GGACR/Johnny/Strategy

General Tactics

The Quick and Dirty:

How do I hit them?: Use your long range to either out-poke characters with inferior range, or to chase down and pressure zoning characters. Use mist cancels in combination with strong pokes to hit opponents who attempt to escape your pressure. Use throws and TK Ensenga to compliment your counter-poke game, and use coins to either continue pressure or give you more close range mixup/poke opportunities.

What do I do once I hit them?: Combo into coins to improve your mist finer level for future damage output, spend tension to improve damage, combo into 1 hit ensenga for mist setups or re-coins, or end in knockdown for setups / oki.

Offense

Most of what Johnny does is +, so while you may not have amazing mixup potential, you excel at punishing players for attempting to escape or counterattack improperly. Walk forward after mist cancels, and continue harassing them with properly placed normals if they attempt to mash you out. Sneak in dash-ins if they respect your pokes too much, for extra pressure. Use coins or Killer Joker FRC to maintain air-tight or semi-airtight pressure. Punish jumping with Mist Finer high, 5H, coins, or 6K.

Move breakdown

6K: Low profile and moves you forward and + if mist cancelled. Stagger / cancel into Coin gives you good frame traps and combos on hit. Great for punishing lots of desperate backdashes, jumps, or pokes. A good move to use to get back in but very vulnerable to sweeps and other low profile moves. If FD'd, this move doesn't put you very close to them, so be aware of that.

5K: Jump cancellable on block and -2 on block, but has great range for its speed! Generally gatling this into 2S, c.S/f.S, 5H, or 2D to continue pressure. Mainly used as pressure starter.

2K: +2 on block and a low makes this a great tool for frame trapping. Especially on characters where 2D CH leads to a full combo! Very good for meaty'ing due to its fast recovery frames, 2K can be a good way to start your offence when you want to stay in. String to c.S, or delay into 2S, 2D, or 3H for a CH. Recover and 5H is also a decent option.

f.S: One of your primary pokes, f.S has amazing range. Be careful that it doesn't whiff over their crouching hitbox, and it will also go over many character's forward dashes / low profile moves. Use this move to punish attempted counterattacks while walking forward, as many characters do not have strong equivalent's to this moves range/speed. If blocked, you can gatling into 6H, or mist cancel.

5H: Huge hitbox, use this move to catch people jumping, or similarly to f.S, to mist cancel and maintain advantage. Better +frame than f.S, it also racks more guard bar than f.S as well, though much worse on block. It has less of a deadzone than f.S as well, though it will still lose to moves like Grand Viper.

2S: Slower, less +, and less range than f.S, 2S is primarily used as one of the few ways to stuff out low profile moves that throw a wrench into Johnny's plan, such as Testament 2H, I-no's Stroke the Big Tree, etc. It also functions as one of your primary lows, with longer range than 2K. Use this to keep them honest / punish people for blocking high / holding up back. It also functions as a good meaty.

3H: Similar to 2S, this move is great for beating out low profile attacks, as well as for safely dealing with DP's from a distance, but is much slower. Racks up a TON of guard bar, but puts you far from the opponent. It has as much frame advantage as 5H, making it very nice if you are able to get them blocking it close enough. Just be aware of how much pushback it has as well as it's vulnerability to FD due to its multihit nature.

6H: Similar to 5H, but with farther reach and slower startup. Due to it's range, 6H is often used as your only attack option if you're out of f.S range, and can be used to compliment dash-in f.S. It's also jump cancellable! Can also be used as a strong way to punish counterattacks if used properly. Just don't whiff this move.

Killer Joker Transport -> Killer Joker: One of the best ways to punish players who mash backdash / jump after 5H or other strings, KJ is also one of your main tools for forcing re-pressure, as it is often airtight. Use j.K > j.D or j.H > j.D afterwards to continue on block. Be aware that if they do not block high, your air moves may whiff their crouching hitbox. Delay your jump in normal and punish them in this case.

Coin: Cancelling into Coin will usually allow you a free dash in, giving you an extra chance at tick throws or more pressure games. Common strings are 5H > Coin, f.S > Coin, 2D > Coin, 6K > Coin

Up Coin: Really good in the corner especially for stopping them from jumping, as well as great for stuffing certain air techs. Works really great for your (tick) throw game as well, and will cause a lot of players to twitch when you throw it. Because of the ambiguity of it, situations like [Corner] 5H > Up Coin > 2S (hit them trying something) > Coin hits > etc, tend to occur, leading to nice confirms.

Divine Blade: Best used as a way to punish throws, or continue pressure with an FRC.

Neutral

Johnny's neutral game is very dependent on his limited movement. It's important to vary the way you move, as your movement dictates your spacing, which dictates what poke range you're at. Focus on using wavedashing, jumpcancelling your dash, and varying backdashes / other movement to be sure your opponents cannot freely anticipate when you are going to be standing still.

Another fundamental issue with Johnny's neutral game is learning how to deal with your dead zones. Moves like f.S, 5K, and even 5H/6H can whiff against a variety of low profile moves, and f.S will whiff over many crouchers / forward runs. Preventing yourself from whiffing normals is one of the primary goals of mastering Johnny's spacing game. Learn the pros and cons of each normal and understand them. Be especially wary of opponents who use FD dash or other means of abruptly changing their movement.

5K: Primary close range poke.

6P: Your primary anti air. Punish people for jumping / iad'ing recklessly at you. It's also useful as a counterpoke due to its upper body inv, allowing you to deal with moves like Ky or Faust f.S, or Slayer's Mappa. Also can be used to go through Stunedge.

f.S: One of your primary pokes due to your range. Just make sure it doesn't whiff. Great after backdashing to punish.

2S: Will not be beaten by low profile, making it a very useful tool against characters who can simply run under f.S, such as Sol.

j.S: Due to it's amazing range, j.S can be an incredible tool for getting an opponent to block at neutral as it's hard to anti-air if spaced correctly. Strong as an anti-air as well, this move is very good for chasing people with, or protecting your air retreat.

6H: A great way to punish an opponent for whiffing or incorrectly spacing their pokes.

Coin: Generally good for you on trade, coin stays out a while and covers a good amount of ground, usually resulting in forcing the opponent to block. Coin can be a very useful way to force your way in, but at the cost of spending coins. Has lots of character specific usages for beating pokes / moves.

Up Coin: Like normal Coin, Up Coin is good for temporarily gaining a lot of spacial advantage, but due to its delayed nature, makes it a lot harder for opponents to attack into. Especially effective for characters who try and approach or contain you from the air.

Divine Blade: One of your primary anti-anti-airs, this move is great for forcing opponents to block (if you can FRC it), or for punishing opponents for mindlessly 6P'ing you.

Killer Joker: Like divine blade, a strong anti-anti-air, though it can clash rather than win, unlike Divine Blade. However, the reward off of it if FRC'd is great. It's also much faster, giving you a good way to deal with anti airs such as rising j.P/K, or airthrow. It's also a good way to alter your trajectory, giving you an extra air option, which can help you get in against zoners or protect vulnerable air movement.

Airthrow: Johnny's superjump is very good due to how high he jumps, so Airthrowing is a very effective option even if they are quite high up. A very reliable anti-air if timed, airthrowing is an essential tool to utilize. Leads to knockdown, and mist / combos / coin in the corner.

Defense

2H: At 5f startup, it's as fast as your 5P or 2P, but with much better range. On Counterhit, you can combo for free if they don't shake - otherwise RC to followup. It's -16 on block, but gatlings to 5D. Won't combo, but gatling'ing to 5D can make it slightly safer. Use this move to beat out opponents who stagger or re-dash at you. Just be careful of getting baited, as it's CH the entire time, and horrible on whiff, making it extremely easy to punish.

5P: Can be used as a fast anti-air for opponents who like to airdash over you a lot.

5K: Johnny lift's his foot up, allowing him to go over some pokes such as Slayer 2K, Axl 2K/2D, etc, giving 5K some character specific use when defending.

Coin: Useful for its ability to at least trade even in disadvantagous positions, the angle of coin is good for covering an opponent who's attempting to re-dash at you or stagger. In addition, its trajectory gives it some use as an anti air as well, particularly against air dashes. Just be sure they don't run under it.

Super: One of his only defensive options, Johnny's super is great if it works, not so great if it doesn't. Loses to a lot of low profile moves such as various sweeps, as well as various upper body inv moves like misc 6P's. It's hitbox also does not extend behind him, allowing some characters to simply move forward if they're right in front of you with certain moves, like Jam's 6H. Be aware of super's weakness, and use it if you feel it necessary. However at 50% tension, it's a big gamble.

Blockstrings

Some basic blockstrings to get you started:

5K > 5H (MC): where most people will start out. Good on block, and your basic bnb starter. Pushes you out, and ideally you'd like to block confirm after 5K instead. Also weak to FD. Regardless, still a recommended starting point

2K: +2, low, fast recovery. A great way to start off pressure. Delay cancel to 2S or 2D for a very tight frame trap, or recover then 5K/2K/5H for a strong punish or repressure. Note that 2K > 2D is particularly good when its a character where 2D(CH) > Coin > f.S/5H will combo. Only disadvantages are its difficulty to hit confirm off the single hit, and poor reward as a starter (prorates)

2K > c.S: ends at +3, and still keeps you close. No delay cancel window on c.S, though, so you must recover. The extra hit gives you more time to confirm the situation, though.

6K (MC) > 5K/f.S/5H/2D: strong frame trap to force opponents to respect pressure after 6K.

6K or 5H > Coin: automatically frame traps almost anything. Most opponents just have to hold this. Very good against opponents who try and stop you from redashing or 6K'ing a lot in pressure.

f.S > 6H: usually thrown out when you think they might get CH by f.S (hitconfirming f.S into MC or 6H is unrealistic generally). Pushes you very far out, but you do have options from 6H if need be (iad, KJ, coin, etc)

Okizeme

Meaty OS options

The following is a table for option selecting after Bachus Sigh setups to play around reversal options such as Backdash, DP, etc. Note that you can generally use a spaced 3H to autobait most DPs. Meaty 3H will also catch backdashes with less than 13 frames of invulnerability, but the timing will vary. Faster backdashes require earlier 3H timing.

Character	Meaty with	Beats	Loses to	Notes
A.B.A	2K or 5K	Danzai, FB Danzai, Goku Moroha		2K > 2S or 2K > 2D to catch backdash.
Anji Mito	2K > 2S	H Fuujin, Backdash	Low Guardpoint
Axl Low
Baiken
Bridget
Chipp Zanuff
Dizzy
Eddie
Faust	3H, c.S > 5H	FB Chop	Super
I-No	2P > 5K	VCL, Super, Stroke, Backdash		2P has 3 active frames, need to meaty with 2nd or 3rd frame to block Super.
Jam Kuradoberi	2K > 2D	Parry, DP, Backdash	Carded DP
Johnny	6P	Super		Callout vs Wakeup Super but you won't be able to catch backdash.
Justice	5K > 5H	623K, Michael Sword, Backdash		Input as 5K > 5K+H
Kliff Undersn	2K or 5K	Lean Back (214P), Super		Lean back is punishable on block. Final frames of it are punishable by 5K.
Ky Kiske	2K	623S/H, Ride the Lightning, Backdash
May
Millia Rage
Order-Sol	2K	623H All levels
Potemkin	5K > 5H	Pot Buster, Backdash, Super		Input as 5K > 5K+H
Robo-Ky	2K	623H Level 1	623H Level2/3
Slayer
Sol Badguy	very meaty 2K	623H	623S, Tyrant Rave
Testament
Venom
Zappa	2K	Centipede (236P), Super

Up Coin Okizeme

- Midscreen: Getting a midscreen knockdown in +R is much stronger than AC thanks to this move. If the opponent presses any backward direction while the Upcoin is on screen, they will be placed in a state called proximity guard. This prevents them from walking backwards, as well as accessing abilities that are only available during blockstun such as Dead Angle attacks or Guard Cancels. Against certain characters, this is a relatively safe way of setting up a strike/throw scenario, since they would otherwise rely on said abilities to negate the scenario entirely. Additionally, the presence of Upcoin often coerces opponents into committing to something other than guarding on defense, creating a scenario where making a read on the other players' defense is generally easier than usual.

Some examples of things you can do with the Upcoin midscreen include the following:

  - Upcoin, dash throw/low/TK Ensenga
  - Upcoin, bait jump/backdash with 6K, high mist finer, 6H, etc.
  - Upcoin, cross up via KJ/DB transport or simply dash jump forward at an ambiguous range
  - Upcoin, bait 2P/2D mash to beat dash throw, 6H instead and kill them

Keep in mind this is in no way comprehensive, rather a general guide as to the types of opportunities that can be created by using this move after a knockdown.

- Corner: Truly, the strongest application of the Upcoin is against a knocked down opponent in the corner. Because backdash keeps the opponent in the same position on screen, it becomes a much less appealing option for most characters. Even the characters who can rely on corner backdash will think twice if an Upcoin is spaced and timed in such a manner that either it or another move will be able to hit them out of it. Otherwise, it is similar to the midscreen scenario, except crossups become much more difficult.

Examples of common scenarios in the corner include, but aren't limited to:

  - Upcoin, meaty 2K, 3H to catch backdash/jump
  - Upcoin, meaty 2K, Upcoin again, 2K 3H
  - Upcoin, walk forward, dash throw/low/TK Ensenga
  - Upcoin, walk forward, wait, react to opponent's commitment and punish

The double edged sword of Upcoin is that the scenarios it creates are highly interactive. Obviously, Sol and anyone with a DP has a built-in answer to Upcoin that you will have to bait. On the flip side, Baiken really hates being knocked down against Johnny because of this move, and she's in good company with much of the cast. Finding ways to coerce the opponent to act in ways that makes it easier for you to hit them is the essence of Johnny's offense, and this move in particular is incredibly good for doing that.

Tips and Tricks

Mist Cancel

Essential Johnny technique.

Observe: 5H on block is -16, punishable by many characters. When Mist Canceled, it becomes +7. Better than safe, it's advantage!

How to Mist Cancel

Do a move that is special cancelable.
Special cancel in to a Mist Finer.
Hold button to stay in Mist Stance.
While holding button, press H to Stance Cancel (Note: Holding the button when mist cancelling is not mandatory as of Accent Core. If H is inputted during the window of mist stance startup, it will cancel at the first possible frame. However, if H is not inputted during that window, the actual Mist Finer will come out. While this technique makes it easier to perform the fastest possible mist cancelling, it is much easier to make a mistake. Thus, it is recommended to hold the button unless you have a good grasp of the timing and have good execution.)

   Example: 5H>236[PKS]~H

Mist Cancel Frame Advantage Chart

Shows the frame advantage for each attack level assuming fastest possible mist cancel by level.

Mist Cancel total frames: LV1: 11(8F+3F). LV2: 8(5F+3F). LV3: 6(3F+3F)

Attack Level	Normals	MC Level 1	MC Level 2	MC Level 3
Level 1	2P, 5P, 2K	-2	+1	+3
Level 2	5K	+0	+3	+5
Level 3	c.S, 2S, 6P	+2	+5	+7
Level 4	f.S, 2D, 6K	+5	+8	+10
Level 5	5H, 3H, 6H	+7	+10	+12

FD Dash

FD Dash, also called Wave Dashing by some, refers to Johnny's ability to cancel his dash recovery into FD in order to chain successive dashes together faster than normal. On the 11th frame of Johnny's forward dash, he can cancel the recovery of his dash into anything, except additional ground movement or a SB.

An example of a single dash into a FD-cancel: 66[PK]4

Punch and Kick are not need for the FD. You can use any combination of buttons that will produce a FD.

A FD-dash into a dash (double hop): 66[PK]4646

N FD-dashes: 66[PK]{4646}xN

there's an extra '4', inbetween each additional dash past the first, that you don't need. But for most, it acts like a mental-metronome and helps keep a steady tempo.

Coin into a double hop: Stuff > 236[H~P], 664646

MistCancel into a double hop: Stuff >236[P]~[H], 664646

Upcoin and its many uses

Far and away Johnny's best move is the Upcoin. The opportunities it creates are immense and it single-handedly makes otherwise bad matchups that much more manageable. Some scenarios it's particularly useful for are:

- Neutral: When you anticipate a move that extends or moves the opponent forward, throwing an Upcoin in advance can be a good idea to either create hesitation or to hit them out of the move. Often times it will be necessary to FD the move in question to push the opponent to a range where the Upcoin will connect, but this is something that can be trained over time. It makes fighting against characters that like to poke at mid range in particular easier to deal with.

- Oki (midscreen): Getting a midscreen knockdown in +R is much stronger than AC thanks to this move. If the opponent presses any backward direction while the Upcoin is on screen, they will be placed in a state called proximity guard. This prevents them from walking backwards, as well as accessing abilities that are only available during blockstun such as Dead Angle attacks or Guard Cancels. Against certain characters, this is a relatively safe way of setting up a strike/throw scenario, since they would otherwise rely on said abilities to negate the scenario entirely. Additionally, the presence of Upcoin often coerces opponents into committing to something other than guarding on defense, creating a scenario where making a read on the other players' defense is generally easier than usual.

Some examples of things you can do with the Upcoin midscreen include the following:

  - Upcoin, dash throw/low/TK Ensenga
  - Upcoin, bait jump/backdash with 6K, high mist finer, 6H, etc.
  - Upcoin, cross up via KJ/DB transport or simply dash jump forward at an ambiguous range
  - Upcoin, bait 2P/2D mash to beat dash throw, 6H instead and kill them

Keep in mind this is in no way comprehensive, rather a general guide as to the types of opportunities that can be created by using this move after a knockdown.

- Oki (corner): Truly, the strongest application of the Upcoin is against a knocked down opponent in the corner. Because backdash keeps the opponent in the same position on screen, it becomes a much less appealing option for most characters. Even the characters who can rely on corner backdash will think twice if an Upcoin is spaced and timed in such a manner that either it or another move will be able to hit them out of it. Otherwise, it is similar to the midscreen scenario, except crossups become much more difficult.

Examples of common scenarios in the corner include, but aren't limited to:

  - Upcoin, meaty 2K, 3H to catch backdash/jump
  - Upcoin, meaty 2K, Upcoin again, 2K 3H
  - Upcoin, walk forward, dash throw/low/TK Ensenga
  - Upcoin, walk forward, wait, react to opponent's commitment and punish

The double edged sword of Upcoin is that the scenarios it creates are highly interactive. Obviously, Sol and anyone with a DP has a built-in answer to Upcoin that you will have to bait. On the flip side, Baiken really hates being knocked down against Johnny because of this move, and she's in good company with much of the cast. Finding ways to coerce the opponent to act in ways that makes it easier for you to hit them is the essence of Johnny's offense, and this move in particular is incredibly good for doing that.

Jackhound: Which, When, Where, Why

Possibly the single most frequently asked question about this character is when you should use regular Jackhound, Stance Jackhound, and Dash Jackhound. I will attempt to put all questions on this matter to rest.

Regular Jackhound

As close to never as possible. Sometimes, as a reactionary whiff punish or anti-air (this one is VERY situational), when you can't or don't feel confident doing the others, it's not so bad. Otherwise, try to spend the little bit of extra time to get into mist stance when possible.

Stance Jackhound

This one's a bit trickier. Against a grounded opponent, it's not always a bad idea to do Stance Jack instead of Dash Jack. Reasons for this may include not being comfortable with Dash Jack off of the move you just landed, wanting to bait bursts a bit easier after landing Jackhound (you can usually access c.S when you use Stance Jack), not wanting to cross yourself up into the corner, etc. There are a few other very fringe scenarios but this covers the general idea. Against an airborne opponent (ex: off of 2D), Stance Jack is actually preferable to Dash Jack due to its longer untech time.

Dash Jackhound

If you have the execution, as close to always as possible, unless you have a specific plan in mind as mentioned above. In terms of being burst safe, it is more burst safe than Stance Jack in some ways, but less in others. As far as bursting Jackhound itself goes, dash is preferable to stance as the momentum moves you through the opponents hitbox quicker and usually places you out of burst range. Keep in mind, however, that anyone who's had this happen to them will probably not want to burst Jackhound itself. Thankfully, even after the move lands you can still bait bursts, albeit not quite as well as if you had used Stance Jack. While f.S is typically burst safe, whether you will be able to follow up with a punish depends greatly upon where you ended up after landing Dash Jack. As such, if your primary goal is to bait bursts, Stance Jack may be preferable. On the other hand, Dash Jack usually gives you access to f.S, which against crouching opponents gives you the f.S 6H Dash Jack loop, which is pretty burst safe and very damaging. So really, it comes down to your resources and how much you care about baiting bursts. This is all assuming your opponent is not staggering out of either version of Jackhound. If they are staggering out, that just opens up other avenues for you: hit them with an overhead (5D is surprisingly good for this as it's neutral on block at worst, and who expects to get out of stagger and have to block a dust lol), dash throw, bait jump/backdash, etc.

Staggering out of Jackhound

To get out of Dash Jack, you have to start staggering before the move even hits. Because of this, the tactics covered above regarding beating opponents who stagger out can also apply before you do Dash Jack, assuming your opponent has demonstrated they can indeed stagger out of it. This intensity of stagger is roughly equivalent to training mode's level 3 stagger. To get out of Stance Jack, you can stagger after verifying the move indeed hit you, but you have to do it kinda quickly. This intensity of stagger is roughly equivalent to training mode's level 2 stagger. Lastly, regular Jackhound is pretty easy to get out of and you shouldn't necessarily expect to get anything after landing it.

Using Jackhound outside of combos

If you can react to Gun Flame/Stun Edge/NB/etc. and Dash Jack through it, you absolutely should do that because your opponent is now going to have to think a lot more about throwing projectiles against you. Not to say this can't be baited (the moves above all have FRC points), but nothing says "stop autopiloting" quite like getting hit by Dash Jack from nearly full screen and dying for it. Additionally, if your opponent likes to backdash after you commit to HS in a blockstring, Dash Jack is a fairly reliable way to call that out, though be careful as both character and player differences in backdash timing can make you regret this. Do this only if you're really comfortable or if you're willing to accept the risk of perhaps whiffing a move with lots of recovery right next to your opponent. Beyond these examples, using Jackhound outside of combos is a fairly specific kind of thing. It can be used as a tech trap, but that's a bit of a gamble if your opponent has good defense. It can be used (again, VERY specifically) as an anti-air against low airdashing opponents, but it's not something you should necessarily build a strategy around. Last but not least, you can whiff punish longer recovery normals on reaction with all versions of Jackhound, as long as you're in range. This is particularly useful against characters with anti-air 2S/2H who whiff it on anticipation against a jump out attempt you didn't do, but there are other uses for it, as well.

Fighting Johnny

Johnny thrives in getting his great pokes to be hit or blocked and mist cancelling them to be always on plus. f.S and 5H are his best pokes to be mist cancelled and his 5K is good, all-rounded poke with both speed and range to used in close and further out ranges.

But to balance his safety of pressuring you at range, he has to know that his pokes will be able to hit or get blocked in order to continue pressure.
If he whiffs (or doesn't mist cancel, which he wouldn't anyways) his pokes with the exception of P and K normals, his gonna have to sit through the recovery frames which are lengthy at 21 frames with f.S to 33 frames with 5H, giving you time to close in the gap and hit him.
Not only that his pokes are horrible on whiff, f.S hitbox can be crouched or even ran under if Johnny doesn't space properly or doesn't anticipate a dash-in quick enough to hit you with the tip of f.S.
All of his standing pokes and 5K can be low profiled and even hit him if you are close enough.

2D is a two normal that can be mist cancelled in any hit. Johnny will make use of this property to mixup whether if it's a 1-hit or 2-hit using mist cancel.
2S, while subpar compared to f.S, is still a good poke to stuff out low profiles.
6P is a good anti-air tool for Johnny to stuff out air approaches. Beware of jumping in if he can 6P you.

Coin

Coin controls a good amount of horizontal space and keeps him safe when cancelled into, allowing him to continue pressure.
Up Coin controls the air so it can stuff out air approaches if you're not paying attention to his coin tosses.

Mist Finer

A godlike poke, controlling both horizontal and air space. This move is scary if he knows your approaches and can stuff you out in a single cut.
K Mist Finer in particular controls the ground and stuffs out slow projectiles like Gunflame.

General Tactics

FD is crucial if Johnny is harassing you with his superior blockstring range. Use FD to make him whiff the next blockstring his going to use.
Backdash if he's playing safe and using his big pokes to get in. His pokes only has 2-3 active frames so you can backdash and punish him for using pokes.
Low Profile Sol's 2D for example can go under and make Johnny whiff his pokes.
Staying close Johnny doesn't have a lot of get out of jail free cards to escape pressure and needs 50% meter to use That's My Name to reversal out.