Raph's Top Ten Moves

Lets discuss what are you top ten.

Considering patch 1.02

There is no clear tier that separates the top 10, so raph is back to being a character where there is no small pool of quality moves that are so strong he can reduce his movelist to 10 core moves and hope to win.

1) SE B : No brainer, undeniable combo damage and + on block. Does great guard burst damage too. The move itself got nerfed but SE A and SE K exist to beat step anyways so pre-patch you just got lucky sometimes (which is why the move is good)

2) 6BB/(B)/B/(BE) series: i12 at great range. Its also great bang-for-the buck meter usage as it turns a 40 damage string into 65+ damage with knockdown. prep BB(BE) is almost as good but the non BE CH string leads into a stun which could lead to a combo superior to the BE version (not that i'm complaining). The fact that you can opt to guard, add the 3rd B, go into prep, or do the BE means that you can expect big payoffs if you can out think your opponent.

3) 3(B): This move gets the prep engine going. Granted there are a LOT of tcing moves in the game, but access to prep4 and SE (while keeping your range) makes it a solid move. At its most basic is a 40 damage ranged punish or a 50 damage up close punish at i16. It's also slightly stronger due to the fact that 3B exists and you should expect a defensive strat from the opponent whenever this move is blocked which gives you time to study your opponent's tendencies.

4) 2K: This is a seriously underrated move for being "generic" move. As long as you're in range, it has surprisingly reliable tracking, allowing you to break up the aggressive lateral movement of an opponent with an option that is not vulnerable to tech crouching. Can hit enemies attempting to roll on the floor as well as beat super-TC moves. Same speed and yet longer reach than 6A. You'll be scoring this a lot on CH if you're using it as described, so the damage is not insignificant. Raph's extra long leg plus his better-than-average backdash whiff bait makes 2K also a very good initiator to observe your opponent. The loss of 22B combos makes side-step whiff baiting less effective however. Weaknesses are that it never tech crouches, and gives -2 on NH and CH (like his BB)

5) 3A: Love the mid-knockdown interrupting wallsplatting properties on CH. Low damage, but semi tracking and safe! It should be mentioned that its a really fast move (i14) that is always a threat after you do a 0 on hit low (especially near a corner/wall).

6) wrB: i13 mid. Great combo of speed, safety and range. Nothing abuseable as it does 1/15 of your opponent's hp per hit. You'd think this should have been his go-to poke. The problem with this besides its obvious low damage is that it pushes them pretty far away which pretty much nullifies any pressure raph can mount.

7) 66A+G: Something about 60 damage and the mashable life gain makes me happy. If they're orange bar, pretty much throw out one of these to seal the deal. However, gives both you and your opponent quite a bit of meter though so keep that in mind.

8) A+BA: Adds good damage to combos after a wall splat, a stun or when they are grounded and you catch. Its also surprisingly evasive given that you step back slightly and TC. Weaknesses are the fact that it is terribly short in range and also a frustrating ability to whiff on grounded opponents that aren't aligned perfectly.

9) 4(B): Despite the push-back on hit issues, the new prepBBB stun now makes this a pretty darn awesome TC move. The move is long ranged enough to also function as a decent whiff punisher. It's high itself, but it TCs starting at i3 which is pretty exceptional (and TC cleanly until impact frame). You can choose to do a quick 85 A+BA to follow through or blow your meter and end with CE which can be pretty good for reading your opponent's high.

10) 66B: Mid and guard break with + frames on block. Too slow for my taste, but has impressive range and an almost 60 damage followup on hit. On paper it is a really strong move with great range, good damage potential, great on block, some TC frames, and very good meter gain and guard gauge damage.

HM: 22A: If you're in range (and this move has exceptional range) you won't whiff, period. One of raph's most reliable tracking moves and is virtually safe on block. On CH you gain massive frame advantage so you can change a zoning game into a rushdown strat. Don't expect to win matches with this as your core move, but it compliments your poking zoning game. Weaknesses are obvious, in that it is low damage and guarantees nothing on CH. Also only available from side step (can't emergency stop step at range) and is high. Despite its long list of weaknesses, its value (to raph) is exceptionally high.

SE A: Another super reliable step killer. It's i15 and mid, and has incredible range. Spins the opponent backwards on hit, and gives you a huge frame advantage on hit. The biggest thing holding it back is that it is stance accessible only, which always makes the move telegraphed (when you have 4 options from SE) so it reduces the efficiency of its raw speed. It pushes the opponent forward noticeably on hit, so a grab mixup post hit requires dashing. Lastly, unlike SE B, it's not incredible on block , as it is now about -7 on block without decent pushback. Treat basically like 1B on block or hit (except can't wall splat). Exists almost solely as a reason for them to sit still for SE B.

version 1.0

GIing pyrrha's 236B with it is pretty satisfying. It'll catch most of her options after she does that stupid 4K on block (AA, 2A, side step, 236B). And project soul is really pushing this as raph's signature move, giving it a clean hit bonus

Brought this up in another thread, but aGIs that start on frame i12 is kinda weird, cuz thats when you can 6BB(BE) her out of it in the first place. Unless it TCs....

O its even ? i thought it was like -2 or -1. But yeah it'll aGI SL horizontals last I recall

I don't know.. the fact it goes hi-mid pisses me off when i get CH'd by a TCing move in the middle of raph's 8A+B.

But yeah it seems to be as close to a multi-purpose move that raph has (like his 44K). Shame on the lateness of the aGI frames though. If it started at single digits.. man that would be great

The problem with 8A+B and B+K's aGI windows is that they are late enough so that they're used more for when the initiative is more ambigious (when it's about -2 to +2 and you know the opponent may try to interrupt).

ie: You manage to hit them with 4A (you're at -2) and the opponent knows this while backturned. They attempt a backturned B (single hit) so you can get a successful B+K off that.

You should be able to quick step or barely backdash in any situation where you could have aGI (provided there is some distance).

The guide says no. However, throw a few out and see if the opponent actually guard impacts (or performs an easy-peasy quick step). If they don't, repeat for the guard burst.