Sora (Smash Plus)

Sora is a playable character in Super Smash Brothers Plus for the Nintendo Switch Plus. Representing the Kingdom Hearts Universe, he is listed as Fighter #93 in Smash's modified numbering system and is classified as a Lightweight fighter. He is hidden at the start of the game, but can be unlocked through random encounters in versus mode or by unlocking every other character in the game.
Sora is unique for a swordfighter in that his offensive capabilities are almost exclusively in the air. His slow falling speed, lightweight and bevy of movement options grant him a great control of the sky and the potential for great aerial combos. However he excels in one on one fights, as in melees he can become easy pickings for opportunistic players waiting for him to land. Sora's durability is also in question, as he lacks the speed to escape pressure and his damage output beyond combos is subpar. His counter functions as both a standard counterattack as well as a limited projectile reflector, and his recovery ranks among the best in the game, so he is at least able to survive off stage easily enough. Despite being the last character added to Smash Ultimate, Sora has received a minor update in his moveset with Magic now being selectable via a shield special, as well as an additional spell of Aeroga, however he is limited in how many times he can cast each spell per stock as well. Sora is a somewhat difficult to control fighter that can KO at early percents with the right usage, but is also susceptible to an early exit himself. Sora has two normal jumps and can crawl.
==Moveset==
===Basic Attacks===
*Neutral Jab- Sora performs a three hit combo consisting of an overhead strike, followed by a straight jab, followed by a horizontal swing of the Keyblade.
*Side Tilt- Sora performs an upward swing with the Keyblade. If the attack button is held, it will automatically combo into a forward thrust followed by an overhead strike, making it a slightly stronger style neutral attack.
*Up Tilt- Sora spins the Keyblade above his head several times before catching it in midair. Hits opponents multiple times, launching on the final hit.
*Down Tilt- Sora crouches down and performs a overhead strike with the keyblade, hitting the ground.
*Dash Attack- Sora performs a sliding kick, moving him forward a good distance and knocking foes away.
*Grab & Pummel- Sora grabs opponents with one hand and pummels by hitting them with the handle of the Keyblade.
*Forward Throw- Sora swings his keyblade downward, knocking foes away.
*Back Throw- Sora spins twice and tosses the foe backwards.
*Up Throw- Sora tosses the opponent up in the air and performs an overhead swipe with the Keyblade.
*Down Throw- Sora slams the opponent down on the ground, popping them back up for more combos.
*Neutral Air- Sora spins in the air with his keyblade extended. If it connects and the attack button is held, Sora will follow up with an upward strike followed by a downward strike with the keyblade, gaining a small bit of airtime with every hit.
*Forward Air- Sora performs a downward strike with the Keyblade. Connecting with the attack allows the player to lead into a combo of an upward strike followed by a spinning horizontal strike to knock foes away.
*Back Air- Sora performs a backwards slash with the Keyblade. Sora's strongest aerial attack in terms of damage output.
*Up Air- Sora performs an overhead slash with the Keyblade while doing a backflip in midair.
*Down Air- Sora pauses in midair and then somersaults to the ground with the keyblade extended, launching foes on contact.
===Smash Attacks===
*Side Smash- Sora performs a powerful horizontal swing with the Keyblade. Easily Sora's most powerful attack in terms of damage and knockback (minus the sweetspot of his up smash), it does suffer from the Keyblade's short reach, reducing its range compared to other moves of its type.
*Up Smash- Sora stabs the Keyblade vertically up, causing an explosion of light at the tip. The attack is the strongest at the tip of the blade and right as the flash of light begins, otherwise it is weaker than average for an up smash.
*Down Smash- Sora jumps in the air and slams the Keyblade straight down on the ground. Comes out very quickly, but lacks range and is the weakest of all of Sora's Smash Attacks.
===Special Moves===
*Shield Special: Magic Select- Pressing the shield special will cause a selector wheel to pop up on screen, which allows Sora to choose one of his four magical spells that he can use for his neutral special. If the spell has been exhausted for the stock, then it will be unable to be selected.
*Neutral Special: Magic- Sora casts whatever spell he has selected with his shield special, being able to choose from 4 different spell types. Each spell has a different effect and a limited number of times it can be cast for each stock. Once the spell has been exhausted, it cannot be used again until Sora is KO'ed or acquires a Honey Syrup item (which will restore all Magic use). If no magic is available, Sora will simply perform a forward strike with the Keyblade that does minimal damage. The spells he can cast are:
**Firaga- Sora's basic projectile spell, he will fire a single fireball across the stage for moderate damage. The rate of fire is slow, but the attack has the longest horizontal range of any of his attacks, and the most uses, as Sora can fire up to 25 fireballs in a single stock.
**Thundaga- Sora casts a spell that causes three vertical thunderbolts to appear in front of Sora, each higher than the last and comboing into each other, with the third bolt having powerful launch capability. This spell can be used 8 times in a single stock.
**Blizzaga- Sora casts a short range burst of ice directly in front of himself. It comes out the quickest of all the spells, and is guaranteed to freeze enemies even at low percentages (and can be used for off stage KO's easily at higher percentages due to its low knockback), but has the shortest range of all of Sora's spells and does little to no damage. It can be used 12 times in a single stock.
**Aeroga- Sora casts a short range wind spell around himself while holding the Keyblade upwards. The wind spell acts as a multi-hitting shield around Sora for about 1.2 seconds, dealing damage to foes and comboing into the blade, which has a hitbox to launch foes away. The wind spell also acts as a projectile blocker, though not a reflector. It also deals only minor damage and knockback overall. Sora can use this spell 15 times.
*Side Special: Sonic Blade- Sora performs a horizontal high speed thrusting attack with the Keyblade. Pressing a directional input after the end of the strike will cause Sora to dash in that direction, an action he can repeat a second time. Alternatively players can hold the special button, which will cause Sora to automatically dash towards the nearest opponent, locking onto them, allowing for easy followup combos. Can be used very effectively as a multi-ranging recovery move, but Sora will enter freefall after dashing three times or if the move is canceled at anytime in the air.
*Up Special: Aerial Sweep- Sora jumps into the air while performing a spin attack with the Keyblade. The attack hits multiple times and launches on the final hit. Unlike other similar moves, Sora will always jump in the air to initiate the attack while grounded, and will rise in the air if used while in midair. Normally the attack will send Sora into Freefall after it ends, but there is a brief window where it can combo into Sonic Blade, allowing for maximum coverage in recovery and for follow up combos. Once Sonic Blade ends, or if players miss the timing, then Sora will enter Freefall.
*Down Special: Counterattack- Sora holds the Keyblade up in a counter position and flashes briefly. If he is hit by a physical attack, he will counter the attack, staggering the foe, and then return fire with a slash attack from the Keyblade. If he is hit by a projectile, he will reflect that projectile forward, regardless of where the projectile originated from. Despite having strong reflect/counter ability and damage multiplication, Sora's back is partially exposed during the animation, leaving him somewhat vulnerable from behind.
*Final Smash: Sealing the Keyhole- Sora fires a beam from the Keyblade that forms a keyhole shaped portal in front of him. All players in the vicinity are sucked into a cinematic final smash, where they are trapped in a Smash Bros version of the Door of Darkness. Sora closes the door and then locks it with a beam from the Keyblade, causing a powerful explosion as Sora poses briefly, returning to the stage and launching the affected foes. Any player who attains over 100% damage in the Final Smash is automatically KO'ed.
===Miscellaneous===
*Entry Animation- Sora flies in from the background, lands with a short hop and gives a "Let's go!" as he readies for battle.
*Idle Animation 1- Sora twirls his Keyblade around himself in a quick circular motion.
*Idle Animation 2- Sora looks around briefly before resuming normal stance.
*Side Taunt- Sora faces the camera and spins the Keyblade around in a circle repeatedly before returning to normal stance.
*Up Taunt- Sora holds the Keyblade up and casts one of three spells: Time, Sleep or Cure. The effect is purely aesthetic, and the spell he casts will be decided at random.
*Down Taunt- Sora jumps up to the air and throws a fist pump, yelling out "Here We Go!"
*Victory Animation 1- Sora jumps into the screen and spins the Keyblade around, ending with it leaning against his shoulder as he smiles as says "Yes!"
*Victory Animation 2- Sora swings the Keyblade forward twice, then turns around and rests it on his shoulder, his back facing the camera.
*Victory Animation 3- Sora performs an unlocking motion with the Keyblade, and then points it skyward while holding it with both hands.
==How to Unlock==
Sora can be unlocked any of the following ways:
*Playing Versus Matches until he randomly shows up as a "Challenger Approaching" fight. Defeat him to unlock him.
*Unlock every other fighter on the main roster through any means.
*Unlock him in the Finale of World of Light by defeating him.
*Paying 1,000 gold in a shop, where he can randomly show up (though rarely.)
Category:Super Smash Bros. Characters
Category:Super Smash Bros. (series)
Category:Smash Plus Characters