-Super arts FAQ- by BillyKane version 0.9 0000 0 0 0000 0000 0000 0000 0000 000 0000 0000 0000 0000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0000 0 0 0000 000 000 0000 000 0 0000 00 0000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 00 0 0 00 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 00 0000 0000 0 0000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0000 0 0 0 00000 00 This document is copyright 2001 Nadir Sellam a.k.a. BillyKane. I will not tolerate any use of the information it contains without with my permission. If you use it without my permission, I will take you to the court, I will win, and you will lose lots of money. Think about it. Writing a FAQ takes time. If you want to use part of this FAQ on your site, please ask for my permission by email at nadir_sellam@hotmail.com. I don't care if you're familiar with the law or not, you copy my work you're going to pay, especially if you try to make profit off of it. That's the way it is. Knowledge is priceless. -End of disclaimer- This is an attempt at creating another base of information for Street Fighter 3: Fight for the future. I am planning the gather a lot of information on each characters Super Arts whenever possible, and gear this FAQ more towards beginners than experts. This should basically be considered as a guide to help you choose your Super Arts of choice, and a general list of all Super Arts' uses. However, I probably won't have time to list -everything- about the subject, since Super Arts are a major part of the game. Indeed, your whole strategy evolves around your Super Art choice, and to be honest some of them are way better than others. My goal with this FAQ is to roughly introduce to beginners and below average players some uses and set-ups for every Super Art in the game. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ A bit of history: Version 0.1: _07/31th/2001- I got this idea after finishing my Chun-Li FAQ. There is so much to be said about Super Arts, so why not give it a try? =) Version 0.2: _08/1st/2001- I just realized how much time this FAQ is going to take... I wrote tips on super canceling, stun value and the types of Super Arts. Version 0.3: _08/2nd/2001- I wrote the Akuma section. Version 0.4: _08/3rd/2001- I wrote the Chun-Li section inspired by my Chun-Li FAQ, and the Dudley section (still incomplete though) with some help from SlimX. I also wrote the Ken, Alex, Remy and Ryu sections. Version 0.5: _08/4rth/2001-I wrote the Hugo and Makoto sections and some formatting. I also started the "Parrying into Super Arts" section. Version 0.6: _08/5th/2001-I wrote the Ibuki and Q sections, added the "Limited time Super Arts" section and wrote some parrying advice. I also changed the layout. Version 0.65: _08/6th/2001-I finished the Sean section, and added some advice on comboing the universal overhead into Super arts. I finished the kara-canceling Super Arts section, too. Only 8 characters left, yay! Version 0.7: _08/7th/2001-I wrote the Yang, Twelve and Urien sections, and wrote the "What's a Super Art?" explication. I think I will submit the FAQ in the present form and update it next week because I will be away for a few days. Version 0.8: _08/11th/2001-I added the PBR section and finished the Urien section. I started the Yun section but it is far from being finished. Version 0.9: _08/25th/2001-I corrected a few typos and added a new SA category thanks to Gunblade. I also added the Genei Jin combos I got from thehy and the low LK X 2 XX Shin Shoryuken cancel. Note to the people reading this: the sections I wrote about each Super Art are neither all finished nor definitive. I am having a hard to do - everything- right now, but everything should come in time. Please do not email me to say: "Uor FAQ SUX! U forgot ma fave Sa111". I know. Constructive criticism, on the other hand, is welcome. Thanks by advance for understanding this. Coming soon: _The parrying patterns of each Super Art _The Elena, Necro, Oro and Gill sections _More "various stuff" _More detailed information about the Super Arts ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Map 1. Legend 2. General rules 2.1 What is a Super Art? 2.2 Types of Super Arts 2.3 Buffering 2.4 Super canceling 2.5 Comboing into Super Arts 2.6 Limited time Super Arts 2.7 Stun value 2.8 Passing through projectiles 2.9 Kara-canceling into Super Arts 2.10 Various stuff about Super Arts 3. Super Arts description by character 3.1 Alex 3.2 Akuma 3.3 Chun-Li 3.4 Dudley 3.5 Elena - 3.6 Gill - 3.7 Hugo 3.8 Ibuki 3.9 Ken 3.10 Makoto 3.11 Necro - 3.12 Oro - 3.13 Q 3.14 Remy 3.15 Ryu 3.16 Sean 3.17 Twelve 3.18 Urien 3.19 Yang 3.20 Yun 4. Parrying Super Arts 4.1 Point-blank parrying 4.2 Parrying patterns description 4.3 "Parry Buffer Reaction"? 5. Parrying into Super Arts 6. Credits ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1. Legend LP = Light Punch/Jab MP = Medium Punch /Strong HP = High Punch/Fierce LK = Light Kick/Short MK = Medium Kick/Forward HK = High Kick/Roundhouse qcf = Quarter circle forward hcf = Half circle forward qcb = Quarter circle backwards hcb = Half circle backwards DP = Dragon Punch move -forward, qcf- P = Any punch button K = Any kick button Throw = LP + LK Tech = LP + LK when being thrown (it nullifies the throw) Universal Overhead = MP + MK Taunt = HP + HK Dash = Forward X 2 Parry = Forward (see TheHY's FAQ) Low parry = Down ~ = Charge time XX = Super cancel ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2 General rules 2.1 What is a Super Art? Super Arts play a major role in Street Fighter 3:Third Strike. They are very often just powered-up versions of special moves, but sometimes have new animations. These attacks have special properties and often deal more damage than normal and special attacks, but you will be asked to choose only one before the fight (unless you are playing on a Dreamcast and messed up with the System Direction options =). You can only stock a limited number of Super Arts: there is a bar at the bottom of the screen that shows the number of Super Arts you can stock, and you level of super energy. The length of this Super Art varies on the move selected. I hope this FAQ will help you to have a better understanding of how Super Arts work in general, and help you make your choice. I have written all of this by myself and did not rip off anyone else's FAQ (I have actually read very few Third Strike FAQs) so I am probably missing lots of things. I was also restricted by time and size: there is no way I could have told you about the way to link every Super Art, or all the variations of Yun's Genei Jin (=SAIII). If you feel I left out an IMPORTANT aspect of a Super Art or made a mistake -which can obviously happen when you try to write a guide on all the characters-, feel free to send me an email at nadir_sellam@hotmail.com . If I decide to add your stuff to this FAQ, you will be credited for sure. Enough of stating the obvious, let's get on with the interesting things now. 2.2 Types of Super Arts It is possible to classify the Super Arts into different categories. To make things easier, I decided to list them here: _Rush-type Super Arts = When you perform these, your character will rush forward, giving more reach to the Super Art. When they are connected up close -outside of a combo-, you have to parry the first hit point, making them extremely dangerous. Includes: Sean's Hyper Tornado (SAIII), Chun-Li's Houyokusen (SAII), Ken's Shippu Jinrai Kyaku (SAIII), Dudley's Rolling Thunder (SAII), Yun's Sourai Rengeki (SAII), Hugo's Hammer Frenzy (SAIII), Q's Critical Combo (SAI). _Projectile-type Super Arts = Their name is self-explanatory: these are powered up versions of the characters projectiles. The number of hits and properties totally vary depending on the character. Includes: Sean's Hadou Burst (SAI), Ryu's Shinkuu Hadouken (SAI), Ryu's Denjin Hadouken (SAIII), Akuma's Messatsu Gou Hadou (SAI), Urien's Temporal Thunder (SAII), Ibuki's Kasumi Sukaku (SAI), Remy's Light of Justice (SAI), Twelve's X.N.D.L. (SAI), Necro's Electric Snake (SAIII), Oro's Yagyou Dama (SAII) and EX Yagyou Dama (EX SAII). _Dragon Punch-type Super Arts = In a similar fashion to the Fireball- type Super Arts, these are powered-up version of the characters' anti- air special moves. You need to parry them at point blank when up-close, and their parry patterns are usually fast and irregular. They consist of 2 or 3 dragon punch-type moves. Sean's Shoryu Cannon (SAII), Ken's Shoryureppa (SAI), Akuma's Messatsu Gou Shoryu (SAII), Dudley's Rocket Uppercut (SAI), Elena's Spinning Beat (SAI), Remy's Supreme Rising Rage Flash (SAII). _Grab-type Super Arts = These Super Arts cannot be parried or blocked. However, your opponent needs to be rather close to you to connect them. They have more range than special throws, and can be kara-cancelled. Some of them need a start-up move. Includes: Alex's Hyper Bomb (SAI) and Stun Gun Headbutt (SAIII), Hugo's Gigas Breaker (SAI) and Megaton Press (SAII), Oro's Kishin Riki (SAI) and EX Kishin Riki (EX SAI), Q's Total Destruction (SAIII), Necro's Slam Dance (SAII), Akuma's Shun Goku Satsu. _Custom Combo-type Super Arts = These Super Arts act like Custom Combos, or V-Ism in Street Fighter Alpha 3. Your character's moves will hit 2 or 3 more times than usual, allowing for longer combos. Includes: Yang's Sei-ei Bu (SAIII), Yun's Genei Jin (SAIII), Oro's Tengu Stone (SAIII). _Vertical-type = The main purpose of these Super Arts is to be reliable anti-airs. They go straight up and can easily stop jump-ins. Includes: Ken's Shinryuken (SAII) and Akuma's Messatsu Gou Rasen (SAIII). _Sudden Impact-type Super Arts = These Super Arts are connected on the ground most of the time, but they need to be parried at point blank when up close. They can be used as counters and have usually good priority. Includes: Alex's Boomerang Raid (SAII), Ryu's Shin Shoryuken (SAII), Chun-Li's Kikoushou (SAI) and Tensei Ranka (SAIII), Necro's Magnetic Storm (SAI), Makoto's Seichuusen Godanzuki (SAI), Ibuki's Yoroi Doushi (SAII) and Yami Shigure (SAIII), Yun's You Hou (SAI), Elena's Brave Dance (SAII), Urien's Tyrant Slaughter (SAI) and Dudley's Corkscrew Blow (SAIII). _Delayed Impact-type Super Arts = These are similar to the Sudden-Impact Super Arts, except that they can be parried as normal moves (after the screen flashes, that is), which makes them easy to parry unless they are included in combos. Yang's Raishin Mahaken (SAI) and Tenshin Senkyuutai (SAII), Makoto's Abare Tosanami (SAII), Twelve's X.F.L.A.T. (SAII). _Other = Any Super art that does not fit the aforementioned categories. Elena's Healing (SAIII), Urien's Aegis Reflector (SAIII), Remy's Blue Nocturne (SAIII), Makoto's Tanden Renki (SAIII), Akuma's Kongo Kokuretsu Zan, Twelve's X.C.O.P.Y. (SAIII). Note: This list is subjective to an extent. While the vast majority of the Super Arts totally fit into one category, some of them could arguably have appeared into several. These categories are not restricting in any way, and I will discuss the proper uses of each Super Art later. 2.3 Buffering _You need to learn buffering to start using characters efficiently in almost every fighting game, not only Third Strike. It is particularly useful for grapplers (e.g. Alex and Hugo), or for fighters who have long or complicated moves in general. In this game, most characters can perform a Super Art by just doing qcf X 2 + P or K, but Alex, Hugo and Akuma's Supers have more complicated motions. _Buffering a move is basically taking advantage of the recovery time of your own character while performing a move (usually a "laggy" move) to start performing the motion for another move (generally a Super Art). If you have played any King Of Fighters or Capcom versus SNK before then you probably know what I am talking about. You can basically buffer - any- Super Art if you can find a move that is long enough to let you do it. -Example- Hugo's Gigas Breaker (=SAI) is one of the hardest Super Arts to connect in the game, because of its relatively complicated motion. It is quite hard to perform if on the ground without jumping because the motion is a 720, so most players decide to jump and start performing the motion when they are in the air. You can even throw a light attack that you hope will be blocked so that your opponent is still within Gigas Breaker range. This is one of the most basic buffering techniques. But you can also buffer it from a dash, a slow move, a whiffed throw... There are many other possibilities. 2.4 Super canceling _This is a basic technique that you need to learn very early if you want to improve your game that is sometimes referred to as buffering (this term comes from other games, but it totally fits here). This technique is somewhat similar to the 2-in-1 concept used in the later old-school Street Fighter 2 games, but here you cancel a special move into a Super Art instead of canceling a normal move into a special move. This is made possible by the fact that most Super Arts in Third Strike are simple qcf X 2 + P or K motions. -Example- When you perform a Super Move, such as Ryu's Hadouken (qcf + P), and then perform another qcf + P very fast, the computer will recognize both the fireball motion and the Super Motion, even though you have not performed separate motions. Motion: qcf + P, qcf + P Result: A Hadouken immediately followed by a Shinkuu Hadouken (SAI), making it harder for your opponent to anticipate and parry. It does not matter what kind of normal attack button (kick or punch) is used. Just keep in mind that some moves and Super Art are cancelable, and others are not. _You can cancel a Super Art from an air projectile by using the same technique with Akuma or Ibuki. -Example- Jump with Ibuki and throw a dagger (qcf + P), then perform another qcf + P to cancel it into her Kasumi Suzaku (SAI). Just remember that you have to do everything while still in the air -if you have trouble at first, just use a super jump (down-up forward or backwards). Motion: Jump, qcf + P XX qcf + P Result: A dagger immediately followed by MANY daggers, making it a lot harder to parry, and quite unpredictable. _It is possible to cancel a Super Art from a charge move quite easily, contrary to what many people seem to think. All you need to remember is that you have to hit the points for the first part of the Super Art (qcf) while performing the initial charge move, and then add another qcf + P or K to perform the Super Art. -Example- Remy does not have any qcf-type move because he is a charge character. However, you will still need to master his super cancels to use him efficiently. One of my favorite tricks to prevent his Light of Justice Super Art (SAI) to be parried (or at least make it harder for your opponent) is to cancel it from a low Light of Virtue. You need to charge back, perform a qcf -or hcf, the computer will recognize the same motion anyway- forward and any kick button (you can change the speed of the projectile, I personally prefer using his HK), and finally perform another qcf + P to pull off the Super Art. Your opponent needs to low parry the first hit, and parry the upcoming Super Art high, making it much harder. But it is true that the Super Art will deal less damage than if it was not canceled. Motion: Charge back~, qcf + K XX qcf + P Result: A low Light of Virtue by the speed of your choice immediately followed by the Light of Justice Super art. _Of course, this technique does not only apply to fireball-type Super Arts only, but to most Super Arts in general. You can use super canceling when up-close. -Example- Canceling Elena's MK Rhino Horn (DP + MK) into her Spinning Beat (SAI) when up close is very easy. Once the first hit of the Rhino Horn connects, you just have to perform another qcf + K. Sometimes, one version of a special move will be cancelable into a Super Art but another will not. In this case, you can super cancel Elena's Spinning Beat from her MK and her HK Rhino Horn, but it is impossible to cancel it from the LK version. The LK version only hits -once-, so you have no time to cancel the Super Art before the second hit, contrary to the other versions. Motion: MK DP XX qcf + K Result: The Rhino Horn will not knock your opponent on the ground and he/she will still get hit by the Spinning Beat. Perfect for chip damage. =) _Of course, you can super cancel from EX moves. Sometimes, you can ONLY super cancel from the EX move version of a special move. -Example- In the same manner as Elena's "Rhino Horn XX Spinning Beat" cancel, Ibuki use her EX "Dragon Kick" and cancel it into her Kasumi Sukaku. The interesting part is that you can ONLY cancel it from her EX version because it lets you use an attack when you are on the way down, recovering from your attack. Just remember to perform the qcf + P quite fast. Motion: DP KK XX qcf + P (do not forget to spazz to get more hits and damage) Result: You connect a Super Art that is usually somewhat predictable from up close and impossible to connect when not at a distance. The downside is that you need more than just one super bar to perform this technique. 2.5 Comboing into Super Arts Comboing into Super Arts generally requires mastering the Super Canceling I just explained. It is the safest way to connect your combo because of the parry feature. However, you need to learn which Super Art can be connected from which move. Throw-type Super Arts usually cannot be comboed into. -Damage reduction rule- It is very important to keep in mind the Damage reduction rule that was implemented into this game to avoid combo abuses. While comboing into a Super Art is usually better because it makes it impossible to parry if the combo connects, it dramatically lowers the damage dealt by the Super Art. The rule is: the bigger the combo is, the lowest the Super Art damage will be. Super Art can lose more than half of their damage potential when included in long combos. -Mix-up games- Comboing into Super Arts allows for mind games, especially mix-ups. Even though most Super Arts hit high (with the expection of Ibuki's Yami Shigure), you can cancel them from some low pokes (usually low MK), and mess with your opponent's mind. Next time he misjudges a hit, he will surely eat a Super Art! -Example of combo into a Super Art- Chun-Li's Low MK XX Houyokusen allows for crazy mind games. Basically, all you need to do is to get your opponent to block high (by using the Hazanshou or the universal overhead), and then connect the low MK into Super Art. Your opponent will soon be afraid to block high or to poke... This is when you should start abusing overheads and down-forward HK into Super Arts. The best way to connect a Super Art is to confuse your foe. Just remember to vary your techniques (you can use a Super Art outside from a combo once in a while). -Universal overhead into Super Art- When you think of it, comboing a Universal Overhead (MP + MK) into a Super Art would be a great idea to dish out major damage easily, since you can catch any player who is blocking low with it. Well, it IS possible, but there are conditions. You cannot just use a Universal Overhead when up close and then combo it into a Super Art, it would be too easy and would break the balance of the engine. You can only perform this when the Universal Overhead is a late hit, meaning that it only hits when you are on the way down -it basically looks like you are hitting your opponent on the legs-. You have to perform the Super Art motion very fast, though. Since most Universal Overheads do not have great priority and cannot be used as counters, you will have trouble finding yourself in a position where you can connect a late overhead on a blocking opponent from a distance. This is the reason why the best moment to use this technique is when your opponent is getting up after a knock down. Keep in mind that it equals to taking a big risk if your opponent has good wake-up moves. But if your opponent is the kind of player who blocks low after being knocked down, it works. Do not abuse it against good parri-ers, though. 2.6 Limited time Super Arts Some Super Arts need a start-up command before you can actually start hitting you opponent. Right after you activate the Super Art, a timer will appear instead of the super meter and it represents the time allowed for you to use the Super Art. During this time, you cannot use EX moves, and you cannot gain meter. The Super Arts that follow this rule are: _Q's Total Destruction (=SAIII) _Yun's Genei Jin (=SAIII) _Yang's Sei-ei Bu (=SAIII) _Oro's Kishin Riki (=SAI) and (EX) Tengu Stone (=SAIII) _Makoto's Tanden Renki (=SAIII) _Twelve's X.C.O.P.Y. (=SAIII) 2.7 Stun value It is obvious some Super Arts deal a lot more of stun damage than others. Actually, some of them are especially geared towards stunning the opponent (I am thinking of the Denjin Hadoken and the Stun Gun Headbutt in particular here). Usually, "bigger" characters's Super arts will inflict more Stun damage, but this rule is not universal. Using a Super art in a combo will not affect its Stun value. Some combos are very useful to stun the opponent. -Example- This is an Urien combo: Low HP (2-hits), EX Headbutt (charge down~, up + PP), Chariot Rush (charge back~, forward + LK) XX Temporal Thunder (SAII) You need to charge the EX Headbutt (down) during the 2 hits of the low HP, and to charge the Chariot Rush during the EX Headbutt, but the timing is not too hard. To cancel the Chariot Rush into the Temporal Thunder, use the technique for charge characters described in the super canceling section. Remember that stunning your opponent is a requirement to get a good grade at the end of a fight, and to frustrate him. A stunned opponent is open to any move and any combo, and has a longer hit stun than usual. 2.8 Passing through projectiles Some Super Art's invincible start-up animation is so long that you can use them to go through projectiles and still hit your opponent. Learn how to recognize the animation -which is different for every character- and time your motion so that you do not eat the fireball -the damage risk is not too big, but you might end up wasting a Super meter-. This is particularly good since most players seem to pick Ryu, Ken or Akuma and throw fireballs all day. Use this technique, that will tech them to play like scrubs! =) The Super Arts that can be used to pass through projectiles are (keep in mind that I am not talking about the Super Arts that even more PRIORITY than projectiles here): _Chun-Li's Houyokusen (=SAII) _Sean's Hyper Tornado (=SAIII) and Shoryu Cannon (=SAII) _Yun's Sourai Rengeki (=SAII) and Youhou (=SAI) _Dudley's Rolling Thunder (=SAII) _Q's Critical Combo (=SAI) _Hugo's Hammer Frenzy (=SAIII) _Ken's Shoryureppa (=SAI) These Super Arts are great when used as "projectile-counters", but do not necessarily pass though fireballs: _Yang's Tenshin Senkyuutai (=SAII) -goes under fireballs- _Alex's Stun Gun Heabutt (=SAIII) -jumps over fireballs- _Makoto's Abare Tosanami (=SAII) -jumps over fireballs- _Twelve's X.F.L.A.T. (SAII) -jumps over fireballs- _Urien's Aegis Reflector (=SAIII) -reflects fireballs- _Akuma's Kongou Kokuretsu Zan -invincible to fireballs- Of course, any "fireball-type" Super Art will nullify a fireball. This can be useful if your opponent is using a "slow" fireball (this works particularly well with Twelve's X.N.D.L.). 2.9 Kara-canceling Super Arts This technique only works with the ground grab-type Super Arts (apart from Oro's Kishin Riki -=SAI- and Q's Total Destruction -=SAIII), not with any Super Art that can be blocked or parried. These are, namely: _Alex's Hyper Bomb (=SAI) _Hugo's Gigas Breaker (=SAI) _Necro's Slam Dance (=SAII) The technique used is the same as the common kara-throw technique: you have to cancel a normal move that makes your character go forward into a Super Art to give it more range. However, the timing is much stricter here since the normal move should be canceled before it evens hits your opponent: you often need to pull off the motion very fast. Here are the kara-throw starters for these characters: Hugo ------> MK (32-pixel-range gained) This one is very hard to perform because of the nature of the Gigas Breaker (=SAI) motion. It is still possible though Alex ------> Forward + HP, HP, close MK (30-pixel-range gained) I personally prefer using the forward + HP for kara-throwing, it seem to have more range. I have never seen anyone kara-cancel this move. It is technically possible, but you would have to be fast as hell. Necro ------> MP, back + MK, HK (26-pixels-range gained) I use the MP for kara-throwing, simply because it is easier to use on an arcade cabinet and it does not seem to give less range than the two other ones. Same deal here, I have never seen anyone perform this, but it should be possible. The problem is that canceling a fast move like that with q qcf X 2 + P motion requires CRAZY timing. I do not even think it is worth using in a fight. 2.10 Various stuff about Super Arts _Necro's Magnetic Storm (=SAI) nullifies fireballs. _Akuma is vulnerable to Super Arts when he is using the teleportation. _If Twelve taunts while using X.C.O.P.Y. (=SAIII), he gets the bonus his opponent would normally get for the rest of the round. _If Makoto's Tanden Renki (=SAIII) does not boost her offense enough in your taste, you can taunt before using it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3. Super Art description by character Note: the damage stats are those of the Super Art done with no combo starter or anything, just the Super Art by itself on Ryu, standing (except for the Megaton Press). Some Super Arts can deal different damage depending on if you mash the buttons or not, and on how long you charge it. In these cases, I picked the highest damage possible. 3.1 ---ALEX--- Alex's Super Arts have very good potential, but beginners should stay away from them because it takes a good knowledge of the engine to master them. But in terms of pure damage, they are scary and well worth taking the time to learn. -SAI: Hyper Bomb- Command: 360 + P Type: grab Damage: 45% Number of hits: 3 Super gauge: I <-----------------------> First off, this Super Art is a grab, which means that it cannot be blocked. As far as I know, there is no way to "tech" it either, because it is a Super Art, and it has a very good priority (like most grab-type Super Arts). Basically this means that if you can get close to your opponent, you become a real threat. This Super Art is very damaging, and quite easy to do: in the previous Street Fighter games, you always needed a 720 to perform a throw-type Super Art. But Alex is a grappler of a new kind, very similar to the KOF grapplers. He does not necessarily need complicated moves to be mastered, but lots of thinking. This moves totally symbolizes this aspect of the character in my opinion. Most players use this move after the MP Flash Chop, because your opponent will be facing the other direction. But this technique only deals 3.3% more than using the Super Art by itself, so only use it if you are having trouble getting up close. This Super Art has very good range -much more than a regular throw- and priority, so do not be afraid to use it when you are in sweep range. If you miss, you will probably eat a combo, but the risk is worth it. There are many ways to land the Hyper Bomb, and most of them include buffering the move (see section 2.3). Of course, you can jump to perform the 360 move without any trouble, as in any other fighting game. But 360 moves seem to be very easy to perform in Third Strike, mainly because of the fact that they do not require a full 360 motion. You can totally skip doing the last part of the motion and press forward + P instead, for instance. This will help you to get rid of embarrassing problems, like having your character jump instead of performing the Super Art. Just practice performing "> V < ^ + P" and it will become natural. Do not overdo it, though, because you might end up performing a Power Bomb (hcb + P). It is much easier to just walk towards your opponent and land a Hyper Bomb than to do the same with Hugo's Gigas Breaker (even though both are possible using tricks), giving Alex a big advantage over most characters. You can also use the usual set-ups: dash-in -> Hyper Bomb, dash under a jump-in -> Hyper Bomb. Another great way to land a Hyper Bomb is after a parry. Just make sure to recognize what kind of move it is, and that your opponent will still be within Hyper Bomb range (most of the time they do). Sometimes you can even use it after a blocked move or as a counter. If you are playing against decent players, they will probably try to parry a Rush Elbow (charge back~, forward + K) you throw out on purpose: remember to perform a Hyper Bomb if they do. Zoning works quite well when using this Super Art, because you can use the DDT trap -basically poking with the close MK and use the DDT when the opponent blocks- and Alex's anti-air special throw (DP + K). This is a great way to scare you opponent. The only downsides to this Super Art is that it gives few EX moves (and these are very important for Alex not to become predictable) and that you have to be close to your opponent to land it, which can be tricky against a good poking player. -SAII: Boomerang Raid- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: sudden impact Damage: 30.2% Number of hits: 5 This Super Art is very underrated. It is rather hard to connect against fast character, and its damage is only average for Alex, but it is still a very good move in my opinion. The thing to keep in mind is that you need to be close enough to your opponent so that the throw that ends the Super Art does not whiff. When it does, it leaves you open to any kind of counter attack, and the damage of the four punches is not worth it. You can use it as a counter because it has decent priority, but once again, remember that it is useless if the first hit knows your opponent down (do not use it as an anti-air). The damage is quite nice, and I like to think of this Super Art as an "old-school" Super Art in the sense that it is not very easy to land, but it is quite rewarding. Like Alex's other Super Arts, you can perform it after (you can even cancel actually) a MP Flash Chop. The damage will obviously be lowered, though. I do not use this Super Art much, because it is not versatile enough for me, but I know that it has a few qualities. -SAIII Stun Gun Headbutt- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: throw Damage: 15.4% Number of hits: 4 Super gauge: I <---------> The Stun Gun Headbutt seems to be Alex's most popular Super Art, mainly because of its Stun value. This move acts like a grab, so it cannot be blocked or parried. It is also totally invincible during the first part of the move -before Alex reaches the top of his jump- so it is very hard for your opponent to use a normal anti-air. The Punch button you press changes the range of the move: the LP version does not go forward, whereas the HP version travels full screen. Actually, the best things to do to avoid being caught by the Stun Gun Headbutt are to either jump (preferably backwards) or dash-in under Alex. So you want to pressure your opponent, and confuse them so that they do not know how to react. If you are predictable, you probably will not land it even once. The secret is in using various set-ups. Basically, you should use it every time you feel that your opponent cannot jump for any reason (laggy move, dashing, jumping, turtle...). Alex is a character that naturally deals a lot of stun damage, so with this Super Art he becomes really dangerous: he can stun you very easily, and once you are stunned he can deal serious damage with his special throws. The MP version is good when zoning: when people are right outside of DDT range they tend to think they are safe, but they are not. =) Against beginners who throw lots of fireballs from the other side of the screen, you can simply use the HP version to catch them. This should make them come closer to you, which means that you can use your special throws. =) But I personally recommend sticking to the LP version becomes it comes out earlier. You can use it to counter upcoming jump-ins: the invincibility frame will prevent you from getting hit, and if you do it early enough your opponent is sure to get caught. You can also occasionally use it as a wake up move. The best way to land this Super Art is to cancel it from a MP Flash Chop (qcf + P): if the first hit connects, your opponent is stunned. You can then get close to him/her and perform another MP Flash Chop, HP Power Bomb (hcb + P). This is a great way to deal a lot of damage in almost no time, and also to get good grades easily. But it seems that this Super Art does not do very well in fierce competition, because all the good players know about it, and know how to avoid it. Third Strike is a rather defensive game, so it is not always easy to catch people with the Stun Gun Headbutt. 3.2 ---AKUMA--- Akuma has a solid set of Super Arts, but most people seem to avoid the Messatsu Gou Shoryu for some reason. The good thing is that Akuma has 2 "hidden" Super Arts that you can use when your super bar is MAX-ed. -SAI: Messatsu Gou Hadou- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: projectile Damage: air-27.2% ground-24.7% Number of hits: 6 hits Gauge: II <----------------> This Super Art is probably the most used by Akuma players. It is quite versatile because you can perform it on the ground or in the air, and you can easily cancel it from a Gou Hadouken (qcf+P), which is good for chip damage -in case your opponent parries it, just dash-in and throw or sweep-. You can use many other similar set-ups, mixing between the air Gou Hadouken, the three-hit fireball and the regular fireball. The air version comes out rather fast and can easily surprise your opponent. When up close, you can try to connect it from the low MK, or the low MP, as with most fireball-type Super Arts. There are a lot of other simple combos involving the Messatsu Gou Hadou, such as: Jump-in HP, low HP, LK Hurricane Kick, Gou Shoryuken XX Messatsu Gou Hadou (under certain circumstances you can even follow up with a HP Gou Shoryuken XX Messatsu Gou Hadou - can you say "flashy"? =). To avoid the Super Art to lose too much of its damage value, I recommend short combos, like: low MK, LK Hurricane kick, Messatsu Gou Hadou. You can mix up your game (using universal overheads and forward + MPs), and then use this combo often. The super Gauge is rather long and you can store two of them, but all three Super Arts are the same regarding this. -SAII: Messatsu Gou Shoryu- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: Dragon Punch Damage: 32.7% Number of hits: 7 Gauge: II <----------------> Few Akuma players use this Super Art, as far as I know. It is very similar to Ken's Shoryureppa, and sadly is as limited. It works well in combos (use the low MK, as usual) and does nice damage, but its primary use seem to be as an anti-air. It has very good priority, but the downside is that in most situations, an airborne opponent will only need one air parry to avoid the whole Super Art, bouncing on the other side of the screen while you will still be recovering. So do not abuse its anti-air properties. It works well as a counter move because of its priority, too, but you have to make sure that the first Dragon Punch does not knock your opponent down -and the rest whiffs-. It is a decent wake-up move. You can cancel this move from a Gou Shoryuken, a Gou Hadouken or a LK Hurricane Kick very easily. It is interesting to note that contrary to Ken's Shoryureppa, the Messatsu Gou Shoryu cannot pass through projectiles. It has very good priority but no invincibility frame. The problem of this Super Art is that it is less versatile than its two others, and therefore is somewhat predictable. You cannot perform it in the air, for instance. The Super Gauge is as long as for the other Super Arts and takes a while to fill, even though you can stock two of them. This is not a big deal though, since Akuma cannot use EX moves. -SAIII: Messatsu Gou Rasen- Command: qcf X 2 + K Type: vertical Damage: ground: 32.7% air: 34.6% Number of hits: 12 Gauge: II <----------------> Akuma's second most used Super Art, if I am not mistaken. It is more limited than the Messatsu Gou Hadou, but less predictable than the Messatsu Gou Shoryu in my opinion. They have the same kind of anti-air properties, but the Messatsu Gou Rasen goes straight up in the air and seems to come out faster. Keep in mind that you can use this Super Art in the air, too. However, you are totally open to a counter attack after a missed, blocked or parried Messatsu Gou Rasen, even more so than with the Messatsu Gou Shoryu. Only use this Super Art when you are sure that it is going to hit, so do not abuse it as a wake-up move either. You can use several techniques to connect it. You can use it as a normal anti-air Super Art against a jumping opponent. If the Super Art misses, remember that you can perform another one just as you touch the ground if you have enough Super meter. This usually surprises people. You can also jump-in, and perform the Super art motion right before you touch the ground. The Messatsu Gou Rasen is likely to stuff his anti-air, and if he decides to parry, he has to be ready for a multi-hit move. You cannot do anything if he blocks, though. This Super art is basically about taking risks. When up-close, you can of course cancel it from a Gou Shoryuken or a Gou Hadouken, and from Akuma's famous LK Hurricane Kick. -Shun Goku Satsu/Raging Demon- Command: LP, LP, forward, HP + LK Type: grab Damage: 43.8% Number of hits: 15 Gauge: MAX <-----------------> This is Akuma's signature move, and can be used in various ways. Mastering the Shun Goku Satsu set-ups is the key to becoming a real "Akuma master". It acts like a grab, in the sense that impossible to parry or block. The Super Art comes out really fast, but not as fast as in Alpha 3 for instance. If you perform it from a distance, your opponent will have time to jump. You need to have a MAX meter to perform it, but the good thing is that you always have the opportunity to either go for your normal Super art or for the Shun Goku Satsu. Use this to your advantage to scare your opponent. If you throw out random LPs, he/she will probably think you are trying to perform the move, so use it to fake and force him to jump, then catch him with a Super art when he is going down. This Super Art is a constant threat that makes Akuma a dangerous character. You can kara-cancel into the Shun Goku Satsu to force your opponent to eat it. For instance, if you are in the corner, you can force your opponent to block low with LPs and then kara-cancel into the Super so that your opponent has no time to jump. Akuma's best kara-cancel starter is his forward + MP overhead. -Kongou Kokuretsu Zan- Command: down, down, down + PP Type: impossible to parry Damage: 44.4% Number of hits: 4 Super gauge: MAX <----------------> This is Gouki's most damaging Super Art... However, it is quite hard to connect. You must be close to your opponent to get the full damage. The first use of the KKZ is as an anti-air move, because you will easily catch people that way. You can also jump-in yourself (to buffer the down, down, down press during the jump so that your opponent cannot detect the Super Art) and use it as soon as you touch the ground. Of course, you can also perform any other move to buffer the command (a Gou Hadouken for instance). It has a long invincibility frame at the start-up that will out- prioritize most moves including Super Arts. This is the reason why using it as a wake-up move can be reasonable. It is possible to parry the first wave of flames that can hit you when you are at a distance, but it is impossible to parry this move when up close. 3.3 ---CHUN-LI--- Chun-Li's Super Arts are unbalanced. While the Kikoushou and the Houyokusen are among the best moves in the game, the Tensei Ranka is, Simply put, worthless. -SAI: Kikoushou- Command: qcf X 2 P Type: sudden impact Pure damage: 29.6% Number of hits: 20 Super gauge: I <----------------> It does a fairly good amount of damage if you can get a close hit. The problem is that most players won't make mistakes so huge that you will be able to punish them in close range. It is easy to combo into. It is also a very good punishing move due to its range. You can easily chip your opponents to death using this move. It is very fast, and has one of the best priorities in the whole game. Of course, it will nullify fireballs and the likes. You can even use it as a surprise wake-up move. As long as you're facing your opponent and he's up close, it is safe. It's insanely hard to parry: actually, this is probably the hardest move to parry in the whole game. It pushes your opponent away even when blocked. This means that they won't have many counter solutions in case you miss your Kikoushou. Of course, you shouldn't miss it in the first place, but if you do, the only thing your opponent can counter with is a fireball special/super, a rushing normal/special/super, or a dash-in normal. It sounds like it's a lot, but it's still better than being totally open. You can use it after a successful air hit: your opponent will bounce and most of the Kikoushou hits will connect. You can use this technique after hitting an opponent in the air with any move except the air throw, the jumping down + HP and the jumping HK. I personally recommend using weak attacks since they don't make your opponent bounce as much so the super art will do more damage. This is a safe way to connect this super art, but it does less damage. It is a very good anti-air: even though you will rarely be able to connect all the hit -or else you're taking a huge risk- you will probably connect enough to do decent damage. Given Chun-Li's lack of a really effective anti-air, this can be very useful especially against characters with a dive move (e.g. Akuma, Yun, Yang, Necro, Twelve). However, it's better to use it against deep jump-ins, that way you can connect most of the hits. Sometimes, the Kikoushou will make your opponent bouncer and he/she can block the rest of the super. You don't want that to happen. However, you can only charge one super. This is annoying because it creates many situations of "hit or miss" and doesn't give you the opportunity to use many EX moves. As a matter of fact, Kikoushou Chun-Li players are quite predictable. If the super whiffs, you're in BIG trouble. Sometimes when you use it as a wake-up or as a punishing move it can go in the wrong way. The main rule with this super is to know what you're doing. -SAII: Houyokusen- Command: qcf X 2 + K Type: sudden impact Damage: 33.3% Number of hits: 17 Super gauge: II <--------------> This is by far her best Super Art, and the most used in tournaments. Actually, it is not much the move itself but the facility with which you can link it that makes it a deadly weapon. In my opinion, this is the best SA in the game. Period. It is Chun-Li's most damaging SA (slightly better than the Kikoushou). You get 2 super bars (so you still have the possibility to use EX moves, especially the EX Spinning Bird Kick). It travels the screen very fast, which makes it an extremely good attack to punish mistakes -a missed Shoryuken, for instance- but keep in mind that you won't have many opportunities to use it as such on high level play. But don't worry, it is not its best use anyway. It is hard to parry, even when not in a combo. Actually, it is quite hard to get the first hit because it's much faster than it looks. Once you manage to parry the first hit, the rest is not that hard. However, if you miss the Houyokusen -which shouldn't happen-, any skilled opponent can just parry the last hit of the super, which is very easy. Try to not miss this super or you're dead meat. It has a rather long invicibility frame at start-up, which means that you can pass through fireballs. This is a very nice trick and many players aren't aware of it: just wait until the fireball is close. The good thing is that you don't necessarily need to pull off the super as soon as you "feel" the invicibility frame coming, since most Ryu/Ken/Akuma players won't block after throwing a fireball (and you know there are many shotokans out there). Just keep in mind that the invincibility frame is rather long compared to other supers but lasts less than one second. So don't try the super just when you see the fireball coming, you will waste it. This should only be used occasionally as a surprise attack, and remember that you can't pass through Urien's Metallic Sphere. This super can also punish blocked fireballs (from the shotos) or sag hit fireballs -within jumping distance-. This is especially useful if your opponents abuse their Low MK -> Fireball combo. But you will ONLY need her low MK to win. Why? Simply because it's one of the best normal moves in the game: it's fast and hits low, but more than anything its hit stun time is long and it has a great number of frames. You can cut the animation of this move at any moment to start the SA: usually you have to finish the motion of the super exactly at the end of the normal move. I have no idea of why Capcom did that, but it gives Chun-Li an edge over most other fighters, as if she wasn't already powerful enough. If you want to win as many fights as possible, simply abuse Chun-Li's "low MK -> Houyokusen" trick. Even though it is already famous everywhere, most players don't have very good low parrying skills, and this move is faster than it looks like. Mix up your attacks and you'll frustrate many players. This is the way Chun-Li is used in tournaments, and this is the way the Japanese top-players use her as well. If you have trouble pulling off the super motion, remember that there are mainly two ways of getting this trick to work: either you throw the MK and then do the qcf X2 + K motion, or you buffer the first qcf DURING the MK, and then you do another qcf +K during the hit stun animation. It sounds complicated in theory, but trust me, any player can do it: I even managed to get it to work on the Dreamcast's regular controller, even though I despise this thing and never use it. But of course, it is more likely to work if you're playing with an arcade stick. The top Japanese players have been reported to do the super motion EVERY time they stick out the low MK. While this technique can appear as exhausting in the long run, it is extremely efficient: they can wait and see if the MK hits. If it does, they just need to press any Kick button again and the super connects. I like to keep pressing the MK button when I'm buffering for some reason. I usually press HK to start the super. But there's more: you can cancel a super jump at the end of the super, which adds up to the damage already inflicted by the Houyokusen. You need to cancel the super jump motion (down, up) during Chun-li's last kick. I remember having trouble to pull this off at first, which is why I recommend to do the super jump motion all the way through the super: it makes you look dumb, but it works every time. Once you've cancelled the super jump motion, you have many opportunities. The best one is to use Chun's target combo (air HP, HP) because it will hit every time if you learn the timing. You can also do "down + MK, HK" but be aware of the fact that the HK won't hit constantly. It does the same damage, though. You can also hit your opponent with a HP and perform a MK or HK Hazanshou after landing. Since most players will be trying to block low after the Super Art, it should hit and it does more damage than the target combo. However, this super has a very long recovery time if missed. If your opponent blocks and has a super in stock, you're dead. This is another good reason to use the low MK trick. This SA doesn't have good priority. It can be stopped after its initial invincibility frame by most normal attacks. This means that you shouldn't just use it out of the blue thinking that your opponent won't be able to counter/out-prioritize it. -SAIII: Tensei Ranka- Command: qcf X 2 + K Type: anti-air Damage: 23.4% Number of hits: 9 Power gauge: III <----------> I see this Super Art as the opposite of the Houyokusen: it is by far Chun-Li's worst SA. I almost NEVER see anyone use it because it's hard to find actual uses for it. I'm all for variety, but honestly, why use this when her two other SAs are among the best in the game? I'm starting to think that Capcom gave her this SA to prevent her from being even stronger... =) It can be used as an anti-air. I suppose this is what the developers had in mind when they created it. You get 3 small super bars, which means that you can use EX moves and charge your bar very quickly. You can try to use it as a wake-up move because the last hit is an overhead. But that's definitely a waste of a super, and the damage is very poor. Besides, this isn't going to work against experienced players. It is not that great of an anti-air, actually. If you're lucky, you might connect the whole 9 hits, but you're more likely to only get 5, or sometimes it will even whiff. Either way, the damage is ridiculous, and not worth taking the risk of using it as an anti-air. Compare that with the damage you get from "parrying -> Kikou Shou". Discouraging, huh? =) It is easy to parry, even used as an anti-air. It basically takes only three parries to parry the whole 9 hits. Any decent player will be able to parry it in my opinion. The damage is too small. Well, this is self-explanatory. Sure, it could be argued that it is normal since you have 3 power bars: but the number of times the Tensei Ranka will hit is so small that it cannot be considered as a balanced Super Art. Chun-Li's EX Hazanshou is almost as good as the Tensei Ranka and has the same properties. Why choose it as a super when all Chun players have access to this move? 3.4 ---DUDLEY--- Dudley has a good set of Super Arts, and they all represent very different styles. Your choice will totally change your style of play, from a poking Dudley to a rush-down Dudley. You can cancel all three of his Super Arts from his command dash (hcf + K) and it does not reduce the damage, so do not hesitate to abuse it. -SAI: Rocket Uppercut- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: dragon punch Damage: 32.1% Number of hits: 11 Gauge: II <--------------> It does pretty good damage and has a fast start-up, is a good anti-air, and has a nice priority. These are the usual properties of dragon-punch Super Arts actually. You get two super bars, so that means lots of EX. However, it has short range and the last part might totally whiff in certain cases, and it is only useful in combos or as a close-range punish because you are dead if it is blocked. But you can include it into huge corner combos involving the low HK -> LP Blow Machine Gun. -SAII: Rolling Thunder- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: rush Damage: normal: 30.8% with mashing: 35.8% Number of hits: 8 Super gauge: I <---------------------> It does very high damage, has good range and "sucks" opponents in. Its start-up is very fast, which makes it a perfect counter move. It recovers quickly when blocked (actually, the more you mash the buttons, the longer your recovery time is), but it has only one bar. If you miss it, you will need to win the fight with normal and special moves only. Contrary to the Rocket Uppercut, it cannot be used to juggle, which makes it a punish move only. A good way to connect this is to poke a lot, and then use the Rolling Thunder to out-prioritize their counters. The Rolling Thunder has very good range, and you can even make it bigger by holding forward + PP after performing the Super Art motion to make Dudley dash towards his opponent. This Super Art can pass through fireballs quite easily because of its start-up, which is very similar to a dash. This can be very useful against the shotos, trick them into throwing close range fireballs and then punish. The timing is not too hard once you get used to it. -SAIII: Corkscrew Blow- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: sudden impact Damage: 23.4% Number of hits: 5 Super gauge: III <------------> This Super Art is the one I use the most. It is VERY fast, and you can cancel it from Dudley's command dash (hcf + K) to give it more range. Switch between his forward command dash and his ducking move (qcf + K) to confuse your opponent, then cancel it into the Corkscrew Blow). It a great counter move, and a very good punish move, but it does poor damage. However, the fact that you get 3 super bars makes up for it. This is a great move to use as a wake-up because it is fast and has a nice priority. It is also a perfect parry follow-up. Remember that the kick button you use determines the range of this Super Art. The thing is that when using this Super Art, you will have to find ways to connect it more than once each round, which can sometimes be tricky against turtles. 3.5 ---ELENA--- -Coming soon- -SAI: Spinning Beat- Command: qcf X 2 + K Type: dragon punch Damage: Number of hits: Super gauge: -SAII: Brave Dance- Command: qcf X 2 + K Type: sudden impact Damage: Number of hits: 10 Super gauge: It is interesting to note that this move should be parried point blank when up close, but due to its range it can usually be parried normally. It is not as hard as it seems, it is only 10 slow high parries. This Super Art is also an excellent counter thanks to its range and speed. -SAIII: Healing- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: healing (!) Damage: none Number of hits: none Super gauge: This Super Art has only defensive uses, since it lets you refill 25% of your life bar. Obviously, remember to use it when you have already lost more than 25% of your life... When you are using the Healing, your main goal is to manage to get some space to perform the Super safely, since it takes about a second. If the Super animation is stopped by a hit, it is not worth it. Most players tend to throw their opponent on the other side of the screen, and then heal. This technique works very well. SlimX informed me that he saw another technique used at MWC: the player was basically using Elena's target combo to knock down his/her opponent and then use the Super Art safely. 3.6 ---GILL--- -Coming soon- -Resurrection- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: healing Damage: none Number of hits: none Super gauge: -Meteor Shower- Command: qcb X 2 + P Type: delayed impact Damage: Number of hits: Super gauge: -Seraphic Wing- Command: qcf X 2 + K Type: impossible to parry Damage: Number of hits: Super gauge: 3.7 ---HUGO--- Of course, Hugo has the most damaging Super Arts in the game. But the scariest thing is that they do not have any real weaknesses, they are just potential weapons that a Hugo player can use safely. To be honest, Hugo does not need to connect his Super Arts to do a lot of damage most of the time. But they make him the perfect anti-Akuma character. =) -SAI: Gigas Breaker- Command: 720 + P Type: grab Damage: 51.8% Number of hits: 3 Super gauge: I <----------------------> Now this is a scary Super Art. It takes off more them half of Ryu's life! Most players will simply tend to stay away from you when they see that you picked this Super Art, or on the contrary they might pressure you so that you get no opportunity to connect it. But remember that connecting it once means that you have almost won the round. As with the 360 moves, you do not really need to perform an entire 720 with the stick to perform this Super Art. You can basically skip the last part. It is possible to perform a walking Gigas Breaker, but it is just extremely hard to pull off, especially in a fight. Apparently you need to "store" the first 360, then walk and quickly perform another 360 + P, but I must admit I have only gotten this technique to work a few times and never in a fight. It would have been interesting to buffer it from Hugo's special moves (Handclap for instance) but Capcom was smart enough to make your opponent be pushed away if they block or get hit by the move. Buffering it from a dash can be VERY useful and makes things a lot easier, since most players can see you coming from a mile away if you buffer it during a jump. Another advantage of this technique is that if you dash under a jumping opponent and perform the 720 motion towards the direction you are facing, the computer will register the move and put you in the right direction. If you have trouble performing a walking Gigas Breaker (who could blame you?), you can just whiff a throw within sweep range and cancel in into the Super Art, it is quite easy and comes out faster than you may think. You can also catch opponents who are jumping-in with it because it has good priority and range, but you might also get thrown out of it. This Super Art is not a good choice if you like to use Hugo's EX Moves, though. -SAII: Megaton Press- Command: qcf X 2 + K Type: anti-air Damage: Number of hits: 38.3% Super gauge: II <-----------------> The Megaton Press is impossible to parry and is very similar to a grab, but the reason I listed it as an "anti-air-type" Super Art is because its primary use obviously is to catch your opponent in the air. If you perform it while your opponent is in the air, chances are he will eat it. You can choose how far you want Hugo to travel on the screen depending on the button you press. The LK version is rarely worth it unless you are trying to catch a deep jump-in, but the two other versions are really good. With this Super art, Hugo is in control of the air: your opponent will probably simply stop jumping when your Super bar is full. This psychological advantage means that your opponent will be forced to dash-in or use dash moves to attack you. If your opponent is good at poking and rushing, you might want to find an offensive use for this move: the best way to connect it is to use the wall toss (hcb + K). This will make your opponent bounce and you can catch them with the Super Art. Not only it looks painful and humiliating, but the damage is also almost the same as if you only used the Megaton Press. With the Mountain Frenzy, this is Hugo's best Super Art for EX moves. Besides, the fact that you can store up to two Megaton Presses means that your foe will always be on his toes. When you are using this Super Art, try to make your opponent forget that you have the Megaton Press, and so not use it when you are not sure it will connect. It is true that this Super Art is half reflex half anticipation, but the jumps are slow enough in this game so you have a lot of time to see them coming. -SAIII: Mountain Frenzy- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: rush Damage: 32.7 Number of hits: 5 Super gauge: II <-------------> This Super Art is a nice addition to Hugo's arsenal and lets you play him in a different way. It is very similar to Q's Critical Combo in the sense that it is rather fast (making it a perfect punish move) and deals decent damage when all the hits connect -which obviously is not the case when it is used as an anti-air-. They also share the fact that one of their hits has special properties. Indeed, the third hit of this Super art is an overhead and will definitely catch most beginners, because the first reaction they have is to block low for some reason. It is better to block the whole Super Art high, actually. This is why it is a good idea to use this move after an overhead (standing MK for instance): only the most experienced players will block it high. The reason why this moves nicely completes Hugo's special moves is because he really needs a strong rushing move in order to pressure his opponent. When up close, you can use the SPD; as an anti-air, you can use the DP + K. With the Mountain Frenzy, Hugo can be a lot more versatile and unpredictable. You can use it as a counter poke: it works very well. You can also use this Super Art after a parry, it connects most of the time and makes your opponent think twice before attacking next time, which is exactly what you want since Hugo is a grappler. 3.8 ---IBUKI--- Ibuki's Super Arts are very unbalanced, and she suffers from the loss of her Double Impact Super Art (which was very good). It is a well-known fact that the developers had the intention of toning her down, and they succeeded in that task. But it is still totally possible to use her Super Arts properly and be efficient with her. -SAI: Kasumi Suzaku- Command: air qcf X 2 + P Type: projectile Damage: normal: 18.5% mashing: 28.4% Number of hits: 20 Super gauge: III <-----------> This Super Art seems to be the most common, probably because its damage/skill level ratio is quite good. Indeed, the Kasumi Suzaku is very damaging, especially if you mash the P button after performing the Super Art move. It is very good for chip damage, but experienced players will surely parry it, because the timing is not hard (you basically just need to tap forward many times as fast as you can). For this reason, you will need to surprise your opponent to connect this Super Art: you cannot just jump towards him/her and use it. The punch button you press decides the range of the Super Art, but in this case it does not change much. It is better to use the Kasumi Suzaku either at close or mid-range. It is interesting to know that you can cancel this Super Art from her EX Kazakiri (DP + KK) quite easily. This allows for nice combos, such as: LP, MP, HP, EX Kazakiri XX Kasumi Suzaku Apparently, this is the safest way to connect this Super Art. You can also cancel it from a dagger (projectile) to protect yourself in case your opponent tries to counter. Because the major drawback of this move is that it does not have very good priority and there is a small start- up time during which your opponent can hit you with a normal move if he is already in the air. This is the reason why I personally would not recommend using this move against a jumping opponent. This is Ibuki's best Super Art for EX-ing, which makes it the best choice for high level play. Ibuki needs EX moves to deal more damage, and with three short Super Gauges you are definitely set. -SAII: Yoroi Doushi- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: Grab Damage: 38.9% Number of hits: 1 Super gauge: I <----------------------> This Super Art was greatly weakened after Double Impact, because now it seems impossible to include it in a combo, making it incredibly hard to connect. It has two versions: the grab version and the fireball version. If you are up close when you perform the Yoroi Doushi, it will grab you opponent (it CANNOT be blocked) and hit for a single hit that does huge damage. This is the only version of the Super Art you should be using. The other one occurs when you are not close enough to your opponent, so Ibuki will throw a 13-hit close-range fireball that does way less damage (23.4). You can hit from half-screen with the fireball version, but it will only do pitiful damage. I can only see a use for the fireball version when your opponent is very low on life, and even then it can be parried. If you decide to use this Super Art (which obviously is not her best), you should just try to get in close and connect it. Forget about EX moves, you only get one long super bar. The problem is that Ibuki is not "fit" to be a grappler because she takes so much damage. To connect the Yoroi Doushi, you need to take risks and you opponent is likely to counter. Your only hope is to force him to block by using overheads, and perhaps Ibuki's LP trap. If your opponent is not good at parrying, you can jump-in HP, Yoroi Doushi. The reason why this move can be linked into the Super Art is because it makes your opponent facing the other way, so his/her hitstun animation is close to Ibuki. Any other move apparently pushes the opponent further away so you can only use the fireball version -which can be blocked-. Given the quality of Ibuki's dash (it even goes through your opponent), you can dash-in and use the Super Art, if your opponent is a turtle it should work. If you can find ways to land this Super Art consistently, do not hesitate to use it because it is Ibuki's only way to deal major damage. -SAIII: Yami Shigure- Command: qcf + P Type: Projectile Damage: 27.8% Number of hits: 7 Super gauge: I <---------> This Super Art does almost equal damage as the Kasumi Suzaku but you only get one short Super gauge, which means you cannot stock as many EX moves. I personally think these two Super Arts are equally as good, and I pick whichever depending on my mood. =) This is a good Super Art for the players who like to play mind games and who can guess what their opponent is going to do. Ibuki's daggers come out very fast, and you can choose their range depending on the button you press: it can hit more than half a screen away. She throws three daggers: the more connect, the more damage it does. The Yami Shigure has decent priority too, so you can use it as a mid-counter and as a punish move (against sweeps for instance). You need to remember that it hits LOW, which is why it is so easy to catch people with it, especially beginners. It also needs to be parried low and only takes one parry, but if you are up close your opponent needs to "point-blank" parry it. If you are a master of Ibuki's mix-ups, this is the perfect Super Art for you. It can be extremely annoying if you keep using only her forward + MK, sweep, and the Yami Shigure. Most Super Arts hit high and can be easily blocked or avoided, but this move gives Ibuki another offensive tool and often puts her in control of the fight. 3.9 ---KEN--- Ken's Super Arts are pretty good. It seems the Shippu Jinrai Kyaku dominates, but you can find uses for his two other Super Arts. -SAI: Shoryureppa- Command: qcf + P Type: dragon punch Damage: 33.9% Number of hits: 12 Super gauge: II <-----------------> This Super Art is commonly canceled from a Dragon Punch when up close, or used as an anti-air (not all the hits will connect though). It is arguably Ken's worst Super Art, mainly because the damage is only average and it is quite hard to connect against an experienced player. If the Super Art whiffs or is blocked, you will be left open for a second, so be sure to connect it. Its very good priority and its great anti-air properties go together... However, these are almost worthless against a player who knows how to parry well. I like to think of it as a beginner's Super Art, very good in combos but rather poor from a strategic point of view. Sadly, there are no real set-ups to connect it, apart from tricking your opponent into jumping -try throwing a fireball, but most players will just parry it-. It is interesting to see that the two first parts of the Super Art do not deal any stun damage. The last part does quite heavily, though. This was probably made so that you would only get stun damage if the combo was included in combos or at least all the hits connected. -SAII: Shinryuken- Command: qcf X 2 + K Type: vertical Damage: normal: 33.3% mashing: 37% Number of hits: 17 This is Ken's most damaging Super Art -you can get more hits by mashing the kick button-, but also the hardest to connect. It should obviously be used as an anti-air in most cases, when your opponent jumps-in. The longer you wait when he jumps-in, the more hits you will connect (but of course, that is taking a risk). The good thing is that your opponent might get scared to jump-in and attack every time your super bar is full. This move, the Dragon Punch, and the Air Hurricane Kick make Ken almost unbeatable in the air. But its range is -very- limited, contrary to the Alpha version that sucks opponents in. Here, you need to time it right, or else you are dead because of the long recovery time. If you have trouble connecting this Super Art against turtles, use Ken's cross-up kick (jumping MK) and use the Super Art as it hits. It does not matter which way you perform the Super Art, the computer will automatically make it hit your opponent. Many players will not know how to block the cross-up, and the Super Art will hit them while they are still in hit stun. -SAIII: Shippu Jinrai Kyaku- Command: qcf X 2 + K Type: rush Damage: 24.7% Number of hits: 9 Super gauge: I <--------------> This is Ken's best Super Art in my opinion, because it is very fast and nicely completes his set of moves. It is so fast you can even combo it from his backwards throw. =) You get three short Super Bars, which means you can use lots of EX moves. This Super Art also has very good priority and will beat most normal moves. Its short recovery time means that you can use it without much fear of retaliation. If your opponent tries to counter after he blocks it, use a dragon punch to try and out-prioritize his counter. The Shippu Jinrai Kyaku has very good range because Ken leaps forward before the first hit. It is not very easy to parry because you have to parry the first hit at point blank, and the timing is slower is slower than it looks. It works well with Ken's footsie game. Fake your opponent by dashing a lot and using overheads (universal overhead and his forward + HK), then try to connect this Super Art. You can also poke with low MK or low MP and cancel into the Super Art. 3.10 ---MAKOTO--- Her Super Arts are very similar to her character: stunning. They can dish out major damage if you know how to use them right, but they take some time to get used to. -SAI: Seichuusen Godanzuki- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: sudden impact Damage: 42.6% Number of hits: 5 Super gauge: I <----------------------> This Super Art is the archetype of the counter move: it does huge damage, comes out extremely fast and has good priority. Basically, if you trade hits while using this move, you should win. When you seem the Seichuusen Godanzuki, you can feel the power of the initial hit: the developers decided to add a "lag" effect, meaning that even though the recovery is long, your opponent will have a block recovery time almost equal to yours. This is why you should not be too afraid to use this move when up close: most characters have the means to punish you if it is blocked, but they will have to be very fast. This move only takes one hit to parry, but it is a point blank parry, so most players will not be able to parry it unless you are VERY predictable. It is an excellent wake-up move due to its priority and speed. However, contrary to the Abare Tosanami, it is impossible to use any follow-up to this Super Art, because Makoto will start saying something in Japanese right after it hits. It does a decent amount of stun damage, like most of Makoto's moves. Using this Super Art usually goes well with two opposite styles of play: _an all offensive Makoto, with lots of overheads, Karakusas and Hayates involved. If you decide to play like that, remember that you can combo the MK Air Axe Kick (air qcb + K) into the Seichuusen Godanzuki very easily. The problem is that good player will either parry or block the initial hit. But this style of play has the advantage of exploiting Makoto's range of moves and of scaring players who like to poke all day. _a very defensive, almost turtling Makoto. Let your opponent attack and feel confident and only stick out a few moves here and there to fill your Super bar. When your opponent tries to poke you, or to use an overhead, use this Super Art. It deals so much damage that you can afford playing like this. I personally prefer using the first one as it is the most fun. But I have seen many players wait for the opening and counter with the Seichuusen Godanzuki, and I have to admit it works most of the time. I often recommend this Super Art to players who start learning Makoto because it is a great way to deal fast damage with her and does not necessarily takes to much skill. -SAII: Abare Tosanami- Command: qcf X 2 + K Type: Delayed impact Damage: 30.2% Number of hits: 4 Super gauge: II <--------------> This move is Makoto's flashiest Super Art by far, and is famous for allowing for crazy juggles. Each time you land an Abare, you can take off a lot of your opponent's life bar if you can perform her best follow-ups consistently. The range of the Super art depends on the button you pressed, in a similar fashion to Alex's Stun Gun Headbutt. This makes Makoto a potential threat from anywhere on the screen, and usually opponents decide to turtle because they are afraid of the Abare Tosanami. If it is the case, just go up close and use lots of overheads and fakes. When they finally decide to attack, counter with an Abare. It works most of the time. Since Makoto leaps on the corner of the screen before attacking, slow pokes are out-prioritized by this Super Art. Beginners will often try to use anti-airs, but they will soon realize that it is a bad idea. It is not hard to parry, so do not use it when you are not sure whether it will connect or not. The last hit is VERY laggy (it is the equivalent of a Fukiage =DP + P) so be sure that your opponent cannot block or parry it by unleashing the Super while they are still recovering from a move. The HK version works very well against Shotokan players who like to sit in a corner and throw fireballs all day. If you can anticipate their fireball, so not hesitate to use the Abare Tosanami. The LK version is also very useful because it comes out faster, and you can cancel a close HP into it, but only when you are in your corner. This means you can use mean combos starting with "LK Karakusa, LP XX Abare Tosanami" when you are in your half of the screen. The damage of the Abare Tosanami itself is not that impressive, but if you can learn this follow-up (which appears to be the most commonly used by Makoto players), you will soon be feared: Abare Tosanami XX jump, MK Axe Kick, HP Hayate, HP Hayate It is also interesting to note that you can cancel a dash from the last hit of this Super Art (but remember to do it BEFORE the last hit comes out) and to juggle the opponent with a HP Fukiage (but you must perform the motion as if your character was facing the opposite side), and then catch them with a jumping normal. You can also chain 2 Abare Tosanamis together but this takes a lot more skill. Stick to the aforementioned combo if you are going for pure damage. Having two short Super bars is good for EX moves, and it means that you can be totally unpredictable. This is the only Super Art that lets you stock more than one bar with Makoto. All these reasons make it her best Super Art in my opinion. -SAIII: Tanden Renki- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: power up Damage: none Number of hits: none Super gauge: I <--------------> This Super Art has very special properties, and definitely takes skill to use efficiently. After you perform it, Makoto becomes 57% stronger - hence her red color, she is angry- but she cannot block until the Super stops. This means that unless your opponent is an idiot who will turtle and let you attack him like crazy, you need more than decent parrying skills when using the Tanden Renki. Learn how to air parry and abuse Makoto's (very good) dash to stay near your opponent. Do not wait for him, just attack him relentlessly with her "Jump-in HK, low MP, Hayate" combo. It makes you vulnerable to all kind of mix-ups and combos that you could have blocked otherwise, so this Super art should be reserved to very good players only. If you cannot parry a Shinkuu Hadouken, do not bother with it: it is not all that great anyway, compared to her other two Super Arts. Besides, Makoto does not necessarily needs this Super Art to deal a lot of damage if you know how to use her Karakusa trap. The only way to safely use this Super Art is to use it right after a HK Karakusa (hcb + K) or when your opponent is on the other side of the screen, or knocked down. Makoto is vulnerable when performing it, and contrary to Yun's Genei Jin (=SAIII) it cannot be included in a combo. When using this Super Art, just forget about EX moves, it is just not worth it. All you strategy should evolve around charging your meter and perform the Taden Renki, than attack as much as possible. 3.11 ---NECRO--- -SAI: Magnetic Storm- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: sudden impact Damage: Number of hits: Super gauge: -SAII: Slam Dance- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: grab Damage: Number of hits: Super gauge: This Super Art has very good priority. -SAIII: Electric Snake- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: projectile Damage: Number of hits: Super gauge: This Super Art should mainly be used in combos since its damage is so low. 3.12 ---ORO--- -SAI: Kishin Riki- Command: qcf + P Type: grab Damage: normal: air: Number of hits: Super gauge: This Super Art is impossible to parry, and can be used in the air. It works wonders against a waking-up opponent, especially the CPU (their first reflex is to block). Sometimes, you can even get two grabs in one meter. -EX Kishin Riki- Command: qcf + PP Type: grab Damage: Number of hits: Super gauge: This Super Art should mainly be used at sweep range. It comes out very fast so most players do not expect it, but you will have to be very careful, because you lose 2 meters when you miss it. -SAII: Yagyou Dama- Command: qcf + P Type: projectile Damage: Number of hits: Super gauge: This is a pressure move. It moves so slowly that you can jump-in and attack if your opponent decides to parry it. The button you press changes the path of the projectile. -EX Yagyou Dama- Command: qcf X 2 + PP Type: projectile Damage: Number of hits: Super gauge: -SAIII: Tengu Stone- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: custom combo Damage: Number of hits: Super gauge: -EX Tengu Stone- Command: Type: Damage: Number of hits: Super gauge: 3.13 ---Q--- All three of Q's Super Arts are more than decent and can deal major damage. They are quite versatile, and his Total Destruction is quite original and fun, too. Do you prefer to play as a punisher, a counter- character or a grappler? =) -SAI: Critical Combo- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: rush Damage: 32% Number of hits: 5 Super gauge: II <---------------> This Super Art is an excellent punisher against longer recovery moves or after a parry because it comes out so fast. It can also surprise many players since Q is a very slow character. Don't be afraid to use it as a counter, it has very good priority. It can also be used in juggles but most of the time you will not be able to connect all the hits, and the damage will be very low. Another good thing is that you can use many EX moves since you get two short super bars. This gives Q more freedom and versatility, as was shown by the Japanese player Ricky during the JIT. If you can play a good defensive Q and parry, the Critical Combo is great. However, there are no safe ways to connect it offensively, aside from canceling it from a Rushing Punch (charge back~, forward +P). You will need to mix up and find the opening in your opponent's defense, and the fact that the first hit of the Super Art is high does not help. But contrary to Hugo's Mountain Frenzy (=SAIII), the fourth hit is not an overhead: it is a low hit. You can surely catch beginners with this, and it makes the move considerably harder to parry, but against good players it is not going to help much. The only way to connect the Critical Combo is too either out-prioritize your opponent's pokes or to use it as a punish move. -SAII: Deadly Double Combination- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: sudden impact Damage: 41.3% Number of hits: 2 Super gauge: I <----------------------> This is my personal favorite. It works in a similar way to Ryu's Shin Shoryuken in the sense that it does huge damage, is best used as a counter thanks to its great priority, and must be point blank parried. This move looks very painful, and it does take off an insane amount of life when connected. The reason why this move is so effective is because it fits the character's style: you only need one clean hit to deal huge damage, but you have to be patient and find a sure opening. If the Super Art is blocked, your opponent will also encounter a short recovery time, but usually missing a Deadly Double Combination is a very bad thing, especially since the super bar is so long. This is why you can use it as a wake-up move, but only when you are sure it will connect. On the offensive end, you can poke and wait for a reaction, then counter with this Super Art. You can also cancel it from a Rushing Punch, but only use the Punch version because the Kick version knocks your opponent out. If you taunt at least three times and have a full meter, it is almost impossible to beat you. Do not be scared to take a few hits to connect the Deadly Double Combination, it is worth it. The range of this Super Art is not too bad, actually, because Q takes a step forward during the first hit. You can also use it in juggles, but practice before using it in serious play, because it is very easy to mis-time it and totally waste a Super bar. -SAIII: Total Destruction- Command: qcf X 2 + P, then qcf + K or qcf + P Type: delayed impact/grab Damage: punch version: 31.5% kick version: 42% Number of hits: 1 Super gauge: I <--------------------> Similarly to the Deadly Double Combination, you only get one long meter when you pick this underrated Super Art. You first need to perform qcf X 2 + P to start the Super Timer, and then you can choose to either use the punch or the kick version. This is very good in terms of strategy because the punch version is faster but is considered as a hit -meaning that it CAN be parried- whereas the kick version is slower and does more damage, but is considered as a throw. It is better not to stick to one version so that your opponent is confused and sees you as a constant threat. However, smart players will simply run away from you, and jump very often. Most players actually tend to jump backwards right after the Super Art animation comes out by reflex. You can try to dash-in and catch them as they touch the ground, but you will have to use the punch version. IT is very hard to catch jumping opponents with the kick version because of the slow start-up. The reason why I think it is underrated is because even though it does take lots of skills to use it properly, the damage more than make up for it. You can taunt more than three times before activating the Total Destruction in order to not be afraid of taking hits. But keep in mind that if your opponent has a fast character and a good air poke, you probably will not be able to catch him/her. You can also combo the punch version of this Super Art from the low MK. It is impossible to combo into the kick version, though. If you are having trouble to find some space to perform the first part of the Super Art against an offensive opponent, try to either: _Knock him/her down with the kick version of his Rushing Punch or a HP: This should give you lots of time to perform the Super Art before your opponent gets up. You can even try to perform the throw before they get up so that they cannot escape it. =) _Knock him/her down with a low HK or a back + HK: This does not work as well as the first technique, but it is possible. Q recovers before his opponent, so you have enough time to perform the qcf X 2 +P motion. _Cancel it from a close MK: It does leave you open for a very short time, but most players will not have the time or the idea to counter (they first need to realize that what you performed is just the first part of the move. Of course, these techniques also work when you want to taunt and need some space. 3.14 ---REMY--- Remy's Super Arts are very similar to his special moves and have the same uses, actually. The Blue Nocturne is very original, but also very hard to connect against above average players. -SAI: Light of Justice- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: projectile Damage: 26.5% Number of hits: 7 Super gauge: II <------------------> Remy throws many Lights of Virtue at once. Obviously, you can use this Super Art to play keep away, but it will not work too well, because your opponent will surely block or parry it. It does not do enough chip damage to be really considered a threat. You need to find a way to connect it. Of course, you can ccancel it from his low MP when up close. It is a very good anti-air, but most of the hits will not connect and your opponent will bounce away (which means very poor damage). It is quite reliable though, especially if your opponent cannot parry multi- hit moves in the air constantly. It is a good wake-up move because it comes out so fast and the recovery time (as with most of Remy's moves) is very short. You can also use it as a counter when close to your opponent. Against "parry-happy" players, remember to cancel it from a low Light of Virtue (see section 2.3 about Super canceling). It gives quite a lot of EX moves and charges pretty fast, especially compared to the Blue Nocturne. -SAII: Supreme Rising Rage Flash- Command: qcf X 2 + K Type: dragon punch Damage: 31.5% Number of hits: 10 Super gauge: II <---------------------> This is a powered-up version of the Rising Rage Flash, and obviously a very good anti-air. The damage is pretty good, and its priority means that it is a good wake up and punish move. However, it has -very- long recovery time when missed, which is the reason why most players seem to stay away from it. It comes out very fast, but apart from that it does not seem to be anything special. You can cancel it from the EX Rising Rage Flash but it can be tricky to connect it in a fight. Also remember that this Super Art is not all that hard to parry. -SAIII: Blue Nocturne- Command: qcf X 2 + K Type: counter Damage: 38.3% Number of hits: 7 Super Gauge: I <---------> This the kind of Super Art most people refer to as a "counter-super", meaning that if Remy gets hit shortly after the Super Art motion was performed, he will not take any damage and will automatically counter with an automatic combo (think of it as a safer and more powerful version of Dudley's Cross Counter). Players familiar with KOF already know this kind of move. However, the Blue Nocturne is in no way as good as the KOF counter-supers. The problem is that experienced players tend to stop attacking when they see the screen flashing, so only moves with a long recovery time that have been activated before the Super Art might get caught. For instance, most command overheads (e.g. the twins' and Ibuki's forward + MK) are likely to be countered no matter how fast they are because of their delayed start-up. Another common technique is to use the Super Art right after performing a Cold Blue Kick because most players tend to counter after this move since it is Remy's most "laggy" special move. But the bad thing is that using the Blue Nocturne this way is highly dangerous, and the damage is not always worth it. It is possible to use the Blue Nocturne as an anti-air, but sadly the damage is not worth it because most of the hits will not connect. Using it as an anti-air is really a waste in my opinion. It charges up very fast but the Super bar is so short that you will not be able to use a lot of EX moves. Your strategy should only evolve around catching your opponent with the Blue Nocturne. A nice trick is to parry the first hit(s) of a multi-hit move and then counter with the Super Art so that they have no way of escaping it. It can be very tricky to pull off, but with good parrying skills it is definitely possible. Just perform the Super Art motion as fast as possible. =) Remember that the Blue Nocturne does not counter everything in the game. It is vulnerable to the Shin Shoryuken and some other moves for some reason. Of course, your opponent can throw you and fireballs will hit you during this Super Art. This is another reason why I cannot really recommend this Super Art in real competition. 3.15 ---RYU--- There is no doubt that Ryu has one of the best sets of Super Arts in the game. There all have very different uses but can be very damaging and correspond to different styles of play. Ryu's Super Arts are scary because they can deal huge damage rather easily. -SAI: Shinkuu Hadouken- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: projectile Damage: 25.9% Number of hits: 5 Super Gauge: II <----------------> Ryu's classic Shinkuu Hadouken... This is a versatile Super Art that can be used in so many ways. It deals decent damage for a fireball-type Super Art, but it can be very easily parried if threw from a distance. Beginners will have a lot of trouble to parry it if you cancel it from a regular Hadouken though. The only cases where it can be interesting to use it from the opposite side of the screens are when your opponent is low on life -you can either chip him/her to death or if he/she parries, dash-in and start a combo with the low MK/throw-. However, it is best used up close because it allows for nice and damaging combos (if you just want damage, it is recommended to link it from the low MK). Do not cancel it from the HP Dragon Punch because it might cause the Super Art to whiff. It is an excellent wake-up move because it comes out very fast, but you can occasionally get thrown out of it. The recovery is not bad, but you will surely be punished it whiffs. Using this Super Art allows you to keep pressuring the opponent and play and offensive Ryu since he is a solid character. Just look for the opening, and throw the Super Art. With the Shinkuu, you do not necessarily need set-ups, contrary to the Denjin. You get 2 long Super bars so this is the best Super Art for EX moves (and Ryu's EX moves are good). Pick it if you want to play a solid and unpredictable Ryu. -SAII: Shin Shoryuken- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: instant impact Damage: 46.9% Number of hits: 4 Super gauge: I <-------------------------> This is one of the most damaging and overused Super Arts in the game. Connecting a Shin Shoryuken can totally change the face of a fight, especially when playing against Ibuki or Akuma. It comes out very fast and has one of the best priorities in the game, making it the perfect counter move. It even out-prioritizes most Super Arts. This Super Art is one of those moves that have a big intimidating effect on your opponent (like Hugo's Gigas Breaker -SAI- or Megaton Press -SAIII-). You can connect a HP fireball or even a HK Hurricane Kick when the opponent is falling down, as if the Super Art was not damaging enough already. Most players seem to use it as an anti-air, canceling it from a Dragon Punch. This is probably the best way to connect it, but good players might parry the whole thing. I personally use it in a similar way to Q's Deadly Double Combination: I let them rush down and turtle for a while, and use it to counter their pokes. But you have to be extremely careful while doing that, because this Super art has very short range, and when it is blocked or missed it acts like a simple 5-hit Dragon Punch doing pitiful damage and leaving you totally open. Sometimes you will only get three hits for the Super Art and it will obviously do less damage, so try to use it carefully. Picking this Super Art usually equals playing a defensive Ryu, with lots of parrying and anti-airs. If you can parry a jump-in, immediately perform the Shin Shoryuken it should hit almost all the time. Using it as a wake up move usually works pretty well, but not against smart players. You can also poke with the low MK and then cancel into the Super Art, but this is quite risky because there is no way to see if the poke hit or not before canceling it. The best way to cancel it is to do low LK, low LK XX Shin Shoryuken. You have enough time to cancel it and it does insane damage. You just need to be fast. Of course, you can try to play an offensive Shin Shoryuken Ryu messing with your opponents timing by using overheads and throws, but it is so much easier to wait for them. =) The Super bar is very long and you only get one, so EX moves are not recommended when using this Super. With the damage it deals, it is not like you would need them anyway. -SAIII: Denjin Hadouken- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: unblockable Damage: 22.2% (5 hits) Number of hits: 5 Super gauge: I <--------------------> This is a very interesting Super because it is unblockable, which was a new addition in the Street Fighter series (expecting the Shun Goku Satsu). This Super Art has an interesting Stun value since the longer you charge it (there are five levels), the more stun damage it does. Remember to twist the joystick when charging the Denjin Hadouken because it makes it charge faster. This Super Art lets you use a variety of strategies, because once your opponent is hit, you can start a combo and deal a LOT of damage. It puts you in control of the fight because your opponent will be scared of getting it by the Denjin, and will start either attacking a lot, or staying in mid-range waiting for you to do something so that he/she can parry the Super Art. There are two things you should focus on when using the Denjin Hadouken: _First, you need to build your Super bar quickly. This is normally not a problem with Ryu because most of his moves have big priority, but keep in mind that if you know a good Denjin Hadouken set-up and you have a fully charged Super bar, you have pretty much won the round if you can connect a knock-down move. _Secondly, you need to learn a damaging combo to use after the Super Art, when your opponent is stunned. Knowing how to use this Super Art is totally useless if you do not know how to get damage off of it. You only get one Super bar, so combos including EX moves are excluded. You can use simple damaging combos (e.g. HP, MP Dragon Punch or low MK, LK Joudan -hcf + LK-) if you prefer. My two favorite ways of connecting this Super Art are: _By canceling it from a Dragon Punch: This technique lets you charge the whole Super Art and it should hit your opponent right as he/she gets up. Beginners cannot do anything about this technique because you need to parry the Denjin Hadouken, and they will have the reflex to block. But decent players will parry it all the time. This is when you dash-in and throw or start a combo from the low MK. _After a low MK or a canceled fireball: This technique requires decent Ryu skills, because it will not be enough to fully stun Ryu. However, if you are fast you can charge up to three levels, which equals to a lot of stun. Parrying a fireball canceled into the Denjin Hadouken is not that easy, so if they take the bait they might screw up on the timing. Using the Denjin Hadouken after the low MK can be equally annoying because it is harder to parry when very close. I have to tell you that some players in the community consider this Super Art to be cheap because it is unblockable. But once you master parrying, there is really no reason to consider it that way. It actually takes a lot of skill to connect it on good players. 3.16 ---SEAN--- Sean is a lower-tier character in Third Strike, mainly because his offensive options are limited. However, with decent parrying skills and good mix-ups, you can be successful with him. His Super Arts are a major part of his game because they are his only reliable way to deal major damage. -SAI: Hadou Burst- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: projectile Damage: 19.7% Number of hits: 1 Super gauge: III <----------> This Super Art is interesting, because it is a projectile, and Sean, contrary to the other Shotos, does not have a projectile-type special move. In theory, it makes him a threat from the other side of the screen, but the reality is another thing. It only takes one parry to nullify it, and it is not that fast so even beginners can do it. It does not matter all that much anyway, because the damage is very low... So how can you use the Hadou Burst properly? In combos. That's the only way the be sure to link it, and deal decent damage. The good thing is that it is very easy to combo into: you can combo it from almost every one of Sean's normal moves, and cancel it from his Uppercut (DP + P). So when you are using this Super Art, keep in mind that your goal should be to stay up close and look for an opening. The Super bar is so short that you will have at least one Hadou Burst charged most of the time, and if you don't, you just need one or two hits to charge one. It is okay for EX moves, but his other Super Arts are better in this area. A fun method to connect this move is to taunt (HP + HK) at mid-screen - and hope that the basketball comes out-, then throw the Hadou Burst as they try to parry the fireball. Be aware of the fact that experienced players will not try to parry the fireball though, because they know a lot of Sean's tricks start with it. -SAII: Shoryu Cannon- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: dragon punch Damage: normal: 18.5% mashing: 32.7% Number of hits: normal: 5 mashing: 14 Super gauge: II <---------------> Another move that makes Sean a stronger character because it covers an area he is not very good in, and perhaps Sean's most versatile Super Art. You can use it in combos, exactly like the Hadou Burst, but it is also a great anti-air. But I must warn you that sometimes all the hits will nor connect: it is better to catch your opponent with the second wave of hits only, or late when he/she is jumping in. It is not easy to parry, and the pause after the first two hits generally confuses people. A nice and damaging combo involving the Shoryu Cannon is: Close MP, HP Sean Uppercut XX Shoryu Cannon Don't forget to mash the punch button to get more hits and damage, it is very important! It is possible to combo two Shoryu Cannons in the corner, you just need to catch the opponent with a close HK after the first Super. You can use the taunt or the roll (qcb + P) to surprise people: the first reaction is to counter, so you can out-prioritize them. The range of the Shoryu Cannon is impressive: it basically covers half of screen from the ground to the top. It is pretty good for EX moves because you get 2 medium-size meters. It has very good priority, as most moves of this type. Sean particularly needs this Super Art because Capcom decided to give him a crappy Uppercut in Third Strike. In terms of strategy, this is probably his best Super Art. -SAIII: Hyper Tornado- Command: qcf + P Type: rush Damage: 37.6 % Number of hits: 12 Super gauge: I <-------------------> The Hyper Tornado is the ideal punish move, and my favorite Sean Super Art. It goes through fireball and has very good range -it almost covers the whole screen, and is the rush-type Super Art that has the best range-, so tricking your opponent into throwing fireballs can be a good idea. Keep in mind that there is now way to control the range of this move, it will go forward until it hits something/gets hits. Its priority is decent, too, so you can use it as a counter when your opponent is trying to poke. As usual, you need to find an opening to connect the Hyper Tornado. Do not be predictable when using it, because it only takes one hit to parry and has very bad recovery. It is more of a "hit-or-miss" move, like Ryu's Shin Shoryuken (=SAII) or Q's Deadly Double Combination (=SAII). It is not very good for EX moves though, and they are very important to Sean's game: since his basic moves are so easy to parry, he needs to EX them sometimes to change their parry pattern and confuse the opponent. It is not a good anti-air, because even though the first hit is likely to connect, the others will whiff. It is just not worth it, you would be better off using a low HP (even though it might be parried). You can probably surprise beginner-to-intermediate level players by using this Super Art right after the Roll (qcb + P) or the taunt. But do not abuse it. =) Mixing-up a lot and then use the Hyper Tornado works very well. As is the case with most Super Arts, you can combo it from the Universal Overhead but it has to be a late hit. Use this trick when you are not too close, or when your opponent is waking up. It is very easy to combo into, exactly like Sean's other Super Arts. But it does more damage, which is why you should base your strategy on "How to connect the Hyper Tornado?" Trapping your opponent in the corner -not a hard thing to do using the Sean Tackle, Tornado Kick and usual mix- ups- works well because they are likely to try to counter with high- priority moves. When they do so, perform the Super Motion. Its invincibility frame is so long that it will eat any kind of move, even throws. 3.17 ---TWELVE--- Let me get this straight: Twelve is not a very good character. Aside from his throw range and priority, he has no important advantage on the other characters, in my opinion. His Super Arts are decent, but sadly they do not really make up for his weaknesses. -SAI: X.N.D.L.- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: projectile Damage: from very far: 14.1% from up close: 32% Number of hits: 8 (max) Super gauge: II <---------------> The damage of this Super Art varies a lot depending on how far from your opponent you perform it. Performing it from the other side of the screen seems useless because of the low damage, but the X.N.D.L. has the property to eat fireballs and travel the screen very fast, so you can counter projectiles with it. It is very easy to counter the X.N.D.L.: it only takes one hit. For this reason, you need to surprise your opponent when you are using it. The best way include it in combos is to simply cancel it from a low LP or a low LK. It is not very interesting to use it as an anti-air, because your opponent can just parry the one hit, if he messes up only a few hits will connect. The main problem with this move is that it does not fit Twelve's style of play: run and hit. Unless you can combo it from up close, or want to use EX moves a lot, do not use it. -SAII: X.F.L.A.T.- Command: air qcf X 2 + K Type: delayed impact Damage: 37% Number of hits: 18 Super gauge: I <-------------------> This is the Super Art I usually pick whenever I use Twelve, because it has huge damage potential, contrary to his other moves. Connecting one X.F.L.A.T. can totally change the face of a fight, but it is not great for EX moves. So you must basically make a choice between damage and EX moves. The problem with this move is that it is not easy to connect, you must really trick your opponent into attacking, and if you are facing a turtle you have pretty much already lost. It is impossible to use it after the air dash, in case you are wondering. However, using a super jump (down, up) helps a lot because it can surprise and mess up your opponent's timing. Try to run away from your opponent to annoy him as much as possible, so that he starts attacking, and then perform the Super Art motion. The priority is very nice so do not worry about anti-airs. But the reasons why you should try your best not to be predictable is because it is very easy to parry (very similar to Makoto's Abare Tosanami -=SAII-, except only one hit) and the recovery time is very long. You can do MK, jump cancel, X.F.L.A.T. but it is somewhat hard to pull off in a real fight. What I usually do when trying to piss off my opponents is abuse his N.D.L. (qcf + P) to chip their life or counter whatever they do. When they start getting pissed and jump, just do the same and use the X.F.L.A.T. -SAIII: X.C.O.P.Y.- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: copy (!) Damage: none Number of hits: none Super gauge: I <---------------------> When you perform the Super Art motion, a timer appears and Twelve morphs into the character your opponent is using. This is an interesting move if you know how to use the character you are facing, of course. When transformed, you do more damage than your opponent (the bonus varies between 10-25% depending on the move/combo), but if you are hit during the Super Art ending animation, you take an awful lot of damage. So your primary goal is basically to win the round before the timer ends, which is why you should play very offensively. Remember that you cannot use EX moves or Super Arts when transformed, so using the X.C.O.P.Y. is not smart against all the characters. However, the bonus you get means that you can play as well as your opponent, and still win. =) The start-up animation is rather short, but do not use it when your opponent is too close. Try to throw him on the other side of the screen before using the X.C.O.P.Y. 3.18 ---URIEN--- Urien's Super Arts are very good and varied. They cover very different areas and let you model your style of play. He also has the most versatile Super Art in the game, the Aegis Reflector. -SAI: Tyrant Slaughter- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: rush Damage: 35.8% Number of hits: 5 Super gauge: II <---------------> The Tyrant Slaughter is almost strictly a punish move. Indeed, there are no other ways to connect it: it cannot pass through fireballs, does not have -that- much priority, is likely to whiff in juggles... A good way to use it is after a parry or when your opponent whiffs a move. It is too easy to parry (it is possible to counter after parrying the first hit only) to be used from a distance, even though the range is very good. The good side of things is that it does good damage, and gives you two long bars for EX moves. There is not much to say about this Super Art. -SAII: Temporal Thunder- Command: qcf X2 + P Type: projectile Damage: far: 18.5% close: 24% Number of hits: 5 (max) Super gauge: II <-----------> The Temporal Thunder does decent damage, and very good stun (see section 2.7). The problem is that it is very easy to parry -even moreso than a Shinkuu Hadoken-, so your only hope to connect it against good player is to use it in combos. You can catch jump-ins with a MP Metallic Sphere, and then cancel into the Temporal Thunder. It connects most of the time. Remember that the size of the projectile varies depending on the distance. It will be easier for your opponent to wait -because of the slow startup- and then jump over it, since it is becomes smaller. As mentioned in a previous section, the best way to connect this Super Art is to do: (jump-in deep HK) Low HP, EX Headbutt, HK Chariot Rush XX Temporal Thunder You can also connect it right after the EX Headbutt. The problem is that the low HP is not easy to connect: you need to either trick your opponent into it or use it after a parry. -SAIII: Aegis Reflector- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: reflector Damage: 11.7% Number of hits: 6 Super gauge: II <-------------> The Aegis Reflector is very versatile and should be considered as a different type of Super Art. Indeed, it does not do much damage by itself. And it requires a good knowledge of the game to use it properly. In the arcade version of Third Strike, Urien had an unblockable involving this Super Art: if you crossed up (Headbutt works well) while your opponent was blocking/parrying it, you could throw out a low LK and they would eat the Aegis Reflector. In the Dreamcast version, Capcom fixed this glitch: you can now block the Super Art both ways. This Super Art creates a magic wall that can both hit your opponent and reflect some moves (check out Kao Megura's FAQ for the description of each move). It can be used in two different ways: offensive or defensive. Defensive: The PP version goes up and comes out in one frame, making it the perfect anti-air. If you throw out a LP and a PP Aegis Reflector, you create a wall that cannot be passed for a few seconds. You can simply use the Aegis to protect yourself (if you want to win by time, for instance). Most projectiles bounce on it and go back towards the opponent, but you have to be careful with the timing. Offensive: you can simply use it to force your opponent to block (it does tick damage). If you cancel an Aegis Reflector after a Chariot Rush, immediately go for the throw. There is nothing your opponent can do to stop that. You can also use it as a fake, or in set-ups. Read SlimX's Urien FAQ for more information. This Super Art allows for crazy combos once you master the way opponents bounce on it. You can juggle foes between two Aegis Reflectors, it looks very cool. =) The timing to parry it is quite slow, so if your opponent starts parrying it, it opens new solutions for you. This is a great Super Art, but it is hard to master. 3.19 ---YANG--- Yang's Super Arts are not very good, to be honest. They all have huge drawbacks, but it is not that much of a problem, because his normal, special and EX moves are very good. -SAI: Raishin Mahaken- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: delayed impact Damage: 38.3% Number of hits: 7 Super gauge: I <-----------------------> Yang's most damaging Super Art by far. Actually, the Raishin Mahaken would be Yang's best Super Art, period, if it were not a "delayed impact"-style Super Art. The problem here is that you can parry the Raishin Mahaken right before it hits, meaning AFTER the Super Art animation. This basically that this Super Art is useless when used outside of a combo against any player who has even the smallest grasp of the engine possible. Honestly, it is not even harder to parry than a fireball. This means that you will have to either combo into the Raishin Mahaken, or use tricks to connect it. You can try to use it right after a short teleport (DP + LK) -mix between throws and Raishin Mahakens- or a fake Palm Strike (hcf + PP), but once again, good players will parry it or block it, so its good priority does not help much. The range of this Super Art makes it a good choice to punish mistakes, and most of the time all the hits will connect. You can try canceling it from the low MK, the timing is not too hard but takes some practice. Since a lot of Yang's game is based on his mix-ups, you should not have too much trouble connecting a low MK... The problem is that the Super meter is very long and you only get one bar, so it is taking a major risk (what if the low MK is blocked?). In terms of EX moves, the Tenshin Senkyuutai is much superior, too. -SAII: Tenshin Senkyuutai- Command: qcf X 2 Type: sudden impact Damage: 25.9% Number of hits: 7 Super gauge: II <---------------> This is his best Super Art, in my opinion. Not that much because of the move itself, because it is only decent, but because of the two short meters that you get when you pick it. This equals to stocking a lot of EX moves, and Yang needs EX moves -especially the EX Mantis Slash (qcf + P X 3)- to stay unpredictable. Contrary to the Raishin Mahaken, this move has to be parried at point blank when up close, which makes it easier to connect and play mind games with. It is too bad its priority is not as good. I would recommend avoiding using this move when not up close, unless you can anticipate a fireball, because it is very easy to block or parry, and leaves you totally open. The nature of this Super Art makes it possible to roll under fireballs, but this is rather tricky unless you are only at mid- screen. Never try this from the other side of the screen, your opponent will have time to block or parry and you will get smacked. It is as easy to combo into as the Raishin Mahaken, and the most common way is to use the low MK because of its range. You can also cancel it from the MP, HP, back + HP chain in the corner but it does pitiful damage (it is a crowd pleaser though =). -SAIII: Sei-ei Enbu- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: custom combo Damage: none Number of hits: none Super gauge: I <----------> This Super Art works exactly like V-Ism in Alpha 3 (and it charges up equally as fast =). After you activate this Super Art, you meter changes into a timer, and during this time each one of your hit will be followed by a two "shadow hits", meaning that each single hit will count for three. This is Yang's version of the Genei Jin, and looks very cool... The only problem is that it does REALLY low damage. I have seen people perform more than 30-hit-combos using this Super Art, but it barely took off one third of their opponent's life. Is it really worth the trouble? Besides, the Sei-ei Enbu is really bad for EX moves, due to short meter. I have heard about Japanese players busting out huge combos taking off more than 50% of Ryu's life bar, but I have never been able to do that myself, so I am not too sure. One thing is sure though, it is that this Super Art is vastly inferior to the Genei Jin. You cannot even combo into it, so you have to perform the Super Art motion and then get up close and use combos, but the time allowed is very short! I personally use these two combos: _Mantis Slash X 2, LK MK HK, Mantis Slash X 2, repeat _Mantis Slash, MK, Mantis Slash X 2, LK, MK, HK, Mantis Slash X 2, MK, Mantis Slah X 3 But my opinion is that the damage is too low to get anything from this Super Art in serious play. While the Sei-ei Enbu is very fun to use, it is simply not worth getting through the trouble of performing such big combos for such a low damage. 3.20 ---YUN--- -Coming soon- -SAI: Youhou- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: sudden impact Damage: 32.7% Number of hits: 3 Super gauge: I <---------------------> This Super Art is a great choice for beginners, because it has nice priority and comes out fast. It can be used as a counter or as a wake-up move and the damage is very nice. Remember that you can juggle with a MP or HP Lunging Punch after this Super Art. You can connect it after Yun's LP, LK, MP, LP Shoulder Rush chain but it lowers the damage of the Super Art by a large margin. It has decent range, and even when the first hit does not connect it is worth using: the first hit does not even 10% of the total damage of the You-Hou. The main problems of this Super Arts are that: _It does not really fit Yun's style of play, because using it while zoning is not very easy to do. _It only gives you one Super meter. _It is very inferior to the Genei Jin. -SAII: Sourai Rengeki- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: sudden impact Damage: 26.5% Number of hits: 6 Super gauge: III <-----------> This Super Art does not de much damage, but it is very good for EX moves. Besides, you get three bars, so it is very good if you can connect the Sourai Rengeki consistently. Only use it after the LP, LK, MP, LP Shoulder Rush target combo, or after connecting a low MK if you are good at buffering. This Super Art has very good range and comes out very fast. However, its priority is only average. The major drawback of the Sourai Rengeki is that once you miss it, you are dead meat. It makes you jump over a low blocking opponent, meaning that you can eat a Super Art or any other damaging move. Only use it when you are sure it will connect (hence the chain). -SAIII: Genei-Jin- Command: qcf X 2 + P Type: custom combo Damage: none Number of hits: none Super gauge: I <---------> This is by far Yun's best Super Art, but it is also the one that takes the most skill. You can use it to create crazy juggles, but the difference with Yang's Sei-ei Bu is that you can use it safely after a chain (LP, LK, MP, LP Shoulder Rush XX Genei Jin) and it does nice damage. Don't use the Genei Jin outside of this combo. If you have trouble pulling it off, just remember that it actually is: LP, LK, MP (press forward while you perform this part, so that the Shoulder Rush motion is easier to do and the Lunging Punch doesn't come out), qcf + P (for the Shoulder Rush), qcf + P (to cancel into the Genei Jin). Remember to start the Genei Jin combo before the screens stops flashing... To practice and learn how to recognize the hit window, just go into practice mode and practice doing: LP Shoulder Rush XX Genei Jin -> your combo (usually starts with low MK). When using this Super Art, keep pressuring your opponent with the Dive Kick (air down + K). Once you connect the chain, you can start your combo. If your opponent is blocking, you can try using the command throw (qcb + K) and start your combo from the other side. It does less damage, but it is still better than to waste a Super meter. If your opponent is in the corner when the combo connects, you can do: low MK, HP, forward + HP, then LP Lunging Punch, late Palm Strike, forward + MK, then LP Lunging Punch, late Palm Strike, forward + MK again, and a LP Shoulder Rush to finish off. If not in the corner, low MK, HP, HP Shoulder Rush, HP Lunging Punch and anything. You can also do repeated MP/HP Shoulder Rushes and MP/HP Lunging Punches then close MK as the last hit so you can launch your opponent for another juggle when the Genei Jin finishes. This Super Art allows for insane juggles that require creativity so you know what you have to do! The best thing is that the meter is really short so you can have a Genei Jin stored almost all the time. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4. Parrying Super Arts 4.1 Point Blank parrying Point-blank parrying is the name of a very simple technique: to parry an Sudden Impact-style Super Art from up close, you need to parry the first move BEFORE the screen flashes and keep parrying in a regular pattern if needed. This is what makes some Super Arts, such as Chun-Li's Kikoushou, very hard to parry up-close. Parrying certain Super Arts takes lots of timing and patience, because you will need to parry 20 hits sometimes. Most people do not seem to be aware of this, and try to parry all the Super Arts as soon as the come out. This shows how much parrying has to do with anticipation and instinct. 4.2 Parrying patterns First off, it is very important that you realize the danger of parrying Super Arts. This technique should usually only be used defensively, unless you want to please the crowd or something. You should know that many Super Arts have a different pattern (read: the number of hits is different) depending on whether they connect or not. You NEED to know these patterns by heart before attempting to parry them, or else you will get smacked all the time. The following Super Arts have a different timing when they do not connect: _Ryu: Shin Shoryuken (=SAII) = 5 fast parries _Ibuki: Yami Shigure (=SAIII) = 1 low parry (can be point blank) _Twelve: X.N.D.L. (=SAI) = 1 parry X.F.L.A.T. (=SAII) = 1 parry _Chun-Li: Tensei Ranka (=SAIII) = 3 slow parries _Yang: Tenshin Senkyuutai (=SAII)= 4 fast parries _Yun: Sourai Rengeki (=SAII) = 5 fast parries? _Q: Deadly Double Combination (=SAII) = 1 point blank parry _Makoto: Seichuusen Godanzuki (=SAI) = 1 point blank parry _Sean: Hyper Tornado: 1 parry (=SAIII) Some Super Arts do not have a consistent parry pattern, such as Urien's Temporal Thunder (=SAII): it can either hit 3, 4, or 5 times sometimes. The best way to avoid getting caught is to always perform a 5-hit parry motion, it's not like you could counter after parrying this move anyway. You have to know that Gill's Seraphic Wing Super Art, even though it is not a grab, is impossible to parry. If you start blocking it and you have less than one third of your life, I hope that you are a "taunted" Q or else you are dead. TheHY and KTDC's Parry FAQ describe the patterns accurately, so I will not go into detail here. Super Arts that cannot be parried: _Gill's Seraphic Wing _Hugo's Gigas Breaker (=SAI) and Megaton Press (=SAII) _Alex's Hyper Bomb (=SAI) and Stun Gun Headbutt (=SAIII) _Q's Kick version of the Total Destruction (=SAIII) _Oro's Kishin Riki (=SAI) and EX Kishin Riki _Necro's Slam Dance (=SAII) _Akuma's Shun Goku Satsu and Kongou Kokuretsu Zan from up close _Remy's Blue Nocturne (=SAIII) _Elena's Healing (=SAIII) _Ibuki's grab version of the Yoroi Doushi (=SAII) 4.3 "Parry buffer reaction"? This technique has been described by SlimX on the gamefaqs.com boards. It mainly involves tricking the opponent into parrying one of your moves, and then catching him with a high priority/range Super Art if he parries it. It does require fast reflexes, but it is worth noting. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 5. Parrying into Super Arts Sometimes the safest way to connect a Super Art is after a parry. This does not really apply to fast Super Art, but more to short-range Super Arts, such as "grab-type" Super Arts for instance. With Alex, buffering a 360 motion from the parrying animation should not be too hard. But with Hugo, it can be a pain at first... Make sure that you are doing the 720 motion correctly. Most people just try to spin the joystick as fast as they can, but it just does not work. You actually have a lot of time to perform the move in this game. You also need to make sure that you are pressing the punch button at the right button. You can start pressing it when you are hitting "up-back" during the second 360. Last but not least, be sure that you are performing the 360 correctly. It might sound funny, but some people do the move backwards because they are not used to grapplers. Obviously, the easiest way is to start the move from a "forward" position. Some people just cannot use this move after a parry, mainly because it takes fast reflexes. Keep trying, you should get the hang of it pretty fast. When you realize that mastering this skill means that you can take off more than half of your opponent's life bar just because of ONE parry, you will understand that it is worth suffering a bit. =) Canceling regular qcf X 2 motions from a parry is rather easy and should not be a problem. Just keep in mind that some Super Arts have a start-up animation and some others will partially whiff after anti-air parries. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 6. Credits Big-ups to: _SlimX for his imput on Dudley's Rocket Uppercut and Rolling Thunder. I'm not good with Dudley. =) _Thehy for the Genei Jin combos. _Gunblade for pointing out typos. _Capcom and SNK for keeping me interested in fighting games. _To Ryo Yamazaki, Chip, samson, yota2001, CAPCOMSNKVISCOSAMMY, for bearing with my "cheap" tactics and being cool and skilled opponents. Wait until I come back from the US to give you guys a lesson! =P _All my peeps from the boards -NickEvil, Geohound Omega, HustleKong, MCJess, OrochiJin, Crispin Evil, Nevermind Me/Mao, FighterX, Andy7878, Twinkie, softoutlaw, Mr. Bump, KANE79, 6Bit, rpgrobert, hoag1, miffo, lobo, NoMeRoN, Jack Torrance, WTFer, D0NKEY K0NG, Rick, Roufuss, Skinny Puppy, DigDat0, Momac*, Zohar Metatron, KindredWarr, ChainsawRaccoon, Akira from PSO, XwShaynewX, Gudeath, thefigurehead, OrochiJin, dreamon, YoungForrest, ninjakid, Punkguy, Dillinger, xtreme, umgogo, Lantis, lukav, MeesterYuk, shaolin stylez, kal-el, chunli89, Space Ace, Terry Bogard, Crimson Fury, Mr. Angry, pepper2000, Project Jiek, DFisher34, bobfish, AkumaZ, Annihilated, cliveboy, Vegita, srwilson, JazzieD, Vegita, GDBlood, NeoGamer, Cormega, Adanis, GalFord, Zigfried, Gunblade, MLai, Forman, Rebirth Gamer, CJones, Huricanne Higashi, GlucoseJoe, ShinATproof, DanKetch, Solid Snake, Czigga, gwings, Tones, Super Android, NekkiBasara, Lebowski, DRVO...- and I'm missing some, for making me want to stay on the boards and write this FAQ. _gameFAQs.com and cheatcodes.com, For hosting this FAQ. _totalstuff, for hosting this FAQ at ivgsource.tripod.com (great site). _shoryuken.com, for listing the kara-throw ranges. Vive la France! =) This document is copyright 2001 BillyKane aka Nadir Sellam.