Time to Throw Down - Almost everything you ever wanted to know about throws

After reading OrlanduEX's thread about the strongest moves in each category, I went out and researched the power and damage of all the throws in the game, since they were all that was missing. However, I was really bored, so I took it to the next level and decided to go the extra mile and put this guide together.
This is my first time writing something this big, so please let me know if there's anything I've overlooked or should double-check.

So I'm pleased to present a mostly complete overview of grabs and throws. Here we go!

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All of my testing was done using Mario as the target. The grab range tests were done on a small custom stage using the blocks for measurement. All other testing was done on Final Destination. If CPU damage was used I will indicate it at the beginning of the section.

-Contents-
I. GrabbingII. PummelingIII. ThrowingIV. Special GrabsV. RecommendationsI. Grabbing

1. Character size
For grab testing, I made a 8 block long custom stage and made measurements in terms of blocks. I placed each character so that they were right on the line between two blocks. The following rough diagram gives an idea of the look as well as where the character was positioned.

From here I took screen shots and estimated the characters size relative to the block. For example, Mario takes up approximately 2/5 of the block from the line. This is based on their neutral stance with the front foot touching the line. Some characters have unusual stances that affects their size measurement; I've made notes for these characters.

I rounded off all grab measurements to the nearest tenth (1/10), fourth (1/4), or third (1/3). These measurements should all be accurate within 1/10th of a block.

Anyway, the following is the list of how big each character is relative to a single block:
(Each section is divided by color on a scale from RED to GREEN. Closer to red indicates generally less favorable measurements, closer to green indicates generally more favorable measurements.)

1 block
-Bowser
0.9 blocks
-Charizard
0.8 blocks
-King Dedede *Dedede's measurement does not include his hammer.*
0.75 blocks
-Donkey Kong *DK is measured from where his fists touch the line rather than his feet.*
0.7 blocks
-R.O.B.
0.67 blocks
-Sheik
-Ganondorf
0.6 blocks:
-Wario
-Samus
-Kirby
-Meta Knight
-Captain Falcon
-Snake
0.5 blocks
-Link
-Zelda
-Zero Suit Samus *ZS Samus will occasionally pose and look around; her measurement is based on her default standing pose.*
-Pit
-Ice Climbers
-Falco
-Wolf *Wolf is measured according to his upright standing pose; his crouched pose puts his heel on the line.*
-Ivysaur *Ivysaur is measured with his front legs touching the line.*
-Lucario
-Jigglypuff
-Ike
0.4 blocks
-Mario
-Luigi
-Peach
-Fox *Fox shuffles his feet in a fighter stance; his measurement comes from the default standing pose.*
-Marth
-Mr. Game & Watch *G&W is constantly shifting between "frames"; his measurement is based on the normal standing frame.
-Sonic
0.33 blocks
-Diddy Kong
-Yoshi *Yoshi "dances"; his measurement is based on both feet flat on the ground.*
-Toon Link
-Squirtle *Squirtle hops back and forth with feet switching positions; his measurement is based on both feet being behind the line.*
-Lucas
0.3 blocks
-Pikachu
-Ness
0.25 blocks
-Olimar

2. Standing Grab
All durations were tested by taking video footage and counting the number of frames between the first frame of grab animation until the character is able to shield (neutral stance). These numbers should be accurate within one frame of recording.
To test the standard range I would start the target (Mario) at a half block distance, and then move him closer or farther until the character's maximum grab range was determined.

A. Duration

46 frames
-Samus
42 frames
-Zero Suit Samus
41 frames
-Link
-Toon Link
35 frames
-Lucas
31 frames
-Yoshi
24 frames
-Ivysaur
20 frames
-Bowser
17 frames
-Ness
16 frames
-Mario
15 frames
-Peach
-Donkey Kong
-Diddy Kong
-Wario
-Zelda
-Pit
-Ice Climbers
-R.O.B.
-King Dedede
-Fox
-Falco
-Wolf
-Captain Falcon
-Pikachu
-Jigglypuff
-Mr. Game & Watch
14 frames
-Luigi
-Sheik
-Kirby
-Meta Knight
-Olimar
-Squirtle
-Charizard
-Lucario
-Marth
-Ike
-Snake
-Sonic
13 frames
-Ganondorf

B. Range

1.6 blocks
-Olimar (blue/white Pikmin)
1.5 blocks
-Samus
-Zero Suit Samus
-Olimar (red/yellow Pikmin)
1.3 blocks
-Link
1.2 blocks
-Toon Link
1.1 blocks
-Yoshi
1 block
-Olimar (purple Pikmin)
-Lucas
0.9 blocks
-Ivysaur
0.8 blocks
-Charizard
0.6 blocks
-Bowser
-Donkey Kong
-King Dedede
-Zelda
0.5 blocks
-Peach
-Diddy Kong
-R.O.B.
-Kirby
-Squirtle
-Jigglypuff
-Marth
0.4 blocks
-Wario
-Sheik
-Meta Knight
-Fox
-Captain Falcon
-Pikachu
-Snake
0.33 blocks
-Ganondorf
-Pit
-Falco
-Wolf
-Ike
-Ness
-Mr. Game & Watch
0.3 blocks
-Mario
0.25 blocks
-Luigi
-Ice Climbers
-Lucario
-Sonic

3. Dash Grab
As with standard grab, I recorded video of each dash grab, and then I counted the number of frames between starting animation and shielding. I attempted multiple grabs from various distances and compared images, choosing the farthest as the "longest". The measurement is taken from the first frame of grab animation. There is a certain degree of estimation and guessing for this step, but most measurements should still be within one frame or 1/10th of a block.

A. Duration

47 frames
-Link
-Toon Link
46 frames
-Zero Suit Samus
40 frames
-Lucas
36 frames
-Samus
31 frames
-Yoshi
25 frames
-Bowser
-Donkey Kong
24 frames
-Ivysaur
22 frames
-Sheik
20 frames
-Diddy Kong
-Wario
-Pit
-Ice Climbers
-R.O.B.
-King Dedede
-Olimar
-Fox
-Squirtle
-Marth
-Ike
-Mr. Game & Watch
-Snake
19 frames
-Peach
-Ganondorf
-Kirby
-Meta Knight
-Falco
-Wolf
-Captain Falcon
-Pikachu
-Lucario
-Jigglypuff
-Sonic
18 frames
-Mario
-Luigi
-Zelda
-Charizard
17 frames
-Ness

B. Range

2.6 blocks
-Zero Suit Samus
2.1 blocks
-Yoshi
1.9 blocks
-Olimar (blue/white)
1.75 blocks
-Olimar (red/yellow)
1.6 blocks
-Link
1.5 blocks
-Toon Link
1.4 blocks
-Meta knight
-Ivysaur
1.3 blocks
-Samus
-Olimar (purple)
1.2 blocks
-Charizard
-Lucas
1.1 blocks
-Bowser
-Donkey Kong
-King Dedede
-Captain Falcon
1 block
-Kirby
-Jigglypuff
-Ness
0.9 blocks
-Diddy Kong
-Zelda
-Pikachu
-Snake
0.8 blocks
-Peach
-Sheik
-R.O.B.
-Falco
-Wolf
-Squirtle
0.75 blocks
-Wario
-Marth
0.7 blocks
-Luigi
-Sonic
0.67 blocks
-Ice Climbers
-Ike
-Mr. Game & Watch
0.6 blocks
-Ganondorf
-Lucario
0.5 blocks
-Mario
-Fox
0.4 blocks
-Pit

4. Pivot Grab
Same drill as before. Video capture to determine frame duration, image capture to determine block length.

A. Duration

47 frames
-Link
-Toon Link
-Samus
46 frames
-Zero Suit Samus
26 frames
-Charizard
-Lucas
21 frames
-Bowser
-Sheik
-Marth
20 frames
-Peach
-Ice Climbers
19 frames
-Olimar
18 frames
-Diddy Kong
-Yoshi
-Zelda
-Pit
-R.O.B.
-Kirby
-Meta Knight
-Falco
-Pikachu
-Ivysaur
-Ike
-Ness
-Mr. Game & Watch
-Snake
-Sonic
17 frames
-Mario
-Donkey Kong
-Wario
-Ganondorf
-Captain Falcon
-Lucario
-Jigglypuff
16 frames
-Luigi
-King Dedede
-Squirtle
15 frames
-Wolf
14 frames
-Fox

B. Range

1.5 blocks
-Olimar (blue/white)
1.33 blocks
-Samus
1.25 blocks
-Zero Suit Samus
1.2 blocks
-Link
-Olimar (red/yellow)
1 block
-Toon Link
0.9 blocks
-Yoshi
-Lucas
0.8 blocks
-King Dedede
-Olimar (purple)
-Fox
-Charizard
0.75 blocks
-Peach
-Ivysaur
0.7 blocks
-Diddy Kong
-Pit
-R.O.B.
-Jigglypuff
0.67 blocks
-Bowser
-Squirtle
0.6 blocks
-Zelda
-Sheik
-Ganondorf
-Pikachu
-Marth
0.5 blocks
-Mario
-Luigi
-Donkey Kong
-Wario
-Ice Climbers
-Kirby
-Meta Knight
-Falco
-Wolf
-Captain Falcon
-Lucario
-Ike
-Ness
-Mr. Game & Watch
-Snake
0.3 blocks
-Sonic

5. Grab Release
When an opponent breaks out of a grab, they are either released on the ground or into the air. This is based on whether or not the grabbed character is able to touch the ground while in the grab.
NOTE: If the grabbed character is over an edge, they will be air released. If they are still in hit-stun from a pummel, they will be ground released.
The following list shows which type of release each character has.

Mario
-Always ground releases

Luigi
-Always ground releases

Peach
-Air release on: Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Wario, Toon Link, Ice Climbers, Kirby, Meta Knight, Olimar, Pikachu, Squirtle, Ivysaur, Jigglypuff, Ness, Lucas, Game & Watch

Bowser
-Air release on: Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Wario, Toon Link, Ice Climbers, Kirby, Meta Knight, Olimar, Pikachu, Squirtle, Jigglypuff, Ness, Lucas, Game & Watch

Donkey Kong
-Air release on: Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Wario, Toon Link, Ice Climbers, Kirby, Meta Knight, Olimar, Pikachu, Squirtle, Ivysaur, Jigglypuff, Ness, Lucas, Game & Watch

Diddy Kong
-Always ground releases

Yoshi
-Always air releases

Wario
-Air release on: Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Wario, Toon Link, Ice Climbers, Kirby, Meta Knight, Olimar, Pikachu, Squirtle, Ivysaur, Jigglypuff, Ness, Lucas, Game & Watch

Link
-Always ground releases

Zelda
-Air release on: Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Wario, Toon Link, Ice Climbers, Kirby, Meta Knight, Olimar, Pikachu, Squirtle, Ivysaur, Jigglypuff, Ness, Lucas, Game & Watch

Sheik
-Air release on: Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Wario, Toon Link, Ice Climbers, Kirby, Meta Knight, Olimar, Pikachu, Squirtle, Jigglypuff, Ness, Lucas, Game & Watch

Ganondorf
-Air release on: Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Wario, Toon Link, Ice Climbers, Kirby, Meta Knight, Olimar, Pikachu, Squirtle, Ivysaur, Jigglypuff, Ness, Lucas, Game & Watch

Toon Link
-Always ground releases

Samus
-Always ground releases

Zero Suit Samus
-Air release on: Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Wario, Toon Link, Ice Climbers, Kirby, Meta Knight, Olimar, Pikachu, Squirtle, Ivysaur, Jigglypuff, Ness, Lucas, Game & Watch

Pit
-Always ground releases

Ice Climbers
-Always ground releases

R.O.B.
-Always ground releases

Kirby
-Always ground releases

Meta Knight
-Always ground releases

King Dedede
-Always ground releases

Olimar
-Always ground releases

Fox
-Always ground releases

Falco
-Always ground releases

Wolf
-Always ground releases

Captain Falcon
-Air release on: Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Wario, Toon Link, Ice Climbers, Kirby, Meta Knight, Olimar, Pikachu, Squirtle, Ivysaur, Jigglypuff, Ness, Lucas, Game & Watch

Pikachu
-Always ground releases

Squirtle
-Always ground releases

Ivysaur
-Air release on: Mario, Luigi, Diddy Kong, Yoshi, Wario, Toon Link, Ice Climbers, Kirby, Meta Knight, Olimar, Pikachu, Squirtle, Ivysaur, Jigglypuff, Ness, Lucas, Game & Watch, Sonic

Charizard
-Always ground releases

Lucario
-Always ground releases

Jigglypuff
-Always ground releases

Marth
-Air release on: Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Wario, Toon Link, Ice Climbers, Kirby, Meta Knight, Olimar, Pikachu, Squirtle, Ivysaur, Jigglypuff, Ness, Lucas, Game & Watch

Ike
-Air release on: Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Wario, Toon Link, Ice Climbers, Kirby, Meta Knight, Olimar, Pikachu, Squirtle, Ivysaur, Jigglypuff, Ness, Lucas, Game & Watch

Ness
-Always ground releases

Lucas
-Always ground releases

Mr. Game & Watch
-Always ground releases

Snake
-Always air releases

Sonic
-Always ground releases


II. Pummeling

1. General
Pummeling serves two major purposes. It's main function is to build extra damage before a throw, but it also has the useful side effect of refreshing attacks affected by move decay. The damage and rate of each character will affect which of these is more important for that character.
To test, I set CPU damage to 50% and initiated a grab. Then I timed how long it took the CPU to break out without pummeling (approximately 3 seconds). Then I checked the character's damage per pummel attack.
(The color scale goes from RED for most damage to GREEN for least. Special cases are listed at the end)

2. Damage
4% per attack
-Olimar (white Pikmin)
3% per attack
-Mario
-Luigi
-Bowser
-Donkey Kong
-Zelda
-Sheik
-Meta Knight
-King Dedede
-Ivysaur
-Jigglypuff
-Ike
-Lucas
-Mr. Game & Watch
-Sonic
2% per attack
-Peach
-Diddy Kong
-Yoshi
-Wario
-Link
-Ganondorf
-Toon Link
-Zero Suit Samus
-Pit
-R.O.B.
-Olimar (red/yellow/blue/purple Pikmin)
-Falco
-Captain Falcon
-Pikachu
-Squirtle
-Charizard
-Marth
-Snake
1% per attack
-Samus
-Ice Climbers *This is with just Popo using pummel; Nana will add additional damage if she is present.*
-Kirby
-Fox
-Wolf
-Ness
Lucario
-@0%: ~0.67% per attack
-@50%: ~0.9% per attack
-@100%: ~1.1% per attack
-@200%: ~1.5% per attack
*Due to his Aura, Lucario's pummel damage changes depending on his damage. These values are approximations, but yes, it does seem that he actually does less than 1% until roughly 80-100%.*
Pokemon Trainer
-Squirtle (fatigued): ~1.5% per attack
-Ivysaur (fatigued): ~2.33% per attack
-Charizard (fatigued): ~1.5% per attack
*These fatigued values are estimates. They seem to be approximately 75% of their standard value.*


3. Rate
After checking the damage of each character's pummel, I tested to see how many attacks they could get in before Mario broke away. I tested several times with each character and, to my knowledge, these are fairly close to the best intervals for each character based on IASA frames. From there it's just a matter of dividing the number of attacks by the number of seconds. Then, to find the damage per second (DPS), we multiply by attack damage.
There may be some slight inconsistencies here, as some characters have very unusual rhythms, Lucario in particular.

Lucas: 3 atks/s, 9 DPS!!!
Donkey Kong: 2.67 atks/s, 8 DPS
Olimar (white): 2 atks/s, 8 DPS
Sonic: 2.33 atks/s, 7 DPS
Mario: 2 atks/s, 6 DPS
Luigi: 2 atks/s, 6 DPS
Bowser: 2 atks/s, 6 DPS
Sheik: 2 atks/s, 6 DPS
Zero Suit Samus: 3 atks/s, 6 DPS
Pit: 3 atks/s, 6 DPS
R.O.B.: 3 atks/s, 6 DPS
Meta Knight: 2 atks/s, 6 DPS
King Dedede: 2 atks/s, 6 DPS
Squirtle: 3 atks/s, 6 DPS
Ivysaur: 2 atks/s, 6 DPS
Jigglypuff: 2 atks/s, 6 DPS
Ike: 2 atks/s, 6 DPS
Diddy Kong: 2.67 atks/s, 5.33 DPS
Yoshi: 2.67 atks/s, 5.33 DPS
Link: 2.67 atks/s, 5.33 DPS
Toon Link: 2.67 atks/s, 5.33 DPS
Falco: 2.67 atks/s, 5.33 DPS
Captain Falcon: 2.67 atks/s, 5.33 DPS
Pikachu: 2.67 atks/s, 5.33 DPS
Charizard: 2.67 atks/s, 5.33 DPS
Marth: 2.67 atks/s, 5.33 DPS
Zelda: 1.67 atks/s, 5 DPS
Lucario (200%): 3.33 atks/s, 5 DPS
Mr. Game & Watch: 1.67 atks/s, 5 DPS
Wario: 2.33 atks/s, 4.67 DPS
Ivysaur (fatigued): 2 atks/s, 4.67 DPS
Snake: 2.33 atks/s, 4.67 DPS
Squirtle (fatigued): 3 atks/s, 4.5 DPS
Peach: 2 atks/s, 4 DPS
Ganondorf: 2 atks/s, 4 DPS
Olimar (Red/Yellow/Blue/Purple): 2 atks/s, 4 DPS
Charizard (fatigued): 2.67 atks/s, 4 DPS
Lucario (100%): 3.33 atks/s, 3.67 DPS
Wolf: 3.33 atks/s, 3.33 DPS
Ness: 3.33 atks/s, 3.33 DPS
Samus: 3 atks/s, 3 DPS
Kirby: 3 atks/s, 3 DPS
Fox: 3 atks/s, 3 DPS
Lucario (50%): 3.33 atks/s, 3 DPS
Ice Climbers: 2.67 atks/s, 2.67 DPS
Lucario (0%): 3.33 atks/s, 2.22 DPS

There is a certain degree of uncertainty to all these values (especially Lucario and Pokemon Trainer), but these rates should be fairly consistent if you know the character's pummel rhythm.

III. Throwing

1. General
Testing for throws was pretty basic. First, just did a throw in each direction to get the base damage, then set CPU damage to 200% and checked if any throws got a KO from the center of Final Destination. Then I just worked my way down on each throw until Mario stopped dying.
This updated list is with CPU set on "Control", so there is no Directional Influence on any of these. Obviously, the numbers will be significantly higher in a real match.
The most damaging throw in each category is bold-faced, as are the throws with the greatest knockback. Percentages over 200% are not listed.
(200% was my damage cap. I figured if the opponent is over 200%, you should probably be using a different move to KO anyway.)

2. Forward Throw
A. Damage
Mario: 9%
Luigi: 9%
Peach: 10%
Bowser: 10%
Donkey Kong
-Cargo forward: 8%
-Cargo back: 8%
-Cargo up: 7%
-Cargo down: 6%
Diddy Kong: 11%
Yoshi: 7%
Wario: 12%
Link: 7%
Zelda: 12%
Sheik: 7%
Ganondorf: 13%
Toon Link: 7%
Samus: 9%
Zero Suit Samus: 9%
Pit: 10%
Ice Climbers: 8%
R.O.B.: 10%
Kirby: 8%
Meta Knight: 9%
King Dedede: 12%
Olimar
-Red: 6%
-Yellow: 7%
-Blue: 13%
-White: 6%
-Purple: 7%
Fox: 7%
Falco: 7%
Wolf: 7%
Captain Falcon: 9%
Pikachu: 10%
Squirtle: 9%, 6% fatigued
Ivysaur: 8%, 5% fatigued
Charizard: 10%, 7% fatigued
Lucario: 7% base, 8% @ 50, 11% @ 100, 14% @ 200
Jigglypuff: 10%
Marth: 4%
Ike: 6%
Ness: 11%
Lucas: 10%
Mr. Game & Watch: 8%
Snake: 9%
Sonic: 9%

B. KO Power
Wario: ~180%
Kirby: ~192%
Olimar (blue Pikmin): ~156%
Charizard: ~195%
Lucario (100% damage): ~179%
Lucario (200% damage): ~140%

C. Notable throws
Most forward throws actually do not have a lot of knockback, though they will still kill if close enough to the edge.
Donkey Kong - The cargo carry is an excellent way to set up combos and can also be used to stage spike.
Pikachu - One of Pika's two chain grab options.
Marth - Most of Marth's throws allow for well-spaced punishment. This one is also a low-damage chain grab.

3. Back Throw
A. Damage
Mario: 12%
Luigi: 12%
Peach: 11%
Bowser: 10%
Donkey Kong: 11%
Diddy Kong: 10%
Yoshi: 7%
Wario: 9%
Link: 7%
Zelda: 11%
Sheik: 7%
Ganondorf: 10%
Toon Link: 7%
Samus: 8%
Zero Suit Samus: 6%
Pit: 8%
Ice Climbers: 6%
R.O.B.: 10%
Kirby: 8%
Meta Knight: 10%
King Dedede: 16%
Olimar
-Red: 7%
-Yellow: 9%
-Blue: 14%
-White: 7%
-Purple: 9%
Fox: 8% (all lasers)
Falco: 8% (all lasers)
Wolf: 7%
Captain Falcon: 9%
Pikachu: 9%
Squirtle: 10%, 7% fatigued
Ivysaur: 10%, 7% fatigued
Charizard: 10%, 7% fatigued
Lucario: 10%
Jigglypuff: 10%
Marth: 4%
Ike: 6%
Ness: 11%
Lucas: 10%
Mr. Game & Watch: 8%
Snake: 9%
Sonic: 8%

B. KO Power
Mario: ~160%
Luigi: ~139%
Donkey Kong: ~161%
Zelda: ~164%
Ganondorf: ~188%
R.O.B.: ~199%
Olimar (blue): ~131%
Olimar (purple): ~163%
Ivysaur: 168%
Ness: ~112% *Strongest throw in the game (with no DI)*
Lucas: ~155%
Snake: ~195%

C. Notable throws
Back throws tend to be better kill moves than forward throw, but most characters will still need to be pretty close to the edge for them to work consistently.
King Dedede - As the most damaging throw in the game, it should always be your choice if you aren't chain grabbing.
Ness - Already addressed above, but worth another mention.
Marth - Again, Marth's throws allow for good spacing.

4. Down Throw
A. Damage
Mario: 6%
Luigi: 6%
Peach: 7%
Bowser: 12%
Donkey Kong: 7%
Diddy Kong: 9%
Yoshi: 4%
Wario: 7%
Link: 7%
Zelda: 10%
Sheik: 6%
Ganondorf: 7%
Toon Link: 7%
Samus: 6%
Zero Suit Samus: 7%
Pit: 6%
Ice Climbers: 6%
R.O.B.: 10%
Kirby: 12%
Meta Knight: 11%
King Dedede: 8%
Olimar
-Red: 9%
-Yellow: 8%
-Blue: 12%
-White: 6%
-Purple: 8%
Fox: 9% (all lasers)
Falco: 8% (all lasers)
Wolf: 12%
Captain Falcon: 7%
Pikachu: 10%
Squirtle: 7%, 5% fatigued
Ivysaur: 10%, 7% fatigued
Charizard: 6%, 4% fatigued
Lucario: 10%
Jigglypuff: 10%
Marth: 5%
Ike: 6%
Ness: 9%
Lucas: 7%
Mr. Game & Watch: 6%
Snake: 12%
Sonic: 8%

B. KO Power
Olimar (purple): ~175%
Squirtle: ~148%, ~193% fatigued *kills off the side*
Charizard: ~155%, ~174% fatigued *kills off the side*
Ike: ~175%
Lucas: ~141%

C. Notable throws
Down throws are the most common combo starters as well as the most likely to be chain grabs.
Wario - Can chain grab heavier characters. Also good for tech chase.
R.O.B. - He just drilled your head in the ground!!!
King Dedede - Chain grab. Difficult to escape for most characters, infinite on some characters.
Falco - Chain grab. Ridiculously good and difficult to escape.
Pikachu - His other chain grab. Better for heavier characters.
Mr. Game & Watch - This can be immediately followed by jab, down tilt, or down smash, and they all lead to pain.
Snake - Good for tech chasing, and can be used as an infinite on certain platforms.

5. Up Throw
A. Damage
Mario: 8%
Luigi: 9%
Peach: 8%
Bowser: 10%
Donkey Kong: 9%
Diddy Kong: 9%
Yoshi: 5%
Wario: 10%
Link: 7%
Zelda: 11%
Sheik: 5%
Ganondorf: 7%
Toon Link: 7%
Samus: 9%
Zero Suit Samus: 10%
Pit: 11%
Ice Climbers: 6%
R.O.B.: 10%
Kirby: 10%
Meta Knight: 12%
King Dedede: 9%
Olimar
-Red: 9%
-Yellow: 11%
-Blue: 12%
-White: 6%
-Purple: 11%
Fox: 8% (all lasers)
Falco: 8% (all lasers)
Wolf: 7%
Captain Falcon: 7%
Pikachu: 10%
Squirtle: 11%, 8% fatigued
Ivysaur: 10%, 7% fatigued
Charizard: 11%, 8% fatigued
Lucario: 4% base, 5% @ 50, 6% @ 100, 8% @ 200
Jigglypuff: 10%
Marth: 4%
Ike: 6%
Ness: 10%
Lucas: 10%
Mr. Game & Watch: 8%
Snake: 10%
Sonic: 12%

B. KO Power
Easily the most diverse list of KO throws.
Link: ~164%
Zelda: ~185%
R.O.B.: ~160%
Kirby: ~167%
Meta Knight: ~172%
Olimar (yellow): ~170%
Olimar (blue): ~137%
Olimar (purple): ~114% *second strongest throw in the game*
Squirtle: ~166%
Ivysaur: ~150%
Charizard: ~157%, ~198% fatigued
Ness: ~198%
Lucas: ~151%
Sonic: ~189%

C. Notable throws
Up throws in general are kind of mediocre. Not terrible, but usually not the best.
Olimar - Fear the blue and purple Pikmin.
Sonic - His most damaging and best for following the opponent into the air.

IV. Special Grabs
This section covers special attacks that function as grabs (i.e. go through shields, have pre-set animations, etcetera).
Max Range is the approximate distance the attack can cover (in blocks) and still connect.

1. Bowser: Flying Slam (Side-B)
Frame Duration: 19
Connects on Frames: 4-5
Damage: 18%
Max Range: ~0.9

2. Diddy Kong: Monkey Flip (Side-B)
Duration: 31
Connects on Frames: 10-17
Damage: 15% attack, 10% jump
Max Range: ~1.5 (note: will not connect if Diddy is directly next to opponent)

3. Yoshi: Egg Lay (Neutral B)
Duration: 20
Connects on Frames: 9-10
Damage: 7%
Max Range: ~1.0

4. Wario: Chomp (Neutral B)
Duration: 23 minimum, 49 maximum
Connects on Frames: 4-14 minimum, 4-39 maximum
Damage: 2% per chomp, 5% on release
Max Range: ~0.2

5. Ganondorf: Flame Choke (Side-B)
Duration: 31
Connects on Frames: 9-16
Damage: 9%
Max Range: ~2.0

6. Kirby: Swallow (Neutral B)
Duration: 38 minimum
Connects on Frame: 8 onward
Damage: 10%
Max Range: ~0.8

7. King Dedede: Inhale (Neutral B)
Duration: 40 minimum
Connects on Frame: 9 onward
Damage: 10%
Max Range: ~1.1

8. Lucario: Force Palm (Side-B)
Duration: 32
Connects on Frames: 4-12
Damage: 9% @ 0, 11% @ 50, 14% @ 100, 18% @ 200
Max Range: ~0.7

V. Recommendations

Positive
1. Olimar, Olimar, Olimar.
His grab game is just too good. He has the fastest and longest range grab, he has decent pummeling (better if using white), and he has the most powerful throws in the game. Blue Pikmin are dangerous!
2. Ness and Lucas
Which one you go with will depend on your play style, but both of the Mother boys have great grab games. Ness is a little faster and stronger, but Lucas has a range grab as well as the best pummel rate in the cast.
3. King Dedede
He has great reach on his grab, high damage throws (including the most damaging in the game), and one of the best chain grabs (if not the best).
tl;dr version: D3 throws good.
4. Ice Climbers
Based on the stats I've listed, the IC's throw game looks really bad. But all of it is only taking into account Popo on his own. With Nana at his side, their sub-par grab game becomes a chain-grab bonanza that builds damage quickly and sets up for deadly finishers.

Neutral
Characters that have fairly good grab statistics but nothing to particularly set them apart include: Bowser, R.O.B., Kirby, Meta Knight, Pokemon Trainer (all 3), and Snake.

Negative
1. Ike
Ike's grab range is average at best, and he has the second weakest damage spread after Marth. Besides, you should be smacking people with your huge sword instead.
2. Ganondorf
His grab range is one of the worst, he only does moderate damage (except for Forward throw), and none of his throws really set up for anything he can punish. Like Ike, he should stick to causing large amounts of direct pain.

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Well, there it is. Hope this will prove helpful to the community!

Edits:
9/27, 7PM ~ Added R.O.B. to the pummel list. Whoops.
9/27, 11PM ~ Added Sonic to the Up Throw KO list (thanks to Tenki).
10/1, 1PM ~ Added DK's Cargo-back throw to damage list. Updated KO percentages. Removed G&W from Recommendations.
10/6, 4AM ~ Added Dash and Pivot Grabs; updated Standard Grabs. Removed Lucario's Forward Throw from Notable Grabs (thanks to Samuelson). Added Kirby to Recommendations.
10/6, 2PM ~ Added color coding to all Grab sections.
10/9, 12:30PM ~ Updated Pummeling section. Changed Grab Release section, partially complete.
10/11, 4:30PM ~ Grab Release section completed.
11/9, 9:45PM ~ Special Grab section added.
11/29, 10:30PM ~ Added Dedede to Recommendations. Other minor updates.

Well done, subscribed
add dash grab range and you'll be set for good

Wow, well done for collecting so much data! Very helpful and possible sticky.

You need to test Pivot Grab range too, because some people (and by people, I mean Yoshi) Rely on Pivot grabs as their primary Grab

Oh yea, i remember reading on smash dojo wedsite before brawl was released that pivoting your grab extends its range, add also pl0x

LOL. Mr no power no priarity no range 11!!!1 has the strongest upthrow in the game.

Good work on all this.

ROB is not in the pummel list

Couple questions

How about Luigi Bthrow fresh? It kills at ~125%.

Also, what about throws that hit people? (with the person being thrown), What kind of damage do they do? Do they count towards stale moves?

please check your numbers for sonic and marios grab. in my testing for a matchup, sonics grab outranged marios every time. and i cant believe pikachu has such a high grab range, when hes noted for having one of the worst.

Something I noticed when I was doing some tests with Squirtle and his grab range:

The most accurate measurement for Squirtle's grab range is found by grabbing Kirby and letting him get out of your grab. The distance between Squirtle and Kirby is aproximately Squirtle's grab range. Squirtle will be unable to grab Kirby depending on Kirby's idle animation (He swings his arms back and forth; Squirtle can only grab while Kirby's arms are swung forward).

Totally pointless information, I know.

****, lucas and olimar are a lot better than i thought

@Mmac: I'm currently in the process of testing pivot grabs (it's a little harder to gauge accurately), but yeah, Yoshi's is pretty sick.

@Nintendevil: added ROB. must have just missed him the first time

@cr4sh: All the throws were tested from the center of FD, so obviously they'll kill faster at the edges. Hadn't considered entering deadweight information, maybe later.

@djbrowny: I will double check both Sonic and Mario to verify their ranges. I was surprised at Pikachu, too. I'll double check him, too, just to be sure.

Omg, Leon used my Ø! More to the point, very informative information, nice job collecting everything.

Nice set of data. Kudos to you for testing everyone.

How are you planning on accurately measuring pivot grabs?

this really helps. ill keep note of the kill %s ggs

Awesome. This helps a lot. Thank you for doing this.
Didn't know that GDorf's FThrow was that good.

@UnSaxon:
Sonic's U-throw should kill Mario at 180-190%.

It kills.

I use it for my sandbag/pwnd kills lol.

PS:
I'm pretty sure that everyone's pivot grabs have different effects.

Some get faster speed (compared to dash grab and/OR normal grabs), and others get more range.

o__o;

kudos for testing everything lol.

thats interesting i though Dedede had the biggest (non tether) grab range.

Did you check the killpower on Lucario's uthrow? Supposedly it can kill at fairly high %.

Not sure where you'd fit it in, but Lucario's forcepalm grab at full aura is devastating. Very close if not more powerful than Olimar's purple uthrow.

Thanks for putting this together, I've been hoping for a thread like this for a long time.

The bit about grab range is especially handy.

Fizzle said:

Did you check the killpower on Lucario's uthrow? Supposedly it can kill at fairly high %.

Not sure where you'd fit it in, but Lucario's forcepalm grab at full aura is devastating. Very close if not more powerful than Olimar's purple uthrow.

Click to expand...

Even an auracapped Lucario's uthrow won't kill until well over 200%.

Force Palm, however, is indeed obnoxiously powerful at high %s (Kills at about 150% with Lucario at 100%, and 115(!)% with Lucario at max), but it is a special move, so it might not be counted.

Also, Sonic's uthrow will kill at 189%. Who knew?

That grab range list is terribly inaccurate.

Sonics uthrow is great on stages like the first phase of halberd... can kill lightweights < 100% :D

I might also suggest you add stats on all moves that act as grabs (that is, anything that can "grab" someone out of their shield: Ganon's Side B and Up B, Cap Falcon's Up B, Bowser's Side B, Lucario's Side B, Diddy's Side B, I'm probably forgetting some).

I'm not particularly grab savvy, but I'd like you to explain a phenomena for me:

Whenever I grab someone in battle (Not training mode) with Ike and do a quick throw, the damage is sometimes 7% instead of 6%. His pummel also does 4% sometimes. I'm pretty sure this'll happen to other characters. Can you rationalize this?

I never knew Wolf had the shortest grab range.....

another thing... check the speed at which you can pummel characters. i know for sonic at least, you can pummel a fair amount faster if you tap a rhythmically instead of just mashing it as fast as possible. you can get at least 1 extra jab for every 3 that you would get by mashing it

YagamiLight said:

I'm not particularly grab savvy, but I'd like you to explain a phenomena for me:

Whenever I grab someone in battle (Not training mode) with Ike and do a quick throw, the damage is sometimes 7% instead of 6%. His pummel also does 4% sometimes. I'm pretty sure this'll happen to other characters. Can you rationalize this?

Click to expand...

Light, I think the thing with that is really simple, it's either diminishing returns, or just estimating to the closer whole number. I kind of browsed the forums for this kind of stuff, and I was looking at lucario's pummel damage %. I was reading up numbers like .5% or somewhere there, and I sometimes look at my opponents damage while I pummel them to see how much I do in combat, and when I pummel my opponents it doesn't even do 1% damage until I either performed a throw/did antoher pummel/they got out of my grab.

I'm going to assume the same physics apply with Ike and depending on what the system wants to do it just gets you to the closer whole number on what attacks you perform.

I hoped that answered your question.

Kinzer said:

Light, I think the thing with that is really simple, it's either diminishing returns, or just estimating to the closer whole number. I kind of browsed the forums for this kind of stuff, and I was looking at lucario's pummel damage %. I was reading up numbers like .5% or somewhere there, and I sometimes look at my opponents damage while I pummel them to see how much I do in combat, and when I pummel my opponents it doesn't even do 1% damage until I either performed a throw/did antoher pummel/they got out of my grab.

I'm going to assume the same physics apply with Ike and depending on what the system wants to do it just gets you to the closer whole number on what attacks you perform.

I hoped that answered your question.

Click to expand...

I guess that makes sense when you think about it, though I'd assumed Lucario was a special case.

It answered the question quite well, many thanks.

Fantastic list! Just, maybe, if you have the time, something else you could add would be specials that grab the opponent, such as Lucario's side b, Bowser's side b (kills at 0%!!!), Kirby and Dedede's neutral b (also can kill at 0%!!), Wario's neutral b, Ganon/CF's up-b, and Ganon's side b. And, you should add Dedede to the positive grab game part.

Shy Guy 86 said:

I never knew Wolf had the shortest grab range.....

Click to expand...

he doesn't.

that portion of the list is wrong.

I mean, putting Pit's grab range above Fox? Really?

Great guide, already knew most of the stuff but I'm really glad to see it in one place. You might want to add that Bowser has a grab release --> jab/ftilt (also dtilt and klaw on certain characters) on most of the cast, though. That definitely sets him apart from the other grabbers in my opinion, otherwise I would just use side+b instead of grabbing so much. It kind of makes up for his pretty weaksauce throws.

awesome! i haven't checked the hole thing so i don't know if it's flawless but definitly good work. you might also want to add a section about grab releases since you your goal is to cover all grab aspects

nice job!, finally i can see the grab game for all the cast

Well, I'm happy to finally know that Luigi's throws aren't all that bad. ^__^

And now I also know that pummels have better times for different characters, so I'll have to keep that in mind.

Thanks for the list!

Kirby should at least have neutral, really.
His grabs aren't that great in stats, but they lead to great throw combos on a good portion of the cast.

Checking KO %'s with a CPU is a bad idea because they'll DI differently each time you throw. It's better to get a second player who just does nothing. Or equivalently, in training mode set the CPU to "Control".

Also I think moves do sliightly less damage in training mode than in an actual fight. Just FYI.

It has nothing I want to know about grab and release though.

A few disclaimers:

First of all, there may be a few (or more than a few) errors on the grab range section, simply because I was estimating before. Now that I'm also trying to test pivot/dash grab ranges, I'm going to re-do that whole section so it's more accurate. I'm also going to add a section about grab speed and lag.

To infzy: Just did a quick comparison between Brawl mode and Training mode using Ike. Forward-smash and Up-smash each did 1% less while in Training mode, but Forward-tilt did the exact same amount. Since Training moves are not affected by move decay, I think the numbers are pretty close. But since I'll be rechecking anyway, I'll probably double check all the throw percentages and the pummel damage/rates just to be sure. Those should be pretty accurate, but I like being thorough.

I may end up adding the "special" throws at a later time, but for the moment, I'm keeping this guide exclusive to the standard throws.

Lastly, I appreciate the support everyone's been giving. I realize that it's not perfect, but the more people point out and suggest, the more accurate it will become over time.