Ryd'

C Maragi being slower actually might screw up Maragi combos where you're having opponents drop into the wave to auto-ignite the pillar. While they require more precision, they hurt more, so it's something of a nerf.

Fire levels go up to 9. Maragi is now hold/release instead of tap again to detonate.

・JB's recovery frames have a fatal counter state Because it's not bad enough to whiff a fan and be stuck with someone in your face. I wonder if this applies to the 3 weeks of forced crouch landing recovery you get from the move alone.

Mixup isn't strictly limited to high/low, and there was plenty of mixup in P4A. S.Labrys, Yu, Chie, Mitsuru, Yukiko, and Aigis all have good high/low and/or crossup options. Teddie as well, I suppose, since that AOA crossup can be kinda dirty.

FD system. Whoever said it was missing mixup must've only played something like Labrys vs Liz.

And she goes up to lv 9 now. Because that's what she needed. Really though, all this did was make SB Boost somewhat tempting to actually use. You still want to make sure you're sitting on at least 25SP at all times since it doesn't seem like they did anything to her combo avenues, so you're still dependent on Maragi into SB Agi to do anything. I'm curious about the intended purpose of her new move since, at a glance, it doesn't do anything she couldn't already do. Phoenix super seems like a nice stfu though.

So one of Yukiko's reported changes is being able to hold and release Maragi. This could mean one of three things: -Typo; nothing changed. -Functions like Agi now: pops immediately unless held. Makes the C version less annoying since you don't have to perform any additional actions in order to pop it now (previously, manual pop meant inputting another C move since Yukiko recovered before the wave really got anywhere). -Complete overhaul of the move: Input the move to create the wave that travels on its own, hit the button again to manually pop, hit and hold to lock the wave and delay the pillar release? If this is true, she might be able to create a whole new type of obstacle course. Also, something closer to MBCC F-Akiha shit.

Not noted on there: Fire levels go up to 9 now. The Maragi thing may mean that you can hit and hold the button down again after releasing to delay the pillar popping up while keeping the wave locked? If that's the case, that could be amazing for Yukiko's pressure and zoning. Edit: It could also mean that Maragi has been converted to Agi status, where you have to hold the button down to keep it from popping immediately instead of tapping the button to manually pop it.

You don't have to worry about that much. P4A's mechanics make utilizing most of Yukiko's unblockable setups more of a guessing game than a "you're gonna get fucked; bend over" option. Opting not to tech will beat everything except dropping SB Agi on you; Maragi and high/lows will tap you for negligible damage and let you escape. That opens up a whole separate game of trying to read each other, though I'm completely okay with that. The problem with this is when you have a character that has something they were never supposed to have, like Chie's full screen meteors. A character whose whole gameplan is "get in and push your shit in" should never have a ridiculously braindead method for getting in that is +eleventybillion f on block. Things like FB Puffball and Slayer's DoT are bad enough on their own, but not on the level of absurdity that Chie has (except where if Slayer lands CH DoT, you're gonna die. That's a little silly.) You could take away her full screen shit, and she'd still be a more than viable character. She already has sufficient mobility to get around just about everything, she doesn't need something to bend you over so she can leisurely walk in and do whatever the hell she wants.

I saw the new super thing for Yukiko. It requires lv 6. Unless it's something like a Dragon Install that puts her into Fire Break status for certain amount of time (or the rest of the round...lol), it probably won't have a drastic effect on her game plan. For fire levels to matter while still being left as is, she needs more ways to combo into her fire moves; because her current stable methods (CH 2B or land Maragi) aren't enough to bother with it. Maybe the new move she's getting will be something that'll allow for more stable fire combos so that you actually have some incentive to level them up, but I'm not sure what they could do for that. Alternatively, grant additional perks to her fire skills according to fire levels. Something like bigger hitboxes, more hitstun/floating, or they become air unblockable. Not ridiculously early on, but lv 5+ or something.

I don't have many major gripes about the top characters, actually. Chie just needs those three adjustments listed, imo. I don't know what can be done about her oki, but it's too much given everything else she has. A character like that shouldn't be damn near impossible to get away from on top of everything else. Mitsuru: -jA no longer has active frames of the gods -5A no longer hits above her head -Tone down her damage a bit. Teddie: -5B, 2B. Do something. -Reduced horizontal distance in 5D's hop? Not sure if that's really needed. Yu is fairly braindead, but...I don't know if there's a whole lot that could be done about him. That character type has never really been something anyone could call inspired, so I guess it's okay. Yukiko wishlist: -5A not 10f please. Alternatively, if she can't have not-slow normals outside of 2A/sweep, give her guard points on the slow ones; 5A, 5C, 2C; high/mid, high/mid, and low, respectively. It wouldn't be out of place given she's supposed to have the elegant thing going. -2B head invul -Do something with her gimmick. Fire levels up passively as fire moves hit opponent (capped per combo or something so you don't land Maragi and suddenly go from lv 0 to 7), or retain a % every round; something to make it have a consistent noticeable impact on her game. -Something air unblockable? 2B, or maybe the Maragi pillars.

What Chie needs: 5A not +1 No more meterless Blue Fire oki. Take away full screen meteors. Make them both close range variety, one starts up sooner but fewer meteors, other has delay, but more hits. Something. Bitch does not need what she has in P4A. Her damage could possibly be toned down a bit, but it might not be necessary if they fix it to where she doesn't have guaranteed tickets in. Also, maybe fix her reversal a bit; more recovery, or make it so that she can't spam it; no character should be able to derp themselves into awakening like that. Also hype for Yukari. And watch me be sad when both her and Yukiko still suck.

So learn Eddie.

I don't think they could make enough changes to Bridget that would make you genuinely enjoy playing him.

I've pretty much given up in trying to coerce people into playing the game. I'll push buttons on almost anything though. Almost.

Just to get a list out there - games that you'll find people willing to play: F/UC GG MB F/UC P4A Tekken VF DoA BB? F/UC SC (lol) AP (ugh...) Mahvel (just me...) Chaos Code (RIP) F/UC Also a chance of jewels like KoF: MI series, SF EX, and other forms of poverty.

Church's.

Arcana is actually pretty up there in terms of difficulty; probably close to, if not alongside, GG. If "mash D, land a hit, win" was all there was to it, the game would be braindead and everyone would be a champ. Turns out the opposite is true. The extra movement adds a whole layer that isn't present in most other games, which makes up for the simplicity it has in other regards. Having to factor in the varying speeds with which opponents can come at you (or vice versa), the trajectories, coupled with the opponent's hitboxes on top of that...that's a lot to have to deal with before you get into the nuances added by the absurd number of character/arcana combinations (though you rarely see more than a handful of combos per character). Blatantly appealing to a niche population is only part of the problem with the game's inability to cultivate a large player base. Also, I played Time Petra (lol); that's not really a combo where you can mash D whenever you want.

Too much work, would rather stick with GG and play easier games on the side.

I don't think there's a whole lot to say about EVO. The real question is: do people plan to drop the game right away? There's nothing new and exciting out to replace it, and I've heard a lot of talk about people quitting after EVO. I'm not sure myself, but it's not like there's anything else that'll require large amounts of grind-time.

Abusing your dp with Slab is fine as long as it will connect and you have meter, or you're covered by Asterius. Slab shits meter, so that isn't a problem, and I didn't see him abusing it raw. It's not like Slab needs meter for damage anyway. Keeping them off you so you can run your game is more important. Lol at D super only being -4.

Should be universal. You won't see it advertised a whole lot because of its unstable nature. While the meter gain is nice, it's easy to drop and the damage isn't too much more than what you'd get from something easier. Given that Yukiko is not a character who can afford to drop a combo, it's generally better to opt for reliability over a little extra meter.

Hitboxes. It's free on Chie, really hard to get on most, and seems impossible with a lot of others.

The challenge mode combo?

Hey, I like playing Luke's Sol. Granted, I play Testament...