Virtua Fighter Strategy Thread

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1

VF strategy thread.

BEFORE YOU ASK! CHECK OUT VFDC WIKI! IF YOU DON’T GET AN ANSWER OR YOU ARE CONFUSED THEN DON’T HESITATE TO POST HERE OR ON VFDC.

This can be for any VF like:
VF1
VF2
VF3/tb
VF4/EVO/FT
and of course VF5

Basically, if you are too lazy to register for vfdc (and I’m frowning at you right now for not), or you think vfdc is dead (which I don’t understand why but whatever, different topic) or you simply want a direct answer for something hard to find. This is the thread for it. I’ll put some effort to handle questions, that way we can leave the VF5 thread in FGD from being side tracked or zombied for strategy questions.

Notations:

VF uses either japanese notation or direcational abbreviation so:

789
456
123

equals…

(up back) (up) (up forward)
(back) (nuetral) (forward)
(down back) (down) (down forward)

or further abbreviated from that…

u/b u u/f
b nuetral f
d/b d d/f

For some people this is obvious or already known but I just wanted to clear it. So 66K means foward foward kick. Alright?

Just so we get it out of the way and so people stop posting it, here is the latest tier listing for VF5 from Arcadia Magazine. I will update this post if it changes or for future revisions/versions/blah.

S+ - Lei Fei, Kage, Vanessa, Eileen

A - Lau, Shun, Pai, Wolf, Brad, Akira

B - Goh, Aoi, Jeff, Jacky, Blaze

C - Lion, Sarah

2

wow a lot of my characters have the least advantages (looking at tier chart). Akira-Lion-El Blaze. Well, Lau is still very good. And I’m going to keep playing the other three for counter measures.

I already signed up for vfdc a month ago. Aim me to talk vf shmo.

3

wolf <3

4

subscribes

ill be checking this often :tup:

5

Since it was Bacardi who gave me permission to post this thread I think I’ll start with some Wolf basics.

How to get the “Fastest Input” Giant Swing:

Shang and a couple other wolf players taught me this, the basic idea is you need to basically back and down back directions and “yank” the stick to forward in an almost lightning like motion. You don’t necessarily need to hit down and down forward to get the Fastest Input (aka the Half Life GS).

Try it in practice and then go pwn some scrubs with half life GS nonsense.

I personally think Wolf is a monster in this game, he can do sooo much damage if he guesses right. While he still kind of has to play like the old games (low punch/defense heavy at times) I think he is a fun and cool character.

Try setting up 0 frame throws from whiffs. For example:

#1 When you duck a throw (like with fuzzy guard)
#2 When you duck an obvious high (like Akira P+KP+K)
#3 When you backdash or ARM(backwalk) from an attack, most people expect a whiff punishment via an attack like shoulder ram, use your throws to make’em eat shit.

Basic Combo Starts:
46P+K (mid, floats on normal and up)
9P+K (mid, floats on normal and up, can bounce in combos, will jump over lows, advantage on block <- wtf)
hcbP (special mid, floats on MC/counter hit)
6K (mid, crumples on MC/counter hit)
4P (high, slams on normal and up)

If you land the 6K on MC, you can follow up with 4K+GK, if your opponent Tech Rolls to the side you can time a 66P+K to hit him out of his roll. If they Tech in place, you can run up and crouch throw him with 4P+K+G or other crouch throws. If the fail to tech, you can easily confirm for a nice 8P pounce. PWN3D

Hope that helps :slight_smile:

6

post some goh stuff :3

7

46P combos-
P>(33 to crouch dash) 6P+K
P>6PP
P>4P+K>(33 to crouch dash) 6P+K
46P+KP6P
P>46P+KP6P

From the black book, :slight_smile:

First is standard for closed stance, second is standard for open stance. Third is for light weights and brad in the closed stance. Fourth is Aoi, El Blaze, Lei Fei, Pai, and Shun in either stance. The fifth works all the way up to Shun in either stance.

PS: use 270 throw and catch throw more. :slight_smile:

8

Dunno if I’m 100% on this because I haven’t kept up too much with VF5, but as I understand there’s a new technique to get a 1-frame throw consistently from an advantageous situation.

Immediately after blocking a move, input 8~66~throw (evade cancelled into dash cancelled into throw). Supposedly this allows you do perform a 1-frame throw with the fastest timing, as well as option-selecting an evade in case the blocked move has a canned followup.

I’m not sure if this is un-fuzzyable in situations where you would normally be able to fuzzy, because I’m not exactly sure how it works. But from what I’ve heard, it is a critical component to VF5 offense.

If anyone has VF5 Kage questions, I might be able to answer them, or maybe system stuff in general. I’d definitely be able to answer Evo questions if anyone cares about Evo.

9

Here some more basic strategy that I use Shoo:

(2)6P+K (or basically his shoulder ram)

When you hit is shoulder ram you get a mix up (nothing is really guaranteed). Some moves I like to use here are:

#1 66P+G - his catch throw will beat any retaliation attack and beat guard and evade. If you opponent doesn’t struggle enough they can’t even duck it. Keep in mind that people can beat this by counter throwing it or struggling and ducking. But it’s still a strong choice. Make sure you know his combos for the catch throw.

#2 4P+K (charge) - this move is awesome in this situation. If your opponent does crouch this move will launch him. If you charge it, the move will crush their guard. Keep in mind the charge version will not launch but will give you a strong guessing game on normal hit and a guaranteed follow up on MC (+13).

#3 66K+G~4P+G on hit - this move is useful vs. Evade or Block. It is full circular so if you opponent likes to struggle and evade it will catch them. Practice timing the 4P+G hit/guard throw, you have a 5 frame window. This move is extremely powerful due to it’s nature in this situation, make sure you are confident in your ability to land the throw follow up. It’s very cool imo.

#4 1K+G - this move is half circular and hits low. I would use it if you really want to deal damage (like end of match). It’s unsafe and leaves you at minor disadvantage on hit but if you need the hit, use it.

#5 P+K+G-43P+K-4P/6P - BASARA!! lol, more of a stylish finish. If you’re opponent is crouching or attacks/throws back this move will most definately stuff them if you time it right. You can also catch them evading if you delay this. Major style points.

Dandy J- I think I read about that tactic, I’ll try it out next time I play. Thanks a bunch.

Also I learned from another player that if you have your elbow blocked and you immediately OM P, you will beat a counter elbow/large attack. I’ve been trying it and it actually works strange enough.

10

[media=youtube]4h18D3auqCU&mode=related&search[/media]=

This is for anyone wanting to learn Akira and Kage.

11

How far apart are the tiers in this game?

What are some general and basic techniques that I should practice on in this game?

-Vf5-

12

Basically the difference is in risk/reward ratio between characters, tools needed to win, and really the ease of winning.

Basically the difference between S and A tiers aren’t that much, B tier is just a lil behind A tier, C tier is a lil behind B tier.

Playing Sarah/Aoi is not like playing Twelve/Sean in 3S, you very much can win. However the damage you deal for the amount of risk you take is not equal to the higher tier characters. That’s all.

As for basics, I think the most important thing is:

#1 Realize what situation you are in: Advantage, Disadvantage, Nuetral, Positioning, when your gonna get own3d, when you have a guarantee to own your opponent.

#2 Use fast moves to dictate a fight and gain control, use throws when you suspect an evade/blocking etc. especially from advantage. Use fast mid/throw when you have a major advantage.

#3 Learn when you get guaranteed damage, this is really important cause you should take advantage of your opponents mistakes whenever you can.

#4 Learn to read peoples habits. Yomi>Theory. Don’t become a pencil and paper VF player. What does your opponent like to do? In situation 1-5. If they like to low jab, counter them till they stop and use that to condition new mind games. If they like sweep, block and punish them. If they like to throw with one throw, escape it or beat them out. Learn to beat your opponent mentally, character match ups and the other what not will fall in naturally.

13

Tiers have never been far apart in VF, mostly due to how the system works. It really depends on the player to have a strong defense. VF5 ver. B is definitely not as balanced as Evo or FT though, but ver. C will probably be on par with those balance-wise.

For anyone beginning to play Evo in the day, I always put stress on learning to fuzzy guard, and now in VF5 it is even more important because you can fuzzy in many more situations. I believe you can fuzzy guard up to -6 (-7 if you crouch dash) in VF5, so you have the opportunity to use it a lot, as well as just out in the open.

The basic idea of fuzzy guard is to crouch, then stand back up, avoiding both an immediate mid or an immediate throw. The concept is that you’ll stand up in time to block a mid, but throw is faster so you’ll still be crouched when it grabs.

There are 2 general types of fuzzy guard. One is fuzzy guard by timing, which I think is what most people learn and depend on. This is doing fuzzy in the appropriate defensive situation, just going by the timing and not necessarily watching the opponent, but focusing on the timing to avoid an immediate mid/throw.

The other is reaction fuzzy. This is harder, but stronger in my opinion especially if you can train/condition yourself to see certain things that would normally beat fuzzy. Here you would stay in crouch until you see your opponent do something, and then stand. As long as you react in time, you will block the mid, but throw is fast enough that you shouldn’t be able to ‘react’ to stand up into the throw.

Things that can beat fuzzy are low throw (this is the absolute best option because there is really no way to react or ‘take back’ your fuzzy to beat it; you might be able to evade or attack out of it on reaction if you are very fast, though), fast low attacks like the basic 2k, and delayed throw. Delayed throw can be done in a lot of ways, like dash throw, crouch dash throw, 8~33/66~throw, K~G cancel -> throw, etc. Basically doing something to make someone ‘react’ and stand up to be thrown. In my opinion K~G cancel throw is the hardest (virtually impossible) so fuzzy against and actually stay crouched. Dash/cd throw is pretty easy to ‘un-react’ and stay in crouch against. 8~33/66 or movement tricks are sort of in between.

Also, if you have a strong fuzzy guard you should be able to not only avoid mid/throw, but also be able to block immediate sweeps/slower lows (~18F) on reaction. If you can do this then people will have an extremely hard time doing any damage to you, because they can’t easily put you in a forced guessing game situation (un-crouchable throw) like VF4.

14

anything for Eileen?
i always though she was low tier and never saw much use of her.

15

Eileen is arguably top tier dude. She’s really really cheesy imo but yeah she’s still good.

I know some Eileen but honestly you are better off checking out Srider’s break down. He knows Eileen in and out.

Check it out here:
http://www.mycheats.com/view/section/19322/19268/virtua_fighter_5/ps3

16

Just to let you guys know, VFDC has officially opened up it’s WIKI function. While it’s still in the works, expect some gradual good strategy and resources being poured into it.

Additionally here are some fun Jacky strategies for new players that are picking him up.

6P mix ups - this is the bread and butter of low level Jacky play. Basically it’s all about delay, cancel, or speed up.

6P >

  • if you see a flash (MC) you can hit confirm for the follow up K ender for a knock down and some damage.
  • if it’s blocked you can backdash away and 2P will whiff and you can punish or pressure from there. If they whiff something major, try P+KP to combo them.
  • if you want to be more safe, apply Fuzzy Guard (explained by Dandy J above) after a block)
  • if you normal hit you can use delayed follow up P or cancel to 2P/P to beat any retaliations. If they still block or get hit by follow up P, try using Side Step Shuffle to mix them up big time.
  • if evaded, you can be in big trouble, try to block any crazy nonsense (like a big launcher) and learn to break side throws if they attempt one.

6PP>

  • if you get your opponent to eat both two, you can mix up between P+K ender (to hit crouching) or 2K ender (to hit standing). They both leave you at disadvantage on hit and major disadvantage on block, but sometimes it can be worth it to get that little bit of damage in, plus it annoys people alot.
  • if they are hell bent on blocking, you can also use K ender to step out shuffle. This also works if they happen to like evading your other stuff. Try using shuffle P immediately after wards to catch them off guard. If they are slow you might score a slam hit!
  • Side Step Shuffle (8P+K+G/2P+K+G) this evades immediate retaliations and gives you access to a much more powerful mid than P+K ender, not to mention safer too! The canned PP will combo on any hit, and knocks down on any hit, and is safe for both hits, though the last hit is high.

One thing to remember- even though some of these strategies may purposely put Jacky at minor disadvantage remember that that’s not necessarly bad. Most players will get annoyed with the elbow nonsense and will try to jab out (like after hit from P+K ender or 2K ender) this is where Jacky really shines. You can yomi or predict this obvious choice retaliation and simply Punch Parry with Jacky’s neutral high/mid punch parry. If your opponent wasn’t already annoyed with the delay/cancel/high/low mix ups he’ll be seriously pissed when he gets inashi’d into a slam. If your opponent fails to tech the punch parry’s follow up you are guaranteed a 8P pounce for some good damage. Good players will be able to tech roll it however Jacky is in a great position either way to put tons of pressure on them with stuff like… 6P lol lol lol

Don’t always rush in 24/7 with 6P spaming with Jacky, try to mix it up with PP6P (which is really really good imo) or try poking with different moves like his knee (4K) or the godly 1P (very strong poke). This works really well in beginner to intermediate level play so play around with it. Just don’t rely on it.

17

Was Kage ever tops in VF2? I know some people who say yeah, and some who don’t.

I know he had some great chains, usually beginning with his awesome throws - but there were some fighters that gave him problems. Akira was in prime mode(he’d beast anybody in this version if trained), Sarah seemed faster(her combos were too - Dural like fast), etc.

18

From what I heard from older players that were around in those days, the game was very much dominated by Lau/Akira/Kage.

19

its kinda funny; in the wiki section for goh

his fighting style says Lucha Libre :lol:

(dan you going to brians place next sat?)

20

Yeah, they would use the fighter who was competitively played the most and named him/her the champion storyline wise. So like, Lau in 1, Akira in 2, etc.

But anyways, thx because I always figured Kage was effective in 2. I played as him all the time and he’s somewhat easy to learn. (well, back then anyway)