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Long-ranged attacks, good durability and powerful command grabs are what makes up the hulking juggernaut, Potemkin. His signature move is the infamous Potemkin Buster, a command grab with good speed, long range and gargantuan damage output. Potemkin’s gameplan revolves around finding ways to land the throw and using other moves to punish counter-play. If opponents jump, Potemkin has many anti-airs to choose from, such as Heat Knuckle. Large normals, such as f.S and 5H, allow him to challenge both grounded and aerial opponents from ranges beyond throw range.
Potemkin’s biggest weakness is movement, he can neither run nor air dash. He struggles against zoning as a result. Don’t be discouraged, Potemkin has several gap-closing tools, unconventional as they may be. Hammer Fall slides forward relatively quickly. Slide Head creates a shock wave that knocks grounded opponents down if they are not blocking low. Both the aforementioned moves can also armor through one hit. He can even use F.D.B. to reflect projectiles. Right back at ya!
While useful, Potemkin’s gap-closing tools have significant weak points, so moving forward is generally unfavorable despite being necessary. However, his high durability and damage output offset this weakness somewhat.
Potemkin is recommended for players who want to utilize powerful throws and long-ranged normals to instill fear in their opponent and punish them harder than anyone else!
Potemkin Potemkin , classified as a Power Grappler, is the mainstay grappler of the Guilty Gear series. He is slow, but durable and deals tremendous damage once you are in his grasp.
- Absurd Damage Output: In Strive, Potemkin Buster's damage levels have been cranked up to ridiculous levels, as well as Potemkin's normal and counter-hit combos doing easily above average levels of damage.
- High Defensive Stats: Potemkin's defense modifier is the highest in the game, other than Giovanna in her powered up state. This allows you to take more hits and use your life bar as a resource.
- Large Hitboxes: Boasting some of the largest hitboxes in the game which lend him above average area control, such as f.S, 5H, or 2D.
- Terrifying Strike-Throw Mix: Potemkin's high damage, long range, good uses of meter, and surprisingly deceptive Kara-Buster can make it very scary to actively contest Potemkin's offense.
- Armor: Both Hammerfall and Slide Head have armor properties. This allows Potemkin to deal with certain moves well and to have a good neutral presence.
- Lack of Mobility: Potemkin possesses no run, air dash, or step dash. This means that it takes a lot of effort to close the gap, and the ways that he does so are unconventional.
- Large Hurtboxes: A big body means that whiff punishing his larger attacks will be easier than average, and he will have to start block some attacks earlier than other characters due to his wide and tall hurtbox.
- Zoner Issues: Characters such as Axl are very difficult to deal with to Potemkin. Due to his limited mobility you have to rely on patience and your tools, such as F.D.B. and Slide Head, to make your way through.
Potemkin |
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Normal Moves
5P
Since this is Potemkin's fastest normal, it is inherently useful in some cases where its speed is needed. It is large for its speed, and can be used as a quick anti-air or short-ranged poke.
Whiffs on crouching opponents, just like Xrd.
5K
A standing low with decent range and great active frames. Can be used as a meaty to score a knockdown along with 2D. Has some niche uses in combos due to its cancel into 6H.
c.S
A fantastic button all around. Fairly fast, solid hitbox, and great frame advantage on hit and on block. Its frame advantage on block gives Potemkin access to some scary frame traps.
If you want a button to connect, it's this one.
- Combos into 2H for a Heavenly Potemkin Buster or Heat Knuckle
f.S
A large poke with a great hitbox, can be used to smack people out of the air or whiff punish people on the ground as it gatlings into 5H. However the reward it offers on hit is somewhat limited without use of meter or counter hit as it cannot gatling into 2D.
5H
A huge poke that claims a lot of neutral space and hits very hard. However, it can be beaten by things such as sword normals or fast projectiles as the hurtbox is along Potemkin's arm. Great reward on counter hit, allowing Potemkin to close the gap with Slide Head or Hammerfall depending on the distance of the opponent.
5D
Potemkin's version of the universal overhead. Uncharged version can be fairly rewarding on counter hit, but if you manage to get the charged version off Potemkin is rewarded with immense damage.
6P
Potemkin's go to anti-air. You'd think that due to his size, he'd have a hard time anti-airing, but this 6P has him sit down and still gives him a bunch of upper body invulnerability. Its great hitbox size smacks a lot of things out of the sky.
You will need meter to get any kind of real combo out of a hit, but on counter hit it gives a hard knockdown and the perfect range to set up Garuda Oki.
Hurtbox size over time:
1-4 upper body invuln
5-17 above knees invuln
6K
A very slow gap closing shoulder tackle. A situational move that can be cancelled into from most normals, and cancels into specials. 6K>FDB will catch some opponents who are not actively expecting it. 6K can also be delay cancelled into Pot Buster or cancelled into Mega Fist to supplement this mixup.
One of the main usages of 6K in Strive is that it can now be kara-cancelled, meaning Potemkin can cancel the startup of 6K into special moves, preserving the forward movement it provides. This can result in a forward moving and slightly slower Potemkin Buster or Garuda Impact, a safe on block Mega Fist, and so on.
6H
Potemkin's most damaging normal, with huge range to boot. 6H is good for long ranged punishes due to its range, and since on counterhit sends the opponent flying into the corner. Using it in combos or after a wall splat will tack on the huge damage that Potemkin is known for.
2P
A nice quick poke. If you need to mash out of a scramble, 2P is nice since it won't whiff on crouching or low-profiled opponents like 5P will. However it is slightly slower so it's not your fastest option.
2K
A fast low, less active but much longer than 5K. Great after landing a jump in or if you need to score a quick knockdown from a bit farther away.
2S
Since 2S is slower than c.S and f.S, you'd rather not use it in neutral. It's fantastic in combos, as it pops airborne opponents higher up and is really large and able to catch people falling to the ground.
On counterhit, it causes a stagger which allows you to convert into huge damage. Using 2S as a frametrap after something like c.S to score said counterhit is very scary.
2H
A massive uppercut that opens a world of damage up to Potemkin. A good anti-air on a read, but due to its large hurtbox and less than stellar speed, it shouldn't be thrown out on reaction. 2H is a massive part of Potemkin's combo game, as it leads to his highest damaging combos. Beware the short range, as 2H will not consistently connect at some ranges.
2D
Your go-to low poke or short combo ender. Hard knockdown on hit, allows for HFB into oki. Fast enough that it will punish some specials (like Stun Dipper) at the right range. Hitting a counterhit at various ranges will actually result in some good damage as it pops the opponent up.
j.P
A fast air-to-air option. Useful for when the opponent is above Potemkin other air buttons would be too slow. Chains into itself, but not into any other button.
j.K
A jump cancellable quick kick. You can do some fun air combos after an air to air or RC or pull off some double jump gimmicks when you use it as a jump in.
j.S
Potemkin spikes down, which results in a jump in less rewarding than his j.H but with better vertical range, meaning you don't have to go in quite as deep to secure the hit.
j.H
The classic grappler body splash, with a Potemkin twist. Is wide enough to cross up, can be used as a big and slow air to air, and gives good damage on hit and even more on counterhit. What more could you ask for?
Do note however that just like many of Potemkin's other Heavy Slash normals, the hurtbox is big and the move is generally slow. Don't throw it out without any regard to your personal safety.
j.D
The classic butt slam. Stops all horizontal air movement and sends Potemkin straight down. You can no longer influence the direction since 4D/6D is now air grab. Useful to get out of the air quickly, avoid grabs like Heavy Mob Cemetary, or confuse your opponent with the change in momentum.
Universal Mechanics
Ground Throw
Universal throw, puts the opponent a jump's distance away from Potemkin which is nice. Faster but smaller than Potemkin Buster, and with much less damage of course.
Air Throw
Universal air grab. Keeps the opponent fairly close to you which is always nice.
Special Moves
Potemkin Buster
632146P
Potemkin's main command grab. Your entire gameplan revolves around getting your opponent into this. Does massive damage on hit, has good range, and decent startup.
To extend its range, Kara Cancel 6K into it. This is done easiest by plinking? the Potemkin Buster input with K~P (so your input will be 632146K~P). This is generally referred to as "Kara Buster" and is important for catching opponents from further away. It'll also increase the startup by 1-2 frames, so if you're already close there's not much reason to do it outside of getting a better tick throw window.
Heat Knuckle
623H
Heat Knuckle is Potemkin's anti-air grab. As of Strive, Heat Knuckle is no longer an unblockable hit throw?, Potemkin reaches his hand up at about a 45-degree angle, and if the opponent is caught, an animation will play out before the opponent is blasted away. If Heat Knuckle is blocked, it puts the opponent in a guard crush state where they are unable to burst or YRC until landing.
- Automatic Wall Break in the corner
- If blocked, opponent has landing recovery frames cancelled and can immediately act upon landing
- Potbuster is no longer guaranteed at certain heights
- A c.S or 5K can check an attempt to jump a PB attempt after blocked Heat Knuckle
- Advantage is height-dependent ranging from +10 to +1
Useful for catching airdash-happy opponents and opponents who use early jump buttons (Ram, Axl, Sol, etc). At close range, it puts Potemkin at advantage, but at any range outside of 5P, you're back to neutral.
Mega Fist
236P or 214P
Potemkin leaps forward or backward with a heavy double-punch. Due to Potemkin leaping in the air, mega fist is able to easily avoid most enemy attacks, usually causing an easy counter-hit. The large hit box leads to most anti-air attempts trading unless timed properly with a large hitbox. If used sparingly and with good spacing, it is a strong advancing tool.
- Punishable on block, but can be safe at longer ranges due to its pushback.
- The kara version (236K~P) travels a much greater distance. Closes the gap on zoners quickly and is safer than Hammer Fall if blocked.
- Backwards
- Advantageous on block
- Doing 2146K~P will perform a Kara Backwards Megafist. This will move Potemkin very slightly forward, at the cost of his +4 advantage (becomes -2 on block but also gains 15 damage). Performing Kara Backwards Megafist grants Potemkin a very damaging combo filler both midscreen and in corner.
This is the version you want to actually be using, simply because KBMFKara Backwards Mega Fist is safe on block and travels basically the same distance any way. It's also easy to confirm on hit and is basically better in every single way. The added startup and mildly different travel distance is an incredibly small price to pay for complete safety should this be blocked.
If you find yourself in a neutral situation, you might occasionally want to use Forward over this, but defensively and just about everywhere else Backwards and KBMF are the way to go.
Slide Head
236S
Potemkin falls forward and creates a shockwave that hits low and grants hard knockdown on hit.
- A strong way to deal with zoning if you can react to projectile startups
- Can be canceled into from 2S making it a good threat to defensive characters
- Has one hit of armor
Hammer Fall
[4]6H
Potemkin lurches forward and clamps his fists together. Causes soft knockdown/instant tech on hit.
- Potemkin's best forward movement option.
- Can be canceled into Hammerfall break by pressing P while Potemkin is moving.
- Has a single hit of armor. Will lose to any projectile with multiple hits.
The break cancel window is much larger than previous iterations, so you can be VERY liberal with your distance. Also note that unlike previous iterations, in Strive you can force the earliest possible break by inputting H + P at the same time.
Practice the timing, you don't want to whiff Hammerfall in someone's face. You've already seen the video. You already know this loses to all the 6p's.
F.D.B.
63214S (Hold OK)
Potemkin leans down and flicks. This is both an anti-projectile move and a mid range poke. A key part of Potemkin's anti-zoning toolkit.
The attack has decent range and a very strong hitbox that is difficult to contest with if done pre-emptively. On hit it will knock the opponent away, allowing you to advance towards the corner.
If Potemkin is hit by a projectile at any point during this move, he will counter it with a blast wave that travels a long distance and destroys other projectiles along the way.
The animation is misleading: you do not need to time the flick to counter projectiles. The counter window is very generous and begins immediately on startup (frame 2).
- Can be held to vary timing
- Frame trap from heavy normals (cS, 6K, etc.)
Character | Move |
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Anji | Shitsu (Both butterfly and bird)
Fuujin Followup Shin: Ichishiki |
Axl | Rensen (green fullscreen sickle)
Winter Cherry Rensen Followup (explosion) |
Chipp | |
Faust | Love (Bag and explosion)
What Could This Be? - Bomb (Explosion only) What Could This Be? - Meteors (Hitting another meteor nullifies reflected projectile) |
Giovanna | |
I-no | Antidepressant Scale
Chemical Love |
Ky Kiske | Stun Edge (ground, air)
Charged Stun Edge j.D |
Leo Whitefang | Gravierte Wurde (S and H versions) |
May | Arisugawa Sparkle (P and K versions) |
Millia Rage | Tandem Top (S and H version) |
Nagoriyuki | Zarameyuki |
Potemkin | |
Ramlethal Valentine | Banjoneto (S and H versions) (Nullifies reflected projectile)
Banjoneto Followup Explosion (May nullify reflected projectile) Kara flick is necessary to guarantee your projectile will not break |
Sol Badguy | Gunflame |
Zato-1 | "That's a lot!"
Invite Hell |
Garuda Impact
214H
Potemkin rears back and unleashes a blast from the gauntlet on his arm. One of his main oki tools, with many ways to set up a meaty Garuda. Builds up RISC and has ridiculous chip damage even on block. On hit, leads to easy Potbuster confirms.
- Can be made DP safe by spacing it properly to make reversal DP whiff for a counterhit starter combo.
- Beats reversal backdash too.
- Some reversal Supers can beat Garuda oki however.
- Guard Crush state leaves the opponent in an unthrowable state but a 2D/Potbuster mix can be attempted near the end of the crush animation.
- 2D will catch jump/mash/backdash while Potbuster will scoop up attempts to block the 2D.
- Fuzzy jump works pretty decently versus this setup though.
- VS characters with no DP, Kara Cancel Garuda followed by c.S sets up a powerful strike/throw mix with potential to end rounds if the opponent guesses wrong.
Overdrives
Heavenly Potemkin Buster
236236S
Potemkin leaps into the air at an angle, grabbing the opponent for MASSIVE damage.
- Quick startup lets you use this to react to jump ins
- Has decent priority, so it will beat many jump in options
- Has its use as a movement tool if all else fails
LEGACY PLAYERS BEWARE the hitbox for HPB has been scaled back, and will whiff on wakeup jump back if you don't delay it.
Giganter Kai
632146H
Potemkin creates a Blue shield that slowly moves across the screen.
- Has infinite(?) projectile invincibility and will nullify any projectiles that come in contact with it
- Invincible on startup, making it a useful reversal tool
- Will stay on screen even if Potemkin is hit
Keep in mind, Giganter will NOT go full stage, so keep your screen position in mind. It goes from the corner to approximately 2/3s of the stage.
84% complete | ||
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Page | Status | % |
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Overview | Missing information about kara canceling as a unique(?) mechanic and how specials interact with kara 6K. Need Invincibility/Armor descriptions, Some moves that have extra effects don't have descriptions (see giganteer kai projectile). Some minor editing about move usages as well. | 15/20 |
Combos | Missing videos for most of the combos. | 8/10 |
Strategy | Needs explanation for gameplan in neutral as well as counterplay. | 14/20 |
Frame Data | Missing some minor specifications, some questions how to framedata Giganter, but in general it's complete | 47/50 |