++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ MORRIGAN CHARACTER FAQ GUIDE Capcom vs Snk 2: Millennium Fight 20001 by Tidus_Leonhart ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ version 3.0 04/10/02 - been 4 months...college...changed the Morrigan bio added the 31+ hit combo, more comments at last an update! version 2.0 11/15/01 - added a brief story about Morrigan, combos, throws, completed the groove selection section, added battleplan tips version 1.5 11/13/01 - finished adding more comments, pros and cons to moves, theoretical combos - revised the layout a little bit, corrected some grammar and spelling errors version 1.0 11/06/01 - my very first faq! TABLE OF CONTENTS: -Copyright -Character Background -Controls -Movelist Basic Moves Special Moves Super Moves -Select your groove -Combos -Battleplan -Credits --------------------------------COPYRIGHT------------------------------------ This faq, which is the fruit of my hard work, should be used for personal purposes only. It cannot be reproduced, re-transmitted or rewritten without my permission!!!. . Send me an e-mail at Tidjustin@netscape.net or squall23_99@yahoo.com if you'd like to use any part of this faq for your own (it should include my name in it). Ripping someone else's work is bad...Be good and maybe I'll help you out. Now on with the show.... This document is copyright; Tidus_Leonhart, 2001. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- ============================CHARACTER BACKGROUND============================== (I'm sorry for the little misinformation before, and I've seen the animated series now, thanks Ryoko) Here's a piece of the bio Ryoko sent me(peopleschamp_20000@hotmail.com) "Morrigan was born just like a real person but with access dark energy. Berial then took all of her access evil energy and placed it in a coffin in the Aensland household. Berial's her father but her mother is unknow, when Berial died, Morrigan inherited the clan but was reluctant to accept because ashe did not want to be served by anyone, she wanted to be able to roam freely. She does have fangs which allow her to use both vampire and succubus type attacks." Well, I'm sure y'all know that Morrigan is a creature of the dark, a Succubus (a vampire for lust, desire, sex...). She comes from the Aenslaed clan, one of the ruling families in the dark world, and hence one of the most powerful. Morrigan is like the rebellious tyrant because she kinda rules the world of the dark but then likes to play around and visit the human world every now and then. She has protected the dark world ever since Demitri Maximov (previous tyrant) was thrown into the world of humans. In her creation, she was to powerful and Berial feared that it will consume her so he sealed it away. But this excess evil developed its own identity and called itself Lilith and claimed itself to be the real succubus. However, in Morrigan's Darkstalkers 3 ending she and Lilith reunited, making Morrigan's power finally complete and unimaginable. However if you use Lilith, and finish the game (Darkstalkers 3), you'll see that Morrigan still lives and Lilith dies. Morrigan inherits the Isis ring, an Aenslaed heirloom. She says that why is it that she finally had the urge to wear that ring. CONTROLS I will use standard motion notations for the moves in this faq. This is of course assuming that you already played a fighting game before. Here are the semantics we will use: U: Up FB- fireball motion - D,DF,F B: Back RFB- reverse fireball - D,DB,B D: Down DP- dragon punch - F,D,DF F: Forward HCF- half circle forward - B,DB,D,DF,F DB: Down-back HCB- half circle back - F,DF,D,DB,B DF: Down-forward (air)- can be performed in the air P: any punch 2x- execute the preceeding move 2 times K: any kick e.g. FB(2x) is D,DF,F,D,DF,F JP: jab punch / - or SP: strong punch + - execute the preceeding and proceeding FP: fierce punch commands simultaneously SK: short kick FK: fierce kick RK: roundhouse kick c: crouching s: standing j: jumping MOVELIST Well, first and foremost Morrigan rules!!! If you're a shotokan player, there almost is any difference I must admit: hadouken - soulfist, shouryuken - shadow blade.... But that is what makes her effective. I will be giving her moves while giving its pros and cons. I've been using her since Darkstalkers 1 so let me teach you what I know... =BASIC MOVES= STANDING: JP - Morrigan jabs her opponents with her hair - close she uses her hands to jab nice interrupt tool SP - Morrigan steps a bit forward and unleashes a quick stab at the abdomen - Very effective poking tool due to its good range. It is fast and has a long hit frame it can easily hit your opponents recovering from a roll. It can also hit Blanka after a blocked Blanka ball!!! FP - Morrigan's wings transform into spikes and hit the opponent. Comes out slow. You won't use it much - close it becomes a standing uppercut SK - a swift kick that can be used to interrupt moves FK - a nice forward kick, fast but lacks range RK - Morrigan bends her body back and kicks upward. This is your second anti-air (first is the shadow blade). It has good vertical and horizontal range, allowing you to hit enemies at peak jump or those who are about to jump. This cannot be used as a last-minute anti-air since it has a slight delay at start-up. - close it becomes a cartwheel kick that is bufferable CROUCHING: JP - a quick punch. If you hold it for half a second, it becomes two JPs (Yes, it is comboable) SP - Morrigan uses her 2 wings in a downward thrust, chainable can be cancelled into the soulfist but the soulfist won't hit FP - a quick sweep using her wings, doesn't knockdown though but great range and can be used to end ground chains SK - a short range foot jab, chainable FK - offers more range than c.SK chainable, again can be cancelled into the soulfist but the soulfist won't hit. Long hit frame though RK - a long range sweep using her two legs JUMPING: JP - Morrigan uses one of her wings to poke down. Great air poking tool. If your fast it can combo into an air Darkness Illusion SP - an air version of her c.SP, you won't use this much FP - Morrigan's wings transform into spikes that envelop her like a ball. Great for cross-ups, nice air priority, but comes out slow SK - Morrigan merely sticks a leg upward, not very useful FK - Morrigan kicks out forward, great cross-up material and nice air to air priority RK - a strong kick from the side, long range and comes out fast THROWS: when near the opponent, F/B+FP - Morrigan body slams the opponent into the other side F/B+RK - One of her supers in Darkstalkers 3. Her wings or bats, I should say, transform into a vine thingy and propel the opponent far into the wall with a missile =SPECIAL MOVES= SOULFIST - FB+P (air) Your standard fireball. Take note that the JP soulfist will dissipate when it reaches about 3/4 of the screen. You can also do this in the air so you can fireball foes out of the air with this. This is good if your enemies have no air move. However, unlike Akuma, Morrigan stays in the air when she executes the move; she doesn't fall down to where the fireball is so you can't combo afterwards. The ground soulfist cannot be "two-in-oned" from ground attacks unlike the shotokans, e.g. the classic c.FK into the hadouken. After a soulfist (preferably a JP), you can chase it using the run ability to close in on your opponent who's blocking from far away. If your opponent has a roll and you would like to hold your ground and throw fireballs, you have two options: use the FP shadow blade when your opponent jumps over it or use the s.SP when he rolls. The FP shadow blade has high priority and can beat Blanka's j.RK. SHADOW BLADE - DP+P Okay an uppercut move, what more can you ask? This means you can do the hadouken-shouryken trap everybody's fond of. This move has shouryken priority and is fast. The vertical and horizontal range are very good. Use this as your main anti-air. Use the FP shadow blade only if you're sure you're gonna hit. The weaker versions will trade most of the time at steep angles so use this and most likely you'll win. Since it is a dragon punch type of move, it is a very effective last minute anti-air. Doing this after a soulfist is very effective. It gains a kind of speed boost after it. VECTOR DRAIN - HCB+P Basically a grab move with nice damage. She carries you into the air and slams you down! If you've played a grappler you can abuse this. Do this when you see your opponent roll and they'll be sorry alright. Also since it's a grab move you can "hide" its execution w/ a basic move. How? Jump in high with a FK and as you land execute the move, ala Zangief. Many players get fooled by this since they're expecting you to combo afterwards. However, don't do this if your opponent KNOWS how to THROW. Since you must kick high in the example to give you time to execute the Vector Drain, expert throwers will THROW you when you land. Other than that you won't use this very often. It also leaves you open if it doesn't connect so be careful. SHELL KICK - D+RK (air only) This is not really a special move but its a nice poke move nonetheless. If I'm not mistaken, this does 3-hits to an enemy on the ground but its difficult to combo afterwards coz it pushes the enemy away. Use this in air-to-air battles and most likely you'll win. Also, Morrigan will quickly fall to the ground while this move is going on. You could quickly cancel jumps into this to annoy your enemies. Try guard breaking the computer with this. Jump close then quickly do this...repeat... =SUPER MOVES= Valkyrie Turn - HCB+K (press SK for near, FK for middle, RK far, then press K when she reappears) Don't let the easy execution fool you. This has got to be the most unused super ever. She flies across the screen and comes back drilling the enemy with the Shell Kick. Sounds nice but the enemy can dragon punch her into oblivion. The enemy could always predict where Morrigan is going to land or appear, making her vulnerable to most attacks. Don't know why Capcom did this to her...In Darkstalkers 3 this was her main super move...If you do connect you can combo afterwards but you have to time it right or you'll get nailed. Don't ever, ever do this against grooves with counterattacks, but the damage is minimal anyway. Good guard damage though. Super Soul Fist - FB(2x)+P (air) Nuff said. A big soul fist. I haven't found a combo for this yet. Inform me and you'll get credit. The only use I have for this now is when your foe dares to become open. You can do this in the air too. Feign a jump-in and do this. They'll probably anti-air so they'll eat the soulfist. Take note that the air SSF launches at a 45-degree angle, to hit enemies closer to you, you must execute it going up from a jump or going down. Cardinal Blade - FB(2x)+K Aahh...at last, a super you're going to exploit for eternity! Think of a shinryuken that you don't need to mash the buttons (8-Hits automatic), with better horizontal range, little startup time too. Basically a maxed shadow blade, this super has dragon punch priority and can be used as an anti-air. When you don't have a super, shadow blade, if you do, cardinal blade! Watch your enemies scream when they can't jump at you. But like all good things, it has its downsides. It is still vulnerable to steep jump-ins and will trade, most of the time leaving you with more damage taken. Do this when your enemies are directly ABOVE you. But at Lvl 3 it receives absolute invincibility. Darkness Illusion - JP,JP,F,SK,FP (air)(can only be done in Lvl 3) When I first saw this, in Darkstalkers 1, I was astounded; two Morrigans appear from both sides of your enemy and beat the hell outta your victim for 27-Hits! Since it's a Lvl3 super, it inflicts vicious damage on your opponent (not to mention psychological damage on the player). Did I mention that it goes fullscreen now? The good thing with this is that it's comboable! (we'll get into that later). IMO this is her best super and I use it all the time in combos. Master this and you've mastered Morrigan. It's also rumored to go through projectiles...hehehe...But one time it got smacked outta the air by Akuma's air fireball...WTF... ====SELECT YOUR GROOVE==== Here I'm going to include my opinions on the grooves when played with Morrigan, starting with what I use. The final decision will be up to you: *****N-GROOVE***** Well, IMHO, Morrigan thrives in N-groove. If you've played Darkstalkers 3 you can apply your techniques in this groove. Why? Have you forgotten that Morrigan has jet boosters (besides the fact she's got wings)? This means you can fly!!! Morrigan's run in N causes her to fly diagonally into the air. This would quicken your pace quite a bit but the HOPS (small jumps) in N will let you dominate. Why again you might ask? You can mix up flying then hopping then cross-upping then comboing then hopping then cross-upping...get the picture? Cool huh!? Plus you can roll in N to play in close quarters. If you get tired hoppin' around, rest by doing the soulfist-shadow blade trap. Cool huh!? Another benefit is that it only takes two stocks to do the Darkness Illusion as opposed to three(C-groove)so if you can combo the DI, you'll be unstoppable. *****C-GROOVE***** However, if you don't like the mobility options use C-groove. Air-blocking is definitely a plus. But the edge will be in canceling supers, basically level 2 into level 1. Try a level 2 cardinal blade into a level 1 super soulfist as an example. The drawback would be the loss of the run ability, though it may be slow, could be vital in positioning your next attacks. You'll have the dash which is like a run with sweep distance, but you can imitate this in N by running for just 1 second. The dash in my opinion is faster than her run so you be the judge. *****A-GROOVE***** Morrigan in A-Groove is weak. Since this groove relies on the Custom Combo System, I have yet to see a combo wherein Morrigan dishes out decent damage. Much like the shotos, she's got weak combos here, due to the fact that her moves and supers have little potential in custom comboing. However, the best I've seen is combo 8 below w/c does half of a life meter's damage (Morrigan and the victim are in ratio 2), unlike Rugal, whose potential in this groove is limitless, and averages about more than half of a life meter's damage. Maybe I have yet to discover one... *****P-GROOVE***** Like what other FAQs are trying to explain, in which I also agree, P is FOR EXPERTS ONLY. The power of this groove depends on your ability to parry. I've already seen a SF3rd Strike player struggle at parrying in CvSNK2. Parrying gives you an 'extra frame' wherein you can counter the attack of the opponent, allowing you to virtually shadow blade anybody. Just remember that an aggressive player is no match against a Morrigan who knows how to parry. Parry then combo, parry then shadow bladd, parry then DI... *****S-GROOVE***** Using Morrigan in S-Groove will be very different with N. The outstanding deviation will be the dodge feature exclusive to S. You cannot fly and roll but you can dodge instead! I believe that dodging is invincible to everything except to throws (much like rolling). If your gameplay constantly relies on having a super move at your disposal then you will loose Morrigan's aggresive edge here, though charging up your meter can force your opponent to make stupid mistakes. But when your life flashes red (how dare you!), she can become very deadly since super moves in S are the strongest damage-wise, she can cardinal blade the opponent anytime plus if you can charge up and do the DI, it will connect for lots of damage too. Come-back maneuvers will be very abused here. *****K-GROOVE***** Wouldn't it be nice if you can fill up your meter without doing anything (well, almost)? The K-groove allows you to do this with the Just Defend ability which you must, and I emphasize MUST incorporate into your play. Just Defending (blocking at the last possible moment) increases your meter DRASTICALLY and when full its slashin' time! Since Morrigan's moves have good priority, hitting the opponent when enraged deals massive damage. If you're the type of player who could read/memorize your opponents attack pattern then this groove is good for you, you can just defend a lot and get a full meter for free! This means Lvl 3 cardinal blades and more DIs from you! =====COMBOS====== Okay, here we come to the soul of fighting games: COMBOS! One thing to remember with Morrigan is that she can make chains out of her punches and kicks. Yes, that's right she's got nasty chains that won't leave you open. Her special moves are harder to combo with though. I'll try to include groove dependent combos too. The basic idea is: from weak to strong, remember that... 1. c.SK,c.SP,c.FK,c.RK/FP (4-Hits) 2. jump-in RK, c.JP,c.JP,c.FK,c.RK (5-Hits) 3. cross-up FK/FP, c.JP,c.JP,c.SK,c.FK,c.RK (6-Hits) - had this since Darkstalkers 3, a nice push away combo when blocked as well, practically all you'll ever need 4. jump-in FP, c.FK, Cardinal Blade (10-Hits) 5. (Lv 3 combo) cross-up FK/FP, c.JP,c.JP,F,SK,FP (30-Hits) -from Darkstalkers 3 as well 6. (Lv 3 combo) c.SP,s.JP,c.FP, Darkness Illusion - a little bit hard. I've got trouble doing it 7. (C-groove) jump-in deep RK, s.SK/c.FK, Lv2 Cardinal Blade, cancel into Lv1 Super Soulfist/Soulfist 8. (A-groove) when the opponent jumps at you, activate custom combo mode and do a shadow blade, then cancel it into a roll(JP+SK), you'll be where your opponent is falling then shadow blade him again, cancel the shadow blade again into the roll...you get the picture? :) Do this until the meter is almost out then do a cardinal blade. (13-15 Hits) - I've seen this at the arcades, it's very fun to watch...:) 9. (A-groove) at the corner activate custom combo mode and shadow blade 3-5 times, s.JP, j.SP, do 4 air soulfists and do a super air soulfist (13-Hits) 10. cross-up FK, close s.RK, Darkness Illusion (31+ Hits) - you've got to be fast for this one. Canceling the close RK is a little tricky. If your foe is bigger (ie Zangief, Raiden etc., add a s.JP and s.SK before the close RK From NurikoChan01@hotmail.com for the consoles "However, if you use the selection 'Cancel any move' with your groove, Morrigan has a nice little combo. Just combo into her shadow blade, and from there you can cancel into her air super soul bat. It's not her most damging combo, but it looks pretty cool and requires a good amount of timing to execute properly." ----->more to come... ====BATTLEPLAN==== 1. First and foremost, DO NOT PSYCHIC THE SHADOW BLADE. Yes it has great range and priority but if it gets blocked, its useless. This is a common mistake by players with anti-air moves (Ryu, Akuma, Guile etc.) that the move becomes too second-nature. If your opponent jumps abuse it though. 2. Do not throw soulfists at mid-screen distance! This is your ticket into instant death, and don't compete with Kyosuke's Cross Cutter by the way, you'll lose. The game allows a long jump remember? Throw it from far away or when your foe is rising up. Throw soulfists at different speeds and try to dash in while it's still there. 3. Exploit the air! Morrigan owns the air, mind you (N-groove). Fly around, confuse your opponents with the hops, rolls, and running. Mix them up and don't put a pattern on your attacks. Repeated tactics will definitely get countered eventually. Do not throw air soulfists when your opponent has the run or roll ability. They'll be waiting to smack you outta the air when you're about to land. 4. Tired of moving around? Play keep away! You've got a fireball and an uppercut, duh! The same rules apply as with the shotokans. 5. Grab a roller. Do not be afraid to grab someone who rolls very often or use the Vector Drain instead. They'll think twice, you'll see. 6. If you have the tactical recovery or safe fall ability, use them. Its real purpose is on ruining your opponents timing. Wouldn't it be nice to destroy your opponents jump-in timing and attack on your own? Play a nice little game of psychological warfare... 7. Small jumps are abusable. A Morrigan with hops can be a pain when done with a FK since it can poke. Its pretty hard to effectively time anti-airs during cross-ups and small jumps. 8. Exploit the standing SP. It is just recently that I've discovered it's priority. You can probably hit your unsuspecting opponent with at the start of the round! The range is pretty deceiving. It is LONG and FAST! Try throwing a jab soulfist and when your opponent rolls do the SP I'm sure they'll get hit by it. Now you can start competing with Blanka a bit. Hit a missed ball with this: hold forward first and tap SP, they'll be afraid of doing it again. 9. Sick of meaty attacks and foes throwing a projectile before you stand up? If you have a Lvl 3, execute the Darkness Illusion as you stand up. A little hard? you'll get the hang of it. To improve your play, you're gonna need to play a bit like a shoto. Notice them doing a c.JP, c.FK into hadouken? you can do this too, though the soulfist won't connect. Try doing this only when your chains get blocked. Example, the 3rd Combo above: if you're enemy is blocking it cut it after the 2 c.JPs pause for half a second do a c.FK into a soulfist. This won't work if you don't pause for a half second so take note of that. And for a general rule, you can't two-in-one into special moves from chains, just cancel from them, supers yes, but specials, no. If you're using N do not be predictable at flying into your foe. Take Sagat. You do a soulfist, Sagat blocks, and you decide to chase the soulfist by flying and kicking. Afterwards you see yourself in the air receiving a 5-hit Tiger Blow. What's wrong? Your enemy has enough time to execute a fast anti-air if you're not there after the soulfist's out. Also use cornertraps. If you have your enemy in the corner, do the meaty ground chain, if it's blocked cut it again like above. After the soulfist's out do a s.SP (remember how fast this normal is) then cancel into the soulfist. Again if the enemy gets hit by the s.SP he won't get hit by the soulfist and just be able to block it. Then try doing fast Shell Kicks. Move around and hop around(if in N). Maybe by now he'll want to jump so do a s.RK. By now you might've depleted more than 1/4 of your enemy's guard meter. I know Haohmaru does a better job but you won't sue me for trying now? You'll probably be using ground chains as part of your main strategy and if you do get the first hit in, first things first, ask yourself: am I in range for a 5-hit combo? should I cut it down to 4 or 3-hits? Be able to judge your distances and don't insist on a long combo that you can't finish. ------------>more to come... *********CREDITS************* Me, myself and I for creating this faq Capcom for creating this crazy game! SNK for the plethora of cool characters! My arcade opponents for unconsciously training me while playing with them...hehehe... My brother for being an arcade addict such as myself Gamefaqs for publishing my first ever faq!!! Thanks to those who e-mailed me: Roger, Josh etc. And God of course