Samurai Shodown VI/Rimururu

Introduction

Thought to have been killed in the Shaolin Tournament, Rimururu mysteriously returns. It is believed she traveled into the Outworld to again attempt to assassinate Zankuro. To do so she must fight her way through Yoshitora's tournament.

Rimururu is a keepaway character who can also run a strong setplay game, with both of these qualities owing to her various projectiles such as arced and rolling ice balls, falling platforms she can leap from and a fast rising anti-air projectile. Her small size and fast dashes aid immensely in her ability to not get hit while she fills the screen with all kinds of traps. Rimururu has low defense and she can't take her turn at close range well due to her short normals, so you better make the most out of her mobility.

Data

• Dash type: Run
• Damage taken: 110%
• Rage retention: 210
• Rage duration: 7 seconds

Gameplan

Rimururu is a keepaway/setplay character who specialises in filling up the screen and locking away the opponent's options with her various ice-based special moves. 236A and 236B toss an ice ball at an arc into the air which don't become active until they touch the ground, where the resulting blossom occupies this space for 20 frames. If the opponent touches this they will get frozen, allowing you to run up and get a free hit, ideally with a combo from 66B (your 66C in this game is a very different move, and that's not a good thing), and because you recover quickly after throwing one of these it's an easy way to keep an opponent in place. 236C also spawns an ice ball, but instead it rolls along the ground slowly until it blossoms after it hits something. This move gives Rimururu strong ground control, which may either force a jump (which you can counter on the ground with 623S, or 214A if they are closer, or meet in the air with jC) or give you time to either move in or run away if they respect it. Be careful with opponents running V Spirit, which gives them access to forward hops, and tools such as Iroha's step dash or Suija's far heavy slash which can all travel safely over your 236C and potentially hit you.

Her ice platform (j2S) is a unique movement option and setplay tool rolled up into one package. Rimururu can either perform it at the apex of her jump or cancel the aerial portions of her backdash, 3B or 66D into it, and from there control not only how she jumps from the platform but when. The platform itself is a great way to occupy space as you're running away, especially if you chose one of the cancel options to ensure it is low to the ground, as the opponent will have to figure out some way around it if they want to catch you, and often times they may not even be able to. Rimururu can also set an ice platform upon a downed opponent for easy setpay, locking them in place for a mixup, and can go for some particularly nasty crossups if there is a wall nearby to interact with (which, by the way, also happens to be where the opponent can't simply long roll away from it, though that still delays their wakeup considerably which is something you may have to think about).

Worth noting is how the universal changes to wakeup rolls and pursuits affect how Rimururu approaches knockdowns. Unless your opponent has a hard time tech rolling, pursuit opportunities are nowhere near as guaranteed (your disarm taunt doesn't even hit OTG anymore), nor are they as rewarding damage-wise. However, with the removal of delayed wakeup Rimururu has an easy time countering both tech roll options with a well-timed ground iceball. Without having to worry about forward rolls or wakeup timings, Rimururu's wakeup game has become a lot more straightforward.

Rimururu does not enjoy being close to her opponent, but she isn't completely hopeless at that range either. 5A and 66A are quick pokes which reach relatively far for Rimururu and leave her safe for the most part, while she still has her famous overhead (3B) which she can use for both long-range poking and for crushing lows. Worthy of note is that when unarmed Rimururu gains access to a high/low mixup when running, alternating between her low u22D and her overhead tumbles (u66AC or u66AD when not in Rage). Though she would obviously prefer to be armed as far as damage goes, Rimururu keeps all of her special moves when unarmed so she can still run her game reasonably well even after copping a WFT. Whether or not you bother with picking up your weapon or just embrace your newfound mixup potential is up to you.

Your new WFT does massive damage but it can't be combo'd into normally and your Rage duration is brief at best. IV Spirit is the way to go because it not only gives you the most Rage duration out of all Spirits (barring VI of course) but through Continuous Slash II you can also juggle into WFT. Rage Explosion can also be used for unblockable setups involving a 236S blossom placed behind the opponent.

Normal Moves

Far Slashes

• 5A - Quick standing poke with decent range.
• 5B - This attack looks very short but it actually has the same range as 5A. Special cancellable.
• 5C - Rimururu's second farthest-reaching attack. She has pretty good recoil cancel options overall so spacing this can potentially start your vortex game.
• 2A - Crouching n5A.
• 2B - Crouching n5B.
• 2C - Hanzo-style sweep, a short slash in front of you. Very good punish option.

Near Slashes

• n5A - n5B but quicker. Not special cancellable.
• n5B - Combo starter.
• n5C - Does the exact same damage as 2C but it's slower and doesn't knock down.
• n2A - Same as far version.
• n2B - Same as far version.
• n2C - Same as far version.

Kicks

• 5D - Your longest-ranged normal and frankly the worst Tsubaki I've ever seen. Rimururu stops, hops forward and delivers a dainty little kick. This hop will actually go over some low attacks such as your own 2D.
• 6D - Standing low. Special cancellable and provides enough hitstun to combo.
• 2D - Low-hitting poke and tick throw option.
• 3D - A low-hitting, cancellable sweep that reaches high and stays out for a while. Very good as a meaty. If the opponent short rolls after this you can easily walk up to them and go for another sweep, or to eliminate guessing you can cancel this into 236C which is guaranteed to hit their recovery if the cancel is timed correctly. If they long roll instead then enjoy your turn anyway.

Dash Normals

• 66A - Running 5A. Low-committal running option and surprisingly the one with the most range.
• 66B - Rimururu shoves her palms forward. Deals less damage than 66A and has worse range but it is special cancellable. Slow startup but it carries your momentum, so for punishes or freeze conversions you want to use this move pre-emptively.
• 66C - This move sucks. Rimururu stabs forward while stopping dead in her tracks and then pauses for a lengthy amount of time. Although this move gives hitstun for days it doesn't knock down nor is it cancellable. Furthermore the fact it halts your momentum while the slash itself has similar range to 66A means that the latter is actually more likely to reach. You are better off using 66B combos for punishes, as they deal more damage and end in a knockdown. At least it's faster than your other heavies.
• 66D - Two parts. The first hit is a standing low kick. The second hit is a mid, although it looks like her sweep, and afterwards Rimururu will bounce back. Depending on the matchup this either leaves you very safe or very punishable. During the bounce you can actually cancel it into j2S, which still doesn't make it completely safe.

Air Normals

• jA - Aerial n5A.
• jB - Aerial n5B.
• jC - Ainu jump heavy, which means it's good at everything.
• jD - Not angled as downward as Nakoruru's jD but still has utility as a jump-in for tick throws.

Unarmed Normals

• u5S - Standing flick.
• u2S - Crouching flick.
• u66S - Running flick which knocks down.
• u66D - Nakoruru's 66D. For you this means your 66D is now just a regular running sweep. Couples well with u66AC/AD overheads.
• juS - Aerial flick.

Hyper Slash (I)

• A+B - Essentially her 5C.

Command Moves

Triangle Jump - j9 near wall

• Rimururu can gain extra height by using this in conjunction with ice platform, but be mindful that characters in VI are unable to interact with the wall more than once so you don't get four jumps anymore. But three is still pretty good, right?

Triangle Get Off - j3 near wall

• New movement option. If you have an ice platform set above their head in the corner then this can make your mixups potentially more ambiguous.

3B, can be done unarmed

• Very good overhead poke with an icicle which reaches far and hops over lows, but doesn't knock down. The startup can be kara cancelled into j2S, letting you form an ice platform on the spot.

Special Moves

Rimururu can have multiple different ice specials active at once, but not any which share motion inputs. For example she can have 236C and 623S out at the same time, but not 236A and 236C.

Lupu Quall - 236S, can be done unarmed

• 236A and 236B toss an ice ball in an arc (a wider arc for 236B which stretches farther than your 5C) which doesn't have a hitbox until it hits the ground, where it blossoms into a flower and covers a wide range. Upon contact the opponent will be frozen, allowing for a free hit. The arcs of each of these moves make them very useful for your vortex game (especially 236A which is best suited for use after knockdowns) or just straight-up keepaway.
• 236C is an ice ball which slowly rolls along the ground and blossoms upon contact with either the opponent or the wall. This move hids mid now but it is still important for locking down a good portion of the screen. As usual, be careful with characters such as Suija and Zankuro who have moves which not only high profile over your 236C but travel half the screen.

Konril Nonril - 623S, can be done unarmed (Samurai Drive)

• Rimururu spawns a blossom which immediately shoots upwards. This is a strong anti-air and damaging combo ender but you are dead if you miss this.

Rupu Toumu - 214S, can be done unarmed (Samurai Drive)

• Bust-Rimururu's angled icicles. Rimururu has these moves in 2019 as well.
• 214A is an anti-air which will not hit most grounded opponents, but covers a closer area above her head than 623S.
• 214B is a mid-ranged poke which leaves the opponent frozen, but you don't have any combos with this unless there is a 236S projectile nearby or if you are in State of Nothingness. Otherwise a pretty safe recoil cancel option which pushes the opponent back a fair bit.
• 214C is a low-hitting sweep with better range than 2C but worse damage. Pushes the opponent back the same distance as 214B but doesn't reach as far.

Upun Orb - 6SSS, can be done unarmed

• Rimururu casts a flurry of small icicles directly in front of her before a final large icicle charges out. This final hit will not combo from the previous hits. Strength determines the number of hits. This move is only good for chip kills and isn't very rewarding otherwise.

Konru Mem - 22S, can be done unarmed (Samurai Drive)

• Sub-Zero's ice puddle. After a long startup Rimururu will summon a low-hitting puddle which freezes the opponent upon contact. Rimururu will recover in time to either combo from it or go for a mixup. The puddle doesn't stay out for very long after Rimururu recovers and she's stuck for a while as she's casting it, so this move is only useful if you have any good setups with it as a meaty. Provided the opponent doesn't tech roll, that is.

Kamui Shtokke - 421S, can be done unarmed

• She has a fireball reflector just like her sister, but this one works a little differently. Rimururu summons an ice mirror which reflects fireballs, but the mirror itself does no damage. After a brief pause an icicle will shoot out of the mirror as it dissipates, causing a wall bounce and a soft knockdown. The ice mirror spawns very quickly and will not disappear if Rimururu is hit out of it, which means an opponent will still have to worry about the icicle.

Konru Shiraru - j2S, can be done unarmed

• Rimururu spawns a static ice platform under her feet. You can jump off in any direction, which will then result in the ice platform falling straight down for a light overhead hit. You can delay this jump, but if you stay on the ice platform for too long then Rimururu will slip off as it begins to fall automatically, leaving her very punishable. Given Rimururu's ability to hop off at different trajectories and at different times this move can be used not only for some very ambiguous crossups but also as setplay for her grounded mixup options.
• This move has a height restriction at around the apex of her jump, however she can kara cancel into this from her backdash, 6B and 66D which ignore this. These cancels are useful for keepaway as the ice platform will be left in a space which the opponent would otherwise be able to run through in an attempt to punish you.

Rupu Kamui Wheh Sampekol - uAC or uAD while running (can only be done after you've been running for about one character length)

• Rimururu tumbles onto the opponent for a fast overhead hit, causing a soft knockdown. This gives her a running mixup even when unarmed. If you did uAC she will fall face down, while if you did uAD she will fall on her bottom - this difference is mainly cosmetic, though. This move does not deal chip damage.

Rupu Kamui Wheh Sampekol Looyampeh - same as above but when in Rage

• A powered-up version of the above move in which Rimururu tumbles multiple times, but it no longer hits overhead. uAC tumbles four times while uAD tumbles thrice. The first tumble deals one hit but the next tumbles deal two, however there is too large of a break between tumbles for them to combo from one to another, so at best the move is a simple frame trap. This move still does not deal chip damage.

Toy Transformation - 321421E (II)

Supers

Konru Sutou Poro - 236AB

• This is the hammer she kills you with for her V Special Overkill. Good range and great damage for punishes but has a huge blind spot between her and the hammer strike, so don't expect to combo into this through conventional means unless you can juggle into it with IV Spirit's Continuous Slash II. You can convert into this from a 236S hit but not necessarily on reaction.
• While Rimururu holds the hammer above her head, an opponent jumping into it will cause it to shatter, which deals the same amount of damage and still causes a disarm. This makes it an effective anti-air.

Rupu Kamui Emyu (Tu Tu) - 6321463214BC (II), 236BC (VI)

• Old WFT. Two hits as she's generating the giant ice block, then a single hit as it travels fullscreen. No longer dips the framerate but you still can't combo into it normally.

Combos

Standard Combos

• n5B/2B/66B/6D 236C/623S/214B/C - Standard combos. Go for 623S if you know you will punish.
• jC, 66C - Only way to make 66C useful, as it comes out faster than your other heavy slashes and 66B is too slow.
• 236S, 66B 623S - Bread and butter conversion on a frozen opponent.
• 5B 236AB - Counter hit only.
• jC, 6236AB - Deephit only.
• 236S, 236AB - Possible but you don't have much time to hit confirm.

Continuous Slash (IV)

• A+B BBC 623S/214B/236AB - Juggle combos. This is your most reliable way to combo into WFT.

Colors

External Links

• Seesaa wiki