Game Engine, Tips, and How to Play Vs FAQ

Version 1.0 (Note: This guide is based on information gained from the test-builds presented by namco at events. Any changes in retail version will be reflected in an update thread asap)

This FAQ and general gameplay tips guide is made for all the new people (and older players who want to brush up on basics.) Please do not post until I have finished posting everything up, and please give credit to me (Nyawu) and 8wayrun.com (most detailed info is gathered from there) if you decide to copy this somewhere. Thanks.

Preface: Why bother getting better?
One may ask him or herself “Why should I bother learning how to play a fighting game? I don’t want to take things so -seriously-, I just want to have fun!” Well, in my personal experience, learning how to play (and play against people) in a fighting game is one of the most fun you can have with the genre.

I enjoy single player content as much as the next guy, but there comes to a point where I seen all the endings, I played all the extra mods... now I have a game where I have done everything... except to explore all that the game’s engine has to offer (The developers spent their sweat and blood making it!) In terms of the amount of content, exploring the fighting overwhelms the single player content exponentially. You can “beat” a fighting game in less than a week, but learning a character’s move properties, combos, setups, matchups... now that can entertain someone for -years-.

Imagine a game where, every match, your opponent finds something new for you to fight against, in which then you find something better or a way to get around it, and your opponent in turn figures out something new, back and forth. It’s like a game with infinite levels, each more creative, deep, and intense than the last. The fun never ends because the game itself never ends. That is why I hope you, the reader, will discover the joys of a fighting game, a game where, if you focus your efforts towards improvement, there is always something new to discover. If that isn’t your cup of tea, very well, that’s fine. If it sounds appealing to you, read on. Hope this guide helps you a little on the way - Nyawu

Table of Contents:
Use Ctrl+f with the (Codes) to skip to each section
1. What does 33A, FC B+K, BT etc mean? (TMNG)
- Let’s start with the directional inputs
- Now for the buttons
- Misc
2. Hit Levels (HITL)
- Hit Level “rules”
- Throws
3. Meter system, Brave/ Critical Edge, Guard Impact (MBJG)
4. Teching/Ukemi, Rolling (TKUM)
5. Just Frames (JFLS)
6. Just Defend (JDVC)
7. Definition of “Combo” (KMBO)
- Juggle
- Air Control
- Stun Combos
8. Guard Burst (GBCF)
9. General vs mode & Play tips AKA "How to improve" (LVUP)
---
Get ready for Soul Calibur V Day 1 stream! 1/31/2012 @ twitch.tv/nyawu
http://sfcalibur.blogspot.com/ | PSN: Nyawu

1. What does 33A, FC B+K, BT etc mean? (TMNG)
Before you read this FAQ, it is important to first know the conventions that Soul Calibur players use when describing moves. It may seem weird at first, but it is a universal (PS3 OR 360), organized, and consistent way to ‘talk’ Soul Calibur.

Instead we are like the Blazblue and VF communities where we use numbers for directions instead. Using HCF (Half Circle Forward) and QCF (Quarter Circle Forward) is ok, but avoid using directions that may confuse input with the buttons.

===
Let’s start with the directional inputs.

Control Layout:

7 8 9
4 N 6
1 2 3

1 = Back Down
2 = Down
3 = Down Forward
4 = Back
N(or 5) = Neutral
6 = Forward
7 = Back Up
8 = Up
9 = Up Forward

Which means basically, those are the 8 directions + Neutral (which means not pressing any direction). This assumes you are facing right. If you are facing left, then just flip it around. If you have trouble memorizing it, you can always look at any standard keyboard's number pad.


===
Now for the buttons:

G = Guard Button
A = Horizontal Slash Button
B = Vertical Slash Button
K = Kick Button

Default mapping to a 360 controller would be:

A = G
X = A
Y = B
B = K

===
Misc
WC = While Crouching (Some may use FC, or Fully Crouched)
WS = While Standing (up from a crouch. In other words, hold guard+2 until you are crouching, then release. The brief moment you are standing up, that is WS)
WJ = While Jumping (during jumping up)
WL = While Landing (landing after a jump)
FC = Forced Crouch/Fully Crouched

SS = Sidestep (tap a side direction -once-)
QS = Quick Step (double tap up or down)
SW = Side Walk (tap and -hold- a side direction)
8WR = 8 Way Run. Holding direction to run in that direction. To do an actual sidestep, tap 7_8_9_1_2_3. To sidestep then 8WR, tap, then hold the direction.

Namco's Tutorial on Quick Step: http://youtu.be/_ZS_TrHRYq4

Sidesteping in someways is like jumping in Street Fighter. Doing it too much will get you killed, but doing it when you "know" the next hit is dodgeable may net you an advantage. Start out with the 2d basics first, and then worry about stepping.

BT = Back Turned/Towards (Your back towards an opponent)
TC/TJ = Tech Crouch (Moves that "duck" over high moves)/ TJ = Tech Jump (Moves that "jump" over low moves)
JF = Just Frame (requires strict timing)
AC = Air Control (See Combo section)
aGI = Auto GI
GB = Guard Break (Moves with blue hit effects; forces opponent to have extended guard stagger)
CS/SS = In the context of Ivy, her throws. Summon Suffering/Calamity Symphony
EWGF = In the context of Devil Jin style, Electric Wind God Fist (Uppercut)
iMCF = In the context of Yoshimitsu, instant Manji Carve Fist (flashing low punch)
iGDR = In the context of Cervantes, instant Geo Da Ray (flashing psycho crusher)
CD/WD = In the context of characters like Pyrrha, Crouch Dash/Wave Dash

[ ] = Hold
_ = or
: = Just Frame input (strict timing hits)
+ = Together
, = Followed by (B,K = push B, after that, push K)

Small letter case followed by capital: Slide input; input very quickly. For example, aA refers to taping the A button followed by another press quickly, while AA refers to just pushing A, then another A.

Like wise, aB means to push the A button then slide quickly to the B button. Sometimes people will use "~" As slide input also, for example, A~B = aB.
---
Get ready for Soul Calibur V Day 1 stream! 1/31/2012 @ twitch.tv/nyawu
http://sfcalibur.blogspot.com/ | PSN: Nyawu

CH = Counter Hit. (hitting somebody while they are doing a move/running can result in CH, usually higher damage or additional hit properties like launching, tripping, or stunning)
NC = Natural Combo (strings of moves like basic AAs or BBs that naturally combos after the first hit connects and cannot be blocked after)
NcC = Natural Combo on Counterhit (Like NC, but requires a CH to naturally combo)

===
2. Hit Levels: (HITL)

H = Hits High
M = Hits Mid
L = Hits Low
SM = Hits Special Mid
SL = Hits Special Low
SH = Hits Special High
UB = Unblockable

To do a "standing" guard, hold G.
To do a "crouching" guard, hold 2+G.
To jump, hold guard, and push 7 or 8 or 9.

-How hit levels work:

High attacks can be ducked, and can be blocked standing.
Mid attacks hits people crouching, and can only be blocked standing
Low attacks can hit people standing, and can only be guarded low.
Special mid can be guarded standing or crouching. (like generic 2A quick slashes)
Special Low is the same, but you can jump over them.
Special Highs negate other moves TC properties.

Note that high moves can also be ‘ducked’ by doing a move that has TC (crouching) properties and likewise, low moves can be ‘jumped’ over by moves that has TJ (jumping) properties.

Unblockables are... well, unblockable. Though some UBs only hit high, enabling you to duck, and some hits low, enabling you to jump over them, some does not track, so you can sidestep around, etc.You cannot Guard Impact an unblockable.

There maybe one or two other weird rules in place, but generally that's mostly what you need to know.
---
Get ready for Soul Calibur V Day 1 stream! 1/31/2012 @ twitch.tv/nyawu
http://sfcalibur.blogspot.com/ | PSN: Nyawu

Throws

Normal A+G and B+G throws are considered “High”
There are also character specific crouch throws that targets crouching opponents. Those are usually preformed by doing 2A+G or 2B+G, and some even have ground throws.

To escape A+G throws (or special throws that requires “A” escape), push A when the throw “arms” just connects with your Character. For B+G throws, push B.
Note that if you push A+B together, it will result in an "A" break, NOT both.

Breaking a throw late will result in your character landing on their behind for a brief moment, as well as the lost of a little life. You can break throws from all directions except for backthrows... which also has an exception for Voldo, as he’s the only one who can break backthrows as well.

===
3. Meter system, Brave Edge (Ex moves), Critical Edge (Supers), and Guard Impact (MBJG)

New to Soul Calibur V is the meters next to the character's life bars. It can fill to two levels (200%).

How to gain meter:

-You gain meter by doing things you would normally do in a match, such as hitting your attacks, getting counterhits, techrolling, breaking throws, just-guarding, etc.
-If your opponent wins two rounds out of the three, you also get 100% (one level) meter for free in the start of the next round. Same thing goes for your opponent if you win 2 rounds.

Brave Edge: Extended versions of some of your character's moves. Do so by pushing A+B+K directly after the input of the move. Uses half Meter level (50%)

Critical Edge: A "Super" for your character. Done by 236236A+B+K. Some does raw damage, some does an auto GI, some are throws, depends on your character. Uses 1 Meter (100%)
-Namco's Tutorial video on Critical Edge: http://youtu.be/Ebaw83w2R9o

Guard Impacts: A counter that "repels" an attack. Done by 4A+B+K. Takes half a meter, on hit or wiff. (50%)

Guard Impact rules: If you are GI'd by somebody, you can attempt to GI back by using 50% of your own meter. You cannot GI unblockables or Critical Edges, and GIing an airborn opponent results in them flipping helplessly into the air.

Players of older SC games maybe freaking out over GI taking meter now, but don't worry. As you can see in this clip, a GI in some ways is alot more effective (it GIs h/m/l now.) If you can get it, if the other person don’t have meter to GI back, your follow ups are now guaranteed they can’t GI back.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xxk1P0U2P24#t=3m23s
Where as in the older game, taking alot of risk to do a GI, which leaves you completely open if missed, for no actual guaranteed damage. If you also want to bet 150% of your meter, you may also try GI into Critical Edge as well.

***Note: Auto GI, or moves with a GI built in, still functions like in older games. They don't take meter, but you can't use them to cancel out of a post GI'd stun like a normal GI, nor can someone GI back if they have been aGI. Because they don't take meter and can't (usually) be blocked or GI back, auto GI moves tend to only impact specific attacks, such as only verticals, horizontals, highs, mids, lows, etc.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xxk1P0U2P24#t=11m34s
There is an example of autoGI being used. Take note of them if your character has one.
---
Get ready for Soul Calibur V Day 1 stream! 1/31/2012 @ twitch.tv/nyawu
http://sfcalibur.blogspot.com/ | PSN: Nyawu

4. Teching/Ukemi, rolling (TKUM)
When you are knocked off the ground, you can quickly get back up by pushing G just as you are hitting the ground. You can also “tech roll” towards the background by pushing 8G, or towards the foreground by 2G.

Note that after teching there is a brief moment of time when you are vulnerable to additional hits and low throws, so sometimes it’s better to take that one ground hit and get knocked back away a bit more, then get back up safely. Setups that takes advantage of the post-tech vulnerability are called "tech traps".

You can also roll on the ground by pushing 8 or 2, evading linear attacks while staying grounded. This is useful to get around an opponent attacking while you’re getting up.

===
5. Just Frame (JFLS)
Just Frames are moves that require specific timing. They can be moves that have better properties like better recovery, more damage, or they can be full extensions of moves. To get them down, you must first learn the proper timing, and then practice and practice until you can get them down.

Just Frames “Flash” white when you do them correctly, sometimes with extra flame effects.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAoshLrtbh4#t=21m58s
In that example at 21m58s, Pyrrha is seen doing her 236B Just Frame. As you can see, instead of just a stab, she goes into a special flame animation after.

===
6. Just Defend (JDVC)
Like Just Frames, Just Defend are blocks which happens if you -tap- guard at perfect timing. What would happen is your character will flash blue, and the move that you Just Defended will go right through you instead of forcing you into the block animation. This allows you to move much sooner than if you would of blocked normally, allowing you to either punish or mount your offense right away. For attacks that hits multiple times really fast, you’ll auto JD all the hits with one JD, but for normal attacks like AAs and BBs, you still have to manually JD each hit.

As you can see in this clip, at 8m11s ZEWI did a just defend and countered:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKaW-vbGiTI#t=8m11s

You can even Just Defend Critical Edge supers!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xxk1P0U2P24#t=15m53s

Notice the large chunk of gauge you gain per JI:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsVcsnt2yfY#t=2m41s
---
Get ready for Soul Calibur V Day 1 stream! 1/31/2012 @ twitch.tv/nyawu
http://sfcalibur.blogspot.com/ | PSN: Nyawu

7. Definition of “Combo” (KMBO)

There is always newbie confusion to what is a combo and what is not, and it’s one of the first things one has to learn before getting better at the game.

“A combo is a series of 2 or more moves in which ALL of the hits are guaranteed after the first. In other words... If the opponent gets hit by the first hit of the combo, the rest of the following attacks will hit regardless of what the opponent does. The opponent CANNOT block or avoid the followup hits.”

So in other words, randomly doing a long series of moves one after another does not mean it’s a “combo". By doing just a "string" of moves that your oppn can block half way through, the rest of the hits will... well... not hit. Beware that the in-game combo counter in practice mode may not always be correct... sometimes it's very open to what counts as a "combo", even when there are ways to get out.

So, what are some basic examples of combos?
Mitsurugi: AA (Basic example of an NC)
Lexia: CH AAB (Basic example of an NCC)

To refresh your mind:

NC = Natural Combo (strings of moves like basic AAs or BBs that naturally combos after the first hit connects)
NcC = Natural Combo on Counterhit (Like NC, but requires additional CH to naturally combo, noted usually by red flash)

-Juggle: A combo That is done after launching your opponent in the air.

Example:
Mitsurugi: 3B, 236B.
Mitsurugi launches the oppn into the air with 3B, and while he is helpless in the air, Mitsu hits him with a 236B.

Another example:
Pyrrha: 3B, 236236A+B+K
Pyrrha hits the opponent into the air, and then activates her Critical Edge super.

-Air Control:

Note that for juggle combos, usually after the first air hit, the person being juggle can do something called Air Control. That means by holding a direction while in the air, you can move yourself towards that direction. This prevents attempting long series of air hits from being an actual combo (so you can’t do 3B, A,A,A,A,A repeat until ring out.)

The only exception is when a hit causes something called an air spin, where it causes the victim to spin around in the air helplessly, unable to Air Control. These hits are rare, and if you have one for your character, chances are you can use them to extend the combo a few more hits extra with such moves.

Stun Combos:

Some moves, esp on CounterHit, will cause an unbreakable stun. This special type of stun usually have massive amount of visual "electric static" effect, and the next move, providing it also have counter hit stun properties, will also cause a stun. If you hit someone with an attack that can stun, link as many stun-attacks as you can to build a long ground stun combo (maybe end it by juggling at the end to extend it even more)

However, note that DOS (Double Over Stuns) and many other stuns can be escaped (To escape, hold guard and push 5x cardinal directions, ie u,d,f,b, no diagonals 5 times), so keep all these factors in mind when you are trying to create real combos. If you don't know which stuns you can shake out of, try them in practice mode!

Though there is an old rule of thumb you can try to use for now: If the stun leaves them standing up, it's shakeable. If it leaves them on the ground after, it's not.

Make sure you know where your stuns can be broken! Against good players it is good to have a mixup plan incase they break your stun (try Throws and lows, or doing hits vs the guard meter as they shake out and guard)

After all that, it's up to you to be creative with your combos and meter management.
Like this@ 8m26s: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MB5d3QpP0sg#t=8m26s
---
Get ready for Soul Calibur V Day 1 stream! 1/31/2012 @ twitch.tv/nyawu
http://sfcalibur.blogspot.com/ | PSN: Nyawu

8. Guard Burst, Armor breaking. (GBCF)
Throughout the match, your life gauge will be glowing in different colors. This is an indicator of your guard meter state.
-No gloe means your guard is relatively safe.
-Yellow means your guard is being depleted.
-Red means your guard is about to burst.

When your life gauge is flashing red, it means that any more guards against attacks will risk your guard being burst, resulting in your character's armor being broken in slow motion, giving your opponent a chance to do a free combo. Note that the trend is “big” damaging moves tend to drain more of the guard meter than weak pokes, and verticals tends to drain more than horizontals. There’s always exceptions, but that’s generally how it works.

After a guard burst, an attack that happens during that state will be given the counterhit properties, so if you have meter and know which moves stuns and links together, you can take advantage of the situation and do some big punishment, as seen here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GhvVdxg9LA#t=8m23s

In SC5, the armor breaking itself does no real effect, only visuals, compared with SC4 causing more damage to which ever hit level your armor was broken.

===

9. General (vs mode) Play tips. AKA "How to improve" (LVUP)

Q. “The characters have too many moves! I don’t know when to do what in battle! How should I start?”

A. Generally for every character, there are only 10~15 moves “worth” using as main, multipurpose moves. Sad to say, but there are a lot of moves in each character’s moveset that are really situational, or have another move that seems to be similar but better. So, as such, try to limit yourself to the character’s 10~15 “best” moves to start with, learn what each move does and when to use them, THEN branch from there into more of the character’s moveset that's more for situational usage. Overwhelming yourself with 100 moves isn’t going to do much good if you don’t know the core ones well.

The ones to look for are: common “safe & quick” moves like AAs and BBs, common juggle starters and combo follow-ups, A good mid, and good low, and throw to get a basic mixup plan to confuse your oppn, hits that can hit a grounded oppn, and branch out from there. Do not worry about "spaming" as some inexperience players would call it. If you don't practice and know all of your character's basic moves down to the last property, you'll never learn to setup the more advance ones. Knowing the exact spacing of your BB is something that you will use for the entire duration of your time in vs mode.

-To help you get started, check out http://8wayrun.com/categories/soulcalibur-v-soul-arenas.86/
This site contains individual forums for each character. Try to follow the rules of the forum and post only when you need to, but otherwise feel free to browse the data that dedicated players will soon gather after the release of the game.
---
Get ready for Soul Calibur V Day 1 stream! 1/31/2012 @ twitch.tv/nyawu
http://sfcalibur.blogspot.com/ | PSN: Nyawu

Q. “What are frames, and what do I do with them?”

A. This maybe a little complicated, but it is very important to those who are trying to learn the
deeper side of the game. A frame is an literal frame of animation. To put things in perspective, there are 60 frames per second, and a generic A slash would be around 10~12-ish frames, depending on the character doing it.

If say... two characters do a "B" slash at each other at the same time, player 1's "B" being 12 frames in speed, players 2's "B" being 18 frames in speed... player 1 will hit player 2 first (and the 12-frame "B" will most likely cause a counter hit).

How it is important, is that it gives advance players a way to accurately file a move’s speed, block recovery, wiff recovery (aka miss), and hit recovery.

For example, let’s say theoretically, Pyrrha’s AA attack, on hit, lets her recover 3 frames faster than her oppn. Let’s also say, if the AA attack is blocked, then Pyrrha recovers 5 frames SLOWER than her oppn. So let’s say you DO hit with the AA move; you are at an advantage, and thus any move your oppn does will need to wait until that 3 frames wear off. You can continue to mount your offence with little fear that your opponent’s attack is going to beat out yours by speed.

BUT, what if your AA attack got blocked in the first place? Then you would have to know that you are no longer free to do what you want without risk, as you will have to wait for the 5 frames of disadvantage to wear off before you do anything else, giving your oppn a small time frame to start up his own attack.

In an actual match, while some players may exaggerate the practice label it "Counting frames", you don’t have to remember the actual numbers. Just know if you are at a disadvantage or advantage in any given moment after a move.

This is one of the main things that separate a normal player from an advance player. An advance player would know when to press on and when to defend, while an inexperienced one will miss offensive openings and often get counterhited after trying to keep on attacking when their attacks are blocked.

-Frame Traps (an application of using frames to your advantage)

By using attacks that gives you a frame advantage, you can create situations where your oppn maybe tricked into attacking you, and instead he will get counterhitted instead because all of his moves have delay from your frame advantage. This is called a frame trap. Take note of your attacks where it -looks- like you are not safe on hit/block, but you actually recover very fast, to bait someone into attacking you at a disadvantage.
---
Get ready for Soul Calibur V Day 1 stream! 1/31/2012 @ twitch.tv/nyawu
http://sfcalibur.blogspot.com/ | PSN: Nyawu

Q. "I keep on losing! How can I get better? ”

A. Practice, and practice correctly. What I mean by that is, you can spend 50 hours in training mode every week, but it's not going to do anything if you don't spend the time actually learning useful things.

The flow of a fighting game is to simply drain your opponent's healthbar before your own. In SC, the mixups are often between Mids vs Lows, Tracking vs non-tracking, Hits vs Throws, techroll or not techroll, etc. Find setups that forces your opponent in an unfavorable setting where he may lose more health in all available options than you. Learn the ins and outs of your character's moves, know what cancels into what, what recovers fast enough for a different move, etc.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2ktxpUofe4#t=13m55s
A good example of mixup and flow by Lexia.

If you're losing to somebody, copy what they are doing to you in training mode, and find out how it works. Chances are you'll find a way to beat it, and you just added another tactic to your library of knowledge. Learn to manage your meter; if you are only using stuff from older sc games, you will eventually die out against people who use BE and CEs within their attack flow, and can quick step around all the old things you are doing. Don’t be a generic Siegfried who just does a single 1-2 hit strings... learn all the stances and transitions you can.

Speaking of training, here is an enlightening article on the art of practice by BrianHates, a well known top level Cervantes player in the SC scene.

In Practice mode:
http://8wayrun.com/threads/hate-speech-we-talkin-bout-practice.8417/

On reasons to join Competitive play (for casuals)
http://8wayrun.com/threads/hate-speech-come-to-the-dark-side.9673/

On the subject of Character selection:
http://8wayrun.com/threads/hate-speech-character-selection.9021/

Theory Fighting
http://8wayrun.com/threads/hate-speech-theory-fighter-university-remedial-math.8906/

Hands on Impressions on the changes of SC5 (and how gameplay changed)
http://8wayrun.com/threads/hate-speech-hands-on.9547/


Also by another well known player on the capcom side, Justin Wong, on similar topics that is a good read: http://www.eventhubs.com/columns/

Q. “What are tiers? Are there any tiers? If so, do they really matter? And how do they matter?”

A. Tiers... the full analysis and ranking of advantages and disadvantages the character have in relation to the entire cast of characters as a whole. The theory is that in a game, there are factors that will never change; hard coded into the game itself. Damage, speed, moves of a character. Tiering takes those unchanging information and process all of them to see which moves are the best, which moves are the worse, and which characters can use those moves to the best and worse effect.

Our trusty BrianHates also have a nice article explaining tiers and it's many myths:
http://8wayrun.com/threads/hate-speech-theory-fighter-university-tiers.8727/

Note that Tiers for characters can can change. The tier list is made by the most up to date info...any new discovery can easily change a character's potential when the game is new. Only when the game is years old and people have pretty much found everything, only then do tiers stay relatively the same. Also, tiers are not there to 100% dictate who you can play as. Character comfort is important, and if you really want it, you can take a low tier all the way to 1st place in a tournament.... just know you have to work much, much harder. But if you are willing to accept the task, then by all means go ahead and play low tiers. Just don't use tiers as an excuse when you lose (or win).... it's your own ability being tested, and it was your/your opponent’s choice of the character in the first place.
---
Get ready for Soul Calibur V Day 1 stream! 1/31/2012 @ twitch.tv/nyawu
http://sfcalibur.blogspot.com/ | PSN: Nyawu

Q. “So, what are the tiers for SC5?"

A. As of writing (Game just got released), unclear, only speculations. Tiers,( or the full analysis and ranking of advantages and disadvantages the character have in relation to the entire cast of characters as a whole using all currently available data) take a lot of theory and a lot of testing. It would normally take several months of high level play (such as competitions, tourneys, gatherings, research, etc) to find out what is good or not. Usually during that time somebody will find something amazing, boosting the “value” of a character, but a week later somebody may find a way around it, even discover a new, even more powerful thing.

In other words, we won't know until the dust is settled from players battling it out for a few months, when the tier list would be somewhat stable. Meanwhile though, you can read, or even participate in character discussions and along with everybody else. … maybe eventually reach a sort of tier enlightenment from understanding all the characters or something, lol. =P Aka go seek details on those good/bad things being discovered, not just the list.

Q. "Well, I think _____ character is the best... right?"

A. This is related to tiers. Most of the time alot of players who thinks that they have "mastered" their character come to a bias conclusion that their character (or a character they can't beat) is the best.

Many others come to illogical conclusions based on age-old generic archetypes of cliches like "fast = weak", "slow = strong", etc.

However, don't think of just -the- character. Think about the character's moveset in relations to the entire cast of characters as a whole. For example, in Soul Calibur II, many Link fans played only as Link, and thought that Link was pretty good in terms of effectiveness. However, when you actually compare Link to everybody else in the game....

Link actually has less potential damage (only 27%-ish) and less safe combo starters (frame disadvantage) then everybody else. His AAs and BBs were lackluster in terms of Speed/damage/containing sidestep, and his bombs/arrows/rang animations simply took too long to come out and were often telegraphed (not to mention duck/step able on lazy reaction), and took up too many of his command slots, his throws, while one having good Ring Out ability (which causes everybody to throw-break that one near the edge everytime) actually does sad damage, and he does not have any good low attacks at all.

So as such... maybe Link wasn't that good of a character after all.

Q. “What about playing against the CPU/AI? I can improve by playing against that right?"

A. In SC5, with the beefing up of the AI (hardest mode), it's actually fine for beginners to get use to the game and what a character's overall theme is like.

However in the end, it is just an AI, so playing too much vs AI tend to build bad habits, as it often falls for things humans don’t. AIs also don’t let the human player exercise real throw/high/mid/low mixups, as the computer controlled character does not have an actual mind to “fool”. Also, AIs don’t do anything beyond what they are programed for, so you won’t learn the newest setups from playing them.

It is alright up to a level, but to really grow one must play against human competition.
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Get ready for Soul Calibur V Day 1 stream! 1/31/2012 @ twitch.tv/nyawu
http://sfcalibur.blogspot.com/ | PSN: Nyawu

Q. “Is online play a good place to practice?“

A. Well… sort of. It depends on how badly you are lagging. In a full bar connection match, you will mostly ok for general play. Throw breaks and blocking lows on reaction maybe a little difficult, but still do-able. Below that, lag tactics will be used by players because somethings are just hard to block when your input is half a second or more delayed. At mid-low bars and below, don’t even bother playing seriously; Pushing a button then will result in your character reacting on screen a couple of frames later, and anything you see on screen already happened a few frames before. Playing at that input lag level will only breed bad habits.

An offline low that is 18-frames and is blockable most of the time would now require the reaction time of equivalent i17~13 or below, depending on how badly it’s lagging. Think of offline as mostly black and white, where you block it or you don’t. Online would cause it to become shades of gray, where there’s varying degrees on which you can block things from match to match.

So in other words, if you get very small amounts of lag, online is fine for casual play, but always know the limitations, for in offline play there are players that will punish you heavily for bad habits you picked up online due to lag tactics. Know that doing well online does not neccessaraly mean one is good at the game, but rather one is good at the online versions of the game. No two players will have the same connection with everybody else, east coast can’t play against west coast without immense lag, everything delayed by 5~12 frames... it’s like an ever semi-random game that switches up frame data every other round.
If one were to feel like they have a need to prove that they are the “best”, maybe bragging about online stats isn’t exactly a good idea (and often leads to conflicts as rivals are never satisfied with online results). One should prove him/herself in offline gatherings and tournaments, where everybody is on equal grounds and everybody is playing the “same” game, no external factors applied (and therefor no viable excuses applied.)

Another important thing you’re missing out by only playing online is the social interactions with players between the matches (smalltalk, side games, pizza, beer... etc) While you’re more likely to meet a jerk than a nice person in ranked battle, in offline gatherings you’re more likely to meet nice people than jerks. Online anonymity tends to lure out the worse in humankind.

Q. "What are the general rules for competition?"

A. Generally, all matches are played on a 3/5 rounds per match (as in, each person has to win 3 rounds total per match).
Health,Meters,Timer etc on default settings.
Stage is random, unless it's agreed by both players to not play on a stage.
No special stats/weapons allowed (standard vs only).

If you are at a tournament, most people will ban Dampierre, as he is currently only access-able towards bestbuy preorder and not everyone has the code to unlock him. He will be un-banned as soon as he is released for the general public in PSN/Live as a regular DLC.
The tournaments may also ban the use of CAS characters due to time/setup/size and hitbox issues, and as a result may ban CAS only styles if there is no pre-made character with that style.
And... that's about it. Just you, your oppn, and playable characters.
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Get ready for Soul Calibur V Day 1 stream! 1/31/2012 @ twitch.tv/nyawu
http://sfcalibur.blogspot.com/ | PSN: Nyawu

Q. “So, where do I go about learning the game?”

A. Go find a local scene to play SC5 with. If you are in a dorm at college, bring your console out to the common room and invite others to play. Or start a local gaming club, and dedicate a station for SC5. To those who seem interested, maybe you can talk strats and get better together.

If you go to 8wayrun.com website and go to match finder, there are plenty of people in America, Europe, and other countries that have local gatherings. Go meet new friends, and get better! (I will be hosting or help run number of events in norcal, so those in the area please ask about them!)

If you want some more info, you can try to look at videos of tourneys, upload matches of your own to ask other to critique, or you can talk here on Gamefaqs/Gamespot. Watch streams and see if there’s any near you to take part in. As a reminder to help you get the basics, these people are going to be compiling every new bit of info regarding sc5
http://8wayrun.com/categories/soulcalibur-v-soul-arenas.86/
(READ THE STICKYS FIRST, USE SEARCH FUNCTION BEFORE POSTING. Also, be humble and nice and people will return the favor... don’t a jerk who makes a bad first impression by telling everybody how best in the world you are online and that you can beat everybody down, and don’t come off as a hyper sensitive newbie if a single user out of 50 decides to be a jerk either. )

Remember, you are only as good as your competition. Owning your little brothers/cousins/neighbor is only that. Without good competition that pushes you to learn the limits of the game and get better... no amounts of reading up on threads/watching videos/playing by yourself/laggy matches will make up for it. So play, and play a lot. Thrive to get better, and don’t hold yourself back.

=) ... and have fun!!!
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Get ready for Soul Calibur V Day 1 stream! 1/31/2012 @ twitch.tv/nyawu
http://sfcalibur.blogspot.com/ | PSN: Nyawu

I know not many people are here on the 360 board, but if there's players who are actually interested in learning how to actually play the game, please request a sticky by selecting message detail in the first post.

Also I may have made one or two typos/mistakes while copying this over from the other topic, so sorry for that. if you have any additional questions, please let me know and I'll try my best to answer/find the answer for you here in this topic. Thanks.
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Get ready for Soul Calibur V Day 1 stream! 1/31/2012 @ twitch.tv/nyawu
http://sfcalibur.blogspot.com/ | PSN: Nyawu

Erzz197 posted...
I can't figure out how to use the Brave Edges. In the move list, it will say something like 1B, (small slide input I can't read)A+B+K. How do I do the slide?

You push b and immediately A+B+K. If you are not on a joystick, use a button bind (Default is Right Trigger on 360). There should be no delay between the button presses.
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Get ready for Soul Calibur V Day 1 stream! 1/31/2012 @ twitch.tv/nyawu
http://sfcalibur.blogspot.com/ | PSN: Nyawu

Random addition for the FAQ: Not only can Voldo and Asta break backthrows, it seems ZWEI can now be added to the list of back-throw breakers.
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NorCalibur stream: twitch.tv/norcalibur | YT channel: nyawu
http://sfcalibur.blogspot.com/ | PSN: Nyawu