Byleth (SSBU)

Byleth in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
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Universe	Fire Emblem
Availability	Downloadable
Final Smash	Progenitor God Ruptured Heaven

“	Byleth Joins Smash House!	”
—Introduction tagline (♂).

“	Byleth Recruits...Byleth!	”
—Introduction tagline. (♀).

“	Byleth is coming to the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate game as a new playable fighter! This iconic fighter is the fifth fighter in the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Fighters Pass. Using the Heroes’ Relics and the Sword of the Creator, represent the three houses and realize their full potential.	”
—DLC Page, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Official Site

Byleth (♂: ベレト, ♀: ベレス, Byleth) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Byleth was officially announced on January 16th, 2020 as the fifth and final downloadable character from Fighters Pass Vol. 1. Both male and female versions are playable. Byleth was released on January 28th, 2020, and is classified as Fighter #75.

Zach Aguilar and Jeannie Tirado, who respectively voiced the male and female versions of Byleth in Fire Emblem: Three Houses and Fire Emblem Heroes, reprise their roles in the overseas version, while Yūsuke Kobayashi and Shizuka Itō reprise their respective male and female roles in the Japanese version.

Attributes

As mentioned by Masahiro Sakurai during the January 16, 2020 presentation, Byleth is specifically designed to be a "distance demon," a character such as Marth or Shulk who utilizes large hitboxes to zone out opponents at mid-range. Boasting a variety of weapons, Byleth's overall reach is fittingly long in line with his archetype, and his attacks are generally very strong; to compensate for this, Byleth has poor overall mobility, high startup and ending lag on many of his moves, and a rather short grab range. All of this makes Byleth's general gameplan very patient, which reflects on his position as a "teacher" or "professor" in his game of origin: his sluggishness makes it necessary for him to plan ahead and learn the opponent's habits, before covering their options with his range and arsenal of hard-hitting weapons.

Like other weapon users, Byleth's attacks have disjointed hitboxes that allow combat to be at a safe distance. Neutral attack is a quick chain of attacks that act as a standard get-off-me option, especially due to the speed of Byleth's moveset. The third hit of neutral attack is good for sending opponents away, and the infinite is a good damage racker that can KO at high percents near the edge. Byleth's tilts all use the Sword of the Creator. Up and forward tilts have wide hitboxes and decent speed, making them effective spacing attacks. Down tilt is a whip with the sword in chain form, giving it more effective distance and allowing it to combo into aerials. Finally, dash attack is a wide swipe forward, which allows it to punish whiffs but is also easily punishable itself. All of Byleth's up attacks emphasize the Sword of the Creator's extended chain form; up aerial causes him to lash upwards in a flurry, dealing multiple hits and acts as a good tool to deny landings or start a juggle. Its looping hits can also drag opponents downwards to initiate extended combos. Byleth's up special causes him to thrust the chain upwards to grab opponents or ledges. As a combat move, this up special can combo from certain moves, and causes an untechable meteor smash at high percentages; if used on offstage opponents, Byleth will hop off the opponent's head for a meteor smash, which can cause an unavoidable KO at high percents. This hop also has extremely low ending lag, allowing for certain followups like side special; in very specific cases, it can even zero-to-death (on Donkey Kong). As a recovery move, the sword grants Byleth a very long tether recovery, which can grab Battlefield's ledges as low as near the bottom blast line. Notably, Byleth's up special can attach to walls and perform a wall jump if it touches a wall, much like tether recoveries in Melee. Altogether, these traits provide Byleth with a safe array of covering various approach options.

Byleth's other weapons grant more specialized options. Areadbhar, a lance, is used for Byleth's side moves (forward smash, forward aerial and back aerial, and side special); it has long range and uses a tipper mechanic that deals more damage at the tip of the lance. Forward smash is a slow but long-ranged stab that deals more knockback if aimed upward and tippered, allowing it to heavily punish jump options. If aimed downwards, the lance can also hit opponents grabbing ledges. Meanwhile, forward and back aerials are very effective spacing moves, even outranging those of Marth, and the tippers deal heavy knockback. Byleth's side special has him swing Areadbhar in a slow, but wide swing, and allows him to step forward if the special button is held. Its massive hitbox easily denies jump options and acts as a powerful but risky spacing option. However, all of Areadbhar's moves are very weak if the hilt lands, so proper spacing is vital; this is especially important with side special, as the sourspot deals extremely low knockback, making it possible for opponents to punish Byleth at low percents even if it lands.

Aymr, an axe, is used for Byleth's down moves (down smash, down aerial, down special); it is an extremely slow, yet powerful weapon that deals high damage and knockback on all moves that use it. Down smash is slow overall, but hits very hard and can KO as early as 90%. Down aerial is a similarly slow swing downwards with extreme landing lag, but it is the strongest meteor smash in the game when it lands, making it also among the most rewarding. Finally, Byleth's down special causes him to charge Aymr in a super armored stance, before unleashing a powerful, Special Zoom-inducing swing. It allows Byleth to pass through platforms and turn around in the opposite direction while charging, which can be used for mindgames. It also has a surprisingly wide hitbox that starts behind Byleth's head, making it much like Warlock Punch; a high-risk, high-reward move that can catch opponents by surprise.

Finally, Failnaught is a bow which is used for Byleth's neutral moves (neutral aerial and neutral special). Neutral aerial is a long-lasting, wide-ranged spinning move much like Palutena's, making it a good option out of shield due to its fast startup, and can also initiate combos or edgeguard with its looping hits. Byleth's neutral special also charges up Failnaught with an arrow, which can be shot at two different strengths: a slow but strong arrow that acts as a sniping option and passable spacing projectile, or a very delayed shot that acts as one of the strongest projectiles in the game, which can also almost break a full shield. The charged projectile also becomes an energy projectile, making it possible to absorb it, but not inhaled nor Pocketed. Unlike every Link's respective Bows, Byleth can cancel Failnaught's charge before he reaches the delayed charge shot, though he is unable to cancel it after he reaches that point. Byleth's neutral special can also turn around before the delayed charge shot.

Byleth is not without flaws, however. Due to his mobility being among the worst in Ultimate, his approach is very committal. This flaw is further stressed due to many attacks having slow startup (e.g. down smash/down aerial), narrow hitbox placements (e.g. forward/back aerials), or even both (e.g. forward smash). His dash attack, neutral aerial and side special are exceptions, but are easily punishable on shield due to their ending lag, while the lattermost is dangerously unsafe if the sweetspot does not land. This flaw becomes even more dangerous with Failnaught’s unique charge properties, as while the arrows fired from it are powerful and fast, they are equally as dangerous if reflected as Byleth cannot cancel the move after charging it halfway through. Byleth’s abundance of KO options is also a double-edged sword, as while it makes it easy for him to heavily punish mistakes, it also makes counterattacks an excellent option to punish his many KO options if used frequently.

Byleth’s grab game is also very lackluster. He does not have a throw that KO’s at realistic percentages. Down throw is a serviceable combo starter at low percents, but it loses utility very quickly. Up throw is his most damaging throw, but only deals a pitiful 9% and its only real purpose is applying pressure from below. Forward and back throws only serve the purpose of getting the opponent offstage. When this is combined with Byleth’s short grab range, his overall grab game leaves much to be desired.

When it comes to Byleth's recovery, his primary recovery, Sword of the Creator, suffers from the same issues as Joker's normal recovery. Being a tether recovery with high vertical distance, but lackluster horizontal distance. This combined with his poor air speed makes Byleth susceptible to gimps (however the move's ability to grab onto opponents, meteor smash them at 50% or higher, all while giving Byleth extra recovery distance can help deter edge-guarders from going off-stage to gimp him).

Finally, even though Byleth has a large array of KO moves, they are not always reliable. His up smash, like certain other multi-hitting up smashes, has almost no grounded hitboxes, making it ineffective against grounded opponents. His side and up special moves have strict hitboxes that only work from a specific horizontal distance or above Byleth, respectively. His down special, despite its aforementioned strengths, is very punishable due to its startup and ending lag throughout, leaving Byleth very vulnerable to grabs. Lastly, his most reliable KO moves will only KO starting after high percentages, making it tough for him to KO effectively.

All in all, Byleth is a ranged powerhouse with great offensive potential due to his weaponry, which comes with varying uses depending on each weapon. Byleth's arsenal grants him access to a mixture of highly damaging attacks, KO options, combos, and setups. However, Byleth's slow mobility and poor overall frame data renders his approach strategic, requiring the player to be very patient with their opponent and read and punish their mistakes, as a careless move on Byleth's end will easily give his opponent just as big of an opening.

Moveset

• Byleth features a multitude of weapons throughout his moveset, all which utilize the Heroes' Relics in Fire Emblem: Three Houses. Each weapon is designated to a different attacking direction (neutral, side, up, down).
  • The Sword of the Creator is Byleth's default weapon and is wielded throughout all animations that do not involve any other weapon. It is used for Byleth's neutral attack, tilt attacks, and throws, though it is also designated to upward moves like up smash, up aerial and up special. Certain moves cause the sword to change into its chain form, extending its reach. The sword lets him wall jump 3 times in his up special.
  • Areadbhar is a lance wielded by Dimitri. It is used for Byleth's forward and back moves, such as forward smash and back aerial. Areadbhar features a tipper mechanic similar to Marth's, with the hilt dealing comparatively low knockback and damage and the tip dealing 1.5x the damage of a hilt hit.
  • Aymr is an axe wielded by Edelgard. It is used for Byleth's down moves, such as down smash and down special. Aymr boasts incredibly high damage and knockback on all moves that feature it, though at the cost of extreme lag.
  • Failnaught is a bow wielded by Claude. It is used for Byleth's neutral moves, with only neutral aerial and neutral special causing Byleth to wield it. Unlike the prior weapons, Failnaught does not feature any particular traits.

For a gallery of Byleth's hitboxes, see here.

Note: All numbers are listed as base damage, without the 1v1 multiplier.

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			1.5%	A knife-hand strike, followed by a roundhouse kick, and finally either a sidekick or if the button is mashed, a flurry attack with the whip-sword. This is Byleth's fastest attack, though the first hit has a limited range. Holding the attack button causes Byleth to repeat the first hit, albeit rather slowly.
			2%
			4.5%
			0.4% (loop), 3.5% (last)
Forward tilt			11%	An elegant outward slash done at a downward angle. A decent spacing tool due to its range, with decent power as well.
Up tilt			10%	Swings his sword in an upward arc over his head, akin to Mii Swordfighter's up tilt. An effective juggling tool.
Down tilt			8%	A low swipe with his whip-sword. It has a very good horizontal range, and despite its slow startup for a tilt attack, the move is one of Byleth's best combo starters, with follow-ups such as up tilt, neutral aerial, up aerial or Sword of the Creator, depending on the opponent's percent.
Dash attack			13% (blade), 9% (hilt)	An inward swipe while sliding forward. A quick and useful burst option for punishing landings, though it has a noticeable amount of ending lag. The move has a sourspot up close, unlike other sword attacks. The sweetspot (located near the tip) boasts respectably good horizontal KO power.
Forward smash	↗		19.5% (tip), 13% (shaft)	Thrusts Areadbhar forward. It has tremendous range, with the sweetspot located on the tip of Areadbhar being extremely powerful. It is fairly slow for a forward smash, however, and has a fairly weak sourspot covering the shaft of the lance. It can be angled, with the upward-angled variant being stronger, and the downward-angled variant being weaker in exchange for being able to more reliably hit shorter, crouching, prone or ledge-hanging opponents. Byleth may occasionally say "Areadbhar!" while using this move.
	→		18% (tip), 12% (shaft)
	↘		17.25% (tip), 11.5% (shaft)
Up smash			2% (hits 1-3), 10% (hit 4), 16% (total)	Swings his whip-sword above himself, hitting multiple times, akin to Zero Suit Samus. This is Byleth's fastest smash attack and is useful for juggling opponents and covering landings. It is also decently strong for an up smash of its kind as well.
Down smash			23%	Sweeps Aymr from front to back. Both hits are equally powerful, and deal extremely high damage and knockback for a down smash, being the strongest in the game. Deals extremely high shield damage, with a fully-charged down smash being able to break a nearly full shield with one hit. However, it is extremely slow compared to other down smashes. Byleth may occasionally say "Aymr!" while using this move.
Neutral aerial		rowspan="1"	2.5% (hits 1-3), 3% (hit 4), 10.5% (total), 1% (landing)	Spins Failnaught around himself, hitting multiple times. Byleth's fastest aerial attack. It is useful for edgeguarding and approaching, has some combo potential, and it also possesses a landing hitbox, making it a useful multi-purpose aerial attack. Byleth may occasionally say "Failnaught!" while using this move.
Forward aerial			12.75% (tip), 8.5% (shaft)	Swings Areadbhar horizontally forward. A decent spacing tool that is fairly safe if spaced at the tip and fast-fallen. The tip has decent horizontal knockback, whereas the shaft is overall weak in comparison. Has the lowest ending lag and landing lag of Byleth's aerial attacks, and is the only one that can autocancel in a short hop.
Back aerial			15% (tip), 10% (shaft)	Thrusts Areadbhar backward. Similar to forward aerial in terms of utility, but it exchanges speed for additional power. One of Byleth's best horizontal KOing options if tippered.
Up aerial			3% (hits 1-2), 5.5% (hit 3), 11.5% (total)	Swings his whip-sword upward, hitting multiple times. A decent tool for juggling thanks to its long duration and excellently disjointed vertical range. Has excellent vertical KO power.
Down aerial			19%	Swings Aymr downward, with the ability to meteor smash opponents. Deals heavy damage to shields and has long-range. It is the strongest meteor smash from a down aerial move in Ultimate, with the sweetspot KOing grounded opponents starting at 85%. However, it is extremely slow to start, has a lot of ending lag, only autocancels from a double jump, and its landing lag is among the highest out of any conventional down aerial in the entire game.
Grab			—	Reaches out with his left hand.
Pummel			1.5%	Knees the opponent.
Forward throw			3% (hit), 3% (throw)	An upward slash with the sword in its whip form.
Back throw			7% (throw), 5% (collateral)	Wraps the Sword of the Creator around his opponent and swings them around twice, throwing them behind on the second spin. Much like Mario's back throw, it will damage and launch nearby opponents.
Up throw			6% (hit) 3% (throw)	Shoves the opponent upward with his sword. Can combo into Sword Of The Creator at low percents but this is easily DI’d.
Down throw			3% (hit), 2% (throw)	A downward slash with the sword in its whip form. It sends opponents directly in front of Byleth, allowing it to start combos at 0%, usually into forward tilt.
Forward roll Back roll Spot dodge Air dodge		—	—
Techs		—	—
Floor attack (front) Floor getups (front)			7%	Slashes behind and then in front of himself.
Floor attack (back) Floor getups (back)			7%	Same as his front floor attack.
Floor attack (trip) Floor getups (trip)			5%	Slashes in front and then behind himself.
Edge attack Edge getups			9%	Performs a low outward slash while climbing up.
Neutral special		Failnaught	12% (normal), 29% (fully charged)	Byleth pulls out the Hero's Relic Failnaught to fire an arrow. He can charge it for more speed and damage, change directions while charging, and can charge-cancel with a shield until a certain duration. Charging at its maximum duration will fire a powerful arrow that has a similar animation and range to the staff item. A fully charged arrow can nearly break full shields. It must be charged a bit before it can be fired, similarly to how Bullet Climax cannot be shield-canceled instantaneously and must charge first. Byleth may occasionally say "Failnaught!" while using this move. The fully charged version pushes Byleth back and up when used in the air.
Side special		Areadbhar	17.25% (ground tip), 11.5% (ground shaft), 14.25% (aerial tip), 9.5% (aerial shaft)	Byleth lunges forward while swinging the Hero's Relic Areadbhar upward with impressive horizontal and vertical range. If the move is smash-inputted, Byleth lunges forward farther, further improving its range. The aerial version has him spin it in an arc around him, covering an area that his aerial attacks cannot, but at expense of lag. Areadbhar possesses a sweetspot on its blade, as opposed to the weaker shaft. Byleth may occasionally say "Areadbhar!" while using this move.
Up special		Sword of the Creator	1% (hit), 3% (grab), 6.5-13% (bounce)	Byleth whips the Sword of the Creator upward, acting as a tether recovery very similar to Joker's Grappling Hook in function. It can also attach to walls and allow Byleth to jump off, up to three times consecutively without landing. If it connects with an opponent, Byleth latches onto the opponent before footstooling them, dealing damage based on how far away the opponent was; if their percentage is at least 50% when they are footstooled, it becomes an untechable meteor smash. This footstool has only one frame of ending lag, allowing Byleth to immediately follow up with any of his aerials or special moves, with combos into moves such as neutral aerial (though this particular combo is only effective against Donkey Kong), back aerial, and Areadbhar. Against grounded opponents, the move first launches them up with the sword to allow Byleth to latch onto them. When activated in the air, it instantly cancels all of Byleth's knockback, which can improve his survivability.
Down special		Aymr	30% (ground hit), 8% (shockwave), 25% (aerial hit)	Byleth channels all of his energy into a sluggish, but colossally powerful slash using Edelgard’s signature weapon Aymr. It has super armor during startup, can be reversed, and Byleth can drop through platforms while performing it. Like other "bold" moves (such as Falcon Punch, Warlock Punch, and Hatchet Man), it triggers Special Zoom. When successfully executed, Aymr can break shields in a single hit. When it is used successfully while falling off the battlefield, by an edge, and it hits the battlefield, Byleth will be suspended, ending the fall. Much like the aforementioned "bold" moves, it expectedly has extremely high lag all around in exchange for its power, making it a very risky yet rewarding move mainly used for hard reads. Byleth may occasionally yell "Aymr!" while using this move. When used in the air, Byleth is stalled slightly just before the hitbox comes out.
Final Smash		Progenitor God Ruptured Heaven	10% (initial hit), 20% (strike), 15% (end), 45% (total)	Byleth lashes out with the Sword of the Creator, exclaiming "I'll finish with this!". The lash itself has a decent range and can trap up to three opponents at once. Upon a hit, he and Sothis combine their power to perform Byleth's signature Combat Art Ruptured Heaven, with Sothis saying "Your will and mine be now as one!", as Byleth extends the Sword of the Creator to unleash an earth-rending twister. As the targets are struck by the shockwave, Sothis says "The end approaches!" before they are launched diagonally upwards with respectable power.

On-screen appearance

• Warps onto the stage using warp magic, poses while holding a pointer, then pulls out his sword.

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  Byleth's on-screen appearance

Taunts

• Up taunt: Swings the Sword of the Creator to his right leg, and puts his left fist to his chest while looking into the sky. Female Byleth has an altered stance, with one foot in front of the other, and with the Sword of the Creator held behind her in a reversed grip. Based off of Byleth's victory pose with a sword equipped.
• Side taunt: Brandishes the Sword of the Creator forward and says either "Let the lesson begin!" or "Stay focused." The former quote is from Byleth's critical hit quote, while the latter is from when Byleth is selected on the battlefield.
• Down taunt: Swings the whip-sword around himself and says, "Try me."

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  Male Byleth's up taunt.

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  Byleth's side taunt.

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  Byleth's down taunt.

Idle poses

• Twirls the Sword of the Creator into a backhanded grip while striking a pose, before returning to his original position. If using a female costume, the Sword of the Creator is instead held in a standard grip with a more energetic pose. Based on the animation when Byleth is selected on the map before moving and when performing a gambit. Both idle poses resemble their official renders.

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  Male Byleth's idle pose.

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  Female Byleth's idle pose.

Victory poses

Note: Like Pokémon Trainer and Inkling, Byleth's victory animations are different between the male and female variants.

Both

• Plants the Sword of the Creator into the ground along with the other Hero's Relics already planted into the floor, says "Each battle, a chance to grow," then swings the left arm out while facing the background, lowering the said arm to the side. Combines Byleth's win quote after a battle with the game over screen in Fire Emblem Three Houses, where all four main Relics are planted on the ground.

Male

• Swings the Sword of the Creator outward, saying "Allow me to demonstrate!" He then raises his left hand towards his chest as he looks outward. Based off of Byleth's victory pose when wielding a sword, combined with one of his critical hit quotes.
• With the Sword of the Creator in its whip form, Byleth swings it around the front of his body in a circular motion, saying "No hesitation!" After striking the ground, the sword reverts to its original form, with Byleth posing with it held in a standard grip. Uses the quote from his critical hit activation.
  • When this victory pose plays, the clapping animations are delayed for a second before showing up, most likely due to the number of graphics on screen from the sword hitting the ground.

Female

• Swings the Sword of the Creator outward before holding the sword behind her in a reverse grip, saying "Allow me to demonstrate!" She then looks toward the screen as opposed to looking into the distance.
• With the Sword of the Creator in its whip form, she swings the whip in front of herself twice (each time in a different direction) while saying "No hesitation," and then holds it up towards her face in a vertical manner.

An excerpt of the main theme from Fire Emblem: Three Houses.

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In competitive play

Because of limited tournament play (largely due to the COVID-19 pandemic impacting tournaments), it is hard to say where Byleth stands in terms of viability in competitive play.

Some pros have stated the character looks promising, including MkLeo. Both Leo and Pink Fresh were able to take 1st place at their respective locals with the character. However, other pro players believe the character is not as promising, mainly citing the character's poor frame data, slow ground and aerial speed, and limited landing options as huge drawbacks, being considered as a mid-tier. Many have noted how Byleth struggles against faster characters such as Fox, Zero Suit Samus, and Pichu.

Notable players

Any number following the Smasher name indicates placement on the Fall 2019 PGRU, which recognizes the official top 50 players in the world in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate from July 13th, 2019 to December 15th, 2019.

•  Blade - Placed 3rd at both Smash Vertex and ChillHouse using Byleth as one of his characters. He has defeated players such as Chag and Sparg0.
•  MkLeo (#1) - Placed 1st at Frostbite 2020 using Byleth as one of his characters in grand finals against Maister.
•  Pink Fresh - Placed 1st at The Grind 112 using Byleth, notably against ZD.
•  Zackray (#7) - Placed 1st at Sumabato SP 12 using Byleth as one of his characters. He has defeated players such as T, Etsuji, HIKARU, and Eim.

Classic Mode: A Heroic Legacy

Byleth's congratulations screen.

Byleth's Classic Mode route is themed around the Fire Emblem fighters and stages from across the Smash series, fought in order of release year. All battles are stamina battles and the player always starts with 100 HP.

Round	Opponent	Stage	Music	Notes
1	Marth	Temple	Story 5 Meeting	References how Marth used Temple as his home stage in Super Smash Bros. Melee, due to the game not having a Fire Emblem stage. Marth starts with 100 HP.
2	Roy	Arena Ferox (Battlefield form)	Winning Road - Roy's Hope	Roy starts with 100 HP.
3	Ike (×2)	Castle Siege	Eternal Bond	The Radiant Dawn Ike will appear once the Path of Radiance Ike is defeated. Both Ikes start with 100 HP.
4	Robin , Lucina and Chrom	Arena Ferox	Id (Purpose) (Remix)	Team battle. Robin, Lucina, and Chrom start with 50 HP.
5	Corrin (×2)	Coliseum	Lost in Thoughts All Alone (for 3DS / Wii U)	Team battle. The two Corrins wearing white and black is a reference to Birthright and Conquest and the conflict against the Hoshido and Nohr kingdoms. They start with 100 HP.
6	Byleth (×3)	Garreg Mach Monastery	Fódlan Winds	Represent the house leaders in Fire Emblem: Three Houses. The red Byleth prefers down specials, the blue one prefers side specials, and the yellow one prefers neutral specials, referencing the primary weapons of Edelgard, Dimitri, and Claude respectively. The costumes will still be worn even when playing with one of them. They each start with 50 HP.
Bonus Stage
Final	Master Hand and Crazy Hand	Final Destination	Code Name: F.E.	The player has Marth , Roy , Ike , Robin and Corrin as CPU allies with 30 HP.

Credits roll after completing Classic Mode. Completing it as Byleth has Paths That Will Never Cross accompany the credits.

Role in World of Light

The message that shows Byleth's availability in World of Light

Due to his status as downloadable content, Byleth does not have a legitimate role in World of Light. Instead, he is unlocked for use in the mode after freeing 10 fighters from Galeem's control. If loading an existing save file that meets this condition before downloading Byleth, he is immediately unlocked.

Spirits

Male Byleth's Fighter Spirit can be obtained by completing Classic Mode. It is only available periodically for purchase in the shop for 300 coins, but only after Byleth has been downloaded. Unlocking Byleth in World of Light allows the player to preview the first spirit below in the Spirit List under the name "???". As a Fighter Spirit, they cannot be used in Spirit Battles and are purely aesthetic. Female Byleth has a Fighter Spirit of her own, available through the shop. Each Fighter Spirit has an alternate version that replaces it with its artwork in Ultimate.

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  1380. Byleth (Male)

• Female Byleth Spirit.png

  1381. Byleth (Female)

In Spirit battles

As the main opponent

Spirit				Battle parameters
No.	Image	Name	Series	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music
1,382	File:Edelgard.png	Edelgard	Fire Emblem series	•Byleth		5,000	Castle Siege (Battlefield form)	•Hazard: Lava Floor	•The floor is lava •The enemy has super armor and is hard to launch of make flinch	The Apex of the World
1,384	File:DimitriFE.png	Dimitri (Fire Emblem)	Fire Emblem series	•Byleth •Ganondorf		5,000	Distant Planet (Ω form)	N/A	•Stamina battle •The enemy has increased attack power	Between Heaven and Earth
1,386	File:Claude.png	Claude	Fire Emblem series	•Byleth		5,000	Gaur Plain (Ω form)	•Hazard: Left is Right, Right is Left •Hazard: Poison Floor	•The floor is poisonous •Left and right controls will suddenly reverse	Blue Skies and a Battle
1,388	File:FETH Sothis.png	Sothis	Fire Emblem series	•Byleth		13,400	Spear Pillar (Ω form)	•Health Recovery •Sudden Final Smash	•The enemy will suddenly have a Final Smash •The enemy is healed significantly when the enemy's at high damage	Fire Emblem: Three Houses Main Theme

As a minion

Spirit				Battle parameters							Inspiration
No.	Image	Name	Series	Enemy Fighter(s)	Type	Power	Stage	Rules	Conditions	Music	Character
1,393	File:Hilda(FE).png	Hilda (Fire Emblem)	Fire Emblem series	•Villager •Byleth		2,400	Garreg Mach Monastery (Bridge)	•Attack Power ↑	•The enemy gets a major stat boost when badly damaged	Paths That Will Never Cross	Claude

Alternate costumes

Gallery

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  Male Byleth's splash art.

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  Female Byleth's splash art.

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  Byleth's weapons.

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  Both male and female Byleth on Umbra Clock Tower.

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  Female Byleth using her back aerial on Garreg Mach Monastery.

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  Male and female Byleth crossing swords on Garreg Mach Monastery.

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  Byleth's costumes based on Dimitri, Edelgard, and Claude.

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  Female Byleth using Aymr against Zelda's Phantom in Pirate Ship.

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  Male Byleth using Failnaught on Garreg Mach Monastery.

Trivia

• Byleth's internal codename is "master", referencing his role as a professor in Fire Emblem: Three Houses.
• Byleth is the only fighter with two taglines. This is because the male and female variants have different names in Japanese.
  • Despite the fact that male and female Byleth have different names in Japanese, the announcer and English-written UIs (such as the versus splash screen and damage meter) will call both of them by their shared English name, unlike with other characters such as King K. Rool and Lucina in the Japanese version, or unlike with other gender-selectable characters in French, Spanish, German, Italian and Russian. However, this is also similar to Young Link and Lucas being still called by the announcer with their English name.
• Byleth is the only character in Vol. 1 of the Fighters Pass to not be from either a third-party company or a new universe, and is the second such DLC character for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, after Piranha Plant.
• Byleth is the third Fire Emblem character that is a DLC. The first two were Roy and newcomer Corrin in SSB4.
  • Byleth is also the first Fire Emblem DLC character that comes in a DLC bundle.
• Byleth, like Ike, Pokémon Trainer, Wii Fit Trainer, and Inkling, is one of the few characters to have alternate costumes with different animations.
  • Female Byleth holds the Sword of the Creator with its tip pointed upwards, while male Byleth holds it with its tip pointed downwards. All animations that can be played from their stand animations (like their idle animations) are subsequently affected through the animation blending.
  • Their victory poses are different. Byleth is also the only fighter where the camera angles will also change depending on the costume, rather than just the animations.
• With his debut in Three Houses in July 2019, Byleth is currently the most recent fighter to appear in Ultimate and, by extension, the entire Super Smash Bros. series. He is also the first character in the game to make his gaming debut after Ultimate's original release in December 2018, which was also the case with fellow Fire Emblem characters Roy and Corrin in their debuts.
  • Correspondingly, Byleth is the first fighter in Ultimate to have debuted on the Nintendo Switch and currently one of two characters alongside the currently unannounced ARMS representative.
• Byleth is the fifth fighter to receive an invitation letter in his reveal trailer, following Villager, Isabelle, Joker, and Terry.
• Byleth is the only character whose alternate costume is displayed alongside his default costume on the official Ultimate site, and is one of two characters in general to have this trait, with Robin's page on the official SSB4 site similarly showing both genders, unlike other characters with alternate costumes.
  • Additionally, because male and female Byleth have different names in Japanese, Korean, and Chinese, the lists of fighters on the website names both of them in those languages.
• According to Sakurai's presentation, Byleth's development was worked in secret; even most of Nintendo worldwide did not know about this inclusion. Only the development team and other stakeholders knew.
• According to Sakurai's column, the reason for Byleth's use of the Hero's Relics was to make him differentiate from all the other sword fighters.
• Byleth is the only DLC fighter in Ultimate not to have been revealed before his presentation video's release. While none of Joker's contents were revealed before his video's release, the character himself was confirmed four months prior at The Game Awards 2018.
• Byleth, Terry, Hero, and Ryu are the only characters who have stamina battles for their Classic Mode routes, making Byleth the only first-party character with this distinction.
  • Coincidentally, they all have been DLC in the Smash series. Ryu in Smash 4 and Hero, Terry, and Byleth in Ultimate
• If excluding Kazooie, the female variant of Byleth is the first female DLC character in Ultimate.
  • Additionally, Byleth is the second DLC character to have a male and female variant, following Corrin in SSB4. Coincidentally, they're both Fire Emblem characters.
• Byleth and Hero are the only Fighters Pass characters whose pages were available on the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate website the same day they were announced.
• Byleth the only character in Ultimate to have an exclusively tether-based up special, as Joker gains Wings of Rebellion through Arsene and Ivysaur can switch to Charizard, which can use Fly.
• For unknown reasons, the Korean reveal of Byleth had been delayed, being revealed on January 22, 2020, rather than January 16 like in other regions.
• Byleth is one of the few characters who occasionally says something after being Blast KO'd: male Byleth will shout "Not my best!", while female Byleth will shout "Forgive me...!"
• When either male or female Byleth is Star KO'd, they shout, "My battle ends here...!" This is a reference to a line of dialogue when they exhaust their health in Fire Emblem: Three Houses. Byleth shares the distinction of speaking a full sentence during a Star KO with Pit.
  • Both, additionally, do not say a sentence in Japanese.
• Both genders of Byleth in the English version uses their heavy knockback scream rather than their standard KO scream KO'd by reaching 0 HP during their final stock in Stamina Mode. This also applies to Mario, Dr. Mario, Hero, and Terry.
  • Additionally, Byleth in Japanese version uses a unique voice clips when KO'd in Stamina Mode. This trait is shared with Joker and Banjo & Kazooie.
  • Additionally, Byleth is the only DLC character who lies on his back when KO'd, unlike other DLC characters who lay on their stomachs.
• Byleth is so far the only DLC character to appear in multiple spirit battles as both the main opponent and a minion.
  • Byleth is also the only DLC character whose default appearance does not appear in these battles.
• Oddly, if Byleth charges a forward smash while holding a Death's Scythe, the charging sound effect will not play.
  • Additionally, he will not vibrate in place while charging. This also applies to Zero Suit Samus if she charges a smash attack while holding a Star Rod.
• In male Byleth's right victory pose, there's a brief delay before the UI displays the panes of the losing fighters in comparison to most victory poses. This is due to the game slowing down when focusing on the particle effects from the Sword of the Creator's whip. This does not occur in team battles consisting of two or more fighters.
  • This makes male Byleth the only fighter who can progress through the results screen without displaying the defeated fighters outside of team battles.
• Byleth is the only character with a taunt that has more than one potential quote.
• Unlike most humanoid fighter models in Ultimate, Byleth's bind pose is uniquely an "A-pose" instead of a T-pose. This is shared with Terry.
• So far, Byleth is the only swordfighter whose neutral attack (in this case, the non-rapid jab version) doesn't involve the use of his weapon.
• The "Congratulations" screen in Byleth's Classic Mode references Tea Parties in Fire Emblem: Three Houses.
• Unlike other characters with gender swaps, the Sound Test does not refer to the two Byleths as male or female. This is because they have different names in Japanese, where referring to them by gender would be redundant.
• Despite being a horizontal slash with Areadhbar, Byleth's forward air uses the punch sound effect. Conversely, while their back air is a smack with the flat of the blade, it uses the slash sound effect.