Zelda (SSBU)

Zelda in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Universe	The Legend of Zelda
Other playable appearances	in Melee in Brawl in SSB4
Availability	Unlockable
Final Smash	Triforce of Wisdom

“	You might recognize Zelda's look from The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds game. In battle she uses magical moves to reflect and teleport, and for her Final Smash, she seals her opponents away in the Triforce of Wisdom. If an opponent has 100% damage or more, they will be instantly KO'd!	”
—Super Smash Blog, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Official Site

Zelda (ゼルダ, Zelda) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. She was confirmed as a playable character on June 12, 2018. Zelda is classified as fighter #17.

Zelda is voiced in-game by Ayumi Fujimura, who previously voiced the character in The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds. She speaks a single line in the Adventure Mode: World of Light opening, voiced by Fujimura in Japanese and dubbed in English by Brandy Kopp.

How to unlock

Complete one of the following:

• Play VS. matches, with Zelda being the 2nd character to be unlocked.
• Clear Classic Mode with Kirby or any character in his unlock tree, being the fourth character unlocked after Pac-Man.
• Have Zelda join the player's party in World of Light.

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

Changes from Super Smash Bros. 4

In addition to a visual redesign, Zelda has been significantly buffed in Ultimate. Many of her moves have reduced startup and endlag and improved KO potential. Her neutral attack, which was previously one of the slowest in the game, comes out significantly faster, and has been reworked into an infinite with KO potential. Her dash attack and up throw are much stronger, allowing Zelda to more easily secure KOs.

Her special moves have seen the most improvements. Nayru's Love has one more frame of invulnerability and allows her to move in the air while during use. Din's Fire no longer causes helpless, travels in a tighter arc, and has better use offstage due to the new airdodge nerfs. Farore's Wind is faster, preserves more momentum, and allows Zelda to drift sooner upon reappearing. The biggest change she receives is the reworking of Phantom Slash: it now assembles in six stages, with the final stage being able to use for trap setups, edgeguarding, and approaching, and a destroyed Phantom can be resummoned as soon as it disappears. Her new Final Smash, Triforce of Wisdom, is better at trapping opponents and will secure a KO for anyone over 100% at the end of the move.

Nevertheless, she has some noticeable nerfs. Forward tilt has more startup and endlag. Her grabs have more endlag, making them more risky to use in neutral to start combos. Farore's Wind travels a shorter distance, hindering her recovery and edgeguarding ability. Since Phantom is formed behind Zelda, and when sent forward has to make up the distance to where it would have appeared from the portal in Smash 4, this makes her more vulnerable when using the move. Furthermore, although now they are less significantly hindering, she still retains her previous Smash iterations' weaknesses, those being poor range, terrible sourspots, lackluster neutral, and slow movement.

Despite these nerfs and weaknesses, Zelda in Ultimate is considered to be her best placement in the series. The threat she poses in the current metagame, however, has yet to be determined as she currently lacks noteworthy results despite her buffs.

Aesthetics

• Zelda's appearance is based on her design from The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and A Link Between Worlds.
• Zelda always faces the screen regardless of which direction she turns, causing all of her animations to be mirrored.
• Zelda hangs onto the ledge with one hand.
• Zelda is more positively expressive, boasting a cheery smile during several animations.
• Many of Zelda's attacks produce brighter, flashier magical effects.
• Zelda's standing pose, idle poses, walking animation, up taunt, and down taunt have been changed.
• All of Zelda's victory poses have been changed:
  • For the first, she conjures a small flame out of her finger and swirls it around playfully.
  • For the second, she summons the Phantom armor and proudly poses in front of it.
  • For the third, she emits magic out of two fingers and points at the screen.

Attributes

• Like all characters, Zelda's jumpsquat is now 3 frames (down from 6 frames).
• Zelda's initial dash speed (1.6 → 1.958) and running speed (1.3 → 1.43) are faster.
• Zelda walks slightly faster (0.87 → 0.914).
• Zelda's air speed is slightly faster (1.04 → 1.092).
• Zelda jumps higher.
• Zelda's spotdodge has one less frame of endlag (frame 28 → 27) but it also has one less frame of intangibility (frames 3-18 → 3-17).
• Forward roll has less intangibility (frames 4-17 → 4-15).
• Back roll has less intangibility (frames 4-17 → 5-16) and more ending lag (frame 31 → 36).
• As with all fighters, Zelda's directionless airdodge has significantly more ending lag (frame 34 → 57), and she can now only air dodge once before needing to touch the ground, grab the ledge, or receive hitstun from a move.
• Zelda's directionless airdodge has more intangibility (frames 3-28 → 3-30) and less landing lag (21 frames → 11).
• With the addition of directional airdodges, Zelda has has intangibility on frames 3-21, her FAF is 130, and it has more landing lag than her directionless air dodge (FAF 20).
• Zelda's full hop has less air time. This makes her faster for movement purposes but means she has less time to hit opponents with aerials (frames of air time 62 → 57)

Ground Attacks

• Neutral attack:
  • Neutral attack is now a rapid jab with a finishing hit.
  • Neutral attack has less startup (frame 11 → 4). Previously the slowest jab in the game, its speed is now on par with many other characters’ neutral attacks.
  • Neutral attack's later hits have an altered angle (140° → 361°) allowing neutral attack to regain its ability to jab lock.
  • Neutral attack's final hit deals much more knockback (40 (base), 95 (scaling) → 55/140).
  • Neutral attack has more ending lag (frame 24 → 25 (if only the first hit is used)), is less safe on shield, and no longer reliably combos into dash attack or dash grab at low percents.
  • The first hit of neutral attack has less hitstun, making it unsafe when used on its own.
• Dash attack:
  • Dash attack has less ending lag (frame 40 → 36).
• Forward tilt:
  • Forward tilt no longer has a blindspot directly in front of Zelda. Instead, if she is close to another character, her lunge animation will push her backwards to allow the hitbox to connect. The hitbox also has a longer duration (frame 10 → 12-13).
  • Forward tilt has more startup (frame 10 → 12), and slightly more ending lag (frame 36 → 37), hindering its combo potential and making it riskier in neutral.
  • Forward tilt deals less knockback overall (50 (base), 88 (scaling) → 72/70).
• Up tilt:
  • Up tilt has a longer hitbox duration (frames 7-18 → 7-19).
• Down tilt:
  • Down tilt has less ending lag (frame 25 → 22).
  • Down tilt has altered knockback (20 (base), 120 (scaling) → 15/125).
  • Down tilt sends opponents at a less vertical angle (80° → 62°) significantly hindering its combo potential despite its decreased ending lag.
• Up smash:
  • Up smash has more horizontal range.
  • Up smash only has seven hits instead of eight making it deal less damage (15.4% → 14.6%).
  • Up smash no longer pulls opponents standing on either side of her into the looping hitboxes as easily.
• Down smash:
  • The front hit has smaller hitboxes (4.2u/4.2u → 4.2u/3.0u).

Aerial Attacks

• All aerials have less landing lag (19 frames → 16 (neutral), 23 frames → 14 (forward), 25 frames → 17 (back), 19 frames → 13 (up), 18 frames → 13 (down)).
• Lightning Kicks and down aerial have unique sound effects, even if the sweetspot misses.
• Neutral aerial:
  • Neutral aerial's multi hits no longer use the autolink angle (366° → 70°/92°/270°) making it connect much less reliably. The final hit also has less base knockback (40 → 35).
    • However, this gives it follow up potential at various percents when SHFFing with the first hit.
• Forward aerial:
  • Forward aerial is has less startup lag (frame 9 → 6), now being as fast as back aerial. It also has less ending lag (frame 53 → 50).
  • It auto-cancels earlier (frame 50 → 43).
  • Its initial auto-cancel window is shorter (frames 1-3 → 1-2).
• Back aerial:
  • Back aerial auto-cancels earlier (frame 52 → 45).
  • Back aerial deals more base knockback (28 → 30).
  • Back aerial has less ending lag (frame 53 → 50).
• Up aerial:
  • Up aerial auto-cancels earlier (frame 56 → 54).
  • Up aerial has altered knockback (30 (base), 84 (scaling) → 55/70).
• Down aerial:
  • Down aerial's late foot hitbox has more knockback scaling (70 → 75).

Grabs and Throws

• Dash and Pivot grabs have more startup lag (frame 11 → 13 (dash), 14 (pivot)) and standing grab has more ending lag (frame 38 → 40).
  • Pivot grab has less ending lag (frame 45 → 43).
  • Pummel has less ending lag (frame 25 → 7).
  • Pummel deals significantly less damage (3% → 1.3%).
  • Zelda grabs and pummels opponents with one hand instead of two.
• Forward throw, back throw, and up throw have altered animations, and Zelda's hands emit brighter trails of magic.
• Forward throw:
  • Forward throw deals less damage (12% → 10%), and deals less knockback (70 (base), 50 (scaling) → 100/30) hindering its KO potential.
• Up throw:
  • Up throw has much higher knockback scaling (60 → 82), now having the ability to combo to low at mid percents and KO at high percents.
  • Up throw sends opponents at a marginally less vertical angle (88° → 87°).
• Back throw:
  • Back throw deals more damage (11% → 12%) and significantly more knockback (60 (base), 80 (scaling) → 40/90), improving its KO potential.
• Down throw:
  • Down throw's looping hits deal more damage (1% → 1.5%) increasing its total damage output (6% → 8%).
  • Down throw sends opponents at a less vertical angle (100° → 104°) and deals more base knockback (55 → 75), hindering its combo potential.
  • Down throw can no longer connect with up aerial at low-mid percents, but can lead to a sweetspot back aerial.

Special Moves

• Nayru's Love:
  • Nayru's Love has less startup lag (frame 13 → 11).
  • Nayru's Love's intangibility starts 1 frame earlier (frame 5 → 4).
  • Nayru's Love no longer halts vertical momentum, allowing Zelda to move in the air while using the move.
  • Nayru's Love has less ending lag (frame 60 → 58).
  • Naryu's Love's intangibility (frames 5-15 → 4-13) and reflection period (frames 5-43 → 5-41) have a shorter duration.
• Din's Fire:
  • Din's Fire no longer leaves Zelda helpless in the air.
  • Din's Fire can travel slightly farther and Zelda has greater control over its trajectory.
  • Din's Fire's sweetspot is larger.
  • Din's Fire's flame has a more stylized appearance.
• Farore's Wind:
  • Farore's Wind has less startup lag with a longer duration (frame 8 → 6-7) and it has less ending lag (frame 81 → 76).
  • Farore's Wind travels faster after disappearing and preserves more momentum when used right after a jump.
    • However, this can make angling the move more difficult.
  • Zelda can drift in the air much sooner after reappearing.
  • The first grounded hitbox has altered knockback (118 (base), 30 (scaling) → 192/14) allowing it to connect with the second hit at a wider percent range.
  • Farore's Wind travels a shorter distance.
  • The second hit deals less base knockback (90/70 → 80/60) hindering its KO potential despite the aerial version having higher knockback scaling (90 → 94).
  • Farore's Wind now shows small green orbs that move in the direction Zelda is moving while before reappearing.
  • Farore's Wind produces a more intense green/yellow vortex at the start and end of the move.
• Phantom Slash:
  • Phantom Slash has been heavily reworked. The Phantom armor now assembles itself behind Zelda rather than appearing fully formed out of a portal in front of her. It is now a single-press chargeable move; Pressing B again will cause the incomplete armor to attack at its current charge level. The move has six charge levels, each resulting in a different attack:
    • 1. Kick (Frame 16)
    • 2. Punch (Frame 21)
    • 3. Outward slash (Frame 28)
    • 4. Downward slash (Frame 38)
    • 5. Upward slash (Frame 50)
    • 6. Delayed upward slash (Frame 67)
  • Phantom Slash's fully charged attack is now momentarily delayed, allowing Zelda to move around before the Phantom rushes forward. Zelda can set it as a trap and attack the opponent in tandem with the Phantom, or she can retreat behind it for protection. This also discourages the opponent from reflecting the Phantom since she now has enough time to respond with Nayru's Love.
  • There is no longer a cooldown if the Phantom is destroyed. Once the armor disappears, the move can be used again.
  • Fully charged Phantom deals more knockback.
  • Phantom Slash's fully charged attack deals less damage since it no longer hits twice.
  • The Phantom now charges behind Zelda instead of in front, leaving her more vulnerable since it has to travel a short distance before it can hit in front of her.
• Final Smash:
  • Zelda has a new Final Smash called Triforce of Wisdom. She magically opens a glowing, triangular portal that sucks in the opponent and immobilizes them while dealing damage. If the opponent is at or above 100% damage before the portal closes, they are "sealed away" and instantly KO'd; otherwise, they receive mediocre knockback. Other opponents above 100% damage can be launched significantly if they are within a certain radius of the portal when it closes. As well, before an opponent gets sucked into the portal, it deals very large, periodic shock-waves of damage that launch opponents slightly and help to pull them into the portal itself.
  • Compared to Light Arrow, Triforce of Wisdom has a much longer duration and much more range now covering an entire stage making it almost impossible to avoid. It also deals more damage (40% → 67%).
  • Triforce of Wisdom can only trap one opponent making it easier for non trapped opponents to avoid.

Moveset

Note: All numbers are listed as base damage, without the 1v1 multiplier.

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			2.5% (hits 1-2)	Emits a magic burst, follows up with a series of several magical bursts, and finishes with a final blast.
			0.2% (loop), 3% (end)
Forward tilt			12% (blade), 10% (arm)	A magically-infused, outward fanning knifehand strike. It can be angled and its sweetspot, which is located on the magically produced blade, possesses respectable power. Its sweetspot KOs middleweights at around 93% while near the edge of Final Destination. Its sourspot, which is located at Zelda's arm, is also reliable for KOing in spite of it being noticeably weaker. Its sourspot KOs middleweights at around 109% while near the edge of Final Destination. However, it has noticeable overall lag and a narrow hitbox.
Up tilt			7.2%	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 minimal ending lag, it is a reliable combo starter. 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; and up aerial at medium percentages. It is also decent as an anti-air attack.
Down tilt			5.5%	A kneeling shin kick. Due to it hitting on frame 5, it is Zelda's fastest tilt attack. However, unlike in SSB4, it has minimal combo potential, mostly serving as a fast safe poke.
Dash attack			12% (clean sweetspot), 9% (clean sourspot), 6% (late)	A double palm thrust that emits a blast of magical energy from her hands, similarly to Peach's dash attack. Due to it hitting on frame 6, it is one of the fastest dash attacks in the game. To compliment this, its sweetspot's base is strong enough to KO middleweights at around 99% while near the edge of Final Destination. However, it has noticeable ending lag, while its other hitboxes lack KO potential.
Forward smash			1% (hits 1-4), 13% (hit 5)	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. Due to it hitting on frame 16, however, it has the highest start-up lag out Zelda's smash attacks. It also has a punishable amount of ending lag.
Up smash			2% (hits 1-4), 0.8% (hits 5-6), 5% (hit 7)	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. However, it has minimal horizontal range and a punishable amount of ending lag.
Down smash			12% (front), 10% (back)	A spinning shin kick. Due to it hitting on frame 5, it is tied with Mario's, Dr. Mario's, Ryu's, and Ken's down smashes for the second fastest smash attack of any kind in the game, being surpassed only by Meta Knight's buffered down smash. It is also a semi-spike that hits on both sides, which make 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 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.
Neutral aerial			2.5% (hits 1-4, front), 1.5% (hits 1-4, back), 5% (hit 5)	Spins with her arms outstretched and 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 can be used as a follow-up from down throw; as a combo starter when SHFF'd; or as an edge-guarding option. However, at higher percents, opponents are liable to being launched out of the multi hit portion, reducing its consistency and reliability.
Forward aerial		Lightning Kick	20% (clean foot), 4% (clean leg, late)	A magically-infused flying kick. Its sweetspot is at the tip of her foot, and has both an outstanding damage output and high knockback growth. Its sweetspot KOs middleweights at around 59% while near the edge of Final Destination. Its sweetspot is easier to land if it hits the opponent at the beginning of the move. However, its sourspots 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 sweetspotted.
Back aerial		Lightning Kick	20% (clean foot), 4% (clean leg, late)	A magically-infused flying kick. It functions almost identically to forward aerial, with the only differences being that its sweetspot has slightly more base knockback and knockback growth. Its sweetspot 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.
Up aerial			17%	Leans back and turns slightly to extend her arm in order to emit a magical explosion from her index and middle fingers. It is the most damaging up aerial in the game, and 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 the bottom of a stage's edge. However, it hits 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 punishable ending lag, a short duration, and fairly minimal horizontal range.
Down aerial		Meteor Heel	16% (clean), 5% (late, leg), 4% (late, foot)	A magically-infused stomp. All of its hitboxes are meteor smashes, with its sweetspot being the most powerful among them. Its sourspot, though significantly weaker, lasts deceptively long, allowing it to potentially gimp fighters with poor recoveries. It also has the lowest landing lag out of Zelda's aerials, which enables its sweetspot to start combos on grounded opponents quite reliably. However, it hits on frame 14, which ties it with up aerial for the highest amount of start-up lag out of Zelda's aerials.
Grab			—	Restrains the opponent with magic. Zelda's grabs have long ranges, but noticeable start-up lag.
Pummel			1.3%	A blast of magical energy.
Forward throw			10%	Magically spins the opponent in front of herself and then throws them away. It is also useful for setting up edge-guards, but lacks KO potential because of its low knockback growth.
Back throw			12%	Magically spins the opponent and turns around with them in tow before throwing them away. In addition to being good for setting up edgeguards, it is among the strongest throws in the game, KOing middleweights at around 105% while near the edge of Final Destination.
Up throw			11%	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, the latter especially being apparent against heavyweights and fast-fallers. It can combo into neutral aerial at low percentages; up aerial at medium percentages; and Farore's Wind at high percentages. However, each of these combos are heavily dependent on the opponent's DI. It can KO middleweights at around 146% from anywhere on Final Destination.
Down throw			1.5% (hits 1-4), 2% (throw)	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 and back aerial combos are easily avoidable with DI, especially past low percentages. In comparison, its up aerial combo is more consistent, especially if Zelda utilizes it 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 while Zelda has a high level of rage.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	Kicks in front of herself and then behind herself.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	Kicks in front of herself and then behind herself.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Kicks around herself.
Edge attack Edge getups			9%	Performs a kick while climbing up.
Neutral special		Nayru's Love	2% (hits 1-3), 5% (hit 4, close), 4% (hit 4, tip) 1.25× (reflected projectiles)	Creates a crystalline barrier around herself. The barrier deals damage and reflects projectiles with 25% more power and speed than they originally had. It also grants intangibility on frames 4-15. However, it has moderate start-up and considerable ending lag.
Side special		Din's Fire	7%-14% (sweetspot), 3.5%-7% (sourspot)	Launches a magical fireball. It can be aimed up or down, and releasing the button causes it to explode. 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 sweetspot is quite powerful, especially when fully charged. Fully charged sweetspotted Din's Fire KOs middleweights at around 87% while near the edge of Final Destination. However, it is very predictable, and its sourspot is very weak regardless of its charge.
Up special		Farore's Wind	6% (hit 1), 10% (grounded hit 2 near), 7% (grounded hit 2 far), 12% (aerial hit 2 near), 8% (aerial hit 2 far)	Warps to a given direction. 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 sweetspot near Zelda that has a decent damage output, high base knockback and high knockback growth, all of which make it very reliable at KOing, especially near the upper blast line. Its sweetspotted 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 sourspot that, although safe, lacks KO potential because of its lower damage output and average base knockback, and due to it incuring helplessness, it is highly punishable if whiffed.
Down special		Phantom Slash	4.7% (level 1), 6.6% (level 2), 8.5%/9.4% (level 3) 11.3%/12.2% (level 4), 14.1% (level 5)	Conjures a 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 charge. When fully charged, the phantom will delay its attack for around a second, giving Zelda time to add pressure or to retreat for protection. When fully charged, the phantom can KO middleweights at around 84% from the edge of Final Destination.
Final Smash		Triforce of Wisdom	7% (initial vacuum), 3% (subsequent vacuum), 60% total (main)	Zelda generates a triangular portal that sucks in opponents using massive periodic shockwaves. Upon catching an opponent, they will either be launched with poor knockback, or if they reach at or above 100%, they are instantly KOed. Very difficult to avoid on smaller stages due to its long length and large vacuum hitboxes.

Victory poses

• Creates magic with her fingertips and waves it around.
• Creates fire from her fingertip and waves it around while giggling.
• Summons a Phantom and poses with it.

A flourished and abridged remix of the theme that plays when Link obtains a Triforce Piece in The Legend of Zelda and has since become the main theme of The Legend of Zelda series.

• 
• 
• 

Classic Mode: Wisdom Prevails

All of Zelda's battles are on The Legend of Zelda themed stages, and her opponents are all villains.

Round	Opponent	Stage	Music	Notes
1	Wario	Great Plateau Tower	Main Theme - The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
2	Bowser	Skyloft	Ballad of the Goddess
3	5 Mii Swordfighters	Temple	Temple Theme	Mii Swordfighters are dressed in Yiga Clan costumes.
4	King K. Rool	Bridge of Eldin	Dark World (for 3DS / Wii U)	CPU is Giant
5	Dark Samus	Gerudo Valley	Hidden Mountain & Forest
6	4 Dark Links	Hyrule Castle	Great Temple / Temple
Bonus Stage
Final	Ganondorf/Ganon	?	Calamity Ganon Battle - Second Form (Ganondorf) Death Mountain (Ganon)	Ganondorf transforms into Ganon upon defeat.

Role in World of Light

Zelda was among the fighters that were summoned to fight the army of Master Hands.

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!", and was present when Galeem unleashed his beams of light. She and 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 Kirby).

Zelda was one of the many fighters that fell under Dharkon's control upon Galeem's first defeat. She is unlocked in the Sacred Realm of the World of Dark on the bottom left corner of the land which makes up the Triforce of Wisdom. The player must defeat the Spirit of 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 Spirit of Uxie, Mesprit & Azelf. Unlocking her reveals the Triforce of Wisdom in the center of the map. If Young Link is unlocked, the boulders leading to Cloud's unlock battle and the Master Sword clear out.

Zelda is later seen among several other fighters, making their last stand against Galeem and Dharkon. She is also seen in the bad ending where Galeem emerges victorious against Dharkon, witnessing Galeem engulf the world in light.

Fighter Battle

No.	Image	Name	Type	Power	Stage	Music
17		Zelda	Shield	10,100	Temple (Ω form)	Ocarina of Time Medley

Spirits

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.

Additionally, different incarnations of Zelda make an appearance in various Primary and Support Spirits.

• 

  173. Zelda

• 

  189. Young Zelda

• 

  190. Zelda (Ocarina of Time)

• Botwzelda.png

  238. Zelda (Breath of the Wild)

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  247. Zelda (The Wind Waker)

• 

  259. Zelda (Spirit Tracks)

In Spirit Battles

As the main opponent

Spirit			Battle parameters
No.	Image	Name	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music
187		Marin	•Zelda •Link	Shield	4,600	Tortimer Island (Battlefield form)	•Hazard: Slumber Floor	•The floor is sleep-inducing •Timed battle	Tal Tal Heights
189		Young Zelda	•Zelda •Young Link	Shield	3,700	Hyrule Castle	N/A	•Take your strongest team into this no-frills battle	Ocarina of Time Medley
195		Malon	•Zelda	Shield	3,600	Smashville	•Item Tidal Wave •Item: Cucco	•The enemy becomes more powerful after eating •Certain items will appear in large numbers	Ocarina of Time Medley
201	File:Greatfairy.png	Great Fairy	•Giant Zelda	Shield	9,500	Fountain of Dreams	•Health Recovery	•The enemy's special moves have increased power •The enemy is healed significantly when the enemy's at high damage •The enemy's FS Meter charges quickly	Ocarina of Time Medley
215	File:Din Spirit.png	Din	•Zelda (x2)	Attack	4,000	Bridge of Eldin (Battlefield form)	•Hazard: Lava Floor	•The floor is lava •The enemy favors side specials	Ballad of the Goddess (Remix)
216		Nayru	•Zelda (×2)	Shield	3,500	Bridge of Eldin	•Temporary Invincibility	•The enemy will occasionally be invincible after a little while •The enemy favors neutral specials	Ballad of the Goddess (Original)
236	File:Hilda.png	Hilda	•Zelda •Young Link	Shield	9,100	Temple	•Assist Trophy Enemies (Nightmare)	•Hostile assist trophies will appear	Lorule Main Theme
238	File:Botwzelda.png	Zelda (Breath of the Wild)	•Zelda •Link •Inkling •Donkey Kong •Falco •Zero Suit Samus	Shield	9,200	Great Plateau Tower	N/A	•Stamina battle •Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd •Defeat an army of fighters	Main Theme - The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
258		Phantom	•Clear Zelda	Shield	3,800	Spirit Train (Battlefield form)	N/A	•The enemy's down special has increased power •The enemy favors down specials •The enemy is invisible	Full Steam Ahead
582	File:Hinawa.png	Hinawa	•Zelda •Lucas (×2) ()	Attack	13,100	Yoshi's Island	•Easy to Launch	•All fighters are easy to launch	Mother 3 Love Theme
659		Mist	•Zelda •Ike	Grab	3,500	Reset Bomb Forest (hazards off)	•Health Recovery •Defense ↑	•The enemy has increased defense when the enemy's at high damage •The enemy is healed when the enemy's at high damage	Victory Is Near
1,053		Maria Renard	•Zelda •Falco •Charizard •Incineroar	Grab	3,700	Reset Bomb Forest (hazards off)	N/A	•The enemy starts the battle with a Cucco	Slash
1,065	File:Charlotte Aulin.png	Charlotte Aulin	•Zelda •Richter	Attack	3,700	Bridge of Eldin (Battlefield form)	N/A	•The enemy's special moves have increased power •The enemy favors side specials •Reinforcements will appear during the battle	Hail from the Past

• Shop Assistant
• Yuri Kozukata

As a minion

Spirit			Battle parameters
No.	Image	Name	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music
1,107		Fighting Alloy Team	•Captain Falcon Team (×4) •Zelda Team (×4) •Mario Team (×4) •Kirby Team (×4)	Attack	3,300	Final Destination (Battlefield form)	N/A	•Take your strongest team into this no-frills battle	Cruel Smash

• Orville

As an ally

Spirit			Battle parameters
No.	Image	Name	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music
243	File:Calamity ganon.png	Calamity Ganon	•Giant Ganondorf •Ally: Zelda	Attack	13,900	Great Plateau Tower (Ω form)	•Sudden Damage	•You lose if your CPU ally is KO'd •You'll occasionally take sudden damage after a little while •The enemy is giant	Calamity Ganon Battle - Second Form

Alternate costumes

Gallery

• 

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

• 

  Zelda's fighter card.

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  Zelda on Temple.

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  Using her neutral aerial in her red costume on Tortimer Island.

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  Zelda using her forward tilt on King Dedede on Coliseum.

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  Kneeling next to a sleeping Pichu on Tortimer Island.

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  Using Farore's Wind on Luigi's Mansion.

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  Posing in her dark costume on Spirit Train.

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  Zelda taunting next to Ganondorf on Hyrule Castle.

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  Zelda giving Rosalina a high-five on Prism Tower.

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  Firing a Super Scope at Yoshi on Mario Galaxy.

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  Taunting near Donkey Kong on Kapp'n's bus on Temple.

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  Zelda, Ridley, Jigglypuff, and the Ice Climbers on Summit.

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  Using Phantom Slash on Mario Galaxy.

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  With all playable The Legend of Zelda veterans on the Great Plateau Tower.

• 

  With Link and Ganondorf on the Great Plateau Tower.

Trivia

• Masahiro Sakurai chose to base Zelda's design in Ultimate off of her A Link to the Past and A Link Between Worlds incarnation instead of her more recent Breath of the Wild incarnation because that version of Zelda, according to him, "is more into research than fighting."
• Zelda's current default design was previously an alternate costume in terms of coloration of her model, while her previous default design based on Twilight Princess has now become an alternate costume in that same regard.
  • Coincidentally, Zelda was revealed in Smash 4 at the same time A Link Between Worlds was released, which inspired her current design.
• Zelda is currently the only playable Legend of Zelda character in Smash whose design originates from a handheld game rather than a home console game.
  • Additionally, seeing as she is partly based on A Link to the Past, this also makes her the only playable Zelda character whose design originates from a non-3D game.
  • This is also the first time a Zelda character whose design comes from a game that belongs to the timeline in which The Hero of Time is defeated
• The World of Light trailer marks the first time Zelda has spoken with dialogue in the Smash series.
  • Zelda speaks English in all Western language versions of Ultimate, unlike her Breath of the Wild incarnation who was dubbed into multiple languages. She is also the first character since Fox and Falco in Melee to have her cutscene dialogue dubbed in English, but to keep her Japanese voice actress' battle grunts in Western versions.
• Zelda is the only The Legend of Zelda character whose animations are mirrored.