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[P4A] Kanji Combo Theory Discussion

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Kanji Combo Theory ver 1.1

version 1.1 changelog: actually wrote a bit about yellowbeat combos and whatnot WHOOPS

Introduction

SO, you’re picking Kanji, and you want to learn how the hell/why the hell his combos are the way they are from a mechanical/math perspective! I have no idea why you would do that! Well, good news regardless, for some raisin I wanted to do a very thorough write up on it so everyone gets to benefit and/or come in and correct me when I'm wrong, hooray! This post will take some knowledge of the game/Kanji to understand, though I'll do my best to make everything easy to understand. Literally, this is the whole "You don't have to know how your car works in order to drive your car well" situation, you can get by without ever knowing this stuff, but it can teach you some interesting things!

Seriously, there's probably a few things in here that i'm wrong about, like maybe how SMP works or other details-Naturally, I will update as much of the post as I can to correct and update everything to be more accurate as it's brought up. AND an update for better formatting that doesn't murder your eyes once someone lets me know what formatting (whatever dustloop runs on) prefers for fancy stuff.

To start, a few details ripped straight from the wiki’s combo section: Every move has a level rating and 3 combo scaling values: p1, p2, and SMP. Level is what determines how much hitstun/untech time you deal with each hit, and the combo scaling values are numbers that get added to a grand total every time you use each move in a combo. The higher that grand total is (referred to as the ‘Proration Tally’ from here on out), the less hitstun/untech time your moves deal, and they do less damage. P1 is a value that is only applied when a move is used as the combo starter, P2 always takes effect, and SMP is a value that is only added when a move is used more than once in each combo. For example, let’s take Kanji’s 5A:

5A: Level 2, P1 200, p2 200, SMP 50.

Level 2: The move being level 2 means that it will deal 13f of hitstun and 12f of blockstun, meaning it can combo into anything with 13f or less startup when it hits and it will be a tight blockstring into anything with 12f of startup. Spiffy!

P1 – 200: 200 P1 means that if 5A is the first hit in the combo, an additional 200 will be added to the Proration Tally on top of the P2 value. P1 is never used outside of the first hit. A High P1 = not a good normal to start a combo with unless it does a metric butt ton of damage, in which case you probably don't care. In Kanji's case, a high p1 always means it's a bad combo starter.

P2 – 200: A value of 200 means that 5A will always add at least 200 to the proration tally every time it’s used in a combo, whether it’s the first or the last hit. High P2 value = Makes your combos end faster/do less damage, and for Kanji, usually means it’s a combo ender like j.214b or 236C.

SMP - 50: Most of Kanji’s moves have an SMP value of 50, which means the second time the move is used in a combo, it will add an extra 50 to the proration tally-For example, if you start a combo and combo into 5A twice (not as the first hit) the first 5A will add 200 to the Proration Tally, and the second will add 250, (and a third will be 250, etc.). For context, the only movie Kanji will usually be doing multiple times in one combo with an SMP higher than 50 is 236B. Simply put, Higher SMP = Not a good move to use more than once. Thankfully, Kanji only has a few moves with high SMP.

In addition to these values, the most important factors to keep in mind when combo theorycrafting are crouch confirms, CH hits, and FC hits. The first two add +2 hitstun to all of the moves in your combo, and the last one adds +5, enabling much better and more damaging combo options.

The reason any of this is nice to know is because it lets you understand exactly how and why you can do certain combos off of each normal but not others, and it makes it pretty easy to sit down and find optimal combos off of each starter via MATH thanks to Kanji’s limited moveset! Naturally, none of this is really NEEDED to find new combos, but it helps me out a lot. Now that I’ve spent an entire page summarizing stuff off of the wiki, let’s go through each move individually!

SECTION 2: A FAR TOO IN-DEPTH ANALYSIS OF KANJI'S ATTACKS.

Before going in detail, if you're intimately familiar with each of Kanji's moves, you can probably skip this section and just read the tl;dr at the bottom and get P1/P2/SMP values from the wiki.

(Unless otherwise noted, the move has 50 SMP.)

5A – As previously mentioned, Kanji’s 5A has a P1/p2 of 200/200, and an SMP of 50, in addition to being 6F startup. Having a p1 of 200 makes it his second best ground combo starter, thanks to its speed and overall chain options into either j.a combos, sweep, or on CH 236C combos. Unfortunately, because the move has a 200 P2, it’s generally preferable to use 2A to extend your combos instead, as it’s only 2 frames slower and has a P2 of 100. Regardless, 5A is a wonderful staple for comboing into 5AA (for jump cancels/juggles into J.A), OTGing heavily prorated combos (usually into 236C) or similar thanks to it being Kanji’s fastest ground normal.

5AA – P1 0, P2 100, This normal would be an amazing starter and infinitely better than 5A in literally every way thanks to that + being a level 4 attack!... unfortunately it’s not really viable as a starter thanks to chaining off of 5A and will mostly used to juggle opponents after 5A and for jump cancels. Thanks to the low p2, you’ll generally be going for it any time you use 5A, especially if you need a jump cancel.

5AAA - Just a special mention, because of the fact 5AAA has a special property that slams the opponent to the ground regardless of where you hit them, you won't really be using it in combo theory.

2A – P1 500 (!!) P2 100, level 3 attack. Thanks to the massive 500 P1, this move is actually an awful starter, limiting your options severely after a few hits. (Granted, the only time that really comes into effect is when you OMC something to extend further…) Thankfully, with its lv 3 hitstun, 8f startup and 100 P2, it’s a fantastic normal for Kanji to extend combos with outside of that, generally used for OTGs into 5B 2B to pick the opponent up off the floor, as it floats the opponent on hit.

J.A – P1 200 P2 100. Extremely unremarkable as far as combos go-You generally need it to combo into J.B as it’s 6f faster, but there’s not much more to say about it outside of that. On CH both J.A and J.B stun the opponent until they hit the floor so it has utility as a faster CH poke than J.B, but generally your options will be between using J.B and airthrow in those situations. As for air to ground… very unikely :C

5B – P1 300, P2 100. Thanks to being a relatively quick level 4 normal with a low p2, this is another one of Kanji’s bread and butter normals, allowing for otg relaunches off of 2A, adding extra damage before a sweep/2B, and utility as an extender off of 5C (5b 2b) for optimal combos. In addition, it causes a spinning state if you start a combo with CH 5b, enabling you to combo into 214C/D/CD/214214C. Unfortunately, the hit stun does not last long enough for anything else new.

2B – P1 200 P2 100 lv4. Welcome to Kanji’s best non persona ground starter! Arguably, anyway. Thanks to it being a launcher, it limits his combos considerably as a starter, as the lv4 untech time is not enough to combo into 236B or anything else either due to duration or height, limiting Kanji to 236C, mostly. Thankfully, on CH, it keeps the opponent stunned in the air until they land, allowing Kanji to combo into 5c (!) and net an easy 4k damage combo off of a normal hit. Outside of that, it’s part of Kanji’s bread and butter triad of 2a 5b 2b thanks to 5b being lv 4 and all 3 moves having 100 P2. Fancy! Can also be used as a burst safe normal if you space it to OTG someone with the tip of the move (such as after OMCing something and running up for an extra 236C ender or after J.C)

J.B – p1 200, p2 100, lv4. Very similar to J.A in terms of comboing, except better in every way thanks to level 4 and more damage! On CH, it works exactly the same as J.A (No teching until they hit the ground) allowing you to follow up with whatever you can throw out in time based on height. Outside of that, thanks to being lv4 and a good downwards hitbox, it’s Kanji’s only jump in, giving him enough blockstun to have a true blockstring afterwards if you space it well. Outside of the increased blockstun however, it’s basically just a good jumpin starter to 5A, and on CH it can go into sweep (if spaced far) or… still 5A. Thanks to both this and J.A having only 100 p1 however, it’s great to throw into any air combos twice (ja jb ja jb) since even with SMP it won’t add too much for the damage it’ll bring overall.

5C - P1 0 P2 200 LV 5 – Finally, the big boy starters. Having a P1 of 0 and Fatal Counter on counterhit, this and 2C are Kanji’s ideal starters in all situations, though not his easiest to land. While having a P2 of 200, it’s still ideal to throw as many 5C and 2Cs into a combo as you possibly can-the high damage, lv5 and mere 50 SMP means it’ll always be your optimal choice to extend combos, though the 25f startup makes it hard to utilize it after a few hits into the combo. In addition, the FC CH that the move brings adds a massive +5f of hitstun to every hit in the combo, making it the essential move for Kanji getting to do an ACTUAL combo. Not only that, but on FC, the ground bounce this move gives is completely ridiculous, giving you nearly three whole seconds to confirm and/or juggle with 2C (on air hit), despite its 30f startup. Also, it can be charged up to force the FC but good luck with that ‘ 3 ‘

2C – P1 0 P2 200 LV5 – Similar to 5C, this is the big boy normal to confirm with, arguably even moreso than 5C. All of the above reasons to use 5C are still true with 2C, except it brings a different juggle and CH property on hit-On Juggle, it draws the opponent towards Kanji rather than groundbouncing them (One of the only ways to combo into Kanji’s DP and be able to continue without super canceling) and on the ground it will create a spinning CH that will allow you to combo into whatever you damn well please and/or including grabs! Unfortunately, thanks to the 30f startup it’s even harder to combo into this than 5C, generally limiting it to after FC 5Cs, OMBs, 236236A/B OMCs, and similar bounces. Doing so when possible is great however, adding extra damage while avoiding SMP from using 5C over and over. All that, plus it moves Take slightly forward to let you… I dunno, give 5C or 5D a little more range. Also, honorable mention, it’s a foot attribute normal, so don’t get hopped trying to poke with it! Also, it can be charged up to force the FC but good luck with that ‘ 3 ‘ (though this might be possible in 5C air hit FCs!)

J.C – P1 200 P2 100 Level 6. Level 6 means that J.C has a unique hitstun amount rather than a fixed one. J.C is Kanji’s more reliable big damage starter-Thanks to being body type and 19f startup, it’s his most likely way to land an FC combo (via beating anti airs and similar). Unfortunately, it boasts a P1 of 200 to compensate for this, but considering the extra damage it allows for Kanji to tack onto a combo (an extra ~1200 C move that he cannot combo into otherwise) it evens up as equal, if not more damage than his 5C/2C combos. Landing a CH with this move puts the opponent into a crumple state similar to SF4’s focus attacks, and makes the next hit juggle the opponent. Unfortunately, on air hit it’s pretty hard to extend into a good combo off of this normal without OMB, but near the corner a FC j.C air hit will confirm into delicious damage with OMB. The hitbox on it also makes it amazing for beating anti airs and starting combos… so it’s honestly Kanji’s best starter period, in terms of damage/reliability/overall

J/5/2D – P1 0, P2 200, level 1. Honestly one of Kanji’s worst starters, but definitely one of his most interesting. Thanks to the move taking away Kanji’s persona normals/specials and the fact each beam individually adds +200 to the Proration Tally for only level 1 hitstun, combo options are not only limited but actually rather execution heavy at times. However, each bolt shocks for a short duration and you can confirm with a j.a or 5a on both air or ground confirms if you dash immediately after setting it up. (2D has more recovery time, but you’ll be closer anyway). Do note that hitting the last bolt will lets you immediately cancel into persona normals/specials without issue!

236A – P1 0, P2 300, lv4. SMP 500. A mixed bag of a starter for Kanji. Thanks to the long recovery of it, you can only combo meterless off this by CHing, which will net you a nice and easy 5AA 2B 236C, which is quite nice. Unfortunately, thanks to the fact it’s -3 it’s pretty bad to just throw out, and it won’t juggle airborne opponents, but it jumps over most of the cast’s 2as for a clean CH and can be supercanceled into 236236A/B enders for certain combos. Outside of that, you’ll generally be looking elsewhere. Also, high SMP means you won’t be using it twice in a combo… not that you’ll really get the opportunity anyway.

236B - P1 0, P2 300, lv4. SMP 500. One of Kanji’s biggest bread and butter extenders, this glorious little normal combos off of 5C on juggled opponents for high damage (~1800!) and allows for a 2A extend afterwards. Unfortunately, the huge 500 SMP makes it very hard to utilize more than once in a combo, as well as the 27f startup makes it hard to combo it after anything except a 5C. It can also be used to set up a j.214B in combos by canceling the startup into it, and you can super cancel it. Note, it is actually possible to get the SMP glitch to work with this move… but thanks to the proration of Kanji’s combos, by the time you hit SMP status with it, you’ll only be able to use it once more before needing to super cancel into 236236A/B for logical damage (ending at ~8100, same as you can get without SMP). Long story short? This move should be in every combo you can possibly fit it in (once) and it’s very unlikely to get it as a starter, but if you do get it, it’ll let you net at least a 2A 5B 2B 236C (on air hit anyway, ground hit nets you a knockdown.)

236AB- P1 0, P2 300, lv4. SMP 500. A very interesting special for Kanji, as it’s one of his only ones that moves him forward (very far forward in fact) and allows him to extend combos pretty well! Unfortunately, it loses the juggle-ness that 236B has, but it allows for guaranteed combos off of 5C FC, granted for 25 meter. Thanks to SMP counting 236AB and 236B separately, this adds a LOT of damage to Kanji’s combos, allowing him to get two ~1800 dmg extenders in a combo. On CH, it works exactly like 236A, allowing for a quick 5B2B/5AA 2B followup to 236C, netting you a nice combo for getting a CH. Unfortunately, the utility of the move is basically just around 5C FC combos thanks to the no juggle aspect of it + kanji’s 2A 5B 2B bnb extensions.

236C - p1 500, p2 500+100, lv~5 – One of Kanji’s two bread and butter combo enders! First thing to notice is the hilariously bad P1-unfortunately, Kanji is not Tager. Netting a random 236C does not net you a combo so much as a quick knockdown even with meter, thanks to the extra 500 added in there. In addition, the 600 P2 ensures it’ll generally be ending your combos even if you have meter-sure, you can extend, but generally it won’t do enough damage for 50 meter. In the corner however, if the opponent is juggled up high enough, you can 5AA 236C once again, using it as a double ender for more damage.

236A/B/AB (combo finisher version) p2 100 – Well, it’s impossible to use this outside of ending the combo, but it gets a special note here for the fact it does 1000/1500(sp) damage if the opponent does not tech in time, which is nice.

236D/CD - p1 500, p2 500+100, lv~5 – Unfortunately, while this move has high utility in a match in terms of controlling the neutral game, it sucks in combos ;w; It still retains the 500 P1 from 236C, so being able to move close to the opponent and hit him as take hits the ground does not have that much utility, outside of getting a free j.b in the combo. 236CD is nice for comboing off of air hit 5C when 236B will not reach, however! Avoid using it in combos outside of that when possible~

214C/D/CD - P1 0 P2 1900 – Kanji’s grabs. Thanks to the hilariously high scaling, you won’t be getting anything more than a 2B 236C or a sweep after this without using OMB, but it works well in a pinch for unburstable damage to end a combo.

j.214A/B/AB – The wayne brady. Kanji’s ideal 150 meter combo ender, it does slightly more damage than 236C, but gives Kanji less options for oki afterwards. Thanks to its 600 p2, it generally is restricted to either ending a combo or hurting the proration of it drastically, though it’s occasionally a necessary evil (such as using it to OMC and extend for around ~3-4k off of non CH/FC starters.) Avoid using it before the end of a combo unless it’s literally your only option~

Sweep – P1 200 P2 100 lv 5 800 dmg. One of Kanji’s most interesting normals for comboing, as it only tacks on 100 P2, does good damage and Kanji’s best OMC-for-more-damage normals because of that! Not only that, but it can be OMC’d to make Kanji airborne, giving him j.b as an overhead option or just an extra ~700 damage with 100 p2 added on. Definitely a good go to in ‘max damage off bad confirm’ situations, such as going for j.b -> sweep OMB.

Furious Action – p1 800, p2 100, lv4. That massive P1 is in place to prevent Kanji from getting massive damage off of supercanceling it into 236236A/B, but is quite interesting for the fact it only has 100(!) p2! The only way to viably combo off of it without super is to hit in the later active frames, essentially limting it to be used after 2C in a juggle combo. Aside from that, can tack on a good 1000 damage for only 100 p1, and can replace a 236C at the end of corner combos to give the opponent shock while managing Kanji’s HP!

AoA/follow-ups: there’s a fair amount of things to say about Kanji’s AoA, so here’s the quick summary: Kanji’s most reliable overhead option, in the corner he gets an easy ~4k off of FC D into his bnb relaunch into 5C 236C, while the rest of the time it’s optimal to go for FC C ender. Also, there may be some crazy combo involving corner AoA FC C launch J.C J.C OMB that pet was going for, I have no idea!

Grab – p1 1000+100 - A useful quick starter for Kanji (since it slides with his dash momentum) but the 1100 p2 prevents him from doing anything TOO interesting with it. Can be OMC’d for a 2C -> things for more damage, but outside of that you’re limited to sweep if you throw them into the corner, and 5D oki if it’s CH.

Air Grab – Similar to ground grab, the 1100 P2 prevents Kanji from doing anything too interesting with it, but OMC 5AA and OMC j.b are both possible, and air grab is pretty important for Kanji’s anti air game as a starter. Can also be OMC’d before Kanji hits the opponent, but I have no idea what you can use that for at the moment. (And the 0 damage first hit is what applies the 1k p2)

236236A/B – P1 0 P2 500. Kanji’s most interesting attack for OMCing, each hit gives him different hit states and OMCing even on block can give you the chair projectile. As a starter, OMCing the last hit can net kanji an easy 5k on all characters on anywhere in the screen, so it’s essentially Kanji’s fastest non grab punish, albeit expensive. The second hit is also Kanji’s best way to set up unburstable damage + his 150 meter ender (into 214214C), as it allows for grabs to combo. Outside of that, unfortunately, the 500 P2 limits the combo potential after it’s used, though it can be a better option than an SMP’D 2A 5B 2B.

214214C/D – Kanji’s super grab. Prorates the combo a huge amount, obviously leaving it as his ideal combo ender, but it can combo into a few different things as a starter thanks to unique hitstun it deals at the end. (Ideally, a point blank to the corner 214214c allows for a 2B 236C ender, which puts the damage over 5k.) Otherwise, if you want more than 2 hits, you’ll have to use OMB.

Tl;DR pointless combo starter tier list:

S+ kenshiro 236D into fatal. come on guys seriously.

S j.c, 5C, 2C 236236A

A 2B 5A 5B CH j b CH236A/AB

B 2A j.214a/b 236D/CD

C 236C (god I hate you 500 p1) everything else

Basically kanji’s best BnB combo filler is 5C/2C, especially 5C 5B 2B. After that, 2A -> 5B -> 2B, then 5AA j.a j.b etc, and using 236B more than once is generally a bad idea.

SECTION 3: HARD NUMBERS.

Okay, here’s the fun part. Thanks to Kanji’s setpieces being so cut and paste (whatever into 5B 2B, 5AA J.A J.B, 5C, 236B, etc) and his enders being very similar (2b into 236C/j.214B and/or j.a j.b into j.214B) it is ungodly easy to just sit down and calculate when he can no longer use each setpiece/ender based on math.

Quick primer: hitstun/untech time is not affected until ~1200 (tho hitstun might be earlier/later than that.) Additionally, hitstun and untech time drop to 1f once you hit 3400 total in the Proration Tally. Lastly, unfortunately, we do not have hard numbers on air untech time dealt by each level of normal and how hitstun/other things are affected by combo scaling, so some of this is speculation that I will update as new info is confirmed! Now then, the fun numbers:

Format: Combo setpiece, proration/SMP’d proration:

5C 5B 2B – 400/550

2A 5B 2B – 300/450

5AA J.A J.B J.A J.B – 800/900 (5a/aa smp added only))

5C 236B – 500/1050(!)

Fun proration tally numbers and facts! (Note, these are estimated by my own work/understanding, and will be updated as I find more useful numbers/am proven wrong on them, or I can make them more accurate)

Without CH/FC, 2A will not combo into 2B (ala FC 236B 2A 2B). Now, some important Proration Tally values, as I've found them:

Reminder, crouch confirms and CH give +2 frames on top of whatever is normally dealt, and FC gives +5, so with/without these, different values are relevant.

1100 - FC 2b 5c still works (Meaning; 2b 5C always works before you get to 1200 proration)

~1100 - FC 2B will not combo into 236B.

1300 - non CH/FC J.B does not combo to j.214

1400 - Non CH/FC J.A doesn’t combo to j.b

1900 - FC 236B 2A does not combo

2100 - FC 2b does not combo to 5C

~3300 - 2b will not combo to 236C

Using the P1/2/SMP values and knowledge of how moves juggle, you can now sit at class/work/the bus to UFGT9 (see you nerds there!) and create combos on paper! Naturally, all things will need to be tested to see if any oddities arise, like hitbox issues or how they juggle, but let’s be honest, this is kanji, once you practice around ~7 combos you can see all the ‘oddities’ that will generally occur.

SECTION 4: ACTUAL THEORYCRAFTING

Now, for a quick demonstration, I’ll go over one of Kanji’s 5C FC BnBs and create it ~purely with theorycrafting~! Hooray!

5C FC - P1: 0 P2: 200 SMP: 0

(5C gives a glorious amount of hitstun on FC and the FC will give all following moves a good amount of +frames, giving us a lot of combo potential! And from here on out, we can completely ignore P1. )

2C P2: 200 SMP: 0 Total: 400

(Brings the opponent closer to us to continue comboing and gives great damage for only 200 p2!)

2B - P2: 100 SMP: 0 Total: 500

One of the few chains available to us off of 2C, gives us launch for only 100, tho using it this early will add SMP to it later. It’s possible to fit a 5B into the combo right here, but we don’t for a reason that’ll be discussed later!

236B - P2: 300 SMP: 0 Total: 800

One of Kanji’s best extenders, gives us a base damage of 1800(!) while letting us extend off of it with a 2A. This is one of the only combos Kanji has where doing it twice is advisable!

2A - P2: 100 SMP: 0 Total: 900

Pops the opponent up. Thanks to this being an FC combo, it combos directly into 2B.

2B - P2: 100 SMP: 50 Total: 1050

SMP starts kicking in at this point, but being only 50, it does not hurt Kanji too much. Now, we could have slipped 5B into this combo twice so far, once before each 2B, but if we had, the 2B would not have comboed into 236B since it is only a level 4 attack! At this point, 5C 236B will still work, but we’re keeping the combo simple for this demonstration, so~

236B - P2: 300 SMP: 500(!) Total: 1850

Once again, we use Kanji’s most damaging extender, AND the move with the highest SMP (that he’ll likely be using twice in a combo, anyway.) Utilizing it means our combo is going to end very soon, but thankfully we already know that FC 236B 2A still works at 1800 proration, and hitstun is not reduced until 1900!

2A - P2: 100 SMP: 50 Total: 2000

Kanji can barely fit another 8f 2a in to pop them up, adding SMP in the process-This late in the combo, the damage is more worthwhile than keeping proration down, however.

5B - P2: 100 SMP: 0 Total: 2100

We slip 5B in becauase 2A 2B will drop at this point, and it happens to be free, non SMP damage!

2B - P2: 100 SMP: 50 Total: 2250

Once more, we use SMP’d 2B to launch the opponent. Thankfully, 2B into (ender) doesn’t drop until much higher proration.

236C - P2: 100 + 500 SMP: 0 Total: 2850

And thus, we land our combo ender special, adding a huge amount of P2 with damage and a hard knockdown. OMCing here will allow for another 2B 236C to combo, but the damage will be pretty minimal, so it might be wiser to spend it on 236AB (chair ender), as it will add 600 minimum damage to the combo total, quite a lot with 2850 damage and hitstun proration already in effect!

236A/B - P2 100 + SMP 0 Tota: 2950.

And Kanji’s trademark combo ender. hooray we’re done etc

There you have it! Once hard numbers are figured out for when certain combos/juggles will no longer work, it’s pretty easy to go through and COMBOTHEORY your way to victory. Of course, however, that’s pretty boring, we’re nerds on the internet playing an ANIME game, let’s figure out something stupid with our newfound abilities? LIKE AN SMP COMBO GLITCH FOR KANJI HOT DANG

(Context/Reminder: the SMP glitch is something that lets you remove the Same Move Proration tally for one move in a combo-In other words, what lets those scrubby Naotos kill you in one hit online. :C In order to achieve it, we need to use Kanji’s only useful combo extender normal with high SMP, 236B, as the 11th hit with SMP in a combo! From that point on, 236B will only have it’s P2 added when used.)

FC 2C air hit P1: 0 P2: 200 SMP: 0 SMP count: 1

We’ll be using a non traditional starter here for several reasons here. 1. it allows for a high damage combo 2. We need to maximize the number of moves we use before 236B, so using a hard to combo normal as a starter like 2C is wise 3. the air hit allows us for some non traditional combo extension, and 4. even if it’s stupid and situational this is some stupid combo video stuff anyway so OH WELL!

5A - P2: 200 SMP: 0 Total: 400 SMP count: 2

As previously stated, we need to fit in as many moves as possible-2C’s swipe lets us juggle into 5AA so we can use air normals to extend. Otherwise, we’d avoid using 5A due to it’s 200 P2.

5AA 500 - P2: 100 SMP: 0 Total: 500 SMP Count: 3

Extra damage, extra SMP count, and jump cancelable to J.A.

J.A - P2: 100 SMP: 0 Total: 600 SMP Count: 4

More SMP count, more damage.

J.B - P2: 100 SMP: 0 Total: 700 SMP Count: 5

More SMP count, more damage.

DJ.C - P2: 100 SMP: 0 Total: 800 SMP Count: 6

Originally, when making this combo, this was actually where I got hung up-I forgot OMB does not have SMP, so it does not count towards the ‘10 moves’ to set up 236B. Thankfully, you can in fact combo off Kanji J.C with OMB air hit in the corner, so here’s our 6th normal!

OMB - P2: -200 SMP: No value Total 600: SMP Count: 6

As OMB has no SMP, we’re mostly using it for -200 (more damage) and to link into the next part of the combo with it’s massive untechable launch.

2A - P2: 100 SMP: 0 Total: 700 SMP Count: 7

Normally, comboing off of OMB with 5C is far more optimal for kanji in nearly all situations, but thanks to the SMP glitch’s requirements, starting with 2A is essential here.

5B - P2: 100 SMP: 0 Total: 800 SMP Count: 8

Part of Kanji’s bread and butter series.

2B - P2: 100 SMP: 0 Total: 900 SMP Count: 9

Part of Kanji’s bread and butter series.

5C - P2: 200 SMP: 0 Total: 1100 SMP Count: 10

Finally, the reason we didn’t use 5C as our starter or our OMB confirm, so we could successfully combo into 236B, as FC 2b 236B drops at only ~1000 proration!

236B - P2: 300 SMP: 0! Total: 1400 SMP Count: 11! dai success minna san

CONGRATULATIONS GUYS WE DID IT WE HAVE REMOVED SMP FROM 236B AND PROVEN WE DO NOT IN FACT LIKE DUDES.

2sHRX

On top of that, it does it’s usual job of extending the combo for lots of damage.

2A - P2: 100 SMP: 50 Total: 1550

Kanji’s bread and butter for extending off of 236B. SMP is now in effect for it, reducing our combo options/damage.

5B - P2: 100 SMP: 50 Total: 1700

Bread and butter. SMP is now in effect.

2B - P2: 100 SMP: 50 Total: 1850

Bread and butter, SMP is now in effect.

5C - P2: 200 SMP: 50 Total: 2100

Unfortunately, this far into the combo, 2B does not combo into 236B, meaning we’ll have to throw a 5C in in order to use it’s LV5 hitstun to combo instead into it instead!

236B - P2: 300 SMP: Total: 2400

CONGRATULATIONS WE HAVE LANDED OUR SECOND 236B WITHOUT SMP AFFECTING IT WE STILL DON’T LIKE DU... er wait. Unfortunately, thanks to the SMP from earlier hits and the large 300 P2 value on 236B... we can no longer use 5A or 2A to link off of it. Well, crap. Maybe we can use our super to extend...?

236236A Second hit OMC - P2: 500 SMP: 0 Total: 3100

thankfully the second hit always has consistent hitstun

214214C - P2: 1900 SMP: 0 Total: 5000 (lol)

the only reason this does actual damage anymore is because of minimum scaling hooray. landing anything outside of 236A/B at this point (as j.214B is in fact possible due to special hitstun) does 0 damage, but as 236A/B does minimum damage guarenteed... you can tack an extra 200 onto there if you want!

TOTAL DAMAGE: 8128ish. Which, admittedly, is... the exact same as most of Kanji’s corner BnBs ending in J.214b, omb, 5c j.214b and the same super ender. Oh well, we still did it, gentlemen! Guess we still like dudes tho. I think there’s a few alternate setups that might do a little more damage, especially if you abuse the separate SMP values on 236AB and 236B, but I doubt much will beat doing whatever into the usual 150 meter ender. :C

SECTION 5: NO TECH AND YELLOW COMBOS

Alright, now you understand general combo proration and when combos will drop and why! Naturally, this has a few uses outside of just figuring out combos, particularly against those silly people who don't take VS Kanji! When a combo 'drops' but the opponent doesn't tech or you continue a combo when the opponent should have teched (such as catching someone with 5AA after 214C 2B in the corner, when they try to avoid 236D setups, or picking them up off the ground with a meaty 5A) the combo meter goes yellow. The good/bad news about this is you can actually continue the combo as soon as you land that hit! The opponent is placed in hitstun as he normally would be in any combo, the only problem is that the proration tally from the previous combo will still carry over. Thanks to the nature of Kanji's combos, this usually means they will be able to flip out after a few hits :C

...But sometimes not! Let's take a few examples.

Say you punish a max range AoA with Sweep --> Cruel attack, and the opponent doesn't tech in an attempt to dodge meaty pressure. You land a yellow combo 5A hitting them up off the ground as a result! Thankfully, Sweep only has a P1 of 200 and a P2 of 100, and cruel attack ender only has a P2 of 100, so hitstun has not been reduced at all. This means once Kanji lands 5A afterwards, he actually has enough hitstun left to do a full 5AA J.A J.B J.A J.B j.214B punish, netting him around twice as much damage as he would have gotten from just the sweep --> Chair ender! Hooray!

Unfortunately, being able to land a full combo isn't too common with Kanji's enders. A more common combo of 5AA, 5B sweep 236A/B puts his proration tally up to 800 before he goes for a meaty 5A-Meaning, by the time you get to the usual air combo finisher, the opponent will be able to flip out before you get to J.214B. Kanji can still, however, go for 5AA 236C, netting him a more solid knockdown and some extra damage! So, knowing your general proration tally at the end of each combo can be useful to optimally punish any yellow combos you get from no techers.

The other obvious use of this is to punish people who don't tech properly off of certain moves by going for a full combo after moves they don't tech properly, as after that initial 'yellow combo' hit you can string together a fully legitimate combo to punish!-Unfortunately, Kanji really doesn't have the tools to utilize this tactic very often since most of his combos rely on FC to allow 236B and 5C extensions, but hey, if you're a non Kanji main reading the thread, go experiment! '3'

Lastly, if you're watching your tally carefully, you can even pretend to be Tager and set up some lovely gimmick tech punishes! For example, if the Proration Tally is high enough in a combo involving 236CD, it's possible to force hold techers to tech in the air after 236CD > J.B! Normally, the hit from that J.B has enough untech time to allow them to land before teching, but since 236CD adds a fair bit of Proration to the combo, you can catch them off guard by hitting them with J.B and setting up 236CD to catch them once they tech unexpectedly! Hooray! There's actually a lot of potential for setting up early tech traps like this with Kanji, but I'll leave that for everyone to figure out for themselves~

TL;DR - The proration tally carries over from legit combos to 'not legit' hits in a yellow beat combo, so you can utilize that to create normally impossible combos or punish latetechers with a OTG 5A! And knowing your proration tally well lets you set up better tech traps than usual.

SECTION 6: OTHER APPLICATIONS

...unfortunately I forgot a few things I was going to write about when I initially posted this thread. I'LL ADD THEM AS SOON AS I GET FREETIME HOORAY.

***

And there you have it! Kanji combo theory. Take all that I detailed in this post and you can go and create combos without even opening training mode once you know enough about how his normals combo! Some useful information is missing still, and I plan to update it in the upcoming days/weeks/months/whatever once school is not getting in the way and people correct me for being HORRIFICALLY wrong. So, thank you SO MUCH for reading!

On next week’s episode, we discuss how Platinum’s 22C combos are dumb and understanding how they work made them even dumber, and Zomb stops playing SWR and VSav long enough to explain how to drop one normal in any Chie combo to avoid ever dropping combos due to tourney nerves! ( ゚∀゚)アハハ八八ノヽノヽノヽノ \ / \/ \

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