Normal Moves
Normal moves (or just Normals) are Attacks performed by pressing any Attack Button (1234) while standing still or pressing in one direction at the same time (For example: Down+2=Uppercut), these normals may change between variations and may lead into a Premade Kombo (or String). Normals are the most basic forms of attack
Universal Normal Moves
Universal Normal Moves are Normals that are shared by every Variation that a character has (For example: Triborg's B+1)
Throws
Standard Throws are Unblockable attacks that put you in a short cinematic that do 12% damage and a Hard Knockdown, they can be dodged by crouching or jumping and are performed with either 1+3 or Throw Button (L1/LB) at close range, note that Standard Throws will still land if you're Crouch Blocking. An Enhanced Throw is performed by pressing Block when your Throw lands and consumes one Meter Stock. Note that unlike most Enhanced Special Moves for Enhanced Throws the BL button is not pressed at the same time as the button that initiates the Throw
Standard Throws can be escaped by pressing specific buttons during the tech window (roughly half a second after it lands), 1/3 for Back Throws (S1+3/B1+3) and 2/4 for Forward Throws (F1+3), note that Throw Escape does not make you invulnerable to attacks. Regardless of whether a Throw is Broken or Enhanced, it always deals 2% damage minimum. There is also a property known as ""Throw Protection" that makes you invulnerable to all Throw attacks while you are in Blockstun and Hitstun
There are some specials in the game that are Throws and these are known as Command Grabs and they behave similarly to Standard Throws, except for the fact that they can be Special Canceled into, they cannot be escaped and that some of them cannot be crouched (ex: Goro's DBF3) or jumped (ex: Kotal's DF1), note that EX Command Grabs can sometimes bypass Throw Protection during True Hitstun
Special Moves
Specials Moves (or just Specials) are Attacks that are performed by inputting two or more Directions and then an Attack Button at the same time sometimes
For example: BF1; Back then Forward+Front Punch. And DF2; Down then Forward+Back Punch). Make sure to memorize your character's Special Inputs and what their Specials do as they come in many flavours and usually change a lot between Variations
Special moves in this game do not feature diagonal inputs unless you turn off Input Shortcuts in the settings menu, but doing so is ill advised as the harder inputs make the game hard to maneuver
Enhanced Special Moves
Adding the Block Button to the end of your Special input will transform the attack into an "Enhanced Special Move". These are variations of your usual Special with enhanced properties such as Armour or a Launch or Extra Damage, etc, these will usually cost 1 stock of your Super Meter and are the main thing you'll spend that Meter on so make sure to have at least 1 stock at all times
Some Specials (or Enhanced Specials) will give you the option to input Block late into their animation to extend the attack in some way like with Erron Black's DBF2 which adds an extra hit at the end or Goro's BF4 which changes the last hit into a Launcher for you to combo off of
X-Rays
X-Rays are this game's equivalent of Super Moves, powerful cinematic attacks that deal great amounts of damage, they are full Armoured on startup and even have the ability to Armour Break, these often deal between 30% or 40% damage and cost 3 Stocks of your Super Meter (so Full Meter). They are done by inputting 3+4+Block or Stance Switch+Block (reminder that Stance Switch is L2/LT)
X-Rays can come in many forms like Strikes, Projectiles, Grabs or even Unblockables but most of them Knock Down except for Johnny and Sonya's X-Rays which you can actually combo from
The high cost of X-Rays makes it really hard to justify using them, as that meter would be much better spent on an Enhance Special or Combo Breaker, but if you're gonna use them make sure to do so in a combo to squeeze as much damage out of them as possible (it is recommended to keep X-Ray Combos short as they scale really badly)
Strings
Kombo Moves (or Strings) are Premade Kombos made by the developers for you to perform off of a select number of normals, some of these can have you perform multiple Directions per Attack or have you press two buttons at once (ex: Goro's F213, F212+4 and F21B2). It is also worth noting that usually there is a huge buffer window for these Strings meaning you can input them very fast and your character will still perform them. However there are some Strings that Must be input very rapidly, those combos are called Dial-A-Combos (DAC for short)
There are a few Strings that can only be canceled into On Hit but that is a rare property, so most Strings in the game can be canceled into On Block and On Whiff as well
Strings are the most important moves your character has, as they are integral to combos and pressure, so make sure to learn when it is best to use each one your character has. Note that some characters can have a lot more/less Strings than average and that Strings can also be changed/added by Variations
There are some instances where a String will have a Gap when it is blocked, Gaps allow the opponent to escape your String with a Reversal but Strings that have them will usually have a great deal of Frame Advantage On Block to compensate (ex: Goro: F212+4 is +2 On Block but has a Gap). Some of them can also be a Throw String instead (ex: Jason's B31+3) because the Throw could not land while the opponent is in Blockstun thanks to Throw Protection
Stage Interactables
Stage Interactables (or just Interactables) are unique props on a Stage that allow you to Interact with them to perform a unique move. They are done by pressing 1+2 or R1/RB and cost 1 Stock of Stamina, you can also press Block at the same time to spend 1 Bar to make them Armoured
While most Interactables can be used for both defense and offense, we will be focusing on the latter for now
1. Super Jumps: These type of Interactables allow you to travel a massive horizontal distance with a single jump, you can cancel this into any Jump Attack as soon as you begin flying forward, most of these Interactables can only be used either on the ground or the air but a few can be used in both (such as The Tombs in Lin Kuei Temple). Note that the ones that can be used in the air allow you to Super Jump Backwards by pressing B1+2
2. Projectiles: Most stages will have at least 1 prop that you can throw at the opponent for great amounts of damage and Hit Advantage, these can either knock down or stagger the opponent and they are usually all Highs or Mids. While some are invulnerable to Highs at the very beginning of their startup (because characters hunch over to grab the props) they are all quite slow so it is recommended to either use them preemptively or spend 1 Bar for the Armour. Note that the strength of the attack depends on the prop itself, the strongest props in this category are People (ex: Blanche and the Dead Crew at The Kove)
3. Corner Leaps: Similar to a Super Jump, these allow you make a massive jump out of the corner of the stage, however the startup for these take much longer and they cannot be canceled into any Jump Attacks after that. The key difference here is that by pressing 3 as you run up the wall you can cancel the jump into a Divekick that is +15 On Block and gives you a Safejump On Hit
4. Misc: Some stages have unique interactables that few others/only they have such as the Humonculus Jar in Quan Chi's Fortress, the Tower Crane in The Kove and the Command Grabs in Kutan Jungle, Emperor's Courtyard and Jinsei Chamber. The former two can actually be comboed off of without any prior setup