Fighter Concept: Alear

[Perkilator]

Okay, so--Alear is undeniably a hot topic for Smash Bros., both within and outside the Smash community. The most popular ideas from other people is to take other FE characters' moves (typically the characters deemed likely to be cut next game) and slap them onto Alear for the sake of representing the Engage mechanic. But after watching a playthrough of Engage on YouTube and doing some research, I decided to take a different approach with Alear and the Engage mechanic. Just so you know, there will be MAJOR story spoilers for Engage.

Alts

Spoiler

For Alear, I'm once again going into my habit of 16 alts for each character (I've done quite a few movesets like that, actually) with 8 divided between F!Alear (who will be the default Alear) and M!Alear. Most of the alts are based on Joy-Con colors, owing to Alear's red and blue hair, while a few others are based on certain aspects and characters of Engage.

Female

1. Red and blue hair (default)
2. Orange and purple hair (Neon Orange and Neon Purple Joy-Cons)
3. Pink and green hair (Neon Pink and Neon Green Joy-Cons)
4. Yellow and blue hair (Neon Blue and Neon Yellow Joy-Cons)
5. Gray hair (Gray Joy-Cons)
6. Veyle (black and white hair)
7. 13th Emblem (blue hair)
8. Past Alear (special costume)

Male

1. Red and blue hair (default)
2. Orange and purple hair (Neon Orange and Neon Purple Joy-Cons)
3. Pink and green hair (Neon Pink and Neon Green Joy-Cons)
4. Yellow and blue hair (Neon Blue and Neon Yellow Joy-Cons)
5. Vander (white hair)
6. Veyle (black and white hair)
7. 13th Emblem (blue hair)
8. Past Alear (special costume)

Animations

Spoiler

Intro: Alear proclaims “Emblem, Engage!” as they enter the battlefield from a golden Warp circle surrounded by red and blue flower petals.

Stance/Idle 1: Their battle stance from Engage.
Idle 2: Alear casually spins their sword in a vertical motion.
Idle 3: Alear places their sword atop their free hand and examines it for a moment.

Walk: Alear keeps their weapon lowered and marches ahead at a careful pace.
Dash: With their sword held to their side and their cape swaying in the wind, Alear sprints forward.
Damage: Their damage animation from Engage.
Jump: Alear jumps relatively normally, then gracefully spirals through the air for the second jump.
Crouch: Alear puts their free hand on the ground and ducks toward it.

Taunts
Up: Sommie appears and barks playfully.
Side: “I’m guided by the Emblems.” Alear’s standard victory pose.
Down: “I’ll never yield…” Alear’s victory pose after using an Engage attack with Marth.

Winposes
1: Alear appears in their Emblem form and holds the handle of their sword to their face while pointing the blade in the opposite direction.
2: Marth’s ring appears in front of Alear, who then grabs it and makes a determined face.
3: Alear makes a pose resembling their official artwork (as pictured above).

Applause: Alear claps respectfully for the winner.
Icon: The Falchion
Boxing Ring Title: The Divine Dragon
Star K.O.:
“I’m sorryyy…!” (Female)
“It’s too muuuuch…!” (Male)
Victory Music: The start of Engage’s main theme, mixed with the Stage Clear theme.
Kirby Hat: Alear’s hair, which changes depending on which gender of Alear is present.

Side note: Obviously Marth would still be present even if Alear gets in. The only change I’d make is to his Final Smash; it would become Lodestar Rush, which sees Marth dash forward and slash eight times (4% each), ending with a massive crescent-shaped projectile that hits other fighters (40%, far knockback).

Normal Attacks

Spoiler

Jab: A diagonal slice in one direction (3%, small knockback), followed by another slice in the other direction (3%, small knockback), finishing with a straight punch (6%, OK knockback)
Forward+A: A spinning kick (7%, small knockback)
Up+A: A backflip kick (9%, small knockback)
Down+A: Alear kicks forward with their left leg (7%, small knockback)
Dash Attack: Alear leaps ahead and lands a powerful cleave (11%, OK knockback)
Edge Attack: An axe kick (8%, small knockback)
Get-Up Attack: Alear kicks at one side and slashes toward the other while getting back up (7%, small knockback)

Aerial Attacks
Air+A: A sex kick (9%, OK knockback)
Air Forward+A: Alear performs a meteor knuckle with their left hand enveloped in draconic flames (13% with a meteor effect, OK knockback)
Air Back + A: A backwards spin kick (12%, OK knockback)
Air Up+A: A drill kick that hits multiple times (10%, small knockback)
Air Down+A: A downward kick enveloped in draconic flames (12%, OK knockback)

Smash Attacks
Forward+A: Alear hops forward and performs a spinning double kick (11% each hit, OK knockback)
Up+A: Alear performs a backward overhead arc slash (20%, OK knockback)
Down+A: Alear jumps up and stabs the ground, causing draconic flames to erupt (19%, OK knockback)

Grab Game
Grab: Alear grabs the opponent with their free hand.
Pummel: A knee strike (2%)
Forwards+Throw: A shoulder bash (9%, small knockback)
Back+Throw: A suplex (13%, OK knockback)
Up+Throw: Alear tosses the opponent into the air and thrusts their sword skyward, hitting multiple times with a flurry of draconic flames (15%, OK knockback)
Down+Throw: Alear jumps up and performs a frontflip kick (10%, OK knockback)

Special Moves & Fighter Ability

Spoiler

B : Divine Dragon Fist; Alear channels draconic flames into their palms, then drives them forward with a fiery blast (13%, OK knockback). Interestingly, this blast doesn’t count as a projectile.
B + ← → : Divine Dragon Lunge; Alear dashes forward with draconic flames around their sword (14%, OK knockback)
B + ↑ : Divine Dragon Uppercut; Alear performs an uppercut with their left hand enveloped in draconic flames (12%, OK knockback)
B + ↓ : Engage / Counter; Alear Engages using the Ring of the Connector. If the meter isn’t full, Alear instead performs a regular counter.

And then there's Alear's Fighter Ability, Engage Mode; using a meter on their HUD that starts out full, Alear can assume the form they take when they Engage with Marth, except without an Emblem present at all…which is because Alear becomes an Emblem themselves near the end of the game.

In this form, Alear gains a decent stat boost and a second midair jump, and their special moves take appearances based on the personal skills of Alfred, Diamant, Timerra and Ivy, who also appear next to Alear during these attacks via Warp (as all four of them are technically Engaging with Alear). However, the meter drains over time, with special moves draining ⅓ of it. Once Alear exits Engage Mode, you must take and deal damage in order to refill the meter, though it doesn’t refill at all when the Counter special is used.

B : Single-Minded Ice Fist; Alear and Ivy fire an icy projectile surrounded by red and blue roses that homes in on the nearest opponent, with a chance of freezing them (17%, OK knockback)
B + ← → : Self-Improved Lunge; Alear and Alfred lunge forward even further, with a chance of inflicting a flower effect the longer you go without using it (20%, medium knockback)
B + ↑ : Racket Jump; Alear and Timerra jump even higher and hit the opponent five times, which also decreases how much knockback Alear can take from the opponent they attacked (15%, OK knockback)
B + ↓ : Fair Counter; Alear takes a counter stance and retaliates when attacked, and Diamant appears next to Alear to attack foes behind them. What makes this one stand out is that not only can it only counter from the front, but when used twice in a row in quick succession, Alear doesn’t retaliate. Instead, Alear is stumbled but can still dodge out of the way.

Final Smash: All for One; Alear points their sword forwards and proclaims “Fate has brought us here!” as a red-and-blue beam of light emits from it. Any opponents hit are taken into a cutscene where Alfred, Diamant, Timerra and Ivy perform their respective Chain Attacks. The attack ends with Alear stabbing forward, instantly K.O.-ing anyone above 100% when the attack finishes, which also instantly drains the Engage meter no matter where it’s at. In the final shot:

• Alfred appears on the bottom left
• Diamant appears on the top left
• Ivy appears on the top right
• Timerra appears on the bottom right

Side note: Obviously Marth would still be present even if Alear gets in. The only change I’d make is to his Final Smash; it would become Lodestar Rush, which sees Marth dash forward and slash eight times (4% each), ending with a massive crescent-shaped projectile that hits other fighters (40%, far knockback).

Stage & Music

Spoiler

The stage Somniel takes place on the eponymous floating island, particularly in the Plaza. The stage will occasionally alternate between fighting in the Plaza itself and fighters being taken above the Plaza, on a platform with two smaller platforms on the left and right. Whenever it goes back to the ground, the camera will focus on wherever it was when the central platforms went back into the ground. Somniel occasionally features cameos from Vander, Clanne, Framme, Céline, Alcryst, Fogado, Hortensia, Yunaka, and Veyle. The Battlefield and Ω forms take place in the skies above Somniel, as pictured above.

1. Main Theme - Fire Emblem: Engage (New remix)
2. Emblem Engage!
3. Faraway Holy Land (Flare)
4. Bloom in the Breeze (New remix)
5. Royal Confidence (Might)
6. Tear Streaked (Ice)
7. Broken Bonds (New remix)
8. Bright Sandstorm (Fiery)
9. Falling Petals
10. Determined Journey (Flare)
11. Last Engage (Prayer-Incantation)

Spirit Battles

Spoiler

Go here for a more in-depth look at the Spirit Battles, but to sum it up: I wanted to go for characters that stood out to me personally while also focusing on the main characters and those connected to them. That said, I wanted to include a Sombron Spirit Battle, but sadly I couldn't find a clean portrait to match some of the other characters so sadly I cut his Spirit Battle.

1. F!Alear (Fighter Spirit)
2. M!Alear (Fighter Spirit)
3. Emblem Marth (★★★★)
4. Alfred (★★)
5. Diamant (★★)
6. Timerra (★★★)
7. Ivy (★★★)
8. Sommie (★★)
9. Vander (★★★)
10. Queen Lumera (★★)
11. Céline (★)
12. Alcryst (★)
13. Fogado (★★★)
14. Hortensia (★★★)
15. Yunaka (★★)
16. Veyle (★★★)
17. Past Alear (★★★★)

Edited July 27, 2023 by Perkilator
Retooled Alear to give them more of a balance between swordplay and martial arts, among other balance changes.

[Jotari]

You seem to be utilizing very little of his Arts. It's just a few kicks, no punches at all. I'd make Alear almost primarily a fist fighter to differentiate him from the other Fire Emblem characters (and really how arts look in Engage would make if a pretty different style from a lot of the Smash cast). The Diamant counter also sounds outright worse than his regular counter.

Edited July 27, 2023 by Jotari

[Perkilator]

11 hours ago, Jotari said:

You seem to be utilizing very little of his Arts. It's just a few kicks, no punches at all. I'd make Alear almost primarily a fist fighter to differentiate him from the other Fire Emblem characters (and really how arts look in Engage would make if a pretty different style from a lot of the Smash cast). The Diamant counter also sounds outright worse than his regular counter.

Edited the moveset to place some more emphasis on the Arts. Also, the point of the Diamant counter was to discourage spamming it, but I fixed that too.