He's in the trees! And he's flarking mad! - The Rocket Raccoon Thread

Classic Fighting Games Ultimate Marvel VS Capcom 3
1101

I’ll say it.

RR is another special character in this game. He metaphorically has no role, and I don’t consider him an assist character because I still think people are overrating log trap outside of combos a hell of a lot.

That’s just my opinion though after realizing what RR is truly made to be in my eyes: A DAMN DISTRACTION. He does this really, really well; he gets your opponent to do things, sometimes stupid things, that either force them to waste bar snapping in someone who is WORTH killing, or killing RR instead of someone else, leading you to get an actual good anchor (You still have to deal with log assist if RR is alive and if he’s in the lead RR can still annoy you to a time out or a win). Thing is most assist characters can do the same thing, but on point they can’t provide the same annoyance and stupidity that RR can when he has bar or against certain characters even though he IS going to die eventually if you leave him to which is a GOOD thing; spring trap, d.H and log on point are just great tools to annoy you really, since he can’t chip you out that well and they’re so easy to avoid on paper. (It makes me think of the Marlin liking when Viper dies to get Mags + Ammy THCs thing, but leaving her alive is amazing for him too) His utility (on a team) is one of the highest this game can provide, he but his usefulness otherwise is pretty low tier worthy imo. Which is why I don’t consider him an assist character, but like Frank in TvC, he’s just a different kind you don’t see a lot, no defined role.

But yeah. That’s just me. I’m probably wrong, but that’s how I see it. He shouldn’t be rushing ANYONE down no matter how strong his mixups can be when he gets there (he’s not Joe, the best midget), and his keepaway is not that great. He does do well at distracting.

Feel free to call me out on that though, I say stupid shit all the time and I just LOVE talking about my hubby RR, so.

1102

That’s an interesting way of putting it, and I agree with a lot of stuff, but I think he provides another thing you’re not mentioning.

I think RR can do a lot of work when he’s out. He’s got pretty sick mixups, but his damage output is pretty bad. I agree with the fact that his role isn’t really defined in the classic sense of assist / point character, but he’s got this annoyance factor. His small size makes people drop combos or do even less optimal combos; he can burrow and just stay there for a period of time; and he’s got a pretty annoying assist. The type of annoyance isn’t the same as Voomerang spam or MorriDoom Sou-soul Fist spam, which makes you feel helpless. It is the type of annoyance in the way a fly that’s buzzing around your head annoys you. Every time I play at TRB and people get hit by log they breathe out a large disappointing sigh like, “I CAN’T BELIEVE I JUST GOT HIT BY THAT.”

I think getting tricky THCs as a result of RR dying is a side benefit of having such a paper-thin character, but I don’t think it’s really something that should be an active mechanic in your team. A GOOD assist character can do damage on point, as well as annoy / lockdown / blow up your shit / keep your point safe as an assist character. That’s why Akuma is so good, or sometimes Frank. With RR, he’s kind of good w/ Log, it makes people try to jump over it, and if you have a character that can take advantage of the middle of the top of the screen, they’ll do well, like with Morrigan’s Astral Vision. Unfortunately not every character can use that assist, where wall bounces are important to them, like Spencer or Jill. I would like to experiment more with Spitfire Twice, but none of my teams that involve RR use it as well as Log.

Although I do agree that whenever I play with RR, people think I rely on that assist and try to snap him in, where it’s not the case. For some teams, if they had Vergil assist or Strider assist or even Akuma assist taken out, their whole team falls apart. Having RR on assist slot provides a good auxiliary assist that hides your other assist. It’s like fighting against Wesker / Akuma / Strider, who do you snap in? They’re all good characters and they’re all good assists for each other. In this case, it’s sort of backwards.

I guess I basically said all the things differently just to agree with you, haha. But all in all, he’s a fun character, and he’s got some sick stuff if people just put in the time.

1103

Yeah I agree he does have some sick stuff. It’s hard to just look past those things really. :frowning: Safe spring DHCs are what I rely on to get Joe out easily sometimes.

1104

Anybody found good uses for shrapnel trap assist?

1105

Pfft. That assist definitely has to have some uses but shrapnel trap is really only rape on point. It DOES take a hit though, which is awesome.

1106

It could be pretty effective on a zoning team, especially against teleporters. Blocked or guarded, you get a great chance for a confirm or mix up opportunity. RR is out of there pretty fast as well, making punishment pretty difficult for the opponent. I’d imagine it’d make RR Chris’s new best friend. Hmm. A little experimentation could shed some light on this idea.

1107

Guy, I was looking in your youtube channel and that RR reset was pretty cool.

I’m not sure how well it would do against airdashers and double jumpers, or people that just hold back instead of forwards trying to get out of the corner. They’ll still get caught in the fire if you do the teleport, but I’m not sure if there’s enough time to confirm the direction they’re bouncing out of the corner after log trap. Also, I have some resets of my own, most of them are from soft knockdown after boulder loops, which makes it harder for me to confirm which direction they’re rolling, so this would help a lot.

1108

Was using my Rocket Raccoon team the other night at a local meet-up and was doing pretty well! Randomly picked his shrapnel assist because I was mashing buttons and instead of going back I just ran with it. Didn’t end up winning the match but I did get to play around with shrapnel a bit and I actually really dig it. Not saying I’d use it more than his other two (which are both great) but EVERY SINGLE TIME that shrapnel lands, assuming you’re ready, it leads to something huge. Log trap is a nice assist that leads to some good hypers and maybe some situational juggles or some DHC chains. Shrapnel was just too fun, locks 'em down on the ground for you to do what you will!

Anyway, was just posting because I firmly believe that if someone took some time to toy around with shrapnel assist… they could probably find some really dirty setups with it. I definitely feel that Rocket Raccoon is a strange utility character… he’s got some great on-point game, and two really strong assists (with a third that’s mostly undiscovered), either way, he’s a character that is ALL about risk/reward.

1109

How does point Raccoon work because I’ve tried it and I always put him in the 2nd slot. Feels so confusing at times lol

1110

With 2 assists, that’s how haha.

1111

No damn it lol I mean like tips and tricks for him I know assists work but I mean stuff like spacing, mounting your offense. Stuff like that. I always put him second slot.

1112

Well, unless you mean you have been circumventing that totally and using RR only as an assist in the past which I doubt XD, it’s really the same, you are just more free to move around and be annoying as usual as you have more options. Generally I’ll have a beam and a lockdown, that means you can fill the screen, do fullscreen left/rights and get in for mixups/unblockables when you get the chance.

Spacing wise I like to stay away when I don’t have a clear opening, but that’s probably just my style, I fill the screen with j.S, log traps etc waiting for a moment where I can get out a sent drones or disruptor + teleport. Landing either allows me to land a combo and then lay on the BS afterwards.

Laying down traps can be useful against rushdown characters and always against teleporters, but make sure you are actually safe to do so.

When in doubt, Mad Hopper.

1113

Yeah cause I tried to do like a Zoning type of RR but didn’t work too well which I think was on my part because I didn’t use traps enough and tried to use Spitfire. I normally didn’t like it more so cause of RR’s health. Other than that it was hitconfirming I think but I didn’t hate it lol

1114

Tomo generally summed up everything with grace. :stuck_out_tongue:

Also, when I say “on-point” I really just mean the character you are controlling. I tend to switch out between all three on my team a LOT more than others. This is because I don’t have a “proper” anchor/battery/general team building idea… just play those that are fun to me and work well together! I see no point in having a character on your team JUST for assist, ya dig? lulz

In my team, I actually start off with Captain. Raccoon is second while Hawkeye is third. I put Raccoon second because it allows me to feel out my opponent without taking any serious risks. You’re not going to kill Captain with your first combo (generally with one hyper bar), but Raccoon… it’s possible! My main goal here is to get them used to the pace of Captain because once Raccoon is out, it’s a completely different game.

With Raccoon, my main purpose is to annoy and score free’ish damage. I’m not worried about doing insanely long combos with him as much as I am worried about always doing… something. He’s not a super strong zoner by nature but he does have his tools. I find he works best while hovers around 1/2-to-3/4 screen.

I have two prime goals in my pestering and I find myself at 1/2 or 3/4 screen, depending on what I am doing:
1/2 Screen - Focusing on laying my QCB traps. This is (mostly) a psychological move. The opponents tend to start worrying more about what you’re doing than what they are doing and (after some spitfires/assists/backwards rocket skates) end up stepping on them more often than not. Sometimes I sprinkle in an oil bomb and set it on fire just because… I guess it’s like peeing on a fire hydrant except it does 11 hits if they (stupidly) walk in it. If shrapnel catches them, pop an assist and it’s damn near a free in. If net trap snares them I usually just lulz because it’s really awesome to see a Sentinel get caught in one and there’s not a whole lot you can do if you’re far besides weird burrow mix-ups as they are dropped. Basically, I’m just being “cheap”, “lame”, “sneaky”, “random” (read sneaky), and really just waiting for them to hit one of my traps (which WILL happen if you keep them feeling uneasy about your next move).

3/4 Screen - Using log trap & Cr.H while calling assists (Hawkeye mostly) just to show them who is boss. Once I feel it’s safe, I go for the (oh so fun!) burrow mix-ups using Hawkeye mostly or getting tricky with Captain’s shield slash and going for hard knock downs. Rinse and repeat while dipping into some of the 1/2 screen maddness. You’d be supprised random stuff you can convert into full combos with Raccoon. <3

As far as spacing goes, I try to get no closer than 1/2 screen unless totally covered. When up close you have three rather solid normals, each with their own ups/downs. Cr.M is really nice because of the reach and it makes Raccoon even more low profile, which sucks for them. You gotta be pretty quick but you can go to St.H >> Cr.H (then from there hit QCB.W/M trap, Spitfire M xx rock n’ roll/level 3).The second being forward + H. This one is quick, covers decent ground and seems to have alright priority. For me, if I charge with forward + H, it’s just to get 'em airborn to go into Flapper OTGs. Last but not least, the instant hover overhead. Tap up twice and press launcher. This is INSANELY fast once you have it down and can lead to greatness. What more can you ask for as Raccoon than an opponent afraid to duck?! Also I find that using the boulder trap is a pretty dirty trick up close. Throw it in at the end of a small chain, make sure you’re still within Cr.M distance and have fun getting yelled at. :slight_smile:

The ultimate trap you have though - hyper bounce trap. You can cause so much situational chaos with this it even throws me off sometimes! It’s a great “suprise bitch!” sorta way to get into a usually-fatal full-team DHC. Also, really satisfying to watch Sentinal bounce! Don’t know why but playing against Sent as Raccoon is always good laughs!

These are my novice THOUGHTS/OPINIONS/OBSERVATIONS/STRATEGIES. Don’t waste your time flaming me because “I didn’t use meter right” haha

Peace!

1115

Yeah that’s a pretty good explanation actually.

In summary: be annoying at 1/2 to 3/4 screen and when you get an opportunity use an assist to get in.

People really do underestimate the range on c.M as well, it’s always been my favorite aggressive normal, c.H being my favorite defensive.

Everyone spends all their meter on Mad Hopper, you shouldn’t get flamed for that XD

1116

Mad Hopper is so hectic & amazing, it’s hard to resist! It can also be played as a “get outta jail free” card… I find that half the time I drop it is to get Raccoon out as safe as possible as fast as possible.

Also forgot to add to that boring ass wall of text that is my previous post that I think stability is a (if not THE) key concept to playing a “RR team”. If you’re not switching out often & safe it doesn’t seem worth it to keep a lil’ dude like Raccoon on your team, as cute as he may be. :stuck_out_tongue:

Quick edit: Log trap is one of the most consistent anti-teleport specials in the game. Assist or not. It’s easier to catch them when you’re controlling Raccoon though. Just thought I’d throw that in there!

1117

Who said spending meter on Mad Hopper is bad lol I think my issue with point raccoon was I tried to use him like Zero (whose another one of my mains since Vanilla) so I would kinda autopilot and teleport everywhere with assists. so I was aggressive when now I realized I should be annoying XD

1118

I have that issue too, I feel like I’m being too aggressive with him.

Rubix, that was a team I was experimenting, and I’m glad you got it to work for you. I have Cap / x / Raccoon right now, and for the most part can be played in any order. There’s a lot of stuff in your posts that I’m not doing, simply because when I’m doing that kind of stuff, my opponents tend to just sit there and wait out the traps while throwing some projectiles or just safe zoning, or just plain ol taking to the skies and do some safe zoning. Either way, they never walk INTO a trap, so more often then not, I’m stuck throwing logs or spitfires to try to get them to come out. I find people more often then not pressing buttons when I try to throw a trap out in a block string and they hit me. It’s pretty annoying.

Sent VS. Raccoon is hard for sentinel because c.H beats almost everything he throws out, assuming you’re 3/4 of the screen away.

1119

@Lamuness - The trap thing is a weird pressure game. You gotta be moving a lot, calling quick assists, seemingly being frantic while putting down some traps. Eventually the hyper bars will cover them(!) and they will step on one. You can have three of those out at a time, so take advantage of that when you SAFELY can do so. Usually those mashing buttons are usually still in the “baby” stage… boulder trap is not as fast as shrapnel but you can create (unblockable) good situations with some practice.

@Saitoryu - I was just prepared to get flamed. Always going to be the players that think meter should ONLY be used for doing damage and never for a quick escape with a character that has as low of health as Raccoon does. And I mentioned it as a preemptive “f*ck you, buddy” to the “meter douches”, “hyper f@gs”, “non-fun-havers” that will say shit like “I don’t agree with the way you used your meter right there” even when it was a hella smart powerplay that fucked them in the booty. It’s the worst kinda salt. Ever. And shows poor sportsmanship! :stuck_out_tongue:

I do NOT feel like Rocket Raccoon can be aggressive alone, or, not without major risk. While he does have great tools to use, most of them are REALLY hard to react with. You must be able to make decent reads to get that “break through moment” with this character. You’re not going to stuff an instant flight with heavy Spitfire on reaction… you know? It totally works on prediction, though, like most of his tricks/tools. With this character in particular, I believe that YOU gotta take control of the flow. Set up what ever you gotta set up to get them to jump forward while pressing shit, watch them eat a log. Spam log trap & assist between your QCB traps. You have to control the SITUATION, not the screen. :slight_smile:

1120

wtf no lol matter of fact i need to start using that super more. but yeah im starting to get it and why i probably wasn’t playing him right he adapts to situations but not the screen itself