Belly Super Armor
Belly Super Armor, as the name implies, is a gold-plated stomach armor worn by King K. Rool that grants super armor specifically in that region during attacks where his belly sticks out. Despite King K. Rool always wearing this piece of armor, Belly Super Armor is not active when idle or during attacks that do not involve King K. Rool expanding his stomach. As such, it is never active unless he executes certain attacks, and Belly Super Armor will not take damage to attacks when it is inactive and K. Rool is hit in the stomach region; instead, K. Rool will be hit as normal. Attacks that hit K. Rool's Belly Super Armor make a loud, distinct clanging sound as an audio cue.
Unlike most forms of armor, K. Rool's belly armor actually reduces the damage K. Rool takes from attacks; specifically, it cuts damage taken in half. However, as with shields, King K. Rool's Belly Super Armor can only withstand a certain amount of damage; the amount of damage it has taken is roughly visible as a crack in his belly, with small cracks appearing when the armor has 11.5 HP left and large cracks appearing when it has 6.1 HP left. If his armor takes enough damage, the camera will Special Zoom on King K. Rool as he is flung into the air on the spot and will become temporarily dizzy, similar to a shield break. If his armor is broken in midair, King K. Rool will slowly descend until he lands on a platform, meaning he can potentially be KO'd by having his armor break off-stage. The armor has 14.01 HP, but since the incoming damage is split 50/50 between K. Rool and his belly, it is practically 28.02 HP. It regenerates 0.08 HP every 30 frames when not using belly attacks.
K. Rool's Belly Super Armor cannot block unblockable attacks.
List of attacks that have Belly Super Armor
| Move | Notes | Frames active |
|---|---|---|
| Forward tilt | Before the clap | 5-11 |
| Up smash | Before the plank, when he hops | 6-19 |
| Down smash | After the jump, before he lands | 8-21 |
| Dash attack | When he leaps forward, extending his belly | 2-28 |
| Neutral Air | When his stomach expands | 6-30 |
| Down Air | After the stomp | 14-25 |
| Up Air | While he rises for the headbutt | 6-20 |
| Side taunt | Right before he pats his belly | 9-20 |
Trivia
- The Techniques menu does not list King K. Rool's up air, down air, and side taunt as moves possessing Belly Super Armor. Interestingly, it does list Gut Check, which does not utilize Belly Super Armor.
- It also dubs the ability "Belly Power".
