m (→Meter System) |
|||
| Line 64: | Line 64: | ||
== Unique Groove Abilities == | == Unique Groove Abilities == | ||
=== Rage === | |||
=== | The Rage system in K-Groove is a unique mechanic that fills the meter bar (or '''Rage Gauge''') primarily by taking damage from the opponent; when completely filled, the character enters the '''Rage State''' which grants massive offensive and defensive bonuses, as well as access to a supercharged Level 3 super. (The Rage mechanic was inspired by the ''Samurai Shodown'' series.) | ||
K-Groove | |||
When you | When you get hit, the meter you build is proportional to the damage of the attack. If hit by a heavy attack, more meter is gained compared to being hit by a light attack. Multi-hit normal and super attacks will build significant amounts of meter, and getting hit by a Level 3 super or full custom combo basically guarantees the meter will fill completely to activate the Rage State. | ||
Rage meter can also be gained with a successful Just Defend (see below). | |||
When Rage activates, the player character pulsates blood red and the meter turns into a timer that slowly drains. While in the Rage state: | |||
* A Level 3 super becomes available, which if landed does an additional 10% damage, | |||
* Normal attacks and throws do an additional 35% damage, | |||
* Special attacks do an additional 30% damage, and | |||
* All opponent attacks do 12.5% less damage. | |||
The Rage State ends when: | |||
* The meter timer empties naturally, | |||
* A Level 3 super is performed, or | |||
* The round ends via win, loss, or time over. | |||
An important consideration of the Rage System is that the meter (which can be best thought of as an "anger" or "revenge" meter) is tied to a character individually, as opposed to most of the other meter systems in CvS2 which are shared by all team members. If a character wins a round with 99% of the meter filled, it will carry over to the next round allowing the character to potentially trigger Rage very quickly and/or get an "extra" Rage activation during the round. However, if a character loses a round with partial meter; or wins a round in the Rage State, the meter is reset to begin the next round. | |||
=== Just Defend === | === Just Defend === | ||
The Just Defend is a defensive parry technique that if performed successfully eliminates pushback, negates guard damage, reduces blockstun, gains Rage meter, and grants a small health recovery. (Though Just Defends are also present in the ''Samurai Shodown'' games, their implementation in CvS2 is "officially" inspired by ''Garou: Mark of the Wolves.'') | |||
A Just Defend is performed by executing the correct guard direction in the 6 frames before an opponent's attack connects. Just Defends can also be performed in the air, but cannot be performed during Small Jumps and cannot be performed during a regular jump or superjump after an attack has already been used. | |||
To correctly Just Defend, input: | |||
* {{Motion|1}} for low or mid attacks, and | |||
* {{Motion|4}} for mid and high/overhead attacks, or while in the air. | |||
Just Defend | (In effect, this makes Just Defend the opposite of the traditional Capcom/[[Capcom_vs_SNK_2/P-Groove|P-Groove]] parry, which requires movement in the (non-guarding) down or forward directions within about the same time frame. However, unlike the Parry, doing a Just Defend too early will generally result in the attack merely being blocked, and is therefore a much safer than a Parry which if done too early will result in eating an attack. Also unlike the Parry, Just Defends do not grant as great a frame advantage.) | ||
Just | A successful Just Defend will produce a blue flash and "chirp" sound effect, in addition to nullifying guard damage, adding 6 units (8.3%) of Rage meter, and recovering 100 units of health (as Ratio 2). The meter and health gained is the same regardless of the strength or type of attack being Just Defended. As the only other way to do so in K-Groove is to take damage, Just Defends provide a more preferential alternative to gaining meter. The length of the Rage gauge is the equivalent of 12 Just Defends, which if performed would also recover 1200 health along the way. | ||
Just Defends also alter the positioning and frame advantage states of opponent attacks. A JD will negate any pushback effects an attack may have created, keeping the defender in place. (This may or may not be beneficial, depending on the attack and player positioning.) It also reduces the amount of blockstun the defender takes, sometimes significantly. (See the Just Defend Frame Advantage Formula below for more information.) | |||
If performing a Just Defend in the air, the defender will "bounce" back and up slightly. It is possible to perform additional Just Defends consecutively as long the defender has not used an air attack. However, if attempting to Just Defend multi-hit attacks from the air, the timings to do so may change depending on how the JD bounce repositions you relative to the opponent's projectile or attack direction. | |||
==== Just Defend Frame Advantage Formula ==== | ==== Just Defend Frame Advantage Formula ==== | ||
''This section is taken from Buktooth's famous [https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/ps2/516510-capcom-vs-snk-2-mark-of-the-millennium-2001/faqs/24355|CvS2 Systems FAQ]. The information from it will be reformatted for this wiki at a later time.'' | |||
JD is not only an easy way of getting rage, but like a parry, you can make the attack unsafe. The blockstun that JD gives you is actually universal and not proportional to the attack's stun. There is a guard stun frame value for lights, mediums, heavies and specials. Here are the frames of guard stun for each JD'd attack: | JD is not only an easy way of getting rage, but like a parry, you can make the attack unsafe. The blockstun that JD gives you is actually universal and not proportional to the attack's stun. There is a guard stun frame value for lights, mediums, heavies and specials. Here are the frames of guard stun for each JD'd attack: | ||
| Line 129: | Line 149: | ||
When JDing heavy attacks that are close, attempt a punish. The opponent should be minus enough to where they are unable to block anything. | When JDing heavy attacks that are close, attempt a punish. The opponent should be minus enough to where they are unable to block anything. | ||
== Groove Strategy == | == Groove Strategy == | ||
Revision as of 01:41, 23 January 2024
K-Groove is one of the six grooves in Capcom vs. SNK 2. It features a "Rage" system that gains meter as you take damage and grants massive offensive and defense bonuses when filled; and Just Defends, which greatly reduce guard recovery times and grants a small amount of health restoration. The major components of K-Groove, Rage and Just Defend, are inspired by the game systems of Samurai Shodown and Garou: Mark of the Wolves, respectively.
K-Groove is a consensus A+ grade groove in CvS2, sharing the top tier with A-Groove and its high-damage, round controlling Custom Combo system.
Groove Data
| Main Features | Significant Offensive and Defensive Bonuses in Rage State, Just Defends | |
|---|---|---|
| Groove System | Just Defending & Rage Gauge System | |
| Groove Subsystems |
| |
| Meter Length | 72 Units | |
| Rage State Duration | 180 Time Units | (18 seconds) |
| Guard Bar Length | 43 Units | 90% of Normal |
| Meter Bonuses | In Rage State:
From a Just Defend:
| |
See Groove Subsystems for complete technical data on specific subsystems.
Meter System
The meter in K-Groove is a single bar with the "怒" (literally, "angry") Kanji character at the end. Unlike in most other grooves, there is no way to gain meter through offensive actions. Even successfully blocking attacks grants no meter. Instead, there are only two ways to get meter in K-Groove:
- Take damage from the opponent; the bigger the damage, the more meter received from it
- Just Defend opponent attacks; one Just Defend grants a flat 6 units (8.3%) of meter
When the meter is filled, the player automatically enters the Rage state: The "怒" symbol lights up and pulses, the player character turns red, and the meter bar turns into a timer that lasts 18 seconds. In the Rage state, the player is granted massive offensive and defensive bonuses, as detailed in the Groove Data chart above.
While in Rage, there is no way to add meter or extend the length of Rage once it has activated. Getting hit by an opponent or Just Defending will not gain meter or slow the timer. Health will still be recovered off a Just Defend, however.
In the Rage state, the player has access to a Level 3 super. K-Groove does not have access to any other super level at any other time. When using the super, any remaining meter will empty and Rage state will come to an end, allowing the player to fill it up again.
Meter is gained and used by one character at a time. If a character wins a round, any gained meter carries over to the next round. If the character loses a round, all meter is lost and the new character will start the next round with zero meter. If a round ends while a character is raged, win or lose, the rage state ends and the meter resets to zero to start the next round.
Unique Groove Abilities
Rage
The Rage system in K-Groove is a unique mechanic that fills the meter bar (or Rage Gauge) primarily by taking damage from the opponent; when completely filled, the character enters the Rage State which grants massive offensive and defensive bonuses, as well as access to a supercharged Level 3 super. (The Rage mechanic was inspired by the Samurai Shodown series.)
When you get hit, the meter you build is proportional to the damage of the attack. If hit by a heavy attack, more meter is gained compared to being hit by a light attack. Multi-hit normal and super attacks will build significant amounts of meter, and getting hit by a Level 3 super or full custom combo basically guarantees the meter will fill completely to activate the Rage State.
Rage meter can also be gained with a successful Just Defend (see below).
When Rage activates, the player character pulsates blood red and the meter turns into a timer that slowly drains. While in the Rage state:
- A Level 3 super becomes available, which if landed does an additional 10% damage,
- Normal attacks and throws do an additional 35% damage,
- Special attacks do an additional 30% damage, and
- All opponent attacks do 12.5% less damage.
The Rage State ends when:
- The meter timer empties naturally,
- A Level 3 super is performed, or
- The round ends via win, loss, or time over.
An important consideration of the Rage System is that the meter (which can be best thought of as an "anger" or "revenge" meter) is tied to a character individually, as opposed to most of the other meter systems in CvS2 which are shared by all team members. If a character wins a round with 99% of the meter filled, it will carry over to the next round allowing the character to potentially trigger Rage very quickly and/or get an "extra" Rage activation during the round. However, if a character loses a round with partial meter; or wins a round in the Rage State, the meter is reset to begin the next round.
Just Defend
The Just Defend is a defensive parry technique that if performed successfully eliminates pushback, negates guard damage, reduces blockstun, gains Rage meter, and grants a small health recovery. (Though Just Defends are also present in the Samurai Shodown games, their implementation in CvS2 is "officially" inspired by Garou: Mark of the Wolves.)
A Just Defend is performed by executing the correct guard direction in the 6 frames before an opponent's attack connects. Just Defends can also be performed in the air, but cannot be performed during Small Jumps and cannot be performed during a regular jump or superjump after an attack has already been used.
To correctly Just Defend, input:
for low or mid attacks, and
for mid and high/overhead attacks, or while in the air.
(In effect, this makes Just Defend the opposite of the traditional Capcom/P-Groove parry, which requires movement in the (non-guarding) down or forward directions within about the same time frame. However, unlike the Parry, doing a Just Defend too early will generally result in the attack merely being blocked, and is therefore a much safer than a Parry which if done too early will result in eating an attack. Also unlike the Parry, Just Defends do not grant as great a frame advantage.)
A successful Just Defend will produce a blue flash and "chirp" sound effect, in addition to nullifying guard damage, adding 6 units (8.3%) of Rage meter, and recovering 100 units of health (as Ratio 2). The meter and health gained is the same regardless of the strength or type of attack being Just Defended. As the only other way to do so in K-Groove is to take damage, Just Defends provide a more preferential alternative to gaining meter. The length of the Rage gauge is the equivalent of 12 Just Defends, which if performed would also recover 1200 health along the way.
Just Defends also alter the positioning and frame advantage states of opponent attacks. A JD will negate any pushback effects an attack may have created, keeping the defender in place. (This may or may not be beneficial, depending on the attack and player positioning.) It also reduces the amount of blockstun the defender takes, sometimes significantly. (See the Just Defend Frame Advantage Formula below for more information.)
If performing a Just Defend in the air, the defender will "bounce" back and up slightly. It is possible to perform additional Just Defends consecutively as long the defender has not used an air attack. However, if attempting to Just Defend multi-hit attacks from the air, the timings to do so may change depending on how the JD bounce repositions you relative to the opponent's projectile or attack direction.
Just Defend Frame Advantage Formula
This section is taken from Buktooth's famous Systems FAQ. The information from it will be reformatted for this wiki at a later time.
JD is not only an easy way of getting rage, but like a parry, you can make the attack unsafe. The blockstun that JD gives you is actually universal and not proportional to the attack's stun. There is a guard stun frame value for lights, mediums, heavies and specials. Here are the frames of guard stun for each JD'd attack:
- vs Light Normals: 10 frames guard stun
- vs. Medium Normals: 14-16 frames guard stun
- vs. Heavy Normals: 18-20 frames guard stun
- vs. Special Moves: 19-21 frames guard stun
These varying numbers for modified JD guard stun tell me that one of two things is possible: the first one being that some of the frame numbers in the official CvS2 guide book might me off by a frame or two. While that's very possible, I'll give the book the benefit of the doubt and assume the other possible reason for varying numbers is true.
Much like different fierces have different amounts of guard stun, the same applies for JDs; there is no set amount of JD stun for a set of moves. This makes it a huge pain to tell what the resulting frame advantage/disadvantage is with a JDed move, since there is no basic formula to follow. However, here's a simple formula for getting a rough estimate on the the resulting frame advantage/disadvantage.
Frame Advantage/Disadvantage = JD stun - (active frames + recovery frames)
Let's take Sagat's cr.HP as an example:
Sagat's cr.HP is 7/8/14 +2F. Plug the relevant numbers into the formula and:
Frame Advantage =
- =18~20F - (8F + 14F)
- = 18~20F - 22F
- = -4F ~ -2F
So, Sagat's cr.HP (normally a +2F move) gets a disadvantage somewhere between -4F and -2F when JDed. With some testing, you'll find that it's actually exactly -3F, but since JD stun is slightly different for every move we can use the formula for a good estimate.
Here's a more extreme example of JD effects:
Benimaru's QCF+HK is 12/4/29 +5. Plug the relevant numbers into the formula and you'll end up with:
Frame Advantage =
- -19~21F - (4F + 29F)
- = -19~21F - 33F
- = -14~12F
Ouch. From +5 all the way down to -14ish. JDing really hurts the moves that are safe or give advantage due to putting a ton of block / hitstun on the opponent.
Other examples of moves that are very minus if JD'd:
- Eagle st.HP / cr.HK
- Hibiki Distance Slash
- Claw cr.MP
- Geese cr.HK
- Haohmaru st.HP
- Rugal cr.HP / cr.HK
When JDing heavy attacks that are close, attempt a punish. The opponent should be minus enough to where they are unable to block anything.
Groove Strategy
K-Groove is a top-tier groove in CvS2. It has both offensive and defensive mechanics that make it the perfect groove for almost every character in the game. Though there are defensive mechanics present in K-Groove, you almost always are playing offense on the opponent, and it's easy to force the opponent's hand due to the threat of a level 3 super.
Strengths
Just Defend - As mentioned above, Just Defend is the best way of getting meter in K-Groove. If you manage to JD multiple attacks at once, you can easily get rage. What makes a great K-Groove player is the ability to JD almost anything. It forces the opponent to attack sparingly, knowing that they are basically giving the K-Groover free meter. Not only that, but since JD makes attacks more unsafe, you can pick up punishes from them just like parries.
Damage - K-Groove's Rage mechanic grants an unreal 35% attack bonus. This means that individual pokes and throws will do noticeably much more damage than before. This forces the opponent to lame and turtle. This can be annoying but you can easily corner them. Once you have the opponent cornered and have rage, it's over for them. The damage potency of K is simply too strong. It has the highest threat in the game outside of A-Groove customs.
Team Flexibility - Because meter isn't shared between characters in K-Groove, your team can be a lot more freeform. You don't need to do a point > mid > anchor format, really all you need is the anchor. A team of, say, K-Kim/Honda/Sagat can work, you can have 2 characters of your choosing, and a good anchor. That leads into the next point.
Everyone is Good in K - I'm exaggerating, there are a few characters who are better in other grooves than they are in K, but almost everyone in the entire game is worth picking in K. They all have access to the really good mechanics of JD and Rage. Outside of the bottom tier dumpster fires, you can construct a team of misfits and they could do some real work in K with the right player.
Weaknesses
No Defensive Subsystems Without JD - Outside of JD, K-Groove has no defensive subsystems to escape pressure. No GC, no roll, no GCR, and irregular access to meter means that you're heavily relying on JD and character-specific options to get out of some bad situations. Even then, this is a pretty minor weakness if you can actually JD well.
No Roll - Another "weakness" of K is that is has no roll. Obviously having no roll sucks, but unlike P, K actually has the firepower to back up not having a roll. Still, not having a roll, and more importantly, not having RCs is still a blow.
Overall K-Groove has very small weaknesses compared to other grooves, it really doesn't have any if I'm being honest outside of the defense. The pros FAR outweigh the cons here.
Character Considerations
As stated above, a large majority of the cast is either close to their best or at their best in K. I would list the entire roster here if I wanted to, but instead I'll list characters that are very good picks for any K-Groove tean.
- Sagat
- Blanka
- Cammy
- Geese
- Hibiki
- Rock
- Mai
- Kyo
- Morrigan
- Nakoruru
- Sakura
- Shotos
- Chun-Li
- Raiden
- Dictator
- Iori
Even for characters I didn't list, they can still be thrown on a team no problem. These characters are just the upper echelon of good K-Groove characters if you wanna make a stacked squad.
Groove Comparisons and Matchups
The info in this section is for direct comparisons between grooves and generic groove vs groove matchups, which may apply differently to specific characters. For more detail on how a character plays in and plays against the different grooves, refer to their character info page.
