*Preface: All of this data has been thoroughly tested by me and is accurate to the best of my knowledge. There were certain moves, certain situations in this game, that made me repeat them for hours–I set them up under as many possible scenarios as I could to figure out how they occurred. Ken’s character contributed most of the testing, as his moves are probably the most intricate and mind-blowingly amazing moves in the game for juggling.
There is a rather large section about him and his gdlk SRK’s, but I put everything in spoilers for a reason!*
Not all of this information will be 100% accurate, especially as I venture into unfamiliar characters. If you know of a combo that refutes my data, please tell me so I can update it. It would be best to either PM me the correction (preferably with a video proving it) or post it here on this thread (again, preferably with a video attached).
Any move that has a JP of Infinity, is just my way of saying “There was no situation that which this character could make this move not juggle.” So for all intents and purposes, that move’s juggle potential is infinite.
Change Log:
Update list
Spoiler
Contributors:
Pokey86
Doopliss
[spoiler=First Update–12/16/09]
- Fixed some incorrect JP and flag properties.
Second Update–12/24/09
Spoiler
- All data for all characters completed.
- Added commentary for each character.
- Added notable juggles for each character.
- Reformatted all character information layouts to be easier to read.
- Updated previously incorrect data.
- Updated main post
- Backed up all character information in case of loss.
Third Update–12/28/09
Spoiler
- Bison, Sakura, Rose, Gen, Rufus and Ken all updated.
- Slight note changes.
- Added the request for further testing of Balrog’s super and ultra, as I’m not proficient enough with him to connect those juggles.
- Added Pokey86 as a contributor.
Fourth Update–12/29/09
Spoiler
- Fixed a series of incorrectly displayed data.
- Updated many character’s juggle data.
- Added many attacks that weren’t previously listed.
- Updated main page Player State information to better reflect what Hard Knockdown State is.
- Added Doopliss as a contributor.
Fifth Update–1/2/10
Spoiler
- Fixed a series of incorrect data.
- Added a bug notice to Ken’s light kick tatsumaki.
- Added a notice on Fei Long’s ultra, as the second and fourth hits cannot connect on an airborne opponent.
Sixth Update–1/5/10
Spoiler
- Simplified some of the information.
- Updated the main post.
[/details]
The Street Fighter 4 Juggle System:
First and foremost, there are a few things that need to be understood about the juggle system. It revolves around 3 things: an imaginary counter that I’ll be referring to as “the counter” or “Juggle Count” (JC from here on out), a series of flags on every hit of every move in the game, and recognizing the current state of your opponent. And I’ll be exploring each of those in reverse order, as that’s how everything will make the most sense.
Player States:
Player States
[details=Spoiler]Odds are, you’re already familiar with this concept. Certain knockdowns you can’t hit people out of, certain knockdowns you can! Well, sort of, on the most primitive level that’s basically true–but the fact of the matter is, some of those knockdowns you actually can hit people out of, you just don’t have a move that has the properties that allow you to do it.
There are probably more states of a character than you’d think:
Standing: This is the state you spend most of your time playing in. You are standing, not knocked down, and susceptible to any attack.
Jumping: This is a state that has subtle differences over Standing. In this state, unlike in Standing, normals will put you in the Reset State, while most special moves that doesn’t grapple in the game will put you in some kind of knockdown.
Reset: This only occurs off of Jumping and Float Knockdown, any normal hit will put your character in this state. You are wholly invincible to being struck, though typically are vulnerable to mix-up games given you’ve no control of your character while landing.
When people refer to resetting, they are referring to deliberately putting someone in this state in order to put them in a situation in which they are required to correctly guess a mix of: where you will be, what you’ll do, which way to block, and/or what to do when they land.
Standard Knockdown: The most common kind of knockdown, the Standard Knockdown is essential to juggling. This is a knockdown in which you are only capable of being hit by moves that have a certain property that I call Juggle Potential (JP from here on out). In this knockdown state, you can “Technical” the knockdown and recover faster than you normally would by either tapping :d: (down) as soon as you hit the ground or pressing any 2 buttons simultaneously.
Moves can only hit you so long as their JP is greater than the current JC on the opponent. Moves that cause the initial Standard Knockdown don’t contribute towards the JC. But that’ll all get discussed much more later.
Hard Knockdown: The Hard Knockdown is very straight forward. Any move that puts someone in a Hard Knockdown cannot be “tech’d” (they cannot quick rise from the ground).
Float Knockdown: Very similar to Jumping, but definitely different. Jumping is a state in which the player is in control of the character–Float Knockdown is a very, very bad state to be in. You have no control of your character and virtually any and all attacks will connect. You are complete at the mercy of your attacker, and typically, they won’t pass this opportunity up. Any attack you are hit by will put you in whatever respective state it can. (For example: if you are fierce punched out of a float knockdown, you will be reset, because it operates under Jumping conditions and normals put people in Reset state when used on someone in an Aerial Float state.)
The relationship between Float Knockdown and Standard Knockdown is sometimes confusing and we’ll be going more in depth on that subject in the next section.
Crumple: Crumples are nothing more than a multi-staged knockdown state. Stage 1 is Stun, stage 2 is Float Knockdown. You’ll know stage 2 of the knockdown has occurred when the opponent has dropped to their knees.
Very few attacks cause this state, as of right now: Viper’s EX Lightning Knuckle and Focus Attack Level 2 or 3.
Stun: The Stun state is reached once your character has accrued enough Stun Points. You are in a Standing state for all intents and purposes, though you have extremely little control of your character. The only control you have is that, any input you push (be it punches, kicks, or movements) reduces the length of the stun.[/details]
Juggle Flags and Move Properties:
Juggle Flags and Move Properties
[details=Spoiler]Now that every possible player state has been covered, we start going into how they actually get there (obviously not including Standing Float and Aerial Float as they imply player control).
Every single attack in the game has a series of properties to it, or as I like to call them, flags. More accurately, every single hit, of every single move, in the game has a series of flags attached to it that determine what happens when it successfully connect.
Some of these flags are actually quite intricate and only occur when certain conditions are met. Also, certain flags have priority over others, such that if they occur then similar flags are ignored.
List of most flags and what they do:
Juggle Potential (JP): Let’s start with the most important one to this thread! Juggle Potential is the numerical value of whether or not a given normal, special, super, or ultra will connect during a juggle. Each hit, of each move, has a designated Juggle Potential.
Knock Down: This is an important flag, as many moves cause Standard Knockdown–but not if the person is grounded. Knock Down is a quality of a hit that actually knocks the person down in some way shape or form.
CC Standard Knockdown (CCSK): A move that has the potential to cause Standard Knockdown, but may not inherently do so. However if the move knocks down, then it will also cause this type of knockdown.
CC Float Knockdown (CCFK): A move that has the potential to cause Float Knockdown, but may not inherently do so. However if the move knocks down, then it will also cause this type of knockdown.
CC Hard Knockdown (CCHK): A move that has the potential to cause Hard Knockdown, but may not inherently do so. However if the move knocks down, then it will also cause this type of knockdown.
Standard Knockdown Reset (SKR): If this hit connects it resets the target back into a 0 JC standard knockdown so long as they are currently in a standard knockdown. Very few moves have this flag.
Float Knockdown Reset (FKR): If this hit connects it resets the target back into Float Knockdown so long as they are already in a Float Knockdown. That part is actually quite key, as there is a difference between Aerial Float and Float Knockdown. Very few moves have this flag. In other words, FKR only occurs given that your opponent is already in a float knockdown state, otherwise this flag is ignored.[/details]
The Juggle Count:
The Juggle Count
[details=Spoiler]The Juggle Count (JC) is an imaginary counter that keeps track of what the current JP is at. There are a few key things to know about the Juggle Count.
First and foremost, each individual hit of a move has it’s own Juggle Potential. That means that the third hit of Akuma’s fp.srk potentially (and in this case does) has a different JP than the first hit. Do not assume that just because a move hits 3 times that it’s JP is 3, as this is usually not the case. Whether or not a move will juggle has little to do with the move, but rather each individual hit of that move and what the JP of each individual hit is. Many juggles, such as Ryu’s Super > Ultra, won’t fully connect because the JC reaches the maximum potential of the last move thrown.
Secondy, each hit during a juggle increases the Juggle Count by 1. So even though a move like Ryu’s Super has a JP of 5 for each and every hit, it doesn’t mean that the JC = 5 when the first hit connects. It means that every hit can connect until the JC = 5. Therefore if the JC = 2, the first 3 hits will connect and the last 2 will miss since 2 + 3 = 5. Or if the JC = 4, the very first hit of the super will connect and the last 4 will miss since 4 + 1 = 5. There’s a reason I refer to it as Juggle Potential, since that’s literally what it is: the potential a given hit of a given move has to juggle.
Third, as briefly outlined above, once a move’s potential has been tapped, it’s done. This can happen mid-move or on the very last hit of it. To be more exact, once the Juggle Count is equal to or greater than the highest Juggle Potential of any hit in a given move, then that move will no longer be able to juggle. Given that Ryu’s super has a potential of 5, once the count hits 5, Ryu’s super can’t connect anymore hits, ever. At that point you need something with more potential, like his ultra. Which has a potential of 8. If you’ve followed me so far, you’d probably have guessed correctly: If you tried to Super > Ultra with Ryu, only 3 hits of the ultra connects: Super sets the JC to 5, Ultra hits until the JC is 8 (3 times), and then stops.
Fourth, moves that cause changes in player state do not, repeat: do not, add 1 towards the JC. Any hit that initially knocks down, any hit that resets, any hit that alters a player state will not add to the JC. Akuma’s light kick tatsumaki changes someone into Float Knockdown state, no JC. The lp.srk afterwards changes them into standard knockdown state, no JC. The shaku afterward would normally put them in standard knockdown, but since they’re already there it’s not changing anything and goes on it’s merry way juggling them.[/details]
