The Full Metal Jaguar BLADE Captain: Elma [Smash DLC] *No XCX spoilers, please!* 37 Days Until XCX!

[Bebe Mignon]

Who is Elma?
​

Starring from an up-and-coming video game titled Xenoblade Chronicles X (a spiritual sequel to critically acclaimed Xenoblade Chronicles), Elma is a BLADE (abbreviated name for "Builders of the Legacy After the Destruction of Earth", a private military organization) captain and the team leader of the Reclaimer division within the organization. She is one of several main playable characters for the game. Elma is calm, cool, and collected.

An impending battle between two warring alien races over Earth's atmosphere forced humanity to flee in massive ark ships before the planet's imminent destruction. Unfortunately, only a few ark ships made it out alive. As Earth blew up, one of the alien races went on a pursuit after the White Whale. After wandering through outer space for a few years, the aliens managed to get caught up with them and attack the ark ship. The attacking alien race eventually got repelled by an unknown hero. However, massive damage was dealt to the ship so it crash-landed into a nearby planet.

At age 29, Elma as well as the other survivors were marooned on planet Mira. Her general duty is to retrieve survivors from cryogenic stasis pods scattered across planet Mira. She and several other characters strive to help humanity to get back on their feet and rebuild their lives on an alien planet while fighting off both native and nonnative creatures. During the course of the story, Elma is the main character while Cross, the avatar, takes the backseat as a mere observer.

She wields two types of weapons: the Dual Swords which are designed for close-range combats and Dual Guns for long-range combats. Her designated Skell, a mecha robot, is named Wels which can be seen below.

Plus, she is deeply fascinated with cats.

Why should she get in?​

Please take a look at Sakurai's four criteria for choosing a character.

"The character's inclusion must make people want to play the game."

Admittedly, Elma currently does not have a strong following. But that is only because Xenoblade Chronicles X has yet to release in the regions outside of Japan. I imagine once the game hits the western regions, Elma will garner a lot more support. Obviously, including Elma in Smash will help to strengthen the Xenoblade series as a Nintendo brand as we've seen with the Fire Emblem series, for example.

"The character must be unique."

The fact that she has an acrobatic fighting style and can wield two types of interchangeable weapons would make her a very unique addition to the roster. Plus, she'll be the only character with double dual weapons.

"The character must fit into the style of Super Smash Bros."

Xenoblade Chronicles X is a first-party video game, so she should get in with no issues.

"They must contribute to the game balance."

This is something that only Sakurai and the devs can do, but I am sure they can make her a viable Smash character somehow.

How will she fight?​

Elma's fighting style is very unique because not only is she incredibly acrobatic, she can harness two different types of weapons for close and long-ranged combats. Her Dual Swords coupled with her strong acrobatic skills would make her a very deadly character. The Dual Guns could be the weaker counterpart to the Swords, but they would allow Elma to attack from a distance. Her Final Smash could probably consist of her jumping into the Wels and unleashing havoc similar to Fox and Falco's Final Smashes.

What are some potential move-set ideas?​

Bebe Mignon's move-set

Spoiler

[Down Special]
Allows player to switch weapons. Dual Blades and Dual Guns.

[Neutral Special]
Blades: Slashes her blades simultaneously in an "X" formation.
Guns: Shoots a barrage of bullets for a limited amount of time.

[Side Special]
Blades:

Spoiler

Guns: Runs and then slides on her back while shooting her guns.

Spoiler

[Up Special]
Blades:

Spoiler

Guns: Crazy jumping somersaults all while shooting her guns, similar to the .gif above.

What are some potential stage ideas?​

New Los Angeles

NLA is a prominent location that is central to the entire game. It is an expansive urban bubble surrounded by an alien landscape. Due to the large size of the area, the stage would probably fly around the city landing in various spots to showcase the different attractions of NLA.

Primordia

Primordia is basically Xenoblade Chronicles X's counterpart to Gaur Plain from Xenoblade Chronicles. It is a massive continent with several towering rock formations, vast plains, and long coastlines. NLA lies on the southern coast of Primordia.

What are the possible soundtracks to be included?​

Spoiler

THEMEX

The Key We've Lost

And finally, some awesome .gifs below!
​

Spoiler

BLADE Members (aka Support List)​

1. BlueSorrow (original thread creator)
2. R R0Y
3. Pallex
4. GuyWithTheFace
5. Brickbuild101
6. Rie Sonomura
7. Andyjoe522
8. Senatiator
9. Bebe Mignon
10. AEM
11. Weeginji
12. ES. Dinah
13. dezeray112
14. Altais
15. S.F.L.R_9
16. Venus of the Desert Bloom
17. IceAnt573
18. Chaos_Knight
19. TheDarkKnightNoivern
20. Nat Perry
21. Chromvoy
22. Powerman293
23. FeenieTheTrite
24. _Sheik
25. Solfiner
26. jamesster445
27. Solar Crystallization
28. RegiGiygas117
29. AwesomeAussie27

 

[Sabrewulf238]

No.

I love Xenoblade don't get me wrong, but we know so little about Elma....I just can't get enthused at the idea of her being playable in Smash Bros.

I'd take any of the Xenoblade Chronicles main party as playable dlc before Elma.

 

[Deleted member]

...No.

I love Xenoblade Chronicles and I love what they are doing with X, but this really isn't her time. Something rubs me the wrong way about having a character get in Smash who's game isn't released yet. And don't you dare mention Roy.

 

[mini paincakes]

I'm not willing to support this character, especially since her game isn't even out yet. I'm not even sure if she would be the best choice for a character from X. It might be better to choose the avatar character or some other character.

Even when her game comes out, I don't think i'll support her for DLC. There are so many vets, Nintendo icons and 3rd party characters that haven't made it yet. Maybe I'll support her inclusion for smash 5, depending on how things turn out by then.

 

[R0Y]

DLC character after XCX release, believe.

 

[WertQuadNine]

Maybe when we know more about here, we know pretty much nothing.

 

[R0Y]

Maybe when we know more about here, we know pretty much nothing.

Nearly 5 years in development + Monolith Soft.

 

[Pallex]

You all want more Xenoblade Chronicles X footage?

I love how it looks just like a West Coast city but there's always that looming wall in the background, blocking out the reality of the alien world. Such a neat effect and heh "Army Pizza" store. But it's still has a 2015 release window.

 

[Sabrewulf238]

The backyards with the person lounging by the pool totally caught me off guard.

It's like a love child between Xenoblade Chronicles and Grand Theft Auto. I half expected the player to hijack a car while the party was walking down the street.

I think the contrast between the inside of this city and outside the city is going to be really interesting.

 

[ErenJager]

It's a "Spiritual Sequel", is that a thing?

 

[R0Y]

With the protagonist being user-customizable and largely mute, I think Elma will essentially be the main character of XCX:

 

[GuyWithTheFace]

Oh hey, it's Elma! I'll support her for DLC! Why not?

Also noticed that you stole this bit from a blog I help run!

If there were to be a second Xeno character, Riki ain’t a half bad choice! Melia and Spoilers McSpoilerson, AKA Seven, are other top options from Shulk’s party, but if the Xeno series were lucky enough to see a second character…

I like it! Glad I could contribute in some small way!

 

[Spazzy_D]

It's a "Spiritual Sequel", is that a thing?

Yes, look at every numbered Final Fantasy game (not something like X 2) for an example.

 

[Sabrewulf238]

With the protagonist being user-customizable and largely mute, I think Elma will essentially be the main character of XCX:

Just because she's the first to join your team doesn't mean she'd be first in line for smash bros. I think if the main protagonist is out all bets are off.

Personally I think it could be that Nopon in the green hat (if he's on your team) purely by virtue of being a Nopon and because Nopons have appeared in both games. It's looking like they'll be the moogles of Xenoblade Chronicles.

 

[Spazzy_D]

Just because she's the first to join your team doesn't mean she'd be first in line for smash bros. I think if the main protagonist is out all bets are off.

Personally I think it could be that Nopon in the green hat (if he's on your team) purely by virtue of being a Nopon and because Nopons have appeared in both games. It's looking like they'll be the moogles of Xenoblade Chronicles.

The girl with short black hair might be fairly important to the plot. She does have those Mondado hair pins, after all. They are most likely just Easter Eggs, but she is still the only person with a physical tie to the most important object from the first game.

 

[GuyWithTheFace]

I get the feeling Elma will be the Chrom to custom guy's Robin. Both pretty darn important, but in terms of Smash, Chrom woulda gotten in if he'd been a more unique character. So I think Elma will be the top candidate over custom guy.

 

[BluePikmin11]

We don't know what Elma does and/or uses for fighting. It's best to wait.

 

[Rie Sonomura]

We don't know what Elma does and/or uses for fighting. It's best to wait.

I seem to recall E3 footage with her using guns, but if that's her sole thing, that could be a problem...

 

[ErenJager]

Yes, look at every numbered Final Fantasy game (not something like X 2) for an example.

Isn't that just a sequel, what makes its spiritual.
More or less just a continuation of the series.

 

[GuyWithTheFace]

Isn't that just a sequel, what makes its spiritual.
More or less just a continuation of the series.

The difference between a sequel and a spiritual sequel is whether or not it takes place in the same world. For example, EarthBound is a sequel to MOTHER because Giygas shows up in both, and the games are therefore in the same world at different time periods. Final Fantasy VII is a spiritual sequel to Final Fantasy VI because no characters or settings from FFVI show up in FFVII. They're set in different worlds.

 

[ErenJager]

The difference between a sequel and a spiritual sequel is whether or not it takes place in the same world. For example, EarthBound is a sequel to MOTHER because Giygas shows up in both, and the games are therefore in the same world at different time periods. Final Fantasy VII is a spiritual sequel to Final Fantasy VI because no characters or settings from FFVI show up in FFVII. They're set in different worlds.

I think they're both sequels one just has a different nature to the series on how it's continued.

 

[BlueSorrow]

With the protagonist being user-customizable and largely mute, I think Elma will essentially be the main character of XCX:

It depends entirely on what a person considers a "main character". Just because they used that word in a sentence doesn't mean that it adheres to exactly what you think it means, even if your definition is the correct one - as evidenced by the utter nonsense that sprung up on the internet after Eiji Aonuma described the E3 footage of the new Zelda as "gameplay". As a matter of fact, I recall hearing the word "main character" used several times to describe the player's avatar in White Knight Chronicles, as ridiculously incorrect as that may be. This is why people are still uncertain as to how central of a role you'll have.
I would also argue against the Bioware protagonists being "amazing silent avatars", but the more important issue here is that it was confirmed that the player will not be participating in "dialogue trees" like you did in those games. So the characters in that game are not "silent" in the same sense that the character in this game is. (Ironically, those characters didn't have voices at all, whereas your avatar in this game appears to have "What a buncha jokahs" type quotes.) It obviously follows a cast of characters, but I think this is an rpg more about the actual world of the game than the characters themselves like say a Persona or Tales of game. Although the story does seems to follow Elma more than you I guess, you just do stuff for the other people. It's obvious Elma will take the lead in dialogue since it's hard to have a conversation with a mute person.
Tatsu: "What's going on X?"
X: "..."
Tatsu: "Okay."

I seem to recall E3 footage with her using guns, but if that's her sole thing, that could be a problem...

Read the opening post and all the answers you're looking for will be revealed.

The girl with short black hair might be fairly important to the plot. She does have those Monado hair pins, after all. They are most likely just Easter Eggs, but she is still the only person with a physical tie to the most important object from the first game.

Having Monado hair pins means nothing to the plot if the game is a "spiritual successor" where it's expected to be.
But if "fairly important to the plot" means having a major role then it's obvious with the trailers and the screenshots and her appearing on the wallpaper of the official Xenoblade Chronicles X website along with X, Elma, and Tatsu.

 

[Brickbuild101]

I was waiting for someone to make this thread eventually. ...Sure, Xeno can have another rep.

 

[Rie Sonomura]

With all that said though, I guess she'd be cool as DLC.

 

[Reila]

I could see Elma being a DLC playable character for the same reason I can see the Splatoon main character being released as DLC: To promote a future game. In fact, some might disagree with me, but part of the reason Shulk is in Smash is because of Xenoblade Chronicles X and the New 3DS port of the original game. Which actually is a negative point towards Elma's inclusion, since Shulk himself already serves the purpose of promoting Xeno X. The point still stands, though.

That being said, I don't see her becoming playable, at least not in Smash 4. Maybe if Xeno X proves to be a success, she will appear in Smash 6. I guess she would be a cool DLC character and I dig her design, but honestly, I would much rather have DLC characters of unrepresented series like Advance Wars, Splatoon ( ), Style Savvy, Baten Kaitos, Golden Sun, etc.

 

[Smash_Veteran_Amtoj]

I'd rather get the player character as a fighter instead.

Apparently he has a default name "Cross" now.

 

[Selenite]

I could see Elma being a DLC playable character for the same reason I can see the Splatoon main character being released as DLC: To promote a future game. In fact, some might disagree with me, but part of the reason Shulk is in Smash is because of Xenoblade Chronicles X and the New 3DS port of the original game. Which actually is a negative point towards Elma's inclusion, since Shulk himself already serves the purpose of promoting Xeno X. The point still stands, though.

Sure Shulk "already serves the purpose of promoting Xeno X" if Shulk was confirmed for Xenoblade Chronicles X where it has been stated that XCX is a spiritual sequel to Xenoblade Chronicles and won't have Shulk (who CAN'T be there in Xenoblade Chronicles X due to the different storyline as well as the ending in the first game). He will come in the 3DS version of XC but that is the same game as the one on Wii. Whenever Shulk appears Xenoblade Chronicles is always mentioned but not Xenoblade Chronicles X. I don't think there is even any Xenoblade Chronicles X content in Super Smash Bros yet.

I don't see her becoming playable, at least not in Smash 4. Maybe if Xeno X proves to be a success, she will appear in Smash 6. I guess she would be a cool DLC character and I dig her design, but honestly, I would much rather have DLC characters of unrepresented series like Advance Wars, Splatoon ( ), Style Savvy, Baten Kaitos, Golden Sun, etc.

Who's to say DLC doesn't allow other characters to get in? I'm sure DLC has enough room for everyone.

6 of those spaces are the last enemies of All-Star Mode for Wii U, Pac-Man, Little Mac, Luigi, Mario, Donkey Kong and Mr. Game & Watch
It seems off considering how organized everything else looks. But then to fill it ALL up, you would need 16 characters.
If that extra space is reserved for DLC characters then there should be enough room for Advance Wars, Splatoon, Style Savvy, Baten Kaitos, Golden Sun, and whatever other characters you would like to see for DLC.

 

[Pallex]

They uploaded the next song.

This time it's the full version of the vocal track from the second trailer.
Same procedure as last time to rip it. You can right-click and save it from this link: http://xenobladex.jp/media/xeno_sound2.mp3 Hurry before we clutter the site again and force Monolith Soft to lower the bit rate.
Please come out faster Xenoblade Chronicles X!

 

[fogbadge]

nah, shes not likely and even when smash 5 comes around they allways seem to go for the main playable character so i think they're more likely

 

[Pallex]

nah, shes not likely and even when smash 5 comes around they allways seem to go for the main playable character so i think they're more likely

So you think simply being a "main playable character" is enough to make X character a shoo-in. Yeah okay.

Sorry Chrom.

 

[fogbadge]

So you think simply being a "main playable character" is enough to make X character a shoo-in. Yeah okay.

Sorry Chrom.

in my defense i dont play fire emblem so i had no idea who the MC was

besides i thought the reason robin was chosen over chrom was cause he was more unique

 

[Andyjoe522]

Really, I think what's going to be a strong determining factor in which Xenoblade X character has a chance at getting into Smash Bros (be it DLC for 4 or Smash 5) depends on if Cross is simply a point of view character (a character who tells the story from their perspective and supports the protagonist, but isn't technically the main protagonist, that role most likely being left up to Elma at this point should they go this route) or if he/she is the/one of the actual main protagonist(s) with a deep involvement in the game's narrative similar to Robin.

From what we know so far, I think both Elma and Cross could bring unique playstyles to the game (changing classes and switching weapons on the fly, the various arts they're going to learn, whatever that gear-themed ability in the February gameplay footage was, etc.). It really just comes down to which of the two Sakurai feels would be the more significant character to include.

 

[Pallex]

The trailer features all kinds of native wildlife, from towering earthen colossi to enormous, flying worms. It is releasing on April 29, 2015 in Japan. I wish they would announce a release date for the United States so websites like IGN would finally publish an article about it for the first time since E3 2014.

 

[Oracle_Summon]

What would be Elma's main weapon of choice though? Nintendo seems to be against having traditional guns in Smash Brothers.

 

[Sabrewulf238]

besides i thought the reason robin was chosen over chrom was cause he was more unique

Well yeah, but it proves that he's willing to make that decision if he feels it's necessary. He doesn't limit himself to the most obvious choice. It's why I personally think the next Xenoblade character we get will be a Nopon. They're in both Xenoblade games so while they may not be main characters, they represent the series very well.

I love the music from that latest trailer, really makes me feel like I'm exploring a vast foreign planet.

 

[fogbadge]

Well yeah, but it proves that he's willing to make that decision if he feels it's necessary. He doesn't limit himself to the most obvious choice. It's why I personally think the next Xenoblade character we get will be a Nopon. They're in both Xenoblade games so while they may not be main characters, they represent the series very well.

I love the music from that latest trailer, really makes me feel like I'm exploring a vast foreign planet.

perhaps we should all stop trying to predict sakurai we're all ways wrong

 

[BluePikmin11]

I'm starting think that the main character is more likely than Elma now. I don't really see a side character happening over the one who is the main focus of the story.

 

[Sabrewulf238]

perhaps we should all stop trying to predict sakurai we're all ways wrong

We should but we won't.

We all know what Sakurai is thinking.

 

[fogbadge]

We should but we won't.

We all know what Sakurai is thinking.

yeah "My fans are crazy"

 

[Pallex]

They updated the website with a whole lot of information for those who's unaware.

Spoiler

On Earth, she served as the captain (or colonel) of the Unified Government Forces Special Vehicle Guidance Squad(also known as the DOLL Squad). [I don’t know military terms, especially not Japanese ones, so this is either something esoteric or another silly acronym that only makes sense in English] Ithink she's one of the original Doll pilots (hence the simplistic name "Doll Squadron"), now the field leader of BLADE, acting as a mentor to the newcomers and kicking a(ss in a giant robot. Hopefully she follows in the footsteps of Major Kai Kitamura of the Aggressors, who continued using a highly customized version of his Gespenst Mk-II to punch Gods in the face while everyone else had moved on to cannons that fire fragmented black holes. (Or, if not, then hopefully she'll take after Sanger and Ratsel, who move on to pilot a giant robot samurai and his giant robot horse, respectively: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ACv-9GG574&t=5m24s) I'm getting this information from Google Translate so correct me if I'm wrong.

Also, her eyes changed.

The new Elma art looks beautiful.