Ukyo Tachibana

The reason why 2P, 5K (delay) Split Seal can be effective is that you can use this as a tick throw setup as well. But instead of your conventional 5S to frame trap, Split Seal works the same way and you do get a few frames of advantage, to continue pressure.

Without having read anything yet, this is my own match analysis as done in ehuang-sama's "post mortem" style: **Ain vs Hase** (16:52-16:55) Ain: Opens the match with Stun Edge. This is a complete hard read and most likely mixed in with player familiarity because SE at this spot is USUALLY a bad idea in a lot of situations. Reason being: some Slayers like to open a match with 6P (which goes completely through a SE). The read gives Ain a minor payoff and tags Hase opening with a Dandy Step. Hase: Gets hit with the Stun Edge, and then curiously does 6P afterwards, perhaps thinking Ain would throw another SE. This backfires because Ain does max range 2K into 5S xx Stun Dipper for a knockdown. (16:56) Ain: Rushes in after a Stun Dipper knockdown with 2P, 2P, 5S. 2P mash is a standard burst/DAA bait that MOST Ky players SHOULD know and SHOULD utilize. Ain baits Hase's burst but Hase doesn't bite. Hase: Opts to not burst - unusual as I notice a good amount of Japanese players burst early to stop momentum. (17:08) Hase: (!) Gets reverse-thrown by Ain back into the corner, and Ain gets to initiate his katame all over again. Hase manages to IB most of Ain's pressure and does backdash into FD jump -> Footloose. VERY good escape and all Slayers should have this option to escape most pressure situations. (17:15) Ain: Ain does YRC (nothing) in neutral during Hase's Dandy Step. YRCing in neutral is a very underrated tactic - keep in mind that by doing so, you are slowing down time for a good 6 frames or so. This gives Ain a bit more leeway to advance forward without having to quickly react to a sudden Pile Bunker. (17:19) Ain: Gets hit by a Pilebunker combo, then bursts. Pretty good presence of mind here - because if he had bursted and Slayer had meter, that would be DANGEROUS for Ain to burst at this spot. (17:24) Hase: (!) Gets hit by Ain's knockdown into Split Seal -> DC CSE. He actually MANAGES to backdash out of this one but a bit late as he had to FD the final hits of DC CSE. Note to all Ky players: ANYONE can reversal backdash midscreen DC CSE - NOT JUST SLAYER. So be VERY wary of using DC CSE midscreen without meter to YRC! (17:29-17:31) Ain: Does standard pressure into SE that gets blocked. Afterwards, he does backdash->2D (which is USUALLY a good and standard response in the Slayer matchup. 2D is active for a long time and if done max range, it can hit most dandysteppers). Hase: (!): Notices Ain's (wrong) spacing completely, right after Ain backdashed. Ain was TOO close - this enabled Hase to reaction IAD D xx Footloose over Ky's extended 2D. (18:22-18:24) Ain: Techs out of Hase's air combo, then YRC (nothing) -> air dash out. Another underrated tactic. If you're the type of player who thinks they need "work" with their air techs, this is a good option. Slows down time for a good 6 frames or so without the immediate fear of getting air-to-aired or air thrown. Hase: Hase gets the same idea because as soon as Ain lands, he does YRC (nothing) into two forward dashes->throw. Ain was about to do another backdash into 2D (perhaps), but because of the time freeze, Hase manages to advance forward and throw Ain for free. (18:38-18:50) Ain: (?) Does YRC nothing (probably execution error, this "feels" like YRC SE but he might've done it too early) into j.K, j.S, j.P, JC j.P, j.S, j.HS. This feels like a burst-bait air combo with the P's thrown in, and Ain chooses NOT to HSVT at the end. Makes me wonder why - Hase had NO BURST and HSVT might've been good enough to kill. Very puzzling decision for Ain (probably just a brainfart) and this blunder enables Hase to snatch a victory away. (18:55) Ain: Opens round 3 by dashing forward, just like he did in the beginning of round 2. Another hard read perhaps (player familiarity-based) because this seems very risky to do. And sure enough, Ain runs into Hase's 2HS. (19:56-19:58) Ain: (!) Ain finally gets some momentum going. Lands a string->Stun Dipper combo that corner carries, does microdash CSE, then runs in and does 6HS. Ain hesitates in a very SUBTLE and MINUTE manner (1-2 frames?) while FDing, and this completely sells Hase into air dashing out of the corner. This backfires for Hase as Ain was ready for him with 2HS xx HSVT. Bad thing is it somehow pushed Hase the other direction. Regardless, this is a very good hard read for Ain that didn't net him the result he wanted, but he was still at the advantage. (20:01-20:14) Ain: (!?) Does 6HS into 2P, 2P xx Greed Sever. Perfectly acceptable "random" abare sequence here, as Ain had 50% meter to cover himself to safety IF Greed Sever is blocked. Ain most likely noticed Hase IBing during this situation also - and Greed Sever would also most likely clip any backdash attempt from Hase. The abare sequence worked to perfection - Ain's Greed Sever led to a midscreen VT loop with a Split Seal ender. For anyone who doesn't know, this is a very hard combo but since Ain was able to pull it off, he scored a corner carry with a STRONG oki possibility (since he ended the combo with Split Seal). The DC CSE oki then lands Ain a hit for a kill combo. (20:22-20:27) Hase: Opens round 5 with a (BDC?) Mappa. Doesn't work out well as Ain starts off the round with 5HS stagger into 2D xx Stun Dipper confirm. Ain: Decides to open with 5HS - not a typical round starter on Slayer matchups but once again there might be a hard read going on here due to Hase's player tendencies. Perhaps he KNOWS 5HS beats mappa round starters. After he scores the knockdown, Ain goes for 6HS, 2P, 5K, (SLIGHT DELAY) Split Seal. THIS is a frame trap - an option that us Ky players needs to explore. This should blow up most 2P mashes and some lows. (20:38-20:47) Hase: (!?) Lands a combo that corner carries into a knockdown. Hase then does 6P as oki. NOTE: Slayer 6P in the corner BEATS many options that Ky has, which includes: Both VT versions, and backdash. No need for Hase to really "guess" here and because of this, he tags Ain's backdash attempt. One thing that can beat Slayer 6P oki is a Blitzshield (which Ain had meter to spare). Ride The Lighting COULD work here but it's risky and could possibly clash with Slayer 6P. From 6P, Hase does a launch combo with 3 Dusts that NEARLY kills Ain. Ain (?!): Gets put into the corner, then decides to backdash on wakeup. VERY BAD decision by Ain here, as he gets 6Ped into an air combo that almost kills him. Hase gets to do another oki opportunity and THAT almost kills Ain as well, but lucky for Ain, he had a burst! Ain gets one more chance to close out this match. (20:48-21:22) Ain: (!?) Ain nearly comes back for a victory. Does YRC CSE from near max range into microdash Split Seal, CSE goes through it and activates DC CSE. Hase instinctively jumps but Ain was ready, and air throws him into the corner. The knockdown doesn't lead to anything as both players return back to neutral at midscreen, but Ain manages to score an anti-air 6P into 2HS xx Greed Sever, microdash HSVT, 2HS xx HSVT. Once again, this is the midscreen VT loop that Ain is famous for and is DIFFICULT to do (and most Ky players aspire to execute). Ain MANAGES to execute flawlessly in a pressure filled situation - where he needs it the most. The combo of course leads back into the corner and lets Ky do his CSE mixups one last time. Hase (!?): Nothing that Hase can do here but he DOES have a burst for one final escape. Ain baits him hard during his CSE mixups once again with 2Ps - in TWO separate occasions - but Hase has the DISCIPLINE to NOT burst here even with a very small life lead. Ain lands a hit on his third mixup and Hase FINALLY bursts, and the situation resets back to neutral with both players' health bars extremely low. Hase then decides to take it to the air, does YRC (nothing) air dash HS to finally secure the victory. Ain can't do much here. The time freeze from the YRC makes the air dash trajectory seem "faster" and "sudden". And combine that with 6-7 frames of time slowdown and it's hard for Ain to anti-air with anything. The only thing that Ain can do here is perhaps a YRC of his own - but Hase is pretty much committed to his airdash HS, and it would've REQUIRED Ain to IMMEDIATELY anti-air after his counter-YRC attempt. Very close match and well played on both ends (with a few debatable reads),and CRUCIAL decision making at the end to really make things interesting. Will do a postmortem on the Ain vs. Mugen match later!

This has been a supremely fun and humbling read. I have not been on Dustloop for more than 7 years and I kind of regret not finding this thread sooner. I will honestly admit I've learned a lot just reading through this thread, despite having played Ky for almost 10 years. A lot of eh_sama's trade secrets I already actually do (without giving it much thought) and for him to articulate and elaborate a lot of them in such precise and educated manner kind of validates that I've made good decisions as to what Ky tactics are "legit" and which tactics I should adapt. I especially loved his write-ups on "Rainbow of Death", "Katame" and "Doing Nothing". "Rainbow of Death" is even more relevant now in Xrd because ending a combo into Split Seal in the corner puts you in the PERFECT range for Rainbow of Death. Like you, I have always loved Faith, and I've always believed he was the best Ky ever. Some people have claimed I play Ky wrong because I play a more heavy neutral style (like Faith), and I simply scoffed and said no. Again, I'm glad you have articulated this well, and perhaps Faith Ky is the right Ky style all along. Since Xrd plays heavily like #R, I am glad to know you are playing it. I hope Faith goes back to playing fighting games again with Xrd, too!

Just saw the preview video, so to Bozac (or anyone else that can try it out): 1) Looks like the FB Greed Sever hops LOWER than the regular version. Can you verify if it's comboable from gatlings? And if it has a level 6 "stun" on block/if it's punishable on block/if it's unpunishable on max range? 2) Are you able to combo after a wall stick S javelin follow up (after Vapor Thrust)? 3) Are you able to do (combo)-> Stun Dipper -> Lightning Bolt FRC -> 2D xx 2364 D -> 5S, 2HS -> (air combo) with no damage scaling? 4) Does the new 3HS (the original 2-hit 6HS) still put people on crouch? If so, can you do 5S, 6K loops afterwards? Thx in advance!

Zappa could always do this, as Phrek said. I'm actually surprised you don't remember me doing this at all. My suspicion is: The sword has more spinning animation than it did before (hence more uptime) so it looks like it's staying in place, but the moment it's about to be retracted, you hit 2HS again and it gives the illusion that it's staying in place. I'd also like the add that the Dog falling asleep while neutral doesn't seem to be a big deal at all, at least not yet anyway (until I try it). My dog is always in motion so it "shouldn't" be an issue. Back in the days when Imo/Potato dominated, he used to turtle with dog like crazy, but then they made it so you can't turtle and stand still too much or the dog falls asleep. But this was easily alleviated in AC by doing 8D + 5S... Dog somewhat stays in one place while at the same time, you're covering horizontal trajectory with your own 5S.

I should definitely kill myself too, then :P All jokes aside though, Travis (Klaige) is probably the most improved out of everyone that I can remember, from this tournament. Rarely dropped combos, punished when the opportunity presented itself, good defense. Combine that with the fact that I sat blocking most of the time and completely forgetting how to block/punish certain stuff, and yeah, GGPO me! Obligatory shoutouts (this is great because I only attend one tournament a year now, which means, I also only have to do these once a year, lol?) Bozac "ElvenShadow": For orchestrating an excellent highway robbery - disguised as a complex underground video game gambling circuit - disguised as a Midwestern Guilty Gear Major! Mike "Geronimo": For running the majority of the Capcom-based fighters which includes (but not limited to) SF4. Mad props for your underappreciated and thankless job! Rob "HeartNana": Likewise, for running the anime loli fighter tournaments. I didn't get to see much of that "other side" but I heard there was some hype! Adam "Keits": Thanks for all the tournament match-capturing equipment, and thanks for running the Random Tournament, very fun! Just one suggestion though: You should make the players flip a coin as to who draws... and the other player should be the ONLY player to get to veto (since he didn't draw). OR... just eliminate the option to veto altogether (very sad I didn't get to play MTV trivia game, haha). Jesse "Fiestament": Absolutely surprised on how better you got with Testament. You weren't kidding when you said you were studying Shonen stuff non-stuff, haha. Should've lost against you in the tournament, for sure... Let's play at Jerry's house sometime! Aric "ChronoSabre": OG Slayer! We'll get you back in shape in no time now that you're free again! Jason "j1n": For always making tournament weekends a lot more entertaining than they already are (GG Grand Finals Color Commentary = gdlk!) and making hangouts a step above fun. Jerry "Nives": Always nice to hang out and you, thanks for the pre-tourney housing, and thanks for your XBox converter that didn't prove to be beneficial considering I lost most of my SF4 matches, haha. Don't beat yourself up too much for not carrying much weight in the team tournament, bad funks can happen to anyone, myself included. Travis "Klaige": As I've said above, probably one of the most improved players in the tournament, if not the most improved. After beating you so many times in countless tournaments, you have now beaten me in the last 2 tournaments we've been in, oh no! And to THINK... if you had stayed with Anji after all these years (instead of silly Venom/Slayer experiments), you'd be even better than your current level, right now! MANY THANKS for braving the cold, FROSTY weather and driving all the way here, despite your current house problems. And much apologies for having the venue completely change on such short notice - you are a trooper, for sure! Alex "Blue9": Awesome May, dude! You ended my team's tournament hopes by preventing my OCV, but I think I got revenge by beating you in the singles tournament with my REAL main character (Ky), ESPECIALLY since Jerry unplugged my controller and I essentially had to beat you 3 matches. :P Unfortunately for you, I am "The May Killer", and you ran into a really difficult roadblock, haha. With all of that said, you are really cool in person and I wish I had played more casuals with you. AND... I totally didn't know you were a guitarist for the Spoony Bards, haha. I like listening to your tunes at ACen for the past few years (one of my favorites last ACen was when your band did a rendition of the Star Wolf's theme from Star Fox 64, for example). I just ranked up in the nerd social circle by sheer association, hahaha. You on facebook? Hit me up, man See you at next ACen! Aaron "AKA": For a guy who apparently hasn't played GG in several months and has been playing nothing but BlazBlue, you still have owned most of us without breaking a sweat. Thanks for the Eddie shenenigans, you make "unwinnable" fights enjoyable! "MSong": Sorry for the rather embarassing Zappa vs. Robo-Ky team tournament match, haha. It happened so quickly that from an outside perspective, it looked like you just beasted on some random scrub. I hope I gave you a better showing in our NUMEROUS Ky vs. Robo-Ky matchups, even though none of them actually ever finished, haha. "Bipples": Welcome to the exclusive club of killer tournament Zappa players, which includes names such as fubarduck, KBNova, Rudy, 4gotten Kazama, HellSap, and of course, me, hahaha. Impressive Zappa though (especially if it's only 4 months old!). I had tons of fun playing Zappa mirror and was quite pleased I was the one to stop your 20-something win streak. :P "Senkei": Fun casuals with you also, man! I really like your Faust, it did a lot of original and cool looking mixups/attack sequences that Mr. ElvenShadow doesn't do. And to me, innovation = awesome. I can really see why you place well in tournaments, for sure, and if it wasn't for years and years of ElvenShadow experience, you would've probably made my matches against you look a lot worse on my end, haha. Thanks for coming to this tournament all the way from Florida! "MacArthur Blunts": Funnest player to watch at FF, period. I don't think I ever saw you drop any combos, every time I turned an eye. Not only did they hurt a LOT, they were mostly 20-30 hits that led to a knockdown. I mean, seriously, I never thought Slayer could do that many hits, haha. I really regret only playing one casual match with you (and when it happened, we didn't even get to finish the match). Maybe next year, lol. "SlyMoogle": Very impressive Anji, man! And props for beating AKA's Millia. We definitely need to have more hard-hitting Anjis around to represent. Thanks for the props during our casual matches, I credit it to my years of Anji experience vs. KBNova and (gasp) Klaige, haha. Plus, I used to be a formidable Anji player back in the days, too. "Tolore": Good shit taking BlackSnake down in Team Tournament, haha. I'm very sure SH_ is going to give him crap for this, nonstop! Also regret not having played you in any casuals, but that's okay, I hate Baiken with a passion anyway, having played against SH_ and Kevinforce for too many years. :P Thanks for coming all the way from Washington to play in this tournament! "Vortex": Probably the most pleasant surprise from the tournament. Someone from the new Team UIC is finally in the limelight! Consider this your coming out party, and I wish more good things to come for you! Let's play more at Jerry's sometime. P.S. Don't be afraid to play anyone in casual games, especially since you're never going to get extensive matchup practice elsewhere. "Bonzai": Your Testament is really scary, man, I'm surprised you didn't place as high as your spar mate. Maybe next time, keep going to tournaments! With experience comes tourney savvy. Also, let's play at Jerry's sometime! "Nappy Jin": Never sell yourself short, haha. So what if you haven't had a good tourney record against me? Think positively, you'll get me next time! "Beefman", "Dehumanizer", and whoever else I played in tournament: Fun matches, guys! To my legions of Quibatime Ky fans who may secretly be lurking and checking on my tournament placing on this tourney (lol): Many big apologies for not repping Ky hard enough, and only placing 7th. I'll just continue to come up with more original and innovative stuff, next time, and maybe I'll place better. And I still will continue to be the most exciting and creative Ky in America! To people I may have forgotten: I don't hate you or anything, I just have problems remembering everything. :P That was a fun weekend, guys. Tons of new faces (which is always good), and in case some of you can't put the name to the face, I was the guy with the white White Sox cap who played Ky and Zappa, heh. Not a lot of people recognize the OLD SCHOOL Guilty Gear players anymore, oh well. Very surprised to place 7th when I don't really play anymore. Maybe I should play in 2 tournaments a year (instead of just one), and I'll maybe place better next time, hahaha. Time to go back into fighting game tournament hibernation again (a.ka. retired mode). See you guys again in Frosty Faustings 3!

Realistically speaking, we were just fresh off of Final Round XI. While I'm sure Prucha could afford going, not sure if George could've. :P And I say this out of humility, but those 2 going might've not made a difference. Chicago (and Midwest in general) needs to regroup and step it up a bit. MW was the best last year but not this year, I suppose. We are losing to matchups that we don't really see being played at a very high level over here (mostly Eddie).

There's no thread about Texas Showdown (as if Dustloop totally condemned EmoGear, Planet Zero, and TS, haha). But yeah, Zinac (FA), Jais (BR), and Raekwon (PO) beat Kensou (CH), fubarduck (ZA), and Jan (PO). Chances are, those 3 will go to SBO. I heard Flash Metroid's team (with Alex G. and Marn) got eliminated in the first round, by Latif's team? Pozerwolf was on Latif's team and apparently beat Marn.

Honestly, if you ask me, Team U.S.A. for SBO should be Mr. Eleven Shadows, and the top 2 players at the moment, from U.S.A. Of course, do be decided in a major tournament. That'll basically give you the best U.S.A. has to offer. But I guess, unfortunately, being the best in this game (for our country) isn't the only prerequisite...

Forget it, Mike. It's been said already, forget the Philippines, haha. Maybe some other time, I could maybe go with you. I'll be your translator (character defamer)!

Sitting pretty in a crouch position against Raoh isn't as safe as you make it out to be. Because the moment Raoh throws you in the corner, you're going to get hurt for big damage. Also, Raoh's Dust is still pretty damn good EVEN if you block it. Not only does it not look like your typical dust, but it also gives you frame advantage on block, allowing you to continue pressure / frame trap / throw. I generally agree with what's said if Axl is keeping Raoh out from max range, but once Raoh gets in...

Actually, at this point we don't know for sure. In an MGS4 trailer, Old EVA tells Solid Snake, "Call me Big Mama". Whether this sentence has a literal interpretation or not still remains to be seen. From a conjecture standpoint, it is very possible that EVA could be surrogate mother for Big Boss' clones. If you remember the timeline at the end of MGS3 credits, there was a portion which says that "EVA mysteriously vanished" or something like that. It's not totally out of the question that the Patriots may have kidnapped EVA, then made her the surrogate mother for the Sons of Big Boss. Add all of these information together, and it still makes logical sense that Big Boss is Solid Snake's father. Random tangents, FTW! Carry on.

You can't air dash after Ky's FRC Javelin.

Baiken's TK Yousanzen is 9 frames startup (an example). You can "expect" it to come, but it should be nigh impossible to react to. And someone feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, but the switching guard question might be different depending on whether you are in blockstun or not (and in which case, fuzzy guard applies).

That Ky was indeed sexy, but don't worry, Mario, Team Random will be BACK for payback, soon!

I'm sorry, nearly ANY competitive environment has some form of shit talk. Michael Jordan was a notorious shit talker on the court. There is a saying that "there is no crying in baseball", and guess what? There's shit talk involved with that sport, too. Even friggin' chess players talk shit, and it's nowhere near as athletic as the sports I described above. The best players in their respective games/sports are able to dish out talk, just as well as they can dish out the walk. Conversely, you don't usually see any player or competitor quitting from their game/sport just because someone else in their game hurt their feelings. Bottom line, if you're way too soft and sensitive to be able to take shit talk as such (and according to your words, "be turned off" by aforementioned shit talk), you probably don't belong in the competitive arena to begin with.

The idea that you cannot motivate someone to improve is a bit of an assumption. Shit talk is still one of the better motivators for anyone to succeed. If you are competitive in nature and you just plainly love Guilty Gear and/or fighting games in general, there's only so much shit talk you can take from someone else. Sometimes, with games like these, you put your pride on the line, as well. If you need concrete evidence, take a good look at the MvC2 scene.

Double-post (haha bite me), for my CONCISE, Cliff-notes version of my pro-cons list: Pros - Naked Zappa: far 5S has new 2nd property if it hits the ground: It hits low and it staggers - Naked Zappa: far 5S (ground hit) gives Naked Zappa okizeme options for high/low/throw - All Forms Zappa: New 2K -> 2D gatling is extremely useful, as it improves Zappa's poking game. 2K -> 2D definitely helps Naked Zappa as it can help him land a summon from semi-max range. 2K -> 2D also helps Ghost mode Zappa in rushdown strings (which, in some cases, the ghosts are falling behind) - All Forms Zappa: New Force Break Unsummon, which is a fast overhead AND it gives you one orb. Definite option to gain orbs VERY quickly in certain situations/combos, enabling you to summon Raoh even faster for less tension - Ghost Mode Zappa: Overall zoning and space control improved, with the combination of j.236K and j.236P (which homes in on your opponent) - Ghost Mode Zappa: New, annoying oki gimmicks with 236P - Sword Mode Zappa: Reliable BnB from a LOW hit: 2K, 5S, 5HS xx 63214 HS (which gives him one orb) - Sword Mode Zappa: Mixup significantly improved, with the combination of BnB combo from low hit, and FAST Force Break unsummon which hits high (in addition to Zappa's crossup j.HS) - Sword Mode Zappa: New air-combo ender: 236HS in the air, for extra damage in combos - Sword Mode Zappa: New j.HS FRC opens up possibilities for extra-damaging air combos and gimmicky setups - Dog Mode Zappa: 2-Phase Dog attack (preferrably 6D, 4D-D) improves his rushdown strings, in terms of pushing your opponent into the corner, and positioning the dog closer for an unblockable bite. In general, 2-Phase Dog attack makes dog positioning even EASIER - Dog Mode Zappa: 5S spit protects your Dog even better vs. opponents who mash on P to kill the dog - Raoh Mode Zappa: New j.HS which has a ground bounce state; enables you to do 90% damage combos from MIDSCREEN - Raoh Mode Zappa: Zoning/Space Control improved with 3 versions of fireballs: 236S,P (straight), 236S,S (upwards), 236S,K (downwards) - Raoh Mode Zappa: 6HS has a new slide state - Raoh Mode Zappa: Can easily do 100% damage in the corner with [6HS, 236S,K] loop, which can be set up from RC 214S Cons - 6HS (Naked/Dog Mode) no longer untechable - Although Zappa overall improved and is now more of a complete character, just about everyone else improved... which doesn't necessarily make his previous bad matchups any easier than before

No way am I the top Zappa player in the U.S. but I have a good grasp of why Zappa ranks the way he is now (yes folks, he is better!) Here is a better explanation of why Zappa is a better character, without stating the established and OBVIOUS (even though Cyringohn had already posted): Zappa Pros - Naked Zappa has a new far 5S, which is essentially the same animation as before, BUT it now has a second property which hits LOW when the spit hits the ground. Because of this, Naked Zappa can actually do wakeup games now, with a perfectly timed, meaty far 5S (so that the spit hits the ground and it hits low). From here, he can do basic high/low/throw mixup. Also, if the 5S spit hits the ground and it connects, it causes a STAGGER state, which essentially gives you a free combo/throw; - The new 2K -> 2D gatling is EXTREMELY helpful and useful... dramatically improving Zappa's poking game. In the past, you would have gained nothing from connecting a 2K from semi-max range. In this game, you can easily poke with 2K from a distance, then gatling into 2D and THEN combo/OTG into summon! In Ghost Mode, you can now follow FRCed 236S into gatling string, WITHOUT the fear of ghosts trailing too far behind, because now you have an option of using 2K -> 2D instead (which doesn't require a ghost for your gatling string); - His Force Break... the Unsummon, is godsent. Not only does it enable you to cancel a summon (especially a certain type of summon that doesn't match up well vs. a certain character), but it also gives nets you ONE MORE orb if it connects, AND it is a very FAST overhead. You can definitely use this move in certain pressure strings for mixup (works very well in Sword Mode). In certain situational combos, you can even use FB unsummon which enables you to net as many 5 orbs for only 25% meter, enabling you to summon up Raoh even QUICKER than before. Finally, when you're at 7 orbs, you might want to opt to go for a FB unsummon, which basically puts you in a very good position to summon Raoh; - Ghost mode is a much more complete character in a sense that his zoning and space controlling capabilities had dramatically IMPROVED. Specifically, the combination of j.236 K and j.236 P (which HOMES IN on your opponent) controls a huge amount of space, WITHOUT the use of FRC. In Slash, Zappa's best way of clogging up space was 236D, but now, he has even more options. Ghost mode Zappa's game plan is basically controlling space and sheer annoyance factor (especially if you connect a ghost), and with his new 236P move, it opens up even more gimmicky, annoying oki setups for Zappa; - Sword mode Zappa is essentially the same, with a few major upgrades that are definite, welcome additions. First, he now has a RELIABLE bread-and-butter combo that starts from a LOW HIT (2K, 5S, 5HS xx 63214 HS)... which also happens to give him one orb! Because of this, Sword mode's overall mixup game improved, because he either gets one orb from a low hit, or gets one orb from a Force Break unsummon overhead! Second, he now has an air-combo ender which tacks on extra damage: 236HS in the air. Third, his new FRC on his j.HS opens up many possibilities for cross-up tricks, and even wacky combos. - Dog mode Zappa is an improved rushdown machine. His new 2-phase dog attack is extremely useful and makes his rushdown strings even tighter. Specifically, Dog mode Zappa will be using 6D, 4D-D patterns in his rushdown strings a lot, because not only does it make your rushdown strings tighter, it places the dog CLOSER your opponent, enabling you to continue your rushdown and push your opponent into the corner further....OR it positions you closer for a free unblockable bite. Also, with Zappa's new far 5S spit, it now gives your Dog BETTER protection against people who mash on P to kill the dog; - As surprising as it seems, even Raoh mode improved. He still does ridiculous damage with his 3-frame uppercut... which is easy to do 90% damage off of with 50% meter. With that said, he has a new j.HS which GROUND BOUNCES on connect. With this move, he now has new ways to land 90% damage combos (as if he needed more!), FROM MIDSCREEN. Second, Raoh can actually control space better now, because he has three versions of his fireball (236S,P goes straight, 236S,S goes upward, and 236S,K goes downward). So in addition to his hammer super (632146S), he can also control space with his new fireball variations, most especially if Raoh is being zoned out. Also, remember that Raoh's fireballs NEED to be FDed, so if your opponent happens to jump without FDing while you do 236S,S, this is basically a free combo for you. Third, his 6HS has a new slide state added to it, so you can easily do 100% combos in the corner by doing a [6HS, 236S,K] loop, preferrably after an RCed 214S. Cons - 6HS (in Naked/Dog mode) is no longer untechable (so your favorite unblockable dog infinite in the corner is "gone"), although not necessarily that big of a deal because you can just do meaty far 5S into unblockable dog bite, and it works just as well; - Just about everyone else in the cast improved, so although he is overall better, his bad matchups aren't necessarily "better" now. That's basically it for Zappa. My pros/cons list is very detailed, so simplify it in however way you please. Bottom line, AC Zappa is essentially the same as Slash Zappa with virtually no nerfs, and major upgrades.

I have finally tried out Accent Core today! First off, I must say that after playing Accent Core, I never want to play Slash again. I mean, this is expected, but it's really, really hard to get back to now. I know there are still supporters of Slash Ky out there because they put a lot of work into this complex and exciting (lol) character and that EVO is most likely gonna be GG Slash, it's hard to care about Slash once you've played AC for several hours. Not to mention the fact that Ky feels like a different character now... you have to unlearn a few things (Shin Akuma, FRC air fireballs upon landing, 6HS, VT loops, 5S->6K loops, etc.). This is not a bad thing as Ky has new options... whether it's through gimmick or "true strategy". I don't want to sound like a broken record and repeat what people have already said, but here are some other ones I'd like to mention: - Veteru, you MAY still be able to do Ky Master Combo... at least on the lighter characters. I didn't get to FRC stun dipper the majority of the times I went for it, but the "good news" is it looks like you can still do sweep -> Stun Dipper and it'll still combo. The only thing to worry about, probably, is that the range on Stun Dipper is a bit short, so you might have to be a bit closer when you do 2D for the combo to work. If I am wrong about all of these and I just gave you false hope, I apologize, but I am human and sometimes I imagine things to happen. :P - It's already a known fact that you can combo 2D into Lightning Sphere Force Break (236 D, then quickly 214 D), and then air combo. BUT, an important thing to consider is that you may have another option to DO if you have more meter. Specifically, if you do 2D, Lightning Sphere, Charge Drive (2D, 236+D, 214+D, 46+D), you will do somewhere close to 40%-50% damage, into a knockdown. I might've raised someone's guard a bit but that is quite a LOT of damage for 50% tension. You might end up using this instead of Sacred Edge after 2D... but of course I'm no expert and I'm sure there are other specific instances when Sacred Edge is better to use than Lightning Sphere -> Charge Drive. P.S. If you guys don't already know what Charge Drive looks like, it looks almost exactly like Rising Force (Ky's IK). - Speaking of IK's, it feels that Ky's IK executes a tad slower. He can still ACTIVATE IK as fast as before, it just that it feels like his IK's startup is maybe a frame slower. Not that this matters much because there are only a few instances that Ky's IK will benefit you... and again, this could just be my imagination, but it's something to consider. - This Ky is very, VERY fun to play as. He definitely has fun tricks and gimmicks again (having his Force Break j.D with no recovery is a breath of fresh air as it is similar to Ky's old jump dust). I know some people here frown on gimmicks and would prefer solid strategy instead (I'm looking at YOU, Chojin) Force Break j.D into low/throw/whatever mixups can be very effective. It seems GIMMICKY at first but I do really believe is a viable mixup. If you ever set Force Break j.D as you're falling, and you get thrown somehow, you will STILL have an advantage because as soon as your opponent recovers from throwing you, he/she will get hit by the FB j.D. So basically this leaves people no other choice but to just block, or try to reversal DP (which will either bait or hit the reversal DP, anyway). So falling FB j.D is really good. It stays out for a while, and you can do gimmick/mixup with it. That's all I have to contribute for now. I wish I can play it more but the Accent Core machine was actually at someone's house (Neil's) and we would be abusing our welcome had we stayed any longer, lol. Add that to the fact that he kinda lives far... and the desire to play more Accent Core is just worse. :/

Easy to do... in training mode with a training dummy? or... Easy to do... in a pressure situation with a hair of life left, about 20 seconds on the clock, against a pretty darn good turtle who won't let you catch him, on a big stage with hundreds of raucous, non-Japanese people cheering against you? Oh, right, Zappa! He rules! Homing P Ghost, pew pew...

I am thinking of experimenting with 6HS (slide), downwards Darkness Anthem (pops up?) then go for another 6HS (which I'm wondering if it causes another slide), instead. Maybe it'll be a neat mini-loop. So something like Raoh Uppercut RC, IAD HS, IAD S-HS, 6HS, Darkness Anthem, 6HS, Darkness Anthem, etc., etc.?

Teyah, Teyah, Teyah, Teyah, Teyah, Teyah, Teyah, Teyah, Teyah-Teyah... Teyah, Teyah, Teyah, VULCANICAH VIPAH

Maybe the Raoh fireball has a slide property to it now. Considering slide is a somewhat new property/state to the GG series, I'm also not ruling out the possibility of found glitches already, lol (slide cancelling OTG state, for example, as you have mentioned)

I just want to say that being able to combo 63214HS from 5HS (IF it's still in the final version of Accent Core) might be a HUGE improvement... Zappa doesn't really have a meaningful Sword bread and butter that comes from 2K, so every once in a while, you can 2K, 5S, 5HS, 63214HS... which gains you orbs! OH, and apparently it causes a wall bounce so you can combo further? Does anyone know if his new aerial sword move gains you any more orbs? I really hated the fact that you can no longer combo 63214HS from 6HS, but now it appears you can combo into this move again. So that's a really good change. Combine 2K with your occasional 5D-ing (which is still pretty hard to see since they upped the 5D speed in Slash, and I assume it's still the same speed), and we really do indeed see a vastly improved Zappa.