User:Star Solister/Ability rankings/Reasoning

Tier 0

 * Wing is unquestionably the best ability in the game.
 * It is at the top due to its unparalleled mobility, invincibility in its attacks, and field utility, being the cornerstone of Return to Dream Land any% speedruns.
 * It can also defeat bosses extremely quickly when mastered, having the highest aerial DPS in the game, with its only weakness being the lack of a single strong move that can strike bosses during spawning or idle times.
 * The only thing holding it back is human error, and even then, speedrunners have pushed the technical limits of Wing very far, which cannot be said for other theoretically powerful abilities such as Ninja.

Tier 1

 * Leaf is undoubtedly one of the most versatile abilities in the game.
 * It is able to:
 * cut ropes and clear field enemies quickly and efficiently,
 * utilize a perfect guard, and
 * can even decimate bosses and the Arenas with its surprisingly high and consistent damage output and the ability to attack from several angles and in many situations with Leaf Rain, Leaf Uppercut, and Leaf Tornado.


 * Leaf can be used in any game mode and on almost every level to a great degree of success. It is ubiquitous as well, meaning players will have no trouble finding it.
 * Overall, Leaf is a Swiss Army knife of an ability that has almost no situations where it would be a poor choice, and several situations where it is one of the absolute best choices.


 * Ninja is about as powerful than Hammer with a few niche moves that allow it to do better against certain bosses (such as Air Drop), and has more stage utility than it, being able to cut ropes.
 * It can clear out enemies quite efficiently and can strike from multiple angles and from a distance, and has good mobility options.
 * However, its highest damage output comes when it's up very close to enemies, and due to a quite slow dash attack, it becomes an unsafe ability when trying to match Hammer's power.
 * Overall, however, Ninja is a solid choice for a majority of situations in the game.


 * Hammer has amazing sheer power and ease of use for sub-8 minute Arena runs, beating out every other ability in overall DPS.
 * It has two powerful moves with invincibility frames and can strike both grounded and airborne bosses, and can even manipulate how much health the boss will have going into its second stage by alternating between normal and reverse Hammer Flips.
 * Its field utility is relatively mediocre; besides pounding in stakes, being able to defeat big enemies quickly, and attacking underwater, there's not much point in keeping it around for too long. However, these flaws aren't enough to keep it out of the top tier.

Tier 2

 * Spark is a zero-risk, medium-high reward ability. Many people think this is the best ability in the game, and rightfully so.
 * Its passive Spark Barrier allows players to just ram their way through enemies and levels and remain completely safe when carrying items, allowing anyone to completely nullify the difficulty of the majority of the game.
 * It easily wipes out waves of enemies with a fully charged Spark Wave and is useful for gimmicking through certain puzzles due to its ability to hit switches at any vertical or horizontal distance.
 * However, the crippling flaw that it has that keeps it out of Tier 1 is its low damage output and lack of options in boss battles. Spark has a lower DPS than the majority of abilities. It lacks moves that give it invincibility frames, meaning that optimal positioning is difficult.
 * While it can beat any boss in the game, it will do so extremely slowly and the difference between its ceiling and the ceiling of the other abilities becomes more and more apparent as one gets better at the game.


 * Parasol is an ability of complete extremes.
 * Its grounded DPS is by far the best in the game, with Parasol Twirl dealing 72 maximum damage in quick succession. It makes difficult bosses like HR-D3 into complete jokes if they give the right pattern. Any boss that touches the ground for more than 3 seconds instantly loses to this ability.
 * It has amazing field utility. Its ability to float through the air makes it an ability that can get Kirby through long, airborne stretches that most other abilities struggle with.
 * Combined with two moves that give it invincibility frames, including a fully invincible dash attack that travels a great distance and hits multiple times, Parasol traverses open levels quickly and easily.
 * As if that wasn't enough, it can even put out fires and attack underwater.
 * However, while it makes some bosses into complete jokes, it has no good options against airborne bosses at all, and is almost completely helpless against them.
 * Parasol is at its worst in vertical platforming sections where there aren't things falling on Kirby, in closed areas with ceilings, and in areas with many hazards. Its dash attack, while great, unfortunately travels in an arc in the air, meaning that it will not get Kirby safely through narrow passageways.
 * Overall, while it is extremely polarizing, being amazing in certain situations and very bad in others, it's a solid choice more often than not, which puts it firmly in Tier 2.


 * Tornado is an ability that carries very little risk with good rewards.
 * It is awkward to try to control at first, but quickly becomes one of the best tools for going fast on the field while staying completely safe.
 * It has a solid niche as one of the only abilities that can traverse dense and/or bottomless areas with ease.
 * It boasts invincibility and can deal quite a bit of burst damage to bosses, being one of the safest abilities to use against bosses that does not completely compromise power.
 * However, positioning Tornado for optimal damage against bosses is difficult, if not outright impossible humanly, making its DPS inconsistent overall.
 * Outside of its niche and going fast, there is little else it can do in the story mode.

Tier 3

 * Fighter is a very powerful boss killer ability.
 * It is able to completely obliterate grounded bosses with its instant Force Blast and deal very respectable damage to airborne ones by virtue of hard aerial 1 and Rising Break.
 * It shines in enemy-dense areas where its large hitboxes can make short work of big waves.
 * However, besides being good at clearing the field, it lacks any other sort of field utility and is quite slow. There is little reason to pick Fighter over something that lets Kirby get to the door faster.
 * It is a difficult ability to use and optimize due to the sheer number of options it has, all of which are best fitted to deal with completely different situations.


 * Spear can cut ropes and has the ability to attack from several different angles, including in the water, making it the best ability to use in water levels.
 * Its massive range lets it effortlessly take out most common enemies, cover falling enemies, and reach into areas that other abilities can't.
 * It has high power, with one of its combos doing over 80 damage to enemies, with one of the best projectiles in the game.
 * However, Spear's biggest flaw is its lack of invincibility frames and quick burst movement. These lead to the following problems:
 * Due to its lack of invincibility, it offers no true protection despite its range.
 * It is not an ability that allows the player to get through a level quickly. It is clumsy on land and air; Spear Copter is too much hassle for too little reward in most situations and is outclassed by Wing, Tornado, Parasol, etc.
 * Spear is far too positioning-heavy against bosses to consistently put its high power to good use. Its highest DPS involves throwing spears from afar, which already have a very clumsy input (dash + 1 in air) and Kirby will have to reposition if the boss moves.


 * Overall, Spear is still a great ability with a good niche despite its flaws, being a versatile jack-of-all-trades attacker.


 * Ice is great for taking out large waves of enemies nearly effortlessly, and has a niche on ice levels in that it offsets the loss of traction.
 * Outside of this niche, it is quite good against bosses. It has great DPS with Super Ice Sprinkle and absolutely demolishes bosses that throw out freezable projectiles or stars due to it having the best grab in the game.
 * It has a dash attack with a gigantic hitbox that deals 38 damage, higher than the majority of dash attacks in the game, and a great shield, making it a good defensive ability.
 * However, Ice is greatly hindered by the fact that most bosses move around quickly now, making it very difficult to optimize. In boss fights, Kirby generally does not want to skate; it makes absolute positioning harder, which is necessary with a setup-heavy attack like Super Ice Sprinkle.
 * The attacks that give it invincibility have significant startup. Its dash attack is the only one that doesn't come out right away and requires a more complicated input.
 * Aside from its niche, it's no more than a traction gainer in very specific levels, and while freezing everything is fun, almost no puzzles require its use.
 * Overall, Ice is a versatile ability that may not be strictly necessary or the best choice in most situations, but is certainly seldom a bad choice.


 * Fire is very useful in the early stages to breeze through straightforward sections with its Burning attack.
 * It maintains a good degree of usefulness throughout the game. Having a solid dash attack that is somewhat controllable and able to be used in the air is a godsend. It does enough damage to most enemies to plow through them, letting it traverse levels quickly.
 * Fire is very good against mini-bosses, as its Inferno attack can make short work of them with its amazing DPS against stationary enemies.
 * However, later on, better options become available for mobility and Fire falls to the wayside as a niche pick. It strikes a middle ground between power and mobility that leads it to become outclassed most of the time. Wing, in particular, just straight up beats it in both aspects; while Wing cannot adjust its angle on the fly, it has mobility in a variety of directions, not just forward, and can deal with any boss in the game.
 * Fire is not the most ideal ability to use against actual bosses, as Return to Dream Land bosses tend to move around frequently, making it very difficult to set up Inferno.
 * Overall, Fire is a good ability. There are just better options than it as you improve at the game.

Tier 4

 * Water has amazing utility on the field. It gives a great advantage while swimming and breezes through a lot of levels very quickly, and has an excellent dash attack.
 * Puzzle-wise, Water can solve a majority of the game's sphere puzzles. It can activate switches from afar with its neutral attack, and offers the quickest, easiest way to put out fire blocks.
 * Water is good against large, immediate swarms of enemies as Kirby can breeze by them with its dash attack.
 * However, Water completely lacks any way to deal with enemies in the air while maintaining momentum.
 * Water's mobility is offset by its limited aerial movement and the fact that its dash attack, Water Wave, bumps Kirby backwards upon hitting a wall. In closed areas, not carrying momentum into a wall can mean the difference between life and death.
 * Water is cripplingly weak as an offensive ability. Most of its attacks are extremely lacking in damage output; the exception is Rainbow Rain, which is unfortunately as hard to input as Gazer Spiral while only dealing 37 damage. While this attack grants invincibility and can be chained over and over, it is simply too much setup and hassle for just decent damage.
 * Water is a decent choice overall, if not a bit niche. While its attacks can be a bit awkward and Water itself quite weak as an ability, it still gets Kirby through quite a few situations and puzzles in the game.


 * Bomb has excellent DPS and has the ability to strike from various angles.
 * Bomb is one of the simplest abilities to use in the game. You don't need knowledge of patterns, etc. to use this ability; just pick a spot and hurl bombs at the opponent or boss until they go down.
 * It is necessary to solve switch puzzles and can come in handy when sniping enemies in hard-to-reach positions.
 * Bomb's biggest flaw is that it is completely one-dimensional. It does one thing and one thing only with very few creative applications. It is certainly very powerful in terms of brute force, but it simply lacks the versatility that higher-ranked abilities have and cannot be applied to a variety of situations in the game like they can.
 * It is very awkward to use to clear enemies due to how slow it is. With each throw, Kirby has to prime a bomb, then angle it, then toss it.
 * While it is easy to pick up, it is difficult to optimize against bosses due to the frequency in which they move around.
 * Overall, Bomb is a good ability and one of the hardest hitters in the game, but with how one-dimensional it is, it will rarely be used.


 * Sword has good grounded DPS with Spin Slash and its multislash.
 * It can cut ropes on the field and can be used in the water, giving it some field utility.
 * Sword has a lot of safety measures built in, in case the player needs to play it safe; Sword Beam hits from afar, Chop and Thrust pushes Kirby back, and the downward thrust lets Kirby get grounded quickly if he's out of his depth trying to navigate the air.
 * However, Sword is ultimately a close-ranged ability that is dangerous to use at full power.
 * Sword is not the quickest ability. Its dash attack is slow, and while it gives invincibility frames, it does not allow Kirby to act out of it quickly enough for players to capitalize on the repositioning. Spin Slash requires charging, making it inferior to other abilities that have similar DPS but can attack right off the bat, like Parasol.
 * Sword has very little utility on the field outside of cutting ropes due to its slowness, lack of mobility (in the air especially), lack of angles in which it can attack from, and lack of range overall outside of Sword Beam and Spin Slash.
 * It struggles in Arenas against airborne bosses due to its lack of good aerial attacks, and has no move that makes it invincible in the air to even try contesting them.
 * Overall, Sword is an OK ability that is able to dish out quite a bit of damage. However, both on the field and in the Arenas, there are always better options than it.

Tier 5

 * Cutter maintains its versatility on the field, being able to cut ropes and strike from multiple angles, while slightly improving its matchup against bosses.
 * It has an excellent dash attack, clears enemies well, and is able to strike from various different angles.
 * Its far-ranged attacks can keep the player away from danger against stronger foes while still dealing decent damage.
 * However, despite the buffs to its damage, it still struggles to get out any sort of decent damage against any boss that isn't a mini-boss, especially aerial ones. It has very low DPS; its most damaging attack (Final Cutter) requires the player to get very close to bosses, making it a dangerous ability to speedrun bosses with.
 * Outside of cutting ropes, its utility is limited. Cutters have no way of hitting things behind walls, cannot be used in water, etc. making its applications very limited.
 * Cutter definitely got a lot better from some of the past games, but the buffs sadly weren't enough. It is a weak ability overall whose only niche is solving some puzzles where Kirby has to hit ropes at weird angles. It is completely outclassed by Leaf in almost every regard.


 * Beam has respectable DPS with aerial Beam Blasts against most bosses in the game.
 * While it is unwieldy in that it requires precise movement and positioning, it can deal consistent damage to any boss in the game when mastered.
 * Beam's grounded DPS is okay. Cycle Beam deals a good chunk of damage, and Capture Beam is also an incredibly quick throw that can deal a short burst to bosses in a pinch.
 * It also has decent range.
 * However, Beam has several crippling flaws.
 * It is too much risk and skill for too little reward. It is a technical ability whose overall damage pales in comparison to stronger, easier abilities like Leaf and Ninja, who can strike from the same angles and deal more damage.
 * The awkward angles that it strikes make it inefficient on the field for clearing out enemies.
 * It is required in almost no puzzles except to poke through bomb blocks or switches embedded in walls, which can be emulated by abilities that are actually good such as Spear and Spark.
 * Beam is overall a weak ability that is almost entirely outclassed by others, and should not be a player's first choice when given options to choose from.


 * Stone can pound in stakes and slide down slopes, and is nice for getting a jump start on water levels.
 * It has decent burst damage against bosses and keeps Kirby completely invincible, making it a safe ability to beat Arenas with if... you don't mind waiting hours for the bosses to stop moving around you.
 * And... that's it.
 * Its boss-shredding power has greatly diminished due to its decreased damage output when uncharged, slowness when charged, and the increased erraticity of bosses.
 * For invincible guards, Leaf completely outclasses Stone, as it can throw up its disguise faster.
 * Stone Uppercut alleviates some of these problems, but it is slow and has low damage compared to Leaf Uppercut, which is basically this move but faster, stronger, and with more reach.
 * It has no truly good matchups against most bosses because in order to clear them within a decent timeframe, Kirby has to be at the absolute perfect positions at the absolute perfect times to get any sort of respectable damage off.
 * It is overall a slow, sluggish, incredibly niche ability that is only useful for players who want to gimmick the Arena without knowing that Leaf exists.

Tier 6

 * Whip is an awkward ability whose only niche is getting 1UPs and healing items behind walls.
 * Abilities like Spear, Sword, Spark, etc. can hit almost every other switch or bomb block behind the walls that Whip is intended to get to. What's worse, Whip and Sword are often offered to the player together, making it even more outclassed.
 * Its throws are the weakest in the game despite being an ability that specializes in throws.
 * Its strongest attack, Whip Tornado, is difficult to input, laggy, and doesn't deal enough damage for the effort the player puts in.
 * Whip is one of the weakest abilities in the game with a very, very small niche that it carves for itself to avoid being the worst ability in the game.


 * Hi-Jump is mandatory for some puzzles, but you should never use it otherwise.
 * The horizontal layout of levels doesn't match its new, simplistic design where it cannot control its movement through the air well unless Kirby takes the time out to charge it.
 * It is thus, ironically, a movement ability that lacks safe movement options.
 * It has laughable damage output against bosses and fails to even take out regular enemies in one hit.
 * If Hi-Jump could be canceled like in Adventure, perhaps it would have been an interesting, technical mobility tool that doubles as a niche ability against airborne bosses, but no, it's not. Stay away from Hi-Jump.


 * Needle is unquestionably the worst ability in the entire game.
 * It has no utility on the field at all. Like, period. I don't think there's a single puzzle in the game that requires you to use Needle.
 * Besides its decent dash attack, its movepool is garbage and it can't even reliably KO field enemies in one hit.
 * Its best DPS revolves around shaking the Wii Remote in a pathetic attempt to do damage to bosses, and since it has no invincibility, it can't even get up close to bosses where it would do the most damage.
 * Do not ever use this ability.