Street Fighter EX 3 Vulcano Rosso In-Depth FAQ - Version 1.1 April 26, 2003 By: Jester - Damien Miele neoavalon.com STANDARD DISCLAIMER This FAQ is the sole property of Jester (Damien Miele) and can not be reprinted without my consent. You, the reader, are not allowed to take, duplicate, or edit this document without my consent. Don't publish it, don't claim it for your own, and don't plagiarize. Thank You CONTENTS ========================================================== I. OVERALL CHARACTER ANALYSIS II. BASIC MOVELIST III. IN-DEPTH TECHNIQUE ANALYSIS IV. SPECIAL THANKS AND SHOUT OUTS ========================================================== I. OVERALL CHARACTER ANALYSIS ============================== Rosso is what I can best describe as the epitome of rushdown. You want to be in your opponents face at all times, closing the distance whenever possible, and leaving zero room for them to breathe. Speed and deception are your main tools for making openings and landing big damage combos. Forcing the opponent to block the wrong way or simply frustrating the hell out of them is the key to playing Rosso effectively. One of the harder characters to master, much time will be needed to understand and execute all that Rosso has to offer. II. BASIC MOVELIST ================ A. Legend -------------- D, U, B, F = Down, Up, Back, Foward LP, LK = Light Punch, Light Kick MP, MK = Medium Punch, Medium Kick HP, HK = Hard Punch, Hard Kick QCF = Quarter Circle Foward (D, D/F, F) QCB = Quarter Circle Back (D, D/B, B) HCF = Half Circle Foward (B, D/B, D, D/F, F) HCB = Half Circle Back (F, D/F, D, D/B, B) DP = Dragon Punch Motion (F, D, DF) BDP = Backwards Dragon Punch Motion (B, D, DB) PPP = LP+MP+HP KKK = LK+MK+HK B. THROWS ---------------- Digestivo (LP+LK) - Rosso's only standard throw, nothing special here. C. SURPRISE BLOW --------------------------- Represso (MP+MK) - Rosso’s Surprise Blow has decent range, but is extremely slow and cannot be combo-ed from a normal or special. I use this move once in a blue moon. D. SPECIAL MOVES --------------------------- Vesuvio (QCF+P~F+P~F+K) - A three hit series consisting of 2 punches followed by a jumping kick. This is Rosso’s main offensive tool and the center of his combos/ground games. The first hit will leave you at safe distance even if blocked, but the second will leave you quite vulnerable unless you cancel into a Torre Pendante or a Momentary. The third will you leave you at the greatest disadvantage before and after if blocked. I STRONGLY suggest avoiding the third hit unless you are certain the first two connect. I have seen everything from ground based combos to FABs landed on Rosso during the long wind up animation during the third hit. Even if you manage to get the hit out and they block, your opponent can easily retaliate when you land. Vulcan (QCB+P) - Rosso’s version of a projectile. It may seem worthless at first due to its extremely limited range, but it’s one of Rosso’s most useful tools. It can be used to negate projectiles, but its real strength lies in its ability to hold your opponent in block stun while you prepare your next attack. The best time to utilize the Vulcan is while your opponent is getting up; a HP Vulcan done early enough on a rising opponent will guarantee you the block stun trap. I have even seen the Vulcan take priority over supers that are buffered from the rising animation. Aeolus (PPP) and Etna (K) - A nice little tricky move that has several purposes. Rosso does a little hop that goes straight up from the neutral position, and be directed F or B by holding the desired direction. The hop portion of the move can be used to travel safely over projectiles if timed properly, and the kick portion will hit crouching opponents. I don't use this move all too often except as a Momentary. Although overheads are generally useful IMO, this one is not quite fast enough, and your opponent will recognize it rather quickly. Etna has nice super canceling properties, and even if blocked, you will be safe from most retaliation, granted that you use the neutral or B version of Aeolus. Regalo - The first of Rosso’s counters comes in the form of his projectile counter. Rosso will stick his palm out and if timed properly it will absorb the opponent’s projectile followed by an extremely fast palm thrust. Again, I don't use this move all that often due to its poor recovery. Even if you manage to absorb the projectile, if your opponent is too far, Rosso will still execute the palm thrust and whiff it completely. What you have to do is be 100% sure your opponent is going to throw a projectile and do the Regalo early - this will better your chances for a successful follow up hit and not leave you in its long whiff recovery time. Another nice thing about this move is that it also has super canceling properties. If you manage to land the palm thrust, a Torre Pendante can be tacked on after it. This is a nice combo and also a safety net if they manage to block. One other unique ability the Regalo has is that it can absorb super projectiles like the Shinku Hadouken, and the palm strike will still come out. Also, you can absorb a fully charged Psycho Cannon and retaliate, but I don't suggest doing this as Bison will recover while Rosso is still absorbing it, but it does look cool. Sciara Del Fuoco (QCF+K) - Probably Rosso’s second most important move, this is IMO what really defines Rosso and his style. Not so much a teleport, but more of a dash. The kick strength used determines how far Rosso will travel. You can be hit or thrown out of this move at any point, but buffering it from a normal or using it as a Momentary fixes that. Your opponent will only be able to retaliate after you have dashed, allowing you to position yourself safely and, hopefully, accurately. Its main purposes are to trick your opponent into blocking the wrong way, allowing you an opening to combo and also to close the gap between you and your opponent as quickly as possible. As stated earlier, you want to be in your opponent’s face most of the time, and the Sciara Del Fuoco does just that. Canasa (QCB+K) - Rosso’s manual counters. The kick strength used corresponds to each type of normal attack you want to counter: LK for air, MK for ground, and HK for low. You can super cancel after a successful Canasa, but make sure to use an appropriate super to complement it depending on which strength you use. (More on this later) E. SUPER COMBOS -------------------------- Ponte Dei Sospiri (QCFx2+P) - Your basic multi hit ground super. Due to its horrible recovery time, I don't use it to too much outside of super canceling or in combos, but it does have some decent priority over other ground based supers. It will go over sweep attempts nicely also, and can be used to attack after slow recovery moves, but again, it’s a bit risky. Accelerando (QCBx2+K) - Rosso’s second multi-hit ground super. Pretty worthless outside of combos, it has the same priority as the Ponte Dei Sospiri, but much less range. It does have one specific use that I will explain later, though. Torre Pendante (QCBx2+P) - A large pillar of fire, easily Rosso’s best super. It’s safe to throw this move out due to its height and its angle. If blocked, you are safe from any retaliation, making this move a nice safety net. Use it in conjunction with your Vesuvio games whether it’s in a combo or not and also as a guaranteed safe way to tag out for both Rosso and his partner. F. METEOR COMBO ----------------------------- Quattro Panorami (QCFx2+KKK) - Rosso's Meteor comes in the form of a special throw. I can best describe this super as average since it doesn't have the range of a FAB, but it does take priority over any ground normals and even some supers. There are a few reliable ways to set this move up, but none are guaranteed. (More on this later) G. MOMENTARY COMBOS ------------------------------------- Momentary Punch - Aeolus Momentary Kick - Sciara Del Fuoco H. CRITICAL PARADE ------------------------------- Accelerando - Use the Critical Parade in any place you would that super. I don't use Critical Parades much, IMO, since it's a waste of super bar for Rosso. If you do decide to use it, do multiple Accelerandos for hefty damage, and try to have a partner with a QCFx2+K super to compliment it. III. IN-DEPTH TECHNIQUE ANALYSIS ============================== Rosso is quite a complicated character to master. You have to rely heavily on Momentaries, evasion tactics, and deception. I'll try my best to describe some standard Rosso tactics I have found to be most effective. Keep in mind that these should be your building blocks for playing. As I said, you must rely on deception, and changing your patterns and set ups at all times is essential. A. NORMAL MOVES ---------------------------- Crouching MK - Excellent range, decent speed, good priority. This is Rosso’s main normal to 2 in 1 off of and to start most of his combos. You can, of course, link a crouching MP before it, but I recommend doing so only when close, or after a successful jumping attack. When on the ground and starting your strings, crouching MK will get you the best results due to its excellent range. Standing MP - A nice little "swat" type move. It has decent speed and good priority, good for poking and annoying. It also advances Rosso which is always nice for spacing and/or pressuring. Crouching MP - I don't use it too much, but it does have some unique properties worth mentioning. When in poking games, some moves such as Zangief's crouching HK can be struck with a well placed crouching MP. It has high priority when exchanging certain pokes, and also takes out moves like Psycho Crusher, Claw Roll, and a few others. Jumping HK - An excellent 2 hit jumping attack, Rosso rules any air exchanges with this move. Rosso kicks at an awkward downward angle allowing you to hit HK at the peak of his jump. This gives you a much broader window to time your attack since it doesn't have to be as precise as, say Ryu's jumping HK would be. Standing HK - A long range and surprisingly fast spin kick. I use this move to keep advancing opponents back, and also in certain combo situations. Crouching HK - A slide move with bad recovery is done too close, but it sets spacing nicely if you hit with the tips of his toes. Also, it goes right under projectiles and most super projectiles nicely, which allows a free hit and an opportunity to start your pressure tactics. B. ANTI-AIR ----------------- Since Rosso should be in your face at all times, you need not worry too much about jumping opponents. If you find yourself in the need of a quick air counter, simply use a LK Canasa. This is guaranteed and will also allow for a free 2 hit jumping HK, or Torre Pendante. Be cautious though, as most people will adapt and try jumping in with nothing leaving Rosso stuck in the missed Canasa animation. If this starts to happen, simply time a hopping HK, 9 times out of 10 you will take priority with it. C. GROUND GAMES AND STRINGS ------------------------------------------------- Now to the meat of matters: I'll try and dissect Rosso’s many ground games and strings in this section. Like I said earlier though, you have to change up the patterns constantly to keep your opponent off guard. This will hopefully give you the foundation for setting up traps of your own. The core of Rosso’s game starts with the first two hits of Vesuvio into a momentary HK. This should be the first string you master. I suggest poking with crouching MK into it; this will give you a good anchor and leave you at a relatively safe distance. What this does is not only make the first two hits of Vesuvio safe, but it also puts you behind the opponent very quickly. Most newbs, and even some vets that aren't accustomed to this style of play are going to be in a world of hurt. Your opponent has to block immediately in the opposite direction after blocking the 2 hit Vesuvio. This set up leads to multiple options and also puts the opponent on the defensive, allowing you time to think of your next attack. Once your opponent starts seeing what is happening, they will begin to block the other way. So, what is one to do? This is where your creativity comes into play. If you have the opponent trained into blocking the opposite direction, substitute the HK momentary for a MK momentary. If done from the proper distance, you will dash directly in front of them, as opposed to behind them. Instinctively, your opponent will be blocking the wrong way and you have just gained yet another psychological edge. At this point, they have to guess which position to adopt, which put them on the defensive yet again. If your opponent is still craving more rushdown and has somehow managed to adapt to those games, you simply turn it up yet another notch. Let’s say you have been doing crouch MK, Vesuvio 2 hits, Momentary HK, then from behind another string of your choice, but they are still blocking. What you do now that your opponent is accustomed to, and can recognize your Vesuvio/Momentary games, is simply start implementing regular Sciara Del Fuocos. For instance, say they block two volleys of strings both consisting of momentary kicks. What you do is instead of following up with a Vesuvio to Momentary is do an immediate QCF+HK or MK to break up the rhythm. Since your opponent has the mental capacity to react to your Vesuvio/Momentary on command, throwing out a second Sciara Del Fuoco is going to throw his timing off completely, leaving you yet again with more games to use. Keep in mind that tossing in some crouching MK into Sciara Del Fuocos will set yet another pace and pattern for them to learn. If by some miracle the victim has grown to defend against all of this, you have yet another option. Mix in some Momentary punch Aeolus~Etna. If you have been using crouching attacks to 2 in 1 off of the whole time, your opponent is used to blocking low at all times. Putting an overhead into the traps is just one more bullet for them to dodge. It’s not quite fast enough to cause real panic, but if you have them on the defensive, they should be so worried about your momentary and dashing games that this little nuisance just might make them crack. Ok, let’s review now: Vesuvio 2 hits into Momentary kick and punch MUST be mastered. If you happen to goof on the momentary will you either have to face retaliation, or waste a super bar for a Torre Pendante safety net. Use Sciara Del Fuoco by itself, or combo-ed from a crouching attack in your strings, and remember that it throws patterns and timings off. Some other things I forgot to mention you might want to try are mixing up throws between your strings. Jump straight up with HK after a Sciara Del Fuoco, and if you are daring, try doing psychic Canasas for even more mind control, and more importantly, for style. ;) D. SET UPS AND MISCELLANEOUS ------------------------------------------------- As mentioned earlier, the Vulcan is a great meaty attack that should be used on rising opponents. Try doing a HP Vulcan early, then a MP Vulcan immediately after. This will combo if the HP one connects, and if blocked, both will cause hefty chip damage. Some options you have if it connects are to immediately link a crouching MK into a combo or even a jumping attack into combo if you are fast enough. If they block, you can try doing things like crouch MP into yet another MP Vulcan to further the pressure, or put an Aeolous~Etna in there for overhead pressure as well. Remember; don't let them breathe for even a second! If you find yourself at full screen distance and can't seem to get close, try doing multiple LK Sciara Del Fuocos in a row to get your opponent nervous. Sometimes it forces them to make mistakes due to your abnormal and sporadic movement. This is more of a mind game and shouldn't be used all that often, but I throw it out for fun sometimes, or if I'm bored. After a 3 Vesuvio or Torre Pendante, immediately start doing HK Sciara Del Fuocos to close the gap even before the opponent is able to rise. What this does is leaves them zero room to regain their composure, and more importantly, itt cancels the full screen running animation after such moves. This is extremely important to remember as it removes the hassle of trying to get close to your opponent to continue your assault. If you connect with a LK Canasa late on a jumping opponent, Rosso will take them down to the ground first, then hit them. After he hits them, you can combo into a crouching MK and follow up. After a blocked Torre Pendante up close, you can walk forward and do a crouch MK before they can recover from the block stun. E. WAYS TO SET UP THE QUATTRO PANORAMI --------------------------------------------------------------------- After a blocked HP Vulcan, do a Sciara Del Fuoco manually or by way of momentary, and then do the Meteor immediately. The Vulcan block stun should just be ending by the time you finish the dash leaving very little time for your opponent to react. If you are being attacked while getting up, buffer the Meteor in while rising, it will go through any normals, most specials, and even some supers. After a successful crouch MK, Vesuvio 1 hit, Tag, do the Meteor. Most people when being combo-ed, especially during a Tag combo will block. Although this is not a true combo, most of the time they just stand there and attempt to block leaving them standing there for the Meteor to connect. After a blocked Vesuvio 1hit, hesitate for a split second and do the Meteor. If they attempt any normal or special you will grab them right out of it. This will also work after a 1 hit Vesuvio that connects, but you will be closer to them and you must wait a half second longer before buffering the motion in. Keep in mind ALL these set ups can easily be escaped by jumping straight up just like a normal throw, so be careful when attempting them to avoid retaliation. F. COMBOS ---------------- Most of these combos can be started with a jumping attack, or can have the crouch MP, crouch MK chain in them, and in most cases, Vulcans come before them. Also keep in mind you can use some of these as Tag combo enders. Crouch MK, Vesuvio 2 hits, Momentary HK, jumping HK Rosso’s bread and butter combo. Use it often for good damage and to build meter fast. A small note about this combo I should mention is this. You can put a crouching MP between the Momentary HK and jumping HK, but there are a few rules that I should mention. If you are facing the opponents back after the Momentary, you must hit the crouch MP EXTREMELY early for the jumping HK to connect. If you are attacking the opponent’s front after the Momentary, a crouch MP into jumping HK is very easy. To start out, I suggest using just the jumping HK on a backwards opponent until you see the timing of the crouch MP that is required. Crouch MK, Vesuvio 2 hits, Momentary HK, standing HK, Torre Pendante Just an extension of the first combo - if you have super bar, do this instead. Aeolus~Etna, Super If blocked, I suggest doing the Torre Pendante to keep a safe distance. If you are close and it connects, I suggest using Accelerando. After successful Regalo Torre Pendante You can super cancel into a Ponte Dei Sospiri, and then into another Torre Pendante if you like, but the damage isn't worth the super bar used. HP Vulcan, MP Vulcan, crouch MK...... One of my favorites when it connects - hefty damage and looks cool. Crouch MK, Vesuvio 2 hits, Torre Pendante A little EX2 style. ;) Crouch MK, Vesuvio 1 hit, Ponte Dei Sospiri, Accelerando, Ponte Dei Sospiri, Accelerando..... Needless to say, your partner must die to execute this combo with the aid of the 6 bars you can potentially have. Crouch MK, Vesuvio 1 hit, Tag, standing HK, Accelerando The MOST important combo you will ever use. I can't stress enough how often you should do this combo. With only 1 super bar, Rosso demonstrates why he is arguably the best partner for any character. This combo can easily do 50% plus damage depending on your partner and how many bars they have. Rosso holds the opponent long enough for your partner to do any combo of his or her choice. In most cases 2 jumping HK/HPs can be landed by the partner before starting the ground portion of their combo. Here are some of my favorite follow ups to this devastating set up: All these are done as soon as control is given to your partner while the Accelerando is hitting. Ken: jumping HK, jumping HK, standing HK, Shippu Jinrai Kyaku Garuda: jumping HK, standing HK, Soukondan (Hold kick) Blanka: jumping HK, standing HK, Super Electricity Dhalsim: jumping HP, Yoga Drill Kick, jumping HP, Yoga Drill Kick These are just a few possibilities. As you can see, many combos are possible. I was going to include a character specific strategy section, but I really don't have the time to do one for each character, and I feel I could only give accurate ones for maybe half the roster. IV. SPECIAL THANKS AND SHOUT OUTS ================================= Nekki Basara - Thanks for editing this FAQ, for introducing me to EX3 in the first place, and especially for the MANY devoted hours spent on match play alone. Gen - I hate your Bison when I am forced to fight against it, but I'm relieved when you're my partner. Many thanks also for the countless hours spent on match play with the rest of NA. Sensei - For his devoted time also spent at my house playing EX3 early into the morning, our meets are just not the same when your Zangief isn't present. I hope we get to see the Jester/Sensei team tear it up overseas next year. ;) Ultima - Thanks for being such an awesome friend and giving us good CvS2 competition. Thanks also for being one of the few people who actually enjoy discussing boxing with me in great detail. Shinji - For editing my last vid, and for helping me with numerous broken files. (He must wanna kill me if I ask for help again. ^_^) Doc - For making NeoAvalon and bringing our small EX community together. Doc is the man! Sorry if I forgot anyone, but many thanks to you, the readers, for taking the time to read this FAQ, and for actually taking interest in EX3. I hope more people realize what a great game it is and how much depth it actually has. If you have any questions regarding this FAQ, Rosso, or anything EX3 related, please feel free to contact me on http://www.neoavalon.com Jester out