A.B.A. vs. Zappa

[DonPatch]

I didn't see one of these yet, and since it's my most frequent matchup, I felt obligated to share some of what I know. The only reason I haven't already made a thread like this is because I've been worried any matchup info I have is just player specific and not character specific, but I suppose anything's better than nothing, right? If anybody finds errors with this, please speak up.

Since Zappa changes so drastically with each summon, I'll just split this up into summon-specific matchups.

A.B.A. vs. Naked Zappa (no summon)

What to watch out for:

-his 6P hits low, goes under a lot of shit, and gives a KD on CH.

-his 5K and 5D have lower invincibility. His 5D also has throw invincibility and can be special canceled.

-his naked f.S hits mid in the air, and the puddle it makes on the ground hits low and causes quick stagger.

-his summon is invincible for the first 9 frames, but is very punishable on block. KD on hit.

-his 5HS and 6HS both hit high.

-his j.HS hits behind him.

-his throw and airthrow both KD.

-his super is completely invincible until the recovery.

How to fight him:

While you're in normal mode, you're both at kind of an equal footing. Try to get into moroha as soon as possible, but only try for it if it's safe (across the screen or off of a 5HS). Normal mode 6HS works as an okay AA if timed right. It's not as quick coming out as 2S or 2HS, but it can combo safely into bloodpack and if you score a CH they're almost already dizzied, though he tends not to go in the air much since his air normals aren't too great. When in moroha mode, always beware of the summon or 6P, as they can beat you out clean if you're getting predictable. Do not underestimate Zappa just because he doesn't have a summon out.

A.B.A. vs. Triplets

What to watch out for:

-his P ghost toss goes straight up, then comes straight down on you no matter where you are on the screen. It hits mid though, so don't get tricked into blocking high and eating a 6P.

-2HS/j.HS KD's on hit, and it's very easy for zappa to crossover with j.HS.

-if you get haunted, the banana peel hits low and KD's.

-his 6HS hits high, and hits 3 times. he can make unblockable setups with this and the banana peel.

How to fight him:

At some point, you're going to get caught under heavy pressure by the triplets. If one is haunting you, it's going to get even heavier. You'll have to try to work your way in to Zappa while blocking everything that gets thrown out at you. 1 hit will get rid of the triplets, including any that are haunting you. Nothing zappa has in this state does too great of damage (excluding 6HS), but his ability to get hits in is very high, and as a result means he can knock you out of moroha very quickly. Play cautiously, and be selectively-aggressive. Once you get your pressure going on him, there's really nothing he can do to shrug you off except a DAA. If you get a hit in while a golf ball is coming at you and try to combo, the golf ball won't dissapear. If you throw a well timed Danzai in the combo, however, you'll just go right through it. This fight is all about patience.

A.B.A. vs. The Sword

What to watch out for:

-he has a decent SRK in this mode.

-his 5HS can outpoke your f.S, and even your 5HS if timed right.

-lots of knockdowns. CH SRK, sword slide follow up, sword swipe, sword spin, and of course throw, airthrow, CH 6P, and 2D

-decent damage.

-strong anti-air (2HS and SRK)

-j.HS has good crossup potential.

-6HS hits twice; first high, then low.

How to fight him:

Poke cautiously. If you get the pressure going, keep it on hard until he cracks (just watch out for reversal DP's). If you get put on the defensive, just wait until you catch an opening. The swords specials all have long recovery time if they're not FRC'd. Nothing too fancy about this fight, however.

A.B.A. vs. The Dog

What to watch out for:

-unblockables (the dog bite is unblockable unless it's used as a follow up attack, and it's air dive hits high, which can make for unblockable setups if mixed with a low attack).

-if you hit the dog, whatever attack killed it will not connect with Zappa. If you kill it with the first hit of f.S, that hit will not touch Zappa, but the 2nd hit of f.S still will.

-the dog attacks independently of Zappa, meaning if you have him in a blockstring, he can still make the dog attack while he's blocking and combo you into a KD.

-the dog has an uppercut that comes out fast and KD's.

-the unblockable dog bite KD's.

How to fight him:

While FB Danzai-ing Zappa/dog combos is hilarious, try to avoid danzai. Zappa can easily let the dog get hit by the first hit, and make you his bitch afterwards. If Zappa's sitting on his dog, f.S can kill any counter attempt the dog might make, and still hit Zappa afterwards. Try to push zappa away from his dog so it can't interrupt your pressure as easily. Zappa tends to be easy to tick throw in this state, so use that to your advantage. If you get knocked down, prepare to face retarded oki. The dog can unblockable you on wakeup multiple times if you aren't able to get it off of you. In this case, one of the safest things to do is probably a wakeup EX danzai. you'll probably get punished by a summon/KD afterwards, but it's better than getting KD'd by the bite again and having to wakeup into another one. Besides, there's always the chance it could connect. If you have the tension, RCing the first hit is your best bet, and if you have a burst, that's the time to use it. Just don't get burst baited and stuck in the loop again. This summon is possibly the hardest part about fighting Zappa.

A.B.A. vs. Raoh

What to watch out for:

-highest damage combos in the game. period.

-a high damage SRK with fully invincible startup.

-edguy KD's, darkness anthem KD's, and 6HS groundslides.

-DA and raoh's super do 2x chip damage.

How to fight him:

For the love of god poke safely. Raoh isn't as bad as you'd think, but if you go rushing in making stupid mistakes you will be killed, end of story. Danzai is good for beating out most of what he throws at you, but don't abuse it by any means. Also, only try to Danzai him out of moves if you have the health to cover it. Example scenario, if you run in and bait an edguy with a FB Danzai, and Zappa RC's, edguys, RC's, and edguys again, yes your danzai will connect, but you just lost 1/3 of your life. Fortunately, edguy has long recovery, so on block you can easily punish it. If you're feeling risky, you can try airdashing in and FDing a baited edguy, landing and punishing. Raoh has no overheads except for 5D and any air attacks, so block low until you see one of those. Watch out for tick throw attempts too, as one of those will take off a large chunk of your life, and once a Zappa realizes they won't be breaking through your defense, they're bound to try for one. Raoh dissapears after about 15 seconds, so if you can defend or keep the pressure going for that long, he'll be reverted back to naked Zappa. This fight is similar to potemkin, just with different areas of caution, and more at risk if you fuck up.

Well, that's all I have on this matchup for now. Long story short, you can decimate him with a couple good combos, but he has dozens of options to knock you down. I hope I didn't leave anything out. If anybody has anything to add or correct me on, please do.

[4Corners]

Darkness Anthem actually does 4x chip damage. FD those guys, if you can. Also, he gains tension faster in Raoh mode, or it seems that way to me. Most times when I have a gold bar, I'll use two supers, then either rush down or start chucking DA at you, since you won't have the tension to keep blocking those bad boys, and I normally find myself with 1/2 to 3/4 tension after Raoh is gone. I've even gone insta-raoh right after Raoh disappears, just to really scare people. Good stuff, though. I think 5k KDs on CH as well?

[Moroha]

I can't stress enough how important it is to keep Zappa off his summons. Strong poking, burst, Dead Angle, etc. If you see an opportunity to throw a wrench in his momentum, do it. If he has Ghosts, he will make life difficult for you to get inside. If you're marked by a Ghost, you're going to enjoy your stay. Sword is a poking match; I like using 2D and also 6H a lot here, it helps get in on the ground. It'll clash with Sword a good amount which is fine. Dog is a funny beast, and he can really ruin your day, so reversal backdashing is generally a must. Dog is something you really need to get hands on experience with, the way dog control works separate from Zappa's condition is extremely good for him. Raoh is not a problem. If Raoh had a conversation with Danzai, he would say, dear Danzai, fuck you. If you've got 50% tension and Zappa has Raoh, you're in fine shape. Also, getting hit by Raoh isn't necessarily always going to be a game over, since ABA's one persistent bitch. Also, his summon is punishable on block and midscreen + closer whiff with Moroha f.S. SO DO IT!!