- The shadow, Eddie, of the former head of the Assassin's Guild, Zato-1, is an archetype-defining puppet character with a myriad of overwhelming offensive pressure. Eddie has unblockables, pressure for days, flight, and plenty of dual attacking options to deal with opponent's defensive options. Letting Eddie get the initiative is suicide and all of the pressure is placed on the opponent once Eddie gets in and runs his game.
On the flip side, Eddie is horribly weak defensively. When his shadow gauge is emptied, he must often run away, or contend with his overall subpar normals. He has the worst guts in the game with a bad defense modifier, a poor backdash, slower buttons, and no meterless reversal. His Dead Angle is barely passable and his reversal super is downright awful. Eddie is a character who wants to get in and stay on the absolute offensive, giving the opponent zero chance to breathe.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths |
Weaknesses
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- Suffocating offensive game with pressure and strong mixup
- Best okizeme in the game with man reversal safe setups
- Shadow can take a hit for Eddie
- Practical unblockables with meter
- Huge damage and stun output
- Several intangibles such as Flight, Drunkard shade (214S), and Break The Law (214K)
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- Below average health and defense stats
- Horrid reversal options, including Dead Angle
- Demands high execution to use effectively
- Large, easy to combo hurtbox
- Slow buttons with overall poor hurtboxes
- Without Shadow ready, Eddie is sorely limited
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Unique Mechanics
Eddie Gauge
- The shadow, Little Eddie, can only be used while the gauge is not depleted. Every shadow attack will drain some of this bar.
Controlling Little Eddie with Negative Edge
- Little Eddie, attacks only when corresponding buttons are released, not pressed.
With proper meter management and execution, Eddie is capable of attacking alongside the shadow for devastating simultaneous attacks. This gives Eddie his extensive offensive pressure game and allows tandem attacks to prevent escapes and multiple mixup opportunities per blockstring, with varying levels of punishment depending on how much meter is left. If it is emptied however, Eddie loses access to this shadow for several seconds, and cannot summon, leaving him susceptible to being stuck in a very bad defensive position. Proper control of this gauge is key.