Editing Zelda (SSBU)

In a similar vein to her fellow ''Zelda'' fighters {{SSBU|Link}} and {{SSBU|Ganondorf}}, Zelda is now voiced by {{s|wikipedia|Ayumi Fujimura}}, who reprises her role from ''{{s|zeldawiki|The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds}}'', replacing Jun Mizusawa from ''[[Melee]]'', ''[[Brawl]]'', and ''[[Smash 4]]''. Similar to {{uv|Star Fox}} characters in ''Melee'', the former provides a single line of spoken Japanese dialogue in [[World of Light]]'s opening; this line is dubbed in English by Brandy Kopp, who also voices {{SSBU|Palutena}}.

With the exception of the third method, Zelda must then be defeated on [[Temple]].

Zelda is a tall and floaty [[weight|lightweight]] fighter with generally poor mobility. Although she has above-average traction, [[air speed]], and a decent [[initial dash]], she has the 16th slowest [[walk]]ing speed, is tied with {{SSBU|Byleth}} for the 8th slowest [[dash]]ing speed, has slow [[falling speed]], has low [[gravity]], and has low [[air acceleration]]. Zelda's attacks are based on magic, making most of them [[disjoint]]ed or otherwise large range attacks. They generally have quick startup; all of her attacks execute before frame 10 except for [[forward tilt]], [[up aerial]], [[down aerial]], and [[forward smash]]. Even though Zelda is classified as floaty and lightweight, most of her attacks have [[KO]] potential and impressive damage output; this in turn makes her power comparable to heavyweights. Due to these factors, a general term to portray her fighting style is a zoning glass cannon.

Her [[neutral attack]] is a small burst of magical energy in front of her. It has decent range and good damage output before transitioning into a [[rapid jab]] of many magical bursts with a finishing hit. Forward tilt is a strong arm swipe with good range and little ending vulnerability. Forward tilt can also be angled up and down. [[Up tilt]] is a vertical, circular arm sweep with long duration and can be a useful anti-air and [[combo]] tool across most percentages of damage. [[Down tilt]] is a quick crouching kick that lasts surprisingly long and is good for many combo setups and 2-framing opponents. Her [[Dash attack]] is a dual hand thrust with a burst of magic most powerful closest to her hands. It’s best used throughout combos to gain distance.

Forward and [[up smash]] are multi-hitting bursts of magic energy with great power; the former being a thrust of the hand forward and the latter being a wave of the hand back and forth above her. [[Down smash]] is a very fast 360° leg sweep that launches opponents at a [[semi spike]] angle with decent knockback.

Zelda's more prominent strengths are in the air, as she has some of the strongest [[aerial]]s in the game. Zelda can auto-cancel her [[neutral aerial|neutral]] and [[down aerial]] in a short hop, and [[forward aerial|forward]] and [[back aerial]] auto-cancel from a fast fall. Though her neutral air lacks notable KO ability, it pairs a long active duration with generously-sized hitboxes. This, combined with its aforementioned early autocancel window, makes her neutral air her most versatile aerial, excelling at starting and/or extending combos, setting up edgeguards, and pressuring shields (if spaced well). Forward and back air are known as the Lightning Kicks. Both of these aerials possess a sweetspot located at the tip of her foot which is incredibly powerful, dealing an electrifying 24% with similarly shockingly high knockback. Surprisingly, unlike most moves with such high power, it also sports minimal startup, coming out at a blistering frame 6. Up air is a large, disjointed explosion of fire with excellent damage and knockback. It now also has a deceptively long active duration, thanks to a game update which added a new, weaker late hit to the move. Down air—sometimes nicknamed the "Lightning Stomp"—is a meteor smash which touts a powerful sweetspot on her foot, similar to her Lightning Kicks. Among the most powerful meteor smashes in the game, the sweetspot is naturally a strong edgeguarding tool, but, due to its early autocancel window and low ending lag, it also has utility in starting and extending combos. It's also among Zelda's most consistent aerials in that the very long-lasting sourspot always meteor smashes, so even if the sweetspot whiffs it can still take stocks.  

Her [[special move]]s take inspiration from various Zelda titles. Her neutral special move, [[Nayru's Love]], is a [[reflection|reflector]], yet it also functions as a melee attack. Zelda is intangible from frames 4-13 of the move. This means the move is good against [[projectile]] users as well as evading/halting opponent’s combos. [[Din's Fire]], her side special move, sends out an explosive ball of fire that explodes on the release of the button. It possesses a powerful sweetspot in the inner part of the explosion, and otherwise has a large exploding hitbox. Din’s fire gets stronger as it moves farther. The ball of fire does not count as a projectile, but the explosion can be absorbed. And for the first time ever, Zelda can use it to cover her recovery, as it doesn't leave her helpless in the air. Her up special move [[Farore's Wind]] is a great KO option, possessing very fast startup and elevator combos from the first hit on the ground to its very powerful second hit in the air. This, combined with it being a omnidirectional teleport recovery that travels a very respectable distance, renders it a very potent recovery move and perhaps among the most versatile in the game. As a teleport recovery, it's difficult to edgeguard against by default due to its intangibility between exit and reentry. On top of this, it can have anti-ledgetrap and mindgame potential if one opts to use the aforementioned powerful second hitbox instead of snapping to ledge. And, similar to Palutena's up special Teleport, she can completely avoid the move's ending lag by using a technique called edge-cancelling which opens the door to otherwise-impossible approach and stage control options. Lastly, her down special, [[Phantom Slash]], is perhaps her most versatile tool. It's a unique projectile that she builds piece-by-piece until it is fully formed. Interestingly, she can use it at any stage of its creation by pressing the Special button (or the attack button while it is actively being built) even when it's incomplete, which affects several of its properties. The earliest stages have rather low damage, knockback and range, but it becomes increasingly more potent as it becomes more complete, with the final stage having high damage output, impressive knockback and stellar range. It takes a little over a second to reach the final stage, after which Zelda will be able to move and attack freely (an untethered sort of state). The Phantom will attack on its own after about another second if it is not triggered. Because of this untethered state, Zelda has a lot of flexibility in what she can do with her Phantom, such as retreating behind it for protection, attacking in tandem with it, launching the opponent towards it, performing shield breaking combos, making grab setups, and even covering her recovery (similar to Din's Fire).

Zelda has an outstanding [[grab]], as she makes up for her noticeable vulnerability with long range. Her grab attack however is mostly average in speed and damage. Her [[throws]] are very useful for her fighting and overall advantage state maneuvers. [[Forward throw]] is good to setup edge guarding, while [[back throw|back]] and [[up throw]] are very strong KO throws. [[Down throw]] is most useful as a combo starter.

Despite her toolkit's versatility and potency, Zelda's flaws are apparent. Chief among them is arguably her poor mobility—especially on the ground—which hampers her ability to approach effectively against those who outspeed her (a majority of the cast). As a result of this, she flounders against quick, fast-falling opponents like Wolf and Zero Suit Samus. Since she is light, tall, and floaty, she is also vulnerable to juggling and can be KO'd earlier than a good part of the roster. Her very poor disadvantage state makes her vulnerable to momentum changes as well. While rage improves her excellent KO potential even further, her mediocre endurance doesn't allow her to take advantage of it as much as heavy characters. Her poor-mobility problem is exacerbated by various frame data issues. While her attacks generally come out quickly, they usually also come with punishable amounts of endlag, especially when they are whiffed or misspaced. This, combined with her poor disadvantage, makes her even more prone to losing stocks early if she doesn't space appropriately. This riskiness is especially apparent in her KO options; though they're incredibly potent, they struggle with unreliable or weak sourspots (in dash attack and Lighting Kicks), punishable ending lag (in up smash, up aerial and forward smash to an extent) or a combination of the two (in Din's Fire and Farore's Wind). Along with this, some parts of her moveset struggle with landing reliably. Her neutral aerial's multihits, though improved through patches, still sometimes struggle to connect to each other, and her neutral attack and forward tilt's hitboxes are placed high and narrow, respectively, so they sometimes have trouble hitting short or crouching fighters. Finally, her special moves have a couple of minor downsides; Nayru's Love has noticeable ending lag, making it punishable if overused, and if Zelda gets hit before sending the Phantom with Phantom Slash, it will fall apart and she will have to reuse the move.

Overall, Zelda has an excellent advantage state and can easily KO opponents thanks to a variety of strong attacks and KO setups, but she has to be careful with how she spaces her attacks, how she approaches, and what she does to get out of a disadvantage.

Zelda had historically and consistently been regarded as one of the worst characters (and, at one point in ''[[Super Smash Bros. 4]]'', the overall worst) in previous games, due to her combination of underwhelming frame data as a whole, a lackluster special moveset, bad hitbox placements, and an undesirable mix of attributes: being slow, light, tall, and floaty. While ''SSB4'' had brought updates to her offensive game, her weaknesses remained, causing her to nevertheless remain unviable. Likely as a result of being a poorly regarded character in previous games, Zelda has been significantly buffed overall in the transition to ''Ultimate'', especially comparing to the game's initial release.

One of Zelda's biggest buffs is her greatly improved moveset: many of her moves have either reduced lag, better KO potential, or other improvements. Her [[neutral attack]], previously the slowest in the game, comes out significantly faster, and has been reworked to possess an infinite portion with better damage racking ability and knockback. Her [[forward tilt]] has more range, less ending lag, and increased damage that improve the sweetspot's KO potential, though it does have 2 more frames of startup and smaller hitboxes with the sweetspots outprioritized by sourspots and the latter have less KO potential. [[Neutral aerial]] has decreased landing lag, allowing it to start combos into multiple ground options, including down tilt into forward aerial. [[Up aerial]]'s hitbox is larger, has been moved upwards and its duration has been extended; while the placement makes it difficult to hit grounded opponents, this increases its already solid large vertical range and makes it more difficult to spot dodge, while also giving it a new late hit that deals 12% with less knockback. Her already good grab game was improved to the point it is now among the most useful in the game: her [[back throw|back]] and [[up throw]]s are much stronger, while down throw deals more damage and, although its knockback and angle were altered, its combo ability remains mostly intact. Additionally she has the longest range for a non-tether grab of any character in the game. Her Lightning Kicks have been improved as well, having a larger sweetspot and the forward kick is now active as fast as the back kick, increasing their potency for followups when landing with them, and making them more devastating [[out of shield]]. This allows Zelda to secure KOs more easily, and down throw in particular possessing more reliable KO setups, as it can now combo into back aerial at mid percentages.

Zelda's special moveset, considered among the most situational in previous games, has seen various improvements. [[Nayru's Love]] has faster startup and [[intangibility]], and preserves Zelda's momentum, strengthening its already strong defensive ability and improving its edgeguarding applications. [[Din's Fire]] no longer causes [[helplessness]], giving it utility as an anti-edgeguarding option, has increased duration of effect and the sweetspot is larger and easier to land, making it more difficult to spot dodge and more effective in neutral or advantage state. [[Farore's Wind]] has faster startup, making it a more effective out of shield option, and more precise angles for reappearance, allowing her to land its second hit easier even if the enemy DIs the first hit, making "elevator" combos much more consistent. Most importantly, however, [[Phantom Slash]] has been heavily reworked to possess several more stages that can be unleashed faster, and the last stage allows Zelda to move around before it is unleashed, allowing for intricate trap setups and combos when edgeguarding and approaching, while the Phantom no longer has any cooldown if destroyed. Since the Phantom is formed behind Zelda, it is now better used in her advantage state, though with sufficient spacing it is also a strong tool in the [[neutral game]]. It's damage and KO potential have also been improved post-release. With precise input, Zelda can also short hop behind the Phantom while charging it, allowing it to block incoming projectiles while charging.

Additionally, Zelda noticeably benefits from some of the universal changes. Despite still having below-average mobility relative to the rest of the cast, the universal 3-frame [[jumpsquat]]s and reduced landing lag improve her the most, as they greatly supplement her neutral game, previously one of her main weaknesses. This allows her to approach more reliably with her powerful Lightning Kicks, and improves her combo potential, giving her more consistent and durable followups from moves such as [[up tilt]], neutral aerial, up throw, and down throw, which can dish out large amounts of damage. The changes to [[air dodging]] also generally benefit her, as they improve her edgeguarding game with moves like Din's Fire, and also give her an emergency recovery option.

However, Zelda has received some mixed changes and a few nerfs as well. Despite the improved speed and combo potential of her neutral attack, it is no longer a nearly unpunishable option against shields, and none of her other attacks has had their ending lag reduced enough to fully compensate. Down tilt has less ending lag, but has less range and its new angle worsens its combo potential in general, removing its ability to combo into up aerial, although it can now combo better into neutral aerial and dash attack and has a new KO setup into forward aerial. The changes to down aerial's hitboxes increase the clean hit's range and remove the blindspot located in Zelda's lower leg, but causes the late hit to have smaller hitboxes. Zelda's dash and pivot [[grab]]s, already below-average in speed, have received even more startup, although her pivot grab has very large range for a non-tether grab and both of them have less ending lag. Both [[forward throw]] and Farore's Wind are weaker, most significantly the former, now only being usable for setting up edgeguards in a similar vein to {{SSBU|Ness}}' own forward throw, though Farore's Wind is more consistent for self-combos due to faster startup and more precise DI options for reappearance that can hit opponents who DI the initial hit.

Lastly, while Zelda does benefit from some the changes to the game's engine, other changes have impaired her as well; the universal increase in mobility doesn't benefit her as much due to her slow grounded movement, since it still doesn't allow her to catch up with most of the cast. The increased [[shieldstun]] both helps and hinders Zelda, as it allows her moves to be more safely spaced, but combined with the universal reductions to landing lag (despite aerials having less shieldstun), it also slightly worsens her respectable out of shield game. Finally, of note is that Zelda keeps some of her weaknesses from previous games, mainly her slow movement speed, light weight, a few poor hitbox placements (such as extremely weak sourspots on her Lightning Kicks, which are otherwise her strongest KO moves). However, the nerfs she has received are not as meaningful as her buffs.

Overall, Zelda's moveset has been considerably enhanced from previous installments, making her strengths much more defined, and allowing her to play defensive much more reliably. Her perception in the competitive metagame has been more positive than in previous games, albeit rather inconsistent: Initially, Zelda was seen as a mid-tier character thanks to decent results from smashers such as {{sm|ven}} despite retaining some of her weaknesses from previous games. However, Zelda's overall tournament representation had at the time been below average, and her polarizing traits had led to her weaknesses to be exploited more easily as the metagame hads advanced, leading most players to believe that while Zelda fared much better in ''Ultimate'', she had not improved significantly compared to other previously lower-ranked characters in ''SSB4'', such as {{SSBU|Palutena}}, {{SSBU|Pac-Man}}, {{SSBU|Falco}} and {{SSBU|Wii Fit Trainer}}, with most players re-evaluating her as a lower mid-tier or low tier character once more (though not to the extent of ''SSB4''). Fortunately, {{SSBU|7.0.0}} has brought her meaningful improvements that have made her moveset more cohesive and consistent; thanks to her buffs, her representation, while still relatively average, has noticeably improved, leading to most smashers to believe that Zelda is a mid-tier character, with some such as {{sm|Mew2King}}, {{Sm|Salem}}, and {{Sm|Goblin}} considering her a high-tier character due to her out of shield options, KO power, and ledge trapping. As such, while she still faces competition from several returning characters that have been likewise buffed to varying degrees, this incarnation of Zelda is universally agreed to be the strongest one yet, and she is generally considered to be a viable character for the first time in the series.

Aside from [[Phantom Slash]]'s shield damage output being decreased via update 3.0.0, Zelda has been buffed via game updates.

'''{{GameIcon|ssbu}} 9.0.2'''

''For a gallery of Zelda's hitboxes, see [[Zelda (SSBU)/Hitboxes|here]].''

|neutralname= 

|neutralinfdmg= 0.2% (loop), 3% (end)

|neutraldesc=Extends her palm to emit a burst of magical energy, then follows up with a series of several magical bursts before finishing with a slightly larger blast, which can KO near the edge at reasonable percentages. Unlike in the previous games, where it was the slowest at frame 11, it now comes out quickly, at frame 4. Decent range, although it can miss small characters due to its high hitbox placement.

|ftiltname= 

|ftiltdesc=A magically-infused outward knifehand strike. It can be angled and has two sweet spots (one on her hand and the other being a blade of magic) that possess respectable power. Its sweet spot KOs middleweights at around 93% while near the edge of {{SSBU|Final Destination}}. It has three sour spots, which are located on Zelda's arm and take priority over the sweet spots, is also reliable for KOing in spite of being noticeably weaker. Its sour spots KO middleweights at around 109% while near the edge of Final Destination. Due to its somewhat low ending lag for its power (24 frames), it's safe on shield with good spacing, and thanks to its five hitboxes sharing almost identical knockback values, it has good range. However, it has noticeable startup lag at frame 12, as well as small and narrow hitboxes, and it can sometimes miss small or crouching characters.

|utiltname= 

|utiltdesc=Waves her arm in an overhead arcing motion while her hand is infused with magical energy. Due to it hitting on frame 7 and having very long active duration and almost no ending lag, it is one of Zelda's most reliable combo starters. It can combo into itself, neutral attack, forward smash, [[Nayru's Love]], and [[Farore's Wind]] at low percentages; into neutral aerial from low to medium percentages as well as into s Lightning Kick out of a reversed up tilt; and up aerial at medium percentages out of a reversed up tilt. It is also good as an anti-air attack thanks to its long active duration.

|dtiltname= 

|dtiltdesc=A kneeling low-level roundhouse kick. Due to it hitting on frame 5, it is Zelda's fastest tilt attack. However, unlike in ''SSB4'', it has noticeably less combo potential, mostly serving as a fast safe poke. It can, however, combo into a dash attack or neutral aerial at mid percentages. With proper timing, it can also be a KO combo into forward aerial.

|dashname= 

|dashdesc=A double palm thrust that emits a blast of magical energy from her hands, similarly to [[Peach]]'s dash attack. The sweet spot lasts for two frames and is located on Zelda's hands. Due to it hitting on frame 6, it is one of the fastest dash attacks in the game. To complement this, its sweet spot's base is strong enough to KO middleweights at around 99% while near the edge of Final Destination. However, it has a noticeable ending lag, while its other hitboxes lack KO potential.

|fsmashname= 

|fsmashdesc=A palm thrust that emits a multiple-hitting blast of magical energy. Its last hit's respectable damage output and very high knockback growth make it strong enough to KO middleweights at around 65% while near the edge of Final Destination. Its multiple hits also make it useful for pressuring shields, especially when it is charged, which combined with its moderate ending lag, with 26 frames, it is safe on shield and very hard to punish with good spacing. Due to it hitting on frame 16, however, it has the highest start-up lag out of Zelda's smash attacks.

|usmashname= 

|usmashdesc=Waves her arm twice in an overhead fanning motion while her hand is infused with magical energy. It hits on frame 9, which is fairly fast for a smash attack. When coupled with its multiple hits and its last hit's extremely high knockback growth, it is useful for both KOing and pressuring shields. Its last hit KOs aerial middleweights at around 104% from anywhere on Final Destination. It also has some combo potential at low percents, and the looping hits of neutral aerial can connect into an up smash. However, it has minimal horizontal range, long duration and 30 frames of ending lag, thus making it punishable if not used properly.

|dsmashname= 

|dsmashdesc=A spinning, low-level roundhouse kick. Due to it hitting on frame 5, it is tied with {{SSBU|Mario}}, {{SSBU|Dr. Mario}}, {{SSBU|Pit}}, {{SSBU|Dark Pit}}, {{SSBU|Ryu}}, and {{SSBU|Ken}}'s down smashes for the second-fastest smash attack of any kind in the game, being surpassed only by {{SSB4|Meta Knight}}'s [[buffer]]ed down smash. It is also a [[semi-spike]] that hits on both sides, which makes it very useful for punishing rolls or setting up an edge-guard. Although it is Zelda's weakest smash attack, it is still quite powerful and has a rather low ending lag. Its front hit KOs middleweights at around 117% while near the edge of Final Destination. In comparison, its back hit KOs them at around 122% while near the edge of Final Destination.

|nairname= 

|nairdesc=Twirls with her arms outstretched and her hands infused with magical energy. Due to it hitting on frame 6, it is tied with forward and back aerials for the lowest amount of start-up lag out of Zelda's aerials. It has a decent amount of utility: it has a great damage output, especially if the opponents are hit from the front, can be used as a follow-up from down throw; as a combo starter when [[SHFF]]'d, or as an edge-guarding option, and it can autocancel in a short hop. The last hit also has decent knockback for its type, as it can KO middleweights at around 150% at the edge of Final Destination without rage. However, at higher percents, opponents can get launched out of the multi-hit portion, reducing its consistency and reliability.

|fairname=[[Lightning Kick]]

|fairdesc=A magically-infused flying kick. Its sweet spot is at the tip of her foot, has both an outstanding damage output and high knockback growth, KOing middleweights at around 59% while near the edge of Final Destination, similarly to Captain Falcon's Knee Smash, although faster and marginally stronger, making it the strongest forward aerial in the game. Due to coming out on frame 6, it's also extremely fast for its power. Compared to back air, it has slightly less knockback, but autocancels slightly earlier and have less landing lag. However, the sweet spot only lasts for one frame when the hitboxes become active, and the sour spots lack KO potential and are very unsafe because of their extremely low damage outputs and average knockback growth. Its considerable ending lag also makes it punishable at low percentages, even if it is sweet spotted, and due to the aforementioned very low damage and knockback, the sour spot can lock opponents and set-up in other moves, lacks utility otherwise. Autocancels in a full hop fast fall, just one frame after Zelda reaches the peak of her short hop, similarly to Kirby's forward aerial.

|bairname=Lightning Kick

|bairdesc=A magically-infused flying kick. It functions almost identically to forward aerial, with the only difference being that its sweet spot has slightly more base knockback and knockback growth. Its sweet spot KOs middleweights at around 54% while near the edge of Final Destination. However, it has the highest amount of landing lag out of Zelda's aerials.

|uairname= 

|uairdesc=Leans back and turns slightly to extend her arm in order to use her magic to create a fiery explosion from her index and middle fingers. It is the most damaging and second strongest up aerial in the game, only slightly weaker than Shulk's up aerial if the second hit is sweet spotted. When coupled with its consistent hitbox, it is Zelda's most reliable aerial KOing option, KOing middleweights at around 100% from a full hop. It can also clip through platforms or the bottom of a stage's edge and has a great vertical range thanks to its large hitbox. However, it is slow, hitting on frame 14, which makes it tied with down aerial for the highest amount of start-up lag out of Zelda's aerials. It also has high ending lag (40 frames), a short duration, and a fairly short horizontal range. It autocancels in a full hop.

|dairname=Meteor Heel

|dairdesc=A magically-infused [[Stomp (archetype)|stomp]], also known as the Lightning Stomp. All of its hitboxes are [[meteor smash]]es, with its sweet spot being the most powerful among them and they can also lock opponents. Its sour spot, though significantly weaker, lasts deceptively long, allowing it to potentially gimp fighters with poor recoveries. It also has low ending lag and the lowest landing lag out of Zelda's aerials, which enables its sweet spot to start combos on grounded opponents quite reliably, as it can lock. Safe on shield with proper spacing. It hits on frame 14, which ties it with up aerial for the highest amount of start-up lag out of Zelda's aerials but combined with its deceptively long duration and its low ending lag, it's somewhat fast for a meteor smash. It can also autocancel in a short hop.

|grabname= 

|pummelname= 

|pummeldesc=A blast of magical energy. Moderate speed and damage.

|fthrowname= 

|fthrowdesc=Magically spins the opponent in front of herself and then throws them away. It is useful for setting up edge-guards thanks to its high base knockback and good damage output but lacks KO potential because of its low knockback growth, often not KOing until 200% without rage. However, it puts the opponent in a dangerous position.

|bthrowname= 

|uthrowname= 

|uthrowdesc=Magically spins the opponent overhead and then throws them upward. It is one of the most damaging up throws in the game and has both excellent KO potential and decent combo potential, but it only applies to heavyweights and fast-fallers, as it can combo into neutral aerial at low percentages against such characters; In addition to its combo potential, it can KO middleweights at around 146% from anywhere on Final Destination, and is tied with Incineroar and Lucas's up throws for the fifth strongest up throw in the game. Overall, these attributes make it one of the best up throws in the game.

|dthrowname= 

|dthrowdesc=Magically shoves the opponent underneath herself and then blasts them with fiery, magical energy from her hands. It launches up and behind Zelda, which allows it to combo into neutral aerial, up aerial and if timed precisely back aerial. Its neutral aerial combos are easily avoidable with correct DI, especially past low percentages. In comparison, its up aerial and back aerial combo at mid percentages are more consistent, especially with proper timing. Its up aerial combo also boasts the ability to KO any character at high percentages. However, this combo will lose its effectiveness if Zelda has too much [[rage]].

|nsdmg=2% (hits 1-3), 5% (hit 4, close), 4% (hit 4, tip) 1.25× (reflected projectiles)

|nsdesc=[[zeldawiki:Nayru's Love|Creates a crystalline barrier around herself]]. The barrier deals damage and [[Reflection|reflects]] projectiles with 25% more power and speed than they originally had. It also grants [[intangibility]] on frames 4-13, making it good as a defensive option against combos. However, it has a moderate start-up for its hitboxes (frame 11) and considerable ending lag, making it punishable if used recklessly, so it must be used carefully and not overused to avoid punishment.

|ssdmg=7%-14% (sweet spot), 3.5%-7% (sour spot)

|ssdesc=[[zeldawiki:Din's Fire|Launches a magical fireball]]. It can be aimed up or down, and releasing the button causes it to explode. It has a large hitbox, and despite being a projectile, it cannot be reflected but only absorbed. The longer the button is held down, the farther the fireball will travel, and it will automatically detonate when it reaches its maximum distance. Its sweet spot, which is located in the inner part of the explosion, is quite powerful, especially when fully charged. It is very useful for edge guarding. Fully charged sweet spotted Din's Fire KOs middleweights at around 87% while near the edge of Final Destination. However, it is very predictable, and its sour spot is very weak regardless of its charge.

|usdmg=6% (hit 1), 10% (grounded hit 2 near), 7% (grounded hit 2 far), 12% (aerial hit 2 near), 8% (aerial hit 2 far)

|usdesc=[[zeldawiki:Farore's Wind|Warps in a given direction]]. It travels a long distance and can be angled in eight directions similarly to Fox's Fire Fox, but is much faster compared to it. It deals damage upon contact while disappearing and while reappearing, and grants intangibility on frames 21-39. When combined with a jump, its travel distance is greatly increased. Its grounded disappearance has very high base knockback, very low knockback growth and launches at 91°, all of which enable it to combo easily into its reappearance when it is aimed upward. In comparison, its reappearance has a sweet spot near Zelda that has a decent damage output, high base knockback, and high knockback growth, all of which makes it very reliable at KOing, especially near the upper blast line. Its sweet spotted reappearance KOs middleweights at around 68% while near the upper blast line of Final Destination and in conjunction with the initial grounded hit, while the grounded reappearance can KO middleweights at around 71% from the edge of Final Destination. However, its reappearance has a sour spot that, although safe, lacks KO potential because of its lower damage output and average base knockback, and due to it incurring [[helpless]]ness, it is highly punishable if whiffed. It can be edge-canceled, a trait it shares with Sheik's Vanish, Mewtwo's Teleport and Palutena's Warp.

|dsdesc=Conjures a {{s|zeldawiki|Phantom}} piece by piece and propels it forward with another button press. Serves as a projectile with varying attacks reaching various levels of damage and distance depending on the charge. When fully charged, the phantom will delay its attack for around a second, giving Zelda time to add pressure, perform combined combos or to retreat behind it for protection, and if the opponent tries to reflect it, she can react by using Nayru's Love. When fully charged, the phantom can KO middleweights at around 84% from the edge of Final Destination. Very versatile and one of Zelda's best options in the neutral game and advantage state.

|fsdesc=Uses the [[zeldawiki:Triforce|Triforce of Wisdom]] to generate a triangular portal that sucks in opponents using massive periodic shockwaves. Upon catching an opponent, they will either be launched with poor knockback. However, if they reach 100% or higher during it, they are instantly KO'd. Very difficult to avoid on smaller stages (such as {{SSB|Dream Land}} or [[Mushroom Kingdom II]]), due to its long duration and large vacuum hitboxes.

*Scoffs with a hand on her hip, while generating magic and twirling it in front of her.

*Closes her eyes and summons [[Din's Fire]] between cupped hands.

*Giggles and waves with a smile.

SSBUZeldaIdle1.gif|Zelda's first idle pose

SSBUZeldaIdle2.gif|Zelda's second idle pose

==In competitive play==

As one of the characters playable in the E3 demo build, players were fairly divided early on regarding Zelda's competitive viability. Much of the optimism surrounding the character could be attributed to noticeably improved frame data, particularly on her jab and out-of-shield options, which were key points of grievance with the character's past iterations, as well as [[Phantom Slash]]'s changes. However, just as players took notice of the character's improvements over ''SSB4'', they found that some of her key issues, such as her mobility and poor endurance, were retained from previous games as well. In spite of this, players such as {{Sm|ven}} used to her to a fair degree of success in the early metagame. This left consensus on Zelda as a mid-tiered character. However, as time went on and the metagame progressed, her flaws were only further exploited, and her success was not as high in comparison to the early metagame. This led to a more negative perspective early on, with the general consensus of professionals considering her as a low-tier character.

After the early metagame, opinions on Zelda began to improve, as players such as {{Sm|ven}}, {{Sm|Naskino}}, {{Sm|Marf}}, and {{Sm|ZeroTwoNone}} continued to place well with her. {{Sm|ven}}, in particular, has won sets against {{Sm|ESAM}} and {{Sm|Megafox}} and has had close sets with {{Sm|MkLeo}} and {{Sm|Glutonny}}. Furthermore, she has received noticeable improvements towards her consistencies in patch 7.0.0, which is one of her major weaknesses. As such, many players now have a more positive opinion on Zelda, and she is widely considered as at least a mid-tier character, with some such as {{sm|Mew2King}}, {{Sm|Salem}} and {{Sm|Goblin}} considering her a high-tier character due to her out of shield options, KO power, and ledge trapping. {{Sm|ESAM}}, who once viewed her as a low-tier now believes that she has the potential to be an upper-mid or even high-tier character, although some players claim that Zelda is still too polarizing as a character and believe she’s still a mid-tier. Overall, it is widely agreed that Zelda is much better than all of her previous incarnations, and is viable for the first time in the series.

===Notable players===

====Active====

''Any number following the Smasher name indicates placement on the [[Fall 2019 PGRU]], which recognizes the official top 50 players in the world in [[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]] from July 13th, 2019 to December 15th, 2019.''

*{{Sm|Kisuke|Japan}} - Placed 25th at {{Trn|EGS Cup 2}} and 65th at {{Trn|Umebura SP 7}}. Has wins over {{Sm|HIKARU}}, {{Sm|Eim}}, and {{Sm|Arika}}.

*{{Sm|Marf|Canada}} - The best Zelda in Canada. Placed 3rd at {{Trn|Animethon 26}}, 4th at {{Trn|Salt Flats 2020}}, 7th at {{Trn|SKL: Prairie Pummel}}, and 13th at {{Trn|VORTEX}}. Ranked 3rd on the [[Alberta Power Rankings]].

*{{Sm|Meru|Netherlands}} - Uses Zelda as a secondary to {{SSBU|Peach}}. Placed 2nd at {{Trn|BURST 4}} and {{Trn|The Ultimate Performance 3}} with Zelda as one of his characters.

*{{Sm|Mystearica|USA}} - One of the best Zelda players in the United States. Mains Palutena. Placed 5th at {{Trn|2GG: Run it Back}}, 25th at {{Trn|Pound 2019}}, and 33rd at {{Trn|Smash 'N' Splash 5}} and {{Trn|DreamHack Atlanta 2019}}. She has defeated {{Sm|Tea}}, {{Sm|Goblin}}, {{Sm|Tyroy}}, {{Sm|Darkshad}}, and {{Sm|Ned}}. Ranked 1st in the [[Indiana Power Rankings]].

*{{Sm|Naskino|France}} - The best Zelda player in France and one of the best in the world. Placed 7th at {{Trn|Smash4Glory - Ultimate Edition}}, 9th at {{Trn|Ultimate WANTED 2}} and {{Trn|European SEL Clash}}, and 33rd at {{Trn|Ultimate Fighting Arena 2019}}.

*{{Sm|ven|USA}} - The best Zelda player in the world. Placed 9th at {{Trn|LVL Up Expo 2019}}, 17th at {{Trn|2GG: Prime Saga}}, 25th at {{Trn|2GG: SwitchFest 2019}}, as well as 33rd at {{Trn|2GG: Kongo Saga}}, {{Trn|Frostbite 2020}}, and {{Trn|Super Smash Con 2019}}. Ranked 4th on the [[Las Vegas Power Rankings]]. He has defeated {{Sm|ESAM}}, {{Sm|Jw}}, {{Sm|Prodigy}}, {{Sm|Gackt}}, {{Sm|Elegant}}, {{Sm|SweetT}}, {{Sm|Karna}}, and {{Sm|Megafox}}.

*{{Sm|Yn|Japan}} - Placed 7th at {{Trn|Sumabato SP 15}}, 9th at {{Trn|HST SP 6}} and 17th at {{Trn|Maesuma TOP 1}} and {{Trn|Karisuma SP 7}}. Has taken sets off {{Sm|Ako}}, {{Sm|Tea}}, {{Sm|Mossan}}, {{Sm|tatsutsuyo}}, {{Sm|Nishiya}}, and {{Sm|Keroguchi}}.

*{{Sm|AceAttorney|USA}} - Placed 33rd at {{Trn|Let's Make Big Moves}} with wins over {{Sm|Jw}}, {{Sm|MattyG}}, and {{Sm|Dunston}}. Has since been permanently banned from competitive play following confirmed sexual harassment allegations.

*{{Sm|Aikota|USA}} - Tri-mained Zelda with {{SSBU|Mii Gunner}} and {{SSBU|Ness}}, and was considered one of the best Zelda players in the United States before dropping all three characters in favor of {{SSBU|Lucas}}. Placed 25th at {{Trn|Super Smash Con 2019}} and 33rd at {{Trn|MomoCon 2019}}. He has taken sets off players such as {{Sm|Fatality}}, {{Sm|Mr E}}, {{Sm|ScAtt}}, {{Sm|Sonido}}, and {{Sm|Maister}}. Ranked 7th in the [[Georgia Power Rankings]].

*{{Sm|Riot|USA}} - The best Zelda player in New England prior to his inactivity. Placed 5th at [https://smash.gg/tournament/push-the-limit-4 Push the Limit 4]. Ranked 2nd on the [[New Hampshire Power Rankings|New Hampshire Ultimate Power Rankings]] with wins on {{Sm|DM}}, {{Sm|LingLing}}, and {{Sm|Pelca}}.

*{{Sm|ZeroTwoNone|USA}} - The best Zelda player in the Tri-state. Placed 13th at {{Trn|Tri-state Showdown: Fall 2019}}. He has defeated {{sm|Zomba}}, {{sm|Stocktaker69}}, {{sm|The Great Gonzales}}, and {{sm|Sinji}}. Has since been permanently banned from competitive play following confirmed sexual harassment allegations.

All of Zelda's battles are on ''The Legend of Zelda''-themed stages, and all her opponents are antagonists. The final battle is against Ganondorf, who transforms into Ganon upon defeat.

|2||{{CharHead|Bowser|SSBU|hsize=20px}}||[[Skyloft]]||''{{SSBUMusicLink|The Legend of Zelda|Ballad of the Goddess}}''||

|3||{{CharHead|Mii Swordfighter|SSBU|hsize=20px}} (x5)||[[Temple]]||''{{SSBUMusicLink|The Legend of Zelda|Temple Theme}}''||Mii Swordfighters are dressed in Yiga Clan Mask and Yiga Clan Outfit.

|6||{{CharHead|Link|SSBU|hsize=20px|color=Black}} (x4)||[[Hyrule Castle]]||''{{SSBUMusicLink|The Legend of Zelda|Great Temple / Temple}}''||

|colspan="5"|Bonus Stage

|Final||{{CharHead|Ganondorf|SSBU|hsize=20px}}, then [[Ganon]]||[[Sacred Land]]||''{{SSBUMusicLink|The Legend of Zelda|Calamity Ganon Battle - Second Form}}'' <small>(Ganondorf)</small><br/>''{{SSBUMusicLink|The Legend of Zelda|Death Mountain}}'' <small>(Ganon)</small>||Ganondorf transforms into Ganon upon defeat.

During the opening cutscene, Zelda tried to rally the other fighters to fight the army of Master Hands by saying, "Stow your fear; it's now or never!" ("{{ja|ここまで来たらやるしかないでしょう!}}"), and was present on the cliffside when [[Galeem]] unleashed his beams of light. She and {{SSBU|Mewtwo}} attempted to reflect the beams using [[Nayru's Love]] and [[Confusion]], respectively, but this attempt failed, and both of them were vaporized and placed under Galeem's imprisonment along with the rest of the fighters (excluding {{SSBU|Kirby}}).

Zelda was one of the many fighters that fell under [[Dharkon]]'s control upon Galeem's first defeat. She is unlocked in [[The Dark Realm]] at [[Sacred Land]], on the bottom left corner of the land which makes up the Triforce of Wisdom. The player must defeat the spirit of [[List of spirits (The Legend of Zelda series)|Impa]] (which is revealed by solving a clock-based puzzle) to clear a boulder that's blocking the path to her unlock battle and then the [[List of spirits (Others)|Zael]] and [[List of spirits (Pokémon series)|Uxie, Mesprit & Azelf]] spirits. Unlocking her reveals the Triforce of Wisdom in the center of the map. If {{SSBU|Young Link}} is unlocked, the boulders leading to {{SSBU|Cloud}}'s unlock battle and the Master Sword clear out.

{{-}}

Zelda's fighter spirit can be obtained by completing [[Classic Mode]]. It is also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 500 coins. Unlocking Zelda in World of Light allows the player to preview the first 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''.

|•Tiny {{SSBU|Zelda}} {{Head|Zelda|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Purple}}<br>•{{SSBU|Young Link}} {{Head|Young Link|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Red}}

|{{iw|dragonquestwiki|Serena|Dragon Quest XI}}

|{{SpiritTableName|Duran & Angela|size=64|ext=jpg}}

|{{SpiritTableName|Seth & Gloria|size=64|ext=jpg}}

|•{{SSBU|Mii Swordfighter}} {{Head|Mii Swordfighter|g=SSBU|s=20px}} (Chrom Wig, Dunban Outfit)<br>•{{SSBU|Zelda}} {{Head|Zelda|g=SSBU|s=20px|cl=Blue}}

=== Character Showcase Video ===

**Ironically, despite her ''Twilight Princess'' incarnation being retired after this game, even though Ganondorf's design from that game is still directly referenced via a spirit, as well as Link's Wolf from that game, Zelda is the only returning ''Zelda'' character from ''SSB4'' that doesn't have her ''Twilight Princess'' design directly referenced in ''Ultimate'' at all.

**She is one of the few characters to have her cutscene dialogue dubbed in English, but otherwise keep her Japanese voice actress's battle grunts, after {{SSBM|Fox}} and {{SSBM|Falco}} in ''Melee''.