General Gameplan

This page has mostly generic beginner advice. Most important info is in the character specific guides or in your personal notes.

Offense

• After you knock your opponent down time an attack to hit exactly when they get up
  • This attack is called a Meaty
    • See also: Okizeme
  • Loses to getup attack, invincible supers, and roll
  • The risk of going for a meaty is usually extremely low for you and you get to kill them if they do something wrong
    • The exception is if their Ultimate is available
  • should be your default option
  • Can chase roll with dash dash dash meaty L
    • Dash macro makes you auto turn around if they roll
    • Usually only have time to meaty with L
    • Loses to get up attack but you can beat this by guessing dash dash block.
• When you make them block
  • Do your block string
    • For example, Blitz might do M 2M H S2
  • Do stagger pressure
    • Do your block string but put small delays in between attacks
      • Will catch people mashing, jumping, or walking back(if you go low)
    • L is usually very good for this. Many chars have a +1F or +0F L.
  • Or just throw

Assists

Using Assists

• Sajam guide
• Krakatoa guide
• In general use assists to extend block strings or to win neutral.
  • Can also use to extend combos but that takes more thought.
• If an assist makes contact with the opponent (on hit or on block) it is often a good idea to tag immediately
• If an assist doesn’t make contact throw out a move and tag
  • As soon as you initiate the move you should tag to give your teammate more time
    • If the move is a charged/held move you can keep holding it while you are tagged out and release whenever
    • If the move has followups you can do the follow-up while you are tagged out
      • There are some exceptions
  • Some good options:
    • A forward advancing special move
    • Projectiles
    • Hooks
    • [H]
    • Any charged special
      • This one was so good they disallowed some from working
• If you initiate certain moves that have a follow-up you can tag out and finish the move by pressing the follow-up button.
  • Guide
    • A couple of the moves mentioned in the example don’t work anymore but the concept still applies
  • This will allow you to control both characters at once
  • Also applies for [H]
  • Easier in duos
  • Amazing for mix
  • This is called puppeting
  • Full list of puppetable moves

Fighting and Defending Enemy Assists

• You want to fight when the enemy’s assist is on cooldown. Bait out opponent assist if possible.
• If you dont have your assist available you want to stall until you do.
• Don’t jump in on an assist. They will handshake > anti air you.
• 2H assists and jump cancel into block
• Don’t press a button if sandwiched
• The counterplay to sandwiches is to pushblock before it happens.

Defense

• Sajam Defense Guide

Blocking -> Fighting back

• When you are blocking the opponent, There is usually a gap after they use a special move. This is your turn to fight back
  • This depends on what move they use so you have to guess until you have more knowledge of the game
• In general
  • If they are close and you think there is a small gap use L
    • Fast but short range
  • If they are medium distance and there is a bigger gap use run up M (or just M)
  • Blocking more is a good option
  • If they whiff (miss) an attack its your turn
  • Blocking or dodging a super usually gives a lot of time to run up and kill your opponent

Push-blocking (T during block)

• You can push the opponent away from you if you are blocking
  • This requires uses your assist cooldown (or 1 bar of super for Juggernaut)
  • Very strong get out of jail free card but can be baited if they are good
  • If you pushblock L fast characters will run up and kill you
  • If you pushblock M fast characters can try to run up and kill you
  • Usually best thing after pushblock is special move -> Tag
  • Usually the best time to push block is right before an opponent uses a special move so they miss it
    • (This often means push-blocking as you block H or 2H).
  • Pushblock > upback ok in neutral
  • Use often, it will save your life.
• Pushblock only pushes one of the enemies away which could be bad for you.
  • Against good players you risk killing your teammate to avoid a mixup.
    • Sometimes you will both die

Retreating guard (dash during block)

• Moves you backwards
  • Different distances depending on if you do it right away or delay until the attack pushes you back a little
    • Which one you want depends on distance
• Builds Meter
• Blocks Mids and Overheads
• Weak to throw in corner
• Does NOT block low
  • Especially dangerous in corner
• Retreating guarding projectiles is often good assuming you don’t mind being far from the opponent
• Retreating guarding jump ins can be ok but they can hit a low after.
  • Press M immediately after to punish
  • Could also do upback to run away
• Generally you should retreating guard H attacks so that the opponent whiffs a special
• Usually bad to do when sandwiched
• Very good at defending against double overheads

When you get knocked down

• Block
  • Safest, default option
• Roll Forward/through
  • Best in corner BUT predictable
  • Loses to throw
  • Usually you roll > block
  • Cannot roll if you get forward thrown
  • Locks you out of getup attack
• Roll Backwards
  • Bad in corner
  • Good as default midscreen
  • Loses to throw
  • Usually you roll > block
  • Cannot roll if you get forward thrown
  • Locks you out of getup attack
• Getup attack ([S1] or [S2] on wakeup)
  • Invincible
  • Pushes them off you
  • Does very little damage
  • Beats getting attacked
  • If they block this you will die
• Jump
  • Beats throws
  • Loses to meaty attacks
• Attack
  • Highest risk option. You will die if you you guess wrong.
  • You are basically gambling they will miss their meaty
  • If you attack you probably want to press something fast like L
  • I do not reccomend this basically ever unless you see that your opponent messed up.
  • At a high level, this is done when you think your opponent is delaying an attack to steal an opportunity elsewhere.
• Throw
  • Good if you think they will throw you. You will break the throw and return to neutral
  • Fast. Can do it if you think they will miss their meaty. Don’t really reccomend.
• Super
  • Only level 3 supers are fully invincible
    • Some level 1s are invincible after a delay, meaning they lose to meatys.
  • If you get blocked you waste your meter and die. Please do not do this.

Parry

• Stand Parry blocks overhead and mids
• Low parry blocks lows
• Landing a parry will stun your opponent unless you parried a projectile
  • Should cancel parry into dash to get to your opponent faster and hit them
• Dash Parry can make some moves easier to parry
• The best time to parry is when your opponent uses a special move that leaves a gap.
  • Some examples of special moves with a gap:
    • Darius Hook
    • Vi denting blows S2
• Parrying Special moves can seem hard at first but there are a few tricks that make it much easier
  • Some special moves leave a small enough gap where parry is guaranteed if you just mash it
    • For example Vi denting blows S2.
      • After blocking the first hit just mash parry.
  • Most players telegraph when they are about to use a special move
    • For example:
      • Yasuos will often do M H into crossup
      • Darius will often do M H into hook
    • Better players wll start to switch it up
• Parry scales your combo (makes you do less damage)

Pushblock

• Generally pushblock H attacks so that the opponent whiffs a special
  • Good default after this is to throw out a special move > tag
• Pushblock before you get sandwiched.
• Fury Bait
  • Niche

Burst

• Don’t burst 2H
  • Very easy for opponent to jump cancel and block after
• Don’t burst when opponent is jumping from the ground
  • Same reason as above. Opponent can jump and block.
• Don’t burst when opponent assist is on screen and their handshake is available
  • Especially bad. This is reactable for as long as their assist is on screen
  • Good skill to learn. Most reliable way to bait burst on offense.
• Consider saving burst for fury
• Bursting relatively early is good so you can build back another one by the next round
• Bursting late in the combo is usually not worth it unless you would die.
• Bursting the opponent into the corner is really good
  • Ahri, Caitlyn, and Warwick have combos that put themselves in the corner.
• Only burst if you think you can win the round
• Consider holding burst if the combo won’t do much damage.
  • L starters reduce combo damage by a lot
• Limit strike often to build burst

Misc.

• Block stun cancel
• Bait pushblock
• SQ Defensive Mechanics Counters