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knihT Interviews; You (Update: 13:47-1-12-09)

Foy

Smash Champion
Joined
Feb 13, 2009
Messages
2,042
Location
Modesto at <3
No problem. After i lost last weekend to this zelda player he was nice about it.

When i threw the hat i think he thought i was gonna hit him. =[
 

Pi

Smash Hero
Joined
Feb 5, 2008
Messages
6,038
Location
Lake Mary, Florida
woot
this thread helped me a lot ^^
did much better at this tourney than previous ones, mindset is so god **** important!!!
 

The Irish Mafia

Banned via Administration
Joined
Nov 19, 2008
Messages
4,487
Location
cping you to Mute at a MDZ tourney
Your Smash Career

1. How long have you been with the series?
SSB64, the first and forever best.
2. How did you discover competitive melee?
Youtube!
3. How long have you been attending tournaments?
Less than a year, I believe.
4. What keeps you stuck on this game?
The community and all the free time I have.


Pre-tournament

1. What do you do to warm up for the tournament?
Play with whoever I can, not much outside of that.
2. Anything different from normal routine?
I always wear my Genesis shirt. Gives me awesome power. Also, I listen to jazz. The smoother, the better.
3. If so, how early do you start training?
As soon as I can. Any excuse to play melee is a good one.
4. Do you view matches of opponents that will be at the tournament?
Only once. I'm not really gunning for any one individual player, so I don't see the point.
5. What's your mindset going to the tournament?
OH YEAH LETS DO IT SMOOOOOOOTH JAZZ


Pre-match

1. The TO announces you have a match on TV 3 with a smasher you have never heard of, what's your game plan? What do you assume about the player, if anything?
Strike Battlefield, stay peach, play wack as ****.
2. What about a match with a smasher who you know/heard of, but are fairly confident of beating?
Watch the rolls/read the techs, and punish. You've done this 100 times, go for 101.
3. What about a match with a smasher who you know/heard of, but have classified him as better than you?
Play harder than you've ever played before. That's the only way.


Pre-match 1

1. You both plug into the cube, pick your characters, and move to the stage selection screen to pick your bans, how do you decide what to ban?
Peach is pretty good on most neutrals, so for the most part it'll come down to my opponent's pick. I'll end up striking PS against a fox, YS against a falcon, DL64 against a jiggs, and if I can't decide, battlefield.
2. Is your mindset still the same? Are you nervous? Where is your head at when you press start and it selects a stage?
Usually nervous, but a little angry. I don't know why, I just usually am during a tournament match

Match 1

1. Game starts, announcer says GO, what position do you take?
Pull a turnip, control the stage, get the grab, land the crucial dsmash.
2. What are you looking for, if anything, in your opponents playstyle?
Anything I can. I'm good at picking up tech patterns, so that's my first option. With falcon, I can find the confidence to make a 4 stock comeback as long as I know their tech.
3. Are you looking for how your opponent is punishing you?
I usually don't, but if something's happening EVERY TIME, i'll do something.
4. You are ahead, got a stock or two up, how are you feeling?
Over confident. I tend to take it down a notch here, which is something I need to stop doing. I lost a 4 stock lead once because of this.
5. You fall behind, not too far, but you're behind, do you change your style?
I start to play MUCH more agressively.
6. Games over, based on what happen (win or lose), what are you thinking about?
Beat him this time/Do it again/CP BRINSTAR GUARANTEED WIN


Match 2

1. Based on how the last match went, what are you thinking about going into match 2?
Punish what you can, stop doing dumb ****.
2. Do you change characters?
I MIGHT go falcon if their tech patterns are truly just blatant, but I doubt it.
3. If you are in the position to counterpick, what do you base it off of?
brinstarbrinstarbrinstarbrinstarbrinstarmaybemute
4. Match 2 starts, depending on how the last match went how are you playing?
If I did well, I'll try to wrap it up early. If it was close, there will be no ******* around. if I lost, I will try harder. If I lost by A LOT, I'm going bowser.
5. Depending on how the match is going, you're winning/losing, how's your mindset?
If I'm winning by a lot, then I'll go for a sweet combo. If I'm losing by a lot, I'll either SD or **** around.

Match 3(if)

1. Last match, you've played your preferred characters, your preferred stage, how are you feeling?
If I won the last match, I'll be a little more confident because I know I've got them on the rocks. If I lost the last match, I'll be a little put off, but I'll know that that was them playing their hardest on their best stage, and if I can take 3 stocks off of that, then they can't touch me on my counterpick.

Post-set

1. Depending on if you won or loss, what are you feeling?
If I won, I act a little prideful, if I lost, I get kind of upset, usually because I know exactly what I did wrong.

Misc. Questions

1. What character(s) do you use in tournament matches, and when? The only time I've used an alternate was when I got CP'd to Pokefloats. I went fox, and took the first 2 stocks, but only those.
2. Are you constantly adapting new techniques, are juss trying to perfect the basics?
A bit of both.
3. Does your playstyle vary from friendlies to tournament? Do you play 'better' in one versus the other?
I play a lot gayer in tournament. More CGing and camping.
4. What are some things you think a lot of people overlook, when it comes to winning?
Win=/=Better. Unless I won LOL
5. What would you say the main aspect of your playstyle is? Tech skill/mindgames/reading?
Reads first, then tech skill, then camping.
6. Who was/is the most influential smasher to you?
Wife.
7. Whats up with your name, why did you choose it?
I was thinking of threatening things and came up with "Mafia". The rest is history.
8. What is your personal favorite technique to use in a match? FC Nair shield pressure. That and turnip fair, simple but effective.


<3
 

The Irish Mafia

Banned via Administration
Joined
Nov 19, 2008
Messages
4,487
Location
cping you to Mute at a MDZ tourney
I'd edit it but I'm lazy, the most influential player to me has, beyond a shadow of a doubt, been Scar. Learned many a life lesson from that man. He taught me to not give a **** what they think, and just do it.
 

Tyserification

Smash Lord
Joined
Jul 4, 2009
Messages
1,541
Your Smash Career
1. How long have you been with the series?
Ever since 64Smash came out.
2. How did you discover competitive melee?
My buddy discovered this thing called Wavedashing and Lcanceling sometime in early 2006 and then I watched Pure Nastyness. I then got into the competitive scene.
3. How long have you been attending tournaments?
A little bit over three years. I've only been to one out of state though which was Event 52.2. I live in Nebraska, what else can I say?
4. What keeps you stuck on this game?
It never ever gets boring. It's also the only thing I do besides school. I have no life and it sucks.

Pre-tournament
1. What do you do to warm up for the tournament?
Play friendlies with my main for a while with my crew the day prior. Sometimes my secondary.
2. Anything different from normal routine?
Nope.
3. If so, how early do you start training?
Uguuu~
4. Do you view matches of opponents that will be at the tournament?
When I went to Event 52, I watched videos of a bunch of people. It didnt really help that much though. But to answer the question, yes, I watch videos of my opponents prior to the tournament.
5. What's your mindset going to the tournament?
Dont lose to some random person. Hasnt happened yet. I lost to Z and Khepri in pools at Event 52. In the bracket I had Mango 2nd Round and he pummeled me then Chexr next who also pummeled me -_-

Pre-match
1. The TO announces you have a match on TV 3 with a smasher you have never heard of, what's your game plan? What do you assume about the player, if anything?
If I've never heard of him before, I typically underestimate them. If they ramsack me in the 1st match then I turn into Mr. Serious. I've never had trouble with a random person yet though, then again, Ive only been to one out of state.
2. What about a match with a smasher who you know/heard of, but are fairly confident of beating?
If I believe I will win, I fool around just because I have this huge sense of confidence. It really depends on who they are though.
3. What about a match with a smasher who you know/heard of, but have classified him as better than you?
Im usually like, "Im gonna lose, but Im gonna try still." Just having the negative mindset probably already screws me over but I cant help it.

Pre-match 1
1. You both plug into the cube, pick your characters, and move to the stage selection screen to pick your bans, how do you decide what to ban?
Yoshi's Story. Hate that level so much. Unless I fight a Falco, then I ban Final Destination.
2. Is your mindset still the same? Are you nervous? Where is your head at when you press start and it selects a stage?
Yes. Depends on who Im playing against. Dont fuck up your tech skill, Tyser.

Match 1
1. Game starts, announcer says GO, what position do you take?
I run away and let him come to me. Dunno if it's very smart but I main Samus.
2. What are you looking for, if anything, in your opponents playstyle?
If they roll or spot dodge too much, theyre going to lose since that's all I look for. Try to pick up teching patterns. Try to pick up on their patterns in general.
3. Are you looking for how your opponent is punishing you?
Depends.
4. You are ahead, got a stock or two up, how are you feeling?
Depends on who Im playing against. If it's someone whose at my level or better, I see it as an even game still. Never over 'til it's over. If they are considerably worse than me, or even just a little bit, I have no worries.
5. You fall behind, not too far, but you're behind, do you change your style?
Maybe a little bit. If I am behind, it just means Im not playing patient enough or spacing well enough. I guess I put forth a little more concentration.
6. Games over, based on what happen (win or lose), what are you thinking about?
If I win against someone who Im better than, "Next?". If I win against someone whose better than I am, "Holy fucking shit!?! Am I HugS right now?" If I lose against someone who I shouldnt have lost to,"FFFFFUUUCCCCKKKKKK!!!" If I lose to somebody who I should have lost to, "It happens. Gotta learn from these losses."

Match 2
1. Based on how the last match went, what are you thinking about going into match 2?
If I won, I stick to the same gameplan as in Match 1. If I lost, Im gonna try to play a lot gayer and more patient/smart.
2. Do you change characters?
If I started with Samus, I wont switch to Fox whether I win or lose. If I started with Fox and lost, Ill switch to Samus. If I started with Fox and won, Ill keep playing Fox.
3. If you are in the position to counterpick, what do you base it off of?
I only counterpick Battlefield and Fountain of Dreams. If neither is available, Dreamland or Pokemon Stadium.
4. Match 2 starts, depending on how the last match went how are you playing?
If I won, I stick to the same gameplan as in Match 1. If I lost, Im gonna try to play a lot gayer and more patient/smart.
5. Depending on how the match is going, you're winning/losing, how's your mindset?
If Im winning, my mindset is the same as normal. If Im losing, "PLAY GAYER, TYSER!"

Match 3(if)

1. Last match, you've played your preferred characters, your preferred stage, how are you feeling?
Depends.

Post-set
1. Depending on if you won or loss, what are you feeling?
If I win against someone who Im better than, "Next?". If I win against someone whose better than I am, "Holy fucking shit!?! Am I HugS right now?" If I lose against someone who I shouldnt have lost to,"FFFFFUUUCCCCKKKKKK!!! Im gonna go kill myself right now." If I lose to somebody who I should have lost to, "It happens. Gotta learn from these losses."

Misc. Questions
1. What character(s) do you use in tournament matches, and when?
Samus and Fox. Fox if Im feeling like it's a Fox day. I use Samus 90% of the time though.
2. Are you constantly adapting new techniques, are juss trying to perfect the basics?
It's all about spacing and timing with Samus. I dont try to add new misc. things into my game because she doesnt need that stuff holding her back. For Fox, I try new stuff all the time. Used to be too flashy and all about that stupid misc. tech skill crap but Im starting to play more straight forward and just play to kill.
3. Does your playstyle vary from friendlies to tournament? Do you play 'better' in one versus the other?
In friendlies, Ill mess around and do stupid crap a lot. In tournament, I will be as gay as Im capable.
4. What are some things you think a lot of people overlook, when it comes to winning?
Dunno.
5. What would you say the main aspect of your playstyle is? Tech skill/mindgames/reading?
When Samus, reading. Fox, tech skill, apparently :p
6. Who was/is the most influential smasher to you?
HugS. I have never met him before by the way. His patient style amazes me. When that guy quit, I died a little inside. But he came back so it's all good.
7. Whats up with your name, why did you choose it?
My original nickname was Asian Flava. I realized that's stupid so I switched it to Tyser, which is my actual first name. I think it's pretty legit.
8. What is your personal favorite technique to use in a match?
Depends.
 

Pi

Smash Hero
Joined
Feb 5, 2008
Messages
6,038
Location
Lake Mary, Florida
Woot! A two-fer!! ^^

@Mafia
lol, nice answers, very peach like haha, might have to pick me up a shirt w/ special powers man, you selling?
it's kinda bitter sweet when you KNOW why you lost, because you were reminded of the **** you ****ed up on, but then you hate that you ****ed up on it and it cost you the match =\
any way man, thanks for answerin my questions, yo gimme some super secret anti peach advice please, that matchup plagues me @.@
Also I got you down as The Irish Mafia, that cool or you got a shorter name?


@Tyser
fix that mindset man! it helps so much no joke T.T
and yea i totally agree with you about samus not needing all that flashy ****, but i refuse to give up on it!! lol, i'll hylian lowrider all day even if it costs me the match!! ^^
but na, when it gets down to it and i'm playing super serious i play super basic, but flashy is so fun, i still have to try for it some times ;)

but seriously dood, fix that mindset ;o, play REALLY smart and you can win matches, focus on the task at hand!! lol

thanks for takin my interview bro
 

Zodiac

Smash Master
Joined
Aug 10, 2005
Messages
3,557
Your Smash Career

1.I rented smash64 as a 11 year old (Or somewhere in there) and thought it was great, never used anyone but link, I wouldnt say that my career started there though. When I was 13 (Or 14) I got melee and used no one but link cause at the time ocarina of time was by far my favorite game so who else would I use? Every now and then I would meander over to sheik but I wasn’t very good with her. I could beat everyone, EVERYONE, I rarely lost a match to anyone and if I did I would correct all my mistakes and wreck them in the following match. In fact I won so much that I stopped playing cause nobody could beat me not even those nobody else could beat, funny eh?

Well after a couple years of not playing melee to much I read an article in Nintendo power about wavedashing and some other technique, and it mentioned smash world forums. So I began to check it out and stumbled on alpha zealots Advance technique thread, I was enthralled and obsessed with mastering them all, then I saw germ videos (Link main here) and started mimicking his style, it was at this point I began to suck at smash. I was forcing advance techniques into my game. I wasn’t trying to read people like I used to, for some reason it clicked in my head that wavedashing equaled an automatic win for me. Anyway I got in touch with yatta dante, another smasher who at the time was competitive. I started to lose, every single match I played I got *****. The simple answer was I got worse at the game cause I was trying to hard to play like the pros or whatever. Only recently have I gotten better than I used to be.

I’ve only been attending tournaments for about a year but..In Oregon that means about 4 tournaments a year, especially in my area. This year I’ve been to I think 5 different tournaments. But I don’t think tournament play helped me improve one bit, the only thing that helped me improve was sandbagging. (Read here for details http://allisbrawl.com/blogpost.aspx?id=45928) My tournament history isn’t really up to discussion cause for the most part I have either tired johns or otherwise.

What keeps me stuck on this game? Im not the best yet.


Pre-tournament

1. To warm up for a tournament I play as many people as I can that are better than me, that’s right, if there someone better than me I’ll try to get the most matches in with them. But the biggest thing is I try to play a variety of people so when the time comes I’ll be already used to adapting to different styles. (Most important aspect of pretournament preparation)

How early do I start training? Early as I can, in short Im always training, always doing upkeep on my techskill by taking it to a level 1 so I don’t get rusty, but when a tournament is coming up I practice about twice as much as I usually do.

4. Do you view matches of opponents that will be at the tournament?(study them?)

Yes, if Iknow a very good player will be at the tournament I study their matches and habits in particular match ups, but for the most when Im studying videos before a tournament I study match ups im bad with and percents I can launch a combo, but I don’t just study two players doing that match up, I studying as many players as I can doing that match up so I can get a varied idea of what to expect from that particular character in high level play.

5. What's your mindset going to the tournament?

When I go to a tournament I don’t look forward to the actual tournament (As of now anyway) I look forward to playing friendlies and learning from people better than me. For instance if there’s someone that plays a character I have a hard time with, I play them as much as I can to learn the match up after the tournament. In short my mind set is , Have fun.


Pre-match

1. The TO announces you have a match on TV 3 with a smasher you have never heard of, what's your game plan? What do you assume about the player, if anything?(Are you thinking about what character you will use, sizing your opponent up, underestimating him, overestimating him?)

I go into the match assuming that this player is the exact same level as me. I do this because if I assume he is worse than me and he turns out to be better it’s a hard mindset to break and you end up being at a disadvantage (Trying thing that wont work even though you know your opponent is better than you). This is also so I don’t over estimate my opponent and miss opportunities I should be able to seize otherwise, when you overestimate your opponent and shy away from being aggressive you are actually giving your opponent more opening in your defense to attack and this could be fatal to your stock. So assuming they are on the same level as me and as such will have an effective counter to all of my attacks, with that in mind I pick a relatively safe character to spam with or camp with and try to learn their style for the first match. In most cases I use Marth or sheik because of their mobility/defensibility. (I plan to go all link at my next tourney though)

2. What about a match with a smasher who you know/heard of, but are fairly confident of beating?(what are some specific thoughts to describe your mental state; "K I'm going to win this one, wonder who I have next" "I usually beat this guy in friendlies, I should win" etc. etc.)

First I have to ask myself the following questions, How long has it been since I played them? How badly did I beat them last time we played? How many matches did I play them for? Did they adapt to my style well? This opens up a plethora of possibilities.

1. If I played them more than 3 weeks ago I assume that they could have gotten better in that time and I feel them out for the first half a stock or so to see if they HAVE improved.

2. If I ***** them last time we played and it wasn’t to long ago, and I played them for an hour or so without them adapting to my style then I go into the match with absolute confidence in what Im doing.

3. If our matches were close, it was last week and they adapted to my style then I go in with a totally fresh and open mind to how I will play this match and feel them out, try a character I didn’t use against them last time and play a defensive style in comparison to that last time I played this person and look for holes in their offense, see what character would best compliment these holes in their offense. And have fun XD

4. If I’ve never played them I may ask a friend how good they are, then ask what character they recommend against them if time permits. But if it does not I pick my best character and feel them out for the first minute or two and be careful not to jump into the ****.

5. If I usually beat the guy in friendlies consistently I don’t worry at all but Im not going to let that fact make me go easy on them. One of the best rules you can go by at tournaments is even if you always wreck these guys, do your best to wreck them harder in the set.

3. What about a match with a smasher who you know/heard of, but have classified him as better than you?("****, gonna lose this one." "I still have a chance, always have a chance" etc. etc.)

You never know how good someone is until you play them, yes there are given player that you can assume are better than you, (M2k, zhu, ss, mango). But even when I know they are better than me I feel them out the same way I would any other player. (This is where studying videos comes in handy). Once again I pick the character Im best with. For instance if I were to go up against Ka-master in the first round of a tournament (And I did) then I would think to myself,

“Ka-master is definetly better than me, he could beat me, but that doesn’t mean Im giving up this match, I know he plays luigi which means staying in for an extended combo wouldn’t be wise, and if I go into my shield he can pressure that pretty effectively”

In short I start by analyzing what a player this good would do with that character and how that will effect the character I use/my style. For instance when I went up to play Ka-master I thought this..

“My style is very aggressive and I like to combo, so if I do stay with my style Im sure to get punished a lot for it, I need to adjust to something semi defensive and use attacks with good range when I do “combo” him.”

From there it’s a toss up of whether or not I can find an effective and consistant way of exploiting the holes in their defense, Im not sure since I haven’t experience this match up to often, but I imagine It would be very much the same as playing an entirely new match. It’s a matter of being able to make yourself play on their mental level.


Pre-match 1


1. You both plug into the cube, pick your characters, and move to the stage selection screen to pick your bans, how do you decide what to ban?("well if he's falco, I'll ban FD", "I really hate BF so I always ban it", etc. etc.)

Again this is a matter of either knowing the player or not knowing the player. If I know them well then I know what stages they do well on and thus I ban their best stage. It also depends on how well I do against them on said stages. But for the most part I don’t know the people Im playing at tournament so I ban stages based on character selection. But if Im really unsure what to ban for that character I just ban the stage I do the worse on.

2. Is your mindset still the same? Are you nervous? Where is your head at when you press start and it selects a stage?

My head? On my shoulders of course, XD LOL LOL. But honestly my head is in the match, totally and %100, if its anywhere else I’ll get distracted and play a great deal worse than I actually am, forcing yourself to not think of anything but the match is one of the best thing you can do, especially if your unsure of your opponents skill level (See my above answers)

Match 1

1. Game starts, announcer says GO, what position do you take?(offensive, defensive, if you have projectiles do you get them out there, be general if you want cause I know it might depend on the characters you're playing, are you trying to be fancy or playing conservititve?)


When I use link I want to know how they deal with my projectiles so I throw some stuff out there to rack up damage and see where they jump when they see a incoming boomerang or bomb, if they shield , roll sidestep ect. Theres an appropriate response to each of these reactions and once I see which one they do I’ll know how to react to them next time.
If Im using marth and their character isn’t one that keeps me at bay (Falco, link, samus, ect.) then I advanced just close enough to be out of range of a tipper, the reason for this is because they will see im out of range if I miss on purpose and then will advance into my ridiculously large grab range (this works wonders against spacies CHAIN GRABS XD) but this is also so I will have time to react to whatever they choose to do and if its something I already know how to punish then great! But if not I retreat back and construct a solution to what they just did, EVERYTHING is punishable, you just need to know how to punish it.

2. What are you looking for, if anything, in your opponents playstyle?(is he rolling predictably, teching predictably, is he playing really offensive, shielding too much?)

The most notable things to look for are if they play offensive or defensive, then after that you should memorize which way they like to tech, what attacks they shield and how to punish that, I look to see what their laggiest move is and wait for a punish opportunity on that. But if they are really offensive and depending on which character they use I look for the open spots, everyone has open spots in their attacks, for instance Falco’s will jump out of habit when someone shields their shine, USMASH OOS FTW! If I successfully punish their first or second approach with an %80 chain then they will usually lose their back bone and back off enough for you to construct a counter offensive strategy.

3. Are you looking for how your opponent is punishing you?(is he predicting your rolls, your spot dodges, your techs? Do you change up your play style to keep the lead, or do you get more aggressive, do you go for more fancy ****?)

This is the opposite side of the spectrum from my answer to an earlier question. For every attack there is a hole to exploit. Its always a good thing to look at what your opponent punishes, if he punishes your teching in place then stop doing it. If your lucky he wont read you, he’ll still attack in the same place and you’ll role away and be up and ready to launch an offensive. If im getting punished for every move I make (It has happened before) then I don’t move, I camp in a small radius and thwart their incoming attacks with attacks that have high priority while I think of a way that I can move around without getting *****. This is a difficult position to be in with today's meta game, often you will find you barely have time know that you just got drop zoned or wave shined or whatever. But it IS beatable, when I find myself in this situation I construct a defensive strategy that makes my opponent sorry they ever stepped inside my bubble.

4. You are ahead, got a stock or two up, how are you feeling?(confident, staying humble, trying to keep focus)

The answer to this is simple, your two stocks up… so what?! **** them and keep ****** them until they have no stocks left. You cant afford to feel cocky, that makes you play worse. Play each and every stock like its your last. I’ll say it again, you cant afford to get cocky, Mango..Kage…nuff said. (If that was in fact the case)

5. You fall behind, not too far, but you're behind, do you change your style?(start playing more defensive/offensive, stop going for fancy edgeguards or cut out some new techniques you have been trying?)

Usually my instinct is to start playing defensive and run away but unless you are ready for an onslaught from your opponent its not the best idea. But I have a good story for just such a question. I went to a tournament put on by seattle smash a few years ago and went up against judeko’s young link. (If you don’t know who judeko or seattle smash is that’s fine) to shorten my story I fell behind because I wasn’t ready for his mad offensive play style (I was using marth) and I was down a whole stock, it didn’t look good but I memorized what his approach was and developed a counter offensive for it and came back to win the match (and the set). but It wasn’t till I saw what I was doing wrong that I could develop what I could do right, so in short when Im in this situation I see what Im doing wrong and correct it. I do my best not to make risky maneuvers either or do things that are expected of that character, that is until I develop a counter offensive strategy.

6. Games over, based on what happen (win or lose), what are you thinking about?(“yes! I won, I got this, he’s not very good”, “crap, I loss, I don’t think I can beat him” and everything in between.)

If I win with ease- “Ok, I won that match with relative ease and my current strategy is working wonders against this guy, no need to fix what isn’t broken, unless he counter picks something that screws me over…”
If I barley win- “Alright I managed to pull that one off but this guy is reading me just as well as Im reading him so I need to use a good counter pick and stop doing things that don’t work and try something else in their place. Also, he use ____ a lot and it usually hit me, I need to watch for that one since I know he will want to keep using it. What was it that he was doing that was giving me trouble? If I can identify it I can counter it.” Or,
I think of what character I could use that would easily punish a lot of thing that my character was having trouble with. For instance, At a tournament a few months ago (P.R.I. Smash) I went up against a falco with my sheik and he almost beat me, It was a hard match up, I thought he was getting more used to my style so I switched over to fox, counter picked yoshi story where I could move around the whole stage in a flash and then four stocked him.

-Theres a lot more than that that goes through my head but that’s the jist of it.
If I get ***** – I think of what they were punishing the most and consider if I would make those mistakes with another of my characters or if I could stay my character and fix my mistakes. There are holes in every offense so I identify those and think of counter strategies for each of my characters and pick the one I think will be the most effective.

If I barely lose – It’s the same process as “If I barley win” except Im thinking of my counter pick and a possible character change.

Match 2

1. Based on how the last match went, what are you thinking about going into match 2? ("I noticed he was rolling/reading my rolls so let me adjust for that", "I need to gimp/not get gimped this time", "Hope I get lucky/hope he gets unlucky", etc. etc, anything that's going through your head)


I think of what I was doing wrong and how he was punishing it, for instance. If Im fighting jiggs and I rush her at the edge twice with fox, I get thrown off the stage and fair/baired to death. Don’t give into her baiting you to run to the edge of the stage. Instead I space myself away from the edge of the stage so they will eventually have to come to me ( check out this match http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wW10vLaKio ). I also identify where the problem lies, is it in my approach? My defense? Are they baiting me into things so they can punish me? Once I answer the problem I come up with the solution. This rings true even If I **** them, If I three stock the there's still something I did wrong to lose that first one, im not saying always go for four stocks. Im saying wreck your opponent to your fullest extent. I only hope I get lucky if my opponent is so far over my head I don’t know what to do. But I should never allow myself to think that, it’s the same as saying your going to lose no matter what.

2. Do you change characters?(specific situations, or do you always change characters? do you pick characters to counter playstyles?)

I do change characters to counter play styles more than anything. But sometimes I pick off characters in the chance that they just don’t know the match up or under estimate the character (Link). If I feel someone is getting used to my play style and I don’t feel a mix up in my own plays tyle is efficient then I change characters and mix up my play style.

3. If you are in the position to counterpick, what do you base it off of? ("I noticed he was playing like this, I thought this stage would counter that", "I'm really comfortable on this stage, so I chose it",

First of all I identify if they were using a lot of space or not, if they are the type that runs away a lot then I would counter pick a smaller stage that compliments my character. If I was using marth and they another character, I would counter pick either yoshi’s story or fountain of dreams. Because it screws with their retreating playstyle and gives me an advantage in stage control, or another option is to counter pick a character with good projectiles to control their escape area.

4. Match 2 starts, depending on how the last match went how are you playing?("I won last time so I'm kinda ******* around this time", "I loss last time so I'm playing a lot more careful this time", "I already know I'm gonna win/lose so I'm not really focused")


I only **** around if I don’t care about the match, but once again if I won the last match easily, if it aint broke don’t fix it and do my best to **** them even moreso then I did last time.

If I did lose last time, I already covered this haha.

5. Depending on how the match is going, you're winning/losing, how's your mindset?("When I'm losing I kinda give up since I'm already a match behind.", "If I'm winning I get excited and lose focus")

I already covered this in an earlier answer but I’ll reiterate. If Im winning then I don’t let myself get cocky and focus on nothing but the match. There’s never a more crucial time to stay focused then when you’re winning, I try to remember im winning for a reason and that reason is Im not losing focus, so why would I screw around, lose focus and risk them making a comeback? I don’t think so.

Already a match behind? That’s a terrible thing to think, I once went into tournament finals against my ex-rival in smash Yatta Dante and picked Link because I knew he would pick fox, and while I knew that I could very well win the match (I have before) I didn’t. But that’s okay because I picked link for a few reasons, one being I KNEW he would pick fox and in the match directly after that I picked marth and took him to the stage he hated the most and three stocked him. But I never let myself enter the mind set of defeat, its stated in several guides and asking any pro smasher, they will tell you to never let yourself enter that mindset.


Match 3(if)


1. Last match, you've played your preferred characters, your preferred stage, how are you feeling?("I'm pretty confident I can win, I'll focus to be sure", "I got lucky 1 match, don't think I can win now", "I've figured out his playstyle and he doesn't seem to be switching it up, I got this", "Juss happy to have taken a game off him")

There is a point were im very confident but if they take you to the third match by winning the second then its not wise to underestimate them. If you take THEM to the third math then you’re entitled to feel a little more confident depending on how well match 2 went. If I take them to the third match my mind set is this, I’ve figured out their play style well enough to beat them, as long as I don’t provide any opening I can win this set. But don’t get cocky. If they took me to game three then my mind set is this. They’ve figured out my play style well enough to beat me but I’ve developed a counter strategy and indentified all the holes in my style that they exploited last match so If I fix those I can probably end this match before they have time to figure out new ones.

Post-set

1. Depending on if you won or loss, what are you feeling?(did you surprise yourself? did your opponent surprise you? are you happy/mad? reviewing your mistakes?)

Usually im reviewing my mistakes, if the video was recorded then im watching the video, often times I get mad if I lose the set, its not a good feeling to get knocked out of a tournament in the first couple rounds, if I made it a bit further then I don’t get to mad. For instance I went to a tournament in Washington a while back and when my match was up I hadn’t slept in about 20 hours, I couldn’t function for ****, I could have beaten this guy I WAS beating this guy but then I was just like..screw this I want to sleep I don’t care that I get knocked out of the tournament, and I threw the match. I was pretty pissed about that. I’ve never lost sleep before a tournament since, if there’s a legitimate john or the fact that I didn’t know the match up involved then I get upset but if not then I don’t get to upset.


Misc. Questions


1. What character(s) do you use in tournament matches, and when (fox when I'm serious, falcon when I'm not)?

I have a character for each match up, I have my sheik/fox/link for falcon, fox/sometimes link for falco, but when im not serious and just screwing around for the fun of it I use falcon lol, He’s fun and I don’t intend on picking him up as a serious character.

2. Are you constantly adapting new techniques, are juss trying to perfect the basics?

I always practice the basics, after all the basics are the foundations of everything afterwards. And yes Im always doing my best to adapt new techniques to each of my characters, Im learning proficient chain grabbing again with marth and the thunders combo(s) with fox.

3. Does your playstyle vary from friendlies to tournament? Do you play 'better' in one versus the other?

Not really, I play better when Im relaxed but if there is a different its that I am aware that more is at stake, which makes me nervous >.>.

4. What are some things you think a lot of people overlook, when it comes to winning?

Have fun, people get to stiff when they are in a tournament, they forget that the reason they started playing the game was because it was fun. That and that you never know how good the person sitting next to you is.

5. What would you say the main aspect of your playstyle is? Tech skill/mindgames/reading?

A healthy combination of all three, there are times when I switch from concentrating on finding an opportunity, to executing a combo perfectly with a technical character. I.E. Fox.

6. Who was/is the most influential smasher to you?

That’s a hard question, but all of the better players are an inspiration, M2k in particular because of his range of skill levels he’s had since he started playing the game to becoming the best and maintaining a very high ranking.

7. Whats up with your name, why did you choose it?

My name is dumb, well the zodiac part is, I don’t know why I chose it, I wanted to sound cool, now I don’t care if I sound cool so I added Mofat to the end of it cause that’s a variation on my last name so yea.

8. What is your personal favorite technique to use in a match?(technical or psychological, either one :p)

Infuriating my opponent, once their pissed off its like taking candy from a baby lol, but that’s hard to do so I would have to say the shine..I love the shine.
 

Pi

Smash Hero
Joined
Feb 5, 2008
Messages
6,038
Location
Lake Mary, Florida
@Zodiac


Wow @.@
Very good read
I agree with so much of what you said, especially about keeping your focus in the match entirely
You seem like the type of person I am, really break things down and understand what exactly is going on, find the mistakes and fix them, and I can definitely relate to sucking at smash when I learned advanced techniques.
I'm still struggling with that to an extent.
I face better samus's with much simpler playstyles who do better than I, but I'm going to try to adapt those while keeping my flashyness.

Although I have to say, in a tournament match, my main focus might be on winning more than having fun.
But I've yet to not have fun at a tourney
So I think it's okay.


I really appreciate you going into such depth
I needed a lot of these reminders
Thanks :)

Also what name should I list you as? Zodiac ? Mofat?
 

Zodiac

Smash Master
Joined
Aug 10, 2005
Messages
3,557
You can list me as ZodiacMofat, Im already known as zodiac so I might as well keep that on my name haha XD
 

Kami-V

Smash Journeyman
Joined
Aug 5, 2006
Messages
374
Location
Lake Oswego, OR
I'm doing this for my own benefit, as I think it will help me out. Hopefully it will help someone else out too! This is a pretty cool thing Khint, so ty!

Your Smash Career

How long have you been with the series?
Been playing smash ever since it came out on 64. Been playing melee ever since it came out, and I've been with competitive for like 4 years.

How did you discover competitive melee?
Through my good friend who had figured out about AT's through youtube vids I think... Then after talking so much about it and realizing I loved smash bro's so much, I found this site, and it went from there.

How long have you been attending tournaments?
I think my first tournament was during the summer of my freshmen year (going to soph.)

What keeps you stuck on this game?
Like everything. I love competition, I'm far too competitive, and I like being good at stuff and I really like competitive video games. This is probably my favorite of my competitive games, though ironically its the one I'm probably the worst at. I love the combos of this game, the mental aspect, performing well, getting better... just about everything with the game. I actually didn't care much about the community though until recently :)
Also, the fact that I'm not the best yet.

Pre-tournament

What do you do to warm up for the tournament?
I try and get practice against good players or at least friends within a week of the tournament. The main thing for me is quite literally being warm. My hands get cold VERY easily and I live in Oregon, so if I spend like 15-30 minutes in any sort of cold environment (ex. the ride to the tourney) then my hands get cold and I cannot perform well at all because my hands can't actually keep up with what my brains telling them to do. It can take me up to 2 hours to get my fingers as fast as they need to be, and several hours of mental preparation is usually good to allow me to get comfortable. Basically, I take forever to 'warm up'.

Anything different from normal routine?
See above?

If so, how early do you start training?
I try to train early. The better I'm feeling about it, the better I will do. This is a psychological problem I need to triumph, and I need to feel confident and good about smash all the time.

Do you view matches of opponents that will be at the tournament?(study them?)
Not my opponents. Of good players? Yes.

What's your mindset going to the tournament?
TODAY I'M GONNA KICK SOME ASSSSSS
Really though, I try to be confident. Regardless I try to have fun, and most importantly, I try to learn.

Pre-match

The TO announces you have a match on TV 3 with a smasher you have never heard of, what's your game plan? What do you assume about the player, if anything?(Are you thinking about what character you will use, sizing your opponent up, underestimating him, overestimating him?)
I try not to think of anything about the person. If I haven't heard of him, and its local, then he's probably new, but if its a larger tournament then it could be someone good who I just haven't seen before. I try not to take any prejudices or anything and I just make sure my hands are warm and I'm set mentally (i.e. comfortable.)

What about a match with a smasher who you know/heard of, but are fairly confident of beating?(what are some specific thoughts to describe your mental state; "K I'm going to win this one, wonder who I have next" "I usually beat this guy in friendlies, I should win" etc. etc.)
I take every match seriously. I tell myself I'm going to win, but I don't take it lightly.
What about a match with a smasher who you know/heard of, but have classified him as better than you?
Time to SIZE SOME THINGS UP. I have to have that kind of attitude every time I go in. By having this attitude, I think I have become a LOT better, because I've won matches that were big upsets. I just go in knowing I'm good at the game and that I have the potential to do well.

Pre-match 1

You both plug into the cube, pick your characters, and move to the stage selection screen to pick your bans, how do you decide what to ban?
Sometimes it varries, but honestly I almost always ban BF. I HATE BF (I man samus btw.) I probably should grow up and just get good with the stage and ban something more specific to the person/character I'm fighting, but its such a god **** stupid stage, and I'm really fine with all the other neutrals. With the counter picks selection being neutered, I'm not too worried about the remaining stages (though brinstar is really dumb...) I'm used to people banning pokemon against me, once they see that I'm a samus player.

Is your mindset still the same? Are you nervous? Where is your head at when you press start and it selects a stage?
I'm a bit nervous but I don't let it bother me. Its more like excitement. My heads ready to go; I don't think about anything other than the match.

Match 1

Game starts, announcer says GO, what position do you take?
I take the one that puts me in the better position in the match. I don't stick to one way or another, I go with what the situation calls for. Generally I'm a conservative player, but if the guy does poorly when I play aggressively then I'll play aggressively. At the beginning of the match its hard to say, its mostly about reading whats going on, and I try and get as big of an advantage as I can.

What are you looking for, if anything, in your opponents playstyle?
Good question. A lot of this is subconscious for me, I think... At any given time in the match I'm paying attnetion to his positioning. If I notice the opponent reacting poorly to something, I exploit it (the most common thing is missiles... a lot of new players/people who haven't fought samus before are bad at avoiding missiles, so if they eat a lot of missiles, then I fire away with them :) )

Are you looking for how your opponent is punishing you?
I always look for how they're punishing me, this is really important. One of the hardest things for me is to be unpredictable. I sometimes turn into a robot... depending on how comfortable I am. Again, I change how I play depending on what will win the match.

You are ahead, got a stock or two up, how are you feeling?
I'm feeling good, but I'm still extremely focused. It isn't over until its over (I can say this from personal experience because it feels as though a lot of my wins come from large comebacks.) This also becomes extremely relevant when fighting chars like jiggs who can turn the game around with a rest.

You fall behind, not too far, but you're behind, do you change your style?
Again, I just go with what works. If I know I am/was losing because of how I was playing, then I try to do different things. If I am/was losing because of things like technical errors... then shame on me, and my hands are not warm enough! :p

Games over, based on what happen (win or lose), what are you thinking about?
If I win, then I just tell myself its time to do it again. If I lose, then its time to make some upsets. It ain't over till its over.


Match 2

Based on how the last match went, what are you thinking about going into match 2?
I'm thinking about what I can do differently from the first match to let me win this match, whether its to win the series or to tie it up. It could be anything from don't SD to get hit less to watch out for his f-smash to don't make technical errors.

Do you change characters?
This is a phase I'm going through. Right now I have only played Samus in tournaments but I am in the process of picking up Shiek as a secondary to hopefully do better against my bad match ups (peach, marth). Optimally I'd like to just play Samus and just outplay the **** out of my opponents, but not everything is perfect like that, and I'm not amazing yet, so I think Shiek will help me out. I play a really good Link too, but I usually save him for low tier tourneys. If I just have a feeling that he'll do well against a certain opponent then I'll pull him out but I generally try and stay Samus, despite being rather good adept at switching characters.

If you are in the position to counterpick, what do you base it off of?
Depends a LOT on the character match up. It also depends on the situation. I love Yoshi's story, and most people call it a bad samus stage but I find a lot of redeeming qualities to it for playing Samus. Because of this, it can actually throw people off, picking a stage that most would consider bad. It depends on the match up though, as I generally won't counterpick a marth on Yoshi's :p I base it off the match up and the specific person I'm playing. I try to make the best judgment off of what happened during the first match.

Match 2 starts, depending on how the last match went how are you playing?
I try to play well.

Depending on how the match is going, you're winning/losing, how's your mindset?
I just keep going full force. I don't give up, and its really awesome to make a large come back and win a match/series.


Match 3(if)

Last match, you've played your preferred characters, your preferred stage, how are you feeling?
If I'm playing with preferred characters AND stage, I'm definitely feeling good. Still, gotta be careful.

Post-set


Depending on if you won or loss, what are you feeling?
If I win I'm always feeling awesome, whether it was an easy win or a hard fought win, though the hard fought ones always feel a million times better. I'm okay with losing and usually I accept it and try to learn from it, but if I lose to something I feel I should have won, then I'm usually upset. If I lose to a bad marth player then I usually want to throw kittens off bridges.


Misc. Questions



What character(s) do you use in tournament matches, and when
I use Samus almost exclusively. RARELY Link, and soon I'll be incorperating Sheik. I don't know if I have yet in a tournament match, but if I feel someone would do very poorly if I played a certain character that I know at least SOMETHING about, then I may pull them out. For example, if my opponent looks to be really bad against Marth, I think I can trust myself enough with the amount that I've played Marth (a decent amount) to pull him out and win the match. But, again, in a perfect world, I'll win all of my matches with just Samus.

Are you constantly adapting new techniques, are juss trying to perfect the basics?
New techniques. I always have to practice up a bit and make sure I'm good with all the basics, but I'm always amazed at how I find little technical things I can get better at.

Does your playstyle vary from friendlies to tournament? Do you play 'better' in one versus the other?
It all really depends on the day. Some days, regardless of tourney or friendly, I'm on fire. Other days, I'm just garbage. Consistency is something I am desperate to master.

What are some things you think a lot of people overlook, when it comes to winning?
Learning from the match they were just in. Even with new players, you can always learn something and become better from it. I think some people forget this at times.

What would you say the main aspect of your playstyle is? Tech skill/mindgames/reading?
Playing well.. or at least trying to? Idk... Most people are pretty weirded out when they see that I'm a Samus main, so you could say that. I guess reading, if I had to say anything. My problem of course with that is the inability to react how I want to in response to how I read my opponent. When I do that well and consistently, I win.

Who was/is the most influential smasher to you?
Oh god... HugS is definitely one of them. I've watched way too many of his videos, way to many times. He and other low tier/non top tier players give me hope because they win without the best characters. I'm a strong believer in the tier list, however, I'm also a strong believer in it not being the deciding factor for everything. Other influential smashers include Aniki, Mango, Aftermath, Eggz, and more. Also, anyone who DOESN'T play Brawl.

Whats up with your name, why did you choose it?
My friend who got showed me about AT's and stuff and got me into competitive smash got the name for me. His game tag is Kaze, and when I asked what I should go with, he said 'Kami' cause together we're KamiKaze xD I liked the name so I stuck with it. Of course, I don't go by the Japanese translation of 'god', but rather 'paper'.

What is your personal favorite technique to use in a match?
Idk, neutral air's are really satisfying. I really, really like shield pressuring people with jab cancels and really all jab cancel combos. Tech chasing is also extremely satisfying.

~*REMINDER*~ put the name you're most well known by!
Kami

Also! If you have any questions you would like to ask to the smash community feel free to make it noticeable at the bottom of your post


Will I one day aspire to 4 stock peach players with Samus?!?1

But anyway, thanks for reading and allowing me to post my entire life story.

edit: made it look prettier. Also, please list me as Kami, not Kami-v. I'm only Kami-v because some jerk also has their alias as Kami here on the boards >.> So I just added the 'v' because its the first letter of my last name. I am 'Kami' on AiB though.
 

Pi

Smash Hero
Joined
Feb 5, 2008
Messages
6,038
Location
Lake Mary, Florida
Woot! Another samus main :)
Thanks kami
A lot of your mindset seems similar to mind, and I actually have a decent marth and sheik as well lol
but I'm definitely sticking samus all the way
at one point I thought about counter picking marth with sheik but then i resolved to beat marth with samus and was successful, so I keep that in the back of my mind whenever I have a bad matchup. AT the moment sheik's are giving me major problems, but I know I can beat them, just need more practice vs. them.

And yea, making a 0-1 comeback is so cash ^^, hope to see you at some of the bigger tournaments

@lunarnova
*waiting* lol
 

Kami-V

Smash Journeyman
Joined
Aug 5, 2006
Messages
374
Location
Lake Oswego, OR
Woot! Another samus main :)
Thanks kami
A lot of your mindset seems similar to mind, and I actually have a decent marth and sheik as well lol
but I'm definitely sticking samus all the way
at one point I thought about counter picking marth with sheik but then i resolved to beat marth with samus and was successful, so I keep that in the back of my mind whenever I have a bad matchup. AT the moment sheik's are giving me major problems, but I know I can beat them, just need more practice vs. them.

And yea, making a 0-1 comeback is so cash ^^, hope to see you at some of the bigger tournaments

@lunarnova
*waiting* lol
Yes xD I read here a lot but don't post much... I'm going to try and change that, considering I've been with smash for quite a while. When I'm having a good day, I actually don't have that much trouble with marth, its mostly at this point Peaches (and oregon/washington has a MILLION peach players...) which is whats killing me. So I'll pick up sheik for a while but in the end I'll be a samus main :) I'm glad we have similar mindsets though... good to know I'm not alone!

Going to big tourneys are hard for me, I have 2 jobs and school. If I start winning local tourneys I'll definitely try and make it to big ones.
 

AXE 09

Smash Master
Joined
Dec 3, 2006
Messages
3,825
Location
Avondale, AZ
snaps! why is this the first time that i've seen this thread??? my goodness, there's so many questions to answer lol

when i find some time, i'll respond to these =) i'm curious to read everything that others have responded to this
 

Pi

Smash Hero
Joined
Feb 5, 2008
Messages
6,038
Location
Lake Mary, Florida
yea after my marth is gay phase i moved onto my peach and jiggs are gay phase lol and am still in it
i really dislike those matchups @.@
peach is getting better though
but jiggs is still annoying as ****
and sheik is juss...not annoying but...like..you gotta play diff lol

and axe! idk how you didn't hear about this! i been fitting it into most of my posts!
lookin forward to you're response axe, make it happen! it'll be my christmas present jajaja ^^
 

Nø Ca$h

Smash Champion
Joined
Jan 15, 2009
Messages
2,727
Location
Philadelphia PA
my interview

About me-
my name is Kurt Zubry AKA Irony. im 15 years old i live in philadelphia,PA i like this game

Smash career-
1. i guess i started spamimng a in 64 but i dont remember the details of those days.
2.i discovered competitive melee by wanting to be better than my friend. i looked up youtube vids and got hooked. must have been late 2006.
3. ive wanted break into the tourny scene a while ago. my first tournament was my 15th bday, oct 17 spoc. so i havent really been getting much experience.
4. what keeps me stuck on this game? a dream. my passion is melee. i want to be the best. i have my goals, and im just currently working to achieve them. i know its gonna be hard and im gonna need dedication to get through the tough times of worrying about smash when im still worrying on eating. but hey you need to walk through nightmares to follow your dreams.

Pre tournament-
1. i dont really warm up before a tourny. i get ready physically. basically il make sure i have my controller and my back up.
2. normal routines arent good in smash. i try to keep away from them.
3.-
4. yes viewing matches is good. for example, jmans strat vs noobs consists of uthfow>uair. if you sdi the uair once, hel replace it with bair. i fought jman in pools at my first tourny and i sdi'ed his uair. my apprehensions were confirmed. i knew he was gonna bair me so i survival di'ed it well.
5. atm its to learn but someday it will be to win.

Pre match-
1. i take a deep breath and introduce myself. simple stuff.
2. if i beat him il encourage him. if not il conggadulate him.
3. il use what i know in the match

Pre match 1-
1. i know what to ban because of their char.
2. i use to get nervous, but that means i care.

Match 1-
1. i try to give myself enough space not to be overwhelmed.
2. well in my theory there are two flaws. habit and game. habit flaws are a way that they chronically react(i.e. teching the same way multiple times). game flaws are what they cant do or have trouble doing(bad oos game, cant space well,ect)
3. iil definitely try not to make the same mistake twice
4. ii get a boost of confidence which becomes my downfall
5. i try to see why i died and prevent it from cycling.
6. i use what i learned

Match 2-
1.il try to be more efficient than last time.
2. never stray from my main in a tourny set.
3. i base my cp stage off what i needed. more space, platforms for rapeing ect
4. i try to make the best disicion and not be nervous.
5. same as above.

Match 3-
1. i stay level headed and be mandful of what he did.

Post set-
1. i say good game and use what i learned

Misc-
1. Marth. hes my main and i dont see why i should switch when im still learning him.
2. i need better di and to practice spacing fairs. i sadly dont get much practice so i need to adapt quickly.
3. idle chit chat in friendlies.
4. currently reading. as i get better i want to force enemies into their actions(aka mindgames)
5. cactuar. hes been like an older brother to me
7. i chose irony because all my life ironic things have been kicking me down like m2ks gimps. it seems as if i have a cloud of irony over my head.
8. not sure i havent thought about it.


put me down as Irony please thanks for having me!
 

Pi

Smash Hero
Joined
Feb 5, 2008
Messages
6,038
Location
Lake Mary, Florida
lol sorry for takin long to read your post lunar

very...shorthand lol
but too the point
so it's all good

i feel the same, i'm still learning my char, and would like to perfect it before i switch, might not place as high in tournaments because of it right now, but i plan to in the future, so whatever, end game is all that matters

thanks for answerin the questions, maybe when you get on a comp you can spruce up your answers a bit lol
 

Lawrencelot

Smash Lord
Joined
Jun 18, 2006
Messages
1,434
Location
Rotterdam/Terneuzen, Holland, Europe
This looks very interesting, and it might just help myself out as well.

Your Smash Career

1. I started with casual melee in 2006, my first tournament was in autumn 2006, so I've been playing competitively for 3 years or so. I also play ssb64 competitively since beginning 2007. I don't play brawl.
2. My friend got me into smash, which was still casual. Then he said something about Captain Jack, and I searched for videos of him but couldn't find it, then on a certain time I found smashboards and then competitive melee really started for me.
3. Since autumn 2006.
4. The depth of the game.


Pre-tournament

1. I just play. And make sure I don't forget to sleep instead of smashing all night.
2. Not really.
3. I sometimes have a smashfest before the tournament. And on the tournament itself I try to do enough friendlies before it starts.
4. Sometimes, yes.
5. I'm going to do the best I can and make sure I learn enough to get better. I got out of pools my last two tournaments so now my goal is just to stay in the bracket for as long as possible.


Pre-match

1. If I have never heard of a smasher, he is probably not that good. Once, that assumption was wrong, so now I try to guess the level by looking at other matches of that person if that is possible. I will pick my main anyway so I don't worry too much about the character, especially the first match.
2. If I am quite sure I can beat the smasher, I just play and make sure I don't do anything stupid like SDing twice. I just play relaxed.
3. I am usually in a 'give up' mode against better smashers, but I try not to. I also try to analyse how I get beaten, what I do wrong, and always realize I still have a chance but that is usually not enough. I try to get out of 'give up' mode against good smashers but it's hard.

Pre-match 1

1. It depends on the other character, and on my dislikes, I don't like FD and I don't like weird stages. Usually I ban the stage that is good for that character.
2. Sometimes I'm not nervous at all and sometimes I'm shaking like hell, usually the closer the other one is to my skill level the more nervous I get, and when I don't know how good the other one is I am not nervous at all and I am enjoying myself more. While the screen is loading I take a deep breath and enter focus mode


Match 1

1. I run away and needle with sheik, or waveland around a bit, then depending on what they're doing I attack whenever I feel like it (I'm not good at looking for openings)
2. How he approaches, how he recovers, what he does while shielding and after landing, detecting rolling and teching patterns, and if he's falco I'm too busy avoiding lasers to see anything.
3. Depends on the character, if I get rested it's obvious how it happened, if it's an obvious mindgame I try to remember it. If my opponent spaces better I have trouble detecting my errors.
4. I lose focus a bit and start taking more risks. I keep in mind that I should not let him surprise me.
5. I play the same when I am behind.
6. If it was tight, I am relieved, but I try not to show any emotions to my opponent unless I got very lucky or he put up a good fight while I still won. If I lose with a 2-stock or more I don't think I can beat him but I still try.


Match 2

1. If I got punished badly for something I try not to do it, if I succesfully punished him for something I try to punish harder with charged smashes or just better options. I try to use the new stage to my advantage, and if he switched characters I take on a new playstyle and start all over again.
2. I almost never change characters in best of 3, unless I really think my secondary has way more chance than my main in the new situation. Sadly I don't know which character is my second best character, so I usually stick to my main.
3. I pick the stage I like most, which is dreamland, unless that stage is good for his character, in which case I consider other stages but possibly still pick dreamland. I also often pick the same stage if my opponent is way better, so I can see how he plays after having played a match.
4. I already know I'm gonna win/lose so I'm less focused. If it was tight the last match, I try harder.
5. I just try to keep focus. If I am winning I look out for possible comebacks, if I'm losing and my opponent loses focus I try to use that to my advantage.


Match 3(if)

1. I just keep focus, keep playing the same while still adapting.


Post-set

1. I often get surprised, both by myself and by my opponent. Weak opponents still manage to put up a good fight sometimes, and sometimes I beat good opponents, but it's also often as expected. I am usually not happy or mad, because still most of the times the results are as expected.


Misc. Questions

1. Almost always Sheik. Against players who rely only on crouchcancel I sometimes try Peach, on FD I sometimes try Falco, but usually it's Sheik. The skill level of my opponent doesn't matter for my character in a tourney match.
2. Usually I save the try-outs for friendlies, and I do what I know will work and what will work best.
3. Yes, in friendlies I pick all kinds of characters and just **** around.
4. Having fun and learning is more important than winning. Not all results are as expected, unless the difference in skill level is really high anyone can win. Also it doesn't really matter how much stocks the winner had left.
5. Techchasing, gimps, cheapness
6. Amsah and Zgetto, and my 'tutor' UchihaJP, and my friend who got me into smash of course
7. I use it on all the internet, it comes from my real name + Lancelot
8. Techchasing and gimping with sheik and comboing with tilts
 

Teczer0

Research Assistant
Premium
BRoomer
Joined
Mar 25, 2007
Messages
16,862
Location
Convex Cone, Positive Orthant
Why am I awake >_<

Your Smash Career
How long have you been with the series?


Since early 2007 so about 3 yearsish. I never really played brawl that seriously ever (Bored of it >_>) and I never really played 64 competitively. I played casual melee on and off after very shortly after its release.

How did you discover competitive melee?

A random group of friends dragged me to a NYC tourney and paid for my entry. After going to a few more, I met Eggm and with his motivational, "You're pretty good you should play more" I began to attend a lot more tournaments within my state (NJ)

How long have you been attending tournaments?

About 3 years or so.

What keeps you stuck on this game?

Community is a giant factor. I met a lot of good friends in this community and its what makes going to events such a good experience. Besides that, the game is just amazing in a lot of ways, the way the game is made there are limitless possibilities and always room to improve.

Pre-tournament
What do you do to warm up for the tournament?


Goof off and enjoy myself. I find myself doing better when I'm relaxed, and un-pressured. I do often times though play fox/falco to start my fingers goin.

Anything different from normal routine?


Not really. I kinda view tournies as a gathering and such. Since I've been playing for a while too I kinda lost the pressure of "I have to play good so people might wanna keep playing me or think I'm good" or what not. It helps that people generally know who I am in my area.

If so, how early do you start training?


I often have a smashfest at my place before tournies. But mainly for funziez and recording stuff (Because people love being recorded). I haven't "trained" in a very long time.

Do you view matches of opponents that will be at the tournament?


Not really. It may help and it may not. But I don't take winning serious enough to the point of sitting on my computer and looking up videos of potential tourney threats. Plus I only generally watch my friends' matches anwyay.

What's your mindset going to the tournament?


I better have fun. I also plan to eat a large breakfast, because for some reason I don't eat lunch when I attend tournies *shrugs*. I suppose I do tell myself and my friends that we'll all do well.

Pre-match
The TO announces you have a match on TV 3 with a smasher you have never heard of, what's your game plan?


I get to go marth yay. Really though I don't think too much into it.

What do you assume about the player, if anything?(Are you thinking about what character you will use, sizing your opponent up, underestimating him, overestimating him?)


I always put myself in a confident state kinda telling myself that I'll be fine as long as I don't play dumb no matter who it is.

What about a match with a smasher who you know/heard of, but are fairly confident of beating?(what are some specific thoughts to describe your mental state; "K I'm going to win this one, wonder who I have next" "I usually beat this guy in friendlies, I should win" etc. etc.)

It annoys me that this is a factor when I play but I just think of previous tourney matches (If I've had any with this opponent) and think of what little tricks I can use or what habits I can abuse. If I haven't I just sit there and get ready to play since I have nothing to base him off of.

What about a match with a smasher who you know/heard of, but have classified him as better than you?("****, gonna lose this one." "I still have a chance, always have a chance" etc. etc.)


Play it like I can win it. Don't care about anything else. Thinking you can lose is how people lose.

Pre-match 1
You both plug into the cube, pick your characters, and move to the stage selection screen to pick your bans, how do you decide what to ban?("well if he's falco, I'll ban FD", "I really hate BF so I always ban it", etc. etc.)
Is your mindset still the same? Are you nervous? Where is your head at when you press start and it selects a stage?


If I have played them before I ban something I know I have a bad chance of winning on. If I haven't I just use my "Theory smash" to help me decide what to ban.

Match 1
Game starts, announcer says GO, what position do you take?(offensive, defensive, if you have projectiles do you get them out there, be general if you want cause I know it might depend on the characters you're playing, are you trying to be fancy or playing conservititve?)


Depends on the characters we both are. But typically a defensive start is usually how I go about things. I like to get a feel for my opponent before I commit to something.

What are you looking for, if anything, in your opponents playstyle?(is he rolling predictably, teching predictably, is he playing really offensive, shielding too much?)

Generally whether they play offensively or defensively is a good start. I then start to look for other habits like jumping habits, how to run away what they tend to attack with and how far are they when they do it etc etc. Rolling habits are very easy to pick up on so I don't even bother with those.

Are you looking for how your opponent is punishing you?(is he predicting your rolls, your spotdodges, your techs? Do you change up your playstyle to keep the lead, or do you get more aggressive, do you go for more fancy ****?)

Generally I keep a thought in my mind that he/she is good at ****** me if I do ____. And just keep that in mind.

You are ahead, got a stock or two up, how are you feeling?(confident, staying humble, trying to keep focus)

Trying to keep focus for sure. Making sure I catch bad habits accordingly and playing safely. I don't get too cocky because then I feel like I'll just get ***** :(

You fall behind, not too far, but you're behind, do you change your style?(start playing more defensive/offensive, stop going for fancy edgeguards or cut out some new techniques you have been trying?)

If something doesn't work I try to tweak my strategies here and there. Also noting my opponent's strong points (Edgeguarding, tech chasing, whatever)

Games over, based on what happen (win or lose), what are you thinking about?("yes! I won, I got this, he's not very good", "crap, I loss, I don't think I can beat him" and everything in between.)

I review the match in my head. Think, why did I lose? Why did I win? etc etc. Also because I play multiple characters I often think if there is a way I can change the momentum of the match. For example:

game 1 I play fox using fairly aggressive nairs and grabs.
game 2 I play marth using defensive aerials and movements.

Match 2
Based on how the last match went, what are you thinking about going into match 2? ("I noticed he was rolling/reading my rolls so let me adjust for that", "I need to gimp/not get gimped this time", "Hope I get lucky/hope he gets unlucky", etc. etc, anything that's going through your head)

Basically I review the match in my head and think of my weak points, my opponents weak points, and their strong points. And try to think of what not to do or what to do to help the next game.

Do you change characters?(specific situations, or do you always change characters? do you pick characters to counter playstyles?)

Depends on the opponent and how I felt about my match. Sometimes I feel like my other characters can do the job better so I switch. If not I usually just stick with my character. That way I don't have to repeat what I did for game 1.

If you are in the position to counterpick, what do you base it off of? ("I noticed he was playing like this, I thought this stage would counter that", "I'm really comfortable on this stage, so I chose it")

I usually look at characters first and try to gain a stage advantage. If that isn't an option I decide on what is a very comfortable stage for me.

Match 2 starts, depending on how the last match went how are you playing?("I won last time so I'm kinda ******* around this time", "I loss last time so I'm playing a lot more careful this time", "I already know I'm gonna win/lose so I'm not really focused")

I sometimes play a little worse if my opponent is gaining momentum or play better if I am gaining momentum thats about it though.

Depending on how the match is going, you're winning/losing, how's your mindset?("When I'm losing I kinda give up since I'm already a match behind.", "If I'm winning I get excited and lose focus")


If I'm winning, I tell myself to stay focused and extend the lead. If I'm losing I tell myself that all it takes is ______ and I'm okay. Just don't give up hope.


Match 3(if)
Last match, you've played your preferred characters, your preferred stage, how are you feeling?("I'm pretty confident I can win, I'll focus to be sure", "I got lucky 1 match, don't think I can win now", "I've figured out his playstyle and he doesn't seem to be switching it up, I got this", "Juss happy to have taken a game off him")

I always tell myself I can win regardless if its true or not. I review the 2nd game and make final adjustments to my strategy and just tell myself that I can win.

Post-set
Depending on if you won or loss, what are you feeling?(did you surprise yourself? did your opponent surprise you? are you happy/mad? reviewing your mistakes?)


Well if I lost I'm always disappointed because its human nature to want to win. If I win I let out a sigh and just am happy that I won and the set is over. If I lose I definitely look back and think what I can improve. Typically if people don't know me I sometimes see a funny surprised look. I do surprise myself a lot of times, I've beaten players that I still have a hard time believing I beat. But its what makes smash so good, sometimes its just unpredictable (Like Mango losing to Kage lawl sorry Mango <3)

Misc. Questions
What character(s) do you use in tournament matches, and when (fox when I'm serious, falcon when I'm not)?


Fox/Sheik/Peach/Marth for pretty much anything, tourney, friendlies whatever.

Are you constantly adapting new techniques, are juss trying to perfect the basics?

I usually don't try other technical things because I hate practicing by myself now. I think of new strategies or mental aspects constantly.

Does your playstyle vary from friendlies to tournament? Do you play 'better' in one versus the other?

I tend to play a lot more reckless in friendlies. I can't stand playing like I do in tourney all the time its just... too much thinking.


What are some things you think a lot of people overlook, when it comes to winning?

Some people don't try to learn from their wins and oversimplify why they won.

What would you say the main aspect of your playstyle is? Tech skill/mindgames/reading?

uhhhhhhhhh a mix of a lot of stuff?

Who was/is the most influential smasher to you?

m2k was easily one influential smasher, he taught me a few things about the game in general and was always fun to watch play. Also PC chris, because he's just amazing.

Whats up with your name, why did you choose it?

Long story, but my friend gave it to me and I liked it. So I rolled with it.

What is your personal favorite technique to use in a match?(technical or psychological, either one :p)

PCCCCCCCCing the edge. For no reason.
 

Pi

Smash Hero
Joined
Feb 5, 2008
Messages
6,038
Location
Lake Mary, Florida
woot
thanks you guys :)

def know about that 'give up' mode lawrencelot
gettin a lot better about that myself though, i can do anythhin man! anythin! ^^


n tec think this needs to be quoted:
Play it like I can win it. Don't care about anything else. Thinking you can lose is how people lose.
also PCing the edge? platform canceling? or some pc chris related tech? lol
 
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