Dopples

It's p. much completely MU based. Against Kanji, I mash 2C like a mad man, to force him to have to find another way to get in, all of which get blown up by Ken's DP, or even Maragidyne. Against Labrys, I go ham with Koro pressure until she gets meter and Awakening, then I back up and try to bait an air option to punish. Basically, find what works best for each MU, and go for there.

236A/B is the god against Adachi's 5D. If he does it in the air and you're forced to crouch, stop his approach with 2C. 5B beats his 5C as a poke. Don't be afraid to punish any misspaced normals, you have the range advantage. You have to respect his...jC I think it is? The one where Magatsu Izanagi swipes at a 45 degree angle. At least, respect it while grounded. Treat it like Labrys j.B: You aren't anti-airing it with your crap 2B, or even whiff 5B. DP is not advised, as it's incredibly easy to miss and eat shit. His sweep low profiles 5B. Be extremely careful if you're playing the neutral game with this. Of course, you can cover yourself with 5C, but this might make comboing off of it a pain. Air-to-air, you win. Your normals are faster than his, and if it has a chance to come out? j.5B will outspace Adachi's 5C fairly easily. Your DP will punish his if you do it somewhat late. So if you're blocking low when you see it come out, don't be afraid to mash it. Generally, keep pressure on him constantly. Mind the low gunshot special, as it can trade with Ken 236A/B, but if you do it meaty, he can't do much about your pressure. Overall, it feels favorable to Ken.

With that last combo, you can easily sneak another DP in before the 214214A/B. Otherwise, good stuff!

Some notes, after doing about four and a half hours of netplay tonight; Ken's...awkward, if you're not used to the puppet playstyle. Sometimes, you just have to sit back and poke with Koromaru to annoy them enough. Multi hit reversal supers can fuck your pressure super hard. Main example being Labrys' Awakening Super. Kanji has a super hard time dealing with Ken in neutral. Bully him with Koromaru whenever possible, DP on reaction to YOLO dives. Ken's lack of gatlings is...annoying. It makes it hard to hit confirm with him. 2B is pretty bad. Honestly, I'm getting more mileage off of whiff 5B as an anti-air over 2B :s DP is probably tied with Labrys' or Elizabeth's tbh...when used as a reversal. In certain match ups, it absolutely dominates though. It'll blow up Yosuke Moonsault if done preemptively, and as stated previously? It destroys Kanji's approach. Start of the round 5B>2C is a decent way to start a match. If they SJ, you still have space to find your positioning in most MUs, so generally it seems fairly safe. If they SJ and you're in awakening, try this for a mix up! Dash under them, 214214A/B! It hits at SJ height, and if done right, it can be almost impossible to tell if you crossed under or not. Also, it's safe.

Approaching with j.A is strong if she's in the air, but be careful about mistiming it. Eating a j.B is never fun lol. Your DP is garbage against her pressure, but great for swatting her out of the air if she's being super j.B happy. Pre-emptive j.5B is good if the try to do the same with their's. Be kinda bold when you're trying to air to air her, your j.5B is better! Baiting her DP is fairly easy, as per the case with everyone. fall down with j.A isn't advisable however, as her 2B will completely low profile it. Gears super is super powerful against Koromaru pressure, so be wary of it if she's in Awakening. Baiting it can be tricky, especially if she does SB Gears, so try to beat her before she gets access to it. 214C/D in neutral is actually pretty strong against her, since it forces her to not approach. Your 2B is garbage in this match up. You'll have better luck anti airing with 2C, or the whiffed version of 5B. Going air-to-air is the safer bet against her, believe it or not. . Once you get momentum, you can bully her a LOT, but be wary once she's in Awakening. SB Gears super will ruin your day if she has the chance to use it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bp4CnDqxiUk Basic BnB

Yeah, if there's a skype group, be sure to add me! Skype: TheFinestBrew/The Finest Brew (In SoCal)

Ohhh, that's true. Basically, it was nerfed because of Chie lol

It's worth noting that combos into AoA have severely scaled hitstun now, to the point where they can apparently tech out in the air.

If you simply want to create a wall? It'd probably be the best choice. It'll likely depend on what the situation calls for though, tbh. Mind you, I haven't played since EVO, so my memory of how high 214C/D goes could be way off.

Yeah, as a reversal, it's garbage. But if you use 214C/D preemptively, then jA? It covers a surprising amount of space for a large amount of time.

If you're anticipating a jump in, I can see early 214C/D>j.A stopping a LOT of approaches actually. 2C seems mostly for combos, since while it's fast? It also shoots out some, and makes it hard to rely on. Kinda wish I had the chance to go to WNF to play, but Walnut's such a long trip from where I am. :s Edit: 2B seems like it's more for mix-up and continuing pressure. It does seem to bring Ken pretty close to the ground, so perhaps it can be used to low profile some moves?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfqM2nMzEhM&feature=youtu.be Because we can always use more impractical, silly combos

Ohhh, we have an Eltnum Skype chat? Mind if I get added? Name on it is The Finest Brew

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fizBbTcO1XI&feature=youtu.be 214C Mid-Combo Reset with Sion

He doesn't feel terribly meter dependent, but having the option to use Maragidyne as a punish from SJ height is really good. Other than that, OMC is always good to have handy if you go for a punish with AoA, but mistime it. As for Ken vs Shadow Labrys, it will all depend on how well Koromaru can deal with Asterius. If he's able to break Asterius from SJ height with Koromaru specials/attacks, I imagine it'll be super hard for her to get going.

If people show up, this is legit close enough for me to simply come over whenever.

Dunno how useful this'll be to folks, but I did a 'Babby's first Eltnum Combos' video. Honestly, I didn't expect to like this character as much as I do. Everything just feels nice to land, and her combos are satisfying as all hell. Definitely gonna have her be my main, I think. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qB4kC6oE-8c&list=UUGYDiaTiz1NLpK6fz1oqg1g

Oh man, Rise's theme is super catchy. Can't wait to be able to clearly hear Adachi and Ken's theme with their trailers.

Yeah, I fought a few at EVO, and...well, it was bad xD On that note, I can see him doing decently against Aigis as well, since j.A actually stops quite a few of her approach options, while 236A/B makes using 2B in neutral a nightmare. Plus, her DP seemed useless against Koro pressure, so take that for what you will.

Yeah, that definitely seems to be the case. Ken's going to prove a nightmare for anyone without a solid aerial DP I think. Oh, and he probably does extremely well against Kanji so long as he doesn't get tagged once.

Wow, I was obviously playing Ken all wrong at EVO :x Still, glad to see my theories about his moveset were right (in that he seems like a great anti-zoner)

Ah, I can also confirm that none of Ken's moves besides 5A are jump-cancellable on block. Sorry, I thought I added that to the notes! Anyways, great guide, can't wait to see more,

No, it's an intentional nerf to hitting aerial opponents mid combo with AoA. This was mainly done because of Chie doing blender oki off of it super easy, if the Atlus rep is to be believed.

Also, it's probably not ACTUALLY a Kyoko reference, but it's really damn close to one. The only difference I could tell was in the eye color, everything else was spot on.