Ganondorf is a methodical bruiser, a slow heavyweight who mostly dishes out strong single hits. He’s brought along a greatsword to boost his arsenal since the last time you saw him in Super Smash Bros.
As slow as most of his attacks are, this makes them bad bets to use frequently in the neutral game. But, thankfully, he has a handful of somewhat quick (or at least not painfully slow) moves to rely on as a foundation. These attacks can be used to safely poke and punish foes while you wait for them to make a mistake before unleashing one of Ganondorf’s many stronger moves.
His quickest moves are neutral attack, grab, neutral air attack, side tilt, down tilt, and dash attack. Use these for minimal risk when fishing for hits. Short-hopping neutral air attack in particular can help Ganondorf threaten aggressively, making him seem faster than he is. This can help bait out overcommitted reactions from enemies, which is when you can safely strike with his special grabs (Flame Choke and Dark Dive), the fast-moving down special slide kick (Wizard’s Foot), or Ganondorf’s fastest reliable move not already listed, down smash.
Ganondorf may not seem like the fastest-grappling heavyweight, and he isn’t, but dash attack (and Wizard’s Foot) aimed to hit foes either super early or super late can leave Ganondorf more or less safe from serious punishment. Running into defenders with these moves with good spacing can set the table for closing in and grabbing them, if they start shielding pre-emptively, expecting rushing launchers.
Any attack not already listed is powerful but too slow to use except for an occasional change-up or edge-guarding home-run swing. Moves like side smash, up tilt, and Warlock Punch are usually too slow against agile, savvy fighters (unless the previously mentioned poking/baiting/punishing game is really freezing them up, in which case swing away). On the other hand, they’re brutally strong, and chew apart shields if targets try to block instead of dodge.
Ganondorf Vitals
Movement Options
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Midair jumps: |
1 |
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No |
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No |
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No |
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No |
Movement Ranks
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Ground speed: |
F (73) |
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Air speed: |
F (73-74) |
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Falling speed: |
B- (28-33) |
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A- (5) |