Ken Tools
Ken uses the dog to reset/resume pressure.
His j.b is very good, can often times beat Minazuki's j.b
Good damage meterless, damage conversion is not as good unless he is in awakening.
Ken's oki must be respected if he does it correctly
Minazuki Tools
j.b beats his 2b under most circumstances
236b hits the dog
236ab combos the dog
2d FC his dp for optimal damage. KEN CAN'T DO ANYTHING ABOUT THIS EVEN IF HE HAS METER.
IK punish also works
Minazuki's high damage can destroy Ken's low health
236236d Can punish Ken's a Mortal Strike on normal block unless he makes it air tight with the dog.
Neutral summary
Minazuki has to avoid the dog, Ken has to avoid Minazuki so they're constantly chasing and avoiding each other, If Ken tries to use the dog to get a free in, 236b, 2a, 5aa all will hit the mutt. If you keep the dog at bay, Ken is forced to approach, be wary of his j.b. You can 236c/d him at times since his AA isn't very good as the invul comes very late. Knives do a good job of keeping him in check and keeping the dog out of your face. j.2d is a viable strategy at times to remind him that he isn't safe fullscreen. Ken's dp is very high risk, small reward, so make him feel it if you bait it.
Offense summary
Ken has to respect Minazuki's buttons, he'll get hit otherwise, at certain ranges there is nothing he can do about j.b but to roll, and it's a free punish. Minazuki's 5a fully spaced will make Ken's dp whiff. Once he's trained to respect the normals, go for grabs/command grabs. Minazuki can easily knock out Ken before he awakens, so it wise to save your burst or meter for that time, the offensive game is one of patience and conditioning. Your block strings will hit the dog and eventually make him retreat. You will have to watch out for his dp if you're in too deep however. Manage your space control properly and you'll have your time to strike. 214b > 4b > 4ab is safe against Ken's dp, but not his awakening super, to be safe vs his awakening super you must do 214b > 4a > 4ab. I don't think Ken has any AUB normals, so 214b > 4b > air options is generally safe vs him.
Defense summary
You don't want to be blocking Ken, his blockstrings are half screen if need be, and the gaps are few and far between and Ken can modify his strings on the fly to change where the gap is and how big it is to actually do anything. Don't look at Ken, look at the dog, the dog will make up for any recovery of Ken's moves, the dog has cooldown, so bear that in mind. Once you see your gap, jump out and return to neutral, if you think Ken is going to commit to resuming pressure, then go in for a free punish, Ken's moves has enough recovery for an iad to tag him. In most cases if the dog isn't already on you and Ken is running at you, you can 5a him fairly easily. Ken likes to over-commit to pressure and he has no mix up unless he gets close. You can downback everything and just stand up for his AoA which has Fatal Recovery, if he gets in close, remember he has a grab and you're good, plus he's suspect to dps that close up. Ken's pressure comes into light once he mixes up where his gaps are, to make you feel safe, then the dog gets you.
Oki summary
A spaced 5a is your goto option if Ken has no meter, it will catch jump outs, make his dp whiff, if he rolls then he rolls right into you. Just memorize an air hit confirm if he tries to upback and take the 5a in hopes of getting away. Once he's respecting that, you can go for actual mix up. but 5a is very safe until he has meter. Just watch out for desperate supers.
Shadow Specific Details
He can't burst your shit.
Ratio 5.5/4.5 :comingsoon:
