Menu
By:
Filters
What's new

Guide Cyrax Match-Up Chart & Guide ~ By Krayzie

YOMI DJT

YOMI DJT

LIn Kuei Champion
Krayzie said:
I'm determined to find a way around him, but his zoning mixed with an 8 frame anti-air advancing normal, quick advancing low that picks up d4 makes it seem very 6-4 in favor of Liu.

Any ideas? Im open to try anything.
Click to expand...
its a patient footsie battle his zoning is not what gets cyrax its the footsies. When i fight liu kang I patiently go not too crazy always watch out for b312. if he throws out b312 d4 him on reaction. try not whiff d4 alot because he can punish like jax can punish it on whiff. you know what to do when you get in just getting in is the hard part. careful with deep jump kick becasue b312 blows it up sometimes I think you explained that part already. block low fireballs and instant block low fireballs because liu doesn't recover fast on them. I know you've prolly watched all my fights vs liu but you can watch them to see something you can add vs liu. I think its all about spacing in this match once you're in jump range. d4 works good if liu trys to get crazy and throw out untimed strings. any specific thing that troubles you in that match?
 
Krayzie

Krayzie

Co-founder
Administrator
Founder
Denzell said:
its a patient footsie battle his zoning is not what gets cyrax its the footsies. When i fight liu kang I patiently go not too crazy always watch out for b312. if he throws out b312 d4 him on reaction. try not whiff d4 alot because he can punish like jax can punish it on whiff. you know what to do when you get in just getting in is the hard part. careful with deep jump kick becasue b312 blows it up sometimes I think you explained that part already. block low fireballs and instant block low fireballs because liu doesn't recover fast on them. I know you've prolly watched all my fights vs liu but you can watch them to see something you can add vs liu. I think its all about spacing in this match once you're in jump range. d4 works good if liu trys to get crazy and throw out untimed strings. any specific thing that troubles you in that match?
Click to expand...
Do you have any new footage? You guys should record some matches.

I have a video of a recent match against Tyrant, but I'm just too lazy to upload those now... lol
 
YOMI DJT

YOMI DJT

LIn Kuei Champion
Krayzie said:
Do you have any new footage? You guys should record some matches.

I have a video of a recent match against Tyrant, but I'm just too lazy to upload those now... lol
Click to expand...
We should definitely record we have hype matches that never get seen aha. if only we had a stream everybody would be able to see. buzzsaw is also a good footsie tool also has good range.
 
P

Playpal

Warrior
Krayzie I think you should include the MU numbers by Denzell and Maxter. Just for the sake of convenience, unless you want to sticky those threads as well.

I'd also like to see MU numbers from other players as well.
 
Vagrant

Vagrant

Champion
...Can you change the Sektor MU to 6-4 rax?

I've always thought rax had advantage but given the stuff j360 just showed in the corner against him I don't know how this MU can be called even.
 
Seapeople

Seapeople

This one's for you
Vagrant said:
...Can you change the Sektor MU to 6-4 rax?

I've always thought rax had advantage but given the stuff j360 just showed in the corner against him I don't know how this MU can be called even.
Click to expand...
Sektor's low hitbox and ability to outzone Cyrax keep the match very even imo, but I'd be curious how much this corner tech changes the matchup. Cyrax already rapes everyone in the corner anyway ;)
 
Krayzie

Krayzie

Co-founder
Administrator
Founder
Playpal said:
Krayzie I think you should include the MU numbers by Denzell and Maxter. Just for the sake of convenience, unless you want to sticky those threads as well.

I'd also like to see MU numbers from other players as well.
Click to expand...
I'll be glad to add or sticky their stuff when they make an informative guide. Not just numbers.

Vagrant said:
...Can you change the Sektor MU to 6-4 rax?

I've always thought rax had advantage but given the stuff j360 just showed in the corner against him I don't know how this MU can be called even.
Click to expand...
There are too many variations for a match-up to change dramatically like that. For instance, there are bigger stages, and mid screen advantages to consider. I haven't really been active lately or have played MK9 in a bit, so I haven't seen the J360 stuff yet. I'll check it out.

In any case, I made a few videos showcasing a certain corner trap against Sektor a while back. On an even level, if one of the characters must have the advantage it will always be Cyrax though.
 
Seapeople

Seapeople

This one's for you
Krayzie said:
There are too many variations for a match-up to change dramatically like that. For instance, there are bigger stages, and mid screen advantages to consider. I haven't really been active lately or have played MK9 in a bit, so I haven't seen the J360 stuff yet. I'll check it out.

In any case, I made a few videos showcasing a certain corner trap against Sektor a while back. On an even level, if one of the characters must have the advantage it will always be Cyrax though.
Click to expand...
I was looking at that trap you posted against Sektor a couple days ago but couldn't figure out how to do it myself. Is it an option select, or how do you know to input 3~teleport instead of 33?
 
Krayzie

Krayzie

Co-founder
Administrator
Founder
Seapeople said:
I was looking at that trap you posted against Sektor a couple days ago but couldn't figure out how to do it myself. Is it an option select, or how do you know to input 3~teleport instead of 33?
Click to expand...
You just need quick reflexes. If you feel you hit the wake-up hitbox, then you would quickly cancel into teleport after 3.
 
Parnak

Parnak

Fight me as you will yet you can never hope to win
Krayzie said:
It was unfortunate when the site crashed, mostly due to losing so much content, including this thread. I was able to get all of my stuff back thanks to FrothyOmen so thats the man you can thank.

I actually almost quit the game altogether, due to school and not being able to practice since Evo. I started playing again, and I will finish the guide to help the Cyrax community destroy the rest of the cast! :)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I spent a good amount of time on this, which honestly, I shouldn't have because I need to finish my homework. So I stopped here, and will continue at a later time. I will be writing the next character by request, so if you guys have a character you have questions about, and I didn't write anything about, just let me know. The more requests on the character, I will choose him/her to write some info about.

I will also be updating this thread after I'm done with the chart info, and I will add tactics, how his frame data can be used to his advantage in matches, tips, tricks, glitches that are still unknown to people that I know about, and other shenanigans. So stay tuned.

My inspiration to writing this guide, you ask? Cyrax is the best character in the game, lets get real.

I personally have learned all of my match-ups, and know this character like my soul! I'm hoping you guys will appreciate me pouring out all of my knowledge here. After I win my first major with him, I'm using Jade.

*Red means Alert, *Orange means a considerable warning, *Green means net. :)


*NOTE: If there is a match-up number next to a character, but does not have any info next to it. Don't look too deep into it, it is not yet finished. Its just a 1 second estimate while I finish the chart.

7-3 vs Scorpion -
Cyrax is a character that gets rewarded with a lot of damage after hit-conformable strings. I think over time, I've shown and paved the way for the rushdown, Johnny Cage type of pressure with Cyrax, and of course we all know that in most cases, specially this one, a trade against this character can and will be deadly.

Scorpion has the ability to keep you on your toes with hellfire, anti-air jumping opponents into 50/50 mix-ups, but in order to do this he must take risks.

In this match-up, Scorpion does not have the ability to keep Cyrax on his toes due to a very deadly trade with net. Both of his teleports, his regular and enhanced are punish duckable, and can lead to a deadly amount of damage. While Scorpion has a risky vortex that keeps you guessing, Cyrax has a much superior pressure system, similar to Johnny Cage, but can lead to massive amount of damage.

The best thing Scorpion can do is armor with enhanced spear through nets, and try and lock him down. Unfortunately, the risk he usually takes against other characters completely fails against Cyrax due to the price of the risk in this match. When played correctly, this match should be as simple as it is written. Good luck.


6-4 vs SubZero -
This match is very similar to the SubZero mirror. However, what makes Cyrax a better character in general comes in to play here as well. Bombs are basically enhanced clones, nets are ice balls that you cant duck, 12 is similar to SubZero's 22, however, 12 is an advancing normal, and either leads into bomb set-ups or a reset.

Both have great D4's, with SubZero significantly beating Cyrax since he has a ridiculous 8 frame D4. But what helps Cyrax in this situation, is the respect you will receive for using D4 when a close bomb has been dropped. I promise you, nobody will want to get near you.

The way I used to play the match, was a mixture of close bomb, nets, and walking back. Today, I mix it up with the occasional jump back deep kick which beats slide 100% of the time. There really isn't space for SubZero to walk when even slide cant AA Cyrax on a jump back. The only real danger you should watch out for are Ex Freeze, since it will win on any trade, and Ex Slide, which is fully armored. Keep note that SubZero is using up his meter with both of these tactics. A very dangerous thing to do against Cyrax.

Big notable things for this match. What makes SubZero an annoying character to deal with is his ability to turtle the match, but when you are Cyrax, you have the ability to do the same, and while you're at it, control the entire floor with far and medium bombs. Never forget, you have the ability to out-footsie, turtle, and control your opponent here.

This should be a cake walk as long as you don't get too impatient.


6-4 vs Reptile -
I've been playing against Reptile from the very beginning, and here's what I have to say. RUSH THAT SHIT DOWN! Reptile has very little room to get around if you block dash near him, you can win most close range acid ball trades with net for a full punish, and he cant really backdash, or dash at you without fear of getting punished for it. If he jumps, just anti-air him, if he dashes at you and you block it, punish him. otherwise, good luck to any Reptile player in this match. That is all...


5-5 vs Ermac -
Ermac is most dangerous when he keeps you out. Some of those reasons are his ability to beat nets with teleport, and his ability to use his throw, and force push as a means to keep you out for the entire match. There was a time when I felt Ermac had the advantage in this match, but after analyzing the match, Cyrax has the advantage in the rushdown department.

Keep in mind that in this match, you have to take a similar approach as you do against Noob. You don't ever use teleport recklessly, and you don't use full screen nets. Full screen nets are the easiest way to let Ermac inside. As a previous Ermac main, I can easily tell you that its not at all hard to hit him out of his net on raction.

You're going to want to block dash a lot in this match, until you are close to force push distance away. From here, you can trade well with Ermac, without the danger of his teleport. If you block dash just near him, and you block an incoming force push, you can dash up and begin pressuring him. Ermac doesn't really have any fast normals to get out besides D1, which doesn't give him the space he needs to get Cyrax off.

This match is very close to 5-5 if the Ermac player is on point and finds a way to keep you out. However, my personal rating is 6-4 in favor of Cyrax do to the rushdown approach. 9 Frame Ex Ragdoll to keep you honest, huge damage, and fast advancing normal's are more than enough to win this match.


6-4 vs Noob -
A good noob can be annoying, but only if you don't have patience. Key factors in a good Noob are teleport punishers, and of course the dreadful clones! Don't worry, clones only take chip, you do much more than that. Don't throw out random nets from a distance, they are very punishable by teleport on reaction, so the best way to use these are up closer for baits. Once you advance at a noob player, they will try and use the up shadow to make you respect their space, but this unfortunately is the time for them to respect your nets. The best trades are up close against up shadow baits. At a further distance from sweep, you can use Ex Anti-Air to go through a noob clone on reaction, and punish him for a full combo. There really isn't much to say here, its a very simple way for him to keep you out, but also a very simple way for you to just get in. Its a very boring match, but I promise that you will be a happy camper once you win.


5-5 vs Smoke -
The issue against Smoke is his ability to keep you away with smoke bombs, and his ability to turn the wheel against you in the damage department after a smoke bomb. The answer? Just be patient, and advance at him. If you can read his smoke bombs, just bait and deep kick out of their way. When you deep kick correctly, smoke bomb whiffs, so you will be able to close the gap, and reach him.(Practice this first.) Smoke doesn't have any other way to put you into a combo, so they will mostly fish for you to duck and punish with B2 smoke bomb. To this my friends, I say, NAY! Take all of the chip and D4 damage, and grabs as you can, eventually they will crack and either grab and end the pressure, or try and guess for a B2 smoke bomb, which is fully punishable for a reset. Smoke doesn't have anyway to take real damage against you, but you can. You can pressure him into command grabs, while making meter, or make him respect you by using Ex Ragdoll which is a 9 frame low.


6-4 vs Rain -
There are a few aspects of this match where you should be careful, and that is Rains ability to whiff punish, and play the footsie game from long distances. His lightning strike is pretty good from full screen, and if you don't take the initiative to move in, you will be playing his game the entire time. When a lighting hits you and it trades with net, by the time you land, he will be out of the net, so don't count on those trades all the time. Nets are best used in this match to make meter and keep him honest. On a trade, neither will really get a punish, but Cyrax will inevitably win the meter war.

Mid screen is where you wan to be. From there, it will be easier to play netsies, and approach. Rain loses once you get close, of course, as long as you don't rush in randomly. His armor is pretty great for players who go in with mindless rushdown, but if you get that spacing right, you can pretty much beat him. His main combo starter is 4,3 buble which you can whiff punish by approaching with D3. If you do D3 and they hit 4, you can fully punish them with 1,2 since the 4 will whiff.

The rest of his wake-up moves are fully punishable, so that means a lot of meter for Cyrax.

The slight advantage Rain might have will be his big damage combos, and his ability to take your meter, but its only slightly. He will rarely get those opportunities, and you can do the same as him, but better.


5-5 vs Mileena -
Mileena can be pretty annoying due to her ability to anti-air, and whiff punish you with roll, as well as punish far distance nets with teleport. However, this is not an excuse for a 6-4 match. Believe it or not, there was a time when I felt this match was terrible. In fact, I used Ermac to counter her, but it wasn't up until after NEC when I figured out the match.

The reason Cyrax players fail to win against Mileena is just their inability to play footsies. If you don't understand how to space well in this game, then you cant bait, and you will never catch a break. This match is best played just outside of Mileenas D4 kick. Like Reptile, you have to take that close up approach, in order to shut down what makes her good against Cyrax.

A few things to note. If Mileena uses Ex Teleport, you have to make sure you block the second part of the special low, in order to punish it. You can use D3 into net, and kill her with a full reset. Teleport happy mileenas should not be beating you!

A really good mileena will take advantage of her instant air sais to keep you away. This of course is not the almighty answer to Cyrax, since Cyrax can slowly walk towards her by just neutral ducking her projectiles. She also doesn't have a good getaway move, such as Kitana, nor does she have any fast advancing normals such as Liu Kang. What she does have though, is a great D4. This is where spacing comes into play. The reason you stay just behind that D4 distance, is to play footsies against her. Or as the term SoCal has come to use, "Netsies." At this distance, you can either advance and D4, or trade a net.

Net will eat the D4, so this will make the mileena player respect your presence. Its basically a wall for both characters. Cyrax needs to read and stay at close distance, which he can easily accomplish against her, and Mileena needs to be on point with those sais, and punish any mistake the Cyrax player does, otherwise she will eat a full reset.


5-5 vs Kitana -
The biggest problem against Kitana is her zoning, but you can get in if you're patient, and exploit her wake-up game. The problem a lot of Cyrax players have against her is the fact that they are used to throwing out nets from a distance, but just like Liu Kang, and Kabal which are 2 of the best instant air zoners in the game, you will most likely lose this uphill battle. My advice is to advance with D3, D4, or just walk up to her. You can duck her fans on reaction, so there is no real issue here.

Similar to Kabal, when you reach a certain distance, Kitana players will have to respect you due to Anti-Air being invincible once it makes contact. Kitana doesn't have the quickest advancing normals like Liu Kang, nor does she have an armored dash, but what she does have is long range moves that can be devastating if not approached correctly. This is your chance to do a number of things. You can play the footsie game, and net any whiff punish you can on reaction, or you can advance with D4, or hit her with Ragdoll.

Something I like to personally do against Kitana players, is after a ragdoll knockdown, jump in with a deep kick, and most of the time, they will try and react by waking up with Cutter, or other wake-up moves. After a deep kick, you can instantly duck, so if they wake up with anything, you can full punish them for a full combo.

A few things to note. All of her wake up moves can be full punished with a net. Cutter can be whiff punished, Ex Cutter can be whiff punished before the second part of her animation begins, fan lift can be punished, as soon as the lift animation becomes slow, you can get up and jab her into a net, and pretty kick can be whiff punished as well.(Practice these, they will give you the match.)


7-3 vs Jade -
Its pretty ridiculous to think that there are people who actually believe this character can go even, or beat Cyrax. Just to set the record straight, I will explain why this character is full of lost hope in this match. Quite honestly, at this point in the games life, I don't see any Jade player giving a good Cyrax any sort of challenge.

As a Jade player myself, I understand how to play against Jade. The only reason she would even give a Cyrax player trouble is just the players inability to understand how bad she truly is. This can be said for most of the cast. She has slow projectiles, so if you trade a net, you already win the match. For those who like to bring up her glow in this situation, I say, "NAY!"

First of all, her boomerang recovery is so bad, that she wont have the time to glow before the net trades from a closer distance. Because of this, her projectile tactics becomes irrelevant. And even if the Jade player decides to use glow to counter nets instead, you should know that a Cyrax net is just a privilege, not a necessity. Specially against a character that can be whiff punished for most of her strings.

And before you even begin to think that net is irrelevant in this match. Try timing the glow animation with a net, and you will see a Jade struggle just as much as any other character. As a Jade player, I can tell you how overwhelming it is to play as her. You need a lot of meter management, Ex Glow, among other tactics. Unfortunately, none of her tactics lead to any damage, so Cyrax easily wins this war. And for a character who constantly needs meter, you will always find her empty enough to release a full scaled 100% combo...

Lets add some final thoughts to this match...

She has a huge hitbox, and is the only female character to have one for some reason.(Sheeva doesn't count, she is a thing.) Also, if you drop your controller/stick, and the Jade player happens to get you in a combo. For the love of god, don't break. Take the damage, she doesn't deal much of it anyway.

I take no pride in writing this part of the guide. I love Jade, but quite frankly, I will be blunt on this one. She sucks! lol


?-? vs Skarlet - coming soon

5-5 vs Sektor -
This match is perceived as a 6-4 in Sektors favor, or in some cases, even a 7-3 for some reason. I'm here to tell you neither of those are true. The match is a 5-5, and here are the reasons why. I'll start with why Sektor does so well against Cyrax, and why the match is so blindly perceived as being in Sektors favor.

Sektor has the smallest crouching hitbox in the game, as well as a 6 frame jab that will punish any rushdown oriented opponent, or characters with mostly high hitting moves. The reason it works so well against Cyrax, is because Sektor also has the ability to punish slow animated projectiles, such as a net, with an instant teleport for a very devastating amount of life. This shuts down a zoning type of Cyrax, which is fine. Quite honestly, Cyrax should only be playing the far distance game in two or 3 matches. One is against SubZero, the other is against Johnny Cage, and possibly Sonya.

Sektor also has a pretty good projectile game, but its nothing special. Cyrax can deal with most projectiles, and stay at a closer distance. Sektors only true way of incorporating the up-missile to get in, is by using F2, or starting his B3 chain which hits low. Otherwise, if a Sektor decides to jump in for pressure, Cyrax can Anti-Air him, and be invincible from any projectiles.

Now that we have that covered. I will explain why Cyrax can indeed rush down this character.

Although on a crouching Sektor, the majority of Cyrax jabs will whiff, he still has a great D3 which will leave Cyrax at +9, on hit against a crouching Sektor. If the Sektor is not constantly crouching, then any high hitting pressure becomes relevant. Being +9 against this character gives you the edge, considering Sektor has a 6 frame punisher. You also want to remember that 3 hits mid, and although its -6 on block, its a very tight window, even for a Sektor player to punish. On hit, 3 is +5, so you gain the ability to pressure, in case you did not hit confirm the net. You only use this on a bait. Most Sektor players only get up to whiff punish certain moves, so if you are constantly pressuring by hitting that D3, or even if you just stand there for a second, eventually they will stand up, and once they do, they will eat 3 into net.

A well spaced B2, is also really good. If you can get in and hit at least 2 D3's, you are in well range to hit a B2, which hits overhead, and leaves you at +2 on block.

Something else to note, is to figure out how to whiff punish Sektor as well. B3, 4 can be whiff punished at some distances, as well as 1,2,B1.

Last but not least, Cyrax has a very devastating corner game against Sektor where he cannot easily get out from. If you net a sektor in the corner and splat them for a bomb set-up. Sektor doesn't have any great wake-ups to beat you. If you hit 3 into teleport, Sektor will hit the invisible wall Cyrax leaves behind, and you can put him in the same situation again. If he wakes up with flame, he will eat the bomb, and you can neutral jump punch him back into the same situation. If he uses a bar of meter, he is still in the corner, and now has less bars, or he might have potentially lost his breaker against Cyrax. None of these are great situations for Sektor in the corner. So once you get him in there, take full advantage of this.


7-3 vs Cyber SubZero -
Plain and simple, this character loses to Cyrax for a few simple reasons. You have to keep in mind that most of the normals Cyber uses to pressure his opponents are not fast. His fastest normal is 1 which starts as 9 frames, just like Cyrax. However, his 11 hits high at all times and the duration is longer than Cyrax's 11 so they work completely different.

2 starts at 15 frames, and most Cyber players follow up a 21 into 2 again. Cyrax can jab out of anything Cyber does. His 1 frame parry is actually pretty good, but against a character who can deal 100% in one combo, its not ideal to abuse it. The recovery on a whiffed parry is pretty terrible, learn when to counter and bait it, and you have yourself a free combo.

A few other punishes you can deal is a simple dash 12 net on a blocked dive kick. Always block when you are close to Cyber, remember he cant really pressure you and his dive kicks, outside of his Ex Dive kick are very unsafe and fully punishable. You can advance on Cyber and block when you are near him. Pretty much all that he can do is either get himself punished, or use up all his meter with Ex Dive kick.


6-4 vs Kenshi -
One of the most feared match-ups in this game. Cyrax isn't one of them. He might have the ability to push you out, but the trade factor is highly in favor of Cyrax. At a certain distance, Kenshi will not want to throw out any charges out due to the trade factor being highly on Cyrax, so if you can keep that distance, you will win.

Don't forget, you can move characters around as you wish with bombs, so use them carefully to extend or close the gap between both characters. If you are able to get close enough to pressure Kenshi, he is basically done for the day. His hitbox is so huge, that he cant even crouch 334, so in this match-up, you can easily be at +5 when you want. If you get close enough to use 334, you can throw out a command grab, which by the way is 14 frames quick, and leaves Kenshi with a 9 frame window to punish it, due to you being at +5 after 334.


5-5 vs Freddy -
This is by far, the character that gives Cyrax the most trouble in the zoning department. Contrary to belief, instant air projectile characters, such as Kabal, Kitana, and Liu Kang, do not give him as much trouble, do to them not being able to control the ground from full screen. Usually, Cyrax can occasionally jump over, and duck under projectiles as he advances to his opponent. Then, he stops at a certain distance, and plays footsies with them. In this case, he cannot do that due to Freddy's ability to keep him off the ground.

Freddy has the ability to frame trap his opponent from full screen, and catch jumpers off guard with his quick projectiles, or go for a full punish with Ex Ground Claws. A close up game is also not the easiest task to fulfill, as Freddy has a great standing jab that anti-airs opponents trying to recklessly get in, and a nice anti-cross up D1, for opponents trying to recklessly jump over too many times.

The way you approach this match will start at the edge of the screen, since its in Freddy's best interest to keep you away and as far as possible from him. Remember to block any full screen frame trap that Freddy pulls out, and as soon as he starts to zone again with gloves, neutral duck it, and advance at him with a quick jump, then block again and repeat the process. When you get close enough to him, you gain advantage in two ways. One is your ability to trade nets with him, which is always in favor of Cyrax, and the other is to either get in with Ragdoll, or a safely executed jump. A few Freddy shenanigans to watch out for, are his ability to run away with Ex teleport, but once he starts doing that, it means he is respecting your space, so you know you are doing a good job.

Here are a few reasons why a close up game is always in favor of Cyrax. Freddy has a huge hitbox, which means you can get 334's on him all day, and be at +5 for more pressure. Your biggest advantage here is being able to pressure him to hit confirm nets. His fastest move comes out at 10 frames, while yours comes out at 9 frames, so if Freddy wants to jab out, it will have to be with a D1. His best option is D1 into Ex Teleport, as he needs to use meter to escape. However, it really wont get him far, and if he happens to use any D1 stance, or stance in general, just shoot a net, and either he will be caught in one, or he will begin to respect you even more.


?-? vs Sindel - coming soon

5-5 vs Sonya -
Her ability to bait and armor through net gives her an edge when rushing down. You would think I could just wait for the cartwheel, and start my pressure, since cartwheel is -3, and her fastest jab is 7 frames, not counting her D1 of course, but her awkward hitbox does not let me keep her pressured for too long. Watch out for any uppercut if you are in trying to pressure with blockstrings, and bait as much as you can. The best thing you can do against her is play the keep away game. Its similar to the Johnny Cage match where you run away, but you have to be a bit more careful, use more nets, and watch out for dive kicks and D4's at a certain distance. If she is in your face, just block her pressure, and pressure her back as soon as the cartwheel ends. Watch out for Ex Cartwheel. Its a big deal if you aren't expecting it, but the trick is to understand the Sonya players tendencies, and act on them. This match is a 5-5 match, because at the end of the day, she cant open you up if you are constantly just running away and counter pressuring her when she finally gets in on you.


5-5 vs Jax -
A small hitbox is the bain of Cyrax. The issues in this match have to do with the limited amount of pressure you can inflict before he can uppercut, or even armor out. His amazing ground pound recovery along with his great projectile game give him a solid advantage in the traditional Cyrax fight. It is said that Jax deals a low amount of damage, but in a fast paced game like this, and a fully armored character that pushes you into the corner for ground pound resets, that myth is false. Jax has one of the most dangerous footsie games in this game, and its due to his ability to anti-air you with both gotcha grabs, make meter as he does it, the use of his 8 frame low starter, and like I mentioned before, his amazing ground pound recovery that does well along his great projectiles. The trick to getting around Jax, is knowledge. Make sure you practice and understand how to punish his dash punch(both regular and Ex-Version). Understand that you as a Cyrax player have the better footsie game. Understand your ability to inflict a great deal of damage anywhere on the screen, which means you can take your time, play the footsie game and take a significant amount of life from him with one good read. His projectile game is great, but you can duck those on reaction. Never stand in one place, always advance at Jax, and be ready for the dash punch(Remember: ONE GOOD READ). As far as his ground pound game and recovery. If you are advancing at Jax, he has to guess just as much as you. He is trying to figure out where to place the ground pound, and you are trying to bait a net. Cyrax can make the ground pound whiff with D4, go into practice mode and figure out the timing for it. A mix of walking forward, avoiding ground pound, throwing net baits, and watching out for dash punch is the perfect recipe to beat him. When he has you pressured, make sure you block everything he does, and poke out when you see an opening. The more meter he uses, the easier it will be for you to finish a full reset.


6-4 vs Johnny Cage -
I play this match like I'm armored SubZero with a net. Drop a bomb, play footsies, and build meter with dozens of nets. At close distance, you can command grab, D4, or use 12 against an incoming F3. You can also use deep kicks to create a wall against cage, since he will already be respecting your close bombs, and if he decides to jump, just anti air him, drop a close bomb, back up and repeat the process. You can also use far and medium bombs to move him around. This match is yours to control. When Johnny Cage gets you into his pressure shenanigans, don't be afraid to take chip. Its a slap on the wrist compared to what happens when you get him in a net. You can also interrupt his F3,2, or F3 with 1. Remember, with the exception of his 8 frame jab, which hits only high and is mostly used to juggle opponents who are trying to jump out, all of his other strings start at 9 frames or higher. All of his strings leave you at neutral, so if you read your opponents pattern, you can counter jab with your own 9 frame jab, and put him in a net.(Works best on P1 side.) Other than this, to play a safer Cyrax, you can D1 out of his pressure, by using D1 Ex Ragdoll. Cancel Advantage on D1 is +1 on block, and +15 on hit, so most likely you will hit Cage, since he will be trying to pressure you. Ex Ragdoll has a start up of 9 frames, so you will never lose in this situation. On block, you will be at +1 after the cancelled D1 into his 9 frame Ex ragdoll, so there is an 8 frame window to beat Cyrax out of this.(Very unlikely.) If you are in the corner, Ex Ragdoll will put him back in the corner, or if he was in the corner, you can hit the grab button and still put him in the corner. Also, in the corner. If Johnny Cage decides to use F3,3,B3 he is done. If he jumps, anti-air him, and if he advances with a F3, just command grab him out of it. Cyrax is also the only character who can cage, johnny cage. Have fun kids.


?-? vs Stryker - coming soon

4-6 vs Liu Kang -
Liu Kang is not a character to take lightly. He has fast advancing normals, and a deadly zoning game. His ability to control the match comes from his quick instant fireball game, and the ability to get in close, or bait a jump with his amazing 8 frame anti-air when he knows you are getting too close to him. What I like to do is just slowly block dash until I corner him, and then wait for a fireball and jump over deep kick. This creates a similar wall, such as the one I explained against Cage. Because of the weird hitbox, he wont be able to use any fast advancing normals without getting touched by the deep kick, or he will whiff anything he throws out. Then you can use 12, or D4 and advance on him when you get the chance.(Warning, this requires a lot of practice. Know your spacing, and understand his strings, frame data, and hitbox properties.)

Other things to note. Some Liu Kang players like to play with low Ex fireballs after blockstrings to create a pressure game, so keep in mind that a low blocked fireball is -12 frames, just enough to punish with a jab, and net him for a deadly reset. Also, do not try and trade against his instant air-fireballs, you are deemed for failure. Just get in close, trade when you know its guaranteed, and follow the above spacing rules.


6-4 vs Kung Lao -
By far, my favorite match-up in the game. Don't be afraid to advance at him by block dashing. There is nowhere he can go. His teleport is very punishable, and his pressure is not that special. Most of what he does to you when he pressures you is a variety of gimmicks that unfortunately will not work forever.

If a Kung Lao player decides to try and jail you with a kick into teleport, just Anti-Air him. Remember, your Anti-Air is invincible once it makes contact, so there is no excuse to get hit with 3. Make him respect your ability to stop his teleport to the max capacity, and he will then start fearing an advancing Cyrax. After this, his only options are to Dive Kick, which is only asking to be blocked and full punished by the most feared character in the game, or Anti-Aired.

Other than this, his other option is to grab you, end pressure, or advance at you with 2. Kung Lao has a 7 frame jab, which starts with 2, but that is all he has. Block as much as you want in this match, and D1 Ex ragdoll if you want to get out. Kung Lao's 21 is good because it starts at 7 frames, not because its plus. Its neutral on block. And please do not forget, any Kung Lao who uses 24 low hat should be full punished for a combo.

Other notable things to use against Kung Lao. If you net Kung Lao twice, you get free pressure, you can use 11, and he will not be able to spin out, he will have to respect you.

On block, if you use 12 on a block standing Kung Lao, you can interrupt any spin attempt with 21. Its a good tactic because if you get a Kung Lao with 12 on block, it creates an illusion of a gap where Kung Lao players feel they can spin out. If they aren't spinning out, just pressure them with 21 again, there is nothing they can do, if they try and spin out of your 21, they will get hit into a net, there is literally no way to spin out in this situation. Their best option is to hit 2, which reaches Cyrax at that distance, but you can easily D4 it. Kung Lao has to take a risk here, and most likely after he realizes that he cant do anything. You will most likely get free pressure as they will sit there and block. Most Kung Lao players look to 6 frame spin out of your pressure, so when you finish any pressure with 12, they are basically in an endless loop.


?-? vs Kano - coming soon

?-? vs Night Wolf - coming soon

3-7 vs Kabal -
This is potentially the only 7-3 match that Cyrax loses. A few reasons for that are his instant air gas balls, the random factor on saw, ex dash, and his ability to pressure Cyrax due to his medium sized hitbox.

There is not too much to be said here, other than be patient. Slowly advance by ducking his instant air fireballs when you get a chance, or when he messes up. Watch out for saw at all times, because like a jax dash punch, one saw will give him momentum to change it up. Never throw nets unless you know for a fact he doesn't have meter, and never teleport.

Your best bet is to slowly get him to the corner, and at a distance use D4 as a wall since ExDash only has armor on its first few frames. Make him fear the approach, and never drop a combo when you hit confirm a net.

Study his frame data, and figure out those gaps to either jump out or counter punish his dash cancels on block.

This part of the guide serves against a counter-pick Kabal. My advice is to switch to Human Cyrax. Make sure you learn the character first and understand why the match is better. Check my Human Cyrax part of the guide for further information.


6-4 vs Baraka -
Believe it or not, this match is not as bad as it seems. Like in most turtle match-ups such as Kitana and Ermac, the ability to keep a Cyrax away helps greatly, of course with a combination of other tools as well.

Kitana has big damage, hit confirmable long range strings, long range d1, and instant air fireballs. She strives the most out of the 3 because of this. Ermac has the ability to drain momentum with force push, a nice air blast, great backwalk speed, a teleport to punish nets, and a nice grab that leaves your opponent at full screen.

The decent side of Baraka in this match is his amazing backdash, semi-safe blade charge, ambiguous and large hitbox on his projectile, and a very nice long range d4 to keep Cyrax away. The downside to it all is that once he corners himself, he is a lost cause. He doesn't have some sort of teleport to change directions, and he will be bombarded by nets and bullied by bombs until he cracks. He can Ex Blade charge anything on reaction, but this is using meter he cannot afford against a character with huge damage. His spin is decent, but with a duck-punishable hitbox, its extremely risky to try and use it against a character that can deal massive amount of damage. Baraka might do well for a small amount of time, but as soon as he gets cornered, its the end for him.


?-? vs Shang - coming soon

7-3 vs Quan Chi -
As much as I hate this character for breaking the law of fighting games... "If you bock, you can avoid or delay dying." This is not a bad match-up for Cyrax.

Quan Chi's unsafe moves really give you the advantage for a quick kill. Don't stay full screen, and don't approach him unless you know you can punish him, he will win any net trade with trance. Stay mid-screen and wait for his trance. If you block a trance, he is very negative, enough for you to approach and pressure from the furthest distance, and enough for you to fully punish from a closer distance.

When you are mid-screen, you can dash up and dash back and mess with his spacing, that way he can never approach you with his normals due to his slow movement, and never get an unsafe trance on you.

Teleport is punishable if he lands behind you, and on block, you can also full punish. No reason to ever let go of block, just dash block your way mid-screen, mess with his spacing and you will be good.


6-4 vs Raiden -
Like most turtle characters, Raiden does well when he is running away. His ability to turtle the match gives him some advantage, but unfortunately, his big hitbox, punishable teleport, and corner game lose severely to Cyrax. Due to the damage Cyrax inflicts.

A very important factor in this match is the waiting game. You have to be extremely patient, as a good Raiden, or a Raiden that understands how this match-up works, will inevitably try and run away from you as long as he can. Raiden has the ability to keep a life-lead, and run with it until the timer runs out.

BE PATIENT!

As he is running from you, he will be doing his best to make meter with projectiles here and there. Neutral duck as many as you can, and walk with him. Unlike a match like Ermac, Kitana, Kabal or Baraka, you are not exactly just walking him to the corner as Raiden can teleport away if you are not paying attention. Instead, you will be fishing for a punish. You might say a bomb is not a good idea because a Raiden can superman through, but an ambiguous medium bomb does the job. I like to think of Raiden as a deer. If you get too close, he will run. In this case, he will more than likely teleport away. When you can successfully make a Raiden teleport, you can fully punish him on reaction. Once you condition him to stop teleporting, the rest will be easy, specially if you finally get your hands on him.

Because of his huge hitbox, pressuring him becomes easy. I personally like to mix up ambiguous jump punches in between the mix-ups, since this eliminates his ability to teleport out. When you jump over a teleporting raiden, you end up fully punishing him, due to the teleport appearing right back under you. In the corner, you can do the same. This is where patience pays off. Its almost like hunting! Good luck.

?-? vs Sheeva - coming soon
Click to expand...
7-3 against Cyber Sub Zero?!? Seriously, this is wrong, the match up is 5-5 or 6-4 at best for Cyrax. You may not have faced adept Cyber Subs yet. A good Cyber Sub will use dive kicks in :ex form for only one reason in this match-up; To punish nets, even from full screen, which is quite easy to do on reaction. Also, let's not forget that Cyber Sub has Sub's ice beam, which can trade with net in Cyber Sub's favor. CSZ's D3 is at 6 frames & has better reach than Cyrax's D1, so parry becomes a choice, not a necessity for breaking Cyrax's pressure. Cyber also has better mobility than Cyrax, both airborne (spacing dive kicks) & on the ground (superior dash), thus can outspace Cyrax. From full screen, if Cyrax refrains from nets due to dive kick threat & throws bombs instead, Cyber can play that game too, especially with :ex triple bombs to possibly bait a teleport escape & punish with 3,4. At close quarters I would use D3 to interrupt Cyrax pressure (also evades command throw) & immediately crossover punch into 3,4/3,3 overhead/low mixups. Cyrax's mix up is not in par with Cyber's, his low requires meter and doesn't combo. Lastly, Cyrax may have enormous damage output, but Cyber's damage is quite potent too (52% meterless ice bomb reset).
 
Red Reaper

Red Reaper

The Hyrax Whisperer
Vagrant said:
...Can you change the Sektor MU to 6-4 rax?

I've always thought rax had advantage but given the stuff j360 just showed in the corner against him I don't know how this MU can be called even.
Click to expand...
It kan be 4-6 but like Krayzie said it depends on the stage too. Overall 5-5 is probably right. From Sektor's point of view it's mostly trying to play keep away without getting to the Korner, so that means that you HAVE to get in klose. Footsies, without too much B1 or F2 pretty much.
 
Red Reaper

Red Reaper

The Hyrax Whisperer
Parnak said:
7-3 against Cyber Sub Zero?!? Seriously, this is wrong, the match up is 5-5 or 6-4 at best for Cyrax. You may not have faced adept Cyber Subs yet. A good Cyber Sub will use dive kicks in :ex form for only one reason in this match-up; To punish nets, even from full screen, which is quite easy to do on reaction. Also, let's not forget that Cyber Sub has Sub's ice beam, which can trade with net in Cyber Sub's favor. CSZ's D3 is at 6 frames & has better reach than Cyrax's D1, so parry becomes a choice, not a necessity for breaking Cyrax's pressure. Cyber also has better mobility than Cyrax, both airborne (spacing dive kicks) & on the ground (superior dash), thus can outspace Cyrax. From full screen, if Cyrax refrains from nets due to dive kick threat & throws bombs instead, Cyber can play that game too, especially with :ex triple bombs to possibly bait a teleport escape & punish with 3,4. At close quarters I would use D3 to interrupt Cyrax pressure (also evades command throw) & immediately crossover punch into 3,4/3,3 overhead/low mixups. Cyrax's mix up is not in par with Cyber's, his low requires meter and doesn't combo. Lastly, Cyrax may have enormous damage output, but Cyber's damage is quite potent too (52% meterless ice bomb reset).
Click to expand...
You kould have just tagged him instead of quoting that long ass post..

And he developed the match up primarily from his matches against GuamoKun so you probably have a point. Guamo isn't really an "adept Cyber Sub." Too many Guimicks not enough real characters...
 
Tigaman120

Tigaman120

Noob
This is something you would like to see! Crazy Cyrax combos you wont see them anywhere else unless you check my page out.
 
Axel_Redd

Axel_Redd

Vampire Jesus....he wants YOUR blood now!!
he mentioned something about cage doin f33b3 in the corner then he's done, did he mean if cage is cornered or cage cornering cyrax? cuz if he does f33b3 in the corner couldn't he just cancel into ex forceballs?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.