So, with the new update, Baz went from a very extreme, almost broken (but not overpowered) character to probably one of the worst characters in the game. In his current state:
- Kickfactor is now basically an endgame solution. If you’re up ahead by a significant amount of rounds and want to close out the game with one more hit, there’s no reason not to go for Kickfactor to finish it off as a guarantee unless you’re worried about getting headshot.
- Shocker is the go-to move for Baz and, unfortunately, probably the main source of kills. Shocker is primarily used defensively, but can also be used as a follow-up for missed kicks when you’re right next to the opponent, especially for steep-kick characters (Marn, Redacted) and high-jump floaty characters (Dr. Shoals, Uncle Sensei)
- Dependency on Shocker means the Baz is dependent on meter, perhaps the most dependent on meter in the game. This means that Headshots are pretty much a death sentence for him.
- Mighty Swing is still terrible. It’s somewhat usable against steep-kick characters and/or for chasing people running away, but it’s otherwise too slow and too vulnerable to use.
I propose the following to remedy the massive loss of Kickfactor:
- Allows Baz to headshot, or don’t allow him to get headshot either. It really makes no sense why he shouldn’t be able to headshot but get headshot in return, especially when the Baz has more to lose from a headshot than pretty much any other character in the game. It’s especially dumb since a headshot on the Baz means another free kill for the opponent, usually more if they are Shoals or Redacted, which is garbage considering the point of nerfing Baz’s Kickfactor was to prevent free kills.
- Make Mighty Swing’s active frames come out instantly. The swing itself doesn’t need to be faster, but the fact that his feet aren’t hitboxes the moment it activates means you can’t really use it on reaction.
- Mighty Swing should also not stop when it hits the floor. That would give the utility of making it longer actually worth something.
- Make Shocker a frame faster. This would keep the S-Kill match-up from being totally bonkers.
Other than the ability to headshot/the ability to never be headshot, these changes don’t drastically affect the way he plays, but it’ll make his options more viable. If the point of the update was for us to use the options more, at least make the options more usable, especially Mighty Swing.