Aerials

General Information

NAir is a central part of King K. Rool's neutral, advantage and disadvantage. It's one of our best ways to get players off us, our main OOS, edgeguards characters for you, and has amazing combo potential. There are few scenarios where NAir isn't a viable option, and playing to this strength is crucial for being successful with K. Rool.

The main reason why this move is so good is the fact it's an armored sex kick that's -4 on shield. With K. Rool's incredible short hop fast fall in mind, you can mix NAir into this to create a 50/50 tomahawk. With the F6 armor in mind, this is extremely safe and very difficult for many characters to deal with.

NAir in Disadvantageous Situations

NAir is far and away our most useful character-specific tool in disadvantage. This is partially due to a lack of better options, but to say NAir is bad would be a misunderstanding at best. It is very good, and is essentially K. Rool just saying “aight here’s my armor you stop whatever you’re doing”. 6.0.0 reducing the landing lag has made this - really - a premier option, as you can buffer dash out of the landing lag to reset neutral even more consistently. Hell, if the opponent shields it, you can spotdodge a shieldgrab with near-consistency as well, which makes it even better.

NAir is our most reliable out of shield option, being F9 Armor and F10 hitbox. This gives a tech situation once it starts sending into tumble (%s can be found here), which can be used for combos, Crown/Kannonball setups and more. Personally I lean towards Crown because NAir is quite committal, which naturally means it's laggy. Once the opponent starts to be sent into tumble, it’s time to use this OOS my dude.

NAir is also our primary landing option after FF N-Airdodge. This is because the armor is F6-30, thus it can stop almost any juggle. The only exceptions are multihits that go past him and those that hit behind him, both of which are extremely rare and often circumvented through fast falling.

While it is immensely strong for landing, it is not very safe if the opponent reads it, and this isn't uncommon due to how predictable it can be. Additionally, its staling does make the hit advantage questionable at lower %s, so be careful there too. However, these shortcomings do little to take away from this move's extremely high potential for abuse.

Late NAir Combos

Late NAir is pretty damn good once it starts sending into tumble, and I often kick myself for not using it more. 6.0.0 made it even better, due to the landing lag reduction making it extremely + on hit in almost every circumstance.

It's recommended to practice approaching with SHFF NAir, buffering dash out of the landing lag. This aggressive style of approach makes the best use of its amazing -4 shield advantage, and can be very obnoxious for players to deal with. While it's far from spammable and the hitbox can be iffy, this does little to deter from the safety.

Late NAir is +3 on hit at 0, and very soon, +10 on hit (tested on Mario) at 25%, which is a Jab confirm, and shortly after, an iDA confirm. It very quickly becomes an FTilt confirm as you can imagine from this, usually at 50%. You're normally able to grab after hitting NAir even at 0, as they instinctually shield in response. This usually means a UThrow, and before you know it, the opponent has taken like 40% just for letting you land. Keep in mind, all of this is Non-Tumble Hitstun. It doesn’t send into tumble until an average of 70%, which means you have true combos that cannot be DI’d. As a result, when landing with NAir out of disadvantage, you can potentially get a complete reversal off of it. K. Rool players absolutely need to get used to this aggressive option if they want to win.

Of course, Late NAir sending into tumble means more aggressive options are available to you as well. You can tech chase with the aforementioned moves we comboed with before - sometimes they're still true. Crown becomes extremely viable due to it covering every getup option, tech or not.

All of this culminates into Late NAir being an extremely useful combo tool, albeit a bit difficult to use due to the hitbox and how telegraphed the move can be. A useful way to mitigate this is to practice using SHFF NAir, but doing the NAir a bit earlier than you would a normal aerial. Using it like Mario NAir can work, although once again the animation makes it easier to react to. Our NAir is still pretty safe, especially on crossup, so using it in that fashion could work as well.

NAir Edgeguarding

Due to the armor properties and angle of NAir, this can be used to edgeguard and gimp a lot of the cast, even characters who usually wouldn’t have this issue (eg. Lucina’s safe as hell Up B gets NAired). This is an insane gimping tool when used correctly and will result in large levels of salt. Given you armor through literally everything except command grabs, there’s really no risk other than the typical edgeguarding risks. It’s braindead as hell, just make sure you don’t do FAir by mistake.

Against Ganondorf and Captain Falcon, NAir doubles its edgeguard potential. You get a large hurtbox extension by technicality: it’s just covered by armor. However, their Up Bs ignore armor, and will attempt to stage spike you. If you abuse LSI (hold down to lower launch speed, making untechables worse, in short you survive like 30-40% longer) and teching, you can do what is known as a rockcrock. This is a timeless technique where you tech their Up Bs and punish, thereby gimping them. So you can either gimp with NAir or abuse the hurtbox extension to get hit and gimp them anyway: it’s pivotal that you learn this.

However, when I say edgeguarding risks, not many people seem to know them. Let ol' Plague here give you a rundown;

• Trying to edgeguard means you’re confident enough to completely give up stage control for the sake of an early stock. This means you should know their recovery habits by heart.

• If the opponent escapes and gets back on stage, you are in a ledgetrap situation. K. Rool absolutely sucks on the ledge, and if the opponent is a Belmont or something you’re probably dead for trying.

• Reverse edgeguarding exists, and while it isn’t a large risk to K. Rool it’s definitely something to think about.

So, while NAir is braindead in most contexts, do not edgeguard without a plan. Don’t just go offstage, you have all the time in the world and do not need to bum rush an opponent. Watch their route, anticipate where they’re going, and let it rip. That is where NAir truly shows its potential.

NAir Ledgetrapping

This all boils down to NAir’s most interesting use: ledgetrapping. By using SHFF NAir, you’re often able to keep the opponent from coming on stage, all while having massive combo potential. Furthermore, the landing lag allows you to react to whatever option the opponent picks that beats it. It can cover neutral getup, ledge attacks and ledgejump up close, and drifting back can have Late NAir connect on ledgerolls. However, it won’t always cover everything, so be careful and use it when it seems favorable. Remember, stalling on ledge doesn’t work for the opponent if used in this way. It’s damn safe to ledgetrap with now, thanks to the new landing lag allowing you to buffer a dash every time.

This move also hits under the ledge if you do the early hit close to the ground, and even the late hit can connect on some characters. Check here to see who it works on.

General Information

This move is great, especially when used while dropping through a platform. It sends the opponent away at a nice angle, and can be used out of DThrow to put the opponent into a disadvantageous situation. Through this you can begin Crown and Blunderbuss pressure. This is one of, if not the most damaging FAirs in the game, free. Devastating move. Oh, and it beats projectiles.

This is an important neutral tool thanks to it essentially resetting neutral when hit, and because it is among K. Rool's fastest and strongest aerial tools. The range is also of particular note. It also catches jumps pretty much 100% of the time if you’re playing correctly, keeping the opponent in disadvantage or resetting neutral. Being able to clank with projectiles is also very handy, especially with the minimal landing lag allowing for a reasonably easy dash buffer. It is also one of the safest moves on whiff in K. Rool’s kit, so it is strongly recommended to go for it. Retreating FAir in neutral is very very strongly recommended.

This move can be used to burst out of a ledgetrap if one drops from the ledge, jumps and immediately uses it. It will require some practice, though. This an immensely valuable tool given King K. Rool is noticeably susceptible to ledgetrapping.

FAir on Shield

FAir can be safe on shield if you space it correctly (-6 on shield), and you should consider it to be an Option Select.

Here is a small OS you can use with FAir on shield;

• Spotdodge -> DTilt / Jab depending on safety, -7 or less is a spotdodge DTilt on the entire cast

• Jab to catch shieldgrabs

• Dashback for movement pressure

• DSmash for a shieldbreak setup if they hold shield for some reason

• iDA to crossup (very unsafe)

Many players often have issues getting the full safety of FAir, and it’s understandable as it doesn’t deal much shieldstun. To do it, you need to land it a bit later than you would a normal aerial. Or, you can do retreating FAir for improved safety. Both of these methods will allow for FAir on shield to be as safe as Joker’s BAir, which is also -6!

Combo Utility

FAir is one of the best combo tools K. Rool has, and if any other character had it they would be very very very busted. There are a good few reasons for this. FAir’s early and mid hitboxes do not send into tumble until 25%ish, and start at +14 on hit VS the entire cast. As a result, this confirms into a TON of stuff. Non-tumble hitstun CANNOT be DI’d, meaning that not only is everything guaranteed, but you can practice this in Training Mode right now!

Here are some confirms from Non-Tumble FAir Early-Mid. These are my personal favorites that I use with K. Rool all the time:

• Grab

  • FThrow iDA works on a few characters after this

  • UThrow means like 40%+ with a juggle situation

  • DThrow can be used as a knowledge check

• Jab

  • Very easy to do with a free tech situation, thus Crown can work with this as an alternative route. DAir locking can be done if you’re quick enough, but don't count on it.

• iDA

  • Highest damage if Grab isn’t favorable with a free ledgetrap situation.

  • Works even after sending into tumble until around 50%ish. This is your mid% BnB.

  • Outclasses FTilt, practice buffering dash out of FAir. Don't skip out on free damage.

• DTilt

  • Only if landed frame perfectly at 0, but it becomes better at around 10%. Allows for s.Jab into iDA or Grab.

Due to this, it is strongly recommended to mercilessly fish for FAir when possible. NAir/FAir -> FAir off a platform or stage space is also possible and kills.

Kill Confirm Utility

This move can kill at around 120% when sweetspotted at the edge on most stages. Great for chasing off stage with when you start turning the pressure up too.

FAir’s Late Hit doesn’t send into tumble until ludicrous %s, and can be used to confirm Grab at around 70%. This can be used to go into DThrow U/FSmash 50/50s, and serves as a kill confirm. However, 6.0.0 made this a lot more difficult due to reducing the hitbox activity and increasing the damage.

FAir Ledgetrapping

FAir serves as a wall during ledgetraps due to its 7 total active frames. As a result this can catch a very wide scope of options - sometimes every single one - due to its sex kick nature. FAir Late can confirm a kill if you hit with it properly just because they did neutral getup. Don’t mash it, though.

This move also hits the ledge if you execute it very close to the ground, check here to see who it works on. It’s not easy to do but kills, so it’s useful.

General Information

BAir is among the strongest kill moves in King K. Rool’s moveset. Period. This move is capable of killing at like 85%, angle be damned, if the opponent is grounded. In the air, they can die as low as 20%.

Many often say this move is bad due to how slow it is. While this definitely means you can be out-framed, this isn’t always something an opponent can do. Considering reaction time, they have to telegraph it, or challenge with an extremely fast move/projectile. Being out-framed is rarely an issue if you space BAir correctly, but obviously it isn’t safe. Please don’t take this as a “spam it” thing; BAir is at its best when used as a surprise option, and that is where it stays.

Another common complaint people have is that BAir gives a bad hurtbox extension. There is one, but it is extremely minor and a lot like the rest of his moves. The fist is disjointed, and the arm hurtbox is generally not that large. So overall, the hurtbox extension is actually one of the smallest in his kit. It's arguably a good hurtbox shift because of how K. Rool moves his body, if anything.

BAir on Shield

BAir is -7 on shield landing, and due to how slow it is you can easily space it. By spacing BAir, you can dash away from most OOS options, thereby leaving your opponent with a battered shield. If they’re OOS-happy, you may even bait out something like Cloud’s dreaded Climhazzard. It is deceptively hard to punish BAir in this circumstance.

Due to its hitbox and shield frame advantage, BAir is a very safe crossup option. It’s definitely high-risk due to it being F18, but the opponent likely won’t drop shield in the face of such a terrifying move. Against opponents with poor anti-crossup options (eg. Ganondorf, but he has FSmash VS jump-ins), this move is exceptional.

Landing BAir

Landing BAir is a good way to use the move in neutral or when trying to land, where it has fringe uses. Being -7 on shield makes it a lot safer than one would imagine, and it’s great at baiting opponents.

Landing BAir’s best uses, however, is whiff punishing and reads. Given opponents just rush in when they see it anyway, it’ll probably whiff punish during the startup on its own. Anyway, if you anticipate the opponent being stupid with their burst options (eg. Sonic with his Spin Dashes), you can use Retreating SH BAir to stuff their option and possibly even kill them. It’s extremely strong in this regard.

Minor Combo Utility

BAir can, in fact, confirm stuff at Low%s, such as FTilt, if you cross up with it. This isn’t easy by any stretch of the imagination, but it’s definitely something to consider. iDA is also possible, given FTilt works. Oh, and...do this if the opponent doesn’t tech. This move is a DAir Lock setup at Low%s, which leads to some obnoxious combos.

Kill Confirms with BAir

FThrow confirms BAir at around 20% if you’re extremely fast with your attack cancels. It's very inconsistent and usually works better as a knowledge check and/or jump punish though, so don't feel bad if you can't do it frame perfectly.

Don't skip on Returning Crown -> BAir either, which is one of the best kill confirms at ledge. With the 6.0.0 buffs to Crown Armor, this is even easier to do when jumping from ledge with it. This is also one of the best shieldbreak punishes that K. Rool has.

This move also hits the ledge for some reason - although it is difficult - check here to see who it works on.

General Information

This move has extremely high endlag, making it primarily a kill option when chasing opponents in the air. Unlike most aerials that give momentum before use, UAir did not receive the change in 4.0.0 that made them all give it out of hitstun. Odd design choice, but oh well. 6.0.0 has further buffed UAir, making it kill at around 60-70%ish, as well as making the early hit active until the head intangibility ends.

Despite what people say about it, UAir is an extremely powerful tool. Its kill power cannot be understated, and it is not the type of aerial you can challenge. Ever. The armor is frame 7, there's head intangibility...yeah, unless you're attacking from behind, you're not stopping it. It’s literally one of the strongest kill moves in the game, with rage you can just put fundamentals to the curb and hail mary this sometimes. The risk-reward isn’t really skewed either, K. Rool falls like a brick which makes the endlag not as bad as it looks.

This move's upward trajectory can be abused for some interesting platform movement when short hopped coupled with the long lasting hitbox. This leads to some fun ways to steal a platform and maintain stage control, although this is mostly a niche play. Sharking is also a potential application here on some stages such as Lylat Cruise, although it isn't that insane or anything. Still cool to know though. These three resources are very helpful for mastering it.

UAir also has an interesting quirk in that you can influence the trajectory slightly. This is very powerful in disadvantage, as it means that you never have to jump to recover. You can fast fall to escape punishes quite quickly, and it's not like you're being challenged on startup.

These two traits also culminate to make UAir an amazing callout for bad jumps, which Dera uses to great effect. If your opponent is the type to spam aerials like crazy, you can often SH UAir and catch their aerial, ending stocks very early. Don't be afraid to RAR it as a DI mixup too if you're feeling bold.

UAir in Disadvantage

UAir functions as an alternative to NAir as a combo breaker (F7 Armor+Hitbox), which can allow it to kill opponents for overextending. While it is a niche option due to the hitbox, it works surprisingly well, especially out of hitfreeze where it won’t go up.

UAir’s trajectory can be influenced after the hitbox terminates, enabling it to function as a recovery move. This is usually used after a Gut Check Stall. The most important aspect of this, is that you effectively get a second double jump when recovering. Given K. Rool does not want to lose his jump, UAir becomes an extremely important move in that respect. It’s also good for avoiding a spike if you do wind up using your jump beforehand.

Combo Utility

UAir is usually a combo finisher out of Crownerang, which works from 60% and is a kill confirm at later %s. Outside of this, UAir is a nice frame trap out of UTilt if the opponent jumps, acting as a 50/50 at Low%s if you consider punishing landings out of Late UTilt. You can also frame trap into UTilt if you cancel UAir on a platform, but it's not great and usually just acts as a way of making the opponent jump, thereby letting you catch with UAir again for a stock.

General Information

This is a typical spike, with the average startup and everything. However, like everything King K. Rool has, there are a lot of caveats made in the effort to make him as complicated as possible. The only real issue with DAir is that it’s laggy enough to kill you if you use it wrong offstage.

The feet go through platforms, leading to it becoming a very nice challenge move against sharking! Definitely something to consider in that aspect as there are a few fringe options that come from this, such as a kill confirm with DSmash as they pop up and such. This makes it a very good disadvantage tool and acts as just another way to make the opponent groan for trying to hit you.

DAir 2-framing

Ok, so: the vertical hitboxes on DAir are wack. This is an extreme case, but know that this move can spike people from very, very far away. With 4 active frames and this considered, it is possible to spike opponents from down below the ledge. This allows you to spike people before they even get to the 2-frame punish window for grabbing ledge. As a result, DAir is a crucial edgeguarding tool and will be how you get stocks a lot of the time.

It should be emphasized that 2-framing with DAir is pretty much non-committal. The landing lag isn't much, and as long as you learn to buffer dash out of it, you can often punish whatever ledge option the opponent mashes in a desperate attempt to not die for playing the game. This is crucial for ledgetrapping successfully. Don't be afraid to mash NAir a bit and go from there, these moves work very well with each other.

On a side note, this move also hits the ledge: check here to see who it works on. It’s literally everyone, and as a result it catches ledge regrabs and anyone stalling. If they come off the ledge, Late DAir can be used to ledgetrap, or the meteor smash can confirm into USmash.

DAir Combos

DAir is a very strong combo enabler due to it not sending into tumble for a very long time. This oft-perceived weakness is actually a massive boon, enabling K. Rool to remove interaction for powerful confirms. DAir’s Meteor Smash hitbox is amazing for combos, before and after tumble. It begins at -1 on hit with perfect landing, but at around 40% it’ll get +16. This confirms DTilt on hit, although the range is pretty meh. It does however confirm Grab very easily, enabling heaps of damage.

Once DAir sends into tumble (Avg. 46.8%), you can get grabs due to how low they’re sent up. As you can imagine, there are many other possible followups here. The basic USmash has nothing on iDA confirms, or a second DAir for that USmash. There's just a lot you can do here and I encourage you to experiment with it.

DAir is also notorious for being able to store a Grounded Spike in buries. This happens on an average of 46.8% - 56.7%. We call this DAir Spike Storage. The range is pretty tight but If you get it, it’s usually a stock due to confirming stuff like FSmash, or a Grab due to the low height. You can even use DAir again as a surprise option and USmash.

DAir’s Late Sourspot doesn’t send into tumble until an average of 44%, as you will find here. It caps out at +16 Hit Advantage, with the next hitfreeze frame being Tumble%. Starting at +3, you can get a rough idea of what it can confirm. DAir can confirm many things, such as Dash Grab, if you land with it correctly. It’s very difficult to really stop this, and you tend to get a stock just by landing it.

Here are some moves that Non-Tumble DAir Late Sourspot confirm;

• Dash Grab

• FTilt

• iDA

Due to the opponent being sent a bit far, it is difficult to confirm stuff at max advantage. Some players opt for Crownerang due to this.

Once DAir’s Late hits start sending into tumble (Avg. 19% Sweetspot, 44% Sourspot) you can get some pretty nice tech situations, usually allowing Crownerang to cover all bases. You can however chase with another DAir to DAir Lock, or perhaps use Jab for it. This is fairly easy to do, and it is recommended to learn how to do this.

It is important to note DAir Late’s sweetspot has higher priority, so sending into tumble at Low%s is very easy. DAir Late Sweetspot also forces a tech on hit due to how high the hitfreeze is (+11 Hit Adv at 0 with perfect landing is kinda nutty). A good setup for DAir Late is FThrow into a tomahawk or something like that, as the panic options people pick often come in airdodging in. If they do, DAir can hit them. Doing this early gives you DAir Late, while late gives the meteor smash for a confirm. It’s pretty damn crazy if you get it down, and is a fine frame trap.

DAir Kill Confirms

At high %s, this move has so many kill confirms going in or coming from it, so much that it would be difficult to list them all. Here's a great video showing practical application of grounded DAir. Keep in mind you cannot tech grounded spikes in this game, so the confirms are very viable!

The most common DAir Kill Confirm is DAir USmash/UAir. It’s very simple, and due to low knockback it’s very easy to do as well. Prior to Tumble%, DAir confirms DTilt. This is by far one of this move’s strongest traits, and should be used when the opportunity presents itself. This confirms s.DAir to store a Grounded Spike, and thus enables numerous kill confirms. The Kremling Kombo (DAir DTilt s.DAir DAir FSmash) is the most commonly used one.

DAir Locking

If the opponent doesn’t tech at Low%s from basically any move, you can repeatedly use DAir to Lock. To do this, use it late out of a Short Hop. You want to exploit the hitfreeze to keep the chain going. It’s difficult to do but with practice it is excellent.

Eventually, once it stops locking, they’ll receive a Grounded Spike, allowing for something like a Grab. This leads into some extremely nasty combos and potentially a 0 to death. Muk is very notorious for exploiting this, treating DAir like a Joker FAir 1. If you can somehow land a DTilt during this they’re in for a wild ride.

DAir’s Late Sourspot hitbox can also Lock until an average of 19%, as you can see in this doc here. Through this you can chase with DAir after sparking off a tech situation, thereby giving lock combos more consistency. This is great off of Jab 3 and FTilt where following up can occasionally be difficult.