| Prince of Sablé | |
|---|---|
  Official artwork of the Prince of Sablé from Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru. | |
| Universe | Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru |
| Debut | Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru (1992) 
|
| Smash Bros. appearances | SSB4 Ultimate |
| Most recent non-Smash appearance | Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru (1992)
|
| Console/platform of origin | Game Boy |
| Species | Human |
| Gender | Male |
| Designed by | Tomoyoshi Yamane |
| Voice actor | Yū Kobayashi |
The Prince of Sablé (サブレ王国の王子, Prince of the Sablé Kingdom) is the main protagonist from the Japan-only game Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru (The Frog For Whom the Bell Tolls).
Origin
In Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru, the naïve but well-meaning Prince of the Sablé Kingdom sets out to rescue Princess Tiramisu of the Mille-Feuille Kingdom after she is kidnapped by Lord Delarin. He was raised in a wealthy family, and as such, he often solves problems by buying his way out of them. On his quest, he competes with his friendly rival, Prince Richard of the Custard Kingdom.
Both princes are tricked into drinking a strange potion by the witch Mandola, which causes them to turn into frogs after touching cold water. The Prince of Sablé pays an exorbitant sum for an antidote and gains the ability to turn back into a human by fainting (which can be achieved by eating Joy Fruit), or into a snake by eating snake eggs. In Super Smash Bros., he can change between forms at will, though he will automatically become a frog if he touches water, referencing this scenario.
Combat in Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru is represented through a turn-based system that pits the player and their enemy in a battle within a dust cloud, exchanging hits until one is defeated. This is also referenced in Smash, as the Prince of Sablé will trap opponents in dust clouds where they gradually accumulate damage.
In Super Smash Bros. Brawl
The Prince appears under the romanization "Sabure Prince" as a sticker.
| Name | Game | Effect | Characters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sabure Prince | Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru |  Attack +31
|
|
.png) Sabure Prince (Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru) |
In Super Smash Bros. 4
As an Assist Trophy
The Prince of Sablé appears as an Assist Trophy and can transform into his frog or snake forms and trap opponents in dust clouds dealing up to 25% damage. As a frog, he jumps about the stage in large arcs, and as a snake, he slithers back and forth along platforms, sometimes falling off of them. He speaks Japanese in all versions of the game, and occasionally announces which form he will transform into: カエル for "frog", and ヘビ for "snake". Before he disappears, he will say さらばだ, translating to "Farewell". He is one of the few Assist Trophies that can be attacked.
Trophy
In Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, this trophy is a Challenge reward for collecting over 300000G.
- Prince of Sablé
- A naive but kind prince in the Game Boy title Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru. He sets off on a journey to the Mille-Feuille Kingdom to rescue the kidnapped Princess Tiramisu. If you summon him in this game, he'll turn into either a frog or a snake. When a foe gets close, he'll kick up a cloud of white smoke and go on the offensive.
: Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru (Japan)
In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
As an Assist Trophy
The Prince of Sablé returns as an Assist Trophy, functioning similarly to how he did in Smash 4, but has been slightly nerfed overall. The rapid smoke attack has a smaller hitbox, as does the final attack, and the finishing attack deals slightly less knockback. KOing him now earns a point. He is also a Legend spirit and can be obtained after enhancing the Frog & Snake spirit. He cannot appear on Mute City SNES and Suzaku Castle.
Spirits
| No. | Image | Name | Type | Class | Slot | Ability | Series |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,143 |  |
Frog & Snake |  |
★★ | 3 | Can Be Enhanced at Lv. 99 | Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru |
| 1,144 | |
Prince of Sablé | |
★★★★ | 3 | Transformation Duration ↑ |
Trivia
- When first revealing the character as an assist trophy on Miiverse, Masahiro Sakurai noted that he did not know what the Prince's name is. This references how the Prince of Sablé does not have an official name, and is instead named by the player at the start of the game.
- The Prince of Sablé's sword is fully modeled and textured in SSB4 despite never being removed from its sheath and thus not normally being visible to the player. Looking at the design of the sword in the game's data reveals that it accurately matches the design seen in concept art for Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru.
- So far, the Prince of Sablé is the only Assist Trophy to have debuted on the original Game Boy console.
- For reasons unknown, the Prince of Sablé's voice clip that plays when the player summons him does not appear in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate's Sound Test.
Gallery
Prince of Sablé's Trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, which also depicts his frog and snake forms.
Prince of Sablé in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
The Prince of Sablé in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate with Little Mac.
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