Sophisticat

Eb, you're going to have to tell me what Mac looks like so I can be a surprise challenger if we meet. :P

Yeah, the past couple months have been a blur, really. It went by so fast. I'm sitting here reviewing all the things I need to know for the exam. I found a copy of the examiner's evaluation sheet online and a lot of tips on a racing forum towards passing the test, so I figure I should at least have my theory down pat. Imo, the only way I could fail atm is either by fluke or a really stupid decision/not paying attention. I can supply those above SAAQ test infos to anyone here in MTL who's thinking of trying out for a motorcycle license, btw. It's good stuff and helps a ton for the nerves. And yerp, I'll have to change my nick to something obnoxious, douche-y, and full of Swag because that's exactly how I'll be feeling after. Fuck yeah.

Good luck at SJ, guys! Show what stuff MTL is made of! :D ------ Welcome to the flood of newbies as well. Hope you like it here! ------ I'm doing the final test for my motorcycle license tomorrow as well. I am so going to crank the throttle once I finally get that piece of plastic!

Nothing to it but practice and experience for this one. Play matches and sit in training mode until you're familiar with your and the other characters. There ain't no other way to do it.

^ Buy a Habanero, ingest it in one bite. Should do the trick. Just make sure to josh around so it mixes good.

On Lobelia: cutting it creates a void and nulls the projectile. It'll create a staff, but it can no longer dmg you. @Mac: Yes, runaway Rachel is a major pain, but I find your dmg output evens the field here. Catching her once is really all you need, imo. All I can say is that being patient getting in and cutting down her zoning (or getting in before it's set up) is your focus. Rachel will get close to you at one point or another, and I haven't met anyone that could outrun me at all times in a match, so you'll get your opportunity. I play RTSD though, so I'm always running after the other guy. I don't mind doing a bit more footwork here.

I would suggest using Pad. It's a very simple "Z" motion with your thumb then. ... *Runs*

They all cave in, in the end... :D I've played one real good Yosuke online. Hell of a character to deal with. You'll do good.

My gameplan is usually to neutralize her zoning with good use of Voids, unless that particular player doesn't zone or is easy to get into. Then I get in close and watch my prey for his/her patterns until downloaded. Then I move in for the kill. :bad: Her defense is not the best. She has 6a for AA, which is good, and Cat Chair as a reversal, but either isn't really a "get off me" type of move. This is what makes the match manageable, imo. Once you're in on a Rachel and lay down the gauntlets, she can have a hard time keeping you off. Midscreen, her mixup is not that bad once you're used to it. Instant j.A looks scary, but isn't hard to block once you have some exp. and note the player's patterns. You should also be able to 6D her 4b (that overhead wings move thingy?) on reaction for free dmg. What you have to watch out for is pumpkin, mostly. Good use of pumpkin can really f up your approach and get you combo'd right into the corner. Voiding it is possible, but you have to be clutch. In the corner, she's free game imo. Just do wtv and get 6k or something. When she has you in the corner, her mixup gets nasty. Frog will pin you in place while she does overheads/lows and you have to block that. I personally just jump out or D if it's really telegraphed. Imo, not the worst character to be pinned by, but she'll still make you feel it. Overall, not too bad of a matchup, but she'll make you work to get your win. Maybe 5 or 5.5 at worst, imo. Haku has the upper hand in dmg and can neutralize her zoning. He's got the match's wild card in hand since Rachels dishes out maybe 3k tops at times while you can punt 5-6k in the corner. Crank dat meter!

Welcome, New One. We have meets every Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday. People start arriving by maybe 5pm, though most aren't there 'til 6-7pm. We'll whip you up into good shape if that's what you're angling for. You just need to come out to the meets (like I should be talking ).

^ I actually agree with you that CP might disappoint. They need to drastically alter the game to make it fresh again. If they keep going in the same direction they were, I think BB's going to be pronounced dead in maybe 1-3 years. Nerfing things like that is never fun. I've been saying that all BB needs is to be a faster game and that alone would do plenty to rejuvenate it. It needs CT's fun factor, plain and simple.

Ok, had time to read that tl;dr stuff. First off, good write up Mr. Minion. I agree with your analysis of his pressure tools, though I think you forgot to include his jump unless that was intentional? Haku does not have true blockstrings in the sense of other characters, but he still has some A <-> B chains such as 5a -> 2a -> 2b -> Special, etc. 5a and 5b are also jump cancellable and in the corner this provides some great pressure for fuzzy j.B shenanigans. Even midscreen you can make use of this. For example, something I might do: Hop in -> 2b -> 2a -> 5a/b -> jump in/out, etc. Jump in j.B -> Or even Jump in -> 2a -> Tick throw Etc. As I recall, 5b still hits on block even after two 2Bs. Or maybe it's one. Whatever the case, you have plenty to work with on 5a/b block and setting up TRM throw is always good to have as well. In any case, I simply believe that good use of his A <-> B chains and jump/hop/Kishuu provide enough to mount some pressure over your opponent. He'll slip up at some point, then you do Renka(K) combo for 3k and carry to the corner. He's a beast if done right, especially in CSEX. I do believe his pressure is quite good even without stars.

I don't/can't do that, though. For one, I'll take on anyone so long as it's not a 0 connection. I also want to beat everyone I meet to a pulp. So sometimes I get a 750 PSR guy 10 times in a row and lose each match, lol. It skews my win% until I find some noobs to milk to bring it back up.

Yeah, it does. But everyone on my friends list is at least 60%+++ except for me. ;_; Still, who the heck do they play? All I get is hard-to-beat 650 PSR+ dudes. I want to play some noobs too!

I tried out the above combo. Some notes: - 2a does not seem to work as a starter. Even 2a -> 214SB -> etc. lets the opponent can tech right after/just before the next 2a. - 2a -> 2b -> Swords! whiffs for me, at least on SLab because 2b shoots them too high. I switched it with 2a -> 5b and it seems fine. Lastly, I'm not sure 2a works at all for G -> R combos. Needs a bit more testing...

^ Good stuff, Tari. I'll look into starting a G-R combo off 2a since I think 2a is a better move than 5a and it hits low anyway. Best starter to get into red axe, imo.

Yeah, the game's pretty much a breath of fresh air after BB. It's fast and fun, which is what GG used to be. BB's a bit too staid in its pacing by comparison. It might be the better game, but I sure as heck am having more fun right now with P4A. @Bibi: of course it's the same cycle. After you've been 'round the block a bit, the world's all the same ol', same ol'. You'll notice everything is just a rehash of past events and you'll anticipate how it'll all play out. Guys who were there in '29 saw nothing exceptional in '72, '87 or '08. It's all the same shit. But that doesn't mean it stops being fun. It's fun to get together and try something new. Maybe it'll get tiring later on, but right now I'm having the best time I've had with an FG since first starting out 3-4 years ago. I don't care if the game will be dead in 2 months because there's no point in thinking about that. You'll never enjoy anything if you just think about the end result and not the adventure. You have to enjoy it while it lasts! So let's get in some good games and break EVO while we're at it, for the heck of it.

Don't worry, bro. I got your back on this one. Haku Void Labrys Blood Axe goin' to slice these haters!

Thanks for the info. It's the good stuff. ------ So I see a lot of combo building in the red axe department, so I thought that I'd focus on green axe for moment. I think Green-to-Red axe combos are going to be essential tools in her arsenal. So far I know these, which were present in vids Iora was kind enough to share: j.B -> dash 5b -> 214SB -> 22b -> 5aa -> Swords cage thingy -> 5a -> Sweep -> 214a J.BB -> dash 214SB -> 22b -> 5a -> 5b -> Swords! -> 5a -> 5b -> Sweep 2b (might need CH) -> j.B -> dj.B -> j.C -> j.214b -> OMC -> autocombo 5aaa -> 236a (SB) -> 2b -> sj.B -> j.C -> 214b There might be more, not sure if I missed. Anyway, I'll be working on these in the immediate future since getting to red axe >>> knowing high-dmg combos, imo.

My 620 PSR and 55% win rate self takes issue with this statement. :<

Omg Pedro ftw! :D Man, I still remember that time at Otakuthon '10 when I went up vs. his Lamb and creamed him publicly. Dude's come a long way since! I'm so proud of this guy. Now he's winning tourneys and taking names. Next up he'll be winning EVO for MTL. I'm almost tearing up here. :'D ------ Also, I'll say it again: Kanji yé dla marde. Sa range de mouvement est nulle pis y bouge autant qu'un gars constipé, sti. Fuck Kanji (pis les grapplers)! :<

PSR is not a bad metric on its own, but it is conditional on several factors. I think an overall view of matches played/win%/PSR/etc. gives a better idea of someone's level (outside of playing them).

I'll get to reading the essays later for lack of time atm, so I'll make this short: giving him a command grab would be OP. The simple answer is because of Kishuu. It would become a gdlk move with tons of options with an added c-grab. You have lows, overheads, and now a c-grab off it. If they try to jump out, then they eat Hotaru/5a/etc. If they try to retaliate, then they risk getting countered unless they anticipated Kishuu which isn't always likely if you use it right since it's a pretty fast move on its own. That's OP if you ask me unless I'm missing something.

Thanks for the info, Tari. That's about what I thought. I think the lower levels might have 1-2f shaved off, but I'm not sure it matters much since you don't stay there all that long. We'll find out with the official data once it's obtained.

Hmm... Any (frame) data about basic combo theory available? I'd like to find out what's the general idea behind combo-building to make up my own. For example, it seems red axe adds maybe 2-3f of extra untech which makes the longer combos possible. Something like that? Anyway, I take it that Lab's basic strat is [short combo] -> oki -> xN -> red axe -> mega dmg?