A scattered dream that's like a far-off memory...
~ Sora, the Keyblade Master ~
~Character Summary
Sora is the hero and main protagonist of the Kingdom Hearts series. He is an upbeat teenager who may seem simple minded at times, but realizes the importance of his quest to save the various Worlds of his Universe from the various evils that plague them. He possesses a strong sense of justice and an unrelenting heart. At times, he is impulsive and quick to anger, but he is always sincere about what he says and does.
At the beginning of the series, Sora is 14 years old and lives on Destiny Islands along with his two friends, Riku and Kairi. When their world is attacked by a group of corrupted hearts known as the Heartless, the three are separated. During the invasion, he obtains the Legendary Keyblade. Soon after, Sora meets Donald Duck and Goofy, who join him on his search for his friends. Together, they've saved numerous worlds from the clutches of the Heartless and the Nobodies, under the control of Organization XIII.
Sora fights with his first Keyblade, the Kingdom Key.
~Statistics (out of 10)
- Strength > 4
- Attack Speed > 7
- Speed > 6
- Jump > 8
- Weight > 3
- Range > 6
- Projectile Range > 4
- Traction > 6
~Play Style
Sora's a very balanced, general character, though perhaps a bit on the weak/fast side. It's possible to play Sora at a range, but if you choose to do so, be prepared for some strangely-placed projectiles. Namely, his Forward Smash and two of his throws. That said, a good number of his moves are pretty far-reaching, even if those tend to have strangely-placed hitboxes.
No, the real key to victory while using Sora is to rely on the speed of attacks like Slicer, Flash Combo, and Sonic Blade to rack up damage early, then finishing a foe off with one of his more powerful, slower attacks like Explosion or Disaster. He's also an incredibly potent aerial combatant, with a real floaty weight class and highly mobile Aerials to back it up.
~Standard Attacks
A: Reversal
Sora dashes behind his opponent, sliding around their side, low to the ground. The move deals no damage, but the sudden disappearance of Sora will stun an opponent directly in front of Sora for half a second. There's zero lag on either end of the move, though unlike a dodge, Sora can be knocked out of the move at any time.
Side Tilt: Warp Snipe
Sora moves at super-sonic speed, seeming to disappear into thin air. He warps back in about one shield roll's length away in front of him, balanced in a crouch on the air around him, and strikes all around him with a short but forceful spin kick, dealing light knockback and
5-6% damage.
[
-]Sora is invulnerable when he can't be seen, and if his kick happens to connect with any energy-based projectiles, they'll be shot right back at the fighter that sent them, homing in on their origin.
Up Tilt: Overtaker
Hopping into the air, Sora spins his Keyblade above him, dealing rapid hits with low knockback. If all ten(!) hits connect, the move can do up to
14% damage, but it's fairly simple to DI out of. Sora jumps almost as far up as a Short Hop, so despite the low damage and knockback, Overtaker has great range in it's favor.
Down Tilt: Fore!
Brandishing his Keyblade like a golf club, Sora takes a driving swing at the ground below him. The hitbox here is only along the very tip of the Keyblade, and unless the enemy is hit while where a golf ball would be, the move only deals
1-2% and only flinches. But if Sora manages to catch his enemies at the apex of the swing, he'll sweet-spot them for
13% and massive diagonal knockback.
Dash Attack: Sonic Blade
Holding his Keyblade in both hands and leveling it against his hip like a lance, Sora lunges straight forward, thrusting his weapon ahead of him as a rush of wind flows around him. The attack is very fast (
Sora accelerates as he thrusts ahead), but it's of average length, and much lag exists near the end.
[
-]However, if a player immediately taps the control stick behind Sora and A again, he'll instantly perform another Sonic Blade in the opposite direction. This can be repeated up to three times, hitting the same enemy for much better damage overall, as the move only deals
3-4% by itself, and his virtually no knockback (
similar to Fox Illusion, actually...).
~Smash Attacks
Side Smash: Strike Raid
Sora winds up, then lets loose--throwing his Keyblade spinning ahead of him like a boomerang. The more you charge this, the farther it goes, but even at maximum, it only goes 1/4 the length of Final Destination. As the Keyblade passes over an enemy, rapid hits are dealt, and it also pulls them along. If they're hit by the Keyblade at the end of it's path, they're sent flying away from the solid knockback. The Keyblade does not hit on it's way back to Sora, who waits patiently for it to return, defenseless.
[
-]Uncharged, the move deals
1-2% over a potential 5 hits, followed by
8-10% at the end. When fully charged, the formula is
1-3% over 7 hits, and
13-14% for the finisher.
Up Smash: Aerial Finish
Levitating into the air, Sora unleashes a trio of slashes to his left, right, and center. The first two draw opponents in, and the final attack blows them away. All three attacks are very wide swings which leave trails of energy in their wake. After the attack is over, Sora flips over (just to show off) in midair, then lands, meaning ending lag is to be expected.
[
-] Uncharged, the attacks do
2-4%,
4%, and
6-7% respectively. If fully charged, they do slightly more, at
2-4%,
5%, and
7-8%, though the knockback is significantly better than the "just okay" level that the uncharged version delivers.
Down Smash: Explosion
Sora raises his Keyblade above his head, then slams it down into the air in front of him (
like Ike's Up Taunt, actually...), saying "It's over!" as he does. Four large pearls pulsate out from him, and circle him once very quickly before exploding to his front and back, damaging foes within range.
[
-]The pearls are each slightly shorter than Sora, and reach fairly far to either side, making this a great move for crowd control. Uncharged, the move deals
1-2% as the orbs circle Sora, then a better
10% upon detonation. A charged version results in the same light damage...but the orbs circle twice, making for double the damage there. An increased
15-17% will result from fully charging the attack. Both versions send foes flying upward at a slight angle: decent knockback, but not too great.
~Aerial Attacks
Neutral Air: Magna Storm
Sora leans back while gripping his Keyblade in both hands and whirls it around him, as if to winding up to hurl it away. The attack deals little damage (
3-4%), but lasts as long as Fox's Forward Air or Yoshi's Down Air, and as Sora's doing it, tilting the control stick left or right will not only make Sora fall in that direction, but will also cause him to "tip" towards that angle, like R.O.B.'s Side Special. Only flinching knockback, so it's more of a utility move than anything.
Up Air: Air Slash
Lifting his Keyblade above his head, Sora twirls it like a baton, causing him to actually rise a little while into the air. As this move can be repeated, it's a good aid for recovery, though significant ending lag means that you shouldn't rely on it entirely when knocked off-stage. The actual damage and knockback is different from most "spinning weapon" attacks, in that there's only one hitbox, and only one powerful hit results from the move...which is right at the start of the move. If Sora "helicopters" into an opponent after the move starts up...he goes right throught them dealing no damage. It sounds bad, but if the attack hits like it's supposed to, you can deal upwards of
13% damage with it, so, along with the strong vertical knockback, this is a great move for aerial KOs.
Forward Air: Slicer
Sora shifts slightly backward while he flips his Keyblade around, finally holding it behind his back. He then bursts forward, flying through any opponent in front of him. As the move ends, three bright slashes appear across all foes caught by Sora's attack, dealing three sets of light damage (
1-3% each, in fact). Sora doesn't fall as he's winding up the attack, and everything else about it is very quick, making this a great move for dealing quick damage. The low, almost-nonexistent knockback prevents it from being anything but anyways.
Back Air: Burst Edge
Sora passes his Keyblade from one hand to the other behind his back, like a basketball. This part of the attack is quick and weak, but right after, Sora grips his Keyblade in both hands and stabs it behind him, creating a small explosion of flames near the tip. The quick pass deals only
3-5% and flinches, but the ending explosion deals
9-10% and has good horizontal knockback.
Down Air: Clear Light
As he faces downward and swipes the Keyblade in front of him twice, in an "X" formation, a short pillar of white energy springs forth from Sora's body, striking below him. The force of the beam causes Sora to be slightly suspended in the air for a short while, and until the attack ends, he stay roughly in the same place. This obviously lets you stall yourself to a small extent once in the air, but it's not nearly as good as Fox's, as the move merely slows Sora's descent, rather than fully freezing him for an instant. Couple that with the cool-down at the end, and you have a move much better suited to attacking than utility.
[
-] Speaking of attacking, this move is rather special. Ideally, you'll trap an opponent at the end of the beam, right against the floor. The beam damages rapidly, but sends opponents away upon first connection, but if you can position them correctly, they'll bounce off the floor and right back into the beam. One hit =
2-4%, with a maximum of 5 hits if you can trap the opponent. Medium knockback.
~Grabs and Throws
Grab: Snag
Sora has a rather unique grab. Rather than simply reaching out, he leaps into the air in an arc, like a smaller version of Diddy's Monkey Flip. Any enemy he connects with will be grabbed, at which point Sora can throw them, even in midair.
Pummel: Reflect
While holding his foe with one hand, Sora passes his other arm, Keyblade in hand, across his enemy's face. The Keyblade's spinning all the while, dealing three hits of
0-1% over the course of the attack.
Forward Throw: Fire
Sora releases his foe, then points his Keyblade toward them and shouts "Fire!" as a ball of flame shoots out and runs through the foe. The fireball flies through the enemy, and continues on ahead of him for a decent distance, making for an impromptu projectile. The 'thrown' enemy takes
4-5% and low knockback, but any other enemy hit by the magic spell takes
8% and medium knockback (
the fireball disappears when it hits someone else).
Back Throw: Grand Cross
Sora grabs his foe with both arms and leaps into the air, flying backwards in a large arc. Finally, both he and the enemy slam to the ground, headfirst as a burst of blue-white energy erupts from beneath, dealing
6-8% and solid knockback. In Sora's case, the burst of energy pushes him back into the air, ready to fight. The foe, however, is caught by the brunt of the gout...
Up Throw: Thunder
Sora plants one foot in the opponent's stomach, and rolls onto his back, carrying the enemy into the air above him. As he does this, he shouts out the name of the throw and points his Keyblade at his foe. A fork of lightning streaks down from above, striking the captive foe and dealing
7%, as well as freezing them in place for a second. There's no knockback, but while frozen, Sora is free to attack his foe.
Down Throw: Step Vault
Sora hops forward and puts one foot on his foe's face, springing off it in a forceful jump. The opponent is slammed to the ground, taking
7% damage, while Sora is projected into the air slightly higher than his first jump takes him.
~Miscellaneous Attacks
Rising Attack: Counterguard
Sora flips up into a low crouch, and brings his Keyblade across in front of himself in a horizontal arc. The attack only hits in front of Sora, and has a thin hitbox, but deals a great amount of damage--anywhere from
13-15%--and has solid, nearly-vertical knockback. The night lack of lag at the end means that even if Sora misses, you'll most often be at little disadvantage anyways.
Ledge Attack: Press/Takedown
Sora scrambles onto the stage, and, holding his Keyblade flat across his chest, muscles up with any foe in his path. If he connects with an airborne foe, they'll flinch and take
1%. But if he runs into an enemy on the ground, he'll lock blades with the fighter, and press them along the ground, finally pushing them to the ground with one final burst of energy. The attack deals no damage, but the faster you tap the A button once you've locked "blades" (or arms, or guns, or whatever the opponent fights with), the farther Sora will push them across the platform.
Ledge Attack over 100%: Press
This is the same as Press/Takedown, except that at the end, Sora simply can't muster the power to force his foe to the ground, and simply disengages from them.
~Special Moves
Neutral B: Dodge Roll
Tap the button once, and Sora takes on a low, squatting pose, ready to pounce. While in this pose (
which he leaves automatically after a few seconds if you do nothing), if you press the button again, Sora will spring forward instantly, covering twice the distance of the average shield roll. And just like a shield roll, Sora dodges attacks throughout all but the very start and very end of the motion.
[
-] However, if, when you press B the second time, you tilt the control stick at an angle, Sora will Dodge Roll in that direction instead, making this Sora's best option for vertical recovery, since in the air, he can travel in any direction he chooses.
Side B: Flash Combo
Sora goes into a fighting stance, drawing his Keyblade up in front of him, between himself and his opponent. If he can concentrate like so uninterrupted for three seconds, the attack will initiate. Faster than the eye can see, Sora will dart forward a large distance, then, after a full two seconds to cool down, return to normal, ready for combat.
[
-] The catch is that if any enemy is caught in Sora's path of travel, they'll be hit by the Flash Combo. The move will freeze them as soon as Sora "passes" through them, and as soon as the Sora player regains control of him (i.e. after the ending lag is done with), a rapid barrage of strikes will catch up with Sora's super-human speed, landing in lightning-quick succession on the stunned enemy. Deals almost no knockback, but anywhere from
20-30% damage, randomly.
You can see Sephiroth use this attack at the beginning of
this video (though Sora blocks it, which other fighters in Smash Bros. are unable to do).
Up B: Disaster
Sora charges his Keyblade with magical power as it begins to swirl around him at ever-increasing speeds. The attack takes a while to really get going, but after a second or two, the Keyblade will have created a miniature cyclone of energy, spiraling around Sora and drawing enemies in. While this is happening, the player can move Sora slowly left or right, and in the air, he won't fall any lower than he was when the move began (though neither will he rise, unless attacked).
[
-] Enemies that are trapped in the attack don't take any damage until the end, and, if their reaction speed is good, can DI out of the move (or get knocked out some other way). That said, the ending of the attack, in which Sora disperses the built-up energy in one go, has great knockback and good damage (somewhere around
15-17%).
[
-] The hitbox reaches fairly far out on both sides of Sora, though only along the ground, so airborne foes will be safe until they land (or hit Sora while still in the air).
Down B: Omega Finale/Sonic End
During any of Sora's Tilts, Aerials, or Smashes, pressing Down+B will immediately end that move with either Omega Finale or Sonic End, depending on whether Sora's on the ground or in the air.
[
-] On the ground, Sora will hop slightly into the air behind him, then thrust his Keylade into the ground ahead of him, causing a pillar of energy to burst up from below, sending enemies flying, and doing
10% damage. (
Omega Finale)
[
-] In the air, he'll quickly dash forward while spinning, keyblade held out ahead of him, like a human arrow. The enemy is knocked away at a random angle, and takes light damage around
4-5%. (
Sonic End)
[
-] This ability to basically fake almost any attack comes at a price, however. Omega Finale has a huge amount of start-up lag, so it's best used when your opponent isn't expecting it. Meanwhile, Sonic End deals very light damage, and strips Sora of any remaining jumps, attacks, or recoveries until he lands back on solid ground (it does send him forward a short ways).
Sora's grabbed the Smash Ball! By activating it's power, his best friends, Donald and Goofy, join him in battle!
Now the player has a few options. By doing nothing, Donald and Goofy will begin fighting on their own, though after ten seconds they'll disappear. Donald will cast Thundaga repeatedly on random enemies, which is like a slower version of Pikachu's thunder with less knockback and only
8-12% damage. Meanwhile, Goofy will stay by Sora's side and automatically deflect (not
reflect) upwards and projectiles that come his way.
However, by pressing either the A or B buttons, Sora will activate one of two abilities:
A: Trinity Limit
Sora, Donald, and Goofy come together and raise their weapons toward the sky, channeling the power of Light through their bodies. Enemies within the range of Cook Kirby will be slowly but steadily drawn into the gathering rays of energy, where they'll orbit the core of light where Sora and Co.'s weapons meet. After a few seconds, the energy disperses, sending all foes caught flying away and dealing
35% to each.
You can see this move in action
here.
B: Final Form
Donald and Goofy lend Sora their power, combining to transform Sora into his Final Form! While in this form, Sora changes in a few key ways...
- He levitates off the ground, and is twice as floaty once in the air.
- His jump height is increased by 1.5x, and he can glide (extremely fast, too).
- He wields two Keyblades now (Oblivion and Oathkeeper), and so any attack that involves his Keyblade will now activate twice in a row.
- Attack power is increased by 1.5. (So an attack that did 10 damage now does 15)
- Attack speed is increased by 1.5.
- He takes no knockback/doesn't flinch (like Giga Bowser).
Which is all great. However, there's a 1 in 10 chance that rather than Final Form, Sora will take on the dreaded
Anti Form, which has the following attributes...
- No air jumps.
- Jump height is doubled.
- Attack power is decreased to 0.5. (So an attack that did 10 now does 5).
- Attack speed is doubled.
- Takes no knockback/doesn't flinch (like Giga Bowser).
- Takes double damage from all attacks.
- The only Special he can use is Dodge Roll.
No matter which form Sora turns into, he'll revert to normal after 20 seconds, and his Final Smash will be over.
~Fin