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This article is about Roy's appearance in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U. For other uses, see Roy.

Roy is a downloadable character in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U. He was shown in a leak showing actual gameplay of him, Lucas and Ryu, and then officially confirmed during Nintendo Direct on June 14th alongside Ryu. He became available for download in June 14th, 2015, alongside Lucas and Ryu.

He currently ranks 42nd on the tier list. Roy has great kill power and a solid combo game but poor recovery and considerable lag on attacks, landing him in the E tier.

Attributes[]

Strengths[]

  • Powerful Smash Attacks, his Forward Smash being one of the strongest in the game if sweetspotted.
  • Fast air speed and running speed.
  • Very agile, with fast movement speed as well as attack speed.
    • His dash animation also allows him to dodge some attacks as his stance is low.
  • Has a lot of kill moves, including forward tilt, up tilt, back air, down air, flare blade, blazer, and all of his smash attacks.
  • His throws have low base knockback, allowing him to pull more follow ups and combos.
  • Can adapt his sourspot attacks to his advantage, as they are useful combo starters and for juggling.
  • Has a Meteor Smash: Down Aerial.
  • Has a counter attack. It is the second most powerful counter in the game, after Corrin's, and deals 1.35x damage back.
  • Damage and knockback are greatly increased if at the middle part of his blade close to the hilt.
  • Excellent Aerial attacks giving more combo and juggle potential. They also provide edge-guarding opportunities.
  • Can rack up damage pretty quick, thanks to his speed and power.
  • Flare Blade can score earlier KOs even when uncharged, since it has very high knockback scaling. It also has low ending lag, being able to be used safely in the air. When fully charged, it is the only move capable of one-hit KOing an opponent.
  • Blazer can be aimed vertically or horizontally, increasing his recovery potential depending on the situation.

Weaknesses[]

  • Poor recovery.
  • Attacks must connect with the middle part of his blade close to the hilt in order to deal more damage and knockback. Otherwise they're very weak and won`t KO even at high percentages.
  • Flare Blade can be predictable and easy to avoid.
  • If Flare Blade is fully charged, it causes 10% recoil.
  • His smash attacks have ending lag and are punishable.
  • Up air has very low knockback, so you can't rely on it to KO.
  • His sword doesn't provide much range, in comparison to other swordsmen.

Summary[]

Kuroham-Roy

Roy's stats by Kurogane Hammer

Roy is a Dominating and Pressuring character, being capable of fighting up close with fast attacks and very high power.

Roy is a middleweight, similar to Marth, but possesses a higher dashing, falling, and air speed than Marth, giving him greater mobility as well as high survivability at high percentages.

Roy possesses an inverse sweetspot at the hilt of his sword, indicated by a bright orange trail near his hand. This makes Roy an extremely effective damage racker at close range due to its size and the addition of a hitbox between the sweetspot and sourspot at the tip of the blade, making it extremely effective when chaining multiple attacks.

Much like Marth, Roy can easily string attacks together, with many follow ups that are true combos leading to KOs. His Neutral Attack is very fast and deals enough hitstun for a quick dash grab and even a Forward Smash, depending on the opponent and percentage. Neutral and Forward Aerial are also very useful in short-hops, capable of follow ups from the air to the ground.

Roy's KO ability resembles that of Ike's, with all of his Smash Attacks being very powerful, especially his Forward Smash (if sweetspotted). His Flare Blade can one hit KO opponents if fully charged, as well as having high knockback scaling, strong enough to KO opponents at mid-high percentages if used near the edge. In addition, his forward and up tilts and Blazers are effective KO options due to their quick startup, his aerials possess a wide range around him, and the addition of rage further enhances his already high knockback.

Roy's Special Moves reflect a balance between quick speed and high power. Flare Blade, due to its aforementioned power, is a deadly edgeguard ability due to its charging capabilities and its low end lag. Double-Edge Dance is an effective damage racker, with its final upward and forward hits having KO potential. Blazer is a solid out-of-shield option, and can stage spike opponents. Lastly, Roy's Counter is among the strongest in the game due to its 1.3x multiplier, making it extremely effective against powerful attacks.

However, Roy has a very poor recovery, one of the worst in the game, with his Blazer only giving him slightly more vertical reach than Dr. Mario's Super Jump Punch. His Blazer can be aimed horizontally, though, giving him slightly more options during recover. Unlike Marth's, Roy's sourspotted attacks due not give him as many combo potentials, and the high end lag of his attacks greatly hinder his combo potential, which forces him to fight up close to effectively deal damage and makes him vulnerable to projectile campers.

Overall Roy strikes a balance between fighters Marth and Ike, possessing both quick attacks and high KO potential. Players must balance his quick mobility and high damage output to pressure opponents and punish them for mistakes.

Changes from Melee[]

Roy has received major buffs and nerfs to balance him in the transition from Melee. His overall speed and power have been balanced to match the rest of the cast, as well as to further differ from Marth/Lucina. Despite being slower than Marth in Melee, Roy is actually faster than both Marth and Lucina here, having a faster dash speed and air speed. Double-Edge Dance received the same treatment of Dancing Blade in Brawl, requiring less technical precision and thus being a more capable move for damage racking. However, Roy's attacks have less range and hitbox durations, necessitating the need to fight up close. The removal of Melee mechanics also hinder his approach significantly.

Roy's appearance is now a combination of his original design in Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade and his design from DLC of Fire Emblem: Awakening. He also has a completely different standing stance and idle pose as opposed to Marth's, as well as a different walking animation.Most of his animations have been tweaked or completely changed to look "heavier", with more aggressive sword swings to reflect his personality, contrasting with Marth's. As a result, this makes his Sword of Seals feel more like a broadsword, as opposed to Marth and Lucina's Falchion, which are longswords.

Attributes[]

  • Taller, giving him more range but also more of a hurtbox. He is now as tall as Marth.
  • Heavier, now being ranked among midweight rather than lightweight. He is now heavier than Marth rather than lighter.
  • Different jump and double jump animation. Second jump is slightly higher.
  • Walking speed is slower, but dash speed is much faster, even more than Marth's/Lucina's.
  • Much faster air speed, now being the third fastest in the game, after Yoshi and Wario.
  • Overall faster and stronger, with all sweetspot and sourspot attacks dealing higher knockback.
  • Many of his attack animations are now done with him holding the sword with a reverse grip (with the blade facing down), resulting in different speed and range compared to Marth's/Lucina's. The majority of his attacks now have reduced range due different hitboxes.
  • Much like Marth, Roy's sword trails now indicate the sweetspot of his attacks.

Ground Attacks[]

  • Neutral Attack has a different animation, where Roy slashes forward and slightly upwards, holding the sword with a reverse grip. It is also faster, with less ending lag, and sends opponents in a different angle that makes it more favorable for combos.
  • Forward Tilt has a different animation, where Roy leans and slashes forward in an arc while holding the sword with a reverse grip. It is slightly faster, with less ending lag, however the hitbox lasts a slightly shorter time. It has stronger base knockback and much higher knockback scaling, enough to KO opponents at high percentages.
  • Down Tilt is slightly faster, however it now sends opponents in a more horizontal trajectory, acting as semi-spike against aerial opponents, being very useful for edge-guarding. This also diminishes its combo potential but allows Roy to perform tech chases.
  • Up Tilt has a slightly tweaked animation, with Roy slashing upwards holding the sword with a reverse grip. It has more horizontal reach than Marth's/Lucina's in the frontal hitbox. It also deals more damage but less knockback.
  • Forward Smash has a different animation, now being a sideways slash with both hands gripping on the sword, decreasing vertical range and increasing horizontal range; its animation is the same as Mii Swordfighter's Forward Smash. It is also slightly faster, with less ending lag. Its knockback growth is slightly higher.
  • Down Smash's first hit sends opponents in a more horizontal trajectory but deals less damage. The second hit deals slightly more damage.
  • Up Smash has a slightly different animation, with Roy pumping the sword by the end while emitting an explosive burst. It has less startup and ending lag. Additionally, the first hit causes no knockback, meaning Roy must connect all hits in order to KO an opponent. However, the hits now connect better and deal more damage.
  • Dash Attack has a different animation, being a short sideways slash while holding the sword with a reverse grip. It covers less range, but is faster. Also, Roy no longer ducks while delivering the attack and now stands upright.

Aerial Attacks[]

  • Neutral Aerial is faster and has less ending and landing lag.
  • Forward Aerial has a different animation, where Roy slashes forward more forcefully, resulting in slightly more horizontal range, however it no longer has a lower hitbox by the end of the move, and it also has higher startup lag. It has much lower ending and landing lag. The knockback sends opponents slightly downwards, being able to follow it up with some of his ground attacks, like his Forward Smash.
  • Back Aerial has less ending and landing lag.
  • Down Aerial has a different animation, looking similar to Ike's Down Aerial, with Roy slashing downwards with both hands gripping on the sword, which results in a more pinpoint range, with less horizontal range as it is no longer an arc slash. It causes more damage overall, on both sour and sweetspots, and it's much easier to land the Meteor Smash than Marth's/Lucina's. In addition, the sourspot is much stronger in terms of knockback. However, it has higher startup lag.
  • Up Aerial has slightly less ending and landing lag. It deals increased knockback and is much more useful for juggling. Its hitboxes also last slightly longer.

Grabs and Throws[]

  • Forward Throw is slower, but has lower base knockback, allowing for better follow ups.
  • Back Throw is slightly slower and sends opponents more vertically.
  • Down Throw sends opponents upwards, directly above Roy, allowing for better follow ups. However, it deals slightly less damage.
  • Up Throw has higher base knockback, reducing its combo potential.

Special Attacks[]

  • Flare Blade has higher startup lag when releasing the attack, and charges slightly slower. However, it has little to no ending lag, and causes a huge explosion on the ground, much like Ike's Eruption. It has much higher knockback scaling, being able to KO opponents above 100% uncharged. A full charge breaks shields as well as being a one hit KO. However, it takes more time to full charge the attack.
  • Double-Edge Dance's fourth hit deals more knockback, especially the neutral one. Also, the attacks are faster, and the interval between hits is shorter, resulting in a faster combo. However, the first hit has slightly higher startup lag. It doesn't stall Roy in the air as much anymore, reducing his potential for recovery aid.
  • Counter is much stronger, being as strong as Ike's. Additionally, the attack has more horizontal reach. The counter frames are slightly longer, but still lower than Marth/Lucina, however slightly higher than Ike's. However, the damage multiplier is slightly lower. (1.5x to 1.35x)
  • Blazer's first hit has much lower set knockback, meaning Roy can connect all hits more reliably, while the final hit has much higher knockback scaling, enough to KO at high percentages. The move can now be tilted upon startup to cover a more horizontal range. It covers slightly less distance when used on the ground. Also, the first frames of startup grants him brief invincibility frames.
  • New Final Smash, Critical Hit involves Roy standing in place for the entire Final Smash. It also has a different animation compared to Marth's/Lucina's, where Roy draws his sword in a full-circle motion before delivering a powerful flaming slash. To compensate the lack of mobility the Final Smash has, the circular swing before the flaming slash can damage and trap nearby opponents, allowing it to hit as soon as it starts up. In addition, the critical bar has a different appearance. However, this Final Smash is not a one hit KO like Marth and Lucina's, also dealing much less damage. The animation and move function references the Binding Blade weapon's ranged attack in Roy's home game.

Moveset[]

Ground Attacks[]

Normal[]

  • Normal Attack: Roy slashes one time while holding the blade with a reverse grip. Great for starting combos due the low ending lag.
  • Side Tilt: Does swift overhead slash.
  • Down Tilt: Stabs downward. Has high range and speed, but deals lower knockback than his other tilts.
  • Up Tilt: Does a upward slash.
  • Dash Attack: Halts and slashes forward while bending for more reach. Good KO potential.

Smash[]

  • Side Smash: Roy lunges and slashes forward forcefully.
  • Up Smash: A relatively quick sword thrust upwards with fire effects, it hits multiple times and then explodes. If the base of the sword connects, can act as a spike.
  • Down Smash: Swipes his sword on both his sides.

Other[]

To be added

Aerial Attacks[]

  • Neutral Aerial: Slashes two times around him. Good in short hops and auto-cancels on the ground.
  • Forward Aerial: Swipes his sword in front of him. Good in short hops and auto-cancels on the ground.
  • Back Aerial: Turns around and swipes his sword. Powerful KO potential.
  • Up Aerial: Swipes his sword upward. Roy's weakest aerial.
  • Down Aerial: Swipes his sword downward. Resembles Ike's Down Aerial. Can Meteor Smash.

Grabs and Throws[]

  • Pummel: Hits the opponent with his knee.
  • Forward Throw: Knocks opponent forward. Good for tech chases since it sends opponents horizontally.
  • Back Throw: Tosses foe behind him.
  • Down Throw: Tosses the foe to the ground. Roy's best throw for combos, with very low base knockback and knockback scaling. Can be followed up by a jab into Up Smash and Blazer at low percentages and Up and Forward Aerial at higher percentages.
  • Up Throw: Thrusts opponent upwards.

Special Moves[]

Roy's Special Moves
Melee 3DS/Wii U Ultimate
Standard Special Flare Blade
Side Special Double-Edge Dance
Up Special Blazer
Down Special Counter
Final Smash Critical Hit

Idle Poses[]

  • Pumps his fist.
  • Swipes his hand lightly against the Sword of Seals while holding it in front of himself.

Taunts[]

  • Up Taunt: Raises his sword into the air.
  • Side Taunt: Poses, brandishes his blade and says "僕 は 負けない!" ("Boku wa makenai!"), which translates to: "I will not lose!"
  • Down Taunt: Kneels and the Sword of Seals behind him while yelling "Hee-ya!". This taunt returns from Melee

In Competitive Play[]

Roy's initial perception among the community was very positive, players almost immediately recognized his powerful offense due to the prominent strengths of his sweetspotted attacks, heavily damaging throw set-ups, and significantly improved mobility. These views were especially noted because his semi-clone, Marth, and by extension Lucina, were considered poor characters at the time. Despite his extremely low representation, which was unseen of a perceived high-tier character, most of the community believed that Roy was a viable character, with some claiming him to be the premier swordfighter in the game. Even so, his viability was also disputed due to his sparse tournament placements and difficulty in initiating combo setups. Furthermore, characters considered worse than him received a variety of buffs in later updates, with a corresponding increase in tournament results and representation than Roy, while his weaknesses were made much more apparent to the community. As such, opinions on Roy quickly started to change for the worse due to his vulnerability to combos, weak recovery, and an ineffective close-ranged playstyle due to his poor approach and unimpressive range. In spite of his flaws and lacking tournament presence, Roy was ranked 32nd on the first 4BR tier list, placing him at the top of the low-tier.

Unfortunately for Roy, update 1.1.4 granted Marth and Lucina major buffs that significantly increased their effectiveness, while Roy only gained minor landing lag decreases to his aerials. This resulted in them, especially Marth, achieving improved results from professionals and saw their opinions reassessed as those of a high-tier and a mid-tier character, respectively. Conversely, Roy remained a low-tier character due to the minimal effectiveness of his buffs from update 1.1.4. The lack of significant breakthroughs to his lackluster approaches and middling combo game . Only served to further damage Roy's negative perception, which saw Roy being ranked 50th on the second tier list, placing him at the bottom of the low-tier.

However, Roy players managed to achieve more success afterwards, with three Roy players in Manny, VoiD and ScAtt, managed to place 4th, 7th and 25th, respectively, at Smash the Record 2016, with the former two having played against each other in a Roy ditto. Ryo also managed to achieve better results with Roy. When coupled with Ryo's previous feat at Super Smash Con, Roy was ranked 44th on the third tier list, placing him in the upper portion of the low-tier. Roy's results would improve even further after Cloudy's high placing of 9th at Smash Factor 6 while upsetting Kameme, 33rd at 2GGC: Fire Emblem Saga as well, Serge reaching 7th with Roy as a secondary, and komorikiri placing 16th at 2GG Championship while defeating CaptainZack. Despite this, Roy remains ranked at 42nd on the fourth and current tier list, though due to the expansion of the tiers, he is now ranked as a mid-tier character. Throughout the game’s competitive lifespan, Roy's standing relative to the cast was among divisive compared to most of the cast. While a number of top players consider his placement to be accurate due to his polarized toolkit causing him to struggle against numerous characters, many players agreed that Roy could potentially rise slightly higher thanks to his good power and mobility.

Costume Gallery[]

Ourboy

Trophy Descriptions[]

Roy[]

Roy, the main character of Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade, returns for the first time since Melee! In The Binding Blade, Roy led the troops of Pherae into battle in his ailing father’s stead, and now he brings his speed and talent for short-range combat into this game. His sword, the Sword of Seals, is uniquely powerful at the base of the blade.

Roy (Alt.)[]

His sword, the Sword of Seals, is uniquely powerful at the base of the blade. Flare Blade creates an explosion in front of Roy that can be charged by holding down the button. Take care, though, because at the highest levels of charge, Roy himself will catch fire and take damage! His side special, Double-Edge Dance, changes for each strike after the first depending on whether you hold up or down while attacking.

Critical Hit (Roy)[]

For Roy’s Final Smash, he traps enemies in a circular swing of the blade, brings it up behind him, and then, in a blast of fire, brings the blade down for a powerful finisher! The downward attack is powerful on its own but doesn’t have much range, so make sure you’re close enough to hit your enemies with the full combo and really seal their fate!

Announcement Video[]


Gallery[]

Trivia[]

  • Roy is the third character to have been dropped in one game (Super Smash Bros. Brawl), then return in a later game (Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS/Wii U), the first being Dr. Mario and the second being Mewtwo.
  • As with Mewtwo, Roy's pose in his official artwork is nearly identical to his Melee official artwork.
  • The "Roy Seals the Deal!" tagline is a reference to the Sword of Seals, Roy's sword.
  • Roy, Marth and Cloud are the only characters in Smash Bros. since Melee that speak in Japanese regardless of localization, reflecting the concept of their respective games never having reached Western territories.
    • However, Marth's game had reached the Western audience (under the name Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon).
  • In Roy's trailer, there is a part where he attacks Roy Koopa. This is a reference to how they are the only characters to share the same name. For a time, this led to a humorous internet meme in which people claimed this Roy as being playable whilst pointing to Roy Koopa.
    • This is referenced again in one of Roy's pictures on his profile page on the official website, where Roy Koopa is being damaged by the lava in Norfair while Roy is in front of him.
  • Roy's Final Smash animation references the Binding Blade's long-range attack in the original Fuuin no Tsurugi.
  • Roy is the last DLC veteran to be announced, and thus, the last veteran overall.
  • Roy and Corrin are the only DLC characters to share a universe.
  • Roy is the only DLC character to lack a projectile attack.
  • Roy is the only character whose dizzy and sleeping sounds permanently loop in the Voices option in the Sound Test.

External Links[]

FireEmblemSymbol Fire Emblem universe
Characters Marth (Melee  · Brawl  · 3DS/Wii U  · Ultimate)
Roy (Melee  · 3DS/Wii U  · Ultimate)
Ike (Brawl  · 3DS/Wii U  · Ultimate)
Robin (3DS/Wii U  · Ultimate)
Lucina (3DS/Wii U  · Ultimate)
Corrin (3DS/Wii U  · Ultimate)
Chrom (Ultimate)
Byleth (Ultimate)
Side Characters Assist Trophies Lyn  · Black Knight  · Tiki
Mii Fighter Costumes Chrom  · Black Knight
Background characters Claude von Riegan  · Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd  · Edelgard von Hresvelg  · Rhea
Others Anna  · Sothis
Stages Castle Siege  · Arena Ferox  · Coliseum  · Garreg Mach Monastery
Item Killing Edge
Music List of Music (Fire Emblem series)
Collectibles Trophies Melee Trophies  · Brawl Trophies  · 3DS Trophies  · Wii U Trophies
Stickers List of Stickers (Fire Emblem series)
Spirits List of spirits (Fire Emblem series)
Masterpieces Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light  · Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem
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