Barry
[10] Knight
Well where do I start?.
SCV Maxi in my opinion is definitely the most strongest character I’ve seen so far out of everyone else. The sheer damage output coupled with a much safer arsenal of moves which compliment each other makes this self explanatory. I’ve been seeing some chatter regarding what people think about the current SC5 Maxi without even playing the game. Let me tell you something, you have no idea how dangerous and what Maxi is going to be capable of in the right hands. You are hearing this from me first.
Now lets cut to the chase. I’m not going to review every single move because quite frankly no one uses every single last one of his moves. What I will tell you is what I remember using, and what worked best for me.
1) Your bread and butter is going to be 1B->RO, RO A,K_BL (old SC4 3B,A->BL)
I’ve seen furzy get shut down my Mick using Lexia’s 2A, however furzy did not attempt to auto gi after the B->RO transition. I did not test this myself, however if 2A is still special mid then it will train 2A happy people to consider twice before throwing it out. With GI costing meter, this is now officially a true 1 out of 3 mix up whether you choose to hold the K, let it go early, or use the BL B,B->LO
2) 66B->LI
This is definitely the best move that he has. It transitions to LI and hits grounded. I was hesitant to throw it out because I gave everyone I played a little too much respect. Provided your spacing is right and the opponent is not mobile this also destroys the guard meter. In addition to this you can fully cancel the LI transition to buffer a critical finish after crushing the guard.
3) 4B->LO,LO B
This transition is the strongest in his entire move set and has been confirmed by both Daishi-san and Yoshi-san. It is totally safe and is Godlike after a 2A_1A. Both Daishi-san and Yoshi-san confirmed that proof of this was myself and Daishi-san using it too consistently. They mentioned that they are going to take another look at it and possibly revise it. I do not think they will make it unsafe, but will consider lowering the damage,making it 0 on block, or quick steppable. I was very skeptical when I first heard this but I do not thing anything drastic will be done.
4) 44B->RO
Definitely the number 2 best move that he has. The damage that this leads to is insane especially if you BE the RCB before the LI A follow up. This move I found most effective on wake up for players that love ducking who anticipate a throw attempt. In addition ot this it also hits grounded provided that they just choose to lie there.
22_88A->LI
This move feels like it’s returned back to it’s SC1 roots. I’m not sure if you saw the Maxi skill project from SC1 where it was possible to land multiple 88_22A’s for massive damage. Although this is not possible, the fact that that the LI K is fast enough after it hits and causes an unbreakable stun is unreal. I’ve noticed that when player is out of range and attempts to attack after a whiffed 88_22A the LI K tends to CH quite nicely leading to a ton of damage.
3A+B (old 3A+K)
This is my bread and butter for training people to block low for setting up 44B to massive damage. As you must have seen from the stream it was being blocked on reaction but it served my purpose which was to force the crouch. best used ideally from it’s maximum range.
2A_1K
Both are still there and are still his staple lows. Maxi does not have any high damage lows which is the way he’s always been.
LO K
I don’t think I’ve had this blocked, however like the previous versions of Maxi I found that I was always in range to set up a throw after it.
LO A,K
I believe this may now be safe as I was not punished after it. This also sets up a throw opportunity as it always did in previous games. Other than that it hasn’t changed much.
RO B
If this thing hits RCA,(BE)B->LI, A is all guaranteed. This can easily take off about about 25-35% of the health bar. What’s also even more disgusting is that after a guard crush all hits are counter hit. So 44B->RO,B->RC,A,(BE)B->LI, A is all guaranteed for INSANE damage.
BL K,(BE) K
I was disappointed with this as the 2nd hit can be air controlled. I brought this up with Yoshi -san and he mentioned that it’s supposed to be guaranteed. He also confirmed that it’s it’s not then it’s a bug which will have to be addressed. Other than that it’s only use I can see so far is after the left side throw.
PSL3 & 4
As mentioned before Yoshi-san confirmed that they were removed and will not be coming back. They mentioned that the designer who is currently working on Maxi said “that it’s too hard to balance”. I agree with Johnny Blaze that this was somewhat a lazy response and I was slightly disappointed with it. First leave PSL3 with it’s Auto GI properties that were in SC3 with a slightly larger window to have people stop and think. Second with PSL4 do not allow auto GI’s during it. There, problem fixed. Can someone tell me how is this broken?....
33B->BL
I was able to to just G cancel the Bl transition on block to make it safe without ever having to worry about setting up or bating an auto gi. As mentioned before I asked Yoshi-san “why was the cancel removed?”. All he could tell me was “there is a very damaging combo after it and you will have to figure it out” DAMN IT what a tease!. I had no luck as nothing clicked inside my head as to what it might be.
FC 3AAA
The only thing that’s changed about it is it can be cancelled very quickly so you cannot be interrupted during the RO transition. Other than that it’s the same as it’s always been but should be feared by players because of that nasty B after it.
66K
Still hits high but man this move closes the gap and quick.
3B
Why even bother when you can use 1B mix ups?
6A+B
I didn’t use it as much since I found the range to be too short to set up any sort of offense. It does not go to LI unless to BE it.
WRB+K->LI,B~G->LI
Yup the old LI B cancel is back but it feels too slow for my taste and looks interrupt and poke friendly. I didn’t use it as much so it’s need more testing.
A+B~G->RC
This move now causes an additional stun after LI K hits and causes the fall stun. This means that you can connect 22_88B->LI,K,A+B~G->RC,A,(BE)B->LI,A for real Soviet damage!
That's about it folks. I may have tested things you don't see here and will remember if they are brought up. So please feel free to ask.
SCV Maxi in my opinion is definitely the most strongest character I’ve seen so far out of everyone else. The sheer damage output coupled with a much safer arsenal of moves which compliment each other makes this self explanatory. I’ve been seeing some chatter regarding what people think about the current SC5 Maxi without even playing the game. Let me tell you something, you have no idea how dangerous and what Maxi is going to be capable of in the right hands. You are hearing this from me first.
Now lets cut to the chase. I’m not going to review every single move because quite frankly no one uses every single last one of his moves. What I will tell you is what I remember using, and what worked best for me.
1) Your bread and butter is going to be 1B->RO, RO A,K_BL (old SC4 3B,A->BL)
I’ve seen furzy get shut down my Mick using Lexia’s 2A, however furzy did not attempt to auto gi after the B->RO transition. I did not test this myself, however if 2A is still special mid then it will train 2A happy people to consider twice before throwing it out. With GI costing meter, this is now officially a true 1 out of 3 mix up whether you choose to hold the K, let it go early, or use the BL B,B->LO
2) 66B->LI
This is definitely the best move that he has. It transitions to LI and hits grounded. I was hesitant to throw it out because I gave everyone I played a little too much respect. Provided your spacing is right and the opponent is not mobile this also destroys the guard meter. In addition to this you can fully cancel the LI transition to buffer a critical finish after crushing the guard.
3) 4B->LO,LO B
This transition is the strongest in his entire move set and has been confirmed by both Daishi-san and Yoshi-san. It is totally safe and is Godlike after a 2A_1A. Both Daishi-san and Yoshi-san confirmed that proof of this was myself and Daishi-san using it too consistently. They mentioned that they are going to take another look at it and possibly revise it. I do not think they will make it unsafe, but will consider lowering the damage,making it 0 on block, or quick steppable. I was very skeptical when I first heard this but I do not thing anything drastic will be done.
4) 44B->RO
Definitely the number 2 best move that he has. The damage that this leads to is insane especially if you BE the RCB before the LI A follow up. This move I found most effective on wake up for players that love ducking who anticipate a throw attempt. In addition ot this it also hits grounded provided that they just choose to lie there.
22_88A->LI
This move feels like it’s returned back to it’s SC1 roots. I’m not sure if you saw the Maxi skill project from SC1 where it was possible to land multiple 88_22A’s for massive damage. Although this is not possible, the fact that that the LI K is fast enough after it hits and causes an unbreakable stun is unreal. I’ve noticed that when player is out of range and attempts to attack after a whiffed 88_22A the LI K tends to CH quite nicely leading to a ton of damage.
3A+B (old 3A+K)
This is my bread and butter for training people to block low for setting up 44B to massive damage. As you must have seen from the stream it was being blocked on reaction but it served my purpose which was to force the crouch. best used ideally from it’s maximum range.
2A_1K
Both are still there and are still his staple lows. Maxi does not have any high damage lows which is the way he’s always been.
LO K
I don’t think I’ve had this blocked, however like the previous versions of Maxi I found that I was always in range to set up a throw after it.
LO A,K
I believe this may now be safe as I was not punished after it. This also sets up a throw opportunity as it always did in previous games. Other than that it hasn’t changed much.
RO B
If this thing hits RCA,(BE)B->LI, A is all guaranteed. This can easily take off about about 25-35% of the health bar. What’s also even more disgusting is that after a guard crush all hits are counter hit. So 44B->RO,B->RC,A,(BE)B->LI, A is all guaranteed for INSANE damage.
BL K,(BE) K
I was disappointed with this as the 2nd hit can be air controlled. I brought this up with Yoshi -san and he mentioned that it’s supposed to be guaranteed. He also confirmed that it’s it’s not then it’s a bug which will have to be addressed. Other than that it’s only use I can see so far is after the left side throw.
PSL3 & 4
As mentioned before Yoshi-san confirmed that they were removed and will not be coming back. They mentioned that the designer who is currently working on Maxi said “that it’s too hard to balance”. I agree with Johnny Blaze that this was somewhat a lazy response and I was slightly disappointed with it. First leave PSL3 with it’s Auto GI properties that were in SC3 with a slightly larger window to have people stop and think. Second with PSL4 do not allow auto GI’s during it. There, problem fixed. Can someone tell me how is this broken?....
33B->BL
I was able to to just G cancel the Bl transition on block to make it safe without ever having to worry about setting up or bating an auto gi. As mentioned before I asked Yoshi-san “why was the cancel removed?”. All he could tell me was “there is a very damaging combo after it and you will have to figure it out” DAMN IT what a tease!. I had no luck as nothing clicked inside my head as to what it might be.
FC 3AAA
The only thing that’s changed about it is it can be cancelled very quickly so you cannot be interrupted during the RO transition. Other than that it’s the same as it’s always been but should be feared by players because of that nasty B after it.
66K
Still hits high but man this move closes the gap and quick.
3B
Why even bother when you can use 1B mix ups?
6A+B
I didn’t use it as much since I found the range to be too short to set up any sort of offense. It does not go to LI unless to BE it.
WRB+K->LI,B~G->LI
Yup the old LI B cancel is back but it feels too slow for my taste and looks interrupt and poke friendly. I didn’t use it as much so it’s need more testing.
A+B~G->RC
This move now causes an additional stun after LI K hits and causes the fall stun. This means that you can connect 22_88B->LI,K,A+B~G->RC,A,(BE)B->LI,A for real Soviet damage!
That's about it folks. I may have tested things you don't see here and will remember if they are brought up. So please feel free to ask.
