Simon Guide: Matchup Chart and Combos

This is a guide to using Simon in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Simon's bread and butter combos, how to unlock, frame data, alt costumes and skins, as well as Simon's matchups, counters, and tier list placement can all be found here.

Simon Tier and Overview

Stats and General Info

Simon
Game Series	Castlevania
Smash Bros. Debut	SSBU
Fighter Number	66
Unlock Order	18
Number of Jumps	2
Weight	107 Units (14/87)
Dash Speed	1.52 (74/87)
Air Speed	0.94 (70/87)
Fast Fall Speed	2.96 (9/87)
Special Attributes	Crouch Walk

Tier List Placement

Tier

A powerful zoner with an arsenal of projectiles

In Smash Ultimate, Simon is a zoner with long range on his attacks, as well as 3 different projectiles, which he can use to wall out his opponents. Using the projectiles to limit an opponent's approach lets Simon punish or KO opponents with a smash attack or one of his aerials. Since his mobility is on the low side, he can make use of his down tilt to slide away from opponents who get in too close, and continue to attack from a safe distance.

As mentioned above, Simon has poor mobility, and additionally, one of the worst recoveries in the game. Although he can use an aerial as a tether recovery, he still struggles a lot offstage, so the best bet is to try and prevent letting that happen. He also struggles in close combat, having poor frame data, so if opponents are able to break his zoning and get in up close, he will have a hard time fighting back.

See Our Tier List Here!

Simon's Strengths and Weaknesses

Strengths	・Excellent range on attacks ・Can control neutral with his many projectiles ・Several powerful moves for KOing ・Great at ledge trapping, thanks to Holy Water ・Good out of shield option in his Up B
Weaknesses	・Poor mobility ・Very bad recovery ・Lackluster frame data ・Struggles at close range

Simon Matchup Chart

Matchup Chart

-2
-1
0
+1
+2

Notes About Matchup Chart

1. -2 = Disadvantage. -1 = Slight Disadvantage or Even. 0 = Even. +1 = Slight Advantage or Even. +2 = Advantage.
2. The matchup chart was based around both the opinions of professional players of each character, as well as our own experience through playing Simon.
3. Characters within each tier are unordered
4. Pokemon Trainer's individual Pokemon (Squirtle, Ivysaur, and Charizard) as well as Echo fighters with no significant difference than their regular counterpart are not shown.
5. For other characters who are not shown here, we are still investigating the matchup.

Simon Combos

Bread and Butter Combos
Down Throw→Fair (From 0% to 40%)
Falling Nair→Up Special
Down Special→Dair→Up Special (From 20%~130%)
Advanced Combos
Down Special→Falling Nair→Up Tilt→Up Special (0% only)

Bread and Butter Combos Guide

Advanced Combos Guide

Simon Frame Data and Moveset

Best Out of Shield Options

Move	Frames
Up B	6 Frames
Neutral Air	11 Frames
Shield Grab	14 Frames
Up Smash	16 Frames

Simon has rather poor out of shield options. His only quick option is his up special, which comes out in 6 frames, but only hits an opponent very close, and will leave him very vulnerable if whiffed. After that, his next best option is neutral aerial, which takes 11 frames for the move to start up. In many cases, Simon will not have a great answer to shield pressure, other than rolling away and trying to reset neutral.

Jab (Neutral Attack)

	1v1 Damage (%)	Startup Frames	Active Frames	Cooldown Frames
Jab 1 (A)	2.4	5	1	24
Jab 2	2.4	3	2	25
Jab (Multi Hit)	0.6	2	-	-
Jab (Finisher)	3	3	2	40
Whip Dangle	2.4/1.8/1.2	-	-	-

Jab

Simon's Jab has two hits, followed by a flurry and then a final uppercut that launches your opponent. This is Simon's quickest attack, which makes it very useful as a get-off-me tool at close range, where he struggles the most.

Whip Dangle

By holding A and using the move stick, Simon can dangle his whip and move it around. It has a stronger hitbox at the ball than the chain. This move can be used to block weak projectiles.

Dash Attack / Tilts

	1v1 Damage (%)	Startup Frames	Active Frames	Cooldown Frames
Dash Attack (Dash ＋ A)	2.04	10	14	31
Dash Attack 2	4.2	25	2	28
Forward Tilt (← or → + A)	14.4/12/2.4	12	2	17
Up Tilt (↑ + A)	12/2.4	10	13	15
Down Tilt (↓ + A)	6	7	17	21
Down Tilt 2	8.4	8	21	15

Dash Attack

Dash attack has Simon dashing forward and spinning the whip around him, causing a circular hitbox to appear around his body. This dash attack is active for a long time, and can even block weak projectiles. Generally, down tilt is better as an approach / escape tool, so dash attack is used to approach and break through projectiles.

Forward Tilt

Simon swings his whip forward, putting out a large horizontal hitbox in the direction he attacks. This move cannot be shifted up or down, so it is mostly used as a spaced poking tool. The move's tipper hitbox is stronger than the base, so correct spacing is particularly important.

Up Tilt

In his Up Tilt attack, Simon whips upwards, with his whip swinging from side to side, which is good for intercepting opponents midair or those at a 45 degree angle. While it is great as an anti-air attack, the only grounded opponents it can hit are large characters like King K. Rool and Ganondorf.

Down Tilt

Down Tilt has Simon do a slide, and performing it right after will allow him to launch himself in an arc in the direction he just attacked. This move's quick startup and movement is good for retreating quickly, as Simon is not very good in close range.

Smash Attacks

	1v1 Damage (%)	Startup Frames	Active Frames	Cooldown Frames
Forward Smash (Smash ← or → + A）	21.6/19.2/16.8	24	2	37
Up Smash (Smash ↑ + A)	19.2/16.8	18	3	35
Down Smash 1 (Smash ↓ + A)	19.2/16.8/14.4	14	2	40
Down Smash 2	19.2/16.8/14.4	20	2	34

Forward Smash

Simon's Forward Smash is similar to his Forward Tilt Attack, however it can be charged, and can be angled diagonally up or down. It has good knockback, and is stronger if hit closer to the tip, so be sure to space it properly. Its long startup and endlad may also get you punished if you use it while too close to an opponent.

Up Smash

Simon's Up Smash has him whipping directly upwards in a straight line, allowing him to juggle falling enemies or anti-air jumping ones, but the move has a very narrow horizontal window. Take note that like with Forward Smash, the move is stronger at the tip of the whip, and landing a tipper hit can sometimes lead to early KOs.

Down Smash

Simon's Down Smash allows him to whip on both sides of himself, which is good for hitting his left and right sides at a range. As with the other smash attacks, hitting at the tip causes more damage and knockback.

Aerials

	1v1 Damage (%)	Startup Frames	Active Frames	Cooldown Frames
Neutral Air (Multi Hit) (A + no direction while airborne)	1.2	8	17	18
Neutral Air (Finisher)	4.8	26	2	15
Forward Air (All Angles) (Hold ← or → in the direction you are facing + A while airborne)	14.4/12/2.4	14	1	25
Back Air (All Angles) (← or → Opposite of the direction you are facing + A while airborne)	14.4/12/2.4	14	2	24
Up Air (↑ + A While Airborne)	14.4/12/2.4	14	3	23
Down Air (↓ + A While Airborne)	14.4	13	2	34
Down Air (Late)	8.4	15	22	12
Down Air (Bounce)	-	-	-	-

Neutral Air

Simon's neutral air swings his whip in a circular motion around him, similar to his dash attack. His hitbox is a circle surrounding him, making a decent get-off-me tool in the air when forced into close range combat. It is also one of his combo starters, and can combo into istelf, as well as a variety of other moves.

Forward Air

Simon's forward air extends his whip forward, which can be angled either diagonally up or down, and deals more damage at the tip. This move has great range and can also be used to tether onto the ledge when midair, which is essential for recovery, given that Simon's up special has such poor vertical distance. While it has rather slow startup, it is pretty powerful in terms of knockback and damage, and can KO at higher percents.

Back Air

Simon's back air extends his whip behind him, in a similar fashion as forward air. The move is nearly identical to forward air in all regards, and like forward air, can also be used to tether onto the ledge.

Up Air

Simon whips directly upwards, like his up smash, in a straight vertical line. Like back air, it is similar to forward air in all regards, except that it cannot be angled, so it will always attack straight up. It can be used to tether to the stage from below, so it is important to learn the best situations for using up air or up special for recovery.

Down Air

Simon kicks downward to whatever direction he's facing. While it doesn't have good horizontal range, it's useful for starting combos. If it hits an opponent, Simon will bounce off them, which can allow him to follow up with another attack.

While it does have a meteor hitbox and can spike opponents, it is very risky to use offstage, as Simon commits to the attack all the way down, so a miss could result in an SD. Therefore, using Simon's wide array of projectiles to ledgetrap is a much safer option than going offstage with a down air.

Specials

	1v1 Damage (%)	Startup Frames	Active Frames	Cooldown Frames
Neutral Special (B)	18	30	67	?
Side Special (Regular, Forward) (← or → + B)	7.2	19	45	?
Side Special (Regular, Return)	6	65	?	?
Side Special (Smash, Forward)	9.6	19	45	?
Side Special (Smash, Return)	6	75	?	?
Up Special (↑ + B)	2.4	6	1	?
Up Special (Multi Hit)	1.8	9	11	?
Up Special (Finisher)	7.2	21	1	?
Down Special (Bottle) (↓ + B)	?	18	1	27
Down Special (Explosion)	1.68	1

Neutral Special (Axe)

Simon throws his axe upward in an arc, and while it has a slow startup and can a bit difficult to hit due to the angle, it deals high damage. Due to its arc, it makes a great anti-air if you get the timing right, so it can be used when you predict an opponent will jump in after throwing out the cross. Additionally, it is a very powerful edgeguarding and ledgetrapping tool, so make use of it for opponents you've knocked off stage.

Side Special (Cross)

Simon's Side Special throws out a giant cross that goes through a medium horizontal distance before returning, with both of them having an active hitbox. While its out, Simon can still move around or do other moves. It is one of Simon's main tools for stage control, as an opponent has to react to the move via jumping, shielding, dashing away, etc, all of which Simon can answer with another move or action.

It will deal more damage and travel further if you smash the control stick while inputting the move, similar to Link's boomerang. Hitting the special button after already holding forward will give you the regular variant.

Up Special (Uppercut)

Simon uppercuts upward in his up special. Its quick startup and decent knockback make it a good out of shield option and close range move for getting an opponent away from you, especially because it grants Simon momentary intangibility.

It is also Simon's main recovery move, although it is very poor as a recovery tool, due to the short vertical distance Simon travels when using it.

Down Special (Holy Water)

Simon's down special is Holy Water, a projectile that explodes on impact and causes multiple hits of fire damage when landed. It's another one of Simon's many powerful zoning options, and catching an opponent in it will allow for a follow up with a forward smash. It's also a very powerful ledge trapping tool, as it forces opponents to either wait it out or manuver around it. Hitting an opponent's neutral getup at the ledge with it and then hitting the stunned opponent with a tipper forward smash can lead to very early KOs.

If the holy water is caught when thrown before hitting the ground, the holder can throw it can use it as an item.

The one minor difference in Simon and Richter lies in this move. While Simon's down special deals flame damage, Richter's deals aura damage (similar to Lucario's specials). While this will generally not have any large effect, Olimar's Red Pikmin are immune to flame damage, while they are not immune to aura damage.

Grab / Throws

	1v1 Damage (%)	Startup Frames	Active Frames	Cooldown Frames
Pummel	1.56	1	1	5
Grab (Normal)	-	10	2	26
Dash Grab	-	13	2	31
Pivot Grab	-	14	2	27
Forward Throw (Throw) (← or → While Grabbing)	8.4	24	1	17
Back Throw (Throw) (← or → While Grabbing)	8.4	18	1	23
Up Throw (Hitbox) (↑ While Grabbing)	7.2	35	1	21
Up Throw (Throw)	4.8	36	1	30
Down Throw (Throw) (↓ While Grabbing)	9.6	24	1	15

Forward Throw

Simon throws his opponent forward, which is good for putting distance between him and the opponent to get back to his zoning game. At higher percents, it can KO when used near the ledge.

Back Throw

Just like forward throw, Simon's back throw just tosses your opponent away and allows you to continue zoning. It is weaker than forward throw, although it is also capable of KOing at high percents near the ledge.

Up Throw

Up Throw is a good move to put your opponents into disadvantage and go for a juggle. At around 40%, it can combo into an up air.

Down Throw

Down Throw can be used to combo into forward air at certain percentages. At 0%, it can also be combo into a forward smash.

Final Smash

Attack	How to Use	Effect
Grand Cross	Press B after obtaining the Smash Ball	Simon traps the opponent into a coffin and attacks it before sending it away, dealing heavy damage and knockback to the opponent inside.

Simon Balance Changes

Version 4.0.0 Balance Patch

	Change
Down Air Attack	Immediately descend when using the attack after being launched.

Version 3.0.0 Balance Patch

	Change
Edge Attack	Increased attack range.
Side Special	Reduced the power against shields.

How to Unlock Simon

Unlocking Via Smash Mode
18th Fighter Unlocked After unlocking Sonic, let 10 minutes pass OR play another battle in smash after soft-resetting OR return to the menu from World of Light
Unlocking via Classic Mode
Clear Classing Mode 3 times using Link.
Unlocking via World of Light
Temple of Light Zone (First Area)

There are three ways to unlock Simon. Completing any of these, then defeating Simon when they appear in the “a New Challenger Appears” screen will allow you to use them afterward.

How to Unlock Characters Fast

Simon Alt Costumes and Skins

Simon Reveal Trailer

Smash Ultimate Character Guides

List of Fighters
Tier List	Unlocking Fighters

Character Stat Lists

Character Stats
Weights of All Characters	Run Speeds of All Characters
Air Speeds of All Characters	Fast Fall Speeds of All Characters