Ganondorf (Super Smash Bros. Brawl)

''This article is about Ganondorf's appearance in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. For other uses, see Ganondorf.''

Ganondorf (ガノンドロフ, Ganondorofu) returns in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. His design is based upon his appearance in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. He retains his hand-to-hand combat style, and does not use his sword outside of taunts.

Despite having some of the strongest moves in the game (in terms of damage and knockback), Ganondorf is currently last on the tier list due to his very sluggish moves, predictable recovery, poor mobility, terrible matchups [especially those with a good projectile (everyone except his semi-clone counters him, and the match-up is only very slight advantage)], and horrible tournament results.

To unlock Ganondorf, you must either -
 * Clear Classic Mode on Hard with Zelda or Link
 * Play 200 brawls
 * Have Ganondorf join your party in the Subspace Emissary by collecting the Link and Zelda trophies in the Subspace world.

Note: With the exception of the third option, you will have to defeat Ganondorf in a 1v1 fight at Final Destination to unlock him.

Attributes
Ganondorf is a very heavy, fast falling, very slow character with slightly above average range, very strong attacks, including more than one of the strongest attacks in the game. His attacks, whether in the sweetspot or the sourspot, are still very powerful. Almost all of his moves have above average knockback and can KO as well, although some have low priority (though the case is not severe, as Ganondorf's overall priority is much higher than Captain Falcon's and overall it's not bad). His leg attacks have enough priority to clank with swords and even cut through them. His side special grants him Super armor while he is holding the opponent and leaves opponents vulnerable for a bit of time if used on the ground, leaving them open for another quick attack; however, this move again has fairly low priority, and the opponent can usually roll away or use their get-up attack before being hit by a move. In the air, Ganondorf's side special can cause a Ganoncide. Ganondorf is arguably the character least affected by Smash DI, because he has the lowest number of multi-hitting moves, effectively rendering escape and punishment of his attacks ineffective: only the down smash is affected in such a way, not even the neutral aerial is affected. Ganondorf's dash attack provides him with a quick speed boost, and the move is a hard hitter as well and can also KO. Ganondorf's aerials are also very strong; all have high knockback, and his down aerial is an extremely strong, reliable spike (able to KO even at 0%).

However, Ganondorf's power and heavy weight is counter-balanced with many factors. Ganondorf is a tall target, has short horizontal grab range (but he can grab release combo several characters including Meta Knight and grab release until the edge on Wario to spike him), has bad air speed, he lacks a projectile and many projectiles on himself can easily stop any approach of Ganondorf due to his slow mobility, has one of the slowest attack speeds in the game along with Ike (but Ganon's attacks have less lag and are shorter ranged), some attacks have low priority as mentioned above, and he suffers from predictable recovery. He, like Captain Falcon and Wolf, has a very fast falling speed and a heavy weight that can backfire by being very vulnerable to chain grabs. His mobility is very poor outside of Wizard's Foot, Flame Choke, and dash attack, those first two which are easily punished, meaning that characters with a good projectile can easily brake his approach and force him to jump and still get very little distance.

Ganondorf is a unique character. His unparalleled power means that a single blow from him can turn the tide of a match with opponents in the danger zone as low as 50-65% (his earliest killer, Warlock Punch, essentially guarantees kills at damages as low as 13% or 14% when reversed), but landing that blow is usually difficult. Opponents need to relentlessly pummel him with attacks and keep him from executing his big finishers, or they may see themselves down a stock.

Changes from Melee to Brawl

 * New appearance, based off his Twilight Princess character.
 * Different Standard Normal attack animation; longer range, but slower.
 * Up Tilt has vacuum effect and charges faster but has much less knockback (though still high) as well as has a purely vertical knockback if it hits from far.
 * New Down Tilt.
 * New Up Smash (single upwards kick instead of two, also has much less ending lag).
 * New Forward Tilt (less vertical knockback making it more effective on characters like Ike, but is slower; new animation that differentiates it from Captain Falcon's Forward Tilt).
 * Up Aerial has slightly more range & knockback at the start.
 * Can also perform a "Reverse Warlock Punch".
 * New Side Special: Flame Choke, though it is similar and doesn't make him fall if he misses.
 * Up-Special is altered at the end with the uppercut animation (this can be used to hit opponents just out of reach of being grabbed)
 * Down Special slightly moves him forward before the kick on the ground with worse knockback and if used in the air it still spike if hit in the beginning but if hit during later frames instead it sends with high knockback upwards. Additionally no longer gains another jump after using it making his horizontal recovery from one of the longest to one of the shortest.
 * Slightly slower dash speed (now barely faster than his walk speed).
 * Most attacks have higher knockback.
 * His dair can now be auto canceled in short hops.
 * 2nd kick of neutral aerial has much lower knockback.
 * Dash attack has now KO potential at much less percentages, has more range, more distance and new animation.
 * Attacks have slightly lower priority (still high unlike Captain Falcon).
 * New dash animation.
 * New voice actor (Twilight Princess actor).
 * Warlock Punch is performed a bit faster, has higher knockback and deals more damage; the move also has a different animation than in Melee.
 * Up special move goes higher in midair.
 * His Side-Smash can be steered down and up and has diagonal knockback instead of vertical as well as it has now a huge disjointed hitbox.
 * Up special can't kill outside sudden death and deals 11% instead of 17%. On the upside it can now grab edge-hoggers.
 * Slightly slower yet stronger character overall and many of his attack animations looks less like Captain Falcon, meaning that he has been decloned somewhat.

Normal

 * Neutral attack - Quick palm strike. Moderate knockback, deals more damage if the tip of the attack connects. Has IASA frames 7%, 9% if tipped.
 * Dash attack - Shoulder tackle. Ganondorf gains a quick speed boost during the move. Like King Dedede's, this can KO at high percentages. The 2nd strongest dash attack. Some characters can be dash attacked after a grounded Flame Choke. 15%.
 * Strong Side - Ganondorf leans back a little and thrusts one leg straight forward. Surprisingly the same range as normal tilt, but slightly slower start up, good low angle horizontal knockback, so it's a semi-spike, so also good for KOing characters with poor horizontal recovery, fairly quick. Often referred to as the "Sparta" Kick due to this attack resembling a kick from a famous scene from the movie 300. 12%-13%.
 * Strong Up - Volcano Kick, Ganondorf lifts his leg for a very long time before smashing it down in an explosion. Has vacuum properties, and has huge damage and knockback if it connects. Does less damage and with only vertical knockback if it connects from far. His slowest start up attack, yet not one of his longer end lag attacks. 27%.
 * Strong Down - Ganondorf kneels on one leg and sweeps the other leg forward. Great range and sets up for aerials, but poor priority in the end. Lowest knockback out of all of his tilts. 12%.

Smash

 * Side Smash - Elbow thrust. Great knockback and even uncharged can KO as low as 70% and the speed is very fast for being so powerful. Can be angled up or down. This is somewhat unique from other Side Smashes that can be angled as the damage does not increase when angled upward and does not decrease when angled downward. It has a disjointed hitbox with about the same range as the elbow making it having a huge range. 24%-35%
 * Up Smash - Ganondorf does a high kick, lifting his leg to about thirty degrees from vertical quickly. Only hits once. Has lots of IASA frames. 19%-26% damage if hit with leg, 22%-30% damage if hit with foot.
 * Down Smash - Ganondorf sweeps his leg forward, then backwards. The knockback from the first kick usually makes the second kick connect as well. First hit comes out fairly fast (at least in comparison to Ganondorf's other moves) but second hit is somewhat laggy. Nearly useless move in general because the 1st hit can be Smash DIed out of the 2nd hit and it's weak compared to his other moves. 19%-26%.

Other

 * Ledge Attack - Backhands the edgeguarding opponent. If the opponent is a distance away, the attack knocks them away. If the opponent is standing close to Ganondorf, the attack will throw the opponent off the ledge. 10%.
 * 100% Ledge Attack - Ducks slightly and delivers a kick across the ground. Comes out fast, and Ganon keeps low. 10%.
 * Trip attack - Does a rising, spinning kick. Reach of the attack extends across the entire height of his legs, and the attack is incredibly fast. 6%.
 * Floor attack - Flips upward, kicking with his feet, similar to his up-aerial.

Aerial Attacks

 * Neutral Aerial - Double kick.The first hit will hit hard but weak compared to his other aerials and the second hit deals a weaker attack that lacks KO potential. First hit deals 11% while the second does 7%.
 * Forward Aerial - Swings his hand forward in an overhead arc downwards. High knockback. Slower, longer range, high land lag and slightly weaker than the knee, and has somewhat of a sweetspot, which is the fist (doing 17% damage), whereas if it connects with his arm, it does 15%, though this only affects damage, and the attack is still powerful wherever it hits.
 * Back Aerial - Backhand. One of Ganondorf's fastest aerials, good knockback. Can be ground canceled. 16%.
 * Up Aerial - Overhead Flip Kick. The hitbox travels in a large arc, hitting opponents above and behind as well. Fast and good for edge guarding. Very strong at the start and semi-spike at the end. Sends horizontally. Ganondorf's fastest attack. 13%.
 * Down Aerial - Thunder Stomp. Ganondorf kicks his legs downward. Will always spike if it hits, even if not sweetspotted. 23% damage. If connected with body instead of his leg, the attack will do 17%. The strongest spike in the game (before his Wizard's Foot and then Ness's down aerial), often KOing even at 0%. This spike is so powerful, grounded opponents will be launched upwards, getting Star KOed at high enough damages (most characters lower than 100%). Can be auto-canceled after short hops making it a great approach move.

Grabs & Throws

 * Range - High vertical range but one of the shortest horizontal grab ranges.
 * Pummel - Knees opponent.A very slow pummel. 2%.
 * Forward Throw - Punches his opponent forward. 13%.
 * Back Throw - Throws opponent backward and kicks them. 10%.
 * Up Throw - Throws opponent upward and jabs his/her back. 7%.
 * Down Throw - Throws his opponent violently on the ground. 7%.

Taunts
Up: Floats in the air, curls into a ball, spins, opens up from his curled position and poses, all while laughing maniacally. (same as in melee)

Down: Takes his sword out, dark energy pulses from the tip, looks at it, then puts it away.

Side: Punches his hands together, and dark energy appears.

Role in the Subspace Emissary
Ganondorf first appears in a control room on the Island of Ancients giving Bowser the coordinates to find King Dedede, who stole Wario's trophies. Later in the same control room Master Hand gives him the orders to destroy the Isle of the Ancients. He then appears in the island base as a hologram and orders the R.O.B. Squad to activate all of the Subspace Bombs they had. When the Ancient Minister gets in their path, Ganondorf presses an overide button that forces the R.O.B.s to ignore the Minister. When the Ancient Minister continues to intervene, Ganondorf presses the overide button again and the R.O.B.S attack the Ancient Minister, setting him aflame. The heroes attempt to stop the R.O.B.s, so Ganondorf sends a flock of Auroros to distract them. Suddenly, the burning Ancient Minister fires beams from his eyes, destroying the Auroros, and reveals that he, himself, is a R.O.B. who was disguised, and proceeds to help the others fighters the advancing Subspace troops. After the Isle of the Ancients is engulfed in Subspace, Ganondorf appears on the Subspace Gunship as it's commander along with Bowser, but he retreats into Subspace with Bowser when the Gunship is destroyed by Kirby and his Dragoon. Ganondorf decides it is the time to usurp the Master Hand so he takes out the last remaining Dark Cannon and aims it at Bowser, his own right-hand and the most loyal of Master Hand's henchmen. After shooting Bowser, Ganondorf kicks the Bowser trophy out of the way and goes up to the edge of a ledge. When Ganondorf presents himself to Master Hand preparing to betray him for complete control of the Subspace Army, he sees that Master Hand was literally a puppet of Tabuu, the supreme leader of the Subspace Army. Ganondorf tries to attack him, but is defeated and turned into a trophy. As he was falling however, he bumped into Master Hand, freeing him from Tabuu's control. Master Hand then attempts to attack Tabuu, but is defeated with little effort. When Kirby finds Ganondorf's trophy the resurrected Bowser appears and brutally attacks his trophy as an act of revenge before tossing it aside. He is revived by Link and Zelda (with a bit of a headache from the abuse treatment) and after Link and Zelda walk away he clenches his fist in anger he then helps the heroes defeat Tabuu.

Exclusive Stickers
These stickers can only be used by Ganondorf or by a select few including him:


 * Boomerang: [Weapon] Attack +4
 * Bowser (Mario Power Tennis): [Darkness] Attack +21
 * Colin: [Specials: Direct] Attack +4
 * Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule: [Electric] Attack +31
 * Darknut: [Slash] Attack +13
 * Epona & Link: [Arm, Leg] Attack +9
 * Fierce Deity Link: [Slash] Attack +21
 * Ganondorf (Ocarina of Time): [Darkness] Attack +29
 * Ganondorf (Wind Waker): [Darkness] Attack +33
 * Happy Mask Salesman: [Leg] Attack +9
 * Hylian Shield (Twilight Princess): Slash Resistance +10
 * Lantern: [Flame] Resistance +7
 * Legend of Outset: [Arm] Attack +26
 * Linebeck: [Throwing] Attack +20
 * Link (Link to the Past): [Electric] Resistance +31
 * Link (Twilight Princess): [Slash] Resistance +27
 * Link (Wind Waker): [Flame] Attack +31
 * Link with Goron Mask: [Slash] Attack +17
 * Link's Grandma: [Arm, Leg] Attack +2
 * Lon Lon Milk: Launch Power +18
 * Midna & Wolf Link: [Leg] Attack +26
 * Moblin: [Slash] Attack +15
 * Octorok: [Leg] Attack +4
 * Petey Piranha (Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour!): [Darkness] Attack +47
 * Phantom Ganon: [Darkness] Attack +40
 * Piece of Heart: Heart Container Effect +50
 * Revolver Ocelot: [Darkness] Attack +17
 * Ridley (Metroid): [Darkness] Attack +30
 * Salvatore: [Electric] Attack +9
 * Shadow Beast: [Darkness] Attack +28
 * Sheik: [Body, Spin] Attack +17
 * Skull Kid (Ocarina of Time): [Darkness] Attack +7
 * Space Pirate: [Darkness] Attack +13
 * Tingle (Wind Waker): [Flame] Resistance +24
 * Young Zelda (Minish Cap): [Battering] Resistance +16
 * Zelda (Ocarina of Time): [Flame] Resistance +18

Trivia

 * Ganondorf is the only playable villain who is never fought in the Subspace Emissary, excluding his Dark clone in The Great Maze.
 * Smash Bros. Dojo states that Ganondorf is the heaviest human character in the game. However, Snake is heavier than him.
 * Ganondorf's side-tilt and side special are two of his only moves to actually be used in a Legend of Zelda game.
 * Ganondorf is considered one of the best characters to use in both Cruel Brawl and Home-run Contest.
 * Though Ganondorf can be the first character unlocked by playing Classic Mode as Link/Zelda on hard, he is one of the last characters to be unlocked when playing the Subspace Emissary.
 * Ganondorf's down taunt reveals the sword he uses in Twilight Princess, which, to the disappointment of many, he does not use to fight. However, it is possible to hack such that Ganondorf is permanently holding an invisible Beam Sword, using his sword as the visible weapon.
 * Ganondorf holds the world record for Brawl's Homerun Contest (2845.8 M) by Sin2324.
 * Ganondorf is the only character to have three Grabs. His Upwards Special, Side Special and Standard Grab means he has the highest number of grab moves in the game.
 * Ganondorf is the only clone to be based off of a character from another series.
 * In Brawl, Ganondorf does his Warlock Punch with his left hand, but uses his right hand in Melee (since in Melee it used the same frames of Falcon Punch).
 * Ganondorf is one of the few characters who carries a holstered weapon but never uses it, the others being Captain Falcon, Sheik, and Snake.
 * Ganondorf's final costume above resembles his Melee appearence.
 * Ganondorf's second costume has been nicknamed by many as "Old Manondorf" due to his elderly appearance from the white hair.
 * Ganondorf side tilt attack has been subjected to an existing popular internet meme relating to the movie "300." Many Youtube videos often recreate the famous movie scene where King Leonidas (represented by Ganondorf) kicks the Persian messenger (represented by a random character) in the bottomless pit (often uses stages created from Stage Builder or the destroyed Bridge of Eldin).  While Ganondorf's side tilt looks remarkably similar to how King Leonidas kicks the messenger, they are not mutually the same thing and not interchangeable.  Many have find this ironic since King Leonidas is portrayed as the main protagonist in the movie while Ganondorf is potrayed as the main antagonist and the final boss of the Legend of Zelda series.