All Matchups
In pretty much every MU, Eltnum takes off when she controls 100 meter or vorpal - make sure to adjust your risk reward accordingly! (Ex. committing to 66C without vorpal is great reward but high risk; with vorpal, it's great reward -low- risk - similarly, 214B without meter is a great poke, but low reward; with meter, it's a great poke with -high- reward)
"I've noticed that vorpal 5A 2C is amazing at catching backdashes. If you're opponent is really backdash happy, then you can use 5A 2C in vorpal as:
1) Backdash killer
2) Decent starter (3k in vorpal)
3) Still leaves many gatling options (5B, 2B, 3C, 5C, 2A)
4) A natural frame trap" ~stickystaines
The other trump card is 5A CS, as a;
1) Backdash crusher
2) Beats all reversals, command grabs, etc
3) Counter hits mash, catches jump out
4) forces blockstun on block
Literally beats all options, but the reward isn't as high as others and you spend CS. Still -very- worth it, frequently. WaldStein Yesterday, me and @MusclesMurphy (AKA sharkkato103) were practicing Eltnum VS Waldstein. Not seeing a significant advantage for either char, here's some notes; 66C is a strong poke for both, safety and practicality higher for Wal, reward higher for Elt (R&R w Vorpal is very good) Shielding the last move of Wal's string and using 236A or 236B can be great to get advantage or a KD, but Wal assault can high profile it Elt's anti airs are pretty bootleg. 236A/B to control space, 66C can be good for hard, early calls, d5B can beat assaults, typically shield or block As both characters, grab early grab often. If Elt isn't representing grab, the rest of the mix up is not effective enough. "I just recently played a lot of matches with my local Wald player and we noticed how useful Eltnum's DP and 214A/B are in this MU as well. At first I thso ought Eltnum's 3C could stuff his Assaults but Wald's air normals are so huge that it seemed like her DP was the only viable choice, however it has to be an early call out though since Wald's air normals can hit Eltnum out of DP. 214A/B can be useful at mid range but you have to pick your spots carefully." ~Ichipoo You can react to many of Waldstein's air options with 623B, it's a life saver.
This might be obvious, but 623B is also a dragon punch. -use it on defense or die- (Range is very poor, so you have to either catch a normal or use it point blank)
This -also- might be obvious, but -backdash is invulnerable too- so make sure to use it as well.
214B covers a great angle and distance, 214A seems to get crushed by most air options much more easily.
As for 3C, it's surprisingly ineffective at neutral. early 66C covers the things it wants to much better.
66B j214A oki is savage in this MU, especially w vorpal near the corner. Beats all wald options other than reversal 623C to my understanding, confirms near corner if 66B hits, w CS if j214A hits
It's also plus even on shield. If he green shields after 66B, j214A will whiff but you still have advantage. Chaos
I would expect Eltnum is in a significant lead in this matchup.
Be calm in lizard pressure, full screen there's no mix up. Relax and then 2B when you're sure you see the hole (5A and 2A will -not- hurt the lizard)
Chaos' pink wall is a very powerful poke with CS, and a decent one without it, so be careful in that range. Control space with 236A/B, with meter confirm to 236C and also consider 5C 214B, 2C 5[C] 214B, 5[C] 214B, 214B in increasing range order.
His AA is pretty good, so don't commit to assault too often. You should come out on top in footsies between 236A, 2C, 214B and the hard call 66C (esp w vorpal)
Don't overcommit if he's set the lizard (lizard underground), he can release it on reaction for counter hits even if he blocks.
(Updated on phone, formatting tmrw)
Hilda
At opening, you can use 236A, questionable risk reward but not poor.
Her 5B is brutal, will beat all your dashing pokes at a run except early 2C which at that range loses to 2B.
This is a challenging obstacle but it's literally Hilda's entire strength - if she keeps you out, she is permitted to live.
66C is a great poke if she keeps going to the air, but it loses to 5B, 3B and is horribly unsafe on block.
22A surprisingly good poke, but also loses to 5B 2B.
Edit: training mode suggests predictable 5Bs can be beaten by jump back assault - needs further testing, might help a lot. 5B on whiff is reactably 2Cable, full combo with god hands or 2k+knockdown
Remaining patient, then, is key. Avoid being frame trapped. If you can call out the charge up overhead, it's pre-emptively punishable with 214B and you get a knockdown (bonus points if you're in range for 214A and can hit the confirm). If you block it (and it -is- reactable, in a vacuum) she can high low afterwards on B release, not sure if reactable.
So then, the focus at neutral is to avoid blocking when possible and don't get Chinese finger trapped until she has at least proven mix up. Every mix up (possible exception, orb feather knockdown >late high/low - I think this is just deadly. Be careful of when and where you tech off the ground) she has puts her in danger in this matchup, and a -lot- of it when Eltnum has meter.
All distant pokes lose in risk reward to 214B 214C
All point blank mix ups risk 412C for 4K (it may feel "scrubby" but you -have- to represent this option to tame her offense - this move is a major reason I picked this character, mixing her up is a hazard - timing is critical though, so if you're not getting paid you have a pattern or sloppy timing)
Be willing to shield projectiles to steer grd in your favor. Controlling vorpal is always sub-goal #1 for Eltnum. Getting safe massive dmg on 66C with a backup plan of "CS > I'm in" is crazy. You don't need 5A CS in this matchup either, because she has no reversals (maybe super?) so only use that if you sniff a veil off and don't feel confident in your OSes (jabs recover before veil; 5A~5B 1)
