Street Fighter 3: 3rd Strike/Urien/2021/Aegis

Aegis Reflector

Aegis Reflector is one of the most versatile and character-defining supers in the entirety of Third Strike; it's so good it gets its own section! Put very briefly and bluntly, Aegis singlehandedly elevates Urien from being a middling character to being one of the most menacing, dishonest, and explosive characters in the game. Aegis Reflector, deployed properly, enables legendary screen control, game theft, and damage output.

Properties

Aegis Reflector has several properties that are key to understanding how it works. They are as follows:

• • This is what sets up unblockables
• Button strength corresponds to the length of travel before the Aegis comes to rest
• Will slowly drift towards the opponent once reaches its target distance
• Six hits, which are consumed on hit
  • The mirror can be 'damaged' when struck by the opponent's moves, losing hits
• Reflection is not fully consistent
  • Some moves are outright reflected, others are destroyed, and a small few will beat the reflector

As for 'unblockability', things get weird. Basically:

• Urien must be blocked according to normal rules; block away from him
• Any Aegis hit can be blocked in the direction Aegis was created from
• The first hit of an Aegis blockstring can be blocked in either direction
• The second hit of an Aegis blockstring must be blocked in the Aegis's origin direction
• Blocking a Urien normal will re-enable blocking the mirror in any direction for one hit

Combining these characteristics lets you set up unblockables which are technically blockable (this is extremely difficult but not impossible) but generally require parries or other setup-breaking techniques to consistently escape.

Positions and Utility

Aegis has four different positions, here are the general uses for each.

LP Aegis

LP Aegis travels directly in front of Urien, and has four primary uses, which are as follows:

• Planting directly in front of or on someone in the corner, to allow for pressure and high/low/throw mixups
• Extensions after midscreen tackles, to maximize corner carry or convert into corner ** The Aegis is not actually intended to hit in this case; it simply allows you to charge and execute additional tackles
  • This works best when you are approximately 1/3 screen length from the corner you are facing
• Point-blank 'simple' unblockables from close knockdowns and throws
  • LP Aegis > MP Headbutt > fw.MK is a very simple unblockable that works on some members of the cast if they do not quick-rise a knockdown or throw (this is very rare at higher levels of play, mind you)
• Corner unblockables
  • Canceling corner tackles into LP Aegis allows a multitude of setups, including resets into the aegis or kneedrop unblockables.

MP Aegis

MP Aegis travels approximately one character width in front of Urien, and is generally used for corner pressure, though it sees some use in specific unblockables. Use cases include:

• Planting directly in front of someone in the corner, enabling high/low/throw mixups, pressure, and more meter building
• EX Headbutt unblockables

HP Aegis

HP Aegis travels approximately two character widths in front of Urien, and is primarily used for midscreen unblockables. Use cases include:

• The 'Shoto unblockable,' involving a tackle canceled into HP Aegis
• Taking up space, either to draw a 'line in the sand' or force an opponent into the corner
• Allowing pressure extensions off of blocked tackles
  • Be warned, very little of this pressure is 'real,' but respectful opponents can be bullied with it

EX Aegis / PP Aegis

Executed by hitting two punches simultaneously, EX Aegis travels roughly the same horizontal distance as MP Aegis, but also moves upwards. EX Aegis is unique in that it is active immediately, enabling use as a juggle enabler and linking tool out of Urien's universal overhead and uncancellable 2nd hit of EX Tackle. Use cases include:

• Making tackles safe
• Linking out of universal overhead
• Picking opponents up off of close headbutt hits
• Reflecting projectiles (instant activation makes EX aegis best to reflect things on reaction)
  • Aegis is a valuable and expensive tool, so using it to reflect projectiles is a trade that is rarely in Urien's favor.

Basic Uses

Highly depends on situation and where you are located. If you have a downed opponent in the corner, just throw down a reflector and do low or high attack. If they are launched in the corner, you can do a corner unblockable. Corner unblockables vary from character to character. Most of them involve using Violent Knee Drop.

If you are in the middle of the screen, and get off a c.HP, you have two choices: You can go for an unblockable, or continue a corner juggle using LP Aegis. If you want to do an unblockable, you do a c.HP, LK Chariot Tackle, HP reflector, HK tackle, then, depending on the character, find a way to cross up the opponent before they rise. This is one of the most difficult things you have to learn. Most of the time, you will dash forward, then do an MP Headbutt, then f.MK them into the Aegis after dashing them inward, there are other variations to this.

If you wish to continue the aerial combo, do an LP Aegis after an LK tackle, then simple cancel into another tackle, then do another tackle/headbutt/s.HP, or after the tackle, it may be possible to get a headbutt of s.HP off.

You can also cancel a blocked tackle into an EX Aegis then try to dash forward and throw, f.HP c.HK to create a mixup.

Metallic Sphere super-cancels into Aegis, which means you can do QCF+P then do another QCF+P and get a fireball -> Reflector. This can push an enemy into a corner, this is effective if they're close to a corner but you can't get them there in time. Dashing can also push an opponent into the corner.

There are other uses for Aegis, but they are more obscure and less likely to be useful (but they can and likely will, Aegis reigns supreme in the versatility category, which means you should watch videos to learn other, random setups). Hell, sometimes you can do setups you didn't even know existed! Experiment!