Briggs8417
Salt Proprietor of TYM
Ok so I am putting in one of my little pieces for the Reptile MU project started by Treadmill. Now I am going to go about this discussion a little bit differently than Seapeople did, however he wrote up a fantastic thread for the Cage MU. I am just going to post a general strategy as to how you should play the character, and if anyone has any further questions they would like answered or specific problems they need help with, they can ask and I will give the best reply I can. If I can't answer, which I most definitely should be able to do, I will go to another fine Reptile player who might be better equipped to answer. Also, if anyone else has anything they would like to add please do so, or if there is anything that you feel might need to be corrected please let me know. Since this is a community project I want the community to participate and not just me telling you how to play the MU the way I do. The idea behind this project is to gain a better understanding of how to handle tougher MU's, and I believe the best way to do that is to communicate ideas, tools and ideas that other players use to help them with said MU's. Now on to the goods.
UP CLOSE:
You really don't want to be here as Reptile, anywhere from sweep range to point blank puts this match heavily in Cyrax's favor. However when this does occur you will obviously need to know how to handle it so first thing is first...Don't dash unless you are just willing to burn the meter to get some temporary advantage or punishing. The risk highly outweighs the reward for it in this MU when you are this close for multiple reasons. Whether it's him throwing out a raw net a just before it and catching you for a nasty combo, or just because he read you and blocks it for a nasty combo...just know that you don't want to die, so you don't want to dash.You have to play footsies very cautiously, be aware of the range of all of Cyrax's pokes and normals and try to you yours to counter them. Cyrax has all your moves beat in the speed department, however Reptile has a lot more range on a lot of his normals. You're best tool up close is d4 using it correctly can get you out of a lot of sticky situations. At point blank it doesn't do much good but right outside of his poke ranges it's good for counterpoking/whiff punishing. If you happen to be right outside of his standing 1's range standing 3 is great for stuffing a lot of his moves. Just a reminder that when doing all of this you can't forget about net EVER. Always be cautious of it, it's always a threat for Reptile up close. If the opponent likes to do ragdolls into d1 ragdolls, if you know it's coming block the d1 and dash him.
MID RANGE:
Reptile can handle himself a little better once gets into jump/elbow dash whiff range, but still needs to play patiently because the match stills sways a little in Cyrax's favor imo. He is going to do everything in his power to either catch you with a bomb/net, or just get you to come back in. Don't fall for the bomb traps, if you see him chuck a bomb you get a free dash and punish, so keep him in check with this tactic. He will start to rely more on trying to net trap you. One move I recommend you don't use at all during this matchup unless the one hit you will actually get kills is ex slide. Unless you just straight up know you are about to be hit by a bomb or will kill him I this move isn't good at all in this MU due the way Cyrax hitbox changes while throwing out nets and bombs. He also has bomb set ups specifically designed to take advantage of this and get full combo punishes. So just try your best to stay clear of using it. Forceballs and spit are still kind of risky at this range so if you do use it, do so sparingly. Ex forceballs are ok, but let's not forget that you might need breaker later on otherwise you might die.
LONG RANGE:
For the most part this is the area where Reptile can be Reptile for a while lol. Just always play cautiously and have your breaker ready just in case. Full screen is where things get easier for Reptile and Cyrax has to start adjusting his game a lot more. You have all your zoning tools at your disposal as long as you mind nets you will be able to control space a lot more freely. Do your best to convert any fb's on hit into full combos, because this is the time where you want to take advantage of your position on screen as much as possible. You can also try to bait nets by dashing when he throws out a bomb and jumping over for punishes, however remember that all he needs to do is delay when he throws it out and you are the one being punished, so this is a bit risky.
One last thing I want to mention again is to always have those two bars of meter with you no matter what, because you don't want to eat those combos. Reptile can play this matchup without meter anyway. Also, backthrow as often as you can in this MU because it puts him full screen and you get at least one free projectile. Alright guys feel free to add whatever you want or ask any questions you might have here about the MU and I will do my best to answer, and I hope this was helpful.
UP CLOSE:
You really don't want to be here as Reptile, anywhere from sweep range to point blank puts this match heavily in Cyrax's favor. However when this does occur you will obviously need to know how to handle it so first thing is first...Don't dash unless you are just willing to burn the meter to get some temporary advantage or punishing. The risk highly outweighs the reward for it in this MU when you are this close for multiple reasons. Whether it's him throwing out a raw net a just before it and catching you for a nasty combo, or just because he read you and blocks it for a nasty combo...just know that you don't want to die, so you don't want to dash.You have to play footsies very cautiously, be aware of the range of all of Cyrax's pokes and normals and try to you yours to counter them. Cyrax has all your moves beat in the speed department, however Reptile has a lot more range on a lot of his normals. You're best tool up close is d4 using it correctly can get you out of a lot of sticky situations. At point blank it doesn't do much good but right outside of his poke ranges it's good for counterpoking/whiff punishing. If you happen to be right outside of his standing 1's range standing 3 is great for stuffing a lot of his moves. Just a reminder that when doing all of this you can't forget about net EVER. Always be cautious of it, it's always a threat for Reptile up close. If the opponent likes to do ragdolls into d1 ragdolls, if you know it's coming block the d1 and dash him.
MID RANGE:
Reptile can handle himself a little better once gets into jump/elbow dash whiff range, but still needs to play patiently because the match stills sways a little in Cyrax's favor imo. He is going to do everything in his power to either catch you with a bomb/net, or just get you to come back in. Don't fall for the bomb traps, if you see him chuck a bomb you get a free dash and punish, so keep him in check with this tactic. He will start to rely more on trying to net trap you. One move I recommend you don't use at all during this matchup unless the one hit you will actually get kills is ex slide. Unless you just straight up know you are about to be hit by a bomb or will kill him I this move isn't good at all in this MU due the way Cyrax hitbox changes while throwing out nets and bombs. He also has bomb set ups specifically designed to take advantage of this and get full combo punishes. So just try your best to stay clear of using it. Forceballs and spit are still kind of risky at this range so if you do use it, do so sparingly. Ex forceballs are ok, but let's not forget that you might need breaker later on otherwise you might die.
LONG RANGE:
For the most part this is the area where Reptile can be Reptile for a while lol. Just always play cautiously and have your breaker ready just in case. Full screen is where things get easier for Reptile and Cyrax has to start adjusting his game a lot more. You have all your zoning tools at your disposal as long as you mind nets you will be able to control space a lot more freely. Do your best to convert any fb's on hit into full combos, because this is the time where you want to take advantage of your position on screen as much as possible. You can also try to bait nets by dashing when he throws out a bomb and jumping over for punishes, however remember that all he needs to do is delay when he throws it out and you are the one being punished, so this is a bit risky.
One last thing I want to mention again is to always have those two bars of meter with you no matter what, because you don't want to eat those combos. Reptile can play this matchup without meter anyway. Also, backthrow as often as you can in this MU because it puts him full screen and you get at least one free projectile. Alright guys feel free to add whatever you want or ask any questions you might have here about the MU and I will do my best to answer, and I hope this was helpful.
lol.
