Hazama Chain Zoning.
Hazama's chain zoning to said the be the best zoning tool in the game, for it's ability to be so versatile, chains give Hazama the option to keep even the most hardcore rush down characters out and shut down most other zoners zoning game.
Chain are a very powerful tool but only if used right. Chains have the ability to be incredible safe by using A cancels. Chain also have the ability to fly Hazama away from the opponent to a safe distance, or fly in on the opponent to pressure them.
One reason why most Hazama's can't keep good players out is because the have the wrong mind set when zoning.
The purpose of zoning with chains vs. a rush down character is to force them to take stupid risks or do something unsafe and capitalize on the free damage the opponent is throwing out, not to keep the other character at bay, I cannot stress this enough. The most effective way to use chains is to be as annoying as possible, to frustrate the opponent and force them to make a mistake.
Think of chains as a fireball, a very very good fireball. If you throw one from full screen you're generally not going to get punished for it. If you throw one at point blank range and it wiffs you're going to get hit even if you A cancel as fast as possible. If you're about mid screen with you're opponent most Hazama's will throw the chains at the opponent to try and get them away from them, this is the wrong thing to do, because if the opponent guesses right and you wiff your chain you're going to get punched in the face. Use your "fireball" to force the opponent into a position you want them and where they don't want to be, think Ryu, throw the fireball so your opponent thinks it safe to jump when it's not.
Another thing that most Hazama's don't understand and is something I did not understand for a very long time is HAZAMA'S MOVEMENT AND ZONING ARE THE SAME THING. I just blew your mind didn't I (Thank You Mu God). Using the chains to poke your opponent and using them to move around in sync makes for a very strong zoning style that is very hard to break.
If you are mid screen with your opponent and you don't want to switch to close range combat, throw your chain, but don't throw your chain to try to keep your opponent away from you, throw it to get yourself away from the opponent, thus you can stay full screen again and throw your chains from a safe distance to continue to annoy and harass them until they choose to do something unsafe. The better your knowledge and understanding of chain movement the better your zoning will be.
Vs. Other Zoners:
Hazama is very strong against other zoning characters because of the fact that he moves VERY VERY FAST. It is very hard to pin Hazama down and make him stop doing what he wants to in neutral. Hazama can attack and move at very weird angles that most zoners simply cannot cover. Combined with the speed at which he flies, Hazama can fly in a out at most zoners as he pleases. Hazama vs. another zoner is one big guessing game with Hazama pulling the strings. The fact that Hazama can fake his chain by canceling it immediately or fly to a different spot on the screen to bait out a counter zone attempt is beyond nasty. Hazama can also fly in at his choice of different angels very fast and punish wiffed swords, steins, clouds, lobelias, and party bugs.
Ground chains:
5D: The most risky of chains to throw out imo. 5D has the most recovery of all the ground chains (17 frames) and is the one the least likely to hit the opponent as jumping and blocking is the most effective way to close the distance vs Hazama.
6D: More effective than 5D and more safe. Opponents will jump at Hazama to close the gap and this chain will stop their advance. It has less recovery than 5D (15 frames) and you have to option to fly into the air if you wiff it completely and the opponent is running in on the ground.
Air Chains:
Using jumping and chain zoning is a whole different animal than ground chains. J.D's are generally safer to use as the angle that j.6D shoots out is very hard for most characters to get around.
J.6D: A low risk chain to throw out, generally used to stop the opponent from gaining ground.
J.5D: is a very low risk chain. Throw it out to predict jumps. If you throw it out and it wiffs you could always just fly away. If they block it you can cancel the chain or you can fly in and pressure them to the floor.
J.4D: Is a very under used chain imo. J.4D can be used to predict the opponent running in. If the opponent runs in and gets hit by the chain free combo. If they jump up in the air chain back to the floor immediately, now you have the option to get away or challenge them with an anti air. If they block the 4D on the ground, you have a couple options,
Option 1: If you have 2 Oroborous stocks you can B follow up then shoot another chain while in mid air to get away and reset the situation.
Option 2: You can try to fly in on them with a jump in and hope to not get hit by an anti-air.
Option 3: Fly back to the floor and block.
J.9D: Use this to get away. Not a very useful chain.
J.2D: Typically used as a bait or to get back to the floor ASAP.
Note: The recovery of all jump chains is 28 frames and if you choose to A cancel Hazama cannot throw another chain while still in the air making it easier to punish if you wiff it badly.
Notable Chain Movement Options:
5D~D(Immediately): Using this follow up immediately after 5D will throw Hazama into the air. This can be used to get away from the opponent or bait out your opponent's advance or counter zoning attempt by flying to a different spot instantly.
6D~B: Using this follow up will cause Hazama to fly up into the air and comes back down to the ground, this is a very powerful option to fly at the opponent very fast and awkward angle. Very useful for getting past other zoners zoning attempts.
J.6D~D(Immediately): This option will fly you straight forward in the air. It is a very good run away option.
J.4D~D(Immediately): This option will throw Hazama at an opponent on the ground. This option is good for pressuring the opponent and get around zoning character's zoning tactics.
2D~B: This is one of the most annoying chain movement options. Doing this will fly you away at the top of the screen for the cost of only 1 Oroborous stock. Use this option to run away and frustrate an opponent trying to lock you down.
(Note: Always, always,always pay attention to your Oroborous stock. Since the nerf to Oroborous in CS2 Hazama will usually have less chain options in neutral against a good opponent. If you don't pay attention to your stock in a high pressure/risky situation and try to chain around with no stocks you may have just thrown away the match.)
Hazama can also cancel his momentum by wiff normals and throwing more chains.
For example: Hazama can J.6D~D at the opponent but stop his momentum by throwing out 2D and follow up to change his trajectory.
Hazama can also 5D at the opponent and if they block it, Hazama can fly in and cancel his momentum by wiffing J.A land and block their anti air attempt, go low, or jump away.
The possibilities of Hazama's chain movement options are quite endless.
More on this later.
Capitalizing on the opponents mistakes:
To capitalize on the opponents mistakes mid screen is you first must recognize when they are annoyed enough to take a risk. When you realized they are IAD-ing or running in and swinging wildly for the fences it's time to get your free damage. The most effective way of baiting out an opponent is to immediately A cancel your chain, if your opponent reacts by IAD-ing have your anti-air ready, if your opponent runs in you have a couple of options.
Option 1:You can shoot another chain in their face.
Option 2:You can jump back and GTFO and annoy them again from full screen.
Option 3: You can stick out your normal before them.
Option 4: You can block.
The best part about baiting attempts to get in by your opponent is if they choose not to run in there is no risk in doing the A cancel, your completely safe to do whatever you want afterwards.
Running away can make your opponent very hasty and impatience. Chaining from full screen to full for 20-30 seconds can even make the calmest of players want to rush in. Once you notice your opponent begins to disregard blocking from full screen you can wait and react your opponent. If the choose to just run at you shot a chain in their face. If they IAD at your from a non safe distance Anti Air them. If they are closing in at an uncomfortable rate then move, create more space between you and your opponent, remember be annoying.
(Note: Never throw chains without thinking about why you're throwing them. Make sure each chain thrown has a specific purpose. Never throw chains just to throw chains. Your zoning will not get instantly better over night I guarantee your zoning will continue to get stomped on unless you keep practicing and trying.)
Now you have a general idea of how to zone with Hazama's chains.
Remember this is just a general idea as most zoning strategies are match up specific, but I'll add more about that later.
Dusty Zoning tips:
#1: Make it a habbit to look at your opponents character and not Hazama when zoning. If you don't do this now I suggest you start training yourself to do it in matches. The trick is to watch your opponents character and know where Hazama is to their relative position so you can easily react to your opponents movement.
More tips coming soon.
If you have any questions feel free to ask and I'll be more than happy to answer them to the best of my knowledge.
