Byleth, the protagonist from Fire Emblem: Three houses, has been announced as the new fighter for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate for the Nintendo Switch, in both male and female forms.
Smash Bros. creator Masahiro Sakurai explained in an Nintendo Direct special that due to low mobility, Byleth’s grab lacks range, but they are a “distance demon”. With a bow and several long-range weapons, Byleth is well equipped for distance combat.
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Byleth’s skills come from their Hero Relic, which transforms their sword into a variety of new forms, including the Sword of the Creator, the Areadbhar lance, the Aymr axe, and Failnaught bow.
Sword of the Creator is Byleth’s standard weapon, used for flurry and dash attacks. Like the weapon in the Three Houses game, it can be transformed into a whip for for much longer-range attacks.
The up special, for example, will whip people up diagonally, which you can then grapple into. Similarly, the whip can be used to grapple up to ledges.
Areadbhar, a long reach pole-arm, is another option for keeping foes at a distance. The tip of the lace is powerful, but the shaft is weak and so unsuited to close combat. Sakurai advised that players hit enemies with the blade aimed up or down. Its side special move is a far-reaching sweep upwards.
Aymr is an axe used for powerful downward inputs. Using a down air attack creates a strong swing, which can even be used to create a meteor attack. Using Aymr for a downwards Smash attack swings the axe left and right, while the down special provides a devastating move akin to a Falcon Punch.
This must be charged up, and during the charge period you can pass through platforms. It’s advised that players don’t use it against characters that can counter, such as other Fire Emblem characters, as the wind up provides plenty of warning.
Finally there’s the Failnaught bow which is used for neutral attack moves. It’s pretty standard, with the special firing a long-distance arrow. However, unlike Link’s bow, the attack can be kept charging until you’re ready to fire.
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Byleth’s Final Smash is Progenitor God Final Heaven, in which they team up with Sothis for an explosive attack.
As is tradition for Super Smash Bros. characters, there are alternating colour schemes to choose from, with each alternating number offering male or female versions of the character.
There’s also costumes inspired by the leaders of each of Fire Emblem’s three houses – Dimitri, Claude, and Edelgard – as well as costume changes from the Three Houses plotline.
Packaged with Byleth is a new stage based on Fire Emblem: Three Houses’ Garreg Mach Monastery. It’s made up of several of the key areas of the monastery – the marketplace, the reception hall, the bridge, and the cathedral – which will rotate through as the match progresses. Each area is populated by students from Three Houses, including all three house heads and favourites like Petra, Dorothea, Lorenz, and Ingrid.
11 tracks of Fire Emblem: Three Houses music accompanies the characters and stage, including both Japanese and English arrangements of the main theme. This music can be played on all Fire Emblem stages. There is also a new Fire Emblem Spirit Board filled out with popular characters, including Sothis as a Legend class.
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In addition to all the Fire Emblem elements, Challenger Pack 5 also comes with a small collection of Mii fighter costumes. Altair from Assassin’s Creed and a Rabbid represent Ubisoft as Swordfighter and Hat types respectively, While Megaman X, Megaman Battle Network’s MegaMan.EXE, and Cuphead provide three new gunners.
Byleth and the additional Super Smash Bros. Ultimate DLC will launch on January 28.
Furthermore, Nintendo also announced that 6 new Smash Bros. Ultimate DLC characters will arrive before 2022.
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Matt Purslow is IGN’s UK News and Entertainment Writer. You can follow him on Twitter.
Source: IGN.com Byleth From Fire Emblem Announced For Super Smash Bros. Ultimate