Yo what’s good guys, welcome back to New SHS, it’s your boy Flow, and today I’m going to be going over Bow—how to play Bow and give you guys a quick basic little guide. This guide is meant for all ELOs. I’m sure everyone, from Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, Valhallan, or even players competing for top 8, will learn at least something from this guide.

---

Assigning Purpose to Each Move

Whenever you’re trying to figure out a weapon, always assign a purpose to every move. You can assign multiple purposes, but just make sure you understand what each move does.

Down Light (DLight)

• Main Purpose: Punish option, combo follow-up from Side Light, or after a spaced Side Air (Sair).
• Follow-ups:
  • DLight → Recovery (to kill)
  • DLight → Sair (for stage control)
  • DLight → NLight (for juggling)
  • DLight → Ground Pound (if 6-7 dex, true at all health levels)

Note: The spacing of your DLight determines which follow-up you can do. Very stacked = no Recovery. Proper spacing is critical.

Side Light (SLight)

• Main Purpose: Punish when DLight won’t reach. Catch opponents rushing down or reading cross-ups.
• Follow-ups/Reads:
  • Walk forward → NLight (catches Up, In, and Up-In dodges)
  • Dash jump cancel → NLight (reactive options for dodge-away/up-away)
  • Difficult to get consistent reads due to range and opponent’s health.

Neutral Light (NLight)

• Main Purpose: Neutral tool to catch jump-ins and pressure dashing opponents.
• Key Strength: Reactable. Practice reacting to dodges after NLight in training mode.
• Follow-ups:
  • React to no dodge or various dodge directions and punish accordingly.

Juggling

• Strength Area: Bow’s biggest advantage state.
• Moves for Juggling: NLight, NAir, Recovery, SLight, DLight.
• Follow opponents in the air. Apply pressure until they run out of options.
• Read their landing behaviors: fast-fall, drift away, wake-up.

---

Aerial Moves and Neutral Flowcharting

Neutral Air (NAir)

• Use When: Opponents are aggressive.
• Why: Covers stacked positions and rush-down approaches.
• How to Use: Dash jump reverse NAir to move away while punishing.

Side Air (Sair)

• Use When: Opponents are defensive.
• Why: Big, deceptive hitbox with high active frames.
• How to Use: Catching dodge-backs and movement resets. Also great for punishing jumps.

The Double-Jump Zone Dilemma

• If your opponent is in a zone where neither NAir nor Sair hits effectively, recognize they’re already in Bow’s juggle zone.
• Solution: Treat it as a landing punish opportunity. Keep juggling.

---

Final Tips

• Stay grounded as much as possible. Jumping restricts your grounded kit.
• Most consistent damage comes from grounded starters.
• Use aerials (NAir, Sair) for movement control, pressure, and to lead into juggle states.
• Practice reacting to dodges out of NLight and SLight.