Questions

[The Martian]

Ok. I'm new here, so I'm not really sure how the forums operate here, but I'm assuming this guide is applicable to Blazblue as well. That being said, I'm not really sure where these questions should be asked, so I'm just gonna ask them here. Anyone feel free to point me in the right direction if this is the wrong place to post this.

So, I have a good amount of experience with BB. I've played Extend a lot before and the characters I seem to regular are Relius, Haku and Arakune. Really leaning toward Relius as a main though. However even though I've played this game for a pretty long time, I've never taken the time to seriously get into it like I have with fighters like VS or Street Fighter. Therefore, I have a lot of (probably) stupid questions in regards to the mechanics, terminology, and overall just how the game works. Please feel free to be as painfully detailed as possible, I want to get a good grasp on this game:

1.What are the important differences within this game in terms of the mechanics that separates it from other fighters?

2. Is there some sort of tier list? How balanced is this game actually? Characters like Noel and Litchi seem to be close to the top.

3. Any tips for someone who doesn't use a fight stick? Hence the 360 controller being notoriously bad for fighting games.

4. Astrals. Do they serve any practical purpose or are they just to basically show off?

5. Is there anywhere I can find hitbox data and such?

6. How do "Instant Block" and "Fatal Counters" work exactly?

This is all I have for now. I'm sure I'll have more down the road. Thanks in advance, ya'll.

Edited May 12, 2013 by The Martian

[mAc Chaos]

1. In terms of differences between BB and fighters like SF, you have what are basically "airdasher" mechanics like double jumps, air dashing, rolling on wakeup, etc. It is much more mobile, but there are still footsies. It just changes how you go about it. Other differences is how unique each character is, rather than having 20 characters that are basically the same thing except for 1 move being different.

2. There's a tier list, although I haven't looked at it for a while because the game is pretty balanced. You can do great with everyone. Some are better than others but it isn't anything extra work can't fix.

3. I use the 360 pad. It works fine for me, although I have to replace them a lot and then you get into each pad being worn out a different way so then you have to adjust all over again to each pad.

4. They are just for style points. Well, there is also a practical purpose: you can use them when the opponent is around 30% life or less. That means you can end the match instantly if you hit them at 30% so they have no chance to make a comeback. Usually that involves comboing into it.

5. The frame data is here on the Dustloop Wiki: http://www.dustloop.com/wiki/index.php?title=Frame_Data_(BBCSE)

6. Instant blocking shaves off some of the the blockstun you have when you block a move. It lets you recover faster, sometimes opening up a gap in the opponent's attacks that let you punch out or punish their moves. You instant block by blocking at the very last second. It also gives you a little meter.

Fatal Counters are moves with special properties on counter hit (Fatal) that basically make them ideal for punishing. If you land one, they will be stunned a lot longer and let you do a more damaging combo.

Edited May 12, 2013 by mAc Chaos

[Celerity]

Just to clarify the last point a bit: Any time you hit an opponent while they're attacking, you'll counterhit (CH) them, which adds more hitstun/untechable time to any attacks you follow up with in a combo. Certain attacks, instead of normal CH, will always Fatal Counter, which adds even more hitstun and allows for even bigger combos.

Oh, and if you play with the D-Pad, I always recommend PS2 pad + adapter over the 360 pad.

[Airk]

Ok. I'm new here, so I'm not really sure how the forums operate here, but I'm assuming this guide is applicable to Blazblue as well. That being said, I'm not really sure where these questions should be asked, so I'm just gonna ask them here. Anyone feel free to point me in the right direction if this is the wrong place to post this.

I think technically this thread is the wrong place since this is the "terminology" thread, but I'm sure a mod will find your post a good home.

1.What are the important differences within this game in terms of the mechanics that separates it from other fighters?

Depends on what "other fighters" you want to separate from. Mechanically, there are some super obvious things - airdashes, double jumps, air blocking - that separate it from a game like Street Fighter, but not so much from a game like Marvel. Seperating it from Marvel is the "Revolver action" (aka "Gatling") system of cancelling normals into other normals in a...moderately more complex fashion than Marvel's simple chain. BB also has a lot more 'command normals' - normals where you hold towards and press a button, for example - than most games. The game doesn't really have a single "gimmick" to set itself apart. Though I guess not many games outside of Arc Sys fighters have the burst mechanic.

2. Is there some sort of tier list? How balanced is this game actually? Characters like Noel and Litchi seem to be close to the top.

Noel and Litchi are both more "obnoxious" than strong, relative to the rest of the cast. There've been various tier lists kicked around, but in simplest form, it looks like this (no ranking within tiers):

Strong: Ragna, Tao, Valkenhayn, Hakumen, Arakune

Good: Everyone not in the other buckets

Less good: Tsubaki, Makoto

Overall the game is pretty balanced, and all characters have a chance to win, but that doesn't mean that some matchups (like Tsubaki vs Ragna) aren't stupid.

3. Any tips for someone who doesn't use a fight stick? Hence the 360 controller being notoriously bad for fighting games.

Use the analog and not the D-pad, or find a new controller. :P You could always go with something from Evil Controllers or something - their 'less fancy' stuff is basically a 360 pad with a less crappy D-pad. :P

4. Astrals. Do they serve any practical purpose or are they just to basically show off?

Sure; Many characters are able to combo into them, and it can be a good way to kill someone before they have a chance to burst if they've held onto one for that long.

5. Is there anywhere I can find hitbox data and such?

The Wiki has all you could desire.

6. How exactly do "Fatal Counters" and "Instant Blocks" work?

Okay, so these are some more answer to your question #1. :P

Fatal Counters; Some moves are Fatal Counters - if you hit an opponent with one when you would normally have gotten a "Counter Hit" (There are weird exceptions sometimes, where moves are a guaranteed fatal counter even on a non-counterhit, but whatever.) you instead get a "Fatal Counter"; Fatal counters add two frames of hitstun to all further moves in that combo, allowing you to do combos that normally wouldn't work - allowing you, for example, to do things that would normally only combo on a crouching opponent to a standing one instead. (Being in a crouching state adds two frames of hitstun as well, and this stacks with FC.)

Instant Block - Block at the "last moment" (within 8 frames of contact) and you reduce the blockstun of the move that hit you by 3 (ground) or 5 (air), and you gain additional heat.

[Airk]

Just to clarify the last point a bit: Any time you hit an opponent while they're attacking, you'll counterhit (CH) them, which adds more hitstun/untechable time to any attacks you follow up with in a combo. Certain attacks, instead of normal CH, will always Fatal Counter, which adds even more hitstun and allows for even bigger combos.

This isn't really right; The difference between a counter hit and a fatal counter is that a CH only adds a bonus to the move that you hit with - after that, the combo proceeds normally. Fatal Counters add two frames of hitstun to ALL moves in their combo, so you can do stuff later on that wouldn't have worked off a "normal" counterhit.

[Celerity]

This isn't really right; The difference between a counter hit and a fatal counter is that a CH only adds a bonus to the move that you hit with - after that, the combo proceeds normally. Fatal Counters add two frames of hitstun to ALL moves in their combo, so you can do stuff later on that wouldn't have worked off a "normal" counterhit.

Are you sure? Well, in P4A there is some minor effect on hitstun/untech time for the entire combo, so I assumed it worked the same way in BB, but maybe I'm wrong.

[mAc Chaos]

> (Being in a crouching state adds two frames of hitstun as well, and this stacks with FC.)

For crouching is that 2 frames to every move or just 2 frames up front?

[Airk]

> (Being in a crouching state adds two frames of hitstun as well, and this stacks with FC.)

For crouching is that 2 frames to every move or just 2 frames up front?

Two frames as long as they are crouching, so if you launch them or something, you lose it.

[Circuitous]

Dunno why you posted the same set of questions in two unrelated threads, but okay. Here's your new thread.

[The Martian]

All these responses are great! Thanks guys.

I've decided to stick with Makoto. She's too much fun, albeit hard to use...it's been a frustrating past few days. I can't land any of the combos I've spent so long practicing. I have no idea how to get in, and I'm even worse at escaping pressure. It seems as if I'm even lucky to be able to move around when I fight people online.

[mAc Chaos]

yup combos is the easiest part since you can do it in traing mode

the rest are senses you have to develop via matches

[Airk]

Getting in with Makoto is mostly a matter of understanding your reach and your opponent's. Though as a beginner, you can do worse than doing a lot of dash in 5A or 5B.

Getting out of pressure... well, your DP could be worse. :P But you'd be well served by just leaning on barrier and jabbing people when they try to close the gap after being pushed out.