The King of Fighters '98 UMFE/Terry Bogard

Command List

Introduction

Terry Bogard has great frame traps, some good special moves that can bully opponents, and great blockstrings that can end in frame advantage, or cause lots of guard gauge damage for an eventual guard crush. He is strong at close and medium ranges. His weakness is that he has no overhead (with the notable exception of an instant jumping one against non small crouchers) and no untechable grab. He can frame trap all day, but against someone who just wants to block, he must eventually guard crush, which he is fortunately great at. He has some easy tools that are immediately effective at beginner levels, but to take him to the advanced stages, he needs some execution to unlock his crazy damage, and to secure and use hard knockdowns midscreen that lead to ambiguous left right mixups, which are his only real way to mix up his opponent.
Pros	Cons
Jumps: His jumps travel farther and higher than other characters', without being floaty or slow. His super jump is among the best, if not the best. Guard crushing: His strings do good guard gauge damage, and he can do strings that never risk wasting a guard crush, by ending in power charge. Massive damage: If he does get a clean hit, he can two touch his opponent if he has sufficient resources. Frame advantage: Terry can sneak in frame advantage by pushing himself far enough away to end strings with a max range power wave, or by ending in crackshoot, which lets him do it all over again. Frame traps: Terry has frame traps with good range and great reward on hit. They can even be block confirmed to go for crackshoot instead. Mix up between frame traps, and jumping or running in again behind the threat of the frame trap. Hard knockdowns: Terry can easily secure hard knockdowns in the corner. With good execution, he can also do it midscreen, which allows for strong left right mixups. These mixups can even defeat reversal attempts. His D grab is a hard knockdown as well. Burn knuckle: Burn knuckle is a great noob killer move. Throw it out at its tip range when you're slightly positive, or even neutral, and watch people kill themselves on it. Power charge: One of the main things Terry has over EX Terry. This move may not seem like much, since it loses to pokes, but it's a great move to use when you're frame positive, like after blocking a strong poke that you can't contest head on. You can just keep blocking, and then power charge. While trading like that, you are chipping and building more meter than the opponent. Power charge is also a strong move to frame trap to, since it's safe on block from all distances but point blank range. It's a pretty good whiff punisher as well.	Weak initial mixup: His only overhead is a jump back D, which doesn't work against small crouchers, and he has no untechable grab. If he can get a hit or a grab to start with, then he can do left right mixups afterwards, but he doesn't have any mixups beyond a techable normal grab that can lead to that first hit. Small crouchers: Against medium crouchers, he has good crossups, but small crouchers can crouch under them. This limits him to left right roll mixups, or forces him to perfectly time a meaty crossup, which is very difficult, and even if executed properly, unsafe if the small croucher correctly holds down back despite the crossup. Execution: Requires strong execution to unlock his highest damage, and to mix people up; especially small crouchers. Variable wakeup timing per character further complicates things. The corner: Although having the opponent in the corner is inherently advantageous, Terry loses his mixups if he has the opponent in the corner, since his main mixup is left right, and he doesn't have backturned knockdowns, except for his grab which moves the opponent away from the corner.

Character Comparison

	Terry	EX Terry
Gameplan differences	Terry has more hard knockdowns, and thus better left right mixups.	EX Terry's power wave, round wave, and fire kick, in addition to the same crackshoot as Terry, let him mix up how he sneaks in the frame advantage in a blockstring, making him better at that part of Terry's game.
Combo differences	Terry's combos can lead to hard knockdown.	EX Terry's combos can do more damage than Terry's, against standing opponents. Standconfirming is useful for EX Terry. Even against crouching opponents, the equivalent combo for EX Terry works from farther away.
Neutral	Terry has a motion DP. Power wave isn't much of a projectile; it's more of a long range poke that can only ever be slightly positive. Power charge is a fast forward moving attack that generally loses to pokes, but is a great way to capitalise on frame advantage and a good punishment move.	EX Terry has a flash kick style reversal and anti air. Power wave is almost always significantly positive on block. His slide, fire kick, is a great poke that can go under a lot, but must be cancelled to a special to be safe, which makes it vulnerable to guard cancel rolling if used too often and too predictably. His power geyser DM is faster, making it a better anti air.
Guard crushing	Terry has pretty good guard gauge damage, and has an easy way to avoid ever wasting a guard crush.	EX Terry has even better guard gauge damage, longer strings, and better ways to sneak in frame advantage to do even more, but he doesn't have any easy way to avoid wasting a guard crush.
Preferred System Mechanics	Terry can use either kind of meter. Stocks build quickly because he spams many special moves, but charge gives him better combos, crossup, and crossunder setups. Rolling and running unlock the most left right mixups, and running by itself increases the range at which he can end combos in power dunk for a hard knockdown, while stepping and dodging don't give him anything beyond the universal, although due to power charge, he can always combo from a dodge strike and hitconfirm it, which is more than many characters get with the dodge strike.	EX Terry spams even more special moves than Terry, which could be good for a stock battery, but quickmax also improves his combos, and gives him an infamous combo against standing opponents that does more damage than anything Terry has. Running and rolling let him use the hard knockdown from his D grab for setups, but other than that, he has no hard knockdowns, so his system choices are up to user preference.

Changelist

'98 to Ultimate Match

Normal Moves:

• Nerf - Activation range for cl.D reduced
  

• Nerf - Startup for f.D increased by 1
  

• Nerf - Vertical hitbox for j.D reduced in size (Does not affect the hop version)
  

Special Moves':

• Nerf - Damage for the light version of Power Charge ( + ) reduced from 9 to 4
  

• Buff - Hitbox for Power Dunk ( + / )'s second hit increased in size
  

• Nerf - Damage for the light version of Power Dunk ( + )'s second hit reduced from 14 to 11
  

• Nerf - Damage for the heavy version of Power Dunk ( + )'s second hit reduced from 15 to 13
  

Desperation Moves:

• Buff - Hitbox for the MAX version of Power Geyser ( + )'s third hit increased in size
  

Ultimate Match to Final Edition

Normal Moves:

• Buff - Damage for f.B increased from 5 to 6
  

Special Moves:

• Buff - Recovery for the heavy version of Crack Shoot ( + ) reduced by 3
  

• Buff - Final hitbox for the heavy version of Crack Shoot ( + ) increased in size
  

• Buff - Invulnerability for the heavy version of Rising Tackle ( + ) increased to 1-9f
  

• Buff - Damage for the light version of Power Charge ( + ) increased from 4 to 8
  

• Buff - Damage for the heavy version of Power Charge ( + ) increased from 9 to 12
  

• Buff - Launch for the heavy version of Power Dunk ( + )'s first hit increased in size, juggle property added
  

Desperation Moves:

• Buff - Invulnerability for the MAX version of High Angle Geyser ( + ) added
  

Normal Moves

Close

• cl.A: Same as crouching A except it is better at catching people jumping, whiffs on short crouchers, and is +1 on block.

• cl.B: One frame slower than other lights, and -2 if you let it finish, but has a great hitbox with its hurtbox very far behind. Good to frametrap in to from a different light. Also has more active frames, making it a better and easier meaty. Its hitbox is also high enough to hit people who reversal superjump

• cl.C: Same speed as his crouching A and B. Does two hits to help with hitconfirming. Pushes back less than lights, and therefore allows for the running power dunk after power charge from farther away than them.

• cl.D: Larger activation range than cl.C, but only does 1 hit. Same speed as his crouching A and B. Has a lot of active frames, so good as a meaty. Pushes back less than lights, and therefore allows for the running power dunk after power charge from farther away than them.

Standing

• st.A: Mediocre standing jab. Does its job of stopping hops, but isn't anything special.

• st.B: Fast mid range poke. You can always frametrap to this for a low risk, low reward option.

• st.C: Hits low crouchers. It has the same speed as st.B, but less range, more damage, a higher hitbox, and a hurtbox further back. When in range for this and you want to do a st.B, consider doing this instead as it's a better pre-emptive anti jump.

• st.D: Very slow move that whiffs on most crouchers, but it has an excellent hitbox and hurtbox and massive range.

Crouching

• cr.A: Standard crouching jab. Neutral on block. Chainable and cancellable.

• cr.B: Terry's main low confirm option. Chainable. -1 on block.

• cr.C: Same range and speed as standing far C and standing B, but doesn't catch people jumping since it hits low. It is, however, cancellable on hit and whiff.

• cr.D: Slow startup. Causes soft knockdown. Long range. Pretty good hitbox and hurtbox. Special cancellable on whiff and hit which can save you if the move was rolled past.

Jumping

• j.A: Quite strong hitbox and hurtbox for air to airs and horizontal jump ins, and has enough active frames to be used as a decent air to ground and air to air with the same timing.

• j.B: His fastest air button, which gives it a niche as an air to air move. Its hitbox and hurtbox are also ok for this purpose. Whiffs on most crouchers.

• j.C: Can crossup, except against small crouchers. Has the most active frames of his air normals, but doesn't have the horizontal or vertical range of D. It does however have a slightly superior horizontal hurtbox, and vertical hurtbox if you're hitting at tip range.

• j.D: A multi-purpose tool, as it works as an air-to-air, jumpin, and on medium crouchers, crossup and instant overhead. Good horizontal range, and a decent horizontal hurtbox that is slightly behind its hitbox. Vertically it's nothing special, but still hits lower than A, B, and C.

CD Normals

• st.CD: Slow-to-start-up st.CD that has decent range and a pretty good hurtbox. Moves Terry forward slightly, and can avoid low attacks starting from frame 6. Can be cancelled on whiff, block, and hit. Slightly positive on attack cancel roll.

• j.CD: Slow startup and inferior horizontal hitbox / hurtbox compared to D. It is his lowest hitting air move, and has the best vertical hitbox / hurtbox out of any of Terry's air moves. It has few active frames, but is great if you get your opponent to block it.

Throws

Grasping Upper: b/f+C (close)

• Regular throw, techable. Soft knockdown in front of Terry.

Buster Throw: b/f+D (close)

• Regular throw, techable. Hard knockdown behind Terry with back turned wakeup. Sets up crossups, and against the characters who wake up slowly, left right roll mixups.

Command Moves

Back Knuckle: f+A

• A far reaching command normal that is useful for setting up the distance at which power wave is +1, and for strings ending in crackshoot without putting Terry in normal grab range. Remember that being +1 doesn't matter if the opponent can grab you with a 0F move, but you can't grab him.

• Second hit is special cancellable.

• Combos don't work from very far away if done with this command normal, and some don't work at all, so use the other command normal for most combos. If you have weak execution, you can start with this as it's easier to use.

• Allows for the longest range qcf qcf K or hcf D confirmation if done on its own.

Rising Upper: df+C

• Reliable combo filler after light or heavy starters. Special cancellable.

• Good pre emptive anti jump when close, but vulnerable to rolling.

• Has the same speed as his close heavies and his lights at 3F

Special Moves

Power Wave: qcf+A/C

• The reason Terry is not a shoto: This move is arguably not even a projectile, and it can only be very slightly positive at most unless meaty, but it reaches quite high, especially during its later stages, letting it catch jumpers sometimes. Can cause soft knockdown depending on how it hits.

• Good special move to end a blockstring with if going for guard gauge damage.

• Knocks the opponent down at close range, but doesn't further out.

• Builds good meter, even more so when it doesn't whiff.

Burning Knuckle: qcb+A/C

• Has considerable startup, but when it gets going, Terry travels forward with quite a strong horizontal (but not vertical) hitbox. Hurtbox quite far behind.

• Both versions are safe if they hit late. A version can be -1 at best.

• Vulnerable to attacks from straight above, and low profiling attacks.

• His easier, but inferior, combo ender. Less damage and no hard knockdown.

Crack Shoot: qcb+B/D

• Terry flies forward in an arc with a hitbox that starts behind him, then goes above him, and finally ends in front of him.

• B version whiffs on small crouchers. D version does not, unless done too close.

• Good anti air if you are underneath the opponent when doing it.

• Creates a half-juggle state on hit, meaning that you can juggle them when they're going upwards but not when they've started falling down in the air. Juggle with jumping D or C if close, and jumping B if far.

• D version is +1 on block.

• Causes no guard gauge damage.

Rising Tackle: dp+A/C

• This is a decent DP, but it's not the best, as it is somewhat diagonal and has a blind spot where it doesn't hit, causing it to lose to well positioned jumping attacks.

• It has an unremarkable hurtbox vertically and horizontally, so it loses to quality jump ins unless it's done late enough to use its armour and invulnerability frames. Against moves with superior hitboxes and sufficient active frames, this is not always possible.

• C version is a true reversal due to its invincibility and armour frames.

Power Dunk: dp+B/D

• Terry does a leaping punch that knocks the opponent up into the air, and then another punch that knocks them back down again. Because it moves Terry forward, you can sometimes get away with whiffing this where rising tackle would be punished.

• Full startup invincibility, but none on the active frames, meaning that it can trade if used as a reversal.

• D version can be used as an anti-air, as you get a hard knockdown if it lands, but dp+C is a much safer alternative for a bit less reward.

• In a trade situation, both versions will juggle them upwards, allowing for a followup attack. The D version gives more time to react however.

• Good combo ender after power charge, as it gives a hard knockdown, setting up left right roll mixups if midscreen

• Easy to combo to if you are very close to the opponent, or in the corner, but otherwise difficult, as a short run must be performed after power charge. Even with running, it is impossible if your combo started from too far away or you did too many light hits.

Power Charge: hcf+B/D

• Terry slides forward with a shoulder tackle, knocking the opponent into the air.

• D version is slower but still combos, does more damage, and is unsafe on block.

• B version is faster and safe.

• Bnb combo tool.

• Causes no guard gauge damage, so by ending your strings with it when you think the guard crush is near, you can avoid ever wasting a guard crush.

• Will lose to most pokes, but is none the less a great tool outside of combos. It can whiff punish, and it's a great way to capitalise on frame advantage, as it will hit people out of startup. If you are having trouble with dominant pokes like Yashiro's 5B, then you can block them and immediately do this move. If the opponent does another move or jumps, power charge wins. If not, you can keep blocking and doing power charge, since you're causing chip and building more meter than he is.

Desperation Moves

Power Geyser: down,back,f+A/C

• Creates a huge disjointed hitbox in front of Terry.

• The easier, but less damaging metered combo ender.

• Has some invincibility, but is very slow, letting short jumpers land and block in time if you try to reactively anti air with this. However, against slow moves that rely on superior hitboxes, such as Ralf kick, this is a great solution.

• In the corner, for the MAX versions, this is the DM to combo to, even though it does less damage midscreen.

High Angle Geyser: qcfx2+B/D

• The more difficult, but more damaging metered combo ender.

• qcfx2+D has full startup invincibility, but can trade once the hitbox comes out.

• MAX version does more damage and travels further than the regular version, meaning that you can combo to it from farther away.

• Many of the MAX version's hits whiff in the corner.

Combos

General Notes:

• In any meter-using combo, you can replace 236236B with 236236BD or 246A with 246AC for more damage if you have the resources.

• If starting with a heavy normal, you can omit the 3C for less damage but easier execution.

Meterless

Easy

2B, 2A, 3C, 214A

5C, 3C, 214A

Medium

2B, 2A, 2A, 3C, 41236D, 623C

This combo works anywhere on the stage. Omit one of the crouching lights if far away or after jumping in. 41236D is canceled to 623C

5D, 3C, 41236B, 623B (Let the start of 623B cause a microwalk that gets you closer)

This combo gives a hard knockdown and works midscreen, but only if you are very close to the opponent. If you aren't as close, you can omit the 3C to make it work.

2B, 2A, 2A, 3C, 41236D, 623B

This is a better combo, but only works in the corner. Also works with a light power charge.

Difficult

5D, 3C, 41236B, run, 623B

This combo gives a hard knockdown and works midscreen, and because of the run in the middle of it, works from farther away. It also works if you don't have run, but you can't be as far away when starting the combo. Can also be done from lights, but only 2, and you have to be close. The fewer moves in the combo, and the closer you start, the easier the combo is. Heavies allow for this combo from farther away than lights.

Meterful advanced mode

Easy

2B, 2A, 2A, 236236B

An even easier variant is 2B, 5B, 236236B because you can buffer the DM motion while doing the normals: 2B, 36B, 236B

5C, 236236K

Medium

2B, 2A, 3C, 246P

You can hold down forward for the whole combo until it's time to do the power geyser. Then, do a quarter circle back, and then press forward.

5C, 3C, 246P

While already in max mode: 2B, 2A, 3C, 41236D, superjump D

In max mode, this does more damage than the rising tackle variant.

Difficult

2B, 2A, 3C, 236236K

5C, 3C, 236236K

Even with clever buffering, these combos are difficult to learn. Many say that Terry's optimal combos are impractical, but this is false. They just take lots of practice and puzzle solving.

While already in max mode: 5D, 3C, 41236B, run, 623B

Skipping the 3C in the middle makes it easier and gives it more range.

Quickmax, staying in max mode

Medium

2B, 2A, QM, 5D, 3C, 41236D, super jump D

Can add a third light, but then it fails from a jumpin. May have to do only one light if you jump in from afar. 5D can be replaced by 5C, but then the combo has less range. This combo does the most possible damage midscreen while still staying in maxmode afterwards. Finishing with a DM only does slightly more damage, unless your health is red.

2B, 2A, QM, 5D, 3C, 41236B, super jump CD

Less damage but gives a soft floor and carries farther towards the corner if he recovery rolls. You may prefer this

Difficult

2B, 2A, QM, 5D, 3C, 41236D, 623B

Only works in the corner. If not quite in the corner, but close enough to it, you can do a B power charge, and end with a running power dunk.

Quickmax, leaving max mode

Difficult

2B, 2A, QM, 5D, 3C, 246P

Optimal damage in the corner if your health is red. May have to do one light only after a jumpin depending on how close you are to the opponent.

Very difficult

2B, 2A, QM, 5D, 3C, 236236K

Optimal damage midscreen if your health is red. The MAX version of this DM gets more range, so you can do three lights on the ground, and usually two after a jumpin, if red healthed.

Strategy & Tips

Preferred system mechanics

For dodging versus rolling, rolling is recommended, as it unlocks left right roll mixups. Dodging doesn't give anything beyond the universal, although he can always get a combo after his dodge strike (because of power charge), which is not true for every character.

For running versus dashing and faster walk speed, running is strong because it improves his ability to combo to power dunk midscreen. It's also strong because if you quickmax an air to air (such as after power charge), then you can cross under by running. The step can do this in some cases, but not in as many. However, if you're really good at dashing up to grab, then dashing can help you land the D grab, which also gives a hard knockdown.

For meter, Terry benefits from both stock and charge. He spams special moves and does long blockstrings, quickly maxing out his stocks, but his combos improve with quickmax, and quickmax even unlocks crossup and crossunder setups.

Instant overhead jump state jank

You may have noticed that when trying to do a jumping D for an instant overhead, it sometimes just doesn't work. This is because, if your last jump was a full jump, or, you just started a round and haven't jumped yet, then the timing to get it to hit is much stricter, although still possible to get if you short jump rather than full jump.

However, if your last jump was a short jump, then the timing is lenient and you can just go for it.

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King of Fighters 98 UM FE: Terry Guide by Mash It Out