WHAT IS UP, EVERYONE!
Man, things sure have changed since the last time you guys came to me for lessons! Last time I had a free lesson like this, Rolento found a way to freeze time and that was no fun at all. But things are different now, aren’t they? The powers-that-be came up with this great new vaccine that has made all of our fights flow as seamlessly as the Nile, and now I’ve got all kinds of students knocking at my door asking me to teach them the Ways of Saikyo.
Thanks to the jump in profits, I’m able to afford this free lesson that I’m about to give you. Most of you guys have already taken my introduction course on how to play at the most basic level, and I recognize some of you guys from my last lesson on how to optimize damage on your killer combos. Today, I’m going to go over something that might be too advanced for some of you guys…but with enough training, you’ll be able to mentally wear down your opponent enough that you can set these bad boys up.
First, let me get my mp3 player hooked up…alright, here we go!
“Stun stun stun stun stun stun (EVERYBOD-Y!) Stun stun stun stun stun stun (EVERYBOD-Y!)”
Today we’ll be talking about the many different kinds of hit stun that exist in Street Fighter x Tekken. If you’ve walked through my door, then I don’t need to tell you about the juggle system and how you can only squeeze in so many hits in a juggle before they fall down. But I’m sure that some of you have noticed the many different ways you can start your killer combos, or “BnBs” as some of your cool kids like to call them. That’s what we’ll be working on today. Now…first we’ll need a volunteer…
…YOU! Yeah, you, the guy in the Madcatz shirt! You seem like a guy who knows how to take a few hits! Put on this protective gear so I don’t put you in the ER. Alright, while he’s doing that, let me get back to what I was talking about. For the new recruits, my vets have been showing you guys how to store your ki. You execute whatever Charge Attack you might have, and once your body gets that orange flash, you release your stance and dash either forwards or backwards. This makes it so that whatever your next attack is, it’ll be considered a Counter Hit. In the fourth Street Fighter tournament, getting a Counter Hit was pretty useful…but HERE, it’s a boon you can’t afford to ignore.
Alright, looks like our volunteer is all fastened up. Let’s get started.
HAI!
- Look at that guy bounce. This is called a “Ground Bounce,” or a “Bound” if you’re a Tekkenhead. The opponent is bouncing off the ground, and your next hit will put them in an juggle state, so the juggle points will now be in effect. HOWEVER, it’s not QUITE like an airborne state because when followed up with certain moves, say a Super Art, it will count as if they were grounded so you’ll get the full cutscene, and damage, off the move. Good examples of this are Bison’s Super Art and Lei’s Super Art, where it’ll have a different effect on an airborne opponent than a grounded opponent, and usually do less damage. Many moves in your arsenal will have different juggle points, so mix and match to determine which nets you the most damage or puts you in the better position. Sometimes it’s better to sacrifice raw damage in favor of better positioning, like say…push your opponent to the corner so you can keep the pressure up.
Hey dude, you OK? Alright let me help you up…HA!
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Sorry, that was mean…but I can’t stop now! Now that I have an opponent in a “Foot Stun,” he’ll be too busy hopping up and down to stop me from jumping in on him for a full combo! If done correctly, they’ll be grounded for the entire combo so you won’t have to worry about juggle points until you actually put them in the air. As far as I know, only Sagat, Yoshimitsu, and Lili can get this stun, so any of you guys who like to hang out with them, keep this in mind!
And next comes THIS! -
Oooh…that’s going to leave a mark! I just sent this poor guy ricocheting against the building, putting him in a “Wall Bounce!” When he comes flying back to you, put the finishing touches on your combo, usually by jumping into the air with a Heavy attack and then giving them a powerful single striking special move on the way down, like say…a DP type move like my KOOOORYUKEN!
Come on, pal, I didn’t hit you THAT hard…relatively speaking, anyway. Now go on that trampoline and get some height. Higher…higher…and THERE!
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You’ll notice that he’s now bouncing higher off the ground than he would with a normal Ground Bounce. This is what I call a “Heavy Ground Bounce.” Moves like Hwoarang’s HK Hunting Hawk or Heihachi’s b+LK will result in this kind of Heavy Ground Bounce. This is notable because in some cases, you will have to adjust your combos differently than if they were hit by a normal ground bounce. In this kind of Heavy Ground Bounce, Hwoarang’s follow-ups are limited, but if you want to do a Pandora Combo, a Heavy Ground Bounce might be the only way to get that juicy Super follow-up.
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Now that he’s jumped high enough, I can jump up and hit him with a jumping Air-to-Air attack. If I catch him with it as a counter hit, he’ll drop his defenses completely and fall to the ground in an “Air Float” state. When he’s like this, you can continue your combo when you land on the ground, juggling him as long as you hit the floor before he does.
Alright, let’s give him a chance to get back up. Straighten up, tense your abs aaaaand…POW!
- Notice how he’s clutching his chest and staggering backwards a bit? That’s called a “Stagger Stun” and your main two guys you have to worry about this with are Steve and Jin. Jin gets a lot of damage off of this with his CH Swaying Willow from his Mental Alertness stance. This is a LONG standing stun that leads to a free combo. Steve usually gets his off of his Peekaboo into LP. It’s also really useful to Tag cancel into a partner, because the stun usually lasts long enough that your partner can come in and start a free solo combo of their own.
…you OK buddy? You’ve taken a bit of a beating…in fact…you don’t look so good in the face. You need water or…aw crap…
- Uhh…see how his eyes are rolling in the back of his head and he’s falling to his knees real slow-like? We call this a “Crumple Stun.” You’ve probably seen this effect when hitting someone with a Focus Attack. It works largely the same way: you see them do this, and if you react quick enough you can start a full combo on them and have it count as a grounded combo. All kinds of characters have this effect tacked onto them, usually off of a CH standing heavy attack like Ken’s s.HK, Balrog’s s.HP, Jin’s s.HP, and Kazuya’s CH Demon God Fist. Store a charge with those that do have this and fish for this. It’ll be worth it, especially if your footsie game is really good.
OK dude, take a breather. We’ll get another volunteer up here and…BOP!
- See that? I just hit him so hard that he fell right on his butt. I call this a “Stumble Stun.” It’s not a stun that lasts particularly long and not many characters have this…but if your timing is good enough, you can start a full combo with this stun and they’ll still count as grounded.
Here, let me help you up and…what!? What do you mean I’m bullying you guys? Don’t talk back to your Sensei!
PAP
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OK, look at how slow he is in facing me after I slapped him. It’s not because he’s afraid, but because I slapped him so hard that I put him in a “Slow Stun.” Moves like Marduk’s b+MP and Heihachi’s LP Demon’s Breath cause this, and like the Stumble Stun, follow-ups to this will require timing. Use these as combo starters.
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The last one I want to talk to you guys about is “Floating.” No, it’s not what happens when you don’t flush. A Float state is your basic effect of your Raw Launcher, along with a handful of other moves like Rising Uppercuts and Balrog’s Buffalo Head. This will put an opponent is a straight-up juggle state, allowing you to do your killer combos while they’re helpless in the air.
Aaaand that should be about it. It looks like our two volunteers are feeling better now, so let’s give them a round of applause. What I want you guys to do now is practice your killer combos with everything I’ve just showed you kept in mind. If anyone has any questions, or if they have something to add that I haven’t covered, be sure to ask me about it or drop me a line. And remember: don’t be afraid to ask your sempai to notice you and show you some tips. When class isn’t in session, most of them hang out in the IRC chat #SFxT.