The 'Shroom:Issue LXXIX/Brawl Tactics

Brawl Tactics by

Greetings, Brawlers, welcome to this month's edition of BRAWL TACTICS! This month, I will be covering the stage Distant Planet from the Pikmin series!

Distant Planet is a very small stage that gets even smaller depending on the time during the battle. The smaller platforms on the main tree both bounce, so if you drop something heavy on them, it might be bouncing for a little while! This stage has relatively shallow sides with a deep floor, so if you fall, you'll be falling for a while if you can't pull yourself back up.

First off, the slope on the left side of the stage. It's a pretty steep slope, which means Pokeballs and other items will bounce right off of it, and they'll be gone if you can't catch them. Another bad thing about this slope is that when it rains on this stage, this slope becomes very slippery. The rainwater will flow so quickly that if you stand on this part of the stage for too long, it will carry you away off the cliff quite quickly. This can get annoying if you're trying to get away from an attack, as the area where you can walk on gets even smaller. Along with the reduced terrain in the rain, the rainwater makes Final Smashes like Samus' quite dangerous. If you activate your Smash on this slope when it rains, (using Samus as the example), when your laser runs out and she is losing her armor, the flood of water will carry you away while you are immobile. By the time you can move again, it's almost too late for you to do anything. My advice is to either stay away from this rainy slope or only stand on it when you are sure you'll have a way to pull yourself back up when the water carries you away.

Secondly, there are Pikmin Posies on the stage that will sprout with number capsules. You can choose to throw these at your opponents for a weak attack, or you can throw them at the Onions that land for items instead. Since you're probably losing a good chunk of your items to the slope, I'd suggest saving the capsules to throw at the Onions.

Distant Planet is not without a KO gimmick, and here, it comes in the form of the Red Bulborb. This giant snail-like creature will approach the right side of the stage harmlessly enough, and you can jump on its head and fight there. But when it gets hungry, that's the time to stay away from it. If it catches you in its mouth, you will become lunch and get an instant KO when it drags you off-screen. If you also want to stay and ride it as it leaves the screen, well, that'll be a KO too, so pick your battles wisely with this thing. In my experience, not even the lower-level CPU opponents will go near it, so knocking them inside the thing's mouth is a bit out of the question. Just stay away from this thing, and your time here will be a bit more pleasant.

This stage may seem perfect for fixed-area Final Smashes like Samus', Luigi's, or Donkey Kong's, but keep in mind where you activate them so you don't get swept away while you're still vulnerable. I would NOT use Marth's Final Smash here unless you are 100% confident that you can get him to land where you want him to- the shallow sides and landing area here will render him helpless if you can't catch him, so be warned about that. A Final Smash that works great here is the Ice Climbers'. When you look at it, the stage will really be divided into two parts- the half with the slope and the half without the platforms. If you catch your opponent on the slope, they will take more damage for every time they touch the glacier. If your opponent is stuck on the other side, they'll take damage and they won't have anywhere to stand on, leading them to a slippery fall with a KO at the end. Of course, make sure you and your companion Ice Climber have somewhere to stand so you don't accidentally fall!

Well, that's it for me this month, Brawlers! Go explore a Distant Planet, and I'll see you next time on BRAWL TACTICS!