Down aerial

Sonic's down aerial in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.

Kirby's down aerial which resembles a drill in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.

Lucario's down aerial, which negates momentum.

The down aerial (sometimes abbreviated as down air, dair, DAir, or ADA, and referred to as AttackAirLw in Brawl files, and referred to as an attack from above in Smash 4's Tips) is an aerial attack that is performed in midair by pressing the attack button and tilting the control stick or D-Pad downwards. Its official term varies between titles, where it is known as a "down midair attack" in Super Smash Bros. Melee, and a "down air attack" in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Many of these moves are meteor smashes and some of these moves can be drills as well.

Down aerials in the Super Smash Bros. series

In Super Smash Bros.

All down aerials in Super Smash Bros. are spikes, with the exception of Pikachu's and Link's. Many of the spikes are drills, and SSB64 is notable for allowing characters to DI out of them fairly easily.

Character	Description	Damage
Captain Falcon	Thrusts both feet below him. A powerful spike. Can also combine a down aerial into Falcon Punch at mid or high percents depending on character.	14%
Donkey Kong	Thrusts both feet below him. High power spike. Poor range. Combos well into both up smash, aerials, and Giant Punch at varying percentages.	13%
Fox	Does a very fast drill kick. Easy to DI out of. Combos into up smash, shine, and tap a combos. A very weak spike. Can do 7 kicks in total.	2% per hit; 14% if all hits connect.
Jigglypuff	Does a drill kick similar to Kirby's. Similar to the other drill based characters, combos into up tilts and up B. Like Kirby's, it is a spike, but it is much weaker. Does 10 kicks total.	3% damage per hit; 30% damage if all hits connect.
Kirby	A drill kick that is very difficult to DI of, very useful in both combos and gimping. Considered by many the best gimping move in all of SSB. Down aerial on the ground combos into up tilts and forward smashes. It is also strong against shields. Does 10 kicks in total.	3% per hit; 30% if all hits connect.
Link	Thrusts his sword below him. Very useful move to short hop. Has the most ending lag of any aerial and is overall the best way of showing the difference between not Z-cancelling and Z-cancelling. Great power and great vs shields if Z-cancelled. Can bounce off of opponents.	16%
Luigi	A drill kick spike. It's easy to DI out of. A good combo move and good vs shields. Can combo a down aerial into Super Jump Punch; or down aerial into up aerial into Super Jump Punch. Does 8 separate kicks in total.	3% per hit; 24% if all hits connect.
Mario	Similar to Luigi, has quicker hits and is harder to DI out of. Combos into up aerial. Useful against shields and for edgeguarding. Does 8 kicks in total.	3% per hit; 24% if all hits connect.
Ness	Thrusts one foot down. A good spike or meteor smash if it connects.	15%
Pikachu	Thrusts its head down, surrounds itself in electricity, and electrocutes the opponent. A disjointed move like some of Pikachu's other aerials, but has high landing lag if its head gets slammed to the ground. Great shield stun. Can be used for KOing conditions.	13%
Samus	Thrusts her arm cannon below her. A high power spike. Usually considered Samus's best move. Main KO combo is down aerial into back aerial or charge shot. Can also repeatedly down aerial opponents and anticipate techs. Short hop down aerials can lead to shield break if the opponent is careless.	14%
Yoshi	Rapidly moves feet to damage the opponent. The most damaging move in SSB if all hits connect. A shield breaker, but also a drill and is easy to DI out of. Weakest DJC aerial, but good to combo into forward smash. One of the weakest spikes in the game. Does 14 kicks in total.	4% per hit; 56% if all hits connect.

In Super Smash Bros. Melee

Character	Description	Damage
Bowser	Spins upside-down in his shell. Can be used in a somewhat similar fashion to Mario's due to the multiple quick hits, though the landing lag is comparatively larger.	1%-15%, depending on number of connecting hits
Captain Falcon	Thrusts his legs below him. A very powerful and fast meteor smash. If the attack connects in the upper hitbox, the attack becomes a spike and therefore it cannot be meteor canceled.	16%
Donkey Kong	Stomps the air below him. Will always meteor smash his foe, with powerful knockback, but is rather slow.	16%
Dr. Mario	Similar to Mario's, but dealing seven hits with more damage and a different sound effect.	12% if all hits connect.
Falco	Similar to Fox's down aerial, but will instead strike once and powerfully spike his opponent. While very easy to perform and combo into, especially on-stage, the move is one of the riskiest in all the game to use off-stage, due to its long duration, Falco's high falling speed, and his poor recovery. In PAL regions, only the first half of the attack can spike.	9-12%
Fox	Performs a drill kick. Another Mario-esque Down Midair Attack, useful for generally the same purposes. However, this attack is a spike, albeit an extremely weak one. It produces noticeable knockback against only lower handicapped opponents.	19% if all hits connect.
Ganondorf	Similar to Captain Falcon's, but is much more powerful. It is by far the strongest meteor in the game and is also the strongest aerial in the game when landed on airborne opponents. It is so powerful, it reliably KOs almost every character while grounded under 100%. Widely considered to be the best meteor in the game due to its power, speed, very large hitbox (almost up to his head), and surprisingly low aerial ending lag, making it a low risk meteor that is easy to land and recover from; Ganondorf's average falling speed and above average recovery also aid this.	23%
Ice Climbers	Place their hammers below them, and drop down. Knocks the enemy a significant distance upwards. This attack has extremely low set knockback.	7-9% per climber; total 17%
Jigglypuff	Performs a drill kick identical to Kirby's, but only meteor smashes with the first hitbox rather weakly. The meteor is very difficult to perform, and Jigglypuff has other, better, safer edgeguarding tactics, notably its Wall of Pain.	14% if all hits connect
Kirby	Performs a drill kick. It is a weak but effective meteor. It is effective, as Kirby can drag the opponent down with him and recover easily, compensating for its weak knockback.	16% if all hits connect.
Link	Thrusts his sword below him. It is a very powerful attack, among aerial attacks and Link's variety of attacks; it deals 22% on the outset, and it can KO reliably as low as 80% to 90%. Additionally, Link can "bounce" on opponents with the attack, hitting them up to three times. Despite its great power, this attack has notorious landing lag (the longest of all aerials in the game). This is also Link's most powerful attack and one of the strongest down aerials in the game.	22%
Luigi	Spins around, performing a downwards kick. Appears identical to Mario's, but instead of multiple, low-knockback hits, he performs one quick spin that can knock the enemy in diverse directions. If Luigi hits his foe with his spinning fists or hip during the start of the attack, they will be powerfully meteor smashed. If sourspotted, this aerial still produces very powerful horizontal knockback, making it a very effective edgeguard. This is Luigi's most powerful aerial.	8-16%
Mario	Performs a drill kick. Is somewhat functionally identical to his Mario Tornado (in fact dealing the same amount of damage), but strikes faster, is harder to escape from, and has no finishing punch, making it a good damage-racker and having good combo potential.	10%
Marth	Slashes his sword downward. Very fast and spikes the opponent when tipped. It is utilized in conjunction with his forward aerial for the Ken Combo. While it has almost no start-up lag, it has moderate ending and landing lag, making it risky if performed off stage, though its angled trajectory makes it useful on-stage. In the PAL versions of the game, it is a meteor smash instead, though it still sends opponents at an angle.	9% (base), 10% (middle), 13% (tip)
Mewtwo	Backflips and kicks downwards. It has three hitboxes varying from being weak to moderate in strength. All three hitboxes meteor smash. The meteor is slow and has small sweetspots, but Mewtwo's floaty falling speed and great recovery make it a low risk meteor.	16% when sweetspotted
Mr. Game & Watch	Pulls a key out and plunges downward. If it hits immediately at the start of the attack, Mr. Game & Watch will meteor smash his foe with good power.	19-20%
Ness	Stomps the air below him with his foot. It will always meteor smash his opponent. It has high base knockback, being the only meteor other than Ganondorf's down aerial to be able to pop up all characters at 0%. However, it has very low knockback scaling, and it cannot KO reliably until 200%. It also has long starting and ending lag, making it a moderately high risk meteor to use.	12%
Peach	Kicks below herself. A good combo starter, but deals low damage and produces barely any knockback.	11% if all hits connect
Pichu	Identical to Pikachu's, but Pichu will receive 1% damage upon using it, and another 1% when landed. It is also a multi-hit move, unlike Pikachu's (but extra recoil damage is only incurred once).	14% if all hits connect.
Pikachu	Turns upside down and spins around, emitting electricity from its cheeks. Another simple drill move that strikes once with decent power, but it suffers from high landing lag.	12%
Roy	Identical to Marth's, but the sweet spot required to meteor smash is located a bit higher and significantly more difficult to land. The meteor is very weak, and its long ending lag, coupled with Roy's high falling speed, makes it among the highest-risk aerials in the game.	9% at the base, 6% near the tip
Samus	Swings her arm below her. It is a powerful meteor smash with a wide hitbox, but it has rather slow start-up lag. Due to Samus' floaty air speed and long, varied recovery, it is a low risk meteor that is easy to perform.	16%
Sheik	Points her leg out and falls at a downwards angle. Knocks her foe very slightly horizontally with mostly vertical knockback.	9-11%
Yoshi	Kicks his legs very rapidly below him. It weakly meteor smashes, but it is inferior to his forward aerial for meteor smashing.	Can deal an absolute maximum of 53%, but 44% is a more realistic maximum against normal-sized opponents.
Young Link	Identical to Link's, but it meteor smashes opponents very powerfully (or sends grounded opponents at the soft platform upward) if he lands his down aerial with the handle. Also, it meteor smashes opponents at a different angle if they are to the side and above Young Link, making it useful for edgeguarding opponents from above if timed correctly. The meteor is strong enough to be capable of star KOing any grounded opponents (if the character is at the soft platform) around 75%. Though weaker than Link's down aerial, this is still a very powerful down aerial and is also Young Link's most powerful attack.	14% when the move comes out and deals 17% damage afterward. The meteor smash sets the foe on fire and inflicts 17-21%.
Zelda	Sticks her leg out below her. This is a meteor smash, but an extremely weak one. It is the weakest meteor smash in the game.	8%

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Character	Description	Damage
Bowser	Flips upside-down and rotates around inside his shell. Racks up a lot of damage, and has an additional hit upon landing, which gives it a good SHFF. However, it is considered one of the worst down aerials because of its high lag and difficulty in landing the last hit, which is a meteor smash. Impractical for edgeguarding due to its long duration.	27% if all hits land.
Captain Falcon	Captain Falcon's classic stomp. The hitbox on Captain Falcon's legs produces a powerful meteor smash. If he connects with his body, the opponent is knocked back horizontally very powerfully. Can no longer nipple spike.	14%
Charizard	Stomps below with both feet. It always meteor smashes aerial opponents with above average power, but sends grounded opponents on an upwards diagonal trajectory. It's the second strongest meteor on grounded opponents. Very effective due to Charizard's multiple jumps and the move's short duration.	14%
Diddy Kong	Slams his hands below him in a fist, meteor smashing the opponent with slightly below average power. The meteor is fast, but is a little difficult to land due to its small hitbox.	12%
Donkey Kong	Stomps his foot below him while performing a strong-man pose in midair. It always meteor smashes, is very powerful, and received a power buff in Brawl, like the rest of Donkey Kong's attacks.	16%
Falco	Spins legs downward, similar to Fox's, except only one hit. It meteor smashes when the initial hitbox is landed with average power. If landed after the initial hitbox, the opponent recieves weak horizontal knockback. Second-fastest meteor in the game, and when executed after a short hop, a very feared move.	13%
Fox	Spins legs around, a bit diagonally, hitting multiple times. A drill-type attack. It is the weakest meteor smash in the game. It is useful when shorthopped for combos and is his primary combo starter, especially in conjunction with his up tilt.	21% if all hits connect
Ganondorf	Stomps legs underneath him with an electrical effect. Has two hitboxes, having weaker knockback in the body than in his legs, but by far the highest knockback scaling of any meteor in the game and always meteor smashes if it connects. It is the most powerful meteor smash in the game at percentages higher than 20% and the 3rd strongest at 0%. It is the only meteor in the game that can reliably KO grounded opponents under 100%.	23%
Ice Climbers	A stall-then-fall attack. Both position hammers below themselves and fall downwards a very slight distance. Knockback is upwards and a bit diagonal, but is quite weak with a moderate amount of landing lag.	Leader, 13%, partner, 8%, up to 13%
Ike	Faces screen while swinging his sword down. If it hits during the initial frames, it meteor smashes very powerfully, and after the initial swing, it deals weaker upwards knockback. It is the third strongest meteor on grounded opponents and third strongest on airborne opponents at mid and above percentages. It has great vertical reach but lacks horizontal reach. It is somewhat risky due to its long ending lag and Ike's poor recovery.	16%
Ivysaur	Blasts its bulb below itself. Surprisingly, does not launch Ivysaur upwards, but stalls it in the air, like Lucario's down aerial. It meteor smashes opponents right below Ivysaur, but rather weakly. It's risky to use due to its slow start-up and long ending lag combined with Ivysaur's extreme vulnerability to edge hogs when it is off stage.	8%
Jigglypuff	Spins its legs around. Similar to Kirby's, but faster, much weaker, and does not meteor smash. Almost no knockback unless at percentages above 200%. Can lead to a Rest, though difficult.	16% if all hits connect.
King Dedede	Spins hammer around under him for multiple hits, with the final hit delivering low vertical knockback. Works well in the ascent of a ground jump.	17% if all hits connect.
Kirby	Spins around, drilling with his feet. It weakly meteor smashes throughout the entire attack. Despite its low power, it is a very effective meteor, as Kirby can use this multiple times or fast-fall, dragging the opponent down with him, perform a Footstool Jump at the end of the meteor or use his multiple jumps to recover, often resulting in a KO.	12% if all hits connect.
Link	Kneels above his sword with it upside down, called a down thrust in the Zelda series. Extremely powerful, incredibly long duration, and low startup lag. This move is the strongest aerial on grounded opponents at 0%. It has notorious landing lag that is made worse by the loss of L-canceling. Link bounces off the opponents when he lands it, but falls through the opponent when fast-falled.	22% clean, 18% late, 8% after first bounce.
Lucario	Causes aura to burst twice beneath its foot. Delays all frames of downwards vertical momentum and can be used to stall. It is very powerful when Lucario is at high percentages and it has almost no start-up or ending lag. With its power, speed, and versatility, it is one of the best aerials in the game.	11%
Lucas	Four quick downward kicks. A weak meteor smash is produced with the last kick. Can be used easily to hit an edge-hogging opponent. Can be SDIed out of by holding up.	20% if all hits connect.
Luigi	Spins rapidly in place. Multiple effect-varying hitboxes surrounding feet, arms, and torso. If the arms connect, it becomes a strong meteor smash, but this hitbox is difficult to land. The leg and body hitboxes deal moderate horizontal knockback. Has been severely nerfed from Melee in terms of knockback.	11%
Mario	Mario Tornado, replaced by F.L.U.D.D. as a down special move, is now his down aerial. Outer hitboxes draw the opponent into the center. Very fast start-up and it produces decent knockback on the final hit.	12% if all hits connect.
Marth	Swings sword beneath him. It meteor smashes powerfully when the tip is connected, but hits opponents horizontally weakly when nontipped. It is the second fastest meteor in the game, start-up lag wise. It retains its diagonal angle from Melee, but its sweetspot has been significantly reduced to the point where the move cannot be landed on its own consistently.	12% at the base, 14% tipped.
Meta Knight	Swings sword below him. Similar to Marth's down aerial, but will semi-spike instead of meteor smashing. Can be used on the ground (short-hopped) to set up a KO by edgeguarding. It has almost no start-up and very little ending lag, allowing Meta Knight to WoP his opponents. Is one of the best edgeguarding attacks in the game due to its semi-spike trajectory, decent power, and blinding speed.	7%
Mr. Game & Watch	A stall-then-fall. Grabs a key and plunges downwards. Upwards knockback and moderate ending lag; can be aimed slightly to the side and can be canceled in the middle with Fire. Is a meteor smash if the enemy is directly under him and during initial frames, and if the player taps down on the d-pad or control stick after execution, the move will slow down. Very low lag compared to other stall-then-falls.	14% initial hit, 13% later, 6% landing.
Ness	Jams foot downwards. Somewhat laggy, but it has very high base knockback (2nd strongest meteor at 0%). However, it has very low knockback scaling and therefore cannot reliably KO grounded opponents until above 200%. It has diagonal-horizontal knockback if the move connects in later frames. Very hard to connect, but a reliable KO move.	12%
Olimar	Arcs a Pikmin below his knees. If the opponent is directly below Olimar, it becomes a meteor smash, with power varying by Pikmin - red is one of the strongest meteors in the game, purple/blue are powerful, yellow has average power, and white is weak. Can be used in conjunction with his forward aerial for a Pseudo-Ken Combo.	Red: 16%, Blue: 14%, Yellow: 12%, White: 8%, Purple: 14%
Peach	Thrusts legs rapidly below herself at a slight angle. Four hits. Although her down aerial's damage and knockback was buffed in Brawl, it still deals low damage and produces almost no knockback unless the opponent has a high damage percentage. Fourth kick has very weak vertical knockback.	14% if all hits connect
Pikachu	Twirls downwards emitting sparks for one hit. Decent power, but has high landing lag if Pikachu lands on its head. The landing animation also has a hitbox dealing weak knockback.	12%, 4% (landing hit)
Pit	Swings both halves of bow downwards. This attack produces good vertical knockback, being one of Pit's few KO moves.	12%
R.O.B.	Pauses momentarily, then blasts boosters powerfully downwards. The attack pushes R.O.B. upward slightly, but not enough so that R.O.B. can infinitely recover vertically (unless tiny). It will meteor smash if it hits. Very slow start-up, but it has a large hitbox and almost no risk. Can be used in conjunction with its forward aerial for a Pseudo-Ken Combo.	13%
Samus	Flips 90 degrees forward and faces the screen while swinging her arm cannon in a 180 degree arc below her. It always meteor smashes with good power and with a wide hitbox. It has slow start-up, but has almost no risk due to Samus's floaty falling speed and the down aerial's low ending lag.	15%
Sheik	A stall-then-fall. Sheik bends her body behind her center of gravity and leans her leg out below her. Minimal knockback, and is dangerous to use. It comes down fast but has high landing lag.	9-11%
Snake	Launches four subsequent kicks below himself. Has high lag and the last hit deals high horizontal knockback. Can be used very well in a short hop for a medium-high percent KO on a grounded opponent. Compared to his [[neutral aerial], it has higher knockback on the last hit and is easier to trap with.	28% if all hits connect
Sonic	A stall-then-fall. Sticks his leg out below him while dropping. Lasts a long duration, but has high landing lag. After some frames, this move can be cancelled with his Spring Jump. Has the properties of a sex kick.	8%
Squirtle	Spins around dealing multiple hits. The last hit has moderate horizontal knockback.	10% if all hits connect
Toon Link	A powerful and fast stall-then-fall. Drops down with his sword held below him. Similar to Link's, although it can meteor in the first few frames. Dangerous to use when not above ground, but some pros use it for showing off. Like Link's, it bounces off the opponent.	16% clean, 13% late, 6% after first bounce.
Yoshi	Flutter kicks very fast below him. It is easier to land it than it was in Melee, but has a much lower damage maximum (it is still the most damaging out of any aerial in the game).	35% if all hits connect.
Wario	Flips upside down and rotates once or twice. When the move connects, he makes contact up to 7 times. It works very well for racking up damage due to its speed and Wario's air speed.	16% if all hits connect.
Wolf	Slams his hands below him in a fist. Similar to Diddy Kong's, but weaker and easier to land. It is one of the easiest meteors to land in the game, but the opponent has to usually be above 50% for this attack to meteor successfully.	Two hitboxes; one does 15%, the other does 13%.
Zelda	Thrusts leg once below her vertically. Similar to her lightning kick, it is a very powerful meteor smash when sweetspotted, shocking the opponent as well. When sourspotted, it is an extremely weak meteor.	16% sweetspotted, 5% sourspotted.
Zero Suit Samus	A stall-then-fall. Turns body in a linear form, then propels downward at an angle. If the opponent is hit in the air, they are carried down until they are knocked away once in contact with ground. The initial hitbox can meteor smash.	4% on contact, 5% landing.

Notable down aerials

Animation of Marth's down aerial in Melee

• Captain Falcon's down aerial, notorious for the nipple spike in Melee.
• Falco's down aerial, a fast spike in Melee and Brawl with high range vital to Falco's pillar.
• Fox's down aerial in Melee, notorious for its use in his infinite combo.
• Ganondorf's down aerial in Brawl can be auto canceled in short hops and KO below 100% who connects on the ground while in an aerial opponent making it a great approach move and as a spike it always spikes if connects with enough power to OHKO an opponent in most cases. It is the strongest aerial in both Melee and Brawl.
• Lucario, Ivysaur, and R.O.B.'s down aerials stop their movement in the aerial. However, it doesn't stop momentum while in the knockback from an enemy's attack.
• Mario's down aerial was replaced with the Mario Tornado in Brawl. Previously, Mario Tornado had been his down special move.
• Marth's down aerial, specifically in Melee, is possibly the most feared with its speed, range, and ability to spike. Its effectiveness has been reduced in Brawl, though it can still be used well with practice.
• Yoshi's down aerial, the most damaging aerial in all four games, dealing a maximum of 56% in Smash 64, 53% in Melee, 35% in Brawl and 32% in Smash 4. It can deal huge damage very quickly, which is especially easy against characters with large hurtboxes. In Smash 64, two down aerials along with some other attacks can bring an opponent to KO percentages. It is also notorious for being a very simple way to win the Paper Mario trophy in Melee, for people who are unable to bat drop.
• The Ice Climbers', Mr. Game & Watch's, Sheik's, Sonic's, Toon Link's, and Zero Suit Samus' down aerials are all stall-then-fall aerials in Brawl. When Link and Toon Link's down aerials connect with a foe or a shield, they will bounce up, allowing him to hit another enemy for minor damage and knockback.