Lucina Guides

Lucina Guide

Lucina is a popular character due to her involvement in the Fire Emblem series, so when she was announced in June 2018 as part of the SSBU roster, there was understandable excitement. 

Lucina is a great character food beginners, and while she is the echo fighter to Marth, she differs slightly from her colleague, and in a game like Smash, this makes all the difference. Lucina is easily a top-tier character, and there is little debate in this regard. Her supreme walk speed and aerial ability make her a terror against many opponents. Also, her reliance on the fundamentals of fighting games makes her a very useful pocket or main for newer players. 

In this guide, we’ll be looking at how to make use of Lucina, her best moves, weaknesses, and general gameplay. 

Lucina Gameplay Strategy

Lucina is a well-balanced character in terms of playstyle. But, if we had to be pressed into categorizing her, we’ll say she is a rushdown character meaning that she excels at pressuring the opponent and beating them into submission. This is certainly the case with Lucina, whose mobility means that she can easily chase the opponent around the stage where necessary. 

Unlike Marth, she lacks a tipper meaning that the damage potential of her sword is consistent across the blade, which could be both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, she is unable to secure early K.Os the way Marth can with his powerful tipper, but on the other hand, her consistent damage allows her to do away with the intricacies that a Marth player will need. Therefore, she can freely hit opponents without worrying about the spacing or anything. 

Lucina is on the taller side compared to other characters in the game, so she can get hit easily, but she makes up for it with some decent range on her moves, which ease her attack. 

If you are a Lucina player, what will you be looking for? You should focus on incessant attacks and racking up damage to get the K.O and air juggles to ensure your opponent can’t get back down. Once your adversary is off the stage, you can use Lucina’s great off-stage presence to edge guard and keep your opponent off. 

Finally, know when to make use of her shield breaker. Lucina’s shield breaker is a great poking option and can be used, as the name implies, to total an opponent’s defense. Use it well and sparingly as it is susceptible to serious punishment if telegraphed.

Lucina’s top Moves

There are a lot of moves at Lucina’s disposal, but to use her effectively, there are some moves that are a must for every individual that wants to main her. We’ll look at these moves below.

Up Special (Dolphin Slash)

If you are familiar with DPs in fighting games, you’ll love Lucina’s Up special called the Dolphin Slash. As with any DP, Lucina slashes upward with her sword while also taking flight and hitting the opponent in the process and launching them in the air. With this powerful launcher, you can juggle the opponent and keep them in the air for as long as possible. You should note that while it does great vertically, it doesn’t quite have the range horizontally. 

Forward Aerial

As opposed to the Up Special, Lucina’s forward aerial is a downward slash that she performs with her sword extended. By virtue of how the move is performed, it covers ground pretty well and can catch opponents sleeping. It is a great move as it is relatively safe as long as you space it right. Also, it deals consistent damage regardless of where you perform it from because of Lucina’s balanced blade. This is different from Marth because his damage potential relies on his sword tip. Furthermore, it can cause a knockback which is great for your pressure game. 

Back Aerial

Lucina’s back aerial is another upward swing, but it is propelled by a full wind-up since the move starts from behind her. The fascinating thing about the move is how it turns Lucina around, meaning she turns as she does the move. It is a devastating move that provides more knockback and can even get a K.O if done close to the edge against a lighter opponent. It can also be abused since it's safe on shield. 

Side Special – Dancing Blade

This is a rapid four-hit combo with a decent range and does some damage on the opponent. Dancing Blade is a great punish tool for players looking to get in and fight Lucina up close. It is also an effective tool against rollers. With this move, she can space out the opponent and stop their approach. Also, she can cancel out of the third hit and perform an Up special instead, meaning that the move is unpredictable when used right. 

There are several moves for Lucina which you can utilize, but the ones we have just discussed are perhaps the most effective and useful for any skill level.

Lucina’s Weaknesses

To truly master a character, you must be conversant with both their strengths and weaknesses, and Lucina, while strong and competent, does have a few things she struggles with.

Lucina can fight up close when necessary but becomes incredibly vulnerable when zoned out. She finds it difficult to close the gap; therefore, projectile spammers can be tricky to deal with. 

Furthermore, Lucina’s grab is poor and should be used rarely as it offers very little reward. These two problems, coupled with her lower damage potential, mean that anyone playing her needs to be patient. You’ll need to properly plan your attacks and ensure you rack up a decent amount before going for the K.O. 

Conclusion

Lucina is a great character with a low-skill ceiling, meaning that you can pick her up and learn the game with her. Also, since she relies on many of the fundamentals of fighting games that players from other games might be used to, she is a great, uncomplicated option for anyone. Her balanced attacks mean that there can be less precision when attacking with her, and even though she has her weaknesses, once you’re aware of them, you can play around them and get the victory you’ve worked so hard for.