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King Leonidas
Universe
Debut
300 (2006)
Appears in
Smash Bros. Lawl
Availability
Starter
Nationality
Greekflag
Playstyle
Offensive
Weight class
Medium-heavy
Representation
Spear and Shield
D (31)

Leonidas

Character Description[]

According to Herodotus, Leonidas' mother was his father's niece and had been barren for so long that the ephors, the five annually elected administrators of the Spartan constitution, tried to prevail upon King Anaxandridas to set aside his wife and take another. Anaxandridas refused, claiming his wife was blameless, whereupon the ephors agreed to allow him to take a second wife without setting aside his first. This second wife, a descendent of Chilon the Wise, promptly bore a son, Cleomenes. However, one year after Cleomenes' birth, Anaxandridas' first wife also gave birth to a son, Dorieus. Leonidas was the third son of Anaxandridas' first wife, and either the elder brother or twin of Cleombrotus.[3] Because Leonidas was not heir to the throne, he was not exempt from attending the agoge, the public school that the sons of all Spartans had to complete in order to qualify for citizenship.[4] Leonidas was thus one of the few Spartan kings to have ever undergone the notoriously harsh training of Spartan youth.

Cleomenes succeeded to his father's throne somewhere between 520 and 516 BCE.[5] Dorieus was so outraged that the Spartans had preferred his half-brother over himself that he found it impossible to remain in Sparta. He made one unsuccessful attempt to set up a colony in Africa and, when this failed, sought his fortune in Sicily, where after initial successes he was killed.[6] Leonidas' relationship with his bitterly antagonistic elder brothers is unknown, but he married Cleomenes' daughter, Gorgo sometime before coming to the throne in 490 BCE.[7]

Leonidas was clearly heir to the Agiad throne and a full citizen at the time of the Battle of Sepeia against Argos (c. 494 BC). Likewise, he was a full citizen when the Persians sought submission from Sparta and met with vehement rejection in or around 492/491 BCE. His elder brother the king had already been deposed on grounds of purported insanity, and had fled into exile when Athens sought assistance against the Persian invasion that ended at Marathon (490 BCE).

Plutarch has recorded the following: "When someone said to him: 'Except for being king you are not at all superior to us,' Leonidas son of Anaxandridas and brother of Cleomenes replied: 'But were I not better than you, I should not be king.'"[8] As the product of the agoge, Leonidas is unlikely to have been referring to his royal blood alone but rather suggesting that he had, like his brother Dorieus, proven superior capability in the competitive environment of Spartan training and society, and that he believed this made him qualified to rule.

Leonidas was chosen to lead the combined Greek forces determined to resist the Persian invasion in 481 BCE. This was not simply a tribute to Sparta's military prowess: The probability that the coalition wanted Leonidas personally for his capability as a military leader is underlined by the fact that just two years after his death, the coalition preferred Athenian leadership to the leadership of either Leotychidas or Leonidas' successor (as regent for his still under-aged son) Pausanias. The rejection of Leotychidas and Pausanias was not a reflection on Spartan arms. Sparta's military reputation had never stood in higher regard. Nor was Sparta less powerful in 478 BCE than it had been in 481 BCE.

This election of Leonidas to lead the defense of Greece against Xerxes' invasion led to Leonidas' death in the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BCE.

Trophy Description[]

This tournament swarms with kings, the honor of whole countries at stake for 1 on 1 fights... not including this one wouldh've been such a blasphemy! The honor for his land has already been defended in very crazy ways... Well with his shieldwhile-walking approximation tech, one can understand 300 Spartans slaughtering thousands of Persians! Not to mention the spear throwing, which will force those lazy asses to the Spartan way! We know this is madness, but as long as he's here to deny it, THIS IS SPARTA!

Moveset[]

Ground attacks[]

Attack Description Damage
Neutral attack Hit with his sword, again by hit with his sword and do Combo with his sword; A clone of Link's Neutral-A combo from Super Smash Bros. Brawl.
Down tilt Attacks with the butt of his spear. Meteor-smashes airborne opponents.
Down smash Sticks spear into the ground with both hands. The very tip of the the hitbox is a meteor smash, making this attack good for edge-guarding.
Forward tilt Stabs with his sword.
Forward smash Smashes opponents with his shield. Has high-priority and amazing knockback, but also has high end lag.
Up tilt Uses his spear to jab diagonally upward. Has a large, disjointed hitbox and hitstun. Also deals extra damage to shields.
Up smash
Dash attack Buffets outward with his shield.

Aerial attack[]

Attack Description Damage
Neutral aerial Spins his spear. It's a semi-spike, and stalls his falling for 4 frames of the attack.
Forward aerial
Back aerial-
Up aerial
Down aerial Falls straight downward with his spear. As Sonic's D-air from Brawl, but a portion of the hitbox is disjointed.

Grab and throw[]

Attack Description Damage
Grab Reaches out a grasps with his shield-arm. N/A
Pummel
Forward throw Kicks the enemy's gut, like a mini-FS.
Back throw
Up throw Flings upwards with both hands, then throws a spear upward.
Down throw Swings enemy over his head and slams them into the ground.

Other attacks[]

Attack Description Damage
Floor attack
Trip attack
Ledge attack

Special moves[]

Attack Name Description
Standard special Spartan Spear Leonidas throws a spear.
Side special Offense Shield Leonidas tosses his shield with a boomerang effect, which does more damage and knockback than Link's boomerang.
Up special Spartan Jump The king gets a jumping boost from a fellow Spartan. His down aerial attack can be used while in the air.
Down special Drinking Formation Leonidas dons his helmet and gets into a position with his shield in front. He can walk and jump (no double jumps) while in this mode.
Final Smash Spartan Madness Leonidas lets loose a powerful scream of "THIS IS SPARTA!" to stun up to three enemies, and then he kicks them off the stage.

Misc.[]

Misc. Description
On-Screen Appearance Steps out from a crowd of Spartans.
Taunts Up Says "Let's give them something to drink!"
Side Says "You're threatening my people with slavery and death!"
Down Raises his shield.
Idle poses
Victory theme
Victory pose 1 Yells "Tonight, we die in Hell!".
2 The Spartans cheer behind him.
3 Says to the losers, "I am sorry, my friend. But not all of us were made to be soldiers."
Lose pose Stands from a distance.

Role in The Subspace Emissary[]

Leonidas first appears in Sparta when some Shadow Bugs start arriving to his hometown, creating Primids. The king unleashes his fury on a Primid, kicking it down into the abyss. After most of the invading forces are wiped out, Leonidas chases the remnants of the forces. He doesn't realize that a Subspace Bomb was activated at Sparta until the bomb detonates, engulfing the city in darkness. The Spartan King notices that Dr. Robotnik was responsible for the invasion and chases Robotnik towards the cliffs. During the chase, Xerxes summons his Persian Army to ambush Leonidas, but he fails, and Leonidas resumes his chase. Leonidas finally catches Robotnik in a grassy field. Robotnik retaliates by summoning Scratch and Grounder to handle Leonidas while he escapes. The king destroys Grounder (while leaving alone Scratch, who flies off) and continues his journey.

Entering the Persian Forest, Leonidas declares vengeance on his doomed city by slaughtering numerous Persians until he meets the Persian Messenger, who was not happy about their last encounter. After the Persian Messenger's defeat, a trophy of King Harkinian falls from the sky and in front of Leonidas. Leonidas revives the trophy, and the Hylian king realizes that the Spartan king is hunting down the same person who trophied The King earlier (Robotnik). From the meeting, the two kings heed through the burned forest. The kings later meet Xerxes and Robotnik, who summon Persians and Badniks to destroy them. The kings fight off the attackers, forcing the partners in crime to retreat.

In the Final Forest, Leonidas hears Gaston trophying I.M. Meen and charges towards him. Gaston prepares to shoot Leonidas with his Dark Cannon, but the Dark Cannon was destroyed by The King's dinner. Frollo, arriving on time, blocks Leonidas from slicing Gaston with his own sword, and then the four fight. The kings win against Gaston and Frollo and revive I.M. Meen, who joins them on their journey.

Playable appearances[]

Snake Codec[]

Snake: Hey... that's Leonidas isn't it? 

Otacon: Good eye Snake! He's the king of Sparta. He also is the captain of his army. He's got spartans to spare... A force that will kick your butt.

Snake: Tell me more about Leonidas...

Otacon: But you already know him don't you?

Snake: I've just seen his movie.

Otacon: Well, um... He used to be a weakling, but countless trials over the years have toughened him up.

Snake: Yeah I know that... 

Otacon: Yeah, well... The king who fought that epic battle with Xerxes was this guy. 

Snake: That was a long time ago... what about now? Does he get along with Xerxes? 

Otacon: Nope, they're still at it... Seems that they're always competing in something: Bloody Wars... Kart racing, sports... you name it.

Snake: You know... seeing Leonidas here reminds me: We should try that thing we always wanted to try... 

Otacon: Oooh! Yeah! That thing! Good idea! Ok, ready... GO!

Snake: This is Sparta.

Otacon: This is Spartaah...

Snake: Wow... we REALLY suck at this...

Otacon: Yeah...

Gallery[]

Palette swaps[]

Artwork[]

Screenshots[]

Video[]

Trivia[]

  • Along with Billy Mays, Leonidas is the only YouTube Poop character that isn't animated.
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