I’d like if hands to did non-negligible chip damage. Not talking HHS chip, just enough to give us something to work with. Our safest method of chipping someone is roll, which is -3 block and a dead-end on hit.
Crane normals need extreme changes. On a character who main mechanic is having two sets of normals and special moves, all of gen’s moves in Crane are almost irrelevant. I really only switch for overheads and to AA, and both have horrible downsides (long startup/recovery or few active frames).
Crane normals need start up changes, need reductions in hurtboxes, maybe even a TC, and some horizonal range increases. I don’t even get the point of crane stance, to be honest. At the very least, change the advantage on some of the moves (make jab c.jab chainable). It needs a lot of improvements.
Currently, Gen has absolutely nothing he can do against a Fei Long who spams c.mp/c.hp and AA’s with DP. NOTHING. Crane s.lk and s.mk, with proper hitbox and hurtbox changes, would have the tools to at least play footsies with him. Make them invincible to the back of the standing foot or something, and extend the hitbox forward slightly past the toes. Come on, do SOMETHING with these normals. Turn the 8-2 Fei/Gen into 6-4 at least.
At least give crane c.mp more advantage on hit/block so that c.mp>hp roll is not a distance-dependent true block string.
The sole purpose of Mantis U2, as it is now, is character specific combos and a tiny bit of invincibility. It is good for NOTHING else, and even in those things, it is terrible. The hitbox on the ultra wasn’t the problem… it was the fact that even if you land it, the opponent can not only escape and take no damage but can benefit by it because it fills revenge meter. In fact, the change in hitbox on the ultra really only served to encourage people throwing it out randomly in close-quarters footsies: It cant hit air, it is too slow to punish most moves in its range, it isn’t invincible to fireballs, it can’t be juggled except from super, and it cannot but combo’d into from anything but EX hands if you’re a fat character. It ENCOURAGES playing like a scrub.
If they really wanted to make Mantis U2 viable, yet keep the stupid gray bar damage, make the move do stun as well. Or speed it up/extend the hitbox forward so that it was 100% connectible after EX hands on the entire cast. Or allow it to AA for full animation! Just do something with it.
I don’t really have a problem with Gekiro’s invincibility, but I do think it’s unacceptible that mk and hk gekiro have the same hitboxes. There is no point in EVER doing mk. Give mk a faster start-up or better hitbox and sure, I’d be fine with that, but it’s lazy as it is.
TC2>HK Gekiro should land on full cast. Please.
Crane U1 needs to be active sooner or have it’s hitbox fixed so that it’s like T Hawk’s U2. Let him have a hitbox at his feet as well, please. Crane U2, just do a horizontal hurtbox reduction so that it stops losing to Zangitroll Headbutts on reaction. I don’t need start up invincibility on it, just a smaller hurtbox (I still think it should lose to DPs).
Maybe give the first hit of crane j.hk more juggle potential so that it can be followed by Gekiro?
IF NOTHING ELSE: Fix stance change landing glitch, fix Mantis U2 somehow… by above suggestions or give it more juggle potential so that full animation hits AA (I dont know why it is possible to get full ani after super but not as raw AA), and make dramatic changes to Crane normals.
