Din Peregrine, a SSBB Falco Guide




None of the “Advanced Techniques” in this guide were discovered by me; however, the descriptions and explanations are my own. If you would like to be credited for the discovery of anything here, too bad, no one cares. If you feel I’ve reported anything inaccurately, feel free to pm me. I will ignore anyone not civil. I am providing this guide as a service to the Falco community.

Updates:

*6/21/08
   - Guide is posted.
*6/23/08
   - Stutter Stepping added.
   - Some data on priority added.
   - Added Input Buffering.
   - Added Get-up and Ledge attacks.
   - Changed some notes on grabs.
   - Changed some notes on tilts.
   - Added some information on the reflector.
   - Added Reverse Jump Canceled Up Smashing.
   - Added buffering information to the Boost Smashing and Chain Grabbing sections.
*7/07/08
   - Added "No Weakness" to the Helpful Videos section.
   - Added Craq Walking.
   - Updated Jab priority.
*7/21/08
   - Added a few more things to the Helpful Videos section.
   - Added neutral stage overviews in Stage Selection.
   - Updated information on the reflector.
*7/22/08
    - Added information to the Proper Laser Usage section.
*7/24/08
   - Altered some information in the Stage Selection section.
   - Added Illusion Stuff.
   - Added some information on the Gatling Combo.
*8/15/08
   - Added video demonstrations (provided by Massiveguns) to the Advanced Techniques sections.
   - Changed SHSL to SHL throughout the guide.
   - Added Reverse Aerial Rushing.
   - Added some information to Input Buffering.
   - Changed some information on Laser Locking.
*4/27/09
   - Made the moveset structure more sensible.
   - Added frame data.
*8/12/09
    - Updated random notes on the moveset.
*10/09/09 
    - Made more random updates to notes on the moveset.

Table of Contents:

1. Pros/Cons
2. List of Terms
3. Moveset
4. Advanced Techniques

4.1. Input Buffering
4.2. Reverse Aerial Rushing
4.3. Boost Smashing
4.4. Gatling Combo
4.5. Proper Laser Usage
4.6. Laser Locking
4.7. Chain Grabbing
4.8. Boost Pivot Grabbing
4.9. Illusion Stuff
4.10. Stutter Stepping
4.11. Craq Walking
4.12. Reverse Jump Canceled Up Smashing

5. Stage Selection
6. Matchups
7. Videos

Navigation: Ctrl+f, then enter in the section number you desire preceded by the # sign. For example, press ctrl+f and enter #1 to reach the Pros/Cons section.

#1: Pros/Cons

Pros:
1. Crazy horizontal recovery
2. Quick vertical aerial movement
3. Great ground mobility
4. Incredible approach options
5. Spammable projectile
6. Great spikes
7. Chain grab
8. Reflector
9. Wall jump
10. The possibility to humiliate your opponent with a laser lock

Cons:
1. Can be hard to get kills
2. Awful ^B
3. Has few stage counter-picks                      
4. Slow horizontal aerial movement
5. Relatively Light

#2: List of Terms

Term (abbreviation) = Meaning
1. Final Destination (FD) = The new Final Destination stage in Brawl.
2. Short Hop (SH) = When you tap the jump button softly and the character only jumps a fraction of the height it’s capable of.
3. Short Hop Double Laser (SHDL) = When you short hop and fire two lasers before you land again.
4. Short Hop Laser (SHL) = When you short hop and fire one laser just before you land again.
5. Illusion () = Falco's side B.
6. Reverse Aerial Rush (RAR) = When you perform a pivot jumped aerial attack.
7. Craq Walking (cwalking) = See the “Advanced Techniques” section below.
8. Directional Influence (DI) = While in the air, you can use the analog stick and the c-stick to alter your aerial momentum.
9. Reverse Jump Canceled (RJC) = When running in one direction, you can reverse directions, keep the momentum, and cancel the lag by jumping. Before you actually leave the ground, you have an opportunity to initiate an attack, which will cancel the jump.
10. Instant Aerial Illusion (IAP) = Instead of doing a grounded illusion, Falco can jump first, then immediately perform the illusion so as to do an aerial illusion with no landing lag.

#3: Moveset

I will not be reporting anything about diminishing returns. It’s not too difficult to figure out that your attacks will do slightly less damage and knockback if you use the same ones often. 

Example Layout
Frame Breakdown: All frame data comes from 3GOD's post here.
Damage: Behind you (4%, 2%, 1%, 1%, ...) In front of you (3%) If an attack varies in damage depending on where you hit, each variable will be labeled and reported in a separate parentheses. If an attack hits multiple times, each hit’s damage will be separated by commas within the parentheses. For smashes, fully charged damage will be reported as (10%-21%).
Notes: Any other relevant information about the attack.

Ledge Attack
Damage: Below 100% (8%) Above 100% (10%)

Get-Up Attack
Damage: (6%)

Jab
Frame Breakdown:

Hits on: 2
Shield hit lag: 6
Shield stun: 7
1st jab total: 16
1st jab advantage: -13
2nd jab hits on: 10 (counting frame 1 as first frame of 1st jab)
Linking to 2nd jab advantage: -7 (opponent has 7 frames between shield stun and 2nd jab hit box)

Damage: (4%, 2%, 1%, 1% ...)
Notes: Falco's jab is arguably his most valuable tool. Its speed, range, and ability to disrupt your opponents attacks and actions helps Falco keep pressure on and control the pace of the game. I'll be adding to the notes on Jab in the near future. 

Dash Attack
Frame Breakdown:

Hits on: 4
Shield hit lag: 8
Shield stun: 10
Advantage: -29
Total: 35
Linking to Usmash hit box advantage: -6 (opponent has 6 frames between shield stun and Usmash hit box)

Damage: End of the attack (6%) Everything else (9%)
Notes: Because of the duration, this can be a great attack for punishing spot-dodges. It also works very well in conjunction with d-throw in that after your opponent is past the re-grabbing threshold, you can dash attack after them and it'll often last long enough to hit them even if they air dodge. Also see the “Boost Smashing” and “Gatling Combo” sections in “Advanced Techniques” to see some neat ways of utilizing this attack.

Up Tilt
Frame Breakdown:

Hits on: 4
Second hit on: 12
Shield hit lag: 6 (second hit)
Shield stun: 11 (second hit)
Advantage: -19 (second hit)
Total: 36

Damage: (4%, 5%)
Notes: This is a great attack for juggling or setting up into aerials. The duration and multiple hits of the attack can catch spot-dodging opponents off guard. This can reach opponents on platforms above you. Especially useful for disrupting frustrating approaches like Wario's dair.        

Down Tilt
Frame Breakdown:

Hits on: 7
Shield hit lag: 9
Shield stun: 13
Advantage: -16
Total: 27

Damage: Tip of the tail (9%) Up close (12%)
Notes: You almost always have better options than this for damage and knockback. You can sometimes slip it in under your opponent's shield, but since it has a very small hitbox, it has little utility overall. 

Forward Tilt
Frame Breakdown:

Hits on: 6
Shield hit lag: 8
Shield stun: 11
Advantage: -17
Total: 26

Damage: (9%)
Notes: This is a great attack for spacing. It has nice horizontal knockback, so when you're near an edge, don't underestimate the usefulness of simply putting your opponent off the stage, even if it's not far out there. Falco has tons of options to inhibit recovery, so if nothing else, you'll have the opportunity to rack up some decent damage. See the “Laser Locking” section under “Advanced Techniques” to see a neat way of utilizing this attack.

Up Smash
Frame Breakdown:

Hits on: 8
Shield hit lag: 9
Shield stun: 13
Advantage: -32
Total: 44

Damage: Above on a platform or behind him (12%-16%) Everywhere else (14%-19%)
Notes: My personal favorite smash attack. This smash will hit opponents on platforms above you. If your opponent is hit by the end of the hit-box (above and slightly behind Falco), they are sent horizontally instead of up. This is one of Falco's better kill moves. See the “Boost Smashing,” “Gatling Combo,” and "Reverse Jump Canceled Up Smashing "sections in “Advanced Techniques” to understand just how insane this attack can be.

Down Smash
Frame Breakdown:

Hits on: 7
Shield hit lag: 11
Shield stun: 15
Advantage: -35
Total: 46

Damage: (15%-21%)
Notes: The range on this drops its utility a lot. The up side is that if you do happen to get this out at higher percentages, its horizontal knockback can help quite a bit against some characters. I've recently found that the hit-box behind you is slightly longer, and almost seems disjointed. I've got no way of actually testing this, so if someone can prove me wrong, please do. 

Forward Smash
Frame Breakdown:

Hits on: 16 – 18 at least
Shield hit lag: 5
Shield stun: 14
Advantage: -22
Total: 49

Damage: At the very tip (10%-14%) Everywhere else in front or right behind (15%-21%)
Notes: This is another of Falco's kill moves. It's rather slow, but its range and power make it useful for reading spotdodges, airdodges, and other mistakes. See the “Stutter Stepping” section in “Advanced Techniques” to increase this attack’s range even more.

Neutral Air
Frame Breakdown:

Hits on: 3
Landing lag: 9
Shield hit lag: 6
Shield stun: 7
Advantage: -8

Damage: (3%, 3%, 2%, 4%)
Notes: This attack is great for juggling and racking up damage. Very useful for harassing opponents from under platforms. If you fast-fall it so as to avoid the last hitbox, you can often follow up with grabs, jabs, tilts, whatever.

Up Air
Frame Breakdown:

Hits on: 10
Landing lag: 15
Shield hit lag: 9
Shield stun: 12
Advantage: -12

Damage: (11%)
Notes: Falco has many ways of getting the opponent into the air. Never underestimate this attack as a kill move, it's a great follow up. I'd venture to say that I get most of my kills after and instant illusion pops my opponent up and then I follow with a well placed u-air, before or after their air-dodge, rape either way.

Down Air
Frame Breakdown:

Hits on: 5
Landing lag: 12
Shield hit lag: 10
Shield stun: 14
Advantage: -8

Damage: Initial hit at feet or near middle of your body (13%) Later or outside your body (8%)
Notes: In order to get the spike, you need to initiate the attack almost on top of your opponent. 

Forward Air
Frame Breakdown:

Hits on: 6
Landing lag: 33
Shield hit lag:
Shield stun:
Advantage: lol

Damage: (2%, 2%, 2%, 2%, 3%)
Notes: If you connect with this against a DK or Bowser using their up-b, it can gimp them pretty nicely. You can throw out full-hopped f-airs to act as a susstaining hitbox wall. You can also RAR f-airs on opponents off the stage to drag them down and potentially stage spike them. That being said, it's fairly easy for your opponent to smash DI out and retaliate, so watch yourself.

Back Air
Frame Breakdown:

Hits on: 4
Landing lag: 15
Shield hit lag: 10
Shield stun: 14
Advantage: -11

Damage: Initial attack (13%) Later in the attack (7%)
Notes: Great for everything. Hitting with the soft bair can lead into jab/grab/etc on the ground at lower percentages. Dropping down off a ledge and soft bairing can gimp many characters as they are recovering. 

Grab
Frame Breakdown:

Standing Grab:
Grabs on: 6
Total: 29
Dash Grab:
Grabs on: 11
Total: 39
Pivot Grab:
Grabs on: 9
Total: 35

Notes: See the “Boost Pivot Grab” section in “Advanced Techniques” to learn more about improving his grab mobility.

Pummel
Damage: (2%)
Notes: You can usually safely get 1 of these off even with your opponent struggling.

Up Throw
Damage: (8%)
Notes: At higher percents, you won’t get all 8% damage. Can be useful for setting up juggling.

Down Throw
Damage: (9%)
Notes: See the “Chain Grabbing” section in “Advanced Techniques” to learn how to link this into other grabs/attacks. Also see the
“Gatling Combo” section because you can gatling combo out of this at lower percentages.

Forward Throw
Damage: (7%)
Notes: Can be used to get your opponent out off the stage if you grab near the edge.

Back Throw
Damage: (8%)
Notes: At higher percents, you won’t get all 8% damage. If your opponent is DIing down, the lasers Falco shoots during the throw won't hit, making the opponent fly much further than usual.             

Neutral B
Frame Breakdown:

Grounded Laser:
Hits on: 12
Airborne Laser:
First hits on frame 10
Shield stun: 5
Silent Laser lag: 2
Advantage: +3

Damage: (3%) [Starts at 3%, though often comes out at 1% since it’s used so frequently]
Notes: See the “Laser Locking” and “Laser Usage” sections in “Advanced Techniques” to see how to fully utilize this attack.

Side B
Frame Breakdown:

Hits on: 17

Damage: While opponent is in midair (6%) While opponent is on the ground (7%)
Notes: If your opponent is in the air when this attack hits, they will be spiked down. If they are on the ground when it hits, they'll be popped up. See the “Illusion Stuff” section in “Advanced Techniques” for a better understanding of how to use this attack to its full potential.

Down B
Frame Breakdown:

Hits on: 4 – 6 at least
Shield hit lag: 0
Shield stun: 9
Advantage: -34
Total: 51

Damage: (6%)
Notes: You can still change (or keep) aerial momentum when using this attack in the air. There is a good chance of tripping your opponent if it hits. The hitbox is the smallest of the hexagons and only hits on the way out. It can be used to hit through walls. All of the hexagons will reflect as long as they are visible, including the first and last few frames of the attack (which cover behind him as well). Reflected projectiles do 1.5x damage. If your opponent's attack can reach you before the reflector reaches them, your attack will be canceled. This can be pretty handy for safely pushing your opponent a bit further out off the stage, which is sometimes all you need to gimp them.

Up B
Frame Breakdown:

First hits on frame 21

Damage: (2%-20%) **Unsure about this as I couldn’t get the whole thing to ever hit**
Notes: After the firebird starts heading in the desired direction, if you are still holding a direction when you approach a ledge, you will not autograb it. If you have to use this in recovery, do your best to sweet spot it because while you are flaming, your reach is extended. Also be aware that if you're recovering from directly below the ledge, you should input the up B so that you face away from the stage because after you start falling, your feet stick out behind you and can land on the edge. This helps a lot when people are trying to edge hog you. 


Misc Frame Data

Jump is airborne on: 7
SH airborne for: 37
SH fast fall airborne for: 27

Spot Dodge:
Lasts 22 Frames
Invincible Frames 2 – 20

Roll Backward:
Lasts 31 Frames
Invincible Frames 4 – 19

Roll Forward:
Lasts 31 Frames
Invincible Frames 4 – 19

Air Dodge:
Lasts 49 Frames
Invincible Frames 4 – 31

#4: Advanced Techniques

#4.1 Input Buffering
This is a concept that likely has more applications for Falco than I am aware of at the moment. As I become informed of them all, I will try to update the relevant sections in this guide. For now, you can find applications in the "Boost Smashing" and "Chain Grabbing" sections.

Buffering allows you to input commands before your current action is complete. Those commands will then go through as soon as your character is able to perform them. You can only do this during certain frames. For a more in depth look at buffering, see Doval's guide at the link below:

http://www.smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=167109

The reason this is such a valuable tool is because if you're on the offensive using input buffering, it means that in order to defend or counter attack, your opponent must be able to predict and react just as fast... which isn't likely since your attacks are coming out the instant they are possible. If your opponent is using an innately faster character than Falco, you can still run into snags; however, input buffering still provides you with a leg up in terms of reaction time, which can only help you.

A great example of this is using input buffering to turn yourself around after short hopping an aerial. For example, if you approach your opponent with an aerial attack and land in front of them, you can be shield grabbed. To avoid this, you can attempt to land the aerial attack behind them, but then you will need to turn around before you can attack again. Buffering the turn can shave off enough time to land an attack or grab before your opponent can react to the situation. For Falco, this is particularly important because it often allows you to continue a chain grab past the usual 45% damage threshold. To demonstrate:

Input Buffering 1

Falco's jab is an incredibly useful attack. It comes out very fast and will almost always push your opponent far enough away so that they can't retaliate. With this in mind, you can use techniques such as:

Input Buffering 2

#4.2 Reverse Aerial Rushing
A RAR allows you to quickly turn and jump so that you are facing backwards as you move through the air. Although RARing is one of the easier AT's to implement, it can be put to great use by Falco because of his fantastic back air. To perform a RAR, while moving in one direction on the ground, smash the opposite direction on the analog stick to perform a pivot, then jump.

Video soon to come.

#4.3 Boost Smashing
The boost smash allows you to slide across the level with an up smash. Falco is able to travel about half the distance of FD with the ability to release the smash at any place along the way. To demonstrate:

Boost Smash Distances

To perform this, turn tap jump off. The idea is to do a dash attack (I dash and then use down-c to initiate the dash attack) and then immediately up smash (I use Z + up on the analog stick). How long you have been running has no influence on the speed or distance of the boost smash. The key is canceling the dash attack with the up smash. The quicker they are done in succession, the faster and further your boost smash will come out. The reason tap jump should be off is so that if you hit up on the analog stick too soon, you don't accidentally jump instead of up smash.

Since Falco’s running speed is sub-par, this adds a lot to his ground mobility. When you start a chain grab too far back from the edge to get your opponent off the stage for a spike, you can follow the last grab with a boost smash. You can also use it to punish your opponent’s mistakes, to tech chase, or even as an approach. The uses for this technique are endless.

After a jump, you can air dodge right before you land and buffer a boost smash so that you will shoot out immediately after landing. This is a particularly useful application of this technique. To demonstrate:

Boost Smashing

#4.4 Gatling Combo:
The gatling combo is similar to the boost smash in that you use an up smash to cancel a dash attack. The difference is that you let the dash attack hit before you cancel into the up smash. To perform the gatling combo, you simply hit someone with the first few frames of your dash attack, and as soon as you hit them, immediately up smash. If you hit too late with the dash attack, or don't initiate the up smash fast enough, you won't be able to follow into the gatling combo. The technique can punish shields very well. You'll often be able to up smash your opponent if they try to shield grab your dash attack. Be weary though, because it is possible to shield grab before the up smash comes out. If you connect with the dash attack, this technique is only effective at lower percentages; otherwise the dash attack can send your opponent out of range of the up smash. To demonstrate:

Gatling Combo

#4.5 Proper Laser Usage:
This technique allows you to SHDL so that your lasers don’t always go over your opponent’s head. This method will hit taller characters twice and most small characters at least once (can’t hit some characters when they are crawling).

To use the technique, SH and wait until the pinnacle of the jump, then tab B twice. If you want to change direction before you shoot the lasers, simply tap the opposite direction immediately before you start tapping B. If you don’t start tapping B until after the peak, or you tap B more than twice, you’ll shoot another laser on the ground.

My best advice for getting the timing down for a SHL is to SH, then tap B on the way down when Falco’s gun is where his beak normally is when he stands.

As you land after performing a SHDL or SHL, you can hold the shield button down to shield immediately. This can protect from both melee and projectile counter attacks. It can also allow you to grab instantly upon landing by tapping the attack button while still holding up your shield. Because you can jump out of your shield, using this method doesn't inhibit your lasering speed whatsoever. To demonstrate:

Proper Laser Usage

#4.6 Laser Locking:
When someone has bounced prone on the ground, Falco can shoot lasers at them and lock them into a prone position over and over until they bounce out of harms way (usually off the stage). In competitive play, this situation will rarely just come up... people tend to tech or right themselves before bouncing prone. There are however, very small windows of opportunity that will come up at certain percentages where you can hit your opponent with a certain attack that will put them into a position where you have a very good chance to get a laser lock.

I will list the situations below with the name of the attack you need to use, the damage your opponent needs to be at, and any other notes on how to get it to work.

If you know of any other Falco controlled situations that allow for a laser lock, please PM me so I can add them and give credit. These percentages are based on my ability, so if I’m off on any of them, feel free to let me know.

Neutral Air (55%-85%)
The last hit from this attack can send your opponent at a horizontal angle. As soon as you land, start spamming lasers to catch them before they can react. These percentages are assuming your opponent is on the ground and that you are only connecting with the last hit of the attack. If you hit with more of the attack, as long as the last hit connects at 55% or more, you’ll be fine. If you hit with more of the attack at 85%, this won’t likely work.

Forwards Tilt (75%-95%)
Just forward tilt during these percentages and immediately start spamming lasers.

To demonstrate:

Laser Locking

#4.7 Chain Grabbing:
You can down throw an opponent over and over again until about 45% depending on the character. Only a few characters can’t be chain grabbed by Falco. Of the ones that can, some are more difficult than others. I will eventually work on a comprehensive list detailing the percentages each character can be chain grabbed to.

To chain grab, simply grab your opponent, down throw, dash forward, and then grab again. Dash grab, shield grab, and boost pivot grab (check its section out below) all work here. During the end of the down throw animation, you can buffer the next follow up grab. At lower percentages, you can just walk forward and grab instead of dashing. To demonstrate:

Chain Grabbing

When using this technique, you can progress across a good portion of most stages. With that in mind, you can usually end up near an edge, which presents you with the opportunity to quickly short hop off and spike them with your down air. You can also mix it up and try other aerials too. Neutral air can rack up a bit more damage before you follow with a double jumped down air for the spike. If your opponent ends up reaching the damage limit before you get to the edge, try following the last down throw with a boost smash.

#4.8 Boost Pivot Grabbing:
This technique utilizes the same concept as the boost smash; however, rather than canceling the dash attack with an up smash, you cancel it with a pivot grab. A pivot grab is when you are running one direction and then smash the opposite direction on the analog stick as you grab.

This technique does have a few downsides. Although it looks like you get a lot of range, you really don’t. This is because Falco’s grab hitbox is a bit in front of him and only lasts a split second. If you start the boost pivot grab at a distance, when you are sliding through your opponent, the hitbox misses them. The only way to get the boost pivot grab to land is to align your opponent with the hitbox. To do this, you need to start the boost pivot grab just in front of them. Another down side is that just like when you try to stand too close to
another character and get moved back, while you are sliding past your opponent, you are also pushing them aside. This further diminishes the range of this move because you will sometimes end up pushing them behind you and out of your grab range. Also note that you can be hit out of this.

The only way I’ve found around the first two issues (the third is always a problem) is to use this technique when your opponent is in the air. Your sliding past won’t push them aside anymore, and Falco’s grab hitbox seems to be slightly bigger against aerial opponents. With this in mind, viable applications for the technique are much easier to find; my favorite being... If you happen reach the edge during a chaingrab before reaching the damage limit for the chaingrab, you can use a boost pivot grab to change directions of the chaingrab. Just be sure to give yourself enough room before hitting the edge. To demonstrate:

Boost Pivot Grabbing

#4.9 Illusion Stuff:
Falco's illusion is an extremely versatile attack. It can be used for recovery, spacing, damage, and even as a spike. We'll first cover its use as a recovery tactic.

The illusion can be "canceled" mid attack by tapping B at precise times. The cancel can occur right after the illusion starts, in the middle of your flight, and very close to the end. All three versions will stop the illusion while allowing you to maintain your horizontal momentum. Do note that after the cancel, you'll no longer be moving straight forward. You'll begin to fall, but as long as you weren't below the stage to begin with, your momentum will carry you forward quite a bit. Canceling during the beginning won't likely help your horizontal recovery distance. In fact, it will often shorten it; however, it can provide an option that makes you harder to predict in your recovery. Canceling in the middle will grant you further horizontal recovery, but not much. Canceling at the end will provide the greatest addition to your horizontal recovery. Standing at one edge of FD and performing a double jump illusion will place you a little past the center of the stage. Doing the same thing but canceling the illusion at the end will allow you to reach just past 3/4 of the stage. To demonstrate:

Illusion Distances

The next aspect of the illusion we will cover is spacing and damage. After a grounded illusion, Falco takes a moment to regain composure. After an aerial illusion, he often suffer from a brief prone fall. Normally, both situations have enough lag at the end to make you vulnerable to retaliation. To avoid the lag, Falco can jump and instantly illusion. This allows him to perform an aerial illusion that ends without the prone fall. Using the instant illusion this way lets you cover great distances very quickly, which amplifies Falco's ability to space and camp. Since it can also damage your opponent, it offers you a hard to predict attack that will rarely get you punished. To demonstrate:

Video soon to come.

If you have quick fingers, you can perform the instant illusion just by jumping and using an illusion right away. There is a substantial difference in lag, so if you aren't noticing it, it's probably because you aren't quick enough. In that case, I suggest changing your control scheme to something that allows you to use the jump button and special button with different fingers. This will allow you to orchestrate the technique much faster.

To view a competent display of the instant illusion technique in action, check out the Helpful Videos section. Sethlon implements it extremely well against Melee1's ICs.

#4.10 Stutter Stepping:
Stutter stepping is when you dash forward, immediately smash backwards on the analog stick, and then immediately forward smash... resulting in an increase in the forward smash's range. With Falco, the second step (smashing back on the analog stick) doesn't help at all; however, doing a dash and immediately forward smashing extends the forward smash's reach by quite a bit. To demonstrate:

Stutter Stepping

#4.11 Craq Walking:
After jumping, cwalking allows you to slide backwards a small distance. During the slide, you can perform any action you would be able to while standing. Also note that you can perform an aerial during the jump as long as you continue the DI and finish before you land. To cwalk, while jumping, DI in the opposite direction you're facing as you land. Once you land, continue to hold that direction until Falco pivots.

Cwalking can be a great tool to utilize in a retreat. You can run away, jump with a back air, and land into a sliding forward tilt or jab. Mix it up and it becomes even more viable.

Craq Walking

#4.12 Reverse Jump Canceled Up Smashing: [Discovered by ShortFuse]
With this technique, while running in one direction, you can initiate an up smash facing the opposite direction while maintaining momentum. Because this method will usually hit behind you (or sometimes above you), it will cause your opponent to fly back horizontally, which is not something most opponents will expect.

When you reverse directions while running, you usually do a "pivot." Pivots are laggy; however, you can cancel the lag by jumping. Jumps can be canceled by initiating an attack. So, to perform the RJC up smash... run in one direction, smash the analog stick in the opposite direction, jump immediately, and then up smash before you leave the ground.

RJC Up Smash

#5: Stage Selection
What you're looking for in a stage can change with the matchup that you're facing. That being said, there are still two universal things to be aware of. The first of these is the stage boundaries. Falco can sometimes have trouble getting kills off the side or top, but that usually isn't too big a problem. What is more important is that Falco can often get 40-60% damage on an opponent extremely quickly... so to take advantage of that, stages with smaller boundaries can provide the means to finish off their stock without incurring too much damage yourself.

Perhaps more important than the boundaries of a stage is its layout. In contrast to Fox and some other characters, Falco's up tilt and up smash both reach through to hit opponents standing on platforms above you. Because the up smash is such a versatile attack, platforms can play an integral role in Falco's performance. Another aspect of the stage layout is how much open space you have available. Lasers are a huge asset for Falco, and the space to use and abuse them can make or break a matchup.

With these two things in mind, we'll take a look at the 5 standard neutral stages in tournament play:

Battlefield:
Overall, Falco does very well on this stage. Its layout gives you the space you need to employ your laser game and implement instant illusions. The platforms give you ideal positioning in many situations. Be sure to take advantage of boost smashing and up tilts. The boundaries of the stage can sometimes present problems when dealing with heavier characters, so you may want to focus on spikes or gimps here.

Final Destination:
This is a good stage for Falco. There is a lip on the edge of this level that can catch some characters' up B and inhibit recovery. Since Falco will be recovering with his illusion more often than not, this won't be too much an issue for you. It is still a good idea to be aware of it though, especially since it can work to your advantage when you spike people. The open layout of this stage is great for lasers and instant illusions for spacing. The lack of platforms mean that you will always be able to start chain grabs as you please. The boundaries are pretty large, so you may want to focus on spikes and gimps here also.

Yoshi's Island:
This is my personal favorite stage as Falco. The boundaries are small and give Falco ample opportunity to kill off the top or sides. Even spikes kill much faster here. The layout is a bit small, so lasers tend to be harder to spam, but you'll manage well enough. The single platform rotates its position throughout gameplay. Be aware that when it is tilted down away from you, you can shoot through the platform with lasers while your opponent's projectiles (if they have them) can hit the platform and won't continue through. This can also work against you if you're on the wrong side, so be sure to position yourself carefully. The sides of the stage drop straight down and form a wall that you can wall jump off of to help recover. It could just be me, but I find wall jumps here to be rather fickle... hopefully you won't have any trouble with it.

Lylat Cruise:
I hate this stage. Seriously. The edge's lip here is far worse than FD. Falco's up B can easily get caught underneath and since the edges are very thin, they make for a more difficult illusion recovery. The entire stage also randomly tilts on a center axis, so in a split second, your illusion can undershoot the edge and kill you. The sides slope downward towards the edges. Combined with the rotating of the stage, this can make lasering more difficult in general. It also makes instant illusions ineffective. I will concede that the boundaries are reasonably small so you can get kills off the top and sides earlier than on some other stages. Platforms can help with your aerials, up tilt, and up smash; however, I seem to use them with far less success here than I do on other stages with platforms.

Smashville:
This is another fairly good stage for Falco. The boundaries off the top and sides are a bit out there, but no worse than FD. The scrolling platform is great because not only does it give you good positioning for boost smashes etc, but your opponent can't blindly use it to avoid chain grabs as they can with other platforms. It also gives you more recovery options, which can make or break a tough matchup. The layout provides plenty of room to put your lasers to use and use instant illusions.

#6: Helpful Videos

Massivegun's combo video displays much of what I detail in this guide. It's a great exhibition of skill and humor. Enjoy.
No Weakness

SlashTalon's video guide may be helpful in illustrating some techniques.
How to Protect Your Bread

Sethlon is an incredible Falco player. As you'll notice from the IC videos below, he can adapt to difficult situations and implement the tools best suited for the job. The MK videos below display more conventional gameplay.

Winner's finals against Melee1's ICs:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NblMpykC4G4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06f7RLKgTZI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_LCP6fxBx8

And then Granda Finalas against Melee1's ICs:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaDLMOY-sSA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzbUEnPtNJs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEgzegu-N7c
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H37E0upOmMk

Loser's Finals against Infinity's MK.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diOZZORgOYU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0tv3Of6q28
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZnSjFmmYYA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXo07OgGEiQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51SHBN2uprM

More soon to come!

Reserved for guide extension.

Demon Kirby edit: having your grab animation be altered in a strange way on the edge shall from this day forward (January 23, 2009) be known as the EoGrim effect

Enoch edit: Until EoGrim introduces me to that honey in his profile pick, I'm not naming **** after him.

This is a repost of the original guide. The OP had expanded past the limit of one post and I had not reserved the first reply. You can find the original thread and comments here: http://www.allisbrawl.com/forum/topic.aspx?id=16389&page=1

I had a few formatting issues, so if you notice anything out of place, please let me know. Thanks.

welp i taped all the advanced techniques you have in your guide so ill make um all into little clips whenever u want me to Enochuout. I also think ill start putting up gameplay clips of myself in hopes people can tell me how to improve

gimie 2 days so i can put gameplay clips up at the same time

Awesome, PM me the links and I'll take a look and add em in. Thanks again.

Great guide. The Advance techs in particular.

Thank you.

nice guide it helped alot

SHSL should just be SHL...

Noted. It'll be changed in the next update.

New Updates:

- Added video demonstrations (provided by Massiveguns) to the Advanced Techniques sections.
- Changed SHSL to SHL throughout the guide.
- Added Reverse Aerial Rushing.
- Added some information to Input Buffering.
- Changed some information on Laser Locking.

Thank you for all that you've contributed Massiveguns. You have been a huge help.

Now this is a person who's bread I wouldn't **** with.

I initially wrote Din Peregrine because I saw that the community had no real direction. Here was a character with so much potential, going nowhere because there was a mass of spam, flaming, bread discussions, and all sorts of garbage flooding into Falco forums all over the internet and consuming thread after thread. It made it terribly difficult to find any trace of helpful information out there. My intentions were not only to help the community, but also to help me better understand the character. After spending several months playing only Falco competitively, I felt that I was at a point with him where I needed to branch out. I wanted to find another character that I felt had a lot of potential. Now that I've found the character though, I'm considering writing a new guide for it and I would like to get an idea of what people did or did not like about Din Peregrine. I tend to have a very specific way of organizing information for myself, and that way of organization is not always easy for others to interpret. So with that in mind, if anyone has any suggestions about how I can better organize a guide to suit their needs, any and all input would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

I myself don't really have any problems with the way the guide is written, but if something comes to mind, I'll et you know by editing this post.

No mistakes jump out at me from reading through it...I really like this man. Good **** ...a very in depth guide to a deep character.  Very nice, and will definitely be helpful to people new coming to falco.

5/5 wins

For lazerlocking, your forgeting the foward-throw, it works around 30-50% on some characters. its how i lazerlock anyway

Unless your opponent is DIing strangely, forward throw won't get you a laser lock.

Awesome guide enoch, though I wish people would stop saying to turn tap jump off to do slide smashes. Its the exact same timing either way, you just need to be more careful with tap jump on or you could end up doing a down air, which in characters that have a downward thrusting Dair (ie shiek) this can be a very bad thing.

It hass never been a matter of "you must turn tap jump off to perform boost smashes," it has always been "for the most reliable results, turn tap jump off." But anyways, thanks for the compliment, it's much appreciated.