Darkstalkers 3/Hsien Ko

Introduction

Lei Lei(lay lay), or Hsien Ko in the States(I use leilei b/c it does seem easier...to me[gbursine]), has seemingly always been a favorite of Capcom & fans.

In Vampire Savior, Lei Lei has all the tools needed for good rushdown; tho she really is mid tier. Infact, something in my mind makes me think she's been placed lower-mid. Nonethaless, her rushdown can be overwhelming, and her zoning can make players frustrated. Also, her DF is an answer to just about anyone else's DF in the game.

Normal Moves

Standing

s.lp/s.lk - both have alot of priority. This makes them excellent for hitting the opponent out of the air. Their best used as a semi-distant anti-air(when the enemy lands little less than a character away), or to hit the opponent out of something( Demitri’s Million Bat EX, or Gallon’s Beast Cannon)

s.mp - here, she throws out her claw above her head. its only a decent AA in VS... it works much better in VS2. aside from that, I don’t believe it has much utility.

s.hp –

• a. close s.hp - has her poke claw out. It isn’t bufferable, so there’s not much to say, since I’ve never used it(outside of her dark force). If you’re chaining, more often times, you should be chaining into her c.hp for a knockdown. The verdict on this move: it has no utility.

• b far s.hp – Lei Lei shoots out a saw of sorts. a multihitting saw, which can amount for up to 3 hits. MAYBE if you’ve chain-comboed far, and cannot reach with her sweep should you finish with this. But more often times than not, using s.hp is a bad habit, & does not lead to any benefiting positional value for Lei Lei. Also, Multi hits is really just asking for a GC or tech hit. Neither of which you want.

s.mk – Lei lei does a weird kick w/ both her legs that has her stutter. Due to the placement of the hitboxes, using this seems very special case.

s.rk – Her s.rk is a necessity for all her chain combos. All of which should end in s.rk. Should you accidentally do s.hp, you should automatically chain to s.rk. It is a habit necessary for a high level Lei Lei(-5 on hit & -6 on block, which really isn’t bad). By itself, it hits crouching characters, and does a good job of keeping opponents grounded.

Crouching

c.lp/c.lk – Much like their standing versions, except c.lk hits low. C.lp retains the priority of its standing version. C.lk is what you generally want to start your chains with.

c.mp- Its her low ranged poke. Doesn’t hit low, but has excellent vertical range. Its best use outside of chain combos is to keep the opponent grounded. Should you anticipate a jump and throw this out, they will more than likely get hit. If not, chain into s.rk and continue rushing/zoning.

c.hp – a looong reaching sweep. Lei lei’s claws turn into spinners, which spin across the ground for roughly a quarter of the screen. Necessary to her game, majority of the time you’ll want to cancel out into s.rk. canceling into s.rk generally takes away her ability to pursue, but allows for you to follow up with instant airdashes or pendulum chains. As said earlier, it’s a safe habit to avoid getting hit should Lei Lei’s c.hp be blocked.

c.mk – Unfortunately I don’t use c.mk as often as I should. It hits low, and is bufferable. C.mkXXlp projectile or c.mkXXpendulum both work well on wakeup within your rushdown.

c.rk- I find this move annoying as hell... She does an angled handstand. the hitboxes are annoying as fuck, and it comes out somewhat delayed. When I first played her I thought this move was good. it doesn't hit behind her surprisingly, and I wouldn't recomend relying on it unless you can properly anticipate a jumpin.

Should you hit a c.rk, you will knockdown your opponent. In my experience with connecting this move, I have almost never missed a pursuit. I’m pretty sure that a pursuit is guaranteed.

Command Normals

F+mp- her farthest reaching poke. she swings a mace ball thingy out. The hit boxes go to the very edge of the ball. Very useful, tho make sure they at least block it(so you can chain to rk)

F+fp – she swing her claws hella high up taking a hughe part of the upper part of the screen. good if you can anticipate them jumping.

I personally don't like it..I rarely ever use it. I think it has too much recovery.... but the japs use it, so it’s really a matter of implementing it into your game.

Also, should you be in need to get out of it, always tap s.rk, or have a heaven spike EX super ready.

Special Moves

======gong====== (QCB+P, useable in air) - Lei Lei pulls out a gong, and bangs on it, sending out a small soundwave which can reflect projectiles of all types.

The gong can be outline with four uses:

• tk gong-(lp, or ES) AA, and anti rush down. if timed right, you can combo the ES gong into the knife super.

• building meter - lp gong does an excellent job of building meter.

• psychic gong(lp gong)- it comes out fast as hell. if you're jumping in, and you see a projectile, many times, it is possible to psychic gong that shit. lp comes out fast, and all you need is a bit of practice, and it'll be like, second nature.

• zoning(ES)- its much like lilith's soul flash, only it can reflect moves, and

Of course you can combo into it, but unless you know you're going to kill your opponent, you're better of comboing into a knockdown of some sort, to set up further mixup.

======spinny scythe "pendulum swing"====== (DP+P, cancelable w/ kick)- Lei lei hooks herself to a chain and starts swinging while spinning. Its priority is random, I'm pretty sure this is how it works... lei lei's [best*]hitboxes are constantly circling around her... so the enemy has to time it if they really wanna hit... it has 4 uses:

• feigning... use it, and fake it in the beginning of your arch downward
• crossup... self explanitory... VERY good... if you can master this shit, she'll fly so fucking fast, that when she goes at the opponent, they need mvc2 reflexes to see whether or not a high hit will come out before you land, and do a quick low one
• runnaway bitch- jump, scythe at the highest point, kick cancel on your way up(this is her double jump basically).. proceed to go across the screen with a dash, or do a hp scythe to stay uptop.
• baiting. A lei lei that can pendulum cancel well can use this move freely. so, you can swing->cancel->block->free combo... of course if they go for a ground normal, you'll likely get hit by something.

...another thing I've seen japs do, is a scythe in the middle of the screen, canceled out into another scythe, to crossup... Its just a fake/crossup variation

• after either the first or 2nd pendulum cancel, you STILL have the option to air dash
• she has hitboxes all around her... tho I think at that main point(where the blade is) is where it has the most priority.

======random object projectiles====== : lp- its another poke... tho it doesn't allow for dizzy projectiles. its still good in cycleing to a dizzy one though. goes 5/6ths of the screen. mp- most useful zoning tool imo. arcs across the screen. allows you to ad/iad forward. hp- should be used after a heaven spike super to set up for an anji type unblockable.

• note1: the biggest drawback of all her projectiles is that she stays on the ground so goddamn long.... so while it may seem like a good idea to throw a mp projectile against jedah, you risk getting put into his underworld grab super
• note2: the 2nd projectile after the shruinken(or the one after the akuma statue) is always a dizzy projectile...

Supers & Dark Force

=DF mode: How to use it. Knockdown/dizzy, activate, rush in, oodles of s.lps and walking forward. its always good to cancel out of it before it actually ends... especilally lei lei's since hers depends on how far away you are from lin lin. -lei lei has super armor:evil: don't be afraid -I often go into df off of a dizzy proj. Make sure you dont hesitate. they can come out of the dizzy if you waste too much time running/dashing to them and activating. -her df counters anyone else's df.

Lei lei Querks

• heaven spikes super(the ones that come fron the air).... heaven spikes sets up for an unblockable hp projectile.

-teh BALLS otg... the big block thingy does too I think.. -the block thingy that falls initially is an overhead

-=Things you should/can do during a match=- -rtsd. -jumping mp(kinda like chun's straight up rk) -iad.mp/mk->groundchain -random ground pokes -c.mk and close s.mp are buffereable... kinda hard to set up imo, but should you manage to land em(doable off the lowest iad)...combo that shit

-knife super makes for a decent AA if you can anticipate them attacking you from afar when they jump in. ...follow up w/ iad to otg heaven spikes. -knife super is the F U to alot of DF's. -no bombs, unless you're japanese -anji type unblockable setups are doable in the corner... unless you're up against a good gcer

more to come after my spring break Thanx satome for inadvetently making me want to write this