by: Mjp93
Welcome to Amiibo Doctor! In addition to training this amiibo, we also have the most cutting-edge guides for nearly every amiibo in the competitive amiibo scene’s many Discord servers. You should also reference our Raid Boss amiibo guides, and if you’re having trouble winning in competitive amiibo, check the official amiibo tier list! Happy training!
Hello, my name is Michael “Purgy” Purgatorio and I am not only the proprieter of AmiiboFight!, but I have also entered my fair share of tournaments and gotten top 8, top 4, runner up, and won a couple of tournaments with my amiibo. About half my roster is also in top 5 on Amiibots. I would like to start this guide off by offering thanks to soysauce and Carbon Show for their time.
AI Issues
King K. Rool’s AI issues really stem from Down Throw. After he lands it, King K. Rool will most likely go for a Forward Smash which will miss every time unless the opponent is severely damaged.
You may also notice at lower levels that King K. Rool will use Up Special when he really shouldn’t be. For the most part that’s normal and will work itself out over the course of your training.
Overall Playstyle
The playstyle of the King K. Rool amiibo should be grounded for the most part.
Edge guarding is fine with King K. Rool but Neutral Special (Blunderbus) at ledge is much safer and in a lot of trainers’ opinions more successful (more on this later).
King K. Rool’s playstyle is an exception to traditional amiibo training because his walk is very slow. Some trainers will teach their King K. Rool to dash and go back to a walk as he approaches the opponent. Personally, I prefer that King K. Rool walks at all times to avoid running into hits.
How to Train the King K. Rool Amiibo in Smash Ultimate
Moves to Use
Neutral Special is going to be a big part of King K. Rool’s training because not only does it work well from mid-range and at ledge, but it also can suck up your opponent and create some cool opportunities to follow up with other moves (if the damage is low enough) or completely KO the opponent at close range.
You can also use some Side Special (Crownarang) from a distance and if you follow it up with Neutral Special you have a chance to sandwich your amiibo between the crown and the cannonball. The two moves can in a small way help you approach but the best option in that situation is to Dash attack (Body attack). Dash attack not only deals good damage, but also gives you some extra cover with belly armor, which is probably why it’s one of the best Dash attacks in the game.
In regard to close range, you can do a little bit of Forward Smash (Dynamite Punch) but to rack up damage you’re going to want to focus on Forward Tilt (Buster Clap) because it’s so fast and great for catching rolls. If you get hit while King K. Rool’s arms are back, belly armor will save you, and angling it just right can make for a great anti-air.
Down Smash (Gigant Press) is going to be your go-to for knocking out opponents. Coincidentally, Down Smash can also catch rolls but it’s kind of a gamble compared to Forward Tilt because of end lag. Down Smash has extreme launch power and if hit just right it will do decent damage. Belly armor and the jump motion in Down Smash make King K. Rool almost indestructible here.
You can also mix in some grabs but stay away from using Down Throw (Piledriver). Instead, focus more on his Forward Throw and Back Throw (Ground Throw and Friction Throw) and also his Up Throw (Super Back Breaker). This move is a winner too. Heck, this is the most damaging throw in the entire game! King K. Rool jumps to execute it, giving it potential to KO super early if he lands on top platform. I suggest maybe training a smidge more Up Throw than Back Throw and Up Throw, but that will be up to you. Forward Throw can combo into some crazy moves, so there is no wrong answer there really.
Edgeguarding
Now as far as edge guarding, you are clear for take-off with the Kremling Kommander given that King K. Rool has a great recovery. It will be riskier, however, than just performing Neutral Special at ledge (Robin’s Up Special still exists after all). If you choose to go offstage, you’ll want to primarily focus on Down Air (Meteor Stomp) and only train Forward Air (Drop Kick) once or twice. Something more unorthodox but that works surprisingly well is Neutral Air (Iron Balloon). It pops out quickly and recruits belly armor which not only protects King K. Rool from any attacks but can also rob amiibo with a terrible recovery (Cloud, Little Mac, etc).
Try your best to not get hit or hit your King K. Rool amiibo with Up Special (Propellerpack) or he may recover high and land onstage, which leaves him a sitting croc for an Up Smash or worse. Personally, I would go for edge guarding if you want a more hype amiibo and go with Neutral Special at ledge for more optimal results. Other than avoiding Down Throw, you don’t want to use Down Special (Gut Check) since your amiibo will not only run the risk of spamming it but could use it at the wrong time. I would limit this move to two times throughout training, if that.
Landing
For landing options, you’ll mostly use Neutral Air though I recommend trying to line up some Forward Airs (Drop Kick) to make sure King K. Rool doesn’t spam it. Personally, I don’t mind my King K. Rool spamming Neutral Air and I’ll talk about that more later.
You can use Up Smash to catch landings, but it should be done infrequently. The angled Forward Tilt is a much safer option and seems to do more damage than Up Tilt (Uppercut). You can also infrequently use Jab (Palm Stomp) at close range, but I suggest you focus more on what we covered earlier.
The Orthodox Method
The orthodox method for training King K. Rool works because Neutral Special has potential to be both a mid-range attack and a close-range attack that can rack damage and KO. Opponents also have trouble getting out of the way of cannonball, which makes it easier for King K. Rool to hit a Dash attack to approach. Forward Tilt is also a viable option since both Dash attack and Forward Tilt are very quick and expose the belly armor for protection. When we mix in Down Smash (especially at ledge) it allows King K. Rool to rack high damage, take stocks, and set right back up for more Neutral Special. The Crownarang provides super armor which will also provide another way for King K. Rool to approach the opponent a little easier. King K. Rool’s recovery is also effective offstage since if he gets hit, either belly armor will take the hit or his Up Special (Propellerpack) will overwhelm his opponent while King K. Rool gets back to the stage.
The Unorthodox Method
Now I would like to touch upon a more unorthodox approach. It’s really going to be almost identical to what we talked about but this time we are adding a whole lot of Neutral Air to the equation. The reason is that Neutral Air pops out quickly and provides protection, not to mention onstage, a short hop Neutral Air can lead into Jab, Dash attack, almost any attack really. But Jab should be used a little more since it is very quick. I also covered earlier that offstage Neutral Air can also take early stocks from amiibo with moderate to low recovery. It also has armor if the opponent tries to attack offstage. King K. Rool’s Neutral Air is almost bullet proof, baby!
The unorthodox method works for essentially the same reason as the orthodox method; however, the unorthodox method is mostly your amiibo overwhelming the opponent in quick offensive succession with short hop Neutral Air as a way to approach and then landing more close-range options such as Jab, Forward Tilt, or a little bit of Grab. You can also mix in Neutral Special and Side Special but both moves could be riskier in some situations. This method really is offense and plenty of it, so if King K. Rool’s opponent didn’t pick up much shield or parrying during training, it’s going be a quick match, but that doesn’t mean completely throw shield and parry out the window.
Spirits
For Support Spirits, King K. Rool does indeed have some options. Some of the more optimal builds for Big 5 Ban is Physical Attack x2 with Trade Off Ability or you could even do Move Speed Up. Air Defense can also be applied but if you want to go with the unorthodox method, I don’t think it would benefit as much but it is an option from vertical attacks such as Zelda Up Air. In an Anything Goes setting, Armor Knight will be the go-to spirit for sure, and it can pair nicely with either Physical Attack or Move Speed Up. Trade Off Ability is an honorable mention here as well. King K. Rool’s primary loadout should be a pretty balanced 2100-2100 or you could go with a more attack-based crocodile with 2500-1700 (a little glass cannoney though so do this at your own risk).
Final Thoughts
I hope you all enjoyed the ins and outs of my favorite newcomer to the Super Smash Bros. roster! I also just want to say thanks to the Doc for giving me this opportunity and I can’t wait to see ya’ll get crockin’ on your big lizard AI. Have fun and good luck!
Amiibo Doctor 