Character Strengths and Weaknesses Synopsis

[TheChad_87]

So, We've been constructing a Strengths and Weaknesses list for each character for the Community Driven FAQ, and I thought it might be good to have this info here on the board as well.
Feel free to give feedback for missing characters or to dispute anything listed for those that do have info. I will keep the OP updated
I just want the lists to be accurate. Thanks guys!

Also, just a side note: I realize a lot of these are just plain wrong. It was just kinda thrown together. That's why I came here for feedback. I think this is a good list to have for the community, and know that there's no ego attached to it for me. If you feel something is incorrect, speak up. I'm not here to argue points, just to collect data.

Baraka

Spoiler

Strengths
- Can cancel almost any normal into special
- Difficult to zone effectively if he has meter
- Low and Overhead combo starters
- Great special attacks with large hitboxes
- Solid air control
- Solid footsies

Weaknesses
- Easily zoned without meter
- Average damage output
- Mostly slow normals
- Slow movement
- Attacks are highly punishable on block
- Very poor zoning

Cyber Sub-Zero

Spoiler

Strengths
- Excellent mix-up
- Very fast movement
- Great pressure game
- Parry grants pressure escape
- Solid anti-zoning tactics

Weaknesses
- Average damage output
- Weak footsies
- Slow normals
- Poor zoning
- Teleport is very unsafe

Cyrax

Spoiler

Strengths
- Most damaging combos in the game
- Long, elaborate combos which force breaker use
- Command throw leading to safe jump
- Largest capture hitbox in the entire game
- Unblockable bombs
- Meter draining special
- Solid footsies

Weaknesses
- Weak against zoning
- Weak wake-up options
- Lacks a low hitting combo starter
- Teleport is very unsafe

Ermac

Spoiler

Strengths
-

Weaknesses
-

Jade

Spoiler

Strengths
- Flash grants projectile immunity
- EN Glow grants super armor to any attack as well as removing blockstun and knockdown
- Great control of spacing
- Strong corner game

Weaknesses
- Steep learning curve/Technically challenging
- Specials have a good deal of cooldown
- Most strings are unsafe
- Slow normals
- Slow projectiles

Jax

Spoiler

Strengths
- Excellent mix-up game
- Great enhanced specials
- Highest damage X-Ray in the game
- Builds meter quickly
- Devastating corner game
- Fastest uppercut in the game
- Difficult to zone effectively if he has meter

Weaknesses
- Easily zoned without meter
- Average damage output

Johnny Cage

Spoiler

Strengths
- Amazing pressure game
- Excellent frame trap capability
- Builds meter quickly
- Deals a great deal of chip damage
- Game-changing X-Ray
- Very fast normals
- Fastest uppercut in the game
- Standing reset

Weaknesses
- Poor zoning
- No low combo starter
- Weak against zoning

Kabal

Spoiler

Strengths
- Amazing zoning
- Builds meter quickly
- Great mix-up options
- Outstanding pressure game
- Strong corner game
- Standing reset
- Has a capture

Weaknesses
- Steep learning curve/Technically challenging
- Slow normals
- Needs meter to escape pressure

 

[TheChad_87]

Kano

Spoiler

Strengths
-

Weaknesses
-

Kitana

Spoiler

Strengths
- Great zoning
- Incredibly high damage combos
- Great footsies
- Unbreakable combo options
- Total control of airspace
- Builds meter quickly
- Deals a great deal of chip damage

Weaknesses
- Slow normals/combo starters
- Weak mix-up options
- Horrible wake-up options
- Struggles against other zoners

Kung Lao

Spoiler

Strengths
- Fast movement
- Fast normals
- Solid mix-up
- Specials add mobility
- Solid anti-zoning tactics
- Builds meter quickly
- Total control of airspace

Weaknesses
- Specials are highly punishable on block
- Lacks overhead combo starter

Liu Kang

Spoiler

Strengths
- Excellent mix-up
- Great launchers
- Solid zoning
- Very fast movement
- Parry grants pressure escape

Weaknesses
- Average damage output
- No overhead combo starters aside from X-Ray
- Weak footsies
- Poor wake-up options

Mileena

Spoiler

Strengths
- Great anti-zoning tactics
- Can combo off of almost anything
- Solid mix-up options
- Great pressure game
- Great footsies
- Above average zoning
- Total control of airspace
- Standing reset
- Smallest hitbox in the game

Weaknesses
- Extremely slow normals
- Most specials are punishable on block
- No armored specials

Nightwolf

Spoiler

Strengths
- Great rushdown and defensive ability
- Massive damage corner combos
- Unblockable Lightning leads to set-ups
- Mostly safe specials
- Difficult to zone effectively
- Solid wake-up options
- Builds meter quickly
- Can restore health with EN Absorb
- Fastest Uppercut in the game

Weaknesses
- No low combo starters/weak mix-up
- Weak footsies
- Mostly slow specials
- Very poor zoning

Noob

Spoiler

Strengths
- Devastating corner game
- Some of the best zoning in the game with fullscreen mix-up
- Good pressure due to Black Hole resets
- Can escape pressure with Up Knee
- Solid footsies

Weaknesses
- Slow normals
- Weak combo strings
- Lacks effective rushdown options
- Weak wake-up

Quan Chi

Spoiler

Strengths
- Solid mix-up
- Excellent meter building
- Rune trap
- Meter draining special
- Standing reset
- Fastest uppercut in the game

Weaknesses
- Horrid wake-up game
- Slow normals
- Slow, highly punishable specials
- Weak footsies

 

[TheChad_87]

Raiden

Spoiler

Strengths
- Amazing teleport
- Great pressure game
- High damage
- Massive damage corner combos
- Builds meter quickly
- Great mix-up off of Teleport

Weaknesses
- Slow, interruptable strings
- Mediocre footsies
- No low combo starter

Reptile

Spoiler

Strengths
- Solid zoning
- Solid rushdown
- Solid mix-up
- Builds meter quickly
- Elbow Dash is safe on whiff (not on block) and adds mobility
- Excellent enhanced specials
- Standing reset with EN Acid Stream
- EN Invisibility gives damage boost
- Forceballs grant combo ability anywhere on screen

Weaknesses
- Slow, clunky dash
- Slow normals
- Mostly slow specials
- Lacks an answer to teleporting
- Lacks a low combo starter

Scorpion

Spoiler

Strengths
- Vortex pressure
- Excellent mix-up
- Great pressure
- Great control of airspace
- Solid footsies

Weaknesses
- Very punishable/High risk
- Very poor zoning
- Struggles with pressure

Sektor

Spoiler

Strengths
- Great zoning/space control
- Great anti-zoning
- Devastating corner game
- Hard to approach
- Has the fastest standing jab in the game (6 frames) that leads into full combo
- Fastest uppercut in the game
- Standing reset

Weaknesses
- Meter reliant
- Mediocre footsies
- Horrible wake-up options

Shang Tsung

Spoiler

Strengths
- Excellent frame trap capability
- High damage unbreakable combos
- Solid zoning
- Builds meter quickly
- Devastating corner game
- Soul steal grants damage boost

Weaknesses
- Steep learning curve/Technically challenging
- Meter reliant
- Struggles to escape pressure
- Horrible wake-up options
- Slowest uppercut in the game

Sheeva

Spoiler

Strengths
- Short high-damage combos
- Unblockable tracking Teleport and Ground Pound
- Armored EN command throws
- Command throws are unbreakable
- Decent mix-up options

Weaknesses
- Very slow normals
- Poor zoning
- Slow meter building
- Can’t escape pressure without meter
- Largest hitbox in the entire game

Sindel

Spoiler

Strengths
- One of the fastest instant Air Projectiles in the game
- Great space control and zoning
- Builds meter quickly
- Great mix-up options

Weaknesses
- Slow normals
- Lacks an answer to teleporting
- Lacks rushown options
- Has no reliable way to escape pressure

Smoke

Spoiler

Strengths
-

Weaknesses
-

 

[TheChad_87]

Sonya

Spoiler

Strengths
- Great pressure game
- High damage, meterless combos
- Excellent footsies
- Excellent mix-up off of Military Stance
- Very fast movement
- Quick, safe projectile

Weaknesses
- Steep learning curve/Technically challenging
- Struggles against zoning
- No good use for meter aside from breaker

Stryker

Spoiler

Strengths
- Total control of airspace
- Fastest projectile in game
- Fastest uppercut in game
- Excellent anti zoning tactics
- Excellent X-Ray

Weaknesses
- Mostly slow normals
- Average damage output
- Lacks low projectile
- Meter reliant
- Poor recovery on specials

Sub-Zero

Spoiler

Strengths
- Simple, high damage combo strings
- Devastating corner game
- Can play offensive or defensive styles equally well
- Solid footsies
- Has long-duration capture

Weaknesses
- No launcher strings
- Poor mobility
- Struggles against zoning
- Projectile is slow and deals no chip damage

... I have nothing for DLC yet, so I'll wait till I do to even post tags for them.

 

[TheChad_87]

Reserved for DLC

 

[Eddy Wang]

Are you willing to do this alone?

Scorpion can Damage easely without the use of Meter

 

[Rampage254]

Nice work, Chad

 

[xenogorgeous]

Hum, I think that Noob and Shang Tsung lack an option for juggle combo launcher in middle screen, is that correct ?

 

[TheChad_87]

Hum, I think that Noob and Shang Tsung lack an option for juggle combo launcher in middle screen, is that correct ?

Shang has plenty. 221, F434, B1214, F34 - All launch.

[MENTION=2387]Couch Tomato[/MENTION] : Get your ass in here and fix this Johnny Cage mess.

 

[leek]

Shang has plenty. 221, F434, B1214, F34 - All launch.

[MENTION=2387]Couch Tomato[/MENTION] : Get your ass in here and fix this Johnny Cage mess.

it seems you got it covered, brotato.

Cage is the only character who can full combo punish mileena ball roll, and he has no game outside of jump distance.

 

[TheChad_87]

[MENTION=433]DanCock[/MENTION], [MENTION=7367]catch22[/MENTION], I'm sure both of you have some input for your respective characters. Care to contribute?

 

[Prinz]

You should ad to Jade's Glow that the most important it grants is no knockdown or blockstun.

 

[LOCO]

great thread
bookmarked

 

[CongoFury]

This is a really good thread! Very informative. Especially for my main character since sindel is pretty much spot on. Along with mileena when i use her from time to time. And a few others I'm interested in. Good work! [MENTION=5797]TheChad_87[/MENTION]

Sent from my LG-P999 using Tapatalk

 

[RomeoBravoDelta]

We're going to have to define footsies with Sektor. His d3 and d4 aren't great, but b3 is extremely fast, has good reach, and starts a launcher. I feel that his damage output is a strength as well.

I would also say that his lack of any real mix-ups would count as a weakness.

 

[A F0xy Grampa]

IMO Sonya's mixup game is probably the best in the game. Wouldnt have counted that as a weakness because the stance can work from any hit that hits or blocks + she has a standing reset and some of the highest damaging combos that take no meter, excellent anti air.

Her only true weaknesses seem to be zoning characters like Noob Saibot.

 

[NRF CharlieMurphy]

This is pretty and all... a great idea.... but some of the info is flat wrong. I think too much input is coming from online people (like myself) who still play the game like it was day 1.

 

[Mr. Mileena]

I'll focus on Kitana and Mileena/

Kitana, you have it mostly right, but add that she has great chip damage strings, and gains meter quickly.

For her cons, when you stated slow combo starters/normals, I lol'ed. Have you ever used her 2? her 3? those are fast and are great A'As. 3 has great vertical coverage, and 2 is an awesome punish starter, its long and fast.

Kitana doesn't have trouble with zoners, the only one is kenshi, but once she's in, he's done


Mileena, no great wake options? again incorrect, her roll, her teleport, great wake ups, just dont abuse them.
Mileena no pressure game? Incorrect. Ending combos in teleport kicks to negate wake ups, her 4,2 dash 4,2 is amazing pressure, 2,3,4 sai, 2,3 dash grab etc.
Her normals are not slow. 3 and 4 are decent.

 

[rev0lver]

I used to complain about Kitana being slow outside of pokes, but really, when you make good use of her 2,1 string (2 is 11 frames), her rushdown improves tremendously. You don't need fast launchers when she can build meter so fast and use ex fan.

 

[Vilén]

...Sektor has horrible wake-up options? :en TU is still a safe-on-block launcher with armor, right? Who has a good wake-up option if not Sektor? And you list Reptile's elbow dash as "safe". You mean only safe on whiff, right? Because it sure as hell isn't safe on block.

 

[B W1zZ]

I don't agree with Raiden having no mix-up game. Sure he doesn't have a lot of high/low mixups, but he has teleport mixups, string cancel/throw mixups, superman mixups, shocker/lightning mixups etc.

 

[Vilén]

I don't agree with Raiden having no mix-up game. Sure he doesn't have a lot of high/low mixups, but he has teleport mixups, string cancel/throw mixups, superman mixups, shocker/lightning mixups etc.

I didn't even look at the Raiden assessment.

LOL @ that shit, though. Raiden is based on mix-ups.

 

[B W1zZ]

I didn't even look at the Raiden assessment.

LOL @ that shit, though. Raiden is based on mix-ups.

I suppose for a weakness that could be replaced with vicinity blast whiffing on some characters.

 

[RomeoBravoDelta]

...Sektor has horrible wake-up options? :en TU is still a safe-on-block launcher with armor, right?

No, it has neither of those properties. Sektor has some of the easiest wake-ups to stuff.

 

[TheChad_87]

Updating. apparently some things were poorly worded. I didn;t write all of these sections and some characters, I dont play at all "ie Raiden"

I'll change that to "Lack of low combo starters" because I agree that Tele-mix-up is pretty much what he's made of.

Also changing other sections to reflect what has been stated. Good points Foxy

All this discussion has me really excited. The thread is turning into exactly what I had hoped.

Keep it up guys ^_^