| Overview | Combos | Strategy/Counter Strategy | Full Frame Data |
Merkava sports some pretty huge limbs that can be used to harass the opponent from a safe distance away, and his unique flight ability gives him a lot of room to move around and position himself. His 5A, 214B, and reversal action are all solid anti-airs that contribute to his dominance of the skies. As an assist, he has very somewhat standard but nonetheless good moves, with a flurry punch for general purpose, a fireball for zoning, and an anti-air that ground slams. On the other hand, his big size can easily lead to him being combo food for most opponents, and he doesn't have many options to get the opponent off of him. In addition, he is big and slow without having any traditional counter-balances, like increased backstep invulnerability or hard-hitting attacks.
| Lore: | Merkava is a Void, a type of creature that resides within the "world" of the Hollow Night in the Under Night universe. They're typically mindless snake-like beasts that seek out and devour any living thing they can find for their EXS (if you survive a Void mauling, you become an in-birth). Merkava obviously stands out as being a Void who is capable of being able to think and talk like a human, owing to the fact he was an in-birth who gave up his human body in favor of a Void one, and capable of living in the real world, making the strongest and most intelligent Void. However, this is a decision that has caused him some angst, as he now has the animalistic urges and instincts of a Void with the conscious of a human. He is suspected as the Void responsible for killing and eating Orie's parents. He was targeted and trailed by a Ritter Schild member Londrekia Light, who then spare the intelligent Void’s life and now having a neutral friendly terms with him while swore to find a possibility to reverse the transformation from a Void back to human. |
Merkava Merkava is a character that likes to pressure his opponent from at least midrange, and when he gets a hitconfirm, get his reward through very technical combos.
- Effective attacks that can reach from footsies range to fullscreen.
- Unique flight mechanic gives great position and safe jump setups.
- Glide attack allows for some tricky mix-ups.
- Strong anti-air game
- Is able to Reverse Beat attacks like other UNIEL characters.
- Tall hurtbox
- Slow moves
- Reverse beating blockstrings does not improve frame advantage
| Merkava | |
|---|---|
 |
Merkava's FLS grants him the ability to stretch and morph his arms, allowing him to punch and grab from a long distance, turn them into whips to slap opponents, and sprout wings to fly
His FLS also grants him the ability to fly whenever he double jumps or air dashes. Merkava can move up, down, forward, or backward and can cancel into his air dash until he starts his third and final wing flap. His air dash is actually a forward glide that also can hit the opponent. Both his flight stance and his air dash can be cancelled into any air attack at any time.Normal Moves
5A
I, don't use overheads during this attack.
I, SHAKE THE BABY!
| 5A |
|---|
| 5AA |
| 5AAA |
| 5AAAA |
- Head invul
- Jump cancelable on block.
5A is his primary anti-air and one of his best moves to end combo strings with.
5AA has good range and is also good to end combo strings with
- Very unsafe on block
5AAA throws the opponent full screen.
5AAAA can only be done if 5AAA hit the opponent.
5B
I, am incredibly sad that this isn't an overhead.
| 5B |
|---|
| 5BB |
| 5BBB |
- Good Poke
5B is a good mid range poke that is safe if used from a decent distance
5BB is safe if done from a distance but can be punished by fast characters up close.
5BBB is also safe if done from a distance. Very punishable up close and does not connect out of 2BB on block, someone can reversal after 2BB if 2BBB is done
5C
2A
I, Throw A Tantrum
- Does not hit low
- Jump and Grab cancelable
Another one of Merkava’s safest moves on block, crouched Merkava slaps the floor twice. Use to end block strings.
2B
I, bite your ankles
2B has 2 hitboxes once on the way there and the other on the way back. This hits low and is generally safe.
2C
I, chomp
- Launches on second hit
This knocks up and leads to big combos. This move is not safe if push blocked and can be punished. Use if attack lands or only first hit.
j.A
I, reach out to the bird feeder
j.B
I, think the wheel of pain is turning.
Can be used for instant overheads, but is a bit finicky with positioning, experiment to find the sweet spot for it.
j.C
I, Divekick
- Advantage based on immediate j.C; Lowest possible j.C hit is -3
This move is actually an overhead, so j.C can be used as an instant overhead. There is a lot of landing recovery, but it can be special cancelled so it's not as unsafe as it seems, and you can actually combo off this solo with j.214C. If the opponent blocks this, your pressure is likely over.
Universal Moves
Ground Throw
5B+C
I, grab and slam you around
- 100% minimum damage
Hitstun after the opponent lands from throw is longer than it might seem at first glace, can easily combo off of it with a dash
I, Penetrate the Clear Skies
5A+D (air OK)
I, EX Snake Strike
| Ground |
|---|
| Air |
- Usually at higher disadvantage due to earlier hits pushing back too much for final hit to connect
Skills
I, Spring to the Sky
88
I, Turn Into A Bird
- Flaps three times before automatically ending
- Merkava will do a small midair hop to indicate flight is about to end.
Fly that can be executed with any 2 jump motions before landing. A very good option for Merkava and has ton of uses for mixups, pressure, etc
I, Soar the Sky
j.44 or j.66
I, Turn Into Kazunoko
| Forward |
|---|
| Backward |
- Can be cancelled to a normal on whiff
Travels very far and also has a hitbox. Used in combination with moves to apply pressure. Used both to approach and help zone.
Given the size of Merkava's air normals, this can let you take over a lot the screen. Ability to use this with the aerial backdash lets you attack while retreating.
I, Drill Through
236A/B
I, Merkava, have a dream.
| A |
|---|
| B |
A version has very little startup and is safe from a distance, will miss in mid range block strings.
B version has a little bit of startup and lunges forward and best used in combos, very punishable.
I, Capture and Devour
214A/B
I, Touch with noodly appendages
| A |
|---|
| B |
- Enters recovery on block; adds a frame of recovery for every 2 frames spent active; additional 23 frames recovery on whiff
Merkava extends his arm full screen and latches onto the opponent wherever they were on hit. On block, he does not travel to the opponent, but on hit he will do a lengthy animation that can be followed up with the help of your partner. Opponents cannot ground forward tech through Merkava after the knockdown, so it's useful in the corner to lock them down.
- Enters recovery on block; adds a frame of recovery for every 2 frames spent active; additional 18 frames recovery on whiff
Similar to the A version but this one hits at a 45 degree angle upward.
I, Breath Out
j.214A/B
I, Skraw!
| A |
|---|
| B |
- A version has 8f forced landing recovery; B version has 4f forced landing recovery
- Advantage based on lowest possible use
Extra Skills
EX I, Drill Through
236C
"Shall we compare the speed of our attacks?"
Merkava's EX punch attack does more damage, goes farther faster, and keeps the opponent blocking for a pretty long time which makes it useful to switch to a partner while he does the long animation.
EX I, Capture and Devour
214C
pls no/"I, Devour Ass"
- Enters recovery on block; adds a frame of recovery for every 2 frames spent active; additional 23 frames recovery on whiff
EX I, Breath Out
j.214C
EX Flame Bait
Partner Skills
5P
I, Drill Through
Neutral partner skill with a good amount of lockdown. Has a rather short animation and screen presence on whiff though.
6P
I, Breath Out
This can mainly be used for helping approach because of it’s slow speed or applying range on zoners. Don't use it in combos if you can help it - each hit applies proration separately so hitting the opponent with 2 or 3 of the fireballs really lowers your combo damage.
4P
5A
- Hard knockdown on hit
While useful for extending combos because of the hard knockdown, it doesn't see much use outside of punishing Cross Bursts.
Distortion Skills
I, Resentfully Rage
236B+C
I, SKREEEEEEEEEEEE
- Minimum damage: 93*20 (1860)
- Minimum Enhanced damage: 83*25 (2075)
Merkava flails his arms around wildly, covering a large area but is super unsafe.
I, Frolic
214B+C (air OK)
I, Kidnap the Princess
| Ground |
|---|
| Air |
- Minimum damage: 200, 80*5, 300, 1054 (1954)
- Minimum Enhanced damage: 200, 80*5, 200*3, 928 (2128)
Merkava jumps into the air, grabs the opponent, jumps into the air and then slams them onto the ground. Can be used in the air. Use to finish off combos from the air.
Distortion Skill Duo
I, Resentfully Rage
P during Partner's Distortion Skill
I, am LATE TO THE PARTY SKREEEEEE
- Minimum Damage: 2000 / 2500 during Resonance Blaze/Cross Combo
Party hard if you think your opponent has less or around 2k (2.5k) HP.
Astral Heat
I, Overrun
222B+C
I, Monch
- Minimum damage 100% (49000)
Merkava reaches forward to initiate the attack. After landing the attack he begins to eat the opponent. Can be used in most situations other supers would be used
External References
move and the move Full sections. One is shown on the character page, while the other is shown on the frame data page.
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Click [★] for character's full frame data
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