Matchup Summary (Win Condition and Game Plan)
Chrom is dangerous when he gets to run his fast sword pressure straight through center stage, because jab, tilts, landing aerials, and up special all convert quickly into juggle and kill situations if Inkling agrees to a direct brawl.
The tradeoff is that Chrom’s lateral recovery is extremely fragile and his movement is less sharp in short spaces than his top speed suggests, so Inkling can use low-profile dash movement and pullback timings to make fair, ftilt, and dash attack miss, then answer with bair, grab, and splat bomb to force him toward the ledge.
The frame table also gives Inkling clear shield punishes on Jab, Forward Tilt, Up Tilt, Dash Attack, all smashes, Neutral B, Side B, and Up B with Up Smash (9f), OOS Nair (9f), Grab (10f), and OOS Bair (10f), so reckless pressure has real cost for Chrom.
The win condition is therefore to avoid rushing for center-stage scrambles, keep disjoint pressure whiffing just in front of you, and turn each ledge push into bomb traps and bair coverage until Chrom’s recovery weakness becomes the stock.
Full Move Frame Quick Reference
| Opponent Move | Startup | On Shield | Inkling OOS Candidate Moves | Barely Missed Moves |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jab | 5 | -10 |
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| Forward Tilt | 8 | -15 |
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| Up Tilt | 6 | -22 |
| |
| Down Tilt | 7 | -5 |
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| Dash Attack | 13 | -21 |
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| Forward Smash | 13 | -28 |
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| Up Smash | 12/13/15/17/19/22 | -29 |
| |
| Down Smash | 6/21 | -47/-31 |
| |
| Neutral Air | 6/15 | -6/-6 |
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| Forward Air | 10 | -4 |
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| Back Air | 8 | -6 |
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| Up Air | 5 | -4 |
| |
| Down Air | 16 | -9/-9 |
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| Neutral B | 21-260 | -15—Shieldbreak |
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| Side B | 9 | -26/-16(air) |
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| Up B | 10/39/53/** | -29 |
| |
| Down B | 8 (Start of Counter) | — | ||
| Grab | 7 | — | ||
| Dash Grab | 10 | — | ||
| Pivot Grab | 11 | — |
Win Condition Checklist
- Use low-profile dash movement and pullback steps to make Forward Tilt, Forward Air, and Dash Attack miss, then favor bair, grab, and up-throw pressure over raw front-to-front scrapping.
- When you block Jab, Forward Tilt, Up Tilt, Dash Attack, any smash, Neutral B, Side B, or Up B, answer with Up Smash (9f), OOS Nair (9f), Grab (10f), or OOS Bair (10f) and deny Chrom the first hit of his pressure cycle.
- Once Chrom is offstage, do not overchase immediately; place Splat Bomb to pre-cover the Up B path first, then rotate bair and Roller over jump and normal getup so his ledge choices stay compressed.
- Keep ink topped up with short refills after you force him to the corner so the next bair, grab, and Roller sequence still carries full damage and kill threat.
Actions to Avoid
- Holding shield in front of Chrom for too long and letting Jab, tilts, aerials, and grab pressure snowball into the juggle game he wants.
- Leaning on Roller as a single central kill plan in midstage and getting stuffed by jump or pre-positioned sword swings before you ever reach ledge control.
- Diving too deep offstage for an early finish and getting caught by Up B drag or a defensive aerial, which makes Inkling’s own recovery route thinner.
- Ignoring ink management and reaching the corner sequence without bomb or Roller threat, giving Chrom time to reset back toward center.