Max is the biggest factor on my team easily. He's a monster. GP is too strong. Most trouble I have with him is getting through projectile spam, but knowing when to roll and when to nullify with the GP on normals or Vapor Cannon hit(A vapor cannon nullifies on hit, C version has some other degree of GP before hit) is extremely handy.
Basically, I throw out st. D whenever. It eats up so much shit. Stops supers and projectiles. I use it preemptively. Also st. C to stuff things, if they run in it turns into cl.C and still maintains a degree of GP so it's very likely to eat up attacks while also being easy to hit-confirm into the combo.
Rushdown wise, I just do the above. Try to be a wall. Might do blowback->Vapor cannon to shut down both vertical and horizontal space plus if blowback is CH then I auto into Vapor Cannon. But you kinda dont want this to whiff but just keep in mind that you have a degree of GP on both moves so sometimes it works out quite nicely. While inside you can do cl.C, d/f+C, light Vapor Cannon, since the string is basically safe and takes a nice amount from guard bar. But you don't want to attack wrecklessly and risk getting reversaled or guard-rolled. You should mix in B version Press when you feel you have them shut down. They'll start jumping, d/f+C is so good for stuffing people in the air and you might get some CHs in which you can do into Vapor Cannon or Blitz Cannon. Also Blitz Cannons when you clearly expect a jump-in are deadly. Cl.C works alright for preventing jumps while in close range.
Don't forget about cr. C. It stuffs quite a bit of things. At the right timing, the GP on this move completely eats up lows and you can go into combo.
Under pressure, sometimes it's wise to go ahead and waste that bar on EX Blitz. This is Max's get the fuck off me move. A dragonunch with complete invincibility. Most times, the knockdown from this is all it takes to get back on the pressure game, or return to "wall mode" while you anticipate them either doing something stupid or tightening up.
Jumpins, of course j.CD is good. Hop C-> air Vapor. Cross-up splash into combo or safe string. J.D to get in over zoning.
Um, cant think of much else. That's pretty much it for me. I run Max 2nd and dont even really use supers as I save the meter for EX Blitz moments or NeoMax if the match has been hell and I can get a clean opening. Or combo'ing into EX Press->EX Vapor loop rinse, repeat if I have the meter and drive and just want to style on them.
The preferred playing style would be up to the players discretion and should prob just be switched up according to the situation. Me, I'm pretty brave with him, so I'm confident once I get in. It's just a matter of actually getting in sometimes. And not just being close, you can play a decent midrange game with him for people who like to stick shit out. Those normals hurt alot and once people get tired of eating them, they'll play into your hands. If they try to rush you, great, he has tools for this. But you dont want them going back fullscreen, as your only option is either trying to get back in, or baiting the startup of a projectile or jump and wasting 3 bars to beam them. 2 bars if you HD first, but the fact that you even HD'ed at all may make them be like wtf and you can start to run in. Even if it's people you play regularly or who are familiar with Max, still doesn't change the fact that they cant escape GP or command grabs. Or getting baited multiple ways. In dry matches, they still have to respect shit and blockstrings and contend with GP. So yea lol.
