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Author Topic: Akiha matchups  (Read 5826 times)

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Offline Psylocke

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Akiha matchups
« on: April 28, 2008, 05:13:37 PM »
So which matchups do you guys have the msot trouble with as Akiha?

I find that I have to play much more carefully against characters with extremely good air normals, like Red Arc, Ren, and the Shikis.  Trying to fight against them air-to-air directly is usually suicide.  Akiha doesn't really have strong air normals other than j.C, and it takes a while to come out, so up against these characters I find I have to space with the tip of j.C really carefully.  Learning to really use air flame ribbons are essential in these matchups too, but Akiha is still very vulnerable during the startup of the ribbons and even after the ribbons are out if she whiffed them.

The Tougeki Tamashii matchup chart that I scanned a while ago has Ciel, Red Arc, V. Akiha, Miyako, Nero, Wara, and Ren as disadvantageous matchups.  I agree with most of these, Ciel is extremely annoying and has much more methods compared to other chars to get out of Akiha pressure.  I don't really know the Akiha vs. V. Akiha matchup that well, but Akiha normally loses that match in videos I see..  don't really know how it works, though.  Wara is an annoying matchup as he can do 2b on reaction to tk ribbon attempts to CH you out of the air, and his j.b can be very difficult to deal with.  I find Nero to be more annoying, as he can do the same thing to tk ribbon attempts except with both his 2a and 2b, and Akiha has less tools than other chars to get out of zoo pressure.  As for Miyako, I have no idea, I guess her fast superjump speed and her superior air normals give Akiha trouble?  I don't really have much experience with that matchup.
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Offline Magikarp9

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Re: Akiha matchups
« Reply #1 on: April 28, 2008, 07:35:19 PM »
AFAIK Akiha's j.a and j.b are fairly decent as air to air normals if preemptively used, their timing's just later than the use of j.c.

IMO Akiha's disadvantageous matchups come from inability to get out of a corner pressure rather than air to air problems. Looking at yuu/yukinose's play I reckon they makeup for her slow air-to-air moves by conceding space, in order to be able to use a/b aerial flametongues safely to move about.

Vs AkaAkiha though, it just looks like Akiha gets completely outmanuvered in every respect. Once she scores a knockdown though things turn easier. Then again, hato's AkaAkiha play is exceptional so we can't really figure what the matchup like is in average hands.

Vs Warakia and Nero, don't you just stay on the ground as much as needed? They're relatively large in the first place and are vulnerable to blockstrings that others are immune to.

Offline tenkai#

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Re: Akiha matchups
« Reply #2 on: April 28, 2008, 07:50:45 PM »
Nero is my absolute worst matchup. If anyone here wants to have an easy time beating me, just play Nero.

If anyone's played my Akiha, you would know that I really like the zoning game with air ribbons and pillars. Against Nero, the ribbons become a lot riskier to use because of its slow startup (25f for j.236a and 23f for j.236b), so you can usually be shot out of the air by Nero j.c/5b. That effectively kills my strongest strategy, so when fighting Nero, I have to change my playstyle around to a more aggressive one.

The following are all my personal opinions and what I have noticed in my experience. Your mileage may vary, especially if you play Akiha differently than how I play her.

Nanaya: I have a decent amount of experience against this matchup. His priority, normals, and ridiculous pressure are what will get you. When he has you in the corner, you barely have any chance of poking out without getting outpoked in return. I think your best bets are to jump out and escape when you see an opening (but this is difficult for you if he does sj.a when you try to jump out, try throwing him if he keeps doing it), ex-shield one of his attacks (I usually ex-shield IAD j.b/j.c) into combo, or hold shield into 623b (or 623c if you have meter to burn so you can send him to the other side of the screen and have momentum on your side). I would not recommend hold shield as much because Nanaya's blockstrings can easily alter moves that have to shielded high and moves that have to be shielded low; you essentially have to guess how you want to shield.

Another problem against Nanaya is when you try to zone him with j.236a/b. If you're too close to him, you run the risk of being hit by a sj.a or a j.a. The way I fight Nanaya is to keep my distance when using air ribbons. Then if he tries to superjump across the screen to get you while you're on the ground, you can try a 214a/b move to intercept him and hopefully CH. Or you can jump up and try to airthrow him.

If you have a Nanaya in a blockstring and have pushed yourself too far out to reset the blockstring and dash back in, you can try drawing counterhits by attaching 214a to the end of your string if you know he loves poking out of every gap he finds with 2b or whatever move. It's worth trying once or twice to see how they react, but when they catch on, I would not recommend using it as much.

Shiki: I don't have as much of a problem with Shiki as I do Nanaya because his pressure isn't as crazy. However, you have to be very careful of his 2c and his j.c. They can both be very deceptive. His 2c probably goes even farther than Akiha's 2c, so be very careful when leaving openings, especially during blockstrings. Regarding his j.c, you should haven't too much difficulty with it. The move is deceptive, but you should know that blocking high is good if he's in the air. Once you catch on to the timing, you can try ex-shielding it or using 214a to counterhit.

Like Nanaya, his sj.a and j.a are very useful against an Akiha that likes to use air ribbons. Take the same precautions as you would Nanaya.

Red Arc: The fact that Red Arc can't deal that much damage, especially against Akiha, works to your advantage. If you chip at each other's life, you will come out on top. A couple of things to look out for:
- j.b: Red Arc's j.b is very, very good against Akiha. Like Psylocke says, it's crazy trying to fight them air-to-air directly. Don't use ribbons too close, lest you get hit by sj.b or j.b (unless you're just really good at maneuvering).
- Bloodrings: Red Arc's bloodrings, particularly her 'a' version, has the advantage of a very quick startup, so be careful to not do something crazy like superjump at a Red Arc that's above you. The angle of the attack isn't too hard to avoid if you're looking for it. You can either try to jump over it and do an air ribbon to continue the zoning, or you can try to dash under it and retaliate.

Ren: Yes, those air normals are here to haunt you once again. Ren's j.a/j.c/j.2c are especially deadly. She can usually cannonball you out of your air ribbon startup with j.a, and when she's approaching with j.c or j.2c, it's really dangerous when trying to beat it. Now, if you can ex-shield the j.c and counter, that'll be very useful. j.2c on the other hand, is not friendly towards the ex-shield -> CH option. The hitboxes on j.2c are extremely deceptive, and I usually don't risk trying to ex-shield this thing. It's safest to block. A couple of things you have working for you against Ren is her terrible vitality and her speed. You're pretty safe if you can zone with air ribbons effectively because then Ren won't be able to get to you. So just zone, get that knockdown, and employ your rushdown.

Another thing to watch out for against Ren is her black cats. The intuitive response that most people have when Ren drops a cat is "jump over it." Most Rens try to read this and retaliate by doing sj.whatever. I haven't come up with a clear method to beat her cat zoning, but a couple of things to keep in mind are that since Ren would usually expect you to jump when she throws a cat out, you can try to form a strategy with this knowledge in mind. Jumping over the cat isn't the only way to avoid it either. You can ex-shield it. When the Ren catches on that you're not always going to jump after a black cat, she may employ some other strategies: run-in, tin cat, etc. This is where you have to think on your feet and where jumping isn't always a bad idea (if she's just running in at you). When Ren drops a black cat and jumps at you, you also have the option of trying to read her jump and knock her out of the air with an air ribbon. Just make sure you account for the black cat that's below you; you lose the advantage of the knockdown if you get hit by the cat.

Ciel: For some reason, I haven't had as much difficulty against Ciel than against the other matchups, but here are some things to keep in mind. Of course, one thing that's very scary when fighting Ciel is her 236c punish. If you whiff something or even start something up (214x series or j.236x), she can easily punish it if she's looking for it. The same applies to blockstrings. Using 214b in a blockstring with Akiha is standard, but Ciel can punish this, so be very careful when using this as well as when using tk ribbons in pressure. Also, as long as she has meter, you're essentially prohibited from using 236c and your arc drive as either a reversal or in pressure; Ciel can just cheat and use 236c. The Ciel you play may really like zoning with black keys; this is usually not a problem since you can jump over it and use the momentum of airdash j.236a to safely bring you over her keys. You can then take advantage of her recovery to land a j.b into combo or something. Ciel's pressure is standard procedure with Akiha: block! And if you're good at it, you can also take advantage of the 2b poke's clash frames to turn the tables in your favor.

V.Akiha: The main thing V.Akiha has going for her is great mobility. Against your air ribbon zoning, if V.Akiha is already in the air, she can use airdash j.b to draw a counterhit from you and then proceed to rush that shit down. The addition of the extra airdash also gives her an edge in footsies and zoning, not to mention crazy corner mixups. But the main thing thing that you have working for you is that she dies a lot faster than you do. With Akiha's above average damage output amplified by V.Akiha's crappy defense, once you have momentum on your side, you can end things very quickly. However, if V.Akiha has the momentum, there isn't much you can do for a reversal. Just block and escape. You can also experiment with 2b a little.

If V.Akiha is in the air, you have the option of trying to shoot her down with 214x (I find 214b into 214a to be useful - most players don't expect it, and V.Akiha's speed is her downfall in this situation), but if you feel up to it, you can take to the skies as well and try to outzone her. Just be very careful of that j.b.

Miyako: Like Psy, I don't have much experience in this matchup either, outside of linalys, Nerina, and mitsu (who doesn't even play her anymore). I essentially fight against Miyako like how I fight Ren (outzone her with air ribbons). It is crazy to try to face them in air-to-air combat; Miyako will shut you down (beat your move or clash with it) with her j.anything. Her superjump speed is very good too, so you'll want to space yourself if you want to try shooting her down with air ribbons. In the corner pressure, she can deliver pretty consistent damage with groundthrow -> 2c etc. etc. However, her lack of range works against her. You can try retaliating with 2b or 2c.

I find Miyako easier to fight than Ren because you don't have any black cats to deal with, so you can land and not have to worry about getting knocked down. Just make sure you take her speed into account. Again, do not engage her in direct air-to-air combat.

Warakia: I don't have much experience in this matchup, but in the experience I do have, with my playstyle, I don't have much trouble against Warakia. His range is both his strength and his weakness. Your 214a/b will be extremely, extremely useful against Warakia. Use these tools to get counterhits. Against his pressure, his range can be a problem, but you should be fine as long as you don't try poking out. One thing you have to be very careful with is using j.236a/b. The long startup is just asking for Warakia to CH you out of the air with 2b/j.b.

Edit: With more knowledge comes more edits (7-2-08)
« Last Edit: July 02, 2008, 06:14:32 PM by Dakanya# »

Offline SynSid

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Re: Akiha matchups
« Reply #3 on: April 30, 2008, 05:12:22 PM »
The two characters I have the most trouble playing against are characters that have quicker normals and have the ability to beat my zoning in various way: Red Arc and Shiki Tohno.

Red Arc's air normals beat out most of my attempts in the air and the bloodring zoning makes it difficult for me to approach.  Using air flame ribbons vs bloodrings doesn't work too well for me, because the risk/rewards for it is too high for me (getting hit by CH ring = free combo, hitting them with a CH ribbon = not always a free full combo).  Holes in my zoning can be easily taken advantaged using Red Arc's crazy air moves.  Once I am able to get close, I feel more at ease, but the better than average wakeup DP just makes this matchup more frustrating.

Every of Shiki Tohno's normals just straight out beat Akiha's moves and his DP is high risk but still damaging.  Like what tenkai said, his 2C his superior to Akiha's 2C in range and speed and his j.A is a nightmare in the air.  I have to be very cautious when using air flame ribbons and during my attack.  I do not think defending against Shiki is too hard, but I have the most trouble with this matchup because most of what I do just gets stuffed from most his moves.

Offline Norborb

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Re: Akiha matchups
« Reply #4 on: May 23, 2008, 08:01:13 PM »
I do not claim to understnad this game very well or be an advanced player so I can't get into specifices on why, but I have alot of trouble against Miyako.

Offline Tech Romancer

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Re: Akiha matchups
« Reply #5 on: May 26, 2008, 10:58:27 AM »
I have some trouble against Ren, but its not simply her air normals. A player I fight tends to abuse her 623 attack (you know, the spinning move, which I think is positive on block). It knocks me out of air dashs, potential overhead attempts and is really a pain to deal with despite the player using Len as a turtler-and-pick character (the fuck?). In short I'm dealing with a bit of a scrub here and even though I win, I don't think I should be having this much trouble against a player that doesn't even know her BnB!

I was thinking of Bara canceling through it; can anyone tell me how? I want his ass everytime he spams it - maybe then he'll learn some damn combos and play correctly >:(
« Last Edit: May 27, 2008, 03:13:14 AM by Tech Romancer »
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Offline Alfonse

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Re: Akiha matchups
« Reply #6 on: May 26, 2008, 11:07:21 AM »
This might be cheap (but since your opponent is cheap anyway), but you can abuse flameribbons (236x) when you see his Len spinning towards you. Rinse and repeat if he still chooses to spam that move repeatedly.
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Offline Tech Romancer

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Re: Akiha matchups
« Reply #7 on: May 27, 2008, 03:14:55 AM »
This might be cheap (but since your opponent is cheap anyway), but you can abuse flameribbons (236x) when you see his Len spinning towards you. Rinse and repeat if he still chooses to spam that move repeatedly.

Good idea. I still would love to be able to bunker cancel through him into a bnb, though.  >:D
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