Lloyd (Super Smash Flash 2)

Lloyd is playable starter character in Super Smash Flash 2. He utilizes the same sprites he had in SSF, meaning he didn't get any new sprites. Most of his special attacks involve him using techs ("artes") from Tales of Symphonia.

Lloyd currently ranks 4th on the tier list; a large leap from his 14th place position last demo. Lloyd has good combo ability, good reach in all of his attacks, a good grab game and kill moves in his down and up smash, forward aerial, forward tilt and Sonic Thrust. He is a edge guarder so breaking his guard will be tough.

However, Lloyd suffers from a poor recovery. Due to his below average weight he is easy to knock off the stage and KO horizontally. He has problems finishing off his opponents unless they are at really high percentages.

Lloyd's pros greatly outweigh his cons and that is why he is ranked close to the top.

Lloyd has small representation in online tournaments due to a low player base or certain players not knowing how to play the character to his full potential. Certain players would rather perform Lloyd's up special, Tiger Blade, into neutral air to rack up a lot of damage or just spam up special into any aerial. This has led to a lot of hate for the character and wanting him to be nerfed. However, Lunary has been able to perform greatly with Lloyd and has been able to take top spots in tournaments with him.

Attributes
Lloyd is a very offensive character. The reach in his attacks combined with how fast they're gives him great combo ability and good follow ups. He has a projectile in Demon Fang which he can spam to stop the opponent's approach, zone and can help lead into his combos. He has KO moves in his down and up smash, forward aerial, forward tilt and Sonic Thrust. He has an amazing grab and throw game, possessing the longest non-ranged grab in the current demo that is low in start up and ending lag, and is one of the few characters to have all of their throws be useful. His forward, down and back throws can chain grab the majority of the cast and his up throw can be followed up with his excellent juggling ability. He has a good aerial game with the majority of his aerials having long reach and fast start up. Grave Blade is useful for preventing opponents from camping, tech-chasing and edge guarding when the opponent is hanging onto the ledge.

However, due to his below average weight, he is easy to knock off the stage and be unable to recover due to his poor recovery. Lloyd lacks any true reliable horizontal recovery options, Tiger Blade covers little vertical distance which leaves Lloyd vulnerable to edge hogging and also gives him one of the smallest ledge sweet spots, distance wise, in the game. Demon Fang has low-priority and can be easily canceled out by other attacks or reflected. Grave Blade is useless if Lloyd and his opponent are not on the same platform or if Lloyd is in the air.

Ground attack

 * Standard attack: Slashes forward. 3%
 * Standard attack 2: Slashes upward. 5%
 * Down tilt: Stabs out in front of him. 9%
 * Down smash: Lloyd slams a sword onto the ground.
 * Side tilt: Stabs forward with a sword. 10%
 * Forward smash: Makes an nove called Beast, the face of a bear appears in front of Lloyd as he slashes forward. 14% uncharged, 20% fully charged. This move is stronger in the intial frames of the move.
 * Up tilt: Slashes upward quickly. 9%
 * Up smash: Stabs upward, yelling "Take this!".14% uncharged, 20% fully charged.
 * Dash attack: Stabs forward. 10%

Aerial attacks

 * Neutral aerial: Tempest (JP: Rekkūzan, 裂空斬, "Rending Sky Slash"). Spins in a circle several times, whipping both swords around himself while yelling "Tempest!". 18% if all hits connect. Tempest can be canceled by using any special move. Canceling will leave Lloyd unable to use Tiger Blade, but he can still use his midair jump if he didn't use it already.
 * Forward aerial: Slashes in front of him. Lloyd's strongest aerial in terms knockback, although it is not the most reliable one due to its slow start up. 11%
 * Back aerial: Begins to slash Flamberge like in his Forward Aerial but then quickly stabs behind him. 10%
 * Up aerial: Slashes over his head. It is very similar to his Up Tilt. Very useful for juggling. 10%
 * Down aerial: Turns his front to the screen and does a slash from his left side to his front with a sword, and a slash from his right side to his front with the other sword, all in the same time. Very fast attack.

Grabs and throws

 * Grab: Lloyd stabs out and "spears" foes on the end. Very good grab, as it's long ranged and has few start up or ending lag.
 * Pummel: Stabs oppone. 2% per hit.
 * Forward throw: Slashes in front of him. Very similar to his Forward Aerial.
 * Back throw: Slashes the opponent backwards behind himself. Can chain grab. 7%
 * Up throw: Slashes over his head like his Up Tilt, then stabs upward, like his Up Smash. 6% for first hit, 7% for second hit.
 * Down throw: Stabs four time 12%. 3% for each stab. Can chain throw.

Other

 * Ledge attack: Rolls up and slashes forward. 10%
 * 100% ledge attack: Rolls up and stabs. 10%
 * Floor attack: Swings a sword in an upwards arc. 6%

Misc.

 * Entrance: Teleports using the Eternal Sword.
 * Taunts:
 * Standard: Swings his sword around and says: "This is gonna be a piece of cake!".
 * Side: Same as standard.
 * Down: Takes a battle pose, holding both swords out saying: "Here we go!"
 * Fanfare: Remix of Victory fanfare from Tales of Symphonia.
 * Wins: Swings his sword around, then says: "It just wasn't your day"
 * Loses: Crouches down as if he is injured.

Changes from v0.9a
Lloyd has received nerfs even though he was considered a mid tier character last demo. He mainly has received nerfs to his KO options, his grab & throw game. However, Lloyd is seen as a more effective character this demo due to advances in his metagame. Lloyd also benefits from this demo's lower hitstun which makes him less susceptible to combos while being one of the few characters who can combo like last demo.

Notable Players

 * Lunary
 * Max Silverman
 * SuliHyuga

Tier placement history
From tier lists demos v0.6 Lloyd was seen as a high tier character ranking 4/5(tied with ) in the first list and was ranked 5th in the second list; both in B tier. In demos v0.7a and b; Lloyd was seen as mid-low tier character ranking 13th at the bottom of C tier in v0.7a and 11th of D tier in v0.7b. In demo v0.8b; Lloyd was seen as a low tier character where he ranked 13/14(tied with ) of D tier. Lloyd would remain ranked 14th on the tier list for demo v0.9a where he is seen as a mid tier character. However, in demo v0.9b is when Lloyd finally rises to S tier where he is ranked 4th and is now seen as a top tier character.

Trivia

 * Lloyd, along with Sonic and Tails, are the only veteran characters who did not undergo a sprite change for this game. Lloyd uses his Tales of the World: Narikiri Dungeon 3 sprites in both games.
 * Prior to version 0.2b, Lloyd's Falcon's Crest worked very differently. When using it, Lloyd would create a series of explosions that came from the ground and radiated out to either side of him.
 * In versions 0.5a and 0.5b, Lloyd's side special move was Beast instead of Sonic Thrust. During these versions, a weaker version of Sonic Thrust was the finishing part of Lloyd's neutral combo. In version 0.6, Sonic Thrust became his side special once again, while Beast became his forward smash.
 * Lloyd is the only swordsman in the game so far to wield two swords in battle; Fire Sword (Flamberge) and the Ice Sword (Vorpal Sword).
 * Lloyd, along with , , and, are the only characters so far to wear their default costumes in team battle when they are on the red team.
 * Lloyd uses his sword in all of his attacks with the possible exception of Demon Fang and Beast.
 * Lloyd's standard and side special used to be chargeable until version 0.9a.
 * Lloyd, along with, , , , and , are the only characters who don't applaud for the winner of a match.
 * As of the SSF2 Beta, Lloyd is the only character in Super Smash Flash 2 whose weapons don't flip when he changes directions — Flamberge always being held in his left hand and the Vorpal sword in his right.