Orrax

This. Good luck, Ryan! Also, I just realized that Ruu and Satou are in the bracket for +R at NEC. I feel like it's a foregone conclusion that they'll be facing each other in grand finals.

Apparently it just has to do with whether the image is arcade perfect or if there are some things removed from the background: http://www.dustloop.com/forums/index.php?/topic/6375-xrd-news-theoretical-gameplay-discussion/page-466#entry867317. I'm guess the perfomance mode might help with some stage issues online (and we already know there are laggy stages in their other games).

I think I need to preface anything I say by pointing out that it has been a while since I played this matchup, or this game, but I have a few things I think are worth noting. Hilda has some slow moves (the frame data says her 214B has a 37 frame start up, for example), including her overheads, so reacting to those can be a good time to CS -> EX Reaper to regain the momentum. I think if you block her overhead pin, you'll have a little room to breath (but it has been a while since I played this match), and her 22A and 22B are minus on block, so those are better bets for making a move. These are also good moves to shield, since you'll create even more space for yourself. If you have 100 meter at the start of the round, there's not a lot she can do about B Reaper, and you can always cancel to super to make it plus. At about midscreen, a correct read on a low can get you in with assault, and you can also jump back and then assault to go over even more of her stuff, but she can punish pretty well if you guess wrong, or she makes a correct read, or she just reacts in time. I've also had a fair amount of luck with 66C in this match. I feel like I'm ok at the matchup (or used to be when I played more), but there's a strong local Hilda player who used to beat me consistently. So, I'm also interested in any other tips that people have.

I just heard some of the English dub of Xrd, and, for some characters at least, I was reminded of the original Guilty Gear X promo movie.

I've never had much trouble with Labrys unless I'm playing online, so I guess I'm just wondering what in specific is giving you trouble. The only Labrys-specific advice I've got off-hand is that her 5A is faster, so be careful about not leaving too much space between 5A staggers, and, from what I remember (it's been a while since I fought Labrys), having a knife out can really mess with her jump attempts.

Man, that makes me wish I knew how to play Baiken in +R. I can only hope they add her in Xrd. UNIEL having more players than MvC3 is something I take as good news -- but I have to wonder how many entrants MvC3 got. Hopefully it's because UNIEL is having a lot of signups and not because MvC3 is having an uncharacteristically weak representation.

I don't know if I can make Sunday (the 30th). I should be able to make Saturday (the 29th), though.

The date on Facebook for the ranbat says the 29th, which is next weekend and a Saturday, not a Sunday.

Claiming that May isn't weak does not automatically imply that she's strong. She can be somewhere in between as well (which is where I think she is).

I play both Minazuki and Chie, and I think this match is really bad for Chie. 5A outranges everything and is really safe for Minazuki to throw out, and Chie cannot DP unless Minazuki is close. Basically, when I play this match as Chie, I pretty much have to play a waiting game. I've tried a lot of super jumping and using Chie's mobility to create an opening to move in, but I haven't had all that much success. It's not all bad, however. Chie can 2B his teleport for a fatal counter, and Minazuki's fastest poke is 7 frames, meaning Chie has a pretty big advantage when she gets in. So, when you do catch Minazuki, you have to make it count. His DP is good, so be wary of it, and you especially do not want to get counter-hit by his awakening super (which is a pretty decent reversal). Basically, my experience is that Chie really struggles in neutral against Minazuki, and on defense she just has to block a lot, wait for a good time to jump out, and make good reads on Minazuki's command grab. Speaking of which, Minazuki's primary mixup is his command grab, so that's the main thing to watch for. His overheads are mostly slow and reactable. Also, a lot of Minazuki's strings aren't as air-tight as they seem. It's possible to DP between the two hits of his sweep or his 2B, for example (although I don't recommend it), so it might be possible to do something like IB -> God Hand if he's being predictable. It should be possible to roll his 5C, unless he does 5C after 5AA. If Minazuki does 5AA 5C, it's safe to rolls, but I think Chie can DP if she IBs the 5AA, hit the persona, and then cancel to power charge to make it safe. Considering how long Minazuki is vulnerable after his 5C, Chie might even be able to run up and punish after power charge, but I haven't tested it yet. Or you could just IB -> God Hand, I guess. But, overall, while there are holes in Minazuki's offense, imho the best plan is usually just to be patient and wait for a chance to escape. Also, I don't recommend messing too much with Minazuki's rekka follow ups. If you make a correct read, you can get out or maybe even 2B him, but the last EX rekka is pretty safe, and he can jump or backdash away after the 2nd rekka, so he doesn't have to commit to anything.

I'm not entirely sure if this one is backdash YRC (I think it is), but, if so, the answer appears to be probably not: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PA2MqK_yowA&list=UUNS7KzXpV2VFJZw_sB9uqhA#t=42.

I'm almost 100% sure you can YRC backdashes. Now that I think about it, I think I saw Ogawa do it in his recent set of matches against FAB. EDIT: Yeah, looks like he does backdash YRC here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PA2MqK_yowA&list=UUNS7KzXpV2VFJZw_sB9uqhA#t=65.

As far as I'm aware, you cannot YRC any DPs.

As VR notes in that video, DI isn't invulnerable until frame seven, so it doesn't actually have startup invulnerability. The end result is that DI YRC isn't that different from YRCing any other move. The only real difference is that it works to stop upward momentum, so it can potentially be used to tk into an overhead, which may or may not prove useful -- I'm not convinced of its usefulness just yet. It also requires 50 meter to use (even though it only costs 25) because DI can only be done with 50 meter.

5K is a good poke to run in with. 5H is mostly for counterhits, and 2S is for plus frames and controlling space. 2P and 5S(f) are his other main pokes on the ground. And 5K is a good AA because of how fast and active the move is, but Sol extends his hurtbox as well, so 5K can lose pretty badly to either properly-spaced or high-priority jump ins. Dragon install is a lot better, but it's still not a great super. Most Sol players get more use out of Tyrant Rave, which isn't particularly amazing either -- it just lets Sol pick up after sweep in the corner for good damage. If you're concerned about how Sol got better, Kudakero (the dive kick) and a better Fafnir have made his neutral game much stronger. 5K is unchanged since forever (it was the exact same in XX, iirc), so it really doesn't have anything to do with Sol being better now. I'm hoping we'll still get a few more returning characters.

Hey Guymam, thanks for the comments, and I agree with them. I will work on the stuff you suggested.

See this thread for more information on the OS: http://www.dustloop.com/forums/index.php?/topic/9522-lordknight-explains-defense-and-defensive-option-selects-in-p4u2/ I was just looking over it, and I'm not sure I was explaining the OS properly. Here's Lord Knight's post about it, which I recommend reading: http://www.dustloop.com/forums/index.php?/topic/9522-lordknight-explains-defense-and-defensive-option-selects-in-p4u2/?p=848109. There's considerably better information in there than in the short post I made.

During pressure, while holding down-back, input a jump and a throw really quickly, and then immediately switch to blocking down back. So, it should look like 1 > 7 + CD > 1. If you did it right, you'll only be vulnerable to lows for a frame or two, and you'll jump if there's a gap, and you'll break a throw if there is one. However, there's still a jump start-up where you'll be vulnerable, so it can be risky.

In my experience, Akihiko cannot be safe-jumped. Mostly I just try to outspace him, since Minazuki's got quite a large advantage when it comes to range. 5A outspaces his DP, and just try to stay out of range of his 2B. His j.B has a good hitbox with a lot of active frames, but, again, it's range isn't great (although it can cover a lot of space in an air-dash). Minazuki's 2B beats it pretty cleanly in my experience. As for Akihiko's pressure, it's only really bad if you're playing online (I find it really obnoxious to deal with when there's even a little bit of lag). But, assuming you're playing offline, you need to be patient. Jump or break his throw attempts (I seem to remember having some luck with the jump air throw/block low os), react to his overhead, watch for his ex crossup, and look for a good time to jump out or roll. DP to get out works, but Akihiko can get some very big damage off of a DP punish, so be very careful. Same goes for rolls, so don't rely on them too much.

I want more old characters back, damnit. I'm interested in seeing how Leo plays, though.

I made matchup threads. I also put the relevant posts I saw in here for Akihiko and Ken in their respective matchup threads.

Relevant posts from the general discussion thread:

Discuss the Yukiko matchup here.

Discuss the Yukari matchup here.

Discuss the Yu matchup here.