Knuckles the Echidna

Knuk
Official artwork of Knuckles for Team Sonic Racing.
Universe	Sonic
Debut	Sonic the Hedgehog 7 (1997)
Smash Bros. appearances	Brawl SSB4 Ultimate
Most recent non-Smash appearance	Team Sonic (2007)
Species	Echidna
Gender	Male
Place of origin	Ani Island
Designed by	Takashi Yuda
English voice actor	Travis Willingham
Japanese voice actor	Nobutoshi Canna
German voice actor	Claus-Peter Damitz
Article on Wikipedia	Knuckles the Echidna

Knuckles the Echidna (ナックルズ・ザ・エキドゥナ, Knuckles the Echidna) is a character from the Sonic series.

Origin

Knuckles digging for a piece of the Master Emerald on Red Mountain in Sonic Adventure.

Knuckles first appeared in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and is one of the main characters of the Sonic the Hedgehog series. He was tricked by Dr. Eggman into thinking that Sonic was evil and was trying to steal the Master Emerald. Since being tricked, he did all he possibly could to slow Sonic's journey down. Since then he has realized that Sonic was the ally, and they have become friends. Knuckles' most recurring personality flaw is his immense gullibility, having been tricked by Eggman more than once to collect the Chaos Emeralds under a hidden agenda, which sparked numerous fights between him and his ally Sonic, only for the former to realize too late he has been fooled. In recent games, this flaw seems to have disappeared altogether. Knuckles is aptly named for both his spiked gloves and immense physical power in his fist, only rivaled by Sonic's supersonic speed. Knuckles lives on Angel Island, and he is constantly tasked with guarding an ancient and powerful jewel known as the Master Emerald, which is said to be able to control the power of all seven Chaos Emeralds.

In Ultimate, Knuckles has three abilities as an Assist Trophy: digging into the ground like a drill and then upper cutting back up, and using the Homing Attack. Knuckles's ability to dig into surfaces first originated in Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2; however, in both games he could only dig if he had the Level Up Item Shovel Claw. He could also dig into the ground and then uppercut in Sonic Battle. It was not until Sonic Generations that he could dig without the Shovel Claw. Knuckles's other ability is the Homing Attack, which also made its debut in Sonic Adventure as a move only Sonic could perform. Knuckles was first able to use it in Sonic Heroes, though he could only perform it when following Sonic. He could first use it on his own in Sonic Advance 3. His third ability is simply punching the opponent with his fists. Knuckles is often associated with punching in many Sonic games and often has the ability to punch enemies as a part of his moveset in his playable appearances in Sonic games, more specifically the previously mentioned Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2 as well as in Sonic the Hedgehog (2006). He is also seen punching in his idle animation in Sonic Blast, Sonic Mania and Sonic Mania Plus respectively. His punch-punch-uppercut combo closely resembles a combo he could perform in Sonic the Fighters

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Knuckles (left) on Green Hill Zone in Brawl.

Knuckles, like Tails and Silver the Hedgehog, appears running through the shuttle loop in the background of Green Hill Zone. Just like many other characters in the Sonic series, Knuckles appears as a Sticker that Sonic can use and a Trophy in the game.

Trophy information

Knuckles' trophy in Brawl.

Knuckles

A powerful red echidna also known by his full name, Knuckles the Echidna. Knuckles resides on Angel Island, where he guards the Master Emerald. Both friend and rival of Sonic, Knuckles is a martial-arts expert who can glide through the air.

• SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 3
• SONIC & KNUCKLES

Sticker

Name	Game	Effect	Character(s)
Knuckles The Echidna	Sonic the Hedgehog 3	DefenseElectric+023 Resistance +23	Sonic

Knuckles The Echidna (Sonic The Hedgehog 3)

In Super Smash Bros. 4

As a costume

Two Mii Brawlers dressed as Knuckles.

Knuckles reappears as a background character in Green Hill Zone in the 3DS version. Knuckles appeared as a downloadable Mii Brawler costume as part of the final wave on February 3, 2016.

Trophy information

Knuckles's trophy appears in both versions. In Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, it is part of the Sonic & Friends Trophy Box.

Trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

Trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.

Knuckles the Echidna

Knuckles the Echidna is the dedicated guardian of the Master Emerald, rarely leaving his post on the floating Angel Island. His serious, one-track-minded approach puts him at odds with his rival, Sonic, but the two somehow manage to be friends all the same.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (02/1994)

Sonic & Knuckles (10/1994)

In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

As an Assist Trophy

“	Knuckles attacks nearby fighters with his fist. He can also dig into the ground and then attack with an uppercut, so be careful!	”
—Super Smash Blog, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Official Site

Knuckles as he appears in Ultimate.

Knuckles appears in Ultimate as an Assist Trophy. He attacks opponents with Homing Attack, and also digs into the ground and then uses an uppercut to attack. He may also simply punch opponents with his fists.

He also once again appears as a background element of Green Hill Zone. However, his assist trophy will not appear when playing on the stage.

Knuckles is voiced by Travis Willingham, though like Sonic and Shadow, it is via recycled voice clips from other Sonic games.

As a costume

A Mii Brawler wearing the Knuckles hat and costume.

The Knuckles Mii Brawler costume from the previous game was not in the base game, but was rereleased as DLC on April 17th, 2019.

Spirit

Knuckles also appears as a summonable primary Spirit. He can be summoned with the spirit cores of Muddy Mole (a character who digs through the ground and throws heavy objects like Knuckles) and Gordo (a character with spikes like Knuckles' fists).

No.	Image	Name	Type	Class	Ability	Series
781		Knuckles	Grab	★★★	Fist Attack ↑	Sonic the Hedgehog Series

Gallery

• 

  Knuckles as an Assist Trophy in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

• 

  Knuckles posing on Green Hill Zone. Note that this is impossible in the final game.

• 

  Knuckles attacking Kirby with an uppercut on The Great Cave Offensive.

• 

  Knuckles posing with Sonic on Palutena's Temple.

• 

  Knuckles mid-air on the Umbra Clock Tower.

Trivia

• The picture of Knuckles with Sonic on Palutena's Temple on the Ultimate website is likely referencing the Sky Sanctuary from Sonic & Knuckles, of which Knuckles is often associated with. The Sky Sanctuary is also where Sonic saved Knuckles in Sonic Generations.