Mechanics

Movement

Ground Movement

Walk

4 / 6 on the ground

Moves you on the ground slowly.

Dash

44 / 66 on the ground

Dashing is faster than walking.

Roll

ABC on the ground (Stand OFF only)

Invincible to strikes for its entire duration and then some.

Standstill i-frames

Certain characters can gain extra invincibility from their rolls by standing still after their roll finishes. Note that this only applies to rolls that don't sideswitch - if you roll past an opponent, you only get whatever guaranteed post-roll iframes you would normally.
This is an extremely strong technique - the standstill state can be interrupted at any point with no downtime, allowing characters with generous iframes to effectively bait out punish attempts.

Roll Properties
Character	Total	Post-roll	Standstill
Alessi	-	-	-
Avdol	39	2	0
Black Polnareff	-	-	-
Chaka	-	-	-
Devo	-	-	-
Dio	-	-	-
Hol & Boingo	-	-	-
Hol Horse	-	-	-
Iggy	-	-	-
Jotaro	-	-	-
Kakyoin	-	-	-
Khan	-	-	-
Mariah	-	-	-
Midler	-	-	-
New Kakyoin	-	-	-
Old Joseph	-	-	-
Pet Shop	-	-	-
Polnareff	-	-	-
Rubber Soul	-	-	-
Shadow Dio	-	-	-
Vanilla Ice	-	-	-
Young Joseph	-	-	-

Air Movement

Jump

Any Upward Direction on the ground

Puts you in the air. Not throw invuln on startup i think

Super Jump

Any Downward Direction > Any Upward Direction on the ground

Puts you higher in the air.

Hop

Briefly Tap Any Upward Direction on the ground

Puts you lower in the air

Hyper Hop

Any Downward Direction > Briefly Tap Any Upward Direction on the ground

Puts you lower in the air but moves fast horizontally

Guard

Ground Block

4 / 1 on the ground

The most fundamental defensive option. Some moves must be blocked with 1 while some must be blocked with 4.

Air Block

7 / 4 / 1 in the air

All grounded normals are air unblockable. Air blockstun lasts until landing.

Pushblock

ABC while ground blocking

Be careful of the input overlap with roll.

Guard Cancel

623X while ground blocking

Rubber Soul

Tech Hit Also commonly known as Throw Teching or just Teching

4C / 6C within 2f of getting thrown.

Tight window but you'll have to deal with it.

Attacks

Normal Attacks

Heritage for the Future is a 4-button game, 3 of which are tied to your normal attacks.

Throw

4C / 6C while close to opponent

All throws are equal, but some throws are more equal than others. 2f window to tech

Special Moves

Motion Input + A / B / C / S

Most specials deal chip damage

Super Moves

Motion Input + Any 2 Attack Buttons

Cost meter. All supers have some form of invuln.

Knockdown and Air Tech

Wakeup

Automatic after knockdown

Wakeup time varies per character. Be very mindful of the block-only frame, don't attempt wakeup reversals if the opponent can meaty this frame properly.

Air Tech

Any Direction + Any 2 Attack Buttons

Autopilot downtech forever

Stands

Stands are HFTF's most unique mechanic and a big part of what makes the game so interesting.
Most Stand-related actions are tied to the S button. Every character belongs to one of three types:

Active Stand
Weapon Stand
Passive Stand

Active and Weapon Stand characters use the S button to toggle between Stand ON and Stand OFF modes.

Stand ON

Going Stand ON bestows several unique and powerful benefits.

Entirely different moveset

Characters in Stand ON will have an entirely new set of normals, specials and supers.

Jotaro's jab in Stand OFF
Jotaro's jab in Stand ON

Moves performed in Stand ON will have the "s." prefix, i.e. Jotaro's 5A in Stand ON would be s.5A

Chip Damage Nullification

Characters in Stand ON receive no chip damage. Instead, moves that would normally inflict chip will now damage the Stand Gauge.

Knockdown Immunity

Characters in Stand ON cannot be knocked down - almost every move that would normally cause a knockdown will instead launch you into the air.

In addition, characters will gain extra options in Stand ON based on if they're an Active or a Weapon Stand:

Active Stand

Double Jump

Any Upward Direction in the air

Puts you in the air in the air

Air Dash Kakyoin , Vanilla Ice , New Kakyoin and Iggy only

44 / 66 in the air

Puts you horizontally fast in the air

Tandem Very Easy

214S

Insanely effective at everything - if you can dream it, Tandem can do it.

Weapon Stand

Custom Combo

214S

Mostly used as a combo and a punish tool. Not as obscene as Tandem, but still useful.

Stand Durability

Stand Crash!

Stand Gauge depleted when getting hit

Stand Crashes put the victim in a period of extended hitstun - giving opponents more time to extend a combo, give them extra advantage on a knockdown or letting them convert off moves that they normally wouldn't be able to.

Stand Crush

Stand Gauge depleted while blocking

Stand Crush is a more powerful version of Stand Crash that forces the victim to take even longer to recover than from a Stand Crash. The extra time not only lets the opponent set up more damaging followups, but also resets damage scaling so whatever they hit you with hurts even more.

Jotaro Combos

Beginner Combos

Stand OFF 236S Confirm How Jotaro gets his knockdowns Basic

5A, 6B xx 236S xx s.214B > 214A

Very simple confirm into Jotaro's rekkas ending in a knockdown. Absolute must-know combo for any aspiring Jotaro as it allows him to put the opponent in an unreactable 50/50 via Star Finger. Note that nearly any Stand OFF normal may be used instead of the 5A, 6B link, but it's best to learn this link early as it's the gateway to Jotaro's more optimal combos.

Stand ON Rekka Confirm How to turn Jotaro's strong Stand ON normals into a knockdown Basic

d.s.5A, s.5AAB xx s.214B > 214A

Not only is d.s.5A extremely fast, but it's also consistently rewarding on hit thanks to reliably comboing into s.214B > 214A.
d.s.5A, s.5A is a link you'll need to practice to hit consistently, but it's fairly lenient and well worth the effort.

Core Combos

Basic Stand ON !SC Combo The reason it's so scary to play Stand ON vs. Jotaro Basic

d.s.5A, s.5AAB xx s.214B !SC, (...)

Makes people wince when it lands. A lot of characters benefit from playing in Stand ON, but Jotaro's titanic Stand Damage makes Stand Crashing a breeze. Always be wary of your opponent's Stand Gauge, as adjusting your routing to cause a !SC makes it very easy to deal a ton of damage. It's ideal to !SC with s.214B, as it moves Jotaro right up to the opponent's face and recovers fast enough to follow up, usually with a d.s.5C xx 214S.

In a pinch, you can consider following through with this string even on block, as fully depleting the opponent's Stand Gauge while they're blocking gives you even more time to kill them with a combo of your choosing. However, s.214X is fairly unsafe on block, so weigh the risks carefully.

Stand OFF BnB Where the real damage comes from Intermediate

(...) 5A, 6B xx 214B, hh.C, 5A, 6B ...

Stylish and damaging - what else could you ask for? This is a bit of a step up compared to basic confirms into 236S, but this extension improves Jotaro's corner carry and does far more damage. There's a few tricky bits here:

You may find it's easier to negative edge 6B xx 214B like so: 6[B] xx 214]B[.
It's vital that you hyperhop before doing j.C. You may find that sometimes a regular jump will suffice, but this is very inconsistent so it's better to always hyperhop.

The two main ways you'll follow up on this extension is by canceling into 236S to end the combo or extend it further using Tandem (214S). Both of these require Star Platinum to have disappeared after recovering from 214B, so adjust your timing accordingly.

As useful as this combo part is, using it more than once in the same combo can be unreliable as IPS can force it to drop.

Miscellaneous Combos

The BBC Link No BBC = Anger Advanced

... d.2B~236AA, 6B (236AA hits)

A very unique, stylish and situationally optimal combo part. Normally, canceling Stand OFF normals that use your stand works as expected, i.e. the normal is canceled into the special/super/whatever else. However, certain normals have an unusual property that allows the Stand User to cancel into a different action while the Stand continues attacking.

This combo abuses the fact that d.2B has this property by canceling its startup into 236AA to reduce Jotaro's recovery while Star Platinum continues the attack. Because of this stagger, it's possible to link into 6B before 236AA actually hits.

The primary way to combo into this is by ending Tandem strings with s.5AB xx s.623X. Forcing a !SC on the last hit gives you far more time, but isn't necessary.
There's several input shortcuts to help with the unusual cancel:
- 661B [ABC] ~ 236]ABC[
- [A] 661[ABC] ~ 236]ABC[
- 6612B[AC] ~ 36]AC[

Character Overviews

Note that this is by no means a comprehensive overview of the characters in this game, but it does aim to give first-time readers a basic idea of what to expect from each character. For a more complete look, click on the character's name to go to their page and learn more! (editor's note: the ones with an asterisk are ones i'm not quite happy with so i hope someone with better writing skills/character knowledge can fix them - thanks!)

Active Stand

Jotaro is a close range brawler with equally strong options in the midrange. Gets his hits by outspeeding or outboxing the opponent's moves before converting said hits into combos with monstrous damage that lead to oppressive 50/50 okizeme.

Avdol is a jack-of-all-trades who heavily rewards fighting game fundamentals. His lack of any real weakness allows him to adapt to nearly any situation or matchup. Has some of the best-in-class tools for nearly any situation, although he can struggle to take back momentum once he's at a disadvantage.

Kakyoin is everything you can dream of and more. Normals that are fast and long, amazing movement, obscene combo damage, suffocating oki and pressure along with Nets - the best move in the game, bar one. His only real downside? Being tournament-banned.

Polnareff is both hard to keep away and impossible to get in on. He's extremely good at playing a patient, neutral-focused game supported by his excellent pokes and massive air normals, but Polnareff can switch to a smothering offense with mixups backed by his Shooting Star special in a heartbeat if he needs to.

Dio is an extremely volatile character defined by lightning-fast dashes and the potential to end rounds off a single opening. Once he’s in the lead, Dio’s movement, strong air normals and the exceptional Stand ON Knives super can put the opponent in checkmate - literally.

Devo is widely considered to be the first real example of a puppet character, and he embodies the archetype perfectly. Effective doll placement allows Devo to attack from two directions, which gives him obscene damage, mixup potential and neutral control.

Iggy * is the smallest character in the game when in Stand OFF, but gains an airdash along with a unique glide in Stand ON, which allows him to play an unorthodox aerial keepaway and high/low game. He's also a dog.

Midler is an unorthodox character with excellent neutral and footsies. She doesn't have a defined win condition, so she instead focuses on abusing the opponent's weaknesses with her varied toolkit, which include obnoxious air normals and the excellent Stand OFF Cars super.

Vanilla Ice * is terrifying - only a select few characters compare in terms of sheer efficiency. Ice is very straightforward - his fast movement combined with excellent dashing normals make him threatening from a surprising distance and his exceptional Stand ON normals make him near impossible to approach once he's in the lead.

New Kakyoin is a zoner-rushdown hybrid that combines oppressive limb zoning with equally oppressive mixups thanks to his unique Stand ON hoverdash. Also has access to Nets, which bolster every facet of his gameplay.

Weapon Stand

Alessi fights in the midrange and gets the bulk of his damage through his unique Child Transformation mechanic, hitting like a truck when a successful hit is capitalised off of. He specialises in controlling neutral, but his many exploitable weaknesses require adaptations and smart play to truly let him shine.

Chaka is a Weapon Stand character focused on close range combat. Constantly switches between Stand OFF's excellent mobility and Stand ON's higher variety of options including access to the situational but strong Learning Counter.

Old Joseph might look seem like a grappler at first, but in reality he plays more of a punish-reliant and okizeme-focused style. While the old man is by no means fast, the opponent has to be mindful of his solid dashing normals including a low-hitting slide, his near-fullscreen hitgrab and his Custom Combo - all of which can lead to a full combo.

Passive Stand

Mariah is a setup-based zoner with a unique level-up mechanic. Although she’s far weaker than most of the cast, landing hits with her Outlet S-Moves will upgrade all her special and super moves, leveling the playing field somewhat.

Hol Horse * is a zoning oriented character with several useful projectile attacks at his disposal. Although he is quite limited up close, his gameplan relies on frustrating the opponent to make mistakes before punishing them with anything ranging from basic positional advantage to Touch-of-Death combos.

Pet Shop is notorious for being one of the cheapest characters ever put in a fighting game. High damage, a unique standing hurtbox and fast movement are supplemented by Icicle Break - one of if not the best move in the game thanks to hitting overhead and needing no commitment to set up, making it an exceptional neutral, combo and setup tool.

Black Polnareff is a character of extremes. He has great normals including good jump-ins and two 2f jabs that all lead to his signature infinite, but his nearly non-existent pressure and bog-standard movement mean it's very difficult to actually land a hit.

Khan has very few surprises. He uses his surprisingly competent normals and movement to gradually wear down the opponent with a combination of dashing low pokes and a relatively safe instant overhead. Although his damage is underwhelming, it can improve with meter.

Hol & Boingo * is an alternative version of Hol Horse with some altered attacks, new supers and a vastly improved S-Bullet special. While the duo might look a lot like Hol Horse on the surface, these changes have a massive impact on how they approach most situations.

Rubber Soul * isn't exactly fast, but sticks to the opponent like glue once he’s in. If he finds a hit or lands a grab, Rubber can force hard to escape, looping pressure with mixups. His exceptional defensive options also can set up this brutal vortex, meaning Rubber can be one Guard Cancel away from stealing the round.

Shadow Dio * is a unique midrange character that rewards reading and conditioning the opponent. Very feast-or-famine, as he has excellent damage, okizeme and movement but starts to struggle as soon as he's put on the back foot due to his weak defensive options.

Young Joseph * is the only character with no actual Stand - despite this, he functions the same as other Passive Stand characters. While his pressure and damage are average, these can improve if he's able set up one of his projectiles. In addition, Young Joseph is full of unique setups and knowledge checks the opponent might not be ready for.