Roy (Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U)

''This article is about Roy's appearance in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U. For other uses, see Roy.''

Roy is a downloadable character in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U. He was shown in a leak showing actual gameplay of both him, Lucas and Ryu, and then officially confirmed during Nintendo Direct on June 14th alongside Ryu. He became available for download in June 14th, 2015, alongside Lucas and Ryu.

Strengths:

 * Powerful Smash Attacks.
 * Very agile, with fast movement speed as well attack speed.
 * His dash animation also allows him to dodge some attacks as his stance is low.
 * His throws have low base knockback, allowing him to pull more follow ups and combos.
 * Has a Meteor Smash: Down Aerial.
 * Has a counter attack.
 * Damage and knockback is greatly increased if at the middle part of his blade close to the hilt.
 * Excellent Aerial attacks giving more combo and juggle potential.
 * Flare Blade can score earlier KOs even when uncharged, since it has very high knockback scaling. It also has low ending lag, being able to be used safely in the air. When fully charged, it is one of the two moves in the game that can 0KO opponents, alongside Mr. Game & Watch Judge #9.
 * Blazer can be aimed vertically or horizontally, increasing his recovery potential depending on the situation.

Weaknesses:

 * Poor recovery.
 * Attacks must connect with the middle part of his blade close to the hilt in order to deal more damage and knockback. Otherwise they're very weak.
 * Flare Blade can be predictable and easy to avoid.
 * If Flare Blade is fully charged, it causes 10% recoil.

Summary:
Roy is what could be called a balance between Marth and Ike: while having the agility and good flow of attacks Marth has, he has a high damage and knockback strength. Unlike Marth, the tip of Roy's blade is no stronger than the rest of his sword, however the base of his sword has a great amount of power. (Base=part of sword closest to body).

Much like Marth, Roy can easily string attacks together, with many follow ups that are true combos leading to KOs. His Neutral Attack is very fast and deals enough hitstun for a quick dash grab and even Forward Smash, depending on the opponent and percentage. Neutral and Forward Aerial are also very useful in short-hops, capable of follow ups from air to ground.

As for his KO ability, all his Smash Attacks are very powerful, specially his Forward Smash (if sweetspotted). His Flare Blade can one hit KO opponents if fully charged, as well having high knockback scaling, strong enough to KO opponents at mid-high percentages if used near the edge.

However, Roy has very poor recovery, one of the worst in the game, with his Blazer giving him slightly more vertical reach than Dr. Mario's Super Jump Punch. His Blazer can be aimed horizontally, though, giving him slightly more options during recover. Much like Marth, he has a sweetspot in his blade, closer to the hilt, meaning attacks that don't connect with that hitbox will do very low damage and knockback.

Overall Roy is a character with powerful combo potential, which combined with his agility and knockback, makes him a force to be recognized. Roy players must be careful to not put him in tight situations, as his sweetspot forces Roy to be much closer to his opponents than Marth, resulting in a high risk, high reward gameplay.

Differences from Melee
Roy has received a major update, most of his animations have been tweaked or completely changed to look "heavier", with more aggressive sword swings to reflect his personality, contrasting with Marth's. As a result, this makes his Sword of Seals feel more like broadsword, as opposed to Marth and Lucina's Falchion, which are longswords. His appearance is now on a combination of his original design in Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade and his design from DLC of  Fire Emblem: Awakening. He also has a complete different standing stance and idle pose as opposed to Marth's, as well a different walking animation.

His overall speed and power have been balanced to match the rest of the cast, as well to further differ from Marth/Lucina. Despite being slower than Marth in the Melee, Roy is actually faster than both Marth and Lucina, having a faster dash speed and air speed.

Attributes

 * Taller, giving him more range but also more hurtbox. He is now being as tall as Marth.
 * Heavier, now being ranked among midweight rather than lightweight. He is now heavier than Marth rather than lighter.
 * Different jump and double jump animation. Second jump is slightly higher.
 * Walking speed is slower, but dash speed is much faster, even more than Marth/Lucina 's.
 * Much faster air speed, now being the third fastest in the game, after Yoshi and Wario.
 * Overall faster and stronger, with all sweetspot and sourspot attacks dealing higher knockback.
 * Many of his attack animations are now done with him holding the sword with a reverse grip (with the blade facing down), resulting in different speed and range compared to Marth and Lucina's. The majority of his attacks now have reduced range due different hitboxes.
 * Much like Marth and Lucina, Roy's sword trails now indicate the sweetspot of his attacks.

Ground Attacks

 * Neutral Attack has a different animation, where Roy slashes forward and slightly upwards, holding the sword with a reverse grip. It is also faster, with less ending lag, and sends opponents in a different angle that makes it more favorable for combos.
 * Forward Tilt has a different animation, where Roy leans and slashes forward in an arc while holding the sword with a reverse grip. It is slightly faster, with less ending lag, however the hitbox lasts slightly less. It has stronger base knockback and much higher knockback scaling, enough to KO opponents at high percentages.
 * Down Tilt is slightly faster, however it now sends opponents in a more horizontal trajectory, acting as semi-spike against aerial opponents, being very useful for edge-guarding. However, this also diminishes its combo potential, but allows Roy to perform tech chases.
 * Up Tilt has a slightly tweaked animation, with Roy slashing upwards holding the sword with a reverse grip. It has more horizontal reach than Marth and Lucina's in the frontal hitbox. It is also deals more damage, but less knockback.
 * Forward Smash has a different animation, now being a sideway slash with both hands gripping on the sword, losing vertical range, however with increased horizontal range; its animation is the same as Mii Swordfighter's Forward Smash. It is also slightly faster, with less ending lag. Its knockback growth is slightly higher.
 * Down Smash's first hit sends opponents in a more horizontal trajectory, however it deals less damage. The second hit deals slightly more damage.
 * Up Smash has a slightly different animation, with Roy pumping the sword by the end while emitting an explosive burst. It has less startup and ending lags. Additionally, the first hit causes no knockback, meaning Roy must connect all hits in order to KO an opponent. On the other way, the hits now connect better and deal more damage.
 * Dash Attack has a different animation, being a short sideway slash while holding the sword with a reverse grip. It covers less range, but is faster. Also, Roy no longer ducks while delivering the attack, now standing upright.

Aerial Attacks

 * Neutral Aerial is faster and has less ending and landing lag.
 * Forward Aerial has a different animation, where Roy slashes forward more forcefully, resulting in slightly more horizontal range, however it no longer has a lower hitbox by the end of the move, and it is also has higher startup lag. It has much lower ending and landing lags. The knockback sends opponents slightly downwards, being able to follow it up with some of his ground attacks, like his Forward Smash.
 * Back Aerial has less ending and landing lag.
 * Down Aerial has a different animation, looking similar to Ike's Down Aerial, with Roy slashing downwards with both hands gripping on the sword, which results in a more pinpoint range, with less horizontal range as it is no longer an arc slash. It causes more damage overall, on both sour and sweetspots, and it's much easier to land the Meteor Smash than Marth's. In addition, the sourspot is much stronger in terms of knockback. However, it has higher startup lag.
 * Up Aerial has slightly less ending and landing lag. It deals increased knockback, and it is much more useful for juggling. Its hitboxes also lasts slightly longer.

Grabs and Throws

 * Forward Throw is slower, but has lower base knockback, allowing better follow ups.
 * Back Throw is slightly slower and sends opponents more vertically.
 * Down Throw sends opponents upwards, directly above Roy, allowing better follow ups. However, it deals slightly less damage.
 * Up Throw has higher base knockback, reducing its combo potential.

Special Attacks

 * Flare Blade has higher startup lag when releasing the attack, and charges slightly slower. However, it has little to no ending lag, and causes a huge explosion on the ground, much like Ike's Eruption. It has much higher knockback scaling, being able to KO opponents above 100% uncharged. A full charge breaks shields as well as being a one hit KO. However, it takes more time to full charge the attack.
 * Double-Edge Dance's fourth hit deals more knockback, specially the neutral one. Also, the attacks are faster, and the interval between hits is shorter, resulting in a faster combo. However, the first hit has slightly higher startup lag. It doesn't stall Roy in the air as much anymore, reducing his potential for recovery aid.
 * Counter is much stronger, being as strong as Ike's. Additionally, the attack has more horizontal reach. The counter frames are slightly longer, but still lower than Marth and Lucina, however slightly higher than Ike's. However, the damage multiplier is slightly lower. (1.5x to 1.35x)
 * Blazer's first hit has much lower set knockback, meaning Roy can connect all hits more reliably, while the final hit has much higher knockback scaling, enough to KO at high percentages. The move can now be tilted upon startup to cover a more horizontal range. It covers slightly less distance, and when used on the ground. Also, the first frames of startup grants him brief invincibility frames.
 * Now has a Final Smash, Critical Hit. However, unlike Marth and Lucina's, it has limited range, with Roy standing in place for the entire Final Smash. It also has a different animation compared to Marth and Lucina's, where Roy draws his sword in a full-circle motion before delivering a powerful flaming slash. To compensate the lack of mobility the Final Smash has, the circular swing before the flaming slash can damage and trap nearby opponents, allowing it to hit as soon as it starts up. In addition, the critical bar has a different appearance. However, this Final Smash is not a one hit KO like Marth and Lucina's, dealing also much less damage. The animation and move function references the Binding Blade weapon's ranged attack in Roy's home game.

Normal

 * Normal Attack: Roy slashes one time while holding the blade with a reverse grip. Great for starting combos due the low ending lag.
 * Side Tilt: Does swift overhead slash.
 * Down Tilt: Stabs downward. Has high range and speed, but deals lower knockback than his other tilts.
 * Up Tilt: Does a upward slash.
 * Dash Attack: Halts and slashes forward while bending for more reach. Good KO potential.

Smash

 * Side Smash: Roy lunges and slashes forward forcefully.
 * Up Smash: A relatively quick sword thrust upwards with fire effects, it hits multiple times and then explodes. If the base of the sword connects, can act as a spike.
 * Down Smash: Swipes his sword on both his sides.

Other
To be added

Aerial Attacks

 * Neutral Aerial: Slashes two times around him. Good in short hops and auto-cancels on the ground.
 * Forward Aerial: Swipes his sword in front of him. Good in short hops and auto-cancels on the ground.
 * Back Aerial: Turns around and swipes his sword. Powerful KO potential.
 * Up Aerial: Swipes his sword upward. Roy's weakest aerial.
 * Down Aerial: Swipes his sword downward. Resembles Ike's Down Aerial. Can Meteor Smash.

Grabs and Throws

 * Pummel: Hits the opponent with his knee.
 * Forward Throw: Knocks opponent forward. Good for tech chases since it sends opponents horizontally.
 * Back Throw: Tosses foe behind him.
 * Down Throw: Tosses the foe to the ground. Roy's best throw for combos, with very low base knockback and knockback scaling. Can be followed up by a jab into Up Smash and Blazer at low percentages and Up and Forward Aerial at higher percentages.
 * Up Throw: Thrusts opponent upwards.

In Competitive Play
To be added.

Taunts

 * Up Taunt: Raises his sword into the air.
 * Side Taunt: Poses, brandishes his blade and says "Boku wa makenai!" (Translates to "I will not lose!")
 * Down Taunt: His original Melee taunt.

Roy

 * Roy, the main character of Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade, returns for the first time since Melee! In The Binding Blade, Roy led the troops of Pherae into battle in his ailing father’s stead, and now he brings his speed and talent for short-range combat into this game.

Roy (Alt.)

 * His sword, the Sword of Seals, is uniquely powerful at the base of the blade. Flare Blade creates an explosion in front of Roy that can be charged by holding down the button. Take care, though, because at the highest levels of charge, Roy himself will catch fire and take damage! His side special, Double-Edge Dance, changes for each strike after the first depending on whether you hold up or down while attacking.

Final Smash Trophy Description

 * For Roy’s Final Smash, he traps enemies in a circular swing of the blade, brings it up behind him, and then, in a blast of fire, brings the blade down for a powerful finisher! The downward attack is powerful on its own but doesn’t have much range, so make sure you’re close enough to hit your enemies with the full combo and really seal their fate!

Trivia

 * Roy is the third character to have been removed in one game (Super Smash Bros. Brawl), then return in a later game (Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U), the first being Dr. Mario and the second being Mewtwo.
 * Roy's artwork resembles his one in Melee. Additionally, all his Victory Screen poses are variations of his original Melee poses.
 * The "Roy Seals the Deal!" is a reference to the Sword of Seals, Roy's sword.
 * Roy and Marth are still the only characters in Smash Bros. that speak in Japanese regardless of localization, reflecting the concept of their respective games never having reached Western territories.
 * However, Marth's game had reached the Western audience (under the name Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light.)
 * Furthermore, Lucas's game (Mother 3) had never been released out of Japan, and yet he still speaks English whenever he uses one of his special moves.
 * In Roy's trailer, there is a part where he attacks Roy Koopa. This is a reference to how they are the only characters to share the same name. For a time, this led to a humorous internet meme in which people claimed this Roy as being playable whilst pointing to Roy Koopa.
 * This is referenced again in one of Roy's pictures on his profile page on the official website, where Roy Koopa is being damaged by the lava in Norfair while Roy is in front of him.
 * Roy's Final Smash animation references the Binding Blade's long-range attack in the original Fuuin no Tsurugi.