| Leffen | |
|---|---|
| leffen.jpg | |
| Character info | |
| Melee main | Fox |
| Other Melee characters | Falco, Marth, Yoshi |
| Smash 4 mains | Diddy Kong, Pikachu |
| Project M mains | Captain Falcon, Fox, Zero Suit Samus |
| Other Project M character | Mewtwo |
| Team info | |
| Crew(s) | Team SoloMid |
| Personal and other info | |
| Real name | William Hjelte |
| Birth date | |
| Location | Stockholm 
|
| Miscellaneous info | |
| Skill |  Top professional  |
Leffen is a professional Smasher from Stockholm, Sweden. He started off as a Falco main, but later switched to Fox, and is now known as one of the most technical and powerful Fox mains in the world. He places very well in tournaments, consistently placing within the top 3 at even the largest tournaments in the world. He is currently ranked 2nd on the European Melee Power Rankings, and is considered to be one of the six best players in the world along with Armada and the four top players in the United States: PPMD, Mango, Mew2King, and Hungrybox (the five latter are known as The Five Gods), with many ranking him as high as at least Top 3. He is also the only player in competitive Melee history to have taken sets off of each of the Five Gods.
Tournament history
Emergence as a top 6 player
At Apex 2014, Leffen defeated Hungrybox 2-1 in winners' quarters, before losing to Mew2King 1-3 in winners' semis. He eliminated Colbol 2-0 in losers' quarters, and then had a close and intense set with Mango in losers' semis, but was ultimately eliminated 2-3.
Leffen won his first national at B.E.A.S.T 4. He lost to Ice 2-3 in winners' semis, but then eliminated Fuzzyness 3-0 in losers' quarters, Overtriforce 3-1 in losers' semis, and Ice 3-2 in a rematch in losers' finals. In grand finals, he managed to win two sets against Armada, 3-0 and 3-1, respectively. Later, Leffen won Republic of Fighters 3, qualifying for the MLG Anaheim 2014 championship bracket. He defeated Ice 3-1 in winners' semis, but lost to Armada 0-3 in winners' finals. After eliminating aMSa 3-2 in losers' finals, he came back and won 6-0 against Armada in two best of 5 sets.
In his pool at MLG Anaheim 2014, Leffen defeated PPMD 3-2, Axe 3-1, Colbol 3-1, s0ft 3-0, and Remen 3-0, but lost to Mew2King 1-3 and Hax 2-3. Seeded in losers' bracket in the championship bracket, he defeated both Westballz and Hax 3-2, before losing to PPMD 1-3 in losers' quarters, placing 5th overall. At EVO 2014, Leffen defeated Lambchops 2-1, OkamiBW 2-0, and S2J 2-0 in the winners' quarters pools, but lost to Mew2King 0-2. In losers' bracket, he was eliminated by Silent Wolf 1-2, finishing off at an underwhelming 9th place overall.
At COMEBACK I, Leffen defeated Android 3-0 in winners' semis to make it to winners' finals against Armada, in which he lost 1-3. After defeating Android 3-1 in losers' finals, he lost again to Armada in grand finals, this time 2-3, placing 2nd in Melee singles. Leffen also won Melee doubles with Beat, defeating Dev and Kuja 3-1 in winners' semis, Android and Zoler 3-1 in winners' finals, and Armada and C 3-1 in grand finals.
At The Big House 4, Leffen defeated Hungrybox 3-2 in winners' quarters to advance to winners' semis. He then faced off against Armada in another close set, ultimately managing to clench out a victory 3-2 and advance to winners finals for the first time at an American national. However, he lost 0-3 to Mew2King in winners finals and 1-3 to Mango in losers finals, with a 4 stock to close out the set.
At B.E.A.S.T 5, Leffen managed to solidly defeat Armada 3-1 in winners semis to advance to winners' finals. He managed to take his first victory over Mango in a 3-2 set to advance to grand finals, where he would once again face Armada. Despite a closely fought set from both players (with Armada notably 4-stocking Leffen Game 4), Leffen managed to win grand finals 3-2, earning his first national victory with at least 2 of the "gods" present.
At CEO 2015, Leffen earned 1st in singles, making it his first American national victory. He had a close set with Plup in winners quarters but ultimately won 2-1, and proceeded to sweep the rest of the tournament, beating Shroomed 3-0 and Armada twice in winners finals and grand finals; each set was 3-0 and 3-1, respectively, in Leffen's favor. In doubles, Leffen teamed with Hungrybox, placing 2nd; they had managed to trade sets with PewPewU and SFAT and take a set off of Armada and Shroomed, but they ultimately lost a close second set 2-3.
At FC Smash 15XR: Return, Leffen once again earned 1st in singles. He defeated Swedish Delight 3-0 in winners quarters, he then beat Hungrybox 3-1 in winners semis and Armada 3-1 in winners finals, including a 4-stock in game 1 on Final Destination. In grand finals; he met Hungrybox once again and beat him 3-1.
Notable tournament placings
Melee
| Tournament | Date | 1v1 Placement | 2v2 Placement | Partner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| STIIG | July 13th-20th, 2010 | — | 4th | AJP |
| SKN2 | October 8th-10th, 2010 | 7th | 7th | AJP |
| B.E.A.S.T | January 7th-9th, 2011 | 9th | 13th | AJP |
| SKN3 | February 11th-13th, 2011 | 3rd | 3rd | AJP |
| Tampora 2 | April 29th-May 1st, 2011 | 2nd | 3rd | AJP |
| GENESIS 2 | July 15th-17th, 2011 | 17th | 13th | AJP |
| B.E.A.S.T II | August 10th-14th, 2011 | 4th | 5th | AJP |
| Tampora 3 | November 25th-27th, 2011 | 4th | 3rd | Zoler |
| Beauty 3 | December 2nd-4th, 2011 | 2nd | 2nd | Zoler |
| Apex 2012 | January 6th-8th, 2012 | 33rd | 25th | Zoler |
| Gamers Meetup STHLM | February 18th-19th, 2012 | 2nd | 1st | Fuzzyness |
| Epita Smash Arena 5 | April 20th-23rd, 2012 | 5th | 2nd | Fuzzyness |
| Haags Kwartiertje 6 | June 16th, 2012 | 4th | 4th | Beat |
| Smashers' Reunion: Melee Grande | July 13th-15th, 2012 | 3rd | 2nd | Dr. PeePee |
| King Funk's Castle II: Måske | October 4th-7th, 2012 | 3rd | 2nd | Ice |
| hf.lan 4 | December 1st-2nd, 2012 | 2nd | 3rd | NMW |
| Apex 2013 | January 11th-13th, 2013 | 17th | 5th | Ice |
| EVO 2013 | July 12th-14th, 2013 | 9th | 5th | Ice |
| hf.lan 6 | December 14th-15th, 2013 | 2nd | 1st | Ice |
| Apex 2014 | January 17th-19th, 2014 | 4th | 9th | Dr. PeePee |
| B.E.A.S.T 4 | February 12th-16th, 2014 | 1st | 2nd | Ice |
| Republic of Fighters 3 | May 17th-18th, 2014 | 1st | 2nd | Fuzzyness |
| MLG Anaheim 2014 | June 20th-22nd, 2014 | 5th | 5th | Hax |
| EVO 2014 | July 11th-13th, 2014 | 9th | 3rd | Ice |
| COMEBACK I | August 1st-3rd, 2014 | 2nd | 1st | Beat |
| Hit & Stun Tournament 2 | September 6th-7th, 2014 | 3rd | 2nd | Ice |
| Beauty 8 | September 12th-14th, 2014 | 2nd | 1st | Professor Pro |
| The Big House 4 | October 4th-5th, 2014 | 3rd | 3rd | Hax |
| DrømmeLAN 4.0 | November 7th-9th, 2014 | 2nd | 2nd | Ice |
| hf.lan 8 | November 22nd-23rd, 2014 | 1st | 1st | Ice |
| Beauty 9 | December 5th-7th, 2014 | 2nd | 2nd | Pop |
| B.E.A.S.T 5 | January 9th-11th, 2015 | 1st | 2nd | Ice |
| Paragon Orlando 2015 | January 17th-18th, 2015 | 3rd | 3rd | MacD |
| Apex 2015 | January 30th-February 1st, 2015 | 3rd | 3rd | Ice |
| Cannes Winter Clash | February 27th-March 1st, 2015 | 1st | — | — |
| NeoNebulous 7 | March 28th, 2015 | 1st | 1st | G$ |
| Beauty 10 | April 2nd-6th, 2015 | 2nd | 2nd | Professor Pro |
| I'm Not Yelling! | April 11th-12th, 2015 | 3rd | 1st | MacD |
| MVG Sandstorm | April 18th-19th, 2015 | 5th | 1st | MacD |
| DrømmeLAN 4.5 | April 24th-26th, 2015 | 2nd | 2nd | Fuzzyness |
| Press Start | May 9th-10th, 2015 | 9th | 2nd | MacD |
| Battle Arena Melbourne 7 | May 22th-24th, 2015 | 2nd | 1st | Blue2ez |
| CEO 2015 | June 26th-28th, 2015 | 1st | 2nd | Hungrybox |
| FC Smash 15XR: Return | July 4th-5th, 2015 | 1st | — | — |
| WTFox | July 10th-11th, 2015 | 1st | 2nd | Mango |
| EVO 2015 | July 17th-19th, 2015 | 5th | — | — |
| Super Smash Con | August 6th-9th, 2015 | 1st | 1st | MacD |
| Heir II the Throne | August 14th-16th, 2015 | 5th | 2nd | Ice |
Project M
| Tournament | Date | 1v1 Placement | 2v2 Placement | Partner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| King Funk's Castle II: Måske | October 4th-7th, 2012 | 2nd | 1st | Fuzzyness |
| Apex 2014 | January 17th-19th, 2014 | 9th | — | — |
| B.E.A.S.T 4 | February 12th-16th, 2014 | 3rd | — | — |
| COMEBACK I | August 1st-3rd, 2014 | 2nd | — | — |
| Hit & Stun Tournament 2 | September 6th-7th, 2014 | 2nd | — | — |
| Beauty 8 | September 12th-14th, 2014 | 3rd | — | — |
| The Big House 4 | October 4th-5th, 2014 | 33rd | — | — |
| DrømmeLAN 4.0 | November 7th-9th, 2014 | 2nd | — | — |
| hf.lan 8 | November 22nd-23rd, 2014 | 1st | — | — |
| B.E.A.S.T 5 | January 9th-11th, 2015 | 4th | — | — |
| Beauty 10 | April 2nd-6th, 2015 | 1st | — | — |
| DrømmeLAN 4.5 All-Star | April 24th-26th, 2015 | 1st | — | — |
Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS
| Tournament | Date | 1v1 placement | 2v2 placement | Partner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DrømmeLAN 4.0 | November 7th-9th, 2014 | 1st | — | — |
Super Smash Bros. for Wii U
| Tournament | Date | 1v1 placement | 2v2 placement | Partner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beauty 9 | December 5th-7th, 2014 | 1st | — | — |
| B.E.A.S.T 5 | January 9th-11th, 2015 | 3rd | — | — |
| Paragon Orlando 2015 | January 17th-18th, 2015 | 9th | — | — |
| DrømmeLAN 4.5 | April 24th-26th, 2015 | 1st | — | — |
Controversy
Despite being considered one of the best professional smashers in Melee, Leffen has led a controversial career as a smasher, stemming from his reportedly rude conduct during and outside of tournaments. Several players, including lower-leveled smashers new to the scene (who were usually the victims of his bullying), accused him of:
- deliberately sandbagging in tournaments by playing low tier characters against less-experienced players, insulting and berating their skill throughout and after the match.
- spreading exaggerated rumors about other players.
- making rude and acerbic comments on friendly discussions in SmashBoards and deliberately starting arguments with users.
- further blaming other people when confronted about his actions, using his status as a top professional player to decrease his punishments.
H This behavior became noticed by Swedish tournament organizers and Melee professionals, both of whom gave him repeated warnings concerning his behavior; in August 2012, he was eventually threatened with a ban from tournaments if he did not improve his attitude. Leffen did not take the claim seriously; as a consequence, the Swedish community continued to discuss banning him. On February 9th, 2013, after a lengthy online discussion about his poor behavior within the Melee community, Leffen was nationally banned from Swedish tournaments, and was later internationally banned in Finland. Several members of the community compiled many pieces of evidence concerning his behavior into a downloadable archive, and demanded that the only way Leffen's ban would be lifted was for him to create a lengthy apology stating everything he has done wrong in the past and how he would change his behavior in the future.
On March 21st, 2013, shortly before B.E.A.S.T 3 (the first major tournament he was banned from), Leffen made a public statement asking for forgiveness; despite this, he was not immediately unbanned, and he ended up missing both B.E.A.S.T 3 and almost one year's worth of tournaments. On January 24th, 2014, it was announced by Armada that the Swedish ban on Leffen was no longer in place [1]. However, Leffen still remains a relatively controversial figure in the community, especially on social media such as Twitter and Facebook due to his strong comments.
At European tournament Heir II the throne, Leffen was banned from commentary on all future European Smash Circuit events for saying that it wasn't a 'serious' tournament and players were playing their secondaries and not trying.
Trivia
- At Apex 2015, Leffen defeated Mew2King in tournament for the first time in his career, which marked Leffen as the first, and currently only player, to have won at least one tournament set against each of The Five Gods.
- Also at Apex 2015's Salty Suite exhibition, Leffen won a $100 money match against Chillin in Fox dittos; after winning all five games of the set, Leffen won both $100 USD and the "rights" to use Fox's default costume.
- Leffen is commonly considered a villain in the smash community due to his reportedly rude conduct and his skill equaling that of the Five Gods. He reports that he enjoys his given title due to the community's occasional stagnation in games, although there is common controversy over whether he should embrace his title or not.
- Ironically, his surname is Swedish for "hero".
- At FC Smash 15XR: Return, Leffen became the first player to four stock Armada in bracket, in game 1 of winners finals on Final Destination.