Controlling Neutral:
Get Them on the Ground:
2D
The core of your strong okizeme game. Secures a hard knockdown A knockdown that forces the character into a prolonged knockdown state. After a hard knockdown, teching is disabled briefly, allowing the player who is on the offensive more time to set up a meaty, a mix-up, etc. with which to charge a meaty Hitting an opponent to cover the moment as they lose invincibility. The most common one is performing an attack early on okizeme to gain frame advantage and bait reversals. Charged Stun Edge, or land an OTG The act of hitting the opponent when they are knocked down. Short for "off the ground" or "on the ground.".
Keep up the Pressure:
c.S
Common pressure starter. Plus When you are able to freely act, but your opponent cannot (usually because they are still trapped in block stun from your attack). Being plus (or "positive") in a fighting game is quite strong; it means you always have a headstart on your next attack, even if it's only by a very slim margin. on block, it can be cancelled into a wide range of options.
Shock State
Multiple of Ky's special moves apply a special condition called 'Shock State' on the opponent on hit and on block for a few seconds. While not necessarily vital to playing Ky, proper usage of Shock State can make your pressure much scarier, and provide you unique and damaging combos. Specific improvements caused by Shock State can be found on the Strategy Page
Neutral
Ky's preferred range is the mid-range, such as at round start. It is at this range where he can leverage his excellent pokes and projectile to keep the opponent at bay until an opportune time to engage the opponent up close.
- Maintain a healthy distance from your opponent, and pressure them with your long pokes.
- Capitalize on stray hits or other mistakes to get damage, a hard knockdown, or close in to begin your pressure.
- Land a hard knockdown to set up your powerful okizeme game, and continue to apply pressure.
- Return to the mid-range upon your pressure ending, and continue to harass your opponent with pokes.
With 50% Tension, Ky also gains a strong tool in Stun Dipper (236K). A notably fast slide which will low profile When a character's hurtbox is entirely beneath an opponent's attack. This can be caused by crouching, certain moves, and being short. many pokes and launches into a full combo with a Roman Cancel available.
Defense
Ky possesses multiple tools to both help him survive pressure, but also to turn back to the offense on a dime.
- Vapor Thrust (623S)
Ky's meterless reversal. A DP Dragon Punch A move that has invulnerability during its startup, long recovery, and a rising motion. to take back your turn by force, but should not be relied on. It is extremely unsafe on block, and will result in massive damage if your opponent catches on to your habit.
- Faultless Defense (FD)
While all characters benefit from the effects of FD, Ky benefits greatly from the increased pushback FD causes, allowing the game to naturally return to Ky's best range. Additionally, the increased pushback can cause your opponent to whiff follow ups, allowing Ky to whiff punish at his preferred range.
- 2P and 2K.
Your go-to mashing buttons. 2P is your fastest at 5 frames, and leads into hard knockdown through 2P > 2P > 6P > 214S. 2K is slower at 6 frames, but hits lower, and combos into 2D.
Offense
Ky relies on strike/throw pressure to open up opponents and secure knockdowns on the offense. While this does limit his overall offensive potency, Ky is well suited to this type of pressure, given his strong okizeme and large damage off Counter Hits. This entails mixing up striking and throwing to do one of three things:
- Land a throw. This leads into a hard knockdown with many options afterwards.
- Land a Counter Hit. Strike your opponent when they expect a throw to land an extremely damaging combo.
- Extend your pressure. Take advantage of your opponents hesitancy after blocking to run up and perform another action. This not only builds RISC A mechanic that affects damage received by an attack in the Guilty Gear series. Risc is built by repeatedly blocking normals or specials, and higher levels of risc will increase the damage future attacks will deal. Occasionally referred to as Guard Bar, but moves your opponent closer to the corner. A common way for this to happen is c.S > dash > c.S
Try to stay aware of how your opponent reacts to your pressure, and seek to punish it. Vary your offensive pressure to keep your opponent guessing and to condition them into certain bad habits.
- Are they mashing to try and escape your pressure? Hit them with a devastating counter-hit.
- Are they jumping and making risky attempts to escape you? Punish their backdash with a button like 6H, or jump to meet them in the air for a throw.
- Are they blocking diligently, respecting your offense too much? Extend your pressure and continue forcing your opponent to guess your next move.
Combos
Ky's combos often revolve around his desire to secure a Hard Knockdown, or carry the opponent far into the corner.
118 Damage
c.S > 2H > 214S
This is the standard meterless conversion off a grounded c.S. Since it finishes with 214S, this combo provides great amounts of corner carry, and grants a Hard Knockdown. Dash up to your opponent and continue your offense with 236H, or a meaty 5K/c.S. This combo also boasts safety on block, as almost all characters in the game cannot punish Ky's 214S on block, and moves the game back to the mid-range, which Ky appreciates greatly.
Starter > 2D > dl. 236H
A simple yet pivotal piece of Ky's kit. Common starts for this combo include c.S, 5k, and 2K. This combo allows you to enforce your strong okizeme game, while on block being safe after 2D > 214S. This combo also excells in catching mashing opponents too, as Ky will get a Counter Hit 2D if he chooses to delay it, granting incredible reward and possibly another opportunity to setup his okizeme.
Further Reading
While seemingly simple on the surface, Ky can have remarkable depth with specific combo setups, Shock State management, and the dynamics of neutral.
For the Ky combo list, containing both BnB A staple combo that is simple yet effective. combos and much more advanced combos, see the Combo Repository
For more in-depth analysis of Ky's neutral, Shock State, and other aspects, see the Strategy Page