MarioWiki:BJAODN/Tabuu
Tabuu is the final boss in the Subspace Emissary mode of Super Smash Bros. Brawl. He resembles a human, though he is transparent, possesses red eyes, and houses a strange object inside of him. He was from a distant world and is the creator and ruler of the land of Subspace and the Subspace Army. A spirit seeking pure power and control, Tabuu is the true villain behind all the events that took place in the Subspace Emissary plot. His name is a reference to the word "taboo", which means unacceptable or improper by society's terms.
History[edit]
Background[edit]
Tabuu resides in the Subspace dimension, a dimension of his own creation where he controls every aspect of it. In addition to this dimension, Tabuu is also in control of numerous demonic spirits and beasts, such as the Shaydas and the Floows, which follow his orders without question. Not content with simply ruling the Subspace dimension, Tabuu begins searching for ripe new worlds to conquer so that he may extend his own rule. It is unknown how many other worlds were attacked by Tabuu, but he eventually set his sights on the World of Trophies. Tabuu made plans to take control of the entire world and combine it with Subspace to create a world of his own, with him controlling the heroes and their battles. Tabuu kept careful watch over the Smash World and all the fighters so that he would know what to expect and accurately make his plans.
Tabuu's plans revolve around cutting the world into pieces and bringing them into his dimension. To do this, Tabuu kept his eye on the advanced technology developed on the Isle of Ancients, which holds the key to cutting the world apart. This mysterious island hung suspended in the sky and is home to a group of robots, called R.O.B.s. It is unknown how long they have lived on the island, but they have existed for ages without interfering with other civilizations. The Ancients were created by Master Hand to be the rulers of the world and were controlled by one single robot known as the Ancient Minister. All the other robots gave their unwavering loyalty to the Ancient Minister and existed in peace. That peace soon became violently shattered though, as Tabuu viciously attacked the floating island of the ancients using his army, destroying their paradise and murdering numerous R.O.B.s. All that was left of the island's former glory were ruins of buildings and statues that were once constructed in the R.O.B.s' likenesses. Dark beasts and creatures with demonic powers loyal to Tabuu infested the island, making it a dangerous place. The Master Robot and the R.O.B.s were forced to surrender their island and free will to Tabuu.
Tabuu took complete control of the island and converted it into his base of operations. The R.O.B.s were forced to become slaves under the threat of annihilation and became bitter at the world. Tabuu made use of the R.O.B.s' technologically advanced capabilities and forced them to create weapons of mass destruction. The floating island then became the site for the construction of a base of operations and bomb factory. The base would become the place where the villain’s affairs were directed from while the bomb factory would be where hundreds of Subspace Bombs were manufactured. Tabuu had infused the bombs with Subspace so that the dimension would appear when they are detonated. The Subspace Bomb was designed to pull an area of the Smash World into Subspace so Tabuu may use it to build up his Great Maze and increase his own power. Along with the Subspace Bomb, the Dark Cannon was also created in the factory, which were devices made to turn others into trophies.
Tabuu takes notice of the peculiar qualities of Mr. Game and Watch's body mass. Eventually, Tabuu learned that Mr. Game and Watch was comprised of Shadow Bugs, small particles that are capable of creating dark beasts, such as Primids, and cloning the Fighters by covering their trophy form. Tabuu then had him captured to harness this power for his own nefarious desires. Taking control of Game and Watch, Tabuu uses these particularities to create a nearly infinite number of shadow bugs, which he then uses to create the Subspace Army, made up of odd and frightening creatures never before seen. Mr. Game and Watch was cloned to make four more copies of him. They all served Tabuu and since they had no concept of good and evil at the time, were unaware of the effect they had on the fate of the Smash World. Along with Mr. Game and Watch, numerous other species were taken captive and cloned to serve Tabuu. Thousands of members in the Subspace Army took Tabuu's orders without any hesitation and had no free will of their own, making them perfect pawns for the tyrant.
Tabuu next decided to build up a group of villains to control the army, as he could not leave the subspace dimension. This is because Tabuu is the embodiment of subspace itself, and both he and the dimension were one. Tabuu then had to find another to lead the army from the outside and there would be no one more suitable than the being that controls the smash world, Master Hand. Seeing Master Hand as the creator and controller of the world, he decides to use him and his high status of respect and authority as his pawn and slave. He somehow defeated the Master Hand and with strings of light managed to control the godly being as a literal puppet. He would be used to direct others to control the army while he remains in subspace taking commands from Tabuu. Master Hand had since became more a part of the Subspace dimension than his own world.
Through the guise of Master Hand, Tabuu summoned and gained servants in the form of Ganondorf, Bowser, and Wario, and several other Nintendo villains and used them to attack the Smash World and perform his will. Under Tabuu's control, Master Hand told the villains that he intends to punish the fighters for learning how to compromise after battles. Master Hand created the world to be one where all the fighters will know is fighting, but they have broken those rules and he plans to punish them, destroy the current world, and build a brand new one that follows his original designs by utilizing a new-found source of power known as Subspace. He chose the three villains to lead in his plans because, unlike the others, they have not broken the rules and know nothing of compromising with their opponents, telling the trio they will have much power and control over this new world.
Even though this was all a fabricated lie made up by Tabuu, it was more than enough to convince the villains that Master Hand's motives for destroying his own world were logical and that they can satisfy their own lusts for greater power and enjoy a taste of revenge against their respective enemies through serving him. The villains however did not know the existence of Tabuu and believed they were only serving Master Hand. However it is mentioned that Ganondorf was planning on usurping power from Master Hand the whole time. While Ganondorf was feigning loyalty, Wario took his missions for granted, and the trio didn't seem to particularly get along, they formed a deadly and effective team, completing most of the tasks given to them. Tabuu convinced Bowser to consolidate his Koopa Troop with the Subspace army, making his forces even stronger. With this, Tabuu's army expanded into millions of troops ready to perform his will.
Tabuu gave the three villains Dark Cannons and planned to have them capture all the heroes that might serve as a problem for his plans so that he may control their powers and battles when the Smash World is conquered and combined with Subspace. Tabuu preyed upon the depression of the Ancient Minister and blackmailed him by holding his people hostage to lead the Subspace Army and be the dispatcher of the Subspace Bombs. The Ancient Minister agreed, half because he was angry and bitter at the world and half because he was threatened. The Ancient Minister then donned himself a set of robes to hide his shame and depression. In this guise, he would be forced to plant Subspace Bombs across the Smash World which would cost the lives of two R.O.B.s, a sacrifice required to set the bomb off. He was also being used as a scapegoat to distract the heroes from Tabuu and the rest of the villain's true plans.
Tabuu had Pikachu captured and placed in a torture device in order to harness his electrical energy to power the base. At the possible suggestion of Ridley, the main villain in the Metroid series, the army also stole Samus's suit and used it in cloning experiments at the base to not only expand the army, but also destroy a possible enemy to the army. Ridley was left at the base to destroy Samus in the event she comes for her suit, which is what Ridley was hoping for. The army was also able to rebuild Meta Ridley who also served for Tabuu's plans. While the R.O.B.s served Tabuu by creating subspace bombs, Tabuu also decided to use them as assassins for the Subspace army. Some were fitted with missiles to destroy intruders while the rest were reprogrammed to fight.
Tabuu next set his sights on a means of transportation for the army. He then decided to take the Halberd and use it to transport the army. Locating where this massive vessel was kept, Tabuu and the Ancient Minister began a violent attack on the Smash World and seized control of the Halberd from Meta Knight and loaded it with countless shadow bugs. Incidentally and to the advantage of Tabuu, King Dedede attacked Meta Knight at the same time for his own purposes, not knowing that the armored anti-hero was already being assaulted by the subspace army. In the insuring chaos, King Dedede engaged Meta Knight, unknowingly distracting him from his stolen ship and making it impossible for him to rebel against the Subspace Army's attacks. It is here where the king learns of Tabuu's special attack that could turn all fighters into trophies. Knowing that the world would be destroyed if all fighters were turned into trophies, Dedede developed special brooches to turn fighters back into their original states after a specific amount of time. Once he found out that Bowser and Wario were minions of the subspace army and collecting trophies, Dedede decided to start his own collection to use as a fail safe against Tabuu should the worst happen (this sequence of events were all shown in a deleted scene).
With the Halberd in his control, Tabuu began to make modifications to the ship in order to make it much more invulnerable towards attacks. To accomplish this, Tabuu stole Star Fox's reflector technology and applied it to the ship to make its defenses twice as powerful. This led the intergalactic heroes into conflict with the army as well. Left in the control of numerous Mr. Game and Watches, the Halberd would turn the skies it traveled bloodshot and would be used as the forefront of the invasion force. However, Snake apparently learned that something big was going on and decided to sneak into the cargo area of the Halberd to learn more of the villain's plans. Due to his superior intellect over Bowsers' and Warios', Ganondorf was left to lead the operations in the floating island base and bomb factory, gave orders to Bowser and Wario, and took orders from Master Hand and ultimately Tabuu. Due to their brute strength, Bowser and Wario were sent on missions to capture the heroes using the Dark Cannons so that their power may become under Tabuu's authority.
Construction had also begun on the Subspace Gunship, a flying fortress rigged with a giant Dark Cannon capable of trapping entire areas in Subspace. The plans of the ship were outlined using R.O.B. technology, but was under construction by the subspace army in Subspace. This was known as the ultimate weapon of the army and it was Tabuu's main goal to transport it to the Smash World. Once it is completed, Tabuu needed for a humongous portal to be opened in order to transport the vessel from Subspace and into the Smash World. Mass production had begun on many, but Tabuu wanted to test one out to make sure they were all ready. Once the mass production of Subspace gunships yielded a certain number of units, it would then be possible to launch all of them through the portal at once. Once the gunships were in the Smash world, there would be no way to stop them from dragging all the remaining pieces of the world into Tabuu's. Once that happened, there would be no more need for the Isle of Ancients or the Subspace Bombs.
With all the pieces and pawns in place, Tabuu rallied his entire army together. He would oversee the construction of the Gunships while manipulating Master Hand to direct the villains and the Subspace army. He provided both Wario and Bowser's army with Subspace transport vehicles to use in their plans and sent them on their missions. Tabuu unleashed his demonic forces into the Smash World to aid the Subspace Army. Subspace bombs were loaded into the Halberd with the Ancient Minister aboard to use them when ordered to. The Halberd left to transport the army and begin to attack the land, while all dark beasts began to invade the land and cause destruction and chaos. With all this in place, the Subspace Emissary had begun.
Super Smash Bros. Brawl[edit]
The Subspace Emissary[edit]
The invasion started at the Midair Stadium where Mario and Kirby were fighting with Peach and Zelda watching along with many fans. The Halberd appeared after their battle, turning the sky blood red and unleashed the shadow bugs, which combined to form the army. After Mario and crew defeated them all, the Ancient Minister dispatched a subspace bomb, Mario is shot into the sky, and Petey Piranha put Peach and Zelda into cages. Though Kirby destroyed Petey and released the princesses, Wario appeared under orders to capture them. Wario turned one of the princesses into a trophy and escaped as the stadium was sucked into subspace, making it the first location to be destroyed. The Halberd next ascended into Skyworld and took control of the area using the army. Fox attempted to neutralize the threat, but his ship was hit by the Halberd and crashed in the jungle.
The subspace army continued to spread across the world, wiping out all resistance and reducing entire areas to barren wastelands. Numerous R.O.B.s were also being sacrificed as more and more areas fell victim to the subspace. Bowser in the meantime was given orders to embark on a scheme to capture the Kongs. Armed with a cannon, Bowser ordered his army to take over the jungle and steal Donkey Kong's banana hold in order to draw the Kongs out. The plan worked well and Donkey Kong was turned into a trophy and captured. Bowser had DK chained to a subspace transport vehicle to be taken to the base. Bowser attempted to do the same to Diddy Kong and Fox, even employing a clone of himself to aid, but they both managed to escape. The invasion intensified as the Halberd continuously spread the army into other areas, including a dense forest where Link and Yoshi resided at the time.
As the story progressed, the Ancient Minister felt increasingly bad about what was happening as more and more of his friends were being killed for Tabuu's warped ambitions. Knowing what fate awaited him and the remainder of his people if they refused to cooperate, the minister had no choice but to serve those who ruined his life. The Ancient Minister continued to plant subspace bombs across the world. On one such occasion he was pursued by Mario and Pit, but managed to escape. He planted the bomb on a battlefield after the army wiped out all opposition. The bomb went off as the army seized Marth's castle and took the armory to use as weapons of their own. Marth met up with Meta Knight and Ike who joined forces but were unable to capture the minister.
Bowser continued to perform Ganondorf's will and captured either Peach or Zelda, turned her into a trophy, and even used the shadow bugs to make an evil clone of her to aid the army. The clone was soon after destroyed by either Mario and Pit or Link and Yoshi, all of whom soon joined forces against the strengthening evil. Wario in the meantime captured Ness in a ruined zoo, one of the many areas devastated by the subspace army, with the help of Porky. With Ness in his captivity, Wario placed both Ness's and the princess's trophy in a subspace vehicle and drove it to search for more fighters to turn into trophies. Eventually though, Wario lost two of his trophies to King Dedede when he left them unattended to capture Luigi's trophy, which was planted there by King Dedede. The King took both trophies along with Luigi's and escaped with the subspace vehicle, leaving Wario to report his failure to Ganondorf. Tabuu ordered Ganondorf to track down the stolen trophies and throw the location that they are found in into subspace. Ganondorf was able to obtain the coordinates of the stolen trophies and provided them to Bowser. Bowser did as he was told and attacked the King's castle while Dedede was putting his newly invented badges on the stolen trophies, causing the entire roof to cave in and knocking out Dedede.
Bowser turned King Dedede into a trophy and recaptured the princess's trophy. Though he was pursued by Mario, Pit, Link, Yoshi, and Kirby, Bowser was able to use the princess's trophy as a shield and escaped on his Koopa Car. The R.O.B.s arrived at the same area and threw King Dedede's castle into subspace with another bomb. The princess was taken to the Halberd where she was locked up in a cage along with the other princess to be cloned. With the princesses secured, the army continued their plans and threw numerous other locations into subspace, even forming tanks to self-destruct to form subspace and throw the heroes off guard. While many complications rose in Tabuu's plans with King Dedede interfering along with the heroes, his main objective was going exactly as planned. The construction of the Gunship was almost complete and Tabuu's success seemed assured at its' completion. Wario in the meantime attempted to atone for his failure, as well as release his anger, by attempting to turn Lucas and the Pokémon Trainer into trophies. This effort was in vain and Wario was defeated and ended up turning into a trophy himself. He was eventually absorbed into subspace by one of the subspace bombs when it detonated.
Bowser continued to capture the heroes and succeeded in turning Diddy Kong into a trophy and making a clone of him. He attempted to do the same with Fox, but Falco intervened and destroyed Bowser's dark cannon. Bowser fled as Diddy Kong was turned back to normal and the three of them defeated his dark clone. Falco dropped Diddy Kong on the subspace vehicle that held Donkey Kong and succeeded in saving him. Donkey Kong, Diddy, Olimar, and Captain Falcon defeated the Primids aboard the vehicle and infiltrated the subspace army base. Samus was also in the base and released Pikachu from his torture and they found Samus's suit after destroying the cloned copies. They both encountered the murderous Ridley, but managed to destroy the beast as well and make their way into the bomb factory. Samus and Pikachu eventually met up with DK, Diddy Kong, Captain Falcon, and Olimar, who joined forces against the Ancient Minister.
Meta Knight and Lucario in the meantime managed to infiltrate the Halberd. They met up with Snake who aided them in releasing Peach and Zelda who were locked up in cages after defeating their clones. Star Fox started another assault on the vessel only to be foiled by Zelda in her Sheik disguise. Fox realized that Zelda did so to save the innocent people aboard and they started a truth. All the heroes aboard defeated Game and Watch who eventually saw the error of his ways and converted sides. Meta Knight then regained control of his ship, causing the blood-shot clouds to disappear. With this, the subspace army no longer had any subspace bugs to use and their transportation was taken from them.
The villains saw all this as a minor annoyance as much of the world was already under their control and once the Gunship was prepared, the world would be at their mercy. Once the Gunship was prepared, Tabuu in the guise of Master Hand ordered Ganondorf to command all the remaining R.O.B.s to detonate all the subspace bombs and blow up the island in order to form a big enough portal for the Gunship to travel through. As Donkey Kong, Diddy, Samus, and others confronted the Ancient Minister, Ganondorf appeared as a hologram. He ordered for the R.O.B.s to detonate all the remaining bombs. The Minister, realizing he has nothing left to lose, attempted to stop them. They seemed willing to listen at first, but Ganondorf used a control to override their programs and follow his orders.
The robots started detonating the bombs, but the minister continued to fight them off. Infuriated, Ganondorf ordered for them to attack him to which they obeyed by shooting lasers at the minister and eventually setting him on fire. All the bombs were set into motion as Ganondorf became drunk on laughter. Ganondorf then sent and ordered a group of Auroros to destroy the heroes, but the minister's robes, symbolic of his forced servitude, burnt off completely and revealed him to be another R.O.B., who helped fight off the robots. After apologizing to his fellow robots for all that has happened, he attempted to stay behind out of remorse but was forced to leave by the heroes. They all were able to escape from the island as it was destroyed and sent into subspace, destroying Meta Ridley in the process. This created a humongous portal, which all the heroes saw as they finally all joined together to form one big team.
The Gunship entered into the Smash World through the newly formed portal and immediately fired the cannon and sent an area into subspace. Ganondorf and Bowser were controlling the vessel and were pleased that the Gunship functioned properly. Just as they prepared to send more areas into subspace, Ganondorf spotted the Halberd. Realizing that the heroes have taken it back from them, Ganondorf ordered the Gunship to destroy it. The Gunship continuously fired at the Halberd until it finally exploded. The heroes were able to survive however and charged at the Gunship. The heroes dodged the Gunship's attacks as Kirby flew his vehicle straight through the ship's cannon, causing a huge explosion. The explosion at the cannon base started a chain reaction that destroyed the whole ship. Ganondorf and Bowser were angered, but calmly walked back into Subspace, escaping the heroes once more. All the heroes followed them and prepared for the final showdown in the dimension that started it all, Subspace.
Suffering a humiliating defeat, Ganondorf and Bowser entered Subspace to seek out the Master Hand whom they have been trying to please. Finally prepared to usurp all the power, Ganondorf first betrayed Bowser and turned him into a trophy before approaching the Master Hand and bowing before him. However, just as Ganondorf prepared to launch an attack on Master Hand and overthrow him, Tabuu then revealed himself and the Chains of Light he had been using to control the Master Hand. Ganondorf, enraged that the circumstances of his plans have changed, tried to free Master Hand, simply for the sake of defeating the being himself, and defeat Tabuu. Tabuu easily overwhelmed Ganondorf and turned him into a trophy with a single attack. However, Ganondorf fell back on Master Hand with enough force to sever Tabuu's strings of light and freed him in the process. Master Hand, in a weakened yet vengeful state, then attempted to attack and destroy Tabuu. However, Tabuu reflected his attack easily and Master Hand flew back and hit the ground. As Master Hand is not a playable character, he simply lied there, wounded and possibly dead.
The heroes arrived and immediately noticed Tabuu, who spread his ethereal wings and released his ultimate attack: Off Waves, which instantly returned every fighter to their trophy form. Tabuu then used the energy of all the lands sent to Subspace to create his own world known as The Great Maze. When all seemed lost, Luigi, King Dedede, and Ness returned back to their original states thanks to the brooches the King had invented. They soon arrived in Subspace and, along with Kirby who is revived by one of Dedede's badges, returned all the heroes back to life.
Ganondorf, Bowser, and Wario realized that they all shared a common enemy with the heroes, Tabuu. Knowing that they have nothing further to gain by fighting the heroes now that their master is dead, the trio decided to put aside their differences for the time being and work together with the heroes to destroy Tabuu before he destroys them. The heroes and villains were forced to travel through Tabuu's maze in order to reach him for a rematch. As they traveled, they learned that Tabuu had resurrected all the previous monsters fought and even created dark clones of the heroes and villains based on detailed analysis's made by the subspace army. The clones were made to guard the maze from intruders. The heroes managed to destroy them all and made their way into Tabuu's residence for the final showdown. As they all arrived Tabuu once again spread his wings and was ready to attack the heroes when Sonic the Hedgehog appeared from seemingly nowhere and attacked Tabuu, shattering his wings. This caused Tabuu to lose his ability to turn the fighters into trophies, but his wings were still capable of causing significant damage to the heroes.
All the characters, now including Sonic the Hedgehog, faced Tabuu for the Final Battle. Tabuu proved to be an incredibly powerful opponent, having numerous powerful abilities and skills. Though he proved to be more than formidable, Tabuu was no match for the collective might of all the fighters in the end and was defeated. He screamed a painful shriek as his spirit shattered and his grip on all the worlds taken into subspace was lost and returned to the Smash World along with all the characters. Tabuu was ultimately destroyed and Subspace and its army were sealed off from existence forever, ending Tabuu's plans and threat. The only area that was not returned was the Floating Island of the Ancients due to the effect of so many subspace bombs going off at once. Instead a glowing X from the rays of the sun set was in place of the floating island, paying homage to the R.O.B.s. This made the Ancient Minister the last of his kind unfortunately, his entire race wiped out by Tabuu and his warped desires. Despite this tragic loss, the heroes and villains now as temporary allies watched the setting sun, reveling in their accomplishment as the Tabuu cast on their world was corrected.
Powers and Abilities[edit]
Off Waves: During this attack, Tabuu appears in the background and opens up his wings which proceeds to release three red shock waves. These shock waves deals very high damage and knockback, enough to one-hit KO on normal and higher difficulties in SSE and on very hard and intense difficulties of Boss Battles. To avoid the shock waves, a character must either roll or sidestep dodge with accurate timing. If playing as Pokémon Trainer, or Zelda/Sheik using Down B the instant Tabuu extends his wings also works. The player can also Perfect Shield, despite the fact that the attack is unblockable. The effects of a Metal Box will help resist this attack, in which case, the character is only slightly pushed.
Dark Cannon: Tabuu appears on one side of the stage and takes out a Dark Cannon, which fires a powerful laser that can only be dodged with a jump.
Side Spear: Tabuu transforms into a wide spear and attacks sideways with one swipe.
Chain of Light: Tabuu takes out a yellow chain, grabs the character, swings them around and slams them onto the ground for high knockback. This move uses the same type as chain that he used on Master Hand.
Dual Eye Lasers: Tabuu transforms into a giant version of himself and appears on either the left or right side of the stage, before unleashing red lasers from both his eyes. They mostly work the same way as Master Hand's lasers, including leaving their user vulnerable to attacks, but Tabuu's lasers are significantly more powerful, and are different in that they only take effect at the point of contact with the stage. They can be avoided by running to the edge of the stage where Tabuu is located.
Energy Blade: Tabuu appears mid-air on one side of the map and attacks the stage with a curved swipe of a red energy sword. It is avoided by jumping.
Teleport: Tabuu teleports around the area and appears at a set spawn position which is randomly decided from the large amount of spawn points available. He also sometimes teleports behind the character and attacks.
Teleport Explosion: Same as his normal teleportation move, but it creates a red explosion everywhere he teleports.
Electrical Shield: Tabuu teleports to a random area and releases energy from the object inside him to circle around him like a shield and attack.
Rapid Claw: Tabuu teleports behind the character and rapidly slashes the area near the character. The attack has less range than the visible shockwaves would indicate.
Golden Bracket: Tabuu transforms into two brackets and flies across the stage, grabbing the character (if he's not avoided) and slamming them onto the stage. On Intense difficulty, this attack is a one-hit KO.
Pinpoint Explosion: Tabuu points at five locations which will blink. Those locations will explode after a second, damaging anyone who did not move away in time.
Bullet Rain: Tabuu appears in a random area in the air and fires a series of small, magical bullets. Tabuu concludes this attack with a powerful energy blast, all of which is avoided by staying behind him.
Shuriken Boomerang: Tabuu appears on one side of the stage and throws a round boomerang which crosses the stage twice before he catches it. This is avoided by jumping and using Up-B (depending on character) to avoid the second swing.
Self Projection: Tabuu pauses in midair and sends out copies of himself in all directions. Characters will take damage if they make contact with a projection.
Character Depiction[edit]
While his presence is not known until the end of the game, Tabuu's actions were responsible for all the chaos sweeping in the Smash World. While next to nothing is known about his past, Tabuu is shown to care for nothing but power. Tabuu plans to merge the world with his own dimension to create a brand new world under his complete control. Hiding within the dark realms of Subspace, Tabuu manipulated numerous villains in his pursuit of power. Master Hand, Ganondorf, Bowser, Wario, Mr. Game & Watch, and Ancient Minister are just some examples of the beings he has used through various means for his goals. He recognized Master Hand's authority and used it to prey on the power envy all the villains have to create an army made up of the most evil beings.
Tabuu was shown to be a being that manipulated every single individual who served him in some shape or form. He took control of the Ancient Minister to not only serve him but have his people become members of the army as well. Tabuu used the R.O.B.s to the fullest of their abilities, using them as assassins for his army and to create weapons of mass destruction based on their technology to further his goals. All the equipment that Tabuu provided to his army was also stolen or made by beings under his forced control. Many army soldiers were clones made from captured originals while the rest were created from shadow bugs from the manipulated Game & Watch. Samus's suit and Star Fox's reflector technology were also stolen and even one of the power sources of the Subspace base was made from a captured Pikachu. The Master Hand himself proved to be no match for the villain and was turned into a literal puppet. This all contributes to Tabuu's character as a master of operations who sees other beings and things as pieces to be set in place for a game of deception.
Tabuu also showed much patience as he studied the world and all the characters to see which ones would be suitable to lead the army. This undoubtedly took much time as all his plans and operations were carried out very carefully and smoothly. It is this patience that allowed Tabuu to enlist the help from three of the most well known and evil Nintendo villains, Ganondorf, Bowser, and Wario. Ganondorf's murderous cunning, Bowser's brute strength, and Wario's mischievous methods proved to the perfect combination for Tabuu to serve as a leadership for his army. Tabuu however had no concern or regard for them in the slightest, only using them until their usefulness had run its course. Ganondorf and Master Hand, who seemed to have even been murdered, were both dispatched when their use was over. While Tabuu dispatched his servants when they served their purposes, he made clones of them so that their powers and abilities would not be wasted and be under his complete control.
Tabuu symbolizes a great evil and this is conveyed by his acts such as his mass murder of the Ancients known as the R.O.B.s, all to insure his own benefit and success. Other such acts he has committed included abduction, theft, destruction, torture, blackmail, manipulation, deception, and much more in order to further his desire and lust for power. He is also shown to take the depression of others and use it to control the beings themselves. The Ancient Minister is a perfect example of such a manipulation, having many of his friends and family murdered by Tabuu and the rest held hostage to be used, as collateral to ensure the minister will cooperate. This hints that Tabuu has no true emotions, or does not care for them in the slightest, but knows how to use them to his advantage.
Tabuu has also shown to be extremely intelligent, making complicated plans and able to use others while never making his presence known until the appropriate moment. He seems to also be very technologically advanced, having created doomsday devices such as the Subspace Gunship, bomb, and cannon as well as creating the bomb factory and the Subspace Base. His trophy also states that he is a master of operations and has great leadership skills, shown by the mass amounts of villains he was able to rally for his cause. Other than what is shown in the story and in the trophy information, Tabuu is a complete mystery. His past is shrouded in darkness and his very species, other than a spirit of sorts, is unknown as well.
Ultimately Tabuu showed to be a villain with high intelligence, patience, and a lust for power. He had no empathy for anybody, even those who served him loyally, only seeing them as tools to be manipulated for the greater good; the conquest of the entire world. His plans would have succeeded had it not been for the invention of Dedede's badges, the collaboration of all the heroes and villains, and Sonic's sudden attack.
(This got featured.)
