DNFD/Vanguard/Strategy

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 Vanguard

Introduction

VanguardAt a Glance


Vanguard is an extremely long-range character, but he's not exactly a zoner. Due to the slow startup on many of his attacks, Vanguard will often spend his time turtling in most matchups, waiting for an opportune moment to use his powerful party-starter attacks.

Notable Moves

Unique S StringsFlexibility at Range

Starting from 5SDNFD Vanguard 5S.pngGuardMidStartup18RecoveryAdvantage-4, 2SDNFD Vanguard 2S.pngGuardMidStartup14RecoveryAdvantage-12, 6SDNFD Vanguard 6S.pngGuardMidStartup21RecoveryAdvantage-9, 4SDNFD Vanguard 4S.pngGuardMidStartup20RecoveryAdvantage-10, or j.SDNFD Vanguard jS.pngGuardMidStartup25RecoveryUntil Landing+25Advantage-8~-4, Vanguard can cancel into a grounded Skill he has not yet used in the string.
This allows Vanguard to convert very easily from the mid-to-long range, especially when starting from 4SDNFD Vanguard 4S.pngGuardMidStartup20RecoveryAdvantage-10, which has a unique pulling effect.
The video example here shows Vanguard using a combination of Skills to pull his opponent in, knock them down, re-launch them with an OTG, and continue the combo.

5M & Follow-UpsNow, That's a Knife


5MDNFD Vanguard 5M 1.pngGuardMidStartup21RecoveryAdvantage-5 is Vanguard's most unique Special. It's extremely cost-effective as it only requires 30MP to use, with its follow-ups only costing an additional 10~30MP.
The low cost is an extremely welcome attribute, as some of Vanguard's moves (such as 2BDNFD Vanguard 2B.pngGuardLowStartup13RecoveryAdvantage-16) leave him at massive disadvantage otherwise.
Each follow-up has unique utility in pressure and combos. Some notable examples are 5M~2MDNFD Vanguard 5M2M.pngGuardMidStartup28RecoveryAdvantage-7's ability to extend combos, and 5M~4MDNFD Vanguard 5M4M.pngGuardMidStartup30RecoveryAdvantage-2's armor attribute.
The only arguable downside is that 5MDNFD Vanguard 5M 1.pngGuardMidStartup21RecoveryAdvantage-5 must connect with the opponent before being able to use a follow-up.

Gameplan

Neutral

General Neutral Theory


Vanguard excels at controlling space with a variety of mid-to-long range attacks and is fairly flexible in their approach to neutral. Generally, Vanguard wants to maintain a range that is uncomfortable for the opponent. This could mean keeping space with Skills against shorter-range characters such as  Striker and  Dragon Knight,
or approaching and badgering with fast mid-range tools like 5A, 5B, and 2B against zoners such as  Ranger and  Launcher.

A lot of Vanguard's attacks are susceptible to being Dodged and punished. Patience is key here, as Dodges have a lot of recovery and can be easily punished when baited.

To learn more about the concept of Neutral, check out the 'Additional Resources' tab at the top of this section.

Common Neutral ToolsThe video example here briefly shows these options being used in real matches to pester the opponent and interrupt approaches.
  • 5ADNFD Vanguard 5A.pngGuardMidStartup9Recovery18Advantage-1

A decently fast poke. Great at checking approach options or for approaching yourself. The only downside is that it whiffs VS a lot of characters when neutral-crouched:

Whiffs VS  BRZ,  STR,  GRP (max),  INQ (far),  SWI,  ENC,  KNO,  DRK
  • 5BDNFD Vanguard 5B.pngGuardMidStartup11RecoveryAdvantage-12

Extremely fast for what it is. 5B covers a massive amount of space and works as a great anti-air as well. Just don't whiff, as it has lot of recovery!

  • 5SDNFD Vanguard 5S.pngGuardMidStartup18RecoveryAdvantage-4

While 6SDNFD Vanguard 6S.pngGuardMidStartup21RecoveryAdvantage-9 and 4SDNFD Vanguard 4S.pngGuardMidStartup20RecoveryAdvantage-10 are also decent pokes, 5S carries a lot less commitment due to its low recovery time, while still benefiting from a disjointed hitbox.

Okizeme

General Okizeme Theory


Vanguard is at his best when pressuring with his Skills, so his general goal will be so set these up as safely as possible.
4SDNFD Vanguard 4S.pngGuardMidStartup20RecoveryAdvantage-10 and 6SDNFD Vanguard 6S.pngGuardMidStartup21RecoveryAdvantage-9 can make use of their disjointed hitboxes to safely meaty against a lot of reversals, making it great way to start pressure without the need for a hard read.
Another way to stay safe from wakeup reversals is to set up safe jumps after specific HKD enders.

Common Knockdowns & MeatiesThe video example here briefly shows each knockdown and some of their respective meaty options.
  • 2BDNFD Vanguard 2B.pngGuardLowStartup13RecoveryAdvantage-16 Counterhit

CH 2B grants a HKD, giving Vanguard enough time to position himself for almost any pressure-starter, including 4SDNFD Vanguard 4S.pngGuardMidStartup20RecoveryAdvantage-10 or 6SDNFD Vanguard 6S.pngGuardMidStartup21RecoveryAdvantage-9.

  • 5M~6MDNFD Vanguard 5M6M.pngGuardMidStartup25RecoveryAdvantage-12 Midscreen

Your main combo ender for those long-range pickups. It grants a HKD, offers a lot of corner carry, and allows you to meaty with 4SDNFD Vanguard 4S.pngGuardMidStartup20RecoveryAdvantage-10 or 6SDNFD Vanguard 6S.pngGuardMidStartup21RecoveryAdvantage-9.

  • 5M~2MDNFD Vanguard 5M2M.pngGuardMidStartup28RecoveryAdvantage-7 Midscreen

Though you can almost always continue a combo after 5M~2M, sometimes it's best to stop early, before granting your opponent their Awakening Passive.
This HKD gives you enough time to safe jump by forward-jumping twice and using j.BDNFD Vanguard jB.pngGuardHighStartup10RecoveryUntil landing(+3)Advantage-.

  • 214M / 4MDNFD Vanguard 214M 1.pngGuardMidStartup15RecoveryAdvantage-2 Corner

After 214M / 4M in the corner, Vanguard can immediately safe jump by timing a forward-jump and using j.BDNFD Vanguard jB.pngGuardHighStartup10RecoveryUntil landing(+3)Advantage-. If the opponent is too high up, this requires some manual timing.
If j.BDNFD Vanguard jB.pngGuardHighStartup10RecoveryUntil landing(+3)Advantage- connects low enough, it can even jail into 2SDNFD Vanguard 2S.pngGuardMidStartup14RecoveryAdvantage-12 at closer ranges, setting up his strong S pressure.

Pressure

General Pressure Theory


Vanguard mainly pressures his opponents by cranking their Guard Gauge with his Skills and denying approach options with strong normals and spacing.
Skill-based pressure is fairly open-ended and leaves a lot of room for player expression, rewarding patience and fundamentals.
From these block strings and staggers, Vanguard aims to make his opponents feel helpless and trapped.

To learn more about the concept of Pressure, check out the 'Additional Resources' tab at the top of this section.

Skill PressurePiling On The Pressure


The backbone to all of Vanguard's pressure. Skills are massive and allow a lot of flexibility as to how he wants to engage. Normally, chaining these Skills together forms completely gapless pressure. By slightly delay-canceling these strings, you are able to create frame traps, which is huge part of Vanguard's "mix".
Generally, you'll want to start your pressure with either 6SDNFD Vanguard 6S.pngGuardMidStartup21RecoveryAdvantage-9 or 4SDNFD Vanguard 4S.pngGuardMidStartup20RecoveryAdvantage-10, saving 5SDNFD Vanguard 5S.pngGuardMidStartup18RecoveryAdvantage-4 to end the string safely.
These moves all have some ridiculously disjointed hitboxes, making some of Vanguard's block strings safe to reversals.

5M PressureLong-Range Threats
30MP Cost


Disclaimer: M Specials grant your opponent White Health when blocked. Your opponent can then use that White Health for Conversion.
Due to the massive utility of Conversion, it is not always a good idea to simply grant it to your opponent, especially in the Early-Game.

5M is very versatile; But unless you have Conversion to make moves such as 2B safe, you'll be using 5M quite a bit.
Ideally, you would want to minimize its use by properly spacing your attacks and extending your pressure by using Conversion instead.

As long as one of its two hits makes contact, 5M can be canceled into a follow-up at any time during the animation.
The 1st hit has less block stun than the 2nd, which is something worth noting during pressure.

To learn more about each follow-up, select a tab at top of this section.

5M~5MCharge!
30+10MP Cost

5M~5M is projectile-invincible; However, it's anyone's guess as to why, as it's a gapless follow-up and 5M is not whiff-cancelable to begin with.

Perhaps the most notable aspect of 5M~5M, is that it is only -2 on Block.
This technically gives Vanguard advantage against characters who don't have an available abare option faster than 10f:

Works VS  LAU,  LOS,  RNG

In those matchups, 5M~5M becomes an extremely valuable gap-closer, allowing Vanguard to continue pressure with 2A, as shown in the video example.

5M~2MSlash!
30+20MP Cost


5M~2M is mostly for combo extension, but it is also a tight frame trap, being able to catch even the early frames of a Dodge.
Other than this, its use in pressure is somewhat limited, especially considering slightly delay-canceling 5M~5M or 5M~6M serves the same purpose while also being safer.

5M~6MBore!
30+30MP Cost


5M~6M is the only other gapless follow-up to 5M. While more ideal as a knockdown, it does push the opponent very far away, which isn't bad for Vanguard in most matchups.

5M~4MBehead!
30+20MP Cost

5M~4M is a fully armored follow-up, making it that much better at blowing through enemy attacks and landing a counter hit.
On said counter hit, it puts the opponent into a crumple state, giving Vanguard more than enough time to run up and start a combo with 2S, as shown in the video example.

Awakening

General Awakening TheoryEffects activate when entering Awakening Mode at 30% HP or less.


Vanguard's Awakening Passive increases his Guard Damage dealt by 50% when attacks are blocked.

Basically, what Vanguard already does best, but better. The threat of a Guard Crush is more than real during awakening, forcing the opponent to have to act before it's too late.

Defense

General Defense Theory


Vanguard's defense is on the weaker side, with his sole reversal whiffing against practically every crouching character and even against some standing attacks.
Because of this, his defense generally involves turtling and requires a good sense of abare to check gaps in pressure.

In DNF, Throws don't generally set up for scary oki situations, so taking a Throw midscreen can actually reset neutral and give you White Health for Conversion.

Though his Guard Cancel is also suspect to whiffing at range, it's a generally safe option to escape pressure, but it will cost 100MP to use. Vanguard isn't too resource-hungry, however, so the cost can be worth it. A successful Guard Cancel will put the opponent at almost full screen, which is a range Vanguard can control well.

To learn more about the concept of Defense, check out the 'Additional Resources' tab at the top of this section.

Abare

Abare means to attack during an opponent's frame advantage with the intention of interrupting their pressure. Naturally, faster moves work best for this task.

Abare OptionsTime to Mash!


  • 2ADNFD Vanguard 2A.pngGuardLowStartup7RecoveryAdvantage-1

It may have a lot of recovery, but it does have a startup of 7f, making it your fastest normal. It can cancel into 5B for easy combo conversions.

  • ThrowDNFD Vanguard AB.pngGuardStartup5Recovery22Advantage-

At 5f startup, Throw is technically your fastest available option, though it carries a lot of risk due to its short range and long counter-hittable recovery.

  • 623M / 2MDNFD Vanguard 623M.pngGuardMidStartup13RecoveryAdvantage-40 ...is not an option!

Don't do it. Just don't. Pretend it's a really, really good anti-air. You have been warned.

Anti-Airing

623M / 2MDNFD Vanguard 623M.pngGuardMidStartup13RecoveryAdvantage-40This is Vanguard's DP Dragon Punch A move that has invulnerability during its startup, long recovery, and a rising motion.. Due to the general speed of jump-ins in DNF, it is usually recommended that you use the simple input version of this move.
70MP Cost

Though it has a deadzone directly above Vanguard, 2M has incredible vertical reach and functions like a hit grab, allowing Vanguard to ignore any lingering projectile hitboxes that may have otherwise hit him during the animation. The only drawback to using the simple input is that your Mana will start to regenerate later, as opposed to immediately.
The video example here shows Vanguard using 2M to beat  Launcher's post-4SDNFD Launcher 4S.pngGuardLowStartup18Recovery25Advantage-17 okizeme, using its hit-grab property to also avoid her NukeDNFD Launcher jM.pngGuardAllStartup124RecoveryTotal 26(+5 Landing)Advantage- set play.

General-Purpose Anti-AirsLow MP? No Problem!


  • 5BDNFD Vanguard 5B.pngGuardMidStartup11RecoveryAdvantage-12

While not invincible like 2M, 5B hits incredibly high up, decently far, and a little bit behind Vanguard, making it a strong general-purpose anti-air.

  • 2SDNFD Vanguard 2S.pngGuardMidStartup14RecoveryAdvantage-12

Though it shares a deadzone with 2M, 2S boasts incredible vertical reach, making it a more than serviceable anti-air option in many scenarios.
Not only can it cancel into Vanguard's other grounded Skills, but it can also be jump-canceled, allowing for unique combo routes.

  • j.ADNFD Vanguard jA.pngGuardHighStartup8RecoveryUntil landing(+2)Advantage-

A fast, long-range, horizontal air-to-air. Nice and easy, and especially useful when back-jumping to stop aerial approaches VS characters such as  Striker.

Experimental Tech & Theory

Counter-Strategy

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