for why Fox is such a high tier in SSB.
In Melee, however, Fox's Blaster is quite different from the original; it has a faster rate of fire and traveling speed is drastically increased, but the Blaster has no knockback or hitstun and does 1%-3% damage per shot. This is one of the few moves in the game that can never provide a KO except stealing other players' KO's. It is mainly used from long range (as short hop lasers or short hop double lasers) to camp and bring up damage for an up throw→up aerial combo or up smash. It should be avoided while standing as there is ending lag.
In Brawl, Fox's Blaster has once again changed: the range of the Blaster now travels roughly half of its previous distance. His blaster inflicts 3% per shot before move decay sets in. Fox is also now capable of a short hop triple laser, allowing him to inflict more damage on opponents falling to the stage. It is similar to Melee in extent to its use for camping. It is also used after auto-canceled aerials to reduce landing lag and after forward aerials usually or after jumping from the ledge.
Falco
The Blaster is Falco's neutral special move in his Melee incarnation, which, like Fox, shoots a laser gun to damage faraway opponents. It is significantly different from that of Fox's: the Blaster has a slower firing rate and longer end lag, (though it fires faster in the air, but not as fast as Fox's), and each beam stuns the opponent in addition to doing damage. Falco's Blaster closely resembles Fox's Blaster as it appeared in the original Super Smash Bros. The end lag can be skipped if used during a short hop. Falco's Blaster is mainly used from long range to build damage for later KO attempts and as an aid in approaching. It has set knockback. It is also used for setting up KOs, especially versus Captain Falcon and Ganondorf, since it can be fired numerous times off the ledge to force these characters to recover each time.
In Brawl, the beams from Falco's Blaster travel farther than the beams from Fox's, and they are blue instead of red. They appear to do some electricity-based damage. They do not appear to have set knockback. They are very similar to Fox's lasers from Super Smash Bros. outside of doing less damage. It is considered to be one of the best projectiles in the game as it has transcendent priority and disrupts the approach of a majority of the cast. This is by exploiting short hop double lasers to shoot one laser in the air and one in the ground. Combined with Falco Phantasm, throws, and his dash attack, this is a common Falco approach. It is also be used to Lock commonly after a Jab Cancel and to "combo" at various damage percentages into a DACUS or forward smash. Also, similar to Melee but to a lesser extent, Falco's lasers can also be used to set up edgeguards.
Glitch
A small glitch with Falco's Blaster is that if used at the right range, the shots will stick into some platforms and remain damaging until it expires. It can most easily be done on New Pork City (or any custom stage with a specific type of ramp), when the player stands where the bridge begins and fires at the platform to the left. It can also be done in Brawl's Temple, on the ramp to the far upper-right of the stage, if the player stands in a certain spot and fires; and in Corneria if the player stands on the engines, jumps, and fires at the tip of the wing.
Although this is not a glitch, characters can become trapped in a tumble animation, called Laser Lock, if hit repeatedly with Falco's Blaster just before they hit the ground while free-falling. The laser lock may also be done after a down aerial by Falco toward the ground if the opponent does not roll off the floor. The laser lock does not work on all characters. The thinner characters will lie under the laser just barely.
Throws
In Melee and Brawl, Fox and Falco both use their Blaster in their back, up, and down throws. In Melee, during their down throw, Fox and Falco will throw their opponents to the ground, and shoot them with their Blaster. The throws Meteor smash the opponent into the ground, which allows Fox and Falco to tech chase, possibly leading into their Shine combos. Fox's will overall deal 5% damage, and Falco's will deal 4%. In Brawl, the throws deal more damage, with both characters inflicting a total of 9% damage, but throw the opponent in different trajectories. Fox's throws the opponent in a diagonal trajectory with high base knockback, while Falco's throws the opponent in a weak horizontal trajectory. Falco's is particularly notorious for being a highly effective chain throws in Brawl, with strong follow up capability into high percents.
In Melee, for their back throw, Fox and Falco will turn around and throw their opponent backwards in a horizontal trajectory, while simultaneously shooting them rapidly with their Blaster. Fox's deal 7% damage, while Falco deal's 8%. In Brawl, both characters' throws inflict 8% in damage. The throws inflict high base knockback, but extremely low knockback scaling prevent them from ever being able to KO.
Fox's and Falco's up throw involves them throwing the opponent up, while then following up with rapid Blaster shots. In Melee, both throws deal up to 7% in damage, and are highly effective at setting up aerial follow ups, particularly into Fox's powerful up aerial. In Brawl, both throws deal up to 8% in damage, but increased base knockback and Brawl's less hitstun has hindered their capability at setting up aerial follow ups.
Interestingly, in both Melee and Brawl, the lasers in all three of the throws can be reflected and absorbed, much like Mewtwo's forward throw.
Throw Damage Dealt in Brawl
Here is a table of the damage dealt by Fox's and Falco's throws that involve blaster shots, courtesy of Mako Shark.
| Throw | Physical | Laser | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fox's up | 2% | 6% | 8% |
| Fox's back | 2% | 6% | 8% |
| Fox's down | 1% | 8% | 9% |
| Falco's up | 2% | 6% | 8% |
| Falco's back | 2% | 6% | 8% |
| Falco's down | 3% | 6% | 9% |
Gallery
Fox's Blaster in SSB.
The Blaster projectile hits an enemy in SSB.
Fox's Blaster in Melee.
Falco's Blaster in Melee.
The glitch with Falco's Blaster in Brawl.
