Akuma FAQs: Quick questions & answers!

[metallicaband]

1)What should I use to hit confirm with? like Cr. Mp after the demon flip?

2)What should my go to poke/block string combo look like? What normal moves should I combo with to put pressure? Are those the frame traps?

I apologize its just I"m lost in all the info and don’t know whats what.

Hit confirmed combos on standing opponents:
cr.lp, cr.lp, cr.lp xx lk.tatsu, HP SRK
cr.lk, cr.lp, cr.lp xx lk.tatsu, HP SRK

You need to link the last cr.lp and not chain it to be able to cancel the jab into lk. tatsu (http://shoryuken.com/f249/hit-confirming-akuma-230532/)

Hit confirmed combos on crouching opponents:
cr.lp, cr.lp, cr.lp xx ex tatsu
cr.lp, cr.lp, cr.mp xx ex fireball or ex tatsu

Heavy combos for punishing opponents mistakes (i.e blocked SRK or most ultras):
st.hp xx lk.tatsu, HP SRK (that’s close standing fierce into lk tatsu)
st.hp xx fireball FADC st.hp xx lk tatsu, HP SRK

As for jump-in attacks confirmation:
Standing opponents > j.hk, cr.lp, cr.mp (or st.hp) xx lk.tatsu, HP SRK
Crouching opponents > j.hk, cr.lp, cr.mp (or st.hp) xx HP SRK (or ex tatsu/fireball)

You can of course use other jump-in attacks such as crossup j.mk or DF dive kick…etc Also, do not use the close fierce for hit confirming if your jump-in isn’t deep enough, because if you’re far from the opponent, far fierce will comeout instead of close which doesn’t combo, it’s better to use the c.lp or cr.mp at the beginning until you’re comfortable enough with your hit confirms to use the close fierce (I still have some troubles using the close fierce hit confirm and I’ve been trying to use it for a while now…)

You can replace the HP SRK after the lk. tatsu with EX SRK for more damage and stun. Also, you can replace the HP SRK with sweep vs some characters (http://shoryuken.com/f249/light-tatsu-sweep-list-240338/), it gives you less damage but earns you an untechable knockdown (which if used properly with Akuma’s wakeup mixups/vortex, will most probably earn you much more damage overall).

Here’s the frame traps thread, read through the posts there to get an idea about which normals to use while doing block strings: http://shoryuken.com/f249/akumas-frame-traps-234748/

[BulimicCannibal]

i am extremely newb. I always drop combos, and eat mashing shoryu and ultra’s from ken. any advice? I feel so rage vs kens.

Practice in training mode atleast 10 minutes a day until you can consistently pull the combos off. If they’re mashing shoryukens mid way through your combos and you know you’re probably going to end up dropping them, you might want to intentionally stop you combos half way through and block their shoryuken/ultra and punish it for good damage.

[BulimicCannibal]

I really have a hard time getting close to an opponent without taking a lot of damage and when I do get close enough, they do a block string to push me away from them again and I do something stupid like try to jump back in. What are effective ways of closing the gap?

Air fireballs offer a relatively safe way to close the gap, because if they’re used correctly they’re like insurance incase you manage to get hit. Try experimenting with air fireballs and far standing hk.

I like to play defensively personally and wait for my opponent to attack before dodging and launching my own, as this limits your enemies escape options.

If your opponent is bad you can spam demon flips all day every day too.

[Supah_Ape]

I just learned how to cross-up fireball off a df palm and a demon but I cant seem to do it after a df throw I cant seem to jump over them. Am I supposed dash first?

[superlollo]

with akuma’s ssf4 crappy stun/damage output the ONLY hit confirm one should do after df kick is c.lp s.hp xx lk tatsu > whatever.

If you hit with a df kick you already know they’re standing and you have plenty of time to confirm the hit with a single c.lp.

After normal jump ins/crossups it more difficult since you ALSO have to confirm if they’re standing or crouching…if i have 2 bars i go for the c.lp s.hp xx hado anyways, since if it hits i can FADC and do crapload of damage even if they’re crouching…if i don’t have the 2 bars i usually do c.lp c.lp c.mp and use ex tatsu/hado if they’re crouching or lk tatsu if they’re standing. c.mp x2 also gives you lots of time to confirm if they’re standing or crouching.

[Nu-Skoool]

I think its better to just learn how to follow up your c.lp, cs.fp links with a fierce SRK (if you have no meter), Ex tatsu (with less than 2 bars) and fireball FADC (with 2 bars or more).

Seeing your jump-in connect followed by 2 hits should be enough to hit confirm and see if they are crouching or not.

[superlollo]

I think its better to just learn how to follow up your c.lp, cs.fp links with a fierce SRK (if you have no meter), Ex tatsu (with less than 2 bars) and fireball FADC (with 2 bars or more).

Seeing your jump-in connect followed by 2 hits should be enough to hit confirm and see if they are crouching or not.

Thing is, the s.hp cancel has to be pretty fast and i usually have to decide what move i’m gonna do before actually hitting the s.hp…so i only got the jab to confirm. I actually sometimes manage to cnfirm in time and go for fierce srk, but i’m not yet consistent enough. Hell i’ve seen tokido go for hado/ex hado on crouching opponents after the c.lp s.hp hit confirm more than once and that guy has godlike reflexes/executions. Of course it is possible to react in time, just not always with the prssure of a real match

[Nu-Skoool]

I just set the dummy to randomly crouch or stand on playback. Then I just end my bnb accordingly. If I get tatsu I end with a reset and keep it going.

[Ev1L]

Can anyone give me the basics behind the akuma vortex? After bouncing from ryu and sagat as my main, i’ve found akuma the funnest to play with.

I don’t really understand the vortex, and the mindset behind doing it/what the player wants accomplished other than making his opponent guess

[superlollo]

I just set the dummy to randomly crouch or stand on playback. Then I just end my bnb accordingly. If I get tatsu I end with a reset and keep it going.

It’s a lot easier in training mode than in a real match, hehe. As i said, i can sometimes do it but i’m not consistent enough yet so i usually go for the fireball fadc if i have the bars

Can anyone give me the basics behind the akuma vortex? After bouncing from ryu and sagat as my main, i’ve found akuma the funnest to play with.

I don’t really understand the vortex, and the mindset behind doing it/what the player wants accomplished other than making his opponent guess

That’s exactly what you want. They guess wrong and they’re back on the ground and have a good chunk of life less than before

[Nu-Skoool]

Well id take the fireball fadc over srk anyday. Better for damage and spacing depending how you end it. If I can’t sweep off tatsu ill try to go right for the untechable otherwise I link into a bnb sweep. As long as I have meter I will always end with ex tatsu unless I have 2 bars to fadc. I only go to srk when I don’t have the meter to expend.

[Supah_Ape]

I just learned how to cross-up fireball off a df palm and a demon but I cant seem to do it after a df throw I cant seem to jump over them. Am I supposed dash first?

tried all day with the df throw couldn’t dash and tiger knee quick enough. Am i suppose to dash after the throw to make the fireball cross-up.

[Gamogo]

tried all day with the df throw couldn’t dash and tiger knee quick enough. Am i suppose to dash after the throw to make the fireball cross-up.

Two methods:

1.) Flip throw > dash once > perform tk motion > wait briefly > press lp

2.) Flip throw > dash once > jump forward > immediately perform lp air ball

Method one is much tighter but requires the correct tk execution. The secret is in the delay between the tk motion and pressing punch. Method two is a little easier though if you don’t perform the air ball quick enough you will lose frame advantage and get punished.

FYI, Tokido almost always uses method two after demon flip grabs (if he chooses to perform air ball setups).

[jp_cash]

Hey guys, I feel my mix up isn’t as strong as it can be. I’ve notice that I don’t use the xup palm into combo on their wake up after a knockdown. How safe is that move? I usually get thrown or my combo gets stuffed. How do you guys go about setting up that move?

[jp_cash]

Also, I seem to always go for a crossup short bit it hardly looks ambiguous, What are some good setups for a good ambiguous j.lk crossup.

[DevilKnight]

Hey guys, I feel my mix up isn’t as strong as it can be. I’ve notice that I don’t use the xup palm into combo on their wake up after a knockdown. How safe is that move? I usually get thrown or my combo gets stuffed. How do you guys go about setting up that move?

Cross over palms don’t need any setups, they just need to be mixed in with various other tactics so that the opponent is caught off guard. The cross-over from it flips their command direction at a crucial timing and makes DP type reversals difficult to perform against it. (you can block in time by landing empty if they show they are able to DP it)

They cross over at a late moment where you can catch them guarding for a flip dive kick and use a hit confirm. It’s common for opponents to buffer a throw at a timing that would normally come out during a dive kick block stun so that empty palm games get a throw on-landing. Because of this, it’s advised to start your hit confirms with something that doubles as a crouch tech in case they do that.

Tokido for example, will land into a cr.MP tech (cr.LK+LP+MP) and if that hits he will jab and cancel into his special. Another thing you can do if you know they are going to tech or just hit buttons as you’re landing from a flip is to immediately land into an HP Shoryu or an Ultra 1 to hurt them for it. The Super is good here aswell.

The key to making a LK/MK jump ambiguous is to aim it to land on top of their head. You cannot land inside your opponent, so the game will just shift you to the side to land on one of the two sides. When done correctly, it’s difficult for either player to anticipate which side it’ll land on.

[Cymatics]

Very basic question here. Best DP to use for AA/ Cross cuts? I’ve been using Fierce DP mainly. Strong DP seems to need you to be very accurate, or else the second hit will whiff leaving you open to punishment. Anyone who can suggest the optimal DP for such a situation?

[Acolytic]

For crosups, use cr.FP

Got a question. How safe/unsafe is it to use cr.mk to dodge jump attacks?

[Ero_Oyaji]

can anyone here do 95% accuracy safejump palm naturally? any tricks to help doing safejump palm better?

i can do safejump palm. but its not something that i can do naturally without thinking. when i safejump with hk it seems natural and easy i don’t have to think about it. but safejump palm takes me a while to get used to hence i screw up alot doing it too early and landing there empty waiting to get grabbed or any random thing happening.

mainly because safejump palm is more superior than jump hk safejump. and its extremely important on certain matchup

notably, chun(focus whore), gouken,dudley,feilong(u2 dick), maybe juri.

[Gamogo]

FGot a question. How safe/unsafe is it to use cr.mk to dodge jump attacks?

I find it quite reliable to avoid cross-up tatsus. Outside of that, I don’t really have the balls to risk it. I figure if I have the time to c.mk reactively to jump-ins, I have time to SRK.