Magnet

Lore & Background

In the sprawling, multiverse-spanning world of Smash Bros., items are not merely props; they are fragments of power ripped from a hundred different realities and tossed onto a single stage. The Magnet fits neatly into that logic. It is a humble piece of technology—or perhaps a small relic from a workshop in some forgotten corner of the Mushroom Kingdom—whose only trick is to bend the local field so that other objects drift toward it. No lightning, no fire, no transformation. Just a quiet, persistent pull, like a hand reaching through the air to say, "That one's mine now."

Fans have long loved the Magnet for the small stories it creates in a match. A character who has been struggling to land a single hit suddenly finds a Fairy Godmother, a Star Rod, and three Bob-ombs spiraling into their palms in a golden spiral. An opponent who just grabbed a Dragoon watches it slide off their grip and float back toward the Magnet's owner. These micro-dramas, lasting only a few seconds, are the kind of moments that make a chaotic item battle feel like a tiny, living narrative rather than a stat check.

Because the Magnet is so gentle, it also carries a certain underdog charm. It is the item you grab when you don't want to fight; you want to collect. It rewards patience and positioning over raw power, and in a series full of gods, heroes, and monsters, that quiet, utilitarian personality is its own kind of character.

In Their Own Story

The stage was Battlefield, that long, flat expanse of grey metal stretching to the void on either side. Four fighters circled, wary, as the item-spawn timer ticked. A Poyo waddled in from the left. A hammer clattered down near the center. Then, out of nowhere, a small red-and-white horseshoe tumbled onto the stage and rolled to a stop.

Ridley snarled and swiped it aside. But the little fox, Fennek, was faster. She scooped it up, and the moment it touched her paws, the hammer shuddered, lifted, and drifted toward her. The Poyo turned and waddled in the same direction. Even a stray Bullet Bill, already half off-stage, slowed, reversed, and crept back.

Ridley's eyes narrowed. The fox just held the Magnet a little higher, and the whole stage seemed to lean toward her.

Reader's Guide

Pick up the Magnet and it begins pulling items within a moderate radius toward your character. The pull is continuous while you hold it, so nearby items will drift, slide, or float toward you even if they were rolling away or sitting still. You can also throw the Magnet at an opponent, but it deals only a token amount of damage—think of it as a nuisance nudge, not a hit.

The key strategic read is simple: the Magnet is a tool for item control, not item offense. In a free-for-all with a dense item mix, grabbing it early lets you vacuum up the high-value pickups (Star Rod, Fairy Godmother, Dragoon) before a rival can react. It also works as a soft counter: if an opponent grabs a dangerous item and turns to face you, the Magnet can tug that item back toward you mid-windup, disrupting their combo.

Timing matters more than aggression. Wait for the spawn wave, grab the Magnet, and let the stage deliver the rest. Throwing it is almost always a waste unless you need to clear it from your inventory to make room for a weapon. In competitive or ranked item battles it is rarely a top-tier pick, but in a casual four-player melee on Battlefield or Final Destination it is one of the most fun, chaotic tools in the pool.

For a new player, the Magnet is a great way to learn item flow without the pressure of landing hits. For a veteran, it is a tempo disruptor: one Magnet in the wrong hands can turn a balanced item battle into a one-sided scavenging run.

Did You Know?

• The Magnet is one of the very few items in the series that actively repositions other items on the stage rather than dealing damage or transforming the holder.
• Because it pulls items in a continuous radius, a single Magnet can create a visible spiral of objects converging on the holder, making it one of the most visually distinctive support items in the game.
• The Magnet can be thrown at opponents, but its damage is so low that it is essentially a non-threat—its value is entirely in the pull effect while held.
• In games where it appears, the Magnet is categorized alongside other support items like the Fairy Godmother and the Star Rod, distinguishing it from weapon items such as the hammer or the Poyo.