ZSS Tech Blog 002: Banana Tech

One of ZSS' disadvantaged Top Tier matches, Diddy Kong, has the ability to create bananas that she can actually do quite a bit with if we can get control of them. Diddy vs. ZSS is nothing if not a momentum war; unfortunately, the fight will naturally lean toward Diddy Kong because he's creating the bananas and thus the momentum defaults to his favor.

It is possible to steal the bananas from him and do a lot of really cool things with them. Today I'll be talking about two techniques you can use against Diddy Kong, Weak Glide Tossing and Jump Cancelled Throws.

Weak Glide Tossing is an extension of Glide Tossing discovered by Ingulit, jihnsius, and yours truly, and is very effective vs Diddy Kong. First, it puts you in his face. Second, it allows you to recatch the banana out of the air (something not possible with suit pieces). This tech is pretty easy to do with ZSS. To perform, foxtrot left or right, let go of the control stick and immediately tap the shield button. Interrupt the roll by tapping "A" like you would for a regular Glide Toss. The effect is that you gain the momentum of a regular Glide Toss and the distance of a weak toss. ZSS' glide toss is perfect for this, because the banana stays with you as you glide. You can catch it out of the air near the end of the toss. Great for mind games.

Now for the real meat of this entry: Jump Cancelled Throws. JCTs are very useful for ZSS vs. Diddy Kong and this is something I've been wanting to talk about for a while. This tech is performed by tapping X or Y, then immediately hitting A and tapping left or right. The effect is a glide toss with a smaller travel distance. It also allows you to toss bananas up and down at various points during a foxtrot. You can also perform a pivot during the JCT.

For example, it is possible to dribble bananas with ZSS. You can use JCTs to fox trot (tap the direction and release), then JCT down and pick up the banana again. By performing a full dash instead of a foxtrot, the banana appears behind you instead of on top of you; experiment with the various combinations. Combos (both "true" combos and cool move strings) are possible.

Try this: full dash pivot JCT down into Diddy Kong. He will trip, the banana will appear behind him. Jab twice, he'll trip on the banana again, and jab cancel down smash twice into an aerial of your choice.

Comments? Questions? You know what to do.