Should I not be plinking in training mode?

Newbie Saikyo Dojo
1

I’ve been practicing 1F and 2F links in training mode a lot this past week but 1F links are still extremely difficult for me, even with plinking.

I was thinking that if I plink everything I do in training mode, then I’m not really learning the exact frame that I should be pressing the button because of the bigger window that plinking allows.

Is it better to master 1F links without plinking and only plink during a real match when the pressure is on? Does anyone practice both? Is it ‘pick one or the other’? Does it matter at all?

2

If you plan on plinking during a match, then practice it in training.

And personally, I don’t see any reason to save it for only high pressure situations. If it comes down to it, you want it to be muscle memory at that point. Only way that happens is if you’re already used to doing it.

3

Plinking is a good skill to have, since you can maximize your damage on your combos, but until you can get proficient with them, I’d say practice regular links more.

If a 1F link makes a good frame trap though, (IE: Cody cl.MP to cr.HP) then I don’t plink it to try and get counter hit.

4

You absolutely should practice plinking in training mode. It’s part of the muscle memory you’re trying to develop. Trying to do it under pressure when you don’t normally practice it will just make you more likely to fail under pressure.

The entire point of practicing execution in training mode is so that you’ll reduce your chances of failing under pressure.

5

Plinking should be done non-consciousely, it should be like a second nature. During a match or high pressure situation you don’t have to worry about focusing on performing the plink…you just do it.
The more often you’ll hit the 1-frame link while plinking the better your timing gets, regardless if you plink or not. I’ve come to a point where if i miss the plink i still hit the link often.
So practice it in matches and training.

6

Thanks guys. I understand what you’re all saying about the muscle memory, but I’m not worried about the muscle memory of my plinking finger. I’m worried about the muscle memory for the button I’m trying to hit on the exact frame. I’m worried that with plinking I’m learning false muscle memory because I’ll never truly know the exact frame I’m supposed to be on. Even if I successfully plink 99.9% of the time, I’ll never know if I’m always one frame early because I’m being saved by the plink.

All that said, I’ll stick with plinking.

7

It really doesn’t matter if you’re one frame early at all, unless something like a patch or a hand injury removed your ability to plink. The only thing that matters is making sure that link hits: this isn’t like playing a piano scale with incorrect fingering. There are no downsides to plinking a 1F link (that I can think of), unless you want to miss the link (like BixHD said).