| Leffen | |
|---|---|
| Leffen 2015.jpg | |
| Character info | |
| Melee main | Fox |
| Other Melee characters | Marth, Yoshi, Falco |
| Smash 4 mains | Diddy Kong, Pikachu |
| Project M mains | Captain Falcon, Fox, Zero Suit Samus |
| Other Project M character | Mewtwo |
| Team info | |
| Sponsor(s) | Team SoloMid, Red Bull |
| Rankings and results info | |
| Most recent ranking |  2015 SSBMRank: 3rd |
| Winnings | ~$42,490.67 |
| Personal and other info | |
| Real name | William Hjelte |
| Birth date | |
| Location | Stockholm 
|
| Miscellaneous info | |
| Skill | Top professional  Professional  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 the 2015 SSBMRank ranking him the 3rd best. He is also the only player in competitive Melee history to have taken sets off of each of the Five Gods. Leffen says that his goal is to end the "five gods" and make the only "god" him.
Leffen challenged SFAT to a $1,000 money match on November 15th, 2015, which took place at DreamHack Winter 2015, where Leffen won 5-1. He also challenged Westballz, but Leffen eventually canceled it.
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.
Leffen once again got first place at WTFox singles, including an impressive 3-0 victory over Mang0's Falco in Grand Finals, making three consecutive first place finishes in singles.
However, he failed to repeat this success at EVO 2015, being sent into losers by Hungrybox, and was then eliminated at 5th place by Plup's Samus.
At Super Smash Con, Leffen took first place once again in singles, beating Mew2King 6-1 in Winners Finals and Grand Finals.
However, an "upset" occured at PAX Prime 2015, where Mew2King avenged his loss at Smash Con in a 6-0 victory over Leffen.
Leffen once again failed to capture first place at Paragon Los Angeles 2015, being sent to loser's by Mew2King, and being eliminated by Hungrybox, ending another tournament run at 5th place.
At HTC Throwdown, Leffen made it to Grand Finals from the Winner's side, defeating Hungrybox in Grand Finals 3-0.
Leffen was unable to enter The Big House 5, Smash Summit, GENESIS 3, Battle of the Five Gods, and Smash Summit 2 due to international visa issues.
Playing Style
Leffen is well-known for his Fox play. His approach to the game is simple and efficient. Leffen also has strong fundamentals in all aspects of the game, leading to him being a well-rounded player. He is also known for his heavy combo game, specifically on fast fallers, and has one of the most potent Foxes in the Fox ditto and the Falco matchup.
However, Leffen is noted to be notoriously poor in the Samus matchup, having been upset by strong Samus players such as Plup, HugS, and Duck.
Tournament placings
Super Smash Bros. 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 |
| PAX Prime 2015 | August 28th-30th, 2015 | 2nd | 1st | MacD |
| Paragon Los Angeles 2015 | September 5th-6th, 2015 | 5th | — | — |
| HTC Throwdown | September 19th, 2015 | 1st | 2nd | MacD |
| The Call of Ragnarok | September 26th-27th, 2015 | 1st | — | — |
| Eclipse | November 14th-15th, 2015 | 2nd | 2nd | Ice |
| DreamHack Winter 2015 | November 26th-29th, 2015 | 9th | 5th | Ice |
| Kickstart 5 | January 24th, 2016 | 1st | 2nd | Professor Pro |
| B.E.A.S.T 6 | February 19th-21st, 2016 | 2nd | 1st | Ice |
| HFLAN 12 | April 9th-10th, 2016 | 1st | 2nd | BrTarolg |
Project M
| Tournament | Date | 1v1 Placement | 2v2 Placement | Partner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GENESIS 2 | July 15th-17th, 2011 | 3rd | — | — |
| 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, due to his previously rude conduct during and outside of tournaments. Several players, most of which were new smashers to the scene, accused him of:
- deliberately sandbagging in pools by playing low tier characters while insulting his opponent's skill throughout and after the match.
- spreading exaggerated rumors about others.
- making rude and provocative comments on 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.
After noticing his poor behavior, Swedish tournament organizers and other Melee professionals of his caliber gave him repeated warnings concerning his attitude. In August 2012, Leffen was eventually threatened with a ban from tournaments if he did not improve his attitude, but he did not take the claim seriously. This led to further lengthy online discussions among the European Smash community that culminated in his national ban from Swedish tournaments, effective February 9th, 2013.
The discussion group announcing his ban compiled a significant amount of evidence of his poor behavior into a downloadable archive, and demanded that Leffen create a lengthy apology about all of his wrongdoings and how he would change his behavior in the future, should he return to the community. On March 21st, 2013, Leffen made his public statement asking for forgiveness; despite this, he was not immediately unbanned, and ended up missing almost one year's worth of local 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 blunt 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 a bet stating that Chillin will not use Fox's default costume in any future tournament.
- 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.
- Leffen, along with Tafokints, holds the title of the most money won in a single money match, a title which he earned at Apex 2015 when he defeated Mango in a $1,000 money match, and again at DreamHack Winter 2015 when he defeated SFAT in another $1,000 money match.
- Leffen is the first 'Smash' player to be sponsored by Red Bull.
References