Samurai Shodown VI/Enja

Introduction

Mash jC all game then claim you're good because you can do the rekka sometimes.

The apex gorilla of Samurai Shodown, Enja has received important buffs to his mobility and speed with a faster run, an overhead which leaps forward and faster medium slashes. Your WFT is also much better, with its faster startup making it more effective as an anti-air and as a combo tool. Furthermore Enja has new tools which further boost his damage output, with a delayed heavy slash similar to Haohmaru's 632146AB and a more damaging rekka ender which you can only perform during Rage. Overall Enja is a much better spot than he was in the last game, which means you can't brag about how weak your gorilla mash character is.

Data

• Dash type: Run
• Damage taken: 97%
• Rage duration: 8 seconds
• Amount to Rage: 38

Gameplan

Enja needs to get in. The character works best at close range where he has access to hard-hitting strikes, pressure and mixups, but any further out than that and he has nothing to threaten the opponent with. Your run is faster than before which helps with this, while you still have access to rolls if you pick the right Spirit. Your low jump is still more suited for rushdown than it is for jumping over fireballs, which means you still have trouble against tall fireballs such as Charlotte's Tri-Slash. Though you don't have any fast, long-ranged pokes to harass with from a distance, you have fast whiff punishes with 5B and 2B which combo into your rekka sequence (236A~236B~236C) at max range, 66D for a guaranteed knockdown and a slower punish in the form of 5C. Most characters have a button they can use to poke you out of your jumps, but it is at 5B range where you can start applying pressure with your jC, a strong jump-in which also has high vertical reach. A new tool Enja has at this range is 6B, his overhead from V Special which now leaps forward a bit, not only giving you an answer against low pokes but also some mixup opportunity even from a distance. If your opponent isn't trying to zone you out then simply jumping forward and occupying space with jC can be hard for the opponent to stop. As far as anti-airs go, your Feet of Flames (623D) is unreliable and requires you to mash 4D and 6D to maximise its damage, while your WFT is much more reliable for its fast startup and tall hitbox if you have access to it. Your Annihilating Flames (421D) is a strike-invincible reversal which may also be used as a dependable anti-air, particularly against slower jumps. For air-to-airs your best options are njA, jC and jD.

When he's close Enja has strong mixup opportunity with his jC and 6B for overheads (the latter is notable as you can link from it into something damaging if it hits either crouching or as a counter hit), and his 3B, 66B and Hades' Flames (236A) rekka starter for lows. A key aspect of the rekka is that it does pitiful damage except for the final hit, which deals a massive amount of damage (usually about 40%) but requires you to hit the exact middle of the opponent. Not only is this a one-frame window but it changes depending on the position of where you hit it, so there is no rigid timing and you have to eyeball it. If you are in Rage you gain access to an alternative ender in the form of 236987412AB, which doesn't drain your meter upon completion or activation (i.e. it is not a true super) but will bump up the damage to around 60%. You still have to time it just the same though, and upon failing either version Enja will be vulnerable on the ground for a lengthy amount of time. But gambling for big damage is not the only use for 236A - upon hit it bounces the opponent, and if you don't cancel into 236B you recover well before they do in time for a high/low/throw mixup. So the choice is yours: do you take a chance on the potential damage, or do you use your frame advantage for a safe mixup?

Regarding Spirit selection, II is a suitable choice for Enja, as constant Rage means constant access to invincible poses. Access to rolls grants Enja a solid means around zoning, while his strong WFT is buffed further by its ability to break weapons. Access to 623623BC once per round also gives Enja an enhanced version of 623D which has more of a use as an anti-air. For even more frequent access to WFT Enja can pick III to manually charge his Rage, which certainly doesn't take long. Additionally he gains access to an air parry, which can add further layers to his jump offense, and a dodge he may use instead of 421D when needs be. IV not only retains this grounded dodge but also grants him the ability to confirm into 623D and another route into WFT in the form of Continuous Slash II. A quirk with this Spirit choice is that completing Continuous Slash IV will immediately max out Enja's Rage even if he had none to start with.

Enja can also pull off a few gimmicky Spirits with some success, mainly those which play with his extremely short Rage retention. I is an immediately appealing choice - not only does it make his retention even shorter but when in Rage his Weapon Gauge shoots up to a monstrous 180% - in this state Enja can one-shot Ukyo and other low-defense characters with just 2C 236A~236B~236987412AB. However, Enja is restricted from his WFT in this Spirit, which is perhaps a dealbreaker. Furthermore VI may be considered not just for constant access to WFT but for the ability to attempt landing 236987412AB as much as possible. V Spirit is probably the least useful for Enja as it cuts his Rage time considerably and is geared more towards meditation which is best performed at a range Enja is not suited to fighting in, however Enja could possibly take advantage of State of Nothingness as a comeback mechanic even without much meditation as he has rewarding mixup options such as his overhead during slowed time.

Normal Moves

Far Slashes

• 5A - Short elbow. Worse priority than 2A but it's a frame faster.
• 5B - A forward-reaching poke with your cuff. Special cancellable and will combo into 236A even at max range. Recoils on block.
• 5C - Still doesn't recoil so you're screwed if they block this.
• 2A - Kazama jab. Useful for its short startup, great priority and quick recovery.
• 2B - A crouching version of 5B with slower startup, so not much reason to use this version. Special cancellable but will push back too far for you to land 623D. Recoils on block.
• 2C - Crouching anti-air with bad horizontal reach and sub-par priority, but otherwise a strong punish tool and a fine choice for a meaty. Special cancellable but the window is late.

Near Slashes

• n5A - Same as far version.
• n5B - Special cancellable but will push back too far for you to land 623D.
• n5C - Recoils unlike the heavy version.
• n2A - Same as far version.
• n2B - Same as far version.
• n2C - Same as far version.

Kicks

• 5D - A hopping knee attack. Immediately immune to throws on its startup though it cancels and combos into your ground specials.
• 6D - Standing low of great frame advantage. Slow startup but quick recovery and medium strength allows you to combo into n5C, 623D and 236AB even without a counter hit. With a counter hit you get even more possibilities.
• 2D - Your fastest low and an option for tick throws. Something you can mix into your jump pressure.
• 3D - A low-hitting sweep.

Dash Normals

• 66A - Running 5A.
• 66B - Running n5B. Doesn't recoil cancel.
• 66C - Running n5C which most certainly does not recoil cancel, but at least it knocks down. The range on this is short so you better make sure you can land this.
• 66D - Running 3D.

Air Normals

• njA - Enja puts his fists down, occupying the area in front of him for a long amount of time. Fast startup as well means this is a reliable defensive tool if you need one.
• jA - Jumping Kazama jab and a solid air-to-air.
• njB - Has less active frames than jA but does a bit more damage. The best part about jA is precisely its active frames, however. Ignore this move.
• jB - Another air-to-air but with worse priority than jA. Use if you aren't close enough for jC.
• jC - Vertical attack which covers a fat area in front of you and above you. Swats opponents out of the air while you unga your way in. Can be combo'd from easily if it hits low enough. Overall a very useful move and one Enja players love to spam.
• jD - Weak air-to-air. May be used as a tick throw or lead into some other mixup due to its low hitstop and good priority.

Unarmed Normals

• u5S - Same as 5A.
• u2S - Same as 2A.
• u66S - Same as 66A but it knocks down and pushes back a far distance.
• juS - Same as jA.

Command Moves

Triangle Get Off - j3 near wall

• All the other Kazama headswaps got this so Enja has this too. Enja can not triangle jump, however. This could possibly see use if you're trying to apply some type of jump pressure in the corner, but usually jC won't come out in time and it will not cross up.

6B, can be done unarmed

• Enja's old overhead from V Special, but it now moves forward a little. This makes it a good option in neutral as it can hop over low pokes, and given how deephits work in VI you can combo from this either by hitting a crouching opponent as usual or by scoring a counter hit. However, there is noticeably more recovery on this move, which means you can only link 5C afterwards if you score a counter hit (which gives you a bit more frame advantage to work with than a standard deephit). On a regular crouching hit, then, your best option is to just go for the rekka.

Special Moves

Hades' Flames - 236A

• A low-hitting slide which does pitiful damage on its own. On hit it causes a reset which leaves you advantageous enough to go for a 6B, a sweep, a throw or some other mixup option. Or you could go for the full rekka.
• Demon Path - 236B
  • A launcher which also does barely any damage. This will cause a wall bounce and then your opponent will sail above you. If you do nothing you'll recover at around the same time and your opponent will be half a screen away. But you don't want that sort of spacing. You want the full rekka.
  • Heaven's Glow - 236C
    • This bad boy will shave off around 40% of their health, but only if you hit the exact middle of your opponent. If you don't, you'll chip off a few measly pixels at best, then slowly fall to the ground and into a slump. This is by far one of the most punishable moves in the game as the opponent even has enough time to sway behind you and go for a backhit combo. It's not a question of if you'll be punished - it's how you'll be punished.
    • You can't input 214C as an alternative, nor is the input changed when the opponent crosses over Enja. You must input the whole sequence in the same direction you started it.
  • Heaven's Glow (MAX) - 236987412AB when in Rage
    • This technically isn't a super move because it doesn't use any resources; it just requires that you have to be in Rage. This is basically 236C but it deals about 50% more damage.

Feet of Flames - 623D, mash 4D and 6D for extra hits, can be done unarmed

• Anti-air kick which isn't all that good for anti-airs, but will shave off over a fifth of their health if you mash correctly. The most you can get is up to 16 hits total but the minimum is three, however less hits will give you more oki because it will take less time for you to land. The reach is so short even a cancel from n5B will push you out of range to land this.

Annihilating Flames - 421D

• This is a strike-invincible reversal (i.e. you can still be thrown out of it) where Enja explodes in place. Unlike in V Special, Enja doesn't teleport a distance back after the explosion - he just keeps his pose while staying in place for a little. This makes it much easier to punish, but at the same time if it hits or if the opponent somehow doesn't punish you for it then you've just stood your ground and it will be easier to close the gap.

Absolute Incinerator - 41236C

• This is a delayed heavy slash similar to Haohmaru's 632146AB, but it lunges forward a bit and causes a wall bounce on hit. If you suspect your opponent will short roll after a sweep then cancelling the tail end of its recovery into this will catch them, furthermore if they long roll they'll be safe but they usually won't be able to punish with anything good. If they didn't tech at all then you've just wasted your turn.

Toy Transformation - 6321464E (II)

Supers

Enja's Bursting Heat - 236AB, cancellable with ABCD

• Improved version of his old WFT with faster startup, allowing it to combo from more starters while still retaining its upper body invincibility. The increased startup furthermore makes it a dependable anti-air. You can cancel it early with ABCD but either way Enja will fall into a slump for a moment. For a change of scenery this uses visuals from his Overkill in V Special.

Hell's Flame and Heat - 623623BC (II), 236BC (VI), can be done unarmed

• A super version of 623D with an explosive finisher if the first few hits catch the opponent, in which case it will always deal full damage. If it whiffs during the catch period and you only land the last kick then you'll still get a decent fraction of the damage. Has the same godawful reach as regular 623D.

Combos

236A can always be followed up with by a full rekka sequence.

Standard Combos

• 5D/66B 623D - Only moves which combo into 623D normally.
• 5B/n5B/2B/2C 236A/236AB - Standard combos. Starters from the above combo work too.
• 6D, n5B/n5C/623D/236AB - Notable links from regular 6D.
• 6D, 5C/2C/236A - Links from counter hit 6D.
• 2C/jC, 41236C - Requires a counter hit either way, but jC will deephit against a crouching opponent.

Continuous Slash (IV)

• A+B BBC 623D/236AB - If you're good at mashing 623D then go for it.
• A+B AABBCCC - Not usually worth noting but Enja's short Rage retention means that if he lands this he gets Raged instantly. None of these hits are special cancellable.

External Links

• Seesaa wiki