"Mei-Ling, Samus took her clothes off" - An In-Depth Zero Suit Samus Guide by Koj

• ^{This was made with approval from Gotenks922 (moderator)}
  • ^{This guide was made by Kojira Inoue (awesome guy)}

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I. Intoduction i. How the Zero Suit Came to be... ii. First Use of the Zero Suit iii. How to Select ZSS iv. Pros and Cons II. Attacks i. Button Tutorial ii. Standard Attacks iii. Aerial attacks iv. Special Attacks v. grabs vi Smash Attacks vii. Final Smash III. Combo Videos VI. Matchups

I. Introduction

i. How the Zero Suit Came to be...
In the Metroid series, Samus was usually in her Power Suit mainly to keep her gender as a surpise until an Easter Egg, showing Zero Suit Samus (a.k.a. Zamus or ZSS) in a bikini, was released to unleash the surprise Nintendo was plotting. Later in the series, ZSS was given a less revealing, and opinionated "less desireable", leotard that was dubbed as the "Zero Suit." It never had a major role in the game because there was nothing to protect Samus from the enemy attacks.

ii. First Use of the Zero Suit
Metroid: Zero Mission makes a strong change from the series with the inclusion of an all-new gameplay sequence in which the player must control Samus in her Zero Suit. In this portion of the game, Samus is more vulnerable to damage, she must crawl through ducts on her hands and knees without the help of the Morph Ball power, and her only weapon is a weak pistol that can only stun an enemy for a brief moment. However, Samus retains all energy tanks she acquired previously. This marks the first time she has been playable during the course of normal gameplay without her suit — in each previous Metroid game, seeing Samus without her armor has been a feature in one or more of the game's endings or at least a cosmetic Easter egg.

iii. How to Select ZSS

To choose Zamus, go to the Character Select screen and choose Samus, then hold the [SHIELD] button and press [START]

iv. Pros and Cons
^{The good and the bad about Zero Suit Samus}

Pros
^{The Good | rated 6-10 in comparison with other characters}

• Extremely quick 9
  • Good at racking up damage 7
    • Longest tether recovery 10
    • Able to stun other characters with her Paralyzer 10
    • A decent juggler 7
    • Has Wall Jump ability 6
    • Good spiker 7
    • Already has items to throw at the start of the game 10 (Makes it easier to approach)
    • Excellent recovery 10

Cons
^{The Bad | rated 1-5 in comparison with other characters}

• Final Smash 1
  • Not enough finishing moves 2
    • Practically weightless 2
    • Too few long range attacks 4
    • Difficult to recover when using spike move 1
    • Terrible short hop 3
    • D-smash range too short - doesn't attack around only in front 5

There are more Pros than Cons, some of them are situational for example, wall jumping. That isn't going to help you if you're playing on Final Destination or Battlefield

II. Movelist
^{Basic Button Attacks}

i. Button Tutorial
For directional attacks that involve using the analog stick or directional pad I will use Alt Key Codes. If there is some possibility that your computer isn't able to see the Key Codes please tell me so I will figure out someway to change it

All attack directions are based on ZSS facing the right.
[↑] = Tilt Upwards [↓] = Tilt Downwards [→] = Tilt Forwards [←] = Tilt Backwards , [→→] = dash, [↔] left or right (side), [↔C] = smash attack [A] = regular attack, (such as punch-kick moves) [B] = special (e.g. Mario's fireball), [Z] = sheild button, [→Z] = rolling dodge, [1], [2], and [1 2] = taunts [G] = grab [~] = midair [-] = connect attacks quickly ["] = fully charged ['] = uncharged

If it looks like [A-A-A] that means to press the buttons quickly and

ii. Standard Attacks
^{Basic A moves}


-Standard Attack: 2%
[A]
All Samus does is do a punch. If you hold it, she stays that way until it hits or she gets hit

-Standard Combo: 2% + 2% + 3% = 7%
[A-A-A]
Samus punches twice then finishes with an elbow attack. It's quick but if the enemy is fast enough, they can block the third attack and retaliate witha combo of their own. She tends to lag a bit afterward that third attack but not so much that she's absolutely vulnerable.

-Side Tilt (F-tilt): 6% (strangely it an be 9% too)
[→A]
It's a quick kick. It doesn't leave Samus too vulnerable.

-Up Tilt (U-tilt): 6%
[↑A]
Samus does an upside-down kick thingy... It's a good move to start up a combo with.

-Down Tilt (D-Tilt): 6%
[↓A]
Much like her U-Tilt. A good-but-not-great launcher.

-Dash Attack (Sexkick): 7%
[→→A]
Samus does a sexkick while running. It's good to use when running at an opponent who's busy blocking or charging

iii. Aerial Attacks
^{Midair moves}

-Neutral Air (N-air): 10%
[~A]
Samus does a simple lash of her whip. (whiplash?)

-Forward Air (F-air): 1st kick-6% 2nd kick-10%
[~→A]
The first kick isn't that great but it's good added damage with the second kick which has some surprising knockback. The second kick KO's at around 120%

-Back Air (B-air): 12%
[~←A]
Samus does a kick backwards. It has just as good, if not better, knockback as her second F-air kick.

-Up Air (U-air): 10%
[~↑A]
Samus does a little kick flip. A little lag after she does it but it does good knockback. Not enough to KO though.

-Down Air (D-air): 5%
[~↓A]
Samus does a really quick and dangerous kick downwards. DO NOT USE WHEN THERE'S NO GROUND BELOW! It's difficult to revover from if you do and even if Samus stops kicking, she doesn't slow down. I only reccomend using this move if you're either 1) avoiding an opponent's Final Smash or 2) Trying to survive from an attack that has flown you upwards. In any other case, avoid this move.

iv. Special Attacks
^{Basic B moves}

-Paralyzer: Uncharged-4% Fully charged-6%
[B]
It stuns the opponent. For how long it stuns them, depends on how long you charge it. Be careful though, it can be reflected. It's a big help when trying to set up a combo with a difficult opponent.

-Plasma Whip: Whip-3% End of whip-16%
[↔B]
Samus sends out a spiral whip that has a fierce, powerful blinking tip. Powerful attack the regular whip doesn't KO but the tip can at about 100% or so.

-Plasma Wire: 3% + 3% + 3% + 6% = 15%
[↑B]
Samus uses her whip. It's a perfect recovery move and it spikes at high percentages.It's first 3 hits do 3% damage and the final one spikes and does 6% damage. It's good to use when your opponent is trying to attack you from above. (for example, Sonic's Dair)

-Flip Jump: 12%
[↓B], [↓B~A], [↓B-~A]
Samus does a flip. If you time it right and use your standard attack then Samus does a kick that can spike whoever she kicked that exact moment. It can also be used in midair so it can act like a third jump

v. Throws
^{Using Samus' toss attacks}

-Front Throw: 9%
[G→]
Samus throws the opponent with her whip. It has decent knockback. Best used to setup KO's at high percentages.

-Back Throw: 6%
[G←]
Samus kicks the opponent backwards. Doesn't have much of a good use, I wouldn't suggest using this particular throw

-Up Throw: 10%
[G↑]
Samus knocks the opponent upwards. It's only good to get your opponent out of your face for a while, I wouldn't recommend using this attack to set up for any combos.

-Down Throw: 7%
[G↓]
A safe way to set yourself up for a combo. It sends the opponent up just as high as the Up Throw.

Smash Attacks
^{Using Samus' most powerful attacks}

-Side Smash: Uncharged-11% Fully Charged-14% Behind-6%
[↔C]
Great move to use to rack up damage. OK range. Can KO at 180%. Best usage for this move is to get them when they're trying to recover from below. It does leave Samus a bit vulnerable while she brings her whip back.

-Up Smash: Uncharged-12% Fully Charged-14% Individual Hit-4%
[↑C]
Powerful move. Great for when opponents are attacking you from above. The final hit does the same amount of damage but has more knockback. It KO's at 100% or somewhere around that.It can be used when running so Samus slides a little while spinning her whip around. The Running Up Smash doesn't affect the amount of damage dealt

-Down Smash: Uncharged-10% Fully Charged-16%
[↓C]
Samus shoots at the ground with her paralyzer gun and stuns any foe trapped in-range. If you're fast, you can use it twice and do a bit more damage than one fully charged hit. Great for setting up advanced combos

Final Smash
^{Samus' Final Smash}
[smash ball + B]
Turns Zero Suit Samus into Power Suit Samus. It brings in surrounding opponents and damages then with high voltage electricity. If you're not a good Power Suit Samus player, then you really shouldn't be using ZSS in the first place. If you do use her and don't like PSS, then you should wither get the Smash Ball and keep it without using it or keep others away from it. Kills at about 120% or lower

If you're good with PSS then you should use it at a place where you can't fall to your death or you won't be easily attacked by other players awaiting your lag, but that's in another guide .

III. Advanced Techniques
^{Zero Suit Samus is quick and can attack just as quick, which helps when executing combos such as these.}

Anyone is allowed to post their own personal techniques or names for mine if they would like to, just post it here on this thread or PM me.

THESE VIDEOS WERE CREATED BY myRoboticClaw (Claw)

This first vid has some good beginner-intermediate combos to use. I use them


This next one shows off Zamus' speed and how to use it beautifully


VI. Matchups

GOOD MATCHUPS
Bowser- I love Bowser. But like most heavy characters, he's an easy kill for
Zero Suit Samus. Really, all you need to do is follow the same tips
I gave for Ganondorf. His recovery is very similar to Donkey Kong's,
so it's hard to edgeguard him unless you're going for the spike. One
annoying move you need to watch out for is his Side B. Some Bowser
players, whenever near death, and you have a low damage percentage,
will suicide using the Side B. It's known as Bowsercide, and it's
annoying as hell. In fact, Kirby, Dedede, Ganondorf and Wario can all
do it.

His Final Smash turns him into Giga Bowser. If the Bowser player is good,
there's not too much you can do. Just run to the other end to the stage,
and when he comes near you, try and jump over him, air dodging
repeatedly.

Sonic- Lots of people really hate fighting Sonic because of his speed, but he's really not that tough. If he does his Spin Dash, you can trying
spamming your Down Smash, and if you're lucky, he'll be paralyzed and
you can start a combo. Sonic's light, and has a good recovery, so go
for the Uair kill. The most important thing about fighting Sonic is to
stay in control. He's not that hard.

His Final Smash is probably the best in the game and will kill you along with any other opponent of his. It's overpowered, easy to control and lasts far too long. If you're unlucky, he can
actually kill you twice.

Captain Falcon- This guy's easy. The only thing he's got going for him is speed. He's
got horrible priority, a Falcon Kick and Falcon Punch can be stopped
by pretty much any attack. Almost all of his attacks are slow and
predictable. He's recovery is nothing amazing, but it can't be edgehogged
so you'll need to edgeguard or Side B him at a high percentage.

For his Final Smash, he hops in the Blue Falcon and drives over you
with it. It's pretty much a guaranteed kill. It's a bit like Meta Knight's
Final Smash as in it'll only hit you if you're in front of him. Just
do your best to avoid it.

Kirby <(^.^<)- Online, you see his Down B spammed a lot, but I think it's fairly
predictable. Just roll out of the way and you're free to grab
him. Go for the down or up throw to get aerial combos going.
Kirby can be difficult to juggle, what with the Down B, but
you can air dodge it. You should probably watch out for that
hammer of his, it has some serious knockback, so keep an eye out.

His Final Smash is odd. He sticks everyone in a pot and cooks 'em.
At the end everyone goes flying and there's a bunch of items. I don't
know HOW to dodge it, but it happens sometimes. Try staying far away
from him or something, I'm not really sure what you have to do. It's
not exactly a devastating final smash anyways.



BAD MATCHUPS

R.O.B- ugh, R.O.B's a S.O.B! He's annoying as hell! He hones amazing projectile usage, but it can't be used often but it makes him tough
to approach as does his Down B. He has a great aerial game, so I'd say
your best bet for killing this guy is edgeguarding.

His Final Smash gives him a beam infront of his eyes. Since Zero Suit
Samus is pretty quick, it's not hard to avoid. Don't try attacking him
though, he's invincible.

Ness- I've always hated Ness. I just don't like the guy. Actually, I don't
like his moves either. He's pretty tough to approach, but once you get
in there, he's helpless. His Foward Smash has great knockback, so watch
out. Ness is light, and in that case, I'd usually say use your Uair to
kill him, but Ness is special. He has a horrible recovery. Ness is an
easy kill once he's off the edge. He's completely vulnerable during his
PK Thunder, so you can get an easy kill on him then.

His Final Smash is a star storm. You need to get lucky to survive it,
since Zero Suit Samus is fast, you sure be able to avoid a couple of
stars with your speed.

Ike- ANOTHER character I hate because of online play. He's way overpowered and overused because he tends to be ''noob friendly'' which isn't good for practical stick figures like ZSS.

Aether spammers suck. Ike is pretty much Marth, except slower and much stronger. Watch out for that Side B of his, he'll charge at you quickly and slice you up.
It has good knockback, and that's bad news for Zero Suit Samus. Watch
out for his Up B, Aether. A lot of people spam it, but it has some lag
when he lands, so do what you want with him when you dodge it. His
Foward Smash is insanely powerful, and it can kill you and some pretty
low percentages. Ike is tricky to KO because of Aether. Your best
bet is to get him to hit percentages and hope you can kill him with
Side B or a Fair.

His Final Smash involves him taking you in the air and pretty much
beating the crap out of you. If he doesn't land the first hit though,
nothing happens. It's a bit like Metaknight's Final Smash. Just
do your best to avoid it.


Solid Snake- He's overused online, but I can't hate him. IT'S SOLID SNAKE! Snake
is considered the best character in the game by most, and I'd say he
deserves the title. His moves have insane priority and they have
amazing knockback. His only real weakness is his aerial game, so you
need to take advantage of that. He's tricky to approach, if you go
from the air, he'll use his mortar on you, and if you try to approach
from the ground, he'll most likely use a Nikita Missile or a Foward
Smash. Go for the ground approach and Down B over the missile. He'll
be completely open for an attack. Try and get him into the air and
rack up as much damage as you can. His Forward Smash is EXTREMELY
powerful, and it'll send you flying, even at low percentages.
His A,A,A combo has great knockback too so try not to get caught
in it. Snake has the ability to plant C4 and Claymore mines, so
keep focused and remember to avoid those spots. When edgeguarding,
most Snake's fire a Nikita Missile and try and guide it at you.
You can Down B over it REALLY easily, and if you're close enough,
you can do the Down B kick to send him flying. Snake's a heavy guy,
and has a good recovery, do you'll need to rack up the damage pretty
high to kill him.

Snake's Final Smash involves him hanging from a rope ladder on a
helicopter shooting a grenade launcher. It's impossible to avoid,
and it can actually kill you twice because it lasts so long.
It's a bit unfair.

quote The Greatest None

How are you going to edgeguard ROB? He has one of the best(if not) recoveries in the game.

I second that comment. He can hover.

ZSS is hawtstuff, but that dsmash infinite thinggy is even more hawtstuff :]

*Dedede

What's this about Samus having too few long range attacks?

No offense, but the match-ups are very poorly done, very little info on the match-ups, and Final Smashes should've been left out, fix it and add more?=/

[/Being a critic-ey bastard]

The reason her short-hop is terrible is because it's really high for a short-hop. Should be noted as such. D=

She's got two jumps, her Up B gives her a slight boost with each jump. (though it may just be once before landing) She's got invincibility during the attack, and she can re-use the tether as many times as she wants. Both of her tether attacks are useful (One spikes, the other can kill)

I don't know if you're saying this in reply to the guide having something like "Good recovery" in it, though. It's definitely not, but by far better than the other tethers. IMO better than a small percentage of other recoveries, too.

Put mario/ luigi as equal matchups plz

quote The Greatest None

How are you going to edgeguard ROB? He has one of the best(if not) recoveries in the game.

As he comes up, Hop over him and dair, Then tether back to the platform.
Not rocket science, Smash science.