Pit (SSB4)

Pit in Super Smash Bros. 4
Universe	Kid Icarus
Other playable appearance	in Brawl
Availability	Starter
Final Smash	Three Sacred Treasures
Tier	C (30/31)

Pit (ピット, Pit) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4. His return to the series was confirmed on June 11th, 2013 during the E3 2013 Nintendo Direct. Instead of retaining Lani Minella as his voice actor from the English version of Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Pit is now voiced by Antony Del Rio in the English version of SSB4, who reprises his role from the English version of Kid Icarus: Uprising. Minami Takayama, who voiced Pit in the Japanese versions of Brawl and Uprising, also reprises her role.

Pit is currently ranked 30th out of 58 on the tier list, placing him in the C tier and tying him with his clone, Dark Pit. This is a drop from his placement in Brawl, where he was ranked 17th out of 38. The number of differences between the Pits, is extremely small, yet somewhat noticeable: Pit's forward tilt and Palutena Bow are stronger and much more maneuverable than Dark Pit's forward tilt and Silver Bow, respectively. Conversely, Silver Bow is stronger than Palutena Bow and Electroshock Arm is a more reliable KOing option compared to Pit's Upperdash Arm.

Outside of these differences, both Pits share the same primary strengths and weaknesses. They have useful combo games, very good approaches, long-distanced recoveries, and strong edgeguarding potentials. However, their unimpressive KO potentials force them to be largely reliant on their forward smashes, forward throws, Upperdash/Electroshock Arms, and aggressive edgeguarding in order to score KOs.

While Pit has a small playerbase, he has nonetheless managed to achieve a decent level of success, thanks to Earth winning a number of regional tournaments, while he, Kuro and KiraFlax have collectively achieved a number of above average placings at the regional and national levels in both singles and doubles play.

Attributes

Pit is a middleweight with above average walking and dashing speeds, slightly below average traction, average air acceleration and falling speed, and below average air speed and gravity. Despite having low jumps, he has three double jumps, which counteract that flaw and grant him better horizontal recovery. These balanced attributes do not give Pit an advantage when it comes to overall mobility, but they nevertheless make him adept at most situations where a key attribute is needed to gain the advantage.

Unsurprisingly for a beginner-friendly character, Pit's greatest strength is his quick frame data. None of his grounded moves or grabs come out after frame 10, all of his aerials can autocancel with a short hop, and his rolls and sidestep have minimal ending lag. When these are coupled with his Palutena Bow's disjointed range, Pit ultimately boasts a very good approach despite his balanced attributes. This is complimented by his neutral special, Palutena Bow, which grants Pit very good stage control due to its arrow's ability to be charged and easily curved. All of these traits give him one of the best neutral games among the cast when played properly. His recovery is also one of the longest distanced in the game, thanks to his midair jumps and Power of Flight. By extension, these two traits allow him to edgeguard noncommittally and make him rather difficult to successfully gimp.

Much like his attributes, Pit's moveset is balanced, so much so that it seemingly has no glaring strengths of weaknesses. When this is coupled with his decent overall damage output and great neutral game, Pit's edgeguarding potential, punishment game and conversions are all balanced compared to the rest of the cast. His ground game is a prime example of balance: his neutral attack, tilt attacks, dash attack, and smash attacks all have decent damage outputs, and thus allow Pit to deal respectable damage to his opponents when he is grounded. Neutral attack, forward tilt, down tilt, dash attack and down smash also function as anti-pressure options due to their quick start-up, although neutral attack, down tilt and dash attack also have particular strengths. Neutral attack can be jab canceled into a grab, down tilt can combo into dash attack up to medium percentages when used against middleweights and heavyweights, and dash attack can combo into a dashing up smash, forward aerial and up aerial up to medium percentages. Up tilt and especially up smash are useful anti-air moves, the latter of which also boasts enough power to score KOs. Lastly, forward smash is Pit's primary KOing option, due to being both his longest ranged ground attack and strongest overall attack.

Unlike in Brawl, Pit now possesses a respectable grab game. His grabs' ranges have increased, while his dash grab has become safer due to its start-up and ending lag being decreased. However, his forward and down throws underwent the most noticeable improvements. Forward throw can now KO at high percentages while near the edge due to its increased knockback, while the changes to hitstun canceling have made down throw Pit's most reliable combo starter. With down throw's newfound ability to combo into a dashing up smash and any of his aerials, the latter of which being effective even up to high percentages depending on the opponent, Pit has become even more capable at damage racking. Although his up and back throws have significantly less utility in comparison, they nonetheless deal respectable damage and launch opponents into unfavorable positions. These traits make them useful at keeping Pit's forward throw fresh for a later KO attempt, as well as alleviating the staleness of his other moves.

Pit's air game is also useful due to his aerial attacks' ability to autocancel, while each one also has particular strengths. Neutral aerial has the lowest amount of start-up lag out of his entire moveset, while its great autocancel window makes it a capable combo starter when short hopped. His forward and up aerials are good for damage racking due to their disjointed hitboxes, as well as edgeguarding and juggling, respectively. His back aerial is his strongest aerial attack when sweetspotted, making it ideal for spacing as part of a reverse aerial rush or for edgeguarding. Lastly, his down aerial is also well suited for edgeguarding due to it being a meteor smash at its start, though it also has approach potential due to its fairly large range.

In the transition to SSB4, Pit's special moveset underwent numerous changes to reference Kid Icarus: Uprising: his side and down specials use weapons that debuted in Uprising, his up special references Palutena's ability to grant him the Power of Flight, and his Final Smash uses the Three Sacred Treasures. These new special moves are rather versatile: Upperdash Arm consists of a dashing uppercut to any opponents in his path, similarly to Raptor Boost. It grants super armor, can deflect projectiles, function as a horizontal recovery option, and is fairly powerful due to its high base knockback. While Upperdash Arm possesses KO potential unlike Angel Ring, it lacks damage racking potential like Angel Ring does. Additionally, it is very punishable due to having an extreme amount of lag overall, especially when it misses. Lastly, its deflection property is largely inconsequential, since it deflects projectiles at a diagonal angle, rather than directly back at the opponent.

Power of Flight covers an impressive amount of distance and be angled to be either directly vertical or nearly horizontal. While it does not boast the invincibility at its start, versatility and unpredictability of Wings of Icarus, it nonetheless grants 10 frames of intangibility and offers better protection from being gimped off-stage, as Pit can immediately reuse it upon being damaged, unlike Wings of Icarus. Guardian Orbitars protect Pit on his left and right sides with energy shields that reflect projectiles and push opponents back. While this seems like a direct upgrade of the Mirror Shield, the Orbitars are not indestructible like the Shield; should they end up being destroyed, they cannot be used again for 10 seconds. His neutral special, Palutena Bow, is his only special move that has been retained since Brawl, and while it is still difficult to anticipate, it has been weakened by the universal nerf to projectile camping. Additionally, its overall damage output and range have decreased, to the point that its advanced techniques and mindgame potential have been noticeably worsened due to its arrow now vanishing after a short time or when it crosses a blast line.

Despite his strengths, Pit does have some weaknesses. Like Mario, most characters are able to outperform him in various areas: Mario himself and Luigi have more versatile combo games, Mewtwo has better mobility, Link and Toon Link have better camping and zoning abilities, Shulk has greater range, and Charizard has much higher power overall. Power, in particular, is Pit's most noticeable weakness, as he suffers from a lack of guaranteed KO set-ups. Like in Brawl, Pit's KO potential is overall unimpressive, and continued use of his strongest attacks can make KOing a difficult task for him if the player uses them due to their respectable damage outputs, especially due to stale-move negation, which forces the player to use other attacks to alleviate the staleness of said stronger moves. This means he must spend a comparatively longer time racking up damage before attempting to score a KO. While rage helps Pit somewhat in this regard, it might sometimes leave him at a critical condition before its effects start to make a difference, due to his status as a middleweight. As a result, Pit's KOing ability is among the most inconsistent in the game, much like Cloud's, and he cannot afford to play predictably when attempting to KO an opponent.

While it is still long-distanced, Pit's recovery nevertheless has worsened since Brawl. Once renowned for its versatility, Pit's recovery is now linear and predictable due to his double jumps being lower, the removal of gliding, and Power of Flight being largely inferior to Wings of Icarus due to it functioning much like a traditional recovery move. Additionally, while Upperdash Arm can aid Pit's horizontal recovery, it has an extreme amount of ending lag when performed in the air, making it extremely risky when improperly used as a recovery option. Lastly, Pit's grab game is slightly offset by his slightly below average traction, which can make it slightly difficult to use from out of shield against characters with powerful attacks.

Pit possesses some decent custom moves. Piercing Bow, true to its name, pierces opponents and deals more damage at the cost of sacrificing control, making it very similar to his clone's Silver Bow. Conversely, Guiding Bow grants even more control over the arrow's curvature, though at the cost of a lower damage output. Interception Arm functions similarly to a counterattack and boasts better KO potential thanks to its higher damage output and knockback, yet it lacks any recovery potential due to it moving Pit very slightly backward upon being used. Breezy Flight makes Pit more difficult to gimp at its start, but at the cost of weakening his long-distanced recovery. Lastly, Amplifying Orbitars are significantly stronger reflectors, making them a better choice against projectile-reliant characters like Villager and R.O.B., although they lose their push effect and have less durability.

All in all, Pit's strengths are mostly on par with his weaknesses. He has a capable approach and damage racking game, and is relatively difficult to KO due to his multiple jumps and Power of Flight's distance. However, his noticeably unimpressive KO potential makes him largely reliant on his forward smash, Upperdash Arm and impressive edgeguarding potential in order to score KOs. As Pit is commonly perceived by players to be the most balanced character in the game due to his general moveset and attributes, his playstyle is that of an "all-rounder", much like Mario. As such, Pit has a rather low learning curve and is quite rewarding when played wisely, which makes him an optimal choice for beginners to learn and adapt to SSB4's pace.

However, players may overlook Pit in favor of Mario, due to the latter having better frame data and consistent KO potential. This has also been reflected in his tournament representation, which is minimal outside of Japan, much like in Brawl. Regardless, Pit has managed to achieve a decent level of success in the competitive scene, thanks to Earth winning a number of regional tournaments, while he, Kuro and KiraFlax have collectively achieved a number of above average tournament results at the regional and national levels in both singles and doubles play.

Changes from Brawl

Pit received some of the most recognizable changes of any returning veteran, much like Bowser, Dr. Mario, Roy, King Dedede and Charizard. Most of his moves have been heavily altered, with his special moveset being the most noticeably changed so as to reference Kid Icarus: Uprising. As a result, this has resulted in Pit receiving a mix of buffs and nerfs in the transition from Brawl, but he was overall nerfed as a character.

Since his special moveset has been changed to reflect Kid Icarus: Uprising, it has received a mix of both buffs and nerfs: his new side special, Upperdash Arm provides the most utility out of the three, as it has super armor, and can be occasionally used for horizontal recovery, and deflect projectiles. Guardian Orbitars, his new down special, provide protection from both sides instead of only the front, but cannot push reverse opponents at their start and have limited durability. Lastly, his new up special, Power of Flight, is more consistent, as he can use it again even if he gets hit out of it, though it has vastly less versatility due to following a straight path.

Pit's previously poor grab game has been improved: the changes to hitstun canceling make his down throw his best combo starter and improve his damage racking potential, while his forward throw is now a reliable KOing option at high percentages. The removal of meteor canceling benefits Pit overall, as he is no longer as vulnerable to meteor smashes relative to the cast. Coincidentally, his down aerial has also become capable of meteor smashing, which slightly improves his edgeguarding potential. Pit's ground mobility has become faster, which allows him to extend his combos and apply more grounded pressure to his opponents. The untechable reeling animation can possibly allow Pit to combo his weak moves into his KOing options.

However Pit has received some significant nerfs: many of his attacks deal less damage, have shorter hitbox durations, and increased start-up and ending lag. This is most notably evident with Palutena Bow and his back aerial, which were one of the most reliable projectiles in Brawl and one of Pit's most reliable KOing options, respectively. In particular, Pit's overall recovery was his most severely nerfed attribute, as it is now hindered by lower and less floaty double jumps, the loss of gliding, and Power of Flight's aforementioned versatility issue. In addition to the removal of gliding, other general game mechanic changes of SSB4 have indirectly nerfed Pit. Phantom footstooling nerfs Pit's combo game, as it allows his opponents to alleviate pressure that he can apply when edgeguarding or in neutral. Edge trumping nerfs Pit's edgeguarding potential, as he can no longer rely on edge hogging for securing KOs. This is further compounded by the majority of the cast having improved recoveries. Lastly, the rage is a mixed bag for Pit: while it alleviates his unimpressive KO potential, it often leaves him at a critical condition before the effects start to make a difference, due to him being a floaty middleweight.

Overall, Pit's strengths from Brawl did not carry over well to SSB4, and his new strengths do not fully compensate for the nerfs to his recovery and overall damage output. As a result of these changes, Pit's position relative to the cast is debatable, considering the fact that most of his fellow veterans, particularly those that were once low-tier, have also been buffed to varying degrees.

Aesthetics

• Pit retains his modern design from Kid Icarus: Uprising, which has been marginally updated since Brawl. His leg bands are now very slightly thicker and their fur trim is more accentuated, the gold ring on his right thigh is now ornate, and his eye color is now very slightly lighter. Unlike in Uprising, Pit now wears bluish black archery bracers on both hands, instead of only wearing one on his left hand.
• Dash's animation has changed. It is now based on Pit's running animation in Uprising. Additionally, roll, sidestep and air dodge now emit the same sound effect from Uprising, while Pit has a new victory pose based on the pose he strikes upon defeating Hades at the end of Uprising. Lastly, Pit now has a Smash Taunt that can be used on Palutena's Temple, which mimics his conversations with Palutena in Uprising and uses an animation similar to his kneeling victory pose from Brawl.
• Palutena Bow is slightly thicker, and its trail is now gold with blue accents instead of gold. Its bow and blade swings' sound clips are also lower pitched.
• Pit now says "Come on!" during his up taunt, "That all you got?" during his side taunt, and occasionally "I'm finished!" upon being KO'd. These are alternate translations of his respective quotes in Japanese, which are unchanged.
• Palutena Bow no longer emits a sound effect upon being split apart during Pit's idle pose. Its swings' sound clips are also lower pitched.

Attributes

• Pit is heavier (94 → 96). This slightly improves his endurance, but makes slightly him more susceptible to combos.
• Pit walks faster (1.18 → 1.199).
• Pit dashes faster (1.583 → 1.66215).
• Pit's air speed is slower (0.893 → 0.89).
• Pit falls faster (1.42 → 1.48). This slightly improves his vertical endurance, but makes him slightly more susceptible to combos.
• Double jumps are lower and less floaty.
• The removal of gliding hinders Pit's recovery.

Ground attacks

• Neutral infinite now has a finisher, a lunging outward slash.
• Pit has a new forward tilt, a vertical scissoring slash. Compared to the previous forward tilt, it deals less damage (12% → 7% (blade)/10% (tip)).
• Forward tilt has less start-up lag (frame 14 → 10), more knockback (12 (base)/95 (scaling) → 40/100), a longer duration (frames 14-16 → 10-14) and a more vertically expansive hitbox compared to the previous forward tilt. These traits make its tip better for KOing despite dealing less damage.
• Pit has a new up tilt, a backflip kick followed by a stretch kick. Compared to the previous up tilt, it deals less damage (3% (hit 1)/6% (hit 2)/7% (hit 3) → 2%/3%/5%), has more start-up (frame 2 → 6) and ending lag (frame 19 → 27), and its last hit has a shorter duration (frames 15-18 → 15-16).
• Up tilt's last hit is stronger than the previous up tilt's last hit.
• Down tilt deals 5% less damage (11% → 6%), has a shorter duration (frames 6-8 → 6-7) and can no longer meteor smash.
• Down tilt has increased knockback (50 (base)/32 (scaling) → 70/50), improving its combo potential at low to medium percentages.
• Down tilt's animation has slightly changed. Pit now lunges further inward while performing the kneeling swipe. This new animation increases its ending lag (frame 29 → 32).
• Pit has a new dash attack, a spinning inward slash. Compared to the previous dash attack, it deals consistent damage (11% (body)/12% (arm)/9% (blade) → 11%).
• Dash attack has different knockback (14 (base)/64 (scaling) → 80/50) and less ending lag (frame 45 → 39) compared to the previous dash attack, making it better at starting combos at low to medium percentages.
• Forward smash deals less damage (7% (hit 1)/12% (hit 2) → 5%/10%), has increased start-up lag (frame 6 → 10) and a shorter duration (frames 6-8 (hit 1)/18-20 (hit 2) → 10/21).
• Forward smash is stronger, improving its KO potential.
• Forward smash's animation has changed. Its second hit now consists of Pit quickly reassembling the Palutena Bow and performing an outward slash. This new animation increases its range, but increases its ending lag (frame 25 → 37).
• Up smash's first hit has a longer duration (frame 6 → 6-7) due to receiving a late hitbox, it transitions into its second hit faster (frames 6/11 → 6-7/10), and its last hit is stronger.
• Up smash's animation has slightly changed. Pit now slightly leans backward while slashing upward. This new animation increases its vertical range, but increases its ending lag (frame 46 → 52) and slightly decreases its horizontal range.
• Down smash deals consistent damage (13% (body)/12% (hilt)/10% (blade) → 12%/12%/10% (hit 1), 10% (body)/9% (hilt)/8% (blade) → 12%/12%/10% (hit 2)). Its knockback and angles have also been reversed, making the front hit stronger than the back hit and the back hit into a semi-spike.
• Down smash's animation has slightly changed. Pit now leans further inward while performing each slash. This new animation increases its range, but increases its ending lag (frame 40 → 41).

Aerial attacks

• Neutral, up and down aerials have decreased landing lag (30 frames → 24).
• Neutral aerial's loop hits deal 0.3% less damage (1% → 0.7%), which decreases its overall damage output by 2.1% (11% → 8.9%).
• Neutral aerial's animation has slightly changed. Pit now swings his Palutena Bow slightly behind himself for its last hit.
• Pit has a new forward aerial, a buzzsaw-like series of slashes. Compared to the previous forward aerial, it deals less damage (15% (body)/14% (hilt)/13% (blades) → 1.5% (hits 1-2)/4% (hit 3)) and has more ending lag (frame 38 → 47).
• Forward aerial has less start-up lag (frame 12 → 11) compared to the previous forward aerial. Like the previous forward aerial, it can autocancel with a short hop.
• Forward aerial is weaker than the previous forward aerial. This makes it better for combos, but worse at edgeguarding.
• Back aerial deals less damage (15% (clean)/7% (late) → 12%/8%) and has increased start-up (frame 9 → 10) and landing lag (15 frames → 20). It also lacks sex kick properties due to its shorter duration (frames 9-25 → 10-12).
• Back aerial's animation has slightly changed. Pit now leans further back while performing the double reverse gripped thrust. This new animation re-positioned its hitbox from an angular placement to a slightly more horizontal placement, which makes its sweetspot more apparent, but decreases its range. It also flattens Pit's hurtbox, but horizontally expands it.
• Up aerial deals 2% less damage (12% → 10%) due to consisting of five hits instead of six. It also has increased start-up (frame 9 → 12) and ending lag (frame 44 → 50).
• Up aerial's last hit is stronger, improving its juggling potential.
• Down aerial deals 2% less damage (12% → 10%).
• Down aerial has received a sweetspot that is a meteor smash.

Grabs and throws

• All grabs have increased ranges.
• Grab has increased ending lag (frame 29 → 30).
• Dash grab has decreased start-up (frame 10 → 8) and ending lag (frame 39 → 37).
• Forward throw has increased knockback, improving its KO potential.
• Up throw has increased knockback, hindering its combo potential and making it unable to KO at reasonable percentages.
• On some stages, down throw's first hit will not hit Peach.
• The changes to hitstun canceling improve down throw's combo potential at low to medium percentages.

Special moves

• Palutena Bow deals less damage (5% (uncharged)/11% (fully charged) → 3.27%/8.6%) and knockback. Additionally, uncharged grounded Palutena Bow has increased ending lag (frame 43 → 59). Lastly, Palutena Bow covers less distance, significantly hindering its advanced techniques and mindgame potential.
• Palutena Bow's animation has changed. Its bowstring now appears invisible and periodically shines as if it is reflecting light, rather than visibly and consistently appearing as if it is made of energy. It also has updated sound effects.
• Pit has a new side special, Upperdash Arm. Compared to Angel Ring, it has less ending lag if it hits (frame 63 → 50 (grounded)/58 (aerial)). Like Angel Ring, it deflects projectiles. Unlike Angel Ring, it deals respectable knockback due consisting of one hit instead of multiple hits, grants super armor and can function as a horizontal recovery option.
• Compared to Angel Ring, Upperdash Arm has more ending lag if it misses (frame 63 → 83 (grounded)/121 (aerial)). Unlike Angel Ring, Upperdash Arm cannot be used for damage racking, disrupting an opponent's edge recovery, or pressuring shields.
• Pit has a new up special, Power of Flight. Unlike Wings of Icarus, it can be reused immediately after Pit is hit while using it.
• Unlike Wings of Icarus, Power of Flight functions like a traditional recovery move due to it following a linear trajectory and rendering Pit unable to attack while using it, making it much less versatile. It also cannot sweetspot edges during its ascent's initial frames.
• Power of Flight grants intangibility, whereas Wings of Icarus grants invincibility.
• Pit has a new down special, Guardian Orbitars. Like Mirror Shield, they are shields that block both melee attacks and projectiles, while reflecting the latter with 1.5x the damage and 1.7x the speed that they originally had. Unlike Mirror Shield, they shield Pit both in front of and behind him, and push back opponents near him when wielded. This makes them safer and capable of edgeguarding.
• Unlike Mirror Shield, Guardian Orbitars are breakable, as they will be destroyed upon blocking any attack that deals at least 50%. Upon breaking, Pit must wait 10 seconds for them to regenerate. They also have more start-up lag (frame 6 → 9) and lack super armor on start-up.
• Pit has a new Final Smash, Three Sacred Treasures. Compared to Palutena's Army, Three Sacred Treasures are better at pressuring opponents in Free-for-Alls due to their projectiles outclassing the Centurions in regard to sheer numbers. Like Palutena's Army, they have accuracy issues, which is especially evident with their concluding light pillars appearing in random locations, similarly to how PK Starstorm functioned in Brawl. Unlike Palutena's Army, they render Pit completely immobile, yet also invincible, throughout their duration.

Update history

Pit has been very slightly buffed thanks to games updates, with the only noteworthy buff being decreased ending lag for Palutena Bow. Although not a direct buff, the changes to shield mechanics brought about by updates 1.1.0 and 1.1.1 somewhat benefit him due to Upperdash Arm's damage and knockback, as well as his multiple hitting moves. As a result, Pit is marginally better than he was during the game's release.

1.0.6

• Fixed a glitch where Pit would clip through sloped terrain while using his edge attack as someone else grabbed the edge.

1.1.0

• Neutral infinite finisher's hitbox size increased: 5u → 6u.
• Neutral infinite finisher's z-axis displacement decreased: 9u → 8.5u.
• All variations of Palutena Bow have had their ending lag decreased by 3 frames.

Moveset

		Name	Damage	Description
Neutral attack			2%	A reverse gripped downward slash, followed by a reverse gripped inward slash, followed by an upward slash. If button mashed, Pit will spin the Palutena Bow instead, which hits multiple times before finishing with a lunging outward slash. It can also be jab canceled into a dash grab.
			2%
			5%
			1% (loop), 2% (last)
Forward tilt			7% (base), 10% (tip)	A scissoring slash. It has a sweetspot at its tip, which is strong enough to KO middleweights at 142% while near the edge. Even though its base has the same knockback values, its lower damage output makes it significantly weaker, to the point that it KOs middleweights at 189% while near the edge.
Up tilt			2% (hit 1), 3% (hit 2), 5% (hit 3)	A backflip kick followed by a stretch kick. A fairly useful anti-air attack, it can also combo into a neutral or up aerial at low percentages depending on the opponent's DI.
Down tilt			6%	A kneeling swipe. It is relatively quick overall, which allows it to combo into a dash attack against middleweights and heavyweights until around 50%. It also as a relatively high chance of tripping the opponent.
Dash attack			11%	A spinning inward slash. It has low knockback scaling and launches at 60°, which allow it to combo into a dashing up smash, a forward aerial and an up aerial from 0% up to medium percentages. However, it has moderate ending lag, making it punishable on shield.
Forward smash			5% (hit 1), 10% (hit 2)	A reverse gripped inward slash with one blade, followed by quickly reassembling the Palutena Bow and performing an outward slash with the Palutena Bow. The first hit launches at 0°, which allows it to connect reliably into the second hit, which has very high knockback growth. It KOs middleweights at 115% while near the edge and is one of Pit's most viable KOing options.
Up smash			3% (hit 1), 2% (hit 2), 8% (hit 3)	Jumps to perform three upward slashes, similarly to Link's up smash. It is a useful anti-air attack and is strong enough to KO middleweights at 131%. However, it has very minimal horizontal range despite its appearance, as it is unable to hit behind Pit and is only able to lead opponents into the attack if they are at point-blank range.
Down smash			12% (base), 10% (tip)	A downward angled reverse gripped thrust with one blade in front of himself, followed by a downward angled reverse gripped thrust behind himself with the other blade. It has very minimal start-up for a smash attack, making it very useful for punishing rolls. Both hits have equal knockback scaling, but the front hit has higher base knockback. Despite this, the front hit's base KOs at 166% while near the edge, due to launching the opponent at 55°. Conversely, the back hit's base KOs at 135% while near the edge, due to being a semi-spike.
Neutral aerial			0.7% (hits 1-7), 4% (hit 8)	A buzzsaw-like series of slashes in front of himself. It hits multiple times, with its last hit having high knockback scaling, though it has a smaller hitbox behind Pit that connects less reliably. Even though its last hit has very high knockback scaling, it is best suited for edgeguarding or approaching, due to its last hit's low damage output. However, is also a useful combo starter when short hopped due to its ability to autocancel, and has the ability to nullify weak projectiles.
Forward aerial			1.5% (hits 1-2), 4% (hit 3)	Lunges forward to perform a buzzsaw-like series of slashes. It hits multiple times, with its last hit having the second highest knockback scaling out of his entire moveset. Despite this, it is best suited for edgeguarding, spacing or approaching, due to its last hit's low damage output. It can also autocancel, but has a very short duration and minimal vertical range.
Back aerial			8% (base), 12% (tip)	A double reverse gripped thrust. It is Pit's longest ranged aerial and can autocancel, which makes it a fairly useful spacing option, especially when used as part of a reverse aerial rush. However, it has noticeable landing lag and a very small hitbox, which can make it difficult to land it sweetspot, especially on small opponents. It is Pit's most reliable aerial in regard to KOing on-stage opponents, as its tip KOs middleweights at 148% while near the edge. While its base is largely ineffective, it nonetheless has very minimal follow-up potential at certain percentages.
Up aerial			2% (hits 1-5)	An overhead, buzzsaw-like series of slashes. It hits multiple times, with its last hit launching at 68° and having the highest knockback scaling out of his entire moveset. These traits make it a useful juggling option. Even though it KOs middleweights beginning at 153% while near the upper blast line, it only does so if all of hits connect, due to its last hit's very low damage output. It can also autocancel.
Down aerial			10%	A downward arcing reverse gripped slash with one blade. Its sweetspot is a meteor smash that is active on start-up, while its fairly large range allows it to function as an approach option. However, it has noticeable landing lag and even though it can autocancel near its final frames, it cannot do so with a short hop.
Grab			—	Reaches out with his free hand.
Pummel			2%	A knee strike. A fairly fast pummel.
Forward throw			6% (hit 1), 4% (throw)	An upward slash. It has the highest knockback scaling out of his throws, which enables it to begin KOing middleweights at 173% while near the edge.
Back throw			8%	Spins around with the opponent in tow in order to perform a one-handed body slam. At low percentages, it can combo into a dash attack, but has very minimal utility outside of this combo and dealing damage.
Up throw			4% (hit 1), 7% (throw)	A handstand kick, similar to Sheik's up throw. Pit's most damaging throw, it can also combo into an up aerial at low percentages if the opponent does not react properly. However, it has very minimal utility outside of this combo and dealing damage.
Down throw			2% (hit 1), 4% (throw)	Pins the opponent to the ground before slashing their back. Pit's best combo starter, as it can lead into a neutral, forward and up aerial at low to medium percentages, or a dashing up smash at low percentages.
Floor attack (front)			7%	Gets up and slashes on either side of himself.
Floor attack (back)			7%	Gets up and then slashes in front of himself, then thrusts behind himself.
Floor attack (trip)			5%	Spins the Palutena Bow behind himself and then in front of himself.
Edge attack			7%	Performs a reverse roundhouse kick while climbing up.
Neutral special	Default	Palutena Bow	3.27% (uncharged), 8.6% (fully charged)	Shoots a bluish white, ethereal arrow from his Palutena Bow. The arrow can be curved in any direction, while the Palutena Bow and can be aimed left, right, or directly upward while charging.
	Custom 1	Piercing Bow	5.1% (uncharged), 11.7% (fully charged)	Shoots a larger and stronger arrow that pierces opponents. However, this comes at the cost of it being slower, having less range, and losing the ability to curve.
	Custom 2	Guiding Bow	2.1% (uncharged), 6% (fully charged)	Shoots an arrow that stays on-screen longer, has greater range, and can be curved to the point of forming two complete circles. However, this comes at the cost of it dealing noticeably less damage.
Side special	Default	Upperdash Arm	11% (grounded), 9% (aerial)	Wields the Upperdash Arm to perform a dashing uppercut. It has high base knockback, grants super armor during the dash, and reflects projectiles at roughly 45°. However, its low knockback scaling results in it KOing middleweights at 153% while near the edge, while its aerial version KOs middleweights at 179% due to dealing slightly less damage and base knockback. Additionally, it is a laggy attack overall, especially if it fails to hit anyone or anything.
	Custom 1	Interception Arm	13% (grounded), 11% (aerial)	Functions similarly to a counterattack, as Pit assumes a defensive stance and will attack an opponent who attacks him. However, unlike typical counterattacks, Pit will still attack an opponent that is very close to him, even if they do not attack. It also deals slightly more damage and noticeably more knockback, to the point that its grounded and aerial versions KO middleweights at 132% while near the edge and at 147%, respectively. Like counterattacks, it has fairly fast start-up and, like Upperdash Arm, grants super armor. However, it lacks horizontal recovery potential, as Pit will only move very slightly backward after using it. Additionally, there is a slight delay until Pit throws the uppercut, which can allow opponents to shield it.
	Custom 2	Quickdash Arm	9% (grounded), 7% (aerial)	The dash is faster, which makes it better suited for horizontal recovery. The dash also continues after throwing the uppercut, while the uppercut itself launches the opponent diagonally like Electroshock Arm, both of which allow it to chase after an opponent for a potential follow-up, or avoid being punished by a shielding opponent. However, it deals slightly less damage and significantly less knockback, to the point that its grounded and aerial versions KO middleweights at 203% while near the edge and at 235%, respectively. Additionally, there is a slight delay until Pit performs the dash.
Up special	Default	Power of Flight	—	Soars into the air by using the Power of Flight. It covers a significant amount of distance and the flight's direction can be angled in any way except downward, making it capable of being a vertical and nearly horizontal recovery option. It also grants intangibility on frames 9-19.
	Custom 1	Striking Flight	9% (clean), 6% (late)	Functions like a traditional recovery move, as it deals damage while Pit ascends, yet has slower start-up and provides very minimal horizontal distance.
	Custom 2	Breezy Flight	—	The flight is faster and Pit emits a tornado at start-up that pushes away opponents in the opposite direction of his ascent. However, it covers less distance.
Down special	Default	Guardian Orbitars	1.5x (reflected projectiles)	Wields the Guardian Orbitars, which create twin energy shields that protect his left and right sides. These shields reflect projectiles with 50% more power and 70% more speed than they originally had. They also block melee attacks, but will break if they block an attack that deals at least 50%. Upon breaking, they require 10 seconds to regenerate. They also push back opponents who are near Pit when he wields them, making them capable of edgeguarding. However, Pit is vulnerable to attacks directly above him. They have a minimum duration of 20 frames and a maximum duration of 80 frames.
	Custom 1	Impact Orbitars	5%	Offensive variations that deal damage and knockback, grant super armor and are unbreakable. However, this comes at the cost of their reflection and blocking properties.
	Custom 2	Amplifying Orbitars	2x (reflected projectiles)	Variations that have an increased reflection multiplier for both damage and speed, though they are more fragile and lose their push effect. They have a minimum duration of 16 frames and a maximum duration of 150 frames.
Final Smash		Three Sacred Treasures	2% (arrows, blasts), 12% (charged arrows), 15% (pillars)	Wields the Three Sacred Treasures and uses the Arrow of Light to fire a barrage of rapid orange white ethereal arrows, rapid greenish white energy blasts, and charged yellowish white ethereal arrows. After this, a final barrage of bluish white ethereal arrows is fired into the sky, which causes pillars of light to rain down. Deals high knockback overall, but only the charged arrows and light pillars have KO potential.

On-screen appearance

• Slowly descends onto the stage while surrounded by a ray of sparkling light shining down from the sky.

Taunts

• Up taunt: Separates the Palutena Bow and crouches down, then spins its blades in either hand before standing up and crossing them over his head, saying "Come on!" (勝負だ！, Let's battle!)
• Side taunt: Separates the Palutena Bow and then slashes with its blades before striking a pose, saying "That all you got?" (まだまだ！, Not just yet!)
• Down taunt: Holds the Palutena Bow/its blades in one hand/each hand and spreads out his arms and wings, as a few feathers are loosed from his wings.
• Smash taunt: Activates Palutena's Guidance. Kneels down before contacting Palutena, Viridi, Dark Pit (when in a match against him), and even Chrom (when fighting against Robin). Pit then receives information on one of his opponents; this goes for every character in the game, including himself, with altered conversations for the Koopalings and the male Wii Fit Trainer. There is a specific conversation reserved for the downloadable characters, but the dialogue remains the same regardless of what downloadable character Pit is facing. Palutena's Guidance can be used only on Palutena's Temple, and is performed by rapidly pressing the button which activates Pit's down taunt. Pit will hold a pose for a few seconds prior to the conversation starting. This can only be done once per match. If Pit gets hit while holding his pose before the conversation starts, it will be canceled. If Pit is KO'd, the conversation will end. Lastly, if there is more than one opponent on-screen when the conversation begins, one of the opponents will be randomly chosen to be discussed.

Up taunt	Side taunt	Down taunt

Idle poses

• Briefly fiddles with his Palutena Bow. Pit will split it into its blades if it is in its bow form.
• Impatiently hops in place.

Crowd cheer

	English	Japanese
Cheer
Description	Pit! Pit! This is it!	Pit-to!
Pitch	Group chant	Female

Victory poses

An orchestral excerpt of Kid Icarus' title screen theme.

• Descends from the sky and slashes his blades while saying "It's game over for you!" This pose is very similar to his side taunt. In Japanese, he yells "撃破ー!" (Struck down-!)
• Slightly turns to his right side while rearing his right arm back, then thrusts it forward to strike the V sign while saying "Victory!" and either sports a slightly stern facial expression or a toothy smirk. In Japanese, he yells "ピース!" (Peace!) The pose is very similar to the one he strikes after defeating Hades in Kid Icarus: Uprising.
• Slowly spins the Palutena Bow in front of himself, then strikes a pose while saying "That was easy!" or "What's up now?!" In Japanese, he says "楽勝楽勝!" (Easy win easy win!/Easy peasy!). The pose is very similar to the one in his official artwork for Brawl.

In competitive play

Official Custom Moveset Project

Character	Custom sets available
Pit	3111	3112	1113	2113	3113
	2111	2112	1112	3311	3121

Notable players

Active

•  Chompy - Has wins over players such as JJROCKETS, and Hoenn.
•  Earth
•  KiraFlax
•  Kuro
•  Len

Inactive

•  Nairo
•  Paseriman
•  Pink Fresh

Tier placement and history

Pit has been perceived as a mid-tier character since SSB4's release. While players pointed out the nerfs to his defense, they also pointed out the buffs to his offense. Despite his playerbase and tournament results being among the most sparse in competitive play, players such as Earth, KiraFlax, Kuro and Plastic Poptart spearheaded his metagame and proved he is still a rather viable character in competitive play, with this consensus also being applied to Dark Pit. Earth's efforts in competitive play, most notably his 13th placing at GENESIS 3, further cemented Pit's viability, and resulted in him being ranked 18th on the first tier list, only one spot below his clone.

Although impressive, Pit's tournament results, however, have never been as outstanding as other mid-tier characters. Despite Earth's better placing of 9th at EVO 2016, Pit's tier placement would drop on the second tier list, where he was ranked 24th and three spots above Dark Pit. While Earth had another strong showing at GENESIS 4 by placing 25th, Pit's lack of widespread success due to his very small playerbase would result in his tier placement dropping yet again, this time to 30th/31st on the third and current tier list. In addition to sharing this ranking with his clone, this drop is also tied with Yoshi and Kirby's for the second largest between the second and third lists.

Trophies

Pit

Pit is the captain of Palutena's royal guard. Despite the wings on his back, Pit needs the Power of Flight from Palutena in order to truly fly. In Smash Bros., he can still get more air than most, with four jumps and a special move that boosts him higher. He has a new reflect move—it protects both sides!

Despite being an angel with wings and all that jazz, Pit can't fly without a little bit of help from his favourite goddess, Palutena. In this game, he's good at both close and ranged combat, and can even deflect projectiles. On top of that, with a high-flying up special and the ability to jump four times in mid-air. He's also got great recovery skills.

: Kid Icarus (08/1987)

: Kid Icarus: Uprising (03/2012)

Pit (Alt.)

Pit's side special Upperdash Arm delivers an uppercut so strong, it can send foes flying for a KO. If you miss and fall off the stage, Pit's up special can bring him soaring back. Another of Pit's specials is Palutena Bow, which fires arrows Pit can aim even after they've left the bow.

Pit's Upperdash Arm special launches him forwards to strike with an uppercut. It's so powerful, it can deliver an instant KO! If you accidentally dash off the stage with it, one of his up special will get you back on easily. His Palutena Bow special can be charged up, shot straight up into the air, and you can even guide the arrows mid-flight!

: Kid Icarus (08/1987)

: Kid Icarus: Uprising (03/2012)

Three Sacred Treasures

The Arrow of Light, the Wings of Pegasus and the Mirror Shield-three legendary artifacts that Pit once used to defeat the evil Medusa. When you activate Pit's Final Smash, he can use them in this game, too! After firing a barrage of different bow attacks, his final shot will cause powerful light pillars to rain down on the battlefield.

The Arrow of Light, the Wings of Pegasus and the Mirror Shield - three legendary artifacts that Pit once used to defeat the evil Medusa. And when you activate his Final Smash, he can use them in this game too! After firing a medley of different bow attacks, his final shot makes powerful light pillars rain down on the battlefield.

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  Classic (3DS)

• PitAllStarTrophy3DS.png

  Alt. (3DS)

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  Classic (Wii U)

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  Alt. (Wii U)

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  Three Sacred Treasures

In Event Matches

Solo Events

• All-Star Battle: Brawl: Pit is one of the opponents fought in this event. All of the opponents debuted in Brawl.
• Doppelgänger Duel: As Dark Pit, the player must defeat Pit in a Stamina Battle.
• The Break of Day: Pit must defeat three Dark Pits using the Daybreak.

Co-op Events

• An Offering of Coins: Pit and Dark Pit must collect 1000G from a shadow Pit and a shadow Dark Pit in a Coin Battle.
• The Ultimate Battle: Two players select a character and must defeat the entire roster.

Alternate costumes

Gallery

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  Pit in the Nintendo Direct from April 8th, 2014.

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  Pit's amiibo.

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  Pit's appearance during E3 2013.

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  Pit as he appears in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

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  Pit as he appears in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.

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  Alongside Wii Fit Trainer.

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  Using Palutena Bow.

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  Using Palutena Bow while Mega Man uses his down tilt.

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  Using Guardian Orbitars, his new down special.

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  Using Palutena Bow on Villager, who is throwing a previously grabbed arrow at him.

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  Using his down taunt.

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  Using Upperdash Arm, his new side special, against Pikachu's Thunder Jolt.

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  Attacking Samus' Missile.

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  Mario, Pikachu, Bowser and Pit fighting on Pilotwings.

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  Pit and Link's arrows colliding.

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  Rolling away from Toon Link's forward tilt.

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  Jumping while Wii Fit Trainer uses Header.

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  Using Upperdash Arm on Fox in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

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  Using Upperdash Arm in the air in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.

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  Using Palutena Bow in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

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  Using Power of Flight, his new up special.

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  Using his forward smash on Donkey Kong.

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  Alongside Villager on Wily Castle.

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  Sonic hitting Pit with the Ore Club.

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  Using Upperdash Arm on Link.

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  Using Three Sacred Treasures, his new Final Smash.

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  Zero Suit Samus about to attack Pit while a Metroid is latched onto him.

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  Using his up taunt alongside Greninja and Little Mac.

Trivia

• Pit was the first Brawl newcomer confirmed to reappear in SSB4.
• Of all the characters who made the transition from Brawl to SSB4, Pit underwent the most changes to his special moves, with his previous side special, up special, down special and Final Smash being replaced.
• Pit and Dark Pit are the only characters with two reflectors in their default movesets.
• In Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS, Pit and Dark Pit's wings will not be outlined if outlines are turned on.
• Both Pit and Dark Pit, akin to the former in Brawl, have some of their moves not applying to their respective bows being in their bow forms or being split into blades. The moves that fit this are their down tilts, dash attacks, up specials, down taunts (despite both of them being different), rolls and sidesteps (only if the latter two are done at the frame before their shielding animation properly occurs).