The Last Blade 2/Kouryu

Overview

Combos

Strategy

Matchups

Resources

Unlocking

You can access Kouryu by highlighting Kaede at the character select screen, and pressing C 10 times, B 5 times, and C 4 more times. If you perform this correctly, you'll hear his voice, then you can select him with A or D.

N.B. Kouryu is not playable on the MVS arcade versions of The Last Blade 2

Overview

The resident boss character of LB2, Kouryu is designed to extremely challenging to fight. Armed with a phenomenal set of fullscreen zoning tools, incredibly high damage output, the fastest dashes in the game, and ludicrous pressure extensions, Kouryu dominates virtually all aspects of the game with ease.

Kouryu is ideally played as a projectile zoner, abusing his 236A and large disjoints to keep the opponent at bay while racking up chip. This gameplan is incredibly effective despite being simple, and Kouryu is still able to go on the offensive when called for. His incredible run and backdash synergize well with his advancing 4A to force the opponent into blocking many safe, high damage mixups. In speed/EX mode he is also capable of starting his offense from mid range by utilizing chains from 5A to repeatedly frame trap the opponent, likely from outside their ideal range. Kouryu's very free-form playstyle makes him very difficult to pin down initially, though his disadvantage state cannot be ignored as he is effectively unable to crouch, making it essential that you have a contingency plan in mind if the opponent successfully defends against you. Despite this, many of Kouryu's moves have massively skewed risk/reward in his favor, so as long as you avoid overextending very few characters can legitimately start their offense in practice.

Strengths	Weaknesses
Virtually unbeatable fireball (best zoning tools of any mode) Gigantic, damaging disjoints High mobility Easy damage cap combos off hitconfirms Safe, multi-layered oki Racks up chip safely from anywhere on the screen Capable of switching to speed mode at will	Large hurtbox and weak recovery rolls leave him susceptable to many character specific forms of pressure Maintaining an advantage state is somewhat meter reliant

Strengths	Weaknesses
Virtually unbeatable fireball Gigantic, damaging disjoints High mobility High damage hitconfirms Multi-layered oki that allows further pressure even if blocked Pseudo block infinite allows for easy pressure resets Capable of switching to power mode at will	Large hurtbox and weak recovery rolls leave him susceptable to many character specific forms of pressure

Strengths	Weaknesses
Same strengths as speed, though with much higher damage and being unable to switch modes High guaranteed chip from stray blocked normals/fireballs	Large hurtbox and weak recovery rolls leave him susceptable to many character specific forms of pressure Notable defense penalty

Kouryu

Normals

Standing

5A Breaks the trend by being not as good as it looks

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 6 2 - - - - - - - Fairly slow but massive jab that can confirm for an absurd amount of damage in any mode. Primarily used as either a fast poke or to check the opponent after a dash. Links to itself and 4A

4A Sets the trend by being better than it looks

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 5 2 - - - - M - - Your fastest button, and also your optimal grounded combo starter (when you're not already in a situation to get damage cap off everything else). Best button to mash out of pressure, and makes up the majority of your own stagger pressure. Has solid range so it very consistently links into itself or 5A. In speed/ex when used in chains it move Kouryu forward slightly allowing for some really silly jab chain loops.

5B 1st hit

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 11 - - - - - - - - High damage 2-hit normal. Pretty slow and has a mediocre hitbox compared to Kouryu's other normals, so it's mostly just combo filler. 2nd hit

6B Relatively low damage starter

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 16 2 - - - - - - - Big damage counterpoke. Although rekka covers a similar space and overall does more damage, 6B seems to trade better with most things in power so it can be used to close out rounds from range.

5C Outclassed

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 10 4 - - - - - - - Hits OTG. Kind of the awkward middle ground between 3c and 2c, while having a worse hitbox than both. Literally no reason to use over the other two stomps in practice.

6C The loops look cool at least

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 11 3 - - - - - - - Wallbounces on hit. Has incredibly short range compared to the rest of your kit, and it's not like Kouryu is starving for damage. Not great by it self but 214A rekkas will link to it at most ranges for a big juggle

BC(Power) Unfortunately the hitbox is "only" on the sword

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 48-68 2 - - KD - - - - An unblockable with pretty mediocre range and slow startup. Can be delayed by holding the button. Kouryu stands in place during the startup, so there's pretty much no reason to use this.

BC(Speed/EX) Reset time

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 25 3 - - - - - - - A universal overhead that will stagger a crouching opponent blocking or otherwise launch them. Has some useful juggle potential anywhere thanks to 214A rekkas being able to juggle, giving speed mode strong meterless damage outside a corner. Can also find sparing use as a mixup.

3B Stabby

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - - - - Ground N/A - - - - Hits OTG. Very long range for an OTG and has decent frame advantage, letting you set up a fireball while still covering most character's forward rolls.

• A, B, and C can cancel in both Power Mode and Speed Mode
• forward + B (Power and Speed) is not cancellable
• forward + C in Speed Mode is not cancellable

Crouching

2A THE knowledge check

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 10 2 - - - - - - - Long range low that leads to high damage. Can be hitconfirmed with 5b in speed. Incredibly plus on block, seemingly on switch guard as well(?). Creates a pseudo-block infinite on some characters in speed/EX with (4a>a>2a)*n, though this can be beaten by switch guarding the 2a and deflecting. Go-to low for mixups in speed/EX due to its safety and aforementioned pressure extension.

2B Half screen disjointed high/low anyone?

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 16 3 - - - - M o/o Air An unreactable low with unbelievably long range. Empty cancels into rekka for insane damage in any mode at any range. In the case you lose lifelead, combining this and 214C at range is a godsend against the few characters able to stuff your dash/hop attempts, as both will safely grant you a knockdown with which you can get your real pressure rolling.

2C Got that 0 damage optimization down!

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 7 2 - - - - - - - Can be linked into and combos into rekka, making it pretty good combo filler at closer ranges.

3C May the earth quake before you

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 13 2 - - - - - - - Hits OTG. Serves as your most damaging OTG and still enables a high/low/throw.

Air

j.A Suzaku?

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 10 2 - - - - - - - Massive hitbox with some solid cross up potential. Hits as an IOH. The long startup actually plays to its favor, as it gives you time to cancel into super when used as an IOH. Canceling into super off specific ranges can lead to a real crossup into either fake or real crossup with the super, giving Kouryu insane oki during desperation.

j.B "My oki's lookin' clean!"

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 13 2 N/A - N/A - - - - Gigantic, high damage normal. Is much easier to cross up with than j.a, often unintentionally catching some tech roles when aiming for same-side hits. Optimal combo starter, potentially enabling meterless damage cap combos.

j.C May the heavens kneel in your wake

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 5 4 N/A - N/A - - - - Kouryu's fastest air normal. Although it doesn't have many active frames, Kouryu's jump arc is angled in such a way that this is still basically a body splash. Very common move to jump in with or meet opponents in the air.

Special Moves

Arrow Show 236A/B The good fireball in LB2

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - - - - - - - - - - Kouryu launches an incredibly large fireball. The A fireball has incredibly fast startup, making it a very low commitment tool for zoning. The B fireball is very slow to start up but has unique properties that essentially allow it to eat other projectiles early on and still hit the opponent. Both versions can be delayed by holding the respective button, but its properties will not change upon doing so. Unlike most other fireballs in the game, Kouryu recovers before it leaves the screen. On hit, the opponent will be knocked down and pushed back an entire screen length; but despite this Kouryu can still get an OTG 3C by running behind it. The projectiles have an incredibly tall hitbox, completely stuffing hops and often anti-airing the opponent inadvertently. However, be warned that the projectiles actually can be low statured by select moves (most notably by Mukuro's crawl). Often considered the strongest move in Kouryu's kit short of BCD abuse, this can be thrown out literally for free at half screen in many matchups. The input 236[A]]A[ is ideal, as it can allow you to completely wall characters without special movement options that interact favorably with the projectile by continuing to hold the button slightly if you see the opponent jump (the window to jump over arrows is very strict for most characters, meaning even a slight delay will make the fireball an anti-air). If the opponent refuses to contest the arrows, you can very quickly and safely rack up chip to start running the clock even without lifelead. Even against the characters that have consistent punishes, the amount of space this denies forces the opponent into the range where your incredible normals can help carry the rest of your game plan. This move also has oki applications when you possess lifelead, as going into the B fireball stance at half-3 quarters screen creates one of the strongest defensive positions in the game, while releasing the arrow meaty against forward rolls will still leave you in a great position to start pressure and beat wakeup deflect easily.

Big Slash 214C BONK

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 23 - - - - - - - - Massive, disjointed overhead slash. Can function as an anti-air as well, though be wary of reactionary deflects. High damage off a single hit, making it almost impossible to trade well with. Causes a hard knockdown on hit, letting you run some oki even at max range. Mostly either used as a power mode mixup or to pester opponents in 2b range. 2nd hit

Quad Rusher 214A/B(x4) Damage

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - - - - - - - - - - Kouryu dashes forwards and performs an incredibly large but fast rekka with up to 4 hits. A version is much faster but "only" goes half screen. B version is much slower but goes full screen, making it a decent way to read distant fireballs. First hit of 214A is safe on block, however the consecutive hits are not. All but the last hit are super cancelable in power/EX mode. All hits can juggle if timed correctly, and the second hit will even combo into another rekka at the right height. By far Kouryu's best meterless ender, as it deals massive damage very consistently from any normal and knocks the opponent down directly in front of Kouryu for a 3c OTG or your best oki. Empty canceling 214a off low pokes in neutral makes contesting Kouryu incredibly scary, making this a key part of his kit. 2nd and 3rd hit 4th hit

Mode Swap BCD Cool gimmick. The immortality I mean.

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 1 37 - - - - - - - As the name implies, when playing either power or speed mode this move will cause you to instantly switch to the opposite mode. In EX mode the animation will play out without actually changing modes. The really strong part of this move, however, is its full invincibility starting from frame 1. This makes it an insanely strong tool to escape pressure or generate free whiff punishes, not even touching on the fact that in theory you could ghost for the entire round with frame perfect mashing. Even in the rare case that an event allows Kouryu to be played, some sort of limit will be put on this move to prevent abuse of its I-frames.

Desperation Moves

Fire Phoenix Super 641236A (in air) Suzaku

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 15 5 - - - - - - - Kouryu reaches with an outstretched hand to injure opponent. If it connects, the opponent explodes. Hits overhead and has cross up potential. Since Kouryu moves backwards slightly during the startup, this can cause real cross ups to be canceled into fake cross ups or another real cross up, making Kouryu's setplay absolutely absurd if left in desperation. Serves as Kouryu's primary combo ender with meter as it does massive damage and combos off rekka in power/EX mode. Has a few applications as a poke or anti-anti-air thanks to its generous hitbox and high damage + knockdown. Although tight, this can be tiger knee'd. Very safe to throw out with no cost at below 25% health, forcing trades to get into desperation is a pretty viable strategy thanks to this move's existence.

Earth Slasher Super 641236B Byakko

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 21 1 - - - - - - - Kouryu reaches to grab. If grab is successful, tosses opponent across the screen, then damages with sword. Fully armored, even during the recovery. Great to throw into your pressure periodically as a damaging yet low commitment mixup. Additionally can be used as a reversal of sorts, trading the high recovery of a deflect for an unwieldy motion and spending a bar up front. Be warned that some characters can confirm massive damage by abusing the armored recovery to land a ton of unscaled hits before confirming a command grab, leading to effective TODs if the opponent knows the matchup.

Water Tornado Super 641236C Genbu

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 30 8 - - - - - - - Kouryu uses a deep slash to create a tornado effect if hit connects. Long range, but has hurtbox extension and mediocre damage. Easily the worst of your supers as its range is better contested with other options, and its startup is too slow to be a reliable whiff punish. Can still find use to read select fireballs.

Lightning Dragon Super 641236D Seiryu

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. - 20 1 - - - - - - - An upward slash brings down lightning strikes. Phenominal anti-air due to the strong hitbox and high damage. Also fairly safe on air block. Just the existence of this move can force the opponent to play significantly more grounded when Kouryu has meter, especially if he's below 25% health.

Super Desperation Moves

Ultimate End 463214B 1000 deaths in a single strike

DamageHow much damage the move does on hit/block. Characters in TLB2 have 256 health, but different defense modifiers. StartupNumber of frames for the move to become active, first active frame included. ActiveNumber of frames the move remains active for, and can hit the opponent on. RecoveryNumber of frames after the active frames for the move to end and the character to become actionable, unless canceled from. StateState your opponent must be in for the move to come out. Some moves can only be done when the opponent is on the ground, for example. Most moves can be done in any state. Frame AdvHow much sooner or later you can act on hit/block when compared to your opponent, assuming the move is not canceled. +2 means you can act 2 frames before your opponent, -2 means your opponent can act 2 frames before you MeterHow much meter the move builds on hit/block. A full bar of meter is 64 points. GuardWhether the move can be blocked standing, crouching, or both. L means it has to be blocked crouching, H means standing, M means it can be blocked either way. Some moves cannot be blocked. CancelWhether the move can be canceled on hit/block. ○ means it can be canceled and × means it cannot. △ means it has a special type of cancel, usually Desperation Move. TechWhether you can tech the move. Air techs are performed by pressing D in the air, ground techs are rolls performed during otg recovery. 180 23 21 - Any KD/- - M x/x None Kouryu charges forwards, on hit slashing the opponent into the air followed by a dramatic scene of a gigantic spear falling onto the opponent. Large range and will always do enough damage to hit damage cap, even if scaled by jabs. Note that Kouryu continues charging during the recovery, meaning it won't hit full screen despite the animation. Kouryu's damage is already so high this move is pretty much exclusively for style points, however it can be a decent way to close the final round off unchained 2a's.