Do you main toon link? Awesome. Did you used to main toon link, but have since changed your main? You're not alone.
Who did you change your main to, and why?
In the first poll on the general discussion where people declared their mains, Toon Link was the most popular choice on Smashboards by a good number. Initial hype for the character and his campy projectiles and combo game was high, and most people predicted great things for the swordsman of the great sea.
But as we've become more experienced with the game in the last few months, TL mains have dropped off sharply. In terms of tournament rankings, TL, who was once predicted to be high or very high tier, is nestled snugly between Ganondorf and Sonic the Hedgehog in the D rank with only two top 8 appearances. Indeed, even the TL boards lack the kind of debate and discussion that some of the other boards have. A few weeks ago, I even changed my main to ROB myself. I still frequent the TL boards because I secondary him, but he's not my best character, and I'm not alone in this.
Why did this happen?
In this thread, I'm attempting to figure out where all the toon link players migrated to, and maybe why Toon Link isn't living up to his potential (or if he has that potential at all). I'll keep a tally of the new mains to see if a pattern of something emerges, and to get a better idea of why nobody seems to be bringing home tournament wins with toon link, or, really, using him at all in the higher levels of tournament play. Why does this character, who has so many good matchups and attributes and so few negative ones, see so little action?
FORMER TL MAINS SPEAK OUT:
-Smashless: switched to ROB
Reason: I started winning more with ROB, mostly. I think it was because Toon Link is an incredibly unforgiving character. If you mess up his spacing, you're going to eat some damage, and unless TL is in a bair combo, he doesn't build damage terribly quickly. That, combined with his difficult-to-land KO moves and light weight means that TL requires massive amount of technical skill and focus to play correctly. ROB, conversely, likes to Dsmash constantly and fire his lazers. My play-style just works better with the Robotic Operating Buddy. Also: people have been getting smarter as to how they get through camping setups, which was not the case early in brawl's metagame. I found ROB's projectiles easier to effectively use than toon links.
-Yukiwarashi: Switched to Pokemon Trainer
Reason: Challenge of maining 3-in-1 in PT
-Santi: Switched to Charizard
Reason: Rocksmash is teh pwn (perhaps the most valid and lucid argument presented in this thread)
-Ryos4: Switched to Pit
Reason: Pit is a creative character.
-=Shiro=: Switched to ROB
Reason: Found ROB more rewarding, fun and effective
-DJBrowny: Switched to Lucario
Reason: Found TL one dimensional and light. New main Lucario has lots more options for approaches and other techniques.
-AvantGarde: Didn't switch, but offers an interesting rationale as to why people switched:
"it's really easy to see why early adopters never stayed with him. As you said, if you mess up, he's really unforgiving. It's just the kind of thing where lots of experience and practice pays off big, and only being middle class leaves you in the dust. Learning things like SDHA proved to be too much for early adopters, and when the awe of his Dair ran off, people just moved on.
I don't think there's any denying that TL has potential, but most people would rather move on to other characters where it takes less mastery to realize that potential. The other thing that's hurt TL is the fact that popular characters do well against him, (Falco, Metaknight) so people tend to use other characters in tournaments."
Who did you change your main to, and why?
In the first poll on the general discussion where people declared their mains, Toon Link was the most popular choice on Smashboards by a good number. Initial hype for the character and his campy projectiles and combo game was high, and most people predicted great things for the swordsman of the great sea.
But as we've become more experienced with the game in the last few months, TL mains have dropped off sharply. In terms of tournament rankings, TL, who was once predicted to be high or very high tier, is nestled snugly between Ganondorf and Sonic the Hedgehog in the D rank with only two top 8 appearances. Indeed, even the TL boards lack the kind of debate and discussion that some of the other boards have. A few weeks ago, I even changed my main to ROB myself. I still frequent the TL boards because I secondary him, but he's not my best character, and I'm not alone in this.
Why did this happen?
In this thread, I'm attempting to figure out where all the toon link players migrated to, and maybe why Toon Link isn't living up to his potential (or if he has that potential at all). I'll keep a tally of the new mains to see if a pattern of something emerges, and to get a better idea of why nobody seems to be bringing home tournament wins with toon link, or, really, using him at all in the higher levels of tournament play. Why does this character, who has so many good matchups and attributes and so few negative ones, see so little action?
FORMER TL MAINS SPEAK OUT:
-Smashless: switched to ROB
Reason: I started winning more with ROB, mostly. I think it was because Toon Link is an incredibly unforgiving character. If you mess up his spacing, you're going to eat some damage, and unless TL is in a bair combo, he doesn't build damage terribly quickly. That, combined with his difficult-to-land KO moves and light weight means that TL requires massive amount of technical skill and focus to play correctly. ROB, conversely, likes to Dsmash constantly and fire his lazers. My play-style just works better with the Robotic Operating Buddy. Also: people have been getting smarter as to how they get through camping setups, which was not the case early in brawl's metagame. I found ROB's projectiles easier to effectively use than toon links.
-Yukiwarashi: Switched to Pokemon Trainer
Reason: Challenge of maining 3-in-1 in PT
-Santi: Switched to Charizard
Reason: Rocksmash is teh pwn (perhaps the most valid and lucid argument presented in this thread)
-Ryos4: Switched to Pit
Reason: Pit is a creative character.
-=Shiro=: Switched to ROB
Reason: Found ROB more rewarding, fun and effective
-DJBrowny: Switched to Lucario
Reason: Found TL one dimensional and light. New main Lucario has lots more options for approaches and other techniques.
-AvantGarde: Didn't switch, but offers an interesting rationale as to why people switched:
"it's really easy to see why early adopters never stayed with him. As you said, if you mess up, he's really unforgiving. It's just the kind of thing where lots of experience and practice pays off big, and only being middle class leaves you in the dust. Learning things like SDHA proved to be too much for early adopters, and when the awe of his Dair ran off, people just moved on.
I don't think there's any denying that TL has potential, but most people would rather move on to other characters where it takes less mastery to realize that potential. The other thing that's hurt TL is the fact that popular characters do well against him, (Falco, Metaknight) so people tend to use other characters in tournaments."
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