Palutena (SSBU)

Palutena (, Palutena) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. She was officially revealed on June 12th, 2018 alongside fellow representatives and , as well as the rest of the veterans. Palutena is classified as Fighter #54.
Brandy Kopp and reprise their roles as the voice of Palutena in the English and Japanese versions of the game. In addition to their portrayals being re-purposed from Super Smash Bros. 4, they also provide new Palutena's Guidance conversations for every veteran not present in SSB4, the downloadable fighters of SSB4, the base roster newcomers of Ultimate, and .
Palutena is ranked 21st out of 82 on the current tier list, placing her in the A+ tier. This is a huge improvement over her 44th out of 54 placement in SSB4. Palutena is one of the most improved veterans from the transition to Smash 4 and Ultimate due to the engine of Ultimate complementing her unique strengths. Her aerials are a core part of her neutral due to her high aerial mobility and their effective traits: they both start and extend combos, most notably with her neutral aerial, which is commonly considered one of the best moves in the game due to its overall utility for starting combos, comboing into itself, high active frames and KOing at very high percents. Her back air is great for retreating and mid-range combat due to the invincibility of the shield and priority, while up air is an amazing disjointed multi-hit that functions as a juggle tool and KO option. Her grab game is also impressive due to its above-average reach and her decent set of throws. Overall, this results in her having one of the best advantage states in the game. Her specials also have seen noteworthy improvements: Autoreticle is useful for interrupting midrange approaches or recoveries, Explosive Flame is effective for general zoning and for halting approaches, Warp makes her difficult to edgeguard consistently, and her Reflect Barrier functions as a simultaneous counterattack and reflector that enhances her already strong defense.
Despite these many strengths, Palutena is not without her flaws. While she wields an excellent air game, her ground game is below average for a top tier, having slow and unsafe tilts alongside committal smash attacks. She also has trouble securing stocks at high percents due to her KO moves being fairly predictable (Explosive Flame) or easily staled due to overuse (back aerial). Palutena's main combo starters are also unsafe on shield and thus forces her to mix up her gameplan and neutral. Finally, her recovery is completely reliant on Warp, which has no active hitbox and can be consistently two frame punished.
Overall, Palutena is a simple but effective character at all levels of play, with well-rounded abilities and few overwhelming weaknesses. She has often been considered a top-tier contender since the release of the game, and has been one of the most popular characters in competitive play, with results spearheaded by in the early metagame and a multitude of other Palutena players since, including , , and .
==How to unlock==
Complete one of the following:
*Play VS. matches, with Palutena being the last character to be unlocked.
*Clear with or any character in his unlock tree, being the last character unlocked after .
*Have Palutena join the player's party in World of Light.
Palutena must then be defeated on Palutena's Temple (the Ω form is used in World of Light).
==Attributes==
Palutena is a tall middleweight. Her walking speed, dashing speed, air acceleration and gravity are above-average; her air acceleration, in particular, is the 5th highest in the game. Palutena also has relatively high jumps, although her traction and falling speed are both merely average, while her air speed is below-average. Thanks to her attributes, Palutena's overall mobility is excellent, even in spite of her aerial mobility being a bit slower compared to her grounded mobility.
Palutena has a dynamic, well-rounded moveset. She has both excellent combo potential and good zoning tools, which allow her to be effective when fighting offensively or defensively. Her staff counts as a disjointed hitbox and she has two projectiles in her moveset as part of her special moves, meaning she can apply safe pressure from a distance and force approaching opponents off her. Her projectiles are unique by the fact that they are completely unconventional. Her aerial-based moveset, speed and versatility means she can easily overwhelm opponents and quickly rack up damage.
Palutena's ground attacks are generally the weakest part of her moveset, but they can be useful. Her neutral attack possesses decent range, whereas her neutral infinite is a reliable damage racking option that can also function as a situational KO option at very high percentages while near the edge. Palutena's dash attack is very fast, grants her partial invincibility, and its clean hitbox enables it to function as a situational KO option at very high percentages. Her tilt attacks are somewhat situational due to their lagginess, but have their own individual perks. Forward tilt has long-lasting hitboxes that enable it to intercept approaches and floor recoveries, while its second hit is strong enough to KO at very high percentages while near the edge. Down tilt is a useful 2 frame punish that semi-spikes grounded opponents and launches aerial opponents vertically, thus enabling Palutena to edgeguard reliably afterward. Lastly, up tilt has the fastest startup among her tilts, it can initiate aerial pressure, and it is even a serviceable KO option at very high percentages.
Palutena's grounded offense is further supplemented by her strong grab game: her grabs are quick and have respectable ranges, while each of her throws vary from being decent to useful. Palutena's down throw is a reliable combo starter, since it can combo into each of her aerials, and even has KO confirms at high percentages. Her back throw is her strongest throw, being capable of KOing at around 130% while near the edge. Palutena's forward and up throws are much less useful in comparison, but have their own perks regardless. Forward throw has a KO confirm into Explosive Flame at high percentages, whereas up throw is decent for launching opponents into the air in order to initiate aerial pressure safely.
Palutena's smash attacks are very strong KO options thanks to their considerable power and very long ranges. Up smash has a very long-lasting hitbox and covers a lot of vertical range directly in front of Palutena; it can be used to KO opponents in the air and even intercept air dodges due to how long the hitbox lasts. Her forward and down smashes are similar, both in their damage output and the fact that they have a wind effect to move opponents away from Palutena if they are just outside of the move’s hitbox.
The strongest part of Palutena's moveset, however, is her air game. Her aerial attacks are each useful in regard to comboing or KOing; despite each of her aerials having rather high ending lag, they compensate for this by having very low landing lag and generous autocancel windows, making them very safe on shield. Her neutral aerial is a very fast and safe move, being Palutena's best combo tool by far as it combos into her other aerial attacks (including itself) until fairly high percentages, while also having KO potential at very high percentages. Her up aerial is an extremely good juggling tool capable of KOing while near top blast zone at around 100% (even on heavyweights), with its fairly large, long-lasting hitbox making it difficult to avoid. Her back aerial, like her dash attack, grants invincibility on Palutena's shield. It has the strongest knockback of any of her aerials, making it one of Palutena's best KO options, especially when used as a reverse aerial rushed follow up from down throw. Her forward aerial, while not quite as strong, is a good combo finisher that is also useful for edgeguarding, and is even capable of KOing at very high percentages while near the horizontal blast zones. Although down aerial is generally considered to be Palutena's least useful aerial, it is a guaranteed meteor smash against airborne opponents.
Additionally, Palutena's special moves each have utility, most prominently for zoning. Explosive Flame, formerly one of her custom moves in Super Smash Bros. 4, is her side special attack and is useful at forcing opponents into the air, as well as for securing KOs while near the upper blast zone at higher percentages. Palutena's neutral special attack, Autoreticle, is not quite as useful as Explosive Flame, yet it is another projectile that can apply long-ranged pressure safely and rack up damage. Her up special move, Warp, is useful for achieving a more favorable stage position; when coupled with its invincibility frames and Palutena's high jumps, Warp is an extremely useful recovery tool. Palutena's down special move, unlike in SSB4, consists of 2 moves: Counter activates against melee attacks, whereas Reflect Barrier activates against reflectable projectiles at either close range or from a distance. Lastly, several of Palutena's moves, such as her tilt attacks and aerial attacks, inflict additional shield damage; as a result, Palutena can pressure opponents consistently and reliably, especially since her forward and back aerials can autocancel with a short hop fast fall.
Despite having considerable strengths, Palutena also has a number of noticeable weaknesses. Her most glaring problem is her mediocre ground game: barring her dash attack, the remainder of her grounded attacks come out on frame 8 or later, and almost all of her moves either have high startup (smash attacks and down tilt), punishable ending lag (forward, back and down aerials and smash attacks), long durations (her tilt attacks), or all three (forward tilt and special moves). Although Palutena's overall frame data is quite faster than it was in SSB4, she can still be rendered very vulnerable if her attacks miss or if the opponent evades and/or blocks them.
Although a number of Palutena's moves have the potential to KO at reasonable percentages, she can still struggle to score KOs due to her options being either somewhat risky or situational. Her smash attacks are very punishable due to their significantly high amounts of overall lag to offsetting their impressive power. Explosive Flame and, to a lesser extent, back aerial are also easily punishable if whiffed due to their ending lag. Up aerial relies on Palutena being underneath her opponent. Furthermore, while Palutena's recovery is decent in its distance, Warp leaves her helpless and lacks a hitbox to protect her; when combined with the fact that Palutena is a tall character, her recovery can be exploited easily by opponents who know how to intercept Warp.
Despite this, Palutena is generally considered at worst a high tier character due to her versatility, well-roundedness and relatively easy combo game. Her lack of overwhelming weaknesses means that there are few opponents she struggles against.
==Changes from Super Smash Bros. 4==
Palutena was previously a lower-tiered character in SSB4 due to a myriad of factors, such as terrible frame data in relation to power and weight (which also resulted in a deficient grounded game), a predictable offensive game with few reliable options, general trouble at KOing, poor disadvantage state, and an infamously dysergic special moveset. Being designed with character customization in mind, custom special moves were able to vastly improve her strengths, but they required for character customization to be turned on to be able to use them unlike the Mii Fighters, resulting in the inability to use them in regular gameplay and limiting her to her default special moveset. Most likely owing to the removal of custom moves and her previous poorly regarded status, Palutena has been rebalanced significantly to work without custom moves in her transition from SSB4 to Ultimate; though while initially considered to be dramatically buffed during the game's release, game updates have given her some noticeable nerfs that have reduced her viability. Regardless, Palutena is still considered to be significantly buffed overall.
Palutena's most notable improvements are indirect, as she benefits from the gameplay changes to the engine to a far greater degree than most of the cast. The universal increases to mobility have not only improved her already high run speed, but particularly give her much faster air and falling speeds compared to SSB4 (though the former is still below-average), improving her air-to-ground transitioning. The reduced landing lag in all aerials further improves her already impressive aerial game, heightening their spacing and combo potential. The increased shieldstun on attacks makes Palutena's own moves much safer on shield, while the changes to perfect shielding now allow Palutena to more easily retailate against opposing attacks, while not reducing her own moves safety on shield due to the aforementioned higher shieldstun and her moves' multi-hit nature making them risky to perfect shield. The weakening of rage improves Palutena's endurance, and now allows her to take advantage of it much easier. The changes to air dodges have significantly improved her juggling and edgeguarding potential combined with her respectable aerial moves, and the reintroduction of directional air dodging now let her use one to escape pressure or slightly extend her recovery. Finally, the changes to the Sakurai angle to be lower, while being a buff shared widely around the cast, have turned her back throw into a highly effective KO throw.
In terms of direct changes, Palutena has also received several notable improvements. Some of her standard moves have seen hitbox increases, which increases her melee range and makes attacks using her staff much more reliable at connecting. Her sluggish ground moves have been sped up, with her forward and up tilts having faster startup, and almost all of her moves (aside from up and down tilts) receiving less ending lag. Down tilt, particularly, has much better 2 framing potential thanks to its longer range and duration, and sends at a more favorable angle for combos when hitting aerial opponents. Her smash attacks have had their utility further increased; up smash lasts significantly longer, while forward and down smash possess increased power as well as stronger, more reliable windboxes, which combined with their lower ending lag makes them harder to punish at long range.
Her already capable aerial moveset was also improved. Neutral aerial now always sends at the direction Palutena is facing and deals less knockback; in combination with the reductions to landing lag, this turns the move into a fearsome combo starter and general all-purpose attack. Forward, up and down aerials deal more damage, with both the former and latter, as well as back aerial, dealing more knockback. Down aerial also lasts for an additional frame, no longer being one of worst meteor smashes in the game.
Palutena's special moveset has also seen various drastic enhancements that have put it in-line with the rest of the cast. Autoreticle's detection lasts significantly longer, and each projectile has faster startup, deals more damage and travels faster. and Reflect Barrier have been merged into one move; the former activates when blocking a physical attack, while the latter activates to reflect projectiles. As a whole, the move has faster startup, lasts longer and has less ending lag in all aspects; individually, Counter has slightly more knockback (though it remains the weakest counterattack knockback-wise), while Reflect Barrier activates immediately and has a much higher damage multiplier, no longer being the weakest reflector in the game. In place of Reflect Barrier, Palutena's side special is now Explosive Flame; in addition to giving Palutena an additional move, the move has less ending lag, deals more damage and knockback, and can be summoned at two distances, increasing its versatility.
However, while receiving far more buffs, Palutena has also seen some notable nerfs that have changed her playstyle, most notably to her neutral attack and grabs. The former can no longer jab cancel due to its angle being homogenized to connect into the infinite, removing many of its guaranteed set-ups into other moves such as dash attack, grab and some of her aerials. For the latter, despite pivot grab's longer range, both standing and dash grab possess less range (especially the former) and all grabs share the same increased startup and ending lag as with the rest of the cast. Her down throw is also less advantageous due to the changes to hitlag on it and has slightly more knockback, reducing its advantage and combo potential beyond low percents despite its reduced ending lag and more favourable angle. The universal slowdown of shield grabs only exacerbate this, further weakening Palutena's out of shield and grab games, the former of which was the crux of her defense in SSB4. Moreover, her dash attack and back aerial's invincibility frames no longer cover her entire body after startup, instead only covering her arm, making both attacks less effective at contesting approaches.
While she has seen mostly benefits from the revamped game physics, a few changes have also hurt Palutena. Aside from the universal nerfs to grabs, the introduction of dash-canceling is overall detrimental to her, as it allows many characters to pressure her more effectively, while her grounded moves are still slow compared to her aerial moves. The smaller edge sweetspots render Warp much easier to intercept and 2-frame, which combined with her less floaty air physics and the changes to air dodges, makes her easier to edgeguard. Most egregiously, however, the removal of custom moves means she is no longer able to utilize them to her advantage to improve her special moveset.
In the end, Palutena's buffs have exponentially improved her predictable, inconsistent offense, and her improved aerial mobility and the revamped gameplay mechanics allow her to take advantage of her streamlined moveset while compensating for most of her nerfs. She now possesses reliable options for most kinds of situations, allowing her to adapt to many kinds of playstyles depending on the opponent. However, her weaker grabs have neutered her defense, and her survivability is slightly worse, which forces her to adapt to the opponents' options through a more offensive playstyle. She also retains some of her weaknesses from SSB4, such as slow grounded attacks, trouble at KOing the opponent, predictable out of shield game, somewhat linear approach, and a mediocre disadvantage state, especially offstage. Game updates have also handed Palutena some impactful nerfs, including the aforementioned nerf to her grab; combined with various characters gaining buffs through said updates, the introduction of DLC characters, and general metagame optimizations, her overall viability is slightly worse than at launch. All in all, however, Palutena is drastically better in Ultimate than she was in SSB4, being one of the most buffed characters among the returning cast, and a fairly strong choice in competitive play.
==Update history==
Likely due to her dominant status during the early metagame, Palutena was nerfed overall via game updates.
Update made Warp safer to recover with, and reduced neutral aerial's hitlag, making it harder to SDI. In , she received an universal nerf to her projectiles' shield damage, on par with the rest of the cast, which made Autoreticle and Explosive Flame are less effective for shield pressure when used in conjunction.
Update granted Palutena a mix of buffs and nerfs, but nerfed her overall; her neutral aerial saw the most nerfs, with its looping hits altered to make them much less effective for drag-down setups and removing its infinite combo on itself on platforms against large characters, and its weaker knockback makes it a much less effective option at high percentages; the latter change did, however, make the move slightly more effective for combos at low to mid percentages. Down throw's increased knockback worsened its combo potential, notably neutering her KO confirm into back aerial. Despite this, her down smash and up tilt's last hit were made stronger.
Update nerfed her Final Smash by making it easier to avoid due to its slowdown period and range being shortened. , however, brought more significant nerfs to her standard moveset; her dash attack and forward aerial were made less safe by increasing their ending lag and landing lag, respectively. Most notably, however, her standing grab's infamous range was shortened considerably; this noticeably worsened her already mediocre out of shield game, and even makes some mispaced attacks harder to punish.
Overall, these changes have affected Palutena's viability, as she fares worse than she did at Ultimates launch. However, she still remains a very viable character.
 
 
 
 
 
==Moveset==
For a gallery of Palutena's hitboxes, see here.
===Stats===
===Announcer call===
Palutena English Announcer SSB4-SSBU.wav|English/Japanese/Chinese
===On-screen appearance===
*Walks out of a set of golden doors that are decorated with her halo's design and emit a bright, shining light.
PalutenaOnScreenAppearanceSSBU.gif|Palutena's on-screen appearance.
===Taunts===
*Up taunt: Raises her arms overhead and then brings them down while producing ethereal wings, emitting her halo, and saying "You shall be purified." (, You will be purified.)
*Side taunt: Laughs while using her staff to perform a twirling, inverted version of the Arabesque.
*Down taunt: Lets go of her staff and telekinetically holds it next to herself, then brushes her hair aside while emitting her halo and saying "Ready when you are." (, Feel free whenever.) before grabbing her staff.
SSBUPalutenaTaunt1.gif|Palutena's up taunt.
SSBUPalutenaTaunt2.gif|Palutena's side taunt.
SSBUPalutenaTaunt3.gif|Palutena's down taunt.
===Idle poses===
*Taps the ground with the tail of her staff and shield in front of herself, during which she briefly emits her halo.
*Looks away while crossing her staff and shield in front of herself, during which she briefly emits her halo.
SSBUPalutenaIdle1.gif|Palutena's first idle pose.
SSBUPalutenaIdle2.gif|Palutena's second idle pose.
===Crowd cheer===
 	Cheer (English) 	Cheer (Japanese/Chinese)	Cheer (Italian) 	Cheer (Dutch) 	Cheer (French)
Cheer 	 	 	 	 	
Description	Pa - lu - te - na!	Pa - lu - tena! 	Pa - lu - te - na!	Pa - lu - te - na! *claps 2 times*	Pa - lu - te - na!
 	Cheer (German) 	Cheer (Spanish) 	Cheer (Russian) 	Cheer (Korean)
Cheer 	 	 	 	
Description	Paaaaalu - te - na! *claps 6 times*	Paaaaalu - te - na! *claps 5 times*	Paaaaalu - tena!	Palu - tena!
===Victory poses===
*Left: Twirls with her staff held out, hovering off the ground. She then raises it in an arc and points it in front of her, saying "No one can hide from the light." ("", So, shall we recover?).
**If Pit is present in the match, there is a chance she will instead say "Oh, so sorry about that, Pit." ("", Were you hurt?). If this quote plays in the Japanese version, Palutena does not look at the camera.
*Up: Enters from the side of the screen hovering. She then briefly spins her staff in front of herself telekinetically, catches it, and stands with it pointed outwards. During the pose, she says "Too bad for you." ("", Was that a bit immature??).
**If Dark Pit was present in the match, there is a chance she will instead say "Poor little Pittoo." ("", Forever a nuisance...!).
*Right: Uses her staff to briefly perform the Backwards Showgirl (a pole dancing move) before assuming a seated stance while floating and laughs. In the Japanese version, she says ("", It's all right to fight seriously.).
PalutenaVictoryPose1SSBU.gif
PalutenaVictoryPose2SSBU.gif
PalutenaVictoryPose3SSBU.gif
==In competitive play==
===Most historically significant players===
See also: :Category:Palutena players (SSBU)
* - Played Palutena alongside a variety of other characters throughout his tournament career, most notably using her in the early metagame. He was considered the best Palutena player in Japan when she was one of his primary characters, as he used solo-Palutena to place 2nd at and primarily Palutena to place 3rd at and 7th at . He has since relegated Palutena to a secondary/counterpick character.
* - One of the best Palutena players in the world in the early years of the post-pandemic metagame and one of Mexico's best players during this time. He is most known for placing 5th at defeating and at defeating and , as well as defeating at . 
* - Although active in the early metagame, he is best known for his performances in the post-online metagame and is one of the best Palutena players in North America since 2023, most notably placing 7th at defeating and at defeating and . 
* - The second-best Palutena player in North America's early metagame, most notably placing 4th at defeating and 9th at defeating . He continued to place well in the post-online metagame, including 9th at and 9th at , but has attended less majors than before.
* - The best solo-Palutena player in Japan, initially known in-region for strong placements such as 9th at and 13th at in the early metagame. He gained further recognition in 2023, becoming one of the best Palutena players during this time thanks to placements such as 5th at defeating and at defeating , as well as defeating at .
* - Picked up Palutena in the online metagame and became one of the best Palutena players in the post-pandemic metagame, particularly in the metagame's early years after placing 5th at both and and 7th at both and . Although less consistent since then, he continues to see noteworthy performances from time-to-time, such as winning and placing 3rd at .
* - The best Palutena player of all-time and the only Palutena player to win a major, having won , , and . He is also the only Palutena player ever ranked in the top 10, ranking 4th on the Fall 2019 PGRU. He has since retired following controversies surrounding his conduct.
* - One of the best Palutena players in the world in the post-online metagame who was first known for being the first player to eliminate Glutonny's at a European tournament, doing so at Dōjo #7. He has since established himself as one of the best European players in the post-pandemic metagame, having placed 3rd at both and defeating in the latter event, 5th at , and 17th at defeating .
===Tier placement and history===
Since the beginning of Ultimate, Palutena has always had a very positive reception among the Smash community, as many top players noticed her significant buffs from SSB4 early on and was agreed on as a high tier for much of 2019. However, after won and , her already strong reception and results have further increased, with strengths such as her notorious neutral aerial, KO confirms from her down throw, and her relatively low learning curve becoming even more apparent, while her few weaknesses are relatively minor. This has to led to nearly all top players to believe she is a top tier, with many claiming she is among the best in the game, alongside other characters such as , , and .
Although she remained a strong character after her nerfs in updates 7.0.0 and 11.0.0, during the online era her representation briefly stagnated due to her strongest players either dropping the character, performing worse, becoming inactive, or in Nairo's case, retiring; this led some players to question whether Palutena was starting to fall off in a similar vein to . This opinion, however, did not last long, as following the return of offline competitive play, other Palutena players such as , , and picked up steam and saw several notable placements at a national level, completely nullifying the stagnation during the pandemic. As a result, opinions on Palutena had remained largely the same. However, players still believe her nerfs and the adapting meta have noticeably pushed Palutena back a few placements, with most players now just viewing her as a solid top tier and not among the best characters in the game, making her ranked 17th on the first tier list, near the bottom of S- tier. She would rise up a spot on the second and current tier list to 16th place, although due to the restructuring of the tier list, she is now ranked in A tier.
==: A Little Divine Intervention==
Referring to being a goddess herself, Palutena's opponents all come from series where religion and mythology play a key role. The title is the same as a phrase she says in her debut character trailer for Super Smash Bros. 4.
Round 	Opponent 	Stage 	Music 	Notes
1 	and 	Great Plateau Tower	 	
2 	 	Midgar 	 	The track used and Cloud as an opponent serve as an allusion to Magnus, who also wields a sword which has almost the same size as its user.
3 	and 	Dracula's Castle 	 	
4 	 	Gaur Plain 	 	
5 	 	Umbra Clock Tower 	 	
6 	(x3) and (x3)	Palutena's Temple 	 	Horde Battle (3 at a time).
Bonus Stage	Bonus Stage 	Bonus Stage 	Bonus Stage 	Bonus Stage
Final 	 	 	(Less than 7.0 intensity) (Intensity 7.0 or higher)	On intensity 7.0 and higher, fights alongside Master Hand.
Note: Most stages play a track from the universe, no matter what universe the stage originates from, with the only exception being Umbra Clock Tower.
Credits roll after completing Classic Mode. Completing it as Palutena has accompany the credits.
==Role in World of Light==
Palutena was among the fighters that were summoned to fight the army of Master Hands.
During the opening cutscene, Palutena was present on the cliffside when Galeem unleashed his beams of light. She attempted to block a beam with Reflect Barrier, which the beam completely pierced, disintegrating her. Her defeat causes and to lose their Power of Flight, making the duo fall victim to the beams as well. They were all placed under Galeem's imprisonment alongside the rest of the fighters, excluding . A puppet fighter cloned from her is later seen alongside ones cloned from , , and other fighters.
Palutena is the last fighter to be found to be imprisoned by Galeem. In , she is called by Galeem as part of reinforcements after is awakened and is beaten. She is an obligatory unlock for the true ending, as awaking her leads to a battle with Master Hand that frees him from Galeem's control (both of whom's defeats greatly shifts the balance of power in Dharkon's favor).
===Fighter Battle===
No.	Image	Name 	Type	Power 	Stage 	Music
54 	 	Palutena	 	12,500	Palutena's Temple (Ω form)	
==Spirit==
Palutena's fighter spirit can be obtained by completing as Palutena. It is also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 300 Gold, but only after Palutena has been unlocked. Unlocking Palutena in World of Light allows the player to preview the spirit below in the Spirit List under the name "???". As a fighter spirit, it cannot be used in Spirit Battles and is purely aesthetic. Her fighter spirit has an alternate version that replaces it with her artwork in Ultimate.
SSBU spirit Palutena.png|705. Palutena
==In Spirit Battles==
===As the main opponent===
Spirit	Spirit	Spirit 	Spirit 	Battle parameters	Battle parameters	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters	Battle parameters	Inspiration
No. 	Image 	Name 	Series 	Enemy Fighter(s) 	Type 	Power 	Stage 	Rules 	Conditions 	Music 	Character
118 	 	Super Mario Series 	•Tiny • • • 	 	1,500 	Green Greens (Battlefield form)	N/A 	•Defeat the main fighter to win•Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd 	 	 	
381 	 	Kirby Series 	•Tiny 	 	3,800 	Rainbow Cruise 	•Item: Balls 	•Take your strongest team into this no-frills battle 	 	 	
445 	 	Pokémon Series 	•Giant (140 HP) 	 	4,300 	Tortimer Island (hazards off) 	N/A 	•Timed stamina battle (1:00)•The enemy favors up smash attacks•Only certain Pokémon will emerge from Poké Balls (Alolan Exeggutor) 	 	 	
632 	 	Fire Emblem Series 	• • 	 	4,200 	Temple 	N/A 	•Defeat the main fighter to win•The enemy tends to avoid conflict•The enemy heals over time 	 	 	
640 	 	Fire Emblem Series 	• 	 	3,700 	Temple 	•Attack Power ↓ 	•You have reduced attack power 	 	 	
644 	 	Fire Emblem Series 	• • 	 	3,500 	Gaur Plain (Battlefield form) 	N/A 	•The enemy's explosion and fire attacks have increased power•The enemy favors side specials•Reinforcements will appear during the battle 	 	 	
650 	 	Fire Emblem Series 	• • 	 	3,400 	Castle Siege (Battlefield form)	N/A 	•Defeat the main fighter to win•The enemy can use their Final Smash twice in a row•The enemy's FS Meter charges quickly 	 	 	
661 	 	Fire Emblem Series 	• 	 	3,600 	Skyworld 	•Health Recovery•Attack Power ↑	•The enemy has increased attack power when the enemy's at high damage•The enemy is healed when the enemy's at high damage•The enemy has increased move speed 	 	 	
710 	 	Kid Icarus Series 	•Giant (140 HP) 	 	4,600 	Find Mii (Ω form) 	•Hazard: High Gravity 	•The enemy has super armor but moves slower•Stamina battle•Your jumping power decreases after a little while 	 	 	
722 	 	Kid Icarus Series 	• 	 	1,900 	Dracula's Castle 	N/A 	•Only certain Pokémon will emerge from Poké Balls (Ditto) 	 	 	
843 	 	Animal Crossing Series 	• 	 	3,700 	Smashville 	•Sudden Damage 	•All fighters take serious damage•The enemy favors dash attacks•The enemy has increased move speed 	 	 	
859 	 	Animal Crossing Series 	• 	 	1,900 	Fountain of Dreams 	•Item: 	•The enemy is easily distracted by items 	 	 	
957 	 	Xenoblade Chronicles Series	• • 	 	4,200 	Gaur Plain (Battlefield form) 	•Hazard: Poison Floor 	•The floor is poisonous•The enemy's magic attacks have increased power 	 	 	
1,172 	 	Golden Sun Series 	• 	 	2,200 	Delfino Plaza (Large Island) 	N/A 	•Timed battle (1:00)•The enemy shields often•The enemy can heal by shielding attacks 	 	 	
1,253 	 	Pandora's Tower 	• 	 	3,600 	Great Plateau Tower 	•Item Tidal Wave 	•The enemy becomes temporarily invincible after eating•The enemy starts with damage but has increased defense•Certain items will appear in large numbers after a little while	 	 	
1,269 	 	Culdcept Series 	• 	 	9,200 	Temple 	•Magic and PSI Unleashed 	•All fighters' magic and PSI attacks have increased power 	 	 	
1,366 	 	Psycho Soldier 	• • 	 	9,400 	Mushroomy Kingdom (hazards off)	N/A 	•The enemy favors special moves•Reinforcements will appear during the battle 	 	 	
1,389 	 	Fire Emblem Series 	• (80 HP)•Giant (120 HP)	 	10,300 	Bridge of Eldin (hazards off) 	N/A 	•Stamina battle•Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd•The enemy is giant 	 	 	
1,423 	 	OCTOPATH TRAVELER 	• • • 	 	9,200 	Summit (Battlefield form) 	•Health Recovery 	•The enemy's ranged weapons have increased power•The enemy can unleash powerful critical hits at random•The enemy is healed significantly when the enemy's at high damage 	 	Ophilia 	
===As a minion===
Spirit	Spirit	Spirit 	Spirit 	Battle parameters	Battle parameters	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters	Battle parameters	Inspiration
No. 	Image 	Name 	Series 	Enemy Fighter(s) 	Type 	Power 	Stage 	Rules 	Conditions 	Music 	Character
972 	 	Xenoblade Chronicles Series	• • 	 	2,400 	Gaur Plain (Battlefield form)	•Hazard: Lava Floor 	•Defeat the main fighter to win•The floor is lava 	 	Brighid 	
972 	 	Xenoblade Chronicles Series	• • 	 	2,400 	Gaur Plain (Battlefield form)	•Hazard: Lava Floor 	•Defeat the main fighter to win•The floor is lava 	 	Brighid 	
1,052 	 	Castlevania Series 	• • • 	 	13,000 	Dracula's Castle 	•Assist Trophy Enemies (Alucard)	•Hostile assist trophies will appear when the enemy's at high damage•Reinforcements will appear during the battle 	 	Sypha Belnades 	
1,168 	 	Golden Sun Series 	• (Moveset 1222, Isaac Wig, Isaac's Outfit, High Voice Type 1)• • •	 	8,900 	Wuhu Island (Swaying Bridge) 	•Assist Trophy Enemies (Isaac) 	•The enemy's magic attacks have increased power•Hostile assist trophies will appear•Reinforcements will appear during the battle	 	 	
This alternative occurs when the corresponding DLC has been purchased and downloaded.
==Alternate costumes==
							
							
==Gallery==
SSBU Palutena Number.png|Palutena's fighter card.
Palutena unlock notice SSBU.jpg|Palutena's unlock notice.
Palutena SSBU No Halo.png|Palutena's first official artwork for Ultimate, shown in E3 2018.
SSBUWebsitePalutena1.jpg|Idling on Coliseum.
SSBUWebsitePalutena2.jpg|Palutena summoning Explosive Flame on Skyloft.
SSBUWebsitePalutena3.jpg|Palutena reflecting 's Charge Shot on Temple.
SSBUWebsitePalutena4.jpg|Palutena on Lylat Cruise.
SSBUWebsitePalutena5.jpg|Palutena using her down tilt near an aerial on Gaur Plain.
SSBUWebsitePalutena6.jpg|Palutena in her cyan alternate costume on Prism Tower.
SSBUWebsiteBlackHole1.jpg|Palutena catching in the Black Hole item on Gaur Plain.
SSBUWebsiteLunala3.jpg|Getting launched by Lunala's Moongeist Beam along with and on Summit.
SSBUKidIcarusJPTwitter1.jpg|With and on Skyworld.
SSBUWebsiteMoon1.png|Palutena, , , and Shovel Knight fighting on Find Mii Ω with the Moon about to crash into the stage.
===Fighter Showcase Video===
==Trivia==
*Palutena is the only character to have two previously separate special moves (Counter and Reflect Barrier) consolidated into a single special move slot.
*Palutena's artwork was one of three to have been updated on the official site, alongside and . Compared to her original artwork, her halo was added, her chiton now covers up more of her thigh, her hair became a brighter green, her lips were shrunk, and her eyes were enlarged. Overall, these changes make it more consistent with the official artwork from both Kid Icarus: Uprising and Super Smash Bros. 4 (especially the latter), as well as her in-game model.
*Due to age rating issues, the slit in her chiton was changed to cover up more of her thigh beginning in update 1.0.6. for the Japanese version of SSB4. This change was retained in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, including all international versions.
**While her official artwork depicts the top of the chiton's slit as fused together, it appears to be stitched together on her in-game model.
**As Palutena's Fighter Spirit artwork uses an unaltered illustration from Kid Icarus: Uprising, it depicts her chiton still revealing most of her thigh. This is probably an oversight, as the spirits for from and from Xenoblade Chronicles 2 had modified artwork to be less provocative.
***This oversight appears to be shared with the Fighter Spirits for , female , and , who likewise use unaltered artwork from their games of origin, but have had censorship applied to them in their playable forms.
*Palutena is one of the last characters to unlock. She is the last unlockable character in 's Classic Mode column, she is the final opponent in the timed encounters, and in World of Light, she is in the Final Battle map.
*An interview with Masahiro Sakurai revealed that Palutena and Bayonetta were under consideration to survive Galeem's attack in the World of Light opening, but were ultimately turned down in favor of . Sakurai stated that this was due to Palutena and Bayonetta's playstyles being very complex for beginners, as well as how other characters from their respective universes were also turned into spirits, stating that Palutena couldn't do anything to escape as all other Kid Icarus deities like Hades were also turned into spirits.
**Both Palutena and Bayonetta are on the Final Battle map, appearing as the final pair of fighters to be encountered. This implies that Galeem (and eventually Dharkon) knew how threatening Palutena and Bayonetta were (Palutena being a goddess and Bayonetta's slaughter of two gods) to his plans, and thus kept them as a last resort.
**Despite using Hades as an example, his spirit does not appear in World of Light at all.
*Prior to update 8.0.0, Palutena's unique voice clip when winning against Pit ("Oh, so sorry about that, Pit.") was missing in the Sound Test. She shares this distinction with , , , and .
*Palutena is the only Kid Icarus character to not fight alongside a CPU ally in the final round of her route.
*Oddly, Palutena does not vanish when performing a directional air dodge despite the sound effects playing. She shares this oddity with and .
*Oddly, Palutena's internal files of voice clips for her smash attacks use the same 3-number codes (e.g. "003" in the case of "Goddess wings!" voice clip) used for special moves, Final Smashes, and on-screen appearances of characters whose voice clips are ported from Super Smash Bros. Brawl (including partial ones like ), as well as few other characters such as Kirby, , , , , and Rosalina & Luma, instead of using the "attack" descriptor that smash attacks usually share with neutral attack, tilt attacks, dash attack, aerial attacks, and floor attacks. This was also present in SSB4. shares a similar, albeit not entirely the same oddity with her on-screen appearance and Daisy Bomber.
**In King Dedede's case, this does not apply to voice clips for Dede-Rush; and in Robin's case, this only applies to the voice clip used when his tomes are broken.
 
Category:Spirits
es:Palutena (SSBU)