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The Dashing Psychic Knight Pokemon slashes in! Gallade for Smash!

Erureido

Smash Hero
Joined
Sep 4, 2014
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5,408
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Erureido
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5301-1552-4121
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Gallade

Mega Gallade

Overview

"A master of courtesy and swordsmanship, it fights using extending swords on its elbows."
- Diamond/Pearl/Y/AlphaSapphire Pokedex entry


"When protecting someone, it extends its elbows as if they were swords and fights savagely."
- Platinum/Black/White Pokedex entry


"Because it can sense what its foe is thinking, its attacks burst out first, fast, and fierce."
-Heartgold/Soulsilver/X/OmegaRuby Pokedex Entry

Gallade is a dual-type Psychic/Fighting Pokemon that was introduced in the fourth generation of Pokemon. His name comes from the combination of the words "gallant" and "blade". He is part of the Ralts evolution line as one of its final evolved forms and is seen as the male counterpart to Gardevoir. He evolves from a male Kirlia when exposed to a Dawn Stone. Gallade has also gained a Mega Evolution in Pokemon OmegaRuby/AlphaSapphire, the most recently released main-series Pokemon games. He is also one of the two Fighting-types to have the highest special defense stat of all non-legendary Fighting-type Pokemon, and when Mega-Evolved, he has the highest attack stat of all non-legendary Psychic-type Pokemon.

As his Pokedex entries state, Gallade is particularly known for using his elbows as sword blades when fighting against foes. He is also known for his design: a cross between a heroic knight (based off his actions and stances) and a gladiator (going off the helmet). Gallade is a master of courtesy and swordsmanship that is capable of sensing the opponent's thoughts. When he Mega Evolves, plates emerge on Gallade's arms, and his helmet and cape-like protrusions on his head and back gives him a more knightly appearance. When necessary, Gallade can use his psychic powers to reshape his arms into blades and utilize a dual-wielding style. Combine all of this together and you see that Gallade is essentially a psychic knight.

Why support Gallade for Smash Bros?

In addition to already being a very popular Pokemon, Gallade perfectly fits into Smash Bros just by looking at him. Gallade would be one of, if not the most unique swordsman in the Smash Bros roster.
  • None of the Smash Bros swordsmen are capable of growing swords from their elbows.
  • None of them can change their blades to a different type for that matter (yes, there is Shulk and his Monado Arts, but in the end, the Monado remains a basic, energy sword no matter what style you use it as).
  • None of them can use psychic powers (except for Shulk and his visions, though his visions are powers from a god, not from psychic ability).
  • Most convincing of all, none of the Smash swordsmen are capable of dual-wielding swords (Pit and Dark Pit might come to mind, but the way they dual-wield their weapons are more like daggers than swords)
Now let's look at what Gallade brings to the table as a swordsman.
  • Gallade can grow blades from his elbows.
  • Through attacks like Night Slash, Leaf Blade, Psycho Cut, etc. Gallade can utilize blades of dark energy, leaf energy, psychic energy, etc. at will.
  • As a psychic-type, Gallade is capable of using psychic powers. He can read his opponent's mind and could use teleportation for certain movement.
  • Thanks to his elbow blades, Gallade is capable of fighting with a dual-wielding style.

Gallade's dual-wielding ability

Looking at these five bullet points, one can definitely see how unique of a fighter Gallade can really be. Gallade also has a very diverse move pool in the games. In addition to learning all of the slash-based attacks in the Pokemon games, Gallade can also learn moves like Stone Edge, Brick Break, Giga Impact, Wide Guard, Poison Jab, Knock Off, etc. With such a diverse move pool, Gallade can easily have a workable Smash Bros moveset.

Gallade could even fit as a good representative of the recent Ruby/Sapphire remakes. Allow me to explain:
Gallade is a Pokemon who debuted from the fourth generation, but compared to the other fourth generation evolution that were added to the Hoenn Pokedex in the remakes (added because they come from the evolution lines of Pokemon in the Hoenn dex), Gallade is the one that arguably had the freshest breath of air to the point he melded in a way that made him feel like a third generation Pokemon, arguably allowing him to represent a "fresh" take on the Ruby/Sapphire games.

The other fourth generation evolutions added to the Hoenn dex like Roserade, Froslass, Probopass, and Dusknoir didn't gain as much attention as Gallade did. Sure, Elite Four Phoebe's new signature Pokemon is Dusknoir, and Glacia of the Elite Four uses two Froslass... But here's the truth: the Froslasses are not the signature Pokemon on Glacia's team. Furthermore, both Froslass and Dusknoir didn't receive Mega Evolutions.

Gallade, on the other hand, actually has a major role in Pokemon OmegaRuby/AlphaSapphire. He is the signature Pokemon of Wally, one of your rivals in the game. Wally has a much bigger presence in the remakes compared to the originals. Though he is fought the same number of times during the story in both (if you take the post game into account, however, he is fought more frequently), he is encountered more often, and your final battle against him before facing the Elite Four is built up better in the remakes (so well done in a way that Wally is becoming a new fan-favorite character for many, and with that in mind, guess what does that mean for Gallade? More on that later in the OP).

Combining the facts that Gallade is the signature Pokemon of one of the game's most important characters, comes from a 3rd generation-introduced evolution line, and gained a Mega Evolution, you can see why I think Gallade represents OmegaRuby/AlphaSapphire, two games that would be good to have some representation in Smash Bros. Gallade's recent fame also proves that he has relevancy again, another aspect worth considering when it comes to Smash Bros.
Before we talk about Gallade's chances, I think it is best to counter the popular arguments against him when it comes to Smash Bros. You can read them in the spoilers tag below.

Arguments against Gallade

1) "Gallade is a completely random Pokemon who has had zero prominence in the series."

Not true at all. Gallade has had a number of significant roles throughout Pokemon's lifetime. Here are a few that particularly come to mind.

Let's start with an individual I'm sure most Pokemon fans are familiar with:


Wally is the character standing alongside Mega Gallade, and believe it or not, Wally was a significant character to ORAS's plot. He served as one your main rivals during the games' adventure. His signature Pokemon? It's Gallade, just as the picture shows. "But wasn't Gardevoir his ace Pokemon?" you might be thinking. Yes, that's true, but that was only in the original games. Gallade replaces his Gardevoir as Wally's new ace Pokemon in the remakes (and this Gallade can even Mega Evolve for that matter; more on that latter). Why does Gallade replace that Gardevoir? Here's one theory I came up with:
Throughout the games, Wally demonstrates a strong willpower to succeed in his Pokemon journey and follows in your footsteps to make his dream become a reality, but he has a frail body, and he needs to be physically strong to carry out his dream. Gallade represents physical strength; such an image reminds Wally to never give up and that positives come from strong motivations.
Returning to the subject, Wally's improvements in ORAS made him a far more remembered and popular character than he was in the original games (just look at his moment in Victory Road for proof), and with this renewed memorability for Wally also comes with more remembrance for Gallade due to his ace Pokemon role.

And going back even further, we'll also notice Gallade had some prominent roles in the generation that he debuted in: Generation 4. One particular role that comes to mind is this one:


The purple-haired gentleman you see in this picture is Lucian. Lucian is remembered for having a signfiicant role in generation 4: he is a member of the Sinnoh Elite Four, the final Elite Four member you face in Diamond/Pearl/Platinum for that matter. In Pokemon Platinum, his team was updated to reflect the revised Sinnoh Dex. Want to take a guess who his ace Pokemon was in those games? Yep, just as the picture shows, it's Gallade.

Because Lucian is the final Elite Four member you face in the story and Gallade is Lucian's signature Pokemon, Gallade is arguably the penultimate challenge before you fight Champion Cynthia in Platinum.

And looking elsewhere in Platinum and even into HeartGold/SoulSilver, we'll see another prominent moment for Gallade. How so? Take a look at this:


The man with the glasses is Darach, and he is one of the Frontier Brain's of the Sinnoh/Johto Battle Frontier. When you fight Darach in your 49th Battle Castle match in a row (your second battle against him), Darach uses a Gallade against you. Darach also used a Gallade in his battle against Platinum in Pokemon Adventures, the most popular Pokemon manga series.

And we're not done yet. Gallade even had some significance in the anime too:


The character in the middle is Zoey. She was Dawn's first and most significant rival during the entire Diamond and Pearl anime, and the two eventually fought each other in the finals of the Sinnoh's Grand Festival, the Pokemon Contest equivalent to the Pokemon League. This picture is from the episode featuring Dawn and Zoey's final battle, and as it shows, Gallade was one of the Pokemon she used for the grand finale, the other being her Glameow.

Zoey won the Sinnoh Grand Festival, so Gallade is remembered as one of Zoey's Pokemon to carry her to victory in Sinnoh's Contest finale.

On a rather minor note related to Gallade and the anime, Gallade also appeared in the 10th Pokemon movie, the Rise of Darkrai. Compared to the legendaries, Gallade's role in that movie was more of a minor supporting role though. It was one of the Pokemon in the Oracion Garden, and it was the one to first inform Ash & Company about Darkrai's presence, even going as far as slicing a tree in half using Psycho Cut when it detected Darkrai. Although Gallade's role in the movie was nowhere as significant as the legendaries that starred there, it was because of Gallade's appearance in the 10th movie that he received a number of merchandising around the time of the movie's release. Look up any merchandise and advertising related to the Darkrai film during the time of it's Japanese release, and you'll see what I mean.

Gallade did have some recent merchandising too. Along with his female counterpart, Gardevoir, Gallade was prominently featured in a special Pokemon Center merchandise era known as "Masquerade Party."

It took place around Halloween a few months ago, and both Gardevoir and Gallade received the most merchandising out of all the Pokemon shown here during that time.

It's also worth noting Gallade is among the 46 out of 803 Pokemon that currently have Mega Evolutions. Not only does his Mega Evolution highlight Gallade's significant in ORAS, it also gives him a prominent edge compared to most Pokemon. This also leads me to the next argument that I will counter:

2) "Gallade is not a popular Pokemon at all."

Really? Then explain to me why did Gallade receive a Mega Evolution in ORAS. Compared to all the other Pokemon, quite a few of them were lucky to receive Mega Evolutions. Gallade was one of those lucky individuals.

It's also worth noting that practically all of the Pokemon Megas are the more popular ones compared to the rest. Those that come to mind include the Kanto starter trio, Lucario, Scizor, Gengar, Absol, Lopunny, Heracross, Tyrantiar, Gardevoir, the Hoenn starter trio, Salamence, Metagross, Garchomp, the Latis, etc. The point is, popularity is a major factor in determining which Pokemon receive Megas, and if Gallade was among those small number of Pokemon to receive a Mega, that should already tell you Gallade is a very popular Pokemon in the Pokemon community.

3) "No one wants Gallade in Smash Bros."

Fun fact: In the Individual Character Poll that went around during the Smash Ballot's conclusion, Gallade scored 128th out of 438 video game characters when it came to who fans wanted to see in Smash Bros. He also scored among the top half of all the Pokemon-related characters listed in that poll.

Yes, I know fanmade polls are not the best indicator to demonstrate a character's overall Smash popularity, but the point I'm getting at here is that interest for Gallade as a Smash fighter does exist. I also know he is not the most popularly requested Pokemon for Smash though (more on that latter).

4) "Mewtwo and Lucario already represent the Psychic and Fighting-types respectively."

Sakurai and his developers never stated, "Only one Pokemon type will be represented in the Smash roster." Thus, typing in relation to a character's chances is a fanmade rule and has zero impact on a character's chances. Heck, the fighting style of those two Pokemon is vastly different from how Gallade fights.

Let's look at Mewtwo first. It's true that both it and Gallade are Psychic-types, but their battling styles are completely different. Mewtwo is a ranged fighter that focuses on special attacks and energy-based attacks revolving around psychic powers and Shadow Balls. Gallade is the opposite. Gallade is a physical one-on-one fighter. Sure he is also capable of psychic powers like teleportation and mind-reading, but they don't define Gallade the way those powers do for Mewtwo. Heck, do you see Gallade going around using special attacks like Psychic or Shadow Ball? Of course not. Even his stats reflect his physical attacking attributes. In fact, if Gallade were to be in Smash Bros, I would imagine that Gallade would only use a few psychic powers while bigger focus would be placed on his physical attacks.

This then leads to a comparisons between Lucario with Gallade. It's true that both are Fighting-types that rely on one-on-one physical combat, but the ways these two Pokemon fight are vastly different. Lucario is all about physical brawling. Almost the majority of his attacks revolve around basic punching and kicking. Meanwhile, Gallade is defined by his use of his arm blades. Because of this, Gallade's most prominent fighting-style involve slashing attacks such as Psycho Cut, Slash, Night Slash, Leaf Blade, Fury Cutter, Cut, etc. Gallade is capable of learning some attacks that revolve around punching, but looking at the broader picture, I believe that his moveset would place bigger emphasis on slashing foes thanks to his arm blades, with only a few attacks focusing on basic brawling tactics like punching.

5) "Lucario already represents the 4th generation of Pokemon."

This is another fan made rule. Sakurai or his developers never said, "Only one Pokemon per generation." Heck, just look at the number of generation 1 reps. Sure, some think they get a free pass because they come from Kanto, the most popular and iconic region, but again, "one Pokemon per generation" is still just a fan made rule by the end of the day.

6) "Gallade is a swordsman. Therefore, he is not unique."

To quote Robin from his reveal trailer, Gallade is "no ordinary swordsman." Refer to the first series of bullet points under the "Why support Gallade for Smash Bros?" section to see why Gallade would be a unique and interesting addition to the Smash Bros roster.

So from all these arguments we've countered, here's what we can conclude about Gallade that makes him supportable for Smash:
  • A very popular Pokemon amongst the Pokemon community, as evidenced by his Mega Evolution.
  • A Pokemon that received prominent roles in the past thanks to his roles as the ace Pokemon of significant trainers such as Wally and Lucian, as well as valuable Pokemon to other important trainers such as Castle Valet Dararch in the games and Zoey in the anime. He also had some merchandising overtime as well.
  • A character capable of a completely unique moveset that revolves around his arm blades, giving him both the ability to dual-wield and even utilize different types of blade attacks in one moveset. He can use some bits of psychic powers like teleportation and mind-reading here and there to reference his psychic-typing.
So What are Gallade's Issues that prevent him from joining Smash?

First off, he doesn't have the relevancy right now. If this was the Smash 4 DLC era where ORAS were the most relevant Pokemon games, relevancy would be on Gallade's side, but now, we have Sun and Moon as the current main series games, and Gallade didn't receive major spotlight as of this generation. Yes, Wally is among the few returning trainers in Sun and Moon that appears in the Battle Tree (and he returns with his signature Pokemon for that matter), but compared to other Battle Tree trainers, Wally (as well as Cynthia) are not as significant compared to the other Battle Tree trainers. Some appear in the story (Dexio, Sina, Colress, and Grimsely come to mind), some have an important role in the story (Anabel comes to mind), and some are Battle Tree Legends (Red and Green come to mind), Wally (as well as Cynthia) is none of that. It is even worth noting that Gallade's evolution line doesn't appear in the Alola Pokedex.

The only hope for renewed relevancy is if he receives some major prominence later into this generation, whether it'd be through a new major character introduced in a new set of core games who uses Gallade as their ace Pokemon or through DP remakes, or in generation 8 assuming we reach that point before the next Smash comes out, but currently, an Alola Pokemon is far more likely for the time being.

The second massive issue is that, quite simply, Gallade is nowhere as iconic compared to the real superstar Pokemon. Yes, Gallade has had a number of major roles during the series, but they don't even compare to the number of major roles that Pokemon like Pikachu, Charizard, Mewtwo, Lucario, Greninja, etc. have. He's also nowhere as popular as the superstar Pokemon like the ones that were listed.

This puts Gallade in a category of Pokemon I like to call "Very popular with some prominent roles here and there but not as iconic as the breakout stars in the series." Other Pokemon that fit this bill include Gengar, Absol, Tyranitar, Sylveon, Absol, Delphox, Weavile, Scizor, Serperior, etc. Thus, Gallade and those other Pokemon are considered "random to be in Smash," but him and them are nowhere as random as Pokemon like Pawniard, Sunflora, Exploud, Lumineon, Unfezant, etc.

This also means Gallade has quite the massive competition, as he has to compete with those other in his league if he wants to be in Smash. He even has to compete with his female counterpart, Gardevoir. Gardevior is a major competitor for him since she is much more popular and has had more significant roles in the series compared to him. Now, if this was the Smash 4 DLC era, I'd argue that Gallade had a better chance than Gardevoir because the latter has been cursed into becoming a Pokeball Summon at the time. Now, with the prospect of Smash 5, Gardevoir is back to having the better edge. We don't know whether or not she will be a Pokeball Summon again, but judging by the past two Smash titles, she's probably going to be fulfill that role again. Despite this, Gardevoir currently remains a massive rival for Gallade.

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And now that we've addressed everything about why you should support Gallade and the various reasons going for & against his inclusion, it's time we get to the moment you've all been waiting for: ideas of how Gallade would be like in Smash!

If Gallade was in Smash Bros

Costume Ideas

You can find my costume ideas for Gallade in the spoilers tag below. If you have any alternate costume/coloring ideas for Gallade, fill free to share it and I'll post it in the OP.


These are my costume ideas for Gallade if he were in Smash Bros. Most of them are based around Pokemon that appeared in OmegaRuby/AlphaSapphire (or had some sort of special treatment in those games at the very least) in order to tie with my idea of Gallade as an OR/AS rep. I will also explain what each costume color is based off of, starting from left to right on the top row and then the bottom row, to give you a better idea.
  • Costume #1: Default
  • Costume #2: Shiny - I find it odd that most Pokemon in the playable Smash Bros roster do not have their shiny forms as one of their alternate colors, so I thought I'd give Gallade his shiny color from the games and make it his 2P color.
  • Costume #3: Blaziken color - Blaziken is one of the Hoenn starters who was also one of the first Pokemon to gain a Mega Evolution; it is also generally seen as the most popular and iconic of the Hoenn starters. Like Gallade, it is also part Fighting-type.
    • The red coloring matches Blaziken's red fur throughout its body
    • The darkened yellow coloring matches Blaziken's yellow fur on its chest
    • The light color on the helmet matches the fur coloring on Blaziken's head.
  • Costume #4 - Gardevoir color - It makes obvious sense to give Gallade a color based on Gardevoir since the two are part of the same evolution line.
    • Here, most of Gallade's colors are brighter than his normal color to match Gardevoir's colors.
  • Costume #5 - Sableye color - One of the first Pokemon revealed to have a Mega Evolution in OR/AS, I thought a color based around Sableye would be interesting in order to give a purple coloring for Gallade.
    • The purple coloring matches the same coloring throughout Sableye's body
    • The hot pink colored protrusion coming from Gallade's chest matches the color of Mega Sableye's red jewel
    • The blue color on the helmet matches the color of Sableye's eyes in its normal form.
  • Costume #6: Metagross color - Metagross particularly stands out in OR/AS not only because of its pseudo-legendary status and its Mega Evolution but also because he is the signature Pokemon of the games' most important characters: Champion Steven.
    • The dark blue coloring matches the same color throughout most of Metagross's body.
    • The metallic colored protrusion from Gallade's chest matches the color of Mega Metagross's claws.
    • The gold coloring on the helmet matches the color of Mega Metagross's X-shaped armor on its face.
  • Costume #7: Lopunny color - Lopunny may not be in the updated Hoenn Pokedex, but she and Gallade were the only generation 4 Pokemon to receive Mega Evolutions in OR/AS, not to mention both are Fighting-types as Megas.
    • The brown coloring matches the color of Lopunny's fur
    • The black coloring on the chest protrusion matches the color of the black fur Lopunny gains in her Mega Evolution
    • The light coloring on the helmet matches the fur coloring on Lopunny's ears.
  • Costume #8: Froslass color - Froslass may not have received a Mega Evolution in OR/AS, but she and Gallade share some major similarities. That is, both come from evolution lines introduced in generation 3, and they both evolve from the use of a Dawn Stone
    • The color mix of light blue and white alludes to Froslass's Ice type.
    • The orange colored chest protrusion has the same color as Froslass's ribbon on her waist.
    • The purple coloring on the helmet references a similar coloring that is present under Froslass's helmet.

Moveset Ideas

Here, you will find various moveset ideas how Gallade could play out in Smash. I already provided mine, and fill free to share your own moveset ideas so that I can add them to the OP.

Basic Animations:

Entrance: Gallade is released out of a PokeBall and does his entrance animation from Pokemon Platinum/Heartgold/Soulsilver. Another idea for an entrance animation is that he teleports from the air and lands in a knightly manner, but the teleport would be more generic unlike Mewtwo’s.

Neutral Stance: Gallade stands like he does in the sixth generation games, but more aligned to his Mega Evolution stance (a.k.a, slightly bends his knees more). Much like Mario, Ryu, and Greninja’s neutral stances, Gallade’s front will always face towards the camera regardless of which side he is facing.



Gallade's standing animation would end up looking a lot like his standing animation in Pokemon Battle Revolution. This picture should visualize that, except imagine Gallade in a Smash Bros 3D model.

Walk: He walks exactly like he does in Pokemon Battle Revolution, but a bit faster with slightly bigger steps. His walk speed is between Pit/Dark Pit's and Link/Mii Swordfighter’s walk speeds, at a max walk speed value of 1.194 to be exact.

Dash: His dashing animation matches that of Pokemon Battle Revolution (a.k.a, looks like normal running). Unlike in the actual Pokemon games, his running speed is relatively fast, between Bowser’s and Marth/Lucina’s at 1.789 max run speed value to be exact.

Jump: Gallade performs a generic-looking jump into the air, and his double jump is a generic flip for added height. Both jumps have a solid height to them, with the first jump having a height in between Palutena and Fox's first jumps.


To better visualize Gallade's initial jump, here's Gallade jumping from tree to tree in the 10th Pokemon movie. Just imagine him jumping a little bit higher than what you are seeing.

Fall: His falling animation looks similar to his final leap after jumping from tree to tree in the 10th Pokemon movie. His falling speed is between Zero Suit Samus/Mii Brawler’s and Meta Knight’s falling speeds, at a max fall speed value of 1.68 to be exact.

Helpless: Gallade’s body is slightly curled while looking down with his arms and legs bent.

Crouch: Gallade kneels with one knee while both of his hands touching the ground. He does not have a crawling animation.

Shield: Gallade extends the blade on one of his elbows and tries to cover most of his body using it.

Roll: Gallade levitates around the opponent similar to Mewtwo’s rolling animation.

Side-step: Gallade steps behind the stage and moves his arm (with the elbow blade extended) over his body.

Dizzy: He stumbles from left to right while holding his head.

Sleep: He lies flat on the ground, belly-first, and uses one of his arms as if it were a pillow.

Idle animations:
  • Gallade does one of his generic animations from the sixth generation games where he moves one of his arms over his head and extends the blade on the elbow.
  • Gallade does his attack animation from Pokemon Battle Revolution when you are selecting a move.
  • Gallade bends lower than he normally does as he extends the blades of his elbow. He moves his arms towards his back so that the two blades touch each other.
Swimming: Gallade swims with breast-stroke arms.

Drowning: His about-to-drown animation is much like other fighters', and when he drowns, it looks similar to other characters' drowning animations (not like Lucario and Mewtwo’s drowning animations where they travel down the water headfirst).

KO Screams: His normal scream would be a simple “Guuuaaaa”, while his special scream (similar to Pit’s “I”m finished” scream) would be him saying his name but with a pained voice.

Screen KO: Gallade smashes onto the screen with one side of his face and both arms touching the screen while his legs are behind him but still visible.

Star KO Scream: Gallade screams “Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaa” with a fading voice as he travels through the sky.

Basic Attacks:

Jab: Gallade performs a quick punch which deals 2% damage.

Double Jab: Gallade performs another quick punch with his other hand that is a bit stronger than the first, dealing 3% damage.

Triple Jab: Slash - Gallade does a quick slash with one of his elbow blades, dealing 5% damage.

Multi-Jab: Fury Cutter - Normally, Fury Cutter in the Pokemon games is a move that only works once per turn, but with each successive use, the attack grows stronger. In Smash Bros's case, it works a bit differently. Here, Gallade slashes the opponent over and over with small but quick swipes with his elbow blades, each slash delivering 1% damage. Gallade furiously slashing the opponent over and over for this attack alludes to the "Fury" in Fury Cutter.

Dash Attack: Gallade lunges one of his elbow-bladed arms forward (the blade being completely extended) while slightly kneeling on one leg similar to one of his animated attacks as a Mega Evolution in the sixth generation games. It deals 9% damage.

Tilt Attacks:

Forward Tilt: Feint - Gallade performs a slash that travels from side to side, similar to one of his attack animations from Pokemon Battle Revolution. This move acts as a shield-breaker since it hits through shields twice similar to Ryu’s Collarbone Breaker. It’s because of this shield-breaking effect this attack is meant to be Feint from the games. The first hit deals 3% damage while the second hits for 6%.

Up Tilt: False Swipe - Gallade performs a light slash over him that creates a wind effect. This wind deals 5% damage and travels in an arc.

Down Tilt: Cut - While kneeling, Gallade performs a quick downward slash. The attack deals 2% damage, and it is also performed at fair speed. If you spam this attack, Gallade will switch between arms each time he slashes, further demonstrating his dual-wielding ability.

The reason why I imagined Cut for this attack is because when I think of Gallade using Cut as an HM in the Pokemon games, I imagine him cutting at the base of the tree to ensure a passable path.

Aerial Attacks:

Neutral Aerial: Gallade spins around twice with both of his elbow blades extended and his arms straight out but bent at the elbows. It deals 6% damage with slightly lower than average knockback.

Forward Aerial: Gallade performs a psychic-powered slash in front of himself. It is one of his stronger aerial attacks and deals 15% damage. The speed of this attack is moderate.

Back Aerial: It is similar to his forward aerial, except he slashes backward and slightly turns his body when he does so. It deals the same amount of damage as his forward aerial.

Up Aerial: Gallade punches the air above him. It deals 7% damage with moderate knockback.

Down Aerial: Brick Break - Gallade moves his head towards the ground as he does a chopping motion with one of his arms. If this attack is used directly above an opponent, it has a meteor spike effect. The attack deals 12% damage.

Grabs:

Pummel: Gallade performs a small, uppercutting punch at the opponent’s chest, dealing 2% damage with each punch.

Forward Throw: Dual Chop - Upon releasing the opponent, Gallade uses his psychic powers to immediately trap the opponent. He then follows up with two slashes. The first slash is quick does 3% damage while the second slash is a tad bit longer and deals 6% damage. After the second slash, the opponent is launched at the same distance as Greninja’s forward throw is executed.

Back Throw: Aerial Ace - Gallade briefly traps the opponent using his psychic powers. He then performs a small somersault over the opponent, and as he is about to land, he performs a sudden stab using one of his elbow blades to damage and launch the opponent behind him, dealing 10% damage.

Up Throw: Gallade performs a slightly more powerful, uppercutting punch. Immediately following that, he immediately inverts his punching arm so that the extended elbow blade stabs the opponent and launches him/her upward. The punch deals 2% damage, and the stab deals 6% damage.

Down Throw: Knock Off - Gallade uses his psychic powers to throw the opponent onto the ground. Then, he stomps on the opponent, delivering 6% damage and launching the opponent diagonally forward. This stomp looks similar to one of his attack animations from his Mega Evolution in the sixth generation games.

Smash Attacks:

Side Smash: Leaf Blade - Gallade readies a powerful stab as his arm starts to glow with a dark green color. Once released, Gallade shuffles one step forward and stabs the opponent. There is a strong sweetspot at the peak of the blade; otherwise, the stab creates a dual-damaging effect that can still deal good damage and knockback for a side smash. The sweetspot deals an impressive 18% damage, while the dual-damaging version hits for 5% damage on the first strike and 11% damage on the second hit.

Up Smash: Night Slash - Gallade bends low with one of his arms held low in preparation for the slash. Once released, Gallade slashes upward as dark energy is emitted from his arm. The attack has a very powerful sweetspot at the peak of the blade. Otherwise, the slash will carry the opponent upwards, but its knockback will be weaker. The sweetspot deals an impressive 20% damage, while the normal slash deals 4% damage with the first hit and 13% damage on the second hit.

Down Smash: X-Scissor - Gallade puts both elbows over his face as he charges the smash attack. Once released, he slashes towards the ground in a X-fashion, dealing very powerful damage on both sides. Unlike the other two final smashes, it doesn’t have a sweetspot, but it is still a strong attack (not to mention a bit more original for a sword-user considering most of the sword-users’ down smashes in Smash 4 involve slashing the ground on one side and then following up with a slash to the other side). It deals 15% damage with strong knockback.

Special Moveset:

Normal Special: Psycho Cut

This attack has two variants depending on your distance towards the opponent. In both versions, one of Gallade’s arms begins to emit a purple glow.

If Gallade is close to an opponent, he will slash the the opponent with a purple-glowing arm. If you press B again, Gallade’s other arm will glow purple and will slash the opponent with that arm while moving forward. Pressing B one more time makes Gallade move forward with one of his purple-glowing arms again, but this time, Gallade will strike the opponent with a powerful stab that temporarily freezes the opponent for one second before delivering strong knockback. You’ll need to press B rhythmically similar to Marth, Lucina, and Roy’s side specials, but here, it is easier to use since you don’t have to tilt the control stick at a certain direction. The first slash deals 2% damage, the second slash deals 3% damage, and the third slash deals 6% damage.

If Gallade is far away from an opponent, he will move his arm like he does with the close-ranged version, except this time, a blade of Psychic-energy is released as a projectile that is roughly Gallade’s size. It travels the same distance and speed as Greninja’s uncharged Water Shurikens, though Gallade’s version is much stronger and hits for 5.5% damage. This projectile is not chargeable, but it is still an excellent spacing tool.
  • Custom 1: Honed Psycho Cut - This variant has a much stronger close-ranged Psycho Cut where all the slashes do more damage. The final slash will also freeze the opponent for two seconds to highlight the increased strength. However, each performed-slash is slower than the normal version, so it is harder to rhythmically press the B button to achieve the final, powerful slash. The first slash deals 3% damage, the second deals 4% damage, and the final one deals 8% damage. When used as a projectile, the blade is smaller and does 2% damage but travels much faster and farther.
  • Custom 2: Ranged Psycho Cut - This variant has a weaker close-ranged Psycho Cut where each slash is performed very quickly and does less damage. The final slash doesn’t have the pause effect like the other two variants have, and you can easily achieve all three slashes by mashing the B button. The first slash deals 1% damage, the second deals 2% damage, and the third deals 4% damage. The projectile, however, is much stronger, dealing 10% damage. However, it travels slower and has much less distance, traveling as far as a fully charged Water Shuriken (the blade also doesn’t have the trap effect like the fully charged Water Shuriken).
Side Special: Power-Up Punch

Gallade readies a punch similar to one of his Pokemon Battle Revolution animations (a.k.a, when he uses Close Combat), and as he does so, his fist becomes surrounded with an orange aura. This attack isn’t chargeable, and Gallade readies the punch very quickly. When finished, Gallade punches the opponent and moves a small but decently forward, making it solid for horizontal recovery. The attack deals 7% damage. If Gallade uses the attack in succession and lands it on the opponent each time, the attack’s strength and knockback will increase. More specifically, the attack deals an additional 4% damage with each successful hit, capping at 19% damage.
  • Custom 1: Focus Punch - This variant works exactly like Ryu’s Focus Attack, except the animation is different from Ryu's. Gallade will ready the punch just as long as Ryu prepares his attack, and the orange aura will grow much bigger. When he punches, the opponent will be stunned as he/she is briefly enveloped by an orange aura. Then, the opponent will collapse similar to the consequences of Ryu’s Focus Attack. You can also cancel the Focus Punch when Gallade prepares it similar to how you play Ryu in Smash Bros. Unfortunately, Focus Punch does not have the increasing damage that Power-Up Punch has. The attack can deal 11-16% damage depending on how long you charge it.
  • Custom 2: Charged Power-Up Punch - This variant is similar to Ike’s Quick Draw since it is chargeable and can travel a certain distance. Here, by inputting the side special input and holding it, Gallade will charge the punch as the orange aura grows larger. The power of Gallade’s punch and the distance he will travel depends on the charge time. Unlike Ike’s Quick Draw, however, you cannot infinitely charge it. You can only charge this attack for up to 2 seconds. Once time’s up, Gallade will immediately attack. The attack is also weaker than Ike’s side special and travels less of a distance at peak power. Like Focus Punch, it doesn’t have the increasing damage effect that Power-Up Punch has. The attack deals 4% damage uncharged while the charged variant deals 11% damage.
Up Special: Teleport

Don't let the name fool you! This attack works differently from Mewtwo and Palutena’s up specials. Here, Gallade’s Teleport is similar to Pikachu and Greninja’s up specials where you can move up to two times, though Gallade’s version is just a tiny bit slower. As for the animation, Gallade will begin the attack by covering his face with one of his arms and slightly curl his body before vanishing. You can control where you want Gallade to appear with the control stick. When he reappears, Gallade will further curl his body and use the other arm to further cover the face before disappearing. If you use the control stick to input a direction for the second time in a row, Gallade will teleport again. When he reappears again, he will attack with both blades in an X-fashion, launching affected opponents horizontally, before being rendered into his helpless animation. This is different from Pikachu and Greninja’s up specials since those two do not finish their recovery with some sort of strong attack. The X-attack is also relatively strong, dealing 9% damage with moderate knockback, and can KO opponents at around 130%.
  • Custom 1: Ambushing Teleport - This variant works exactly like Meta Knight’s Dimensional Cape. Gallade will do his first teleport animation to start the attack. If you hold B while inputting a direction similar to Meta Knight’s down special, Gallade will go straight to his X-Scissor animation. Unlike the normal variant, the X-attack is much stronger. If you simply press B and don’t hold it after inputing a direction, Gallade will go into his second animation before the X-attack, ending the attack. It deals 16% damage as a stationary slash on the ground, 12% damage as a retreating slash, and 14% damage as an advancing slash or a stationary slash in the air.
  • Custom 2: Swift Teleport - This variant is closer to Pikachu and Greninja’s up specials. Gallade will teleport much faster and farther than the other two variants, but he will not attack on the 2nd reappearance. He will execute the X-attack so fast that it will do no damage at all.
I will admit I did have a bit of a hard time coming up with an up special for Gallade. I wanted to go for something more original, but I had a trouble imagining a slash-based attack for recovery. The only real recovery option I could envision for Gallade was Teleport (and it made sense considering I want to show his Psychic aspect to him), but I knew I had to make it less like Mewtwo and Palutena’s. Thus, I eventually settled with a blend of Pikachu/Greninja’s up special and Meta Knight’s down special to create an original spin. If anyone else creates a Gallade moveset, I’m especially interested to see what your ideas are for a bit more original up special for Gallade.

Down Special: Swords Dance
Gallade closes his eyes and readies the blades on his elbows as they emit a metallic glow. He then proceeds to move them around in a circular, hypnotic fashion similar to the scene from the anime when Zoey’s Gallade used it in the Grand Festival. He also moves with graceful leg movements from where he stands. As he moves his arms, a holographic image of a shiny, fancy-looking sword appears on both of Gallade’s sides each time he completes a circle. Gallade will move his arms in circles four times, which means the swords will appear four times. If you press B the moment the swords appear, the swords will appear much brighter than they normally do. Doing so will also increase the power of all of Gallade’s attack for up to 3 seconds with each successful button press. Thus, if you successfully press B at the right moments for all four times the swords appear and you are not interrupted during the duration of the attack, you can have more power in Gallade’s attacks for up to 12 seconds. When the attack finishes, Gallade pauses and opens his eyes as a faint psychic aura is emitted from his body with the generic “healing” sound accompanying it. The entire duration of this attack lasts between 5-6 seconds.

If you break your rhythmic pattern of pressing B or you are interrupted by an enemy’s attack, it will cut the attack short but can still carry the amount of seconds of increased attack power. For example, you managed to get two successful button presses, but by the third time, you are attacked; thus, you will have 6 seconds of better attack power. It is also important to note that if you ruin your rhythmic pattern of pressing B at any point, Gallade will stop and open his eyes automatically, but unlike when you successfully execute press B all four times, Gallade will have a saddened expression that looks a lot like a face he makes in Pokemon Amie if you don’t follow his head movements. You also cannot use this attack during your time of increased power. If you try to do so, Gallade will simply change into an animation where he stands perfectly straight and closes his eyes for a single second.
  • Custom 1: Quick Guard - It has the same animation as Swords Dance, but it does not have the effect of strengthening your attacks. He will also move his arms only once. Much like the normal variant, the holographic swords appear when he completes a circle with his arms. After that, he opens his eyes and returns back to normal. If you press B when the circle completes, the swords will be brighter, Gallade opens his eyes, and a blast of psychic energy is released from his body that can reflect projectiles or turn opponent's around similar to Mario’s Cape. The blast can deal 4% damage if the opponent is up close.
  • Custom 2: Stored Power - It has the same animation as Swords Dance, but here, it works as a counter. Like Quick Guard, Gallade will close his eyes, expand the blades on his elbows as they glow with a metallic color, and move his arms in a single circle, but the swords do not appear when the circle completes. Unlike the other two variants, however, you don’t press the B button at the right moment since this is a counter. When an attack hits Gallade during the animation, the holographic swords appear on both of Gallade’s sides as he automatically opens his eyes, initiating the counter. Then, a powerful blast of psychic energy is emitted from his body. It deals 1.2 times the damage he receives, hitting at 8% minimum much like Marth and Ike's counters.
Final Smash: Mega Gallade - Close Combat

From his neutral stance, Gallade leans forward and performs a quick swipe with one of his elbow blades. The blade is extended and glows red, and as it swipes, the blade emits an added red effect that extends as far as the mat Greninja uses for his Final Smash. If no opponent is caught within Gallade’s blade or the added red effect, the attack automatically ends. However, if Gallade catches anyone within the range, the screen suddenly turns bright. A cinematic Final Smash is about to take place!

In a POV camera angle, the opponent suddenly finds his/herself in the middle of a field of flowers that looks exactly like the battle location where you fought Wally in Pokemon OmegaRuby/AlphaSapphire. The opponent turns around and notices Gallade Mega-Evolving in the distance. The scene changes as we zoom in on Gallade’s Mega Evolution. Once the process is complete, Gallade releases his cape to the side much like the same animation in OR/AS. He then dashes toward the opponent at blinding speed as he extends the blades on both his arms. Once he reaches the opponent, he proceeds to furiously slash the opponent with all his might as red, psychic energy is emitted from each slash.

After about 3 second of slashing, Gallade performs a powerful uppercut that launches the opponent up to the sky. If multiple opponents have been caught in the Final Smash, each opponent will find themselves beneath the other opponent in a stack formation. Gallade then teleports to the sky and performs a kick that causes the opponent (or more) to bounce off the ground. Gallade then jumps very high, twirls, and performs a very powerful X-slash with both of his arms, finishing the cinematic attack as the opponent is launched incredibly far with very high damage (leading to a OHKO most of the time); the final attack Gallade performs looks similar to the final attack he uses in his Mega Evolution anime special (takes place between 0:43 and 0:46 in the video). Once the attack finishes, Gallade reverts back to his normal form.
The starting slash deals 0 damage, but when the cinematic Final Smashes takes place, the first series of slashes deal 1% damage, with the final slash dealing 10% damage. The kick deals 5% damage, and the following bounce delivers another 5% damage. The final X-slash deals 10% damage.

Taunts:

Up Taunt: He stands straight and puts both hands of his hips and makes a proud grunt. This is meant to match one of his Mega Evolution animations from the games.


Gallade's up taunt would look similar to this animation.

Side Taunt: He mimics one of his Mega Evolution animations where his eyes turn angrier as he changes to a sort of “Fight Me!” stance by curling his hands in front of him while making a determined sound.


Gallade's side taunt would look something like this; just imagine the normal Gallade doing it instead of the Mega.

Down Taunt: He mimics his Diamond/Pearl entrance animation where he moves both arms at the same time (one arm is in front of his body, the other behind him) and extends the blades on his elbows before returning to his neutral stance.

Victory Animations:

1) He performs three slashes as he moves towards the camera. He kneels down in a knightly fashion on the third slash and stares at the camera with a heroic expression.

2) He reaches both of his hands towards the sky as he closes his eyes. Once his wrists intersect, he moves his arms toward his left side. Once his arms are at the level of his head, he performs a single slash and maintains that stance while staring at the camera.

3) He bows towards the camera with one arm by his side and the other on his chest; it looks similar to his bow before you play with him in Pokemon Amie. Upon finishing the bow, he stares at the camera with a smile on his face. If you look closely, you can see that he is holding Wally’s Mega Pendant from Pokemon OmegaRuby/Alpha Sapphire. Yes, this victory animation and his Final Smash is supposed to hint that this is Wally’s Gallade that is fighting in Smash Bros (similar to how it is hinted that the Smash Bros Lucario is the one from the 8th Pokemon movie).

For his losing animation, he claps with both hands in front of him with a happy expression on his face.

One idea I had for his victory theme, aside from a snipet of the Pokemon main theme like all the other Pokemon have, would be a small sample from Wally’s battle music in Victory Road. You can listen to it here. It's pretty epic, and it would further hint that the Gallade in Smash Bros is Wally's Gallade.
I'll try Gallade, one of favorite Fighting-types!

Gallade has mostly average run speed (around Mario), but slightly above average air mobility (very slightly). His attacks are generally strong (like Link), and fairly quick. Has the ability Steadfast, which if he ever flinches to a weak hit, his speed (ground and air) increases by 10%.

U-special - Aerial Ace: A quick upwards slice in the air, similar to Simon and Richter's uppercut. Great for off the top KOs, and has decent vertical and horizontal distance due to the to angle the direction, but Gallade is left vulnerable if he misses.

N-special - Psycho Cut: A far-reaching horizontal slash in front of Gallade. However, it can be charged as well, and damages opponents who get too close to him. It KOs fairly easily when fully charged (think of Marth's Shield Breaker for instance) and can still keep opponents away at low percent, but has a bit of endlag (couple of additional frames, perhaps) in order to prevent spamming.

S-special - Night Slash: A slash with a dark effect added to it. Has a unique critical hit effect, in which it has almost enough launch power to one-hit KO, but has a 1-in-20 chance of happening. Quicker than Psycho Cut, but slightly weaker.

D-special - Swords Dance: Gallade hold out his hands above his head, and does a chant to summon a clanking group of swords (later SD animation reference). Raises damage values by 20% for 15 seconds. However, charging takes three seconds, and it must be uninterrupted, or the Swords Dance only raises damage values by 5%.

Final Smash - Final Duel: This is original material, being a mix of two moves. Gallade transforms into Mega Gallade dashes across the stage (going through opponents through the stage), and if he hits anybody during the dash, they are sent to a regular route (with ample space), and Gallade first uses Psycho Cut on opponents at high speed for a few seconds, then unleashes Close Combat for the KO.

Gallade is only male, as that's how it is in Pokémon. I won't get started on Gardevoir though.

Additional Ideas

Here is where additional ideas regarding Gallade in Smash Bros will be posted. These ideas can include Boxing Ring titles, Palutena's Guidance conversations (while unlikely, it is still fun to toy with nonetheless), reveal trailer ideas, trophy descriptions, Kirby hat ideas, etc. You can find some of my ideas below to get you started. If more people provide ideas of own, I will be more than willing to split apart the additional ideas category to several categories of their own. Even I will contribute with some more ideas over time.

Gallade: The Psychic Swordsman

Accurately sums up Gallade in a nutshell.
We first see the flaming Smash Bros logo like all of the other reveal trailers.


The trailer uses the same 3D animation present in Villager's, Megaman's, Wii Fit Trainer's, Rosalina's, Greninja's, Duck Hunt's, and Bowser Jr.'s trailers. It begins with the front view of the Kalos Pokemon League from the outside. The setting is nighttime, complete with a scenic, starry sky similar to the nighttime background there in Pokemon X/Y. The camera then zooms into the building as we see a battle taking place between Ike, Lucas, and Ganondorf in the main room of the Pokemon League. The Smash Bros remix of Champion Cynthia's theme starts playing.

At 0:03 of Cynthia's theme, the camera spins around in a circle that mimics the angle and movement of the Hall of Fame presentation in the 6th generation games. Ike and Lucas have determined expressions on their faces, while Ganondorf chuckles villainously with an evil smile on his face. At 0:08 of the theme, Ike has the first move and uses his Dash Attack, but Ganondorf dodges it. Lucas uses PK Freeze, but Ganondorf crouches and rolls away to avoid the icy blast. Ganondorf tries to ambush Ike from behind, but Ike quickly perceives the incoming attack and uses a slash that is blocked by the armor on Ganondorf's wrist. Ganondorf manages to move the sword away from him with considerable force, causing Ike to jump back a certain distance. We then see Lucas running, and he jumps into the air and uses PK Fire. The fire hits Ganondorf and causes him to fall back.

At 0:28 of Cynthia's theme, we return to the front view of the Kalos Pokemon League as we see two shadowed figures standing in front of the Pokemon League. The doors at the front entrance are closed, but you can hear the noises from the battle taking place from the outside. At 0:33 of the theme, we see one of the shadowed figures up close from behind, but the figure is still shadowed. This figure is actually Wally with his OmegaRuby/AlphaSapphire design, as you can tell just by looking at the hairstyle, and the figure standing next to him is his Gallade. Of course, the trailer doesn't reveal Wally yet; the same with Gallade. The unnamed trainer turns to the figure standing beside him and tells him to go inside.

?????: "It's time. Go in there and show the world what we are really capable of!"

The second shadowed figure (a.k.a. Gallade) jumps high into the air and follows with a quick teleport to reach the nearest roof. The second shadowed figure starts to run and vanishes behind the the roof (since the camera is showing this from a lower angle). Again, the figure is obscured in a way that doesn't make it too obvious who it is yet, though only the Pokemon fans will recognize it straight away.

At 0:38 of Cynthia's theme, we return to the battle taking place inside. We see where the battle left of as Ganondorf gets up and notices Ike charging towards him with Quick Draw. Ganondorf negates Ike's attack with a powerful kick, and the two proceed to clash with a series of brief ut fierce attacks against each other. Ganondorf uses a lot of shadowy, physical attacks, while Ike uses powerful sword movements. The fierce clashing stops when Ganondorf successfully uses his Up Tilt to hit Ike. Ike is then sent blasting out of the building, breaking the roof directly above Ganondorf and Lucas. Lucas looks up at the ceiling with concern and turns his attention to Ganondorf, who is also staring at Lucas while laughing evilly.

At 0:48 of Cynthia’s theme, we return to the shadowed figure that is running on top of the Kalos Pokemon League roof. We see the shadowed figure’s legs, followed with the back of the figure (still shadowed) as the camera turns in a way that follows the figure as it runs into the distance. At 0:51 of the theme, we have a POV shot from the shadowed figure’s perspective as we see Ike blasting out of the roof in the distance (you can hear his star KO scream during this scene as well). At 0:53 of Cynthia’s theme, the next clips shows the shadowed figure’s elbows extending, getting ready to intervene.

At 0:55 of Cynthia’s theme, we revisit the battle taking place between Lucas and Ganondorf. Lucas uses PK Thunder, but Ganondorf shields himself by the time it reaches him. Immediately following the shield, Ganondorf begins to prepare his Wizard’s Foot attack. With little to no options left, Lucas looks with worry (but doesn’t cry like he does in the Subspace Emissary) and begins to prepare for the worst while Ganondorf evilly smirks.

At 1:08 of Cynthia’s theme, we have another POV shot from the shadowed figure as he closes in on the hole created from Ike launching out of the battlefield. Once the figure reaches the hole, it jumps inside as we now see a POV shot of the figure falling down, with Ganondorf and Lucas present on the bottom. When the figure gets close to Ganondorf, Ganondorf looks up with surprise as the camera suddenly changes to show Lucas closing his eyes in fear with gritted teeth as we hear powerful attacks being delivered onto Ganondorf. We then see Ganondorf getting smashed into the wall, knocked out and stuck within it, at the 1:14 of Cynthia’s theme.

It’s at this point the theme stops playing. With all of the powerful attacks finished, Lucas looks up as his expression turns into surprise. The camera zooms out as we now see the chest of the figure that defeated Ganondorf and saved Lucas. We then see the figure from behind as it stands up and turns around to face Lucas. It’s at this point the figure is revealed to be Gallade (specifically Wally’s)! With a smile on his face, Gallade nods to Lucas. The camera changes angles again as he turns around and run towards Ganondorf. Gallade’s arms begin to glow with purple energy as he dashes forward and delivers two powerful slashes. The moment the second slash is delivered, Gallade’s splash card comes into view!

Gallade
Tears into Battle!

It’s at this point the Team Flare Smash Bros remix starts playing.

We now begin to see gameplay footage of Gallade. We first see Gallade land from a teleport in the middle of the Pokemon Stadium 2 stage. Gallade dashes forward as we now see some footage of Gallade taking out fighters with a few of his attacks. At 0:13 of the Team Flare theme, we are introduced to Gallade’s special moveset. We first see his normal special, Psycho Cut, and its two variants. We first see the close-ranged variant as he uses three psychic slashes on Marth. Then, Gallade jumps back and uses the ranged variant as it releases a projectile consisting of a blade of psychic energy released from his arm.

We then see Gallade’s side special, Power-Up Punch. Gallade uses the move about three times in a row, each punch hitting different opponents with the next opponent being launched farther back to demonstrate its increasing power with each successful attack. After hitting the final opponent with third Power-Up Punch, Gallade does on of his taunts (when he stands perfectly straight and puts both hands on his hips).

At 0:24 of Team Flare’s theme, we see Gallade using his up special, Teleport. The first time we see it is Gallade using it to dodge Robin’s Final Smash (when Chrom charges in). We see Gallade teleport into the air above him before disappearing again. We then see Gallade using the attack from the up special as he ambushes Robin from behind. The next footage shows Gallade using his up special for recovery, revealing that his recovery move works similar to Pikachu and Greninja’s up specials.

At 0:29 of the theme, we learn about Gallade’s down special, Swords Dance. Gallade begins to move his arms around in a circular, hypnotic fashion as he also begins to gracefully move his legs from where he stands, with holographic swords appearing on both of his sides each time he completes a circle. The trailer assumes the player performed the attack perfectly, as the next footage shows Gallade rushing toward Zero Suit Samus with a series of attacks finishing with his side smash. All of the attacks used on her are meant to demonstrate the increase of strength created from the down special.

At 0:35 of Team Flare’s theme, we see more footage of Gallade’s attacks. We first see all of his smash attacks, followed with some of his aerial attacks, tilt attacks, and throws. At 0:46 of the The Team Flare theme, the track abruptly jumps to the 1:09 mark as we know see Gallade taking some of the big-shot Pokemon like Lucario, Greninja, and Mewtwo with some of his combos. At 1:19 of the theme, we see more gameplay footage of Gallade’s moveset, this time complete with some funny footage with his other taunts shown. One of the scenes shows Gallade dodging Samus’s normal special by rolling into a barrier created by Gardevoir, causing the energy ball to be reflected and KOing Samus.

At 1:40 of the Team Flare theme, we are introduced to Gallade’s Final Smash: Close Combat! Gallade performs a powerful swipe with an extended red-lining. The swipe catches Rosalina and Captain Falcon, and the camera suddenly brightens, revealing Gallade’s Final Smash is a cinematic one. We see a POV shot from one of the caught fighters finding themselves in the same flower field where you fought Wally in Pokemon OmegaRuby/AlphaSapphire. The camera turns to the side as we see Gallade Mega Evolving in the distance. The camera zooms in as we see Gallade complete his Mega Evolution and move his cape to the side just like that same animation from the games. The camera Gallade then charges forward with blinding speed as he begins to furiously slash at Rosalina and Captain Falcon (the camera no longer uses the POV shot at this point). Gallade then finishes his furious slashing with a slashing uppercut that sends Rosalina and Captain Falcon up to the sky. Gallade then teleports up to their location and uses a powerful kick to send them bouncing off the ground. After this, Gallade lands and jumps back with a small twirl. He then finishes off Rosalina and Captain Falcon with a powerful X-slash using both of his arms. At that point, the cinematic Final Smash ends as Captain Falcon and Rosalina are sent flying off the stage and getting KOd.

At 1:47 where the theme loops, the theme abruptly ends as we now see the Smash Bros title card similar to how some of the reveal trailers end.

The final footage returns to the same 3D-style footage previously used for the battle between Ike, Lucas, and Ganondorf. We now have a complete change of scenes where we see an open meadow. Gallade can be seen walking up from behind and a hill and looking out on the horizon. He then thinks about Lucas as we see a faded-out flashback of Gallade saving him from Ganondorf’s attack. Gallade closes his eyes with a smile as we another faded-out flashback of a POV shot of Gallade, when he was a Ralts, looking up at Wally (with his OmegaRuby/AlphaSapphire design) as he walks through the grass in Route 102.

Just as we are about to see Wally’s head, the flashback stops as we suddenly hear a voice cry out to him. Gallade opens his eyes, and the camera turns toward the direction of the voice as we learn it is coming from Wally, who is walking up towards Gallade. It is also revealed that Wally was the other shadowed figure that ordered Gallade to intervene in the battle at the Kalos Pokemon League during the trailer.

Wally: "Hey, Gallade, wait for me!”

Gallade turns around; he approaches Wally and pats him on the head with a happy expression on his face. Wally expresses his thanks.

Wally: “Aw shucks, you don’t have to do that. I know you did amazing yesterday!”

Wally and Gallade then stare out at the horizon as we see a shot of a scenic landscape ahead. Wally speaks one last time during this scene.

Wally: This is just the beginning. Even bigger challenges and wonders await us, but I believe we will come out on top in the end!"

The trailer finally ends with the typical ending screen.

Additional notes
  • Ike, Lucas, and Ganondorf each represents the various aspects that make up Gallade. Ike represents the idea that Gallade is a sword-fighter; Lucas, with his psychic powers, represents Gallade's Psychic-typing, and Ganondorf, with his large array of physical attacks, represents Gallade's Fighting-type. Each of these characters also didn't have any prominent roles in past reveal trailers, hence why I picked each of them for Gallade's reveal trailer
  • In this trailer, Wally would be voiced by Yuri Lowenthal. Keeping Ricken (a character from Fire Emblem Awakening who is also voiced by Lowenthal) in mind, his voice fits Wally the most if you ask me.
  • This trailer can also work without Wally. Just remove any of the dialogue and the closing segment following the Smash Bros title card.
  • The point of Gallade thinking about Lucas and Wally in the final scene is supposed to indicate the similarities. Both initially start out as very timid individuals, but over the course of their adventures, they gain more confidence and bravery.
Pit: "Um, Lady Palutena, you didn't tell me there's a secret agent in your army."

Palutena: "What makes you think that, Pit?"

Pit: "My current opponent. He's got a different helmet on, and it looks like wings coming out on the sides of his head. He even looks like someone who handles a battle differently from all the Centurions."

Palutena: "Oh, him? We don't have any secret agents in my army, and that individual isn't one himself. That's Gallade, the Blade Pokemon, and a dual Psychic and Fighting type. Gallade is a master of courtesy and swordsmanship, and fights his foes by extending the swords on his elbows."

Pit: "You don't mean-"

Palutena: "Yes, Gallade is a dual-wielder who can use psychic powers such as teleportation and mind reading."

Pit: "Uh-oh! Anything else I should know about?"

Palutena: "Gallade has a wide array of moves he can utilize. He can attack you like you're in a sword duel, or he could fight you up close with physical-based moves. One of his signature attacks is Psycho Cut. He can either slash you up close with his arm blades powered by psychic energy, or he can use those same arm blades to release a blade of psychic energy as a projectile.

Viridi: "Are we talking about Gallade? Well, he does have a very cool Mega Evolution where he gains a more knightly appearance, complete with a set of capes and longer elbow blades! As you are swoon away by his radiant figure, he proceeds to demonstrate the psychic knight he really is to finish you off!"

Pit: "..."

Viridi: "Ah, I just wish I was a Gardevoir so that Gallade would pick me up by his arms and carry me away in the most romantic way possible."

Pit: "Seriously, Viridi?

Viridi: "What, don't you ever imagine yourself as a Pokemon, Pit?"

Pit: "Something tells me you're rooting for Gallade in this battle."

Viridi: "Am not!"

Pit: "Alright, whatever you say."
Gallade:
The Psychic/Fighting-type Blade Pokemon makes his way into Smash Bros! Gallade is a master of courtesy and swordsmanship that fights by using his extendable elbow swords and can even sense what his foe is thinking. In Smash Bros, Gallade demonstrates this with various slash attacks and psychic abilities.

Appears in:
Pokemon Diamond/Pearl (04/2007)
Pokemon OmegaRuby/AlphaSapphire (11/2014)

Gallade (Alt.):
Gallade's Psycho Cut move has two variants. When used at close range, Gallade will attack with three psychic-powered slashes w/ rhythmic button presses. At far range, he releases a blade of Psychic energy as a projectile. With its solid distance and surprise attack, Gallade's Teleport up special can work for both recovery and ambush.

Appears in:
Pokemon Diamond/Pearl (04/2007)
Pokemon OmegaRuby/AlphaSapphire (11/2014)

Close Combat:
Gallade's Final Smash starts with Gallade performing a powerful psychic slash. Anyone caught within it suddenly themselves in a beautiful flower field... only to find Gallade Mega Evolving in the distance! Then, Gallade dashes forward and furiously slashes his opponents, finishing with a powerful X-Slash that will surely lead to a KO!

*Note: These trophy descriptions are based around Erureido's moveset idea for Gallade, with the release dates based around the North American releases of the listed games). Trophy art will be added later, so stay tuned.
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If you want to show others that you are among Gallade's supporters, you can pick out a banner that you can add to your signature. I created one of my mine just to get this started. If you are wondering how I created it, I used Smash WiiU's art software that you can access in the album mode; then, I re-sized it on my computer so that it can fit into a signature space. Admittedly, it's not perfect, but hey, it still works! If you have any banner ideas of your own, fill free to share it in this thread and I'll add it to the OP.


Banner #1: Large size for the premium signature size


Banner #2: Small size for the normal signature size

Supporters

Gallade's Squires of the Round Table
Erureido
Yomi's Biggest Fan
Aussie the Shinobi
Rider Gwen
Velvet Rebirth
Iridium
RealPokeFan11
ZephZag
Tonnyboi
If you want to be added to the supporter list and become one of Gallade's Squires of the Round Table (a fun title I came up with for Gallade supporters), all you have to do is leave the OP a like, or leave a comment in this thread that expresses your support in some way, whether it'd be you'd love, like, or don't mind to see Gallade in Smash.


Release your capes, draw your blades, and dash forward to join Gallade's Squires of the Round Table today!


 
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Yomi's Biggest Fan

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I support. I always found this Pokemon a cool Special Attack attacker.

That reminds me, I really need to raise my Ralts to finally get me a decent Gallade on my team.
 

Erureido

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I support. I always found this Pokemon a cool Special Attack attacker.

That reminds me, I really need to raise my Ralts to finally get me a decent Gallade on my team.
Special Attacker? Is that a typo, or did you find a way to turn Gallade into a neat special sweeper?

Anyways, added you to the supporter list. Welcome aboard the Gallade support train! I'm happy to have my first supporter on the Smash Switch scene!

And definitely consider raising that Ralts when you have the chance. Gallade doesn't disappoint in battle. You can even pair him up with Bisharp, and the two arm-blade Pokemon will cover each other's weaknesses perfectly!
 

Yomi's Biggest Fan

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Special Attacker? Is that a typo, or did you find a way to turn Gallade into a neat special sweeper?

Anyways, added you to the supporter list. Welcome aboard the Gallade support train! I'm happy to have my first supporter on the Smash Switch scene!

And definitely consider raising that Ralts when you have the chance. Gallade doesn't disappoint in battle. You can even pair him up with Bisharp, and the two arm-blade Pokemon will cover each other's weaknesses perfectly!
Possibly a mistake on my part. Gardevior excels at having better Special Attack than him. He's more of a Physical character looking at his stats. But hey, at least he knows Psycho Cut, one of the best Psychic Type moves of all time. :laugh:

That's great can't wait to make him evolve myself. I miss my old Bisharp. Haven't kept my old Pokemon Black copy, thus I wasn't lucky enough to save it for Pokemon X. Not sure if I can find one in the wild for Omega Ruby, there are plenty of Pokemon I'm digging up on the Mirage Locations. It was definitely worth it to get Girafarig and Donphan.
 

AwesomeAussie27

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I love Gallade as much as I love Gardevior. Both are Pokemon with their own strengths and abilities. For me, it's one of the few Gen 4 evolutions to a pre-gen Pokemon that really impressed me (Froslass for Snowrunt being another good one) with its design and abilities.

It may be a little bleak, but I'm all for seeing it get another time to shine after he missed the boat for Pokken. Add me Eru.

Possibly a mistake on my part. Gardevior excels at having better Special Attack than him. He's more of a Physical character looking at his stats. But hey, at least he knows Psycho Cut, one of the best Psychic Type moves of all time. :laugh:

That's great can't wait to make him evolve myself. I miss my old Bisharp. Haven't kept my old Pokemon Black copy, thus I wasn't lucky enough to save it for Pokemon X. Not sure if I can find one in the wild for Omega Ruby, there are plenty of Pokemon I'm digging up on the Mirage Locations. It was definitely worth it to get Girafarig and Donphan.
Silly Yomi. You should know he's part Fighting Type. Making him a physical fighter over a special one despite being able to learn some good psychic moves beforehand. Maybe you'll learn after you get the feel of him.

Your only chance of getting Pawniard or Bisharp was trading a Jigglypuff in Snowbelle City (Get 6). if you didn't do that, your only chance is trading for one online. Good luck funding something of value to trade with.
 

Yomi's Biggest Fan

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Please excuse the ****y phone quality, but I finally got me a Gallade. He's currently level 20 at the moment, but there's still time to give him the proper training.



I still need to work on my Gardevior however.

With the upcoming Pokemon Direct, how much you bet we would get a sequel to Pokken with more fighters?
 

Erureido

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Please excuse the ****y phone quality, but I finally got me a Gallade. He's currently level 20 at the moment, but there's still time to give him the proper training.



I still need to work on my Gardevior however.

With the upcoming Pokemon Direct, how much you bet we would get a sequel to Pokken with more fighters?
Nice! Gallade will not disappoint. Hopefully, Gamefreak will release his Mega Stone soon for the Sun and Moon players, and once it does come out, that's where you'll see Gallade truly shine.

Regarding the Pokemon Direct, I guess Pokken news is a possibility, but I don't know if this would be a sequel. It's only been one year since it was released on consoles, and two years since it came out on the arcades. I think a port of Pokken 1 would be more likely for now, and said port will probably include all of those extra fighters added in the arcades like Darkrai, Empoleon, Croagunk, and Scizor as well as some new fighters. Pokken 2 feels more likely to be revealed next year at the earliest, assuming they don't plan on taking too long-of-a-gap similar to what the Tekken series does.

If we do get more fighters, no doubt I'd love to see Gallade in that game, though what seems to hold him back from joining right away is that Scizor has a pretty similar moveset to what Gallade would do. If Gallade were stand out in Pokken, he would most likely have to emphasize his use of Psycho Cut and psychic powers like teleportation.
 

Yomi's Biggest Fan

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I called it, Pokken Switch is real as it gets.

Now to hope we get new characters.
 

AwesomeAussie27

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I called it, Pokken Switch is real as it gets.

Now to hope we get new characters.
The only new character is Decidueye with the four missing arcade additions.

And I doubt this port could have DLC. I'd like for Namco to prove me wrong.
 

Erureido

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I think it's time to use a Max Revive, if that is alright.

Well, fellow squires! This was revealed today!


Smash Switch is finally official, and it's coming in 2018! The Smash Speculation/Supporting scene is returning!

I know Gallade's still aren't looking good, especially with the prospect of generation 7 or even 8 rep, but I want to let everyone know that I still support him for Smash, and with today's news, my interest in seeing my favorite Pokemon in the game has come back full circle!

So for this first revival, I'd figure we can try to create some discussion.

Let's say Gallade was added to Smash. What stage do you think he'd come with? Any particular location from the Pokemon series in mind?
 

Velvet Rebirth

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You know what throw me on that support list. I'm not very partial to any new Pokemon characters coming to the game, but I'd much prefer one I like over one that's relevant.
 
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Iridium

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Here's my support! I know you have seen this moveset:

I'll try Gallade, one of favorite Fighting-types!

Gallade has mostly average run speed (around Mario), but slightly above average air mobility (very slightly). His attacks are generally strong (like Link), and fairly quick. Has the ability Steadfast, which if he ever flinches to a weak hit, his speed (ground and air) increases by 10%.

U-special - Aerial Ace: A quick upwards slice in the air, similar to Simon and Richter's uppercut. Great for off the top KOs, and has decent vertical and horizontal distance due to the to angle the direction, but Gallade is left vulnerable if he misses.

N-special - Psycho Cut: A far-reaching horizontal slash in front of Gallade. However, it can be charged as well, and damages opponents who get too close to him. It KOs fairly easily when fully charged (think of Marth's Shield Breaker for instance) and can still keep opponents away at low percent, but has a bit of endlag (couple of additional frames, perhaps) in order to prevent spamming.

S-special - Night Slash: A slash with a dark effect added to it. Has a unique critical hit effect, in which it has almost enough launch power to one-hit KO, but has a 1-in-20 chance of happening. Quicker than Psycho Cut, but slightly weaker.

D-special - Swords Dance: Gallade hold out his hands above his head, and does a chant to summon a clanking group of swords (later SD animation reference). Raises damage values by 20% for 15 seconds. However, charging takes three seconds, and it must be uninterrupted, or the Swords Dance only raises damage values by 5%.

Final Smash - Final Duel: This is original material, being a mix of two moves. Gallade transforms into Mega Gallade dashes across the stage (going through opponents through the stage), and if he hits anybody during the dash, they are sent to a regular route (with ample space), and Gallade first uses Psycho Cut on opponents at high speed for a few seconds, then unleashes Close Combat for the KO.

Gallade is only male, as that's how it is in Pokémon. I won't get started on Gardevoir though.
 

Erureido

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Here's my support! I know you have seen this moveset:
Welcome aboard the Gallade support train! Glad to have you aboard!

I've added your special moveset idea to the OP as well. You've got some great ideas! Aerial Ace as Gallade's up special suits Gallade well and stays true to his arm-blade fighting style, and Swords Dance looks like a solid charging move.
 

RileyXY1

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Guys, the Smash playlist has just been updated. Also, the new tag on the fighters section has been removed. I think we might be getting a new character soon.
 
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Erureido

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Guys, the Smash playlist has just been updated. Also, the new tag on the fighters section has been removed. I think we might be getting a new character soon.
Seems like Sakurai could be planning one more Smash Direct that will have those one-two newcomer reveals, or it could be like how Robin was revealed in Smash 4 where the character got a reveal trailer on a random day and not during the Direct.

While I'd love for the newcomer reveal to be Gallade, I'm very doubtful it'll be him. It's probably Incineroar if those recent rumors are anything to go by.
 

RileyXY1

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Seems like Sakurai could be planning one more Smash Direct that will have those one-two newcomer reveals, or it could be like how Robin was revealed in Smash 4 where the character got a reveal trailer on a random day and not during the Direct.

While I'd love for the newcomer reveal to be Gallade, I'm very doubtful it'll be him. It's probably Incineroar if those recent rumors are anything to go by.
Rumors are just that: rumors. There's a good chance that Vergeben gets something wrong.
 

Erureido

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Gardevoir is a Poke Ball Pokemon again.
I'm not surprised. She's been Poke Ball summon for the past two Smash titles, and even if she has become more popular with her mega and her fame in generation 6, she hasn't had any sort of major relevancy this generation.

With Gardevoir as a Poke Ball summon again, that just means Gallade once again has the higher chance of becoming playable. I'm doubtful we'll be seeing any more Pokemon as DLC following Incineroar's reveal (perhaps a generation 8 Pokemon is possible, but even that doesn't seem completely likely to me), so I think Gallade's chances are still low. However, I'm still supporting him nonetheless.
 

ZephZag

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My god, I've always wanted Gallade in Smash, he would be such a perfect fit and probably be super fun to play. Full support!
 

RileyXY1

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I could see Gallade getting added as possible Sinnoh remake promotion, as Gallade is one of the more popular Gen 4 Pokemon not counting Lucario.
 

Erureido

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Been a while since there was a post on this thread, but I figured I'd post here to say that today is a very special day:


Yep, it's already been 15 years since Pokemon Diamond and Pearl first released. Not only were these the games that started the 4th generation of Pokemon, but it also makes Gallade's 15th anniversary of his existence. Diamond and Pearl were the games Gallade made his debut in after all.

So I guess you can say Happy 15th Birthday Gallade!

The remakes will release in two months from now, and as the recent BDSP footage from the last trailer and the Pokemon Direct showed, Gallade is obtainable in BDSP!

Thus, you could say Gallade has regained relevancy thanks to the soon-to-release remakes of Diamond and Pearl!

Well, with the final Smash Ultimate fighter set to be revealed (and likely be released) on October 5th, Gallade's chances aren't very high compared to other characters, but boy, imagine if that one-in-a-million chance Gallade is revealed as the final Smash Ultimate fighter to tie in with that Pokemon BDSP promotion: it will certainly be a momentous day for us Gallade squires!
 
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