One-hit KO
- This article is about attacks with enough knockback to KO in one hit. For KOs that occur instantly and bypass all knockback, seeInstant KO.
Aone-hit KO, commonly abbreviated asOHKO, is an attack in theSuper Smash Bros. games that has such highknockback that it canKO an opponent at 0%. Such attacks currently exist in every installment of the series.
OHKOs can partially result from a high base knockback value. However, they are typically mainly the result of a hitbox's extreme damage value and high knockback scaling, the two of which in combination significantly affect the knockback even from 0%.
Definition[edit]
In general, the community defines a move as a one-hit KO if it inflicts enough knockback to KOMario at 0% from the middle ofFinal Destination (Dream Land inSmash 64).
As a result, moves and situations like the following are not considered to be one-hit KOs:
- Meteor smashes that only work offstage, such asLuigi's downtaunt, as they may not work elsewhere
- Moves or hazards that inflict noknockback, such as being flown off the screen by theLandmaster or eaten by theSummit'sFish orDistant Planet'sBulborb, as it involves the victim being physically moved
- Sacrificial KOs such asBowser'sFlying Slam, due to inflicting no knockback
- Moves that only work on certain light characters (such as the first hit ofRoy'sBlazer againstJigglypuff on specificstages inMelee), as they are character-specific
- Moves that only work on certain stages (such asIke'sGreat Aether on75m), with stage hazards being an exception
- Instant KOs such asHero'sWhack, due to inflicting no knockback and KOing victims on the spot
Conversely, a one-hit KO move may fail to KO if the standard conditions are not met, such as the stage being large or havingwalls; the opponent being at the far end of a stage; the move being weakened due tostale-move negation; or the opponent usingDI,momentum cancelling,crouch cancelling, or various other techniques to reduce the knockback or alter the trajectory of the attack.
InSuper Smash Bros.[edit]
Moves that KO at 0% are almost nonexistent in the originalSuper Smash Bros. In fact, aside from the Home-Run Bat, only one move in the game is able to OHKO, and only under uncommon conditions involvingitems.
Items[edit]
- Asmash attack with theHome-Run Bat.
- IfFox usesReflector on a walkingBob-omb, he (as well as any character caught in the blast radius) will be OHKO'd.
- If two Foxes use Reflector on aGreen Shell, it will eventually gain OHKO power after 3-4 reflects.
Video[edit]
The following video demonstrates the main moves that KO at 0% inSmash Bros. for the Nintendo 64:
InSuper Smash Bros. Melee[edit]
Playable characters[edit]
- Roy's fully chargedFlare Blade.
- Roy'sCounter (sweetspot) upon countering a hitbox that deals at least ~35% damage.
- Mr. Game & Watch's fully loadedOil Panic afterabsorbing three strong projectiles (such as threePK Flashes).
While close, Mr. Game & Watch'sJudge #9 is not quite strong enough to KO at 0%.
Items/Enemies[edit]
- Asmash attack with theHome-Run Bat.
- TouchingMoltres.
- Articuno's Icy Wind.
- Getting caught inLugia's Aeroblast (if most hits connect). Touching Lugia's body can also lead to an OHKO if multiple hits chain (while a single hit KOsMario as low as 35%).
- A thrownPolar Bear (smash throw).
- AGreen Shell gains OHKO power when reflected 3 or 4 times by twoFoxes usingReflector.
Stage hazards[edit]
- Rapid laser shots from the Great Fox onCorneria, as well as the turrets while the Great Fox is charging.
- OnFlat Zone, if a falling tool is launched at enough speed (after either being hit by an extremely powerful attack such as aHome-Run Bat swing, or being launched after receiving enough damage), it will OHKO anyone it slams into.
- Banzai Bill's explosion onPrincess Peach's Castle (if all hits connect).
- Touching a blueKlaptrap onJungle Japes.
1-P Mode[edit]
- Master Hand andCrazy Hand's Crush (if all hitboxes land), Power Punch, Flying Punch (sweetspot), Jetstream (sweetspot), and Flying Slap (Classic Mode Very Harddifficulty)
- Master Hand's Reverse Throw, Master Hand's Finger Drill (when preparing to launch), and Crazy Hand's Fake-Out Slap (Classic Very Hard).
- The combined hands' Applause (if all hits connect) and Sandwich Punch (Classic Very Hard).
- InCruel Melee, theFighting Wire Frames'forward smash,up smash, and other moves.[citation needed]
Video[edit]
The following video demonstrates nearly all the moves and hazards that KO at 0% inMelee:
InSuper Smash Bros. Brawl[edit]
DespiteThe Subspace Emissary automatically increasing the player'sgravity andfalling speed by up to 19% from normal brawls (making OHKOs less likely),Brawl features the largest amount of OHKOs, with the vast majority being frombosses.
Playable characters' standard moves[edit]
- Ike's stage 8Eruption. Requires thefreshness bonus and therefore does not work in Training mode.
- Mr. Game & Watch's fully loadedOil Panic afterabsorbing three medium powerprojectiles (such as threePK Flashes) or a very strong one.
- The followingcounterattacks:
- Ike's Counter (sword and body hitboxes) upon countering a hitbox that deals at least ~45% damage.
- Marth's Counter (sword and body hitboxes) upon countering a hitbox that deals at least ~50% damage.
- Any sufficiently strong or repeatedlyreflected projectile when reflected or countered, such asZelda'sDin's Fire, or aGreen Shell.
Sheik’sChain with theChain Jacket glitch can also copy another hitbox, including a hitbox of OHKO power.
Final Smashes[edit]
- Marth'sCritical Hit.
- Lucario'sAura Storm at high enoughAura (Lucario's damage must be at least 95%) if all hits connect, including the initial take-off.
- Pokémon Trainer'sTriple Finish if most hits connect, including the last one.
- Ganondorf'sBeast Ganon if most hitboxes land (at least one stomp and charge).
- Zelda'sLight Arrow (first opponent only).
- Samus'Zero Laser if all hits connect.
- Olimar'sEnd of Day if all hitboxes land (bury, ascent, and explosion).
- Captain Falcon'sBlue Falcon.
- Wario-Man'sWario Waft fully charged.
While close,Luigi'sSuper Jump Punch duringNegative Zone is not quite strong enough, only KOing Mario at 5% and Bowser around 7%. Negative Zone inflicts incremental damage and can easily break these thresholds, but this damage does not consist of "hits" due to inflicting no knockback.
Items[edit]
- TheDragoon.
- Asmash attack with theHome-Run Bat.
- TouchingMoltres.
- Suicune's Aurora Beam.
- Deoxys's Hyper Beam.
- Electrode's Explosion when smash thrown. If an Electrode fails to burst, it can still be picked up and smash thrown with OHKO power.
- IfWario runs over a buriedPitfall while riding on hisWario Bike, he will be sent flying at OHKO power.
- If an uncharged Hothead is hit by anelectric orflame-based hitbox that deals at least 30% damage (such asIke's stage 6-9Eruption), it will OHKO when smash thrown or launched. Coming into contact while it is sparking will also OHKO.
- If aSoccer Ball is launched at enough speed (after either being hit by an extremely powerful attack such as mostforward smashes or a Home Run bat swing, or simply being launched after receiving enough damage), it will OHKO anyone it slams into.
Stage hazards[edit]
- TheUltimate Chimera's bite onNew Pork City.
- If the bite lands on the mouth's edge, it deals immense knockback, comparable to Marth's Critical Hit. If the bite traps the character inside the mouth (or the Ultimate Chimera turns around to inflict a reverse bite), the attack hits twice, dealing even more knockback.
- Corneria's laser beams.
- Touching the hull of thePirate Ship.
- The first and fourth spikes onRumble Falls (can easily beteched).
- Touching aKlaptrap onJungle Japes.
Bosses[edit]
Due toBoss Battles mode weakening bosses (to compensate for the player's singlestock and lack of continues, items, orstickers), all of the following apply only toClassic Mode orThe Subspace Emissary, and cannot OHKO in Boss Battles mode on any difficulty with a single exception.Tabuu's Off Waves will still OHKO in Boss Battles on Intense difficulty.
- Master Hand andCrazy Hand's Reverse Throw (Intense).
- Galleom's Collapse (sweetspot, Very Hard).
- Galleom's Collapse (sourspot), Double Lariat (all hits connect), Giant Jump (landing directly on opponent, low HP), Uppercut (sweetspot, low HP), and Rush & Slam (against grounded opponents, low HP) (all Intense).
- Meta Ridley's Mega Fire Ball and Falcon Flyer Pull (giant fireball at point-blank) (all Intense).
- Tabuu's Off Waves (any difficulty at less than half HP, Normal at any HP).
- Tabuu's Movement Throw (Hard), Tabuu Shot (Very Hard), Blade Charge (less than half HP, Very Hard), Shadow Laser (Intense), Discharge Attack (body, Intense), Tabuu Fire (Intense).
Other[edit]
- InCruel Brawl, the Red Alloy's forward smash can OHKO from the center of the stage even onBowser.[citation needed]
Video[edit]
The following video demonstrates some moves and hazards that KO at 0% inBrawl:
This video shows some other OHKOs, including moreboss attacks.
InSuper Smash Bros. 4[edit]
Playable characters' standard moves[edit]
- Roy's fully charged and almost fully chargedFlare Blade (sweetspot).
- Mr. Game & Watch's fully loadedOil Panic afterabsorbing three medium power projectiles or a very strong one.
- Villager'sPocket after it has absorbed a particularly strong projectile, most notablyTimber. Powerful projectiles released by Pocket that can still be reflected will also OHKO, such asZelda's fully chargedPhantom Slash.
- Many otherreflectors also share this behaviour, especiallyNess's bat.
- The followingcounterattacks:
- Shulk'sPower Vision custom move while grounded, held toward the attack, and upon countering a hitbox that deals 26% damage or more.
- Ike'sSmash Counter custom move upon countering a hitbox that deals 28% damage or more.
- Corrin'sCounter Surge, Ike and Roy'sCounter, and Shulk'sVision upon countering a hitbox that deals 35% damage or more. These counters technically have varying degrees of knockback, but they nevertheless achieve a KO at 0% without DI.
- Mii Swordfighter'sBlade Counter upon countering a hitbox that deals 37% damage or more.
- Lucina andMarth's Counter,Little Mac'sSlip Counter, andPalutena'sCounter upon dealing the 50% damage cap with their counters (this requires countering a hitbox that deals at least ~38.5% damage for Little Mac and Palutena, and at least 40% damage with Lucina and Marth).
Contrary to its name and intention, Little Mac'sKO Uppercut does not KO until above about 30% damage. At 0%, it falls short of the necessary amount of knockback, KOing a character as light asJigglypuff at 12%.
WithRage applied[edit]
- Lucario's fully chargedforward smash andup smash (due toaura and rage stacking).
- With nearing max aura, Lucario's damage meter must be at least around 169% to forward smash, and around 179% to up smash.
- Ganondorf's reverse and/or aerial Warlock Punch.
- Kirby'sGiant Hammer.
Final Smashes[edit]
- Marth and Lucina'sCritical Hit.
- Some ofGiga Mac's attacks when fully charged andsweetspotted:
- Straight Lunge,up smash andforward smash (when angled up or horizontally).
- Shulk'sChain Attack when augmented by several custom Monado Art variants:
- nearing approximately six seconds beforeDecisive Buster Monado Art andHyper Buster Monado Art expire. With proper timing, it can deal near max damage before the deactivation reverts to vanilla damage and knockback.
- Decisive Smash Monado Art before it deactivates (easy and realistic OHKO that can't be survived even with DI holding toward stage.)
- Hyper Smash Monado Art is a "Training Mode-only OHKO" that requires frame-skipping or played on a slower speed. Cycle to Hyper Smash Art, and then input jab 1 between frames 2-6. Frame 7 and onward is too late since it'll cause Hyper Smash Art to expire before Chain Attack's launching hit.
- Captain Falcon'sBlue Falcon (barely in OHKO threshold, easilyDIed by holding towards the stage).
- Wario-Man's fully chargedWario Waft.
Items[edit]
- TheDragoon.
- A smash attack with theHome-Run Bat.
- Electrode's Explosion after being smash thrown.
- If aHothead is powered up significantly by aflame- orelectric-based hitbox (30% total or higher), it will gain OHKO power when smash thrown or emitting sparks.
- Equipment can increase the player's damage, increasing the amount of damage a Hothead can be charged by and thus making it easier to reach OHKO power.
- TheBlack Knight item fromSmash Tour will cause smash attacks to have a 30% chance to have 5 times knockback, occasionally turning them into OHKOs.
Stage hazards[edit]
- Touching the hull of the boat onWuhu Island.
- Touching the hull of thePirate Ship.
- Touching aKlaptrap onJungle Japes.
Bosses[edit]
- Master Core's final wave attack.[1] Ironically, the chances to survive are higher if the player is closer to theblast lines.
- Master Core's self-destruction after unleashing the last wave.[2] However, this knockback can never defeat the player as they have already won by the time the hitbox lands.
Other[edit]
While it isn't accessible in regular battles, thebomb used in theTarget Blast stage has enough power to OHKO.
Video[edit]
The following video demonstrates all the moves and attacks that KO at 0% inSmash 4:
The following video demonstrates all of Shulk's moves that KO at 0% inSmash 4:
InSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate[edit]
Playable characters' moves[edit]
- Roy andChrom's fully charged and almost fully chargedFlare Blade (sweetspot).
- Hero's fully chargedforward smash withOomph or Psyche Up active (sweetspotted critical hit).
- Kirby's reversed aerialWarlock Punch (afterinhalingGanondorf).
- The followingcounterattacks:
- Roy and Chrom'sCounter,Joker'sTetrakarn withArsène,Shulk'sVision withSmash Art, andMii Brawler'sCounter Throw countering a hitbox that deals around 35% damage or more.
- Corrin'sCounter Surge andIke'sCounter countering a hitbox dealing around 40% damage or more.
- Marth andLucina'sCounter countering a hitbox dealing around 43% damage or more.
- Any sufficiently strong or repeatedlyreflected projectile when reflected.
- Any throwable item under extreme conditions which cause them to move at a very high speed. An example isR.O.B.'s fully chargedGyro.
With Rage applied[edit]
- Hero'sHatchet Man with Psyche Up active.
- Hero'sKazap with Psyche Up, Oomph, and Hocus Pocus Giant active.
- Mr. Game & Watch'sOil Panic afterabsorbing a very strong projectile (like Hero'sKafrizz).
- Mr. Game & Watch'sJudge #9.
- Ganondorf's reversed aerialWarlock Punch.
- Lucario's fully chargedforward smash at 180%, near maxaura after patch 9.0.
Final Smashes[edit]
- Marth and Lucina'sCritical Hit.
- Lucario'sAura Storm at 91% if all hits of theaura blast connect, and at 77% when the leap hitbox connects into every hit of the aura blast.
- Olimar'sEnd of Day if it hits a fighter that cannot beburied. End of Day's bury hitbox deals 633.15 units of knockback, more than enough to KO any character onUltimate'sTraining Mode Stage.
Final Smashes executed usingFinal Smash Meter always lose their OHKO power, with Critical Hit KOingMario at 20%.
Items[edit]
- TheDragoon.
- A smash attack with theHome-Run Bat.
- Electrode's Explosion when smash thrown.
- AHothead when brought from no charge to significant overcharge by a singleflame orelectric attack that deals over 50% damage. If the Hothead hits while sparking, it can OHKO from attacks closer to 30%.
- Spirits can increase the player's damage, increasing the amount of damage a Hothead can be charged by and thus making it easier to reach OHKO power.
- TheDeku Nut's explosion on a grounded target that cannot be stunned, such asSandbag, or Kirby in hisStone transformation.
Stage hazards[edit]
- Touching the hull of thePirate Ship.
- Touching the hull of the boat onWuhu Island.
- Being hit by aKlaptrap onJungle Japes.
Other[edit]
While inaccessible in a regular fashion without hacking, the gun found on theFree the Spirit screen's stage is programmed in as its own usable item, inflicting 30% damage with OHKO power (mainly because the Free the Spirit stage is very small with close blast zones).[3] This situation is similar toSmash 4's Target Blast bomb.
Video[edit]
The following video demonstrates all the moves and hazards inUltimate that inflict enough knockback to KO at 0%, alongside some powerful moves that don't. However, it also includes a few moves and hazards that do not inflict any knockback, such asInstant KOs:
The following video demonstrates Lucario's OHKO capabilities (forward smash andAura Storm) after the 9.0 patch inUltimate with Stale Moves set to On for freshness bonus.Aura's max cap increase also means Lucario's damage meter can be at earlier percents. At worst, Lucario needs to be at around 109% to OHKO Bowser.
Conclusive video[edit]
The following video demonstrates several one-hit KOs from everySmash game:
Gallery[edit]
Fox throwing aGreen Shell that was reflected multiple times inSmash 64.
Mr. Game & Watch's fully loaded Oil Panic after absorbing three strong projectiles inBrawl.
Marth'sCritical Hit inUltimate.
Chrom'sFlare Blade inUltimate.
Trivia[edit]
- InMelee,Roy's trophy inaccurately refers to the OHKO power of a fully chargedFlare Blade as delivering aninstant KO; however, this mechanic itself did not exist untilBrawl.
- TheHome-Run Bat, whensweetspotted, is the onlyitem (and by extension, the only attack) able to perform a guaranteed OHKO in everySmash game.
- Roy'sFlare Blade andCounter are the only moves to maintain their OHKO power in every installment.
- In every game with playable characters from theFire Emblem universe, at least one possesses a move with OHKO potential. Other main characters appear as items with OHKO power (Black Knight inSmash 4).
- Marth'sCritical Hit is the only Final Smash to maintain its OHKO power in every installment. Throughout all games, it is also the most powerful attack of any character's standard moveset (in terms of knockback) without any exterior factors or buffs, being impossible to survive in any uninterrupted path to a blast line, even on the largest stages of each game.
- While the majority of OHKOs will fail to work on characters under the effects of aSuper Mushroom orMetal Box, a few attacks have such high knockback that they will still OHKO under these circumstances. InBrawl, this includesSuicune's Aurora Beam, Marth's Critical Hit, theUltimate Chimera's bite, and severalboss attacks.
- Starting fromSmash 4, a few Final Smashes have hitboxes that negate the effects of such buffs, such as Marth's Critical Hit.
- Tabuu on Intense difficulty inThe Subspace Emissary has 7 OHKOs, the most of any boss or enemy in theSmash series.
- The most powerful moves in theSmash series are Tabuu's Off Waves (waves and contact with his body) on Intense difficulty in The Subspace Emissary and Boss Battles, and the Ultimate Chimera's bite inBrawl. Both these attacks are the most damaging moves, dealing 100%-200% damage and having immense knockback.
- Master Core's final explosion on 8.0 difficulty or above is the only OHKO that can never KO the player in practice, since the battle is always already won by the time the hitboxes land.
- Galleom's Tank Rush and Tank Rush & Slam can also hit the player after the boss is defeated, with OHKO power on the higher difficulties.

