M2Dave
Zoning Master
Conventions
f - forward
b - back
u - up
d - down
1 - square (PS), X (X-Box)
2 - triangle (PS), Y (X-Box)
3 - X (PS), A (X-Box)
4 - O (PS), B (X-Box)
BLK - block
~ - next sequence must be input immediately
* - tap and hold
AA - anti air
Noteworthy Basic Attacks
d+3 - generic d+3. Use it to create space against rush down characters. Watch out for the jump when you start using this.
d+2 - generic MK uppercut. Skarlet's d+2 is not too good but too bad either. Only to be used as an anti-aerial attack.
f+4,3 - safe string with tremendous push back on block. f+4,3 is undoubtedly one of Skarlet's best strings because it positions her to the sweet spot, so she can toss more daggers. f+4~d,f+3 into slide is only interruptable by X-Rays and quick attacks with armor.
u+3,4 - safe hop kick string that looks like something you would see in Tekken. At the moment, u+3,4 has limited uses. A minor glitch, which will soon be fixed, prevents Skarlet from performing the string after dashing.
f+3,1 - main punishing tool for blocked special moves such as Raiden's Electric Fly (b,f+3) and Smoke's Teleport Punch (d,b+4). Use f+3,1~d,b+2 + combo. See the combo section below. f+3,1 is slow, but it may be Skarlet's only hit-confirmable launcher that hits crouching opponents. You can do f+3,1~d,f+3. If it is blocked, slide. If it hits, do the Up Slash and combo. On block after f+3,1, the slide is only interruptable by X-Rays and quick attacks with armor.
2,1,2 - main punishing tool for blocked special moves such as Reptile's Elbow Dash (b,f+2). Some characters can crouch the first two hits, even on block, so I would generally stay away from 2,1,2 (aside from punishing). See the combo section below.
For the most part, everything else is either too unsafe or too slow.
Special Attacks
Dagger Toss (d,f+1) - Skarlet tosses two daggers that leave trails of blood.
- the first dagger does 3% of damage while the second dagger does 4% of damage. Even though the game says that the first dagger does no block damage, if you pay attention to your opponent's lifebar, you will notice that it does do minor block damage.
- the two daggers can be ducked and they never combo, not even at point blank range.
- the second toss can be canceled by holding down the face button. You can toss consecutive daggers using d,f+1*, backdash, d,f+1*, backdash, d,f+1*, etc. Using this technique, Skarlet can toss projectiles very quickly.
- the daggers build a lot of super meter, particularly if your opponent is silly enough to block them, but they provide poor hit advantage.
- AA d,f+1*, d,f+1*, d,f+1 is a combo that does 11% of damage.
- Nightwolf can reflect the daggers, but if you keep throwing them fast enough, the reflected daggers will disappear before they have a chance to make contact with you
Close Air Dagger (d,b+1 in air) - Skarlet tosses a dagger in a downward direction. This special move looks somewhat similar to Sindel's d,f+3 in air.
- Close Air Dagger can be done instantly using u~d,b+1, which is solid for building meter.
Far Air Dagger (d,f+1 in air) - Skarlet tosses a dagger that travels horizontally just like Liu Kang's b,f+1 in air.
- Far Air Dagger can be done instantly using u~d,f+1, which is solid because of improved recovery and meter building.
Blood Ball (f,d,b+1) - As the name suggests, Skarlet tosses a blood ball which can be controlled with up and down.
- The Blood Ball does 15% of damage and 6% of block damage, but Skarlet loses 7% of her life.
- The Blood Ball has no enhanced version.
Up Slash (d,f+2) - Skarlet launches the opponent with her knife. The Up Slash looks similar to Nightwolf's d,f+1.
- The Up Slash is not safe on block. It is punishable by fast special attacks and by fast jabs.
Down Slash (d,b+2) - Skarlet pummels and launches the opponent with her knife.
- The Down Slash is an overhead, but it is not safe on block. It is more punishable than the Up Slash.
Blood Drop (d,b+4) - Skarlet teleports to the other side of the screen and pummels the opponent.
- The Blood Drop is very unsafe on block. It cannot be used to punish the faster recovering projectiles in the game, such as Kano's Knife Toss and Quan Chi's Skull
Red Dash (d,f+3) - Skarlet dashes forward. Tapping f+2 after it performs the Up Slash. Tapping b+4 after it performs the Down Slash. Tapping 4 after it performs a slide attack.
- The slide attack is safe on block.
- There is some kind of difficult just frame after the slide. You can juggle with d,f+2. Tap 4~f+2 quickly after the Red Dash. This is a glitch that will be fixed, according to Paulo Garcia.
Throw
- the front throw does 11% of damage while the back throw does 17% of damage. Expect this to be patched to meet universal throw damage at 12%.
Enhanced Special Attacks
Double Daggers (d,f+1+BLK) - Skarlet tosses three sets of daggers two consecutive times
- the first set of daggers does 5% of damage while the second set of daggers does 7% of damage (unless you hold it in which case it does 8% of damage)
- the daggers can be ducked and they never combo, not even at point blank range.
- just like with the regular daggers, the second toss can be canceled by holding down the face button.
- Double Daggers provide more frame advantage on hit and block. There are some block frame traps that you can do up close.
Tri Air Daggers (d,f+1+BLK or d,b+1+BLK in air) - Skarlet shoots three daggers in different directions. This move looks similar to Nightwolf's enhanced Arrow.
- each dagger does 4% of damage and 1% of block damage. The daggers never combo unless you hit them point blank in the air.
- The Tri Air Daggers do not look impressive on paper, but they are a solid tool. Use them to chip opponents to death at the end of rounds. It works well because they control a lot of space. Also, if you are jumping back and need a cover, throw them out.
Dual Up Slash (d,f+2+BLK) - Skarlet slashes the opponent twice.
- Not safe on block. Never waste any meter on this move.
Dual Down Slash (d,b+2+BLK) - Skarlet slashes the opponent twice. The first hit is an overhead.
- Not safe on block. Never waste any meter on this move.
Blood Stomp (d,b+4+BLK) - Skarlet teleports to the other side of the screen and stabs the opponent.
- The Blood Stomp is not any safer than the regular version, but it does do slightly more damage and seems slightly quicker to me
- Not too bad of an enhanced special attack if you need to punish projectiles, particularly at the end of rounds
Krimson Dash (d,f+3+BLK) - Skarlet dashes forward quickly. The dash has armor. Tapping f+2 after it performs the Up Slash. Tapping b+4 after it performs the Down Slash. Tapping 4 after it performs a slide attack.
- The Krimson Dash is arguably Skarlet's best enhanced special attack. You can blow through projectiles and pokes and juggle your opponent with the Up Slash at mid range. Really, really good stuff.
X-Ray - Skarlet flips forward and proceeds to attack the opponent. The X-Ray does 29% of damage.
- the X-Ray works best as an anti-aerial attack, but the damage is very poor. I would only use it to finish off opponents. Skarlet is better off using her powerful enhanced special attacks than waste an entire super meter on 29% of damage. Not worth it.
Fatalities (Thanks to Tim Static)
Fatality 1 - Blood Bath - d, b, d, d + BLK (sweep distance)
Fatality 2 - Make it Rain - f, b, d, d + 4 (jump distance)
Babality - d, b, d, f + 2 (jump distance)
Stage - f, b, f + 1 (close)
Bread and Butter Combos
1. f+3,1~d,b+2, f+4~d,f+3,b+2, f+4~d,f+3,b+2, dash 2,3~d,f+3,4. 41% of damage.
2. f+3,1~d,b+2, dash 2,3~d,f+3,b+2, 2~dagger cancel, dash 1,1,2, d,f+3. 38% of damage + mix ups.
The first combo does the most damage and builds the most super meter. The second combo ends in the Red Dash and leaves opponents in a guessing game between the slide, Down Slash, and throw. I like to use the first combo when I am winning and the second when I am losing.
3. f+3,1~d,b+2, b+2~d,b+2, 2,3~d,f+3,f+2, dash quickly 2,3~d,f+3,4. 44% of damage.
4. 2,1,2~d,f+1*, 2,3~d,f+3,f+2, 2,3~d,f+3,4. 37% of damage.
General Strategy
The daggers cause poor damage, so Skarlet is not winning too many full screen projectile wars. However, if you step forward to mid screen, things change. The daggers, especially when canceled, are so fast that opponents will have a difficult time moving around. In fact, they are most likely going to be crouching. The key is to be able to move left and right while canceling the daggers and reacting to what opponents do. You can also use the Red Dash at mid range. You can slide, which is safe on block, or dash, stop, and throw. Use the slide to check opponents who dash. Once you train your opponents to block low, you can use the Down Slash from the Red Dash to juggle. Be mindful of the move's lack of safety on block, though. Should opponents throw their own projectiles at mid range, you may blow right through them with the enhanced Red Dash which has armor. Use the Up Slash afterwards for a juggle.
Glitches
- Up and Down Slashes after slide (d,f+3,4~f+2 or b+2)
- Back throw damage (17%)
- Inability to dash and perform u+3
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is Skarlet's best wake up move?
A: The Red Dash into the slide (d,f+3,4). You can also use the enhanced Red Dash which has armor.
Q: What can Skarlet do against cross ups?
A: Use the Red Dash (d,f+3) to dash underneath your opponent's cross up. You can also use the enhanced Red Dash which has armor. You can jump back and punch too which gives a free d,f+3,4.
f - forward
b - back
u - up
d - down
1 - square (PS), X (X-Box)
2 - triangle (PS), Y (X-Box)
3 - X (PS), A (X-Box)
4 - O (PS), B (X-Box)
BLK - block
~ - next sequence must be input immediately
* - tap and hold
AA - anti air
Noteworthy Basic Attacks
d+3 - generic d+3. Use it to create space against rush down characters. Watch out for the jump when you start using this.
d+2 - generic MK uppercut. Skarlet's d+2 is not too good but too bad either. Only to be used as an anti-aerial attack.
f+4,3 - safe string with tremendous push back on block. f+4,3 is undoubtedly one of Skarlet's best strings because it positions her to the sweet spot, so she can toss more daggers. f+4~d,f+3 into slide is only interruptable by X-Rays and quick attacks with armor.
u+3,4 - safe hop kick string that looks like something you would see in Tekken. At the moment, u+3,4 has limited uses. A minor glitch, which will soon be fixed, prevents Skarlet from performing the string after dashing.
f+3,1 - main punishing tool for blocked special moves such as Raiden's Electric Fly (b,f+3) and Smoke's Teleport Punch (d,b+4). Use f+3,1~d,b+2 + combo. See the combo section below. f+3,1 is slow, but it may be Skarlet's only hit-confirmable launcher that hits crouching opponents. You can do f+3,1~d,f+3. If it is blocked, slide. If it hits, do the Up Slash and combo. On block after f+3,1, the slide is only interruptable by X-Rays and quick attacks with armor.
2,1,2 - main punishing tool for blocked special moves such as Reptile's Elbow Dash (b,f+2). Some characters can crouch the first two hits, even on block, so I would generally stay away from 2,1,2 (aside from punishing). See the combo section below.
For the most part, everything else is either too unsafe or too slow.
Special Attacks
Dagger Toss (d,f+1) - Skarlet tosses two daggers that leave trails of blood.
- the first dagger does 3% of damage while the second dagger does 4% of damage. Even though the game says that the first dagger does no block damage, if you pay attention to your opponent's lifebar, you will notice that it does do minor block damage.
- the two daggers can be ducked and they never combo, not even at point blank range.
- the second toss can be canceled by holding down the face button. You can toss consecutive daggers using d,f+1*, backdash, d,f+1*, backdash, d,f+1*, etc. Using this technique, Skarlet can toss projectiles very quickly.
- the daggers build a lot of super meter, particularly if your opponent is silly enough to block them, but they provide poor hit advantage.
- AA d,f+1*, d,f+1*, d,f+1 is a combo that does 11% of damage.
- Nightwolf can reflect the daggers, but if you keep throwing them fast enough, the reflected daggers will disappear before they have a chance to make contact with you
Close Air Dagger (d,b+1 in air) - Skarlet tosses a dagger in a downward direction. This special move looks somewhat similar to Sindel's d,f+3 in air.
- Close Air Dagger can be done instantly using u~d,b+1, which is solid for building meter.
Far Air Dagger (d,f+1 in air) - Skarlet tosses a dagger that travels horizontally just like Liu Kang's b,f+1 in air.
- Far Air Dagger can be done instantly using u~d,f+1, which is solid because of improved recovery and meter building.
Blood Ball (f,d,b+1) - As the name suggests, Skarlet tosses a blood ball which can be controlled with up and down.
- The Blood Ball does 15% of damage and 6% of block damage, but Skarlet loses 7% of her life.
- The Blood Ball has no enhanced version.
Up Slash (d,f+2) - Skarlet launches the opponent with her knife. The Up Slash looks similar to Nightwolf's d,f+1.
- The Up Slash is not safe on block. It is punishable by fast special attacks and by fast jabs.
Down Slash (d,b+2) - Skarlet pummels and launches the opponent with her knife.
- The Down Slash is an overhead, but it is not safe on block. It is more punishable than the Up Slash.
Blood Drop (d,b+4) - Skarlet teleports to the other side of the screen and pummels the opponent.
- The Blood Drop is very unsafe on block. It cannot be used to punish the faster recovering projectiles in the game, such as Kano's Knife Toss and Quan Chi's Skull
Red Dash (d,f+3) - Skarlet dashes forward. Tapping f+2 after it performs the Up Slash. Tapping b+4 after it performs the Down Slash. Tapping 4 after it performs a slide attack.
- The slide attack is safe on block.
- There is some kind of difficult just frame after the slide. You can juggle with d,f+2. Tap 4~f+2 quickly after the Red Dash. This is a glitch that will be fixed, according to Paulo Garcia.
Throw
- the front throw does 11% of damage while the back throw does 17% of damage. Expect this to be patched to meet universal throw damage at 12%.
Enhanced Special Attacks
Double Daggers (d,f+1+BLK) - Skarlet tosses three sets of daggers two consecutive times
- the first set of daggers does 5% of damage while the second set of daggers does 7% of damage (unless you hold it in which case it does 8% of damage)
- the daggers can be ducked and they never combo, not even at point blank range.
- just like with the regular daggers, the second toss can be canceled by holding down the face button.
- Double Daggers provide more frame advantage on hit and block. There are some block frame traps that you can do up close.
Tri Air Daggers (d,f+1+BLK or d,b+1+BLK in air) - Skarlet shoots three daggers in different directions. This move looks similar to Nightwolf's enhanced Arrow.
- each dagger does 4% of damage and 1% of block damage. The daggers never combo unless you hit them point blank in the air.
- The Tri Air Daggers do not look impressive on paper, but they are a solid tool. Use them to chip opponents to death at the end of rounds. It works well because they control a lot of space. Also, if you are jumping back and need a cover, throw them out.
Dual Up Slash (d,f+2+BLK) - Skarlet slashes the opponent twice.
- Not safe on block. Never waste any meter on this move.
Dual Down Slash (d,b+2+BLK) - Skarlet slashes the opponent twice. The first hit is an overhead.
- Not safe on block. Never waste any meter on this move.
Blood Stomp (d,b+4+BLK) - Skarlet teleports to the other side of the screen and stabs the opponent.
- The Blood Stomp is not any safer than the regular version, but it does do slightly more damage and seems slightly quicker to me
- Not too bad of an enhanced special attack if you need to punish projectiles, particularly at the end of rounds
Krimson Dash (d,f+3+BLK) - Skarlet dashes forward quickly. The dash has armor. Tapping f+2 after it performs the Up Slash. Tapping b+4 after it performs the Down Slash. Tapping 4 after it performs a slide attack.
- The Krimson Dash is arguably Skarlet's best enhanced special attack. You can blow through projectiles and pokes and juggle your opponent with the Up Slash at mid range. Really, really good stuff.
X-Ray - Skarlet flips forward and proceeds to attack the opponent. The X-Ray does 29% of damage.
- the X-Ray works best as an anti-aerial attack, but the damage is very poor. I would only use it to finish off opponents. Skarlet is better off using her powerful enhanced special attacks than waste an entire super meter on 29% of damage. Not worth it.
Fatalities (Thanks to Tim Static)
Fatality 1 - Blood Bath - d, b, d, d + BLK (sweep distance)
Fatality 2 - Make it Rain - f, b, d, d + 4 (jump distance)
Babality - d, b, d, f + 2 (jump distance)
Stage - f, b, f + 1 (close)
Bread and Butter Combos
1. f+3,1~d,b+2, f+4~d,f+3,b+2, f+4~d,f+3,b+2, dash 2,3~d,f+3,4. 41% of damage.
2. f+3,1~d,b+2, dash 2,3~d,f+3,b+2, 2~dagger cancel, dash 1,1,2, d,f+3. 38% of damage + mix ups.
The first combo does the most damage and builds the most super meter. The second combo ends in the Red Dash and leaves opponents in a guessing game between the slide, Down Slash, and throw. I like to use the first combo when I am winning and the second when I am losing.
3. f+3,1~d,b+2, b+2~d,b+2, 2,3~d,f+3,f+2, dash quickly 2,3~d,f+3,4. 44% of damage.
4. 2,1,2~d,f+1*, 2,3~d,f+3,f+2, 2,3~d,f+3,4. 37% of damage.
General Strategy
The daggers cause poor damage, so Skarlet is not winning too many full screen projectile wars. However, if you step forward to mid screen, things change. The daggers, especially when canceled, are so fast that opponents will have a difficult time moving around. In fact, they are most likely going to be crouching. The key is to be able to move left and right while canceling the daggers and reacting to what opponents do. You can also use the Red Dash at mid range. You can slide, which is safe on block, or dash, stop, and throw. Use the slide to check opponents who dash. Once you train your opponents to block low, you can use the Down Slash from the Red Dash to juggle. Be mindful of the move's lack of safety on block, though. Should opponents throw their own projectiles at mid range, you may blow right through them with the enhanced Red Dash which has armor. Use the Up Slash afterwards for a juggle.
Glitches
- Up and Down Slashes after slide (d,f+3,4~f+2 or b+2)
- Back throw damage (17%)
- Inability to dash and perform u+3
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is Skarlet's best wake up move?
A: The Red Dash into the slide (d,f+3,4). You can also use the enhanced Red Dash which has armor.
Q: What can Skarlet do against cross ups?
A: Use the Red Dash (d,f+3) to dash underneath your opponent's cross up. You can also use the enhanced Red Dash which has armor. You can jump back and punch too which gives a free d,f+3,4.
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