Shulk (SSB4)

Shulk in Super Smash Bros. 4
Universe	Xenoblade Chronicles
Availability	Starter
Final Smash	Chain Attack

“	Shulk Foresees a Fight!	”
—Introduction Tagline

Shulk (シュルク, Shulk) was unofficially revealed as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4 alongside Bowser Jr. and Ganondorf via leaked videos from footage used by ESRB to rate the game before being formally confirmed on August 29th, 2014. His official reveal coincided with the announcement of Xenoblade Chronicles 3D, the New Nintendo 3DS port of his debut game Xenoblade Chronicles, which was originally released for the Wii.

Shulk's English voice actor, Adam Howden, reprises his role in the Western version of the game; meanwhile, Shintarō Asanuma reprises his role in the Japanese version of the game.

Attributes

Shulk's characteristics are the most balanced in the game. His walking speed, dashing speed, falling speed, air speed and gravity are all average compared to the rest of the cast. However, he has above average weight and his air acceleration is among the lowest in the game. These attributes give Shulk no real advantages, but no real disadvantages.

One of Shulk's greatest strengths is his outstanding range, courtesy of the Monado. Although the Monado itself has fairly long range, it also conceals an energy beam-based blade that is as long as the Monado itself. In addition to essentially doubling the range of Shulk's attacks, it also gives him the longest disjointed weapon in the series, even surpassing Marth's in Melee. His grounded moveset benefits greatly from this range, as his jab and tilts are good for comboing and spacing, and his smash attacks are all potent KOing options that can easily reach distant opponents. His aerial moveset benefits even more, with all of his aerials being excellent at edge-guarding, and with his neutral and forward aerials also being very good at spacing and starting combos.

Despite his aforementioned average stats, the most unique advantage Shulk has at his disposal are Monado Arts, which allow him to tweak his attributes considerably and grant him options for any given situation. Jump increases his air speed and jump height, improving his off-stage game and recovery. Speed increases his walking, dashing and air speeds while lowering his jump height, granting him tremendous horizontal mobility and efficient short hops. Shield drastically improves his knockback resistance, and allows him to survive any attack longer than any other character. Buster lowers the knockback of all his moves and increases their damage outputs, allowing his tilts and throws to efficiently combo, letting him rack up ludicrous amounts of damage in a very short period of time. Finally, Smash turns all of his moves into potent KOing options, with his smash attacks and both his down and back throws becoming some of the deadliest of their kind.

His other special moves have their own forms of utility as well. Back Slash is very powerful if striking the opponent's back and has long range regardless, making it a great surprise attack. Air Slash grants a good amount of vertical distance (which is increased if Jump is active), comes out quickly and has decent knockback, making a good recovery and a great out of shield option. Finally, Vision is the longest-lasting counterattack in the game and has the longest range as well. Its secondary attack also hits harder than any other counterattack in the game.

However, Shulk is not without his weaknesses. His most glaring flaw is his sluggish moveset. With frame data rivaled only by King Dedede and Ganondorf, he does not have a single attack that hits before frame 9 (barring neutral attack and Vision), and none of them have less than 25 frames of ending lag (barring down tilt), making his moves highly punishable if spaced incorrectly or used carelessly. It also makes it difficult for him to fend off opponents that are right next to him. In addition, none of his aerials can autocancel at all, forcing him to take landing lag every time, even if he tries to interrupt them. To further compound this, all of his aerials (barring neutral aerial) have considerable landing lag, and without use of the Monado Art Landing Lag Canceling, his landings are unsafe.

His special attacks are also flawed in some ways. Back Slash is exceptionally weak if hitting the opponent's front, and has considerable ending lag. Air Slash provides very little horizontal momentum, and thus makes his recovery predictable, even with the Jump Art. Vision's counter window decays upon consecutive use, discouraging the move's frequent use. But his most noticeable flaw is the Monado Arts' drawbacks. If an Art is active, it causes some of his stats to drop. Jump makes him very vulnerable to damage. Speed lowers his damage output, and the reduced jump force hinders his vertical mobility. Shield drastically reduces his mobility and noticeably reduces his damage output, making it hard to get a percentage lead, as well as making his recovery the worst in the game. Buster increases his vulnerability to damage (although not to the same extent as Jump) and the lower knockback makes it nearly impossible to KO opponents without smash attacks, even well over 150%. Finally, Smash severely reduces his survivability, hinders his combo game, and his attacks become the least damaging in the game.

With customs on, Shulk has various options. Decisive Monado Arts last longer and have amplified effects, but cannot be changed, making it a high-risk, high-reward move. Hyper Monado Arts last much less, but have even more powerful effects, allowing him to briefly boost a needed stat to the extreme. Back Slash Leap offers quicker start-up and more vertical range, at the cost of some horizontal range and more ending lag. Advancing Air Slash gives more horizontal distance and the second hit is stronger, but it gives less vertical distance. Mighty Air Slash is more powerful, but has only half the range, making it difficult to connect the second hit. Dash Vision is weaker than normal, but it has much more range, giving Shulk his only anti-projectile option, and another recovery move. Lastly, Power Vision has much less power and a much stricter counter window if used repeatedly, but a full-power counterattack has extreme power.

Overall, Shulk can be difficult to master, as it takes time to learn his wildcard-like playstyle, and requires extensive knowledge of his match-ups, or very quick adaptability. Nevertheless, his deficiencies are not significant enough to prevent him from being an effective character, as his ability to adapt and space is virtually unrivaled.

Update history

Shulk has been significantly buffed by updates. Update 1.0.4 increased the damage on all of his attacks, and the changes to shield mechanics in updates 1.1.0 and 1.1.1 not only make his attacks harder to punish on shield, but have also turned several of his attacks into surprisingly effective shield breakers when used in combination with the Buster Art. Other than this, his attacks have only been given minor tweaks during updates. Overall, Shulk is much more viable than what he was during the initial release of SSB4.

1.0.4

• Neutral attack's first and second hits deal 0.5% more damage: 3% → 3.5%.
• Neutral attack's third hit deals 1% more damage: 4.3% → 5.3% (clean), 3.2% → 4.2% (late).
• All tilts deal 1% more damage: 12%/10.5% → 13%/11.5% (forward), 7%/6% → 8%/7% (up), 8%/6% → 9%/7% (down).
• Forward tilt's knockback scaling decreased: 100 → 92.
• Down tilt's second hitbox's position has changed: bone 25, offset [0.0,2.0,-1.0] → bone 0, offset [0.0,5.5,5.5]. This removes a point-blank blind spot.
• Dash attack deals 1% more damage: 10% → 11%.
• Forward and up smashes deal 0.5% more damage: 5%, 12.5%/11% → 5.5%, 13%/11.5% (forward), 4%, 13% → 4.5%, 13.5% (up).
• Forward smash received a variety of changes to enable both of its hits to connect better.
• Forward smash's first hit's angles altered: 40° (upward), 75° (forward), 84° (downward) → 78° (upward), 10° (forward), 40° (downward).
• Forward smash's first hit's fixed knockback values decreased: 45/45/31 → 28/28/28.
• Forward smash's first hit's radii decreased: 4.0/4.0/4.0 → 2.0/2.0/4.0.
• Forward smash's first hit's positions elevated: [-2.0,0.0,1.0]/[4.1,0.0,1.0]/[10.0,0.0,1.0] → [11.0–4.0,0.0,2.0]/[11.0–4.0,0.0,-0.5]/[-2.0,0.0,1.0].
• Forward smash's second hit's radii increased: 3.5/2.0 → 4.0/3.0.
• Forward smash's second hit's first hitbox x-offset decreased: 22.0–0.0 → 21.0–0.0.
• Down smash deals 1% more damage: 13%/10%, 11%/9%, 9%/7%, 7%/5%, 5%/3% → 14%/11%, 12%/10%, 10%/8%, 8%/6%, 6%/4%.
• All aerials deal 1% more damage: 6%/7% → 7%/8% (neutral), 6.5%/5% → 7.5%/6% (forward), 11%, 7% → 12%, 8% (back), 4%, 9%/6.5% → 5%, 10%/7.5% (up), 5%/3%, 9%/8% → 6%/4%, 10%/9% (down).
• Forward aerial's landing lag decreased.
• All throws deal 1% more damage: 2% → 3%.
• Monado Speed's damage output multiplier increased: 0.72x → 0.8x.
• Monado Buster's damage input multiplier decreased: 1.2x → 1.13x.
• All variations of Air Slash deal 1% more damage on the first hit: 5%/4% → 6%/5% (Air Slash, Advancing Air Slash), 8%/6% → 9%/7% (Mighty Air Slash).
• All variations of Vision have had their y-offsets increased: 8.0 → 9.0.

1.1.0

• Back Slash's start-up decreased: 31 frames → 22.
• Back Slash travels slower when activated in midair, making predictions harder.
• Up aerial's first hit now launches opponents at 96° and its second hit's hitbox sizes increased: 3.5/5.5 → 3.8/6.5. This increases its horizontal coverage.

1.1.1

• Dash Vision's knockback growth increased: 84 → 89 (standard), 94 → 99 (alternate).
• Dash Vision's hitbox angle altered: 35° → 32°.

Moveset

Shulk is specialized by having an equal distribution of long reach and power, enabling him to attack opponents from a distance due to the Monado's beam properties. The Monado does more damage and knockback on some attacks if it hits from the middle of the beam blade rather than from the tip of the beam blade.

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			3.5%	A jab followed by a mid-level roundhouse kick followed by an upward lifting slash. By far Shulk's fastest move, hitting on frame 5. The roundhouse kick looks similar to Dive Sobat, one of Reyn's physical Arts.
			3.5%
			5.3% (clean), 4.2% (late)
Forward tilt			13% (blade), 11.5% (beam)	Shulk swings the Monado in front of him inward as he draws it from his shoulder. Has noticeable ending lag, but it is capable of KOing at high percents, especially when boosted by the Smash Art. Resembles one of his basic auto attacks from Xenoblade Chronicles.
Up tilt			8% (blade), 7% (beam)	Shulk leaps in place and does a fast, upward-arcing swipe above himself. A very good anti-air move with enormous vertical range, but lacks a hitbox on both sides of Shulk, leaving him open on the ground. A reliable damage racker with the Buster Art, especially after an up throw, and a good surprise KO move with the Smash Art.
Down tilt			9% (blade), 7% (beam)	Shulk does a forward leaning, sweeping slash at the opponent's feet. Has the least ending lag out of all his moves. A good combo starter with the Speed Art or the Buster Art, as it send opponents into the air and in front of Shulk.
Dash attack			11%	Swipes the Monado inward after drawing it from his shoulder into a sliding brake. Similar to his forward tilt and down tilt in terms of motion. One of Shulk's most potent KOing options with the Smash Art. It has very high ending lag, however, and should not be used excessively.
Forward smash			5.5% (hit 1), 13% (hit 2 blade), 11.5% (hit 2 beam)	A two-handed forwards stab with the Monado's beam blade revealing itself, causing a slight recoil. The move has two hits, the first from the Monado itself and the second from the beam blade. Angling up increases the move's knockback scaling, while angling down allows the move to hit characters hanging from a ledge. An extremely damaging move with the Buster Art, and a very strong KO option with the Smash Art. Suffers from high ending lag, which makes it extremely punishable if missed or without Buster's higher shieldstun. The attack itself looks similar to Slit Edge, one of Shulk's physical Arts in Xenoblade Chronicles.
Up smash			4.5% (hit 1), 13.5% (hit 2)	Shulk smashes the hilt of the Monado to the ground, causing the beam to strike and reveal itself upward. Like his forward smash, there are two hits to this move, with the first hit dragging foes into the beam blade. Its deceptive horizontal range allows it to punish rolls and landings, and its high vertical range and knockback makes it a great anti-air move in general. Slightly lower but still noticeable ending lag compared to his forward smash.
Down smash			14% (hit 1 blade), 11% (hit 1 beam), 12% (hit 2 blade), 10% (hit 2 beam), 10% (hit 3 blade), 8% (hit 3 beam), 8% (hit 4 blade), 6% (hit 4 beam), 6% (hit 5 blade), 4% (hit 5 beam)	A high-range, spinning slash with Shulk dragging the Monado around him along the ground. The move hits five times (three at Shulk's front and two at his back), with the first hit having high power for a down smash, and each hit having more range but less power than the previous one. Extremely useful for punishing rolls and spotdodges, and can break full shields if Buster is active and a shielding opponent is cornered at a ledge. However, it suffers from the most ending lag of all his smash attacks. It looks similar to War Swing, one of Reyn's physical Arts in Xenoblade Chronicles.
Neutral aerial			7% (blade), 8% (beam)	A circular, upward-arcing slash spanning from his upper leg to his head, with little landing lag. The hitbox begins at Shulk's toes and continues all the way over his head. It is a great approach option, and a great combo starter if either Jump, Speed or Buster is active, due to its long range, low landing lag and long-lasting hitbox. However, this long-lasting hitbox, combined with the move's high ending lag, makes it a very unsafe move to use offstage when fast falling, as Shulk will be in serious danger of self-destructing.
Forward aerial			7.5% (blade), 6% (beam)	An overhead, forward-leaning slash that reaches and ends a bit behind him. It has the least ending lag out of all his aerials, and extreme range for an aerial. Great for spacing and interrupting approaches, a powerful combo move with either Speed or Buster, and a potent edgeguarding move with Jump, which can let Shulk wall of pain opponents to the blast line.
Back aerial			12% (clean), 8% (late)	Shulk thrusts the Monado behind him after a pause, with the Monado's beam blade revealing itself. The hitbox of the attack begins at Shulk's body. Has slow startup and moderate landing lag, but also long horizontal range and high knockback. Shulk's most reliable offstage KO and edgeguarding option, especially with the Smash Art.
Up aerial			5% (hit 1), 10% (hit 2 blade), 7.5% (hit 2 beam)	Shulk thrusts the Monado skywards as its beam blade reveals itself. Acts like his forward and up smash, with a weak first hit that leads into a second stronger hit. A useful tool for juggling falling opponents, and a very strong KO option with the Smash Art, considering its deceptively high vertical range. However, it lacks horizontal range, which can make it difficult to connect.
Down aerial			6% (hit 1 grounded), 4% (hit 1 aerial), 10% (hit 2 blade), 9% (hit 2 beam)	Shulk holds the Monado below him and performs a downward thurst, with the beam blade revealing itself downward. The first hit of the move deals set knockback, and can easily connect to the second hit, which meteor smashes if sweetspotted, done by hitting with just the tip of the first hit. It is a decent edgeguarding move. This move can also stage spike ledge-hanging opponents, giving Shulk an option to surprise foes. It has high landing lag, however, making it punishable if whiffed, and has low horizontal range like his up aerial.
Grab			—
Pummel			3%	Strikes the opponent's head with the Monado's hilt. Slow, but the most damaging pummel in the game with the Buster Art.
Forward throw			3% (hit 1), 8% (throw)	Shulk pulls the opponent towards him before slashing them with a two-handed upward slash from the Monado. With Speed or Buster, this can lead into a dash attack or a forward air.
Back throw			3% (hit 1), 9% (throw)	Shulk pulls the opponent behind him and stabs their midsection with the Monado's beam, with the blade held in reverse grip. With the Smash Art, this is one of the strongest back throws in the game. One of the few moves that forces back-facing knockback, which can set up a Back Slash if Buster is active.
Up throw			3% (hit 1), 4% (throw)	Heaves the opponent in the air and kneels down similar to his up smash, revealing the Monado's beam blade to stab his juggled foe's chest. A reliable combo throw at low percents or with Buster active, as it can lead into several up tilts or a ground attack if the opponent air dodges. However, its low hitstun can prevent these follow-ups.
Down throw			3% (hit 1), 4% (throw)	Slams the opponent onto the ground and backstabs them with the Monado. With the Smash Art, this is the strongest down throw in the game, and consequently Shulk's most powerful KO throw.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%
Edge attack Edge getups			7%
Neutral special	Default	Monado Arts	—	Shulk activates one of five Monado-based Arts; Jump, Speed, Shield, Buster or Smash; each of which enhance some of his abilities while reducing others.
	Custom 1	Decisive Monado Arts	—	The Arts last for 21 seconds instead of 16, but once an Art is activated, it cannot be changed. There is also a slight delay before the Arts activate.
	Custom 2	Hyper Monado Arts	—	The Arts' positives and negatives are both amplified, but the Arts only last for 5 seconds instead of 16. Additionally, their recharge times are 5 seconds longer.
Side special	Default	Back Slash	10%/9% (front), 16%/14% (back)	Leaps forwards and performs a downward slash with the Monado's beam blade, similarly to Link's dash attack. The attack is more powerful if it hits the opponent's back.
	Custom 1	Back Slash Leap		Shulk leaps up before performing a downward slash. Has reduced horizontal movement, but comes out a little faster.
	Custom 2	Back Slash Charge		Shulk leaps forward and gains super armor for the downward slash. This move has increased horizontal movement, but has harshly reduced damage if it doesn't strike the opponent's back.
Up special	Default	Air Slash	6% (hit 1 clean), 5% (hit 1 late), 5.5% (hit 2)	Jumps and performs an upwards slash with the Monado's beam blade, similarly to Dolphin Slash. The first slash deals set knockback, but pressing the attack button at the end of the slash will result in a second, forward slash which deals moderate knockback and gives Shulk a small height boost.
	Custom 1	Advancing Air Slash	6% (hit 1 clean), 5% (hit 1 late), 8% (hit 2)	The first slash launches enemies diagonally while the second slash moves Shulk forward.
	Custom 2	Mighty Air Slash	9% (hit 1 clean), 7% (hit 1 late), 10% (hit 2)	The range of the attack is reduced, but it deals more damage.
Down special	Default	Vision	1.3x (min 13%/10% or 10%/7%)	Shulk leans forward while holding the Monado up to the side of his head so that his eyes slightly peer outside of the Monado's ring in order to foresee an attack. Upon taking a hit, Shulk retaliates with a powerful and high ranged Monado slash that sends opponents forwards. The move can be altered if used on the ground, with the alternative hit being faster and stronger while sending opponents backwards, at the cost of less range. The standard attack Shulk performs when Vision activates looks similar to Stream Edge, one his physical Arts, while the alternate attack looks similar to Thunder, one of Dunban's Ether Arts.
	Custom 1	Dash Vision	1.0x (min 11%/8% or 8%/5%)	Shulk takes a big step forward and the counter's range is extended. The counter is faster, but lacks power.
	Custom 2	Power Vision	1.5x (min 20%/17% or 17%/14%)	Shulk counters an attack with greater power. However, the attack is slower and if used too much, the counter will become less and less effective.
Final Smash		Chain Attack	3% (hit 1), 2% (hits 2-12), 12% (hit 13), 5% (hit 14)	Shulk summons Dunban and Riki to perform a Chain Attack on his opponents before he finishes the assault with a powerful slash.

Taunts

• ShulkUpTauntSSB4.jpg
• ShulkSideTauntSSB4.jpg
• ShulkDownTauntSSB4.jpg

• Up Taunt: Shrugs, shakes his head, and waves a hand as if lecturing someone, and says "Now it's Shulk time!" (穏やかじゃないですね, Not being gentle, huh? or That doesn't sound good.). The English phrase is a reference to Reyn, his best friend and one his party members in Xenoblade Chronicles, who occasionally utters the phrase "Now it's Reyn time!" whenever his talent Art gauge is completely filled during combat. The Japanese phrase similarly references a popular meme in Japan from Xenoblade Chronicles; in this case, a line Shulk commonly says when accepting quests in Xenoblade Chronicles. The animation is also a reference to how Shulk sometimes moves his hand as he talks during cutscenes in Xenoblade Chronicles.
• Side Taunt: Grips the Monado's handle with his right hand while triumphantly pumping his left fist and announcing "I'm really feeling it!" (だんだん乗ってきたよ！, I'm getting the hang of it!). References one of Shulk's voice lines in Xenoblade Chronicles when his tension level increases in combat.
• Down Taunt: Grips the Monado with both hands, activates it and poses similarly to the Buster Art's pose while he says "This is the Monado's power!" (モナドの力よ！, The Monado's power!/The power of the Monado!). References one of Shulk's lines when he activates the Monado's Talent Art in Xenoblade Chronicles.

Idle Poses

• Taps his foot while making a thinking gesture. Based on his idle animation from Xenoblade Chronicles.
• Tenses and quickly looks behind himself, then in front of him before easing up.

On-Screen Appearance

Jumps down onto the stage with a slash using the activated Monado, before placing it on his back after it deactivates and the Buster Art's symbol flashes for a quick moment while his back briefly faces the camera.

Victory Fanfare

The second half of the riff of You Will Know Our Names, the battle theme used in Xenoblade Chronicles when fighting a unique monster.

Victory Poses

• ShulkPose1WiiU.png
• ShulkPose2WiiU.png
• ShulkPose3WiiU.png

• Swings the Monado a few times while it is active, then holds it level to his head as it deactivates, saying either "The future is ours to decide." or "I've got a good rhythm going!". In Xenoblade Chronicles, the first quote is used when Shulk prevents a vision from occurring during combat, whilst the other is a typical combat quote uttered when the battle is in Shulk's favor (although it has been changed from plural ("We got") to singular ("I got")).
• Swings the inactive Monado upwards, places it on his back, and poses with a hand on his hip, saying either "I got through that pretty good!" or "This is a good result!". The former is a quote Shulk can exclaim after finishing a battle in Xenoblade Chronicles (although it has also been changed from plural in that game to singular in SSB4) whilst the latter is exclaimed by Shulk following a successful gem crafting session in Xenoblade Chronicles.
• Bows down with the Monado held lengthwise, activating it, then changes grip to pose with the Monado backhandedly, saying either "I can feel the power!" or "I can change the future." In Xenoblade Chronicles, the first quote is one of three lines that may randomly be uttered whenever Shulk levels up, while the second is another one of the lines Shulk may exclaim when he prevents a vision from occurring in combat.

In Competitive Play

Official Custom Moveset Project

Character	Custom sets available
Shulk	1113	2113	3113	1123	3123
	3213	1122	3122	1213	2123

Notable Players

•  9B
•  Artryuu
•  Jerm (Canada)
•  Nicko
•  Nobu
• Relaxed
•  Sodrek

Trophies

Shulk

In Xenoblade Chronicles, this young lad's colony is attacked by the Mechon, so he and his friends set off to take them down. In Smash Bros., his Monado Arts let him change his specialization during battle. You can choose to boost a stat—his jump or attack, for example—but other stats might drop as a result, so choose wisely.

In Xenoblade Chronicles, this young lad's colony is attacked by the Mechon, so he and his friends set off to take them down. In this game, his Monado Arts let him change his specialisation during battle. You can choose to boost a stat—his jump or attack, for example—but other stats might drop as a result, so choose wisely.

: Xenoblade Chronicles (4/2012)

Shulk (Alt.)

Shulk's up special Air Slash is an upward slash done during a jump. Press the button again quickly to launch opponents sideways. His side special Back Slash, on the other hand, is a downward swing with a very wide range, though using it leaves Shulk wide open. Try hitting foes from behind with this!

Shulk's up special, Air Slash, is an upward slash done during a jump. Press the button again quickly to launch opponents sideways. His side special, Back Slash, on the other hand, is a downward swing with a very wide range, although using it leaves Shulk wide open. Try hitting foes from behind with this to do more damage!

: Xenoblade Chronicles (4/2012)

Chain Attack

In Xenoblade Chronicles, building up the party's team spirit would let them unleash a chain attack, using multiple Arts in a row to deal massive damage. In this game, Shulk's Final Smash calls party members Dunban and Riki to help obliterate an unlucky target... or multiple targets if you catch more than one in the circle of light!

• 

  Classic (3DS)

• ShulkAllStarTrophy3DS.png

  Alt. (3DS)

• 

  Classic (Wii U)

• 

  Alt. (Wii U)

• 

  Chain Attack

In Event Matches

Solo Events

• Mechanical Menace: Shulk must defeat a metal R.O.B. and Mega Man, as well as Metal Face.
• New Challengers 2: Shulk is one of the seven opponents fought in this event alongside Greninja, Palutena, Robin, Dark Pit, Mega Man, and Pac-Man.
• The Ultimate Swordsman: Shulk is one of the opponents that Ike must defeat.

Co-op Events

• The Ultimate Battle: Two players select a character and must defeat the entire roster.

Alternate costumes

Gallery

• 

  Shulk's poster.

• 

  Splash art of Shulk.

• 

  Shulk's amiibo.

• Shulk Alt.png

  Swimsuit costume for Shulk.

• Shulk4PalleteSwaps.png

  More palette swaps for Shulk.

• 

  Pic of the Day, when Shulk was revealed.

• 

  Fighting Sheik.

• 

  Shulk activates the Smash Monado Art.

• 

  Taunting with the Buster Monado Art activated.

• 

  Using an up smash against Captain Falcon with the Smash Monado Art activated.

• 

  Attacking Donkey Kong.

• 

  Charging a down smash.

• 

  Posing with two Villagers.

• 

  Forward air on Link.

• 

  Shulk's Final Smash, featuring Dunban and Riki.

• 

  With Luigi on Boxing Ring.

• 

  Shulk in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

• 

  On Final Destination.

• 

  Shulk posing with Riki.

• ShulkSSB4.png

  Image of Shulk from the ESRB leak.

Reveal Trailer

<youtube>GUl1EkUJ46k</youtube>

Trivia

• Several of Shulk's standard attacks share similar animations with either his own or other party members' arts in his original game.
  • Shulk's jump animation is exactly the same as the one in Xenoblade Chronicles.
  • Many of Shulk's voice clips are re-recorded versions of the lines that he would state throughout the game.
  • The title of Shulk's trailer, "Looks like we don't have a choice!", is a direct quote from him in in Xenoblade Chronicles when the party is about to face a powerful monster. It is believed by some to be referencing the ESRB leak.
    • In the PAL versions of the game, however, the title is changed to "Now it's Shulk time", referencing one of Shulk's taunts.
• Shulk's down taunt, if performed at the right timing, can dodge certain projectiles, such as Fox and Falco's Blaster, Link's Hero's Bow, and Pit's Palutena's Arrow.
• Shulk is the only character to tumble towards the screen when footstooled, whereas other characters would spin towards direction they were facing. He is also the only character to hit the screen with his back during a Screen KO. These animations make the Monado and its active Monado Art more visible to the player.
• Shulk, unlike other fighters with a weapon, does not have any visible sheath or holder for his weapon: the Monado simply hangs from his back with no buckle or belt to attach to his back with. He does not have a strap for the Monado or any of his weapons in Xenoblade Chronicles either.
  • He is the only sword-wielding character in Smash Bros. that does not hold his weapon in his hands when not attacking with it; this excludes Ganondorf and his Sword of Sages, which is only used in a single custom move.
  • Shulk is also the only realistically designed weapon-wielding character that uses a "wobbling" sound while charging up smash attacks instead of the "unsheathing" sound that other realistic weapon-holding characters typically use.
• Shulk is the first and so far only non-Mario playable character in Smash to speak in a European accent and have a European voice actor in the American versions of the game.
• One of Shulk's victory voice clips, "I can change the future", is missing from the Sound Test in both versions of the game.
• Shulk was the last character and newcomer to be officially confirmed for SSB4 before the worldwide release of Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.
• Shulk and Pac-Man are the only fighters without a green palette swap option.
• Despite not being a third-party character, clone, or Mii, Shulk is placed with them in most official material, including the Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS roster and foldout. This is changed on the Super Smash Bros. for Wii U roster, where Shulk is placed before the clones, and the Super Smash Bros. for Wii U manual, where he is placed before Bowser Jr. As a result of this ambiguity, some fans mistake Shulk as a third-party character. However, Monolith Soft was acquired by Nintendo in 2007 prior to the development of Xenoblade Chronicles, making Shulk a second-party character.