These are some basic strats. I admit that Tron is at a disadvantage in these fights… but who says that someone at a disadvantage can’t win?
First off, the most important thing to get versus these characters is (ugh) practice. Yes, my friends, you will have to get your ass kicked a couple of times before anything really starts to work itself out. Unfortunately, because I have no insane Magneto players to play against, and I tend to fight storm with other people, I’m gonna leave it up to you guys to get those strats down.
vs. Sentinel
Yay! The Robot grudge match! At first glance, Tron would seem to have a distinct disadvantage: she has two projectiles: The Kobun launch, and the Shikidan Gun. The Kobun launch is somewhat slow (though a good anti-air), and Sentinel can easily out range it. The Shikidan gun is vicious, but good luck catching him… your best hope to do that is to catch him off guard during fly mode… or connect with an anti-air assist as your kobun strike hits. Either way, this strat isn’t very good.
Sentinel has four projectiles, a mouth-beam (fast, long range, combo starter), Rocket Punch (fast, long range, combo starter, damaging, but vulnerable), and both forms of his drones (lots more drones than Kobun, best for stuffing attacks, or pinning… not actually openers for his other hits.)
Nope! Tron does not do well at range versus this guy… which is why he will desperately want to keep you there. So, the first essential in fighting Sentinel is to be able to approach him. For this reason, it is extremely important where you and he are on the screen…
Grounded Sentinel, In The Corner:
If Sentinel is in the corner, approaching him is no problem. Super jumping can carry you to him even without Tron’s Bonne Strike or air dash… with those two, it’s almost impossible for him to avoid you. It is, however, quite possible for him to try to hit you with an anti-air assist, or coax you into landing on drones. Because of this, and because you don’t necessarily want him to know when you’re going to strike, you want to mix him up. Air dash at the top of the jump, drop straight down about half the screen, and LK dash the rest of the way. Then, hit with the LK jump in if he’s blocking or whiffed an assist… the HP jump-in if he tried to cross you, or the lp or hp jump-in if he tried to meet you in the air. Any of these can be cancelled into a drill in the air… and all of these can combo straight into a Lunch Rush if landed correctly.
You can also simply HK Drill and fall, or air dash at the last second to try to cross him… or just super jump. He won’t know when you’ll land, so he’ll have a tough time countering you.
In addition, Sentinel’s head is just a little bit higher than any of his moves’ range… if you tiger-knee-drill at it, you can connect with chip, block on the way down, and then combo him. Be wary, though… a good Sentinel can call out either of his supers and connect with them if you get predictable.
Once you get in close, do not let him breathe. Hammer him with assists, cover with the aerial drill, aerial saw, HP, or mp, or land and use the lp into s. mp or s. lk. Continuously play your best high low game, and try to get the Lunch Rush. Note, however… if you whiff a lunch rush, you’re probably dead… so be careful, too.
Ironically, I have whiffed Lunch Rushes doing this and survived… Sentinel was so focused on getting away, getting over, and getting some distance between us that he just jumped over me, and completely missed his chance.
You can also play a chipping game with him… mash an aerial drill at knee level, drop, lp, mp, HK drill, King Kobun. If you call it right, he’ll have an incredibly tough time escaping… and you’ll deal an insane amount of chip, recovering fast enough to hit him again as soon as the super ends. It’s almost a meter dependent Chip infinite, except that King Kobun is escapable.
Be careful calling King Kobun in the Corner, though… it’s possible for the Lego Man to walk off screen. And that’s just not fun. Time it right, and it won’t happen.
Grounded Sentinel, mid-screen
This match starts out almost like the one before, with a few distinct differences. You’ll both probably start at distance, since Sentinel on the ground loves distance. Once you start to approach, it’s harder for the anti-air to connect, but it’s also harder to place yourself perfectly before you land. If you super jump, you can do the fun thing and cross him up anywhere from one to four times using the HK drill, so he has no idea where you’re coming from. Get in close while he’s confused, and don’t let up.
Also… you can cross him up more readily with moves like the Jumping HP… which is a free Lunch Rush if you connect. And, if you hit with a jump- in lk xx HK, you can start either a lunch rush combo, an air combo, or use another s.HK to knock Sentinel to the wall, and a Bonne Strike to follow him. Timed right, it will connect before he lands.
You can also use assists to cross him up at mid-range, if you get the chance.
Grounded Sentinel, Agressive
If Sentinel really wants to fight you close range on the ground, oblige him. Be careful, since someone who’s good at his ground combos can hurt you… but overall, I’d say that Tron can take him on the ground, move to move. Most people tend to play Sentinel at range, unless you’re already helpless in close… so they don’t even think of attacking on the ground.
And if you do block, 9 times out of 10, he takes to the air afterward.
Aerial Sentinel, Evasive
Get distance, tag with drill. Get in close, tag with jumping lp or lk. Get to mid-range, tag with the jumping HP. Get below, and tag with an assist. Or, for fun, try your darndest to hit him with that Shikidan gun… If you do, you can either jump up and hit him with your HP, or laugh maniaclly while two Servbots frantically hump his leg.
Aerial Sentinel, Agressive
This is Sentinel’s best bet against my Tron… he’s faster than she is in the air, and getting above him from below him is a pain. If you have an anti-air assist, it’s easy to connect with… on his way down, catch him and hurt him. Blocking is a pain against this strategy, but it’s absolutely necesity… if you fail to block well, Tron will die.
There are only a few ways to deal with this… get above or beside him and tag him with the HP, lk, lp or Bonne Strike… or Bonne Strike to the other side of the screen and try and take him on from there. Bonne Striking is less dangerous than dashing… but is hard to do, especially if he’s hitting you with a flurry of light kicks. If he calls the HP, it’s a window of opportunity to counter. Again, be careful here.
If you’re below him, it is possible that you could time a Kobun Launch correctly, but even more possible that he will just kick your upraised arm. It is also possible that the Mad Vertical Reach of Tron’s launcher will hit him… but her lag on that move is nothing short of ridiculous. If you can normal dash under him, it is quite possible to hit with a standing HK. I don’t, however, know anywhere to go from there. Be careful dashing under Sentinel. If you do Bonne Strike to the other side of the screen… don’t let him get the chance to do a long range pin. Go right back at him, and don’t let up.
You might be able to get him with the King Kobun, since it forms even if Tron gets interrupted… but if he flies past it, well… Bad things happen. If he Un-flies and blocks the hit… I may be wrong, but I think it opens up the opportunity to guard break.
Anyhow, that’s all on this particular match up… More later, if people are interested. Feel free to correct me, tell me I’m full of… well, let’s not test the censorship programs… or add your own strats. Good luck to all of you Tron players out there… I hope this is helpful.
Tron Jon
Cross up and cross up often with Fp/rocks or drones. Go for jumping Kobun Strikes from close range. Also, do kobun launches to keep him from jumping.