DBFZ/Krillin

Overview

One of the few students the legendary Master Roshi ever took on, Krillin is a classic support character who still has plenty to offer himself. Lacking in strength but bursting with creativity and a devious mind, Krillin is known for his wide and varied toolset that he can combine together to become one of the most workable characters in the game. Krillin can do a little bit of everything: he can zone well thanks to his guided ki blasts, he can lay on some solid pressure with several of his special moves, and he can perform some rather powerful mixups with the right setup. He can even heal your team thanks to tossing out Senzu Beans, which can dramatically bolster the vitality of your team members. In the right hands, Krillin can prove to be the deciding factor between death and victory as he was so many times in the original series.

Krillin's greatest weakness lies in his less than stellar size. Being one of the smallest characters in the cast, Krillin is memetic for his short, stubbly limbs, and although his ground normals are lightning fast and move him far forward, he lacks truly reliable ways to close distance. Overall, Krillin is a character who rewards planning and execution with consistency in performance, and his varied toolset means a player who commits to playing this bald bruiser can find their team strengthened by his supportive potential.

Krillin

Krillin is an unorthodox support character that provides healing with his beans and headaches with his stones.

Pros

Cons

Zoning Tools: Versatile projectiles with controllable ki blasts and chargeable Kamehameha gives Krillin a decent ranged game.
Healer: Can be annoying to deal with due to his infinite Senzu Beans, allowing him to constantly heal his teammates' life or even his own.
Pressure Tools: Multiple tools to reset pressure with like Stone Throw, Afterimage feints, and 2S.
Mid-screen Solo Damage: By using j.5S to solo rejump in mid-screen combos, Krillin can deal solid damage without the use of any assists.
Okizeme: Excellent okizeme tools. Solar Flare and Stone Throw are both immune to reflect push-back, allowing him to cover all tech options. Krilin also has one of the strongest Level 3 oki in the game!
Fast Normals: Has some of the best normals in terms of frame data, 5M in particular having amazing range and low recovery making him very hard to whiff-punish on top of his short stature.

Stubby normals: Shenron giveth, Shenron taketh away. Ground normals move him very far forward as compensation, but his air normals have no such blessing and severely lack range.
Anti-Air Reward: Krillin's 2H is small, forcing him to use Solar Flare as his anti-air which gives little reward.
High commitment projectiles: Most of his projectiles are highly committal with high recovery and don't convert into pressure in most cases making them high risk/low reward.
Picky Fighter: His A assist and Level 3 oki being as unique as they are, make it so some fighters have a hard time meshing well together with Krillin.

Normal Moves

5L

Version	Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	On-Block
5L	400	All		6	3	-3
5LL	700	All		9	5	-5
5LLL	1000	All	U3+	11	4	-5

5L

Good frame advantage.
Deceptive range.

Krillin scoots forwards during his 5L, giving it roughly the same range as SSJ Goku's.

5LL

Counts as grounded. Teen Gohan this ain't.

Moves him forward a decent amount, good for pressure

5LLL

Counts as grounded.

Can be followed up with j.L, generally not used in optimal routing.

5M

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
700	All		8	6		-5

Crazy fast normal and a staple of Krillin's ground game. At 8F startup, it's one of the fastest M buttons in the game, bonus with great range and frame advantage. It doesn't quite catch backdash, but it's good at just about everything else.

When you are point blank with the opponent, this can actually be used as an anti reflect after 5L or 2L.

Has fixed frame advantage. No matter how meaty, will always be -5

5H

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
850 / 1000	All	U1	13	3		-9

Amazing forward movement, similar to 5M.

Another very far reaching normal despite the pathetic hitbox, this one goes about as far as a lariat would. Very handy for catching backdashes or baiting Sparking.

5S

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
500×2	All		8			-7

Fires two Ki Blasts, one right after another.
Pressing S again causes them to angle upwards, coming back down to hit the ground after 60~ frames.
Pressing 4S redirects the second Ki Blast only.
- A linear hit will keep the opponent standing.
- Falling Ki blasts will pop opponent up in the air.
Every version has the same hitstun.

Krillin's best neutral tool outside his beam. Firing the Ki Blasts and angling them up is often enough to make opponents freeze up out of fear of getting hit, letting Krillin run in freely and be plus when they impact.

2L

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
400	Low		7	3		-4

Very short range.

Pressure and mixup extrordinare. Not good for pressure resetting into thanks to its poor reach.

2M

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
700	Low		10	5		-4

Krillin's main low normal.

Very safe on block and can be spaced out to gain much better advantage, making it excellent for pressure. Use 5M or 5H instead for neutral since they have more range.

2H

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
850 / 1000	All	U1+	11	3	17	-5	4- Head

The range speaks for itself.

Standard anti-air option with Krillin. Has short range so you need to let the opponent get deep before throwing it out. Has low recovery making it hard to whiff punish.

Due to its poor range, this means that the majority of the cast is allowed to crossup Krillin, with him being unable to actually 2H the crossup.

Landing this correctly means you could probably land 2H with every character.

2S

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
900	All		17	5		-1

Causes an explosion on the ground that launches Krillin to the same height of a normal neutral jump.
If it hits the opponent on the ground, they too are launched to the same height as Krillin.
Krillin can hold forward or back during his launch to move in that direction near the apex of the jump with better lateral speed than a normal jump.
Allowing him to jump during a blockstring, Krillin can always attempt an escape and a variety of mixups.
On hit, Krillin can follow up immediately with buttons if he moves forward towards the launched opponent.

6M

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
850	High		24	6		0

Universal overhead.

j.L

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
400	High		6	3

Has short range.

Mostly used during an aerial blockstring.

j.M

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
500×2	High		9	3(6)3

Good air to air normal.

Hits twice, but getting both hits to connect in combos can be finnicky depending on the juggle height.

j.H

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
850 / 1000	High	D1+ [D3+]	13	6

Sends the opponent downwards.

j.S

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
500×2	All		8

Stops Krillin's air momentum
Pressing S again or 2S after the Ki blasts have been fired will make them curve downward towards the ground.
Pressing 8S will curve the Ki blasts up, then they will fall back to the ground slightly further forward.
These can be combined with left or right inputs to also give Krillin air momentum: 4S/1S moves left and curves down, 3S/6S moves right and curves down, 7S moves left and curves up, 9S moves right and curves up.
Has very high hitstun, granting Krillin rare privilege of comboing into super dash, both from the corner and midscreen, giving him extra damage for post-vanish or midscreen rejump combos.
Great tool in neutral, as if Krillin is low to the ground it allows him to get a 2H if an opponent attempts to disrespect with a fullscreen super dash.
Due to the move having low recovery, it can be cancelled into beam when at a mid range away from the opponent to act as a frame trap not allowing them to jump if they blocked the downward ki blasts.

j.2H

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
850	All	U1+	13	6

Sends the opponent upwards.

j.2S

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
300, 900	All		15

Fires a Ki blast directly down below Krillin.

Good for beating anti-air attempts directly below Krillin, and is especially useful in the corner. Can also be used for gimmicky, although very ambiguous cross-up mix, as it will combo directly into super-dash. This however, does not grant very high reward on hit without resources.

Special Moves

Afterimage

236L/M/H (Air OK)

Version	Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	On-Block
236L	1200	High	D1	30	4	+1
236M	1200	High	D1	32	4	+1
236H	1400	High	D1	32	4	+3
j.236L	1000	High	D1	23	4
j.236M	1000	High	D1	27	4
j.236H	1200	High	D1	21	4

All Versions

Krillin creates an afterimage of himself. This results in two Krillins: one Krillin that goes for an overhead kick, and the original Krillin from which the overhead Krillin emerged from.
By default, the overhead Krillin is the tangible one.

This move always gives sliding knockdown anywhere on screen and is one of his main combo enders after a 5H rejump combo or after a vanish combo.

236L

The overhead Krillin moves forward about 1/5 of the way across the screen.
- If he hits up close, the overhead Krillin will end up on the opposite side of most crouching opponents.
- Surprisingly, will not whiff a crouching GT Goku.
The original Krillin crouches.

236M

The overhead Krillin moves forward about halfway across the screen.
- The overhead Krillin will leap over most standing opponents - unless they're more than halfway across the screen or they're extra large in height (with the exception of Zamasu, whom Krillin WILL leap over).
The original Krillin dashes back once.

Because this variation of Afterimage leaps over most standing opponents, it is more suited for neutral than pressure.

236H

The overhead Krillin moves forward about halfway across the screen.
- Wherever he hits, the overhead Krillin will NOT switch sides with his opponent.
- Will not whiff a crouching GT Goku.
The original Krillin dashes forward once, nudging your opponent forward if they touch (regardless of which Krillin is tangible).
Holding 6 will bring the original Krillin through/behind your opponent if done close enough to them. Useful for left/right mixups.

j.236L

The overhead Krillin moves forward about 1/5 of the way across the screen.
The original Krillin jumps back about 1/4 of the way across the screen.

j.236M

The overhead Krillin moves forward about halfway across the screen.
The original Krillin jumps back about 1/8 of the way across the screen.

j.236H

The overhead Krillin moves forward about halfway across the screen very fast.
The original Krillin drops down very fast.

A tricky tool because of how fast both Krillins move.

Afterimage (Hold)

236[L/M/H] (Air OK)

Version	Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
236[L]						Total 33
236[M]						Total 35
236[H]						Total 38
j.236[L]						Total 34+3L
j.236[M]						Total 38+3L
j.236[H]						Total 23

Holding the button makes the original Krillin the tangible one. This allows you to go for a lot of conditioning.
Holding 6 when doing 236[H] will bring you through/behind your opponent if done close enough to them. Useful for left/right mixups.
- In the corner, you can use Scattering Energy Wave's projectile cloud for an unreactable left/right mixup of 23[6H].
With assists, you can set up a very tricky 50/50 as the j.236[H] Afterimage recovers very quickly. While there is not very much reward off feinting the overhead, there are some assists that are active for a longer time (such as Cell A, Gotenks B, UI B, etc.,) that let you combo after his overhead or low mixup and still be true string.

Senzu Bean

214L/M/H (Air OK)

Version	Startup	Recovery
214L	25	Total 37
214M	25	Total 37
214H	25	Total 32+3L
j.214L	27	Total 51
j.214M	27	Total 51
j.214H	27	Total 41

All Versions

Krillin auto jumps if used on the ground, has enough height to airdash before he lands.
Beans will heal all blue health for Krillin and his teammates, but will only heal 1000 blue health for the opponent.
Heals around 1000 normal health if you don't have blue health.

Sets up an assist mixup in the corner that can be completely gapless with assists that have 40 frames of blockstun or more.

214L

Turns around and throws a bean offscreen, heals Assist 1 if they're still alive, even if they're on screen.

214M

Turns around and throws a bean offscreen, heals Assist 2 if they're still alive, even if they're on screen.

214H

Turns around and bounces a bean off the wall back to him.
Bean can only be picked up once it's on the ground.
If you miss, it will stay on the ground for about 5 seconds. During this time your assists, the opponent, and their assists can also pick it up.

Stone Throw

22L/M/H (Air OK)

Version	Damage	Guard	Startup	Recovery	On-Block
22L	100	All	33	Total 53	-5
22M	100	All	33	Total 53	-5
22H	100×2	All	26	Total 47	-5
j.22L	100	All	29	Total 51
j.22M	100	All	29	Total 51
j.22H	100×2	All	27	Total 50

All Versions

Krillin auto jumps if used on the ground, but doesn't gain enough height to do anything afterward.
Stones can bounce off the corner. Hitbox will be disabled if Krillin gets hit.
One of Krillins' best oki tools.

22L

Throws a stone right in front of him.
If stone is thrown after a j.H or 236H knockdown, the stone will beat Vanish, Uptech, mashing, normal tech, and will allow Krillin to keep his pressure. Very scary move to have to hold in the corner.

22M

Throws a stone full screen.

22H

Throws both L and M stones at the same time.
If this is used after a 236L or 236M knockdown, will set up the same oki as the L stone after a normal j.H knockdown from a 2H or j.2H smash combo.

Kamehameha

236S (Air & Hold OK)

Version	Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
236S	250×5	All		18-47	24	33	-16
j.236S	250×5	All		10 after landing	24	33	-10

[] is holding down S.
Wall bounces.
Cancels into SD.
Holding the button will allow Krillin to jump around while charging. Can't superjump nor airdash.
Can only charge for a limited amount of time if he stays on the ground.
While in air, can be hold indefinitely and released on demand. However, the instant Krillin touches the ground he will shoot it out.

Standard tool for zoning that beats super dash. The ability to hold a charge as well as use it in the air makes it a bit more versatile than some other beams.

Solar Flare

214S (Hold OK)

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
0, 1000	All	D1	9	5	22	-2	1-12 Head

Has a large hitbox both vertically and horizontally, and long hitstun.
Has anti-air properties.
Hold the button to prevent the automatic follow-up on hit.

Safe on block and can be plus on air block. Good move to frame trap with at the end of a string, ideally with an assist behind it to continue pressure on block and pick up a combo on hit. Gives a lot of Ki on hit. If you can react to delay tech well, solar flare can actually meaty and be plus +1 to +4 and above.

Z Assists

Assist A

Senzu Bean

Version	Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
Assist A	100×2	All		18			+17
Assist A Bean				33

Stone Throw ]A1/A2[

One of the best assist in the game with extremely fast startup, great screen coverage and insane hitstop on hit practically freezing the opponent in place. Tied for fastest assist in the game with Adult Gohan's Assist AGuardAllStartup18Recovery64Advantage+29, so it's great for defensive calls (with a caveat), anti-air or for common approaches like Super Dash + assist.

Similar to his own 22H, depending on spacing and characters' hurtboxes, the rocks can "split", with the lower one making contact immediately, while the upper one arcing all the way up and hitting them a bit later, effectively acting as 2 assist calls.

You can oftentimes just throw this assist out in neutral and watch as your opponent gets hit by it, there's very little it isn't good for. Use B assist if you want better and more consistent blockstun, otherwise this is the way to go.

Senzu Bean 4]A1/A2[

The second part of the this assist, and the reason why it's not a god tier assist. Holding , or while calling Krillin will instead spawn him behind the point character and throw a Senzu Bean at their X coordinate. This is barely ever useful, and can be a detriment if you try to call the assist while defending, as it does jack all to dissuade the opponent from pressuring you, if not even giving them some health back.

Even if you have a lot of blue health that would benefit from Senzu Bean, every bean call is one that could've been used for space control, lockdown, okizeme, blockstring or combo extension. Try not to get bean unintentionally, and intentionally.

Assist B

Kamehameha

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
200×5	All		34			+30

Krillin performs a basic beam assist.

It's a beam assist for beam things. Compared to A, it's a more standard and practical assist as well as friendlier in blockstrings, but loses out on speed, aerial coverage and healing.

Assist C

Solar Flare

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
0, 1400	All		28 [20]			+24

Teleports to the opponent and does 214S.
On hit, teleports again behind them and knocks them down into a ground bounce SKD.

Has a large hitbox but really isn't worth it compared to Krillin's other options. A is already better for anti-airs given its speed and two angles all the while still beating superdash.

Super Moves

Destructo-Disc

236L+M or 236H+S

Version	Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
236L+M	2000	All	UDV	9+5			-18	9-15 All
236L+M > X	1100×1~4	All	UDV

Destructo-Disc

Invulnerable from frames 9 to 15.
Deals significant chip damage on block.
Minimum damage: 800, 330*3, 550.
Can be curved by holding up just like Android 18's and Base Vegeta's 236S discs.
Immediate solar flare meaties all techs in the corner, though it will lose to downtech -> F4 reversals outside of vanish

Chain Destructo-Disc Barrage Destructo-Disc > L/M/H/S

Each additional button press throws one more disc for one extra meter. Can throw a total of 5 discs.

Mashing additional discs is less efficient damage for meter than using a DHC or level 3, but it can be good to do if one super just barely won't kill and you want to keep Krillin in.

Scattering Energy Wave

214L+M or 214H+S

Damage	Guard	Smash	Startup	Active	Recovery	On-Block	Invuln
4050	All	UDV	9+3			+35	1-21 All

Invulnerable from frames 1 to 21
Costs 3 bars.
First half of the move is a Lv3 beam, but the second half is only Lv1 projectiles.
The projectile cloud can be used for unreactable mixups with the correct setups. It is very difficult to see like Piccolo's Hellzone Grenade, albeit at thrice the cost.
- In the corner, you can use the projectile cloud for an unreactable left/right mixup of 236[H].
No matter which part hits first, using this raw will always deal 100% recoverable health and doesn't give Krillin any followup opportunity.
Minimum damage: 1660.

After Krillin sends the beam upward the projectiles will stay on top of his opponent's current location. If this is blocked at close range, the opponent will have a hard time landing a full combo punish.