Dream Icon: Ice King (Guest Article)

This guest “Dream Icon” was created by @NickDaDroid on Twitter, and thanks to Cart Boy for help with edits.

Adventure Time is one of Cartoon Network’s most beloved shows, consisting of hundreds of episodes over ten seasons, plus multiple offshoots. It’s no wonder the series already has two playable “Icons” in the Warner Bros. crossover MultiVersus, namely protagonists Finn and Jake. And yet, Adventure Time still has a wide cast of unique characters that would perfectly fit the platform fighter, an especially obvious choice being the Ice King. Not only is he among the show’s most beloved and recurring characters, but his powers lend themselves to vast moveset potential. And although the Ice Kingdom is prominently featured in the background of the Tree Fort stage, Ice King does not cameo in the background. Thus, with the crazed cyromancer poised to slide his way onto the roster at any moment, let’s talk about what kind of fighter we could expect him to be.

Who Is the Ice King?

Ice King is the ruler of the Ice Kingdom, known for his insanity and regular princess kidnapping. He commonly appears as an antagonist, driving the plot by attempting to abduct Princess Bubblegum and other would-be suitresses, or by simply interfering with whatever quest Finn and Jake are partaking in. Ice King has also inadvertently contributed to many of the major conflicts of the series, like bringing Betty to the future, unknowingly housing Orgalorg, and assisting Patience Saint Pim in turning the land of Ooo into an elemental mess.

While Ice King might seem like a surface-level bad guy, his tragic backstory leads many of the main cast to sympathize with him and put up with his shenanigans. Before discovering the crown adorning his head, Ice King was once a regular human named Simon Petrikov. As an antiquarian, he was always fascinated by ancient artifacts and sought them out. One such artifact was a mysterious crown that he acquired from an old dock worker in Scandinavia. Upon donning the dubious headpiece, he began to see visions and become entranced by its powers. The more Simon wore it, the more it influenced him, causing his speech to worsen and sanity to diminish, as well as his skin to turn blue and his hair white. Eventually, Simon fully succumbed to the crown and became the Ice King. 

Importance to Warner Bros. & Series

Adventure Time’s first episode aired over a decade ago and its finale close to four years ago, yet it remains as relevant as ever thanks to its ever-passionate fanbase. In turn, Warner Bros. has continued to expand the series through the likes of Adventure Time: Distant Lands. With the franchise’s next venture set to be Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake, which will include Simon as a major character, it would only feel natural that MultiVersus celebrates with another rep from the cartoon. Having been around since his show’s inception, Ice King’s a prime candidate for such an honor. It seems as though the developers are already aware of Ice King’s popularity, too, as he is one of very few characters absent from the roster to appear as a profile icon. There’s plenty of time for MultiVersus to give the universes within more love, and Ice King’s absolutely got what it takes.

Cosmetics & Design

Ice King is no stranger to the third dimension, having appeared in games like Adventure Time: Pirates of the Enchiridion, Adventure Time: Finn and Jake Investigations, and even Bloons Adventure Time TD. We even got a look at a three-dimensional Ice King within the show itself in the episode “A Glitch Is A Glitch”. As such, he’d have no problem being adapted for MultiVersus. Naturally, his classic design would remain, including his blue tunic, unkempt beard, and iconic crown.

As for potential Variants, costumes that can change the character completely, the Ice Thing’s a natural choice, a being created after the penguin Gunter got his flippers on the crown and wished to become the Ice King. The imitation and original’s silhouettes are nearly identical, the main difference being the former’s bird-like feet and lack of a crown. While the Ice Thing is never shown using ice magic, since its gem-like eyes are still capable of manifesting it, we can assume the cryomancy’s still present. Ice Thing’s dialogue, though, would consist of utter nonsense, shouting non-existent catchphrases and making remarks about his ‘beautiful child’ Gunter.

Urgence Evergreen, the creator of the crown, could also be a Variant. His stature and mastery of ice magic matches Simon’s pretty well, after all. In fact, the main purpose of Ice King’s crown is to be an imitation of Urgence and his powers, making him a fitting Variant. Evergreen’s dialogue would feature cocky lines about his ‘brilliance’ and ‘calculated’ nature, being sure to brag how “Gunther could learn a thing or two from this!”, and making sure to let his opponents know that him getting KO’d was totally part of the plan.

Another idea for a Variant could be Simon before fully succumbing to the influence of the crown, like his appearance in “Simon & Marcy”. Simon would retain Ice King’s beard, blue skin, and crown, but keep his glasses, backpack, and jacket. His dialogue would include a balance of maniacal laughs and bouts of insanity, with occasional lines where he realizes his sanity’s diminishing state.

Some simpler, less expensive Variants could include the likes of a tunic-less Ice King, like his appearance in “What Is Life?”. His next could be the athletic attire that he wore in “Simon & Marcy”. Another could be Ice King’s sweater from “Holly Jolly Secrets Part II”. Lastly, we could see a skin based on the time he wore a wig that resembled Marceline’s hair in “Holly Jolly Secrets Part I”.

How Would He Play?

Ice King’s stats and properties:

• Class: Support
• Direction: Horizontal
• Weight: 75 (~ Shaggy)
• Height: 8 (~ Wonder Woman)
• Jump Height: 1450 (~ Bugs)
• Overall Speed: 2000 (~ Finn)
• Crawling? No
• Gliding? Yes
• Passive abilities? Yes

(A more detailed look at the stats)

(Height determined by approximate y-axis height on The Lab)

Ice King’s playstyle is all about getting opponents to freeze up, both literally and psychologically. His “Snow Escape” and “It’s Snowing!” moves create zones that punish opponents with Ice for attempting to approach him. Getting opponents to fifteen stacks of Ice not only gets them frozen, but also allows Ice King to inflict some serious damage thanks to his “Ruler of Ice and Snow” passive ability, which boosts his damage against frozen opponents. But opposing players can’t just avoid the Ice King, as he also has access to some long-range projectiles, like his “Zip Zap” move, which inflicts Ice, and his “Icicle Impale” move, which can be devastating if Simon’s allowed to charge it. To properly make use of these abilities, Ice King also has access to some powerful get-off-me tools, ranging from a short-range, but forceful “Beard Bash” move, to his “Monsters of Snow, Go!” move that pushes opponents back from both sides. Ice King’s biggest drawbacks are his rather lackluster damage, however, needing to rely on freezing opponents to unleash powerful hits, as well as his large hitbox and middling movement. Ice King players must work in tandem with allies to find opportunities to inflict Ice stacks and take advantage of the ensuing vulnerability.

Passive Abilities:

• Ruler of Ice and Snow: Ice King’s attacks deal more damage to frozen opponents.
• Invincible Ice Armor: When Ice King neutral dodges and the input is held, he quickly freezes himself in a ball of ice. In this state, he’s immune to damage, and his armor halts incoming projectiles. Using a directional dodge while continuing to hold the input makes Ice King slide in that direction, dealing slight damage and considerable knockback to opponents he makes contact with. However, Ice King’s armor is only able to withstand 20 points of damage, upon which it will shatter, leaving him unable to create his armor but still able to dodge normally. Upon respawning, he will be able to use his armor again.

Signature Perks:

• Corrupted Crown: When using “Power of Ice and Snow”, only Ice King receives the Crownmancy, but it affects all of his attacks for five seconds.
• Keep Simon Safe: Upon reaching 100 points of damage, snow shoots out from all sides of Ice King, inflicting ten stacks of Ice.

Move Type	Description
On-Screen Appearance	With his beard flapping, Ice King comes flying in from the background.
Stance	Ice King awkwardly stands with his hands at his side, occasionally lifting them to scratch himself.
Stance Change	Ice King falls asleep, while standing up as Gunter pokes their head out of his beard, letting out occasional quacks.
Walk	Ice King lifts his tunic and dances forward, while crazily giggling.
Jump	Ice King’s first jump is fairly small, only having him hover slightly above the ground. His second jump makes up for this by having him mightily flap his beard, quickly sending him skyward.
Glide	Ice King slows his descent by using his tunic like a parachute.
Crouch	Ice King lazily hunches over and puts his hands together.
Neutral Attack (Ground): Sword Slash and Shield Bash	Ice King creates an ice sword and shield, slashing forward twice with the former, then bashing ahead with the latter. The initial slash drags opponents closer to Ice King, while the shield bash deals decent knockback.
Neutral Attack (Air): Beard Bonk	Ice King slaps forward with his beard. While this disjointed attack’s range is small, it deals massive knockback.
Side Attack (Ground): Snowball Slam	Ice King creates a large ball of snow and rolls it forward. Opponents who make contact with the snowball become trapped inside, becoming stunned and being forced to struggle in order to escape. The snowball is also affected by gravity, propelling in the opposite direction it is hit from while rolling. The snowball also acts as a platform for Ice King and his ally, and has a cooldown of fifteen seconds.
Side Attack (Air): Zip Zap	Ice King shoots a beam of icy lightning magic straight forward. While this move’s damage is weak, it applies a stack of Ice for every second an opponent makes contact with the beam. The longer the move is charged, the further its range and longer its duration. It has a cooldown of ten seconds, though, and while on cooldown, Ice King merely smacks forward with his hands repeatedly, dealing slight damage and knockback.
Up Attack (Ground): Snow Escape	Ice King blasts a beam of ice magic directly upward, creating a cloud of snow in the process. Any opponents that touch the cloud take slight damage and suffer a stack of Ice for each second they make contact with it. The longer the move is charged, the longer the snow cloud stays before dissipating. This technique has a cooldown of fifteen seconds, and while on cooldown, Ice King shoots the same beam without creating the snow cloud.
Up Attack (Air): Snow Escape	Similar to ground.
Down Attack (Ground): Monsters of Snow, Go!	After some preparation, Ice King summons two snow monsters that emerge on both sides of him and swipe away from their master. The snow monsters deal decent damage and large knockback.
Down Attack (Air): It’s Snowing!	Ice King rubs his beard as flakes of bear hair fall below him. Any opponents immediately below Ice King become inflicted with Freezer-Burn Flu, and while under this debuff, opponents gain one stack of Ice for every attack they input. Freezer-Burn Flu dissipates after either eight seconds or after landing an attack on Ice King. A cooldown of twenty seconds applies when the attack lands and, on cooldown, Ice King instead slaps downward with his beard to deal damage without inflicting any debuffs.
Neutral Special (Ground): Power of Ice and Snow	Ice King calls upon the power of the crown to grant him and nearby allies Crownmancy, which makes the damage of their next three attacks also apply two stacks of Ice, and deal more damage to opponents inflicted with Ice. A cooldown of fifteen seconds balances this maneuver, which only begins after both Ice King and his team use up their stacks of Crownmancy.  While having Crownmancy, Ice King’s teammate would receive a mini crown, or tiara, with glowing gems. As Ice King and his ally input each attack, their headwear’s gems turn gray, and when all three attacks are inputted, the ally’s headwear disappears as Ice King’s returns to normal.
Neutral Special (Air): Power of Ice and Snow	Similar to ground.
Side Special (Ground): Icicle Impale	Ice King shoots an icicle projectile forward, which can be angled in any direction that’s within 90 degrees to his front. The longer the move is charged, the larger and more powerful the javelin becomes.
Side Special (Air): Icicle Impale	Similar to ground, but Ice King shoots multiple smaller icicle projectiles forward without needing to charge.
Up Special (Ground): Unshaven Uproar	Ice King uses his beard as if it were wings and starts rapidly flapping upward. Opponents who make contact with his beard as it juts outwards are dealt massive knockback, and the longer the move is charged, the further his beard juts out and the higher he flies.
Up Special (Air): Unshaven Uproar	Similar to ground.
Down Special (Ground): Power of Pure Evil	Gunter jumps out of Ice King’s beard and slides forward. While sliding, the penguin leaves a small patch of ice behind himself that inflicts stacks of Ice for each second an opponent makes contact with it. As Gunter continues sliding, the parts of the patch furthest from him will thaw and disappear, and new parts of the patch will freeze directly below him. If Gunter encounters a ledge, he will automatically turn around and continue in the opposite direction. The move may not be inputted again while Gunter is still on screen. A cooldown of ten seconds applies after Gunter either takes five damage or survives for ten seconds, upon which he will disappear.
Down Special (Air): Power of Pure Evil	Similar to ground, but Gunter first goes hurdling straight downward, dealing massive spike damage upon colliding with an opponent. If Gunter hits the ground, he begins his usual slide, but if he plummets off-screen, the move will enter its cooldown.
Up Taunt (Default Emote): The Hee-Hee	Ice King triumphantly kicks his legs, smacks his buns, and makes jubilant noises.
Right Taunt: Make-Believe Princess	Ice King closes his eyes and makes a kissy face, probably daydreaming about a princess.
Down Taunt: Gunter Groove	Gunter appears next to Ice King and starts dancing, while Ice King happily watches.
Left Taunt: Bad Gunter!	Gunter appears next to Ice King and smashes a bottle. Ice King promptly gives him the squirty-squirts while looking upset.
Victory Pose	Ice King jams out on his #1 Babe drum set.
Defeat	Ice King screams with rage, then puts his hands on his face, accidentally freezing himself.

Voice Actor

In MultiVersus, Ice King would be voiced by Tom Kenny. Simon’s voice has been provided by Kenny since Adventure Time’s debut, and he’s continued to do so in every official appearance of the character since. Kenny also voices the Ice Thing and Urgence Evergreen, possibly making those characters’ inclusions as Variants more likely. His latest portrayal of the character was in the TV series Adventure Time: Distant Lands as Simon, specifically.

Dialogue

Dialogue when Ice King is versing a character:

Dialogue when Ice King is teamed with a character:

Dialogue when a character is versing Ice King: 

Dialogue when a character is teamed with Ice King:

Closing Thoughts

While the MultiVersus team is more likely to prioritize expanding the roster with other series aside from the ones that are already present, I think that Ice King could still be a great addition, and even Tony Huynh does too! His wacky personality and versatile abilities would lend themselves to making a fun character with iconic dialogue and mannerisms. Moreover, seeing Tom Kenny in not just Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl, but also MultiVersus would be pretty hilarious to see. If nothing else, I’m glad Ice King fans are able to rock his profile icon, and hopefully, will be able to fight as him someday.

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Hamada

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