GGST/Leo Whitefang/Counterstrategy

Fighting Leo

Leo is a neutral-focused character with a unique way of going about pressure: his Brynhildr Stance (which will also be referred to as Backturn or bt). Without Backturn Stance, he has to rely on strike-throw or his unsafe cross-up to open someone up. As such, his goal is to get a clean hit that leads into his Backturn Stance and then use his high/low mixups and other tools to vortex you to death.

Unique Attributes/Mechanics

Brynhildr (Backturn) Stance

Upon a successful ground throw, crossing up with Zweites Kaltes Gestöber (aka run-through or cross-up)GuardAllStartup25 [25]Recovery22 [15]Advantage-6 [+2], or holding when using TurbulenzGuardAllStartup21Recovery21Advantage-8, Leo will enter a stance in which he is turned away from the opponent. In this stance, Leo has a different set of normal moves, as well access to two new special moves and his projectile Overdrive, StahlwirbelGuardAllStartup4+1RecoveryTotal 27FAdvantage+14, but is unable to jump or block. His only defensive option in this stance is Kahn-SchildGuardAllStartup3Recovery18Advantage-. Backturn Stance will end if Leo is hit, and can be cancelled any time by inputting 22.

Round Start

Leo’s roundstart mostly revolves around two options: holding his position with moves like 2SGuardLowStartup10Recovery13Advantage-2 and 2K to counterpoke lows, 6P to beat mids, or whiff punishing moves that reach by microwalking back into a Dash > 5K. A slightly delayed mid poke will beat holding ground and whiff punishes, but will lose to 6P or aggressive options.

Most of Leo's buttons don't reach round start distance, so he'll need to dash into a normal to play aggressive, such as 5KGuardAllStartup9Recovery13Advantage-3 and 2KGuardLowStartup7Recovery11Advantage-5. Dash > 2K has 9-11 frames of start up. It beats walking back as well as some crouch kicks/slashes, but any quick poke will easily beat them out. Leo has an airborne 2DGuardLowStartup12Recovery19Advantage-8 which dodges some lows (such as 2Ks), but is punishable on block. All of these aggressive options lose 6P, even 2K (which lacks low profile properties).

Leo has one more gimmicky roundstart: dash into Eisensturm (Flashkick). This will beat any button at round start, the tradeoff being the risk. If it whiffs or is blocked, Leo is wide open for a counter hit punish that can decide a round immediately.

Neutral

In neutral, Leo likes to play footsies so he can make use of his neutral buttons, and he can establish this situation with his 2DGuardLowStartup12Recovery19Advantage-8. It’s a fast, midscreen low, and can catch you by surprise if you get too comfortable walking back or forward to adjust your spacing. On the other hand, most characters can punish it on block with 2K since it is not special cancellable, so baiting it can give an opportunity to punish. Plus, it can be poked out, as his other aggresive options can.

Leo's poking game is quite strong, as they have some combination of speed, range, or activity that makes them hard to deal with. 5HGuardAllStartup15Recovery22Advantage-8 will hit low profiles and leads to heavy damage on Counter Hit. f.S is a relatively standard poke that likely will not see much use, as it is usually outclassed by 5H. Leo can enter a Guardpoint Stance from these buttons, which quickly retracts his hurtbox. It blocks mids, highs, and supers, and the follow-up attack gives backturn pressure on hit, is 0 on block, and can armour through mids and highs (even supers); it is only vulnerable to lows and throws. To avoid this guessing game, try to counterpoke where possible. f.S hits very high and is easy to low profile with a move such as 6P, and 5H significantly extends his hurtbox on startup. Faster characters like Chipp or Millia can also punish guardpoint with a fast dash-up low. Additionally, if you hit the guardpoint, you can RRC, as if he tries to counter attack, he’ll be hit by the RC shockwave out of the startup (which breaks the armour), and if he doesn’t, you can use a fast low to pick up a free punish. Other pokes to watch out for are 2S and 2K. 2S is slightly stubby, but fast to recover and mostly disjointed, making it good at counterpoking and stuffing moves that hit low. 2K is fast and very active, meaning it is easy to run into and get hit. Both can be outranged by many mid-hitting pokes, as Leo lacks a significant low profile on either move.

If you are playing passively, the other tool Leo can resort to is H versionGuardAllStartup35RecoveryTotal 66FAdvantage+17 of Gravierte Würde (often called a boom or fireball). It has 73 frames of recovery, but hits four times, travels slow, and goes across the entire screen before it disappears. If he gets a chance to throw it out, Leo can close distance safely and start applying pressure. The S version of his projectile is fast to start up, hits twice, travels fast and goes about three fourths of the screen, but it still has 54 recovery frames and doesn’t do much on hit; it is mostly used to beat out single hit projectiles. Leo is in counter hit state for the lengthy recovery of both versions, meaning that they can be beaten rather easily with an IAD jump-in if you’re close enough - if you are point blank, you can block the S version and get a free counter hit. If your character has a far reaching disjoint, such as Ramlethal's f.S or Nagoriyuki's 5H, you can also use that to counter hit him even after the projectile has been launched.

Leo has one main weakness in neutral: his air moves are quite poor and easily anti-aired. If Leo ever takes to the skies, it is easy to anti-air him with 6P (or even higher reward starters like many 5Ps).

Offense

Leo's mash out options aren’t particularly outstanding. His fastest button is his 5PGuardAllStartup5Recovery6Advantage-1, at 5 frames, which is a rather standard abare button - similar is 2P, which is slower but catches crouchers. 2K is a 7 frame button but has good reach for its speed, so be cautious of it when trying to reset. 2D is a risky option - it is somewhat slow but long-reaching low which also evades throws and some low attacks, but if you block it you get a punish, so if Leo is representing it, try blocking it to dissuade him from doing so.

Abare isn’t what you should be worried about when pressuring Leo. His flashkick (Eisensturm)GuardAllStartup9Recovery33Advantage-28 is powerful because the input allows it to easily disrupt frame traps in your blockstrings. He can use it on wakeup like any other reversal, but if Leo is crouch blocking during a blockstring, he’s in a position to hit up and activate this move during any gaps (even a 1-frame frametrap can be beaten by it). Be especially wary and mindful during your offense. It is an important move to account for, and it may be worth ending some blockstrings early to keep him honest with it. Bait it frequently, and punish accordingly. If you think a Leo will do a wake up Flashkick, you can also try throwing on his wakeup, which will beat it (Eisensturm is not throw invulnerable), but this carries risk and isn’t as rewarding as other punishes. Practicing a powerful DP punish will greatly help against Leo, and most characters can easily take half a health bar and set up for more offence when properly executed. Having a good DP punish makes DPs far more risky, so be sure to learn them!

Leo also has a five-hit invincible reversal OverdriveGuardAllStartup10+1Recovery43Advantage-33, with massive horizontal range. This allows it to punish some very-minus moves which lead into frametraps, so be cautious of its range. Beyond this, it's still just a metered reversal. Anything that beats Eisensturm will also beat this, with the exception of throws (which metered reversals beat) and backdash (as the large hitbox will often catch them). Block it and punish. There are five hits to this Overdrive. It's easier and safer just to block all five hits and then punish it, but he can Roman Cancel it early with 100% tension, so if he has a full bar, interrupt it early with a throw. The final hit is -33, allowing anyone to punish it with a 5[D].

Defense

Frontturn Pressure

Leo’s pressure is stirke throw, which some kind soul will write about at some point.

His kicks are strong neutral tools with a flaw. Leo must commit to either pressing 6K for combos and frametraps or not press it and go for a tick throw - he cannot confirm stray kicks on reaction. Still, 6KGuardAllStartup14Recovery18Advantage-4 is a nasty frametrap that will beat any mashing, and the ensuing Counter Hit leads to a damaging combo and backturn pressure. FDing Leo out is a good idea. If he tries to reset you using his guardpoint follow-up, be ready with low abare, but be careful,

236H (also called his cross-up) is a dash that passes through characters and hits on the opposite side. Leo will also immediately go into the Backturn Stance if he successfully dashes through you, and even if you block it, he is plus enough to begin pressure. Leo can’t go directly into Backturn off non-Counter Hit f.S or 5H. If he lands these, or any slash normal in the mid-range, he can only cash out a bit of damage with 236S, which has a similar animation.

The primary way to deal with the cross-up is to throw it on reaction. The timing can be a bit unintuitive, but with practice, it becomes fairly easy to execute. Try to time it as soon as he is on top of you. You can grab him out of it during blockstring, or even after he's hit you with pokes and is trying to greed. In either scenario, stay calm and look for the cross up. You can also hit him out of it if you see him coming, but grabbing it is the most reliable measure. Throws are 2 frames and often lead to good okizeme.

Leo can use fast roman cancels to get a free cross-up that can’t be thrown. In this case, you can backdash it. If he does bt.K instinctively after this, it’ll whiff and give you an opportunity to backdash again and create more distance. If you do backdash and he doesn’t press a button, he’ll be +2, so don’t always mash after backdash. Your other option, which is better but harder, is to Instant Block it and throw, which Leo can only beat by preemptively backdashing away.

Defending Against Backturn Stance

When Leo is in Backturn Stance with advantage, you will have to deal with difficult-to-block, looping pressure. Leo has access to barely-reactable cross-ups, low/overhead buttons bt.KGuardLowStartup5Recovery6Advantage+3 [+0] and bt.HGuardHighStartup18Recovery21Advantage-6 [+5], Guard Crush resets, and the ability to cancel into plus frames at any time. If he’s in Backturn Stance and applying pressure, it may seem hopeless, but Backturn Stance is designed to be interacted with via mashing, backdashing, and the like - accept that you will have to guess, and that sometimes you will have to fight back. Leo is lacking for safe pressure options in backturn, and Counter Hit bt.K and bt.H don't actually lead into more reward than regular hits.

Rules for Fighting/Defending Against Backturn

Rule 1: Never try to land a jump-in attack on Leo. Every single jump-in will lose to bt.P, which is essentially a super-6P that also leads to damaging combos. If you jump out of backturn, use the time to escape rather than challenge.

Rule 2: Always make space when possible. Backturn is far less threatening once you are out of range for bt.K. Use Faultless Defense. From up close, if you FD two bt.Ks, it pushes him too far away to do any high/low mix. He can only hit you a bt.S which pushes you out further, bt.H which will end his pressure since no stance cancels will reach, or dash in (which leaves a large, mashable gap). For similar reasons, backdashing is also effective during gaps after bt.S and bt.H.

Dealing with Backturn Stance Normals

bt.K is a 5 frame low and is +3 on block, but leads to self-looping pressure unless you FD it, so make sure to do so! Once Leo notices that you’re pushing him out with FD, he’ll have to walk in or dash cancel to continue pressure with more than 2 bt.Ks, giving a chance to mash as a counterattack. Leo can mix by going directly into bt.H, but you can interrupt it with a 5 frame button preemptively. Note that you have to commit to this option, and it can be frametrapped - it cannot be done on reaction. In any case, it is more common for him to gatling bt.K directly into bt.S, a nasty frametrap. Be cautious of this option and consider it before you decide to press buttons.

bt.SGuardAllStartup6Recovery14Advantage-3 [+5] is a mid and -3 on block. It will catch your backdash after a bt.K meaty, and it staggers on counterhit, giving Leo access to much more damaging combos than backturn would normally allow and therefore making it a threatening frametrap. Additionally, should you block bt.S, there’s a 50/50 scenario that you’ve got to worry about. Leo can either go into bt.H or Stance Cancel into 2K. However, both of these options are neutralized by backdash midscreen. What Leo players can do instead is slightly delay bt.H to catch the backdash, in turn beaten by mashing or a delayed backdash. This is also a solid spot to try using a reversal, but given the risky nature of reversals, don’t use it as a go-to. If bt.H is backdashed, most characters get a punish, depending on their backdash duration (e.g. 20F backdashes grant a 6F punish). Lab with your character and see what you can do.

After blocking bt.H, Leo is -7. He can try to continue pressure afterwards (which you can beat with any mash you want), cancel into the parry-shield bt.D to catch your mash (which you can beat by delaying your mash a bit), or stance cancel to make himself +5 instead, more likely at higher levels because it has much less counterplay. Leo can frame trap after a Stance Cancel with 2K or 2S if you simply try to mash. Midscreen, you can backdash after blocking bt.H to disengage and remove the threat of pressure entirely, but if you are in the corner, 2K will catch this, so you will have to respect his pressure and block instead.

Leo can't block or jump in backturn. His only defensive option is bt.D. This move can catch strikes and initiate a counter attack or reflect projectiles. From farther away, this move will cause opponents to enter a guard broken state, but it won’t initiate the counter attack. It’s a move with frame 1 start up, and is active for 18 frames, with 34 frames of recovery. Throwing Leo out of it is the most reliable countermeasure, but you can also delay a mash to beat it, as it will Counter Hit.

Dealing with Backturn Stance Specials

Leo can use his specials to reset pressure or open you up at any time during backturn, but they are all reactable if you are looking for them. If Leo is representing these options, keep an eye out for them.

236H can also be used in backturn, and has similar counterplay with frontturn, but the mental stack of all his backturn options can make reacting to it a lot harder. It’s still reactable, but you need to be watching for it, and that attention might be better served looking for something else.

Blitzschlag (214[H])GuardAll (Guard Crush)Startup29Recovery33Advantage+21 is a guard crush. It is unsafe and has a very slow startup (29F), but is +21 on block and does substantial chip damage. Blocking it resets pressure completely: it gives Leo time to dash up and hit you with either bt.K or bt.H safely, which isn’t ideal. The best way to deal with it is to interrupt it. Counterattack with a P or K normal depending on the distance, or even throw it since it moves him forward. Backdashing its few active frames will also net a punish - if Leo tries to meaty you with this, backdash it and then take a free combo.

Glänzendes Dunkel (214[K])GuardGround ThrowStartup30Recovery42Advantage- is a command grab Leo only has in Backturn Stance. It has 30 frames of startup and 42 frames of recovery, making it very punishable, and while the animation is subtle, the startup has a distinct sound cue. Anything except blocking will beat this - even backdashing, at some ranges - and it is not throw invulnerable. If you chose to not block somewhere, and he picks this option, you will still beat him. This makes it a weak option.

Sample Backturn Pressure Strings
Blockstring	Risk	FD
bt.K > (bt.K >) bt.S > bt.H > 22	Very Safe	The basic The most basic Brynhildr string. FD Leo out, and block high once you see bt.S. You can also backdash after bt.S, which can be punished by characters without slower backdashes.
bt.K > bt.S > 22 66 > 2K	Very Safe	Low of the high-low mixup after bt.S. With proper FD usage, can be backdashed midscreen, but not in the corner. Can also be reacted to by holding down-back after not seeing bt.S cancelled into anything.
bt.H > 22	Very Safe	Meaty overhead that makes up the high of Leo’s high bt.H - low bt.K at the start of pressure. Unsafe after Whiff 236H oki, and punishable if backdashed.
x(bt.K) > bt.H > 22	Safe	Leo may vary the amount of bt.Ks before going directly into the overhead to catch people who block high after a while or who use bt.S as a telegraph to block bt.H, but he can only do two bt.Ks if you FD. Has a 7F gap that cannot be reacted to but will lose to preemptive mashing, though this is often very risky.
x(bt.K) > 22 66 > Throw	Moderate	Tick throw setup. Reactable if you’re watching for the stance cancel, but if you commit to looking for this, you won’t be able to react to any other unsafe options.
bt.K > bt.S > 214[H]	Moderate	Used to demolish backdashes after bt.S, or reset pressure if you’re looking for other options and being passive. Mash or throw it on reaction - it’s slower to startup and a charged Dust attack.
x(bt.K) > 236H	Moderate	Leo can use this against opponents stacked during bt.K staggers, but can be thrown if you’re watching for it.
bt.K > bt.S > bt.[H] > 214[H]	Unsafe	Pressure reset against an opponent who anticipates a stance cancel after bt.[H] and backdashes or holds the pressure. Again, mash or throw it on reaction
bt.K > bt.S > 22 66 > Throw	Unsafe	Tick throw setup that utilizes the large visual noise of bt.S in conjunction with the threat of 2K to play on stack. Loses to backdashes (common after bt.S) and also loses to anything preemptive that beats 214[H].
bt.K > 66 > bt.K	Unsafe	Dash cancel cross-up. Can be thrown if you’re looking for it.
bt.K > bt.S > 214[K]	Very Unsafe	Very high-risk, high reward setup using Leo’s backturn command throw. Will lose to any option that isn’t blocking, but sets up extremely good okizeme midscreen if it hits. Mash, jump, backdash - heck, you can even throw it…just don’t block it.

Dealing with Backturn Oki Options

Off of a whiff 236H knockdown (e.g. H Flash Kick knockdown, raw 2D) he is able to do a meaty bt.K/bt.S but not a bt.H. You can fuzzy mash a jab to block bt.K > bt.K while also punishing attempts at bt.H.

Oki from a hit 236H, 214[S], or 214[H] near corner involves a 50-50 between bt.K low or bt.H high. He can attempt to cross you up with an additional dash, but this can be thrown on reaction. However, the 50/50 cannot be fuzzied and necessitates a guess. Backdashing isn’t the worst option if you suspect an overhead: if Leo goes for a bt.H, he’ll miss and be left open for a punish, making the Leo player feel like going for bt.H is a bad option. Keep in mind that this is easily punishable if he goes for bt.K instead.

Leo’s best type of oki is throw oki. Throw oki is a three-way mix up between same side low, same side high, and crossup meaty. All of these are options beat mashing, requiring a guess as above.

A final note: one of the best options to beat backturn oki is, surprisingly, Gold Burst. Leo can’t block in Backturn Stance so it’s free Tension and it gets you out of the situation entirely. Just be cautious to not get baited.