everyone regestr and vote a3 at evo!
I have never been able to stop the splash with any grounded attack except for a far away S.Roundhouse. Even then, it isn’t entirely successful…it takes some practice to stop it clean, and if he’s too close with it (Or any of his long range jump ins for that matter), you’ll probly get your Roundhouse stuffed. You just have to keep him a certain distance away. A good distance is just out of the range of her C. Short kick. Too far away though, and she could whiff an empty jump-in from Zangief, which is dangerous.
Anyways, I say if you wanna beat that splash, you should go airborne. Her ground-to-air options vs. Zangief are like, pretty much nothing.
mika’s low jab can beat zangief’s splash cleanly and nearly everytime. the key is to hit the button just before the move makes contact. this also depends on how early or late your opponent decides to use the splash, forcing you to adjust your timing. in other words, the timing is varied and you can’t use the low jab without taking into consideration the opponent’s height from the ground.
Slide: i use vc1 for all of mika’s vcs. when in the corner the shooting peach vc does more damage in vc1, whereas with the other activations, the less damging shadow shooting peaches will tend to hit instead of mika’s.
Middlekick, thanks to you I figured out how to beat the splash with C. Jab. Thanks! 
I dunno, though…I still think I prefer S. Roundhouse from far away, cos at least when the blows trade with S. Roundhouse, it’s a little more manageable damage…the C. Jabs will take a long ass time to rake up the damage of a CounterHit Fierce from Zangief. But, when he jumps in really close, S. Roundhouse isn’t even an option. This is definitely cool info, man. Thanks again!
the total damage from the low jabs will be greater if cancelled into a fierce flying peach, as described earlier.
Any tips on cancelling crouch fierce? I know it can be done, but I only get it to work once every 10 tries. It’s really inconsistent for some reason so I figure it’s like a 1 or 2 frame window.
yeah, i think so too. what i try do to is cancel on the 2nd or 3rd frame (or at least, that’s what it feels like) after the low fierce makes contact.
some info on the sardine’s beach special:
the tobikoshi(the flip-over grab thing during the sbs) has four follow-ups. pressing punch after you’ve landed the tobikoshi will cause mika to perform a lariat, while pressing kick results in a drop kick; towards + punch or kick will make mika execute various throws. the damage from these moves is very poor, even at level 3, but there is a way to maximize the super’s effectiveness.
when you have the opponent in the tobikoshi, your opponent’s sprite will flash, indicating that they cannot move till the move is over. from here you have a limited time to perform her various follow-ups. any button that is pressed during this time will activate these. however if you delay your button presses and joystick inputs so that this ‘follow-up time’ expires, the opponent will still be flashing but you can perform any move, be it a special, a normal or even a super.
with that in mind, here are some of the things that you can do
once you land the tobikoshi:
tobikoshi-> wait till time expires-> low fierce-> shooting peach or t+forward-> forward shooting peach.
tobikoshi-> wait-> daydeam headlock or heavenly dynamite
tobikoshi-> wait-> low fierce-> sbs-> mika lariat-> moonsault press
tobikoshi-> wait-> low fierce-> sbs-> japanese ocean drop kick-> follow-up
tobikoshi-> wait-> low jab x 2-> low short-> sbs-> mika sliding-> follow-up
the opponent cannot escape, even if he or she mashes during the move, making all of these pretty much guaranteed.
the japanese ocean drop kick causes a lot of stun (28 points).
low fierce-> sbs-> japanese ocean drop kick is a guaranteed dizzy against akuma, who has 34 points in his stun bar.
You know…Mika has that damn Knee Press (D.Short Kick in air), but I’ve never been able to find any really great use for it. The move doesn’t stay out long, the hitbox is kinda weird, and there are definitely better air-to-air and air-to-ground options. The only thing I’ve ever found is that it’s okay for Paradise Hold ticks, but there are also much easier, SAFER ticks than that. Any ideas on just what it’s good for, if anything?
Great thread.
You ever got into those situations where you air recover and your opponent begins to track you? And then try to land another move on you?
I tend to try and avoid those at all costs, typically these situations present themselves when I’m up against V-Akuma and Karin every so often, especially after Akuma’s hurricane kick mix ups and Karin’s rekkas ending with neutral kick. Try the knee press and see if that can stuff some of their anti air attempts as you fall.
otg fun
i posted something similar to this before in the q&a thread. here’s the updated version.
for some reason in a3, moves that you can normally recover from (e.g mika’s daydream headlock and depending on the opponent - her paradise hold) cannot be air-recovered from when used to otg after certain moves. the only stipulation of these moves is that they must not be air-recoverable and the opponent must have the ability to ground roll upon being hit by them.
as mentioned earlier, her fierce paradise hold x 4 corner-only vc (she has variations of this) only works against 6 characters in the game - discounting dizzy-otgs. all other characters will be able to perform an air-recovery after the 1st paradise hold is finished.
however, if you start your combo from a move that cannot be air-recovered from - her flying peach - and otg from there, all opponents will be unable to perform an air-recovery, making the the paradise hold x 4 vc possible aginst all characters.
but there’s a slight problem that makes landing the combo difficult (timing issues aside) - rolling. the opponent can still decide to roll if they think that you’ll try to otg.
if you see or anticipate the roll, use a low roundhouse to punish them.
so…
in terms of combos, and if you think your opponent might not roll, here’s what you can do:
in the corner, (optional) low fierce-> jab or strong flying peach-> activate any vc then one of the following:
-
-> otg fierce paradise hold x 3-> whiffed low roundhouse otg daydream headlock
-
-> otg fierce paradise hold x 4
-
-> otg fierce paradise hold-> whiffed low roundhouse otg short daydream hold-> otg fierce paradise hold
-
-> otg short daydream-> otg fierce paradise hold x 2
-
-> otg short paradise hold-> whiffed low roundhouse otg roundhouse daydream headlock
-
-> otg fierce paradise hold-> whiffed low roundhouse otg short daydream headlock-> whiffed low roundhouse otg roundhouse daydream headlock
-
-> otg short daydream headlock-> otg fierce paradise hold-> whiffed low roundhouse otg roundhouse daydream headlock
combo #1 is the most damaging but the last otg in the combo requires accurate timing (e.g when to low roundhouse and when to cancel it).
this is made even more complicated when you take into account the various frames in which each character can be otg’ed.
combo #2 is very damaging and probably the easiest. i use this the most. the other combos are not as damaging and are mainly
for style. however, otg’ing with the daydream headlock is easier to time.
ryu,ken,akuma,dan,honda and blanka cannot perform an air-recovery after a normal paradise hold. so if you tick into the ph,
you have the option to take off about up to 80% damage. useful.
i tend play as p2 mika a lot, and because she can’t use the shooting peach vc when in the corner, it’s handy to have the option to use actually your meter if the situation arises.
the art of being unblockable
Man, thx for that post Middlekick, that was a HUGE inspiration :tup:
Her freestyle super into flip is probably the best use of a lvl.1 meter EVER because it gives you a combo FOR FREE ! The lvl.1 itself has enough invincibility to pass nearly everything up close, the flip is unblockable, and with the right setup it can be hard to escape. It’s even impossible to straight jump out of it, because Mika can run under the opponent and hit them with the elbow (fierce starter) from behind. It’s also a perfect wakeup option in certain situations.
- qcf x2 short, hold b (go behind), wait, …
–> … 360 P (throw, 24)
–> … f forward xx qcb short (2 hits, 26)
–> … 360 K (mash throw, 28)
–> … s.fierce -> c.roundhouse (2 hits, 31)
–> … c.fierce xx qcb roundhouse (2 hits, 33)
=> without meter her most damaging option is comboing the fierce, both versions require accurate timing though
–> … qcf x2 forward (lvl.2) -> fierce (elbow), splash (2 hits, 40)
–> … (close) s.strong xx qcf x2 strong (8 hits, 54)
=> when using the freestyle super the elbow starter is the only way with a guaranteed follow up but the damage isn’t worth it, it’s better to use the punch super instead if you can’t afford any risk
–> … qcf x2 forward (lvl.2) -> jab (dropkick), b/f K spinning scissor grab (1 hit + grab, 18 + 30 = 48)
–> … qcf x2 forward (lvl.2) -> jab (dropkick), K ender, instant j.fierce (1 + 2 hits, 18 + 33 = 51)
–> … f forward xx qcf x2 K -> strong (slide), b/f K spinning scissor grab (2 hits + grab, 29 + 30 = 59)
–> … c.jab x2, s.short xx qcf x2 forward (lvl.2) -> strong (slide), b/f K spinning scissor grab (4 hits + grab, 32 + 30 = 62)
–> … c.jab x2, s.short xx qcf x2 forward (lvl.2) -> strong (slide), K ender, instant j.fierce (4 + 2 hits, 32 + 33 = 65)
Excellent OTG and SBS stuff. That’ll help me fight the shotos, i gotta get the timing down on these things. I’m gonna give it a try.
Also, for A-Mika I think that the Level 1 SBS actually has more invulnerable frames than levels 2 and 3. A friend told me about this one from having a look at the All About Zero 3 book. I think he said 14 frames IIRC. I’ll try to confirm this info again.
Could this be used in the nature of a counter activate, or to bait activations?
Looks as if LEVEL 1 is the thing to do all 'round with A-Mika. More strategy on making sure you ALWAYS have a level 1 filled when getting close to the opponent.
Middlekick, do you have more information on Stun Points? For example how much the splash(CH’d or not) into cr. jab x2, cr. short does?
A couple of times, I’ve gotten away with, cr. roundhouse(for knockdown) cross up splash series x2. Then cr. fierce, jump. roundhouse = Dizzy. Then VC = round over.
EDIT: Another bit of information. VS Akuma(no other shotos fireballs): Whenever Akuma gets in deep with a hadoken combo. If Akuma does NOT do more than 3 cr. shorts. It’s a free cr. roundhouse CH for Mika, guaranteed when the combination is blocked.
Example: Blocked Akuma dive kick, cr. short x2, hadoken. Free Mika cr. roundhouse counterhit on Akuma.
This applies to his fireballs in general, if they’re blocked in proximity of Mika’s cr. roundhouse. But if Akuma can get off 3 cr. shorts than it’s a miss IIRC.
What I wanna know is… is it possible to activate, THEN cr. roundhouse. Cause if so, a counterhit cr. roundhouse in activation can lead to the shooting peach VC??
unfortunately, i don’t have access to my aaz3 book so i can’t supply you with that info. i do know though that the counter hits do increase the amount stun inflicted to the opponent. however, i don’t know the exact rate of this effect. i believe the aaz3 also has this information. i think both TS and Xenozip have it though, so maybe they can help.
i don’t see why it wouldn’t be possible. and i doubt that you’d even need reversal timing to pull it off.
because you’ll attempt to land the unblockable? that’s assuming the opponent is not going to attempt a wake-up dp, teleport or something nastier.
in my experience, i’ve never come across akuma players who finished a blocked chain with a fireball - it’s usually something a lot safer, such as a spaced low roundhouse or his b+roundhouse if it’s v-akuma. but if your opponent persists with ending a chain in this way, feel free to use the low roundhouse punish and set up some wake up games.
I was talking about if the cr. roundhouse is CH, in activate can a roundhouse shooting peach connect?
And often times, Akuma players ive faced won’t go for the fireball in the blocked chain, but there are times when it happens out of habit. That’s the kill spot. And there are times when I’m moving forward and I end up blocking a fireball in the right spacing for me to counter it.
no; the low roundhouse will cause a knock-down, putting the opponent into a special type of knock-down state where they cannot be juggled.
Ah yeah =\
Well considering that I could activate after blocking the fireball and can strike Akuma, i wonder if I can land a shooting peach flat out then. I’ll try and test this one out eventually, and report back.
daydream headlock notes, observations, and ramblings
[LEFT]all versions have 4 frames of start-up and a grab range of 31 dots.
all 3 versions will leave the opponent at 3 different distances when the move is finished.
the short version leaves the opponent closest to mika while the roundhouse version will have the opponent at the farthest;
the forward version’s finishing-distance is somewhere between the other 2.
iirc, the only type of aerial recovery available after a daydream headlock is the defensive version (away+pp).
with this in mind, a good baiting tactic is: corner daydream headlock-> take a small step forward-> opponent recovers->
low jab-> flying peach or the anti-air vc if you are playing in v, or a level 3 sbs-> mika lariat-> moonsault
press for a/x-mika.
x and a-mika can increase the range of the daydream headlock by employing whiff-cancelling with her t+forward.
i’m not sure on which frame the kick must be cancelled - though it’s pretty early - but you must allow mika to travel
a slight distance first. if done correctly, mika will scream “yah!”, and immediately grab the opponent.
i guess the following applies to mashable throws too.
each version of the daydream headlock has a set time in which mika will choke the opponent before performing the final
slam part. the weaker the strength, the less time you have to choke the opponent, so obviously the roundhouse version
will be the most damaging version. the actual choking part is where you must mash to inflict the most damage. there is
no set amount of hits possible for the dh; so in theory, if the choking part was not limited by time, you could mash the
move for an infinite number of hits.
when i use the dh, in terms of damage and the number hits (including the slam) scored, various situations can happen;
i’ve listed these below. i’ve used the roundhouse dh as an example because i use it the most and because it’s the most
damaging.
a: you don’t mash and neither does the opponent. 6 hits. poor damage - slightly more damaging than a low
roundhouse.
b: you don’t mash but the opponent does. 5 hits.
a1: mashed fairly quickly, and the opponent does not mash. this will result in something around 8-9 hits.
b1: like above but counter-mashed. assuming the opponent mashes at a similar rate to you, this will result in no more
than 6-7 hits. basically, anything over 7 hits is respectable damage.
a2: you start mashing at the earliest available opportunity. opponent does not mash. you score anything from 10-12
hits, resulting in very high damage (more than a roundhouse siberian suplex).
b2: same as above, but the opponent mashes. good damage. 7-8 hits but more is possible. see below.
mashing the dh
when using the dh, there are 2 important things to remember: 1. it’s a good idea to start mashing before your
opponent does - this will ensure you get the slight advantage of a few rapid chokes before the opponent slows
this down; 2. although you should try mash the dh as early as possible, there is a certain frame, or certain frames,
where, as soon as you start your mashing on them, will cause mika to choke the opponent at a very rapid pace. i think
when i’m successful in doing this, i will almost always get a minimum of 8-10 (non counter-mashed) hits. in other words,
you must time when you start mashing.
regarding the joystick inputs during the dh, i’ve had the most response when i’ve used a rapid up-down or a left-right
input as opposed to repeatedly spinning the controller or a random frenzy of directional inputs.
for the button inputs however, i found that i would still get the same number of hits whether i used all 6 buttons or
just 3.[/LEFT]
Great thread indeed.
I don’t really have much to add at the moment except:
-You can modify the generic cross-up unblockable VC to make it so reversal DP’s can’t escape or counter it (along with most other escapes). Reversal activations, teleports, and a few other character specific moves can still always escape it, though.
-If you have trouble jabbing gief out of his splash, deep air-blocking it is slightly better than ground-blocking it (but still fairly risky).
-Mika’s P and hcb+K air-throws are slam throws (break damage scaling rules). Not really useful, but it might be worth it to try and find a CC set-up at the end of her B&B VC in order to regain some meter while still tacking on some slam damage at the end. Of course, the only advantage to doing it would be to regain meter. I haven’t tried finding one yet though.
-Indeed, the game only accepts a certain ammount of mash inputs per every few frames. There are also frames in which the game will not accept mash inputs during Mika’s DH (every 3rd frame, I believe). So it’s possible to actually mash faster than is “necessary”.
The game doesn’t seem to accept negative edge inputs (both directional and attack) for mash inputs, contrary to what I’ve been told.
Diagonals are accepted as mash inputs but only if they are inputted individually (seperately) from horizontal and vertical inputs – a 360 motion will cause the game to ignore diagonals because it treats the diagonal as both a vertical and a horizontal input, and not it’s own seperate direction. EG: you pressed left, the game ticks, you press down+left the game ticks again for down (not diagonal), you press down, nothing happens. If you press left, then down, the game will tick for both left and down. If you press diagonal down+left, the game ticks, if you then press either left or down nothing will happen (because it interperated down+left as both down and left, not diagonal).
-Actually, I don’t have the good book. I do most of my technical research through emulator testing. I’ll get around to buying a copy when I’m not penniless.
To confirm:
Level 1 SBS: 14 frames invulnerable
Level 2 SBS: 18 frames
Level 3 SBS: 22 frames
So no. The level 1 doesn’t have more invulnerable frames than 2 or 3. But even still, level 1 is not a bad choice. Especially since A-Mika’s game is best built around the level 1 720 so level 1 SBS is smart for not burning meter.