Dealing with jab pressure

Classic Fighting Games Street Fighter x Tekken
1

So after playing a bit against good players and watching a lot of streams, it seems like jab pressure is a huge part of the metagame. (Weak punch I know, but it’ll always be jab to me)

In regards to that, what does Bob do?

I’ve looked at it in training mode with Cammy, and Rolento since they seem to have the best jabs, and here’s what I’ve got so far.

-Avoid the situation. The best solution but this isn’t Zangief we’re talking about, it’s Rolento/Cammy, so this is unfeasible.

-Block until they do something else. This is a great idea, but I’ve seen players with a life lead who’re willing to literally go on until timeout.

-Backdash. It can work, but Bob’s backdash isn’t great and in the corner it’s not safe at all.

-Jump. You will get hit. But sometimes it’s a weird situation where they can’t get an optimized combo and you get a chance to get free. Sometimes though you’ll take 300-400 damage off the confirm.

-Alpha Counter. You can do it, but it’s really difficult and it’s highly likely you will get counterhit.

-EX Cracker Jack. It’s invulnerable but unsafe on hit. So . . .

-EX Special Step. It sorta works. It has a hit of armor and you can go right into the dp style followup and it will be safe, but your opponent can manage to get two jabs in fast enough to break your armor from point blank and the dp can be blocked if they know you’re going to do it. (I mean a jab isn’t a commitment) Also since you don’t have much blockstun to work with sometimes the move won’t come out as a reversal and then you’re just counterhit for sure.

-Jab them first! I try but Bob’s jab isn’t Rolento’s, and he doesn’t have a divekick, although his jump arc is the hotness.

So, anyone else have any input?

Also if you want I can delete this and fold it into the Q&A or Footsies thread, but it seems like this is becoming a big part of the game so I thought it deserved a place to discuss.

2

Jab them first

3

Be patient and block, most people are bound to get irritated with good defense that they will try risky things.

1.) They will try to grab, practice teching.
2.) They will try to jump, anti-air accordingly.
3.) Depending on the character, try to guess when they throw out a jab. There have been various matches where people will DP an unwatched jab.

Eventually, your opponent should be annoyed as hell.

4

yeah… ‘just wait for’ advice is totally voided by ranked. On this and other topics… (see lk scissors) people are PERFECTLy happy to spam something if you seem content to just block it. maybe 1 out of 10 gets frustrated and tries to throw… but if they have a life lead, dont count on it.

5

I actually don’t think there is much Bob can do against jab pressure…

  • Trying to jump out can work, but only if they screw up or leave a big gap, as against tight jabbing you’ll probably just eat a full grounded combo for trying
  • Backdash can also work, but if they’re on the ball (and sometimes not even - see Rolento) this can also result in you eating a full grounded combo, because not only is Bob’s backdash pretty bad in terms of distance and duration, it also has the most grounded recovery frames in the game if I recall correctly
  • Trying to interrupt with your own jab can work, but only if they leave a big gap. Bob’s jab is 5f startup, and most opponent’s jabs are at least that fast or quicker, and leave them + on block anyway, so yeah, this will probably result in you getting counterhit into eating a full grounded combo
  • s.LK is Bob’s quickest attack, at 4f startup, but again, good luck on not getting counterhit. It’s also hard to confirm into anything since you can’t link after it, so I would recommend chaining to s.MP, and trying to confirm the rest of the chain into cross rush, sweep, or c.HP into EX swift step if it hits
  • EX Cracker can work, but only against standing jabs, as it will sail over crouching opponents leaving you open for a combo. The 9f startup doesn’t make this easy either… It ain’t no Ryu DP, that’s for sure. It’s also -14f on hit, and the followups don’t combo from it (I think?), so it appears that the opponent can just mash DP/whatever after getting hit by it anyway.
  • If you’re feeling gutsy, you could try Cross Art. The range is laughably tiny, but it has the same startup as EX Cracker (9f), so if you consider that a viable option, then I guess this would be one too… at least it can’t sail over the opponent if they’re crouching I guess lol
  • Alpha counter might be a legit option, but I’m unsure of the startup? Can it be safe jabbed by certain characters? Kind of a bummer how you can’t really tag cancel off of it into combo, but if it works, it works

You best option is honestly to never get in that situation, but try as we might, it’s going to eventually happen anyway…

Other than that, I think the best option is to do EX Swift Step (for armour) into Apres Sweep (the fastest swift step attack) into Cutting Coppa. If blocked, cutting coppa is a safe-ish move (but not totally safe), and also allows for combos after it in the corner. Still not perfect, because if it’s blocked they can just mash DP/whatever before the Cutting Coppa (there’s a gap) and it also requires meter, but I think it’s probably your best bet all the same…

I have tried to do EX Swift Step into Langue Washer to score a combo, but the startup is so large that I often just get snuffed as my armour runs out and I eat a combo, or they end up just blocking anyway… I’ve had much more success with Apres Sweep into Cuttnig Coppa so far.

EX Swift Step into Spiral Rocky should beat everything, but it’s suicide if they block, so it’s pretty risky… Although, if you’ve got the meter for a switch cancel to save yourself on block (2 bars total), it may actually be a great idea.

If you don’t have any meter… I think all you can do is just block it out and hope they push themselves far enough away so you can escape, or hail-mary cross rush against the c.jabs.

6

Your safe options are:

  1. Block until they push themselves out, poke/neutral jump once they are at a safe distance.
  2. Pick a different character :stuck_out_tongue:
7

You can try and trade your LP with them and then backdash to establish space, but as everybody else as said there’s not much he can do against it.

8

yeah spiral rocky should beat just about everything but that’s like a one time deal

like everyone has said though just blocking is the best idea just because jab pressure doesn’t really hurt you it’s just pressure shrugs if they abuse it it’s better for you because then you can see their patterns to when they decide to walk up

9

Bob doesn’t have a legit GFTO move, which is one of his biggest problems. However you should take advantage of SFXT engine mechanics…

Getting throw is a lot better than being jab pressure. I mean when you are knockdown, the oppotent has to make a good read on you. You can just roll accordingly to get better space from your foe. You still have to block crossups, and crap…if you are knockdown there is virtually nothing prevent you from rolling. IMO, rolling in this game makes okizeme mixups not that big of a deal at all. Don’t sweat being knockdown’d when that is not really a big deal to Bob, as much as being corner’d with no options to escape.

Finally if you got 3 bars and Bob is going to cost you the match…use Cross Assault. Cross Assault automatically tags out your oppotent, and you will just get a free get out of jail card for 3 bars. It also splits down Bob’s health with your partner health…so it’s comes in handy when you need to keep your team in the life lead.

10

Jab Cracker>Jacker seems to actually work against the standing jabs…

Not exactly the safest option. :sweat:

11

i just raw launcher and pray. Seriously i think an entire thread devoted to bobs overall defense needs to be made. He’s got good life but i when he gets knocked down people honestly just run through him.
This is all i got:
cr.fr - works decently as an anti-air
St.fr - good keep out move, stays active a while and beats most things coming in
jump back mk - its got decent priority, when used right it can relieve some pressure
cr.str - just a good poke
The way i see it now the whole of his defense is gonna come from rolling and alpha counters (i don’t even know if the ac’s are safe on block or not, i would think not)

EDIT: After experimenting with some st.fr it works but it seems really slow and punishable, wouldn’t say its bad but you gotta use it sparingly

12

yea i just do ex swift step into apres and cutting coppa cause it will go under, or rocky depending on if i have the extra bar to tag out

you just need a little meter to be safe against pressure. which is why i like bob on anchor.

does jab cracker have invincibility??

13

All of them (at least non ex) are upper body invincible during their beginning frames, then strike invulnerable later in the start up animation. Works against st jabs but low attacks will blow it up. Cl. LK is also decent if you’re in range as it’s his fastest move at 4 frames.

14

Wait for them to push themselves far enough so that you can safely backdash or jab them. No character in this game can actually jab you infinitely without leaving gaps eventually.