pewter

2C is def a tool to be used on fast characters like Bang. You can restrict his movement with wind just as much as you can boost your own. A big part of bang is learning his block strings; after a few matches they should be pretty obvious to you. After you got that down, use your barrier so you screw up his spacing. Rachel has to play conservatively on most of her matchups and I think this is one of them. Unless you can predict a rushdown, it's better to just block it against Bang. Get to know what his drives look like so you know not to try to poke him out of it. Most bang players will do the same 2-3 combos over and over on you, so use their lack of flavor against them.

Don't fear the reaper, baby. Just don't get frame-trapped.

Just keep in mind tager's a cakewalk to combo, and his ... girth means he's all the easier to hit with Sword Iris. Don't rush yourself in this match, or any match for that matter -- but especially against Tager. He's also very susceptible to Rachel's air pokes. Take a look at this match video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jx8JaeDOG78&feature=PlayList&p=DC8621CE5CEE593D&index=2

waiting it out takes too long and honestly you're gonna slip up somewhere. A lot of arakunes will think it's still okay to sit around in the air against rachel. Prove them wrong with wind + lobelia. Most of the time, I find rachel has two ways to break curse: 6A and j214B 3D (basically get out a pumpkin and immediately wind it -- this requires patience for your opening to present itself. Also always be on the look-out for a grab. If you can deny 'kune his throw >> distortion drive, you make the match that much harder for him. Have a pumpkin out any time you can. It really messes with arakunes -- they def respect the pumpkin. Just keep in mind in a kune fight you need to aim for where he's going to be, not where he is.

Buppa (Hakumen) vs Matsu (Rachel) Solid use of combos, pretty creative at points too. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDXUY9a5k7M&feature=PlayList&p=DC8621CE5CEE593D&index=9

JackG is correct. Properly countering a projectile will save you from damage, and that's it, but 2d, 5d and j5d all give one star assuming you actually HIT them with the counter. I also noticed that Hakumen gains meter when he gets hit which is nice. I find these big 214214b combos pretty awesome, as if you get very skilled at mixing pokes with auto-guards, you can fill your meter quite fast without taking much damage, then just end the match right there with a 80% combo. Sounds brilliant, ballsy, and ... honestly, in the end, not that realistic. But still---!!!

I find this one of the easier match-ups, you've just got to be ballsy with your distortion drive. Most of Tao's moves are fast but she's got ones with longer start-ups than 1f (the startup for 6d 2d or j.d). Block her for a while, let yourself get to know when she throws her heavier attacks, as opposed to pokes which you shouldn't be trying to auto-guard. Then -- once you auto-guard you can get your damage in. Taokakas HAVE to be aggressive in order to win, and if they try to start pulling that stick'n'move crap, try TK 236c for some heavy damage to punish 2a mash poke. The difficulty is Hakumen seems to love getting people in the corner, but Taokaka is astounding at getting OUT of the corner, so just don't try to rely on it. Keep your cool, pace yourself, take your damage where you can get it, and if you can set up a j.2c combo, for the love of justice, take it.

A well-timed 5b will also knock Jin out of ice car. Most scrub-Jins use it to fly at you from the other side of the screen, offering tons of time to whack him out of it. Unfortunately, ice car puts Jin in the air, making your ground combos off 5b impossible, but you can in the very least 214b to deny an escape and fully steal pressure from him.

Sounds delicious. This, as a policy, seems to be a stronger strategy for Rachel as she really has a hard time "beating" rush-down. You need to be a strong blocker as Rachel to take on faster opponents, and insta-blocking is apart of that. One idea for anti-rush is a bit risky: shooting out an A or B-lobelia semi-randomly, though if i have full wind, I'll do it and then redirect the shot if I see them move. Jump back, C-lobelia is also a good idea against characters that are weaker in the air. Versus Hakumen, I feel you need to keep in mind he never has 100% zoning, even though his c-slashes are very wide. They're also slow, though, so just be very conservative with what moves you do, especially with your back to the wall. You've got to always be ready to block, especially against a Hakumen who knows to not try to take you in the air. Wait for your opportunities to show, and keep things interesting with pumpkin and frog.

I haven't fought a very experienced V-13 yet so I cant attest to any of that, but Rachel seems to have an awful time dealing with pressure -- i.e. Noel and Taokaka. You've got to be quite careful when you try to summon, and really only Lobelia if you know they're at the very least going to have to block it. You can argue just about any match with Rachel requires patience, just because her high-damage combos demand a lot of set-up. Have pumpkin, will travel, though.