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[P4AU] Adachi VS Akihiko

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Here are my initial thoughts on the Akihiko matchup. As my own experience is limited, this writeup is meant to serve as merely a collection of ideas and possibilities for you to take into consideration with your own play.

Enclosed numbers such as "⑦" refer to punishment combos; check the "General Punish List" for a transcription and demonstration.

Underlined text is hyperlinked; click to view a video demonstration.

 

Collapsed: General Punish List:

http://youtu.be/16KM46L6YiI

5B > 5C > 2AB > 214A or 236BB

 

http://youtu.be/tIoKxDt34FE

CH 5B > 5C > 2AB > 214A or 236BB

CH 5B > 2AB > 214AB > 665B > 2C > 2AC > jC > 5B > 2B > 2C (> 2D in corner)

CH 5B > 2AB > 236236B > run forward > 2C > 2AC > jC > 5B > 2B > 2C (> 2D in corner)

 

http://youtu.be/cwHyOa00Kaw

CH 2B > jC whiff > 5B > 2C > 2AC > jC > 5B > 2B > 2C (> 2D in corner)

 

http://youtu.be/8Z9jiKf_sO4

2AB > 214AB > 665B > 2C > 2AC > jC > 5B > 2B > 2C (> 2D in corner)

2AB > 236236B > run forward > 2C > 2AC > jC > 5B > 2B > 2C (> 2D in corner)

 

http://youtu.be/GxsJ8KW4Tzs

5C > 2AB > 214A or 236BB

 

http://youtu.be/kSRBEYRbaC0

CH 5C > IAD > jC > 665B > 5C > 2AB > 214A or 236BB

 

http://youtu.be/1FtbjHkkJ_Y

CH 5C > 2AB > 214AB > 665B > 2C > 2AC > jC > 5B > 2B > 2C (> 2D in corner)

CH 5C > 2AB > 236236B > run forward > 2C > 2AC > jC > 5B > 2B > 2C (> 2D in corner)

 

http://youtu.be/BC4SEnRFHkw

FC 5C > IAD > jC > 665B > 5C > 2AB > 214AB > 665B > 2C > 2AC > jC > 5B > 2B > 2C (> 2D in corner)

FC 5C > IAD > jC > 665B > 5C > 2AB > 236236B > run forward > 2C > 2AC > jC > 5B > 2B > 2C (> 2D in corner)

 

http://youtu.be/ILfFJmsAmmE

236AA or 236BB > 236236A > 662C > 2AC > jC > 665B > 2B > 2C

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Akihiko seems somewhat similar to Adachi in some ways; get in, stay in, hit buttons. No real range or spacing.
I find this fight to be very "honest"- it's a battle of patience, as always.

 

5A/2A - Akihiko can control the space in front of him very well with these attacks. They recover quickly when whiffed and can cover even more space when used together with microdashing. Sometimes, Aki may attempt to whiff these in your face to catch an errant limb or movement. There is not much you can do; if you want to risk it, you can try to counterpoke with 5B or 214A. Watch your spacing very carefully.

 

Should Akihiko attempt to stagger your block with 5AA, 2A5A, etc. just stay calm. He is at disadvantage when doing this, so you can counterpoke back with 5A or 5B- but you should be very aware that he may be setting you up for a 5B frame trap (5B is always Fatal on counterhit). Pick your spots and remember you can always just block.

 
jB - The big one. Aki will probably be throwing this all over the place. He has a noticeably shorter jump arc than most of the cast, so you'll have to get used to this. In neutral, a well-aimed 2B should be able to do the trick; make sure you stay crouching to lower your hitbox, to make Aki have to press his button really late.

If you must block it remember that it is two hits, so don't crouch until that last hook comes out.
 
When you are knocked down, Aki may jump at you with jB. Wakeup DP is not really effective when Aki learns to stand block it... SB Atom Smasher (quick enough to hit him out of the air) or Ghastly Wail D (to give him time to land) may work if you have meter, depending on the situation. The safest thing for you to do would be to mixup your wakeup timing. You don't always have to tech immediately- you can tech late, or you can just wakeup naturally. Usually, just small adjustments are enough to throw off his meaty pressure.

 

Watch out for a dash 2A/2A2A; using the momentum from the dash, Aki can air turn and jB to land a crossup hit. If you see this coming, simply jump back and air throw. (Don't try to 2B, DP, roll, etc. as you may get punished for it.)
 
Blockstrings/Cyclone - When Akihiko tags your block with jB or a stray 2A, he'll usually head into 236A (Kill Rush) and then proceed to pummel your guard for a short while. Aki's blockstrings are somewhat free-form, so I won't cover all the possible combinations- I think just knowing his options is enough.
 
Extending - 8A (Sonic Punch) and 4A (Boomerang Hook) are normally the go-to followups here. I would advise that you just block and wait it out; you may instant block if you want, but if it's too much trouble I wouldn't worry about it. Aki will only be able to do one of each before he has to get closer or stop; note that if you are cornered he can extend things for one more set.
 
Advancing - 8B and 6C (Duck) are what Aki will have to do once he pushes you out of range. Look for these: they are your chance to DP, reversal, roll, or even risk a 5A/2A/throw interrupt (be warned that 8B Fatal Counters if your timing is bad, and 6C can be canceled into 214A/B which will Fatal your 5A/2A). You can opt to just sit and block, but these are your break points if you wish to use them.
 
Mixup - Aki has a couple of mixup options during Cyclone strings. He can AOA, he can sweep, he can throw.
 
AOA - As long as you stay lucid, you should be able to see this coming. It is unsafe on block, but you don't get too much from it; you can punish with ① or ⑨. Personally, I would just go directly for buffering 236236A into combo for ease of execution. Watch for OMC.
 
Sweep - Going for 2AB post Kill Rush ends Aki's momentum, as it can only be super or One More canceled afterwards. If you sense it coming, instant block it and you can 5A or 5B punish it. Aki will have to spend meter to make it safe (Thunder Fists/Maziodyne/OMC) but due to blockstun and/or superflash he should not be able to directly punish your punish.
 
Throw - Due to blockstun protection, Aki will not be able to throw you right after hitting your guard- and this means that he will most likely have to Duck (6C) before he can throw you. If you are looking out for it, this should not be a problem. Your throw will actually beat both 8B and 6C (and Closeout Blow!), so as long as you stay aware you shouldn't get thrown.

 

10/28 Edit: Akihiko's AOA, because it's airborne, prevents throw from being a catch-all response to Akihiko's pressure. Just be aware of it.

 

5C - A slow Persona overhead. Blocking it will usually stop Aki's momentum. You can try to last-minute DP through it, if you want- don't try to roll through it, as you'll end up at disadvantage right in Aki's face.
 
Corkscrew - If Aki does this on block he's really messed up. Fatal Recovery means you can punish with ⑧ or whatever you'd like. As always, watch their meter for a counter-super or OMC. You may get lucky if they try to use super to cover themselves, as they have to input it very late; if they jump the gun you can easily just sit back as the blockstun eats your initial inputs and punish them when they're done.

 

Odds and Ends - There are some lesser used options that I should list here for the sake of completeness.

 

4B hold (unblockable Boomerang Hook) - Aki needs to be relatively close to pull this off. The attack is also somewhat slow, even after the !! bubble has faded- so it is worth trying to challenge this with 5A/2A, or even DP. Be warned that if you are way too late on the interrupt you will be Fatal Countered.

 

As a small sidenote, if you eat something on hit (e.g. SB Kill Rush) and then Aki transitions into this, you must DP to escape as you will most likely not have enough time to react.

 

4D (Weave) - Aki may suddenly back off during a blockstring, most likely to bait a whiff from you so he can Corkscrew whiff punish. If you think your timing is good enough, just 214B and shoot him in the foot (or block and punish the Corkscrew if he has a habit of doing it preemptively).

 

6CD (SB Duck) - SB Duck is special, as it will cross you up and force you to block the other way if Akihiko is close enough. The thing is, it is slow enough to ignore crossup protection, but that also makes it slow enough to interrupt. If you have been challenging Duck (especially with throws) you should be fine.

 

6AB (SB Corkscrew) - SB Corkscrew has a noticeable windup, but it also has 18 full invincibility frames! By spending a little meter, Aki can call out any aggressive response you have during his blockstring (and sometimes even in neutral). However, SB Corkscrew still retains Fatal Recovery, so it's a very big coin flip for him.

 

jC - Not that this will happen a lot, but if you are close enough, this does have enough recovery on it to be punished with ⑨.

 

Double Uppercut (Furious Action/DP) - Same old, same old. Watch for super, punish with ⑥ or ⑦, yada yada yada.

 

Kill Rush (236A/B) - When you are within range, Akihiko can dash over to you with this and immediately put you in a blockstring. Kill Rush happens just to be a quick run that recovers fairly well on whiff and only fully animates on block or hit, so attempting to bait one and 236AA whiff punish is out of the question. So, knowing that Akihiko can bully you on the ground with this, how do you deal with it?

 

You can attempt to interrupt the startup with 236AA/5B/5C, but this requires a very, very hard read. If you are caught whiffing Akihiko will just whiff punish you with Kill Rush instead.

 

You still have to sense it out, but what you can do is roll. Rolling through Akihiko's dash will start his punching animation, but he'll be punching at air, and open to a nice 236AA (⑨) punish.

 

10/30 Edit: You don't even have to roll, just jump. As soon as Akihiko gets close to where you are on the screen he'll start whiffing punches- simply land and punish him (or CH jC while you're still in the air if you like).

The B version is Fatal Recovery...

 

Cyclone Uppercut (236236A/B) - A fair amount of invul frames, but I've never blocked this in play. (Thunder Fists or Maziodyne are probably better reversal options.) I recommend punishing with ③ or ⑦ for consistency.

 

Maziodyne (Awakened 214214C/D) - A fullscreen super, like your Atom Smasher. Maziodyne gives Aki a large amount of invulnerability frames to work with, but it's fairly slow, and every version is unsafe unless it is used in Cyclone strings. Punishing it depends on how close you are- ⑥, ⑦ or ⑨ could do. Watch for OMC, and note that you can Instant Block some of the later hits for free. (Also, don't ever try to roll through it- too many active frames.)

 

If he does this fullscreen for whatever reason (probably SB to freeze you in place), you need meter for an Atom Smasher C punish if you choose to do so. C version can be punished with 2D but who would ever do that?

If you don't have the meter for an Atom Smasher C punish, you could possibly sneak in an Evil Smile D/SB if you aim it right (they should not be able to avoid it if timed properly).

 

Be aware that SB Maziodyne will Shock you whether it hits or not.

 

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Be very careful about using your 5C as a spacing tool in this matchup. It's just not reliable- jB beats it, dash 2A beats it, if Aki is awake it's free Kill Rush whiff punishes for him.

 

Try not to use 2D, either. It's unlikely that Aki will be doing anything stupid at range as to get caught by it (most likely he will just run forward and clip you while you summon Magatsu-Izanagi).

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