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SBT: so, you beat his samus, then he beat you with IC, then Marth? It was double elimination I assume? Isn't there a rule where the winner can't change their character? meaning, he had to pick IC again in the third round?



Wow, someone who mains ness besides me! I want to play you! gonk

That's odd, in the tourneys down here, the loser gets to change their character, winner keeps theirs and gets to pick the stage.

but if it was friendlies, then i guess it doesnt matter.



er... meant to say best two out of 3 there ^^;

O_O Wow... that's odd. I never heard of it being done that way.

Well, to each state their own. wink

Advanced Slob Picks: Quite possibly one of the most important aspects of competitive Smash is Advanced Slob Picks. The name went through an evolution over the years. At first, it was just known as Slob Picks because the loser was allowed to view the winner's character before selecting their own (the loser being the "slob"). However, a new addition was made to this, allowing the loser to also select the stage, creating the full version as we know it today. The idea behind this? Essentially, the first game in a match is made to be as neutral as possible. You choose your character without the opponent's knowledge (known as double-blind character selection), and the stage is subsequently set to be as neutral as possible (you either both agree on it, or it is selected automatically from the seven Random Select stages).

The match afterwards is a quite a bit different. It is set up to give the loser of the first game several advantages in an attempt to counter the person who beat them. For starters, the loser selects the stage before either player chooses a character. Knowing about stage selections is very important; for example, a Peach player would prefer a stage with a higher ceiling and further walls to benefit her recovery abilities, while a character with weaker recovery abilities, like Roy, would prefer a stage with slimmer walls so both characters are at the same disadvantage. Being able to recover twice the distance of your opponent becomes pointless when you can't apply that recovery because the stage is too small. This is one of the first instances where your overall knowledge of the game comes into play. If you won the first match, and you hear the stage called out "Kirby 64," you may be able to take a guess at the character your opponent will choose (this stage is considered recovery friendly, so think Peach, Samus, and JigglyPuff).


Now, if you won the first match, and if you have no inkling of what character your opponent will be choosing, there are many choices you will have to make. First, evaluate the first game. Was it close? Does my opponent have the skill to use other characters to counter me? Do I have other characters I can play? What other characters that I can play will fit well with this new level? Do I want to give away how my best character plays during a game where I am at a disadvantage? If I lose this game, am I confident I can run it back in the third game, making this one irrelevant?