Smash 4 Stage Builders Guide Appendix

Part I - Sections A and B http://d.hatena.ne.jp/nicholighkun/20150605/1433519053

(A) Terms
(1-A) Soft Platform, (2-A) A Solid, (3-A) Clipping, (4-A) Weight Bar, (5-A) Freehand, (6-A) Point Plotting, (7-A) Blast Zone, (8-A) Sight Zone, (10-A) Layout, (11-A) Skins, (12-A) Grid Shift.

(B) Simple Tips
(1-B) Getting the Grid: Press X to toggle the grid. Flickering Grid. (2-B) Grid Counting Made Easy: Count by 2’s. (3-B) Undo: the last segment of a line by tapping the next to last point. (4-B) Faster Camera Panning: Use both control sticks. (5-B) Thinner Perpendicular Walls: Using the Bend method. (6-B) Saving Space: (a) Combine solid structures, (b) LAW trick (lava weight trick), (c) limit unnecessary line directional changes. (7-B) Getting Around the Ledge Grab Icon.

Part II Section C http://d.hatena.ne.jp/nicholighkun/20150605/1433522542

(C) Making a Good Stage
(1-C) Try having at least one large flat area devoid of obstacles, with minimal platforms and at least one grab-able edge, preferably two, for more competitive play. (2-C) Avoid building too close to the blast zones; I suggest 10-12 blocks away from the green side lines, and about 15-20 away from the top. (3-C) Limit ceilings. (4-C) If you must have ceilings (especially if they are above lava), make sure that they are angled and not flat. (5-C) Also angle the bottoms of structures that have grab-able edges for use by many characters Up-B moves. (6-C) Create with a flow. (7-C) Get creative with the items. (8-C) Consider the stages atmosphere; pick the right music and visual designs, with reoccurring visual themes. (9-C) Test your stage with multiple characters. (10-C) Synchronize your moving platforms. The segments of the moving platforms are the Start, Path and End, and the Blue Path line is how we count its distance traveled. (11-C) Test all four spawning points with at least one 4-player match, especially if you have enclosed areas.

Tight Mover Stacking Formula from section (10-C):

The grid must be on when each platform is laid down, and turned off when adjusting up or down. Be sure that the pieces do not shift left or right while adjusting up and down.

(1) The first one needs no adjustment.
(2) Shift up 2 pixels.
(3) Down 1
(4) Up 1
(5) Down 2

Then repeat from step 1.

Part III - Sections D-F
http://d.hatena.ne.jp/nicholighkun/20150606/1433601171

(D) Good Platform Connections
(1-D) TOM (The Overlay Method). (2-D) GrOffO (Grid Off Overlay). (3-D) BUTT. (4-D) Miagi (Grid On, Grid Off). (5-D) DL (The Dual Line Method).

(E) Problems With Sloping Platforms
Soft platform slopes that can only be drawn going up:

(1) 3-5 / 2
(2) 4-8 / 3
(3) 5-10 / 4
(4) 6-13 / 5
(5) 8-16 / 6
(6) 9-19 / 7
(7) 10-21 / 8
(8) 11-24 / 9
(9) 12-27 / 10

(F) How to Make a Circle
(1) 2 block horizontal line
(2) 2 / 1
(3) 1 / 1
(4) 1 / 2
(5) 2 down
(6) Continue around until circle is complete.

Part IV - Secions G & H http://d.hatena.ne.jp/nicholighkun/20150612/1434117972

(G) Layering
(1-G) Naming Layouts and Skins: Sky, Fire, Isle, Star and Play Making Torches using the LaW trick and a Flat Top Skin (1) Place a solid mass of any size or shape, (2) Draw a torch sized mass using a flat top skin, (3) Draw a new shape to the design of the flame, (4) Paint lava over the flame, (5) Use the eraser to delete the lava on all pieces except the flame. (2-G) Sharing Edges, (3-G) Problems with Layering, (4-G) Bevels and Platforms, (5-G) Optical Illusion, (6-G) Background Layering, (7-G) Changing Normal Layering to Background Layering, (8-G) Deep Layering.

(H) Good Tricks and Glitches
(1-H) SIG (Sloping Intersection Glitch). (2-H) RAGS (The Right Angled Gap Slide) Glitch. (3-H) UMPS (Uphill Moving Platform Stack) Glitch, (5-H) Pie Slice Glitch, (6-H) Clipping Anomalies.

Part V - sections I-L http://d.hatena.ne.jp/nicholighkun/20150620/1434838588

(I) Avoiding Bad Glitches

(J) Cannons
(1-J) A characters weight and size affects their trajectory: test your stages with Jigglypuff and Captain Falcon. (2-J) Cannons and Walls; small cannons need to extend at least one grid block beyond the wall, ceiling or floor, (no upward facing cannons in floors and ceilings unless you create a gap), (3-J) Cannon Respite.

(K) Random Notes
(1-K) Sudden Death Bomb Drops: space 5 blocks high or less will not have bombs, (2-K) Checklist for Stage Testing, (3-K) Miiverse Presentation, (4-K) Spawn Algorithm by Ethan Sarik, (5-K) Wafer (the thinnest solid platforms possible).

(L) Anomalies
Phantom Grab

PART VI - sections M-N http://d.hatena.ne.jp/nicholighkun/20150706/1436203359

(M) Suggestions for New Features
(1-M) External save ability, (2-M) Larger Weight Limits, (3-M) Breakable Walls/Floors, (4-M) Water, (5-M) Ice, (6-M) All Skins Available For All Layouts, (7-M) Falling Blocks, (8-M) Lighting Effects, (9-M) Warp Points, (10-M) More Hazards, (11-M) More Options for Moving Platforms, (12-M) Stage Shifting Options, (13-M) Line Adjustment, (14-M) Stairs, (15-M) Item Testing from Training mode in Stage Editor, (16-M) Opponent Action Options From Training mode, (17-M) No Limits on Grab-Able Edges, (18-M) Grab-Able Edges on Soft Platforms, (19-M) Pass Trough Walls, (20-M) The ability to “Yeah” stages from Smash without having to log in to miiverse, (21-M) Stage Info Automatic for Miiverse Posts, (22-M) Solid/Soft (Pass Through) Toggle for Soft and Moving Platforms.

(N) Making Stairs
(1-N) The bend Method, (2-N) The Insert Method, (99-N) Put a Spring In Your Step.

Part VI: B - Section O

(O) Making a Competitive Stage
http://d.hatena.ne.jp/nicholighkun/20170512/1494604674

(1-O) Stage Size, To top S=16, M=22, L=32. To side S=15, M=21, L=31. To Bottom S=14, M=18, L=24, (2-O) Starting Positions: equal distance from center, (3-O) Platforms: 5 blocks up is optimal, (4-O) Combos, (5-O) Underside Slope Angle: down 2, over 3, (6-O) Wall Cling: over 1 down 3, or over 4 down 11, (7-O) Bells and Whistles.

Part VII - section X http://d.hatena.ne.jp/nicholighkun/20150626/1435342490

(X) Character Notes
(1-X) Character Specific Notes: Little Mac, Link, Greninja, Ness, and Megaman, (2-X) Character Common Notes: (2-X [a]) Slopes that eat projectiles, (2-X [b]) Grapple Point: (2-X [b-1]) HGP [Horizontal Grapple Point], (2-X [b-2]) PGP [Platform Grapple Point], (2-X [b-3]) ADGP [Auto Detach grapple Point], (2-X b-4]) Using Grapple Points.

Part VIII - sections Y-Z http://d.hatena.ne.jp/nicholighkun/20150626/1435344043

(Y) Item Notes
(1-Y) Item Specific, (2-Y) Item Suggestions.

(Z) Final Words
(1-Z) Be creative and Give credit, (2-Z) Please Feel Free To Contribute To This Guide, (3-Z) Stage Builders That I Like.

NEW ADDITIONS

6-20-15

Added (12-A) and (4-G).
Added "Making Torches using the LaW trick and a Flat Top Skin" at the end of (1-G).

6-26-15

Added (17-M) and (18-M), as well as the phrase "It would be really cool to be able to melt these ice blocks with fire attacks!" to (5-M).

6-27-15

Added (4),(5) and (6) to section (2-K).

6-29-15

Added (19-M).
Added a sub section titled "Flickering Grid" to (1-B).
Updated the link for Union Specific to the current version in (10-C).
Added (7) Check for Sudden Death Bomb drop height to the (2-K) Checklist.
Changed the very end of (3-K) to add the original version of Dragon Slayer for an example of my style of presentation.
Added (20-M) The ability to “Yeah” stages from Smash without having to log in to miiverse.
Added Pitfall to (1-Y).
Added (3-Z) A list of Stage Builders that I like.

6-30-15

Added (5-G) Optical Illusion and (6-G) Background Layering to the Layering section.

7-4-15

Changed out Villager for Jigglypuff as the lightest character in (1-J).
Added (21-M).

7-6-15

Added (7-G) Changing Normal Layering to Background Layering.
Added (N) Making Stairs.

7-7-15

Added (8-G) Deep Layering.

7-13-15

Added (4-K) Spawning Algorithm by Ethan Sarik.
Added 13 Ethan-Sarik to (3-Z) Builders I like.

8-10-15

Corrected some information in (6-B) (b) LaW Trick.
Altered some info in (4-D) and (5-D) in light of patch alterations.
Added (5-K) Wafer.
Added some info to the section on Greninja's Side Special in (1-X).
Added Greninja's Up Special to (1-X).
Added Grapple Point to (2-X) (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED).

8-22-15

Sectioned off the portion on Grapple Points (2-X).
Altered the instructions for (2-X [b-2]) PGP.
Added section titled (2-X [b-4]) Using Grapple points.

8-26-15

Added (22-M) Solid/Soft (Pass Through) Toggle for Soft and Moving Platforms.

5/12/17

Added Part VI: B Making a Competitive Stage

5/13/17

Added 2 paragraphs to the end of section (1-O) on map sizes.

!!!^^^!!!