[CS2] Platinum vs. Hazama

[YukiBlue]

Punishes:

Anti-airing:

Zoning:

Strategy:

Char specific details:

Other details:Blog mode on: Fighting Hazama is a somewhat Unique Blazblue experience. Same with Arakune and possibly Carl Clover. You dont truly have the option of sprinting in and starting a combo right away. Half of the time, you are on the defense, blocking Chains, and wondering when Hazama will Zip right at you.

This will happen all the time. In every Hazama match, he will jump and launch a chain, and the second one hits you, expect pressure and damage.

IB'ing chains and knowing when to escape pressure and/or punish is something I cant stress enough. Knowing when to use Platinums DP vital.

*More coming, Seriously tied down *irl*

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Working on this as you read these words...Be patient with me.

[stickystaines]

My findings in this match up - in note form!

- IBing chains are a must. However, if he chains in with D and attacks with j.AA, you cannot AA it without bat (even if you IB it). If you want to avoid it you can time a backdash through it though. The rest of his attacks can be AA with 6A if you IB, for the most part.

- Hazama is one of those characters where the normal hammer loop combo wont work after a Mami Circular (5C (sj) j.BC (jc) j.CD). You just need to add in an extra B in before you do the j.CD, so it would look like this: 5C (sj) j.BC (jc) j.BCD.

- Missiles are really useful in this matchup, because once you get out a missle, it cannot be destroyed. So even if he tags you with his chain, then he will get hit if he tries to chain into you.

- Using a bubble to approach isn't ideal in this match up, since he can just chain the bubbles to destroy them and you will most likely get punished in trying to put one out.

- Don't ignore Dead Angles in this matchup. His pressure isn't the greatest, but if he has 50 heat then any hit he gets will be going into a lot of damage. Don't be afraid to Dead Angle if his back is close to the wall and a DA will send him into it.

- j.C and j.2C is great when you put them in the corner but you are not directly there yourself yet and they will recover before you get there (common after a Mami Circular ender). You can run up and do a j.C as many Hazamas will often try to jump and do a j.8DD to get out of the corner. If you get CH you go into huge damage. j.2C covers more area because of its active frames, but you don't get the damage if they fall into it, but it will still keep them in the corner.

- Many Hazamas like to AA with 5A and 5C. You can use Swallow Moon to really mess with their timing and possibly land a hit yourself.

I'll post more stuff if it comes to me.

[Arifureta]

Since I used to be Hazama main, I thought I'd write this up.

Punishes:

- Clearly, a whiffed/blocked jayoku is a free punish to anything.

- Any move from his stance (214D) is punishable on startup. Depending on the spacing, you can either 5A or 5C the followup. Though watch out for a gimmicky flash kick followup since that'll eat anything.

- 214D~B is punishable on whiff, although it really depends on how close you are on him. I think IBing it is also a free punish.

- Blind chain-ins are punishable with 2C.

Anti-airing:

- I'd say use 2C more since every time Haz approaches from the air he'll be coming in with a meaty so having head invuln and a lowered hitbox is a nice thing. Plus it has the added bonus of being crossup safe, just in case he decides to fly in with the C followup. Though to be honest, only a silly Hazama would actually fly in on a blocked chain so that's probably the least of your worries.

Zoning:

- lol no. Although at full screen, you do have an advantage if you have the cat missiles. If you throw one out, your ground approach is pretty much safe since his chains can't cancel the missile and he'll either block or jump out, Either way, it's a free dash in. Just know the range of his chains and watch out where you decide to throw out your projectiles.

Strategy:

- Nothing really special; just go with your standard strategy. Try to get him in the corner and get your godlike bubble oki (B bubble + TK swallow moon) going. An annoying thing about Hazama is how easily he can get out of corner by using chains. You'll really have to work to keep him in there. Your j.C beats his air game clean though so feel free to abuse that if he's jump happy while trying to get out.

- I probably don't have to say this, but watch out for Jayoku. If he has 50 heat, then stick to an actual blockstring for your pressure, otherwise you might eat a nasty fatal into 5k combo.

- His midscreen oki got nerfed a little bit, but you'll still have to watch out not to roll towards him because his 2A will pick you up and get you back into a BnB. His corner oki is still pretty godlike, so watch out for that. 2A will eat any attempts at rolling out of the corner so your only option is neutral tech (although staggering your rolls can sometimes work). Don't try to mash out on wakeup since nothing you normally have beats his normals (although the bat does work wonders). Just watch out for the mixup and wait for a good place to poke out. Hazama's blockstrings end fast so you won't be wating long. He can extend it with 214D~A or 6B, but those are reactionable. Basically what'll happen is you'll wait for jabaki and be like "aha, end of blockstring".

- If he likes to fly in on blocked chains, laugh at his face and 2C. Though he can safely approach by stopping the chains before they hit you.

- A good way to get in on Hazama is to IB the chains and then dash in as he retracts it. Just be careful since he can cancel his chain into Jakou to catch out any air dashes.

- Always barrier cancel your dashes, just to make sure you don't eat a chain on your way in.

Item Strategy:

- The bomb is at a disadvantage in this matchup since their effective range is right inside his chain range so be careful whenever you throw those out.

- The missile is pretty good at covering your ground approach since he can't cancel them with your chains. Just be a little wary of where you throw them out on the screen since his chains are fast enough to beat your startup if you're close enough.

Char specific details:

- His hitbox is like Jin's (i.e. thin) so some combos need to be adjusted. Most notably, the full hammer loop doesn't work. Either you do 2 reps of the hammer into oki, or you do 1 hammer into super. Though this might be execution failure on my part so if someone has done it then I stand corrected.

- Oh and watch out for his command grab. At 12 frames, it's pretty scary. It's really effective in corner when he gets his oki so just be careful.

[ShadowFiend]

Insight

- most hazamas will go for the falling fang(ressenga) mixup. level 2 he has full foot invul. during it, if you are in the air you will be spiked back down, you can just 5a him out of this or better yet IG it. you can punish him alot better if you IG it. oh i just confirmed this. if hazama does level 2 ressenga even if you i.g it, he is still save.

- don't blind rush hazama when he is away from you. he won't be afraid to Rising Fang/Flash Kick(Gashoukyaku). i believe he is invincible on the startup of the move. don't push buttons either otherwise you will get fatal'd into 8k combo.

- his 5b, a great counter move. decent startup and it is safe on block +2. alot of hazamas use this for their frame traps. be patient and don't get countered. it is jump cancellable. every now and then i would see haz 5b into IAD 2C. indeed it is great because it's a cross up but if you are able to read it, you can 5a it.

- his 5c comes out pretty fast. it is air unblockable and he can follow up with the hungry coils.

- his 2c arguably one of the best anti airs in the game. don't let him catch you on counter.

- be careful of his sweep(3c) it has excellent range. on counter hit, he can follow up with the devouring fang just like in CS1 days :D

- don't let haz think he can approach everytime he shoots the ouroboros at you. you can punish badly timed approaches with 6a. i love using it. even if he goes for the B or C follow ups 6a still beats it out you can always 5a also. be warned, if he approaches with a distanced j.5b, 6a won't work.

- Jayoku is one of haz distortion drives. he basically dragon kicks your ass into the milky way. he can pretty much cancel any of his standing normals into this move. it's 6+1 frame on start-up, it is possible for a fatal and it breaks guard primer. most haz aren't afraid to use this move on wake up, block stun or even random. it ain't safe however due to it being -31 on block.

-his 6a is an overhead. haz every now and then will use this for mixups reasons. it's slow but if your mind isn't fast reacting you will eat it. he can't combo this normal into or out of anything besides Jayoku. oh it breaks a guard primer.

- his 6b is a low attack. it's slow also but it's safe on block +3. just know he's up to something when he goes for it. breaks a guard primer.

- his 6c, he pulls knifes out of his pocket and throws them while hopping back. breaks a guard primer.

My advice is, you can stop him from controlling the air by approaching with J.5C it is risky but do not make this a habit.

you can stop him from traveling towards you by 6a.

YES:

The items that work well for me, Bat(invincibility, punishes bad strings/mixups) lol it even goes through jayoku and trades with Gashoukyaku. The bombs are great also because it's controlling the air and the ground keeping things unstable for him. missiles are beautiful because he can't destroy them so free approaches. Hammer (HELL YEAH!) he only has 4 guard primers have fun destroying that shield and making him your bitch.

Meh:

the kitty i feel is sometimey. it is good. you'll can catch him approaching or even shooting an chain, but once haz gets the spacing between him and the kitty pretty much he'll be baiting or just approaching with caution. the pan is somewhat ok in this matchup. i mean you get free instant overheads and staggers. but most of the time, i find myself throwing it away. DON'T BE AFRAID TO THROW SOME ITEMS AWAY they always go toward the air you can catch haz like that time to time.

[Kujikawa]

Idk why, but I use 2B to punish, predictable Hazama's, chains. I believe it works if the opponent tries to hit a J.B after shooting towards you. I think the shrunken hitbox of Plat's 2B causes Hazama to whiff J.B, and you get counter hit - which then can be followed up by 5C > Mami.

[ShadowFiend]

wait so if haz approaches with Blocked chain to J.B we can 2b him!? D:

[soujiro seta]

^^^ I don't know, I've never tried that, but I know 2B low profiles under hazama's 5D

[Kujikawa]

wait so if haz approaches with Blocked chain to J.B we can 2b him!? D:

I believe thats what I'm doing, unless it's something else he pulls out :S

[ShadowFiend]

i tried 2b'ing when he shoots the chain. yeah i duck but sometimes i get counter hit >_>

[Kujikawa]

I need someone to fully test it, I can't since I no near to nothing on Hazama.

[ShadowFiend]

well i tried it bro, sometimes i dodge the chain but i got CH a couple of times.

[Shazam]

I wrote up a nice friendly post about this matchup from Hazama's perspective, so you can refer to that and it might give you a few ideas.

So, here's a few things that I would do if I was fighting Hazama.

*Use drive a lot but be careful. You will get zoned, bitten, and flown in on for trying to pull out an item at the wrong time, and when that time is depends on your opponent.

*Jump to use your missiles, or at least be varied with them. Don't just let them all out on the ground with 214d because it's easy to get around. Bombs can be effective if you use them right.

*Bat is good in this matchup if you're bad at blocking or want a get out of pressure free card

*Try to stay patient

*Command grab is less viable because of counter command grab

*Use mami circular as a surprise every now and then and you might have good results

That's about all i've got for now, good luck to you all.

[Kujikawa]

Using all 214D Missiles is also a bad idea, Hazama can sj over them and chain away.

Do not mash bat when under pressure, Hazama can easily bait this with Serphant's Benidiction.

Also, after a random A or B bubble, stupid Hazamas may want to chain it even if it's far away - this gives you a way in (sort of).

Not recomended to use though.

[Yggjrasil]

IB his pressure and chains, low-profile or 2C his full-screen chain approaches,watch for overheads (my god, 6A > Jayoku so dumb) and if possible use bat wisely to get him away from you. You just need to be patient and not get caught up in his pace, once you do, you've already lost.

[ShadowFiend]

6a to jayoku is too pro xD when it's not being used against me ofcourse lol.

but combo'ing platinum with hazama is pretty dumb. haz has to change from 4D ouroboros to 6D and time it correctly :P

[Zeron_X25]

Mash your AAs in neutral. Really the only useful info I can give about this matchup. You can get baited a lot if you spam 2C but you always have 6A.

[Yggjrasil]

Yumekami vs SMILE

these matches are pretty good reference materials for the vs Haz matchup.