Skankin Garbage

"Every Dp except Felicia's Catspike" should probably be "Any move that hits only once and knocks down". Like, I wouldn't think of Cat Spike as a DP for one (DP motion, but it's not an anti-air and it doesn't knockdown). That also is a catch-all for a few other things you've written (Felicia's Cat Helper EX, Wolf's Climb Razor, Rapter's anti-airs, Anak's Coffins). These are all moves that are meant to be unsafe on block, so push-blocking them nets you no particular gain and is unsafe. Also, yeah Beast Cannon is a great thing to push block if you can. The oddity abotu AG'ing Beast Cannon though, is that it's not about getting distance, it's about recovering with time to counter-attack sooner than you would if you had just blocked it. AG'ing the first hit (or any hit) means you have that much more time to jab him out of it, or to jump and immediately attack - counters to Beast Cannon that are available to anyone.

Oops! Yeah, that's probably an artifact of the original draft. I usually write these articles talking about the character's defensive options first, but it's so important when fighting Rapter to approach everything from the frame of getting unblocked that I reversed them at the last minute, to help put the whole article in perspective.

Yeah, granted, The Triangle is explained in full detail in the article, but it's not necessary against everyone in the cast. Rapter is in the right position at Match Start to apply pressure immediately against basically anyone who can't create a ton of space with their backdash (e.g virtually no one except characters with hopping backdashes), so if he starts in on someone and succeeds, he'll probably never need to Triangle in the first place. Furthermore, you're right in that the backdash portion of The Triangle is also very fringe - the only people it tends to be relevant against are people who can pressure him from full screen as well (again, virtually nobody, except maybe J.Talbain and L.Rapter himself...and maybe, maybe Jedah, but probably not). The reality is that Rapter's pressure has such a large range, and has such a large damage potential, that in high-level play, if you're not making a deliberate move that you think is going to work in a neutral situation, you're just running away from Rapter for as long as you can. There are plenty of characters that can apply some amount of pressure to Rapter; but the bigger problem is that once he gets meter, you need to be a lot trickier. Bishamon definitely has some good pressure-based tricks that will help him. Here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sy61g-lO-eY Check this video out of Nakanishi vs. Komemaru. Notice how in the beginning of the match, before Rapter has one bar of meter, that Nakanishi is happy to go crazy. He reins it back a little bit at one meter (Rapter can still do damage off an unblock with no meter, just not nearly as much), and by the time Rapter has 2 meters, Bish is mostly running away and punishing. At that point, Bishamon's damage is coming from counter attacks (high Iai Giri AA into EX Pursuit, or jump-out chain combos), "safe jumps" (i.e doing the jump attack low enough that he can land and block the Guard Cancel in time), and frame-trap mixups, like dashing into attack range and either going low or throwing a fireball to blow up the AG attempt. A lot of Bishamon's attacks at this point are also from far range, as well. The range issue, I'm not particularly certain is relevant - it's just something I noticed. He does plenty of point-blank attacks on Okizeme as well, probably because the 5-frame throw injunction doesn't apply to Bishamon (you're not able to throw or be thrown for 5 frames after a forward/backward roll, but Victor, Bish, and I think Q-Bee ignore this mechanic). When Rapter does a roll, Bishamon can pretty safely do Okizeme at point blank, because Rapter (or anyone, for that matter) needs to worry about being pressured/frame-trapped, or thrown. if you'll allow me to go on a tangent, this is relevant cos Bishamon wins the hell out of the throw game versus Rapter. Normal throws are 1 frame, so if Rapter tries to command throw, his will lose on the count of being slower than a normal throw (normally not an issue because of the throw injunction). Funny enough, if he tries to do a normal throw, the best possible situation is a tech hit, because Bishamon's command throw has 13 frames of invulnerability, meaning he should be able to dodge the normal throw entirely. For that matter, Rapter's command throw has no invulnerability either, so it should lose in the event that they both attempt a command throw, as well. All of this leads to Bishamon being able to get away with some stuff on Oki that other people simply can't. It's also why you see some Bishamon players do that super-late pursuit to intentionally land right next to their opponent. This is a high-risk gambit for most of the cast. For Bishamon, it's just awesome. So, in that regard, Bishamon can be a little meaner to Rapter off of resets and okizeme than most other people can. But, he's still careful when Rapter on the offense after Rapter's built enough meter. This is mostly stuff I left out of the article itself, since I am going for a more general approach to stuff. But, I hope this can shed some light on why people are making certain choices in that specific matchup. For the most part, though, you'll see that Nakanishi follows the basic "Don't get unblocked" principles outlined in the article: - Every offensive maneuver he does has some mixup potential to make ES GC a potentially dangerous option (after Rapter has meter). - He is very careful about getting reset - he only gets reset twice in that match; the first time, Rapter wasn't even expecting it (watch how he lands and throws Lp or Mp or something to Guard Break Bish, who already got reset), and the second time, he got reset when Rapter was too far away to convert it into an unblockable anyways. - His general gameplan in neutral situations and on the defense is geared towards getting knocked down as little as possible (he only gets knocked down twice, and one of the times was when he lost a bat). And, when he does get knocked down, he yomis the shit out of Komemaru, the first time, rolling towards Rapter - and toward the corner - when that is otherwise a logistically terrible idea (and it works - watch Komemaru do a IAD.Lk in the completely wrong direction); and the second time, opting to not roll at all when Komemaru ground dashes right up to him, and predicting Kome's next action (a delayed C.Lk to bait the AG). Mind the "don'ts" in this matchup and you can be a baller, just like Nakanishi!

Part 2 of the character-specific series is for Lord Rapter (i.e Zabel, but the Japanese names are for suckers). This was the second character-specific guide I wrote, partly because I felt like I understood it, and partly because I received a request to write it. This guide is the product of empirical data, in-game testing, personal match experience, and videos of high-level play. How do I block, yo?! Rapter Edition 1. Neutral Game - Things to watch for when neither opponent has the offensive advantage. A. Where to stand? Where not to stand? Rapter's neutral game basically rules you. If you're a half-screen away or closer, the range on his air attacks is good enough that he can put very good pressure on you from the ground or from the air (though admittedly much better from the air). Thus, unless it's a requirement for you to even play your neutral game, I would stand at least 3/4ths of a screen length away in any neutral situation. However, if Rapter has ANY weakness in his game at all, it's that he doesn't really have an approach that is safe, if his opponent is too far away. Unlike other high/low rushdown characters, who have a way of altering the trajectory of their dash in safe ways, Rapter has no especially safe way to do it. He can try Skull Split, but that gives his opponent plenty of time to move out of the way and punish. He can end it early with a normal attack, but if his opponent is standing at the right spot, they'll be in range to attack him where he lands, so he's put himself on the defense. He can try doing an air Death Voltage, but it's an extremely high-risk maneuver, since if it gets blocked, he'll probably land right next to his opponent. (This is also why often times at the start of a match, you'll see a lot of Rapter players go all-in; they're in range to start pressuring you already, so they might as well get started before they're forced too far away.) Thus, Rapter plays a neutral game that I unoriginally dub, "The Triangle". From about full-screen away, he will jump towards you and do an extremely late jump attack - as in, right before he hits the ground. He'll then dash backward and do it again. This might sound stupid, but consider how safe this is for him; if you're not within half-screen distance, he can't make a solid approach, so The Triangle defends him quite nicely: - If you try to walk towards him, he can land and IAD, OR he can land and use any of his long-range normals, if he thinks you're going to walk to mid-screen and attempt a jump-in. - If you try a full-screen attack, depending on your timing, he'll either block it (which is the advantage of him attacking at the last second; he can react to your assault by simply not doing anything), or you'll be under him during his descent, where he'll hit you with hit late jump attack and start his offense. OR, if you try extremely late, you will probably whiff, thanks to the backdash portion of the Triangle, which will leave you in a pretty vulnerable position on the ground for him to start his offense. - If you try a fireball, depending on the recovery time, he can simply dash over it and counter you. Smart Rapter players will also watch for exactly WHEN you like to throw the fireballs, so they can try to Air-Dash/IAD at the point they expect you to throw it. - If you are too defensive, he can simply start doing the triangle a hair closer, which will either pressure you into attacking, or slowly push you into the corner where he CAN move in range to attack. - If he thinks he's caught his opponent not paying attention, he can substitute the late jumping attack for a late air-dash; it'll be close enough to the ground that he's relatively safe from a lot of counter-attacks. As you can see, The Triangle isn't especially fancy, but it IS an effective way to mask his biggest weak point. B. How to approach? If the Rapter player is good at The Triangle, you will have an extremely hard time approaching. Your only way to approach is to swat him out of the air with a full-screen attack, but that's very risky. A projectile is less-risky, but you still have to avoid being too predictible, because of the speed of his dash and the range of his attacks. Rather than approach, your goal should be to try and trick Rapter into approaching. While this still courts some risk, it's much easier to beat Rapter's attacks when you've goaded him to move in on you under your own terms. Find the optimal way for you to stop his full-screen approach, whether it's a SRK, a well-placed projectile, or even just swatting him out of the air with a jab. Then, you can go to town on him. I should mention that you should still endeavor to play your own neutral game, as well; just, you'll be playing it with limited space. For example, Jedah's elaborate neutral game of dash fake-outs and air-wheels is still important. However, you'll probably be jumping straight up to throw wheels from full-screen, and you'll probably only want to dash about a character length forward at any given time. Even so, you still need to do something to provoke his approach while stopping it at the same time.- If you *are* jumping at him, the best thing to do is to go for a guard break. Most characters can do a full chain, and then do an anti-air/AG option select; just do an AG, leading with S.Lp. If Anak is in range, or he tries a late enough Pyramid, you'll swat him out of the air and have the advantage. If he tries a Pyramid early, you'll get the advancing guard and keep the situation at neutral. C. Anything to watch out for? If you, God forbid, actually try to approach, know that staying on the ground is still better than taking to the air in almost every case. This is because, if Rapter successfully defends against an air attack, it's much easier for him to convert it into big damage. It's also better to be on the ground because if your approach fails, you still have full control over your movement, and are able to push block/Guard Cancel. You'll be happy to have those at your disposal, believe me. If you DO need to take flight, do whatever you can to make sure you land before he has a chance to counter-attack, and don't be afraid to throw in some air frame-traps - provided you have them - to keep him honest. 2. Rapter's offense - Their options when they the offensive advantage - how you must defend against his attacks and okizeme. (NOTE: Normally, I prefer to talk about a character's defensive options, first; but, the article had a more natural flow this way.) A. Unblockable Antics, Part 1: Don't ever get reset. There's something you always, always, _always_ have to keep in mind when fighting Rapter: His J/AD.Lk can be unblockable. Good Rapter players will not only know this, but they will try to create situations where they can take advantage of it. By far, the easiest and most common way, is for Rapter to chicken guard an attack. Here's how that exchange goes: - You do some attack that gets blocked. - Rapter then counter-attacks you with...something, who cares what? The important part is that you get reset and Rapter lands before you. - Rapter, having landed before you, follows up with meaty IAD.Lk \/ some combo into Evil Scream/Death Voltage for a lot of damage. What would be a mostly innocuous exchange in any other matchup, is essentially handing Rapter 1/3 of your lifebar. Do NOT ever get chicken guarded, and do NOT ever get reset by an anti-air! If you're trying an aerial assault, you need to be DAMN sure that he can't do anything to reset you, or you're rolling the dice with a lot of your health. B. Unblockable Antics, Part 1: Don't ever get Guard Canceled. ...Well, rather, don't ever get hit by his ES Guard Cancel. Even if getting GC'ed sucks, and you should avoid it, you want to be especially careful about it when Rapter has meter. This is because you can't do a forward/backward roll if Rapter knocks you down with his ES GC. He also lands RIGHT NEXT TO YOU. What does this mean? Here's how that exchange goes: - You do some attack that gets GC'ed. - You can't roll, and Rapter lands right next to you, so he jumps straight up, does meaty J.Lk \/ some combo into Evil Scream/Death Voltage for a lot of damage. Are you beginning to see how this works? C. Unblockable Antics, Part 3: Careful how you wakeup/roll. ...You probably already see the pattern. So, here's how THIS exchange goes: - You got knocked down. - You think are are pretty sneaky, and roll towards Rapter. - Rapter jumps up at the approximate place where your roll will end, and does meaty J.Lk/IAD.Lk \/ some combo into Evil Scream/Death Voltage for a lot of damage. This is the trifecta. You need to avoid all three of these situations whenever possible if you want to stand a chance against Lord Rapter. Now, there is some exception to all of these rules. For example, if your opponent doesn't appear to do them in certain situations, i.e doesn't go for the unblockable after a reset, you can bully a lot harder with your air attacks. Or, if they don't prepare for your wakeup rolls with unblockables, you don't have to worry about taking the free damage (although his Oki is still buff as fuck without it). Not to mention, Rapter does risk letting you out of an advantageous situation by trying to do a meaty IAD unblockable; for example, if you're cornered after a knockdown, and you roll forward, he's effectively let you out of the corner if he predicts that you were going to wakeup neutral. The most important thing, really, is to try not to let these situations occur in the first place. But, when they DO, you need to pay attention to whether or not your opponent capitalizes with unblockables, as well as their success rate. Assume that they can and will until they've demonstrated otherwise. Also...common sense tip: If you're primed to get hit by an unblockable, just try to block it anyways. It requires precise timing, and you never know if Rapter will get it right. Don't crap out early! D. Unblockable Antics, Addendum: Mind the drills. I saved this one for last, mainly cos it's the least-important one. The reason being, there's not a whole hell of a lot you can do about it, AND it's the least-likely situation to be converted into an unblockable by Rapter. Basically, since Rapter's drills always force a reset, even on a grounded opponent, if you get hit by one when Rapter is low enough to the ground, he can convert that into an IAD unblockable. It's not a situation that comes up very often, because Rapter has to be VERY close to the ground to make it work. Also, because of that, he will probably be decently far away, meaning you have plenty of time to react and block. I want to stress that this basically never comes up. I almost put it in the miscellaneous section, but it seemed better to have all the unblockable setups in a list. Just know that it's theoretically possible. ...Now that all the unblockable antics are out of the way, let's talk about all the stuff that Rapter can actually do...on TOP of unblockables. E. Oki - IAD Crossup So, even if Rapter doesn't get an unblockable IAD on wakeup, he still does have a pretty filthy trick. If he predicts which way you're rolling, he can dash in the same direction, and perform an ambiguous crossup. The reason this works is, if Rapter dashes past you and attacks, he will just turn around. Thus, if you are on the 2P side, for example, and roll past him, he can IAD you normally, or dash behind you again and attack. In any case, the speed is about the same, and you'll have to pay close attention to figure out which way to block. F. Rapter's Pressure Rushdown: You do have to watch your feet...sometimes. With the amount of power Rapter wields from the air, it's easy to forget that he has a strong ground pressure game, as well. When he dashes, he is crouching, so certain attacks may whiff against him (though not to the extent where you need to completely rethink which moves are effective for zoning in the match, as you might against Bee or Wolf). Also, some of his dashing attacks hit low. Thankfully, he can't link any of his lows into combos, but he can, for example, do a D.Hk, which moves deceptively fast and has long range for a sweep (about half a screen length if he hits Hk immediately). He can also link his D.Lp into other attacks, which can be effective for punishing AG attempts (he can hit-confirm it into a chain combo, or even do D.Lp, S.Lk xx Death Voltage). His ground dash speed is also quick enough that he can mix up his ground pressure with a command throw, and, of course, move straight into an IAD after a dashing normal. To combat this, my suggestion to you is to block high by default, and react to the lows. Since he can't generate a lot of damage off a successful low, it's more advantageous to not worry about it. Naturally, if he's already closed the gap, this situation changes entirely, and you're in 50/50 hell. But, at least while you have some space, don't worry as much about your feet. If you can react to the lows, and AG/anti-air the highs, you'll go far in mitigating his potential damage. G. Frame Traps from downtown Sometimes, during Rapter's ground pressure, or even after an IAD that leaves him too far away to convert into a super, Rapter will do a chain combo ending in T.Hp/T.Hk. These attacks are not likely to combo, but they WILL hit you if you are not still blocking. Make sure you are watching what he does, and as usual versus Rapter, you're very likely to be safe if you just stand up and block! H. Rapter's High/Low Rushdown: Rapter wins Most people have seen this in action; it's what makes Rapter such a fierce opponent in the first place. Let's go over it quickly: - Rapter has the typical high/low game: Throw some highs, throw some lows, make them guess, convert their wrong guesses into damage. - Rapter can technically play his high/low game from far away, thanks to the range on his dashing sweep. If he gets a knockdown, all he needs to do is stay on top of you. - Rapter's high/low is augmented by his aforementioned pressure game, since he can easily land command throws, and punish jump-outs with his ground dashes. - Also augmented by his many unblockables. Every decision you make about defending against Rapter should be screened against the possibility of leaving yourself open for an unblock. - The crux of Rapter's high/low game is his ability to convert basically any hit into a combo that ends with one of his supers. He can easily take off 30+% of your health with a single combo, and these combos set him up to continue his mixup to try for ANOTHER such combo. - On top of that, Rapter can also throw in occasional frame traps to punish jump-out attempts. For example, he can do Backwards IAD.Hp \/ Towards+Hp. The IAD attack will, ideally, connect at about max range, and the space between you and Rapter gives you plenty of time to start your jump before getting swatted by the T.Hp. Couple that with his ability to land unblockables off most resets, and you have an outstanding reason to almost never jump. ...So, what the hell do you do about this? The only options you really have are the most basic defenses against high/low rushdowns. The first one is to predict when Rapter will take to the air. Since moving into an IAD with everyone is far from instant, you can use that time in close-quarters to anti-air him. This is, of course, risky - if you guess wrong, you're probably gonna lose a ton of health. But, it's one of the options available to you. The other thing you can do, much like when playing against Rapter's neutral game, is to create space. Jump-outs are not necessarily a bad idea (if you know what you're doing), but you need to have enough space to get airborne in the first place. Also, more importantly, Rapter's dashing attacks are very quick, and very long-ranged; however, their vulnerable hitbox extends out very far, as well. Thus, they are easy to anti-air as long as you have space. If Rapter is half-screen or closer (again, this is why Neutral game vs. Rapter is played from far away), you probably won't have time to throw out an attack that beats his IAD attacks. From farther away, though, it's easy to set up your defense. And thus, you want to AG Rapter's shit as much as possible. Some combination of both of these is what you're going to have to use against Rapter. It may be a bit frustrating, since this knowledge is typically the truth against every high/low character. Even so, they are your only tools against his high/low game, so become a master at it if you wanna win! 3. Rapter's defense - Their options when you have the offensive advantage - how they will defend against your attacks and okizeme. A. Unblockable Antics, Defense Edition: Everything from before still applies. I could probably leave it at that and call it a day, but that's not very good writing, is it? Just remember that, no matter who has the offensive advantage, you are always susceptible to unblockable converts. The only difference is that you're more likely to run into certain situations depending on who has the advantage. For example, on the offense, you're more likely to get hit by an ES GC than anything else, whereas on the defense, it's more likely you'll be reset into an unblockable. Keep it in your thoughts, like your sweet, adorable Grandma. And, hope your Grandma doesn't unblock your shit. B. Dat Dash Tho If you are trying to pressure with attacks that can be crouched under, OR if you like to jump forward a lot on the offense, be aware that Rapter can dash under your offensive maneuvers. If you're on the ground, this is even worse, since he can dash under your attack and do D.Lp, (some combo) xx DV. It's still pretty bad in any situation, however, because you just don't want to lose the offensive advantage on Rapter once you've got it. Keep your attacks mid, and learn to abuse neutral jump a little. C. Psychic Death Voltage! This maneuver is the bane of any new player's existence. Anyone new to fighting Rapter will likely get their ass handed to them by this trick for a long time. The trick? ...Death Voltage is really fast, and hard to beat. That's the WHOLE trick. And yet, it's so powerful that, even if it's not technically the best thing to do in a situation, it commands enough respect that people will likely not punish it (even though it's usually unsafe on block). If you're a new player/lack experience versus Rapter, watch the fuck out. If you think you can just jump attack Rapter willy-nilly, you're gonna get hit by this a lot. If you do moves that are unsafe on block, you're gonna get hit by this a lot. If you try too many anticipatory anti-airs, you're gonna get smoked. It's not even that this is the best thing to do in every situation; But, just punishing with DV expends so much less mental energy, than other options, while also psyching you out. So, don't hand them free damage - give Death Voltage its proper respect. If you're NOT a new player, you're probably blocking most or all of them, and you're probably not putting yourself in unsafe situations where you can be countered by DV, BUT...you might not be punishing them. Make sure you capitalize on every single blocked DV, because the only way you're going to stop your opponent from spamming it is to show them that they can't. D. Rapter Vs. Your Oki: I'm not even standing there, bro If you watch high level Rapter play, you might notice that there are plenty of situations where opponents don't even try to apply corner pressure. This is because, for one, they don't wanna get hit by an ES Guard Cancel. That, however, is avoidable with a little work; you can use pressure that accounts for your opponent's GC, or you can intentionally use variable pressure on their wakeup (i.e stuff that they may or may not have to block right away as they get up). This, however, creates ANOTHER problem. Because variable pressure is paramount in not getting ES GC'd, you're not as likely to meaty Rapter. So, if you commit to any sort of variable pressure, Rapter can just use his teleport to avoid the situation entirely. If you think you can easily and reliably re-engage Rapter on the offense after a teleport (hint: you almost certainly can't, unless your opponent sucks), then just keep up whatever you were going to do. Otherwise, though, you'll need to gauge what you do on a player-by-player basis. But, for the sake of theory, a strong Rapter player is very likely to escape whatever you do in that situation, so the best thing you can do is give him a little space before re-engaging; if you rush in headfirst, he knows he can escape with teleport. If you stand too far away, the situation is neutral again, and you've lost all the work you've put into gaining the offensive advantage. So, find the space in-between and live there. E. Offensive Reset Because Rapter's IAD attacks are so fast and long-range, you need to be careful when you are pressuring him. If you push him too far back out of your range, you've practically given him the offensive advantage, because he will just IAD you from that range. Granted, it's not technically as safe for him to do as it would be if it were a neutral situation or if he had the offensive advantage already. This is because you can frame trap him at that range. Let's use Talbain as an example (since I main Talbain). If I push him out of the max range of my C.Mk, he can just IAD and start pressuring me again. He's very likely to be successful, too, if he AGs the final attack that would put him out of range. What I CAN do, however, is use an ES Beast Cannon at that range; since it doesn't combo at the max range of C.Mk, if Rapter tries to restart his offense at that point, he'll eat an entire ES BC. You can do this with other characters, too - any character with a projectile can take advantage of this situation. Felicia can be relatively safe frame-trapping with LP Cat Spike in this situation. See if your character has an option, and if they do, this situation becomes a guessing game for the two of you. If you don't have a frame trap for this situation, though, you just need to apply some pressure with your dash, as well. In fact, it's good to do a bit of both, even if you do have a frame trap; it's just mandatory if you don't. The trick here is to not always dash when you're about to put them out of range. This not only keeps it difficult for Rapter to tell when it's safe to IAD, but it also lowers your chances of getting GC'ed. 4. Anything else? - Stuff that doesn't fit into any of the above categories. A. Dark Force Nonsense, Part 1: Everything knocks you down ...If you're airborne. All of Rapter's ground hard attacks (the uppercut-looking attack) will knock you down in every case. But, if you're in the middle of a jump, every single one of Rapter's attacks causes a knockdown on hit. So keep your ass planted on the ground...which, by now, should be a clear, running theme for fighting Rapter: don't leave the ground without a plan. B. Dark Force Nonsense, Part 1: My ES GC is suddenly unblockable This is not likely to come up...but it's true. There are plenty of characters with unblockable ES GC, and Rapter is one of them. But, thankfully for all of us, his normal ES GC isn't unblockable. Rapter has a different GC during Dark Force, and the ES version of THAT one is unblockable. Naturally, this means he can't convert it into an unblockable combo afterwards, since there's not enough time for him to deactivate and set it up...nevermind the fact that his Dark Force GC is terrible and whiffs a lot of crouching characters. But, this IS a comprehensive guide and all...so, now you know.

Bonus!! Here's a casual set between me and MightyMar, the best Anakaris player in North America. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pv9K7J1jN0o If you watch this, you'll see the practical applications of basically everything discussed in the article. Enjoy!

Part 1 of the character-specific series is for Anakaris. This was actualyl the first guide in the series I wrote, since it was one of the characters I felt I understood best. This guide is the product of empirical data, in-game testing, personal match experience, and videos of high-level play. It was checked for consistency by Anakaris players. How do I block, yo?! Anakaris Edition 1. Neutral Game - Things to watch for when neither opponent has the offensive advantage. A. Where to stand? Where not to stand? - Anakaris can play his entire neutral game in mid-air; he can stay in the air for longer than anyone in the game, and can immediately get airborne again if he has enough space. Most characters need to stay as close as they can, without being in range of his air normals (either his punches or kicks, since either one will stop early jump attempts). This is the same range for basically everyone. If your character needs a bit more space to play their neutral game, then you should have no trouble getting that space; Anak isn't going to try and contest it. - There's a dead zone about 1-2 character lengths in front of him that you don't want to occupy in neutral situations unless you are airborne. An easy way to think of this space is, if you were to jump over his curse projectile, it would be the space between the projectile and Anakaris. Being under Anak at this space allows him to put offensive pressure on you, and doubly so if there *is* a curse projectile behind you. Also, given the stength of his ground dash, this space is also makes it really easy for him to just start up his ground pressure out of nowhere, as well. Thus, you need to make sure you don't enter this space unless you are jumping at him. B. How to approach? - If you *are* jumping at him, the best thing to do is to go for a guard break. Most characters can do a full chain, and then do an anti-air/AG option select; just do an AG, leading with S.Lp. If Anak is in range, or he tries a late enough Pyramid, you'll swat him out of the air and have the advantage. If he tries a Pyramid early, you'll get the advancing guard and keep the situation at neutral. - Common sense tip: Never crouch after air-chaining Anakaris; he'll still be in the air, so he's *ONLY* going to hit you with a high attack! - Possible ways to botch your approach: Jumping from too close (you'll get hit out of your jump startup by an air attack), jumping from too far (whiffed air attacks are a good way to get hit by curses and coffin drops; he can also jump back to force your attack to whiff, and counterattack), trying to jump while he is landing (also easy to be hit out of jump startup, or he can sometimes just land and anti-air you with S/C.Mp or C.Hp), and air-chaining at the wrong altitudes (if you haven't landed by the time your air chain is over, he will just chicken guard you). - If you have any frame traps in mid-air, it's also good to mix them up with your air chains. This includes chaining into very slow normals, as well as canceling air normals into special moves with slow enough startups to frame trap. Also, if you have any attacks that quickly cover long distances, you can potentially punish Anak by reading when he's going to throw a Curse. C. Anything to watch out for? - Anak's goal here is to either get you to enter his dead zone, or, as a secondary goal, to get you to try something reckless and get hit by any of his special moves - Cobra Blow at close ranges, Coffin Drops, and Curses. - Cobra Blows, you'll rarely need to worry about, as they are high risk/low reward against most of the cast. Just be aware that if Anak is landing, let him get airborne again before making your approach, and stay out of his dead zone while you do this! - Coffin Drops and Curses will mainly hit you when you whiff attacks. They are hard to land for Anakaris, and require good reads. However, he can take to the offense without fail almost every time if he lands either one. So, basically, don't whiff attacks! - As an addendum, Anak players will probably try and gauge your approach in neutral situations by double/triple-jumping back and seeing what you do. If you go for an attack and whiff, they can hit you with an air normal. Do this too often, and they will probably figure out how to set you up for a curse/coffin. If you think you're smart and try to empty jump...well, congratulations - you've empty-jumped into his Dead Zone. Don't be smart - approach with an attack! 2. Anakaris's defense - Their options when you have the offensive advantage - how they will defend against your attacks and okizeme. A. Can't Advancing Guard... This is well worth keeping in mind. Not just because you can take advantage of it, but because you can make things harder on yourself by not thinking about it when you mount your offense. Because Anakaris can't AG, you can try to do attack strings that have the highest amount of frame advantage. As long as they keep you in range, you can cheese a lot of damage this way, although each character's ability to exploit this trait will vary. Some people have virtual infinites, while the only way other people can exploit it with walk-towards Jabs. Obviously not a good idea to do that. ...However, ALSO because Anakaris can't AG, literally ANY offensive technique that you do to punish AG attempts with variable blockstun timing is basically useless. The only exception is if it's something that loops into itself, which is what we discussed in the previous paragraph. If you're just doing one-off mixups to try and blow up AGs, stop doing them to Anakaris (unless you're playing a very mash Anak player). It's much better to just limit his space when you're on the offense, and play it more like you would play a conventional fighting game. B. Can't Guard Cancel...sort of. Anakaris can also not Guard Cancel without meter. And, in fact, his Guard Cancel doesn't do a whole hell of a lot. It's frame advantage is so low, that depending on your proximity to Anakaris, you can even throw him before he recovers. That being said, there are still some times that Anakaris will use it. For one, if he's going to get chipped by a close-range attack, it's in his best interest to just Guard Cancel the attack to try and live longer. For two, his Guard Cancel is unblockable, so it's still a good way to mess up your rhythm if you're not expecting it. It's not exactly a huge advantage for Anakaris; but, he needs all the advantages he can get, so remember this! C. Jab. Jab. Jab. Jab -> Short. Jab. Anakaris can't AG to get out of trouble, so his options are to either allow you to push him out of your own attack range, or to try and throw light attacks in-between the places where he knows there are holes in your offense. If you have any areas in your attack strings that are long enough for him to throw a S/C.Lp or S.Lk (both 4-frame startup) - or, to put it more simply, at any point where you have to move towards him while attacking to stay in range - you run the risk of getting hit by one of these. If you're wondering like, "Well, who cares if I get hit by a Jab or Short?" A good Anakaris player will be able to link S/C.Lp, S.Lk, or an Lp -> Lk chain into a combo that knocks down. So, while he may not be able to AG your offense, if you give him something to work with, a good Anakaris player will definitely convert it into damage and a knockdown, also reversing the offensive advantage to his favor. Thus, it's important to know where these holes are and punish him occasionally for attempting to attack in-between the stops, instead of continuing your relentless assault. After all, if your offense is just getting you killed, it's not much of an offense, right? To further expand upon that idea...if you don't have a super-tight block string that's hard for Anakaris to escape, it's usually best to convert your hits into knockdowns. At least that way, no matter where Anakaris moves to, you can still meaty him, or try to otherwise limit his movement. D. Through-the-wall! Similar to his use of Lp/Lk to reverse the offensive advantage, if Anakaris is pinned to a wall, he can simply backdash into it and come out through the other side. Most Anak players already do this when faced with something basic like a jump-in that they don't wanna deal with. However, slick Anak players can also Through-the-wall dash out of very small holes in your offense. If you can bait it while you're still not in close range of him, you can be very close to the other end and punish. The easiest way to do this is to get him to read a jump-in. However, if there are points in your offense where Anak frequently tries to exit, you can intentionally end your string at this point and move to the other side of the screen. E. Anti-Pursuit Anakaris doesn't really have that much he can do about your wakeup game. He can't command throw you if you cozy up too close. He can't AG your attacks, so you can safely do any attack as a meaty without fear of being pushed away. He can Guard Cancel you, but again, if you are close enough on wakeup, you'll punish him for it anyways. The only thing he DOES have going for him is his Anti-Pursuit attack. When knocked down, he can opt to use this attack instead of neutral or rolling wakeup. It's an unblockable attack, and it will nab you out of your pursuit attacks if you're too close. It will also get you if you are trying to corpse hop or walk through him. The downside (because of course, it's Anakaris, so there is one) is that the normal version is a very high-risk maneuver. There's a large window to punish if he misses the attack. This is still somewhat true with the ES version; however, there are some differences that make it a little easier for Anak to throw out. For one, the window to punish Anakaris is much smaller and more difficult to time. For two, Anak is considered airborne for the entire duration where you can punish him (the normal version is part airborne and part grounded). So, if you are normally punishing Anti-Pursuit with any sort of combo, the first attack will just reset him if you try the same punish on the ES version. Thus, you need to use whatever your strongest single attack is. This doesn't hamper some people (like Talbain, for example, who can just ES Beast Cannon both versions), but depending on who you're using, you may need to have a different punish ready for ES Anti-Pursuit. Since at least part of the normal Anti-Pursuit is airborne, you may opt to use the same punish for both. F. Offensive Reset (i.e attacking your opponent out of your own range) Anakaris's Close-Range Offense is very strong. If you knock Anak out of range with most characters, the situation is going to be neutral, or even potentially at his advantage. He can quickly dash in and deal with you trying to jump after an Offensive Reset. He can jump towards you and just try and counter-hit whatever you do on the ground with his Pyramid attack. Or, he can jump backwards and begin his neutral game all over again. If he likes, he can even root himself in place and counter your next offensive maneuver (Lp/Lk your ground dash, AA your jump/air dash). Granted, if he's in the corner, you have a slightly better situation here, since Anak can't really play his neutral game when cornered. At that point, you can mix him up by either staying in place and trying to zone him on the ground (potentially beat if he tries to trade with a sweep or if he tries a Pyramid atack), or doing a neutral jump (beat by anything Anak can use to punish jump-outs. When cornered, however, you don't have to worry about Anak being too ballsy; as he wants to minimize any damage possible, the odds of him doing something reckless are pretty low. 3. Anakaris's offense - Their options when they have the offensive advantage - how you must defend against his attacks and okizeme. A. Anak's high/low/"throw", AND pressure game. Anakaris's offense has a lot of variety and nuance, and, in the hands of someone who knows how to use it, can be legitimately dangerous to handle. I typically refer to characters' offense as being "high/low", which should be pretty self-explanatory, or "pressure-based", which are characters who rely more on constant offensive pressure and frame traps (i.e Rikuo, Bishamon, Lilith, Wolf, etc.). Though he is the worst character in the game, he holds the distinction of being the only character is is extremely excellent at both. (...although L. Rapter is probably the second-best, that dick) His high/low/"throw" game is pretty straight-forward, and most Anak players will have some level of proficiency at it; it's the typical "I do some lows, and then I use my quick overhead to stay in range" spiel that everyone has. Just like anyone else, he can vary at which point he wants to end his pressure string, he can do multiple overheads at once, he can do an overhead feint by using the Vertical Pyramid instead of the Diagonal, and go right into a low attack. (For that matter, he can feint using the Diagonal Pyramid, too, but it requires some practice and knowing the timing of his opponents' wakeup animations.) There are two main differences in Anak's high/low game from other characters: - Instead of moving into an overhead, Anak can try to punish people for trying to jump-out, or even predict an overhead, by just continuing the chain into a sweep. This is because C.Hk's startup is slow enough that it will combo on hit, but not block. Thus, if you block, say, C.Lp -> C.Lk, and he chains the Lk into C.Hk, you'll have enough time in-between those attacks to try an attack or get hit out of an AG attempt. You even have enough time to stand up. Thus, if you can't AG/GC his light attacks, you need to just watch carefully for his next move. - In lieu of a normal throw, Anak has his command throw. The ES version is a very powerful tool in his high/low mixup game. He can cancel it off of his lows, which will catch you if you're not AG'ing/not watching closely. He can do it immediately after a blocked Pyramid, since he knows only crazy people are going to try and jump out immediately after that (If you don't know why, it's because you literally have no time to jump out before he can do a low. If you're trying to jump out, you'll be standing and eat a full chain). If he knows that you are antsy and like to neutral jump at close range, he can even throw it so that it grabs you as you land, unless you can alter your jump trajectory somehow. About the only way to dodge this is to jump over it, or run far enough away that it misses. The harder part, however, is just being able to react in time. Anakaris will keep you on your toes, so watch out. As for his pressure game, it too is well-equipped to give anyone some trouble. His light attacks are quick and have long range. He can link most of them, too, which means if he hits with one, you can expect it to be converted into damage and a knockdown. He's also the only character in the game who can choose to do the Standing or Crouching versions of his attacks during a forward dash, so he can try and read people expecting overheads, as well as punish jump-outs effectively from virtually any range. Speaking of which, if Anakaris has the offensive advantage...you can't Jump. Just, don't even try, really. From close range, he can punish your jump-outs with S.Lp. From farther away? S.Mp. From even farther? S.Hp. And if you somehow get EVEN farther than that, like with an AG? He can either do a Cobra Blow, or, he can throw out a normal version of his Command Throw; if he knows the proper ranges, he can put it right in front of you, so if you did a crouching AG and try to jump afterwards, you'll get grabbed as you're standing up. Don't be dumb - just AG and wait for him to run out of steam! He'll have to go back to his neutral game eventually, if you push him out far enough. And, finally, make sure you are still trying to AG during his pressure. If Anak closes enough distance, he can just go into his high/low game, which is harder to escape and will net him a lot more damage than a few stray punches. As if that weren't bad enough, Anak's pursuit is quick enough that he can stay on top of you no matter where you roll, so he can hit-confirm his attacks into sweeps and keep playing his high/low game with ALL of his options intact, no matter where you are, until you push him far out of your range. Don't underestimate his offense just because he's the worst character in the game - he's bad because of his DEFENSE, not his offense. B. LOL it's my EX When you are cornered, Anakaris can take his surprise throw game to another level. If you aren't successfully AG'ing his attacks, he can cancel a low into his EX attack, "Pit To the Underworld". Since the attack is unblockable, if you don't have a way to jet out of the corner or a long-range attack to hit Anak *immediately*, you're gonna get hit by this attack. Like the ES Command Throw, you just have to be aware that he can do it, and be ready to react accordingly. Watch closely! C. Surprise Pyramid! This isn't a pivotal thing, but it's worth knowing. If Anak gets an air reset on you during one of his forward jumps, he can chose to land and start his offense, OR he can Pyramid just before hitting the ground. Thus, if you get reset in this way (shame on you), this is another place where you're going to need to look carefully. Although, it's probably smarter to just stand. Anak's trajectory is very slow, so it's easier to react to him NOT doing the Pyramid, rather than the other way around. D. tl;dr: AG the Pyramid. So, dealing with Anakaris's offense is a doozy. Unless you can crouch under half his shit (Bee and Wolf), or you have an unblockable GC and are good at landing it, you're gonna have some fun. However, as long as you play the pressure game intelligently, there is one thing you can do: AG the Pyramid! Seriously. If you AG the Pyramid, he can't continue his high/low game. He can't do surprise throws, or Surprise EX attacks, cos you'll be too far away for it to be a smart move. If he's close enough, he can't even reliably feint with the vertical Pyramid, cos you'll just swat him out of it (though, it's always best to AG reactively, so I don't necessarily recommend doing that last one). He'll have to go back to doing his pressure game, and, as long as you're being patient, you will hopefully escape with minimal damage. 4. Anything else? - Stuff that doesn't fit into any of the above categories. A. I absorb your FOOLISH projectiles into my being ...I don't think this is very important. I feel like I never see Anak players do this at any level. However, if you are playing a character with a projectile, Anakaris can probably eat it, which will allow him to use it on you, as well: - Rikuo: Sonic Wave - B.B Hood: Missiles and Mines - Demitri: Chaos Flare - Jedah: Dio-Cega - Hsien-Ko: All projectiles - Lilith: Soul Flash - Morrigan: Soul Fist I'm guessing the reason I never see Anakaris do it, is because it's slow as hell, and easy to punish. Having a fireball also doesn't add very much to his game; he plays his neutral game in the air, where he already has a projectile. But, you know...this being an attempt at a comprehensive guide and all, now you know. B. Are you right next to him? Good. Throw him. This isn't something especially reliable as a strategy, but if you ever find yourself adjacent to Anakaris for any reason...you might as well throw him. It's true that you can't simply walk up and throw a good Anakaris player, because the same way that they try to defend against your normal attacks (fish for jabs and convert to a knockdown) is exactly how they are going to defend against walk-up throws. However, at point blank range, there's not much you need to worry about: - Anakaris doesn't have a conventional normal/command throw, so he can't possibly throw you first or outprioritize you. - Anakaris has no invulnerable attacks worth using in a situation like this; his only invulnerable maneuver that he can do without blocking/being knocked down is his Dark Force activation, and honestly, he is probably going to take more damage from activating and de-activating that, than he would from being thrown. - To top it off, Anakaris doesn't have any particularly fast light attacks. Not usually an issue for other characters with no 3-frame lights, because they usually have a worthwhile command throw/Dark Force. - And, if all those things aren't bad enough, none of Anak's standing mediums and hards (i.e the tech hit normals) are very fast. At best, incorrectly guessing a throw with Anak will see his move get beat, and take a chain combo. At worst, if Anak's tech hit normals are dodged completely, he's wide open for the combo of his opponent's choosing. So, while I wouldn't reccomend trying to walk up and throw him all day, if you land right next to him? Throw him. Also, it's worth noting that characters with more intense pressure rushdowns (particularly ground dashers, like Rikuo, Bishamon, Lilith, etc.) have a much easier time bullying their way into that close range. But, character-specific strategies is beyond the scope of this guide.

So, some people know that there are unblockable ES Guard Cancels. This information isn't as widespread as I would like it to be, so I'm fixing that now. For starters... Characters with ES GC unblockables: Anakaris, Bishamon, Demitri, Felicia, Lilith, Morrigan, Rapter (his DF Guard Cancel) Why only ES?: I asked KENGALLON, a high-level Wolf player in Japan who knows some English, about how this all works. He told me, "You cannot take guard pause for [seven] frames after ESGC flash." Guard pause, I imagine, is what they must call proximity block. In other words, the ES Guard Cancel flash is a separate phenomenon from the standard GC flash, and you can't even guard attacks for seven frames afterwards. ...Thus: - Characters with ES GCs that have less than or exactly seven frames of startup (i.e all the characters listed above) can create a situation where their ES Guard Cancel can't be blocked. - Since ES GC flash is apparently different from standard GC flash, characters with normal GCs that are lower than seven frames can always be blocked. This unblock phenomenon applies to ES GCs only. Yeah, but dawg - I blocked one of their ES GC's before. Explain that. It's important to note that blocking is only disabled for seven frames afterward. Characters with shorter-range ES GCs that move forward (for example, Morrigan's) have a chance to be blocked. Continuing with Morrigan as an example, her ES Shadow Blade has thirty-two (32) active frames, and four (4) frames of startup. So, only the first three (3) active frames of her ES Guard Cancel are actually unblockable. If you create a situation where she fails to hit you within those frames, you can safely guard the rest. This has some bigger implications, as well. Felicia's ES GC can be unblockable, but only the first active frame of the attack. Naturally, this means that the second half of the move is very, very blockable. Same goes for Lilith - only the first three (3) active frames of the first attack of her ES GC is unblockable, so if you dodge the first hit, you're definitely in the clear, and can safely block the remainder of the attack. This has more powerful implications for characters with ES GCs with static hitboxes, or ones that already have very good range. In particular, this phenomenon heavily benefits Bishamon and Demitri. It would probably benefit Anakaris for the same reason if his ES GC didn't suck so much. The numbers Anakaris: 6F startup, Frame 7 unblockable Bishamon: 3F startup, Frames 4-7 unblockable Demitri: 4F startup, Frames 5-7 unblockable Felicia: 6F startup, Frame 7 unblockable Lilith: 4F startup, Frames 5-7 unblockable Morrigan: 4F startup, Frames 5-7 unblockable Rapter (DF): 4F startup, Frames 5-7 unblockable tl:dr - Proximity Guard is disabled for 7 frames after ES GC flash. - Characters with ES GCs that have less than 7 frames of startup have unblockable startup on their GCs. - Emphasis on startup; the entire attack is not unblockable. - Bishamon rules you.

It's blockstop.

This came up in the Facebook group, so I just wanted to post it somewhere. This may be common knowledge for a lot of players, and it's well-known already. This post is mainly to give new players some perspective on Push Blocks and probability. Anywhere you go to find Vampire Savior information, you'll find this info on Push Blocks: - Press buttons SEPARATELY during blockstun (technically block stop but stfu) to try and trigger an Advancing Guard (hereafter AG). Simultaneous button inputs count as only one input. - First two inputs: 0% chance to AG. - Third input: 25% chance to AG. - Fourth input: 50% chance to AG. - Fifth input: 75% chance to AG. - Sixth input: 100% chance to AG. - The strength of attack determines the pushback distance of the AG. In other words, if you trigger an AG with Light Kick (Lk), your opponent will be pushed back a short distance. If you trigger an AG with Hard Kick (Hk), your opponent will be pushed back a far distance. None of this is technically wrong; however, it is incredibly misleading, and also doesn't give the whole picture. The biggest problem with this figures is that they look at each input "in a vacuum". If you're familiar with game emulation, you could make a savestate where you've just blocked an attack and pressed two buttons. If you load this savestate and immediately press a button, you will trigger an AG 25% of the time. Same goes if you make a savestate where you're just blocked an attack and pressed three buttons; assuming the third input didn't trigger the AG, you will trigger it with your fourth input 50% of the time when you load state and press a button. But, you already know this if you've read anything about AGs. This is exactly what the conventional wisdom says. But, the problem is, PRECISELY BECAUSE Advancing Guards work this way, we can use probability to extrapolate some better information. Advancing Guard probability chart #1: Probability of individual triggers This chart shows the individual probability that each input will trigger an Advancing Guard. You have a 0/32 chance (0%) of AG'ing on the first and second inputs. You have a 8/32 chance (25%) of AG'ing on the third input. You have a 12/32 chance (37.5%) of AG'ing on the fourth input. You have a 9/32 chance (28.125%) of AG'ing on the fifth input. You have a 3/32 chance (9.375%) of AG'ing on the sixth input. The important information here, is that the fourth and fifth input have the highest probabilities to trigger an AG. This is also a large part of why the Lk Lp Mp Hp Hk sequence for AG is popular - it puts HP and HK on the fourth and fifth inputs, giving the highest chance to trigger an AG with the buttons that generate the greatest amount of pushback. You might notice that looking at individual probability is weird. Of all the hits that can trigger an AG, the sixth input has the lowest chance. That seems counter-intuitive, since we know that a sixth hit will trigger an AG 100% of the time. What this means is that the likelihood that you'll even need to input six button presses to trigger an AG is very low (...9.375% low, in fact). So, here's a slight better chart: Advancing Guard probability chart #1: Probability that you will have triggered Advancing Guard This chart shows AG probability in a different way. That is, it sums up the individual probabilities of each input going forward, to tell you the probability that you will have triggered an AG by the time you reach a certain input. You have a 0/32 chance (0%) of AG'ing on the first and second inputs. You have a 8/32 chance (25%) of AG'ing by your third input. You have a 20/32 chance (62.5%) of AG'ing by your fourth input. You have a 29/32 chance (90.625%) of AG'ing by you fifth input. You have a 32/32 chance (100%) of AG'ing by your sixth input...obviously! As you can see, even if your fourth input has a 1/2 chance of triggering the AG, when you look at probabilities, you realize that you have a 62.5% chance of triggering on your fourth input...not because the fourth input suddenly changes from 50% to 62.5%, but because your chance of having already triggered the AG by a certain time goes up with each failed press. This is important to take into account, because now we can see that your chances of having triggered an AG by your fifth input is already almost 100% - much higher than it seems at a glance, looking at the raw data. This is also another reason why perhaps the 5-input AG technique is popular; if you are consistent at it, you'll 1-hit AG any attack 90% of the time. tl;dr - Mathematical probability gives later inputs in the AG sequence a higher chance to AG than you might think. - Your fourth and fifth inputs in the AG sequence have the highest individual probability of triggering the AG. - A five-hit AG technique might be "good enough", as probability states you have a 90% chance of triggering AG by your fifth hit.

I've been working on a 15-part series of character-specific guides on all aspects of defending against a character, as well as handling their own defense. As I was writing them, however, I realized it would be important to have a guide on all the universal things that everyone can do, and how to deal with them effectively. Thus, I've written this guide. I'd actually been sitting on this one for a few weeks, slowly revising it, worried that I'd left something out. Well, forget it - anyone can just tell me if they think I missed something important, right? A little more info on this project... I do have some of the character-specific guides finished already; however, I want to have more in the pipeline before releasing any. Ones I have complete: Anakaris (checked by MightyMar and Hildr) L.Rapter (awaiting notes from Rotanibor) Q-Bee (will be unchecked unless a baller-ass Q-Bee wants to look it over) Ones I am currently writing/researching: Victor (need to find more videos of high-level Vic play; any help appreciated) Morrigan (currently watching vids + playing a lot of Morrigan in my spare time) J.Talbain (writing very, very slowly, to make sure it's not riddled with my own, personal biases) If you like this article, I ask for your patience while I write and prepare to release future articles. Making an article is a lot of research, and it takes a lot of time to write and revise on top of that. There's also a lot of taking what I *think* I know to be solid gameplay from a character, and cross-checking high-level play to see if they do it, as well as when, why, etc. Thus, the process is slow-going. Anyways. Without further ado... How do I block, yo?! 1. Introduction I like helping people learn how to play Vampire Savior. The most common advice I ever give to people is "The single most important technique in Vampire Savior is blocking attacks." Sometimes, the problem is that they don't understand to the extent to which I mean it; the next time you watch high-level Vampire play, count how many attacks are blocked versus how many actually hit the opponent. People are blocking attacks for loooong periods of time. Some people just don't appreciate the advice until it dawns on them that it's not only the top tier characters/whichever character they're dying to that forces them to really block properly (although, certainly, it's much easier to demand a pro-level defense from your opponent with a top-tier character). If you think you fall into either one of these camps, this guide will still be of use to you, for sure; but, the guide is mainly written for the third type of player I run into - the player who understands and appreciates it, but still makes bad decisions. That's not a slight against them; I still make poor decisions, as well as many of the best American VSav players. It's not because we are bad players, but rather, our decisions and heuristics for running a sound defense are rooted in logic that works for many OTHER fighting games. ...Buuut, this is Vampire Savior, and everything you think you know is probably wrong (in fact, I've written a guide about how various mechanics that look familiar from other games in VSav function much differently in VSav compared to those other games. The deceptive nature of familiar-looking mechanics in VSav is a topic I've dabbled in). My goal is to write a comprehensive (or near-comprehensive) article on the ins and outs of defending against each character in the game. I'll cover how their neutral game is played, how you need to approach (or not-approach) them, what you need to do to defend against their offensive pressure, as well as what you can do on the offensive to avoid having the advantage reversed...as well as any other random tidbits of information that could be useful. Before I do, though, there are some basics I'd like to go over as far as defense is concerned. Some of this will overlap concepts written in my guide on Mizuumi. Some of it is information not-yet recorded in an accessible place (although many people may know it). And, some of it will even be made redundant when reading certain articles, for the sake of being thorough. But, they are concepts I assume that people know when reading the character-specific articles, so I want to make sure you understand them before going further. 2. Offensive types In general, there are two types of rushdown in Vampire Savior. Almost every character contains the ability to do both in some limited capacity; however, every character is generally better at one or the other. And, for a bit of variety, there are also some characters who are exceptions to this "rule". A. "Pressure" Rushdown: Characters with Pressure Rushdown use their offense to create a sequence of attacks with very few holes, no holes, or even worse: intentional breaks in the attack strings that are used to bait hasty counterattacks. It's generally pretty obvious HOW the attacks are supposed to be blocked - very few Pressure Rushdown characters incorporate frequent overheads into their game. Rather, The Pressure Rushdown characters excel in taking advantage of their menacing attack strings and abundance of frame traps to trick their opponent into mounting their counter-defense at the wrong time, and using these openings to deal damage; or even reading when their opponent is being too catatonic, to nail them with a Command Throw - powerful throws that can't be escaped from or have their damage mitigated. There are six easily classifiable Pressure Rushdown characters: B.B Hood, Bishamon, Felicia, J. Talbain, Lilith, and Rikuo. B. "High/Low" Rushdown: Characters with High/Low Rushdown use their toolset to trick their opponents into blocking in the wrong way. That is, they have the ability to do very quick overheads with their dash (or air dash), and either follow up with low attacks, or even do another quick overhead attack. While High/Low characters have less leeway/damage potential in altering the timing of their attacks, the High/Low Rushdown characters make up for this deficit by being able to switch between lows and overheads at very high speeds, creating a more proactive guessing game for their opponents, and using this guessing game to get past their opponents' defenses and deal as much damage as possible. There are six easily classifiable High/Low Rushdown characters: Hsien-Ko, Jedah, L. Rapter, Morrigan, Q-Bee, and Sasquatch. C. "The Outliers": These characters fit into the categories in strange ways. - Anakaris might be able to be considered a High/Low character, especially since his neutral game is typically played in the air like many High/Low rushdowns characters. However, what's noteworthy about Anakaris is that, while most characters excel in one type of offense or the other, Anakaris may be the only character in the game who is equally proficient at both. So, while it might be a natural inclination to think of him as High/Low, bear in mind that he's not only adept at both, but that it's easy for him to switch between the two modes of offense at-will, giving him a powerful offensive toolset to work with...Remember, Anakaris is the worst character in the game for his lack of DEFENSIVE options, NOT his lack of options on the offensive. Forget this at your own peril. ...Although, he does lack a normal throw, and his command throws are...well...you can read my article on Anak and see. - Demitri, in my opinion, fits in neither camp. He definitely isn't a High/Low Rushdown character, because he has no overheads outside of his jumping normals (or that treacherous Bat Spin move, which can frequently be unsafe on HIT). His dash renders him unable to use any normal moves, and none of his special moves can be chained together to make any sort of relevant Pressure-based offense (again, unless you count the rare times that Bat Spin actually allows Demitri to land normally, instead of sending him flying backwards on block). Instead, Demitri's entire game is based on okizeme (i.e wakeup games); he spends his neutral game fishing for knockdowns, and then uses his opponent's wakeup to create high risk/high reward guessing games that payoff with huge damage. If he guesses right, he gets a ton of damage and gets to try and set up the situation again; but, if he's wrong, he gets virtually nothing out of the exchange and has to start all over. - Victor can be considered a Pressure Rushdown character; but, his pressure is not only rather weak, but he relies on the fact that his ground normals can force resets to create a sort of loop. Thus, if he gets blocked, he can't very easily continue the pressure. On top of that, any time he gets a successful combo into a Hp reset, he then has to trick his opponent AGAIN, or be pushed out and lose opportunities for damage. His offense is also tailored for heavier use of his Command Throw, which does about as much damage as one of his normal chain combos. Although, interestingly enough, landing the Command Throw usually forces Victor to forfeit the offensive advantage...is it any wonder this guy is one of the worst characters in the game? Anyways, this makes him more of a "Pressure Rushdown Lite", or something. The Diet Coke of Pressure Rushdown. 3. General Advice There are some things you need to consider, no matter who you're fighting. A. Everyone can do both...except Demitri and Lilith No matter if you're fighting a Pressure Rushdown or a High/Low Rushdown character, basically everyone in the game has the ability to do both in SOME capacity, no matter how small, how effective, or how ridiculous. B.B Hood is pressure, but her J.Hk unblockable is a high/low game - she can either come down with a standard jump attack (high option), or do J.Hk to try and pin you to set up the unblockable low (low option). Many High/Low characters can still use Variable Blockstun Pressure (the fancy term for "intentionally make your own frame traps") to get some more damage, even though they can't generally get as much damage out of it as Pressure Rushdown characters. Rikuo can do instant J.Lk xx Drill on some characters, and hell, even Victor can follow up his resets/knockdowns with Giga Stake, which needs to be blocked high. It's important to keep in mind that both avenues are available to every character in some way, shape, or form. And, whether or not it's incredibly powerful, good players will know when and how to use even the most esoteric options. B. Guard Cancel Guard Cancel is an extremely important tool in Vampire Savior. In my opinion, it's very underused and underrated by American players. If a player is good at Guard Cancelling on command, it completely changes the dynamic of the match. Watch Japanese matchups between characters with powerful GCs, and you'll see how frequently they move into range and hesitate. It's not uncommon to see top players move into each others' attack range and then sit there for a second or more (which, as you probably know, feels like an eternity when you're the one playing). Obviously, this isn't an all-encompassing thing, and all GCs can be baited. Some attacks are "GC-safe" in most situations. Some GCs are even easier to bait than others (Anakaris's is not even safe on hit, Talbain's and Hsien-Ko's are slow enough that they can be effectively baited with almost any light attack from max range). On the other hand, there are some characters who virtually can't even be played at a competitive level without the ability to instant-GC (Demitri and Victor are the ones that immediately come to mind). Your ability to do it WHEN you want, as well as your ability to judge when it's a good idea, is a huge factor in stopping your opponent from applying block pressure with impunity when they shouldn't be. Guard Cancels can also be used offensively by people with GC-only attacks, as they can do a GC Option Select that allows them to attempt a GC without dropping their defense at all. This is especially useful against players/characters who are AG-happy or like to counterpoke. When playing offense, just hold a button down, and buffer the GC - if your opponent attacks, finish the GC and let go of the button you've held down. You can't get an accidentally special move if your attack is GC-only, and you won't even throw out a jab that can be counter-hit, because you used negative edge. Characters with GC-only attacks: Anakaris, B.B Hood, Bishamon*, Jedah, L.Rapter, and Q-Bee. * - Bishamon can use his GC attack, Kien Zan, for a few frames after block stun, hit stun, wakeup, being reset, or landing from a jump. On top of that, some characters have unblockable ES GCs, which make them even harder to pressure. Anyone who attacks within their GC range will be hit, and anyone who has their jumping attack get GC'ed is almost guaranteed to be hit as well, since even if they land in time to block, they will land right next to their opponent with no time to move out of range. Characters with unblockable ES GCs: Anakaris*, Bishamon, Demitri, Felicia, Lilith, L. Rapter (during Dark Force only), and Morrigan. * - Anakaris's GC still sucks and is unsafe on hit. Finally, Guard Cancels are important for a big reason that I don't think most people consider: They replace reversal attacks in Vamprire Savior. Refer to this chart: http://clientes.netvisao.pt/anpedror/reversals.htm The important thing the note, here, is that the game engine prohibits you from using the Piano Method to reversal, so unless you can consistently be accurate within 1/59th of a second (since VSav runs at 59FPS), you can't realistically rely on reversal attacks. More importantly, many characters in the game don't have moves which are suitable reversals. A lot of characters only have three invincible moves: Their command throws (which don't actually grab opponents unless they are reversals in most cases, because throws can't be used for four frames after getting up...AND they can be stopped be simply standing out of throw range), Dark Force (which can't be used as a reversal; the chart notes that Dark Force isn't even possible until after the reversal frame), and...their Guard Cancel, which, by its nature, isn't a reversal. Thus, even if it were possible to Piano Reversal, many characters have no suitable options in the first place. However, every Guard Cancel has invulnerable frames, and it is the answer to reckless attacks - especially reckless meaty attacks - making it the effective substitute for wakeup reversals in Vampire Savior. As long as you're not going to get chipped to death, a wakeup GC is your best bet...as long as you know it'll connect. C. Addendum 1: Reversals As an addendum to what I just wrote...Reversals in VSav are a stupid idea. Stop trying to do them, and if you unironically suggest that someone try a reversal and I hear about it, I will punch you in your stupid face. D. Addendum 2: Wakeup Command Throw Exceptions I just explained that Guard Cancelling is the substitute for reversals, for a whole ton of reasons. However, there is one exception: While this isn't necessarily a reversal, there are some characters who can get away with wakeup command throws. - Bishamon, Q-Bee, and Victor can all throw as they get up from a forward/backward roll; the 4-frame throw injunction doesn't apply to them in this case. - Some characters have command throws that will beat the throw injunction, for a variety of reasons; some characters have throws that have more than four active grabbing frames. Some characters have throws with a 4-frame (or longer) startup, with invulnerable startup. If these characters aren't being forced to block immediately as they get up , they can squeeze in a command throw, and even if it doesn't come out as a reversal, it will still cause the poorly-timed meaty to whiff (thanks to the invulnerability) and grab them. - Characters with enough active grabbing frames to bypass the throw injunction: Bishamon (5), J.Talbain (7), L.Rapter (11), and Q-Bee (10; ES version only). - Characters with long-startup command throws + invulnerability: Bishamon (7 starup; 13 invincibility), Morrigan (4; 4), Rikuo (Gem's Anger, i.e HCB+K - 6; 6) - The simple list of characters who can do the Wakeup Command Throw Exceptions; Bishamon, J.Talbain, L.Rapter, Morrigan, Q-Bee, Rikuo, Victor (after forward/backward rolls only) Finally, bear in mind that if you are fighting one of these characters, simply timing a meaty properly is all you need to do to stop this...or just play your okizeme from the air. If you're on the ground, and any of these characters actually DO succeed in a reversal attack, however, you will get thrown if you're in range...which brings me to the last method of defense against characters with Command Throw Exceptions: don't do meaties from point-blank. E. Advancing Guard/Push Block I probably don't need to discuss this too in-depth, right? Advancing Guard (AG) is the most fundamental defensive technique in VSav...apart from just blocking. Done right, and your opponent is pushed back. Press buttons during blockstun to "proc" an AG. First two buttons won't proc. Distance pushed is based on the strength of the button pushed when it procs. 4th and 5th presses have the highest probability of proccing (see the math section in my Tutorial on Mizuumi if you're interested). If you manage 6 presses, it will automatically proc. You can almost gauge an opponent's defensive prowess by how they AG: if they're new, they probably don't AG/can't AG very well. If they're intermediates, they can probably AG on the first or second hit; but, more importantly, they'll probably try to AG everything, and they'll do so predictively - that is, they don't actually wait to see if you attack. More advanced players are more familiar with each character's attacks and pacing, and will probably do a lot more basic blocks, interspersed with reactive AGs - that is, they "block confirm" their AGs. Dealing with AGs becomes more complicated as you move higher up the ladder. In novice play, you can basically do whatever you want, because they can't AG/won't AG consistently. Intermediate players are enamored with how easy it is to push block people away, and will try to do it every chance they get...so, if you have high/low capability in your offense, you can use this to trip them up. Besides that, you can figure out their AG timing - usually immediately as they get up - and time your attack so that you counterhit their AG (after all, if they AG too early, they're just gonna get a jab/short). In high-level play, if you just try to do a meaty, you'll get AG'ed for sure; but, even if you try to stagger, you're not usually going to hit your opponent. This is because they are waiting to see what you do. This allows them to defend better against high/low AND pressure game, because they aren't commiting to anything until they see what action you're going to take first. There are, however, a few upsides for the person attacking. For one, since they are not just attacking willy-nilly, they are more susceptible to throws on wakeup. Granted, they can still possibly react fast enough to counter your throw attempt; but, at least now, it has a chance of working, and becomes a viable option. For example, if you play Victor, as strange as it sounds, you can tell how smart a defender is by the fact that they DO get hit by your dashing 360 sometimes; the poor defender will always be protected from the 360 (cos they're spamming AG as soon as they have any breathing room), without realizing that they're always wide open to variable pressure, and that Victor's chain combos deal more damage than his 360. Sweet irony! Second, because the high-level player will try to block-confirm their AGs, you can get away with doing more attacks without immediately getting pushed away, since they won't AG without being certain that they've read your offense properly. This trait diminishes somewhat as you get to the top end of VSav players, though, because they are very good at figuring out an opponent's next move based on their character selection and their spacing - only true guessing games will be difficult to AG for them. There's only one technique that truly renders the AG inept, aside from taking advantage of its inherent risks: crossups. Or at least, some crossups. The reason is because an AG pushes you away from the direction your opponent is FACING; where they actually are on the screen has no relevance. Thus, if an opponent crosses you up, and you AG, they will be behind you, but they will be facing behind you, as well. As a result, your AG pushes you toward them, even though they're behind you when the attack connects. Not every crossup technique works. Some aerial maneuvers cause the characters to turn around. For example, most characters with air dashes turn around if they move to the opposite side of their opponent during their dash. Morrigan's flying dash, and B.B Hood's double jump cause the same phenomenon. (I need to make a list of what aerial maneuvers auto-correct their directions; if anyone wants to give me that list, that'd be much-appreciated.) The point is, if you do any standard jumping crossup, or you have a dash that crosses up without turning you around, you can make certain aspects of your offense un-AG'able. F. Jump-Out Jump-Outs are an interesting part of American VSav. It's the preferred method of defending yourself from attacks, and for a lot of good reasons: - It's easy: hold up, or up + back. - It's powerful, if it works. If you're mid-screen, you get some breathing room, and potentially reset the situation to neutral. If you're in the corner, you can evade your opponent's attack and have a good chance to mount a counter-offense if they are unprepared. - If your opponent doesn't/can't/won't include contingencies in their offense to deal with jump-outs, or can't time meaties consistently, you can use it in a variety of situations, even if you theoretically shouldn't be able to get away with it. That being said, Americans probably use it too much...however, it's definitely used in Japan, too. The "meta" of JP Savior, however, gives proper attention to jump-outs. Their offensive strings, strategies, and techniques prepare for the possibility of jump-outs in the same way that Guilty Gear players do combos that prepare for the possibility of the opponent using Burst, for example. They know which attacks will stop jump-outs, and the ranges they need to be at. Their oki is made to discourage using jump-outs as an easy escape, and when it does happen, they even know what to do to keep the offensive pressure going, or even punish them for jumping out. On the contrary, Japanese players know when to jump, too; they make space by either AG'ing or blocking until the opponent is pushed far enough away. Jump-outs in close range *SHOULD* be a high-risk, high-reward maneuver. So, what can you do to deal with Jump-Outs more effectively? - Know your best attacks and strings for punishing jump-outs, and the ranges at which they are effective. I won't try to explain the best strategies for each character here (nor do I know them all as of writing this), but what I can say is, it's best to precede your anti-jump-out attacks with attacks that have a lot of frame advantage on block. Also, the best moves for punishing jump-outs are usually fast moves with longer ranges; the larger the hitbox, the slower it can be, but we're talking 4-6 frame startup on average. There are some definite exceptions to this rule if you have extremely long-range attacks, or have a ground dash with standing attacks (like Anakaris, for example). ALL jumps have a 3-frame startup...except Lilith's High Jump, which has 6 frames, and Anak's neutral jump, which is only 1 frame, but...well, you'll hit him out of his neutral jump in most cases. My point is that your punish shouldn't be much slower than that. - Know your offense well enough to know WHEN it's a good idea for your opponent to jump-out, so you can be prepared with something. "Something" can either be an anti-air (particularly if they're in the corner, since they can't jump out of your range), a GC (in fact, anti-air or GC is a very good mixup game for this situation; attacks get GC'ed, and descending with nothing gets AA'd), it can be walking forward, doing a dash, doing a move that propels you forward, throwing an attack that takes up a lot of space on the screen - anything that can potentially keep the offensive advantage in your favor. - Make sure your Oki is solid. You need to be able to time meaties properly, and you need to do meaties often enough that your opponent doesn't keep trying to jump-out anyways. For example, against players who don't time meaties properly/don't meaty often enough, I will continuously try to jump-out, just because I know that I won't die before I successfully jump out of their offense, and I know my counter-offense will succeed; it's a shamelessly lazy way to beat opponents who don't factor jump-outs into their offensive plan. Basically, don't be a person that your opponent performs this type of risk assessment on; it means your Oki is weak-sauce. - As an afterthought of that last point, make sure your jump-out punishes deal as much damage as possible, or are as threatening as possible. Your jump-out punish should have a follow-through. Your jump-out punish's follow-through should not leave you vulnerable to attack if your opponent gets reset (i.e they actually made it into the air before you hit them). Your jump-out punish should have a plan on how best to capitalize on a reset...which shouldn't be too hard; what do you already do when you get a reset? It'll probably work in this case, too. G. Dark Force On the opposite side of jump-outs are Dark Forces, which are perhaps the most under-rated defensive maneuver in American VSav (aside from just blocking). This probably doesn't need mentioning, but just for the sake of being thorough...each Dark Force has an activation animation, after which the character is in a special state, where either their moves are different, their hit and movement properties are different, or a combination of any of those things. Your activation animation is invulnerable, and a couple of frames afterward will be invulnerable too. Everyone's Dark Force is on a timer - the length of the timer is different on a per-character basis. Getting hit by attacks takes chunks of time off the timer. When the timer expires, your Dark Force will deactivate, which (usually) has an animation. You're completely vulnerable during this animation, but you can also deactivate manually, which is often the smart idea. When I say "a couple frames of invincibility", I mean it literally - the majority of the cast has invulnerability equal to the length of their Dark Force animation plus two frames. The exception: - Victor has only 1 frame of additional invulnerability, on both Dark Forces. - J. Talbain and Sasquatch have 3 additional frames of invulnerability (true of both of Sas's DFs). - Rapter has 8(!) additional frames of invulnerability. - Anakaris has NEGATIVE 28 FRAMES, cos fuck Anak, I guess. For everyone but Anakaris, the general purpose of using a Dark Force is to evade an attack on someone going all-in on their offense. If they are recklessly using moves that are too long on startup, or if they are just unrelenting in their offense to the point where they're not even concerned about a possible counter attack, you can reset the situation with a Dark Force. This is especially good when cornered against a character/opponent who likes to use jump-ins for their offensive pressure. Honestly, a lot of dealing with Dark Forces properly is a matter of not being too arrogant. Much like dealing with Jump-Outs, being prepared for a Dark Force is a matter of mounting your offense under the assumption that a Dark Force can and will happen. If you go through the motions without properly watching your opponent, you're gonna get caught off-guard. Part of it is simply a matter of leading your ground assault with light attacks compared to medium/hard attacks (that way you recover and can block/run/counter in time); but even then, failing to react to a Dark Force, even if you're technically doing the right thing to PREPARE, is just as fatal. Here are some things to consider when faced with a Dark Force: - Characters who fly during their Dark Force are going to get away. Just be happy with the fact that they burned meter, give them space, and try again. Try not to give as many opportunities for them to jump-out if possible. Well-timed meaty attacks, and better jump-ins will do the trick. DF Flyers are: Jedah, Q-Bee, Rikuo (well...he surfs, but it's basically the same shit). - Characters with super/hyper armor are basically the same. The only difference is, against characters with Super Armor, as you're giving them space, you can watch what they do; Dark Forces are very risky as offensive maneuvers, cos if they get hit out of them, they risk having the timer run out automatically, which leads to them eating a second combo. Thus, if your super-armored opponents get too ballsy, have a plan ready for them. DF Armoreds are: Sasquatch (super armor), Bishamon (super armor), Hsien-Ko (hyper armor). Rikuo also has hyper armor during his Dark Force, as long as he remains on his surfboard. - Flyers and Armored DFs are probably going to use DF as a defensive maneuver more than most people. This is a big part of why I brought them up, specifically. Just about any time you put a tough situation in front of them, and they have any breathing room to act, there's a decent chance that they will respond with a DF activation. The only other character who activates frequently is Felicia, since her DF properties allow her to generate easily generate very powerful high/low pressure, and even set up unblockables. - As for everyone else, their goal will be to move in with the quickest attacks possible. Given that the invulnerability window after the activation is so short, they don't have much choice. Thus, the most important thing you can do is NOT be within throw range, nor within the range of ANY invulnerable attack. Throws have immediate startups, so they can safely throw you before their invulnerability ends. And, characters with invulnerable attacks can just extend it further by doing a second one (granted, you can block, but still). The second thing you need to watch out for are light attacks. The invulnerable frames will be over before anyone (but Rapter) can throw a normal attack, but the window is very small. In fact, this is usually not a half-bad time to jump back; all of their fastest moves will likely not punish your jump-out, and then it's just a matter of defending against their DF attacks properly. - I've implied this - and stated it outright - in a few places on this guide, but let me state it again here: Reversal Dark Forces are IMPOSSIBLE. This means that any meaty attack will always beat a Dark Force. If your opponent likes to abuse Dark Force to weasel out of situations on wakeup/reset, a properly-timed meaty will always win. In particular, jumping/aerial okizeme options are good for this; you can lead into a combo on your jump-in/IAD if you hit their DF, and if your meaty isn't properly timed, you'll land and be prepared to react accordingly. Granted, it's not a good idea to meaty all the time (you'll get AG'd/GC'd all day if you do), but this is an effective way to handle a Dark Force if you predict them. The inverse of this is true, too; the fact that Variable Blockstun Pressure is necessary to deal with AG/GC means that sometimes, even doing a Dark Force on wakeup can be effective...rarely, and much moreso for Flyers and Armoreds than anyone else, but rarely useful, nonetheless. H. Okizeme Every character that isn't Anakaris has the same basic options. They can get up and try to AG your next attack, giving them breathing room to try and counter your next move or bring the situation back to neutral. They can Dark Force, if they think your timing is off/think you'll stagger the timing on purpose. The invulnerability of Dark Force can allow them to capitalize and reverse the situation if they successfully catch their opponent off-guard. They can try to block the next attack and convert it into a Guard Cancel, which will see varying degrees of success based on your proximity to them, how quick the startup of their GC is, whether the hitbox of their GC is wide enough to actually hit you, and whether or not their ES GC is unblockable. If your timing on meaties isn't correct, whether intentional or not, they can also just try to jump on wakeup. This is a very advantageous spot for most people in the game to be in. There are, of course, some options that people have available to them that others don't. Taller characters can sort of cover high/low options with a crouching AG, because if your High meaty isn't on point, you'll get hit out by their C.Lp. Some characters have cool unblockable GCs. Some characters, as stated above, also have good enough command throws to take you out if your timing isn't right. The foundation of a good Oki covers these options as well as possible. The key is not only to know what your character should do about these responses, but also to be able to gauge what your opponent is going to want to do, both by their own personal habits as well as based on the character they've chosen. - If your opponent is AG-happy, that's the time to apply Variable Blockstun Pressure. Intentionally do slower attacks on wakeup than they are expecting, or even do your same quick attacks after waiting just a split second. - If your opponent likes to Dark Force or jump-out, you've got two options: either, do a proper meaty (it's very commonplace for people to use Variable Pressure without even thinking about it in most levels of VSav play, which makes it easy to respond with either one of these. Jump-outs are more popular, though, since you don't have to time anything). Make sure you know the timing on your meaties, and if you have a meaty attack that punishes jump-outs, that's even better. Another option is, if your character can do this, to Oki from the air. If you use Variable Pressure from the air, it doesn't really matter what they do: If they jump out, you're nearing the end of your jump, so you can make them block a low air attack and then Guard Break them. If they Dark Force, as long as you're reacting to them, you should have plenty of time to realize that they've activated Dark Force, and take the proper countermeasures...whatever they may be. - If your opponent likes to GC, you also have a few options, depending on how they do it. Novice players will just finish their entire Guard Cancel, leaving them wide open to be punished (after all, they'll be in the middle of a Shadow Blade or something else stupid). If they buffer only half of the GC at once (i.e they "block-confirm" before finishing the GC), you need to either do a more-delayed Variable Pressure than you would with AGs, or you need to do meaty attacks from as far away as possible. Think hard about what the character you're playing against might want to do, based on their skillset. And, just as important, think about what the habits of your opponent are (hint: jump-outs/up-backs/whatever you call them are very popular in American VSav...quite rightly, since American VSav players rarely do pressure strings without holes/with contingency plans for jump-outs). 4. General Tips vs. Pressure Rushdown A lot of this will be gone over in more detail in the character-specific articles, but I figure some things are worth mentioning here. - Pressure Rushdown is all about frame traps. Block confirm your AGs. Block a lot. Do not just go attacking as soon as you have breathing room - that is the MAIN WAY THAT PRESSURE RUSHDOWN DEALS DAMAGE. - You do need to AG eventually. Most people won't have a problem with this; they're more likely to have a problem with being overeager and reckless, as described in the previous tip. However, being too catatonic is still a problem. You're more likely to get thrown by a Pressure Rushdown than a High/Low Rushdown, and good players WILL kill you for this. - This is somewhat an extension of the first point, but Pressure Rushdown also excels in having options to blow up Tech Hits that aren't necessarily frame traps. Just by having two approaches to a situation with different timings can trip up defenders who rely on anticipation. For example, Bishamon usually dashes in with attacks, but he also has a popular audible to his dash where he cancels the dash into an ES Fireball. If he had attacked, it would have been push-blocked; but, in this situation, he'll probably eat a single attack and trade with the ES Fireball, leading to big damage anyways. - Pay mind to WHAT attacks you decide to Advancing Guard, as well as what attacks you decide to Guard Cancel. For example, if you're getting dashed at by a Pressure Rushdown character, most of them will still have forward momentum anyways, so you haven't really pushed them away. On the flipside, they can't stop their forward momentum in the middle of an attack, so this is usually a fantastic time to Guard Cancel. Obviously, consider the moves being used, as well; you're probably gonna have a harder time GC'ing Rikuo's Dashing Lp compared to his Dashing Mp. If you don't AG the right things, you're not actually stopping their offense. - I've mentioned this earlier, but every Pressure Rushdown has a limited High/Low game. Some are more limited than others; for example, Rikuo's High/Low options are pretty awful compared to Talbain's, which can be pretty strong. Regardless, be aware of each Pressure Rushdown character's High/Low capabilities and options, because it will be the only times where the direction you block is made ambiguous. J. General Tips vs. High/Low Rushdown As with the Pressure Rushdown tips, much of this will also be covered in the character-specific guides in more depth. - Block HIGH. React LOW. Most characters - Pressure OR High/Low - can't use their set of both High and Low options from any distance. The farther away your opponent is, the less likely they are to use a low attack. The closer they are (and I mean, very close), the less likely they are to use a high attack, unless you're cornered. There are, of course, some exceptions; but, following this rule will have you making a lot less guesses on how to block. - AG a lot in neutral situations. If you can keep a High/Low character out of that sweet spot where they can make you guess which way to block, you can avoid taking serious damage in many situations. Once they're actually in that range, it's much riskier to AG (and unfortunately, still necessary, which is part of what makes High/Low so powerful). - To expand upon that idea, once they are in range to make their high/low pressure a true guessing game, you want to stop trying to AG the high attacks as much, and try to block-confirm their ground attacks for your AG. Whatever you do, do _NOT_ try to anticipate with your AGs; all they need to do is attack where you're not expecting to get a ton of damage out of your guess. Whereas, on the flipside, if you're watching closely, and you realize you're blocking low when they're about to go high, you at least have a split-second to react, instead of being stuck doing a crouching Jab cos you *thought* they were gonna go low. Block-confirm your AGs! - ...Expanding upon THAT idea...When you're on the defense versus a High/Low character, you need to watch them CAREFULLY. This might sound obvious, but it's something anyone can work on. When you're in your High/Low opponent's sweet spot where they can make you guess, good reaction is going to be your best friend. If you aren't sharply focused on them, you will have trouble reacting correctly/quickly (Hint: this is also your best chance to GC a High/Low character, so you want to be able to react efficiently. FOCUS!). - The previous point ALSO ties into THIS point: as an inverse to Pressure Rushdown having High/Low capabilities, so too do High/Low characters possess Pressure capabilities. They will use staggered ground normals to try and frame trap, but they will also use this to catch you unfocused. For example, Sasquatch can, after some repeated C.Lks, do one of two things: he can either go right into a Short Hop for a high attack, or he can do something like C.Mp -> C.Hk. The brilliance of this is, let's say you stand up to block the Short Hop or even try to jump-out: C.Mp -> C.Hk is about the same speed as a Short Hop, and if you're not paying attention, you'll register blocking an attack without realizing that you're about to eat the sweep. So, again, the name of the game is FOCUS. Defending against High/Low characters is very heavily reaction-based. --------------- Conclusion Not much to say, other than I hope you found this guide helpful. My goal is to ensure that these guides are useful for new players and veterans alike, unlike my last guide, which was specifically to help newcomers. Let me know if you think I missed anything!

I wanted to write a little bit about Morrigan's dash. Some of this is known, maybe even well-known. Some of it is even documented here already. It took me forever to really figure out the mechanics and esoterics of her dash, though, so perhaps this will be of help to someone. 1. Morrigan's dash has three segments. You wouldn't necessarily notice it if you just dash forward, or straight up...but basically, you have the initial direction you dashed, and you can change direction twice. So, if you dash with 66, you can change your direction to up, and then forward...a 686 dash, I guess you could call it? You could also change your direction to up early (688), or fly up at the last minute (668). I also like this nomenclature, because a normal, forward dash is 666. Hell yeah. ...Get it 1a. You can cancel the dash with an attack at any time; the segments only refer to how you can use the dash to move. 2. You can do a dash starting with 8 by doing a "Super Jump" motion (2 8). Since 2 7 is needed to backdash, I actually just recommend doing a Tiger Knee motion (2369 or 2147 for the backdash). This has the added benefit of allowing you to do an immediate TK Soul Fist forward version, and if you mess up, you're not flying/jumping towards your opponent. The segmented movement still applies on "8" dashes. 3. Doing a normal manually cancels Morrigan's dash. Most people realize this, already; but, you can actually end your dash more quickly by hitting a normal than you can by just tapping 66. If you do 66, Lp (or any normal, really), and the LP is at the earliest point which you can attack, it will stop your forward momentum faster, allowing you to stutter dash more safely, and more quickly for better Okizeme. Stick players can probably achieve this effect reliably with double taps. For pad players like myself, I recommend hitting Lp -> Lk in rapid succession; since the point is rarely to actually attack the opponent, it doesn't really matter which one you get, and if your opponent isn't knocked down, both of them are equally safe from retaliation. 3a. You can use this property on an 8 dash to travel an even shorter distance. 3b. You can also use the double-tap/"grace note" strategy to do instant overheads more reliably, making her sorta-crappy high/low game a little less crappy. 4. Pretty common knowledge, but Morrigan automatically turns around to attack if you cross your opponent up during a dash. If you DI during a dash, it will also automatically correct it's direction (as opposed to jumping, where it will still send Morrigan in the wrong direction). The poorer implication of this, however, is that it doesn't allow you to do inescapable nonsense like Jedah's dash will. Since Tech Hits push the opponent away from where the opponent is facing, AG'ing Jedah's crossup D.Hk pushes Jedah's opponent TOWARDS him (since he doesn't turn around if he flies over his opponent). Morrigan doesn't have this luxury, and thus, when facing a more experienced opponent (or just an opponent with more experience vs. Morrigan), simply flying over your opponent at close range to cross them up is no longer a viable tactic; it's slow, easy to to block, harder to convert into big damage, and has multiple points where it can be punished. 5. If anyone, like me, has ever watched JP Morrigans do dash links and thought "Why can't I do those consistently?" Well, it's not because it's actually hard to do (I mean, the links themselves still require some timing; this point is more about if you're having trouble throwing the second attack before you land). You see, there's two ways you can try to do them: - You can dash up to your opponent, let go of 6, throw your first attack, throw your second attack. - You can dash up to your opponent, throw your first attack (automatically canceling your dash), throw your second attack. I wish I could write up a dazzling explanation of why one works and the other one doesn't, like I usually do. But, the truth is, I don't have a fucking clue why. Here's what I know: The second method makes it very easy to Dash Link. The first one, does not. It took me a long, long time to figure out that there was even a difference. Even knowing what I know about dashes, it feels like the first one would be the right way, since it appears that hitting a normal attack starts your downward descent quicker. The only thing I can think of is that maybe, since you're canceling your dash with a normal attack, the attack connects before you've even begun landing? What-thefuck-ever. The point is, if you wanna land those dash link, do it the second way: don't let go of 6, let the normal move cancel your dash. Not only will you find that you have a much easier time hitting the Dash Links, but you will be able to do them more frequently at lower altitudes than you might have been able to, previously (if you were previously doing it wrong, like I had been for years). 6. Since Morrigan's pursuit animation is identical to her dash, you can actually play a mixup game on your opponent's wakeup with Pursuit or dash. - Landing the pursuit is well...not really part of the mixup. It's just damage that you could get. - Whiffing the pursuit favors the low option, but you can whiff and then immediately dash. - Dashing towards your opponent (pursuit feint) favors the high option, but you can whiff/lend and start in with a low. Naturally, this is dependent on how quickly your opponent wakes up, if they roll or not, if they get hit by your pursuit (if you went for the feint), etc. but it's another trick in Morrigan's arsenal for you to use from time to time.

Throws in Vampire Savior are weird and have inconsistent properties and are mostly stupid. I catalogued this information mainly because I have a hard time remembering it. This is a list of all non-command throws in the game (and Victor's two command throws that act like normal throws) and their relevant properties - whether they are a throw or hold, their rough damage, their damage scaling on tech hit, and any additional, noteworthy properties. A. Glossary, for reference when using this guide: I've defined the terms used, no matter how obvious it is what I'm talking about, just in case. Normal Throw: When I refer to the "normal" version of a throw, I simply mean throwing them forward, as you'll likely do most of the time. I called it "Normal" because in 2D fighters where the throw is a buttom combination like Lp + Lk, holding the stick at neutral will default to the forward version of throws in games like VSav. Backward Throw: Conversely, this just refers to when you hold the joystick away from your opponent when you throw them, causing your opponent to turn around. In rare cases, throws and air throws don't have a backwards version. Throw: Exactly what is sounds like - when you pick up your opponent and throw them. Basic stuff. Every character has a throw they can perform in mid-air, referred to as an "air throw". Hold: Special throws that allow you to mash the buttons during their animation for addition hits, and of course, additional damage. Holds have backwards versions, just like throws; but, you probably already knew that. There are no air holds...but, you probably ALSO knew that. "Tech Hit" "Tech" "Teched" "Escape "Escaped": All terms for the same thing: attempt a throw while your opponent is throwing you to reduce the throw's damage, as well as cause the throw to reset instead of knockdown. Sometimes, however, a Tech Hit will only cause one or the other. B. tl;dr If you don't feel like reading the whole guide, here's a quick list of the more relevant information. The catalogue will have more details; but this should be the most important stuff. 1. Tech Hits generally reduce a throw's damage by roughly 50%. It's actually somewhere between like 48-52% depending on the throw and the opponent, but whatever. - Victor's K Throw has its damage reduced by 75% on tech. - Q-Bee's throws only have their damage reduced by roughly 20% on tech. - The following ground throws have no damage reduction on tech: Morrigan's P Throw, Rikuo's P Throw, Victor's Graviton Knuckle (28P). - The following air throws have no damage reduction on tech: Hsien-Ko, Lilith, Morrigan. - The second half of Rikuo's throw can be teched; however, you can't use a Tech Hit to break the throw between halves. Also, the second half of Rikuo's throw also has no damage reduction on tech hit. 2. Holds do a fixed amount of damage regardless of an opponent's defense modifier, and, with very few exceptions, ignore damage proration caused by low health. Teching a hold causes the hold to only get one hit. There are some interesting exceptions; but, the result is roughly the same. - The final attack of Demitri's and Rapter's holds are subject to damage proration by low health opponents. The final attack Demitri's throw is activated even on Tech Hit, and can not have its damage prorated on Tech. - Victor's Mega Shock (Qcf+P) is considered to be a hold, not a command throw, and can be Teched. - Victors Mp Throw (hold) resets his opponent, even on hit. This is deliberate, and is the only distinction between his Mp and Hp holds. 3. Hsien-Ko's and Victor's air throws put the opponent in a knockdown state, regardless of whether the throw was teched, meaning that teching Victor's air throw only causes damage reduction (remember, Hsien-Ko's air throw deals full damage on tech). - If Hsien's air throw is teched, she can't follow up with a Pursuit Attack; however, Victor is able to under the same circumstance. The relevance of this is, there is at least SOME incentive to Tech Hsien's air throw, however small. 4. Throws where the "normal" version switches sides with their opponent: - B.B Hood's throws - Demitri's K throw (hold) - Hsien-Ko's air throw - Lilith's air throw 5. Throws with no "backwards" version: - B.B Hood's air throw - Demitri's K throw (hold) and Air Throw - Jedah's air throw - Morrigan's air throw - Sasquatch's air throw - Victor's Mega Shock C. The Throw Catalogue The throw damages that I've listed are tested on medium-defense opponents. Throw tech reductions are approximate, and the damages/reductions will change slightly based on the character who is throwing, as well as their opponents. Holds deal static damage, and thus the defense modifier of the opponent is irrelevant. 1. Anakaris "What's a Tech Hit LOL :(" 2. B.B Hood P Throw Type: Throw Damage: 13/21 Tech: Damage is cut by ~50% (6/10) Other: B.B Hood switches sides with her opponent when doing the "towards" version of this throw. To maintain the same side, you must throw backwards. Air Throw (P) Type: Throw Damage: 14/22 Tech: Damage is cut by ~50% (7/11) Other: B.B Hood switches sides with her opponent when doing the "towards" version of this throw. Also, there is no "backwards" version of this throw, meaning that using this throw will inevitably cause you to switch sides with your opponent. 3. Bishamon P Throw Type: Throw Damage: 14/22 Tech: Damage is cut by ~50% (7/11) Other: N/A Air Throw (P) Type: Throw Damage: 13/21 Tech: Damage is cut by ~50% (6/10) Other: N/A 4. Demitri P Throw Type: Throw Damage: 14/22 Tech: Damage is cut by ~50% (7/11) Other: N/A K Throw Type: Hold Damage: 2/4 Per hit; I've never got more than 10 hits. Tech: Only two hits; the second hit has its damage reduced by 50% (total damage of 3/6) Other: The final attack of this hold is when Demitri throws the opponent over his head; this attack occurs even on a Tech Hit. Furthermore, the final attack of this hold is a special finisher, and is subject to damage scaling on opponents with low health. Finally, there is no "backwards" version of this throw; performing this throw will inevitably cause you to switch sides with your opponent. Air Throw (P) Type: Throw Damage: 14/22 Tech: Damage is cut by ~50% (7/11) Other: There is no "backwards" version of this throw, so you can't use it to switch sides with your opponent. 5. Felicia P Throw Type: Hold Damage: 1/2 per hit; additional hits from mashing always comes in pairs; I've never got more than 14 Hits (i.e 7 pairs) Tech: Only one "pair" (total damage of 2/4) Other: N/A K Throw Type: Throw Damage: 13/21 Tech: Damage is cut by ~50% (6/10) Other: Felicia moves across the screen along with her opponent during this throw. Air Throw (P) Type: Throw Damage: 13/21 Tech: Damage is cut by ~50% (6/10) Other: N/A 6. Hsien-Ko Throw (P and K) Type: Throw Damage: 13/20 Tech: Damage is cut by ~50% (6/9) Other: N/A Air Throw (P) Type: Throw Damage: 13/20 Tech: No damage reduction Other: This throw causes a knockdown AND deals full damage regardless of whether it's Teched or not; Tech Hits only prevent Pursuit attacks. Also, the normal version of this throw causes Hsien to switch sides with her opponent; to maintain the same side, you must throw backwards. 7. Jedah P Throw Type: Throw Damage: 15/23 Tech: Damage is cut by ~50% (7/11) Other: Enemy is launched all the way to the wall, regardless of Jedah's distance from the wall, whether the throw is Teched or not. Air Throw (P) Type: Throw Damage: 14/22 Tech: Damage is cut by ~50% (7/11) Other: There is no "backwards" version of this throw, so you can't use it to switch sides with your opponent. 8. J.Talbain P Throw Type: Throw Damage: 14/22 Tech: Reduces damage by ~50% (7/11) Other: This throw launches the opponent roughly half a screen's distance, regardless of whether the throw is Teched. K Throw Type: Throw Damage: 14/22 Tech: Damage is cut by ~50% (7/11) Other: Talbain moves across the screen along with his opponent during this throw. Air Throw (P) Type: Throw Damage: 15/23 Tech: Damage is cut by ~50% (7/11) Other: Talbain moves across the screen along with his opponent during this throw. 9. Lilith P Throw Type: Throw Damage: 13/19 Tech: Damage is cut by ~50% (6/9) Other: N/A Air Throw (P) Type: Throw Damage: 15/22 Tech: No damage reduction Other: Since there's no damage reduction, the only difference a Tech Hit makes is that you're reset afterwards instead of knocked down. Also, the normal version of this throw causes Lilith to switch sides with her opponent; to maintain the same side, you must throw backwards. 10. L.Rapter P Throw Type: Hold Damage: 3/5 per hit; I've never got more than 8 hits. Tech: Only one hit, scaled at 120% (4/7) Other: Rapter wins the distinction of having the only hold in the game that is somehow buffer WHEN it's teched. Thank goodness he only gets one hit. Also, the final hit of Rapter's P Throw is a special finisher, and is subject to damage scaling when his opponent is at low health. K Throw Type: Throw Damage: 18/27 Tech: Damage reduced by ~50% (9/13) Other: Fuck my balls, this throw does a lot of damage. His command throw deals 20/28, for reference. Seriously - what a douchebag! Air Throw (P) Type: Throw Damage: 15/22 Tech: Damage is cut by ~50% (7/10) Other: This throw launches the opponent about a half-screen's length, regardless of whether or not the throw was Teched. 11. Morrigan P Throw Type: Throw Damage: 14/21 Tech: No damage reduction Other: Since there's no damage reduction, the only difference a Tech Hit makes is that you're reset afterwards instead of knocked down. K Throw Type: Throw Damage: 14/21 Tech: Damage reduced by ~50% (7/10) Other: This throw causes Morrigan to slam her opponent against whichever wall she is facing, regardless of distance. This is important to remember, because if her opponent Techs this throw, they recover before she does. In other words, this throw can be unsafe on enemy Tech Hit...not that it matters, cos you should be using P Throw anyways... Air Throw (P) Type: Throw Damage: 16/24 Tech: No damage reduction Other: Since there's no damage reduction, the only difference a Tech Hit makes is that you're reset afterwards instead of knocked down. Also, there is no "backwards" version of this throw, so you can't use it to switch sides with your opponent. 12. Q-Bee P Throw Type: Throw Damage: 15/23 Tech: Damage is cut by ~25% (12/18) Other: Noteworthy here, is that the permanent damage is only cut by 20%, so it's not a constant rate for both variables as it is with other Tech Hits. This is because the throw is technically two hits; the first hit deals 9/14 damage, and the second hit deals 6/9 damage. Tech Hits only reduce the damage of the second hit, from 6/9 to 3/4. Air Throw (P) Type: Throw Damage: 15/23 Tech: Damage is cut by ~25% (12/18) Other: This throw has the exact same properties as Q-Bee's ground throw, and Tech Hits mitigate the damage in the exact same way. 13. Rikuo P Throw Type: Throw Damage: 11/17 or 17/27, depending on whether you perform the second half of the throw. Tech: No damage reduction Other: Since there's no damage reduction, the only difference a Tech Hit makes is that you're reset afterwards instead of knocked down. Also, a Tech Hit will interrupt the second half of Rikuo's throw, which will also do full damage regardless of whether or not it's Teched. What a dick. Air Throw (P) Type: Throw Damage: 13/20 Tech: Damage reduced by ~50% (6/9) Other: N/A 14. Sasquatch P Throw Type: Throw Damage: 15/23 Tech: Damage reduced by ~50% (7/11) Other: N/A Air Throw (P) Type: Throw Damage: 15/23 Tech: Damage reduced by ~50% (7/11) Other: There is no "backwards" version of this throw, so you can't use it to switch sides with your opponent. 15. Victor Mp Throw Type: Hold Damage: 2/4 per hit; I've never got more than 9 hits. Tech: Only one hit. Other: This hold resets Vic's opponent instead of knocking them down; it's the only difference between his Mp and Hp Throw. Hp Throw Type: Hold Damage: 2/4 per hit; I've never got more than 9 hits. Tech: Only one hit. Other: N/A K Throw Type: Throw Damage: 16/24 Tech: Damage is cut by ~75% (4/6) Other: Enemy is launched all the way to the wall, regardless of Victor's distance from the wall, unless the throw is Teched. Also...why 75% reduction? On Victor, of all characters? Air Throw (P) Type: Throw Damage: 15/23 Tech: Damage is cut by ~50% (7/11) Other: This throw causes a knockdown regardless of whether it's Teched or not; Tech Hits only reduce the damage of this throw. Also, unlike Hsien-Ko's air throw, Victor can attempt (and connect) a pursuit attack if his Air Throw is teched. Graviton Knuckle ("28P" during the startup of Mp or Hp throw) Type: Throw Damage: 18/26 Tech: No damage reduction Other: Since there's no damage reduction, the only difference a Tech Hit makes is that you're reset afterwards instead of knocked down. Mega Shock (Qcf+K Throw) Type: Hold Damage: 2/4 per hit; I've never got more than 11 hits. Tech: Only one hit. Other: The only reason I put this on this list is because it's a command throw that can be escaped with a Tech Hit. WTF? Also, this is probably obvious, but because Mega Shock is a command throw, there's no "backwards" version.

EDIT 3/12/14: Found another oddity regarding Felicia's ES Toy Touch.

Just a few notes about Bishamon's GC that I think most people don't realize: 1. You can pressure the SHIT out of people when you're on the offense with Bish's GC, because can't get a Guard Cancel on accident. Watch JP match videos, where Bish has his enemy cornered. There are situations where they certainly can attack (like, say, they jump over/out of an attack and land in range to start pressuring), and they will just wait instead, because of Bish's GC option select; if they attack, they get hit by an invincible Kien Zan. If they don't attack, they're not in any better of a situation than they are before. It's much like landing close to a Demitri, where the defender has to not only attack AFTER Bishamon gives up on trying to hit the GC OS, but BEFORE Bishamon has gone back to pressuring them...a very small window, to be sure. EDIT: In fact, looking at the video Korey posted for "Block and GC an attack" for whiff pursuit mixup, not only is that what makes it a viable mixup option for Bishamon...but, there's also a part in the video that demonstrates my point #1 perfectly, at about 45 seconds in. Watch as Morrigan jumps over Bish and starts doing C.Lks with hesitation. She knows about Bish's safe GC pressure, and is trying to catch him at a point where he's about to go back to pressuring with normals. ...She tried too early. 2. Bishamon's ES Guard Cancel is unblockable. Now, this has some implications for the first point I made...but more importantly, this means that if you are good at GC'ing a jump-in, you can reverse that situation any time. This should be obvious why, but just to elaborate: If someone's jumping at you, they are going nowhere but forward. So, even if they try to be sneaky and bait your GC by attacking very low to the ground (for the purposes of landing before the active frames of the GC), they are still right next to Bish and are going to get hit anyways, even if they can block. The minor downside to this, is because Bishamon's Kien Zan can't be done out of nowhere, characters with fast jumps can turn this against him by doing empty jump throws. If Bish expects to block an attack and Guard Cancel, he won't throw out anything to defend himself against the empty jump. Even still, Bish can yomi even this by using the AG option select for empty jump throws (do a very late AG that leads off with an attack that will hit crouchers, so that you AG a jump-in and have a meaty attack out to stop people from doing command throws. If anyone's reading that and thinking "that sounds hard as fuck", it's only because it is).

I had a professional translator translate it. I have his translation at the bottom in a link, but I've cleaned it up here, since it was translated with a lack of fighting game knowledge. Original translation: http://pastebin.com/d1Db9JmL My cleaned-up, understands-fighting-game-terms version: * Forward/back recovery input lasts from being knocked down until recovery begins * When knocked down with a sweep, recovery is 3 frames quicker than the numbers in the chart * Immediately after using forward/back recovery, throws can't be used for 5 frames. However, reversal command throws can be used. * (Q-Bee, Victor, Bishamon can throw after forward/back roll) * Moves like Sasquatch's command throws and throwing-type EX special techniques (i.e throws that always have a whiff animation) can be done too, but if the grabbing frames are within the 5 "can't-throw" frames, then they will whiff.

I'm interested in getting a second translation on this, cos the English Translation of the page made a few years ago says something slightly different: http://clientes.netvisao.pt/anpedror/recovery.htm Though, for whatever it's worth, I think you are probably right, based on my own testing; I just want to be absolutely sure.

If you're getting normal-thrown out of a meaty or semi-meaty attack, then there's two things happening here: 1. Your timing isn't spot on. 2. You are used to timing the meaty late, either to blow up tech hits, or because you've blown up so many that you think that's the right timing, now. Either way, you can fix both problems by just standing a little farther back. Also, I can't find any data that suggests people who roll don't have this same invulnerability, though. However, at least with a basic test, it looks like that's correct. Where did you get that info?

So, a lot of players I fight, GGPO or anywhere, do absolutely everything they can to avoid getting command-thrown by Victor. A lot of trying to AG every attack they see, or mashing light attacks every time Vic is on the ground and they fail to get a GC. You guys are doing it wrong. <-------- x999 Here's why: 1. Chain combos actually do more damage than Vic's 360 on most of the cast. Obviously, this isn't true for his 720, but you also don't have to mash to avoid a 720; if you block a Dashing LP or LK, you can likely guess what's coming next and jump (yes, jump-outs can be punished, too; but the main point here is to quell the possible rebuttal that people are mashing like fucking spazoids to avoid a 720. No, you're not.). Granted, characters with above-average defense take more damage from the command throws, but that's only three characters. So, I *guess* if you play Sas, Bishamon, or incidentally, Victor, this argument is moot. But, even if you don't agree or think that the damage difference isn't a big enough reason to stop freaking out at the though of a command throw... 2. Getting hit by a 360 leaves Victor with no way to continue applying pressure, unless in the corner. Vic only gets to keep applying pressure midscreen by landing a chain that ends with E.Hp, and even in the corner, the chain combos set up into themselves and lead to better mixups than simply landing a throw. Thus, trying to AG/Mash to avoid throws and leaving yourself extremely vulnerable to chain combos will ultimately see you taking more damage to any Victor player who catches on to what you're doing. For reference, I've included under this paragraph a damage chart of Vic's basic chain damage, compared to his command throws. This is a good thing for Victor players to look at, too. It not only shows which characters take more/less damage from command throws compared to chains, but it also shows at what point scaling begins to favor 5-hit "chains" over 4-hit chains. It also clearly demonstrates that 6-hit "chains" offer no additional damage and typically are the lowest damage, making them only useful as a defensive hit-confirm. Explanation of the chart: 4-Hit = C.Lk -> EC.Mp -> EC.Mk -> ES.Hp 5-Hit = C.Lk, C.Lp -> EC.Mp -> EC.Mk -> ES.Hp 6-Hit = C.Lp -> C.Lk, C.Lp -> EC.Mp -> EC.Mk -> ES.Hp Throw = 360 Super = 720 ® = This chain deals the most red damage or is tied for the most red damage compared to his other chains (W) = This chain deals the most white damage or is tied for the most white damage compared to his other chains A. Highest (Victor only): 4-Hit: 21/33 (R/W) 5-Hit: 20/33 (W) 6-Hit: 19/32 Throw: 22/37 (More than) Super: 39/53 B. High (Bishamon, Sasquatch): 4-Hit: 22/35 (R/W) 5-Hit: 22/35 (R/W) 6-Hit: 21/35 (W) Throw: 23/38 (More than) Super: 40/54 C. Medium (Anakaris, B.B Hood, Demitri, Felicia, Jedah, Rikuo): 4-Hit: 24/39 ® 5-Hit: 24/40 (R/W) 6-Hit: 22/39 Throw: 23/39 (Less than) Super: 40/54 D. Low (Q-Bee, Rapter, Talbain): 4-Hit: 25/40 ® 5-Hit: 25/41 (R/W) 6-Hit: 23/40 Throw: 24/40 (Less than) Super: 40/54 E. Lowest (Hsien-Ko, Lilith, Morrigan): 4-Hit: 26/41 ® 5-Hit: 26/42 (R/W) 6-Hit: 25/42 Throw: 24/40 (Less than) Super: 40/54 So hopefully, this information will help Victor players make informed choices about what types of attacks they want to perform, as well as demonstrate to Victor opponents that the actual worst thing about getting hit by a command throw is that it feels a little embarrassing, but that it might actually be good to leave yourself open for it if it means avoiding chain combo loops.

That's something we should really look into...it would be a good indicator of what moves to look for, which ones are the best to AG and which moves to stick to if you're trying to stay on top of an opponent.

Ahh, okay, yeah I know what you're talking about. By the way, would blockstop be the same as hitstop? I realized after reading your explanation, that it was the duration of blockstop that you have to perform an AG, not hitstop. But, I guess it doesn't matter if it's the same thing, i.e hitstop creates blockstop. ...Actually, there's a definition in the VSav Wiki: "blockstop: The duration in which you are unable to switch your guard while blocking an attack. This is also usually the window of time that you are able to input a tech hit or guard cancel, and is a time prior to entering blockstun where your character is frozen in place and not being knocked back." Is that right? It sounds legit, lol.

Can you explain "hitstop" to me? I've heard Xenozip talk about it as well, that apparently you have the duration of a move's hitstop to perform an AG. However, I've never had it defined and I've never found any hitstop data, lol. This is a subject that I'd definitely like to know more about.

C.Lk has the same startup and active frames as C.Lp, but it has two additional frames of cooldown. It's probably better for tick throws, though, because if you have too much frame advantage, you run the risk of attempting a throw before the opponent leaves blockstun and getting a S.Mp/S.Hp instead. The difference isn't that great, though. When dashing, however, this is pretty irrelevant, because the frame data for the dashing versions is the same - something that the VSav Wiki doesn't mention. C.Lp: 4 / 3 / 7 (Startup / Active / Cooldown) C.Lk: 4 / 3 / 9 D.Lp: 3 / 3 / 12 D.Lk: 3 / 3 / 12 This is mainly relevant because I'm pretty sure you can't link either dashing version...or if you can, it's damn near impossible.

Bear in mind, these punishes were specifically for punishing BB Hood's "Grandma" super. They are still perhaps valuable for punishing attacks that knock the opponent far back, or moves that have a small amount of landing frames (i.e, Demon Cradle). However, if you're punishing something where the opponent lands closer to you/has a lot of landing frames (i.e Beast Cannons), you can do much better counter-attacks than the ones posted above.

1. My suggestion to you is to find safe points while he's flying around to use ES Towers. ES Towers just stops Wolf in his tracks, myself included. 2. Don't AA him. AG him.

Sasquatch Big Sledge has a ton of problems. - It's a two-part attack, but the two hits don't "combo", thus the damage values will display only the second hit. - The second hit has its damage numbers in the wrong values, and the "combo" column sums up the damage values and throws them under the first value (just like Bishamon's EX Pursuit and Victor's Mega Spike). For example,Vs. Morrigan: 29/37 - Damage values for the first hit. 10/16 - Damage values for the second hit. Note that they are reversed in-game, reading 16/10. 26/0 - What the "combo" column reads at the end of the super (it's the sum of both values for the second hit, and is 10 more damage than that hit actually deals). 39/53 - The actual damage value of Big Sledge.