Osirun
www.powerupfighters.org
Shinnok All Variations
1. 50/50 mix ups and pressure (4/5)
2. Neutral game and footsies (4/5)
3. Defensive options (4/5)
4. Zoning and anti-zoning (5/5)
5. Damage output (3/5)
Comprehensive Score: 20/25
Great topic, and I hope my contribution is useful.
1. 50/50 mix ups and pressure (4/5)
Impostor Shinnok has a great 50/50 game, and the damage buff makes it more scary. The opponent cannot armor out if the Shinnok player goes right for the mixup, and even though they can block at any time, Mimicry is up there with Quan Chi's trance in terms of usefulness. It is not as easy for Impostor to open people up when compared to Kung Lao, Raiden, or Kung Jin, who have safe or easily option selected overhead options, more easily hit confirmable mixup strings, and so on. However, Impostor is still a great variation.
Pressure is the realm of Boneshaper. Cancels off of the last hit of f.2,1,1+3 (Deity) are wonderfully useful and really put the opponent on the defensive. The pressure is not endless, but now all variations can make use of a meter burned Hell Spark on the first hit to stay in range for pressure. Shinnok can now be overwhelming, especially against inexperienced players.
Pressure is the realm of Boneshaper. Cancels off of the last hit of f.2,1,1+3 (Deity) are wonderfully useful and really put the opponent on the defensive. The pressure is not endless, but now all variations can make use of a meter burned Hell Spark on the first hit to stay in range for pressure. Shinnok can now be overwhelming, especially against inexperienced players.
2. Neutral game and footsies (4/5)
Yes, Shinnok has a very fast move. Probably one of the fastest in the game, but if he is not in Boneshaper he cannot really make great use of f.4 (Shin Kick). Boneshaper's footsies are where most of this 4/5 rating comes from, as Necromancer's zoning can still be avoided by opponents who are prepared for it.
Necromancer is still good, but the zoning is one-dimensional. Will I flick, or won't I? The tools in Necromancer are not suffocating. Boneshaper's special moves are slow, but sometimes the unblockable will catch people turtling at long range. Impostor, at long range, is nearly a useless variation. The "footsies" revolve around when and where to teleport.
Other than f.4, Shinnok has very few fast normals that lead into any real damage. Yes, he can poke you out with d.3 and his d.1 is great, but longer range moves are slow, such as b.1, f.2, and s.4.
Lastly, while Hell Sparks is a great anti-air, and his uppercut is not shabby at all, I have had mixed success with Hell Sparks at a little closer than jump in distance. The sparks are simply not fast enough to catch opponents who jump in from a position close to Shinnok. I have also had, very often, the great pleasure of seeing a Kung Lao or Kung Jin dive kick right through the middle of Hell Sparks. Mileena has also rolled past Hell Sparks very often as I throw it out as a sort of poke to read her jump-in or run. I'm sure other characters can similarly avoid Hell Sparks in this way.
Necromancer is still good, but the zoning is one-dimensional. Will I flick, or won't I? The tools in Necromancer are not suffocating. Boneshaper's special moves are slow, but sometimes the unblockable will catch people turtling at long range. Impostor, at long range, is nearly a useless variation. The "footsies" revolve around when and where to teleport.
Other than f.4, Shinnok has very few fast normals that lead into any real damage. Yes, he can poke you out with d.3 and his d.1 is great, but longer range moves are slow, such as b.1, f.2, and s.4.
Lastly, while Hell Sparks is a great anti-air, and his uppercut is not shabby at all, I have had mixed success with Hell Sparks at a little closer than jump in distance. The sparks are simply not fast enough to catch opponents who jump in from a position close to Shinnok. I have also had, very often, the great pleasure of seeing a Kung Lao or Kung Jin dive kick right through the middle of Hell Sparks. Mileena has also rolled past Hell Sparks very often as I throw it out as a sort of poke to read her jump-in or run. I'm sure other characters can similarly avoid Hell Sparks in this way.
3. Defensive options (4/5)
Impostor is not the defensive player's choice, let me get that out of the way. You can play Impostor defensively, but it is not really what you want to do with that variation. You wanna play keep away? Play Necromancer. The tools, while avoidable and predictable, are still good and can frustrate non-teleporting characters immensely.
All of Shinnok's variations benefit from Hell Sparks. It is a major disincentive to jumping, in spite of the drawbacks to the move I described in the neutral game section.
EX Scepter Slam is a great reversal that leads to a combo, and is something I need to use more of now that the Deity string can be cancelled out of. I often find myself using EX Shoulder on wakeup, and in Boneshaper you can follow up with a Scepter Slam, while in Necromancer you can follow up with a Summoned Fiend. However, EX Shoulder is a better wakeup in the corner, where the combo ability is better.
All of Shinnok's variations benefit from Hell Sparks. It is a major disincentive to jumping, in spite of the drawbacks to the move I described in the neutral game section.
EX Scepter Slam is a great reversal that leads to a combo, and is something I need to use more of now that the Deity string can be cancelled out of. I often find myself using EX Shoulder on wakeup, and in Boneshaper you can follow up with a Scepter Slam, while in Necromancer you can follow up with a Summoned Fiend. However, EX Shoulder is a better wakeup in the corner, where the combo ability is better.
4. Zoning and anti-zoning (5/5)
Instant air Tricky Port is the ultimate in anti-zoning for Shinnok. Read that projectile, and then put them in the Mimicry vortex. It is the long range mind game that Impostor Shinnok must use to maintain safe distance and put mental pressure on the opponent.
Necromancer is also good at both zoning and anti-zoning. Flick and Summoned Fiend are good at long range, but Summoned Fiend is -20, so there is the potential for quick teleport punishes, fast advancing specials, and run pressure to happen if the move is thrown out without caution. However, combine these two moves with Hell Sparks, and Necromancer can become a nightmare for non-teleporting characters.
Boneshaper is not the most wonderful zoner, but Shinnok as a whole still deserves the 5/5 because of the usefulness of Hell Sparks. Yes, it is unsafe without a meter burn on block, but the move is good and should not be underestimated. The Boneshaper vortex is okay, but once people start canceling into Hell Sparks off of a Deity string and resetting the long range game, I believe the zoning strengths of Shinnok will begin to shine more.
Lastly, there is the matter of Shinnok's basic mobility. His special moves really give him the 5/5 score here, because his mobility is average. His run is good, but not very fast, and his backdash is average. Air Tricky Port would be crazy good if Shinnok could teleport somewhere not right next to the opponent, for the additional movement and mixup potential, but that is not the case. Also, IATP is very likely to get hit out of its startup by a projectile, and the opponent will begin to get the read on your teleports just as they would against a Kung Lao. So IATP mobility is good, but not great.
Often, in Boneshaper and Necromancer, I find myself backing up to create the space for an effective Hell Sparks anti-air or Flick offense. This could just be my playstyle, of course, but I find very little that Necromancer can do up close, and I do not have a dive kick or other aerial move that bounces me around the screen and past my opponent. I am stuck as a kind of tower of defense, waiting for my opportunity and pestering the opponent at long range. So mobility is not very good in Necromancer.
Boneshaper is the variation that rewards rushing your opponent down thanks to its great strings, but a lot of the time Shinnok is adjusting his spacing while slowly being pushed to the corner. Even as you rush in with a run, that is all you can do. Boneshaper does not have a move to get Shinnok out of trouble or feint the opponent like a neutral jump into Air Tricky Port. That all said, EX Shoulder is a great way to spend bar in all variations if your goal is simply to escape pressure. You get a bit of breathing room, but still are close enough to the opponent to be worried. So, Shinnok's mobility is not great, but his 5/5 score for zoning and anti-zoning still stands fairly firm.
Necromancer is also good at both zoning and anti-zoning. Flick and Summoned Fiend are good at long range, but Summoned Fiend is -20, so there is the potential for quick teleport punishes, fast advancing specials, and run pressure to happen if the move is thrown out without caution. However, combine these two moves with Hell Sparks, and Necromancer can become a nightmare for non-teleporting characters.
Boneshaper is not the most wonderful zoner, but Shinnok as a whole still deserves the 5/5 because of the usefulness of Hell Sparks. Yes, it is unsafe without a meter burn on block, but the move is good and should not be underestimated. The Boneshaper vortex is okay, but once people start canceling into Hell Sparks off of a Deity string and resetting the long range game, I believe the zoning strengths of Shinnok will begin to shine more.
Lastly, there is the matter of Shinnok's basic mobility. His special moves really give him the 5/5 score here, because his mobility is average. His run is good, but not very fast, and his backdash is average. Air Tricky Port would be crazy good if Shinnok could teleport somewhere not right next to the opponent, for the additional movement and mixup potential, but that is not the case. Also, IATP is very likely to get hit out of its startup by a projectile, and the opponent will begin to get the read on your teleports just as they would against a Kung Lao. So IATP mobility is good, but not great.
Often, in Boneshaper and Necromancer, I find myself backing up to create the space for an effective Hell Sparks anti-air or Flick offense. This could just be my playstyle, of course, but I find very little that Necromancer can do up close, and I do not have a dive kick or other aerial move that bounces me around the screen and past my opponent. I am stuck as a kind of tower of defense, waiting for my opportunity and pestering the opponent at long range. So mobility is not very good in Necromancer.
Boneshaper is the variation that rewards rushing your opponent down thanks to its great strings, but a lot of the time Shinnok is adjusting his spacing while slowly being pushed to the corner. Even as you rush in with a run, that is all you can do. Boneshaper does not have a move to get Shinnok out of trouble or feint the opponent like a neutral jump into Air Tricky Port. That all said, EX Shoulder is a great way to spend bar in all variations if your goal is simply to escape pressure. You get a bit of breathing room, but still are close enough to the opponent to be worried. So, Shinnok's mobility is not great, but his 5/5 score for zoning and anti-zoning still stands fairly firm.
5. Damage output (3/5)
Shinnok is a medium-damage character without his Mimicry damage boost. Mimicry is most of the reason for the 3/5 rating. The damage can get silly, but when you take Shinnok as a whole, Necromancer and Boneshaper do not dish out the damage all at once like Impostor can. Also, this Mimicry damage is not guaranteed. The opponent does have the chance to block or otherwise avoid the mixup, so the 3/5 rating makes even more sense. In addition, some move steals are utterly worthless and should not be used even as damage enders because the Mimicry vortex is much better. So you lose the opportunity to really take advantage of the damage buff. Sometimes your best mixup is a throw, and while it is still powered up to around 16%, that does not merit more than a 3/5 rating when taking all other things into consideration.
Boneshaper can deal more damage now thanks to the cancelability of the Deity string, but the damage is not out of hand. It is difficult to hit someone with a raw Deity string, and this makes option selecting the f.2 in Boneshaper important, but then leads to damage scaling as the combo continues. If Deity is thrown out with abandon, it is -22 on block, since the capture will not come out on block. In Boneshaper, it is more likely that you will be hitting the opponent with f.4,1,d.2 or f.3,1,d.2 and confirming into Hell Sparks, with the subsequent damage scaling. If you are on point with your hit confirms, you'll cancel after f.4,1 or f.3,1, but again the damage being dealt is not immense. The reset potential is great, but the combo damage itself is average in a game where the average combo with meter can still net around 32-35%. In my opinion, for Shinnok this is as it should be.
Boneshaper can deal more damage now thanks to the cancelability of the Deity string, but the damage is not out of hand. It is difficult to hit someone with a raw Deity string, and this makes option selecting the f.2 in Boneshaper important, but then leads to damage scaling as the combo continues. If Deity is thrown out with abandon, it is -22 on block, since the capture will not come out on block. In Boneshaper, it is more likely that you will be hitting the opponent with f.4,1,d.2 or f.3,1,d.2 and confirming into Hell Sparks, with the subsequent damage scaling. If you are on point with your hit confirms, you'll cancel after f.4,1 or f.3,1, but again the damage being dealt is not immense. The reset potential is great, but the combo damage itself is average in a game where the average combo with meter can still net around 32-35%. In my opinion, for Shinnok this is as it should be.
Comprehensive Score: 20/25
Great topic, and I hope my contribution is useful.
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