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Kotal Kahn General Discussion

Wait they nerfed defensive totems?
Yes, a mixed totem stack no longer functions at the power of the stack, but based on the individual totems. So previously 2 dmg + 1 def got you +60% offense/defense, now it'd only get you +40%/+20%...

So just act like you only have the dmg totem, because def is still just as slow to come out, making it kind of useless.
 
Yes, a mixed totem stack no longer functions at the power of the stack, but based on the individual totems. So previously 2 dmg + 1 def got you +60% offense/defense, now it'd only get you +40%/+20%...

So just act like you only have the dmg totem, because def is still just as slow to come out, making it kind of useless.
Ouch I didn’t realize that.
 
After today's patch's totem changes...
You now take the highest stack of each kind. So you don't lose dmg for making a 1-stack when you already have a 2-stack.
They fixed the glitch where a def totem continued to have an effect after vanishing if you made a 2-stack of dmg after it.
 
It's just really unreliable to purposefully aim the air kat that low. You're still -6 very often, based on how high YOU were when you hit the opponent.

Though you do have the option to do short hop into air kat, for -1 to +2 frames on block. If you do it late (short hop coming down), you can get that bonus low-to-ground double-hit that amped air kat does, but it's less reliable due to the diminished distance. It can be reliably done from a low jumpkick, but that already has 7 to 11 frames of plus to it and let you go into a combo on hit on reaction (so divekat with it is mostly meaningful for its 45 points of chip).

Divekat is safer now, yay, and you can apply low-poke pressure often after doing it, just be careful about doing it to people with 9f mids.
 
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In case you haven't noticed, Kotal's d1 says it's 7f, but it's effectively 8f (because outside of the opponent pushing into you in the corner, the first active frame is embedded somewhere inside Kotal and unable to reach anything). There's a reason I've used d3 over it pretty exclusively, but I only stopped to think about that yesterday, and then Shenles tested it: .
 
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Slymind

Noob
Looking foward to laser people. Also they gotta buff that anti-air move where he breaks the plate or something.
 
If i was to be asked id probably just make it a part of his standard move set , u can use far and close version like in mkx , or give it option to choose the position of it at least .
 
I fear they are going to butcher this man in the balance patch.

He's got too much juice in kustoms, I doubt they'll let him live and thrive.
That would be a problem if he was the only one ,but there is a lot of characters that benefit from kustoms. Ultra instinct noob , any kano and v2 geras with sand simulacrum says hi .
 

The Ultimate

aka CommandThrower
Question: could Kotal always tick into his command throw off of his B22? If he always could, I never noticed it until now. But, if he never has been able to, he now can.
 

The Ultimate

aka CommandThrower
Yeah I got hit with that today and was like wtf
He can't be poked out of a B22 into command grab, but it can be jumped.


Also, B2 itself seems to hit opponents who crouch block at max range, but it whiffs again crouch blocking Kitana, Joker and Raiden at max range. Up close however, it does hit them crouch blocking. Still whiffs against neutral ducking, across the cast.


EDIT: Looks like a hotfix took place, and now Kotal can no longer tick from B22. Profound sadness.
 
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Lex Luthor II

Lord of Lightning
What do you guys do up close with Kotal? I'm so used to characters with 9-12 frame mids into confirmable combos that his lack of that turns me off from him, though I know he has all kinds of other great tools.
 

Mandolore1123

Man of Science Who Wields the Living Lightning
What do you guys do up close with Kotal? I'm so used to characters with 9-12 frame mids into confirmable combos that his lack of that turns me off from him, though I know he has all kinds of other great tools.
D3 jails comfortably into pretty much any high he has, or micro dash into command grab
 

Slymind

Noob

Not the most pratical combo, but at close distance the stun from that KB allows for another totem before continuing the combo, if you predict the breakaway, you can mix with the armor break for another KB. Unlikely to happen on a real match, but, just for fun.
 
It's a shame about the D1 recovery changes this patch. After KBs in the corner I'd typically do 3,4 > d1 > f1,2 into whatever depending on variation. Definitely much trickier now. Obviously not losing a ton of damage, but it felt more consistent than going for 3,4 > f1,2. Ah well, time to adapt.
 

RoboCop

The future of law enforcement.
Administrator
Premium Supporter
I'm surprised I don't see more people talking about his energy regen totum. Even just a single stack shaves 3 seconds off his 10-second Amplified Maul cooldown. 3 totems gets it down to a 4-second regen time. It's like Spawn's insane meter-regen portal, only it's a full-screen effect. If you amp his beam, you can recover your bar by the time the beam makes it to the opponent. The long animation for the amped Cat Maul essentially makes it cost zero meter.
 
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I'm surprised I don't see more people talking about his energy regen totum.
Because only the dmg totem comes out fast, and is thus reliable to get out via s4. It was clearly designed to facilitate totem stacking with one support totem, only then NRS decided that no, build variety sucks.
 

M2Dave

Zoning Master
Emperor Aztec equips command grab, EX disc, and cat. I have recently been experimenting with Kotal Kahn and I think that these three moves make up the best variation. There is a very good balance between mix ups, footsies, and anti-zoning. You also keep the beam as an effective chip tool at the end of rounds. The buff to EX disc was huge. You reset neutral after a blocked f+2,4 or hit confirm into d,f+2 on hit. Kotal Kahn is definitely strong now. Arguably top 10.