[CSE] Hakumen Q & A: New players check here first

[dioxideUniversa]

TK hotaru is a minimum of 4f startup and can be much longer if you are not inputting it with enough precision. netplay can also make it difficult to get out in 4 frames

6D, 2D, Yukikaze, and Akumetsu are all active on frame 1, so if you are getting hit by meaties while trying to do one of these, you are simply not pushing the button early enough (assuming you weren't trying to block a low with 6D or a high with 2D.) note that 6D and 2D have very short active frames (9f and 8f respectively,) so the opponent has two options on oki: do a frame 1 meaty to keep you from doing hotaru, or bait the frame 1 parries by doing a slower attack that will hit after your active frames end.

your parries could be not working for any of these reasons:

-trying to parry something that it does not catch (highs with 2d, a throw, pure projectiles with Akumetsu)

-you are not hitting the parry on the first frame of wakeup

-the opponent is baiting it and hitting you after the parry recovers

-netplay/latency (or possibly input lag caused by a poor TV or monitor)

and as the above poster suggested, accidentally inputting 3D is generally going to be unpredictable so try to input 2(or 1 as there is no 4D (if only)) or 6 clearly

kishuu is also a potential (but gimmicky) wake up option for some forms of specific mixups, but it does not gain its invuln properties early enough to be reliable. shippu also has its occasional uses as a reversal midscreen between its invuln, quick startup, and moving hakumen back quite a bit. for starters and safe play, however, stick to parries or hotaru (or blocking)

Edited August 11, 2013 by dioxideUniversa

[Raziul]

Went and bought a new controller, and now certain things are coming out much more reliably. I guess there was something wrong with the old controller after so many hours in training mode. I appreciate the great explanations, I'll be sure to keep it all in mind!

[dioxideUniversa]

bad controllers really make and break that sort of thing. that said, the rift between pad and stick is pretty massive for most people that aren't die-hard pad users

[BlackYakuzu94]

I don't find either particularly harder to master, but I think sticks have more longevity to them.

[Raziul]

Hey guys! It's me again! Why does Hakumen suck so much?

I get mashed out by literally every person I fight, and if I try to do anything remotely aggressive, I usually get punished by recovery frames, anti-airs, or a grab. I can't even use D against them because the active frames are too short and the recovery frames just means I get punished again.

What am I supposed to be doing so that I can actually hit confirm into a combo with this character?

[mAc Chaos]

Hakumen is good.

You just have to know how to use his strengths and play around his weaknesses.

Do you have any match videos you can show us as an example?

[mAc Chaos]

Also I see you have XBL. So if you want I can play some games with you and see what to do firsthand.

[Raziul]

I had CS1 on PS3 and Xbox a while back, but now I've only got Extend on PS3/Vita. Sorry. Let me go through my replays and see if there's a good example.

[mAc Chaos]

I have access to PS3 for a little while actually.

[Raziul]

Cool, well, I'm online now, no promises that we'll have a good connection though. Seems pretty hit or miss with this game.

[mAc Chaos]

All right, I'll get on now.

[mAc Chaos]

I'm going to use Hakumen first, but I'll be switching to other characters too so I can see how you play in non-mirror matches.

[Wander]

I have access to PS3 for a little while actually.

a little while... What would be a good time for matches?

[mAc Chaos]

GGs Raziul. A few things to work on:

First, execution. You want to be able to get your combos down so when you finally land that key hit, you can make it count. A few times you were dropping combos that would have done a lot of damage to me. If you can do it in training mode but not in real matches it just means you need to play more so you can get used to doing them in the heat of the moment. It's a lot easier to do in training mode where there isn't another guy trying to mess you up. Also, a good rule of thumb for training mode is to try to do it 10 times in a row. If you can't then you need to practice more.

On that note, there were a lot of times you hit me where you could have turned them into combos. For instance you would IAD j.B and hit me, but then just stop there. You can follow it up with a 5B on the ground and turn it into a regular combo.

The 6D > Mugen > Shippu ftw was pretty cool. I did not expect that at all. Couldn't even burst. Insta death.

Which reminds me, you were not using your bursts a lot. They are precious second chances that will give you a chance to escape a combo that drops half your life bar, and also turn the momentum around. You should pay more attention to them since they can turn a match you would have lost into one you can win. Part of knowing when to use them wisely is knowing the other character and player's combos. You don't want to burst when they are going to only do a combo that does 1% of your life, so that means getting experience seeing the combos firsthand to know which ones are the dangerous ones.

For offense, you could expand your blockstrings. Your main blockstring was 2A > 3C. But 3C instantly ends your offense because the recovery is long. When you throw out 3C you are basically handing the control of the match over to the other player, so you don't want to use it right away. From 2A, you can do plenty of good moves like another 2A, 2B, 5B, and 5A if the character is big enough or standing. Then you can also chain it into Gurren or Kishuu and repeat the process until you get a hit. Or you could just throw. You want to start mixing these in there.

For instance, example blockstring:

2A > 2B > 2A

This is good because even if 2A or 2B is blocked, they are safe and you can chain them into each other, meaning you are not stuck in recovery for half an hour. But they also have just enough of a gap that if the opponent tries to do something, they will get hit out of it and you can do a combo.

There's also 6B mixup. Did you notice how I was using it? I'd get in your face, and then after some 2As and 2Bs I'd throw a 6B in there, which would unsettle you. Then just when you thought you could block high and be safe, it would open the door to hit you with 2B or 3C. And if you are close enough you could throw too. On that note, you don't want to be TOO close when you 6B or YOU will get thrown, as you did to me a few times.

Basically, for offense, you want to start with your As and Bs, and only finish with your Cs.

For defense, you want to control the space around you more. Think of the space around your character as your territory. The area in which you can do your moves is basically your homeground. If somebody is trying to get in, you have to make it like storming the beaches of Normandy for them. Hakumen's j.C is great for this, along with 3C, 6A, 4C and 5B. Basically, if they DO get near you, you want them to have already been beaten up a bunch. It should be like storming a fortress.

If somebody is jumping towards you or IADing in on you, 6A or j.C them. If they are coming in on the ground, use 4C and 3C and 5B.

For a lot of our matches, you just sat there and let me get near you for free, so it's basically like waiting until the enemy army is right at your doorstep before firing at them.

Every character has certain areas they control better (like how I kept hitting you from a sweet spot range with Ragna) so you want to figure out what those are so you put yourself in the range that you have advantage on. That is generally right where you can hit them with the tip of your attack but they can't hit you.

And then I noticed some matchup knowledge stuff. If Tager is throwing you into the air and you are magnetized, don't tech. He can reel you back in with Atomic Collider because he sucks in magnetized people and start the entire thing over again.

Part of that involves punishes. If a character does something dangerous and it doesn't work, you want to make them pay for it as much as possible. For instance, if you block Hell's Fang or Inferno Divider, there is absolutely nothing he can do (except rapid cancel) to stop you from killing him. That's when you want to do a big combo to him.

I know it is a lot to take in, but just by whittling away at everything one piece at a time you can improve.

[Raziul]

Thanks for the advice.

Yeah, I know the Tager match up pretty well, I just haven't quite got to the point of recognizing all his combos. So it's a bit tougher for me to predict when to delay the tech.

Dropped combos is mostly a bad habit created from trying to double tap the directional too quickly and it ends up being a single tap with a muscle twitch, need to fix that.

Thanks again.

[mAc Chaos]

Heh, that reminds me, you had like a transformation when I picked Tager.

With Hakumen and Ragna and Lambda you seemed kind of hesitant to attack, but with Tager the shackles came off.

[Raziul]

I've been punished too many times by anti-airs.

[mAc Chaos]

You can still try to move in by hopping or using Gurren or Kishuu. Or just a regular jump, since that gives you a chance to double jump away if they try for an AA.

[BladeOfJustice7]

You guys should continue this discussion in the general thread, since this thread is made for quick beginner tips/questions.

Glad to see things are still somewhat active here though.

[BlackYakuzu94]

Hopefully things will be more active in a month.

..These forums are dreadfully barren.

[mAc Chaos]

We have for the most part covered everything there is to cover, that's why.

[dioxideUniversa]

that and we have essentially one poster who presents entry-level questsions

[mAc Chaos]

how do i jump

[someonewhodied]

I'm new how do I do hakumen combos?

[BladeOfJustice7]

Hopefully things will be more active in a month.

..These forums are dreadfully barren.

That's because no one really plays CSEX and we've had to wait for over a year to play CP, which better be worth it by giving us an early patch. So it's to be expected, things will get really active when October hits.