So I figured that the only real movelist thread we have here is kinda barren and not very detailed. Since PTX is a character who requires a lot of precision and care to play effectively (and even then it’s hard to win with him) I think I might take the liberty of creating a more detailed guide.
Anyway, onto the stuff.
PTX-40A is a weird character. He looks like he was designed to play keep-away, but is actually much better at close range. He doesn’t combo very well, but does well at pressuring the opponent in the corner since many of his moves seem to work well in blockstrings. PTX-40A deals pretty good damage if he can actually land any moves, but otherwise relies on chip damage and possibly even timeout wins if you play carefully enough.
:MOVEMENT:
As you’d expect, PTX is slow as hell. He walks like he’s trudging through deep snow and his dash is just acceptable. There are other ways to get him around the screen though. Riot tackles are one of them, and jumping is another. PTX’s jump seems very slow, but it’s possible to cancel his jump start animation by pressing ABC and then immediately jump. this will cause PTX to lift off the ground instantly. Great for closing in on those pesky Karas users and their chains. When PTX does an air attack, he usually has a landing animation. This animation is deceptive: you can’t use any attacks when in this state, but you CAN BLOCK and use specials! This means SAFE AERIALS for PTX, something he really needs to get in close to an opponent.
:LIMITATIONS:
PTX (and Lightan) can’t use a partner. This also means they can’t use variable counters, tag in attacks or anything else related to partners. They also are the only characters who can be dizzied after being hit a certain amount of times in a short time frame. They can mash out of this, but during this phase they are vulnerable to being juggled just like a normal character. As well as this, their constant hyper armour is able to be broken by command grabs, all level 3 attacks, and even some level 1 supers. They cannot recover red health because they can’t switch out.
:NORMALS:
5A: a standing jab. This can combo into itself and is quite fast. It doesn’t hit standing opponents but it’s great for swatting people out of the air. Memorise where it hits because it’s quite an important move for PTX on both offense and defense.
2A: a crouching slap that can’t combo into anything, not even itself. This is actually the move you’ll probably be using the most in panic situations. It’s great for harassing people at close range and preventing retalliating since it’s one of his faster moves. It gives great frame advantage on hit or block so it can be used for pressure. If in doubt, use this move. can be blocked any which way. However, make sure you don’t just spam this attack in hopes of scaring the opponent away. While it comes out pretty fast, it has a lot of lag on recovery if you don’t cancel it into a special. This is especially important to remember if you’re fighting a chain user like Karas, who can pushblock your 2A, prevent you from hitcancelling into 6B4B, and then get you while you’re recovering from 2A.
j.5A: PTX does an aerial knee strike. Press A again to do another one. This move is useful because it keeps the opponent close to PTX when juggling, and can allow for more pressure afterwards with standing jabs.
5B: A mid swipe. Not that great on range, but it hits standing opponents and can be cancelled into other things. Not a bad move, but keep in mind that it will whiff crouching opponents, making it not so useful for ground pressure.
6B: A far-reaching chainsaw slice. Decent damage and good range and hits as an overhead, but it telegraphs horribly and is very unsafe unless you cancel it with something like the A version chainsaw. HOWEVER…
4B (while in initial frames of 6B): This move makes 6B all that much more worthwhile. As stated before, 6B is an overhead. Any time before the chainsaw slices the opponent, you can input 4B and PTX will do a quick dash backwards, his rocket boosters hitting low. It doesn’t do much damage as the 6B but definately a lot for such a fast low. This makes it an awesome mixup tool that gets PTX back out of trouble. Use this if you see that 6B definately isn’t going to land. The backdash can also be cancelled into specials, allowing PTX to continue the pressure with a riot tackle to get close again. A smart opponent will jump backwards and block whenever they see you use 6B to avoid this mixup, but since you can empty cancel into specials, doing this puts them in the way of a riot tackle or chainsaw, both of which are fairly safe if used against aerial opponents.
2B: PTX does a jet boosted kick. It’s a low so it’s good for surprise attacks against opponents who don’t try to block low all the time, and if you combine it with 6B on occasion. Just remember to charge a chainsaw or riot tacke in case they don’t fall for it.
j.5B: like the A version, but slower and with more range. PTX extends his whole leg. I find the A version to be better since it keeps the opponent close, but the B version is pretty decent for approaching.
5C: After a brief delay, Ptx does an uppercut that hits twice. Lots of lag if used as is, but you can cancel into specials so it’s really not that bad. It’s fairly fast for a heavy move, and fairly unsafe if blocked. If it hits, it won’t combo into anything without a baroque, but can be kept safe with a special and keep the opponent airborn so they have less time to punish you. Can be blocked any way. Another nice thing to remember about this move is that the first hit can be cancelled into 2C or 3C. Only 2C combos from it though.
6C: This move is both terrible and awesome at the same time. The effectiveness entirely depends on how much red life and how much meter you have. With megacrash and a bit of red life at your disposal, you can turn PTX’s usually shitty and easy-to-tech throws into deadly death-traps in the corner. More on this in the throws section. But yeah…DO NOT USE THIS MOVE EVER UNLESS YOU HAVE MEGACRASH AND ARE IN THE CORNER.
4C: Same as 6C except it throws behind you.
2C: PTX spins around, jet boosters blazing. This move is really nice. It deals good damage if everything hits and can be cancelled into specials within the first 3 hits. The really good thing about this move is that it hits OTG, which is good because it’s pretty unsafe if used on it’s own. However, if it’s cancelled into the A version of riot tackle or chainsaw before the 4th hit, it’s pretty safe.
j.5C: Another jet booster move. PTX hovers in the air, hurting anyone who touches his flames. Deceptive horizontal range and deals good damage and fills crazy meter if it hits. This might seem predictable at first, but the nice thing about it is that you can use PTX’s dash to cancel his jump’s startup time and lead right into this move. If done this way, it’s quite fast. Can be baroqued into his launcher or another j.5C depending on height, which is very nice. Because of PTX being able to block immediately after landing, this move is always safe, easilly making it one of PTX’s best moves, if not his best move. Keep in mind that it doesn’t combo on an airborn opponent, but if blocked or pushblocked, PTX lands on the ground instantly with no lag and can immediately attack or move.
3C: He sticks his foot out a bit and explodes it. Quite a good move because it’s decently fast and allows him to combo. The animation is also pretty subtle and sometimes the opponent may not see it coming. The important thing is that if you’re really fast, you can cancel this into the A or B version of riot tackle, allowing for some powerful corner combos. The input for riot tackle needs to be started as soon as this move is performed if this is to work. The timing is strict but well worth it.
:SPECIAL MOVES:
236A/B/C: Right gunshot. This move fires the gun on your right shoulder. PTX always starts with a rocket launcher here. Once the gun falls off, use this again to get a new one at random. A version fires low, B version fires straight ahead and C version fires high.
214A/B/C: Right gunshot. This move fires the gun on your right shoulder. PTX always starts with a machine gun here. Once the gun falls off, use this again to get a new one at random. A version fires low, B version fires straight ahead and C version fires high.
See guns section for details
Rapid Fire: by inputting 236A/B/C and 214A/B/C quickly, it’s possible to fire the guns one after another. Keep twiddling the control stick back and forth and you can even unload the guns entirely for some nice damage.
(4)6A/B/C: Riot tackle. This move is very useful all around and quite an important attack for PTX. The A version is safe and quick, but doesn’t go very far. The B version goes almost fullscreen though it’s somewhat more unsafe than the A version, and the C version goes really far and snaps back, and takes a horribly long time to start up and cool down. The A and B versions do wallbounce, with the B version bouncing higher. Out of the three, the B version is probably the best for combos, the A version the best for approaching, with C being the last most useful despite snapback, it’s just too hard to land on an attentive opponent unless they’re spamming fireballs or whatever. B and C versions are good for players who try to run away and use projectiles.
(2)8A/B/C: Chainsaw attack. Great range and good power. The A version is the quickest and safest while the other two deal additional hits but are slower. The A version is easily the best one, but the B version can sometimes be useful as well if you know the hit will land. Generally best used for pressuring airborn opponents and attacking from a distance safely, but beware since it’s not entirely safe when Advance Guarded, and does leave PTX slightly open. C version is next to useless, since it rarely lands all the hits and often leaves PTX completely open. Use this against Gold Lightan, though, because it really hurts him.
:SUPER ATTACKS:
41236 A+B: Barrage super. Costs 1 level. This is an odd move. It’s usefullness totally depends on what kind of guns you have mounted on your shoulders. PTX does a little needless backdash, then fires both guns for a few seconds until they run out. After this, he pauses and recieves two special missile launchers, and fires a cluster bomb. PTX is completely vulnerable during the pause, making this very risky to use. However, the cool thing about this move is that the number of projectiles fired has nothing to do with how empty or full your guns are. So if PTX has a rocket launcher, he will end up firing 5 rockets in total along with whatever other gun he had mounted. This super becomes very worthwhile if you have at least one rocket, and if you happen to have 2 rockets, it really shines. The last two cluster missiles can get in some extra chip damage if the opponent doesn’t avoid them. Should PTX be stunned before he can fire these missiles, he gets to keep them. Which is very nice but not something you should rely on.
Machine gun + Machine gun: utterly useless. Does crap damage and leaves you very vulnerable.
Shotgun + shotgun: does a bit more damage than the machine guns duo, but is still not very good. Only at close range.
rocket + rocket: completely unblockable, homing and devastating attack. Well worth it if you can just get that second lucky missile.
Machinegun + shotgun: not all that great.
Machinegun + rocket: really nice. Sometimes the opponent will block the missiles if the machinegun bullet was blocked first, but other times it’s an unblockable pindown that does some nice damage almost for free.
Shotgun + rocket: good for another reason. The shotguns will most likely miss, meaning that the missiles won’t be blockable. Still does good damage just with the missiles.
623 A+B: Tactical Blitz. Costs 1 level. This chainsaw super honestly isn’t all that useful in my humble opinion. It deals Ok-ish damage if it hits and looks cool, but it’s pretty slow to start up and also has crap recovery time. It’s unsafe on hit, and many opponents can get up and start attacking you before you’ve even put away the chainsaw. Not good if your opponent is Karas, who will most likely get a free infinite. Do use this super if you know it will KO an opponent though.
214A+B: L-P, Level 3 super. Very nice super that deals respectable damage and is fairly comboable. PTX knocks the opponent into the air, strips off his armour and then spirals around with lightsaber arms, cutting the opponent up before finishing with three powerful slashes. Since PTX can’t combo like other characters, he may as well use his meter on this. When used correctly, it can often end up taking half an opponent’s life bar, especially when hitconfirmed with a rocket. It can be treated like a Riot Tackle, since it has pretty much the same properties. Surprisingly, it comes out pretty fast for a PTX move.
:GUNS:
Machinegun: this is the most common weapon you’ll obtain. Thankfully it’s quite useful. The bullets eat through projectiles and travel the screen very quickly.
Shotgun: seems to fire faster than the machine gun and does more damage, but is only useful at close range.
Rocket: whenever you see one of these appear it’s time to rejoice. The rockets can be the deciding factor of a match. They don’t deal too much damage, but home in and are unblockable. They also throw the opponent high in the air in an un-recoverable state. You generally want to save these and use them carefully. good thing you always start the match with one.
:THROWS:
Yes, PTX’s throws suck, but they aren’t completely useless like I once thought. No matter what, they still pick the opponent up and break whatever they were trying to do to you, and they come out fairly fast. When the opponent techs a throw, they are put in an odd falling state where they can do nothing but use special moves. They can’t block either.
One way to actually make use of the throws is in the corner. If you use a megacrash when the opponent techs, you can really make it pay off. There are two ways to go about this:
1st method: As soon as you grab the opponnet, immediately start hammering A+B+C+P. If at any time the opponent techs the throw, PTX will immediately Megacrash, but it will not hit the opponent for some reason. They will still be stuck in that strange air tech state where they can’t block, jump or use normals and PTX can immediately attack with 5A or 5B
2nd method: Wait for the opponent to tech PTX’s throw, and then as they break free, wait a short moment and then megacrash. It will hit them and send them falling to the ground.
Either way, both methods give you lots of red life for baroque. Method 2 is generally better I think, since you can then do 2C BBQ 2C which deals a hell of a lot of damage after 2 megacrashes, especially on someone like Karas.
Another nice thing to remember is that human players will sometimes panic and mash all their buttons at once, which will cause them to megacrash. Since PTX isn’t knocked back by megacrash, if they do this you just made them waste 2 bars.
:STRATEGY:
PTX-40A is a character who requires patience and attention to play correctly. Much of his game revolves around using his moves to pressure the opponent and make it hard for them to really do anything useful. This is harder than it sounds, becuase in order to close as many gaps as possible, the player has to always think ahead and watch the opponent’s movements like a hawk.
The main goal is to try to keep your opponent backed into a corner and pressure them with quick, safe moves like 2A and the A variant of riot tackle. Occasionally go for a 6B mixup and always be ready to make your hits count. It helps to be charging a riot tackle or chainsaw attack whenever possible, because these moves are needed to cancel other important, but unsafe moves. Baroque is very important to PTX too, and since you can’t heal red life, you should be using it regularly. Keep in mind that even blocking an attack gives you chip red life for baroque, which you can use to cancel your laggy special moves and avoid unsafe situations.
:PRESSURE:
PTX’s main pressure moves are 2A, 2B, Riot tackle A version, Chainsaw A version, Air C and his 6B mixup. 5A and 5B should be used against opponents trying to jump.
Against opponents who have ways to punish your pressure, you’re going to need to jump around…a lot. The GREAT thing is that PTX’s aerials are all safe on landing. And since he can cancel his jump startup time by dashing…it means you get fast j.5C’s and no chance of eating an infinite on landing. Jump all day, bunny robot!
When it comes to corner pressure, it’s best to play somewhat aggressive-defensive. Always approach by jumping at first, and using either landing A or landing C, then holding back to block any retalliation before using a single 2B 6B4B string to retreat and start again. Once you have enough meter for megacrash or even a sliver of baroque, you can start getting a bit adventurous and using specials carefully to apply more pressure in the corner.
:USING BAROQUE:
Baroque is very important in PTX’s game. Any time you get hit, block any attack that deals chip damage, or use megacrash, you will have Baroque. It’s important to know that the amount of red life doesn’t add to your overall damage dealt, but determines it. So for example, if you have chip damage worth of red life, and use 5C, BBQ, 5C…then the damage on the second 5C will be minimal, wheras if you had upwards of 30% red life, the second 5C will do a lot more. Chip baroque is good though, since it allows PTX to cancel his laggy specials and close any holes in his offense. Even pushblocking a Karas chain can give PTX baroque with which to take some risks and get some rewards. Using a megacrash or getting your ass handed to you for a while will leave you with a good amount of red life. When you have anything upwards of 20% red life, you can turn the match in your favour if you play carefully. If you still have a rocket and manage to KO one opponent while you yourself have over 30% red life, that may as well be GG right there.
:COMBOS:
NOTE: Most combos that involve a rocket are links, not combos. Since the rocket is unblockable, they’re still guaranteed against
anyone who doesn’t have an invincible move or an instant teleport
–Meterless no baroque–
2B, 2C
2B, 6B4B
3B, riot tackle B/A
(against an airborn opponent) 5A, 5B, 3C, j.B, J.B
(when near wall) 3B, riot tackle B, 2C
(alternative) 3C, riot tackle B, 5A, 3C, fire guns C version.
3C(delay as much as possible before following), (slight delay) j.5A, (slight delay) j.5A, (land) 5A, 5A, 5A, 5A etc.
5C (1 hit) 2C
(in corner) 6C, 2C
(in corner) 6C, (slight delay) 5B, 3C j.A, j.A
(with two machineguns or two shotgus) 236214A (must mash A while rolling the stick back and forth)
(with rocket) 3C, 236A/B/C (run up to falling opponnet) 2C
—Meterless Baroque—
note megacrash gives you 10% red life.
j.C, BBQ, j.C
2B, 2C, BBQ, 2C
2C (3 hits), BBQ, 2B, 2C
2B, BBQ, 3C, j.5B, J.5B
2C (4 hits), BBQ, 3C, [4]6B, (wallbounce) 2C
5C, BBQ, 5C
5C (one hit), 2C (4 hits), BBQ, 66, j.5B, j.5B
(with rocket) 236 A/B/C, BBQ(just before rocket hits), ([4]6B, 2C if in corner)
j.5C (3 hits), BBQ, 3C, j.5C, Megacrash, 2C (if near corner)
note: this combo is sort of hard since the megacrash needs to be very properly timed or else it won’t come out.
(near corner) 5C (1 hit), 2C (3 hits), 236A (rocket), BBQ before rocket hits, (run to opponent) 3C, [4]6A, 5A, 3C, j.5B or 214C (machine gun/shotgun)
This does about 30k with 20% baroque. Not bad for something that requires no meter. You can also bypass the 3C and instead go for a front grab, then try to set up for a megacrash trap 5A, 5B, BBQ, j.5B, j.5B for some extra damage
–Meter combos–
3C, 421AB
5C (1 hit), 421AB
(near wall) 3C, [4]6B, 421AB/623AB
236A (shotgun/rocket), 421AB
(near wall) 5C(1 hit), 2C (3 hits), 236A (rocket), BBQ, (run to opponent’s corner) 3C, [4]6A (wallbounce), 421AB
3C needs to hit just before the opponent lands or else [4]6A can be blocked. requires 3 levels, baroque and a rocket. But with only 20% baroque, this does about 48624 damage if you consider the fact that it’s a reset. This combo is pretty much a KO on anyone with less HP than Ryu. You can also use 623AB as your finisher if your opponent is already at 50% or less health. Also note that against some characters like Ryu or Alex, it’s safer to start this combo with a 3C instead of 5C, 2C. It does less damage but it’s more airtight.
–Grab and Megacrash and Baroque corner fun—
silly gimmick if you want to be funny, but it can be effective
step 1: Get the opponent into the corner if you have 2 or more bars for megacrash.
step 2: Grab that dolly
step 3: Opponent will probably tech. If they don’t tech, then you get a throw, which is just as good.
step 3.5: wait for a moment and then megacrash, knocking the opponent down.
step 4: use 2C when the opponent is on the ground.
step 5: if you have enough for another megacrash, repeat to step 1. Watch carefully if the opponent tries to roll behind you, in which case just grab them with a back throw instead.
step 6: defeat the first opponent. Try to land the snapback if they keep switching to the guy with more health.
Step 7: just before the second character enters, fire a missile and baroque it just before it hits. Make sure you’re near the wall when you do this.
Step 8: Laugh as the opponent loses almost all of their health to a baroqued missile, then finish them off with 2C on the ground.
