Assist Trophy

The Assist Trophy is an item introduced in Super Smash Bros. Brawl that, when grabbed, summons a random Nintendo or third-party character to quickly aid the holder. Assist Trophies work nearly identically to Poké Balls. However, no Pokémon come out of them, and once an Assist Trophy is grabbed, it is automatically activated, assuming the holder is standing on the ground, and not in a jump, attack, or hitstun. Some Assist Trophies must be unlocked in order to be used, such as Isaac from Golden Sun. Unlike the Poké Ball, this item can be eaten by those such as Kirby and King Dedede's Inhale and Munchlax.

The majority of Assist Trophies in Brawl are undamageable, with only Starfy and Lakitu being able to be interrupted or otherwise hit or even KO'd. In Super Smash Bros. 4, however, some Assist Trophies can be attacked, potentially interrupting their attacks or otherwise manipulating how they perform and even being able to KO them (this can be seen by their ending animations coming earlier than normal, them having their own death animation, or simply teleporting away). However, there is no reward for KOing an Assist Trophy.

List

 * Andross
 * Ashley
 * Barbara the Bat
 * Chain Chomp
 * Color TV-Game 15
 * Dark Samus
 * Devil
 * Dillon
 * Dr. Kawashima
 * Dr. Wright
 * Elec Man
 * Excitebikes
 * Ghirahim
 * Ghosts
 * Hammer Bro
 * Helirin
 * Infantry and Tanks
 * Isaac
 * Isabelle
 * Jeff
 * Jill
 * Kat and Ana
 * Knuckle Joe
 * Lakitu and Spines
 * Little Mac
 * Lyn
 * Magnus
 * Metroid
 * Midna
 * Mother Brain
 * Mr. Resetti
 * Nightmare
 * Nintendog
 * Phosphora
 * Prince of Sablé
 * Ray MK II
 * Riki
 * Saki Amamiya
 * Samurai Goroh
 * Shadow the Hedgehog
 * Sheriff
 * Skull Kid
 * Starfy
 * Starman
 * Takamaru
 * Tingle
 * Waluigi

Trivia
In the GameCube preview issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly, the Super Smash Bros. Melee article comments that Nintendo originally tried to implement Assist Trophies in Melee. The only trophy concept they gave details on was one that would release the ducks from Duck Hunt to fly around the stage and interfere with the fighters.(citation needed)
 * Hammer Bro. is the only Assist Trophy character to appear as an enemy in the Subspace Emissary.
 * It is also one of the five Assist Trophies to appear as an enemy in Smash Run, along with Starman, Lakitu and Spinies (Albeit, using their 3D designs), Chain Chomp, and Metroid.
 * In Brawl's Classic Mode, if the character who summoned an Assist Trophy is KO'd, the Assist Trophy goes away. However, this does not happen in All-Star Mode.
 * In the Smash Direct for SSB4, Waluigi was shown as a Wario series Assist Trophy, despite never appearing in a Wario game. By the game's release, he is corrected to represent the Mario series, like in Brawl.
 * Sometimes in SSB4, the silhouette figure within the Assist Trophy capsule will blink its eyes.
 * Attendants at the 2007 Whobby Game Festival who played a demo of Brawl claimed to have seen Assist Trophies of Duster from Mother 3, Muddy Mole from Mole Mania, and Rosalina, but the veracity of the claims was never proven, and there is no evidence in the final game that these characters were ever planned.
 * Similarly, attendants of E3 and players of the Smashfest event claimed to have seen Chunky Kong as an Assist Trophy in Super Smash Bros. 4, although he was not seen in any following public demos, and is absent in the 3DS and Wii U version of the game.
 * In Brawl, the Mario universe is the only universe to have more than one Assist Trophy.
 * In Super Smash Bros. 4, it is tied with The Legend of Zelda for the most Assist Trophies, with four.
 * Jill, Prince Sablé, Ray MK III, Magnus and Phosphora are the only Assist Trophy characters that have appeared in only one game outside of their Smash appearances.
 * The Donkey Kong, Yoshi, and Pokémon series are the only three franchises with playable characters in every installment to lack Assist Trophies.
 * Because the Pokémon series uses Poké Balls instead, the Donkey Kong and Yoshi series are the only two of these three to lack any assist characters whatsoever.
 * Waluigi, Shadow the Hedgehog and Little Mac are the only Assist Trophies in Brawl to make the cut as playable characters in MUGEN.