Advanced/Expert Zappa play

[Oiboi]

It seems that the popularity of Zappa has been growing, so I've decided to go ahead and start working on a "Advanced" Guide for Zappa. I won't describe any basics or properties of moves unless it's a specific strategy/setup, or if a certain move has characteristics not normally described. Since this is an advanced guide, I will be assuming that any and all opponents are using advanced tactics as well, and therefore will be providing a few 'circumstantial' strategies; As in, assuming that your opponent is intelligent and skilled enough to punish or use certain tricks. As always, feel free to add comments and info, and ask questions, but I'll try to limit the information to only advanced techniques, so please don't get offended if it's not included UNSUMMON -------------------------------- First, as usual, let's start with naked/unsummon Zappa. There's not a whole lot of fanciful stuff he can do without a summon, however, he has one of the best anti-strike moves in the game without a summon: His summon move. Timed right, it can defeat nearly any strike-based move in the game, so long as it's not a poke or projectile (And even then, the range is usually good enough that if your placed correctly, it will still connect). The trick to using the summon, however, is to never use it outside of a combo or a hit, because the recovery is far too long and very punishable on miss or block. It's good to go for Counterhits with, but don't get predictable or over confident. Using the summon in a combo is a very safe way to use the Summon move, because not only is a hit confirmed, but you get more damage, and if they burst, the summon will usually keep you safe, as well as give you a summon to continue pressure. Even when I fight someone like Potemkin, who many consider to be safe to summon from a distance, I go for combos into summon. The reason is that if you 'free' summon, as I like to refer to it, he can simply slidehead you out of recovery. Many characters have some way of covering distance or using a fast projectile to attack from nearly across the entire screen to punish a free summon, so it's not advisable. The few times a free summon is admissable, is perhaps off a Airgrab into OTG Summon, or other forms of knockdown. But what I prefer to do is f.S 66 2K 2D 236P, or some variation of this. The way to do it is to see if the f.S hits before doing the combo/pressure; if you go into pressure without realizing it hasn't hit yet, Don't summon, because the opponent will simply punish you. Obviously, Naked Zappa is all about the Summon, as most of his moves do not have the range, priority, and frame advantage necessary to keep him safe in this mode. GHOSTS/TRIPLETS ------------------------- Next, we'll move on to the ghosts. Assuming you get the ghosts after a summon hit, the first thing you want to do is 236P for the vertical ghost toss. This is because as soon as the enemy stands up, theres a ghost on top of them, allowing you to pressure or mixup from there. This works well for baiting DP's if you stand close enough to trick them. If this hit lands, the opponent will be haunted, giving you opportunities to do even more pressure and unblockable setups. If the ghost didn't land, try for mixups and pressure until you can trick them (While the P Toss is coming down, you can do 6P if their gaurding high; sometimes this will catch them, as even advanced players get tricked by the appearance of the P toss, making them think it's an overhead. If they do gaurd low, 5D or 6HS are good overhead options, and can trick people very easily, especially if you do a basic rushdown hit such as 6P or 5k). Once you have a ghost on them, watch for items. Understanding when and where the items will come can help, even if you are not certain which one will come, you can see them and usually react fast enough to take advantage of them. For instance, lets say a banana comes out. You can 66 9 j.HS before you pass over the opponent, Land and rush them again, doing 6P 6HS to push them into the banana. Since it's a low, and 6HS is an overhead, it becomes an unblockable. RC the 6HS if you want to combo off it, but I prefer to toss a P Ghost and reset for pressure. Alternatively, if the Banana lands behind them, you simply have to pressure them into it with 6HS (This is more likely, as the banana tends to land that far back). The golfball and flowerpot, however, work more as pressure and combo extenders. The method for this is to rush in with 6P or 5K, and whether on hit or not, do c.S f.S 2S/5HS "Toss". The "Toss" is where you put in the ghost toss that would connect; If the 6P or 5K are Counterhit, the opponent is lifted off the ground, and ultimately, you have to leave out the 2S and are forced to do a HS toss (if you FRC, an air combo is possible, but it won't do much). However, on block or normal hit, you can do a semi-infinite with the ghosts. You can do the above combo, S toss FRC 66 repeat; If you watch for the golfball and flowerpot, it is in fact possible to not have to FRC if timed right. The timing is ridiculously strict, but it's an amazing method to put on great pressure or damage. If you'd like to see this in action, look up Nang-In's videos on youtube, as his ghosts have to be the best I've ever seen. The Running Toss FRC: A little trick I picked up is to throw a Ghost toss, then do 6FRC6. The timing is incredibly strict and fast, but if done properly you can inch closer during the 'endless' ghost combo, as well as put on terrifying pressure when crossing the screen (Like doing it while running, if you do it fast enough, it's almost like you don't even stop to throw it). SWORD ----------------------------- For the Sword, let's again assume that you have just gotten a knockdown from a summon. The sword can not set up, per se, but it is possible to still trick people with it, as it is exceptionally fast, has great range, and has a good mixup. As okizemi, the only real thing it has is the sword uppercut. Timed right, it should beat out any grab attempt or DP (Aside from Sol's, but it can still defeat it if you execute fast enough off the clash). If this connects, you can FRC for a combo (Counterhit is much easier to combo off of, but normal hit is possible as well). The general combo off a DP is DP FRC 2HS (1hit) into air combo. If the move is blocked, however, your in a bit of a predicament. The only way to make the move safe is if you FRC; if you don't, it has a very long recovery which is very easy to punish. The sword's FRC's are Zappa's most difficult FRC's, the Sword slide in particular. Look up frame data if you like, but the only way to really learn them is to just keep practicing. One way to make the sword slide easier to learn is to do it in a combo, so that the timing is always the same (Like c/f.S 2D 236S FRC f.S 2HS [1hit] JC air combo). However, the Sword slide is very safe on block if you learn the FRC, and makes the move pretty nice to use if you can do it reliably. Other than orbs, the sword slide doesn't really have much use, with so-so damage and not much combo opportunities (unless you use FRC or RC, there is no combo, simply put). The Swordswipe is one of the easiest FRC's for the sword, as it's right as it connects. This makes it a splendid move to use for combos, as you can FRC and continue the combo off the wallbounce, and if it's a Counterhit, you can even combo before the opponent is even launched. The damage is nice and it gives an orb, and the range is amazing. Just don't use this in mirror matches or when a Sol is doing grand viper, as it'll whiff. Experiment with the sword to make up your own combos. I've seen plenty different kinds, so it all comes down to how creative you can get. Other than the sword slide mixup (when the sword passes the opponent on block, you can do 2S or j.HS when it's coming back to try to trick the opponent) and 6HS, the sword can't mixup or setup very well. However, it's damage output and combo ability is on par with the Dog, if used properly (But it's a difficult summon to use). DOG ------------------------- The Dog is arguably one of the best summons for Zappa. Many people say they prefer it over Raou in many matchups, because of the pressure and unblockables. Assuming once again you have gotten the dog off of a summon, use 6D to place the dog beyond the opponent. Careful not to get wakeup grabbed, use a mix of rushdown and 5D to place immediate pressure on them, or if you prefer and have it set up properly, use 2D and pressure to get them into an unblockable combo. I like to do 2HS with 2D, as it has twice the dizzy modifier, not to mention that it acts as a meaty and really helps crank gaurdbar/damage. Once the 2D has hit, any assortment of combo and pressure setups are available. For instance, you could do a crossover j.HS 2D so that even if they try to jump, they will still be hit, or do f.S 2D in the corner to lock them down. It is possible to get an auto summoned dog from faint. Although not exactly reliable, wait for your opponent to try something while fainted then counter them with the dog (8D is invincible, so try for that more often than not. 4D is also invincible for the backflip, but may not cover you in the case of being fainted). However, the place the dog shines is when you use it for setups. The trick is setting it up properly; thanks to the new chaining in AC, you can 6D 6D on block or hit and place the dog behind the opponent, all the while using pressure to keep them from countering as the dog recovers. Once it does, you can do 5D to continue pressure, then wait for it to end and do 2D to start unblockable. Also, although I see it used less nowadays, 4D D and a low hit will result in an unblockable hit. I've found that using it with f.S is a good method, as it's easy to combo from. Dog combos are more or less limited. It's certainly possible to do an 'infinite' on some characters, , but the damage becomes garbage after just a few reps, so I prefer to stick to 2HS 2D into extended ground-to-air combo. The damage is nice, and I can usually get a knockdown or setup for more unblockables. However, like the sword, it all comes down to preference and skill. Just try to get as good a combo as you can. RAOU ----------------------- And finally, Raou. The big blue lightning guy. Raou's combos are one of the only ones in the games that can defeat full health people even when their guard bar is at normal levels, and also the only one capable of taking off huge chunks of health just by pressuring. Although he does not have much in the way of setups or mixups, it's very easy to simply crush the opponents guard and defeat them with chipp damage. First, let's discuss what to do after the summon. In most cases, you will only be able to charge a Darkness Anthem on top of them as they wake up. But in some cases, for instance a 'half' instant raou combo (Summon RC into another Summon will push them higher than normal, so if you have 8 orbs on the second summon you can do more), it's possible to do Edguy RC into combo. Let's say that the opponent blocked, so now you have to resort to pressure. Even though you have Raou, don't get cocky; many characters have methods of countering some of Raou's moves. For instance, Sol can Grand viper under 6HS, and Anji can Fuujin through the P toss of Darkness Anthem. However, there are ways to counter those, like tossing a K DA at Sol if he tries a grand viper, or using the K toss on Anji (both will hit). For pressure, in most cases, you want to keep on them. Darkness anthem is a very versatile move, allowing you to hit anyone who tries to jump out of the way or use a technique to slide under it. If they have full tension and are just FD'ing everything, use Bellow's Mallice twice. Although you will be out of tension, so will your opponent, and you can use Darkness anthem to chip them to death. If you do get a hit, Raou can combo nearly any move. Edguy RC will be your favorite combo extender, and causes so much damage it should be illegal. Using the standard Raou combo with this and you can usually defeat anyone in one combo, even Potemkin, by the time Raou comes out. For instance, one technique I like to use is 6HS K DA 6HS K DA 66 Edguy RC 66 (until your up against the wall, underneath the opponent) Edguy, then timed carefully a Darkness anthem K toss. This will pick them back up, and used well can give you more Edguy hits than a standard combo. I've even been able to do Edguy RC and run all the way across the screen, and do a Darkness anthem underneath the opponent on the other side that I had hit them. This method works on everyone, but it has varying difficulties for different characters (For instance, Slayer is particularly difficult to catch, while Baiken is very easy). Using the unsummon: This is quite a difficult matter. The Unsummon is a particularly odd move; It's an overhead, unsummon's, gives one orb, and costs 25% tension as an Force Break. However, it's one of the fastest overheads in the game, and has deceivingly long range (but not too long of a range, it hits just beyond the 'ring' of orbs around Zappa). It has no invincible frames, which is odd for a move from Zappa, which makes it pretty much useless to use as a defensive technique. It's main use is obviously as mixup, but it can also function to some extent in combos. For instance, 2D 2HS c.S 8D 214D, 66 236P for OTG summon hit, which gives 7 orbs in just this combo alone. If you had gotten a summon hit for the dog, you would have Raou after this combo. Obviously pretty nice to use in a pinch or when you feel like you want Raou, and does work to some extent with other summons, but the dog is the easiest and best option. ---------------------- Abare (Or, the ability to combo after 'random' hits) Zappa's ability to abare is variable to which summon he gets. From Best to Worst in terms of Abare, 1: Dog 2: Raou 3: Sword 4: Ghosts The reason being is that ANY hit will open the opponent up for dog set ups, and any hit that Raou gets gatlings/cancels into a special move. The sword can combo particularly well also, but the ghosts have pretty strict chains and are limited to less damage. Naked/unsummon isn't listed, but it's abare is more or less limited to a few hits then summon. --------------------------- Mixup Zappa has arguably some of the best mixups in the game, though this ability varies for each summon. Again, from best to worst: 1: Dog 2: Sword 3: Ghosts 4: Naked 5: Raou Dog is listed as the best because you have the naked 5HS and 6HS, both overheads, 4D D which is an overhead as well, and 2D which is an unblockable, allowing you to effectively defeat any option of defense. The sword I listed as the second best option of mixup for 6HS overhead, but more importantly the Sword slide mixup options that are applicable for nearly any matchup. The ghosts have standard dust and 6HS as overhead options, 6HS being a very strong normal, and having the banana low hit alongside this really helps. Unsummon is 4th because it lacks reliable mixup without using tension, forcing you to FRC 5HS or RC 6HS to produce any kind of real mixup, especially at the start of a match. And of course, Raou, who has the most limited mixup for Zappa, with all of his ground hits being low or mid hits, except for 5D. --------------------------------- I recently had a discussion with a friend, and decided to detail something that I believe seems to be such a difficult part of using Zappa: Range of effectiveness. For most characters, the range of effectiveness is more or less constant, with few exceptions. However, Zappa's range varies greatly from summon and situations involved. Naked/unsummon: Mid to short range. This is largely due to the importance that f.S now plays in getting a poke in. Aside from that and 6HS, being close is very important (And thus, why he is very susceptible to grabs in this mode). Due to the summon move, useful in both offensive and defensive situations. Ghosts: Very strange. At first, you will probably use them as Longe range type, and then move in for short range combos that push you to mid, and with Toss FRC combos, move back to short range. This Short-Mid repitition can repeat several times. Mostly Defensive play due to the fact that the moves have rather long startup, but can lockdown very well once anything connects, blocked or hit. Sword:VERY short range. It can hit to mid, even long ranges at times, however, it is most useful and damaging and gives much more abare opportunities at short range. Keeping this in mind, air and defensive play is generally not very rewarding damage wise, as DP is the only option for defense and even then, it costs tension to make it safe. Dog: Seemingly anywhere. Depending on where, who, and what the opponent is doing in relation to yourself AND the dog (instead of just the 1v1 usual setup), you can effectively work from long, mid, and short range. Works very well defensively and offensively. Raou: Mid to Long range. Several of Raou's moves miss at a very short range, so trying to keep your opponent between the Darkness anthem charge and your 6HS maximum range is best. Offensive mostly, though Edguy beats ANYTHING, hands down. --------------------------------- SPECIAL CANCELLING DUST: A little trick that Zappa has that no other character has is special cancelling 5D. It should be noted that everyone can Jump cancel, but ONLY Zappa can Special Cancel (inputting a special move as 5D connects). While this may seem just a simple bonus, it actually has some interesting uses. The most basic and useful is definitely 5D into Summon move, especially as a pressure and mixup tactic. It can also work when you've knocked your opponent down and get within grab range to make them whiff a throw attempt (Since it has grab invulnerability starting at the 13th frame). This tactic works particularly well with the Sword, because you can do a sword move (Slide or DP) to score an orb, then as they tech you can anti air them very easily. This has no use with the dog, but it works somewhat well with the ghosts, and to some extent can create impossible dust situations. Raou allows this to be used for combos VERY well (Throw DA on wakeup, 5D them) since as soon as 5D connects you can cancel into Edguy/DA S toss to set up impossible dust situations. Learning this minor trick can open up many possibilities that aren't immediately understandable, especially considering the nature of Zappa's dusts, so play with it and discover how it can help your playstyle. ------------------------ Edit: Added Abara and Mixup info. More to come later. Edited Edit: Added some more organization and tips on the ghost FRC run. Edit Edit Edit: Added Range of effectiveness data. Editx4: Added Dust Special cancelling This is all for now. I'll add more later when I can think better (Damn wisdom teeth... ). Feel free to add comments, suggestions, etc. I understand this isn't that impressive yet, but it's a start, so bare with me.

[Zoogstin]

Haven't read through everything yet but this is definitely an excellent start!!!. Good stuff man. But what this thread needs are videos. Too bad I can't record stuff. =/

[Oiboi]

That is a great idea. All I've got is a really low quality webcam though. I can produce some low-quality stuff for examples, I suppose, but it sometimes gets too bad to make anything out. I'll see what I can manage.

[lymevirus]

ive been playing zappa for a long time and feel im quite good, but ive heard of people maxing out the counter gauge with them...HOW?

[Phrekwenci]

ive been playing zappa for a long time and feel im quite good, but ive heard of people maxing out the counter gauge with them...HOW?

Uh with Raoh? Or something else?

[lymevirus]

sorry...I'm retarded...the triplets, maxing gaurd with the triplets.

[Phrekwenci]

Probably in the corner with the jHS. It's not as good it was in the earlier versions but if you get creative you can probably max it out.

[Zoogstin]

2hs does' the trick too. Check the block string section for the ghosts in teh Zappa love thread.

[Oiboi]

Zappa's damage isn't so bad that you need to max out the gauge, even with the ghosts it's just a bonus. I'd suggest going for mixup rather than letting them find a hole in your pressure, your overall damage would be worth it. That said, sure, if you wanna max the gauge (or at the very least, get it flashing) it's not too hard to do. All the summons are capable of doing it (aside from unsummon, but getting that summon in is what you're going to want anyways). Ghosts, obviously j.HS and 2HS are your go-to's for cranking gauge, and aside from Raou, are the easiest to do this with. Dog I'd say is your second, just because you can keep someone in block string for quite a while with him, eventually cranking the gaurd gauge. The sword is a little more difficult, but you can shove a lot of blocked hits in real fast if you want to crank the gauge. And of course, all of Raou's moves are designed to crank the bar and chip them to death. I end matches faster doing mixup rather than maxing the bar out then mixing into a combo though, so if you're going to do it, just get Raou and destroy them

[Oiboi]

Added more data to the first post. Range of effectiveness seems to be something I never really thought about on a more conscious level, but always kind of understood what it was for Zappa.

[Zoogstin]

Great stuff and discussion Oiboi. One of the most important things you should mention (maybe you mentioned it but maybe not) is that when ever you summon, press 5D, 6D, or 8D. This is vital incase you wiff a summon or the opponent blocks a summon. If you happen to get that dog, it will easily save you. One should attempt to do it everytime you summon, you probably won't remember to do it everytime but it will help you a lot in the long run. Also if you are ever knocked down and feel gutsy enough try to do a wake up move. input 6236 P+HS. This will take into account if you wakeup with no summon or if you wake up with the sword. Both moves have invincibility. However if you get the ghosts you're probably going to lose to what ever meaty attack your opponent is going to throw at you on okizeme. The dog I don't believe can be reversaled, otherwise I would say to press D as well.

[Oiboi]

Great stuff and discussion Oiboi.

One of the most important things you should mention (maybe you mentioned it but maybe not) is that when ever you summon, press 5D, 6D, or 8D. This is vital incase you wiff a summon or the opponent blocks a summon. If you happen to get that dog, it will easily save you. One should attempt to do it everytime you summon, you probably won't remember to do it everytime but it will help you a lot in the long run.

Also if you are ever knocked down and feel gutsy enough try to do a wake up move. input 6236 P+HS. This will take into account if you wakeup with no summon or if you wake up with the sword. Both moves have invincibility. However if you get the ghosts you're probably going to lose to what ever meaty attack your opponent is going to throw at you on okizeme. The dog I don't believe can be reversaled, otherwise I would say to press D as well.

Ah, Yeah, I always considered 'instant' dog tactics to be intermediate level so I didn't include them, but they are very important things to keep in mind and are a great basis for wakeup/summon play.

I almost always try to summon if my opponent is not in grab range on wakeup, simply because I've noticed it comes out a lot, at an almost reliable rate. I sometimes eat the attack due to getting the ghosts or something, but in the long run, Blocking or back dashing is the safest option-- Period. Still, You've got an interested way of using the sword on wakeup, so that's worth mention as well.

Something that needs to be kept in mind with using the dog off summon hits is that every character has different wakeup timings, so sometimes they'll get up before you can set up the dog properly, and sometimes you can really get great setups off that would normally be very difficult to work out. This is why I almost ALWAYS do 'whatever' into 2D Summon, because it pushes the opponent higher and further, allowing me more time to get a summon out and assess the situation, and begin my oki. Aside from which, I'm pretty sure it gives me more damage; but even if it didn't, the options it gives vs. 2P 2K Summon make it well worth it.

Edit: Oh, and in rare cases you can sometimes connect a 5/6D off summon hits on some characters with the dog. It's difficult to combo off this, but I believe it is possible if you prime a dash and try to get close; of course, this is kind of risky if you end up getting a different summon, so it's give or take.

[DonPatch]

it's possible to determine what summon you're getting from the timer right? couldn't you use that on occasion to prep a wakeup move, instead of trying to make universal wakeups for all the summons at once?

[Phrekwenci]

it's possible to determine what summon you're getting from the timer right? couldn't you use that on occasion to prep a wakeup move, instead of trying to make universal wakeups for all the summons at once?

There's only 3 seconds of the timer that you can tell what you are going to get and that is IF you get an auto-summon.

[Oiboi]

It's certainly possible, but I find it questionable to really work at it and rely on something like that. There are many things that can be happening at that time, so it could fail or it could work splendidly. So while I say it's possible and use it if you can/want, I wouldn't swear by it, especially because it only takes a millisecond of bad timing to get the summon on a different second; hit stop and comboing into it will effect the timing greatly.

[Tiamat]

There's only 3 seconds of the timer that you can tell what you are going to get and that is IF you get an auto-summon.

you mean it only applies if your summon appears from you getting hit? i can't find the time list

[Phrekwenci]

you mean it only applies if your summon appears from you getting hit? i can't find the time list

No it applies anytime you get a summon. We are talking about wake-up, where it is possible get a summon (or not get a summon).

[Oiboi]

Added Special Dust Cancelling. Looking forward to what everyone else uses this trick for.

[GhostSummoner]

I'm not sure if this applies to it, but i've started to notice that if you are CH'ed while you have a summon out, then most of the time, the summon comes back right after you fall and wake-up. It has happened numerous times to me, but i'm not sure if anyone else has had this happen or someone has noticed.

[HellSap]

Yeah, I always follow the chance that I lost it due to CH it will probably come back, as well as the dog getting hit always seems to come back. But I could be wrong.

[GhostSummoner]

I think it varies with different summons. I know the Dog comes back most of the time, and we both may be right about that. The sword varies, and the ghost are kinda random. That's what i believe.

[Oiboi]

Yeah, I've certainly noticed this too. in terms of chances of auto summon (if you are hit while having a summon already): If you had the dog, you have about 90% chance of auto summoning it again on recovery. If you had the sword, about 50-75% chance of auto summoning. Ghosts seem to jump all over the place, sometimes seemingly 10% or less chance to 95%. Very random. This is just based on my personal experience but it's a definite trend that I've been seeing. Auto summoning when you did not have a summon already on hit is much less; about 25% random summon chance.

[GhostSummoner]

That's about as detailed as it gets really. But good thing the dog has a high percentage, because it basically acts as a "scapegoat" for you not to get hit....Well the first hit at least, but should give you edible time to recover and CH if possible.

[Oiboi]

Since the first post is getting a bit HUGE and unwieldy, I thought I'd throw this up here. Raou Mixups: Raou has little to no mixup, his only ground overhead being a (relatively fast) 5D. However, the true wonders of 'mixing up' with Raou actually has little to do with Raou. The reason why I insist on not unsummoning him is because it gives you silly opportunities when it's reaching the end of his timer. Chances are that your opponent will know how long you have Raou, and if they do they're smart. However, this knowledge can also be your best weapon. If they're trying to count how long it takes for Raou to go away, just crank their gaurd bar as much as you can. Now, the bar is flashing. If they have too much health to bother blowing tension on a double Bellows Malice, then save the tension for this part: You don't need to know EXACTLY how long Raou has; in fact, this is a good idea to not bother counting the timer. Not only do you have you're opponent focusing on the timer now, but they also are looking for that huge 5D meaty. But if you are rushing in with 5HS and 6HS just as Raou dissappears, mind games are abound. Suddenly, Raou is gone and they have an overhead right on top of them. This works so often for me that it's funny; the only hard part is knowing your FRC/RC timing to keep yourself safe and give you a free summon combo to really put them on their toes. If you don't even know which one will come out, it's a safe bet that your opponent won't either (assuming you don't become predictable, of course; sometimes using this trick to make them block high every time raou dissapears will allow you to get a simply 6P in or the like). Because of this, Raou does technically give you amazing mixup. The hard part is playing against your opponent and not the character their using, and to get into their heads. This is probably Zappa's greatest tool: Intimidation.

[Digital Watches]

I dunno, that sounds like something that could trip someone up on occasion, but... 21F is still 21F. Do people really have a very hard time reacting to that on a regular basis? Especially if you lose raou and thus obviously don't have a dog covering you, that sounds risky as hell to try.