ANAKARIS FAQ (finished December 12, 2003, 11:25 US EST time) ("final" minor revisions December 4, 2004, 11:00pm) (yes, it took a year to finally try submitting from a windows instead of my mac) The last time I had updated my Anakaris FAQ (January 13, 2003) was the last time it would look like THAT. As I have gotten better once again and changed, so does the FAQ. I present to everyone simpler-looking renovations to my Anakaris FAQ. Table of Contents Abbreviations "Brian's School of Anakaris" Anakaris' Tier Rating Standard Attacks Anakaris' Special Moves, and How To Use Them Better Anakaris' Supers and How To Use Them Better Anakaris' Assist Types Anakaris' Ideal Partners Anakaris vs The Big Four Fun Facts Miscellaneous Contact Me! Special Thanks !!!. Copyright info I. Abbreviations b- back f- forward d- down u- up df- down-forward db- down-back uf- up-forward ub- up-back PP- both punches KK- both kicks DHC- delay hyper combo II. "Brian's School of Anakaris" A. ANAKARIS' tier rating- generally, he's consider like a high 3rd-low 2nd tier character, but when the god-tiers came about, he's more like a mid-tier, up to top- tier wannabe. he has the tricks to turn the tables on the opponent in an instant, but has craptastic defense. that, and his speed makes people think twice about trying him. -ANAKARIS' pros- *can cover a good amount of the screen using all of his moves *power *comboability *range *intimidation... it's all in the pharoah's curse and his ultra powerful level one super cobra rush *all specials can be done in the air infinitely, coffins can keep away AND build meter (not ultra fast, but gets the job done) *confusion and surprise *4 supers, 2 are really powerful, but 2 (not necessarily those two) are regularly useful *mummy wrap (idle hands, mirror hands) is too good, even if it can be crouched under *forward-only airdash -ANAKARIS' cons- *craptastic defense, as good as akuma and roll! *SLOOOooooowwww walking and jumping speed, though they can now be overlooked *lag on many normals and specials, thought not THAT bad, can be worked around as well *more easily pressured/trapped than he can do himself, but if you know what to do beforehand, you can avoid those situations ANAKARIS' pro-cons *he's big, so he has great reach with normals, but makes him easier to pressure B. Standard Attacks Standing Lp- straight chop at a slight downward angle. Mp- downward chop Fp- hands do a cobra bite at arms length Lk- shin kick Mk- weird straight kick, like his lk, but leans back more. Fk- shapes himself into a coffin and attacks with the feet. Leaves the ground. Crouching Lp- bandages poke the enemy Mp- arms emerge vertically from the ground in front of him, 2 hits Fp- LAUNCHER, arms emerge vertically from the ground around him (can counter cross-ups) Lk- hard-to-see foot bandage attack Mk- further than lk Fk- knockdown attack with good range, but bad lag. Jumping Lp- similar to his crouching lk, jumping Mp- good ranged leg attack, slight downward angle Fp- kick downward 60 degrees Lk- feet/legs emerge from the ground, kinda slow Mk- again, but it's 2 hits Fk- both feet strike from below, about a 60 degree angle Superjumping Lp, mp, fp same as jumping Lk- like jumping version, but closer to him. Has a good angle of vertical attack. Mk- like his jumping mp, but upwards instead Fk- straight kick, half-screen range -ANAKARIS' normal moves to use... on the ground- *his standing lp has awesome range for a non-dhalsim-or-juggernaut light attack, but more often going for a ground combo or launch combo, you're more likely to use the crouching. *i tend to use his lk when i can't dash in close, therefore going for a cobra blow ground combo instead *his crouching medium punch is perfect to call assists during, and anakaris can still combo one medium kick and one fierce to bridge in the assist attack *his standing fierce punch is a pretty quick cobra hand bite with slight lag. awesome for poking or dashing in, as he slides forward for a moment when using this in a dash *his cr. fierce punch (launcher) is pretty darn good covering directly above him, and it has deceptive range... not THAT deceptive, but slightly better than it looks *his standing fierce kick lifts him off the ground for half a second. i don't use it much except in a certain double DHC combo i use to wipe out sentinel in training mode (i'll tell it later) *his crouching fierce kick has a good range, but leaves him open unless you cancel into a lp-cobra blow *walk of the saint (back + lk) is a long range overhead. Before I didn't use this move much because I consider the pyramid smash a better overhead. I still hold to that, BUT this overhead will often lead to a Mummy Wrap if you don't get predictable with it. What I mean is to not use the same patterns of getting into it and using it, and to mix up usage of Mummy Wrap and knockdowns or more axe kick overheads -... in jump- NOTE: Many of you will probably think it makes no difference, but when Anakaris normal jumps and whiffs an attack on the way up, his decent will be sooner and faster. Alone, it probably leads to a near 100% vulnerability, depending on the opponent's ability to retaliate. But with assists, they can cover anak, and anak can cover for them once he lands, assuming the opponent chooses to stay on the ground *jumping backwards, his fk covers him decently, even better with any assist to cover another area. All of his kick button "jump" attacks appear from below, but I only use this strength. *jumping backwards from the corner, his fp I believe comes out faster than his fk, and considering Anakaris' sloowwwwwww jump speed, consider this a reliable overhead that you can fool the opponent into a curse with on anak's recovery, somewhat covering his decent. *his pyramid attack diagonal (air only down-forward + any kick) is just about the fastest overhead in the game (I could be wrong?) -... in superjump- NOTE: airdash rushdown! Characters with an airdash can often use it in part of their rushdown game. Although the best example of this is magneto, other characters without 8-way airdashes can still implement the same technique. Computer rogue is a common example here. Although Anakaris can't do nearly the same with his normals, his sj fp is perfect for tagging a grounded opponent as long as you're not too close nor you airdash too late *superjump lp is nothing special, but for the sake of getting out of airdash in order to block, this is I think his fastest possible way to try to get back into block animation should it be necessary. Otherwise, it's basically a starter of airdash rushdown against tall characters, as it stays out, so the bit of lag still counts as a falling hit. *his superjump lk has a great vertical reach. i'm playing around with undercrossing up with it after launching. what i mean is like launch, superjump, airdash immediately and possibly reset for a lil extra damage or whatever. *his superjump mp has a slight downward angle, but if the opponent is too thin AND anak is too close, it won't connect unless you straight vertical superjump. *his superjump mk has a slight upward angle, but the opponent is shifted down if the mk connects *his superjump fp attacks at a steeper angle, the same as his jump- version fp. if you have an opponent pressured in the corner, you can choose to come down with this, followed by a delayed fk to possibly unexpectedly overhead him. *his superjump fk has awesome non-dhalsim reach. on a grounded opponent, this causes less hit stun than his sj fp. C. ANAKARIS' specials, and how to use them better First off, his command moves: 1.Walk of the Saint - hold back, lk (overhead) It's an overhead with fair range. Before, I wouldn't use this often, but seriously, WHORE IT! Considering what Anakaris can do to anyone after landing this, I actually consider it one of his best moves now. Treat it as a medium kick attack. You can seriously use this move to force your opponent into a Mummy Wrap. It's hard to decide if this or the Pyramid smash is a better overhead because the Pyramid leads to rushdown, while the axe kick leads to more Mummy Wraps, which is important in Anakaris' game. 2.Pyramid Smash - d/df/f any kick (air only) His legs take the shape of a pyramid and he attacks a short distance with it. Holding down makes him attack downward, holding df (or db) makes him attack at a 45 degree angle, holding forward makes him attack straight forward. I use this as a quicker overhead because Anakaris' normal jump is so slow. Use this for melee rushdown because it's a faster overhead than his axe kick overhead. The difference between using them is you have to be up close to reach the opponent with this, as for the axe kick, you can be a little further. His actual specials 3. Mummy Wrap (or idle hands, or miira drop). qcf + p, (air also) One of his trademark moves that make him... him. It's a long range unblockable throw, and his hands appear a either about 1/4 screen or almost 3/4, bypassing any object/character between Anakaris and his hands. Don't try to abuse it, because people nowadays know they can duck under the hands, and it leaves Anakaris wide open if whiffed past the opponent. It grabs ground-ground, air-air, but not ground-air or air-ground. On the ground, it's best as an unexpected surprise if you find the opponent in either of the spots, and there's a slight margin of distance error possible without whiffing. When connected, Anakaris slams the opponent over to the opposite side, making it possible to follow up after if slamming them into the corner. in the air, preferably superjump or TK'ed (tiger knee, sagat's classic motion for his tiger knee back in the street fighter 2 games), you'd still have to be sure to at least target the general middle part of the body, but other than that, it's not hard to catch an airborne opponent, especially in a short air combo. when it connects in the air, Anakaris slams the opponent down on the opposite side below him.... without the bounce of the ground version. If the opponent doesn't roll, it might just be possible to air dash (if you haven't already) to attempt to cross up with a fierce punch and fierce kick (Anakaris turns around to attack if airdashing over an opponent in superjump state) 4. Pharaoh's Curse, qcf + k (air only) The other move that makes Anakaris strike fear in the opposing player! Even the sight of the curse can pressure opponents the first few times seeing it. Don't throw it out randomly, but make sure it will at least force the opponent to block… or don't make it predictable or obvious that it's onscreen (an assist to distract from it or to shift the screen like an AAA assist helps). The lk version makes the curse fall at a slightly steeper angle. the fk version makes it fall slightly farther.... but it's kinda hard to tell the difference sometimes. the one major difference between the two is that Anakaris recovers in half the time of his fk version. Anakaris has assisted infinites using the curse dhalsim aaa is a popular choice colossus aaa i saw in a video where the anakaris user OCV'd with the colossus aaa curse infinite i use zangief ground assist if i catch the opponent in mummy wrap and get them right in the corner cyclops aaa is common too, and is the one my friend is trying to persuade me to use.... but i don't have time anymore to learn cyclops and many others the good thing about the assisted curse infinites is that damage is reset every time, and it's no longer part of the initial combo, so you can call your assist again to curse em again (that's why it's an ASSISTED CURSE INFINITE) also, another thing I like doing is if I have an opponent below me and I can coffin him a few times, I like dropping down occasionally and go for a far fierce punch into fierce kick (usually blocked) into a lk pharaoh's curse so I can get one of them out, and sometimes, they tried attacking me when i froze in the air forgetting that's the pose Anakaris takes when he releases a curse. Doesn't work that well, but it's a mixup to add. 5. Coffin Drop, down down + any attack button (air also) Distances from nearest to farthest: lp (next to anak), fp, lk, fk (almost full screen) well, on the ground, you can use it to tag down high runaway storms without jumping and getting in the range of a lightning storm. Most of the time, use this in superjump, cuz he can stay in the air infinitely doing all his specials. Superjump coffins are good for brief keepaway, and certain charcacters won't have an easy time gettin past. Plus, it builds meter. Maybe not fast, but it gets the job done while keeping away. take advantage of the coffins' wideness and not go for direct hits everytime, have fun and fake em out a few times just to get em with the next coffin. If you get the opponent cornered, go ahead and superjump and stay about 1/2-3/4 the screen back and start tossing a few. With experience, you'll know if it's okay to continue tossing, like if the opponent has a threatening assist, or if they're a mobile character like most of the top tiers and god tiers. On the ground or superjump, Anakaris can toss a coffin and cancel into a super before the coffin appears if you don't cancel too early. 6. Cobra Blow, back forward + p (air also) lp hits half screen. it's usable in air combos, and cancels into the sarcophagus holocaust, but depending on the character box of the opponent (not necessarily size) you can get between 1 and 5 coffins. or you can cancel it into the pharoah's wrath super if you're FAST enough. the fp version, hits about 3/4 screen, but takes longer to actually "hit". it's better for ground combos ending with a fp or fk. it covers a good amount of the ground area when the hand bites. in his ground combo in the corner ending with this version cobra blow, you can cancel into a sarcophagus holocaust for one coffin and dhc into another super. D. ANAKARIS' supers, and how to use them better 1. Pharaoh's Wrath (fk, lp, down, lk, fp) Okay, a lil harder to do than the raging demon tap sequence... and less useful too. practically, you can only really connect it if you have an assist to keep the enemy in hitstun, and it's his weakest super. the only plus sides are that if it connects, you get the guaranteed 59 damage on cable defense characters. also, i've connected it on its own by jumping to get hit indirectly by Akuma's dragon punch super (jumped, got hit, but got hit back to the ground in a way that i could then block), pushblocked after the second spin, let Akuma go up whiffing, and unleashed the wrath and killed him. in a launch air combo, if you superjump forward and do lp lk > lp-cobra blow >> pharaoh's wrath, you can connect, but i find it to hard to pull off in such a small period of time. if you cancel into it too late, it'll either be blocked or the opponent will fall before it even gets blocked. if you cancel into it too early, it'll get blocked cuz the opponent is slightly above it and has room to fall down. if you do manage to connect it and the opponent doesn't mash to roll/get up sooner, you can OTG and go for whatever you wish. don't expect to connect with this in a real match UNLESS YOU HAVE THEM CURSED. 2. Super Cobra Rush (or as anakaris curse calls it, hyper...viper hordes!) (back, forward + pp.) his best super overall by a landslide. control the snakes by height: lp hp lk fk Basically, half of each snake overlaps into the one above and below it. it has better potential for maxiumum damage the further away you and the opponent are from the corner, so that the snakes have more room to come out. Practice and experience make perfect, as you'll never be at the same spot every time you connect it, especially in the air where most of the time you'll be doing it. On the ground, the head of the snakes seem to do more hitstun than the snake bodies stretchin, but I could just be makin that up. Also you won't get as many hits on the ground because of the various sizes of the characters may prevent the lp snake from hitting normal sized characters. It is easily combo-able from any medium or fierce attack on the ground in case you get a minor critical mistake when trying for it in the air combo. In launch air combos, if Anakaris jumps straight up, you can do lp lk mp >> cobra super, but for the sake of consistency, I started omitting the mp like the first two anakaris faqs by Lemur X and Mysterious M, however long ago they were here. in the air, on pretty much all characters except servbot and roll, all snakes should be able to hit as long as you're at roughly the same height as the opponent in the air. Remember, the closer you are to the opposite corner (if Anak faces right in this instance, i'm talking about the right side of the fight stage), the faster you have to dial through the buttons. in the corner, i tend to use my middle and index fingers... umm, the two fingers used to form the scissors in rock-paper-scissors, from both hands, using my left to hit the lp and lk, and my right to hit the fp and fk. should you choose to do it this way, practice at not hitting two buttons simultaneously to get the most out of it. at maximum distance, you should get between 50-70 hits at the corner, at least 40 should be your goal and just like all his specials and supers in his superjump state, he can still attack while falling after the super ends 3. Sarcophagus Holocaust (down down pp) well, if connected fully, it's the strongest single lv 1 super in the game hit-damage at 7 hits 99 damage on cable. unfortunately in a real match, i believe this would rather be a super to keep the opponent away from you than to connect the full damage. still, you can use it in the following air combo in a real match: cr. lp, cr. fp ^ lp lk mp > lp cobra blow >> sarcophagus holocaust like anakaris curse said earlier, on cable, this will do 4 coffins. i think the majority will get 3. those generally "thin" will probably get two. iron man and war machine i believe only the first will hit. strider 4 coffins i think hulk takes 5 coffins juggernaut i thik is 3 or 4 sentinel i think is only dented by 2, maybe blackheart's the same if you know how many coffins will hit, either A) DHC into another super, the default is the hail storm B) wait it out if the opponent can't do anything to get past or beyond the range of the coffins to punish you. this depends on the opponent's character and location. best if done near corner so the opponent can't run back beyond the coffins' reach. if you use this on a cornered opponent, make sure you take to the skies first and activate it from no further than half screen 4. Pharaoh's Illusion (lp, lp, forward, lk, fp) Yurp. It's the raging demon tap motion. the initial hit can launch the opponent up to fall into Anakaris' hands if you know how to use it. it also really helps that anak can do a ground combo cr. lp, c. lk, cr. fp to give you more time to pull off the pharaoh illusion. lp makes left hand swat to the right - can also hold down or up to change direction of the slap fp makes right hand swat to the left - look at above sidenote lk makes left hand rise the opponent - can also hold the right to rise the opponent to the oppsoite side fk makes right hand rise the opponent - can also hold left to rise the opponent to the opposite side what i like to do is start with whichever kick that best matches the position of the opponent, and rise them to the opposite side. then i use the punches to volley them back n forth. the time gap between the rise and slap is a lil smaller than if you rose the opponent vertically, so you can usually get in one more hit than usual. the super starts off pretty instantly, though you must wait almost half a second before you can start slapping. anak recovers almost instantly after touching the ground again in his coffin, and often this can throw off opponents attempting to close quarters combo you and you just combo them back. his supers in potential strength: 1.super cobra rush (70 hits at over 100) 2. pharaoh illusion (see if you can get 12 on cable, it does 100) 3. sarcophagus holocaust (all 7 = 99 damage on cable) 4. pharaoh's wrath >_< his supers in average strength 1. super cobra rush (45-60 hits, about 65-80ish damage on cable) 2. pharaoh illusion (plan for 8 hits, 70-80 damage on cable) 3. pharaoh's wrath, 59 damage on Cable >_< wobb!!! 4. sarcophagus holocaust (3-4 coffins in the specified air combo, buffered from 45-55ish damage.) his supers in practical use in a real match 1. super cobra rush 2. pharaoh illusion 3. sarcophagus holocaust 4. pharaoh's wrath (*does akuma grunt) E. ANAKARIS' assist types alpha: ground assist- hp Cobra Blow this is okay as an assist. Anakaris pops in behind you and does said attack. sometimes, it can be annoying as all parts of the cobra arm can hit once it reaches full length. if i learned something from the computer, make sure the opponent is far from your corner to reduce the chance of him gettin whooped counter: same not really a good counter. even if you do decide to use it, he'll get hit from an air chain, and it's probably too slow to hit other characters because there's so many different options of cancelling that those moves would probably beat out this counter team super: SUPER COBRA RUSH well, i consider this his best team super. but the snakes come out at random, makin it less useful as a solo team super. it would help hold the enemy in place for the other supers to connect if those need slightly more time to reach the opponent. bah, i don't use alpha type beta: throw assist: hp mummy wrap the hardest of his assists to use, for you might not be able to consistently place the opponent in the corrects area to be grabbed. when it does connect, he swings the opponent around twice instead of 4x before slamming them to the opposite side. best if used near the conrer counter: same (i think) probably easier to connect under certain circumstances, for it's faster than the cobra counter. let's say.... possibly you block sentinel's rocket punch with your current point character, i think this would work from the correct distance. possibly even hyper sentinel force before countering after the 1st or 2nd set of drones. team super: PHARAOH ILLUSION meh, the worst of his team supers. it's auto random. simply, don't pick this assist if you still incorporate team supers in your game. gamma: variety assist: lk coffin drop. maybe it's the hp version the best of his assists. it's more useful than the other two, and it's the closest he gets to an AAA assist. if you don't use commando/blackheart assists that reach all the way to the top, this one attacks from the top of the screen instead. it attacks further than the commando assist (if he does the one where the spark appears where he is, if it's the other version, nevermind the lil bit before these parenthesis), but isn't homing like that blackheart inferno assist. best used to for tagging down characters who like to go to the skies and runaway, but not sentinels who take to the skies and stomp the living flowers out of you. why i chose flowers to say, i don't know! counter: same his worst counter. i really have nothing to say about it team super: SARCOPHAGUS HOLOCAUST still not really the team super of choice, but it is consistent. but it does have the most recovery time, making your point character wait until he starts to jump out, leaving yur point character and anakaris open to a combo, or AHVB. overall best assist: COFFIN DROP F. ANAKARIS' ideal partners to play him at his best, you need: a) a reliable, if not invincible AAA b) or an assist that keeps the opponent in blockstun c) both d) an assist for using the assisted curse infinite a) the best ideas that come to mind would be doom's rocks, cyclops AAA, or colossus AAA. dhalsim AAA is more for attempting the assisted curse infinite i think, but the others i said are better all around for multi-purpose. SonSon's AAA really works well too. I use SonSon's AAA because, she's a staple to MY team, it sets up a superjump mummy wrap, it OTGs, and helps set up a guard break for incoming characters at the corner. Anakaris Curse also uses SonSon's AAA with Anak on his fun? team. I use zangief's lariat because he's a staple to MY team, he adds needed defense to my team where Shuma didn't help before. People panic when he gets close, and he only wears tights and he has magenta tights with fp color. in the corner it can set up the curse infinite too, though not nearly as consistent as others. b) the best ideas that come to mind at the moment are doom's rocks (they really are too good, grrrrrr), sent's drones, and spiral's fp assist. they'll help anakaris' ground pyramid rushdown. anak's cr. mp (two hit shifting vertical pillar thingie) is perfect for bridging the assist in to help connect the pharaoh's illusion without the aid of a launcher or mistake. even doom's rock's will slightly pop em up, giving you time to illusionize and start chip-slapping away. then it's a matter of your opponent knowing when the super ends, cuz anak can pretty much attack the instant he touches the ground in his coffin. c) really the only assist that falls into this is doom's rocks. d) Cyclops AAA, Psylocke AAA, Dhalsim AAA, Zangief ground, many others. Also a reason why I choose Zangief for this purpose is because in mech- mode, should I already have him meched, is one of the best close quarters AAA's. That and I'm not a top tier person, haha. I never said I was a serious tournament player. G. ANAKARIS vs the Big Four well, these are not easy matches for him, obviously. he's at a serious disadvantage in rushdown, keepaway, pressure, comboability, mixup, everything including flowers (don't mind that). But remember, Anakaris has the moves to take them on. First, here's OSMBV Tiger's take on it OSMBV Tiger's "Cliff's Notes" version Storm- *If she tries to runaway, predict her next move and counter with coffins. Or, if you need the meter, meet her up there and use Idle Hands. *Don't let her start rushing you, especially if you don't have a good AAA. Anakaris doesn't have too much he can do to stop her. About his only real tool here is his launcher, which has excellent vertical range and deceptively good horizontal range; remember though that like nearly all of his attacks, if you miss it you're screwed. *Don't try coffin runaway... that's just begging for hail. *Rush her down before she rushes you. That's really all you can do to stop her. Keep in mind that with her defense, one good PCB combo DHCd into something else will kill her. Magneto- *Everything I said for Storm, minus the runaway part. Mags doesn't do runaway. Honestly I have no real character-specific strategy here. Just find a way to land that curse infinite! *Coffin runaway is more effective on Magneto than it is on Storm, but still watch out, as he's more than fast enough to get around it if youre predictable. Sentinel- *Personally, I play coffin runaway to stall and build meter for a better character. As always, watch for AAAs. *He's a big target, so if he tries anything from outside stomping range, you can grab him with IH or TKIH easily. Cable- *If you stay at peak superjump height, you're pretty much safe from any big damage. If he tries to shoot you down, catch him with IH, and otherwise keep him busy with coffins. Watch out for Scimitar, and of course any AAA he has. *Rushdown against Cable is your best bet, if he's alone (remember that debate?). In fact, if you're good with his rushing, it's probably your best bet even if he does have an assist. However, given that Anakaris's rushdown does have some holes, watch out for anything (such as Scimitar or AAA) that can lead to AHVB. vs Magneto Magneto will more often than not, rush you down like..... a speeding bullet, no..... more like an old geezer with a crapload of caffeine. In reality, I think this is the least hard match against the big four, since he actually needs to come to you. He's most annoying with the psylocke AAA, and most of you most likely know why. In case newer faces are reading this, Psylocke AAA hits up the opponent a lil bit and they land on their back on the ground. That, and it's invincible. It easily sets up magneto's many combo options whether it be infinites or slide tricks, or resets. By then, Magneto is likely to have 2 meters, meaning a double tempest air combo, meaning an annihilated Anakaris. power- MAGNETO and ANAKARIS are about the same hit for hit combo by combo. one tempest combo does roughly the same amount on Anakaris as one air cobra super would on magneto. the only difference is that magneto can do more tempests. this goes hand in hand with the defense comparison. defense- MAGNETO's one of the under-average defense characters. ANAKARIS has defense like a flower on steriods. this kinda goes hand in hand with the power comparison. But because Anakaris can keep away and Magneto has to get in close or use an assist to best get Anak out of the air, Anakaris takes this 6-4. comboability- MAGNETO wins this hands down, but he has to go all over the place to do his non-basic-tempest-combo comboes. ANAKARIS only has two options, pyramid overhead into ground combo, or launcher (to counter magneto's rushdown attempts) into air super cobras. also, look at power comparison. Magneto wins 8-2. priority- MAGNETO is faster, and the hyper grav is super annoying. his best priority single move is his standing fierce... but i don't see any magneto players use it because he doesn't need to hit the opponent far away. ANAKARIS has the launcher to counter tri-jump signs, his mummy wrap when you find him in the right place, his superjump fk (straight far kick attack). I say this category goes either way 5-5. speed- MAGNETO is the fastest all around character in all areas, with the moves to compliment it. ANAKARIS is a slow walker on the ground. sometimes, you can use anakaris' lack of walking speed to make magneto come to you instead of you chasing him down and eating a psylocke AAA or captain corridor AAA. Magneto wins 7-3. ground battle- MAGNETO has the rushdown tri-jump, hyper grav for blocking, the fastest dash in the game. ANAKARIS has laggy (but overlookable) ground moves, and can do a 5 button (6 hits) ground chain. he does have the pyramid though for one of the fastest overheads in the game I guess. use both ground battle and air battle against Magneto. This is probably more ideal because Anakaris has an easier time mixing up his high-low game once Anak and Mags are in close quarters. Magneto takes this 6-4 AIR battle (superjump heights)- MAGNETO has the 8-way airdash, tempest combo that can surprise you because there was no launcher. this is where ANAKARIS has the advantage, being able to stay in the air infinitely with special moves. plus he can only do the pharaoh curse in the air. not that it works well, but Anakaris can fill the screen with a lk curse and coffins. Anakaris has better usage and priority in the air with projectiles from above and a curse that moves slow enough to add crap on the screen. I use both ground and air battles against magneto. 5-5. to put up a fight against him with Anakaris, don't stay on the ground too much, but still make it part of your gameplan, because if all you do is superjump and stall with coffins, Magneto will get past em after the 2nd coffin at earliest. one of the best moves for this matchup is his LAUNCHER!!! you can't throw it out at random of course, but when Magneto shows signs of tri-jump rushdown, throw this out he can often run right into it cuz it has a nice vertical reach above Anakaris' crouching body. As soon as you launch him out of his rushdown assault, simply go for Anakaris' super cobra rush air combo and know the timings for the mashing. More random thoughts... -Watch out for Mags if he's armed with two meters. While you're thinking about how to keep him away, he can frame-kill DHC into Hail or Captain Sword or Armageddon or something. -Against Sentinel, stay on the same horizontal plane as him, as he'll have a harder time hitting you, and also because this is the only way to connect Idle Hands. Stay just out of stomping/panning range . If you're out of range of the frying pan, chances are you're in perfect range for HP Idle Hands. Sentinel's so big that you can't miss the grab. vs Cable this could go either way one on one, because Anakaris has way more goin for him. power- CABLE's real power is in punishing with TK AHVB (tiger knee'd air hyper viper beam). ANAKARIS is just as strong hit for hit, but combos a lot more than 3 buttons for normal chain hits. Anakaris' power in this matchup comes in his air super cobras. Assuming one on one, a launcher shouldn't be hard to land, seeing how anakaris can pyramid rushdown surprise from HFIL (darn computer does that better than me, lol). also, look at defense and comboability. 5-5 one on one, 6-4 Cable assuming both have assists. defense- CABLE's the default example of normal damage stamina, meaning he takes no more or less than 100% damage from all attacks. ANAKARIS takes damage like a wet noodle. An air combo with the super cobras on Cable is almost equal to two AHVB's on anakaris. also, look at power. Both characters can keep the other at bay if needed. 5-5. comboability- CABLE can only do three buttons on the ground, and all 6 in superjump. most often, Cable will just go for lk mk fk >> (superjump cancelled) AHVB. ANAKARIS can build meter with his combos, air or ground. Anakaris also has his axe kick overhead and pyramid overhead to try n get the combos started. Combowise, anakaris wins, but results- wise, cable does with AHVBx (number goes here). 6-4 Anakaris priority- CABLE has his hp guns, which are fast and multi hitting and keeps the opponent in blockstun. Of course they'll beat out all of Anakaris's moves. cable probably could use his cr. hp to shoot anak out full screen superjump heights. grenades can pressure Anak pretty good. ANAKARIS can use his mummy wrap to punish cable and other things. When Anakaris gets close, mind games kick in and priority really goes in Anak's favor. Overall, I'd say Anakaris takes this category 5.5-4.5. speed- CABLE used to stay back all day and throw out hpx4 > viper beam and never walk forward. cable now walks forward much much more, but he's still kinda slightly average in the speed area overall, except for AHVB. ANAKARIS has slow walking and jump speed, but the better and much more experienced anakaris players, are pretty fast in their assault, especially when they mix up pyramids, axe kick overhead, ground combo, fast blockstun lp mummy wrap followup, mummy wraps out of nowhere. general speed-wise, cable wins, but speed in depth.... anakaris actually wins this category 7-3. ground battle- CABLE will often keep away with assists and grenades, and some viper beams. and of course, there's punishing with AHVBx #, or combos with superjump cancelled AHVB. ANAKARIS' ideal positions would be either (A) superjump heights right above cable if cable has no full vertical AAA like commando or blackheart, or (B) up up up up close and personal rushdown mixup from HFIL. Even if Anakaris is totally right next to cable and cable pulls off a ground HVB instead, the gun itself makes the beam shoot past Anakaris = free combo. then again, when is a cable ever gonna let you constantly rush him down when he has assists waiting in the background to interrupt. it goes either way for the most part, but I'd still give a slight edge to Anakaris. 5.5-4.5 AIR battle- well, encounterig CABLE in the air isn't terribly bad cuz cable isn't exactly mobile in the air. he can manipulate himself by dropping sooner while jumping by pressing fp (jump gun shot), and for air priority ownage, or throwing grenades to pause, or viper beams to slow his decent. really the only thing to watch out for in the high skies is yurself being AHVB dinner, although at those heights he can only use one AHVB if he so chooses. ANAKARIS can only really toss a few coffins before cable might go for a high AHVB. watch out for cable doing a psimitar, the shot is much bigger than it seems. Anakaris almost takes this, but because in the air Cable has a full screen beam to limit Anak's superjump about 50% of the time, I'd consider it either way, 5-5. important, from Tiger in an aim conversation Tiger: his j. fp owns you, unless you just happen to be at the right distance usually, you'll be able to airdash into range for idle hands but if the cable player knows a thing about anakaris, he wont let u I'm a cable player too, and i know how anakaris beats cable therefore i know how to counter anakaris in short, fighting cable isn't HARD, but generally don't do anything that will make you eat 2 AHVB. you have to work a lil harder than he does for quick damage, but it's still very possible, unlike against storm and sentinel. against cable, it's ultra important to know your gameplan before the fight by knowing the purpose of all 6 characters in the fight, because it's a very possible winnable fight. just don't get (*readys Geese's CvS2 voice) PREDICTABLE!!!!!! *If you stay in the air, you're pretty safe from AHVB. Even a loaded Cable will probably hesitate to unleash that high up, since he can only get one AHVB in and that won't kill you. So don't worry about being vulnerable while in the air. And if he does try it, you'll see him coming a mile away, so airdash to wherever he is and give him snake in the face, or just let him jump into your waiting hands. From COPENHAGEN "Well, that's definitely right, that anakaris owns cable in a one on one match, you can surely win this match only if you are an anakaris expert or maybe an anakaris average player will do i think,some people really insist that cable will surely win this match but they are wrong, for sure,they are saying that because they didnt see some matches of an anakaris expert player,in other words,they really haven't seen yet the REAL play and POWER of anakaris." Vs Storm this is one of anakaris' harder matches against the big four, IMO. storm can hit and run, runaway, chip, keepaway a lil, rushdown, AGHHHHH!!!! power- STORM doesn't hit too hard hit for hit, but considering all her combo options, it more then makes up for it in the case against Anakaris. both of her supers are practically full screen, which sucks for the mummy. ANAKARIS needs to outsmart her on the ground when storm needs to come down and pull off his BnB air combo using his launch to counter tri-jump attempts. i say this goes either way, because for the sake of chipping with storms super, anakaris can still block random chip. 5-5 defense- STORM takes slightly less damage than Anakaris. plus, she can runaway and keepaway with homing vertical typhoons. Just about all of her moves are safe. ANAKARIS is.... really his only defense is his launcher if storm goes for tri jump rushdown. even if you whiff, you can always cancel into pharaoh Illusion and throw her off with the surprisingly fast recovery. Storm takes this category 7-3 comboability- STORM has more combo options than the sweat i've produced during hardcore ddr sessions. she can attack high, low, unexpectedly, to infinity, and everything magneto can do i guess. ANAKARIS can only use the tried and true practical BnB air cobra super air combo, or pyramid rushdown combos on the ground. no contest here, Storm wins 7-3 priority- STORM's wind-covered normals are too effin good (grrrrr). typhoons are indestructible, full screen hail storm that will always come out in the worst random times. ANAKARIS only has his launcher, but it's a damn good one. don't expect to land mummy wraps too much against her, even with assists. Pharaoh's Curse at random actually seems like a good idea as long as you aren't in close range or at full distance. Reason? IT GOES THROUGH HAIL STORM!!! Also, Storm might be too speed- crazy to think there's a curse on screen. Storm takes this category 6- 4, ONLY because one cursed Storm often will lead to a dead Storm. speed- STORM has one of the best rushdowns in the game, where i consider magneto's rushdown the best hands down. and lightning attack is really fast too. ANAKARIS.... no comment unless he can battle storm on the ground in close quarters. Storm wins ground battle- STORM has indestructible typhoons, wind-covered limbs, a launcher with insane frontal priority, hail storm. ANAKARIS has pyramid rushdown again, and the occasional mummy wrap if the opportuntiy presents itself. However, this is where you'd wanna be against storm mostly, so she doesn't get you out of the air with a Hail Storm. Also remember the use of assists that Anakaris can retaliate upon. Storm wins 8-2 air battle- STORM has the 8-way airdash, lightning attacks to manipulate her direction, slow falling, specials on ground and air, that lightning attack air combo. ANAKARIS has his sj fk, coffins, lk curses, and several attack angles with his normals in superjump. as long as you meet storm in the air, you have no hail to worry about. if storm is running away high above the top stage perimeter, toss a coffin to smack her back down if you know when to do it, and which coffin. if she's on the ground and you're in the air..... don't stay up there for long unless you wanna bait out a hail for you to block. Storm wins 8-2 well, i made it look like Storm completely overpowers anakaris, but only knowing how anakaris can take down storm takes personal experience. it's definately far from impossible, but it's also farther from an easy win. Vs Sentinel Ack!, I consider Sentinel the other hardest matchup for Anakaris, where I previously considered magneto to be. Sure, Sentinel is a big... thing, but he's still got the speed tricks figured out over time to work around his land speed. Keep in mind that basically one combo will almost always do Anakaris in...... which is why I like it ^_^ power- SENTINEL has the best physical strength in the game, as well as defense, and high comboability exploited by the players. ANAKARIS' physical strength won't do any good head on here unless you play mind games first. Sentinel get's this 9-1, possibly 8.5-1.5 defense- SENTINEL's best defense lets him survive many of the best practical combos a numerous times, and his drone bombers can be a surprising anti air if the opponent super jumps. there's the j.FP Wok to protect from near above, and the air kicks to kick down jumpers from below when Sent's flying. ANAKARIS dies in 1.25-1.5 sentinel combos, seriously. He does have better usage of the curse and coffins from superjump heights to keepaway, and his sj fk for a possible offensive or defensive poke cuz it has a long reach. but still, sentinel wins this 9-1 because of Sent's ability to constantly hit Anak's weak defense stat. comboability- SENTINEL has his drones super multilinks, short ground combos that do like 50% on anakaris, devastating SIMPLE air combos that'll do like 60-65% on Anakaris, unfly combos, air throw corner reset combos that would probably kill Anakaris, corner TK hard drive dash super that is otg'able right after. ANAKARIS won't be able to get of his ground BnB combo unless he can catch sent with a pyramid smash overhead. Sent will play midscreen-full screen distance to prevent anakaris from being able to launch him more than once. smart anakaris vs sentinel won't go for the quick kill and instead work hit by hit by whatever means without putting himself in big danger for retaliation, while smart sentinel vs anakaris will be able to counter most of Anakaris' attempts to land a single hit when Sent is supposedly open. Sentinel wins 8.5-1.5 priority- just about all of SENTINEL's normals and specials will beat out everything anakaris has. but ANAKARIS shouldn't get in close quarters to battle head on. anakaris does have the coffins to keep sentinel at bay as long as he doesn't have a proper assist to get anakaris down. the mummy wrap is great against sent.... if sent's not flying. sent will in that case swat down Anak every time with the wok from HFIL or pin Anak down with close quarters flying lk or fk. Sentinel wins 8-2. I say Anakaris gets 2 points because once Anakaris can get close via mind games or a successful curse, he should even up the match. speed- SENTINEL's land walking speed matches Anakaris, but is faster in every other aspect. He attacks fast now that he's no longer a destruction robot. Seriously, he's a Dhalsim kung-fu robot who can call drones to do his bidding if he desires. That, and his recovery on most moves are covered or can be cancelled into HSF. ANAKARIS shouldn't rush sent with his melee speed too long, if at all, but do include it to mix up his game and the psychology of the match. I think his pharaoh illusion super will also allow him the fastest way of attacking from one end of the screen to the other end, it has excellent startup. Sentinel wins 7.5-2.5 ground battle- SENTINEL can call drones to cover him, one button projectile beams which can be unblockable, (Team) Rocket punch is fast to reach the other end of the screen, and he has super armor that can't be penetrated by Anakaris easily. ANAKARIS is at the big disadvantage on the ground, and really his mummy wrap can produce any results as long as sent hasn't started flying. However, a low level curse is always good to throw out, even if it's random or desperate. As long as you're not predictable with it, the curse will save you and turn the momentum of the match in your favor. Sentinel wins 8-2. air battle- SENTINEL has the fp wok of doom to swat down near jumpers, his kick stomps to pin anakaris down, the fastest fly mode in the game. however.... ANAKARIS can use his coffins and curses better at superjump heights to somewhat limit sentinel. Sentinel's a big character, and can't do any fancy fast 8-way airdashing the way magneto and storm and cable (just kidding) can. Seriously, an air keepaway game against a Sentinel without Commando or Blackheart or maybe Cammy AAA assists is a smart gameplan. Also, if Sentinel happens to be cornered, if you stay somewhat above sent and toss coffins and occasionally coming down for a dropping fp fk, and sent doesn't have the above assists, sent won't be able to cleanly hit Anakaris without getting a coffin at some point. IMO, I think it's the ideal spot for doing any possible consistant damage, but actually getting to that spot is harder than it seems (obviously). If sent is flying high and Anakaris is high up there too on opposite ends, coffins can keep sent from getting close, but you won't really get damage from it. Still, it's better to let the round last than to go for the fast win. This is Anakaris's ideal spot to slow down the match against sentinel, but Sent also has rocket punch, but Anakaris also has his super cobra rush to stop sentinel from using rocket punch, for I'm thinking the extending of Sent's arm will make him get nicked by a cobra head. For connecting mummy wrap, Tiger gave great advice, to stay in the same air horizontal plane and just out of reach of the frying pan. Air battle goes slightly in favor of Sentinel if it's PURE air battle (I don't mean with the use of an assist or launcher). 6.5-3.5. Very refreshing to kill a Sentinel with Anakaris, which is why it's my fave matchup for Anak. Like vs storm, I made it seem sent wins hands down, but the smarter, more experienced anakaris players won't go suicide and get vulnerable to a rocket punch > HSF > launch > air combo or whatever. It makes Anakaris dust rather quickly. More thoughts from OSMBV Tiger, on Sentinel *It's pretty safe to stay at maximum superjump height and coffin him to death, since Sentinel doesn't really have anything that can bring you down. Just watch out for CapCom AAA and the occasional Blackheart. Also, keep in mind that a smart-flying Sentinel can put a wok in your face if you get carried away with the coffins. *If he tries to lock you down on the ground with drones, carefully time a dashing IH so you grab him between the time he sends out the drones (and after any normal move he may have done first such as hp mouth beam) and the time the drones hit you. Or, superjump away at the first opportunity and proceed with the coffins. Guard cancelling is a life- saver here. From AnAkaRiS CuRsE tip: Do a desperate Son Son's Super Monkey Hyper Move, and when an opponent is close enough, beating Son Son badly like Strider Hiryu DHC with Anak's Pharaoh's Illusion, both the assist and the character will get hit by the Illusion. Then beat both of them until such time that you must do another Hyper Move which will make your opponent angry (i.e. Hail Storm) RANDOM TIP: whenever you defeat a character with anakaris and waiting the next character to come in(corner only), you MAY surprise the next character by dashing in the other side with c. hp then (lp,lk xx Hyper Viper Hordes!!! Unbelievable Damage!!!!!!). If c.hp is blocked.....you may cancel it a lp cobra blow or pyramid rush or Hyper Viper Hordes to get some chip damage....it is SOMETIMES safe..... depending on the familiarity of your opponent with Anakaris' moves. I've been doing this almost every match and success rate is 80%. III. Fun Facts !!!Super Jump Canceling!!! All characters can do this lil trick to eliminate any lag from certain normals. The most common example is Cable's AHVB from a standing fk. Anakaris can best superjump cancel out of a standing/crouching mp/mk, or a crouching fk. Finally, after at least a year and a half after seeing Meikyousissui 8 (included an Anak combo on a Colossus), I just now tried exploring superjump canceling. From his cr. Fk up close, you can sj cancel and go into a DOWN Pyramid Smash and follow up with a combo. From a grounded opponent, canceling out of a st/cr mp/mk can lead to airdash rushdown/mixup, and juggling an opponent (like in Meik 8) with a st. mp, you can sj cancel into an airdash and combo. !!!getting under a cornered opponent with the launcher!!! Against a cornered opponent, Anak's launcher has the ability to slightly move the opponent away from the corner. What you can do with this is airdash immediately following the launch superjump, and whiff a light attack to allow Anakaris to fall, and Anak will be on the other side, although it does not look like it. Now see if the opponent realizes they have to block the other direction now before they are suddenly launched into the best position for the Super Cobra air combo !!!the (very unlikely) Dual Super Cobra Rush!!! Now, if one air cobra super when cornered didn't hurt enough, it actually is possible to pull off TWO, which very likely means a KO'd opponent. The trick is tapping in a way that you let out a cobra at the very last possible second before the super background reverts back. IF… and I mean IF you do it right, it is possible to tag on a lp into a second cobra super. However, the timing is so damn strict to be able to pull it off, and that the timing depends on the player, that it is not worth the trouble to try it in a real match. A good analogy here is trying to connect with any one-hit KO move in Pokemon while accuracy is down to the minimal, you are confused and paralyzed, and the enemy keeps using possible flinch moves. Now cut that likelihood in half, and that's how often you'll pull it off in training mode. Cut it in half again, and you have the likelihood of pulling it off in a real match. It would make great use in an example vid… if I could even do it again in training mode. Maybe the opponent's size is a factor. IV. Miscellaneous Colors - Lp) blue/yellow helmet/yellow "skirt thing" Lk) pink helmet/"skirt thing" Fp) green helmet/"skirt thing" FK) yellow/red helmet/"skirt thing" A1) brown bandages A2) "stone" Anakaris (gray) Entrance - Anakaris falls from the ceiling in his coffin. Taunt- Like a brief win pose #1 Winning: 1) He faces you with arms placed to the side and chants. 2) Raises his arms and is hailed by a crowd of monkey-looking creatures. Time over loss - He faces you and loses composure, and his bandages become really loose. Vids, Pics, and more! (not just MvC2) at: http://gamefaqs.servebeer.com/brian/ and www.freewebs.com/sexyparsley_ V. Contact Me! Questions? Comments? More Advice? Am I Missing Anything? (probably) flashflipb@hotmail.com or ugaldebp@vcu.edu AIM: BrinN Unlimited, or Bri423248 VI. Special Thanks OSMBV Tiger- THE first GameFAQs user to AIM me. You're like a brother to me now. AnAkaRiS CuRsE- Also a big Anakaris contributor on the boards. EVERYONE (too many to name) who has come to me for advice after seeing some of my match and example vids. Gutabo for allowing me to post stuff on his server, MESUIT!!! All my VCU DDR Hero friends who keep me motivated to do my work, despite all my suffering from my art classes. GameFAQs for posting this. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This FAQ is written and copyrighted by Brian Ugalde "EasternPinoy". Please… go right ahead and use this info for free!!! I'd be surprised if anyone actually does. It's not that I care, I have more important things to worry about. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!