[Top 10] Smash Ultimate Best Defense Spirits That Are OP (Latest Patch)

Updated:

30 Mar 2022

No one likes to be a punching bag, in smash or anywhere, that’s why sometimes you just need a little help. Spirits can become great strategic allies so you can eventually beat your opponents, or at least extend the duration of your matches a little bit.

If you find yourself trying to get back to the stage rather than getting hits, there might be some defensive improvements you can give to your gameplay. Even if the saying states that the best defense is offense, a little more defense doesn’t hurt.

Here are the 10 best defensive spirits to keep you in the game for longer:

10. King Boo

Defense looks different for everybody, sometimes the anxiety of falling towards your demise puts you at a great disadvantage, that’s why king boo´s trait can give you a little more room to think and help you recover.

Floaty jumps the name of this spirit´s ability decreases your fall speed giving you more time not only to get back on stage but also to not get juggled when your opponent is keeping you in the air.

Pros:

Versatile trait
3 Slots

Cons:

Not great overall stats
Not so easy to obtain

9. Omega Ridley

With great overall stats, Omega Ridley provides the longevity expected from a defensive spirit, its ability not only references the actual Omega Ridley weight and size from previous games but will also prove to be a great tool in battle making you more difficult to launch out of stage. You´ll have to compensate for this weight and longevity with slower movement. But even with this drawback, this spirit is guaranteed to keep you fighting for longer.

Pros:

Decent defensive stats and good offensive
Two slots for extra boosts
Increase in weight making you last longer

Cons

Limits movement speed
Can make some characters more vulnerable to combos

8. Regigigas

The leader of the legendary Gigas, this Pokémon is famous for its tanky nature as well as its origin game ability: slow start. Slow start limits Regigigas´ attack and speed on its first five turns. This translates very well to smash with the trait slow super armor. Slow super armor, similar to the last spirits trait limits the user's speed nut instead of increasing the weight of your character it rewards this sacrifice with super armor, making you incredibly difficult to launch.

Pros:

Great defensive trait
Decent overall stats
Can be obtained in World of Light

Cons:

Limits speed greatly
Costs 2 slots

7. Beast Ganon

The Demon King makes an appearance in smash not only as a character but also as a spirit as beast Ganon. This boar-like spirit makes use of offense to defend itself. This spirit will be especially helpful if you’re an aggressive or rush-down player who wants to gain the upper hand as quickly as possible. Getting a constant hitbox out there can help stuff your opponent's attempts at hitting you. This is what impact run does, dealing damage any time you dash with your character. If you´re hitting your opponents, they´re not hitting you.

Pros:

Offensive or defensive skill depending on use
Great stats
3 Slots

Cons:

Can be exploited by experienced players
Not useful for zoners

6. Ho-oh

Getting out of a disadvantage state when your opponent has the momentum in the match is one of the most important things to think about in any fighting game, but in smash especially jumps play a huge role in the game plan of most characters. Jumps help you get back on stage, are crucial for a lot of combos, and can help you take a breath and get away from your opponents´ attacks. That’s why adding an extra jump to a roster that mostly consist of character with two jumps can help you help the tide of any match.

Pros:

Great defensive and flexible upgrade
Can help extend some characters´ combos

Cons:

Costs 2 Slots
Some characters make this spirit irrelevant

5. Skull Kid & Majora´s Mask

Sometimes you need a little bit of mischief in your playstyle to win. That’s why we are using the health recovery aspect of this spirit to make you more difficult to win against, but also give your rival a bigger pressure every time they get hit. This spirit´s trait gives you the ability to get back a little bit of hp with any hit you land. If you want to not only keep your percentage low but also frustrate your enemies this is the spirit for you.

Pros:

Health recovery while dealing damage

Cons:

2 Slots
Not so great stats

4. Sothis

Let’s start again. This is the motto that Sothis lives by. Once per match, when you reach 100% critical health healing will allow you to heal completely, resetting the conditions of the fight. Even if this support spirit costs 3 slots, its trait can change the tide of any battle in an just a second. Depending on the situation this can be the best spirit defensively.

Pros:

Great clutch tool

Cons:

Difficult to obtain
Costs 3 Slots

3. Gold Mario

Gold Mario will make sure that your character doesn’t get launched unless you receive a really big hit at a high percentage. If its trait, super armor, reminds you of another spirit on this list it’s because it’s the same as Regigigas´ with the key difference being that the word slow is dropped from it. What does this mean? This means you have the benefits of super armor without the drawbacks of slow speed. Yeah, it's difficult to obtain but imagine the face of your opponents when you just tank a hit that would otherwise send you flying.

Pros:

Great trait with no disadvantages

Cons:

Difficult to obtain
Takes up 3 slots

2. Halberd

Halberd is not only a good defensive spirit. It's one of the best spirits of all the game period. Let me explain why. If you want to become a difficult foe in every way possible this is the one spirit you should keep in mind. With a huge increase in defense and a slight increase in offensive, its speed limitations pale in comparison to the advantages.

Pros:

Huge defense buff
Slight offensive power-up
Great advantages for only 2 slots

Cons:

Slight movement speed decrease

1. Celebi

This is the one. This is the ultimate, no pun intended, defensive ability you have been looking for. Plain old-fashioned healing. Every five seconds you heal 5%, this gives your opponent a greater sense of urgency inviting them to make more mistakes just to keep you from getting back to low percentages. And the best part, this is obtainable in World of Light, so you’re almost guaranteed to get it.

Pros: