Frame Trap: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 17:54, 16 June 2020

Frame Traps

A Frame Trap is a way of leveraging frame advantage to bait an opponent into attacking after blocking with the goal of counter hitting the opponent's startup frames.

A frame trap has the following basic flow:

Player One forces Player Two to block
Player Two exits block stun and attempts to attack
Player One hits Player Two with an attack before Player Two's attack becomes active.

To put it simply: A frame trap is when a player intentionally leaves a gap in their pressure where their next attack will hit the opponent if the opponent tries to attack during the gap.

Setting Up Frame Traps

There are a few common ways to set up a frame trap. We will cover the three most common ways to do so.

Plus Frames

Plus Frames are the easiest and most common way to create a frame trap. Simply force the opponent to block a move which has frame advantage (plus on block) and the follow up with a move which takes long enough to become active that the opponent will have a few frames to press an attack but is fast enough that you will hit the opponent out of their move.

Example:
In Guilty Gear XRD Rev 2, Leo Whitefang does 2S, 5K.
Leo's 2S does not gatling into 5K so we don't have to worry about canceling recovery frames. After 2S, Leo will recover from his attack 4 frames before the opponent does. Therefore, if Leo presses 5K and the opponent presses an attack as soon as they can, Leo will counter hit the opponent and win the exchange.

Leo created a frame trap using frame advantage.

Natural Gaps

Some characters will have frame traps naturally built into their block strings. These usually occur when a character can cancel one move into another and this cancel results in a gap that the opponent cannot succesfully hit them during.

Example:
In Guilty Gear XRD Rev 2, Slayer does 5K > 6H.
This is a gatling for Slayer, therefore 6H will cancelTo bypass the remaining time or frames in an action by proceeding directly into another action the recovery frames of 5K with the startup of 6H, but because of 6H's long startup there will be a few frames where the opponent can act. If the opponent chooses to attack during this gap Slayer will counter hit them.

Slayer created a frame trap using a natural gap.

Speed Advantage

Sometimes a character will have an attack that is so quick to start up that it will hit the opponent's startup even if the player is at a frame disadvantage.

Example:
In Guilty Gear Plus R, Sol Badguy's 5K has a startupThe time before an attack is active including the first active frame. of 5 frames. This means that if Sol links into 5K after a move that is -1 on block there will be a 4 frame gap. This means that Sol's 5K will come out fast enough to beat all except for the fastest moves.

Sol created a frame trap by being faster than the opponent's fastest options.

Other Types of Frame Trap

There are other forms of frame traps which are not easily covered in this primer. These include delayed cancels, assist frame traps, and more.

Escaping Frame Traps

Frame traps are designed to condition you to block so that the opponent can remain in control of the pace of a match.

Instant blocking an attack reduces the amount of blockstun received, which reduces the frame advantage the opponent has and may give you enough time to counterattack or to jump/backdash out.

Barrier/Faultless Defense is also an option. This pushes you further away, possibly far enough to be out of range of the opponent's attacks unless they spend time to run back in (preferably into your fist!).

Invincible moves like reversals and backdashes are a strong tool versus frame traps because while they may be the fastest attack, they have invincibility, allowing them to go through the opponent's attack!

All of these options have their own advantages/drawbacks and may not work against certain frame traps. In the middle of a match, you will need to learn what frame traps the opponent likes to use and have a counter prepared to maximize your punishes.

General Strategy

Metagame

Evaluating Risk/Reward

Techniques

Basic

Intermediate

Instant Air Special (Tiger Knee)

Advanced

F-Shiki ("Fuzzy Overhead")

Proximity Block Option Select

Technical Info

Using Training Mode Effectively

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-A Frame Trap is a way of leveraging [[Using Frame Data|frame advantage]] to make retaliating (or anything with startup, like jumping) a riskier option for the opponent.
+<div style="float:left; margin-right:25px;">
+{{TOC limit|4}}
+</div>
+== Frame Traps ==
+A Frame Trap is a way of leveraging [[Using Frame Data|frame advantage]] to bait an opponent into attacking after blocking with the goal of counter hitting the opponent's startup frames.
+A frame trap has the following basic flow:
+# Player One forces Player Two to block
+# Player Two exits block stun and attempts to attack
+# Player One hits Player Two with an attack before Player Two's attack becomes active.
-==What is a Frame Trap?==
+To put it simply: A frame trap is when a player intentionally leaves a gap in their pressure where their next attack will hit the opponent if the opponent tries to attack during the gap.
-A basic [[Frame Trap]] consists of two parts:
-# Make the opponent block an attack
-#* Typically this is an attack with lots of frame advantage, but is not a requirement
-# Let the opponent exit blockstun very briefly, inviting them to attack/jump (anything that is not blocking)
-# Time a second attack to hit the opponent during their vulnerable period before the opponent's attack becomes active
-#* Look at what moves opponents like to do after blocking, these are usually fast attacks like 2P/2A or jump
-Once the opponent is conditioned into blocking after the first part of a frame trap (eg: blocking during step 2 instead of attacking), then it's time to take advantage of your opponent's hesitation to mix it up! Throws and slow overheads become options if you can condition the opponent to not move.
+=== Setting Up Frame Traps ===
+There are a few common ways to set up a frame trap. We will cover the three most common ways to do so.
-==Common Types of Frame Traps==
+==== Plus Frames ====
-Let's look at a few common types of frame traps and an example of each.
+Plus Frames are the easiest and most common way to create a frame trap. Simply force the opponent to block a move which has frame advantage (plus on block) and the follow up with a move which takes long enough to become active that the opponent will have a few frames to press an attack but is fast enough that you will hit the opponent out of their move.
-===Frame Advantage===
+Example:<br>
-A typical frame trap is doing a move that has frame advantage, following it up with a fast strike. If the opponent attempts to attack between your two moves, then they will get hit.
+In [[Guilty_Gear_Xrd_REV_2|Guilty Gear XRD Rev 2]], {{Character Label|GGXRD-R2|Leo Whitefang}} does {{clr|3|2S}}, {{clr|2|5K}}.<br>
+Leo's {{clr|3|2S}} does not gatling into {{clr|2|5K}} so we don't have to worry about canceling recovery frames. After {{clr|3|2S}}, Leo will recover from his attack 4 frames before the opponent does. Therefore, if Leo presses {{clr|2|5K}} and the opponent presses an attack as soon as they can, Leo will counter hit the opponent and win the exchange.
-For example, [[BBCF/Hazama#5B|Hazama's 5B]] in BBCF is a very strong frame trap tool because it is +2 on block and relatively fast with 8 frames of startup. After an opponent blocks Hazama's 5B, the Hazama player can move 2 frames before the opponent can, allowing him to do a dashing 5B without much fear. If the opponent attempts to retaliate with a 5A (average speed 6F), then Hazama's 5B will trade in Hazama's favor since he will be +10F in the exchange. If he's dealing with someone with a 5F move (like Ragna's 5A), then Hazama can use 5A and beat 5 frame moves outright.
+Leo created a frame trap using frame advantage.
-===Blockstrings===
+==== Natural Gaps ====
-In games like BlazBlue and Guilty Gear, characters can often cancel their normals other normals on hit or block (5A > 5B > 5C or 5P > c.S > 5H).
+Some characters will have frame traps naturally built into their block strings. These usually occur when a character can cancel one move into another and this cancel results in a gap that the opponent cannot succesfully hit them during.
-Players can make frame traps by either:
+Example:<br>
-# Delaying the later move to intentionally create a gap, inviting the opponent to attempt a counter
+In [[Guilty_Gear_Xrd_REV_2|Guilty Gear XRD Rev 2]], {{Character Label|GGXRD-R2|Slayer}} does {{clr|2|5K}} > {{clr|4|6H}}.<br>
-# Doing two moves that naturally have a gap between them that's small enough that most moves would be hit out of their startup
+This is a gatling for Slayer, therefore {{clr|4|6H}} will {{Tt|cancel|To bypass the remaining time or frames in an action by proceeding directly into another action}} the recovery frames of 5K with the startup of 6H, but because of 6H's long startup there will be a few frames where the opponent can act. If the opponent chooses to attack during this gap Slayer will counter hit them.
-For example, Jin can do multiple [[BBCF/Jin Kisaragi#2A|2A]]s in a row with delayed timings to coax the opponent into counter attacking. Jin's 2A is -1 on block, so theoretically the opponent should have a slight advantage. However by delay canceling the second 2A, the window to attack between the two 2As is very tiny, usually less than the time for the opponent's attack to come out.
+Slayer created a frame trap using a natural gap.
-If the opponent decides to keep blocking, then Jin can choose to restart a new blockstring, they can even start the new blockstring with another 2A, placing the opponent in the same situation yet again!
+==== Speed Advantage ====
+Sometimes a character will have an attack that is so quick to start up that it will hit the opponent's startup even if the player is at a frame disadvantage.
-Most blockstrings actually already have gaps between some moves, however it's hard to consider them frame traps as they don't look like an opening to the opponent, and thus won't elicit a response from them.
+Example:<br>
+In [[Guilty_Gear_XX_Accent_Core_Plus_R|Guilty Gear Plus R]],{{Character Label|GGACR|Sol Badguy}}'s {{clr|2|5K}} has a {{Tt|startup|The time before an attack is active including the first active frame.}} of 5 frames. This means that if Sol links into {{clr|2|5K}} after a move that is -1 on block there will be a 4 frame gap. This means that Sol's {{clr|2|5K}} will come out fast enough to beat all except for the fastest moves.
-===Delayed Cancels===
+Sol created a frame trap by being faster than the opponent's fastest options.
-Similar to the delayed blockstrings mentioned above, players can do the same thing, but with special/super cancels instead! This is usually much more risky, but follows the same principals as described above.
-===Assists===
+==== Other Types of Frame Trap ====
-Some characters can create frame traps by using assists to hit after unsafe moves to create frame traps. The assist is timed to hit the opponent while you are recovering from your attack.
+There are other forms of frame traps which are not easily covered in this primer. These include delayed cancels, assist frame traps, and more.
-A common case of this is puppet characters like Zato-1 from Guilty Gear or Carl Clover from BlazBlue. Others like Kum Haehyun and Arakune can use delayed projectiles for the same purpose. Almost everyone can do this in team based games where partners can be called in for assist attacks like [[Dragon Ball FighterZ]] and [[BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle]].
 ==Escaping Frame Traps==