VF4 Sarah Questions

started picking up on VF4 Sarah, so i'm gonna ask some
questions;

do you need to be standing to do the Dragon Cannon? seems everytime i try a d/b+K whenever i'm ducking i end up doing the low kick.

what are Sarah's best ways of hitting dodgers?(basically i'm asking what circular attacks/tracking attacks can she use to hit a dodging opponent, besides the crescent and sweep)

know any good wall combos w/Sarah?

f,d/b+P+G looks cool eh? niiice looking belly suplex(not really on topic, but hey, it does look cool, doesn't it? or did i accidently do the wrong throw?)

 

1. Yup, you need to be standing.
2. The best way to nail a dodger is with a throw =)
Otherwise I know now that the knee hits dodges in one direction (dodges to the front leg) and beyond that, I only know that some slow executing moves have a better chance of hitting dodges. Try dragon cannon for giggles, or u/f+K, since they lead to free combos.

Wall combos: This really depends on how far you are from the wall. From a good distance you could probably land knee, d/f+P, K (FL), FL. KKK (wall), FL. kickflip.

f, d/b+P+G? I dunno sarah that well, but belly suplex is what we've traditionally called plain old P+G. AFAIK she has P+G, b+P+G knee bash, b,f+P+G leg hold slam... the old f,f+P+G clothesline... u/f+P+G catch throw (also a clothesline)... and that's about it for non-flamingo throws.

 

Hey Charred....:

a) Dragon Cannon can only be executed when standing; her low kicks come out if you are crouching. A tip to do the dragon cannon quickly while crouching, is to buffer a forward dash first before doing it. So just quickly tap f,f(G) then d/b+K.

b) Sarah's best anti-dodging attack is her K+G move, which also has deceptively long range. If they don't TR, you can dash forward a step and pounce afterwards as well.

c) One of her most damaging and cool looking combos is: d/b+K, d/f+P, K, P(G), d/b+K. It takes off almost 40% WITHOUT a pounce, and a pounce is guaranteed if the opponent hits a wall. So it's devastating. Another cool (but harder) combo is: u/f+K, P(G), b+K, u/b+K. Again, pounce if opponent hits the wall for MASSIVE damage. Both of these combos require a MC however.

d) The f, d/b+P+G throw is her new throw, and is Sarah's most damaging non-flamingo throw because the ground kick is guaranteed afterwards. It's also a fantastic throw because it's hard to break; few throws end with d/b+P+G and most people probably won't break that at first unless you get too predictable.

 

Ahem! Sarah players seldom care about damage in a combo /versus/images/icons/smile.gif
We use any flashy combo that offers itself a chance. b+K, d+K+G though has pitiful damage but looks great. Especially in PS2 slo-mo replays. This move hits very well for flopping leg knockdowns. u+K, b/u+K+G. When d+K+G is replaced by u+K, the kickflip hits OTB. f+K, b/d+K MC's offer d/f+P,K, P(G), f+P,K. There's so many things to do during a flamingo. Yum Yum.

 

Just to post a little more variety, and actually a little more basic on the combos...

Honestly, I prefer the knee over the dragon cannon. It tracks somewhat, does the same damage, recovers faster (in case you flub up and whiff, though you usually get thrown anyway) and executes only one frame slower.

One bit of advice...learn what follow-ups are not stance dependent. Honestly, for all practical purposes, the most stable follow up for a float is P(G), f+P,K. It's not stance dependent, doesn't ever need a counter hit, following a knee it nets a decent 65 damage (1/3) total and you recover soon enough to keep the pressure on the tech rollers. If you do get a counter hit on your launcher, you can make it P(G), P(G), f+P, K and the damage rises to 77 or 84 depending on minor or major counter for everyone. (except the heavies again)

The chop-kick, P, DC will not ever work on a heavyweight and honestly you will have difficulty on a middle weight without a counter hit on the launcher (pretty easy on a lightweight though). Damage ranges from 75 without a counter hit to 90 with a major counter. If you're determined to use chop-kick, just using a flipkick afterwards (u+K) only does 3 points less in damage than the P(G), DC.

enough numbers though...to chime with everyone else...

1) Yes, you need to be standing.
2) Sarah's best method of dealing with dodgers is to throw them. /versus/images/icons/smile.gif All of her circular attacks are throw counterable when blocked.
3) Sarah's wall combos are not much more damaging than her regular ones. The real fun with her wall combos is just getting nasty with how much unorthodox crap you can string together. Stuff like launcher(MC), P(G), m-TA kick (d/b,d/b,b+K) (G) (wall hit), d/b+K. I mean hell...how often do you get to combo the mule kick? (btw that's lightweight only)
4) Yes, the f,d/b throw does look nice /versus/images/icons/smile.gif

 

If you need to DC from crouching, there's a simple solution: Rising knee instead. /versus/images/icons/smile.gif Against dodgers, you can df+K+G or (if you're feeling lucky) knee, but K+G or throw is the best option.

Question: Does anybody actually USE the uf+K+G? Too slow to catch people off guard, less powerful than a standard uf+K combo, and high to boot. If I wanted a big flashy move, I'd use d+P+KK instead. /versus/images/icons/wink.gif

 

The Dragon Cannon is far more dynamic than the Knee. Yes it doesn't track but it ducks under high attacks and is far safer than a blocked knee as the actual kick can hit from some distance away from the opponent while the knee puts you belly to belly. Like the Side Hook Kick (db+K+G) The Dragon Cannon is also excellent anti-air.

I recomend the Knee for distance and crouchers and the Dragon Cannon for everything else.

The Round Kick (u+K+G) is good for dodgers but throwing or sweeping are just as good. In fact, depending on your position you may want to Moonsault to give you better footing so Full Spin Dive-Moonsault (u/uk+KP) would be something to consider.

 

Yeah, I know the DC dodges high punches (for lack of a better timeframe for phrasing), but for block situations, it actually worse than the knee. Basically I view the knee as trading off the high punch evasion for moderate tracking. The small extra distance the knee is giving is also trading off the fact that it's in even a worse position than the knee when blocked, as it's elbow conterable, where the knee is not.

 

<blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr>

Question: Does anybody actually USE the uf+K+G?

<hr></blockquote>

I do /versus/images/icons/smile.gif Hits Lei players when they are far away busy showing off their stances. Not much good against machi runaway defenders. Only once in a blue moon(sault).

 

Yeah, I use the uf+K+G when I'm feeling cheeky. Makes Sarah yell!
It's good (but risky) against rising attackers, too.
Don't forget to tack on the d+K+G or df+K+G after you interrupt with a uf+K+G tornado kick or the K+G crescent.

 

Another thing with the Tornado Kick Is that It leaves Sarah in a 50/50 position when blocked. If your opponent is agressive, chances are they'll attempt to throw or punch, a Dragon Cannon under the chin does wonders.

 

cool;no, i guess i didn't do the wrong throw. that's cause i do know the normal P+G throw is the belly suplex; the f,d/b+P+G one looks like a modified one where she first spins around the opponent before doing it(am i right?)

 

thanks for the reply; actually thanks for everyone who helped me; yeah, i asked that wall combo question cause when i was just trying stuff out against the CPU and tried the staple DC, chop-kick, kickflip combo, the opponent hit the wall and screwed up the rest of the combo.

i hear the regualar u/f+P+G catch throw is especially good for dodgers? or am i wrong?

 

Yup, like any other... the u/f+P+G throw eats up dodges. Maybe even a little better than typical throws... more range.

 

oop, I screwed up, yah. I totally forgot about that. It is a nice looking throw. The opponent is kind to sit still while sarah whirls around them, but hey, that's VF.
Looks a bit like a cross between Shun's P+G and lau's b,f+P+G.

 

Just a side note... Raxel had Sarah's F,B/D+P+G throw introduced in FV2. It's an identical motion, and the executed throw looks exactly the same. Again, the result of some of the same developers working on both titles.
In any case, it's a very fun throw. (^^)

 

Re: VF4 Sarah Questions and a bit of trivia.

The "Fallen Angel" Is my second favourite throw, beaten only by the magnificent "Kick Tornado" (FL: 270+P+G)

Against players who have no real knowledge of Sarah's 4th incarnation the throw really baffles them with it's unique execution and escape motion and, it's her best opportunity to tag on a pounce/Soccer Kick due to the "Power bomb" position the opponent is left in.

I'm just surprised it's not her strongest throw. In my opinion Sarah's throw's don't match the real life damage they would cause in comparison to each other. The "Leg Hold Takedown" (b,f+P+G) is her strongest throw from her regular stance at 55pts but all it does is break your neck. On the other hand, the "Lightning Knee Smash" (b+P+G) only does a pitiful 43pts but depicts Sarah busting your rib cage with three sadistic knee's. It's funny that the knee smash becomes 70pts as a wall throw with just one extra hit.

Now the "Fallen Angel", if someone had the strength to heave you in an arch motion and then slam you down with such force on your head, you'd think that would be a seriously damaging move. Technically I guess it is due to the opening it gives Sarah especially near a wall.

Speaking of throws, Does anyone know the exact number of kicks Sarah unleashes in her "Kick Tornado"? I counted six last time I played: High kick, Hook kick, High kick, Low kick, front kick, Side kick. Followed by the much deserved "Go Home!"

 

Re: VF4 Sarah Questions and a bit of trivia.

fallen angel is my fave because of the limited breaking of it. next is the knee smash. i must say the knee smash is also a good way to take time off the clock.........

 

Re: VF4 Sarah Questions and a bit of trivia.

That's not really my style but yes the Lightning Knee Smash eats up seconds. The throws I use strategically are the Leg Hold Takedown and the Neck Breaker Drop (f,f+P+G). When I'm seriously close to the edge and the round looks bleak the LHTD is good for a sly ring out.

One thing that's been overlooked by many Bryant users in my experience is the Neck Breaker Drop (AKA Clothes Line) because of its pathetic 40pts. But, for Sarah, it's a better change over move than the Moonsault in some respects. It's execution may leave both players in a 50/50 state but you've actually changed sides and delivered some damage no matter how weak it is in the process. Now, you could argue that the LHTD is stronger and, of course you're right but, "f,f" is far easier to execute compared to "b,f".

Elbow, whether hit or miss will always be in Sarah's favour, now a simple G cancel and a buffered Neck Breaker Drop works wonders. Even from a dash you can pull it off and, from the edge of the ring you can do the throw and roll forward into the centre of the ring effectively reorienting yourself in a much better position than the opponent who put the pressure on you at the beginning.

 

Re: VF4 Sarah Questions and a bit of trivia.

There's 8 kicks and the ground hit counts as the 9th hit. Registers as a 9 hit combo in training mode.