GGST/Giovanna/Strategy: Difference between revisions

From Dustloop Wiki
< GGST‎ | Giovanna
Line 213: Line 213:


[[File:GGST_Giovanna_Countering_214K_623S.mp4|500px|frameless|caption]]
[[File:GGST_Giovanna_Countering_214K_623S.mp4|500px|frameless|caption]]
<div>Two mid-hitting attacks, and then a low against Giovanna's {{MiniMoveCard|game=GGST|chara=Giovanna|input=214K|label='''{{clr|K|214K}}'''}} > {{MiniMoveCard|game=GGST|chara=Giovanna|input=623S|label='''{{clr|S|623S}}'''}} trap.
<div>Two mid-hitting attacks, and then a low against Giovanna's {{MiniMoveCard|game=GGST|chara=Giovanna|input=214K|label='''{{clr|K|214K}}'''}} > {{MiniMoveCard|game=GGST|chara=Giovanna|input=623S|label='''{{clr|S|623S}}'''}} trap. Despite {{MiniMoveCard|game=GGST|chara=Ramlethal Valentine|input=5P|label='''{{clr|P|5P}}'''}} being faster, {{MiniMoveCard|game=GGST|chara=Ramlethal Valentine|input=2K|label='''{{clr|K|2K}}'''}} connects due to it beating the low profile.
</br>Despite {{MiniMoveCard|game=GGST|chara=Ramlethal Valentine|input=5P|label='''{{clr|P|5P}}'''}} being faster, {{MiniMoveCard|game=GGST|chara=Ramlethal Valentine|input=2K|label='''{{clr|K|2K}}'''}} connects due to it beating the low profile.


If she’s outside of the range of {{clr|K|2K}}, you won’t be able to take your turn back this way. She can recover in time to punish longer range buttons by dashing into her own {{MMC|game=GGST|chara=Giovanna|input=2K|label={{clr|K|2K}}}} or {{MMC|game=GGST|chara=Giovanna|input=2P|label={{clr|P|2P}}}}, despite the frame disadvantage. If you misjudge the distance between you and her and input your {{clr|K|2K}}, she can easily whiff punish you with these buttons. There are three ways to deal with post-Sepultura options outside of your {{clr|K|2K}} range:
If she’s outside of the range of {{clr|K|2K}}, you won’t be able to take your turn back this way. She can recover in time to punish longer range buttons by dashing into her own {{MMC|game=GGST|chara=Giovanna|input=2K|label={{clr|K|2K}}}} or {{MMC|game=GGST|chara=Giovanna|input=2P|label={{clr|P|2P}}}}, despite the frame disadvantage. If you misjudge the distance between you and her and input your {{clr|K|2K}}, she can easily whiff punish you with these buttons. There are three ways to deal with post-Sepultura options outside of your {{clr|K|2K}} range:

Revision as of 10:24, 4 March 2023

General Strategies

Gameplan

Giovanna's gameplan, while seeming rather straightforward at first, is arguably quite hard to classify in Guilty Gear. She's labelled as a rushdown character, but she doesn't simply loop gapless high/low oki mixups with lockdown projectiles the same way  Millia or  I-No do, and she isn't the kind of character where you have to constantly keep the opponent locked down else you die, like  Chipp. Instead, she offers a more neutral & defense oriented approach to rushdown, where the threat of her strong counterhits, whiff punishes, and strike/throw mixups are what define her pressure. In that sense, you can draw similarities to  May or  Sol, just with more of a focus on ground speed and evasion rather than pure space control or pressure. The understated yet unique properties of her moves and lack of proper space control causes her gameplan to very strongly vary by matchup compared to most characters—but thankfully, her wide array of tools and strengths allow her to make up for almost any situation with proper foresight and knowledge.

But to elaborate on Giovanna's general design strengths, there's three things that immediately stand out: her amazing step dash, her formidable S buttons, and her nuanced special moves.

Dashing

(It's heavily recommended that you get used to the dash macro, as it will make your life playing Gio much, much easier.)

Much like  I-No, Giovanna's dash is what defines her playstyle. But while one is made for ambiguous high/low hover mix-ups, the other is made for fast and reliable grounded approaches. There's no doubting the strength of her dash: it's fast, travels far, and can be instantly cancelled into any other action. Furthermore, any cancelled action retains momentum from the dash, the distance of which depends on how early you cancel it. Canceling early gives less distance for faster startup, and cancelling later gives more distance for the cost of some extra startup. Combining this with her best ranged pokes extends her effective range, combo routes, and overall neutral game drastically.

If you cancel the dash into a block, however...

Step Dash Blocking

When you dash as Gio and then immediately hold back, you will actually be blocking while still dashing forward. This is because her step dash is both cancelable and has no skidding animation when you stop inputting the dash like characters with a run do, causing her to continue moving while simultaneously blocking. This is even doable with Faultless Defense if you press and hold the buttons before you dash, so as to not trigger an FD Brake. Dash macro helps out a lot here especially, as you won't have to hit forward and instead just alternate between going neutral, dash, then back.

Furthermore, if you input FD after you dash to properly do an FD Brake, it retains some dash momentum, but still stops the dash. Since your step dash normally has a fixed distance to travel as opposed to a run, FD Braking allows you to have more control over the distance of your dash without having to throw out a move. While it somewhat resembles a wavedash if done repeatedly, it isn't faster than dashing normally. Instead, think of it as a micro-dash of sorts: useful when you want to close just a bit of distance to get to the right spacing at the right time.

Proper use of these blocking techniques turns safe approach from something Gio struggles with into something she excels at. It's especially important against characters with very fast and long moves that are able to stuff your dash-in attempts, such as  Axl or  Nago. It's great to use on roundstart so as to react to what the opponent might do without getting counter-hit, and it even allows you to safely close distance during gaps in pressure that are as small as a few frames. The possibilities are virtually endless with such a versatile step dash.

Offense

Put simply, Giovanna's offense is focused on combining her moves with her movement. Her grounded moves in particular go hand-in-hand with her dash's momentum, allowing her to pressure, punish, and mixup in a multitude of unique ways.

Pokes

Though Gio's pressure shines at close range, she isn't the kind of character that strictly specializes in one distance. She has a formidable mid-range poke game, mainly focused around counterhits , whiff punishes, and the topic of this section: pokes. To compensate for her normals not having much range on their own, Giovanna often has to rely on her dash and its transferred momentum to go in and out of striking range in order to poke. The two most reliable moves for it are...

While these two moves may look very similar in appearance, taking a look at the hitboxes reveals some key differences:

Most notably, 5H is not only longer range, but it's disjointed while active, only losing the disjoint during recovery. This means it can beat certain moves at max range that 5K would get counterhit by. It also gives a solid counterhit combo that can be option selected using this technique. The combined speed and range of this normal makes it a very valuable tool when trying to put pressure and whiff punish from a distance, something Gio can't accomplish too well with the rest of her moveset. It also gives solid counter-hit reward, making it all the more useful in frame traps, and poking as a whole.

This doesn't mean 5K is outclassed by any means, however—it comes out in 6 frames, 4 faster than 5H, and has less recovery by a whopping 9 frames. It also has the massive potential advantage of being both jump cancelable and dash cancelable, allowing you to approach for mixups, bait bursts, and much more.

5K is often better for abare and getting in, whereas 5H fishes for counter-hits while maintaining your distance (unless you cancel it into 236K). These two moves often compliment each other quite well, as 5K into 5H is a 12~ frame gap on their block that can still often beat their abare due to 5H's active disjoint. Both of these moves can still be beaten out and punished on whiff recovery due to the nature of them being forward, hurtbox-extending kicks that lose to 6P and other low profile moves. But there is one more core poking tool that Giovanna has to fill those weaknesses, and that is...

An extremely valuable tool for Giovanna in the right scenarios, 2D allows her to safely cover an area with its very significant disjointed hitbox. Even though it takes a while to start up, the range and recovery surpass quite a few mid range moves in the game. The fact that it hits low can also catch some opponents off guard, as they may not expect to be blocking a low from that range and will instead be trying to adjust their spacing or jump away. This move can be very hard to contest at the right ranges and in the right matchups, but its slow startup causes it to be very risky to throw out against zoners who tend to throw out moves that will outrange it in neutral. It can also be used for reversal safe okizeme, expanded on in this section.

An honorable mention goes to Sepultura—being the multi-purpose tool that it is also lends its use as a poke to pressure jumpers and beat out anyone trying to low profile your other options. Sol Nascente also serves as a risky poke thats usefulness is often matchup-dependent, but in the right scenarios is able to beat out many high/air options with its frame 1 low profile and large vertical hitbox. More on these moves in a later section.

Pressure

Now, let's assume you have landed a hit with a poke and successfully gained an advantage, probably by comboing into Sepultura for a hard knockdown. Understanding how to pressure the opponent in order to press your advantage is a key to solid Giovanna play. Once again, her dash is key, with a well-placed dash being able to turn much of her mid-screen pressure into up-close offense. And there isn't any better move to reward you for going into close range than...

c.S is one of her most reliable pressure tools: it's +3 on block, has low pushback, and it beats low profiles. With it, you're often able to scare opponents into blocking, and if they continue doing so without Faultless Defense, it can even loop into itself. If they get fed up and try to hit a button, it's likely you'll land a rewarding counter-hit. Its largest weakness is being a proximity-based close slash that requires you to take the risk of actually going close in order to use it. You can make up for this with smartly timed dashes, but that will always create larger pressure gaps that allow for more time to fight back. That's why smart use of this button requires solid conditioning and counterplay, encouraging you to observe your opponent and respond to how they seem to want to get out of pressure accordingly.

Resisting Pushback

As the main weakness of your c.S pressure is its substantial distance requirement, the pushback you receive after they block it is your biggest enemy in being able to pressure freely. Get pushed too far, and your pressure will be given a deadline of sorts, losing access to your safest, most plus tool and instead having to use buttons that can only really safely go into a basic gatling string. Trovão can be a decent way to reset your pressure once you're pushed too far, but it isn't too hard to react to if used carelessly.

Luckily, Giovanna has a trick for this exact thing. By using dash momentum even at point-blank, she is able to continue moving forward to the point where she can significantly resist pushback. This can greatly aid the effectiveness of your c.S pressure, increasing your ability to loop it into itself and overall maintaining your frame advantage to do whatever you'd like. This is especially important against defenders who rely on Faultless Defense, as it causes pushback to increase along with the need to resist it.

The difference in c.S pushback on block between no dash momentum, cancelling a dash early, and cancelling it slightly later.
Even while as close to the opponent as possible and in the corner, the momentum still serves to fight against the pushback of c.S.

Meterless Setups

Basic Frame Traps
  • c.S/236K > 5K (3/2 frames)
  • 5K > 214K (2 frames)
  • 5K/2K > 2D (6 frames)
  • 5K > dash Throw (tick throw, beats normals slower than 5 frame startup)

Outside her built-in frametraps, Giovanna's offense revolves around making frametraps with delays. c.S is naturally plus, but that only really matters when going for a throw or a dash c.S pressure reset. Establishing fear of c.S usually means a delayed gatling. f.S and 2S can gatling into 5H, giving her another opportunity to reset pressure (albeit with more risk as their frame advantage is worse). 5H doesn't naturally have any gatlings, but a slight delay 214K can have the same effect while still leaving Giovanna safe.

Metered Setups

Midscreen BRC

Instead of using a jump cancel, Giovanna can instead use her dash cancelable normals (5K and preferably c.S) to gain access to BRCs. A dash cancelled c.S BRC has enough plus frames to blockstring into 5D while staying plus, and be able to also let her link from 2K to complement said 5D. Video example: https://twitter.com/raynexpress/status/1415526550087294978?s=21

Corner BRC

Giovanna can get a fuzzy guard mixup off of any of her jump-cancelable normals in the corner if she has 50 tension available. After jumping, an immediate 66.BRC j.S will force the opponent to stand block or get hit by a highly damaging BRC combo. This part is easily reactable so most players will not get hit here. The fuzzy itself is the rising j.H after landing from j.S. This can be linked into a falling j.H to continue a combo thanks to the BRC slowdown. The low option (2K after j.S) can be linked into c.S because of the BRC slowdown as well.

Okizeme

Safejumps

Giovanna has a variety of safejump setups that are done by landing with a properly timed j.H on the opponent's wakeup.

Giovanna's safejumps are consistent against the whole cast. This makes for your default, consistent and reliable oki option out of nearly any hit.

If you have the chance to do either of your jump cancelable normals (c.S or 5K) as an OTG, you can then jump cancel them and IAD > j.H for a rather simple setup.

Each OTG move and their respective setups each have their tradeoffs:

  • 5K is faster, longer range, but its narrow and raised hitbox demands you hit the OTG very early upon them falling on the ground, limiting its use after a long combo.
  • c.S is much more forgiving with the timing and is usable in more scenarios.

Making sure you use 214K as high as possible to end your juggle combo is a good way to ensure the 5K safejump's success.

There are also some ways to do the safejump without an OTG:

  • After a ground throw, you may simply hold up-forward and do j.H late in your ascent and it will give you a properly timed safejump.
    • Doing a neutral/back jump into an IAD j.H or j.K may work to as well if one prefers after a ground throw, but it does demand more precision.

2D

If you wish to safely meaty the opponent, beat reversals, hit low to catch jumpers, and stay at a distance either for matchup or mixup reasons, 2D is a solid option. Because it has such a disjointed and active hitbox, you are often completely uncontestable using it from a distance if you have time to get it out, thus beating many reversals in the game. For more info on which reversals 2D will be able to safely beat, check out this table in the matchups section. Keep in mind that 2D is active for 10 frames, so optimal timing will require you to hit with it on the last couple frames. A properly timed 2D can be up to +6 on block. Off of a throw, Giovanna can help time her meaty 2D by doing Throw > whiff 5P > 2D.

c.S

After longer combos ending in a hard knockdown or after a throw, Gio has enough time to dash in and get a meaty c.S. This can turn into a mixup with a slightly delayed throw, dash cancel, backdash to beat reversals/throw techs, Sol Poente, and more. It's usually easier for her to bait throws with a backdash instead of trying to get a frame-perfect meaty or shimmy, but it's also generally less reward and leads to less pressure. If you're able to land meaty c.S, the pressure is highly in your favour, but be wary of trying to land multiple c.S together as the window is very tight and you can easily get grabbed out of it.

Counter-hits

For most characters, a counter-hit is a nice thing to get some good damage. For Giovanna, however, it's considerably more integral to her gameplay to land them, and she has several tools to do so, both offensively and defensively.

Tips and Tricks

Counterhit Option Selects

5H

https://twitter.com/FrinkyWinkZz/status/1404966974531190788?s=19

Simply said, you use 5H then do 214K1236K. If 5H gets blocked, it'll do 214K, the safer option. If 5H counter-hits, however, 236K will come out due to the slowdown extending the input buffer time and allowing you to override the previous input, leading into your usual ch 5H > 236K combo.

c.S

https://twitter.com/Snare56447417/status/1414719133652963328

This OS is similar to the one above, as it uses the counterhit slowdown to your advantage. Pressing c.S and tapping what button you want next (preferably standing normals like f.S, 2S, or 5H) then inputting 5[D] will give you the normal of your choice on hit/block and a fully charged 5D on counter hit, giving a highly damaging launch starter.

Avoiding Wallbreak

Because Giovanna struggles in neutral against certain long/mid-range characters, there are scenarios where you may not want to break the wall in order to avoid returning to neutral. There are two key ways to do this, the first being shortening your combo so that it doesn't touch the wall. This is a fairly simple method: simply try to end combos with 214K or 5K dash cancel before the wall is reached, and you will be able to get an advantageous to continue corner pressure without breaking the wall. This can also net you more damage and meter gain as a whole, as one more confirm in the corner may lead to a wallbreak that may ultimately end the round, especially if you built enough meter to super. This method will always lead to a wallsplat eventually, but the point is to make the most of your corner pressure while you can and then cash out when there's no avoiding it, ideally when it closes out the round. Generally, this is quite practical and pays off in many matchups, unless you are in absolute need of a fast Positive Bonus and don't care about returning to neutral too much.

The second method is to perform corner pressure exclusively with normals that keep the opponent grounded. Each normal is hard coded to either keep the opponent on the ground or to launch them into the air. To do this technique, simply avoid connecting buttons that cause the opponent to be airborne on the same hit that the wallsplat occurs, and then afterward do not hit them. If they are in an air state while on the wall like usual, they will be able to tech out using the very advantageous wall tech positions... but if they are kept on the ground, they will slouch over, unable to tech, as if it were an even longer hard knockdown. This may be a little trickier to do than it sounds. 214K will always cause an airborne wallsplat, even if it doesn't seem like it. When comboing from a hit from c.S, you may delay the gatling so that it connects after their brief airborne period, and it will keep them grounded for the remaining hits of the combo. c.S > delayed 2S > 5H would be a common string to do this, for example. While this technique limits your options quite substantially especially if you don't have meter, it allows you to keep the opponent cornered forever, in theory.

An extra method is to use RRC to un-stick them from the wall, but this uses so much meter for so little damage that you'd probably rather just super, since it gives a knockdown anyway.

Fighting Giovanna

Summary/Win Condition


Giovanna is a rushdown character whose goal is to get in your face with her fast step-dash and then use her plus on block attacks to smother you with pressure and put you in difficult strike/throw situations. Because Giovanna has tools to play both offense and defense in the right scenarios, understanding how to face her on a general level can often require knowledge of that specific Giovanna's playstyle. That being said, though, there's still plenty of general mistakes to look out for to avoid being dominated by basic strategies when facing this character.

Unique Attributes/Mechanics


  • Meter Boost
  • Step Dash

When Giovanna's tension gauge is filled above certain thresholds, she deals more damage, receives less damage, and her normals begin dealing chip damage. There isn’t really any counter play to this, as aside from just applying pressure that forces her to use her Tension on Faultless Defense or YRC, you can’t really force her to expend the Tension. Still, it’s important to understand what this is and why you need to keep Giovanna away from you at all costs. When defending against her, always remember to use Faultless Defense if she has Tension to negate the chip damage.

Giovanna step dash defines her playstyle. It’s fast, it travels far, and allows her to approach reliably from the ground. It can also be instantly canceled into any other action, and any canceled action retains momentum from the dash, the distance of which depends on how early Giovanna cancels it. Canceling it early gives less distance for faster start up, and canceling later gives more distance for the cost of some extra start up. Combining this with her best ranged pokes extends her effective range, combo routes, and overall neutral game drastically. Because her step dash is both cancelable and has no skidding animation, Giovanna can dash and then immediately block, allowing her to block while still moving forward. She can combine this with FD Braking to allow her to have more control of her dash without having to throw out a move. This is essential for Giovanna’s spacing, as well as her ability to get you to whiff. It also allows her to approach safely against characters with fast long range attacks that are normally able to stuff her dash-in attempts, like Axl or Nago.

Round Start


Giovanna has some of the most threatening round start options in the game. It can also be a little bit tricky interacting with her at round start. Her ability to cancel her step dash into any normal or special can cause the range of her attacks to change depending on how quickly the Giovanna player inputs the dash canceled normal. For example, her 5KGGST Giovanna 5K.pngGuardAllStartup6Recovery12Advantage-2 won't reach you at roundstart, but it will if she does a dash right before it, increasing the time it takes by roughly a couple frames. If the dash is cancelled as early as possible, its distance is lowered, making it a "microdash" that you are still often able to get out of range of with proper timing. If she wants to do an even bigger dash to ensure you don't go out of range, she must sacrifice even more speed for it, making her easier to interrupt, and so on.


Some examples of how to beat the threatening opener of microdash > 5K


This can lead to inconsistent round start interactions that could be beneficial or a detriment to either player. It makes labbing round starts against Gio a bit tricky, and is something to consider when deciding whether or not to challenge her round start.

Her 5HGGST Giovanna 5H.pngGuardAllStartup10Recovery19Advantage-5 is a 10 frame disjoint, which forces some characters to open with a 6P or hold their ground. Any move that 5H can’t handle (such as a 10 frame low or 6P), she can rely on Sol Nascente (Cartwheel)GGST Giovanna Sol Nascente.pngGuardAllStartup7Recovery21Advantage-15 to bulldoze through it, and counter hit those options. This move is not invincible, but can be hard to punish at times because Gio’s hurtbox is so low to the ground that it can low-profile most attacks, even jabs. If all else fails, she can rely on her infamous 2DGGST Giovanna 2D.pngGuardLowStartup17Recovery12Advantage-8 to safely whiff punish, go under mids, or otherwise fish for counter hits. Walking back will put you out of range of any of her immediate options of value, including her mids and her 2D. If she throws these options out, you’re in a prime position to whiff punish. This leaves her with specials that you can react to easily with 6P. Her only other options is to dash in, either on the ground or through the air. Keep her movement options in check with your keep out buttons, and round start is yours.

Neutral


In neutral, remember, Gio has to come to you. She doesn’t have any projectiles. It’s not a matter of if she comes to you, but when. Use that knowledge to your advantage, but be smart about it. Don’t just throw out buttons. You have to really focus on two key things:

First, instead of placing your buttons where she is, place them where she’s going to be. You know she’s coming to you, so you don’t have to dash in yourself. Instead, aim to place them further back than you would normally, checking her movement. This requires less work and opens up less committal options in neutral. Most Gios know that you’re trying to take advantage of the fact that she has to come to you. Don’t throw out big buttons to stop her approach. Gio’s excellent ground movement and the range of her 2D and advancing special moves allow her to take advantage of the recovery of larger buttons and whiff punish her opponents into oblivion. Instead, rely on low commitment options such as long reaching P and K buttons, as proper use of them will force her to adjust her approach. She can try to air dash over your low commitment buttons, or force her way in with Trovao (aka Spiral Arrow)GGST Giovanna Trovao.pngGuardAll [All (Guard Crush)]Startup27Recovery13Advantage+4 [+15], but you can take care of both of these options on reaction with 6P. Trovao is an advancing special move that does go through single hit projectiles. It has 27 frames of start up and is +2 on block. Most of the time this move will be used to get in on you, so just keep an eye out for it and don’t let her get in for free. She’ll try to back dash to bait out buttons with higher commitment and punish with 2D, but she can’t keep this up forever. As long as you’re steadily advancing, she’ll run out of space eventually.

The second thing you want to do in neutral is understand your options in relation to her 2D. What’s important to remember is that she’s not pressing 2D because she wants to. It’s because she has to. On block, she has nothing to gatling into, so we’ll only be defending against her 4 special moves. On whiff, it can be hard to punish, but we’re guaranteed at least a turn. Just be wary in case she’s very reliant on Sol Nascente. On hit, she gets a little damage and a safe jump. Its effectiveness varies depending on distance. If she tries to air dash in from farther away, you can use a DP or invincible Overdrive to intercept her approach. With all this considered, her using 2D in neutral is actually the least threatening thing she could do.

If you see Giovanna double jump high into the air while she has Tension, she's likely attempting to use her aerial Overdrive Tempestade (aka Divekick)GGST Giovanna j236236H 1.pngGuardAllStartup3+1RecoveryAdvantage0~+6. You can punish this on reaction by inputting a reversal Overdrive during the super flash. If you don't have the Tension to punish this and you're forced to block it, it's not an overhead, so it can be blocked while crouching. However, it is +6, and Giovanna can do a tick throw immediately afterwards and begin running her pressure, so bear that in mind.

Offense


Giovanna has no meterless invincible reversal. She does have a 4 frame 5PGGST Giovanna 5P.pngGuardAllStartup4Recovery9Advantage-2 and a 5 frame 2PGGST Giovanna 2P.pngGuardAllStartup5Recovery10Advantage-2 that she can mash during pressure, but that's about all she has. Otherwise, just bait and punish her invincible reversal Overdrive VentaniaGGST Giovanna Ventania.pngGuardAllStartup5+4Recovery49Advantage-37 when she has Tension.

Defense


If Gio manages to get in, her close range pressure primarily consists of the use of frametraps, tick throws, and dash cancels for strike/throw mix.

Using Faultless Defense

Without Fautless Defense, Giovanna's c.SGGST Giovanna cS.pngGuardAllStartup7Recovery10Advantage+3 can create what feels like endless pressure that forces you into dangerous guessing situations from any hit. Fortunately, it only takes a single use of FD to make her pressure much easier to escape from. If Giovanna has not be conditioned to use 2SGGST Giovanna 2S1.pngGuardLowStartup9Recovery15Advantage-6 as a meaty, standing FD blocking is great as it has more pushback than crouching. Also IBFD on her c.S can completely end her turn. The more distance Giovanna has to travel to make her normals connect, the more time you'll have to interrupt her. The differences may seem hard to capitalize on at first due to the continued speed of her dash, but try your best to be aware of your openings and time your fast buttons preemptively to catch her in the act of getting back in.

Dealing With Her Special Moves

Both Spiral Arrow and Sol Poente (aka Flip Kick)GGST Giovanna 214S 1.pngGuardAll, HighStartup{4} 27Recovery21Advantage-5 can both be dealt with by using 6P. Sol Poente is an overhead kick that is +4 on block with 27 frames of startup. Gio can flip over opponents and cross them up with this move. In addition to 6P, if your character has a high reaching jab, you can 5P her out of it. If you’re feeling risky, you can even go for an air throw. If the move crosses you up, you’ll have to adjust your timing for 6P or 5P. You need to delay it so that your character will turn around and hit her out of it.

Cartwheel is -15 on block, but if Gio has meter, she can PRC it and attack you with an aerial move. You cannot punish her in this case, it’ll stuff any button, even 6P.

Dealing with Post-Sepultura Options

Because of the weaknesses of her other special moves, SepulturaGGST Giovanna Sepultura.pngGuardAllStartup13Recovery20Advantage-4 is the only special move Giovanna has that she can rely on as a safe blockstring ender. This move is only -4, so it’s not really punishable with anything. Attempting to do so can lead you to getting frametrapped by Flip Kick or another one of Gio’s fast abare options. However, if you let Gio scare you into not pressing anything, she can start stealing turns. You're going to have to play a bit of RPS around what option she'll do post-Sepultura.

When it comes to dealing with this special move, the first thing you have to do is assess the distance between you and her. Figuring out just how far away she is after Sepultura determines how to deal with it. The closer she is to you, the more potent Sol Nascente becomes. Even 2Ps can get counter hit in close range because of how low her hurtbox is during this move. If she's up close, you can use 2K to take your turn back after blocking it. 2Ks are low and too quick for her to interrupt. She can backdash the 2K, but you’ll still have frame advantage, meaning she can't punish you if it whiffs, only restart her pressure. Study the Gio player’s habits. If she keeps backdashing after Sepultura, then you can start using a long range button, such as a 2S to catch the backdash. In turn, it's why lows are so important against Giovanna. Beating her low profile means you're able to reliably take back your turn when she ends her blockstrings with . If Giovanna has no meter, there's especially no reason not to hit a low unless you are one of the six characters with a ~4 frame normal ( Sol 5KGGST Sol Badguy 5K.pngGuardAllStartup3Recovery25Advantage-16 & 5PGGST Sol Badguy 5P.pngGuardAllStartup4Recovery9Advantage-2,  Chipp 5PGGST Chipp Zanuff 5P.pngGuardAllStartup3Recovery10Advantage-2,  Millia 2PGGST Millia Rage 2P.pngGuardAllStartup4Recovery10Advantage-2,  Baiken 5PGGST Baiken 5P.pngGuardAllStartup4Recovery10Advantage-2,  May 5PGGST May 5P.pngGuardAllStartup4Recovery8Advantage-1,  Giovanna 5PGGST Giovanna 5P.pngGuardAllStartup4Recovery9Advantage-2) able to land a punish.


Two mid-hitting attacks, and then a low against Giovanna's 214KGGST Giovanna Sepultura.pngGuardAllStartup13Recovery20Advantage-4 > 623SGGST Giovanna Sol Nascente.pngGuardAllStartup7Recovery21Advantage-15 trap. Despite 5PGGST Ramlethal Valentine 5P.pngGuardAllStartup5Recovery8Advantage-2 being faster, 2KGGST Ramlethal Valentine 2K.pngGuardLowStartup6Recovery9Advantage-2 connects due to it beating the low profile.

If she’s outside of the range of 2K, you won’t be able to take your turn back this way. She can recover in time to punish longer range buttons by dashing into her own 2KGGST Giovanna 2K.pngGuardLowStartup6Recovery11Advantage-2 or 2PGGST Giovanna 2P.pngGuardAllStartup5Recovery10Advantage-2, despite the frame disadvantage. If you misjudge the distance between you and her and input your 2K, she can easily whiff punish you with these buttons. There are three ways to deal with post-Sepultura options outside of your 2K range:

1. If you use Faultless Defense, you can push her out farther and give you more room to intercept whatever approach she opts for from there. Intercept them using the same buttons you'd use in neutral: either 5K or 2K for ground approaches, and 6P for aerial approaches or Spiral Arrow.

2. Sepultura is -4 on block. If you successfully Instant Block it, it's a free grab punish. This is a difficult option however, as it will hinge on whether or not the Gio player delays the Sepultura.

3. Finally, you can simply backdash out of this guessing game. As long as you’ve got space behind you, she can’t stop you from doing it, only punish you if you’re too predictable about it.

Dealing With Her Dash Cancels/Dash-In Options

Keep an eye out for the flames that appear on the ground when Gio dash cancels her normals. This will be key for dealing with her tick throws and frametraps. All characters can only dash cancel off of either their c.S or 5KGGST Giovanna 5K.pngGuardAllStartup6Recovery12Advantage-2. Be on the lookout for these normals during her pressure. Once you see the dash cancel, she’s locked into the dash animation for its entire duration. She can’t shimmy or jump until the dash animation is complete. You can punish both of these dash cancels with a throw. After a dash cancel from c.S, you have a 4 frame window to throw punish her. You have a slightly longer window of time to input throw after a dash canceled 5K.

When it comes to her tick throws, remember that Gio can’t grab you immediately after a blocked c.S This move always manages to push you out of her throw range. However, with dash momentum inwards, she can throw you immediately off of her 5K/2K. These are the buttons you need to watch out for, they’re your visual cues. From here, simply grabbing not only beats her grab, it also saves you from 5[D]GGST Giovanna 5D.pngGuardHighStartup28Recovery25Advantage-10, Sepultura, and her delayed gatlings. This will also work if she tries to tick throw after a dash-in 5P or 2P as well.

However, just because throw is a solution in these situations doesn’t necessarily mean you should just do it every single time. She can shut you down from doing this by frametrapping her 5K with 6PGGST Giovanna 6P.pngGuardAllStartup12Recovery15Advantage-9 or her ability to jump cancel her 5K and hit you with an aerial. To avoid getting counter hit by these options, you’ll need to do a delayed grab. A delayed grab will block both frametraps for you and still break the grab that may come after the dash-in 5K. To get the timing for this correct, set a bot to randomly do all 3 options for about 60 seconds. As long as you don’t get hit and break every grab, you’re delaying the grab the correct amount of time.

Dealing with Common Frametraps

Like with any character’s pressure, be especially careful about mashing in-between her f.SGGST Giovanna fS1.pngGuardAllStartup9Recovery16Advantage-4 and 5HGGST Giovanna 5H.pngGuardAllStartup10Recovery19Advantage-5. The only reason to mash between these buttons is if you think she’ll go for a throw after the f.S instead of a 5H. Use Faultless Defense to push her out. You can use this to create space or challenge her directly with 6P if she inputs a delayed 5H after the f.S.

Another frametrap to avoid is a delayed Sepultura at the end of her blockstrings. To avoid this, once she’s reached the end of her blockstrings, briefly delay your next action to see if she goes for it.

The next frame trap is tricky. Some Gios like to gatling from her kicks into either her 2D, Flip Kick, or jump cancel into an aerial option. You can interrupt all of these options with a 5P or 2P since she isn’t in throw range, but if you’re a little slow to react, you’re getting counter hit into a wall break. In this situation, the safest option is hold your ground and be on the lookout for that delayed Sepultura before you take your turn.

Off of Gio’s c.S, she has a potential high/low mix, as she can do either an uncharged 5DGGST Giovanna 5D.pngGuardHighStartup20Recovery25Advantage-15 or 2D. She might not be able to combo off of the 5D if it hits (unless she has meter for a Roman Cancel) but she’s so plus she can dash in for another c.S. You're going to have to guess here, but make sure you're using Faultless Defense to give yourself time to punish her if she tries to dash in again.

Dealing with Safe Jumps

When Gio gets a clean hit on you, one of three things are going to happen if you don’t have Burst: you’re going to die, you’re getting wall-broken (which means she’s getting positive bonus), or you’re getting safe jumped. 9 times out of 10, you’re likely going to just get safe jumped. After a hard knockdown, either from Sepultura, 2D, or a throw, use Faultless Defense on her jump-in to push her out. This will take some of the immediate strike/throw pressure off the table and give you breathing room to use all of the counterplay talked about up until now. Make her work for those c.Ses and you should be getting conditioned for her strike/throw game significantly less.

Random notes

Trovão Projectile Chart

TrovãoGGST Giovanna Trovao.pngGuardAll [All (Guard Crush)]Startup27Recovery13Advantage+4 [+15] negates many, but not all projectiles it comes in contact with. Here's the full chart:

Projectile chart  
Character Attack Trovão wins?
 Anji Mito ShitsuGGST Anji Mito 236P.pngGuardAllStartup29RecoveryTotal 52Advantage-6 Wins
 Baiken Tatami GaeshiGGST Baiken 236K.pngGuardAllStartup15Recovery5Advantage-3 DependsGiovanna loses on 236K(1), but wins on 236K(2)
 Bridget Stop and DashGGST Bridget Stop and Dash Overlay Air.pngGuardAllStartup15RecoveryTotal 38Advantage-4 Wins
 Chipp ShurikenGGST Chipp Zanuff Shuriken.pngGuardAllStartup22Recovery35+4 After LandingAdvantage- Wins
 Goldlewis Dickinson SkyfishGGST Goldlewis Dickinson Skyfish.pngGuardAllStartup35Recovery84 TotalAdvantage-13 Loses
 I-No Antidepressant ScaleGGST I-No Antidepressant Scale.pngGuardAllStartup29RecoveryTotal 51Advantage-8 Wins
 Ky Kiske Stun EdgeGGST Ky Kiske 236S.pngGuardAllStartup13RecoveryTotal 46Advantage-14 (S, H, j.S versions) Wins
Sacred EdgeGGST Ky Kiske 236236P.pngGuardAll [All (Guard Crush)]Startup4+3RecoveryTotal 38Advantage+10 [+26] Loses
 Leo Whitefang Gravierte WürdeGGST Leo Whitefang Graviert Wurde.pngGuardAllStartup10RecoveryTotal 50FAdvantage-12 (S and H versions) Wins
StahlwirbelGGST Leo Whitefang Stahl Wirbel.pngGuardAllStartup4+1RecoveryTotal 27FAdvantage+14 Loses
 May Arisugawa SparkleGGST May Arisugawa Sparkle.pngGuardAllStartup48RecoveryTotal 45Advantage+29 (P and K versions) Wins
 Millia Rage Tandem TopGGST Millia Rage Tandem Top Full.pngGuardAllStartup12RecoveryTotal 45Advantage-10 (S and H versions) Wins
Septem VoicesGGST Millia Rage Septem Voices.pngGuardAllStartup4+5RecoveryTotal 43Advantage+8 Loses
 Nagoriyuki ZarameyukiGGST Nagoriyuki Zarameyuki1.pngGuardAllStartup18~29RecoveryTotal 39Advantage+5 Loses
 Ramlethal Valentine BajonetoGGST Ramlethal Valentine Bajoneto H.pngGuardAllStartup20RecoveryTotal 43Advantage+3 Loses
CalvadosGGST Ramlethal Valentine Calvados.pngGuardAll (Guard Crush)Startup11+13Recovery17Advantage+16 Loses
 Sol Badguy GunflameGGST Sol Badguy 236P.pngGuardAllStartup18RecoveryTotal 54Advantage-10 Wins
 Testament Grave ReaperGGST Testament j236S.pngGuardAllStartup16~22Recovery27Advantage-4 (all versions) Wins
Unholy DiverGGST Testament 214P.pngGuardAllStartup21RecoveryTotal 39Advantage+1 WinsNeither damage nor stain are applied
 Zato-1 Sun VoidGGST Zato-1 Sun Void.pngGuardAllStartup11+14RecoveryAdvantage+3 Loses

Reversal Chart

Below is a list of invincible reversals and parameters detailing the following:

  • Whether or not you are able to use a correctly spaced and timed meaty 2D to outrange their reversal and punish, typically determined by the move's range and speed.
    • Yes means 2D successfully outranges the reversal and you are able to punish it accordingly (unless stated otherwise with *). This assumes that you are at at ideal range away from the reversal, as moves with 7 frame startup or less will beat out your 2D if you are too close, even with optimal meaty timing.
    • Clash means 2D's hitbox may clash with the reversal if the meaty isn't optimally timed, still outranging the move but allowing it to be cancelled into something safe. Repeat clashes would likely make someone catch on and learn how to cancel from it, but it's generally not too bad as you can also cancel into FD to be safe, and as each clash builds 10% Tension.
    • No means 2D has to be out of the opponent's body distance to outrange the reversal, or simply cannot outrange it. You may still be able to time a meaty 2D safely (unless it is marked with **), but improper timing will see you getting hit. If a move both cannot be outranged and outspeeds 2D's recovery (No**), 2D absolutely cannot beat it. You're much better off using a safejump, or simply blocking.
  • Which safejumps will work against the reversal, typically determined by its speed.
    • All means the reversal is slow enough to be safejumped by any conventional setup.
    • Fast means the reversal comes out in ~7 frames, requiring a fast setup that recovers earlier to properly safejump the reversal, such as with 5K OTG.
    • None means it cannot be safejumped.
Character Reversal 2D Outrange? Safejumps
Anji Mito Kachoufuugetsu Kai No** None
Axl Low Sickle Storm No All
Chipp Zanuff Beta Blade Clash Fast
Faust Bone-crushing Excitement No All
Giovanna Ventania No Fast
Goldlewis Down With The System Clash All
Down With The System (720) Yes All
Down With The System (1080) Yes All
I-No Ultimate Fortissimo Clash* Fast
Ky Kiske Vapor Thrust Yes All
Ride The Lightning No** Fast
Leo Whitefang Eisensturm Clash Fast
Leidenschaft des Dirigenten No All
May The Wonderful and Dynamic Goshogawara Clash All
Millia Rage Winger Yes Fast
Nagoriyuki Wasureyuki No** All
Zansetsu No All
Potemkin Giganter Kai Yes* All
Ramlethal Mortobato No** Fast
Sol Badguy Volcanic Viper Clash Fast
Tyrant Rave Yes Fast
Testament Calamity One No All
* Cannot punish.
** Comes out in ~7 frames, meaning it can punish 2D's recovery regardless of meaty timing. Basically, don't 2D this if you can help it.

External Resources

Navigation

Systems Pages