Wolf Advice - Combo More?

Hey everyone.

I've been debating this for a while. My Wolf has been feeling more defensive lately than I think it should. In attempting to go offensive, I'm finding it hard to figure out moves that will give me an advantage in breaking out of a steady offense (Lau, Lion, Sarah, Jacky, etc.)

Should I be attempting combos more? The combos I've been doing lately involve things like + Shoulder to , +, or simply doing two shoulders followed by a ground throw or +, both of which I feel leave me a little open should the opponent tech roll.

If the opponent floats light, I can usually get three shoulders in there plus the ground throw/+

I suppose Wolf isn't a very combo-centric character, but if I'm to go more offensive, isn't that what I should go for?

 

wolf is semi-decent at defense if you know how to use it right. if not, then so help you. /versus/images/graemlins/laugh.gif as for effective offense, it is much more about "good guessing" with wolf..so there is limited strats to use i will try to help as much as i can, bare with me if i am going to fast^^

=regarding breaking out of series =

his best option(s) in most cases is to go for a low P -- HCB+P when you spot your opponent's opening. low P is the second fastest attack range in the game, so it should beat any attack the opponent does at neutral postion, and most of their slow attacks if they are at slight advantage. however you should most likely go for it after you have blocked a safe attack or have your safe attack guarded (i.e moves which put you at disadatvantge, but not throwable).

mainly the idea is to interupt the opponent to give you good advantage, then your HCB+P will then beat any attack the opponent tries as a defensive counter ---- giving you a good launch for a nice reverse hammer follow up (FC d,f+p). It's nice to use this flow chart often because it will pressure you opponent to slow down and start guarding where you can then switch to dealing powerful throws instead ^^. -------note>> if you get your HCB+P guarded, start inputting throw escapes as you are throwable. it's not always a good option to go for the second P as it's punishable ducked - although delaying it can sometimes work nicely.

Low P / high P -- HCB+P (P) can be used for both offense and defense. Once you have block an opponent's safe attack, HCB+P(P) is advisable on it's own as you are already at enough advantage to beat any of the opponent's attacks. you then mix this up with a throw for a 50/50 chance guessing game.

The next best defense technique is after an interrupted DB+K (MC) -------- go for a HCB+P (P) or low P cut reversal (d+p+K). the reasons why is basically you are at enough advantage to beat any elbow or fast mid from the opponent as you recover low. however a low P from the opponent will beat you. mix it up with a low P cut reversal --- you will also duck a fast high with it's whiff animation so you are still fairly safe.

As for combos....

The best option in most cases is:
shoulder --- P ---- HCB+PP

mainly because if the opponent does not TR (and their land is a little more arquard than usual) you get a free chance to ground throw them or b,f+k+g this will ultimatley deal more than enough damage. even without the non-TR bonus. the combo works on all weights MC, on mids like akira, and all heavies, switch to Low P --- reverse hammer to be safe.

the original combo i mentioned will only work with a specific foot forward on heavies and heavier mids, so the variation will save you guessing all the time..

Offense:
i cant think of much other than the basic flow charts:

high P ---- HCB+P (p)
DB+p ----- HCB+P (P)
high P ---- F+K
high P(MC) ---- short shoulder

a nice TR follow up however is abusing wolf's staggeing upper elbow (FC d,df+P).. it's safe, and gives you good options if the opponent tries a get up attack.

i hope that has helped anywayz.

 

Just a general response while cooking dinner -

The main weakness I've seen in Wolf is that he is kind of lacking in the rush department. It's hard to keep a sustained offense up against someone - either you knock them down and it's okizeme time, or you're back on the defensive very fast. So it's kind of natural to find yourself playing a more defensive game with him.

Combos aren't really the key to breaking a rush. The key to breaking a rush is stopping your opponent from continuing the attack, which may lead to a combo, but not necessarily. If you can put your opponent at a disadvantage, you can start your own rush. While whiffing a combo starter could leave you open or get you countered, something as simple as or + could break a rush and put you back at an advantage. When you're on the defensive, you need to work from the options available to you, instead of forcing options. Trying to force a break in a well orchestrated rush can lead to excellents - the wrong kind. Combos are the key to dealing damage, not to breaking out of rushes.

When someone is rushing you, you have to wait for an opportunity to break out, and then do your own rush. The characters you listed are great at rushing and keeping the pressure on - that's part of the reason why they're 'ranked' fairly high. Breaking out of their rushes is going to be hard.

In all honesty, your very best bet is to start to play those characters a little bit. You'll learn which moves string them out, where weak/break points in some rushes are, and which points are where you may as well just flip a coin. 'Know thy enemy' and all that.

 

Wolf can keep a pretty good offense, just keep with the quicker mids until they are stuck into blocking, then its GS time!

 

I tend to feel that hcb+p is just too risky to abuse, it's -10 on block. df+P is only one frame slower, so you might want to give that a try, although the force crouch thing does kinda suck...

And, to reiterate what everyone else said -- Wolf can't maintain an offense for very long, if at all. Guess right, punish correctly, and turtle like hell!

And yes, I'm back...in a way.

 

I played against my Lion/Lau playing friend tonight and I decided to dedicate myself to the "defend and punish" strategy, and I found it worked quite well. I won nearly every match over the course of three hours, much to his chagrin.

I guess I was just wondering if I should be more aggressive or not, but I guess that's wasn't the answer.

I found that I couldn't abuse the HCB+ either. Although I could occasionally break out with it after a low , most of the time the opportunity to counter with a + crumple came up first, and I get a guaranteed combo or down throw with that one, so I went with it whenever possible. ^_^

I've heard that the evade/throw combination isn't too effective, but after an evade where they lunged out, it seemed pretty safe to go for. Any thoughts on that?

 

The problem with evade+throw is that if you evade at the start of a chain and the person keeps the chain going (for example, a Lau PPPK string), you can evade a hit, and then reach out to grab, and be hit by another part of the string. Also, if your opponent is doing striking attacks, normal throws don't land, so you can evade, and execute a throw, and watch as your opponent chains off into the distance right through your throw. Evade + throw is an ok strategy in Tekken, but throws have a much lower priority here, and I've been bitten by this Tekken reflex several times. It's nowhere near as guaranteed.

 

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I tend to feel that hcb+p is just too risky to abuse, it's -10 on block. df+P is only one frame slower, so you might want to give that a try, although the force crouch thing does kinda suck...


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ok, there are several reasons why screw hook is one of wolf's best tools.

you use HCB+P when you have good advantage prefferably after a low P, it will beat the opponent's reaction attacks and has much more reward than the arrow knuckle which ironically puts you back in advantage with the same choice to make ----- attack or throw. Unlike the screw hook, the arrow knuckle cannot be exicuted from fully crouch position. meaning you would have to unput a forward or backdash and risk losing frames with sucky timing. on non MC, you get a +3 with a low P, so that one frame from arrow knuckle means you cant interrupt an 11 frame punch from the females.

on top of that, screw hook is half circular, so if you manage to catch someone on evade, you are at -3 atleast rather than being more punishable if they evade a linear arrow knuckle i'm guessing. whilst rushing in to your opponent, arrow knuckle is nice, i use db+p normally for a mid poke as it gets insane advantage MC..

there are just different uses for arrow knuckle and screw hook, that's really the point i am making.

 

Maybe it's an input issue.

After playing till very very late last night, I discovered that when I had the advantage after a low punch, that screw hook did indeed come in handy. However, I simply need to practice getting that screw hook IN there. Coming from a full crouch into the HCB motion quickly is something I'm just going to have to repeat over and over to get accustomed to.

 

i generally do the reverse sledgehammer in that situation... it's just as fast, but more scrub friendly /versus/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

I do that occasionally, too, especially if they guard in the wrong position. =D

 

reverse hammer's same speed and gets knockdown regardless, i'd be abit more cautious however, if the opponent blocks it you get alot guaranteed on you despite not being throwable.

jacky - df+ppp (yeah!!!!)
akira - b,f+p
goh - b,f+p
lau - b,f+p
wolf - b+p
brad - f+p+k
pai - K or uf+kk
shun - KKP

etc etc etc - basically alot of damage and combo starters /versus/images/graemlins/laugh.gif - just a though to be aware of. it's really at it's best during combos.

 

I primarily use it as a finisher on juggle combos. Still, I'm a big fan of using random attacks that I haven't seen a lot of people use in certain situations (frankensteiner, dropkick, low dropkick, etc), and sometimes when they are expecting my usual follow-up. That reverse sledgehammer has come in pretty handy.

 

yeah, it's definitely riskier. i just do it, because i'm a scrub. /versus/images/graemlins/smile.gif

oh, i use the low drop kick a lot too- even riskier!!!

 

nah, low drop kick is good, you just need to have the distance to see what they are doing.

 

I've found it useful if they start a combo string a slight distance from you, and with the joystick I can pull out the Low Dropkick instantly, and it sets up a ground throw 9 times out of 10.

On that note, how does doing some out-of-the-ordinary moves make one a scrub? /versus/images/graemlins/confused.gif

On a side note, I've recently found the 'Smackdown Bottom' (aka the 'Rock Bottom') to be a very useful throw. I seem to stand up much faster after doing it VS other throws.

 

It should set up a ground throw every time unless they escape.

 

That's what I mean. "It sets up a ground throw 9 times out of 10"... Basically that 1 time out of 10 they escape somehow. I've found that Low Dropkick VERY useful, as long as it's not abused.

 

by, scrubby, I meant that I do the reverse sledgehammer from crouch rather than the hcb elbow, simpley because it's easier to do, not necessarily because it's better. i think we've all done the sf2 fireball combos enough times to know that motion in our sleep.

oh yeah, low drop kick rocks... but it's a special low, i.e., like a lp. /versus/images/graemlins/frown.gif

the db throw, I find really useful for ringouts. it covers quite a distance. jeff & vanessa have the same throw, btw.

 

I've found it more useful for Jeff than for Wolf, for some reason. But yes, it's very useful for ringouts.