Hate Speech: Stop Playing (Mindgames) With Yourself

[MichaelJackson]

After reading Hates articles I got my life back on track. Now I can proudly say that I have my GED, married my fourteenth babies mama (XOXO BERTRUDE), and finally won a belching contest with my pet pig, also coincidentally named Bertrude.

Thanks Hates!

 

[Jayrad]

I'm currently stuck in the mindset that I"m not even sure what I need to improve on. I currently main Astaroth. I love the character and I actually bought the game with intentions of mastering this awesome character. I know Astaroth's moveset front and back for the most part. What should I do in this case?

Also, awesome article. I was feeling a little discouraged but this definitely gave me some hope.

 

[Dr. Hates]

I'm currently stuck in the mindset that I"m not even sure what I need to improve on. I currently main Astaroth. I love the character and I actually bought the game with intentions of mastering this awesome character. I know Astaroth's moveset front and back for the most part. What should I do in this case?

Also, awesome article. I was feeling a little discouraged but this definitely gave me some hope.

This may or may not be too loose and metaphorical to be entirely helpful, but I can't think of a better way to express it presently. Learning the movelist front to back is just the first step on a long journey. It's like what learning the alphabet would be to someone who wants to become a great novelist. You need to start digging into how you apply moves, how you read and react to situations, how well you move and position your character, etcetera.

Self-analysis is really crucial, and if you're having a hard time with that, find someone who kicks you around pretty hard and ask for honest feedback. Also, dig into the soul arena and discuss things with your fellow Astaroth players.

 

[lobo]

so, hates, do you recommend learning the movelist in and out first?

personally (and this applies to tekken as well), i find that doing so hurts me; not so much in the long run, but in the immediate and near future. i find that i am best off simply training for a few minutes, going through the list once on NH and once on CH, and then taking the moves i like and playing with them.

if i do this, i build a foundation which i can expand on with the rest of my options. if i try and learn the other way (complete movelist/combos before BnB), i find myself trying to do things that are too impractical for too long, and tiring of the character.

i also think that the great novelists often had terrible grammar/spelling/"alphabet skillz". it isn't about that. it is about finding a character and moves that you like, applying them, and then building on that imo.

i'm certainly not as knowledgeable as hates in this game, but my advice, jayrad, would be to figure out which asty moves work with your playstyle, get good at applying them, and THEN learn how to use the rest of his tricks.

do you like to rushdown? learn to command throw like you are blinking and spam 66k and other good mids. do you like to turtle? learn how to space and setup 44b, 44a, 44(a), 2a and whatnot. i believe you should start very simple and build on that.

then again, hates is good at this game, and i'm absolutely horrid, so take all of this with an entire shaker of salt.

 

[Inori DWF]

I agree with lobo. However, I am going to expand on the idea of using Astaroth's different strategies.

Once you've learned how to do these separate strategies, you can then mix them together. Fighting a character that is very good at rushing down and has safe close range strings/moves? Use your good range game to eliminate his strengths and force the opponent to play differently. Have you taken up a good position mid fight (opponent near wall/edge)? Start putting on the pressure. Use 66K, iFC3K, BB6 and throws to set up high damage wall combos or a potential RO.

More on topic: For a while I struggled with the idea that "I don't have enough mix-ups..I can't keep my opponent guessing anymore." when what I really needed to learn was to use the mix-ups I have more effectively in the current situation. How much health does he have left? Where are we in the ring? Which outcome has more benefits? What is my health at? Should I take this risk? These are the questions I would always ask myself mid fight. I had to train myself to go through these questions as fast as I could, so that I would stop freezing mid fight to think about my next move. It took me a long time, but it benefited my game in the end.

I also needed to learn that my opponent has only seen what I have shown him during the fight. While I may know how to stop my own mix-up, my opponent may not have such knowledge. Even if the player is very well known and has a great reputation as a tourney player, he may not know your character as much as you think. Make him prove that he is capable of stopping your offense.