Samurai Shodown VI/Ukyo

Introduction

Fun fact: Mist Finers, like many moves in ASW games, were actually invented by SNK, with such moves as Yamazaki's Hebi Tsukai and Moriya's Ittou Oboro. Is Ukyo's acquisition of them a case of SNK taking back what's theirs? Nope - this game was made by Examu.

Overheads are less valuable in a game that incentivizes stand blocking for frame advantage, and his lows aren't as threatening due to input buffer changes that make the 2D link into Tsubame more difficult. Ukyo adapts to this environment with greater focus on his monstrous poke and punish game. He trades out ghost slashes for fast mist finers that hit between half and 3/4 screen and now uses apple slices as his main combo ender. He now has counters which he can throw into his recoil cancel game, and his WFT is much faster and combos off close B normals. He still has amazing pokes (especially now that 5C recoils on block) and scary fast punishes, his ground movement is still top class, and Tsubame Gaeshi is still an all-in-one package of instant overhead, fast punish, antiair, and fireball reflector, so the gist of Ukyo remains the same.

Oh, and he can delete half your life on a counterhit punish.

Data

• Dash type: Run
• Damage taken: 113% (5th Frailest)
• Rage retention: 68 (3rd Lowest)
• Rage duration: 16 seconds (2nd Longest)
• Ukyo's Continuous Slash is throw invulnerable during startup. This also applies to Kazuki, Nakoruru, and Rera.

Gameplan

SS6 Ukyo runs a very poke-and-punish focused gameplan in neutral. His far slashes all have great range for their speed, and all but 2C can recoil cancel. In addition to deflect, Ukyo has his 214S apple slices, 214D feint, and 64123A/B counters to mix into his recoil game. He can also use his new 236S as a quick recoil cancel off spaced pokes, but these are very unsafe. Many of these options are themselves vulnerable to deflect, so Ukyo will need to vary his timings and also incorporate his kicks to keep opponents off balance. 5D has decent range and special cancels, which lets him either confirm with 214A or stay safe with 214D.

However, Ukyo is not a character who pokes all day. Ukyo uses his impeccable ground movement to play hit-and-run, finding counterpokes and punishes from almost any position with his fast, long range normals, 236S, and Tsubame Gaeshi. If playing IV Spirit, his Continuous Slash also serves as an important punish starter and confirm after counterhits/backhits. C Tsubame and 236A yield strong punishes against attacks recovering in the air. Opponents trying to jump past Ukyo's ground game may instead find themselves running into his 2B, 66C, jA, jC, or C Tsubame depending on situation and spacing. 3D, 6D, and 66D also fill roles as fast but lower reward punishes that are especially useful while disarmed alongside his u66S.

Ukyo can stick close to opponents after most knockdowns and use that as an opportunity to start his offense. Most of his hits cause soft knockdown, for which Ukyo can often chase the opponent down and attempt to react to short vs long roll with 66C/D vs throw into another soft knockdown that pushes the opponent towards the corner. If they don't tech, Ukyo may be able to pursuit for additional damage. 214B/C instead cause hard knockdown, from which Ukyo can secure a guaranteed pursuit for additional damage or take the time to set up, meditate, etc as Spirit and desired gameplan allow.

Once on the offensive, Ukyo primarily plays a strike/throw game while calling out counterpokes, dodges, and attempts to jump out. Tsubame gives him a nasty instant overhead, but there's a few important things to keep in mind before using it:

• Opponents can punish you for much more than you'll hit them for with Tsubame, especially if they're prepared and know their counterhit confirms.
• Opponents often want to stand block in SS6 for better frame advantage, devaluing overheads.
• Ukyo's only lows are 2D, 6D, and 66D. 6D and 66D are low reward into soft knockdown. 2D combos into various options, including Tsubame itself with frame perfect timing, but these are low reward or risky unless backed by confirms into Ukyo's WFT or Secret Move.

Lows and overheads are still worth mixing in sparingly as suits an opponent's defensive habits. Frame data and wakeup changes better enable him to press offense however, so the opponent has to take more risks on defense. Ukyo can focus on motivating opponents into poor defensive decisions and then punish them. Ukyo can also sneak in an occasional crossup with 66B as an extra offensive layer if the opponent is out of corner.

Ukyo is frail and his floaty jump limits his ability to jump out on defense, but his fast buttons also serve him well here. He has great options for poking out of an opponent's offense, including several of his normals and of course Tsubame Gaeshi. Stand blocking often gives him enough advantage to secure a quick knockdown with 6D, 3D, 66D, or 66C, from which he can then start his own offense. Tsubame is also an option here, but inability to buffer TK specials makes it difficult to use here and may result in whiffed 236As instead. Alternatively, he may be able to find a confirm with n2B or 5D. System mechanics in most Spirits expand his options with ways to evade or escape pressure, and greedy opponents trying to mix Ukyo with something more high-risk will quickly find themselves up against his strong punish game once again.

Spirits

• I focuses on Hyper Slash and high Rage damage, with no access to supers or system defensive options. While Ukyo's rage duration is very long, low Rage retention means he takes a long time to enter Rage. His Hyper Slash also deals subpar damage.

• II gives Ukyo full Rage duration and breaks the opponent's weapon on successful Weapon Flip. It also grants access to his Secret Move once per game. Rolls, ducks, and hops give Ukyo a variety of defensive options and some extra mobility.

• III lets Ukyo charge Rage manually and grants infinite Rage at very low HP. Low Rage retention makes for very long charge time, and Rage resetting after each round greatly limits Ukyo's access to Rage. Dodge offers a standard grounded defensive option, along with circle step in close quarters. Air parry is niche in use, especially for a character like Ukyo that mostly stays grounded, but can lead to Tsubame punishes against attempted anti-airs and air-to-airs.

• IV greatly enhances Ukyo's punish game, opening up devastating combos even from run. Any Continuous Slash combo leads to hard knockdown and a mixup or guaranteed pursuit, potentially taking 1/3rd to 1/2 of the opponent's health. IV also has dodge and circle step for defensive tools, along with Rage Explosion and Issen for last ditch options. Circle step also lets Ukyo get behind downed opponents more quickly than jumping over them, opening up his potent backhit mixups off more knockdowns.

• V further enhances Ukyo's mobility over II Spirit with a good forward hop, while meditation de-emphasizes Rage and WFT in favor of State of Nothingness and Issen. However, Ukyo does not have a good unburstable launcher and must rely on jB for high/low mix in SoN. V also offers Rage Explosion as a defensive tool, but without access to Issen. V's forward hop can cross over downed opponents for backhit mixups similar to circle step.

• VI ensures reliable access to WFT thanks to its unique Rage system and is unaffected by Ukyo's low rage retention. He can also spend part of his meter on Hyper Guard to safely push the opponent away on defense. Ukyo gains access to his high damage Secret Move at low hp for strong situational confirms, even comboing off his 5A. Mikiri dodges are strong defensive options, with successful dodges further enabling Secret Move use.

Normal Moves

Far Slashes

• 5A - Fast, long-reaching poke. Safe, but low reward without counterhit or access to Ukyo's Secret Move. You can special cancel it.
• 5B - Same reach as 5A, deals more damage, but longer recovery and can't special cancel.
• 5C - A far-reaching, high damage slash. This is great for poking and recoil cancels, with good startup for its range. Very punishable on whiff.
• 2A - Your fastest midscreen poke, but it has less range than 5A. Can special cancel, but the window is delayed so combos from it are even more situational.
• 2B - Very strong spaced anti-air. Hits directly above Ukyo, then in a tall area in front of him. Disjointed and will beat most spaced jump-ins clean. Using it at closer ranges is more dangerous, as n2B is not an anti-air and risks eating a crouching jump-in starter.
• 2C - Ukyo's most damaging normal and his only far normal which doesn't recoil. Slightly more range than 5C, better frame advantage on hit, and can go under high attacks, but a little slower to start up and extremely punishable on block. Ukyo can combo off 2C on counterhit.

Near Slashes

• n5A - Safe get-off-me tool. Special cancellable.
• n5B - High-reaching attack, can catch jump-out attempts during pressure. Can special and recoil cancel. Slower than n2B but deals more damage.
• n5C - Generic punish tool. It's two hits so it can be bursted before the more-powerful second hit.
• n2A - n5A but lower. Special cancellable.
• n2B - Your fastest combo starter. Same range as n5B.
• n2C - Generic punish tool. Same damage as n5C and also two hits. Starts lower, has better frame advantage on hit, but gives 2C if misspaced rather than 5C.

Kicks

• 5D - Standard forward kick. Your farthest reaching poke that both combos on hit and can cancel on block, and a decent ranged option when disarmed. Canceling into 214D improves its frame advantage.
• 6D - Quick sliding low kick. Long active frames, moves about two character widths forward. Safe-ish if it hits from roundstart range, but still minus and open to quick punishes. Soft knockdown.
• 2D - Short low kick. Very fast recovery, good frame advantage on block and hit. Excellent for tick throws on offense. Links into Tsubame Gaeshi, which also functions as a high-low mixup on block, but the link on hit is frame perfect. Can also link into n5A, n2A, 3D, 6D, or 66C without counterhit.
• 3D - A fast sweep that hits mid. Reaches upwards enough to hit high profiling attacks, and can also low profile some high hitting attacks and jump-ins. Good active frames. Soft knockdown.

Dash Normals

• 66A - Has more range than 66D. Has decent priority, but there's not much of a reason to use this.
• 66B - Ukyo will run past the opponent and strike from behind him as a crossup. This will not autocorrect depending on whether or not he actually ended up on the other side after the run, and furthermore Ukyo can not run past a cornered opponent. At midscreen this is a decent mixup option because it results in decent damage and a soft knockdown, but it is very punishable on block and leaves Ukyo backturned during recovery.
• 66C - This move has 4f startup, knocks down and shares an animation with 2C, although it does slightly less damage and doesn't reach as far. That aside, this move punishes almost everything and is a big part of why Ukyo's hit-and-run is so strong. It can also function as an effective landing trap or occasional anti-air, especially after running under to hit the opponent from behind, and opens up strong reaction tech chases off his soft knockdowns.
• 66D - Running low. Your best option for punishing when unarmed. Safer than 6D, can be safe on block (though still minus) with good spacing/timing.

Air Normals

• jA - Aerial n5A. Fast air to air with long active frames.
• jB - Can be used to hit opponents who are close below you. May also be used as an instant overhead in State Of Nothingness if your opponent is tall enough.
• njC - Air-to-air which covers a great distance directly in front of you.
• jC - Good horizontal range and gives Ukyo a decent jump-in, though his jump is still terribly floaty. Also works well as a more rewarding air-to-air.
• jD - Ukyo's fastest air normal, a two hit kick. The two hits allow it to stuff rising air-to-airs while still threatening grounded opponents, late jD can hit twice against most standing opponents to mess with punish timings and make confirms easier, and it's the one air normal Ukyo can immediately throw out after buffering the motion for Tsubame.

Unarmed Normals

• u5S - High slap.
• u2S - Low slap.
• u66S - Gives plenty of hitstun to link into a knockdown move. u66S is a heavy attack so linking it into itself causes a knockdown.
• juS - Jumping slap. jC reaches farther.

Hyper Slash (I)

• A+B - Essentially his 5C but slower, more damaging, more punishable, and knocks down on hit.

Continuous Slash (IV)

• A+B - Similar to n5B but with more reach and available at any spacing, even during dash. Leads to very damaging followups with C2 or C4. Has throw invulnerability during startup for some reason. Cannot cancel on block and very punishable.

Special Moves

Concealed Sabre Snowfall Slash - 214S (Samurai Drive)

• Ukyo tosses an apple in front of him then slashes rapidly. Strength determines the startup, amount of hits and recovery. This is Ukyo's primary combo tool in VI due to his different 236S. It also retains its use as a chipping tool.
• 214A sweeps the opponent, while 214B and C knock the opponent away. All versions will usually cause hard knockdown, but under certain conditions cause soft knockdown instead. Ukyo can pursuit after any 214B, with midscreen followups requiring a dash. 214C guarantees pursuit in the corner; 214A does not have sufficient frame advantage to land pursuit.
• 214A is the most reliable option for confirms and offers strong setups after due to position and hard knockdown. 214B is one frame faster, deals more damage, and launches the opponent away for strong corner carry, but later hits may whiff depending on spacing. 214C offers the greatest reward with both good damage and hard knockdown, but will only combo reliably in the corner or from close backhit starters.
• High hit count means 214S deals significant chip. 214A is the safest tool for this purpose and is difficult to punish on block if all hits connect, but deals the least damage. 214B and C can deal more chip, but are more punishable on block if the chip damage does not kill. Pushback may send Ukyo out of range before the final hit depending on spacing and screen position, especially on 214B and C.

Swordless Sabre Snowfall Slash - 214D

• Ukyo tosses an apple in front of him then recovers instantly. You may think throwing apples all game is really, really funny and I won't begrudge you of your amusement. However, the primary purpose of this move is to get a free mixup on an opponent who has been conditioned to block 214S. However, the sound cue is completely different.
• Ukyo is -20/-15 after recoil canceling into 214D. 5D 214D reduces 5D recovery by up to 10f for -11/-6 on block and +1 on hit.

Concealed Sabre Swallow Swipe - j1236S (Samurai Drive)

• Ukyo's patented Tsubame Gaeshi. These are fast overheads which cover a decent area around him and cause soft knockdowns. Strength determines the startup, amount of hits and how long Ukyo spends coughing afterwards. If this move is active then Ukyo will only land once it ends.
• Ukyo may either tiger knee the motion or cancel his backdash to get these out instantly. Frame advantage on block is comparable for each method, but backdash canceling leaves Ukyo further from the opponent and has better advantage on hit. TK Tsubame is a great close range punish tool for its speed, range and the knockdown it gives.
• Ukyo is in counterhit state during recovery.
• Always, always, always use j1236A for the instant overhead as it's faster than the other versions, even being able to link from the low-hitting 2D. All the damage is concentrated into one hit as opposed to numerous weak hits before the final one. The hitbox on this is not geared towards hitting opponents above Ukyo, but rather in front and slightly below him.
• j1236B is potentially more rewarding than j1236A, but it's slower and even more punishable. It's liable to whiff against smaller crouching hurtboxes or low profile attacks when tk'd, especially if you're even slightly late on the attack input, and the final hit may whiff from backdash cancels. The final hit deals less damage than j1236A's sole hit, but if at least one of the two small hits beforehand also connects it will deal more. This version reflects fireballs, which is its main use.
• j1236C is the slowest and least safe version by far, but it deals tremendous damage and hits above Ukyo. Very rewarding as an air-to-air and to punish moves with little or no landing recovery such as Gen-An 623S. Whiffs against small crouching hurtboxes. Some hits may even whiff against average sized crouches, especially if the attack input is slightly late. Final hit is very unlikely to connect from backdash cancels unless in corner, drastically reducing damage.

Concealed Sabre Send God - 236S

• Mist Finers. They can't be cancelled or delayed or anything, but Ukyo still has the traditional three angles of attack and they all have impressive range. Be very careful with using these as pokes because not only are they extremely unsafe, deflectable (except 236C), and extend his hurtbox quite a bit, but there is a huge blind spot between Ukyo and their hitboxes. Very useful for fast, far range punishes.
• 236A is great for swatting opponents out of the air further away, be it Iroha double jumping, Tam Tam on a spaced fadeaway jC if unsure of landing C Tsubame, or Suija or Yumeji after an air fireball. On the ground this will only hit Kusaregedo standing. Does the most damage of the 3.
• 236B is a straight poke which travels extremely far. This is best used as a recoil cancel option from a well-spaced 5B or 5C where the blind spot isn't an issue. Whiffs against small crouching hurtboxes.
• 236C has similar reach to 236B but it's much lower to the ground, making it more susceptible to jumpouts. In return, it hits low. Deals the least damage.

Concealed Sabre Sky Wind - 64123A

• A counter against lower-body slashes. Invulnerable below the waist and will also evade low kicks, projectiles that hit near ground, and throws, but only counters slashes. If not activated Ukyo will cough in place for a bit. When activated Ukyo will hop over and punish. This is an overhead and may cross up at very close range.
• Foot invulnerable 1-20, throw invulnerable 1-20, strike invulnerable below the waist 5-20, counter on 5-20, 31f startup after catch. 46f total if counter does not proc.
• The opponent is frozen for 15f after triggering the counter, effectively making this a 16f punish.

Concealed Sabre Frost Wind - 64123B (Samurai Drive)

• A counter against upper-body slashes. This version is strike invulnerable above the knee, but it still only counters slashes. If not activated Ukyo will cough in place for a bit. When activated Ukyo will duck under and punish. This is a low and will always hit same side.
• Strike invulnerable above knees 1-20, counter on 5-20, 23f startup after catch. 46f total if counter does not proc.
• Unlike 64123A, the opponent is not frozen for any period of time on successful counter. Faster slashes are more likely to recover in time to block against 64123B, and both versions are very punishable on block.

Trampling Down Kick - u4613D

• Ukyo's unarmed small pursuit from V Special, a stanky leg. This can actually be used when your opponent is not knocked down, and it hits low. However, the lack of knockdown, convoluted input, and pathetic range, damage, and advantage mean you're better off using your other lows when unarmed.

Toy Transformation - 3214623E (II)

Supers

6 Swallow Flash - 236AB

• Ukyo leaps forward for a hitgrab which hits overhead, does decent damage, and ends in a hard knockdown. This is a direct improvement from earlier iterations of the WFT, as the super flash eats up a good portion of the startup and it travels much faster. This makes both raw punishes and close medium confirms feasible, and in fact it's actually fast enough to combo from lights at close range. Not useful for its overhead quality except as a knowledge check, as the super flash makes it too telegraphed. Leaves Ukyo behind the opponent unless they're already cornered, setting up backhit mixups with little risk given the opponent is now disarmed.

Concealed Sabre God Roughness - 641236BC (II), 236BC (VI)

• Enhanced Mist Finers where Ukyo charges forward with nine hits for high damage and soft knockdown on the final hit. Unlike regular Mist Finers this will hit close to Ukyo. Fast enough to combo from standing lights, making it useful both for combos and as a high damage whiff punish. If used as a far anti-air the opponent will not be locked into eating the rest of the hits and will usually land on their feet, as the final hit is a low-angled slash. All hits can be blocked mid.

Combos

Standard Combos

• n5B/n2B/5D 214A/B - Standard combos. Use 214A after jump-ins or if you're not right next to the opponent, as the final hit of 214B will miss at further ranges.
• 2D, n5A/n2A/3D/6D/66C - Various links from 2D.
• 2D, j1236A - Another 2D link that is very hard to block, particularly if you mix other 2Ds in before going for j1236A. Also very difficult to hit as it's a one frame link.
• n5A/n2A/5A/n5B/n2B/5D 236AB - WFT confirms. Only works from 5A at close range. All of these will also confirm into Ukyo's Secret Move from any range.
• 5D 236C - Spaced confirm for max range 5D hits. Much more reliable against big bodies than thin characters like Mina, Nakoruru, and Ukyo himself. 236B doesn't hit quite as close on the inner range so it's even less reliable, along with potentially whiffing over crouching opponents.

• ch 5A 236C - As above, but requires counterhit. Easier to space given 5A's longer range. Also possible from ch 2A against larger characters or after tagging an extended hurtbox.
• ch n5B/n2B/5D 214C - Counterhit/backhit only.
• ch 2C, 6D/n2B/66C - Counterhit/backhit 2C combos for varying range/reward.
• ch 5D/n2B/n5B 214D, 66C - Canceling into 214D leaves these buttons +9 on counterhit. Mainly relevant to 5D since it also gains better advantage on block.
• ch 5D/n2B/n5B 214D, n2B/5D 214A - Close range links for better damage than 66C followup. 5D works a little further out but is more strict.

Continuous Slash (IV)

• A+B AABBCC 214A/214B/236AB - Your bread and butter in IV Spirit. Can follow 214B with (dash) pursuit for extra damage, or dash and circle step for backhit oki. 214A deals 2 less damage and doesn't allow pursuit, but keeps the opponent close for more consistent setups and better position if starting from corner.

• ch 2D/n2B/2C, A+B - Counterhit/backhit links into Continuous Slash for even higher damage.
• ch 5D/n2B/n5B 214D, A+B - Counterhit/backhit links off cancels into 214D.

CS2 routes are inferior to the CS4 combo above, but are included here for documentation.

• A+B BBC 236AB - May be useful if Rage time is low.
• A+B BBC 236A/236B - Requires a slight delay into 236S. 236A is particularly unreliable against small characters, especially from close range.
• A+B BBC 214D, j1236A - More consistent than the 236S enders, but does less damage. j1236B is possible for the same damage as 236A, but it's character specific and a 1f link.
• A+B BBC 214C - Corner only.

Frame Data

Attack	Startup	On Hit	On Standing Block	On Crouching Block	Notes
n5A	5	0	-2	+3
n2A	5	0	-2	+3
5A	9	-5	-11	-6
2A	5	-4	-5	0
66A	11	-4	-16	-11
j8A	9	N/A	N/A	N/A
j7A/j9A	8	N/A	N/A	N/A
n5B	9	-12	-8	-3
n2B	7	+2	-8	-3
5B	8	-7	-17	-12
2B	9	-4	-17	-12	Hits in front f15
66B	22	KD	-38	-33
j8B	7	N/A	N/A	N/A
j7B/j9B	9	N/A	N/A	N/A
n5C	14	-4	-20	-15
n2C	14	0~+1	-20	-15
5C	13	-11~-10	-25	-20
2C	15	0~+1	-31	-26
66C	4	KD	-34	-29
j8C	11	N/A	N/A	N/A
j7C/j9C	13	N/A	N/A	N/A
5D	8	-9	-21	-16
6D	5	KD	N/A	-18	Active for 11 frames
2D	7	+6	N/A	+7
3D	5	KD	-17	-12
66D	6	KD	N/A	-15	Active for 12 frames
jD	7	N/A	N/A	N/A
Hyper Slash	23	KD	-65	-55
Continuous Slash	8	N/A	-25	-20

Colors

External Links

• Seesaa wiki