Rivals of Aether: Beginner-to-Advanced Guide

A complete primer on the original Rivals of Aether: how its platform-fighter rules differ from Smash, the core techniques, a roster overview with each character's gimmick, how to practise, and how to use the Workshop in 2026.

Researched September 2026 — current as of patch 2.1.9.1 (May 13, 2025), with Rivals of Aether II available as the active sequel. Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Quick Start

• There are no shields. Defence is movement, dodges, and the parry. Parrying an attack at the right moment leaves your opponent helpless and open to a punish.
• There is no ledge grab. Recovery is about reaching the stage, using your wall jump, and your up special. Stage walls are your friend.
• Learn your character's elemental gimmick. Every Rival changes the stage or the fight (fire, puddles, pillars, clones, flowers). Using it is not optional at any level.
• Do the Tutorial mode. It runs from beginner to advanced lessons and teaches techniques like wavedashing that the game assumes you will learn.
• Use Practice mode's frame data and hitbox display. Rivals ships with strong training tools; they are the fastest way to understand why a move lost.
• Pick 1-2 characters and stay with them for your first dozens of hours. Matchup knowledge matters more than roster breadth.
• Play online with rollback netcode. Rollback was added on February 3, 2022 (in the same free update that officially added four fan-made characters); use a wired connection and adjust Rollback Settings before readying up.
• Rivals of Aether II launched October 23, 2024. The original is feature-complete and its competitive scene has largely moved to the sequel, but Rivals 1 remains active for casual play, the Workshop, and its own community.

How Rivals Differs from Smash

Mechanic | Rivals of Aether | Typical Smash-style game

Shield | None | Yes

Parry | Core defensive tool; parrying stuns attacker; reflects projectiles | Timing-based shield release in some games

Ledge | No ledge grab; wall jump and recoveries onto stage | Ledge grab and ledge options

Tech | Tech on the ground and walls to avoid getting hit on landing | Similar

Stage mechanics | Characters create hazards and objects (puddles, pillars, fire, flowers) | Mostly neutral stages

Strong attacks | Charged "strong" attacks (equivalent to smash attacks) | Smash attacks

Controls and Core Inputs

Input | Use

Attack | Jabs, tilts, and aerials

Special | Neutral/side/up/down specials; mostly element-based

Strong | Charged kill moves (can be mapped to the right stick)

Jump | Short hop by tapping; full hop by holding

Parry/Dodge | Parry on the ground, roll with a direction, air dodge in the air

Recommended setup changes:

• Map strong attacks to the right stick on controller; this makes fast strongs out of movement much easier.
• Turn tap-jump off for more precise aerials.
• On keyboard, bind jump, attack, special, strong, and parry to comfortable keys and practise shorthops.

Core Techniques

Parry

• A parry must be timed as the hit connects. Successful parries put the attacker in a long stun (and in many cases push them into a vulnerable state); parried projectiles are reflected.
• Do not spam parry. A missed parry has recovery and leaves you open. Rolling or spacing is usually safer.
• Bait parries. Delay your aerial or hit with a late hitbox to make parry-happy opponents whiff.

Wall jump and recovery

• Every character can wall jump off the side of the stage. Use it to mix up timing on recovery.
• Without a ledge grab, you must land on stage. Save your double jump and up special, and vary your angle (high, low, wall).
• Many up specials are vulnerable at the end; learn which of your options are safe and which get punished.

Teching

• Press parry just before hitting the ground or a wall after being launched to tech and avoid a tumble.
• Tech in place, toward, or away. Mix these up so your opponent cannot read you.

DI (directional influence)

• Holding a direction when hit changes your launch angle. At high percent, DI to survive (hold roughly perpendicular to the direction you are being launched, which shortens the trip toward the blast zone); at low percent, DI to escape combos.

Wavedash and wave land

• Air dodge diagonally into the ground right after jumping to slide. It is a core movement tool for many characters and is taught in the Tutorial.
• Wave lands (air dodge into a platform) let you reach platforms and get actionable quickly.

Short hops and fast fall

• Shorthop aerials are safer on shield-less defenders because they can be retreated.
• Fast fall your aerials to land sooner and follow up.

The Roster

The core roster is 16 characters split across four elements, plus the guests Ori (with Sein) and Shovel Knight, for 18 total. The developers described the game in 2025 as "18 characters meticulously adjusted over the course of 10 years."

Element | Characters

Fire | Zetterburn, Forsburn, Clairen, Mollo

Water | Orcane, Etalus, Ranno, Hodan

Air | Wrastor, Absa, Elliana, Pomme

Earth | Kragg, Maypul, Sylvanos, Olympia

Guests | Ori and Sein, Shovel Knight

Which characters are in the base game versus the Definitive Edition content can differ by package. Check the Steam store page for exactly what your purchase includes.

Starter recommendations

Character | Why start with them

Zetterburn | Straightforward rushdown. Specials burn opponents; strong attacks on a burning enemy absorb the flames and launch twice as far. Down Special leaves fire on the stage

Orcane | Great recovery and tricky movement. Creates puddles with Neutral or Down Special, teleports to them with Up Special, and can turn a puddle into a bubble pillar with Down Special

Kragg | Solid fundamentals; builds rock pillars and uses rocks as projectiles and stage tools

Wrastor | Fast air-based fighter with high mobility; great for learning aerial combos

Character gimmicks at a glance

• Zetterburn: burn damage, lingering fire on stage, fire amp on strong attacks.
• Orcane: puddle teleportation and bubbles.
• Kragg: rock pillars and throwable rocks.
• Forsburn: smoke and a clone decoy.
• Wrastor: air current slipstreams that boost movement.
• Maypul: marks opponents to set up tethers and follow-ups.
• Absa: clouds and lightning; strong stage control.
• Etalus: a heavy who uses ice to change the floor and power up his moves.
• Ranno: poison and bubbles for trapping.
• Clairen: plasma field that disables projectiles and a sword with a tipper sweet spot.
• Sylvanos: grass and flowers that power up his attacks.
• Elliana: pilots a mech; manage its overheating to avoid being left vulnerable.
• Ori and Sein: extremely mobile with strong edgeguards.
• Shovel Knight: collects gems to buy items between stocks.
• Mollo: bombs with set timings.
• Hodan: sweat-based moves, including projectile-immune sweatwhirls.
• Pomme: an air-element fighter from the later roster additions; lab her projectiles in Practice mode.
• Olympia: crystals and close-range pressure.

Details on exact numbers are best checked in Practice mode's frame data, since the balance has changed across many patches.

Game Modes

Mode | What it is for

Versus | Local 1v1, 2v2, or free-for-all

Online Versus | Play friends with your own rules

Ranked | Climb the leaderboard with rollback netcode

Story | Learn each character's backstory

Abyss | Survive waves of shadow fighters solo or with a friend; customise builds; Abyss Versus for challenging friends

Tetherball | Beach sport mode with surprising depth

Tutorial | Beginner to advanced lessons

Practice | Frame data, hitbox visualisation, and training tools

Workshop | Community characters, stages, and buddies

The Workshop in 2025-2026

The April 23, 2025 patch (2.1.9.0) focused on Workshop creators and players:

• Stage searching and more stage features (including thick platforms).
• The option to disable hitbox shaders.
• Several scripting fixes and additions for creators (for example, update_end.gml for stages).
• Regional pricing updates for the game (for example, the Euro price dropped from 28.99 to 24.99).

The 2.1.9.1 hotfix (May 13, 2025) fixed duplicate sprite priority for Workshop characters and adjusted Mollo and Hodan projectile interactions.

Tips:

• Subscribe to Workshop content in Steam and it appears in-game.
• Use the "Rivals 2 Contest" tag in the Workshop to find the 2023-2024 character contest entries; La Reina, The Crowd Magnet was the winner and is planned for Rivals 2.
• Buddies are cosmetic companions; some are crossover unlocks (for example, Mawson from Cross Blitz is unlocked by owning both games on Steam).

Skins

Many event skins used to be tied to the Rivals Championship Series. In July 2024, the developers added Skin Packs on Steam that bundle older skins at a discount. Owning a skin through a pack shows a cardboard box icon on character select; owning the original shows the star.

Practice Plan (First 20 Hours)

• Tutorial mode, all lessons. Even if you know Smash.
• Pick a main. Play their Story chapter to learn the gimmick.
• Practice mode drills (15 minutes a session): shorthop aerials, fast fall, wavedash in both directions, wall jump recoveries.
• Learn one reliable combo from a low-percent starter and one kill confirm.
• Play Abyss to practise against varied pressure.
• Go online. Focus on one habit per session (for example, "stop panic parrying").
• Watch your replays after losses; note what you got hit by most.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Treating parry like a shield. It is a read, not a panic button.
• Recovering the same way every time. Without ledge grab, predictable recoveries die.
• Ignoring your character's stage objects. Puddles, pillars, and fire are half the kit.
• Not teching. Missed techs turn into free punishes.
• Holding the wrong DI at kill percent. Practise survival DI in training.
• Over-extending offstage without a way back. The walls help, but do not save everyone.

Advanced Tips

• Parry mix-ups: late aerials and delayed strongs beat opponents who parry on reaction to your jump.
• Edgeguard the wall. Many recoveries must touch the wall; cover the wall jump and the up special angle.
• Use drift and fast fall to make shorthop aerials safe on hit and block.
• Stage objects as walls: Kragg's pillars, Orcane's puddles, and similar objects change where players can move. Place them to take away options.
• Frame data is king. Practice mode shows startup and endlag for every move. Punish with your fastest move when your opponent's endlag is long.
• 2v2: team attack settings matter; coordinate so one teammate covers ledge options while the other controls centre stage.

FAQ

Is Rivals of Aether still updated? Development has slowed. The latest patches are 2.1.9.0 (April 23, 2025) and hotfix 2.1.9.1 (May 13, 2025), focused on Workshop features and a few character fixes. Active development has moved to Rivals of Aether II.

Rivals 1 or Rivals 2? Rivals II is the current competitive focus and has newer features. Rivals 1 is cheaper, has the full 18-character roster and a huge Workshop, and remains excellent for learning platform-fighter fundamentals.

Does Rivals of Aether have rollback netcode? Yes, since February 3, 2022.

How do I play Workshop characters? Subscribe on the Steam Workshop page, then launch the game. Community characters appear in the character select.

Why can't I grab the ledge? There is no ledge grab by design. Recover onto the stage using jumps, wall jumps, and your up special.

What are the best characters? Balance has shifted over nearly a decade of patches. Pick the one whose gimmick you enjoy; the roster is broadly viable at casual and intermediate level.

Sources

• Steam store page: Rivals of Aether
• Steam news: patch 2.1.9.0, 2.1.9.1, 2.1.8.0
• Wikipedia: Rivals of Aether