Ken
I like to use Ken over the other
characters because of his combos, special
moves, and supers. His 波動拳 combos
are excellent for chipping at the
opponent, and his supers do a lot of damage
and can be comboed easily.
Ken is one of the few characters that
has good crouching attack combos.
Contents:
Colors
Normal moves
Special moves
Supers
Combos
Advantages & disadvantages
Strategies
Parrying
Versus strategy
---------------------------
Colors
---------------------------
LP: Red MP: Black HP: Blue
LK: Yellow MK: White HK: Purple
My favorite colors are black, blue,
and white. Each time I die or start
over, I usually alternate between these
colors. I don't like red, yellow,
or purple.
---------------------------
Normal Moves:
---------------------------
C. LP
At close range, Ken will do an elbow.
At far away, Ken does a jab.
S. MP
At close range, Ken does a uppercut
at stomach range. The S. HP can combo
after this attack.
At far range, Ken does a forward
punch.
S. HP
If the opponent is far away, Ken
will do a hook punch with the arm closest
to the opponent. If the opponent
is close, he will do an uppercut with
the arm closest to the opponent.
I like to use this as air defense.
It's better than doing the Shouryuken
cuz you don't have to worry about completely
missing.
C. HP
This is Ken's next best anti-air move
after the S. HP.
C. MK
This sets up a 波動拳 perfectly.
MK、Axe kick: hold down on S. MK (or ? MK)
If you don't hold down on the MK, it won't cancel into an axe kick.
C. HK
The recovery time cannot be canceled
on the sweep, so it should be used
carefully. I like to use to nail
a vulnerable opponent that is too far
away for anything but a sweep.
S. HK
Ken does a standing low roundhouse
that is a knockdown.
This has better reach than the C.
HK, but also cannot be cancelled. It
has worse recovery time than the C. HK.
---------------------------
Special Moves:
---------------------------
波動拳: QCF + P
Same ol 波動拳 from Turbo and Alpha.
Because it has some delay, avoid
using it at mid range or you may take
a beating.
Good offensive pressure for turtlers if
they don't know how to parry. This
move can be cancelled with any super.
昇龍拳: DP + P
I like to use the HP version the
most when someone jumps at me. However,
because it isn't invulnerable anymore,
I sometimes use the HP instead when
I can't time the 昇龍拳。The LP version
comes out the fastest. This move
can also be canceled with any super before
Ken leaves the ground.
竜巻旋風脚: QCB + K
I only use this in combos cuz Ken
can be swept afterwards. This move builds
up the stun bar hella good. The
1st hit can be cancelled into a super.
いなずま かかと 落とし: ? + MK
Ken does an axe kick that can only
be blocked standing.
This down attack is slow compared
to the other down attacks, but has good
range. I like to use this after
a sweep.
---------------------------
Supers:
---------------------------
All of Ken's supers are only fully effective
at close range - if you can't
get close to the opponent, they are useless
(except for 神龍拳、which keeps
people from jumping at you). If
they are blocked or totally miss, the opponent
will have plenty of time to counter.
At least for me, I combo the supers most
effectively in a C. MK、波動拳、
波動拳、 Super art combo. The key
is to watch if the C. MK hits - as soon
as you see it hit, then do the double
fireball motion. Otherwise, the super
will not be entered in time.
=========
神龍拳
=========
QCF, QCF + K
super meter: 2 huge bars.
Damage: 30-40%
Ken does a multi-hitting 昇龍拳 that
goes straight up into the sky. Without
ramming the kick buttons, this super does
9 hits. If you ram the kick buttons,
you can get up to 16 hits.
This is one of my most favorite
supers in the whole game. 神龍拳 is Ken's
best super because it is versatile, invulnerable,
does good damage, and
can build up to 2 bars. 神龍拳 is
versatile because it can be comboed and
used as anti-air. This super is
the best anti-air move in the game because
it is invulnerable as soon as it comes
out, it can hit the opponent for
maximum hits whether or not they are on
the ground or in the air, and is
very difficult to parry. In my opinion,
this is the best super in the game.
It also looks really cool too, with
Ken hitting the opponent multiple times
while soaring high up in the sky.
The one weakness of this super is
if you do not connect with it, it will
give the opponent plenty of time to prepare
a counter attack. Also, this
super is only effective at close range
- it will not combo off of a 波動
拳 combo if the opponent is too far
away. Even tough this is good anti-air,
you have to be ready. I usually
have to be anticipating in the ducking
position in order to pull it off
on time.
When I do this super as air defense,
I usually like to do it from the crouching
position.
=========
昇龍裂破
=========
QCF, QCF + P
1 huge bar.
Damage: 25%
Ken does three 昇龍拳 in a row.
The good thing about this super is that
it can be comboed after a C. MK、
波動拳 or S. HP、波動拳。It also has better
reach than 神龍拳、and can hit
an opponent that it is out of reach for
神龍拳。This super can be used as
air defense, but only 3 or 4 hits will
get in. This super does the best
chip damage of all of Ken's supers.
The thing that sucks about this super
is that the opponent has to be completely
on the ground for the full hits to get
in. It also cannot be used as effective
air defense and only one bar can be built
up.
============
疾風迅雷脚:
============
QCF, QCF + K
2 medium bars
Damage: 15% (one sweep)
Ken does a bunch of kicks and ends
the super with a spinkick that knocks
the opponent up in the air. If the
super does not connect, Ken stops kicking
after a couple kicks and does not do the
spinkick.
This super has the best range of
Ken's supers - it can combo off of a S.
MP, S. HP combo. It can also be
comboed off of the kick throw into the
corner. This super can also be built
up the fastest of all of Ken's supers.
This super keeps the stun bar
as it is.
The bad things about this super
is that it doesn't do enough damage, there
is no way this super can be used as air
defense, it is also not invulnerable,
and its hitting range on start up
isn't as good as the other supers. It
also doesn't look that cool.
For some reason, I've seen some
experts use this super. I guess because
the throw、 super combo is good against
turtlers? I don't know.
---------------------------
Combos:
---------------------------
C. MK、波動拳
This is the combo I use the most.
Even if they block it, they get chipped.
The LP 波動拳 is the best choice
if you are not planning to cancel into
a super. If a 昇龍拳 comes out on
accident, you won't be left as vulnerable.
C. MK、HP 波動拳/HP 昇龍拳、神龍拳 / 昇龍裂破
/ 疾風迅雷脚
Along with being an effective way to link
his supers, this combo looks pretty
cool too. Instead of a 波動拳、a
昇龍拳 can be done. The HP 波動拳 is
the best because in case a 昇龍拳 comes
out, it will suck the opponent closer
to Ken.
(jumping opponent) C. HP, HP 波動拳
This isn't really a combo, but if the
opponent tries to do something after
getting hit by the C. HP, they'll get
nailed by the 波動拳。Even if they
block, it is good offensive pressure and
block damage.
C. MK、HK 竜巻旋風脚
I do this combo on vulnerable characters
that are falling. Make sure you
visually see the MK hit before you do
the Spinkick or only the Spinkick
will come out.
S. MP, S. HP、HK 竜巻旋風脚
This is a modification of combo #5 - it
does a little more damage, but the
opponent has to be hella close and completely
on the ground. I only do
this combo against Gil after blocking
his charge.
S. MP, S. HP、HP 波動拳、疾風迅雷脚
I use this combo for vulnerable characters
who aren't close enough for the
Spinkick to hit. I use it mainly
against Alex.
J. HP \/ C. MK、HP 波動拳 / HP 昇龍拳、神龍拳
I go for this combo on dizzy characters.
竜巻旋風脚、Super Art
HK throw into corner, 疾風迅雷脚
(jump attack) Parry, S. HP、HP 波動拳
Make sure to not rush any step of this
combo, or you will mess up the parry
or end up doing a 昇龍拳 which will most
likely not connect. Even if the
HP doesn't hit them on the ground, they
will land on the 波動拳 and be forced
to parry or block it. Don't throw
the 波動拳 if the opponent lands in the
corner or Ken may be punished.
The S. HP seems to be the best attack
Ken can do after parrying a jump attack.
(jump attack) parry, S. MP, S. HP, HP 波動拳
Although the S. MP doesn't always reach,
this is a good anti-air against
people who parry. Also, the 昇龍拳
never comes out accidentally with this
combo.
(vs anti-air) J. parry, \/ C. MK、波動拳、Super
Art
This will not always reach.
(at sweep range) \/, \/ + HK
If the opponent attacks, Ken will low
parry and counter perfectly. If the
opponent doesn't attack, Ken will do a
hop attack.
(at close range) low parry, S. MP, S.
HP、波動拳、昇龍裂破 / 疾風迅雷脚
If the S. HP doesn't reach or connect, do a C. MK、Hadoken combo.
(at close range) \/, MK/HK/C. MK
Right now, I only do the S. MK and S.
HK cuz then I don't have to worry
about messing up entering the parry correctly.
(after knockdown) cross-up J. HK \/ combo
of choice
The timing is hella hard for this, but
I've been caught by this many times.
-------------------------------------------
Advantages & disadvantages
-------------------------------------------
Advantages:
Best anti-air character in the game
Without a doubt, Ken's 神龍拳 is the best
anti-air move in the game. It
is invincible, does 30-40% damage, and
is hella hard to parry. Even if
he doesn't have a bar, his HP and 昇龍拳
will knock most people out of the
air.
Can cancel special moves with a super
Ken can cancel his special moves 波動拳
and 昇龍拳 into any super, which
makes it very easy for Ken to combo his
super. This makes Ken a very powerful
super combo character - 2 神龍拳 take
off 60% life on most characters.
Basically, if an opponent jumps at Ken,
they die. If they get hit by one
MK、波動拳 combo, 神龍拳 will cancel it
and kill them. If they just block
the 波動拳 combo all day, they get chipped.
In my opinion, Ken is the best
character in the game because of anti-air
superiority, combo potential,
and safe chipping ability.
Disadvantages:
Okay reach
Ken's reach is only average, making it
difficult for him to fight against
Elena, Necro, and Alex. Watch out
for those characters, especially their
sweeps.
Jump-ins not that good
Almost anyone can knock Ken out of the
sky. Don't jump attack unless you
know you'll hit or you can air parry.
Ken's supers are close range
Ken's supers cannot punish from far away.
So if you can't get close to
your opponent, the supers are useless.
---------------------------
Strategies
---------------------------
Don't rely on 波動拳!
Sweep
Low parry, standing combo
C. MK、波動拳 combo
Counter jump-ins
Jump at opponent
Parry projectiles
Not only does that nullify block damage,
but it also builds up your power
bar. Once the opponent realizes
that you're just building up your bar,
he'll go on the offensive. This
is also a good technique to know when you
are low on life and can't afford to take
any damage.
Don't jump
In general, it's best to stay on the ground
whenever possible. The times
it is safe to jump are countering another
jump, jumping over a fireball,
running away to the corner, and going
for a combo when the opponent is vulnerable.
Even if you can air parry fairly
well, the only other times you should
jump is when your opponent is better than
you on the ground or time is running
out and you need to get close to your
opponent to do damage.
Wait for the opponent to jump and counter
Because no one can block in the air, you
can usually hit your opponent as
long as you do the right move on time.
I usually like to wait for the opponent
to jump at me and pull off a 神龍拳、which
very few people can parry completely.
Use the HK for characters just out of combo range
I throw the HK when my C. MK will not reach
or the MK、波動拳 didn't connect.
However, make sure the HK at least
makes contact or you'll be left very
vulnerable.
Don't throw the Hadoken out of nowhere
Be very careful when you throw the 波動拳
because if the opponent jumps
over it, you'll open to lots of hurt.
真空波動拳、Alex's jump and dizzy
super, and Yun/Yang's kick super will
also nail Ken. It's safest to throw
it in a combo or
after a knockdown.
When your opponent is in the corner
Don't, I repeat, don't throw a close 波動拳
when your opponent is in the
corner! Even if they get hit by
it, Ken will be left vulnerable for lots
of pain. I have 神龍拳ed people
who have done this. Many other combos
and supers can get him too.
Instead, so the hop attack or something
that does not have delay.
Throw after knockdowns
If the opponent is really close to you
after he knocks you down, throw his
ass. By close, I mean so close that
if you hit the buttons while pressing
?, you can throw their ass unless they're
doing a super. It's better than
just sitting there cuz they could
do the attacks that are unblockable ducking.
Some of them (like Ryu's and
Dudley's) are really fast and hard to
switch guards in time. Ken's throws
have good range, so it's worth going for.
---------------------------
Parrying
---------------------------
Parrying jump-in attacks (while on the ground)
The combo I like to do after I've parried
a jump-in attack is S. HP、HP
波動拳。
Parrying in the air
After parrying an anti-air attack, as soon
as I land I do a C. MK、LP 波
動拳 or sweep.
Multiple parries
Ken says, 滴uh!箱on the ground and 擢unh!箱in the air.
Low parrying
Another thing to keep in mind is what kind
of attack you want to do after
doing a low parry. Right now, I
can only counter with standing attacks
cuz I can't do crouching attacks in time.
Ken's standing attacks aren't
that great; I'm trying the S. MK and S.
MP, S. HP right now. The problem
with the S. MK is that it goes over some
characters' heads and it doesn't
hit. And if the opponent didn't
attack, the S. MK kinda leaves Ken open
to attack.
Here are the best times to low parry with
Ken:
After connecting with the 竜巻旋風脚。If
the opponent doesn't attack, oh
well, I build up my super bar and just
walk away safely.
After a knowdown, sweep, or throw.
After doing an attack that was blocked
or missed. I then walk away to gain
distance from the opponent.
First, I practice low parrying by just
pressing down and doing a standing
attack. Once I got used to it, then
I started doing a C. HK. I plan to
do the C. MK next so I can combo a super
art.
Doing a crouching attack after a low parry
is the best strategy because
if the opponent doesn't attack, you will
do the hop attack, which is fast,
hard to block correctly, does a lot of
damage, and can combo afterwards.
Standing counters are good after a low
parry only if your characters has
a safe standing attack. A safe attack
that must forces a crouching opponent
to block it, doesn't leave your character
vulnerable, and has decent reach.
Ken's standing attacks are too short
or leave him vulnerable, so they aren't
that good to use after a low parry.
A super art also cannot combo well
after his standing attacks.
Gil
The things that set Gil apart from everyone
is that he does hella damage,
can do good multi-hitting block damage,
all of his HP and HK attacks do
chip damage, and his moves have very high
priority. His Resurrection super
brings him to full life unless he
is hit during the super.
Although Gil is powerful, he does have
three vulnerabilities that can be
taken advantage of. Those vulnerabilities
are that he takes a lot of damage,
does not attack low very often,
and does a charge attack that leaves him
very open to any kind of
combo.
I got my main strategy to fight Gil from
watching other people. This involves
walking backwards the whole time and counter
what Gil does. This strategy
works well because Gil rarely does low
attacks and this prevents getting
hit by his fast axe attack,
which can only be blocked standing.
After knocking Gil down with any attack,
I jump backwards so I can get out
of the range of his charge. Otherwise,
he will get a free 30% damage.
Charge attack:
This move does about 30% damage.
This move can only be blocked if you against
the corner or if the move did not reach
you. This is why you should walk
backwards into the corner when possible
against Gil.
The vulnerability of this move is that
it leave Gil open to damage for a
split second. This is where I get
most of my damage against Gil.
S. MP, S. HP、HK 竜巻旋風脚: does 25% damage
and builds up the stun bar
a lot. Two of these combos will
build up 95% of Gil's stun bar. Don't
forget to low parry after the Spinkick.
MP 昇龍拳、super: I go for this combo whenever
I have a bar. It is the
best way to combo a super against Gil.
Don't do the HP 昇龍拳 because it
won't come out in time.
神龍拳 or 昇龍裂破: Whichever super you
do, you have to do it super fast.
To be safer, I usually just combo
any super with a MP 昇龍拳。神龍拳 does
40% damage.
HK throw into corner, 疾風迅雷脚
Stomp attack:
Sometimes Gil makes it obvious that he
is going to do this move by hopping
backwards. During that time, you
can decide to do a dragon punch, walk
underneath him, etc.
HP Shouryuken: if he did it from far away and obvious.
alk behind and HP 昇龍拳、神龍拳。He can't
block it if he's still in the
air doing his dumb stomp. This is
your best option if Gil makes it obvious
and you have a super bar.
神龍拳: I usually don't try this unless I'm ready for it.
Block the double hit stomp, throw a HP
波動拳
Parry both hits, D. C. MK、波動拳 / 昇龍拳、神龍拳。
This will work if Gil landed close to
Ken. However, Gil has blocked this
a lot of times, making this combo risky.
Parry both hits, D. C. MK、HK Spinkick.
I do this combo when I don't have a super
bar. As far as I know, these
are the most powerful combos that will
work. Standing combos are harder
to time because Gil doesn't land right
away.
Parry both hits, 神龍拳
HP: Don't use the HP as anti-air for any
jump-in Gil does cuz you'll just
tie at best.
Normal jump:
Parry, S. HP、波動拳: I always do this
cuz it's another way to prevent block
damage, build up your bar, and do damage.
Block it
神龍拳: if you're fast enough.
昇龍拳: it will tie at best, so don't
do it.
HP: no
High jump:
HP 昇龍拳: This is the best counter, but
only do it when it will hit.
Parry, S. HP、波動拳: The timing
is a little harder though because you
have to wait for a long time. It's
better to do the
HP 昇龍拳。
神龍拳: I usually don't do this because
it only does half damage. I'd rather
save my super for another opportunity
where Gil will suck full damage.
HP: no
Double fireball:
Parry it: this is your best option.
If you can't parry both hits, try to
parry at least one of the hits.
Block it: I usually do this when Gil throws
at close range.
S. HP: only if he threw the diagonal upward
one and he's right next to you
(missed) Axe kick:
S. HP.
Resurrection:
Gil recovers all of his life after dying
once. Gil can only do this super
once a round, and after he uses it, he
cannot build up his super bar.
Once I've killed him, I dash at Gil in
order to get as close to him as I
can. As soon as the super starts,
I do the HK Spinkick from a walking forward
position. I walk forward before
doing the move because that way it is more
likely I won't mess up the move if I do
a half circle than just a QCF.