Medusa

Side Special
 Up Special
 Down Special
 Final Smash
 Extra Skill
 Franchise
 Game of Origin
 Release Date of Origin
 Other Appearances
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## **Character Info**

Long ago, Medusa ruled over Angel Land alongside Palutena. However while Palutena loved humans, Medusa despised them and took great joy in killing them. As punishment, Palutena transformed Medusa into a hideous cyclopic monster and banished her to the Underworld. Medusa vowed vengeance against Palutena and swore that one day she would return to Angel Land and overthrow Palutena. Medusa would go on to lead the Underworld Army in a war against Angel Land and succeed in imprisoning Palutena and turning all of the Centurions to stone. Eventually she was defeated by Pit who managed to claw his way out of the Underworld to defeat her and free Palutena. 25 years later Medusa was revived under mysterious circumstances and quickly resumed control over the Underworld Army and once more sought to get revenge against both Palutena and Pit.

## **General Information**

### **Entrance**

A portal of darkness is seen on the stage which Medusa will quickly claw her way up out of much like her journey from the Underworld.

### **Kirby Hat**

Kirby will have Medusa’s snake-filled hair atop his head.

### **Taunts**

**Up Taunt:** Medusa will twirl her staff around in one hand before striking the ground with it with a convincing stamp saying, “Hmph.”

**Down Taunt:** The snakes in Medusa’s hair will get aggressive all of a sudden as they writhe, wriggle, and hiss in what’s more of an intimidation tactic than a taunt.

**Side Taunt:** Medusa will hold out a hand as a small stone statue of either Pit, Dark Pit, Palutena, Viridi, or Hades materializes in her hand. With a snarl, Medusa crushes the statue in her grasp as bits of stone fall from her hands.

### **Victory Poses**

1. Medusa is seen towards the back of the results screen as her head suddenly flies off her body and comes barreling forward in a half-circular arc and delivers a heinous, guttural cackle.
2. With a flash of dark energy, Medusa will warp to the results screen and say, “Soon, Angel Land will be mine.” If Pit was in the match, Medusa may instead say, “Isn’t that just… precious. Guess it’s all that hot air that keeps you flying.” If Palutena was in the match, Medusa may instead say, “This is revenge for all that you’ve done to me, Palutena!” If Dark Pit was in the match, Medusa may instead say, “Hmph… a pale imitation of the worst angel in existence.” If Viridi was in the match, Medusa may instead say, "I think it's you who is in need of a reset, Viridi!" If Hades was in the match, Medusa may instead say, "Hades keeps reviving me, but I won't play the puppet anymore!"
3. The results screen will focus on a city burning away as it's attacked by the forces of the Underworld Army. Above in the clouds, Medusa can be seen towering over the city swinging her staff as if commanding the army to destroy the town.

## **Moveset**

### **Standard Special**

**Weak-Point Reticle:** A thin purple laser will fire out from Medusa’s staff and travel a short distance. If this laser makes contact with an opponent they’ll take a minimum amount of damage and no knockback, however this will create a small purple reticle to place itself over their body. While this reticle is in place, that player will take 1.3x damage from all attacks that hit them for 8 seconds. Unlike the Inkling and their special ink, Medusa can only have a Weak-Point Reticle attached to one opponent at a time. Using this move a second time, whether it hits an opponent or not, will cancel out any currently existing reticle.

### **Side Special**

**Gorgon's Claw:** Medusa takes a moment, then swipes forward with fury, rending the space directly in front of her with red scratch marks. The marks quickly pave the way for a spatial rend, making a miniature black hole. It pulls opponents and items alike into its trajectory, so long as they are within a few solid steps' distance from it. Captured opponents will remain in this space unless they either break free or until the spacial tear disappears. The black hole appears regardless of whether Medusa swipes straight into the air or manages to claw at an opponent. If she claws at the opponent, she can either send them flying or falling to the floor, immobilized and ripe for the black hole's picking. The move is also fairly capable at breaking shields. With its relatively quick-moving startup and prevalent super armor, it's a move that can really help make or break a match. The black hole maintains a separate aesthetic than the Blackhole item, appearing as glowing red and purple, showing its magical properties courtesy of Medusa. Keen eyes can zoom in towards the rend and note that it's a portal straight into the depths of the Underworld!

### **Up Special**

**Hellish Missile:** This move is similar to one of Palutena’s custom special moves from Smash 4, Angelic Missile. For this move Medusa will physically launch herself forwards head first as she spins around her. The direction she launches herself in can be influenced by the control stick shortly after initiating the attack however once Medusa has blasted off her angle can’t be adjusted further. Opponents who make contact with Medusa when she’s missiling herself around are damaged, but the exact amount and the direction their knockback sends them is dependent on where they make contact with Medusa. Direct hits with Medusa’s head are the most damaging, while being hit by her feet is considerably weaker. Medusa can only launch herself so far and once she reaches the maximum distance she can go, about 2.5x her height, she’ll drift and descend downwards.

### **Down Special**

**Cursed Palm:** Medusa holds her hand forward, and an Eldritch-toothed mouth opens wide from her palm, releasing a toxic gas. The gas will linger in the air for a little while, and any opponent that enters it is at risk of being poisoned. Those caught up in its immediate spray will also be dished out additional damage per every second that they remain within the vile spray's trajectory, and might just slip! It operates similarly to Ice Climber's Blizzard, where the initial gas unleashed will come at a steadier, harsher stream and dish out more damage than when the stream's let loose for a while. If the move is kept active for too long, the gas will become naught but a sad excuse for a stream, eventually culminating in the hand burping and Medusa shaking it off before returning to her standard battle stance.

### **Final Smash**

**Petrifying Meteor Shower:** With a dark laugh, Medusa will raise her staff high into the air as a series of meteors shaped like the Medusa Head item rain down on the stage. These meteors vary in size and rain down quickly from the top of the screen at a diagonal angle. The meteors carry with them a chance to petrify opponents that they strike with those odds going up with the amount of damage that opponent has sustained. If affected by this petrification they’ll find themselves unable to move for 1-2 seconds as their bodies are covered in a layer of stone. Being affected by this petrification can be deadly as it makes them unable to escape the wrath of other meteors that are raining down making dodging them a high priority. The damage and knockback of each meteor varies in accordance with the size of the meteor.

### **Extra Skill**

**Head Games:** Medusa's body remains on stage while her head detaches. This move works very similarly to Pit's Brawl Up Special, wherein Medusa's head is given free roaming capabilities for a brief period of time. You can build up momentum and smash into opponents, too. Encapsulated in pulsing dark magic, players are cued into when the move is about to finish up when the glow begins to flicker. Once it is deactivated, Medusa's body returns in another sudden swirl of magic, and she free falls towards the ground. She isn't totally helpless while in her floating head form, either, as her snakes will become more active, snapping at anybody within reasonable distance from her head. The snakes' bites are capable of potentially stunning or poisoning an opponent (or both!). Opponents can attack Medusa's body; if it garners enough damage, it will receive knockback and cancel the move. When used in mid-air, Medusa's body disappears.

## **Alternate Costumes**

1. **Default**
2. **NES Spirte** - Medusa’s outfit will take on a faint orange color scheme with her skin and hair becoming shades of green based off of her sprite for the original Kid Icarus.
3. **Hades** - Medusa’s outfit will take on a vibrant purple color scheme based off of Hades.
4. **Amazon Pandora** - Medusa’s outfit will take on a cyan color scheme based off of Amazon Pandora.
5. **Thanatos** - Medusa’s outfit will take on a green color scheme based off of Thanatos.
6. **Palutena** - Medusa’s outfit will take on a white color scheme based off of Palutena.
7. **Viridi** - Medusa’s outfit will take on a red color scheme based off of Viridi.
8. **Pyrrhon** - Medusa’s outfit will take on a flaming orange color scheme based off of Pyrrhon.
9. **Dyntos** - Medusa’s outfit will take on a gray color scheme based off of Dyntos.
10. **NES Art** - Medusa’s outfit will take on a pink color scheme with her skin becoming turquoise with blonde hair based off of her art for the original Kid Icarus.Alt 2Alt 3Alt 5Alt 6Alt 7Alt 8Alt 9Alt 10

## **Associated Content**

Click Here to watch the episode of the Super Cast Bros podcast where Zantok and Jonno created this moveset!