Editing Meta Knight (SSB4)

Meta Knight is ranked 16th out of 54 on the [[tier list]], placing him in the B tier. This is a moderate drop from his top-tier placement in ''Brawl'', where he was ranked 1st out of 38. Meta Knight's already impressive mobility has been improved: his already fast [[dash]]ing and [[falling speed]]s have become even faster, while his extremely slow [[air speed]] has become drastically faster. Meta Knight's overall frame data remains extremely fast and {{s|wikirby|Galaxia}} grants him [[Hitbox|disjointed]] [[range]], which collectively enable him to retain his formidable [[combo]] game and [[edge-guarding]] potential. Incidentally, he also boasts a superb [[recovery]]: in addition to his [[Double jump#Multiple double jumps|multiple double jumps]], all [[Mach Tornado|of]] [[Drill Rush|his]] [[Shuttle Loop|special]] [[Dimensional Cape|moves]] are reliable at bringing him back on-stage.

Boasting five midair jumps and a special moveset full of recovery options, Meta Knight has an outstanding [[recovery]]. [[Mach Tornado]] covers a large amount of horizontal recovery, especially if mashed. [[Drill Rush]] can be used as a horizontal recovery, and can be angled. [[Shuttle Loop]] covers a high amount of vertical distance and grants a fully controllable amount of horizontal distance. [[Dimensional Cape]] makes Meta Knight invisible, and allows him to move in any direction, making it the most unpredictable move in his arsenal and a good option for [[mindgame]]s. His recovery, when combined with his quick and disjointed aerial attacks, contributes to a deadly off-stage game. Furthermore, his aerial prowess makes him among the most difficult characters to [[juggling|juggle]] consistently.

In ''Super Smash Bros. Brawl'', Meta Knight was near universally regarded as the best character in the entire game, to the point of being considered by many as [[broken]]. This is due to numerous factors: Meta Knight was incredibly fast due to his blazing ground speed, array of mid-air jumps, having access to a glide and terrific frame data. In addition to his speed, most of his attacks were disjointed and possessed [[transcendent priority]], making Meta Knight a very difficult character to challenge and punish.

As a result of all of these traits, Meta Knight was an incredibly dominant force in ''Brawl'', with numerous characters heavily struggling against him and even the characters who could deal with him still had a disadvantageous matchup against him. Likely as a result of how he warped the metagame, Meta Knight has been significantly reworked in ''Super Smash Bros 4'' and while he did receive some buffs, he was truly nerfed overall.

Having been completely unmatched in ''Brawl'', Meta Knight's frame data has been considerably toned down. Many of his attacks now have slower start-up lag, reduced active frames, and higher ending and landing lag, with his up aerial being a good example in all these aspects. Additionally, his aerials have much later auto-cancel windows, which in combination with their higher landing lag, substantially hinders their safety as his neutral, forward, and back aerials no longer auto-cancel in a short hop. His range has been shortened, which makes his [[spacing]] ability much weaker and thus forces him to adopt a more aggressive playstyle. To further compound this, his overall damage output has been significantly reduced now being below average. With the nerfs to several of his most pivotal [[neutral game]] options, such as down tilt, forward aerial, down aerial, [[Shuttle Loop]] and [[Mach Tornado]], and the loss of [[Glide|gliding]] and the [[Priority#Transcendent priority|transcendent priority]] on his moves, Meta Knight's neutral game is overall significantly worse, leaving him more vulnerable to [[camping]] and zoning, especially with his lack of a projectile. The changes to his down aerial and Shuttle Loop combined with the removal of [[edge-hogging]], his shorter recovery, and the generally improved recoveries of the majority of the cast have collectively hurt Meta Knight's edge-guarding potential, and the loss of gliding removes some of his off-stage mix-ups. With his faster falling speed and the changes to [[hitstun canceling]], Meta Knight can no longer momentum cancel and is more vulnerable to combos, worsening his already poor endurance.

However, Meta Knight has received some noteworthy buffs. His already good mobility has been improved: his [[air speed]] is drastically faster, he dashes and falls faster, and he has gained a new movement option in his long perfect [[Pivoting|pivot]]. Several of his attacks are stronger, most notably his forward and up smashes, back aerial, and [[Dimensional Cape]]. Due to the changes to hitstun canceling and the updated gameplay physics, Meta Knight can perform true combos more reliably, especially with his dash attack, which has become his most reliable combo starter and is now a large part of his game plan. His up aerial also remains a strong combo option due to these changes despite its severe nerfs and his altered Shuttle Loop while having far less utility has become an incredible combo finisher and KO move near the upper blast line. His grab game is both more rewarding and more consistent, due to the mechanic changes somewhat making up for the nerfs to his damage output. He also benefits from the removal of [[chain grab]]bing and the changes to aerial [[grab release]]s which was previously one of his weaknesses.

Meta Knight has also received buffs over time via game updates, and while they are helpful, they do not nearly compensate for the loss of his overwhelming strengths from ''Brawl'' and version [[1.1.5]] nerfed his up aerial further.

*{{buff|Meta Knight's [[air speed]] is significantly faster (0.752 → 0.99), going from the third lowest out of 39 characters to the 23rd lowest out of 58.}}

*{{buff|[[Roll]]s have a longer duration (frames 5-12 (forward)/4-12 (back) → 4-15 (both)).}}

*{{buff|Rolls travel further due to Meta Knight's larger size.}}

*{{nerf|All of Meta Knight's sword-based ground attacks have lost their [[Priority#Transcendent priority|transcendent priority]]. This significantly hinders Meta Knight's neutral game as it makes it much easier for opponents to challenge his ground moves.}}

**{{buff|Neutral attack launches opponents at a higher angle ([[Sakurai angle|361°]] → 60°/84°) and it has lower knockback scaling (40 → 30). This makes the move connect much more reliably as grounded opponents are now put into the air when the move is performed, preventing them for shielding.}}

**{{buff|Neutral attack has a lower [[Smash directional influence|SDI]] multiplier (1× → 0.6×). When combined with the weakening of the mechanic along with the move's other changes, this makes it much more difficult to escape from.}}

**{{change|The third hit launches opponents at a lower angle (65° → 361°). This improves its KO and edgeguarding potential, but removes its set-up potential.}}

**{{nerf|Down tilt has more ending lag (FAF 16 → 19).}}

**{{nerf|Dash attack deals less damage (6%/7%/8% → 5%/6%).}}

**{{nerf|Dash attack covers less distance overall.}}

**{{buff|Dash attack deals more knockback (40 (base), 88 (scaling) → 70/90). When combined with the changes to hitstun canceling and [[DI]], this significantly improves its combo potential (now being one of his best combo starters).}}

**{{buff|Dash attack has larger hitboxes (4.2u/4.2u/4.2u → 5.5u/5u/4u) which are positioned further away from Meta Knight (z offset: 0/2/4 → y offset: -1/-6/-10), greatly improving its range relative to Meta Knight.}}

**{{buff|Meta Knight now vocalizes once his forward smash's hitboxes become active, rather than as soon as he starts it. Due to its high startup lag, this makes forward smash harder to react to while being interruptible at the end.}}

**{{buff|The changes to shields significantly benefit forward smash as the move is now safe (in terms of frame advantage) against a sizeable portion of the cast.}}

**{{change|Forward smash has an altered animation. Meta Knight now draws Galaxia farther back and slashes outward in a more pronounced motion, ending the slash behind himself and taking a while to re-adjust to his neutral stance (which can be interrupted).}}

**{{nerf|Forward smash has smaller hitboxes (7u/6u/6u/6u → 6.2u/5.2u), with the upper/lower hitboxes being removed. This significantly reduces forward smash's vertical range.}}

**{{nerf|The near hitbox has been moved further away from Meta Knight (z offset: 5 → 9), considerably reducing the move's range behind Meta Knight.}}

**{{change|Up smash has an altered animation. Meta Knight now slashes upward at a slightly higher height.}}

**{{nerf|The upper hitbox has been moved closer to Meta Knight (y offset: 22 (hit 1)/24 (hits 2 and 3) → 20 (all)), giving the move less range above Meta Knight.}}

**{{change|Down smash has an altered animation. Meta Knight now slashes inward around himself while spinning once.}}

**{{nerf|Neutral aerial has an altered animation. Meta Knight now cartwheels, instead of somersaulting. This new animation is slightly longer (47 frames → 49), increasing the amount of time Meta Knight cannot grab ledges after performing the move.}}

**{{nerf|The clean hit's body hitbox is smaller (8u → 7u).}}

**{{nerf|Forward aerial now consists of one extended hitbox close to Meta Knight and one normal hitbox further away from him (with each having two separate sets of hitboxes for grounded and aerial opponents) rather than four normal hitboxes forming a square in front of him which hit both grounded and aerial opponents.}}

***{{nerf|The far hitbox is positioned closer to Meta Knight (z offset: 15 (hits 1 and 2)/14 (hit 3) → 13 (all)) and its height is inbetween the previous set of hitboxes (y offset: 1/10 → 6 (hits 1 and 2)/2.5 (hit 3)).}}

***{{buff|However, this does also give the third hit slightly more range below Meta Knight.}}

**{{buff|The first two hits now use the auto-link angle against aerial opponents (80° → 366°) and they have higher set knockback (48/35/20 → 90). This makes them connect more reliably, as well as granting them edgeguarding and drag down setup potential.}}

**{{nerf|Up aerial has much more ending lag (FAF 14 → 27). When combined with its higher startup lag, this greatly hinders up aerial's juggling and sharking potential.}}

**{{nerf|Up aerial has smaller hitboxes (5.5u/5.5u/5u/5u → 3.5u/3u/3u) and they are now extended. This gives up aerial less range below Meta Knight as well as less range in front of him despite the right side hitbox being extended further away from Meta Knight (z offset: 8 → 9.5).}}

**{{nerf|Down aerial auto-cancels later (frame 24 → 26).}}

**{{nerf|The side hitboxes launches opponents at a much higher angle (23° → 50°), greatly hindering their edgeguarding potential.}}

***{{buff|When combined with the changes to hitstun canceling and DI, this significantly improves forward throw's combo potential.}}

**{{change|Meta Knight releases opponents from back throw one frame later (frame 17 → 18). While this does make the throw easier to DI, it also reduces its ending lag as its total duration was unchanged.}}

***{{buff|When combined with the changes to hitstun canceling and DI, this improves back throw's combo potential.}}

**{{nerf|Down throw's first 9 hits deal less damage (1% → 0.5%), reducing the throw's total damage output (11% → 7.5%).}}

**{{nerf|The throw deals more damage (1% → 2%) and deals significantly more knockback (60 (base), 110 (scaling) → 50/170). This hinders its followup potential at higher percents while still being too weak to KO at realistic percents.}}

**{{buff|The throw launches at a higher angle (50° → 60°), improving its followup potential.}}

**{{buff|Meta Knight releases opponents from down throw one frame later (frame 74 → 75). This slightly reduces the throw's ending lag, and since the throw already executes so slowly, the additional frame to DI the throw is completely negligible.}}

***{{buff|When combined with its higher launch angle and the changes to hitstun canceling and DI, this significantly improves down throw's combo potential despite its higher knockback.}}

**{{buff|Floor attacks' second hits have less startup lag (frame 26 → 24).}}

**{{buff|Floor attacks have less ending lag (FAF 50 → 46).}}

**{{buff|As with other edge attacks, edge attack no longer has set knockback (110 (set), 100 (scaling) → 90 (base)/20).}}

**{{nerf|Edge attack deals less damage (8% → 7%) and launches opponents at a less favorable angle (361° → 45°).}}

**{{nerf|The loop hits now consists of one hitbox in the middle of Meta Knight, rather than one hitbox below him and two hitboxes on the side of him. The previous lower hitbox has been moved much higher up (y offset: -2 → 8) and the side hitboxes have been removed. This significantly reduces the move's range both horizontally and below Meta Knight despite the hitbox being larger (5u → 6u), and slightly extended.}}

**{{nerf|The loop hits now deal hitlag. This not only makes the move slower to execute and easier to DI but this also greatly hinders the move's shield pressuring potential, as opponents are trapped in shield for two less frames (as they now only suffer from two frames of shieldstun, rather than four frames of shieldlag Meta Knight does not go through), giving the cast more opportunities to escape and punish the move, especially early on in the move's duration with the move's lower rehit rate.}}

**{{buff|The grounded version's final hit has much higher knockback scaling (100/130 → 200), significantly improving its KO potential as well as no longer making it weaker than the aerial version.}}

**{{buff|Shuttle Loop grants much more height, improving its vertical recovery potential.}}

**{{nerf|The grounded version no longer has intangibility on startup, significantly hindering its ability to stuff out approaches as well as hindering its use as an [[out of shield]] option, especially against multi hitting moves.}}

**{{change|The second hit launches opponents vertically unlike the previous clean hit (30° → 80°).}}

**{{nerf|As mentioned earlier, Meta Knight now enters free fall when Shuttle Loop completes rather than gliding. This not only significantly hinder the move's horizontal recovery potential but this also makes the move drastically more punishable, immensely hindering its safety.}}

**{{buff|The attack deals more damage when it is not performed backwards (14% → 15% (neutral)/16% (forwards/vertical)).}}

**{{buff|The attack deals more knockback (20 (base), 85/95 (scaling) → 40/98), significantly improved its KO potential, especially when performed forwards or vertically.}}

Meta Knight has been buffed via game updates. In updates [[1.0.4]] and [[1.0.8]], damage output, knockback, reach, and attack speed were improved on some moves. Update [[1.1.0]] reduced the number of Galaxia's trails on his moves to match his moves' hitboxes, considerably improving his accuracy. The specific buffs to his neutral attack, forward tilt, and neutral aerial have given him more options with which to relieve pressure, and the increased power of his neutral and back aerials have enhanced his KO and edge-guarding potential. Update [[1.1.1]]'s changes to shield mechanics have also been beneficial for Meta Knight: thanks to several of his attacks hitting multiple times and/or having high [[hitlag]] modifiers, most notably forward aerial and forward smash. However the one indirect buff that really improved Meta Knight was 1.0.4 adjusting [[LSI]] to no longer apply on hits that launch between 65-115 degrees; this change made Meta Knight's infamous [[ladder]] and [[bridge]] combos that would define his meta significantly more potent, allowing Meta Knight to string more up and down aerials in the same combo and to connect at wider percentage windows, while also allowing the [[Shuttle Loop]] finisher to KO significantly earlier.

While these buffs do not make Meta Knight nearly as potent as he was in ''Brawl'', they have still allowed him to recoup some of his initially weakened offensive potential and remain viable with some notable tournament success. However, update [[1.1.5]] would then nerf Meta Knight; although its decrease of forward aerial's landing lag made it into a new approach option, it altered up aerial's launch angle to be more diagonal and increased its SDI multiplier, both of which make it harder for up aerial to combo into itself for early KOing ladders on most characters. However, the same update and update [[1.1.6]] also brought significant nerfs to {{SSB4|Sheik}}, {{SSB4|Zero Suit Samus}} and {{SSB4|Bayonetta}}, who were some of his most challenging matchups prior to these updates. Overall, Meta Knight has improved since the initial release of ''SSB4''.

*{{change|Forward tilt's last hit's angle altered|65°|361°. This improves its spacing and edge-guarding potential, but removes its set-up potential.}}

|neutralname=Flurry Attack ({{ja|フラリーアタック|Furarīatakku}})<br>Slash Up ({{ja|斬り上げ|Kiri Age}}, ''Slashing Lift'')

|neutraldesc=An extremely fast series of slashes followed by a backflipping slash. It is notably the only neutral attack in the game that consists solely of a neutral infinite. This makes it one of Meta Knight's more reliable damage racking options, as it is able to consistently inflict 10%-15%, but it is punishable if missed. It appears to be based on the Chopping Sword move from ''Kirby & The Amazing Mirror'', while its finisher is a possible reference to the Uppercut from the Sword ability in ''Kirby Super Star'' and ''Kirby Super Star Ultra'', with the latter game naming it Meta Upper when it is used by Meta Knight.

|ftiltname=Diagonal Slash ({{ja|袈裟斬り|Kesagiri}}, ''Kasaya Cutter/Slash''<br>Counter Slash ({{ja|返し斬り|Kaeshi Giri}}, ''Return Cutter/Slash'')<br>Flip Up ({{ja|跳ね上げ|Hane Age}})

|utiltname=Spiral Up Thrust ({{ja|螺旋突き上げ|Rasen Tsukiage}}, ''Spiraling Thrust-Up'')

|dtiltname=Lower Thrust ({{ja|下段突き|Gedan Zuki}})

|dashname=Charge Kick ({{ja|突進蹴り|Tosshin Geri}})

|fsmashname=Torso Quick-Draw ({{ja|胴抜き|Dōnuki}}, ''Torso Draw'')

|usmashname=Triple Flag Swing ({{ja|旗振り三連|Hatafuri Sanren}}, ''Flag Swinging Triple'')

|dsmashname=Front and Back Slash ({{ja|前後斬り|Zengo Kiri}})

|nairname=Aerial Spin Slash ({{ja|空中回転斬り|Kūchū Kaiten Kiri}}, ''Midair Rotating Cutter'')

|fairname=Midair Front Triple Combo ({{ja|空中前三連|Kūchū Zen Sanren}}, ''Midair Front Triple'')

|bairname=Midair Back Triple Combo ({{ja|空中後三連|Kūchū Go Sanren}}, ''Midair Back Triple'')

|uairname=Midair Up Sweep ({{ja|空中上なぎ|Kūchū Jō Nagi}}, ''Midair Up Mower'')

|dairname=Midair Down Sweep ({{ja|空中下なぎ|Kūchū Shita Nagi}}, ''Midair Down Mower'')

|grabname=Grab ({{ja|つかみ|Tsukami}})

|pummelname=Wing Claw ({{ja|翼爪|Yokutsume}})

|fthrowname=Toe Kick ({{ja|つま先蹴り|Tsumasaki Geri}} , ''Tiptoe Kick'')

|bthrowname=Warp Slash ({{ja|ワープ斬り|Wāpu Kiri}})

|uthrowname=Air Drop ({{ja|いづな落とし|Izuna Otoshi}}, ''Izuna Dropper'')

|dthrowname=Trample ({{ja|踏みつけ|Fumitsuke}})

==In [[competitive play]]==

===Most historically significant players===

:''See also: [[:Category:Meta Knight players (SSB4)]]''

*{{Sm|Abadango|Japan}} - One of the best Meta Knight players in the early metagame, primarily maining the character in late-2015 and early-2016 and placing 7th at {{Trn|The Big House 5}} and {{Trn|Umebura Niconico Qualifier}}. He later picked up other characters but maintained Meta Knight as a secondary, including using Meta Knight in crucial sets to win {{Trn|Pound 2016}}.  

*{{Sm|AC|USA}} - First came to prominence in early-2017 by placing 7th at {{Trn|2GGC: Midwest Mayhem Saga}} and defeating {{Sm|MkLeo}} at {{Trn|2GGC: Civil War}}, placing 25th. He has since since become one of the best Meta Knight players in North America, placing 5th at {{Trn|SwitchFest}} and 9th at both {{Trn|2GGC: Fire Emblem Saga}} and {{Trn|EVO Japan 2018}}, and is ranked 47th on the [[PGR 100]].

*{{Sm|Ito|USA}} - One of North America's best Meta Knight players for the game's first few years, ranking 37th on the [[PGR v1]] and placing 13th at {{Trn|2GGT: Abadango Saga}} and 17th at both {{Trn|GENESIS 3}} and {{Trn|EVO 2016}}. He became less active at the start of 2017 and has only attended regional events since.

*{{Sm|MkLeo|Mexico}} - The best Meta Knight player of all-time who helped popularize Meta Knight in competitive play thanks to placements such as 1st at {{Trn|Smash Factor 4}} and {{Trn|Smash Factor 5}}. He later picked up other characters while maintaining Meta Knight as a secondary and counterpick, most notably using Meta Knight to defeat {{Sm|ZeRo}} twice in order to win {{Trn|2GG Championship}}.

*{{Sm|Rags|USA}} - First came to prominence in early-2018 after placing 17th at {{Trn|Frostbite 2018}}, and has since become the best Meta Knight player in North America who did not reside on the West Coast, most notably placing 5th at {{Trn|Smash 'N' Splash 4}} after defeating {{Sm|Ally}}, {{Sm|Cosmos}}, and {{Sm|Raito}} and ranking 87th on the [[PGR 100]].

*{{Sm|Sho|USA}} - A consistent threat at SoCal majors despite being less prominent than the other top SoCal Meta Knight players, most notably placing 13th at {{Trn|2GGC: GENESIS Saga}} defeating {{Sm|Dabuz}}. He also placed 33rd at multiple majors, including at {{Trn|GENESIS 4}} where he defeated {{Sm|6WX}} and {{Trn|2GGC: Nairo Saga}} where he defeated {{Sm|Ranai}}. He is ranked 96th on the [[PGR 100]].

*{{Sm|Tyrant|USA}} - One of the best Meta Knight players in the world from 2015 to early-2017, regularly attending and placing highly at {{Trn|2GGT}} events, including winning {{Trn|2GGT: The False Awakens}}, placing 3rd at {{Trn|2GGT: Fresh Saga}} defeating {{Sm|VoiD}}, and placing 13th at {{Trn|2GGT: ZeRo Saga}} defeating {{Sm|Dabuz}}. He became less active in 2018 but was still ranked 64th on the [[PGR 100]].

==In Solo Modes==

In All-Star Mode, Meta Knight is fought in Stage 4 in both versions alongside {{SSB4|Kirby}}, {{SSB4|Fox}}, {{SSB4|Falco}}, {{SSB4|Wario}}, {{SSB4|Sonic}}, and {{SSB4|King Dedede}}.

==={{GameIcon|SSB4-U}}[[Event Match]]es===

====Solo Events====

====Co-op Events====