Moves List
Normal Moves
Throws
| Leg Lift Throw | LP + LK |
Command Normals
| Handstand Kick | F + MP |
| Handstand Whip | F + MK |
| Round Arch | B + HK |
| Sliding | DF + HK |
Target Combos
- In air, LP -> MK
- In air, MP -> HP
- HP -> HK
- MK -> D + HP
Special Moves
| Mallet Smash | F, DF, D, DB, B + P | (EX) |
| Rhino Horn | B, DB, D, DF, F + K | (EX) |
| Scratch Wheel | F, D, DF + K | (EX) |
| Spin Scythe | D, DB, B + K | (EX) |
| Lynx Tail | B, D, DB + K | (EX) |
Super Arts
| I | Spinning Beat | D, DF, F, D, DF, F + K | 3 stocks |
| II | Brave Dance | D, DF, F, D, DF, F + K | 2 stocks |
| III | Healing | D, DF, F, D, DF, F + P | 1 stock |
Strategies
Normals You Should Be Using
I think Elena has a lot of really useless normals. That seems to be more common in this game than in other games; I'm not really sure why. But, in any case, here are the normals I use...some, more often than others:
1. S.Lk - Cos sometimes, it's just nice to have a standing normal that cancels into stuff. In any case, I don't use this very much.
2. C.Lk - This move is kinda funny. It can go under fireballs at point blank (not all that useful), and it can combo into EX Spin Scythe or SA2. In fact, it's her only low cancelable normal. It's really a shame that this one is really hard to hit confirm, but in any case, it's probably good to know about it.
3. S.Mp - One of my other less-frequently-used normals, this one is nice when your opponent jumps in from too close to use Back Roundhouse effectively, and I don't have enough time to dash under my opponent.
4. C.Mp - This one is nice. It's got almost as long of range as C. Mk (on characters with straighter stances, there really is no difference, and on characters with less-straighter stances like Chun-Li, the difference is negligable), it's actually pretty nice anti-air, and it's her only hit-confirmable move. This one's very important.
5. F+Mp Overhead - It's an overhead. It's a little slower, or maybe as fast as her UOH, but the range on it is quite long, and it doesn't move her forward at all. I use this one less than her F+Mk Overhead, but this one has its uses, mainly in countering slow crouching attacks.
6. S.Mk - This isn't half bad for stopping special moves that move your opponents forward (Hurricane Kicks). Other than that, I don't use it.
7. F+Mk Overhead - Oh man...I love this move. It's got about the same range as the F+Mp Overhead (surprisingly; I thought this move had much better range), and it comes out waaay faster. The only trouble with this move is that it recovers a bit slower, and it moves Elena forward, which can put her in trouble sometimes...If this move gets parried, you're in a lot of trouble. Just learn when it's safe to follow up and when it isn't, and you'll be fine.
8. S.Hk - One of Elena's important normals for her defense. This one send Elena forward, and can go over some low attacks. This beats quite a lot of stuff on ground AND air, but is VERY slow to recover, and the range isn't quite as long as it looks. Use this if you're sure your opponent is gonna attack, so you can counter it. Otherwise, use it in close proximity. If you whiff this, it's GONNA hurt. Another thing...While this can be used as anti-air, you don't wanna use it as anti-air on closer jump-ins. Stick to S. Mp for that kinda stuff!
9. B+Hk - The other important defense normal. B. Hk moves Elena slightly backwards, giving her throw invulnerability. Is also goes over a lot of low attacks. As if that wasn't enough, it has crazy priority (better than normal S. Hk!), and does crazy large amounts of stun. Just like S. Hk, you don't wanna use this on close jump-ins, so watch out. Be sure to use her Hks along with S. Mp and C. Mp for a surprisingly solid defensive game.
10. C.Hk - A quick sweep that's pretty effective at far ranges, and even goes under fireballs on occassion. Going under fireballs isn't very practical, but it can be useful to remember. This move comes out pretty fast, and is surpsingly safe on block, considering you didn't do it too close to the opponent.
11. OC.Hk - A sliding kick that knocks down and has decent range. While the range is better than her C. Hk sweep, it's not really a lot safer, and you can't abuse it quite as much as some people's slide kicks (Dhalsim or Guy, anyone?). The range isn't quite as long as it looks (her foot doesn't actually hit the opponent), and it can whiff pretty easily. If it does whiff, btw, you're screwed - this move has horrible recovery time. Be sure to use this only when you've got a clear shot.
12. J.Mp - I use this when I'm going to jump up and immediately try and hit someone out of the air, especially because you can link it into J.Hp. This can also be useful when someone tries to parry the attack, but don't rely on that to help you very much, because once someone learns that trick, it's not very dangerous anymore. Just remind your opponent every once in a while. Overall, I stick to using it as a surprise manuver.
13. J.Hk - This is a nice, nice move. It's good anti-air, it's a good jump-in, it can be easily followed up with a combo, and it can hit either once or twice. It's good to try and learn how you can control that (because you can to an extent) to try and fool people that whore parries all day. This is a nice way to screw up their rhythm, and I prefer it move than J.Mp -> J.Hp because it's more ambiguous.
14. J.Lp and J.Mk - I guess I should mention these, since they're her crossups...but I don't use them. Oddly enough, you can link these two moves, but you can't do it when you cross up. I don't ever go for crossups with Elena, though.
Special Move Breakdown
Elena has great special moves...but none of them are particularly safe unless you use the EX versions...that's just my opinion, though. The normal versions can be nice when used in combos, but that's about the extent to which I use them. In any case...
1. Spin Scythe - Sigh...this move would be really nice in any game without parrying...but I guess there's no point in wondering what that would be like. Pretty much any person you play against will not fall for any of the built in tricks of Spin Scythe (additional hits, Hk Spin Scythe ticks), and none of the normal versions will combo in from any move you do. Thusly, you have to resort to EX. EX Spin Scythe, though, is very nice; it's the staple of all her B&B combos. More on that later, I suppose...
2. Scratch Wheel - I think I have a rather unpopular opinion of this move, as a lot of people like the normal versions. I think that none of the normal versions are particularly safe outside of a combo; Short and Forward Scratch Wheels won't even hit jumping opponents right next to you if they're on their way up. Wtf? I have no idea which of Elena's limbs actually hit. Roundhouse Scratch Wheel is move effective in this way, but it still has its problems. Even if Forward Scratch Wheel has some invincible frames on startup, I think there's much better, safer options overall for anti-air. I use the EX Scratch Wheel as a Reversal attack sometimes (it's her safest option, which isn't saying much, unfortunately), and I use the Short and Roundhouse Scratch Wheel in her various combos.
Actually, I found one very random use for Short Scratch Wheel: It makes a good Psychic DP attack when you use it in her wakeup game. What I mean is, for example, say you use F. Mk overhead and it gets blocked. Elena and her opponent recover at about the same time. Your opponent will naturally want to try and attack you, so you can just go for the Short Scratch Wheel and knock em down again. Of course, wakeup game is all about reading your opponents and training them, but should the occassion arise, this is an option at your disposal. ...Oh yeah, and if they block the Scratch Wheel, you're still in range for a Kara Throw. >:D
3. Rhino Horn - I don't think I need to say much about this...The Short and Forward versions are safe when blocked, but are also slow, predictable, and the Short version doesn't travel very far. Let's not even get into the fact that NO Rhino Horn hits crouching opponents. It's my opinion that outside of combos, you shouldn't even be using Rhino Horn to hit grounded opponents, anyways. Outside of combos, I use EX Rhino Horn in a similar fashion to Alex's EX Slash Elbow; that is, I use it Psychic DP style to punish people that jump backwards (or even forwards sometimes, but much less frequently). Other than that, I just use the EX version in some of her combos.
4. Mallet Smash - I used to like this move a lot, until I found out how great her command Overheads were. You can link the normal versions of this move into Scratch Wheels on crouching opponents, but if that's the only time you ever used Mallet Smash, that might get a little predictable. You can do the same thing using EX Mallet Smash on standing opponents, though I don't think that's very practical, either. I use Mallet Smash only in certain combos, and to psyche people out by using it to cross-up, but that's not something you should be doing very often. Suffice to say, I don't use this move very much.
5. Lynx Tail - ...Has anyone EVER found a good reason to use this move? I think NO version of this move is practical. No normal version combos in from anything, and the EX Version frequently whiffs, not to mention there's easier ways of knocking an opponent down that deal more damage. Don't even bother with this move.
Which Super Art?
Boy...this is pretty hotly debated. First, let's start with something everyone can probably agree on:
SA1 (Spinning Beat) is not very good. The damage is low, the extra meter you get for using SA1 compared to SA2 (Brave Dance) is negligable, and worst of all, if you connect the first hits of SA1 from a far distance, the next hits will whiff, even if your opponent is standing - imagine how catastrophic this move can be when trying to hit a crouching opponent? So, as I said, SA1 is not very good.
Yeah? We can all agree on that, right? Cool. The BIG debate usually comes with which SA is better between SA2 (Brave Dance) and SA3 (Healing). Personally, I am an SA3 fan, and I think I'm the only Elena player I know that primarily uses Healing. Now, trying to use empirical evidence, here's why I think SA3 is better than SA2:
1. You can deal damage comparable to SA2 by using EX combos.
- SA2 alone does 56 damage; C. Mp XX SA2 (the B&B using SA2) does 65 damage (FYI, all my damage data in this spiel is based on Ryu). Now, let's take a look at some combos you can do without Brave Dance...
- C. Mp XX EX Spin Scythe, Lk Scratch Wheel does 54 damage. Not bad for a combo you can do 3 times (technically 4 times, cos the C. Mps and Scratch Wheels will give you enough to do an extra one) with SA3, huh? You can do this combo anywhere on the screen, and, if you were able to land it that many times, it will do near 100% damage to most of the cast (It WILL do 100% damage to characters with lower vitality, like...I dunno...Yun and Chun-Li? Yang and Akuma? :D). It's really not hard to build enough meter to do this combo, and you can use it without worrying about ruining any chance you might get to use Healing.
- If you're in the corner, you can even do this: C. Mp XX EX Spin Scythe, Mk Spin Scythe, EX Rhino Horn, Hk Scratch Wheel. 75 Damage. That's MORE than you can do with a normal SA2 link.
- If you're not in the corner, here's a combo you can do with 2 EX moves from anywhere: C. Mp XX EX Spin Scythe, EX Rhino Horn (this crosses up midscreen), Hk Scratch Wheel. This is for 64 damage, and the Scratch Wheel will build you up to about half bar again, meaning you already have almost enough to do it a second time.
- Also, in the instance of adding a jump-in attack to the mix, the SA2 combos don't gain a substantial amount of damage increase (neither do the EX ones), making the amount of damage pretty proportional no matter what you decide to do.
Now, admittedly, in all these cases, the damage is negligable, but why would you use a whole bar for to do the kind of damage you can do with just part of it? AND, you have the option to gain back life on TOP of all that!
2. There are almost NO links which combo into only SA2 and not EX Spin Scythe; the only exception is that EX Spin Scythe might whiff certain crouching characters at max range. In most cases though, it's not only possible, but it's EASIER to use EX Spin Scythe.
3. There are almost no EX combos that Elena can do with SA2 that she can't do in SA3. The only one I can think of is EX Mallet Smash X 4 on jumping opponents (SA3 Elena can only get 3 of them...aww. :P). If someone can explain to me why this combo is even PRACTICAL, and why that fourth Mallet Smash is key to her game, you let me know. I don't even think that this is a practical combo.
4. More diversity. You can now mount an offense, OR turtle, depending on what the situation calls for.
5. Elena doesn't get a lot of her damage from these crazy combos. Let's face it...You're not gonna get a million chances to use these combos anyways. In fact, I can remember several matches I've won where I didn't use anything but Elena's crazy wakeup game. With that in mind, just what are you hording that meter for? You'll have a million more chances to use Healing than you'll have to use Brave Dance.
6. My overall verdict
All in all, the biggest reason I've ever heard for people using SA2 over SA3 dealt with being able to dish out damage, and that you have to play Elena completely differently with SA3. I don't buy this. The damage of her combos do the same damage as her various SA2 links, and sometimes more, which means you can still mount a great offensive and deal the same damage. SA3 adds an extra dynamic to Elena's game - the ability to safely implement other, less predictable tactics safely (turtling game and wakeup game, most specifically). Everyone knows what an SA2 Elena is trying to do - C.Mp. That move is not even dangerous in most cases (it can be blocked and parried high AND low! Talk about working hard for a match!) and is easy to see coming. Now that you can do other things with Elena, it's that much less predictable to use it.
On the other hand...there are some characters who are certainly difficult to hit with Ex Spin Scythe combos, due to their height (in particular, Chun-Li). From here, it becomes a judgement call based on how want to go about the match.
Combos
Here are some combos I use with Elena:
Anywhere:
- C. Mp XX EX Spin Scythe, Lk Scratch Wheel (6 hits, 54 damage)
Note: This is what I'd consider Elena's B&B combo. She can do this anywhere, and it's the best combo in ratio of meter used to damage dealt. You have to be quicker on the Scratch Wheel in midscreen, but it's not too difficult overall.
- C. Mp XX EX Spin Scythe, J.Mp -> J.Hp (3 hits, 47 damage)
Note: This is the other B&B for Elena, it does a bit less damage, but the trick is that it will reset the opponent, so if you think you can fool them with something as they land, go for this, cos it'll result in more damage in the long run. Learn to be smart with these two!
- C. Mp XX EX Spin Scythe, EX Rhino Horn (crosses up midscreen), Hk Scratch Wheel (10 hits, 64 damage)
Note: This one is a bit better if you have meter to spare, I suppose. You'll still have about half your bar left after this combo.
- C. Mp XX EX Spin Scythe, EX Rhino Horn (crosses up midscreen), EX Scratch Wheel (11 hits, 69 damage)
Note: I listed this one more for completion's sake than anything. A lot of people use this combo thinking it's her best one, and technically, it does the most damage...but you're using the entire bar to get that damage...you're technically using 1/3 of your bar for 5 damage. That's ridiculous.
- (On a jumping opponent) EX Mallet Smash x3, Lk Scratch Wheel (5-6 hits, 70-ish damage)
Note: This combo is stupidly hard to land. Hitting someone with an EX Mallet Smash out of the air is difficult for me, and landing three is quite a feat. If there are any really good ways to land this, it's almost certainly going to stun your opponent...except for that your meter is gone, so you can't follow it up. This is quite possibly the only combo that's better with SA2, since you can do the Mallet Smash four times, or you can do the same combo and have a little more EX. In any case, I can't figure out what to do with this combo, so I leave it in your guys's hands.
- EX Mallet Smash, Hk Scratch Wheel (5 Hits, 44 damage)
Note: I suppose it's pretty nice for an overhead, but it's really, really hard to land. I don't bother.
Corner only
- C. Mp XX EX Spin Scythe, Mk Spin Scythe, Lk Scratch Wheel (8 hits, 67 damage)
Note: The timing on this one is pretty tight, but if you've played 3S for a while (and particularly Elena), you can probably pull this off with good accuracy. This is a really nice combo, and it's too bad you can only use it in the corner.
- C. Mp XX EX Spin Scythe, Mk Spin Scythe, EX Rhino Horn, Hk Scratch Wheel (12 hits, 75 damage)
Note: Nice! I used to doubt the power of this combo until I realized it wasn't all too impossible (I just went for EX Rhino Horns WAAAAAAAAAAY too early :P). This is a nice one for only two EX moves, and the moves in between will give you enough meter to be able to do another two EX moves. Definitely the combo you wanna learn for the corner. DO IT.
- C. Mp XX EX Spin Scythe, Mk Spin Scythe, EX Rhino Horn, EX Scratch Wheel (13 hits, 79 damage)
Note: I really added this for completion's sake. It's not really worth the four extra damage to drain your entire bar.
Crouching opponents
- Hp Mallet Smash, Hk Scratch Wheel (5 Hits, 51 damage)
Note: This would be SUCH a great combo if you could do it with Lp, or even Mp Mallet Smash. Hp Mallet Smash is just too fucking slow to make this practical, and you can't cancel the ending animations of the other two. That's really too bad...this is a NICE combo. :/
Miscellaneous
This is just for one or two things that I don't feel fit anywhere else...
1. Kara Throw
Elena has a very, very nice Kara Throw. Most Elena players already know, but it's using her T+Forward Overhead. I personally find it's much easier to land this throw if you're not already walking toward your opponent, but it's probably good to learn how to do it with accuracy from a standing or walking position. I generally find the best times to go for a throw is after a dash-in or on an opponent's wakeup, which are both situations where you can bring the Pad (or Stick) back to neutral before attempting it. Whichever way is easier for you; the important thing is that you should really learn how to use the Kara Throw if you're playing as Elena.
2. Frickin' Stance
When I used to play Elena exclusively, I thought I just really, REALLY sucked at parrying. But, as I began to branch out into playing other people, I realized I only kinda sucked at parrying, and that Elena's fighting stance actually moves her around.
Anyone ever been in this situation? Some lame-o throws a Shinkuu Hadouken, or any other random fireball at you. You think you've got the timing down, so you go for the parry, and you COMPLETELY mess that shit up? Elena probably stepped forward or backwards as the fireball was coming at you, messing your timing up.
I think parrying is an important thing to learn as Elena (or anyone for that matter), so it's important to know the logistics of how her stance works:
- Elena's default position in her stance has her back leg (the one farther away from the camera) forward.
- Eventually, she puts her back leg backwards, and which moves her backward from her original position. The back leg stays back for a very short time before putting it forward again.
- Getting up from a crouch, landing from a jump, and executing any grounded move puts her at a different part of her stance.
The reason all of this is important is because if you don't know, you won't have any control over her stance, and it'll cause you a lot of frustration when you try to parry things.
There are about five different ways she can end an animation:
- Back leg foward (T+Forward Overhead, S. Roundhouse, B+Roundhouse, Throw connects, Spin Scythe) - Back leg moving forward (UOH, Getting up from a crouch, landing from a jump, Throw whiffs, Scratch Wheel) - Back leg backwards (Dash, Backdash, T+Strong Overhead, Rhino Horn) - Back leg moving backwards (S. Short) - Back leg back, moving forward (S. Strong)
With them, I've listed all the grounded actions I think are important. But, as complicated as that might sound, there's only a few of those you should know:
- Know Elena's position after all her dashes, her crouch, her jump, or any standing move that you might whiff (Throw, S. Short). If you know exactly what Elena does after, say, a crouch, you can parry projectiles easier by simply crouching before the fireball comes, then standing up and parrying; you'll always know the timing with this tactic! Learn all these different positions for effective defensive parrying.
- After heavily offensive moves (S. Roundhouse, B+Roundhouse, Overheads). This way, for pesky reversal attempts, or any attempts at stuffing your moves with bad recovery (T+Forward Overhead, anyone?), you know easier how to parry in the middle of your offensive game and keep the pressure on.
Jeez, this was a little long. If anyone knows how I can truncate this section, lemme know. :P
EX Spin Scythe Troubles
EX Spin Scythe can miss crouching characters at far ranges, especially on crouching characters that are SHORT. I was teaching my friend the basics of the game, and he wants to start as Makoto...Well, something I noticed while sparring with him is that Makoto almost NEVER gets hit by it when crouching. There are troubles with it in far ranges for MOST characters, sure. But I'm talking about comfortable ranges.
So, I decided to experiment with that, and I looked for various weird properties when trying to combo C. Mp XX Ex Spin Scythe.
Here's a list of characters that are difficult to hit with the combo when crouching (i.e You should only attempt C.Mp XX Ex Spin Scythe at point blank):
Yun Yang Makoto Oro Ibuki Elena (damnit, lol)
Here's a list of characters with strange, specific problems:
Necro & Twelve - It's pretty simple...Necro and Twelve seem to be shorter than average characters when crouching, but taller than the people I just mentioned above. You can still hit them in the range I tested, but it seems like they're still hard to hit within comfortable ranges. Take caution.
Dudley - This is weird...It's not a problem of hitting him while crouching, but it's a standing problem. You know how when you hit someone with C. Mp XX Ex Spin Scythe from a little far away, Elena sort of 'catches up' to them? Well, sometimes at farther ranges, Elena DOESN'T catch up, so the last hit of the Ex Spin Scythe will miss. My hypothesis is that it has something to do with how fast you cancel it; basically, this means no hit confirming this combo on Dudley from farther ranges. It could, however, be because of the way Dudley's stance changes slightly at he fights.
Chun-Li - The most obnoxious problem of them all: Ex Spin Scythe just plain DOESN'T work on crouching Chun-Li. The last hit always whiffs, no matter what you do. How annoying!
Strategy Part 1 - Turling Game
Strategy Part 2 - Offensive Game
- Personal Action: Stun Damage up.