The fifth Smash Bros. Ultimate Fighter Pass fighter is Byleth from Fire Emblem: Three Houses. Byleth will be available on January 28 for $5.99 or will unlock automatically if you have the Ultimate Fighter Pass.
They were revealed in today’s Mr. Sakurai Presents episode, along with the usual overview of the series and character and refreshing joviality from Masahiro Sakurai himself.
If you’re thinking, “What? Another swordsman?”, don’t worry. The development team knows that and even parodied it in Byleth’s clever reveal video, with Sothis criticizing our hero for daring to venture into battle with just a sword.
So, they get three different weapons instead, all of which are Hero’s Relics (important items in Three Houses).
The Sword of the Creator is Byleth’s default attack and dash attack. It turns into a whip for the up smash attack and the up attack, and it’s a grappling whip of sorts with a huge attack range and multiple hits for the up special.
Areadbhar is the side weapon, offering even greater reach than the whip. The side smash using it can even be angled up and down. Because the lance’s tip is more powerful, it’s best to try and attack enemies at a distance to deal the most damage. The side special is a powerful upward swing taking advantage of that extra reach, but it also has Byleth charge forward.
The axe Aymr is the down attack. It’s a tremendous axe blow that can be used with a meteor effect if you’re brave enough. The down special is a charged axe strike that also lets Byleth pass through platforms. It’s slow, so you’ll need to plan carefully to effectively pull it off. Fortunately, it’s got a splash effect that damages foes if they’re nearby, even if the actual strike misses.
Failnought the bow relic is the neutral special. It’s more powerful than Link’s bow but can’t be fired until the arrow is finished charging. If you keep the button held down after the initial charge, it powers up even more and fires off a beam of light. However, you can’t actually do anything else while the bow is charging, though shielding during the charge will cancel the attack.
Byleth’s Final Smash is Progenitor God: Ruptured Heaven, a move which sees Byleth channel the power of Sothis into a tremendously strong strike using the Sword of the Creator in its whip form.
The new stage should come as no surprise: Garrag Mach Monastery. It will cycle through the Marketplace, Cathedral, Bridge, and Reception Hall, and each area has its own special guests, like the Marketplace hosting prominent Blue Lions students. One other thing to note about each area is that it has fully destructible objects you can smash to expand the stage’s size or use to your advantage.
Some of the music tracks shown off include the ever-popular Fodlan Winds and Between Heaven and Earth, though it’s not certain whether more tracks will be added as well.
We’ve still got six more Fighter Pass characters on the way between now and December 2021, so if you didn’t see your all-time favorite in the first round of five, there’s always next time. Stay tuned to GameSkinny for more Smash Ultimate news as it crashes in.
