its probably a testament to this game being at least pretty good that I disagree with almost every one of UD’s matchup numbers.
Seems like the whole zoning with fbs and traps becomes hella risky once a lot of characters get super/trigger. It’s an important part of his game, but also seems like every fang is going to learn how to play without it eventually.
I got raped in the ass by KBrad’s Cammy twice. 2nd time double perfected me. There was literally nothing I could do without getting hit. So used going against braindead Cammys that when I went up against a pro I got stuffed every time I pressed a button.
what’s kbrads name on SFV? want to look at his matches XD
Uh KBradJStorm I think. Can’t remember.
My match up ratings as of 2016-09-06, coupled with some details for each character. Was fun to write! I will try to keep it updated and add new character.
**Birdie 6-4: **
Birdie has a lot of trouble dealing with FANG’s Zoning. His V-Skill Can helps him close the distance, but a well timed HK Cloud can help keep him out (only his EX moves can deal with the cloud effectively), since the can and cloud ignore each other. Depending on the range, you can sneak in another special or V-Skill. Birdie can try to spam V-Skill full screen, but that gives you the opportunity to EX Dash if you see your Nishikyu will land, and follow up for a combo and pressure.
Birdie’s buttons are good, and if he corners you it can be very dangerous. His only real advantage in this match up is his much higher damage, but without meter that’s all he has. His V-Trigger makes him qite a bit more threatening, increasing his damage, speed, and making some of his specials more useful.
FANG can give Birdie a hard time at mid screen, which is where most Birdie players are comfortable. Birdie lacks a 3f normal, so he’s also very susceptible to st.HK pressure.
Lame him out until you see the opportunity to go in. MP Nishikyu will not allow him to jump/bull revenger very easily, his hanging chain is not fast enough, his headbutt will often get stuffed, etc.
Cammy 3-7:
While Cammy has no meter, it can be more challenging for her to approach. Even her V-Skill won’t help as much if you keep a cloud ready, and it will allow you to land a counter combo unless you’re in the middle of something. Unfortunately, she is able to DP FANG if she is close right through Ryobenda and come out unscathed, so a skilled Cammy player will not let be restrained for long.
Take your time and safely apply poison/chip/build meter where and when you can. FANG can win in the footsie battle, so mixing in projectiles and a slew of normals is important. FANG’s low damage output is a little less noticeable against the 900 HP Cammy at very least.
As soon as she can EX Spiral Arrow or V-Trigger, your zoning game won’t be reliable at all. I try to V-Skill to bait it, since the recovery on that move is fast, but it’s still risky against a quick player. EX Cannon Strike is also very, very difficult to anti air with any consistency, allowing her to force her way in fairly easily. You’ll need to become familiar with all of FANG’s anti airs to try and deal with it, although usually I don’t want to risk it and would rather just block. Once she’s in your face, she has all the tools to break your guard, with frame traps, fast normals, shimmy, etc. However, it’s important to realize that her forward throw resets her pressure, unless you’ve already been cornered by her! It’s much better to take a throw than eat the combo and let her continue an offensive.
Since meter isn’t too difficult to accumulate in this game, she’ll probably have access to her EX moves often enough that after round 1, you’ll rarely be given time to breathe. V-Reversal helps to escape once she gets in (say, after blocking an EX Cannon Strike), but eventually you’ll run out, and a privy player will punish you/keep the pressure on regardless.
It is a difficult match, and given her speed it can feel very smothering. Use your defensive options as best you can, but don’t be surprised if you’re not able to keep her out.
Chun 4-6:
Chun’s versatility, speed, and aggression make her a challenge for FANG. You can lame her out from certain ranges, but her slow Kikouken can push you into the corner, and break down your wall allowing her to approach. At mid range, she can effectively shut down FANG’s specials by using her long limbs to punish on reaction.
Instant air legs, 3 frame normal, similar footsie strength, good anti airs, speed, and a strong V-Trigger. Chun-Li provides a lot of problems to deal with, and in my opinion does not really have a weakness. Her jumps are slow, although a good Chun-Li player really doesn’t need to jump other than to use instant air legs at close range.
cr.MK is what I usually try to use against her air lightning legs, but it’s a pain to watch out for constantly while she has her fast dashes, overhead, and big damage. cr.HP also can work, but the hitbox doesn’t hit quite far enough ahead I find, and depending on spacing it can whiff. It is also slower, but more rewarding. When it comes down to it, I want the most reliable option, which I believe is cr.MK.
Dhalsim 6-4:
I think this match is a lot of mind games between the two. They both have similar styles, zoning and waiting until the opportunity to go in presents itself. Both characters do fairly low damage, have good pressure, and can fight from long range.
I believe FANG can win in the long range, but a very patient Dhalsim can make it a challenge. He can trade with our clouds on reaction at mid screen (for more damage too), and punish our projectiles with time to block.
On the bright side, block strings into clouds does not let Dhalsim press buttons very easily. Nishkiyu catching a flying Dhalsim and blowing through his projectile is helpful, and you can EX Dash/Super if Dhalsim teleports to try and save yourself. Crush counter potential from full screen with HK Dash as well.
Dhalsim’s teleport are useful, but FANG has options to punish it depending on the spacing. FANG can also punish instant overheads by closing the distance with HK Dash, on block or on hit.
Dhalsim’s drill/gale pressure is pretty strong, so don’t be afraid of EX Dash or V-Reversal.
Karin 5-5:
Both characters have good footsies. Karin has more damage, a reversal, and a few ways to approach through FANG’s specials. She lacks a good anti air without meter, and has lower health. All in all, a fair trade I think.
FANG can’t get much of a consistent punish on blocked overheads, so Karin is able to do her high-low mixups without as much fear.
Try to make it difficult for Karin to get in. She can’t afford to make too many mistakes, so poison is almost actually a strong mechanic vs her. Neutral jump also is a powerful tool against her forward moving special attacks that some players rely on to approach.
Ken 4-6:
Ken is explosive up close, and he can quickly deplete FANG’s health bar if he gets to run his game. Ken can struggle to approach, but like Cammy he is able to DP right through our cloud, so it’s not something to rely on against a skilled player. His EX Hurricane Kick functions similarly to Cammy’s EX Cannon Strike, but fortunately for FANG, his cr.HP isa very good tool for anti airing it. His normals are stubby enough that you can poke and chip away at him, and he does not have a 3 frame normal, which helps FANG to pressure him, although he does have a 3 frame tatsu that he can risk.
V-Reversal is useful for once he does close that distance, and you’ll want to use it to get out of the corner ASAP, as his damage and shimmy game is really strong.
Ken’s V-Trigger makes him very scary. Not only does it help him push you to the corner, but it just makes him an all around stronger character while it’s active. If he V-Triggers a DP, be sure to punish, I believe all versions are at best -5 on block, so throw or s.MK combo! Don’t let him get away with this, it’s too deadly to give him free pressure. If he V-Triggers off a normal, consider using V-Reversal to reset neutral.
His fireballs are very fast in V-Trigger, and his tatsus are more dangerous as well. With his high damage, it’s not uncommon for him to make a comeback after activating.
Laura 5-5:
My opinion on this match up changes a lot, bouncing up and down. For now, I think I should just leave it at 5-5.
Laura with meter available, similar to Cammy/R. Mika, shuts down FANG’s ability to zone with her bolt charge. Once she gets in, her mix up game is really strong, as well as her pressure. You can be stunned and killed extremely fast if you don’t make the right guess.
This match is all about keeping Laura out, which is often easier said than done. Knowing which moves are - on block is important to help push her off. Checking her dashes with st.LP is extremely important. She can’t really compete with FANG until she closes that distance in a way that leaves her +, but he reward for doing so is large. For the most part it’s wiser to block vs Laura than to expect a command grab, as the reward for the latter is less. With some of her set ups, it’s basically impossible to tell what side she will land on, so blocking isn’t always easy…
I find this match up is really all about knowing when to use s.LP to keep Laura honest. With meter and V-Trigger, she can kill you just as fast as Ken with one combo and two guesses, and she doesn’t need you cornered to do it. Don’t let moments like that demoralize you though, as that is her character in a nutshell. Love it or hate it, we have to deal with it.
M. Bison 6-4:
I find Bison suffers to FANG’s zoning, so at full screen the fortress should do well (Watch out for EX Stomp). He’s annoying up close with his frame traps, but his dash is slow enough that you can c.MK with some consistency on reaction, giving you a counter hit combo or leaving you +2 on block. He’ll make you afraid to press buttons, building up that grey health and eventually landing some throws, but if you’re patient you can V-Reversal or EX Dash out and force him to deal with your zoning again.
Bison can hit hard, and his V-Trigger shenanigans are annoying. When you get the opportunity, pressure him and maybe force him to use his V-Gauge to V-Reversal. Like in every match up, once you get the opportunity to pressure, you absolutely need to. His defensive options are lacking, like a lot of the cast, so take advantage of that. He’s one of the characters without a 3 frame jab, so prepare to bully him with s.HK. Be sure to punish his s.MP, Pyshco Axe target combo, as it’s -5! Try not to fall for his frame traps and shimmies. Taking the throw is usually the better option, and I don’t believe he can follow it up easily unless you’re already cornered.
Bison’s V-Reversal is powerful, and you’ll either find a Bison that will happily use it at every chance to ensure FANG can’t pressure, or save it all for V-Trigger and try to make a comeback. If they have V-Trigger stocked, many like to slide to begin their offense with it, so neutral jump/stay at a good range and try to punish it!
Nash 5-5:
Nash has a lot of tools, and can combat FANG in a few different ways.
Nash’s sonic booms give him options, to zone or to cover his approach. You can combat him in the ranged game by placing clouds to give yourself protection as well as enough time to lob that poison. His best option is to use the fireballs to close in, in my opinion, because at full screen you’ll start to take the lead. He can also punish some of our zoning attempts with his sonic scythe, which can be quite annoying.
Once you’re in, Nash has weak defense, similar to FANG. He has no 4 frame normals, so it’s easier to keep the pressure on him. Nash will want to save his V-Gauge to V-Trigger, but once you prove how annoying FANG can be when given the momentum, you can force them to V-Reversal out. Afterwards, if they go back to zoning, I still believe it’s in your advantage.
Nash has a great assortment of buttons to abuse. I like to V-Reversal EX Sonic Scythe, and it’s not too hard to anti air the others with c.HP. His overhead is -6 on block, so you can punish with c.MP. Once he gets V-Trigger or super, it’s dangerous to try and zone him, but if he reacts to your Nishikyu, you can react with super cancel or EX Dash.
I feel like this is one of the most fun matches in the game, where both characters have a lot of tools and answers to each other.
Necalli 4-6:
Necalli struggles to approach FANG. He can use his dive kick to mess with your anti air timing, or hope for a quick dash to get in. He can also use Disc’s Guidance to blow through your wall. On block, it’s -6, so you can punish it with c.MP.
He may also rely on his V-Skill, which becomes an extremely powerful tool in V-Trigger. FANG can protect himself by placing a cloud, which will absorb the hit fortunately.
Necalli up close is very scary with frame traps and a command throw. His V-Trigger mode in extremely fast, and either you or he will probably be K.O.'d shortly after he has activated it. Try not to let him land too many V-Skills to build that bar early, because his V-Trigger is arguably the best in the game. The added speed, damage, and buff to his V-Skill is enough to make this match go down hill very fast.
His DP and 3 frame jab make it hard to pressure Necalli, and his damage can be really high if you make a mistake. This can be a frustrating match for both players, where FANG can more easily land hits, but Necalli can make his count for more.
Like any character that struggles to get in, V-Reversal is always a choice, going up in usefulness more and more based on how long it takes the opponent to close that distance. If you play smart and carefully, you’ll be alright.
Necalli’s can super on reaction to our projectiles, so be careful in situations like that.
Mika 5-5:
You can react to a charged s.HK with coward crouch, and get a nice follow up combo for your troubles. If you’re too slow, you’ll eat a crush counter combo instead, so there’s some risk involved. Alternatively, you can st.HP to Crush Counter, and V-Reversal on block.
While she has no meter, like others, she struggles to get in. It’s important to make her take as much damage as possible during these moments. She can mess with her jump timing by doing her body slam, which can make it difficult to anti air her consistently. Her shoulder charge if spaced well will give her the opportunity to pressure you as well.
Her EX Shooting Peach is a strong tool to bulldoze her way in, similar to Laura’s elbow (although faster!). It’ll also push you towards the corner quite a bit, which is a terrible, terrible spot to be vs her. When you block it, either throw if you’re too close to the corner, or s.HP Punish. You can also use an EX Cloud to try and bait out this move, as her armor won’t be enough to break through all the hits, and it’s hard to react to whether it’s an EX Cloud or a normal one.
Mika’s throw changes based on if you’re standing or crouching. It’s natural to want to crouch block when on the defensive, but if you stand block, Mika cannot follow up pressure on her throws. Unless the Mika is intentionally punishing you for not crouch blocking, I’d say you should try to stand block against her at all times to force her to use the much less powerful throw.
V-Trigger gives her ways to corner you, approach, or do 50-50/unblockables. Its versatility makes up for her rather lackluster V-Skill.
Being cornered by R. Mika is possibly the worst situation to be in for FANG. Be patient! Try to V-Reversal out, or risk the EX Slide if you think she’ll press buttons.
Remember, her rewards (Damage, corner carry, pressure) are better off of her combos than her command grabs usually! Block more often than trying to avoid the throws.
Rashid 5-5:
Rashid’s speed helps him get in and stay in against FANG. He’s -2 on after you block many of his normals and spinning mixer, so s.LP/s.MK is required to keep him honest. Some players are in love with EX DP after they’ve given you frame advantage, so be wary of that and punish accordingly. Because of this, I find fighting Rashid a bit of a gamble, so you may win or lose games unexpectedly.
With his very fast jump, he can bait throws, do empty jump lows, and just be annoying in general. His pressure is no joke at the very least.
EX Cloud will absorb Rashid’s V-Trigger if done right on top of it, and still have one hit left remaining, so it’s something to consider if you’re in a bad spot with time to react.
If he has you cornered, he’ll probably try to use a lot of projectiles to keep you locked down and help him get in. You can jump over his HK Cloud due to its long start up. Be very careful using V-Reversal on the cloud, as you’ll end up right in Rashid’s face unless he moved!
A perfectly spaced Eagle Spike is a real pain for FANG to deal with. EX Sotoja, inch forward f.HP, and V-Reversal s.LP, s.MK, MK Sotoja are our only options to punish it! Not many Rashid can space it this well, but keep it in mind in cas you run into a very good one.
Rashid’s normals are decent, but FANG has the tools to keep him out with some success. Out range him, chip away, and make some good guesses on those reversals and you’ll be okay. Probably…!
Ryu 4-6:
A pretty honest match up. Ryu hits hard, has lots of tools to combat FANG, and as always just seems like a solid character with an answer for many situations.
FANG can have a difficult time zoning out Ryu, as his Hadouken game is pretty powerful, especially in V-Trigger, not to mention he builds more meter than we do for using clouds compared to his Hadouken. His sweep is as fast as our s.MP, and due to the priority system it will beat it clean, so be careful using it in some situations (such as when you break a throw tech).
Up close and personal is where Ryu will want to be. He can really do some damage and put on the pressure, which is bad news for FANG. He’s also harder to pressure due to his fast normals and DP, and FANG’s damage off a crush counter isn’t amazing so it can be frustrating. His j.LK has an annoying hurt box, so even though cr.HP is a great anti air for cross ups, it can still miss if you’re not on point with it.
It feels like both characters can fight one another, but the reward on Ryu’s end is larger, so even if you both play well he’ll come out ahead most of the time. I believe this is one of FANG’s hardest match ups, mostly because like Chun-Li, Ryu doesn’t appear to be lacking at all in this match up. Make use of your longer limbs as much as you can!
Vega 5-5:
I find this match up to be frustrating. Vega is scary with his claw off and up close, but he can compete with FANG at midscreen with the claw on. He has options to deal with FANG’s zoning as well, such as V-Trigger and EX Roll.
That said, it can still be hard for Vega to approach consistently. Without meter/V-Trigger he’s quite vulnerable to FANG’s zoning. Pick up what damage when you can, while you can.
Vega up close, with his claw on/off tricks, a command grab at his disposal, and his low hitting special attack gives a lot to worry about. There are gaps where you can jab him, but sometimes you’ll have to guess, and that’s never good for FANG. You cna’t jab him if he spins and puts the claw ON, as he is +. Only when he spins to take the claw off.
Being ready to jab (and convert into a counter hit combo) is useful. c.MP into MK Wall is also very useful here to keep Vega off of you. If Vega jumps in, his j.HK has a great hitbox and can be very dangerous to anti air with st.LP. Try not to rely on it in this match up, or you’ll eat a lot of damage.
Zangief 6-4:
Another match where MP Nishikyu can be effective vs Gief. He can opt to use his V-Skill in order to absorb the projectiles and build up that V-Trigger gauge, which is something you’d rather not let happen obviously. Try to keep the poison on him so he can’t recover that gray health, but eventually you’ll have to fight your way in to land that hit if the Zangief is playing very patient and conservatively.
He’s slow and bulky, and s.MP is useful to keep him out. st.MK/cr.HP to anti air him, depending on the angle he comes in at. Pick away at him with your normals and specials, and try to bait the V-Trigger. While he has it, it’ll be harder to keep him out. You can bait the V-Trigger by using MP Nishikyu, and EX Dash on reaction to his V-Trigger activation, although if he’s very fast this won’t work.
If you’re getting close to the corner, it’s worth spending an EX Bar to dash out while he’s still working his way in. Cancel it from a normal (say s.MP) or react to a jump, and force him to chase you down again. It’s absolutely 100% worth it, since if Zangief gets you into the corner it can be game ending.
Zangief doesn’t have a 3 frame normal, so you can try bullying him on wake up. His V-Skill absorbs 2-hits, so st.HK or cr.MK does isn’t 100% guaranteed to work. Throw works pretty well on Gief’s wake up also, but if he does his EX Grab it will beat yours and swap the momentum completely. When he has meter, it’s probably better not to risk throwing him on wake up very often.
When Zangief scores that knockdown, he can be very scary. It’s hard to escape after eating a SPD, so you’ll have to make guesses like usual. Try not to panic, because eventually you’ll make a mistake and Gief will get to do some damage. His light SPD doesn’t let him pressure after landing it, but his other ones do. Keep that in mind, as it is a very crucial detail!
Alex 5-5:
I haven’t fought a great many Alex players yet, but he has some obvious difficulties vs FANG. Coward crouch can duck under his elbow, and allow you to punish it. FANG’s walls are also really useful to keep Alex out, and completely kills his V-Trigger Unblockable attack. He suffers on defense, so we’re able to pressure him happily. He has a quick and easy to use anti air, so don’t be too jump happy against him.
His lariat can be ducked unless he’s super close I think, so crouch blocking vs him is really important to make it whiff. His c.MP is a good poke, and he may use it to V-Trigger cancel into. I think for the most part you can use a similar game plan you use against Zangief to fight Alex with. Unlike Zangief, Alex’s reward for landing a command grab is less both in damage and pressure. Like Laura/Mika, you’ll probably want to block against Alex more than risk jumping away from a command grab, because when Alex hits you, he hits you hard, and can continue his pressure very well off of many different hits/combos.
His huge damage and high health mean he can turn the match around very quickly if/when you make a mistake. Try your best to play solid and he shouldn’t get that opportunity too often.
Guile 4-6:
Guile is difficult to fight. His zoning game is very strong, and his V-Skill + Boom can knock down our wall and allow him to pressure us. You can LK Ryobenda the two-hit boom if you’re feeling spiffy, but I feel like this is the one match where we have very little hope of forcing Guile to come to us. His zoning game is simply stronger than ours.
If Guile corners you, has V-Trigger, and gets that one lucky hit, he can do his silly 20 second combo on you and reset you into stun, then death. Don’t let it happen, he shouldn’t be able to push you that far very easily in the first place.
Guile’s flash kicks are all crush counterable, but only his EX one is fully invincible. His HK Flashkick goes through projectiles however, so cloud setups on knockdown against him aren’t as great an option. They’re also risky to set up in block strings, as a knowledgeable Guile will be waiting for the MK/HK cloud to be put right in his face, and then punish the long recovery with a flash kick.
His normals and boom aren’t quite as oppressive as they were in IV, and he’s weaker defensively as well, with no 3 frame normals, below average health, and only EX as his true reversal. You can feel out the ranged game for a bit, but don’t be surprised if you have to abandon that plan. Consider using your meter to cancel the poison lob into EX Dash simply to close the distance and try to put the hurt on, as it can otherwise be very difficult to approach Guile. That said, he’s still powerful and forces FANG to play his game, which is pretty bad news for us.
His regular flash kicks all have high-attack invincibility, which unfortunately means it will be invincible to not just jumping attacks, but our st.LP, st.MK, etc.
Ibuki 5-5:
Ibuki is a very resource dependant character. She has low health, her damage changes drastically depending on her resources. She doesn’t have threatening low attacks either, only really getting anything off it with V-Trigger or at very close range.
Still, she is literally an explosive character that can finish FANG off fast if she gets her V-Trigger combos and set ups going. Her EX Kunai can go through our cloud (but the other ones cannot), and her f.HK can hop over it as well and punish us for good damage. At mid range, she is outclasses in footsies, but has all the tools needed to fight our wall.
If she ends a combo with LP Raida, she’ll dash forward and do a st.MP most likely. This hits meaty, allowing her to convert on hit or pressure on block. It’s not too scary once you’re used to it.
Her overhead is the slowest in the game, but she can combo off of it. You shouldn’t get hit by it unless you whiff a throw or something. It is -2 on block, so you can steal the momentum with a jab afterwards (unless she wants to risk an EX DP).
Balrog 6-4:
Until Barlog gets V-Trigger, this match up is pretty bad for him. The cloud is a big problem, although he is able to punch over it with a few attacks. Use your projectiles greedily in this match and get all the free damage you can.
Once Balrog has V-Trigger, he’ll be able to convert into big damage, especially with EX Moves added in. Watch out for his double low Target Combo, which is how most Balrogs like to start their V-Trigger pressure/combos.
Like Vega, his jumping attacks are strong, so don’t rely on st.LP too much or you’ll regret it. His EX Low and Straight are not punishable on block, so keep that in mind as well.
If Balrog wants to reset during his V-Trigger, he’ll be able to do a low, high, throw or frame trap. It may be worth mashing EX Slide during this, as that option will beat 3/4 of his.
Juri 5-5:
Juri is an odd opponent. At full screen she can charge her specials and her V-Skill, meaning it’s probably not worth it for FANG to fight her from full range. Like Guile, her reward is simply greater than ours, so we’re forced to play footsies instead. Her V-Skill can very easily punish our projectiles during recovery if it’s charged. If you block it, you are able to punish with st.HP fortunately.
She also has EX Moves to punish our specials at mid screen, so basically relying on those to win this match up won’t work.
Her fireball leaves her at -2, so try and jab her after it so she can’t go too crazy. During her V-Trigger, she’ll be able to do quite a lot of damage. If you’re blocking, it’s probably better to just downback until you see the fireball. Almost everything she does during V-Trigger will deplete her gauge faster and faster, so while it can be quite scary, it should be short-lived if you’re patient.
Not going to fill up the page with a quote but I did want to reference this list you made. (Just realizing your the Rhyllis from reddit and the video I commented on yesterday.)
Chun 4-6: Yeah I think it’s hard to put a matchup as 7-3 but this one feels brutal. I never feel like I am in control against Chun and her pressure at multiple ranges just suffocates me. This probably has something to do with how strong of a character she is too though.
Bison 5-5: I find this matchup very difficult but that could be my matchup inexperience. He seems to somewhat ignore your fullscreen zoning or at least taking minimal damage to get in and start his endless button pressing. You just have to play so much better than they do with your low damage and possibility to get blown up over and over by his pressure/dash up.
**
Rashid 4-6:** This matchup doesn’t feel to bad. Personally I’m not all that afraid of a lot of rashids options being that he doesn’t have a command grab and his damage is on the lower end. He has some tricky setups but once you learn them he looses a lot of his potential. You really need to make rashids pay for jumps and unsafe special moves because he relys on some amount of both of them.
I haven’t played a good sim yet so I am unsure on how that matchup goes but I’m impressed you think fang is favored.
chun 7-3 hands down fang has no answer to this …
Mika’s a pain.
Interesting. In my (lower level admittedly) experience, I have a pretty easy time zoning Mika out. Vega and Nash’s jumps are hell for me to deal with, especially when Vega does wall dives in Claw stance. Nash isn’t so much a problem until he gets you to block that bullshit cr.MP which is like +5 or some nonsense. I also have trouble anti-airing his cross ups for some reason, partly because his jump is so darn fast.
Interesting to see you post here, Rhyllis. I noticed you were one of the highest-ranked FANGs online. Mad respect for that.
I do like to grind that ladder! Thanks for the kind words :).
I don’t find Nash difficult to anti air at all personally, but he does have a fast jump, I agree. Vega I sometimes trade with when I anti air him, which is annoying, but at least it’s something.
I have a trick I’ve been doing against Vega’s EX Wall Dive recently. I’ll make a video about it later today if I can!
Please do ! I find myself unable to do anything against it, mostly because I’m to slow to react, j.lp doesn’t seems to work unlike the normal ones.
Here it is:
This “counter”, if you’d call it that, still loses to Vega’s grab follow up, but most Vega players I find never do that when you’re grounded like this. They want that hit, especially with claw off, to combo. That said, if you keep spamming this option against them, they may actually do the grab follow up instead, but c.HP will beat that.
This trade is the same with or without Vega’s claw on. You’re able to counter attack them before they can recover. Depending on spacing and what not, you can even land s.HK before they have time to block, but c.MP or c.HK are good choices too.
Also, if they do not use the EX Version of the wall dive attack (not the grab), it will whiff entirely. However, if they cross you up (quite likely!) your follow up crouch attack will go the wrong way. If they use the normal Wall Dive, I personally prefer to c.HP anti air, since that can beat it clean much more consistently I find.
And if you don’t want to deal with it at all, you can try to command dash away from harm.
Not a perfect counter sadly, but you get to hit them back harder than they hit you, gain momentum, and confuse/throw them off. Plus it’s fun.
Fang’s arms eat projectiles during Sotoja, and he is crazy safe on block at maximum range. Nash has a long windup on his booms and fast recovery afterwards - it’s pretty much the perfect fireball to beat with Sotoja.
Very much appreciated ! That’s quite simple and elegant, I like it !
So guys, does anyone have strong opinions about FANG’s moves/tools on a by match up basis? I’ll give some examples from my experience:
-Coward Crouch is amazing against Birdie because he generally tries to poke with his standing medium and heavy normals, all of which FANG can command crouch under and whiff punish. This makes Birdie’s mid-range game much harder and more dependent on cr.MK and cr.HK, which aren’t very safe and can be blocked whilst downbacking. Against characters who use low pokes and/or cross up a lot, this move isn’t very useful. There’s also a nice cancel window in Nishikyu during this move, which is very good for winning projectile wars against Ryu and Ken.
-MK/HK Ryobenda can be frustrating obstacles for Zangief and non-VT Bison, and also are good ways to force R.Mika and Laura to waste EX Meter armoring through them to get in. They are also really good for stopping Dhalsim’s pokes and coaxing him into a predictable teleport. In my experience, Nash/Cammy/Vega’s speed and jumps make these way less useful, especially when they have the resources to simply ignore them.
-df.HP … I can’t figure out what to do with this normal. It is FANG’s farthest-reaching poke, but its speed means you have to set it up instead of just throwing it out like some of Vega/Chun/Dhalsim’s better pokes. This move is fairly good against big and/or short ranged characters, but the aforementioned speed problem makes using it against other poke characters a liability.
idk. fang doesn’t seem to have any 1 size fits all options vs anyone. the better i get with him, the more i end up using almost everything at my disposal. right now it seems more to me about understanding situations where a tool might be useful or you can get away with some shenanigans.
J
This is exactly how I feel, and trying to improve as a player I really enjoy all of the options Fang gives. He may not be the greatest character in terms of tiers, but I love his play style, and a character that forces me to predict and use almost 100% of his tools makes me understand the character more indepth.
so vs vega, i think the perfect stock round opener would be to walk back a little bit. a lot of vega’s like to open up with sweep or f.hp. if you do this you can whiff punish with s.hp xx h.sotoja. i did it in a match one time then decided to test it out, works vs both options.
vs vega’s f.hp really isn’t that safe. the only thing is your timing has to be perfect. you recover a lot sooner than you might think and all of vega’s recovery is him stepping back to where he started so the earlier you can catch him even at max range if you do things frame perfect.
from absolute max range frame perfect s.mp and c.mp connect. s.mp can cancel into l/ex sotoja or m/h mine to trap, while c.mp only cancels into ex sotoja or the mines.
anywhere closer in (if ANY part of vega’s arm touches you), you have a tone of options. c.lk, s.mp, c.mp, ex sotoja, df.hp and c.rh
c.rh and df.hp punish are a bit particular. for c.rh, too far and you only get 1 hit. for df.rh, it’s 12f start up so all that time vega is moving backwards so you have to be slightly outside of df.hp range for it to work.
the risks, obviously if you’re late you can get whiff punished. vega’s like to slight afterwards and if you were late w/ s.mp/c.mp you’ll get whiff punished. same for sweep. but df hp if you screwed up and they pressed a button, they’ll get hit but if they didn’t, you’ll whiff and again get whiff punished.
not a punish but after blocking it is the perfect opportunity to place a m.ryobenda off reversal timing.
vs ex crimson terror, since it’s -2 and vega’s fastest normal is 3f, you can use the priority system to use s.mk xx L/ex.ryobenda. if you’re in the corner use ex ryobenda and if it’s blocked, immediately use c.lk (counter hit confirm into c.mp). on hit you can either juggle w/ ex sotoja or get out the corner and mix up. if you’re mid screen, s.mk xx l.ryobenda is safe and gives you some space.
again, you recover faster than you think you do so practice the timing.
Against Vega, I didn’t realize that we could punish his forward HP with our down forward HP xx VT, S.HP xx whatever. I’m slow smh