Sephiroth (SSBU): Difference between revisions

Sephiroth is ranked 37th out of 82 on the current [[tier list]], placing him in the B+ tier and making him the lowest-ranking character from Fighters Pass Vol. 2. Sephiroth's greatest strengths are his great KO power and long range; the latter of which is courtesy of his [[Masamune]], which grants him the ability to apply constant pressure to his opponents without having to risk fighting in close-quarters combat. Sephiroth's [[Winged Form]] also grants him increased attack power, higher mobility, [[super armor]] on his [[smash attack]]s, and a second [[double jump]] throughout the form's duration.

However, Sephiroth has some glaring weaknesses. His very light [[weight]] and tall hurtbox collectively make him easy to hit and KO in a similar vein to {{SSBU|Mewtwo}}. Sephiroth's long range also comes at the cost of sluggish frame data and the Masamune's hitboxes being very narrow to compensate for their long range, making his thrust attacks difficult to hit short or crouching characters with. He also has inconsistent KO power, as he needs to connect precise sweespots in his attacks: if he attacks with a slash, he has to connect with the sweetspot in the middle of the Masamune and avoid the sourspots at the tip, and when attacking with thrusts, he needs to hit at the tip and avoid the sourspots at close range, which combined with his slow frame data, gives him a poor close-range game and makes it hard for him to score a KO, as he must space himself accordingly when using his attacks to avoid getting punished and finish off his opponent. Lastly, the Winged Form is a high-risk, high-reward [[fighter ability]]: due to being a comeback-oriented mechanic, it requires Sephiroth to be at a noticeable disadvantage in order to be accessed, and upon dissipating, it will be able to be reactivated only after Sephiroth is KO'd.

|ssdesc=Snaps his fingers to emit a thin, short-ranged surge of dark energy at the opponent. If it connects, spheres of dark energy will orbit the opponent, then home in on them and explode after the spheres make at least two revolutions around the character. The initial surge can be charged, increasing its damage and range while creating more spheres on hit. An uncharged surge creates only one sphere, whereas a fully charged surge will create three spheres; up to five spheres can orbit an opponent at once. Sephiroth can also quickly turn 180° before firing Shadow Flare by quickly flicking the control stick in the opposite direction, similarly to [[B-reversing]]. The spheres can also hit bystanders while they orbit around the opponent, with each sphere being able to collide twice before disappearing. The spheres can be reflected and absorbed. If [[Pocket]]ed, the sphere is thrown as a standard projectile. In comparison to Sephiroth's other moves, Shadow Flare is very spammable, thanks to its fairly low interruptibility, and it pierces through enemy projectiles without being destroyed, making it capable of negating any projectile within its priority range despite the initial hit's low damage. As a result, it can be used frequently without fear of retaliation, and allows him to set up follow-ups or condition the opponent into picking an option. However, the move has very low safety in close quarters even on hit due to it causing minimal hitstun and shield damage.

|fsdesc=Performs a diagonally upward slash while saying {{ja|星に帰れ|Hoshi ni kaere.}} ("Return to the Planet.") Up to 3 opponents hit by the slash will be put in a cutscene where Sephiroth transforms into Safer∙Sephiroth (his final boss form) to summon Meteor and trigger a supernova, wiping out the world and causing random status effects to foes who are not KO'd. These status effects include an automatic [[shield break]], being [[timer|slowed down]], having reversed controls (indicated by a [[Ramblin' Evil Mushroom|mushroom]] on the victim's head), having a [[flower]] planted on the victim's head, being put to [[sleep]], or simply using the darkness effect alongside more knockback than usual (albeit still below-average for a Final Smash). Fighters caught in the Final Smash face toward him with their backs to the camera, much like Cloud and his party do in his final boss battle in ''Final Fantasy VII''. The attack is also based on the attack of the same name in ''Final Fantasy VII''. Once the move successfully concludes, Sephiroth assumes his fighting stance from ''Final Fantasy VII'' and then performs an animation based on his victory pose as a guest party member during the Nibelheim flashback.

However, these results were either set back by the players' inconsistency with the character or were complemented with other characters. For example, KEN mostly played {{SSBU|Sonic}} at Battle of BC 4 prior to top 8, while his Sephiroth became less consistent as time went on, including going 1-2 at the invitational {{Trn|L'Odyssée - Chant I}}; he has since regulated Sephiroth to an occasional counterpick. Sephiroth's smaller playerbase compared to other top-tier characters, as well as his general inconsistency at higher level play, has led many to reconsider his placement. Most players generally started to agree he was the weakest of the Fighters Pass Vol. 2 characters, some even believing Sephiroth might belong in mid-tier rather than being in high-tier. He would fall 10 spots to 37th on the second and current tier list, notably seeing one of the largest drops of any character.

*Sephiroth, {{SSBU|Meta Knight}}, {{SSBU|Inkling}}, Hero, Banjo & Kazooie, Pyra, Mythra, and Sora are the only fighters who use their walking animation when navigating through the map in [[World of Light]].