Community Project #1: Rate our Moveset(shoutouts+credit to the guys on the zard boards)

[Smog Frog]

The point of this thread is to gain a community perspective of which of our moves are great, good, situational and bad. Perhaps we can find some new uses for moves that we never considered. Feel free to discuss one, two, five or all of them. Discussion will be rather unstructured and free flowing for now. However, I may direct traffic to a specific move or moves if discussion is becoming too lopsided on a particular topic (inb4WhirlingFortress). Please be prepared to back your claims with a detailed, informative explanation. Worthwhile posts will be added to this OP and cataloged appropriately.

THE MOVESET RATING LEGEND:


- A certified fantastic move. Covers a wide variety of situations and/or covers a few important situations but covers them extremely well. An absolute staple and essential to our gameplay.

- A great move overall. Covers a few situations pretty well and is relied on frequently. May cover one or two select but important scenarios very well.

- A solid move. More of a niche move but covers this niche quite well. May also be used as a mixup occasionally.

- Not too hot but not totally useless. Might be used for VERY specific situations or a mixup that we might want to use every once in a while. Certainly not a move to be used often.

- Crap tier. An option select we'll probably never use unless we want to be Trollsers. This rating specifically means "There is literally always a better option than this".
= full point, = half point, and = quarter point for those who like to split hairs
CRITERIA TO CONSIDER WHEN RATING:

- How often we use this move.
- How many roles this moves fulfills.
- How safe/reliable this move is.


EXAMPLES OF ROLES:

- Kill Move
- Anti-Air
- Spacing Tool
- Recovery
- GTFO Move
- Combo Starter
- Combo Finisher
- Close Combat Tool
- Reliable Punisher


OUR MOVESET:

Jab
Dash Attack
Forward-Tilt
Up-Tilt
Down-Tilt
Neutral-Aerial
Forward-Aerial
Back-Aerial
Up-Aerial
Down-Aerial
Forward-Smash
Up-Smash
Down-Smash
Neutral-Special (Fire Breath)
Side-Special (Flying Slam)
Up-Special (Whirling Fortress)
Down-Special (Bowser Bomb)
Forward-Throw
Back-Throw
Up-Throw
Down-Throw

 

[MrEh]

Jab -
Opponent in face? Mash jab.

Dash Attack -
Your standard run of the mill dash attack. Nothing really special about this. Usually preferable to dash grab in most situations.

Ftilt -
Used as an anti-air against slow approaches. Also used to hit people on ledges. Overall, it's an ok move. Just overshadowed by Jab in neutral situations.

Utilt -
A big move, but not as fast or strong as it was in previous titles. The lack of hitbox in front of Bowser makes this move extremely awkward to use in neutral, and there's usually a better solution in those instances where Utilt can actually hit your opponent.

Dtilt -
Another move that is overshadowed by Jab in neutral situations. Dtilt does cover many options against an opponent on the ledge though, which gives it a good use.

Nair -
Not that useful since Fair covers most of the options that Nair does. Nair does work alright against airdodges or intercepting certain recoveries though.

Fair -
An all around great aerial. Absolutely massive, which allows it to trade or beat with almost everything. This is your go-to aerial for nearly every air to air confrontation.

Bair -
The Bair that everyone gushes over. Ultimately, it's not as good as people think it is. Yes it's fast. Yes it's strong. Yes it autocancels. However, people see it coming from a mile away, and if you're actually trying to approach with this, you expose your back to your opponent, which is terrible when you're Bowser. Still useful as a surprise kill move though. Just don't spam it like a moron.

Uair -
Much faster but also much weaker than its previous incarnation. Since the power has been reduced so heavily, there are often times where even Fair would be preferable to use over this move. Fair is just that huge.

Dair -
Not much to say about this. If the spike is guaranteed, go for it. Otherwise, eh. Pretty bad move, but not as bad as it used to be.

Fsmash -
Yes it's strong as balls. It also sucks. You'll never land this in neutral without some serious reads. A really terrible move.

Usmash -
DOES A LOT OF DAMAGE. KILLS EARLY. AUTOGUARD THROUGH EVERYTHING. LET NOTHING STOP YOU.

Dsmash -
Can snag people who try to neutral getup or roll from the ledge. Otherwise, has no good purpose. Pretty bad.

Fire Breath -
Decent move to throw out during footsies and zoning. Applicable in many matchups.

Fireball -
One of the crappiest projectiles in the game. Useful in the Dedede matchup to knock back Gordos, but nothing else.

Fire Roar -
The cooldown cripples this move hard. Like REALLY hard. Would have been a fine move if the cooldown was doubled from regular Fire Breath, but instead it's like 4x or something. Really harsh.

Klaw -
The Klaw still does a crapload of damage and it kills, but the range has been nerfed to the point where it's really not that good. No where near as good as it used to be.

Dash Klaw -
Lingering grab hitbox, great mobility, and a good punishing tool. If it didn't trade unfavorably against like everything in the game, this move would be insanely good. As it stands, it's still really decent though.

Dash Slash -
This move is freaking massive, makes Bowser super slippery, and smashes through everything. At certain spacing, it even sets up for combos. This isn't some really specific gimmicky crap either. The combos from Dash Slash are very consistent. This move is insanely good, and allows Bowser to operate on a much higher level.

Fortress -
While it's no longer invincible and huge, Fortress is still very important in Bowser's overall gameplan as a punish tool. It's still insanely fast and punishes many things. You just need to time it better to make up for the lack of invincibility. If this were Brawl or Melee Fortress, I would have given it 10 Bowser heads.

Sliding Fortress -
A Fortress that starts up twice as slow is utter **** and doesn't punish anything.

Flying Fortress -
As is a Fortress that doesn't even HIT people.

Bowser Bomb -
Man this move is ridiculous. Comes out as fast as Ftilt with similar range. Only difference is that this kills. This is very useful in punishing landing lag, frame traps, and also for ledge shenanigans. This move is just really good in this game.

Wind Bomb -
Bowser Bomb with slow startup and much lower kill power. And for what? A crappy windbox that doesn't even work well as a gimp. Overall a really bad move.

Trip Bomb -
Oh man, this Bomb doesn't even hit on the way up! Although this Bomb has the fastest startup, the lack of the rising hit and kill power makes that irrelevant. Bowser also cannot do anything after forcing an opponent to trip. Overall, this is also a really bad move.

Fthrow -
Chuck people offstage with it. Otherwise, no real other purpose.

Bthrow -
Similar to Fthrow, but stronger and comes out much faster. Can actually kill people at very high percents.

Uthrow -
Useful to chuck people ontop of platforms for great positioning advantage. Otherwise I'm more fond of Bowser's other throws, since Uthrow does the least damage.

Dthrow -
A throw that keeps your opponent fairly close to you. This can be a good or bad thing depending. General rule of thumb is that if there's a ledge close by, you always Fthrow or Bthrow them offstage. If there's no ledge nearby, you try and Uthrow them onto platforms. If there's no platforms, then you can Dthrow.

 

[Meowser]

Hey, nobody said that only GOOD smashers are allowed to provide input here. I'm mostly covering moves I find on either end of the spectrum or otherwise significant, because quite frankly, while I try to utilize my entire arsenal I rarely find myself actually landing dtilt for example, thus my basis of judgement isn't qualified enough on some of them. Also I use customs, like, never. Because FG 1on1.

Jab -

Can't stress this enough. When opponent in jab range, jab. Don't even think about it, just jab. It's fast, it does great damage (for a jab), it has decent range (for a jab).

Ftilt -

So good. Is a disjoint (sort of), has range, does damage and knockback, is super fast. Can be angled for different situations, too. Such a good move. Second in my personal priority list, if enemy out of jab range, use ftilt. It clanks with SO MUCH **** it's not even funny, and destroys most annoying ranged moves. Even those you wouldn't expect to succumb to the power of the koopa fist, such as force palm.

Fsmash -

While it looks neat, I personally dislike this move a lot. Virtually every single time I use it nowadays, it's because I botched a ftilt input and it always puts me in a worse situation than if I had ftilted. It's so incredibly slow, it's like begging to get countered/spot-dodged, and the enemy can just wait for you to release charge since the move is SO slow, so you can't even bait the counter out by charging the move. Also, the headbutt fsmash from previos Smash games felt more satisfying.

Upsmash -

Incredibly good, like MrEh already pointed out perfectly. Guards through Links dair and a ton of other similar dair moves. You can even plow through Bowser Bomb and Yoshi's downB.

Klaw -

Receives more hate than it deserves, imo. Yes, the range is quite pitiful, but if you're in grab range anyway, then why not use the move that kills reliably at 150% regardless of weight and rage state (and much earlier on light opponents)?

Fair -

Covers a lot of space, does great damage and knocks at a convenient angle. The only downside I can really think of -besides the avoidable landing lag - is the fact that people see this move coming, because of how overused it is. And rightfully so.

Bair -

I hate it for the same reasons I hate fsmash, minus the lag at the end of the move since it autocancels. It's pretty difficult to surprise anybody with this, but I gotta admit that the one time every 5 or so games it lands, it does its job decently. It also causes many Bowsers to get punished for the blatant overuse, though.

Dair -

A move that I love, personally. It's much like B-Bomb in that it is extremely punishable if used too obviously and too often, but used sparingly it's freaking awesome. The moment of stalling in mid-air is my favorite part about it, as it throws off peoples timing when they try to catch/punish you from below. I've lost count of how many uairs/upsmashes whiffed because I pulled off a last-second-dair. Also people underestimate the amount of steering you can do while propeling downwards, often I can manage to aim towards the enemy who rolled to the side and is charging a smash so that the small shockwave knocks them out of it.

Uair -

I want the old one back. The new uair is so pitiful that fair covers 90% of all situations where you might want to use it. The only time I find myself using this is when my target is somewhat behind and above me, in which case bair and nair are usually the better options. It literally only gets two out of five because of the blind spot between bair and fair.

B-Bomb -

Call me Marth. Incredibly underrated move that has its awful reputation only because of people who use it brainlessly. I personally use it only in two situations - right above a ledge and off the ground after a read, usually on a shield-heavy opponent. It shines in both, and a successful shield break means a guaranteed kill at almost all percentages. I think I've killed a Jiggs at 0% once. The overuse of scrubs in FG has its advantages though, people tend to not respect the B-Bomb as much as they should.

 

[Uncle]

Jab -

Jab is love. Jab is life. The range was lowered from what it was in Brawl, but it's still good. It also has excellent frame advantage on hit, which it didn't have before. Use it, embrace it, and become one with it.

Dash Attack -

A move with a clearly defined niche. Bowser's dash speed combined with the lunge on the kick make this a nice situational zone breaker.

Forward-Tilt -

Hits hard. Good reach. Can be angled. Don't try to beat out fast stuff with it. Use it to punish slow-to-average approaches, and people on the ledge.

Up-Tilt -

Swing dat hatchet! Good coverage for above/behind, but not much reward, and it lacks a front hitbox. Use sparingly.

Down-Tilt -

Good ledge coverage option that can kill. The double hit comes in handy sometimes. Don't use this as often as Jab in neutral, though.

Neutral-Aerial -

Can catch airdodgers and be occasionally useful for air defense. Don't use it often, but keep it in your pocket.

Forward-Aerial -

The backbone of Bowser's air game. He needs fantastic hitboxes like these! Can trade with or defeat many things.

Back-Aerial -

It's fast, powerful, and it can even autocancel. You shouldn't use it as an approach, though. Use it for edgeguarding (like when you get a ledge trump, for example), punishes, and mixups. It does those jobs really well.

Up-Aerial -

As solid as this move is, in most situations either Fair or Bair will be the better choice. Use it to vertically KO an opponent who is above you while you're both airborne.

Down-Aerial -

Much improved from Brawl! The spike potential, ability to go diagonally left or right, slow fall option, wind hitbox, and considerable power make for one hell of a compelling move. It's versatile and rewarding, but incredibly punishable if you completely miss or get shielded.

Forward-Smash -

Absolutely insane power, but you're not landing this on a competent opponent without a hard read or a shield break. Only use it when the moment is right, and you will become a legend.

Up-Smash -

ALL HAIL THE AUTOGUARD! In addition to that blessed trait, the move hits hard and even has a hitbox while falling down. The sheer offensive and defensive power of this move must be utilized by every Bowser player.

Down-Smash -

It certainly has merit as a ledge option, but it just isn't rewarding enough to be used in typical ground combat. It's rather weak for a Smash attack, knockback-wise.

Neutral-Special (Fire Breath) -

This is an important tool in Bowser's neutral game and even his edgeguarding game. The range, damage-racking potential, and gimping potential are all much appreciated. Be mindful of the startup, end lag, and inability to move while breathing fire, though.

Side-Special (Flying Slam) -

Bowserciding is no longer favorable, the disjoint is gone, and Koopa Hopping is no more. What we have left is a low-range command grab with plenty of power. There's still a place for this move, and the ability to cancel landing lag is undeniably useful too. Even with that being said, I can only score a move that can potentially be used against you so high...........

Up-Special (Whirling Fortress) -

Even with the loss of invincibility frames, this is still an awesome move. The meaty grinder hitbox is a tough defense to penetrate, and it comes out fast. Furthermore, the damage-racking is good, along with the recovery distance via mashing the B button.

Down-Special (Bowser Bomb) -

The aerial version of this move has its place as a rare hard punish, but the grounded version is lightning in a bottle and earthquake in a can! The power, startup time, and shield-breaking potential make this move frightening like few others. Don't forget that you can still Bowser Bomb the ledge, which is awesome for ledge trumps. Naturally, this move is still punishable as hell when you miss.

Front-Throw -
Back-Throw -
Up-Throw -
Down-Throw -

All Bowser players should be grabbing and throwing often, without question. Back-Throw is usually the best choice, because it can get someone offstage and even kill outright at high percents. Forward-Throw is the best choice when you're facing the edge, obviously. Up-Throw should be used around the center of the stage in situations where you want your opponent on higher ground or in the air. Otherwise, Down-Throw should be used for its higher damage.

 

[UltimaLuminaire]

Jab -
Bowser's go-to neutral move against everyone except and . Jab 1 to hit confirm, wall out dash grabs, and clash with or outright beat zone-breaking attacks. Comes with frame trap shenanigans and KO power at high percent with rage. Your opponent's salty tears not included.

Dash Attack -
Our only real zone-breaking tool, and it's about as average as it can get. That being said, this is a go-to move for making deadlines, job interviews, your favorite afternoon program, and other important dates. Doesn't disapoint.

Ftilt -
A good punish tool and wall, especially against opponents that think they can out space our pivot grab. Would not use this in neutral against all the popular picks. It's just too risky with the top tier characters being what they are. Good to use until you don't need other moves fresh anymore.

Utilt -
The back end of this move is stupid large. I can stand outside someone's ledge get-up attack range and hit them even if they ledge jump. Condition your opponent and bait counters like a boss. Or, you know, use any of our other, more amazing, options.

Dtilt -
Solid move that covers several situations that ftilt just can't, including spot dodge punishment and being much safer on block, at the expense of leaning your hurt box forward. if it's early on, this will punish someone harder than using Bowser Bomb, and without the same kind of retribution if you miss!

Nair -
This move is dependent on MU. Against this might as well be 5 full . Otherwise, it's a great damage dealer... if you ever plan to land it. Can run off stage into nair and jump into nair for hilarity. On a lucky day, this sucker deals 20%. Might even land you 40% in a match if you just DGAF. Fair invalidates this move's existence in situations where you just want to press your advantage after breaking out of the neutral... so most situations.

Fair -
Due to its priority and auto-cancel capabilities, this move shines as an off-stage and ground to air powerhouse. Can help you drive home almost any opening you can find in your opponent with ease. This is the move you master first or second if you're serious about using Bowser.

Bair -
Everyone should know that this move will never rise above being just a solid punish tool. The fact that this move has no disjoint whatsoever should make Bowser mains think twice about actually trying to approach with it. That said, you can do some funny things to people that don't know what trades with what.

Uair -
While it's known that this move has lost power, it still hits like a monster. You will find situations where a simple run off jump into Uair will hit an opponent's blind spot and net you the KO where Fair would have failed, especially against characters with projectiles (or they could throw a projectile down at you and risk fast falling).

Dair -
Force a whiff or die. This move can cover some interesting mix-ups in an air to ground situation, but it all depends on how ballsy your opponent is, and whether you know that or not. The momentum stalled version can be very useful against certain characters as the move has enough priority to crush anything that gets too close. Memorizing which characters you can do that to is half the fun, really. If you've got some Bowser friends, grab the tanooki power-up in custom Smash for ridiculous Dair battles.

Fsmash -
Zigsta showed me the light. Jab 1 into Fsmash is such a ridiculous fake-out. Otherwise only hard-reads need apply.

Usmash -
What hasn't been said? This is a new rule: master this move ASAP. Dump it out of shield, IDK. All that matters is that when you use this move, you will blast fools in any situation where someone is even remotely above you. Yes, a ledge jump counts as being remotely above you.

Dsmash -
This move is silly. Requires a reading level almost as high as Fsmash. That's like... masters in English level. If you're gonna use it for a punish, make sure they get sucked into the side disjoint or something. Otherwise, you can be like Jerodak and just sass someone at the ledge with it.

Fire Breath -
I'm with MrEh on this one. Provides an essential tool in neutral. Someone respecting you too much? Walk them to a corner and breathe fire on them. Let them know that our neutral game isn't so easy to beat.

Fireball -
I don't even.
Fire Roar -
Unless you're just gonna jump into someone's face for a brutal 30%, you're better served with the normal Fire Breath, especially given the larger scope of how neutral works in Sm4sh.

Klaw -
Still a solid air to ground mix up. Classic command grab. Also very useful if you need to grab something in your initial dash frames.

Dash Klaw -
Incredible punish and mix-up tool. Pressure someone from a ridiculous range just by existing. Though, like MrEh said, it's still a command grab that gets stuffed by almost any attack.

Dash Slash -
After seeing MrEh use this move early January, how could I not want to try this? It's a ridiculous movement tool and has enough priority that you can easily approach with it. It's our greatest unsung zone-breaker, too.

Fortress -
This thing still punishes moves that many other characters struggle to deal with. It's also the most potent anti-cross-up tool in the game IMO. People will fear landing behind you for the rest of their lives, and that's how it should be. Against , this move is a 10 out of 5 for sure. When used at the ledge, it will semi-spike him because his hand reaches above the platform before he ledge-snaps. Add to that a shrunk hurt box that makes spaced attacks whiff and that's that. RIP invul frames, tho.

Sliding Fortress -
There are too many things that can be punished with Fortress that we can't with any of our other moves, including this one. It's just not worth it.

Flying Fortress -
A full jump + Fortress + mash A will do the job. Wanting to go higher at the expense of all else is just a waste. Use it in Smash Run and that's it.

Bowser Bomb -
This is a deceptively reliable punish tool. Has a bit more range than Klaw with a bigger reward if both hits connect. Push the limits of what you can punish with this move and you will come to understand what it means to close a stock.

Wind Bomb -
No. In any situation where you'd want the wind to push your opponent away, you're better off chasing them with Fair or Bair. Really, no.

Trip Bomb -
Trap.

Fthrow -
Yo, this is a kill throw. With Rage, against most characters, at the edge of FD, this baby will kill at 130%, no problem. You can and should pummel your opponent to be sure, and if you do, it might as well kill at 120%. If you get the chance to use this at the edge, just do it.

Bthrow -
Slightly more KB than Fthrow and serves much the same purpose. Get someone to the edge of the stage, pummel the ever living daylights out of them, and go get your 110-120% kill.

Uthrow -
Platforms only.

Dthrow -
It's good to explore this option, especially if you're trying to keep Fthrow and Bthrow fresh and you know you're not in a position to kill with either of them.

 

[B!squick]

I'll just deffer to MrEh's opinions. I'm pretty sure he was Bowser in a previous life.

 

[MagiusNecros]

MrEh pretty much has my thoughts. Although I will say I am fond of Dashing Aerial Fortress cheese for easy damage. And Offstage Klaw grabs to ensure anyone with just a second jump or poor recovery won't ever make it back.

 

[Rend4125]

Upthrow is usually my go to throw unless i can throw them off stage and put them in a worse position, since at low percents it strings into a fair or uair on a decent amount of the cast or even people that arent expecting it and can also be used to get potential upsmashes. 3 Bowser heads from me for sure.

 

[S_B]

I want so badly to give f-smash a higher rating than folks are giving it here because it's uncharged kill power is insanely good, and it ALMOST comes out fast enough, like just a few frames faster and we would be using it to catch enemies in all kinds of things...

 

[Zapp Branniglenn]

Jab -

Gotta love that delicious frame advantage. Jab to ftilt, jab to dash grab, jab to side B, jab to Fsmash if you're feeling brave, and let's not forget the jab to Down B. Sure, they're escapable, but who is expecting these kinds of followups? I use jab all the time on the runners like shiek and fox. The only way this move could possibly be better is if you could continuously jab by holding the button down like some other characters. That way you wouldn't have to have such a good sense of timing.

Ftilt -

These slightly slower f tilts lend themselves very well to being pivot moves, and this one has seems to have more than a couple active frames. Not a safe poke and doesn't have much killing power. You can angle the move, but there seems to be not much reason to do so.

Dtilt -

Can double hit at low percents for about 26% damage. Pretty safe to throw out in neutral, and hits lower than most of his moveset regarding opponents hanging on a ledge. Though Dair will likely get a kill when used on them, the D tilt has much less risk for its modest reward. The low knockback angle can kill opponents with bad recovery options. And the move seems to feature as much Knockback as F tilt, making it the more ideal attack when facing the opponent.

Utilt -

There are a lot of wrong ways to use this move, and not a high enough reward for landing it in the first place. It takes ages for this move to end, and you need to put your back to the opponent before using it. I've been able to link aerial Dash Slash into turnaround>uptilt, but that's about it for combos. I try not to use this ever. Not even for platform sharking.

Dash attack -

Pretty meh, but so are most dash attacks. Bowser's has a ton of reach, and with his very fast running speed in this game, it's a solid combination in the For Glory setting where opponents sit at the edge with projectile spam. I just prefer dash>side B or dash grab for punishing in a safer manner.

Fsmash -

This move is not bad at all, and feels great to pivot. It's primary use is fully charged after you successfuly break somebody's shield with our more awesome Down B. Try not to get too hungry making reads with this, Bowser's grounded Fortress and Dsmash have more active frames for catching people's rolls and spot dodges.

Dsmash -

Disjointed hitboxes, and multi hit. It has almost enough knockback for it to be a reliable kill move. Instead of more knockback, I'd wish for this attack to have a more horizontal knockback angle. Since Bowser's best kill options are already vertical kill moves.

Usmash -

A bit precise, but well worth the accuracy needed to land this. This is an upsmash that wins clashes with typical dairs, and has a pretty quick startup to boot. You can shark people from under platforms much safer than using the unwieldy up tilt.

Nair -

Ha, the wobbly legs. I can't find much use for this. It's a multihit move that only sometimes links together properly. It's generally unsafe to land with and must be full hopped in order to auto cancel. The hitboxes are not disjointed so the move is easily challenged from any angle. I guess you could juggle with this, but it's unlikely it will work with that auto cancel window.

Fair -

Very effective. The move will hit above, below, and anywhere in front of Bowser. It edgeguards, you can hit from a safe distance, and any Bowser knows that you can autocancel this out of a short hop. Make your opponent respect this, and you can force them to approach from the ground, where Bowser's options are more deadly.

Bair -

Lots of killing power with a horizontal angle. This one also has a generous autocancel window, but I mostly try to bait an airdodge on a falling target before using this to kill. I guess you can Rar this move to smack people on platforms, but Fair has a more generous range.

Dair -

How does this attack keep saving my ass? Bowser plummets to the ground extremely quickly, and if the early hitbox connects, the move spikes them rather than launching upwards. Use that aspect of the move near the ledge, and you can get a satisfying gimp. The move also features landing hitboxes to help keep Bowser protected from punishes, making it stand out from Bowser Bomb.

Uair -

The hitbox is much weaker than previous games, and only really includes bowser's head. It's functional, but not noteworthy, and it's annoying how such a subtly motion creates so much landing lag, or we could use this to poke from under a platform.

Neutral B 1, Fire Breath -

This move fits two very important applications. Making incoming projectiles disappear, and something you can potentially use to get on stage with after letting go of the ledge manually. The damage potential is low, but so is the potential for being punished. This move can protect your teammate as they recover in doubles since it functions as a decent wall.

Neutral B 2, Fire Shot -

Bad. The only good thing about this move is that it's a projectile that can't be clanked. It's slow to fire additional shots, and is not quick to act out of. If you fire these from a platform, you can have fun angling the move in order to have any effect on it. The low damage and knockback almost assures that any speedy character will punish you for this move. And you can't angle it far down enough to really disrupt recoveries.

It's interesting for specific MUs, but it has more wrong applications than right ones.

Neutral B 3, Fire Roar -

Besides being Bowser's manliest move, this is a risky version of breath. It dissipates extremely quickly, which cuts the higher damage potential. In addition, it takes a turtle's age to recharge. If we could use this almost as repeatedly as fire breath, it would make for a good alternative. The only application I can think of is if you're partnered with a character that can absorb it in doubles. But Fire breath could fulfill that just as well if you really cared.

Side B 1, Flying Slam -

Okay, suicide clause error aside, this is still an amazing move. The air version is lagless if you land, making for fun mixups from the ledge and on platforms. And if you're in a tumble state, but not in hitstun, you can use this just before landing to put Bowser in a neutral position. This application removes the need for teching, which is good since Bowser's tech rolls are garbage. This move is also the reason why I love battlefield, since you can get early (60-75%) kills on lighter characters if you manage to land on the top platform with some rage, which is entirely possible when grabbing from the ground. And the damage dealt is fantastic too. 18% is a good standout from our already great throws which deal 10-12.

Side B 2, Dash Slam -

The immeditate reason we want this, or dash slash, is because of waveslashing. Like normal Side B, the air version is lagless when landing. So even if this move whiffs, you can slide in for a jab, tilt, or another dash slam. It's a lot of fun, and allows Bowser to take charge of the situation and press advantages. This one in particular I think is great for getting up from the ledge with. However, I find this to be the least desirable choice for side B. You can still perform some of Flying slam's neat tricks with this and Slash, but the move itself is just the most underwhelming. At only 12% damage and no kill potential (besides bowsercide), I'd rather have the quicker flying slam as my command grab of choice.

Side B 3, Dash Slash -

Same as side B 2, but as an attack, rather than command grab. As such, most of what can be said about this is also said about the other move. However, this one can combo into attacks if you land after an aerial hit confirm. It knocks opponents airborne with low knockback. As long as you waveslashed correctly, it's often difficult to punish when shielded. Landing next to an opponent with a hitbox, then grab is a good mixup to cover for your loss of a command grab move. And when you do have a hit confirm, Bowser can followup with aerials, usmash and utilt, heck, maybe even slip bomb could followup from it.

Up B 1, Whirling Fortress -

This is a move that can't challenge many dairs and can't be B reversed. Make sure to utilize the boost correctly by pausing before mashing B to gain more height. Because of this, It's got better, more reliable recovery potential to make it stand out from the custom variants. A big reason to use this move is as an OoS option. However, it is nerfed from previous games and no longer features Frame 1-5 invulnerability. Still with a hitbox on Frame 6, it is his fastest grounded move, and by being an up special, definitely still good for OoS. In addition, if you're daring, you can use this to launch yourself at an opponent in the air or on a platform. When performed inside of them, the full damage potential is about 35%, but doesn't launch far.

Up B 2, Flying Fortress -

Bowser winds up before launching a set distance vertically. This move trades your excellent OoS option for a better recovery from vertical positions. Bowser winds up for 10 frames instead of six before launching upward. Your total recovery potential suffers greatly when you can't move horizontally at all. All you gain from this is the ability to edgeguard deeper with Fairs. Make sure your edgeguard connects, because you still can't B reverse this, meaning you won't ledge snap on the way back up. The damage potential is cut to about 4% and doesn't knock far enough to stage spike either. Also, for some reason, you cannot boost the height of this move like you can the other versions of Fortress. That's bizarre for the version that's all about gaining height.

UpB 3, Sliding Fortress -

Again, you're trading one of the best OoS options in the game for something mediocre in damage and knockback. This one takes 12 frames to wind up, that's double whirling Fortress. However, this one fulfills a better niche role than Flying fortress. When considering ledge options, you can use this to barrel through the opponent. Even if they shield this, you'll be on the other side of the stage when you land, making it difficult to punish. Bowser has a hard time on the ledge, without customs, but if customs are on, then you should use one of the custom side Bs for surprising the opponent instead.

This one gets a better rating because it isn't garbage for its intended purpose

Down B 1, Bowser Bomb -

Fantastic. It picks opponents up into the bomb itself and clocks a ton of damage. If the opponent successfully shields the rising hit, they'd better dodge roll, because they're shield will be broken if they sit there. I also love this for opponents considering their ledge options. I initiate it as soon as I see their character start moving. If their choice is ledge jump or simple getup, they can get clobbered very consistently. If they let go and jumped on stage, the rising hit will likely connect. If they chose dodge roll, Bowser can fall off the ledge and grab it, guaranteed. He didn't have this sure option in previous games because of the old ledgehog mechanics. The main drawback is of course how vulnerable you are after whiffing this move onstage. The custom variants have much less of an issue with this.

Down B 2, Turbulent Bomb -

This move has the furthest jump from the ground and the least amount of damage by far (about 9%, not counting the rising hit) The windbox will help ensure you're not punished on a whiff, but I question using this move in the first place when you consider its drop in damage and knockback. It also cannot break shields.

Down B 3, Slip Bomb -

This version of bomb lacks the rising hit, which means no linking out of a jab or punishing a laggy attack. To make up for it, this version, both from the air and ground, are much faster. The damage drop still keep this custom out of the common perception of viability. However, the knockback of this version seems to match, or is even stronger, than the Bowser Bomb. It also share's the standard bomb's ability to break shields, but good luck landing precisely on opponents without a rising hitbox. Trying to catch falling or generally airborne opponents seems to be the ideal purpose for this variant. As for the tripping effect, there's nothing to say. Bowser cannot follow up on it, even from a close range. That is, unless the opponent forgets that you have this version of the bomb and doesn't notice quick enough that they've been tripped. Maybe this will make for fun setups in doubles if your partner can followup, but that's really grasping. In case you're wondering, no, this trip effect does not go through shields, and deals virtually no shield damage/stun.

Grabs

Bowser's grab range and speed are above average since he's such a large character. His pivot grab has godlike range to where I often dash backward just so I can pivot grab my approaching opponent. If you've opted for Dash Slash over Flying slam, then your grabs become even more important.

Throws

Most characters have throws that are only average at best in Smash 4, but Bowser's are pretty good. Not Sonic level good, but still worth noting. They all deal at least 10% damage, and upthrow has some light combo potential. Bthrow and F throw can potentially kill if you've got some rage. All in all, he's got a bit of everything you'd want out of throws, and more.