Fatal Fury Special/Big Bear

Introduction

After the events of Fatal Fury 1, the wrestler Raiden drops his heel persona and joins the fight under the new alias Big Bear. Bear is the resident big body grappler and has the usual pros and cons of the archetype - great throw range, damaging moves and long reaching normals, but also big hurtboxes, slow walk speed and hard matchups against good zoners.

Pros	Cons
Moves deal a lot of damage Best throw range in the game Moves with tons of invulnerability	Slow movement Next to no combo potential Has a hard time getting in against certain characters

Move List

General Hurtboxes

Standing	Walking	Crouching	Jumping	Taunting
			46F (4+39+3) duration, the fastest jump in the game.

Close Standing Normals

c5A

c5A
Elbow/エルボー

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
9	2	Mid	7	7	6	19	+3	+4	Kara Cancel
Bear's fastest close range normal. Gives decent frame advantage and can be used for tick throws. Hits fairly high, so it whiffs against some of the smaller characters if they're crouching.

c5B

c5B
Knee Attack/ニーアタック

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
12	2	Mid	8	9	10	26	-3	-2	Kara Cancel
Poor recovery, so you're better off not using this for anything except for tick throws. Even then, 2B is generally better for that purpose.

c5C

c5C
Elbow/エルボー

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
22	4	Mid	12	10	8	29	+6	+5	Kara Cancel
Good frame advantage both on block and hit, but has quite a bit of pushback. Same hitbox as close A.

c5D

c5D
Stomping/ストンピング

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
24	4	Mid	13	10	9	31	+5	+4	Kara Cancel
Can link into other normals like 2C if it hits meaty, but not particularly noteworthy otherwise.

Far Standing Normals

f5A

f5A
Jab/ジャブ

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
7	2	Mid	6	8	7	20	+1	+2	Kara Cancel
Pretty good range, and at 6 frames of startup this is tied with 2A for Bear's fastest ground normal.

f5B

f5B
Front Kick/前蹴り

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
10	2	Mid	10	8	10	27	-2	-1	Kara Cancel
Solid hitbox and has more range than 5A. One of Bear's main pokes.

f5C

f5C
Knuckle Part/ナックルパート

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
20	4	Mid	12	11	12	34	-5	-6	/
Whiffs against smaller characters if they're crouching, and has less range than you'd expect. Not really worth using.

f5D

f5D
Dropkick/ドロップキック

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
23	4	Mid	16	12	11	38	-5	-6	Throw Invincible 16-27F
Very good utility move. Since Bear is off the ground, you can use this to dodge lows and certain projectiles.

Crouching Normals

2A

2A
Crouching Straight/しゃがみストレート

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
7	2	Mid	6	8	7	20	+1	+2	Kara Cancel
One of the essential Bear normals - comes out quite fast and has a great hitbox. Doesn't link to anything, but still gives some advantage both on hit and block.

2B

2B
Slide Kick/スライドキック

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
10	2	Low	8	9	10	26	-3	-2	Kara Cancel
Works very well against low profile moves, like Joe/Jubei slides. Being -3/-2 makes this move ideal for tick throw setups as throw protection after blocking or getting hit lasts for 2 frames; you can go for a Bear Bomber pretty much immediately after 2B recovers.

2C

2C
Crouching Straight/しゃがみストレート

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
20	4	Mid	10	13	10	32	+1	0	Kara Cancel
Stronger but slightly slower version of 2A. You can combo off this move, but only if you have enough charge for a 5 second Super Drop Kick.

2D

2D
Slide Kick/スライドキック

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
23	4	Low	11	13	21	44	KD (+28)	-11	Kara Cancel
Fairly slow startup, but has more range than 2B and gives a knockdown on hit. The large amount of active frames also makes it a good move against corner backsteps.

Jumping Normals

jA

jA
Albatross Chop/アルバトロスチョップ

Version	Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
Diagonal Jump	9	2	Overhead	6	∞	/	/	-	-	-
Decent jump-in, but favor jC over this whenever possible as it deals more damage and has the same hitbox.
Neutral Jump	9	2	Overhead	8	∞	/	/	-	-	-

jB

jB
Stamp Kick/スタンプキック

Version	Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
Diagonal Jump	12	2	Overhead	8	∞	/	/	-	-	-
Compared to jA/C, the hitbox on this is stronger horizontally but weaker vertically.
Neutral Jump	12	2	Overhead	5	∞	/	/	-	-	-
Very fast startup. Good air-to-air against Kim divekicks and the like.

jC

jC
Albatross Chop/アルバトロスチョップ

Version	Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
Diagonal Jump	22	4	Overhead	11	18	/	/	-	-	-
Bear's main jump-in whenever you're charging for Super Drop Kick and can't use jD.
Neutral Jump	22	4	Overhead	11	17	/	/	-	-	-

jD

jD

Diagonal Jump

Neutral Jump

Version	Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
Diagonal Jump Flying Dropkick/フライングドロップキック	24	4	Overhead	13	18	/	/	-	-	-
Extremely strong hitbox that's hard to beat without a dodge attack or an invulnerable anti-air. Use this whenever you're not charging for Super Drop Kick. Despite how good this looks, it still sadly loses to low profile anti-airs.
Neutral Jump Stamp Kick/スタンプキック	24	4	Overhead	13	18	/	/	-	-	-
Like neutral jump B, but harder to use due to having more startup and a limited number of active frames.

Universal Mechanics

Lane Blast (CD)

Lane Blast
Outstep Kick/アウトステップキック
C+D

Front Lane

Back Lane

Version	Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
Front Lane	22	5	Mid	15	12	8	34	KD	-1	Cancel, Lane Shift
Basically a slower but beefier version of 5B. Very good reach and plenty of active frames.
Back Lane	22	5	Mid	15	12	15	41	KD	-8	Cancel, Lane Shift
Stronger hitbox, longer recovery.

Lane Attack

Lane Attack
Flying Dropkick/フライングドロップキック
A/B/C/D from opposite lane

Front Lane

Back Lane

Version	Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
A/B	20	2	Overhead	13	-	4	-	-	-	/
Straight and fast lane attack.
C/D	20	4	Overhead	13	-	4	-	-	-	/
Slower high-angle lane attack.

Dodge Attack

Dodge Attack
Bear Claw/ベアクロー
6A during proximity guard

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
11	5	Mid	20	11	9	39	Air Reset (+20)	-1	Kara Cancel, Upper-Body Invuln 1-39F
Slow to start up but keeps its invincibility through recovery, unlike other dodge attacks.

Throws

Power Bomb (6C)

Power Bomb
close 6C

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
26	3	Throw	1	1	/	-	KD (+78)	/	/
Same damage as Bear Bomber and has a more advantageous knockdown.

Back Drop (4C)

Back Drop
close 4C

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
26	3	Throw	1	1	/	-	KD (+79)	/	/
Swaps sides.

Lariat Drop (3C)

Lariat Drop
close 3C

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
26	3	Throw	1	1	/	-	KD (+18)	/	/
Swaps sides. Very poor advantage.

Neck Hang (6D)

Neck Hang
close 6D

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
16~32 (4 x 4~8)	0	Throw	1	1	/	-	+29	/	/
Hold throw. Opponent can mash to reduce hits.

Headbutt (4D)

Headbutt
close 4D

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
12~32 (4 x 3~8)	0	Throw	1	1	/	-	+28	/	/
Hold throw. Opponent can mash to reduce hits.

Lift Up Throw (3D)

Lift Up Throw
close 3D

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
26	3	Throw	1	1	/	-	KD (+39)	/	/
Swaps sides.

Bear Hug (9D)

Bear Hug
close 9D

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
24~48 (4 x 6~12)	0	Throw	1	1	/	-	+30	/	/
Hold throw. Opponent can mash to reduce hits. Bear's most damaging throw, so this is worth going for despite having much less range than Bear Bomber.

Special Moves

Giant Bomb ([1]6P)

Giant Bomb
[1]6P

Ready?

※Recovery on whiff.

• Your main tool for getting past projectiles. Fully invulnerable during startup, but gains a lower body hurtbox once Bear starts charging at the opponent.
• While this move may seem hilariously broken at first glance, it's fairly easy to react to and still loses to just about any low, dodge attack, ground projectile or invulnerable special.

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  Invincible during recovery on contact

Version	Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
A	16 (4)	3	Mid	37	12	2※	50	KD (+41)	+2	Invincible 1-25F, Upper-Body Invuln 26-48F, Throw Invincible
Travels 3/4ths of the screen. Charge time: 45F.
C	22 (5)	6	Mid	57	16	2※	74	KD (+74)	-4	Invincible 1-45F, Upper-Body Invuln 46-73F, Throw Invincible
Travels fullscreen. Charge time: 60F.

Super Drop Kick ([D])

Super Drop Kick
Hold D

An advancing move that grows more powerful the longer the D button is held. The D button can begin charging during the match's intro, but the charge is reset between rounds.

• Pressing D immediately after releasing the charge will cause Bear to execute a D normal or D throw instead of the dropkick.
• Has lower body invulnerability and thus can be used to get past some projectiles that travel across the ground (Terry 236A/C, Geese 236A).

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Version	Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
300F Charge 5 Second Charge	13 (3)	3	Mid	21	11	12	43	KD (+77)	-1	Invincible 1-11F, Foot Invuln after frame 18, Throw Invincible
720F Charge 12 Second Charge	33 (8)	3	Mid	23	11	12	45	KD (+77)	-1	Foot Invuln after frame 20, Throw Invincible
1200F Charge 20 Second Charge	53 (13)	3	Mid	25	11	12	47	KD (+77)	-1	Foot Invuln after frame 22, Throw Invincible
2400F Charge 40 Second Charge	73 (18)	3	Mid	27	11	12	49	KD (+77)	-1	Foot Invuln after frame 24, Throw Invincible

Bear Bomber (6428C)

Bear Bomber
6428C

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
26	3	Throw	1	1	/	/	KD (+71)	/	-
A throw with average damage but immensely large range. Can input 642A8C as an option select to get 2A instead of a jump when whiffed. If the opponent is in Bomber range, 2A will kara cancel to grab them.

Desperation Move

Fire Breath (63216BC)

Fire Breath
When health is flashing
63216B+C

Damage	Stun	Guard	Startup	Active	Recovery	Total	Hit Adv	Block Adv	Property
48 (12)	4	Mid	30	96	16	141	KD	+12	-
Flame is not full size until frame 36. Very good super despite its slow startup. Safe on block and deals a good chunk of chip damage. Has a projectile hitbox, but stays active even if it collides with an enemy projectile. 30-32F (first active) 33-35F 36-38F, 45-47F, etc. (cycles) 39-41F, 48-50F, etc. (cycles) 42-44F, 51-53F, etc. (cycles)

Combos

• 2C > Super Drop Kick (5 sec. version only)
• Meaty c5D > 2C

Strategy

The Basics

If you're the type of player to gravitate towards traditional grapplers like Zangief, picking up Big Bear in FFS is a no-brainer. Regardless of matchup, your gameplan revolves around getting into throw range and then threatening your opponent with your powerful strike/throw mixups. In a game with several strong zoners, getting into close range is a task easier said than done, but fortunately Bear is equipped with several good tools to deal with projectiles. His Giant Bomb ([1]6P) is an upper body invulnerable tackle that allows Bear to go past any projectile that doesn't hit his feet. The light version of the move is slightly plus on block to boot, making it possible to go for a throw attempt even if the move gets blocked. Super Drop Kick (charge D and release) on the other hand is an advancing move with lower body invulnerability, making it ideal for punishing lows and projectiles that travel on ground like Terry's Power Wave. Bear's dodge attack is excellent for avoiding projectiles as well, as it retains its invulnerability even during recovery.

Bear's most useful normals are:

• 5A: Decently fast jab with good reach. It's possible to option select between this move and a dodge attack when input as 46A.
• 2A/2C: Crouching punch with a strong hitbox. 2C is one of the very few moves Bear can combo off of.
• 5B/CD: Good long reaching pokes, ideal for stopping the opponent's advancing moves.
• 2B: Solid low kick that makes for a good tick throw button.

While Bear comes with a massive number of throws, you mainly need to just remember two of them: his command grab, Bear Bomber (6428C), and Bear Hug (9D). Bear Bomber has more range than any other throw in the game, allowing Bear to grab his opponent from a slight distance without the risk of being counter-grabbed. Bear Hug, on the other hand, has much less range but does immense damage, making it the optimal throw to go for if you're right next to your enemy. Since Bear has almost no combo potential, 9D is also generally the best move to go for if you happen to stun your opponent.

Bear's walk speed is rather poor; second slowest in the game after Axel. On the other hand, he has the fastest jump in the game and a very high stun threshold - 22 points, shared 1st place with Krauser.

To dropkick or not to dropkick:

Bear's Super Drop Kick is very useful: an advancing move with lower body invulnerability and a faster, less telegraphed startup compared to his other advancing special Giant Bomb. However, due to its input - having to hold down the D button for 5 seconds or more - it also comes with some big drawbacks, since you're locked out of all of your moves that utilize the heavy kick button while completing the charge. Most notably, you can't use jD - your best jump-in button, and 2D - Bear's sweep kick. Still, the benefit of having Dropkick available more than often makes up for these flaws, as it gives you at least one move you can combo into and it's great for punishing the opponent's moves even from a distance away. In matchups where you can dodge and punish projectiles with the Dropkick (namely against Terry and Geese), you'll want to have the move charged pretty much all the time.

The longer you charge Super Drop Kick, the more damage it deals, but most of the time you'll want to stick to using the 5 second version as it has the fastest startup with brief full invincibility, and it's the only one that works as a combo ender. The other versions are more gimmicky; while the idea of taking away over 70% of your opponent's health with a single hit may sound like the stuff dreams are made of, keeping the move charged for 40 seconds and then finding a suitable opening to land it isn't generally a feasible task.

Advanced Strategy

While the command for Bear Bomber is pretty tricky, you still have some leeway in how you input it; hitting diagonals doesn't matter as long as you have the 4 required directions in order. On stick, I find it easiest to input the move as 64128C, doing a small loop from 4 to 2 to make the overall motion smoother. Other "longcuts" are possible as well, so try experimenting and find a motion that works best for you.

Matchups

Vs. Andy Bogard

4 - 6

Giant Bomb beats most of Andy's key moves and safely goes past his fireballs, but he can still counter with a dodge attack or Shoryudan. You can use Bear's dodge attack to beat both Zaneiken and Kuuha Dan. CD is also a great move against Zaneiken, although it only works as a read.

Vs. Axel Hawk

4 - 6

Axel's projectiles are annoying for Bear as you can't avoid them with Giant Bomb or dodge attack; fortunately they have a slow recovery, so punishing them with a well timed jump-in isn't too difficult. Axel's jumps are hard for Bear to anti-air on the ground, so go for air-to-air jD instead if possible.

Vs. Big Bear

5 - 5

This can easily devolve into a silly tackle contest at any moment, so make good use of 2B and 2D to stop those Giant Bombs.

Vs. Billy Kane

3.5 - 6.5

Work your way in using Giant Bomb and well timed jumps - Giant Bomb beats Billy's mid pokes, but you can't rely on it entirely as he's got fast lows as well. Billy's pretty susceptible to tick throws as he doesn't have an invulnerable reversal or rapid fire jabs, so try your best to stay within throw range.

Vs. Cheng Sinzan

3 - 7

Cheng makes for a surprisingly good Bear counterpick. His fireballs are very hard for Bear to deal with as you can't avoid them with Giant Bomb due to their lingering hitboxes. Cheng can also easily stop tackle attempts with his 5B or 5D. Try to patiently work your way in, preferably trapping Cheng in a corner if possible. You can use 2B to beat his Hagan Geki roll.

Vs. Duck King

4.5 - 5.5

Vs. Geese Howard

4.5 - 5.5

Geese's a good zoner with a projectile that beats Bear's tackle, but this matchup is still quite fair due to the fact you can punish Reppuken on reaction as long as you have a Super Drop Kick charged. Keep that D button pressed down and look for any opportunity to unleash the move on Geese.

Vs. Joe Higashi

2 - 8

Pain. Joe can demolish Bear using only two moves; Hurricane Upper beats all of Bear's usual anti-projectile tools, and his slide kick beats all of Bear's jump attacks (and most ground normals as well). Light Hurricane recovers very fast as well, making it impossible to beat with a jump-in on reaction; you have to get a good read if you want your jump attack to land. Even when you do get in, Joe still has some incredibly fast jabs to make throwing him a difficult task.

It's technically possible to avoid Hurricane Upper by timing a Giant Bomb so that the projectile goes past you during the brief full invulnerability on its startup, but this is very hard to time correctly. Still, it's something you might want to attempt as your options against Joe's projectiles are very limited otherwise. Keeping Dropkick charged isn't a bad idea either as you might be able to catch Joe off guard with it if your timing is on point.

Vs. Jubei Yamada

3.5 - 6.5

Jubei's tiny size is a problem for Bear as a good number of his moves simply up end up whiffing. Jubei can easily beat Giant Bomb and most of Bear's normals with his slide kick as well, so use 2B as your main poke as it's capable of beating the slide. Use jumps very sparingly as Jubei's low profile moves beat all of your air normals, and he even gets a full combo off a meaty 2B anti-air.

Vs. Kim Kaphwan

4 - 6

Vs. Laurence Blood

4 - 6

Vs. Mai Shiranui

4 - 6

Use Giant Bomb and dodge attacks to avoid projectiles. Mai has more pre-jump frames than average and she's the only character that can be grabbed out of a backstep with a ground throw, which helps in landing those Bear Bombers.

Vs. Terry Bogard

5 - 5

Possibly Bear's best matchup and it's still about even. Always keep Super Drop Kick charged as it allows you to easily avoid and punish Terry's Power Wave. You can often get away with pressuring Terry with Giant Bomb in close range, as his main counter against it is Rising Tackle which requires a charge; his dodge attack tends to lose against Giant Bomb as it has a larger than average hurtbox on some of its frames.

Vs. Tung Fu Rue

3 - 7

Vs. Wolfgang Krauser

5 - 5

Surprisingly one of the best matchups for Bear. While Krauser's projectiles have excellent frame data, both high and low Blitzballs can be dodged and punished with Giant Bomb, so you're unlikely to get zoned out. Krauser has fairly bad lows as well, making dodge attack his main counter against tackles, which can be difficult to time correctly.