Frame Traps

I’ve seen and heard this term a lot, and I have no idea what it means. I’m assuming it means doing something that forces the opponent to make a choice upon wake-up or if they’re in a certain situation, but get punished regardless? If I’m right, then can someone help me what those situations might be, and if I’m wrong, tell me what it really means?

I’m a Cammy player, if this helps at all.

Thanks

That isn’t a frame trap.

Some of the most common frame traps in SF4 are ways to blow up throw teching. For example, many characters are at frame advantage after their low jab/short is blocked. They can then input another attack that will counter hit the start up frames of the throw tech attempt, often leading into big damage.

Cammy’s game benefits greatly from frame traps. Try checking out the Cammy section for more info.

"Frame traps are about tricking your opponent into thinking they can punish you after a blocked special that leaves you at an frame advantage"
http://sf4answers.com/questions/206/what-are-frame-traps
That’s what I got from Google.

Basically using a move that is safe on block.

Okay, I see what you’re saying. Thanks!

no. safe on block just means you are safe from punishment. Safe on block could even mean you are at a disadvantange let alone be in a position to continue pressuring.

Simplest explanation. It’s doing two moves in succession that leave a small gap in between that allow an opponent to try and retaliate but the gap would be so small that your second move will interupt theirs. Invincible attacks wil blow through your second attack but it’s good against people pressing buttons and trying to crouch tech (as a normal will come out if you don’t throw them).

It’s not designed to blow up crouch tech like the other guy implied though. It just also has a use there.

That’s the sort of thing why counters are made, just sounds like a scrub mashing away knowing their safe unless the other guy spams an uppercut which is a big risk for someone not trying to mash.

Thank you, sir. That makes much more sense.

you can think of frame traps along the lines of block strings.

No, what I described is not just scrubby mashing knowing your safe. It’s called knowing your moveset and using moves that allow you to keep on the pressure.

Why are you talking like you know stuff when you had to google frame trap to begin with.

It’s not real pressure though, wasn’t sure the exact term for frame trap but how you describe it, it’s scrubby. A counter is something to stop a scrub from mashing on block. But without counter you simply keep blocking until it resets. Would only work the first time someone doesn’t know how long the trap last, when they find out how long you can string crap together, such as that one character with the dradle in Arcana Heart 3, it removes all pressure possible.

You joined last wednesday, how much experience do you have in fighting games?

Some situations require the a player to take action to regain back momentum or get the opponent off of him. By enforcing these situtations early on in a match you’ll condition him to do things like throw tech/try and jump out (jumping has startup)/stick out a cr.mp/etc to escape these situations the next time he recognizes them. And these fall victim to frame traps. SF4 in particular has a lot of emphasis on conditioning the opponent to tech throws, this requires a button input that will lose to well thought out frame traps.
You seem to assume frame traps are obvious and that a good player will just see it coming and block or counter it. But if you’re a good player too you won’t be transparant about your intentions, you’ll make him feel that blocking is not the best choice in that situation since blocking can lead to bing thrown and being placed in horrible positions on the screen by either the throw or a good blockstring, while at the same time making him weary of throwing out something invincible to blow through your pressure. At that point he’ll start using other options like throw tech/jumping out/sticking out a poke of his own to puh you away. That’s when you use a frame trap to hit you opponent.

It’s all about a varied offense. Frame traps are just one option out of many you should be employing.

If you think that’s scrubby please refer back to 20 years of fighting game experience that this community has. Or you can block everthing perfectly, never get counterhit, never get thrown, counter every pressure string with a special.

Frame traps are the more consistent way to setup counterhits. They also stop people from mashing. Basically if you are plus frames on a move (blocked or on hit) then you have a frame advantage. If they try to do something like mash jab or tech, then you can usually blow it up with another move, and you’ll get a counterhit. Counterhits are powerful because there are some combos that are only possible off of a counter hit. They also do more damage and stun.

Lets say I’m Guile and I have Ryu cornered. I dash in and do a low short, I’m now at plus, so I need to do a move that is probably 4 frames on startup. If he tries to do a cr.mk, and I do a cr.mp, then counterhit him because my cr.mp will actually come out before his cr.mk. His animation will start but be interrupted, because he’s doing this move when he has negative frames. If he loves to jab or cr.short after he is hit, then I can do a close st.fp. It has about 4 frames startup and hits crouchers. This will blow up his attempt at mashing, and he will get hit out of it.

Frames traps are the best way to beat people who mash jab a lot, especially at a disadvange

quality newb pwnage.

By frames, you mean the actual frames it takes for a move to come out? If that’s the case, that makes plenty of sense.

What throws me off about part of this post is the example you provided. What do you mean by negative frames? I apologize, I’ve played since vanilla, but I’ve neglected to understand frame data.

honestly, Ive been playing fighters for 8 years, and ive never bothered to look at frame data…you just need to learn what can counter what and memorize it.
as for his example, jabs are really fast so guile can recover from his jab faster than ryu can recover from his BLOCK STUN + countering…so there for guile can continue an assault until he is pushed out of range from ryus blocking.

just like hit stun in marvel decays over time…the longer your frame trap or block string is the greater chance ryu or whomever has to recover because it pushes you back in the process

Gotcha.

I swear my opponents are like this lol