Sheik’s combos start out with a fast move, the launcher, to get someone in the air which sets up an execute. Launchers in Sheik’s kit comprises of Forward Tilt, Down Tilt, Up Tilt, weak Up Smash, Down Throw, Jab, Dash Attack, Down Air, and Up Air. All these launchers will work depending on what percent the opponent has, however, they all share one thing in common in that they do not launch at 0%.

The hardest thing about Sheik combos is getting opponents to the percent where these launchers start to work, which can be achieved through Tech Chasing, Chain Grabbing, and stray hits from moves such as Down Smash, Forward Air, and Back Air. The final thing about launchers is that they are easily crouch cancelable, so mixing in when to and when not to use your launchers is a big discipline which requires practice. The below gif is an example of a launcher working because Captin Falcon is at the percent where he gets launched off the ground.

The final part to Sheik’s combos are executes, which comprise of Tipper Up Smash, Forward Air, Neutral Air, and Up Air. The opponent knows that Sheiks will most likely go for these options to try and kill them, so they will use their DI to live longer. Yes, these combos are easy to perform by doing one launcher and one execute, but this wouldn’t knock the opponent far unless they are at a high percentage or have poor DI. Using these executes are simple and the player would change these depending on where the opponent is on the screen. The below images show Strong Up Smash and Forward Air because the opponent was lower to the ground. People would often use Up Air if the opponent was higher and could be potentially be killed off the top if Strong Up Smash couldn’t connect. The below example is a combo that ends off with an Up Smash execute.

The part that is the difficult part about Sheik combos is the string of launchers or what I like to call the extensions in the combo. Extension moves include all of the launchers along with weak and reverse hit variations such as reverse Back Air, weak Up Smash, and weak Down Air. The reason why reverse Back Air and weak Down Air are not on the launchers list is that they are too unsafe and the player would be better off using more grounded moves as launchers. The below video shows an example of a combo utilizing the extenders to mix up the opponent's DI.

To achieve the ultimate goal of completing the combo is to mix up all these options so that opponents cannot DI out of said combo. Sheik’s combos are hard because opponents can easily DI out of all her combos, however knowing where to DI is the difficult part which the Sheik player need to take advantage of. Knowing what extensions and which launchers to start off a combo with are key to completing a devastating combo, and in my opinion, the hardest thing about Sheik’s playstyle. Knowing how far a player can push a Sheik’s combo is a matter of predicting the opponent’s DI and using the correct move in conjunction with their DI as a set up for the execute, making them have poor DI and ending their stocks earlier or by building so much percent that no amount of DI can save them from the execute. Achieving this goal is different for every Sheik player because every opponent will DI differently. It is the Sheik player’s job to trick the opponent in helping them get themselves killed such as delaying moves, using different moves, or even ending the combo earlier than expected.

Some basic combos include:

Dash Attack, Forward Air

Forward Tilt, Forward Air

Down Tilt, Forward Air

Some variation in these combos that don’t always work because of DI would be the below examples. These are more advanced combos with extensions that are all built off the basics. Keep in mind that DI and percent changes with every combo, so these may only work in niche situations. The combos below start off and end relatively the same, however, they all have different and unique intricacies with each of them which sets them apart from one another.

Vanish, Up Air, Up Air, Down Air, Strong Up Smash

Vanish, Up Air, Up Air, Down Air, Reverse Back Air, Forward Air

Down Air, Down Air, Up tilt, weak Back Air, Back Air

To combo as Sheik, the player must focus on what the opponent wants to do to get out of the combo. Once the player knows his/her opponents well enough to know their habits of DI is when Sheik’s combo game really shines. This is not an extremely in-depth analysis, so I encourage everyone who wants to practice Sheik’s combos to use different variations on different opponents to even see if combos are possible with certain DI. Some combos are true such as Forward Tilt to Forward Air, but the real fun of it is using that basic combo as a basis to ultimately make your own combo stylish, effective, and to make Sheik fun to watch despite everyone saying she is an easy character. The important part is how to set up, and the real middle of the combo stringing moves together. Remember also to keep practicing and happy Smashing.

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