Yo. My team is Frank, Sentiel, and Morrigan. Should I have Sentiel with the drones or his otg rocket punch assist?
Well, drones charge or drones bomb can both help Frank get in and extend his combos. So I’d go for those.
I don’t think you need an assist after coming in as Frank after Viper. If you launch right away and then hit :s:, you can use his knee drop to land faster and it can then be canceled into photo.
This is why I use Joe/Frank
[details=Spoiler][media=youtube]9ji6xUWTq08[/media]
905k
Cr. 
:h: Cr. :h: :dp: :h: (Double Jump) :h: :s: (first hit) :qcf: (Airdash if midscreen) :qcb::h: :h: :dp: :atk:+:atk: Air Joe (Aerial Exchange) (Frank) :h: :qcf::l: :qcf::l: :qcf::l: :s: :qcf::s: :qcb::atk:+:atk:[/details]
Ok, so I have to say something about this now. To all my Frank West players, please, please spend more time in training mode with your team.
If you’re going to build a team around Frank then you need an assist to help extend your combos and another to help with mixups.
- There’s no reason to end a combo with a picture, with no follow up.
- There’s no reason for you to use THC’s just to level up Frank. It’s kind of noobish.
- There’s no reason at all for you to TAC just to level up frank.
I played a guy yesterday that had a team of nova/frank/wolvie. I dont remember exactly how/what he did but it started with nova doing a combo into nova force, dhc (whiff) tools of survival super, took a pic with frank into tools of survival super, dhc to wolvie berserker charge, then hard tag back to frank for 4 levels. That’s 3 supers…kinda redundant IMO.
I can level up frank to 3 or 4 levels, NO super, NO DHC, NO TAC, NO THC’s. I can give whatever advice I can, but I’m trying to stop the noobishness. If you need to depend on the above tactics to gain levels then you should consider trying some new characters to level up frank in any order they may be.
CHARACTERS THAT HELP WITH LEVELING UP:
- Multi hitting assists. (dormammu, dante, scrull, chun li)
- Ground bounce assists. (deadpool, nemesis)
- Wall bounce assists. (ironfist, nemesis)
- Hard knockdown assists. (spencer, ironfist)
yeah I totally agree. A lot of people have been too focused on lvling up Frank that they tend to burn up a lot of their resources to do it. I think the main issue is that people are too inclined to have that lvl 5 that they forget that the point of the game is beat the opponent. It’s a fighting game not an rpg. I think Frank players should find a balance with maintaining a decent lvl Frank while doing as much damage as possible. So what if you don’t get lvl 5, 4 is already pretty good.This game revolves around teams so building a team just to have a lvl 5 Frank is not the best thing to do imo.
Some things to remember:
- the less resources to use, the better
- havng characters on the team just to lvl up Frank may not be the best thing. Think team, do the others compliment each other? are the dhcs good? do they cover weaknesses? etc. are the other members of the team actual characters for you to use or are they just for Frank?
- can I maximize damage/lvl with whatever random touch I make (probably most important and would go back to the whole “back to training room” thing)
Granted it’s a lot to take in and I myself was guilty of this. I ran a team for the sole purpose of getting frank to lvl 5 (Nova, Frank, Nemesis and GR, Frank, Nemesis). It made me realize after playing people that my team wasn’t exactly at a good place and that there were some serious problems with it. I am not talking playing online or with bad players either. I play with some fierce competition down here in socal, with some people you see in streams. I had to change my game plan to something with a good balance (running Nem/Frank/Dorm). I had to hit the lab to figure out ways to maximize dmg, get to lvl 4 off any hit meterless, or whatever. But with all that said and done, I think it makes for better a Frank/ overall player. I suggest for some people to take a look at their teams and just analyze their gameplan and overall strategy.
Im not here to criticize, by all means I want to help people. Just a few things I noticed and a few others I no doubt as well. I also would be glad to answer some questions or any concerns.
Should I go ahead and make a thread so we can analyze his move set and options through his levels?
I understand where people are coming from about using THC’s and TACs, but there is almost nothing wrong with the strategy. Using a THC is almost absolutely as relevant as using a DHC, so I don’t understand the argument there. I also don’t see what the problem is using a TAC. Some teams don’t have DHC setups that can make frank an instant level 3-5, so TAC’s are absolutely acceptable. Granted it isn’t a certainty but, what if you want to play Frank with two other specific characters that have no other viable options?
In fact, I’m struggling with my team synergy so if someone here can help me with my two main problems, I’d greatly appreciate any advice you guys could provide
Firebrand/Frank West/Doctor Doom
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what assists should I use for each? Rocks for left right mixups or Missiles for firebrand unblockable?
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My go to level 4 Frank combo is: FIREBRAND 22 hit combo, TAC into frank, picture XX tools of survival DHC luminous body, HARD TAG FRANK, picture.
I could always start frank, do a decent combo, picture, tools of survival DHC luminous body, hard tag frank picture, but it would probably put me at level 3 and having level 1 frank open up an opponent is no where near as effective as firebrand mixing one up.
For my Frank team, I’m currently using Strange/Frank/Hawkeye.
I use TAC from Strange to Frank to get to lvl 5 with no meter.
I’m considering using doom instead of strange and I’m wondering does doom rocks combo fully after a picture late into a combo after the TAC?
Basically what I do is a hit maximizing combo with point, TAC into Frank for a bunch more hits, then hit the floor, call assist and take a pic. Strange works no matter the hitstun, but I’m wondering if doom rocks works the same way.
TAC’s can be blocked though. What I’m trying to say is that you dont need those cheap tactics. If someone counters your TAC then your plan has to change immediately. My firebrand assist helps me get to 3 levels which is all frank needs to be comfortable in a match. All you need is 2 pics and you’re good.
But to answer number 1…
- Try putting frank on point…he has more health and better combos. If you play me and I touch your firebrand, he’s dead.
- Frankie - either juice assist for meter, or shopping cart
- Firebrand - I use the otg spitfire…air combo with frank (launch, M,M,H,S) land, call firebrand, take picture, assist hits, (launch, M,M,H,S) land, call other assist (doom rocks), take another pic…either try another pic if the rocks are still hitting or just do a super after the second pic.
- Doom - rocks assist for firebrand and frankie. They both benefit from it. Since you’re spending most of your time in the air with firebrand anyway, fly and call doom, swoop down for your own mixups or combo. Build meter from frank’s juice.
I like that team, it sounds very solid. My substitute from doom is nemesis. I’ll play you a few games if you want to see what im talking about.
STAY AWAY FROM TAC’s just to level up frank. I don’t play people who depend on tac’s.
I hope my post helps. Merry Christmas.
I agree with Wolverine-Master. Most teams focus on burning meter to Level up Frank when clearly we can just use assists to help frank continue combos. Not only that but if your exchange gets countered you better know how to use Level. 1 Frank.
EDIT: sorry for grammatical errors, I was typing on my phone and driving (bad idea).
anyway here is a video, level 4 with No TAC, although I just don’t see why I should risk using frank at level 1 when I have an effective way of opening an opponent up and getting level 4 with a TAC (and a 66% certainty), Video shows both options.
[media=youtube]P2YFgz4THcY[/media]
Im just saying not all characters provide the same benefit through assists. if i use doom rocks after a snapshot in an extended ckmbo my opponent will flip out and i cant get a relaunch. i will try swapping the order because my firebrand gets tod way too often. however i do not see how that would change the situation if he were second anyway.
clearly if my team had a way to get level 4 frank without a TAC it would be my go to thing. hiwever a TAC is worth the risk. what is the worst that happens off a failed TAC? A character lives?
Not many characters can kill off of 2 bars anyway. although skme can.
jn vanilla i never used TAC combos because im a ourist and i thought they were a skill crutch. however noe that ive been playing characters like modok heavily, i realize thry allow for combos that would TOD now. something some characters could not do before. i think it is very important to know how to play every levek of frank correctly, because.u can never rely on a gimmick to automaticaly get u level 4. However gimmicks like TACs are rrally good and THCs are 100% legit.
THC’s are not bad since you’re spending the meter while doing the damage (so long as you get the lvls). DHC’s on the other hand are a bit less reliable. I think it should only be used if you can guarantee the lvl 5, or at least lvl 4 because you could use that same bar for something worth much more.
I think Frank/Fribrand/Doom would be a better option. I think missiles or beam would better than rocks. Rocks have very low durability and causes the opponent to pop out sooner than the other assists when used towards the end of long combos. Swoop might be better too since the other characters don’t need an otg assist and it covers that area Frank and Doom has some trouble hitting. It lets you combo giant swing or the jump loop if it connects.
I have to disagree about your DHCs comment to a certain extent. Some DHCs give some other advantages even if they do not do damage. I’ll give a Firebrand example since a number of us use him. You get do a combo with Frank using Firebrand’s spitfire for example then finish with snapshot into super. Then you can DHC into Firebrand then raw tag Frank in to take a snapshot to level 4/5. This does decent damage, leave Frank at level 4/5, and gives you a luminous body assist. Of course not every DHC that levels up also gives other advantages.
I said less reliable, I never said it was a bad choice. I said it’s good as long as it gives you lvl 4 or 5 and it’s effectiveness varies from team to team (some teams can’t utilize install supers so they’re forced to whiff something ala Nova/Frank or Skrull/Frunk for example). Some DHC’s waste meter from whiffing a super, something that should be avoided because that one bar could have been used for better things than trying to lvl up: snapbacks, damage, alpha counters, etc. I use DHCs all the time to lvl up, don’t get me wrong, I was merely stating that it would be much wiser to save that meter and try to maximize/optimize things in a better way.
I’m nobody special, but IMO, I think that TAC’s are for noobs. Don’t get me wrong, there are situations where you need it, but people abuse the shit out of it.
This is a new technique that capcom came up with that makes it too easy extend combos.
- If you start at level 1 you gain more knowledge/experience about his normals and how to hold your own if you just happened to get happy birthday’d.
- Sounds like you just want to play as level 4 frank. That’s not a frank west player, that’s just a nigga with frank on his team.
- If you take the TAC route, then there’s always the chance of you getting countered no matter what you think. But if you build a solid team around him, the only way you don’t level up is if YOUR execution aint on point.
your arguments are poor in logic.
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I know perfectly well how to play level 1 frank. But he is a suboptimal character. Why would i play a suboptimal character when I could just use a character that has incredible speed, instant overheads and great mixups (aka firebrand) on point?
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that’s very elitist and it is also very untrue.
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my execution is not perfect but it is fine. who gives a fuck about the TAC if I can’t even open my opponent up with a level 1 frank? granted, if u are very good at opening up your opponent with a level 1 frank, then more power to u, but against the people I play who have sharp reactions and defense, it is quite some work, especially with the only openings that will get me to level 4 have to come off of a high or low (since i dont have the roll at level 1).
I agree that TACs allow for easy mode combos. But, no matter what YOU think, they also allow for touch of death stuff. go ask any MODOK player if they think exchanges aren’t valid.
+1 to all his points
There seriously is no point playing Frank West on Point, that’s essentially the same as playing phoenix wright on point. You’d basically have to be building the team around him.
If you played a decent player, your Frank west on point will most likely be mauled by the opponents point character.
- +1 to kensanity’s points
- And people with Frank on their team want to play him as level 1?
- the only way you don’t level up frank is if you can’t open people up. I’d rather take my chances playing with a point character that can open people up much more easily especially with shopping cart assist, and go for an exchange to a level 4 or 5 with no meter/1bar than to try and open someone up with Frank to get to level 3 or 4 using 2 to 3 meters. (I say 2 to 3 meters and level 3 or 4 because odds are you NEED an assist to get an opening because you know you ain’t gonna run up and hit him with level 1 Frank, so you’d only have 1 assist to level up with)
Enjoy 
[media=youtube]8aLDgC-djtQ[/media]
Its ok…you asked for help on your team synergy and I gave MY OPINION, that’s it. My main point brother was that if you only learn level 4 frank then you are screwed. You depend hard on actually having enough meter to dhc from firebrand to frank. Or somehow successfully landing a TAC to frank. I’m not going to make anymore points.
If anyone got questions about my frank teams and need a hand in leveling up frank gimme a holla.