What if Azura got in instead of Corrin?

[Perkilator]

Hi, I've been wanting to make this topic for a while.

It's...no secret that Corrin's garnered a lot of hate when he/she was revealed for Super Smash Bros. for 3DS / Wii U back in December 2015 as one of the last two DLC fighters. In turn, this caused a lot of hate towards Fire Emblem characters in Smash in general (especially when Byleth was the last character of Ultimate's Fighters Pass Vol. 1, but that's another story).

Bottom line; Corrin is, at the very least, mostly unique from other FE characters with their moveset. But I've been wondering something for a while...what if Azura, another important character in Fates, was the rep for that game instead of Corrin? Azura is currently a Spirit in Ultimate, but this topic is more of a what-if scenario where Azura chooses to dance on the battlefield.

Note: My inspiration came from an article Source Gaming posted back in 2016. A lot of what I say here is more or less word-for-word from the article.

What Azura would bring to the table

Spoiler

• A better representation of Fates: While one could say Corrin represents the game currently, I believe he primarily represents himself, as all moves and animations are based on his Dragon Fang ability. Fates is currently the only game in the series to grant certain units the unique ability of Dragon Vein, which allows its user(s) to manipulate their environment. Corrin, despite having this ability in the game, does not incorporate it in his Smash moveset. Azura, being of royalty, is another Dragon Vein user in the game. For my moveset, she uses them as a secondary action for her specials, which I’ll touch upon later.
• Lance user: As of now, the closest thing to a lance user is the side attacks Byleth uses. There are several sword wielders, but no true lance wielders. Azura would fill that niche while also representing spear fighters from FE generally.
• Dancer: Or, in Azura's case, a Songstress, but the core function is more or less the same; primarily a support unit that invigorates adjacent units for extended actions. Dancers are genrally fragile speedsters who can dodge just fine, but could die in a second when sent too deep into enemy lines. Azura is one of the few dancers who can actually fight enemies.

To translate all of these factors into Smash would be fairly simple. Azura is a lightweight, she’s launched easily and her overall recovery is somewhat limited. However, she’s far from weak due to the range of her lance alone. What also helps is her ability to bend water, primarily for her specials; remember when I teased Dragon Vein earlier? She can even use it to manipulate the water she's already using to (like I said earlier) perform a secondary action in the middle of a special move. She’s also very fast, allowing her to easily escape an enemy's range if possible.

Actual moveset (the one I did, anyways)

With this, I deviated from Source Gaming's version a bit

Spoiler

Intro: Azura appears from a circle of water, mimicking her battle intro animation from Fates

Stance/Idle 1: Her fighting stance from Fates

Idle 2: Azura’s pre-battle pose from Fates

Idle 3: Azura puts her left hand on her chest
 

Notable Palette Swaps:

1. Azura (default)
2. Phina (red/yellow)
3. Sylvia (green/white)
4. Ninian (turquoise)
5. Tethys (red/black)
6. Leanne (gold/white)
7. Olivia (pink/white)
8. “Mysterious lady” (purple)

 

Walk: Azura carefully walks forward

Dash: Taken from Fates

Damage: Taken from Fates

Jump: Similar to Palutena’s jump

Crouch: Similar to Palutena’s crouch
 

Normal Attacks

Jab: A horizontal slash (2%) followed up by a rising slash (3%) and finishes with an overhead slash (5%, OK knockback)

Forward+A: Azura slashes downward (7%, small knockback)

Down+A: Azura jabs along the ground (6%, small knockback), potentially tripping opponents

Up+A: Azura quickly slashes upwards, attacking opponents both in front of and above her (7%, small knockback)
 

Aerial Attacks

Air+A: Azura spins in the air once, slashing anyone in the vicinity (8%, small knockback)

Air Forward+A: Azura brings her lance down for a powerful slash (11% with a meteor effect, OK knockback)

Air Back + A: Azura delivers a wide horizontal blow (10%, OK knockback)

Air Up+A: Azura delivers a rising slash (9%, OK knockback)

Air Down+A: Azura delivers a downward diagonal slash (11%, OK knockback)
 

Dash Attack: Azura delivers a diagonal cut while performing a Ballerina’s Jete (12%, OK knockback), which can launch foes above her

Edge Attack: Azura stabs the opponent with an overhead jab (7%, small knockback)

Get-Up Attack: Water bursts around Azura as she gets back up (6%, small knockback)
 

Smash Attacks

Forward+A: Azura launches foes in front of her with a rising slash (18%, medium knockback)

Up+A: Azura stabs upwards (16%, medium knockback) as two small pillars of water rise on both sides of her (11% each, OK knockback)

Down+A: Azura slashes diagonally downwards on both sides (14% each hit, OK knockback)
 

Grab Game

Grab: Azura snags the opponent in a circle of water

Pummel: Azura spins the water circle (1%)

Forwards+Throw: Azura stabs forwards (8%, OK knockback)

Down+Throw: Azura brings her lance down for a downward slash (9%, OK knockback)

Back+Throw: Azura tosses the opponent behind her with the water circle (6%, small knockback)

Up+Throw: Azura backflips while launching her opponent upwards (11%, OK knockback)
 

Special Moves

B : Inspiring Song; Azura sings for 3 seconds, healing 30% of her current damage when it is completed; this is divided up among her allies. If she is attacked or uses her Dragon Vein during the song, she won’t receive its benefits.

B + Forwards : Javelin Throw; Azura throws her lance like a javelin, which can also hit multiple opponents at once (15%, OK knockback). She is then limited to unarmed combat; all of her jabs, Smash attacks and aerial attacks are reduced to water-bending, which is faster but deals much less damage.

B + Up : Ballerina Twirl; Azura rises moderately high upwards as she twirls under a spiral of water (17%, OK knockback)

B + Down : Stream; Azura twirls once, pulling in opponents, and then raises her lance upwards; a huge stream of water then appears, launching opponents upwards (25%, medium knockback)

Final Smash: Dark Song; Azura raises two columns of water around herself (7%). Opponents are taken into a cutscene (based on the Opera House scene from Fates) where Azura sings her song as ripples go rapidly across the water (50%, devastating knockback)

Gimmick: Dragon Vein; Pressing B in the middle of a Special allows Azura to perform a secondary Special. She can perform any Dragon Vein attack during any Special, but she enters a helpless state when she does this midair.

• Neutral Dragon Vein: Azura surrounds herself in a barrier of water that pushes opponents away (10%, OK knockback) and reflects projectiles
• Side Dragon Vein: Azura calls back her lance, which twirls three times (5% each, small knockback) and instantly warps back to her
• Up Dragon Vein: Azura is pushed up extremely high by water, dealing no damage
• Down Dragon Vein: Azura pushes a stream of water (similar to the Gust Bellows) in front of her, pushing away opponents and dealing no damage
   

Taunts

1: “Take your final bow.” Azura mimics her pose in her official artwork

2: “Look me in the eyes.” Azura mimics her talking portrait from Fates

1+2: “I must not lose here.” Azura mimics her battle entrance animation from Fates
 

Winposes

1: “I’m so happy, I could sing.” Azura’s victory animation from Fates

2: “I had no choice.” Azura mimics her map sprite when dancing, putting her lance up to the camera

3: Azura dances while singing the victory theme
 

Applause: Azura looks down in disappointment

Icon: The Fire Emblem series icon

Boxing Ring Title: Lady of the Lake

Star K.O.: Azura screams in a near-singing voice

Victory Music: A snippet of “Lost in Thoughts All Alone” suited to Azura

Kirby Hat: Azura’s coif

 

Ideally, due to being a bit more complex then Corrin, Azura would have to be released in March 2016 (along with Bayonetta).

Stage: Opera House (Here's where I got the idea)

Spoiler

Undoubtedly an iconic location from Fates, being featured in the game's intro. I was thinking this stage could be exclusive to the 3DS version at the time of Azura's launch, and then brought back for Ultimate.

Layout: A fairly simple layout. There is a big boat in the center, two small boats on the left and right, respectively, and two wooden platforms in between the boats. Various observing boats are sometimes seen moving in the background and foreground, and an audience can faintly be seen in the rafters. Confetti rains down whe the match starts, and sometimes water droplets flood the background while the match progresses.

Gimmicks and Hazards: After about 10 seconds, the lights will dim and the water will glow. More specifically, certain areas beneath the boats glow and a geyser of water appears wherever a glowing spot is. Each geyser jettisons the boats at either a high distance or medium distance. Any fighters launched into the geysers would be slowed down as they pass through, slowly moving up with the current before being shot back out. If a fighter jumps into the water, they slowly rise up until being stopped by a boat. The geysers dissipate after 8-10 seconds, and the cycle repeats every 30 seconds or so.

Music: I should note that, due to this stage being 3DS-only in 4, Opera House would only have two songs, which I'll highlight. I'll also list the places where each song plays between each version of 4.

1. Lost in Thoughts All Alone
   • Opera House
   • Coliseum
   • Castle Siege
   • Smash Run
2. Lost in Thoughts All Alone (JP) (plays in both Wii U FE stages)
   • Coliseum
   • Castle Siege
3. Justice RIP (Storm)*
   • Opera House
   • Coliseum
   • Smash Run
4. Misery in Hand
   • Coliseum
5. Alight (Storm)
   • Coliseum
6. Dusk Falls (Fire)
   • Castle Siege
   • Smash Run
7. Condemnation
   • Castle Siege
8. A Dark Fall (Fire)
   • Castle Siege
9. Past Below (Flow)
   • Coliseum
   • Castle Siege
10. Road Taken (Roar)
    • Coliseum
    • Castle Siege
    • Smash Run
11. End of All (Below)
    • Coliseum
    • Castle Siege

*I was thinking the remix could be in the style of PAII's remix

Battlefield/Ω Form: The Ω Form is the stage where Azura performs her song in Fates. The Battlefield Form platforms are based on the boats in the regular stage.

Alright, now I'm gonna be getting into more Ultimate-specific stuff.

Palutena's Guidance (well, I say Palutena's, but...you'll see in a sec.)

Spoiler

Azura: ~Youuu are oooceans’s grey waaaaaves…~

Pit: Whoa…that’s some great singing! What’s your name?

Azura: Oh, hello there. My name is Azura. I’m a songstress from far away.

Pit: A songstress? So you defeat people by singing?

Azura: Actually, my singing is meant for helping people, and only when needed. But I can be one with the water in many different ways, which I can then use in conjunction with my Dragon Vein.

Pit: Whooaaa, that’s so cool!

Azura: I’m glad you think so, but…I personally consider it a burden. One that makes me want to groan with increasing discomfort.

Pit: Huh? Why?

Azura: I’d rather not talk about it. All I can say is, I hope I don’t hurt you too much even in a friendly fight.

Classic Mode: Song of the Fight (fights characters to vocal songs)

Spoiler

Round 1: Marth, Lucina, Roy, Ike, Robin and Chrom (horde battle) on Battlefield Opera House (Fire Emblem Theme)

Round 2: Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong on Kongo Falls (DK Rap)

Round 3: Sonic on Green Hill Zone (Live & Learn)

Round 4: Mario (Color 8 ), Peach (Color 6) and Bowser (free-for-all) on New Donk City Hall (Break Free (Lead the Way))

Round 5: Inkling x4 (Colors 1, 3, 5 and 7) (free-for-all) on Moray Towers (Bomb Rush Blush)

Round 6: Azura (Color 8 ) on Opera House (Lost in Thoughts All Alone (JP))

Final Round: Master Hand (& Crazy Hand on 7.0 or higher) on Opera House Ω (End of All (Below))

Credits: Lost in Thoughts All Alone (JP)

Possible Spirit Battles against Azura

Spoiler

1. Moblin (Color 2 x4)
2. Marin (Color 7)
3. Krystal (Color 8 )
4. Gyarados (default)
5. Meloetta (Aria Forme) (Color 3)
6. Caeda (default)
7. Minerva (Color 5)
8. Pegasus Sisters (Colors 7, 3 and 1)
9. Ninian (Color 4)
10. Ephraim (Color 5)
11. Hinoka (Color 7)
12. Sakura (Fire Emblem (Color 7)
13. Garon (Color 8 )
14. Tsubasa Oribe (Color 2)
15. Ingrid (Color 6)
16. Chaos (Color 8 )
17. Blue Pikmin (Color 4)
18. Cid (Color 6)
19. Barbara the Bat (Color 8 )
20. Eddy (default)
21. I-Tetrimino (Color 4)

I don't think Azura would've mitigated hate by any means, since she'd still be another FE character, but I wanted to peep into what would be if Azura was fated for Smash.

Edited July 18, 2021 by Perkilator

[vanguard333]

There's a thread for creating your idea of what a fighter could bring to Smash Bros. in terms of moveset and such; it's called "Create a Fighter & Moveset". That said, you are talking about a lot more than just moveset potential, so I suppose I can't really say, "Why didn't you make this a reply in that topic?"

Anyway, Azura definitely could've been a very interesting choice. I'm personally fine with Corrin, as his dragon powers do bring a lot of cool stuff to the table. But Azura definitely could've been interesting; I especially like that idea of the Opera House being a DLC stage; I'm honestly kind-of surprised in retrospect that that wasn't a DLC stage even with them picking Corrin.

[Faellin]

17 hours ago, vanguard333 said:

I'm honestly kind-of surprised in retrospect that that wasn't a DLC stage even with them picking Corrin.

Yeah thats one thing fire emblem really lacks in smash. Stages based on actual locations. Only one like that is Ferox. I would have loved the opera house as a stage, or even something like the plains of hoshido taking place during chapter 6 with xander, ryoma, takumi, and camilla working as stage hazards. (Bonus if Corrin could start conversations with them like snake and pit could on their stages)

And another really cool thing they could have done with the opera house, was having Azura do her performance in the background if the song you chose was lost in thoughts.

Edited July 18, 2021 by Faellin

[Perkilator]

16 minutes ago, Faellin said:

Yeah thats one thing fire emblem really lacks in smash. Stages based on actual locations. Only one like that is Ferox.

Actually, we do have Garreg Mach in Smash, but that and Ferox is only 2 FE stages based on actual locations out of the 4 we have in Smash.

[Faellin]

1 minute ago, Perkilator said:

Actually, we do have Garreg Mach in Smash, but that and Ferox is only 2 FE stages based on actual locations out of the 4 we have in Smash.

I meant pre dlc. My bad