Super Smash Bros. Melee/Movelists/Link

Basic Techniques edit

Standard Attacks edit

Button(s) Description/notes
A A weak slash. Good for starting combos.
A A Just two simple slashes.
A A A A very good and quick combo.
A(Very Fast) Stabs repeatedly at a rate of 8 per second.
Forward + A Brings his sword above his head and strikes downward.
Dash + A Slashes with the momentum of the dash
Down + A Kneels down and sweeps his sword horizontally just above the ground.
Up + A Swings his sword above his head 180 degrees.
Smash Forward + A Very similar to the Forward-A move. Press A again for another Smash that sends the opponent upward.
Smash Down + A Again, similar to his Grasschopper, but swings a second time behind him. Great KO move.
Smash Up + A He swings, just like his Up-A, three times above his head, with the third move being the strongest. Not recommended for continuous use due to the amoint of times he misses the last hit.
A (While lying down) Link gets up, then slashes behind him, then in front of him.
A (When hanging off an edge) Link flips back onto the ledge, doing a slash with the momentum behind him.

Aerial Attacks edit

Button(s) Description/notes
A He kicks. That's about it. Not very strong, but good for breaking combos.
Forward + A He spins around once while swinging his sword. He attacks twice in front of him and once behind.
Backwards + A He kicks once then once again behind him. You could double jump and repeat this move, then do a Spin Attack.
Down + A He drops down from above and slams down, planting his Sword in the ground(or an enemy's head). Very slow, but very Strong.
Up + A Raises his sword above his head. A very strong and quick move.
Z A very unique attack, where for most characters, Z doubles as A while in the air, Link will actually shoot his hookshot forward, doing damage to whatever the tip hits.

Special Attacks edit

Button(s) Attack Description/notes
B Silver Arrow Shot Whips out his Bow and Arrow and shoots one. Can be charged and it goes farther and does more damage with more charge time. The Arrow will shine when fully charged.
Up + B Spin Attack This is his signature move. He basically spins around with his sword outstretched. In close range the move is pretty strong. If you tip them with the end of the blade, they’ll go flying at a very low trajectory. In mid-air, he hits up to 5 times. This is also used for recovery purposes.
Down + B Bomb He pulls out a bomb. Use A or Z with the Control Stick to throw in four directions. You can also use Down-B again to throw it, but only in the direction you’re facing
Forward + B Boomerang He tosses his Boomerang. In close range, it does around 14-17 damage. The farther the enemy, the less damage it does. During its return path, it can only go through walls does miniscule damage.

Throws edit

Button(s) Description/notes
Down He throws the opponent on the ground and slams his elbow into him. Follow up with a Down Smash or Spin Slash
Forward He just kicks him in front of him. Quite weak. You may be able to squeeze in a Forward Smash afterwards
Up This look just like his Up-A move. Try to follow with an aerial move or an Up Smash
Back Link brings the opponent behind him and kicks him away.

Advanced Techniques edit

Wall Grapple edit

When using Link, Young Link, or Samus, pressing Z or A+L or A+R to use the character's hookshot (Link and Young Link) or grappling beam (Samus). This can be done during the aforementioned characters' air dodges. It can connect to most solid ledges or walls and will allow the character to hang there; pressing A reels the character back up towards the stage. A triple jump attack (Up+B) can be performed immediately afterwards. The air dodge can be used to position the character properly before using this recovery technique, since the hookshot/grappling beam will not connect if the character is too close or far from a wall. If it hits an enemy it does some damage and has minimal knockback.

In general, this move is superior to the Up+B for recovery, except in stages like DK 64 where it won't work.

Bomb Jump edit

Link also has the ability to bomb jump, but it is not quite as effective and much more difficult to pull off. Basically once you’re off the edge (from being hit), pull a bomb out, throw it, and proceed to jump and up B, if you do it correctly then the bomb will blow up on you and you will be able to perform another up B move.

Auto Block edit

Link automatically blocks projectiles with his shield just by standing still, if the projectiles are at the correct height. Ducking will also accomplish the same thing. Samus’s Charge Shot, Bob-ombs, almost anything. Link can not use this ability while holding items, (because he holds them with his right hand and puts his shield on his back).

Boomerang hookshot glitch edit

In 1.0, it is possible to throw a boomerang and hookshot a ledge. When the boomerang comes back Link will shoot up impossibly high into the air. This glitch is fixed in later versions (Player's Choice, PAL/European)