I really think there is something about Meta Knight's core character that makes him consistently good no matter the nerfs. Though some people may get turned off by changes in 3.5, he's still one of the best characters in the game. I'd reccomend him to anybody, and that's why this guide was made by us. As one of the most helpful forums here in Smashboards, the most active, helpful, and/or knowledgeable players have joined forces to create an epic guide that will make everyone want to play Meta Knight!
But for now, I'm doing the first draft on my own so don't rate it because the guide will be so much better later on. It'll have frame data, really complicated advanced techniques, and matchups so for now you have to read my probably inaccurate, probably poorly worded, and probably opinionated but still somehow entertaining first draft!
CREDITS( though only I have worked for now )
- Espi
- Lawn Chair
- PMS | nameless.ez
- Kappy
- Darth Bane
- GuruKid
- JABS
- Chesstiger2612
- 9bit
and of course, me!
PROS AND CONS
Pros :
- one of the best edgeguarders in the game, if not the best
- deceptively great range on his disjointed sword
- versatile combo ability and mixups
- very fast attacks and fast run speed
- unpredictable and versatile recovery that covers a lot of distance at least horizontally
- powerful kill moves in up b, down b, nair, bair, and forward smash
- one of the best DACUSes in the game
Cons :
- fast fall speed plus slow tech roll PLUS being, like, the second lightest character in the game makes him VERY fragile
- transcendent priority ( unbeatable priority-wise but certain types of attacks like disjoints and projectiles can go straight through it ) makes dealing with camp a pain
- relatively bad vertical recovery
Oh and if you want Meta Knight in a nutshell, he's a combination of Marth, Sheik, and Fox AKA the Melee top tiers.
MOVESET
Jab - Kind of a useless move. I guess it can be a GTFO move or lead to grab but it's very punishable and does very little damage. Also it doesn't do as many hits as you think it does so don't use it for pressure.
Dash Attack - This move is situational but godlike in the situations where it would work. First of all, it's the only move in the game that clanks with aerials and also Meta Knight's only move to clank with projectiles! You have to have good reflexes though and try to down tilt or down smash immediately after the clank if your opponent is trying to zone you. It has gigantic burst range and isn't overly laggy. It can also lead to up tilt sometimes since it sends them upwards and up air at higher percents.
Forward Tilt - This move is great for combos, spacing, and occasionally, shield pressure. It's different than most forward tilts 'cause it has three hits that can hit at different speeds depending on your timing. It sends them perfectly for another tilt or aerial. It has excellent range on the second and last hit but the first hit has no hitbox on the visible tip for some reason. I like to use it as an anti air too.
Down Tilt - This move is a combination of Roy's down tilt and Marth's down tilt and that has got to be a good combination. It pops 'em up for combos close range but pushes them back at the tip. Combined with it's excellent range, it's one of his best moves to space. Also like Marth's down tilt, it's great for onstage edgeguarding. Very useful overall and a nice move to use after crouch canceling.
Up Tilt - Like Marth, it's stronger at the tip and has godlike vertical range but definetly not horizontal. A nice anti air and sometimes good during combos( though slightly outclassed by short hop up air ). It's deceptively fast too.
Forward Smash - At first glance, it seems like your usual really strong but really slow move, but it can be used for many things. It's excellent for hard reads, punishing recoveries, and you can really mess with people with that charged forward smash. Everyone falls for the charged forward smash. It's deceptively fast and has a massive hitbox.
Down Smash - Both excellent for edgeguarding because of it's hitbox and a strong finisher because of it, and an amazing crouch cancel option to top it off.
Up Smash - Really good against spacies and a good anti air in general. One of the best DACUSes in the game because it is multihit and still strong. Not very strong at the tip though.
Forward Throw - Has really easy followups on floaties but not good for anything else.
Back Throw - This is your main get-off-the-stage move.
Down Throw - Your main combo and tech chase starter throw! At low percents, it sets up a stagger situation where you can get tons of followups with your aerials, tilts, AND smashes plus a regrab for Brawl Falco style chaingrabs( except Meta Knight's chaingrabs are way shorter )! The safest followup IMO is forward tilt because the first hit can jab reset if they miss a tech and you can do all three hits if it doesn't start a techchase.
Up Throw - This sets up a DI trap for down throw if the opponent gets used to it but it can also lead to IDC( down b ) if the opponent is used to down throw. If they don't DI at all, you can get followups like up air, nair, and up b at mid percents.
Nair - Out of all of Meta Knight's moves, his aerials are what I like most. There's too many ways you can be creative with this move. Platform drop then jump up onto it and nair, fadeways, full hop nair fast fall auto cancel, etc. You can even perform an aerial interrupt if you full hop and nair at a specific time. I actively try to do it and it has led to some crazy combos. I've been leaving out the obvious so for the record( or more accurately, for the guide ), it's a sex kick except it's a lot stronger than most other sex kicks so it's kind of a finisher even though you can still get followups after it. Since it's disjointed, really fast, and the hitbox lingers a lot, it's a great combo breaker and great moge overall. I think it's his best OoS option too.
Fair - Trajectory, use, and knockback wise, this move reminds me of Puff's bair but it has multiple hits so it's kinda different. You can use only the first and second hit only by landing before it finishes. The first two hits pop them so there's ton followups.
Bair - Finisher/edgeguarding tool/kill move. I doubt you'll get followups on characters after 20% with this move. It's slow so learn to time it right. You can easily do it after a ledge hop for a gimp. Has different hitboxes so hit with the center for maximum effectiveness.
Dair - Combos and edgeguards low recoveries easily. Sometimes it will stage spike. Try to hit wih the front part. Full hop dair is a really safe spacing and OoS move.
Up Air - Juggles people like nobody's buisness and has many followups while being the easiest followup after most moves itself. To perform a technique called the "rollercoaster", juggle them with up airs and finish with up b. Make sure you hit with the center and not the sides because you don't want to send them diagonally ( unless you do ). Make sure to learn double aerials too because they are godlike.
Mach Tornado ( neutral b ) - Recovery and mixup. To go higher, mash b. It's for the high recovery since it doesn't snap to the ledge. Covers a lot of horizontal distance though. I like to use it after I lose a stock to be invincible like in Brawl. Sometimes you can do this instead of up b during a rollercoaster if your opponent is evading your up bs often.
Drill Rush( side b ) - Only for quick ledge grabs. Nothing else but recovery.
Shuttle Loop - This moves destroys floaties. It's really for recovery if you are good with it's glide portion ( which no longer goes for forever ). On stages like Skyword and Dream Land, you will cancel the move because you will land on the top platform and slide off. This technique can work for recovering onstage since it is unpredictable.
So what about his Dimensional Cape? That move is too complex to not have it's own section. Speaking of new sections, I'm not gonna write em right now so this guide is done until we have the second draft. Which reminds me: DO NOT RATE THIS GUIDE YET. I REPEAT. DO NOT RATE THIS GUIDE YET. IT IS NOT DONE. Kay bye!
