Editing Sheik (SSBU)

'''Sheik''' ({{ja|シーク|Shīku}}, ''Sheik'') is a playable character in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]''. She was officially confirmed on June 12th, 2018 alongside {{SSBU|Zelda}} and the rest of the returning roster. Sheik is classified as fighter #16.

As a result of Zelda's ''{{s|zeldawiki|The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds}}''-based recast, {{s|wikipedia|Ayumi Fujimura}} now also voices Sheik, instead of retaining Jun Mizusawa, her voice actress from ''{{s|zeldawiki|The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time}}'', ''[[Melee]]'', ''[[Brawl]]'' and ''[[SSB4]]'' (thus making first time not to have Mizusawa voiced both Zelda and Sheik in a ''Smash'' game), or {{s|wikipedia|Saori Seto}}, who portrayed her in ''{{s|zeldawiki|Hyrule Warriors}}'', continuing the trend from Mizusawa voicing both characters in previous games.

With the exception of the third method, Sheik must then be defeated on [[Gerudo Valley]].

Sheik is a character that, like a ninja of sorts, fits the "hit-and-run" character archetype. One of Sheik's greatest strengths is her overall mobility, being among the best in the game both grounded and aerial. She also has the 4th highest gravity, which makes her mobility better, but leaves her more vulnerable to vertical knockback. Her crouch is also very low, making her difficult to hit when doing so. Sheik can also wall cling and crawl. However, she is the  6th-lightest character in the game, which when coupled with her gravity and tall height, these traits collectively make her very susceptible to combos and KO's, thus giving her very frail survivability overall.

Aside from her excellent mobility, another one of Sheik's greatest strengths is her extremely quick frame data. Her moves have generally negligible amounts of the startup or ending lag, making her extremely difficult to punish properly; this is supplemented by the good range of her moveset. She also has an excellent projectile in Needle Storm, with the needles charging and traveling fast, being long-ranged (covers about half of Final Destination), possessing transcendent priority, and causing hitstun. Coupled with her range, her needles give her a strong camping ability. Overall, her mobility, projectile game, range and frame data all combined form her greatest strength: her outstanding neutral game. She can play both defensively, by pressuring and zoning from afar without much trouble, or aggressively, with her fast attack speed giving her an unpredictable approach. Sheik can poke and pressure her opponents with her aerials and tilts, all of which are safe options. If they choose to drop their shield, they are wide open to these attacks. At the same time, holding shield presents her with an opportunity to grab and use her throw set-ups.

Sheik's excellent frame data, combined with the low power of many of her moves, give her among the best combo abilities in the game. Her throws can easily lead to other attacks, with her forward and down throws being particularly effective at starting combos, as they can set up long chains of forward aerials, with her up aerial and Bouncing Fish being useful combo finishers. Her combos are not limited to her air game; all of her tilts can start and extend combos since they send opponents into the air, and can confirm into aerials; her forward tilt particularly, has reliable follow-ups all the way into KO percents. Down tilt, while not chaining into itself as effectively, has even lower power, giving her access to KO confirms as well.  

All aspects of Sheik's moveset are solid overall. A sole few of her aerial moves possess great versatility; forward aerial, in particular, has a fast startup, decent ending lag, auto-cancels in a short hop fast fall, and has slightly disjointed range, making it an all-purpose move: it can be used to approach, pressure, combo and set up edge-guards. Her back aerial is also versatile to an extent, as it can be used to extend or finish combos. When sweet spotted (at the foot), it can KO at high percents near the ledge and is even safer on shield than her forward aerial. Neutral aerial is her fastest one, allowing her to break out of combos and extend or finish hers, notably into Bouncing Fish. Up aerial is her strongest aerial, and also sends opponents into a great angle for juggling, both of which give it good utility at both KO'ing and finishing combos.

Outside of her Needle Storm, Sheik's special moveset also possesses good utility: her up special, Vanish, grants her intangibility and invisibility, making it hard for the opponent to predict where she will appear. It also has a hitbox on disappearance that is decently strong, and another one and a windbox when she reappears, making it difficult to punish. Meanwhile, her down special Bouncing Fish, is famous for being her primary KO move, being similar to Flip Jump on some regards: it deals good damage with high knockback scaling, can finish combos from her neutral aerial, forward aerial, and aerial Needle Storm, and is safe on shield if it hits. Bouncing Fish can let you bounce on multiple players in a single move, although this is very rare in normal gameplay. Both Vanish and Bouncing Fish also conform Sheik's last strength in her recovery, as they make it versatile and extendable, both of them and can be used in tandem with each other, and they are difficult and risky to intercept, as they both deal high knockback enough to interrupt an edge-guard. Combined with her wall jump, this makes Sheik hard to edge-guard or gimp, without disabling her midair jump, and enables her to reverse edge-guard effectively.

However, despite having immense strengths, Sheik has polarizing flaws. The most notable of them is her frailty: despite the fact that her recovery is amazing, in a similar vein to {{SSBU|Fox}}, her on-stage endurance is very weak due to her very lightweight (being lighter than characters such as {{SSBU|Kirby}}), succumbing to even decently strong blows, whereas her above average height, high falling speed and gravity make her easy to combo. This is further compounded by her notoriously poor damage output overall: despite her strong damage racking ability, she requires extremely long strings of attacks just to do the same amount of damage that the vast majority of the cast can inflict in noticeably far fewer hits. While the low damage and power on her moves grant her an awesome combo game, Sheik also struggles to secure her opponent's stock. She has a few moves with high knockback, but she has difficulty landing them; her up smash has a powerful first hit on her arms as she raises them, but it is hard to land outside of a read or confirm,  is hampered by its much weaker second hit as she lowers her arms and is very punishable if missed, her forward and down smash are among the weakest smash attacks of their kind, and they have punishable ending lag as well, while Vanish's hitbox when Sheik disappears is hard to land. In the air, she is limited to using her up aerial, back aerial, or Bouncing Fish to KO, and even then, the former two require to be used close to the blast lines due to their relatively weak knockback, forcing her to rely too much on up smash and Bouncing Fish to score a KO. Furthermore, her aerial KO setups are difficult to pull off due to ''Ultimate's'' faster launch physics, re-addition of directional air-dodges, and the weakening of her neutral aerial's combo potential. Her other aerials are otherwise only useful for edge-guarding and gimping characters with particularly weak or linear recoveries due to their abysmal KO power or sacrificial use. Her overall below average grab game has no throws that can KO at realistic percents, and her aforementioned forward and down throws have too much knockback for truly reliable KO set-ups. With all of this working against her, it is not uncommon for her opponents to survive in excess of 150%. Lastly, the rage mechanic hinders Sheik: without rage, she often has trouble KO'ing, though as her rage increases, her combo game slowly dwindles, which when combined with her poor damage output, can make bringing an opponent to KO percents difficult. Additionally, this brings opponents to a high level of rage enough to KO Sheik herself.

Other weaknesses include a few moves that have very low utility, despite Sheik's moveset versatility. These include her down aerial, which is the slowest of her aerial moveset, has the highest landing lag and is a stall-then-fall, giving it the lowest utility of Sheik's aerial moveset despite it meteor smashing an opponent. Her smash attacks are difficult to land overall and outside of up smash, have little KO power. Lastly, Burst Grenade is powerful but has a slow explosion, which limits it to situational usage on edge-guarding predictable recoveries, extending the damage of a hard punish, or a situational mix-up to deter edge guarders.  

Altogether, Sheik's strengths are on par with her weaknesses. While she has an outstanding neutral game owing to her excellent frame data and mobility, these traits are overall unrewarding due to her very frail survivability, abysmal damage output, and inconsistency at KOing. Her strengths are further overshadowed by the vastly buffed mobility, frame data, damage outputs, and combo and KO potential of many returning veterans and newcomers. As a result, many top players have a poor view on Sheik's viability, with her tournament representation matching her perception due to her player base from ''Smash 4'' largely dropping her.

Like most top-tier characters, Sheik in ''Smash 4'' was considered one of the most potent characters (and the best character in the middle of the game's lifetime), due to her nearly uncontested [[neutral game]]. Sheik went on to receive the most nerfs from game updates, and while they did somewhat reduce her effectiveness, she remained a top tier character. Possibly as a result, while Sheik has received a large mix of buffs and nerfs, the latter is more prevalent since they have worsened her strengths from the previous game. Thus, Sheik has been heavily nerfed overall in her transition to ''Ultimate''.  

Sheik's most notable nerfs are to her already weak damage output and to her poor survivability. Her main combo moves like her [[tilt]]s and neutral and forward aerials (most notably the latter), in addition to Needle Storm and Bouncing Fish, all deal less damage. This gives Sheik a notoriously harder time racking up damage, requiring her to string even more hits in order to rack up notable amounts; this is exacerbated by her lack of KO ability. Although the weakening of [[rage]] has slightly improved her survivability and, most importantly, her combo consistency, this is counterbalanced by her weight getting decreased to the point of being lighter than characters such as Kirby, now being the sixth lightest character in the game, and this makes her lack of KO power even worse. As a result, she is still unable to take much advantage of rage, much like in ''Smash 4''.

The universal changes to the game's engine have brought both positive and negative changes to Sheik, but have hurt her overall. The game's faster launch physics, changes to jostling mechanics (which prevent cross-ups and instead pushes characters away), and the reintroduction of directional air dodges hinder many of Sheik's combo strings and KO setups. Furthermore, the prevalence of the newly introduced [[short hop]] multiplier on aerial attacks (which causes them to deal less damage) means Sheik doesn't benefit as much from the new [[1v1 multiplier]] as the rest of the cast due to her semi-reliance on aerials done out of a short hop; this, combined with the lower damage on her combo moves, further exacerbates her worsened damage racking ability. While Sheik does benefit from the universally faster [[jump]]squats, mobility and lower [[landing lag]] like the rest of the cast, she already had highly impressive mobility and the overall fastest frame data in ''Smash 4'', which causes the rest of the cast to benefit more than her from their buffs in those aspects, allowing them to keep up with her.  

However, Sheik has received some useful buffs besides the universal changes. Her running speed is much faster, now being the 4th fastest runner in the game. Her [[neutral attack|rapid jab]] connects more reliably and its finisher has less ending lag, making it more effective for damage racking despite its individual hits dealing less damage. Her up and down tilts, and Needle Storm (especially the aerial version) also have less ending lag, improving their combo potential. Her generally least useful moves in ''Smash 4'' such as her dash attack, down smash, down aerial, and up throw deal more damage. Her smash attacks as a whole have also been buffed, with forward smash and down smash's hits connecting better, and up smash's first hit having more range and power. [[Burst Grenade]] has less ending lag and no longer causes [[helpless]]ness, while [[Vanish]] grants more intangibility when used on the ground. Sheik has a new [[pummel]] that has gone from one of the slowest to one of the fastest, allowing it to be used more safely and rack up more damage. Finally, and most notably, her [[back aerial]] now deals more damage and knockback, improving its previously lacking KO potential when sweet spotted (though it is still a relatively weak aerial).

In the end, Sheik's nerfs noticeably outweigh her buffs, as the former have both worsened her key strengths and exacerbated her main flaws, while the latter was not significant enough to compensate despite giving her more consistent options. This makes her worse than her ''Smash 4'' iteration, and one of the most nerfed characters in the transition to ''Ultimate'', alongside {{SSBU|Bayonetta}}, {{SSBU|Cloud}}, {{SSBU|Corrin}}, {{SSBU|Diddy Kong}}, {{SSBU|Donkey Kong}}, the {{SSBU|Ice Climbers}}, {{SSBU|Little Mac}}, and {{SSBU|Rosalina & Luma}}. Initially, Sheik's overall perception was extremely negative, with many top players claiming that she is not a viable character since she has to work much harder to rack up damage and score KOs than the vast majority of the cast. As such, her current representation in ''Ultimate'' has been poor, with many notable players such as {{Sm|Vinnie}} and {{Sm|Nietono}} dropping her in favor of other characters, and others like {{Sm|Mr. R}} and {{Sm|k9sbruce}} reducing her to a secondary. Update 3.0.0 gave her improvements, including a new kill confirm; while they have done little to address her minimal damage output, she has received better representation and results since then from players such as {{Sm|VoiD}} (using her as a co-main to {{SSBU|Pichu}}), {{Sm|Kameme}}, {{Sm|Kirihara}} (both using her as a secondary), {{Sm|Shachi}} and {{Sm|Sylph}}, causing some top players to reassess opinions on her to a more favorable one. For now, Sheik's viability remains questionable, with the general consensus being that she is a mid-tier character, in stark contrast to her top tier performance in ''Smash 4''.  

Sheik has been buffed via game updates. Update 2.0.0 made her KO potential slightly more consistent by enlarging up smash's first hit, allowing it to catch landings better and hit a larger number of tall and/or large characters when they are standing right next to Sheik. In addition to these changes, [[Burst Grenade]] had its ending lag decreased, which slightly improved its safety as an edgeguarding option, while down smash's hits were modified to connect more reliably. Update 3.0.0 brought a few more noteworthy buffs, increasing the range of down tilt's tipper hitbox and slightly improving her neutral game, as forward aerial gained the ability to hit smaller characters beneath her, while [[Needle Storm]] [[charge]]s slightly faster.

Update 7.0.0 further buffed Sheik in a number of ways. Most notably, Needle Storm has less landing lag, improving its safety and combo potential. A handful of her untoned moves have also been noticeably improved. Down smash has less startup and connects even better than before, while [[Vanish]]'s explosion KOs noticeably earlier. Burst Grenade's ending lag was decreased even further, its explosion has a longer duration, and it can no longer be cancelled out by attacks; altogether, these buffs addressed the move's primary flaws that have plagued it since ''SSB4''. Lastly, standing grab has more range, which somewhat restored one of her former out of shield options, and her shield itself was enlarged as part of a near-universal buff to shield sizes.

|neutralname= 

|neutraldesc=An inward {{s|wikipedia|knifehand strike}}, followed by an upward knifehand strike. When button mashed, Sheik performs a barrage of knifehand strikes, followed by a palm thrust. Very fast startup (frame 2) and decent for damage racking, especially if the opponent fails to [[SDI]]. The finisher can KO on certain platforms, such as one of the platforms on Town and City.

|ftiltname=Cycle Kick

|ftiltdesc=A roundhouse kick. Deals very poor damage, but can string into itself and its low vertical knockback grants it excellent combo potential.

|utiltname= 

|utiltdesc=A stretch kick followed by an axe kick. The first hit is hard to land on grounded opponents. Like forward tilt, its low damage output is compensated by its great combo ability.

|dtiltname= 

|dtiltdesc=A legsweep. Sheik's foot has a hitbox that launches the opponent straight up, while the rest of her leg launches at 45°. The sweetspot combos into forward tilt, up smash, and all aerials besides down aerial. The tip leads into up smash for a KO at around 90%, though the timing is very strict.

|dashname= 

|dashdesc=Lunges to perform outward fanning knifehand strikes with both of hands. While situational, its fast startup (frame 5) and decent base knockback make it a decent punishment tool.

|fsmashname= 

|fsmashdesc=A roundhouse kick followed by a jumping spinning side kick. Both attacks cause Sheik to move forward. One of Sheik's best KOing moves, although its power compared to other forward smashes is weak. Crosses up shields if done close enough.  

|usmashname=Razor Wing

|usmashdesc=Raises her arms overhead and then quickly swings them downward to perform outward fanning knifehand strikes. There is a hitbox at Sheik's hands, just before she swings down her arms, that hit opponents above her. If close enough to a tall character, it is possible to land both hits of the move, but this is difficult to achieve. When sweetspotted, it is Shiek's strongest move overall and one of her best KOing options. However it has high ending lag and the second hit lacks KO potential.  

|dsmashname= 

|dsmashdesc=A modified butterfly kick performed from the [[wikipedia:Windmill (b-boy move)|windmill]] (a breakdancing move). Has a poor damage output and below-average knockback for a smash attack, but has respectable startup (frame 8).

|nairname= 

|nairdmg={{ShortHopDmgSSBU|6}} (clean sweetspot), {{ShortHopDmgSSBU|5}} (clean sourspot), {{ShortHopDmgSSBU|4}} (late sweetspot), {{ShortHopDmgSSBU|3}} (late sourspot)

|nairdesc=A flying kick. Very fast startup (frame 3), and a great combo breaking or out of shield option. Great for edgeguarding due to its somewhat powerful sweetspot and its long-lasting sourspot. The late hitbox on landing combos into Bouncing Fish at around 100% for a KO confirm. Autocancels in a short hop, but with strict timing.  

|fairname=Hatchet

|fairdesc=A lunging, downward knifehand strike. Its sweetspot is located on Sheik's arm, while the sourspot is on her body. Comes out on frame 5 with minimal ending lag. Low base knockback, but very high knockback scaling. Combos into itself and other moves exceptionally well, including Bouncing Fish which can lead into a KO. Safe on shield if properly spaced. Has a very generous autocancel window, being able to do so after 11 frames.

|bairname= 

|bairdesc=A side kick. While its power is slightly below-average for a back aerial, it can easily gimp characters with bad recoveries or outright KO offstage starting at around 90%. Hits on frame 4, sharing its speed with up aerial and making it one of the fastest moves of its kind in the game. Autocancels in a short hop.  

|uairname= 

|uairdesc=A diagonal corkscrew flying kick followed by a kick with the opposite leg. KOs reliably near the top blast zone, and can be set up into by forward tilt or down tilt, though this requires precise timing and doesn't KO until around 120%. Can be used after a forward tilt to drag the opponent down and lead into another forward tilt. Does not autocancel in a short hop.  

|dairname= 

|dairdesc=A diagonal flying kick. It is a [[stall-then-fall]], and its clean hitbox is a [[meteor smash]] during its beginning. One of Sheik's least useful and most situational moves, as its lag makes it very punishable, and trying to use it offstage will most likely result in an instant self-destruct.

|grabname= 

|grabdesc=Reaches out. One of the shortest grab ranges.  

|pummelname= 

|pummeldesc=A knee strike. Fast but weak.  

|fthrowname=

|fthrowdesc=Performs the tie shan kao{{ref|a}} (a technique used in {{s|wikipedia|Bajiquan}}), attacking with a shoulder bash. Combos into aerials and Bouncing Fish at low percents. Can combo into Bouncing Fish at higher percents, though this is easily avoidable with an air dodge. However, this can be conditioned and punished with Sheik's extremely fast movement and frame data.

|bthrowname=

|bthrowdesc=Throws the opponent behind herself and performs a mid-level side kick. The weakest [[back throw]] in terms of knockback, to the point that it KOs Mario at roughly 565% at the edge of [[Final Destination]].

|uthrowname=

|uthrowdesc=A handstand kick. Sheik's least useful throw, as it does the least damage and lacks follow-up potential. It is also Sheik's strongest throw, but fail to KO middleweights until around 288% on Final Destination.

|dthrowname=

|dthrowdesc=A collar drag takedown followed by a somersault axe kick. Can combo into up air at low percents.

|floorfdesc=Kneels and performs a palm thrust in front of herself and then behind herself.

|floorbdesc=A {{s|wikipedia|kip-up}} transitioned into a double-footed {{s|wikipedia|scorpion kick}}.  

|floortdesc=Squats on one leg and performs a spinning roundhouse kick.

|edgedesc=Performs a corkscrew {{s|wikipedia|dropkick}} while climbing up.

|nsdesc=Accumulates up to six needles that can be thrown immediately or stored for later use. When used in the air, Sheik throws the needles downward at approximately 30°. One of Sheik's best options for [[camping]] and zoning. The needles have [[transcendent priority]], and thus cannot stop or be stopped by other attacks (including, for example, other projectiles).

|ssdesc=Throws a grenade attached to a {{s|wikipedia|tripwire}}. On detonation, it creates a small vortex that [[pull]]s opponents towards it, then explodes. The detonation can be delayed a second by holding the special move button. The grenade can be thrown a farther when used in the air or when thrown over an edge, and its explosion is strong enough to KO middleweights at 115% near the edge, making it useful for edge-guarding. If Sheik is attacked before the grenade explodes, the grenade will detach from the tripwire and become a non-[[explosive]] [[item]] that anyone can use.

|usdesc=After a short delay, Sheik destroys a {{s|zeldawiki|Deku Nut}} in order to disappear via a small explosion, before reappearing nearby in a controlled direction. Its disappearing hitbox's respectable damage output and very high knockback scaling enable it to KO at 100% while near the upper blast line. It also grants a small vertical boost when used in the air. Conversely, its reappearance hitbox deals much less damage, but also has a windbox that can [[push]] away opponents who are very close to wherever Sheik reappears. It grants intangibility on frames 19-53. Reappearing near a edge renders her helpless, though [[self-destruct]]ing with the move is difficult to do because it allows Sheik to grab the edge the moment she enters helplessness.

|dsdmg=11% (first kick), 13% (following kicks)

|dsdesc=A 360° Tengkong Pantui Cepu{{ref|b}} (a kick used in Nanquan). If it connects with an opponent, she will backflip a distance away and land on her feet. She can then kick up to three times by pressing the special move button again after the preceding kick connects. Upon missing, she experiences landing lag if she lands before the move's animation is over. It can also be executed earlier by pressing the special button again, and covers more distance if the control stick is held in whatever direction Sheik is facing. Its long horizontal travel distance, respectable damage output, and high knockback scaling make it one of Sheik's most viable KOing options. It KOs middleweights at 120% while near the edge, and grants intangibility on frames 3-4. Due to its earliest input hitting on frame 17 and its landing lag, however, it is punishable if it misses.

|fsdmg= 3% (first hit), 2% (first hit late), 50% (entire move)

|fsdesc=Sheik dashes forward and slashes with her knife. If she catches anyone, the [[zeldawiki:Eye Symbol|Sheikah eye symbol]] will appear onscreen, and the screen will darken. She will then proceed to launch an onslaught of attacks from multiple directions before finally launching the trapped opponent with a final slash. The last hit of her Final Smash launches opponents the opposite direction of the initial dash. Only one opponent can be trapped in her Final Smash, though anyone nearby will also take damage during the duration.

Appears from a {{s|zeldawiki|Deku Nut}}'s explosion while briefly emanating blue wisps.

*'''Side taunt''': Pulls out the {{s|wikipedia|tripwire}} she uses for [[Burst Grenade]] and stretches it out, causing a "twang" sound.

*'''Down taunt''': A modified version of the [[wikipedia:Age-uke|age uke]] (a blocking technique in {{s|wikipedia|Japanese martial arts}}).

SSBUSheikIdle1.gif|Sheik's first idle pose

SSBUSheikIdle2.gif|Sheik's second idle pose

*'''Left:''' Performs her forward tilt and then her down smash before striking a pose with her arms crossed in front of her face.

*'''Up:''' Crouches, swipes with her hand twice, then stands up while rearing back her right hand up to her face.

*'''Right:''' Performs the fumikomi geri{{ref|c}} (a stomp-style kick in karate), followed by a mid-level side kick, and then exhales loudly before performing the [[wikipedia:List of shotokan techniques#Blocking techniques (Uke-waza)|tate shuto uke]]{{ref|d}} (a blocking technique in {{s|wikipedia|Shotokan}}).

[[File:ZeldaSeriesVictoryThemeUltimate.ogg|thumb|A flourished and abridged remix of the theme that plays when [[Link]] obtains a [[zeldawiki:Triforce|Triforce Piece]] in ''[[zeldawiki:The Legend of Zelda (Game)|The Legend of Zelda]]'' and has since become the main theme of ''The Legend of Zelda'' series.]]

==In competitive play==

During ''Ultimate's'' early meta, Sheik's representation was almost nonexistent due to the significance of her nerfs. With the reduction of her overall damage output, it was common for Sheik players to pull off a lengthy string of combos that only amount to the equivalent of 2-3 stray hits that their opponents dealt. As a result, much of her playerbase dropped her entirely due to the sheer amount of effort required when using her compared to the vast majority of the cast (for the same or potentially even weaker result). Her weak damage output even got notorious within the community, with players and commentators alike pointing it out during matches. As such, Sheik was commonly seen as a mid low or even as a bottom tier character by most professionals.

Patch 3.0.0 eventually gave Sheik a handful of buffs, most notably improving the effectiveness of some staple moves like down tilt, forward aerial and [[Needle Storm]]. As a result, some of her former players, most notably {{Sm|VoiD}} and {{Sm|Mr.R}}, began representing her in tournaments again, and her perception within the community has improved somewhat as some players such as {{Sm|ESAM}} believe that Sheik has potential and could make a great secondary character. {{Sm|VoiD}} has been using Sheik along with Pichu and has used her to great success.

For a while, Sheik's perception has been questionable more recently, as {{Sm|VoiD}} has gotten worse results and has started to use his other mains, such as {{SSBU|Joker}} more often than Sheik. This was up until Sheik was buffed again in 7.0.0, and as a result VoiD has recently gotten much better results with the character, greatly improving her perception within the Smash community with most professionals claiming she is a upper mid to high tier character. Soon after, he placed 13th at {{Trn|Frostbite 2020}} with solo Sheik, and is the highest placement for a solo main for that character.

As a result, the general reception of her has become positive by many professionals although many still consider Sheik's flaws too severe for her to have dominance in tournaments like in ''Smash 4''. As of now, Sheik's current spot in the metagame is uncertain though she is in a much better position than she was back in 2019.

 

===Notable players===

<!--If you are planning to add a player you consider to be notable, please provide tournament results in some shape or form in the edit summary (be it a link to a results thread or bracket of placing high in a tournament of other notable players or a video of them beating a notable player). Winning tournaments without notable players present is generally not enough to warrant a spot.-->

 

*{{Sm|big_mak|USA}} - One of the best Sheik players in the United States. Placed 17th at {{Trn|Midwest Arena}}, {{Trn|Midwest Arena 2: Doubles Masters}}, and {{Trn|Frosty Faustings XII 2020}} as well as 25th at {{Trn|Midwest Mayhem Ultimate}}.

*{{Sm|Javi|p=Smash 4|Mexico}} - Placed 2nd at {{Trn|Ragnarok}} with mainly Sheik, 5th at {{Trn|Mexican Gaming Championship}} and 33rd at {{Trn|2GG: Prime Saga}} using Sheik as one of his characters.

*{{Sm|K9sbruce|USA}} - Uses Sheik as a secondary. Placed 17th at {{Trn|Thunder Smash 3: Clash of the Pandas}}, and 25th at both {{Trn|Mainstage}} and {{Trn|2GG: Nightmare on Smashville}} in conjunction with {{SSBU|Wolf}}.

*{{Sm|kameme|Japan}} (#11) - Uses Sheik as a secondary. Placed 1st at {{Trn|The Mang0 Kickoff}} and 4th at {{Trn|Just Roll With It! 11}} using Sheik as one of his characters. Has wins over {{Sm|Tsu}} and {{Sm|Shogun}}.

*{{Sm|Kirihara|Japan}} (#48) - Uses Sheik as a secondary. Placed 4th at {{Trn|Umebura SP 5}} using a combination of Sheik and {{SSBU|Rosalina & Luma}}.

*{{Sm|Mr.R|Netherlands}} (#44) - Uses Sheik as a secondary. Placed 2nd at {{Trn|Encuentro Mítico}} and 4th at both {{Trn|Saints Gaming Live 2019}} and {{Trn|Expand Gong 4}} using Sheik as one of his characters.

*{{Sm|Shachi|Japan}} - Placed 25th at {{Trn|Sumabato SP 2}}, {{Trn|Sumabato SP 3}}, and {{Trn|Sumabato SP 7}}.

*{{Sm|Sharp|USA|p=Rhode Island}} - Placed 4th at {{Trn|New England Three Houses Invitational}} and 17th at {{Trn|Overclocked Ultimate III}}. Ranked 1st on the Rhode Island Power Rankings and 12th on the [[New England Power Rankings]].

*{{Sm|Sylph|Japan}} - Placed 9th at {{Trn|Sumabato SP 4}} and 13th at {{Trn|Sumabato SP 3}}.

*{{Sm|VoiD|USA}} (#38) - Co-mains Sheik with {{SSBU|Pichu}} and is the best Sheik player in the world. Placed 1st at {{Trn|Goodwill of Orange County's Charity Invitational}}, 5th at {{Trn|Mainstage}}, 9th at {{Trn|Glitch 7 - Minus World}}, and 13th at {{Trn|2GG: SwitchFest 2019}} using both characters. He also placed 13th at {{Trn|Frostbite 2020}} with solo Sheik, making it the highest placement for a solo Sheik player at a S-tier. He has defeated {{Sm|Zackray}}, {{Sm|Raffi-X}}, {{Sm|Salem}}, {{Sm|Goblin}}, {{Sm|MuteAce}}, and {{Sm|yeti}} with the character.

 

*{{Sm|Eim|Japan}} (#51) - Placed 9th at {{Trn|Umebura SP}} before switching to {{SSBU|Wolf}}.

Sheik's opponents are characters who wear masks or other forms of headwear to conceal their identity.

{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"

|1||{{SSBU|Meta Knight}} {{Head|Meta Knight|g=SSBU|s=20px}}||[[Fountain of Dreams]]||''{{SSBUMusicLink|Kirby|Forest Stage}}''||

|2||{{SSBU|Captain Falcon}} {{Head|Captain Falcon|g=SSBU|s=20px}}||[[Big Blue]]||''{{SSBUMusicLink|F-Zero|Death Wind}}''||

|3||{{SSBU|Samus}} {{Head|Samus|g=SSBU|s=20px}}||[[Norfair]]||''{{SSBUMusicLink|Metroid|Opening/Menu - Metroid Prime}}''||

|4||[[Bowser Jr. (SSBU)|Roy Koopa]] {{Head|Bowser Jr.|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Roy}}||[[Mushroom Kingdom U]]||''{{SSBUMusicLink|Super Mario Bros.|Underground Theme - Super Mario Land}}''||

|5||[[Little Mac (SSBU)|Wireframe Mac]] {{Head|Little Mac|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Green}}||[[Boxing Ring]]||''{{SSBUMusicLink|Other|Tunnel Scene - X-Scape}}''||

|6||{{SSBU|Mii Fighter}} {{Head|Mii Brawler|g=SSBU|s=20px}}{{Head|Mii Gunner|g=SSBU|s=20px}}{{Head|Mii Swordfighter|g=SSBU|s=20px}}{{Head|Mii Brawler|g=SSBU|s=20px}}{{Head|Mii Gunner|g=SSBU|s=20px}}{{Head|Mii Swordfighter|g=SSBU|s=20px}}||{{SSBU|Final Destination}}||''{{SSBUMusicLink|Super Smash Bros.|Meta Crystal}}''||Horde Battle. Items do not appear.

*{{SSBU|Mii Brawler}} costume combinations: [[Majora's Mask]] and [[Skull Kid]]'s Outfit, Hockey Mask and SSB T-Shirt.

*{{SSBU|Mii Gunner}} costumes: Shy Guy Mask and Butler Outfit, [[Ray Mk III]] Helmet and Ray Mk III Outfit.

*{{SSBU|Mii Swordfighter}} costumes: Black Knight Helm and Black Knight Armor, Yiga Clan Mask and Yiga Clan Outfit.

|Final||{{SSBU|Master Hand}}||{{SSBU|Final Destination}}||''{{SSBUMusicLink|Super Smash Bros.|Master Hand}}'' <small>(Less than 7.0 intensity)</small><br>''{{SSBUMusicLink|Super Smash Bros.|Master Hand / Crazy Hand}}'' <small>(Intensity 7.0 or higher)</small>||On intensity 7.0 and higher, {{SSBU|Crazy Hand}} fights alongside Master Hand.

[[Credits]] roll after completing Classic Mode. Completing it as Sheik has ''{{SSBUMusicLink|The Legend of Zelda|Gerudo Valley}}'' accompany the credits.

During the mode itself, Sheik can be unlocked early on shortly after rescuing {{SSBU|Mario}}, where the player arrives at a crossroads and has the choice to rescue her, {{SSBU|Marth}} or {{SSBU|Villager}}. If one of the others is rescued first, Sheik's path will be blocked by a force field created by {{SSBU|Master Hand}}, which will disappear upon defeating a boss or can be circumvented by looping back to the other side.

{|class="wikitable sortable" style="width:100%;"

! style="width:5%;"|No.

! style="width:5%;"|Image

! Name

! Type

! Power

! Stage

! Music

| 16

| [[File:Sheik SSBU.png|center|64x64px]]

| {{SSBU|Sheik}}

| [[File:SpiritTypeShield.png|20px|center|Shield]] <center>{{color|#18aef5|Shield}}</center>

| 2,500

| [[Final Destination]]

| ''{{SSBUMusicLink|Super Smash Bros.|Final Destination}}''

{{-}}

Sheik's Fighter Spirit can be obtained by completing [[Classic Mode]]. It is also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 500 coins. Unlocking Sheik in World of Light allows the player to preview the spirit below in the Spirit List under the name "???". As a Fighter Spirit, it cannot be used in Spirit Battles and is purely aesthetic. Each Fighter Spirit has an alternate version that replaces them with their artwork in ''Ultimate''.

Sheik Spirit.png|174. '''''Sheik'''''

==In Spirit battles==

|{{anchor|Geno}}[[Geno]]

|[[File:SpiritTypeAttack.png|20px|center|Attack]]

|•Defeat the main fighter to win<br>•Timed battle<br>•The enemy's FS Meter charges quickly

|{{anchor|Impa}}{{s|zeldawiki|Impa}}

|''The Legend of Zelda series''

|[[File:SpiritTypeShield.png|20px|center|Shield]]

|[[File:Byrne Artwork.png|center|64x64px]]

|{{anchor|Byrne}}{{s|zeldawiki|Byrne}}

|''The Legend of Zelda series''

|[[File:SpiritTypeAttack.png|20px|center|Attack]]

|{{s|fireemblem|Sothe}}

|''Fire Emblem series''

|[[File:SpiritTypeGrab.png|20px|center|Grab]]

|{{s|fireemblem|Jakob}}

|''Fire Emblem series''

|[[File:SpiritTypeGrab.png|20px|center|Grab]]

|[[File:Katana.png|center|64x64px]]

|[[Kat & Ana]]

|''WarioWare series''

|•{{SSBU|Sheik}} (×2) ({{Head|Sheik|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Purple}},{{Head|Sheik|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Red}})

|[[File:SpiritTypeNeutral.png|20px|center|Neutral]]

|{{SSBUMusicLink|Nintendo|The Mysterious Murasame Castle Medley}}

|{{anchor|Gray Fox}}[[File:Gray Fox Spirit.png|center|64x64px]]

|[[Gray Fox]]

|''Metal Gear Solid series''

|[[File:SpiritTypeAttack.png|20px|center|Attack]]

|•[[Assist Trophy]] Enemies ([[Gray Fox]])<br>•Move Speed ↑

|{{s|nookipedia|Rover}}

|''Animal Crossing series''

|•{{SSBU|Sheik}} {{Head|Sheik|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Indigo}}<br>•{{SSBU|Villager}} (x2) ({{Head|Villager|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Cyan}}{{Head|Villager|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Chartreuse}})

|[[File:SpiritTypeShield.png|20px|center|Shield]]

|[[File:Cammy Spirit.png|center|64x64px]]

|Cammy

|''Street Fighter series''

|•{{SSBU|Sheik}} {{Head|Sheik|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Green}}

|[[File:SpiritTypeNeutral.png|20px|center|Neutral]]

|[[File:Lokii.png|center|64x64px]]

|Loki

|''Bayonetta series''

|[[File:SpiritTypeShield.png|20px|center|Shield]]

|[[File:Mummy Castlevania.png|center|64x64px]]

|Mummy

|''Castlevania series''

|•{{SSBU|Sheik}} {{Head|Sheik|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Yellow}} (x2)

|[[File:SpiritTypeGrab.png|20px|center|Grab]]

|{{anchor|Shinobu}}[[File:Shinobu.png|center|64x64px]]

|''StreetPass Mii Plaza series''

|•{{SSBU|Sheik}} {{Head|Sheik|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Purple}}<br>•{{SSBU|Mii Swordfighter}} {{Head|Mii Swordfighter|g=SSBU|s=20px}} (Nia Wig, Ninja Suit)

|[[File:SpiritTypeGrab.png|20px|center|Grab]]

|{{SSBUMusicLink|Nintendo|Boss 1 - Sakura Samurai: Art of the Sword}}

|[[File:Makoto Persona 5.png|center|64x64px]]

|[[Makoto Niijima]]

|''Persona series''

|•{{SSBU|Sheik}} {{Head|Sheik|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Black}}<br>•{{SSBU|Wario}} {{Head|Wario|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Green}}

|[[File:SpiritTypeAttack.png|20px|center|Attack]]

|•N/A

|{{s|fireemblem|L'Arachel}}

|''Fire Emblem series''

|[[File:SpiritTypeShield.png|20px|center|Shield]]

|[[File:Trevor Spirit CoD.png|center|64x64px]]

|Trevor C. Belmont

|''Castlevania series''

|[[File:SpiritTypeShield.png|20px|center|Shield]]

|[[File:Phantom Thieves Spirit.png|center|64x64px]]

|Phantom Thieves of Hearts

|''Persona series''

|•{{SSBU|Joker}} {{head|Joker|g=SSBU|s=20x20px}}<br>•{{SSBU|Pikachu}} {{Head|Pikachu|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Libre}}<br>•{{SSBU|Captain Falcon}} {{Head|Captain Falcon|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Black}}<br>•{{SSBU|Zero Suit Samus}} {{Head|Zero Suit Samus|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Red}}<br>•{{SSBU|Chrom}} {{Head|Chrom|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Black}}<br>•{{SSBU|Sheik}} {{Head|Sheik|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Black}}

|[[File:SpiritTypeGrab.png|20px|center|Grab]]

|[[Mementos]]

|[https://megamitensei.fandom.com/wiki/Makoto_Niijima Makoto Niijima]

|[[File:Hero's Comrades Spirit.png|center|64x64px]]

|Hero's Comrades

|''DRAGON QUEST series''

|•{{SSBU|Ike}} {{Head|Ike|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Black}}<br>•{{SSBU|King Dedede}} {{Head|King Dedede|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Pink}}<br>•{{SSBU|Zero Suit Samus}} {{Head|Zero Suit Samus|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=ShortsBlue}}<br>•{{SSBU|Sheik}} {{Head|Sheik|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Red}}<br>•{{SSBU|Robin}} {{Head|Robin|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Red}}<br>•{{SSBU|Zelda}} {{Head|Zelda|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Green}}<br>•{{SSBU|Link}} {{Head|Link|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Teal}}

|[[File:SpiritTypeShield.png|20px|center|Shield]]

|•The enemy has increased melee-weapon damage and move speed<br>•The enemy's smash attacks have increased power<br>•Stamina battle

|{{s|dragonquestwiki|Sylvando}}

|1878

|[[File:Kyle Astral Chain.png|center|64x64px]]

|Kyle

|•{{SSBU|Cloud}} {{Head|Cloud|g=SSBU|s=20px}}<br>•{{SSBU|Sheik}} Team ({{Head|Sheik|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Black}} ×3)

|[[File:SpiritTypeNeutral.png|20px|center|Neutral]]

|[[New Pork City]]

|•The enemy has increased attack power when the enemy's at high damage<br>•Reinforcements will appear after a enemy is KO'd

The Legend of Zelda artwork.png|Artwork of all ''The Legend of Zelda'' characters, as posted on the official Legend of Zelda Twitter account.

SSBUWebsiteSheik1.jpg|Sheik posing on [[Skyworld]].

SSBUWebsiteSheik2.jpg|Fighting {{SSBU|Wii Fit Trainer}} on [[Coliseum]].

SSBUWebsiteSheik3.jpg|Surrounded by the fires on [[Kalos Pokémon League]].

SSBUWebsiteSheik4.jpg|Sheik performing [[Bouncing Fish]] near a [[Goldeen]] on [[Tortimer Island]].

SSBUWebsiteSheik5.jpg|Sheik and {{SSBU|Ivysaur}} [[taunting]] on [[Tomodachi Life]].

SSBUWebsiteMrGame&Watch4.jpg|Sheik and {{SSBU|King Dedede}} hit by {{SSBU|Mr. Game & Watch}}'s down smash on [[Yoshi's Story]].

SSBUWebsiteWiiFitTrainer3.jpg|Sheik becoming [[buried]] by the male {{SSBU|Wii Fit Trainer}}'s neutral attack on [[3D Land]].

SSBUWebsite10.jpg|Sheik charging [[Needle Storm]] on Tortimer Island.

SSBUZeldaJPTwitter1.jpg|With all playable {{uv|The Legend of Zelda}} veterans on the [[Great Plateau Tower]].

===Character Showcase Video===

*Sheik is currently referred to with male pronouns on the Smash Blog <ref>{{citeweb|url=https://www.smashbros.com/en_US/blog/index.html?category=cat02_fighter_16|title="Usage of Male Pronouns on Official SSBU Website}}</ref> despite being referred to with female pronouns in every ''Smash'' appearance thus far, as well as on various other official Nintendo social websites.<ref>{{citeweb|url=http://nintendo.tumblr.com/post/178668945609/|title="Usage of Female Pronouns on Official Nintendo Tumblr}}</ref><ref>{{citeweb|url=https://twitter.com/NintendoVS/status/1047018344212250625|title="Usage of Female Pronouns on Official NintendoVS Twitter}}</ref><ref>{{citeweb|url=https://twitter.com/Ixbran/status/1049729171470016512|title="Usage of Female Pronouns on Official Nintendo Switch News Feed, screenshot posted on Twitter}}</ref> Likewise, the game itself uses both female and male pronouns: Sheik is referred to with female pronouns in her moveset and [[tips]], while {{SSBU|Palutena}} and [[Viridi]] refer to Sheik with male pronouns in [[Palutena's Guidance]], albeit in the latter instance is done for comedic purposes as {{SSBU|Pit}} then mentions her being an alter-ego of Zelda.

*''Ultimate'' is the first ''Smash'' game where Sheik's design is based off of a different ''The Legend of Zelda'' game than her alter-ego, {{SSBU|Zelda}}.

*''Ultimate'' is also the first installment in the series that gives Sheik a [[Final Smash]] different from Zelda's.

*Sheik is the only ''Zelda'' character:

**Who doesn't fight characters from her own series (including Ganondorf).

*Sheik is the only character who travels to [[Final Destination]] outside the final round in Classic Mode.

*In Palutena's Guidance, Sheik is referred to in the sense of having been present before in ''Smash'' ("Sheik appears to be wearing a traditional Sheikah outfit this time around."), despite every other newly recorded Zelda character guidance bringing up the characters having separate incarnations throughout the franchise (Ganondorf being the same person, Link being a different person than before and Zelda and Young Link being specific incarnations). This implies that she's the same version of Zelda/Sheik seen in ''Brawl'' and ''4'' that was based upon the scrapped ''Twilight Princess'' design. Seeing as Sheik and Zelda are separate characters starting from ''Smash 4'' onwards, It is possible it could instead refer to the original ''Ocarina of Time'' version of Sheik from ''Melee'' as ''Ocarina of Time'' is her only canon appearance.