GGML/Zato: Difference between revisions

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{{InvisibleHeader}}{{#lst:{{PAGENAME}}/Data|Links}}
==Overview==
======<span style="visibility:hidden;font-size:0">Overview</span>======
{{GGML/CharacterLinks}}
{{Overview
<div id="home-content" class="home-grid">
|overview= Players familiar with Zato from later games may be expecting a puppet character. However, that is not the case in Missing Link. Here, Zato and his shadow cannot move independently as he can later in the series. Instead, he functions as a zoning character, with a variety of strong pokes and projectiles to both wall the opponent out and harass them from far away. He also boasts solid buttons all around, many of which having the speed and range to turn nearly any stray poke into a Charge Cancel infinite.
{{card|width=4
|lore=Soon after becoming the Guild leader, he launched a large-scale mission that deployed many of the Guild's personnel, ultimately failing due to {{Character Label|GGML|Millia Rage}}'s betrayal, who held a crucial role in the mission. Not long after his incarceration, he learned of the Second Holy Order Selection Tournament, which allows the participation of criminals. Believing that this was his chance to exact revenge against Millia, he participated in the tournament. However, his mind and body were weakened gradually due to the price of his curse, and his body was eventually taken over by the shadow (Eddie).
|header=
|summary= zones the opponent with large normals, varied projectiles, and anti-zoning tools.
|content=Players familiar with Zato from later games may be expecting a puppet character. However, Zato and his shadow cannot move independently. Instead, he functions as a zoning character, with a variety of strong pokes and projectiles to both wall the opponent out and harass them from far away. He also boasts solid buttons all around, many of which having the speed and range to turn nearly any stray poke into a Charge Cancel infinite. This makes him a somewhat basic but effective enough character, with some uniquely strong tools like air drill.
}}
{{GGML/Infobox
|fastestAttack={{MMC|input=5H|label=5H}} (whiffs up close, 4F)<br/> {{MMC|input=2P|label=2P}} (7F) <br/> {{MMC|input=623P|label=Rise And Fall}} (6F)<br/> {{MMC|input=P+K > 236X|label=Instant Kill}} (common crouch whiff, 6F)
|reversal={{MMC|input=623P|label=Rise And Fall}} (6F)
}}
{{ProsAndCons
|intro = outspaces the opponent with large normals, varied projectiles, and anti-zoning tools, looking to convert his pokes into a long-ranged infinite.
|pros=
|pros=
* '''Break the Law''': Break the Law is obscenely strong in Missing Link with only 6 vulnerable frames on startup, 4 vulnerable frames during recovery, and great speed. Combined with guard cancels it's very hard to deal with and lets Zato gain space from the opponent without much risk.
* '''Break the Law''': Break the Law is obscenely strong in Missing Link with only 6 vulnerable frames on startup, 4 vulnerable frames during recovery, and great speed. Combined with guard cancels it's very hard to deal with and lets Zato gain space from the opponent without much risk.
* '''Good Zoning Options''': With Invite Hell, Climb Darkness,  Break the Law, and huge normals like j.S and 5H, Zato is a powerful zoner.
* '''Good Zoning Options''': With Aerial Invite Hell, Climb Darkness,  Break the Law, and huge normals like j.S and 5H, Zato is a powerful zoner.
* '''Strong Anti-Zoning''': Invite Hell is good at catching opponents trying to zone and Drunkard Shade is an incredibly effective projectile reflector.
* '''Strong Anti-Zoning''': Invite Hell is good at catching opponents trying to zone and Drunkard Shade is an incredibly effective projectile reflector.
* '''Honest Footsies?''': Zato has a variety of relatively safe long-range normals for poking, including {{clr|2|5K}}, {{clr|3|f.S}}, {{clr|3|2S}}, and {{clr|3|j.S}}. Combined with his fast and long-ranged {{clr|4|5H}}, this lets him turn stray hits into Charge Cancel infinites from remarkably far away.
* '''Honest Footsies?''': Zato has a variety of relatively safe long-range normals for poking, including {{clr|2|5K}}, {{clr|3|f.S}}, {{clr|3|2S}}, and {{clr|3|j.S}}. Combined with his fast and long-ranged {{clr|4|5H}}, this lets him turn stray hits into Charge Cancel infinites from remarkably far away.
|cons=
|cons=
* '''Long Vulnerability on Invite Hell''': Invite Hell lasts for a very long duration and Zato is open to a full ground punish the entire time. This is partially helped by Aerial Invite Hell, but comes at the cost of nerfed hitboxes.
* '''Long Vulnerability on Invite Hell''': Invite Hell lasts for a very long duration and Zato is open to a full ground punish the entire time. This is partially helped by Aerial Invite Hell, but comes at the cost of nerfed hitboxes and is still punishable if misplaced.
* '''Incredibly Weak Reversal''': Zato's 623P, Rise and Fall, is fully invincible on startup. However, it's fully punishable by an infinite on block '''and hit''', making it useless outside of kills.
* '''Incredibly Weak Reversal''': Zato's 623P, Rise and Fall, is fully invincible on startup. However, it's fully punishable by an infinite on block '''and hit''', making it useless outside of kills.
* '''Weak Super''': Dark Sentinel, despite looking cool, is a very underwhelming super, lacking any use outside of specific situations. Most of the time Zato will be spending meter on FD.
* '''Big Hurtboxes''': Zato's normals are strong, but unlike most of the cast, tend to have equally big hurtboxes. This gives him a tendency to lose neutral interactions other characters wouldn't.
* '''Small Instant Kill''': Zato's instant kill, while fairly fast, has barely any range and can be crouched by most of the cast.
* '''Small Instant Kill''': Zato's instant kill, while fairly fast, has barely any range and can be crouched by most of the cast. This makes it tough to use outside specific circumstances.
|fastestAttack={{MMC|input=5H|label=5H}} (4F, whiffs up-close)<br/>{{MMC|input=2P|label=2P}} (7F)
|reversal={{MMC|input=623P|label=Rise And Fall}} (6F)
}}
}}
</div>


==Normals==
==Normals==
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{{GGML_Move_Card
{{GGML_Move_Card
|input=5P
|input=5P
|description=A relatively slow 5P with decent range. Although it's more advantageous on block than on hit, the frame advantage on hit is fairly unimportant due to gatlings.
|description=A bit slower than you'd think, but has decent range. Plus on block even without Charge Cancelling, and fairly rewarding on hit due to Zato's long-ranged conversions. Outclassed in most situations, however.
}}
}}


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{{GGML_Move_Card
{{GGML_Move_Card
|input=5K
|input=5K
|description=A fairly large footsies button which is + on block. Despite the animation it is not a low, but it is still useful for tick throws.
|description=A fairly large and active footsies button which is + on block. Despite the animation, it is not a low, though luckily {{clr|P|2P}} is. It remains useful for abare and tick throws, and having a self-gatling on a normal this long never hurts. Reactively converts into an infinite on hit due to this, as well.
}}
}}


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{{GGML_Move_Card
{{GGML_Move_Card
|input=f.S
|input=f.S
|description=This move has great range and a decent disjoint, but it's horribly unsafe. If you use this, be prepared to cancel into another normal, or into Charge.
|description=This move has very solid range & speed, but it's horribly unsafe. The multiple hits luckily easily allow you to react & cancel it into {{clr|H|5H}} or Charge, alleviating its poor recovery. Don't miss.
}}
}}


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{{GGML_Move_Card
{{GGML_Move_Card
|input=5H
|input=5H
|description=5H is Zato's fastest normal, and has enough hitstun to structure into a CC infinite. It comes with some notable issues.
|description=5H is Zato's fastest normal, and has enough hitstun to structure into a CC infinite. Enables Zato to begin charge cancel infinites from the maximum range of his ground pokes, giving his footsies deadly reward. That being said, it comes with some notable issues:
*The Hitbox to Hurtbox ratio is very poor.
*The Hitbox to Hurtbox ratio is very poor.
*Whiffs on most crouching opponents. Characters' hurtboxes extending upwards when hit generally remedies this in combos, but not always. You can't use 5H to structure into infinites on crouching Millia, Baldhead, or Zato, and whether you can use it on Baiken is range-dependent(you can't be too close or too far).
*Whiffs on most crouching opponents. Characters' hurtboxes extending upwards when hit generally remedies this in combos, but not always. You can't use 5H to structure into infinites on crouching Millia, Baldhead, or Zato, and whether you can use it on Baiken is range-dependent(you can't be too close or too far).
*Lengthy recovery and poor frame advantage uncanceled.  
*Lengthy recovery and poor frame advantage uncanceled make this risky to throw out on its own.  
}}
}}


===<big>Fierce Attack</big>===
===<big>Fierce Strike</big>===
{{GGML_Move_Card
{{GGML_Move_Card
|input=6P
|input=6P
|description=6P in missing link is significantly advantageous on block, but lacks the upper body invulnerability that it has in later games. The frame data is actually good, making this a solid button to press in pressure.
|description=6P is decently fast with virtually no recovery, and is significantly advantageous on block even uncancelled. Lacks the upper body invulnerability that it has in later games, so it isn't an anti-air. The frame data makes this less committal than most things Zato can do, making this a solid poke and pressure tool.
}}
}}


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{{GGML_Move_Card
{{GGML_Move_Card
|input=6K
|input=6K
|description=Zato's classic overhead, except it's painfully slow in this game. You're more likely to be hit out of it than to ever land it. Bizarrely, it can be special canceled or charge canceled at any point in the move's duration. Although he lacks low-hitting specials, the charge cancel lets him go low with 2P or even go for a throw, although this is not much better vs. mashing than raw 6K. Some characters, notably {{Character Label|GGML|Baldhead}}, can crouch under 6K.
|description=Zato's classic overhead, except it's painfully slow in this game. You're more likely to be hit out of it than to ever land it. Bizarrely, it can be special canceled or Charge Canceled at any point in the move's duration. Although he lacks low-hitting specials, the charge cancel lets him go low with 2P or even go for a throw, although this is not much better against mashing than raw 6K. Some characters, notably {{Character Label|GGML|Baldhead}}, can crouch under 6K.


For some baffling reason, the command list gets the input for this move wrong. It says "Press forwards when holding K" but that doesn't even work. Instead of doing [K]6, like the command list implies, you just do a normal 6K input.
For some baffling reason, the command list gets the input for this move wrong. It says "Press forwards when holding K" but that doesn't even work. Instead of doing [K]6, like the command list implies, you just do a normal 6K input.
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{{GGML_Move_Card
{{GGML_Move_Card
|input=2P
|input=2P
|description=Unlike in later games, 2P is a low. It has the same bizarre on-block and on-hit properties as 5P, but a bit worse.
|description=Unlike in later games, 2P is a low. Fairly useful for mixups and occasionally close-up abare, though be wary that the hitbox doesn't extend as far as the graphic does, making it an unfortunately average jab overall.
}}
}}


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{{GGML_Move_Card
{{GGML_Move_Card
|input=2K
|input=2K
|description=Zato's classic sweep, except because of how teching works in this game, you won't knock them down and will potentially be minus on hit if your opponent's on the ball. Goes pretty far, like 5K, but is also jointed.
|description=Definitely a normal you can press. It's got the animation that would later turn into Zato's classic {{clr|5|2D}}, but unfortunately it's techable. It's slow, jointed, leads to nothing on hit, and doesn't go very far. {{clr|S|2S}} is binarily better but even that won't see an extreme amount of use.
}}
}}


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{{GGML_Move_Card
{{GGML_Move_Card
|input=2S
|input=2S
|description=A large, fairly low commitment poke which can combo into 5H to start a CC infinite, even at maximum range.
|description=It's quite slow at 12 frames, though it's a decent low poke which can catch low profile attempts where {{clr|S|f.S}} or {{clr|H|5H}} would fail. It isn't incredibly committal on whiff, which helps also. Unfortunately hard to fit into CC infinite confirms since it's on the slow side, especially in comparison to {{clr|S|f.S}}.
}}
}}


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{{GGML_Move_Card
{{GGML_Move_Card
|input=2H
|input=2H
|description=Big vertical hitbox. Not very much disjoint, so it isn't amazing as an anti-air. Necessary for infinites on characters 5H won't work on.
|description=Big vertical hitbox. Solid but relatively slow as an anti-air option, covers a more vertical angle than {{clr|H|5H}} but still loses to crossups. It's also necessary for infinites on characters 5H won't work on.
 
Still a low, which is silly. Has about as much range as {{clr|P|2P}}, but using it for intentional mixups is not recommended.
}}
}}


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{{GGML_Move_Card
{{GGML_Move_Card
|input=j.P
|input=j.P
|description=j.P is really slow for an air jab, but it only has 1 frame of recovery.
|description=j.P is really slow for an air jab, but it only has 1 frame of recovery. If you need an air-to-air, press {{clr|H|j.H}}.
}}
}}


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{{GGML_Move_Card
{{GGML_Move_Card
|input=j.K
|input=j.K
|description=j.K has the same startup as j.P, but with way more recovery. Generally, it's worse than j.S as a jump-in and j.H as an air-to-air due to its pretty bad frame data.
|description={{clr|K|j.K}} has the same slower-than-{{clr|H|j.H}} startup as {{clr|P|j.P}}, but with way more recovery. Generally, it's worse than {{clr|S|j.S}} as a jump-in and {{clr|H|j.H}} as an air-to-air due to its pretty bad frame data. Typically goes unpressed.
}}
}}


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{{GGML_Move_Card
{{GGML_Move_Card
|input=j.S
|input=j.S
|description=Giant landing normal with a tiny bit of invuln on startup. Useful for hitting opponents below you. Has a big hurtbox accompanying it so it is whiff punishable and can lose trades to disjoints. Will sometimes win trades against disjointed moves thanks to the startup invincibility.
|description=Giant landing normal with a tiny bit of invuln on startup. Useful for hitting opponents below you. Has a big hurtbox accompanying it so it is whiff punishable and can lose trades to disjoints. Will sometimes win trades against disjointed moves thanks to the startup invincibility. Generally good to use before cancelling into an air drill, though be wary that this will lose to stronger guard cancels and depending on opponent and scenario can leave large gaps for them to escape through.
 
Due to this move's hitbox being so incredibly deep, it will often fail to hit in situations that aren't a strict air-to-ground scenario. If opponents are frequently meeting you in the air, opting for {{clr|H|j.H}} isn't a bad idea.
}}
}}


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{{GGML_Move_Card
{{GGML_Move_Card
|input=P+K > 236X
|input=P+K > 236X
|description=Weak instant kill. Crouched by everyone but Potemkin and Justice while still being smaller and slower than some other instant kills. You won't be seeing this one as often as other characters' instant kills.
|description=Instant kill on the weaker end of the spectrum. It's crouched by everyone but Potemkin and Justice, though it's quite fast and has very good low profile while being quite safe if whiffed, so it's still good at AA. Sees little use in neutral or against tiny characters in general.
}}
}}


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Once the first followup is used, the shadow will begin its return to Zato regardless of whether or not it reached the edge of the screen.
Once the first followup is used, the shadow will begin its return to Zato regardless of whether or not it reached the edge of the screen.
----
In terms of actual use, Climb Darkness is a committal but very decent zoning tool to mix in with your other options. All of the followups are overheads arbitrarily, and Climb Darkness is Zato's only air unblockable move. It's difficult to use this move to reactively command parts of the screen depending on what your opponent does, as the shadow immediately recalls upon using the first followup and it does so very quickly, making it hard to "stagger" out the followups to wall out big areas of space.
The hits combo into eachother depending on where they hit while being fully disjointed. They are techable in the air, though any subsequent followups will be air unblockable and Zato's far from punishable due to the brisk recovery even if they did manage to get out.


*Air Unblockable
*Air Unblockable
*The earliest valid followup input is on the 10th frame of climb darkness, right after the shadow becomes visible on the animation.
*The earliest valid followup input is on the 10th frame of the animation, right after the shadow becomes visible on the animation.
*There must be at least 1 frame without an input between the end of one Climb Darkness Followup and the start input of the next.
*There must be at least 1 frame without an input between the end of one Climb Darkness Followup and the start input of the next.
*After the shadow returns to Zato the recovery of the move is 3 frames.
*After the shadow returns to Zato, the recovery of the move is 3 frames.
}}
}}


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|description=Invite Hell locks Zato in place and produces a drill a set distance away. The S button places the drill near Zato, and the H version places the drill far away.
|description=Invite Hell locks Zato in place and produces a drill a set distance away. The S button places the drill near Zato, and the H version places the drill far away.


The drill hits once when coming out of the ground, once when erect, and once more when retracting into the ground. It has enough vertical range to reach the apex of Potemkin's jump arch, which means that some characters will be forced to superjump or double jump to get around it. Invite Hell is a bit awkward as a zoning tool since Zato is immobile for the entire duration, so it is matchup dependent how you use it.
The drill hits once when coming out of the ground, once when erect, and once more when retracting into the ground. There is an extremely sizeable gap between the second and final hits, which depending on circumstance can lock people down for longer or let people escape pressure while the drill's on them.
 
It has enough vertical range to reach the apex of Potemkin's jump arch, which means that some characters will be forced to superjump or double jump to get around it. Invite Hell is quite awkward as a zoning tool due to it making Zato immobile and unable to do much with its otherwise strong properties. It generally only sees usage to get mileage out of its stronger, higher-charge variants. Otherwise, using the air version instead is highly preferred.
----
----
At Level 2, the drill gains massive hitboxes on its sides which make it considerably harder to contest, avoid, and deal with in general. The hitbox also goes under the bottom of the stage, for some reason.
At Level 2, the drill gains massive hitboxes on its sides which make it considerably harder to contest, avoid, and deal with in general. The hitbox also goes under the bottom of the stage, for some reason.
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{{GGML_Move_Card
{{GGML_Move_Card
|input=j.22S or j.22H|versioned=yes
|input=j.22S or j.22H|versioned=yes
|description=Aerial Invite hell is similar to the ground version, but with some interesting tweaks. It spawns a drill on the ground a short distance in front of Zato's position when the move is first input. The S button places the drill near Zato, and the H version places the drill far away.
|description=Aerial Invite hell is a significantly improved version of the grounded variant. It instantly spawns a drill the first frame it's inputted at the target location and has much less cumbersome recovery, potentially actually letting you move around while the drill's sticking people in blockstun unlike the grounded version. The S button places the drill near Zato, and the H version places the drill far away.


Zato's momentum is preserved which can let you move away from or towards your drill by using backwards or forwards jumps. Because this move is in recovery until landing + 29 frames you want to use it as soon as possible before hitting the ground. this will give you the most actionable time before the drill disappears.  
Zato's main strength, aside from his solid neutral buttons, is throwing out air Invite Hells frequently and safely against any character who spends the majority of their time on the ground. Use and abuse this move.
 
Zato's momentum is preserved which can let you move away from or towards your drill by using backwards or forwards jumps. Because this move is in recovery until landing + 29 frames you want to use it right before hitting the ground. this will give you the most actionable time before the drill disappears.  
----
----
Level 2 is identical to level 1 in all known ways.
Level 2 is identical to level 1 in all known ways, wasting your charge. Being liberal with your placements of air Invite Hell is still preferable over keeping charge.


Level 3 Aerial Invite Hell spawns 3 level 1 drills, which makes it cover considerably less space than the ground version.  
Level 3 Aerial Invite Hell spawns 3 level 1 drills, which makes it cover considerably less space than the ground version. It's still difficult to contest and occupies a third of the screen at worst, however.
}}
}}


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==Colors==
==Colors==
{{GGMLColors|Character=Zato|Size=240}}
{{GGMLColors|Character=Zato|Size=220}}


==Navigation==
==Navigation==
<center>{{Character Label|GGML|Zato|42px}}</center>
{{notice|To edit frame data, edit values in [[{{#titleparts:{{PAGENAME}}| 1 | 1}}/{{#titleparts:{{PAGENAME}}| 1 | 2 }}/Data]].}}
{{#lst:{{PAGENAME}}/Data|Links}}
{{GGML/Navigation
{{Navbar-GGML}}
|summary=Zato's debut in Guilty Gear is actually not a puppet character, rather a zoner with comically unsafe framedata.
}}
[[Category:Guilty Gear|Zato]]

Latest revision as of 01:00, 15 February 2024

Overview

Players familiar with Zato from later games may be expecting a puppet character. However, Zato and his shadow cannot move independently. Instead, he functions as a zoning character, with a variety of strong pokes and projectiles to both wall the opponent out and harass them from far away. He also boasts solid buttons all around, many of which having the speed and range to turn nearly any stray poke into a Charge Cancel infinite. This makes him a somewhat basic but effective enough character, with some uniquely strong tools like air drill.
Zato
GGML Zato Portrait.png
Defense
100%Raw Value: 10
Jump Startup
3f
Backdash
22f
Meter Gain Mod
100%Raw Value: 10
Charge Time
70f
Forward Walk Speed
73%Raw Value: 563
Backward Walk Speed
65%Raw Value: 384
Dizzy Resistance
100%Raw Value: 30
Fastest Attack
5HGGML Zato 5H-1.pngGuardAllStartup4Recovery25Advantage-10 (whiffs up close, 4F)
2PGGML Zato 2P.pngGuardLowStartup7Recovery11Advantage0 (7F)
Rise And FallGGML Zato 623P-1.pngGuardAll,OverheadStartup6Recovery29Advantage-60 (6F)
Instant KillGGML Zato IK-1.pngGuardAllStartup6Recovery10AdvantageN/A (common crouch whiff, 6F)
Reversals
Rise And FallGGML Zato 623P-1.pngGuardAll,OverheadStartup6Recovery29Advantage-60 (6F)

 Zato outspaces the opponent with large normals, varied projectiles, and anti-zoning tools, looking to convert his pokes into a long-ranged infinite.

Pros
Cons
  • Break the Law: Break the Law is obscenely strong in Missing Link with only 6 vulnerable frames on startup, 4 vulnerable frames during recovery, and great speed. Combined with guard cancels it's very hard to deal with and lets Zato gain space from the opponent without much risk.
  • Good Zoning Options: With Aerial Invite Hell, Climb Darkness, Break the Law, and huge normals like j.S and 5H, Zato is a powerful zoner.
  • Strong Anti-Zoning: Invite Hell is good at catching opponents trying to zone and Drunkard Shade is an incredibly effective projectile reflector.
  • Honest Footsies?: Zato has a variety of relatively safe long-range normals for poking, including 5K, f.S, 2S, and j.S. Combined with his fast and long-ranged 5H, this lets him turn stray hits into Charge Cancel infinites from remarkably far away.
  • Long Vulnerability on Invite Hell: Invite Hell lasts for a very long duration and Zato is open to a full ground punish the entire time. This is partially helped by Aerial Invite Hell, but comes at the cost of nerfed hitboxes and is still punishable if misplaced.
  • Incredibly Weak Reversal: Zato's 623P, Rise and Fall, is fully invincible on startup. However, it's fully punishable by an infinite on block and hit, making it useless outside of kills.
  • Big Hurtboxes: Zato's normals are strong, but unlike most of the cast, tend to have equally big hurtboxes. This gives him a tendency to lose neutral interactions other characters wouldn't.
  • Small Instant Kill: Zato's instant kill, while fairly fast, has barely any range and can be crouched by most of the cast. This makes it tough to use outside specific circumstances.

Normals

How to Read Frame Data
Damage
A quantification of how a character's health bar is reduced when they are hit.
Guard
The act of defending against incoming attacks. Guarding either negates the damage from an attack entirely or reduces it to minor chip damage.
Low
Guarded against while crouching
Mid
Guarded against in either the crouching or standing state, but not while airborne
High
Guarded against in the standing state
All
Guarded against while crouching, standing, or while airborne
Throw
Cannot be guarded against, but only applies to grounded opponents
Unblockable
Cannot be guarded against
Startup
The time before an attack is active including the first active frame. For example, an attack with 10F startup means the attack will do nothing for 9 frames, then hit the opponent on the 10th frame.
Active
The active frames of an attack refers to the amount of time an attack can hit the opponent.
Recovery
The recovery of an attack refers to the amount of time an attacker must wait before they may perform another action, even blocking.
On-Block
A measure of frame advantage when the opponent blocks an attack. Positive values indicate that the attacker can act first. Negative values indicate that the defender can act first.
On-Hit
A measure of frame advantage when the opponent is hit by an attack. Positive values indicate that the attacker can act first. Negative values indicate that the defender can act first.
Invuln
Short for InvulnerabilityA state where a character cannot be hit. A common component of reversal moves.

5P

5P
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
5 All 7 4 12 +2 0 none
A bit slower than you'd think, but has decent range. Plus on block even without Charge Cancelling, and fairly rewarding on hit due to Zato's long-ranged conversions. Outclassed in most situations, however.

5K

5K
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
9 All 8 9 8 +1 -1 none
A fairly large and active footsies button which is + on block. Despite the animation, it is not a low, though luckily 2P is. It remains useful for abare and tick throws, and having a self-gatling on a normal this long never hurts. Reactively converts into an infinite on hit due to this, as well.

c.S

c.S
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
9 All 10 4 12 +1 -1 none
c.S is used as filler for CC infinites, but is otherwise unremarkable. The frame data isn't particularly outstanding, nor is the hitbox interesting, so it's just something to stuff combos with at close range.

f.S

f.S
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
8x2 All 6 4,4,7 30 -20 -22 none
This move has very solid range & speed, but it's horribly unsafe. The multiple hits luckily easily allow you to react & cancel it into 5H or Charge, alleviating its poor recovery. Don't miss.

5H

5H
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
16 All 4 10 25 -10 -8 none

5H is Zato's fastest normal, and has enough hitstun to structure into a CC infinite. Enables Zato to begin charge cancel infinites from the maximum range of his ground pokes, giving his footsies deadly reward. That being said, it comes with some notable issues:

  • The Hitbox to Hurtbox ratio is very poor.
  • Whiffs on most crouching opponents. Characters' hurtboxes extending upwards when hit generally remedies this in combos, but not always. You can't use 5H to structure into infinites on crouching Millia, Baldhead, or Zato, and whether you can use it on Baiken is range-dependent(you can't be too close or too far).
  • Lengthy recovery and poor frame advantage uncanceled make this risky to throw out on its own.

Fierce Strike

6P
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
9x2 All 8 4,5 5 +7 +5 none
6P is decently fast with virtually no recovery, and is significantly advantageous on block even uncancelled. Lacks the upper body invulnerability that it has in later games, so it isn't an anti-air. The frame data makes this less committal than most things Zato can do, making this a solid poke and pressure tool.

Dark Heel

6K
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
9 Overhead 31 4 16 -3 -5 none

Zato's classic overhead, except it's painfully slow in this game. You're more likely to be hit out of it than to ever land it. Bizarrely, it can be special canceled or Charge Canceled at any point in the move's duration. Although he lacks low-hitting specials, the charge cancel lets him go low with 2P or even go for a throw, although this is not much better against mashing than raw 6K. Some characters, notably  Baldhead, can crouch under 6K.

For some baffling reason, the command list gets the input for this move wrong. It says "Press forwards when holding K" but that doesn't even work. Instead of doing [K]6, like the command list implies, you just do a normal 6K input.

2P

2P
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
4 Low 7 5 11 0 -2 none
Unlike in later games, 2P is a low. Fairly useful for mixups and occasionally close-up abare, though be wary that the hitbox doesn't extend as far as the graphic does, making it an unfortunately average jab overall.

2K

2K
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
8 Low 12 10 16 -4 -2 none
Definitely a normal you can press. It's got the animation that would later turn into Zato's classic 2D, but unfortunately it's techable. It's slow, jointed, leads to nothing on hit, and doesn't go very far. 2S is binarily better but even that won't see an extreme amount of use.

2S

2S
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
12 Low 12 4 13 -1 -3 none
It's quite slow at 12 frames, though it's a decent low poke which can catch low profile attempts where f.S or 5H would fail. It isn't incredibly committal on whiff, which helps also. Unfortunately hard to fit into CC infinite confirms since it's on the slow side, especially in comparison to f.S.

2H

2H
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
18 Low 8 9 13 0 +4 none

Big vertical hitbox. Solid but relatively slow as an anti-air option, covers a more vertical angle than 5H but still loses to crossups. It's also necessary for infinites on characters 5H won't work on.

Still a low, which is silly. Has about as much range as 2P, but using it for intentional mixups is not recommended.

j.P

j.P
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
5 Overhead 10 4 1 N/A N/A none
j.P is really slow for an air jab, but it only has 1 frame of recovery. If you need an air-to-air, press j.H.

j.K

j.K
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
16 Overhead 10 4 26 N/A N/A none
j.K has the same slower-than-j.H startup as j.P, but with way more recovery. Generally, it's worse than j.S as a jump-in and j.H as an air-to-air due to its pretty bad frame data. Typically goes unpressed.

j.S

j.S
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
11 Overhead 15 5 11 N/A N/A none

Giant landing normal with a tiny bit of invuln on startup. Useful for hitting opponents below you. Has a big hurtbox accompanying it so it is whiff punishable and can lose trades to disjoints. Will sometimes win trades against disjointed moves thanks to the startup invincibility. Generally good to use before cancelling into an air drill, though be wary that this will lose to stronger guard cancels and depending on opponent and scenario can leave large gaps for them to escape through.

Due to this move's hitbox being so incredibly deep, it will often fail to hit in situations that aren't a strict air-to-ground scenario. If opponents are frequently meeting you in the air, opting for j.H isn't a bad idea.

j.H

j.H
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
14 Overhead 8 11 19 N/A N/A none
Giant dedicated air to air normal. The hitbox is big but so is the hurtbox, so be careful with it. Very active, meaning you can throw it out pre-emptively to an extent.

Universal Mechanics

Dust Attack

S+H
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
16 Overhead 16 5 9 +10 none
Fast overhead that whiffs on over half the cast crouching. Useful in the few matchups you can use it in for mixups, little use otherwise.

Throw

4H or 6H
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
20 Throw 1 N/A N/A N/A +17 none

It's a grab, and has the usual properties of one. Zato's throw is decently plus on hit, even if they tech. If they do tech they are left very high in the air for you to catch their landing.

  • Sideswitches on hit
  • Sends the opponent flying very far horizontally as well as vertically

Dash Attack

6[6]
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
13 All +16 +2
Pretty standard dash attack. Moderate hitbox, and pretty plus on block.

Instant Kill

Fear of the Dark

P+K > 236X
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
FATAL All 6 6 10 N/A N/A Above Knees 1~11, 15~40
Instant kill on the weaker end of the spectrum. It's crouched by everyone but Potemkin and Justice, though it's quite fast and has very good low profile while being quite safe if whiffed, so it's still good at AA. Sees little use in neutral or against tiny characters in general.

Specials

Drunkard Shade

214K or 214P
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
9 All 12 40 13 -32 -32 Upper Body

Drunkard Shade is pretty cool. First of all, the move is invulnerable above the knees and has a tall hitbox that extends up from the ground.

The K version will immediately reflect any projectile which contacts it.

The P version will instead absorb the last projectile to contact it. After a couple seconds, that projectile will then automatically fire out of Zato's face, even if he is in hitstun.

Drunkard Shade does not work on the following projectiles:

Climb Darkness

41236H
Version Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
Climb Darkness N/A N/A 19 N/A 3 N/A N/A none
Climb Darkness Followup 15 Overhead 2 17 2 N/A N/A none

Climb Darkness sends Zato's shadow forwards to the edge of the screen, then calls it back to him. During this time, Zato's only valid actions are the followups to Climb Darkness.

The followups to climb darkness are all the same, but are input with distinct buttons. They are done by pressing H, S, and P in that order. You can use the 3 followup hits at any time that the shadow is away from Zato so long as the order is respected.

Once the first followup is used, the shadow will begin its return to Zato regardless of whether or not it reached the edge of the screen.


In terms of actual use, Climb Darkness is a committal but very decent zoning tool to mix in with your other options. All of the followups are overheads arbitrarily, and Climb Darkness is Zato's only air unblockable move. It's difficult to use this move to reactively command parts of the screen depending on what your opponent does, as the shadow immediately recalls upon using the first followup and it does so very quickly, making it hard to "stagger" out the followups to wall out big areas of space.

The hits combo into eachother depending on where they hit while being fully disjointed. They are techable in the air, though any subsequent followups will be air unblockable and Zato's far from punishable due to the brisk recovery even if they did manage to get out.

  • Air Unblockable
  • The earliest valid followup input is on the 10th frame of the animation, right after the shadow becomes visible on the animation.
  • There must be at least 1 frame without an input between the end of one Climb Darkness Followup and the start input of the next.
  • After the shadow returns to Zato, the recovery of the move is 3 frames.

Invite Hell

22S or 22H
Version Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
Invite Hell 9x2,1 All 17 8,60,5 15 +3 -55 none
Invite Hell Level 2 All 17 15 -15 -27 none
Invite Hell Level 3 All 17 15 -1 -41 none

Invite Hell locks Zato in place and produces a drill a set distance away. The S button places the drill near Zato, and the H version places the drill far away.

The drill hits once when coming out of the ground, once when erect, and once more when retracting into the ground. There is an extremely sizeable gap between the second and final hits, which depending on circumstance can lock people down for longer or let people escape pressure while the drill's on them.

It has enough vertical range to reach the apex of Potemkin's jump arch, which means that some characters will be forced to superjump or double jump to get around it. Invite Hell is quite awkward as a zoning tool due to it making Zato immobile and unable to do much with its otherwise strong properties. It generally only sees usage to get mileage out of its stronger, higher-charge variants. Otherwise, using the air version instead is highly preferred.


At Level 2, the drill gains massive hitboxes on its sides which make it considerably harder to contest, avoid, and deal with in general. The hitbox also goes under the bottom of the stage, for some reason.

At Level 3, the move spawns three drills and occupies virtually the entire floor, making it borderline uncontestable.

Aerial Invite Hell

j.22S or j.22H
Version Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
Aerial Invite Hell 9x2,1 All 1 9,59,18 Until Landing+29 +16 -38 none
Aerial Invite Hell Level 2 9x2,1 All 1 9,59,18 Until Landing+29 +16 -38 none
Aerial Invite Hell Level 3 9x2,1 All 1 9,59,18 Until Landing+29 +16 -50 none

Aerial Invite hell is a significantly improved version of the grounded variant. It instantly spawns a drill the first frame it's inputted at the target location and has much less cumbersome recovery, potentially actually letting you move around while the drill's sticking people in blockstun unlike the grounded version. The S button places the drill near Zato, and the H version places the drill far away.

Zato's main strength, aside from his solid neutral buttons, is throwing out air Invite Hells frequently and safely against any character who spends the majority of their time on the ground. Use and abuse this move.

Zato's momentum is preserved which can let you move away from or towards your drill by using backwards or forwards jumps. Because this move is in recovery until landing + 29 frames you want to use it right before hitting the ground. this will give you the most actionable time before the drill disappears.


Level 2 is identical to level 1 in all known ways, wasting your charge. Being liberal with your placements of air Invite Hell is still preferable over keeping charge.

Level 3 Aerial Invite Hell spawns 3 level 1 drills, which makes it cover considerably less space than the ground version. It's still difficult to contest and occupies a third of the screen at worst, however.

Rise and Fall

623P
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
9,12 All,Overhead 6 7(25)28 29 -60 -58 Full 1~12, 34~37

Invincible on startup DP with a decent hitbox and damage. It has a huge amount of recovery, making it very unsafe on block.

Initially looks like a useful reversal and combo ender, especially considering Zato's status as a zoner, but it has a major flaw. It's fully punishable ON HIT. By teching the second hit of the move, the opponent lands next to Zato fully recovered while he's still going through the move's long recovery. This leaves it fully open to a punish with anything you want, be it an IK or an infinite. This unfortunately renders the move mostly useless.

Break the Law

63214S
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
N/A N/A 30 N/A 15 N/A N/A Strike 5~30; Full Until Exiting BTL; Strike 1~11 of Recovery

Zato schlorps into the ground making him completely invulnerable. While underground Zato's only valid actions are to move left and right at incredible speeds. Coming out of the ground has a brief animation before Zato becomes actionable.

  • Startup represents the time it takes to enter the ground from first input. Recovery represents time that it takes to come out of the ground.
    • Zato has 4 frames of vulnerability on either side of the animation. 4 Frames at the start when he goes into the ground, and 4 frames at the end after he comes out of the ground.
  • Pressing S will cause Zato to come out of the ground early.
  • Pressing P will fake coming out by playing the first 11 frames of the animation.

Supers

Dark Sentinel

412363214H
Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery On-Block On-Hit Invuln
63 All 39 Until Reaches Enemy/Wall 75 -65 -65 none
An advancing attack with a single hit of huge damage. The startup isn't great and the recovery is incredibly long. As a result this is isn't particularly useful because why try to combo into a weird slow unsafe super when you could go infinite with Charge Cancel.

Colors

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