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Try Sol vs. Gold EX Dizzy. You can't jump, you have no tension (I think), and all of Dizzy's hits are counters.

[shudders] gonk

Yeah, that was hilarious. xd

I'm starting to learn Eddie. He's kinda tricky, but I think I'm getting the hang of him bit by bit. 3nodding

My infamous Potemkin write-up. Aided and abetted by Gen_Eric_Gui.

General Strategy: Potemkin is slow. He's got a few quick moves, but on the whole he's like a mountain, and occasionally you will use the almighty power of Hammerfall to move that mountain. Be patient and take your time.

Potemkin should keep his opponent on the ground at all times, because that's where all his damage comes from. If someone tries to use an aerial move against you, anti-air with Forward Punch, Forward Kick, Slash (far) or Heat Knuckle. The first two options have a little upper-body invulerability, so I'd recommend using those. After 6K follow with Heat Knuckle. 6P has no follow-ups of note, unless you're playing Slash, at which point you can Jump Cancel and air-combo or Heat Knuckle.

Once your opponent is on the ground, you should start looking for Potemkin Buster opportunities and chances to launch for juggles. Learn to Instant Block moves with significant recovery and Potemkin Buster before your opponent can defend. Also, it's possible to tick into Potemkin Buster using standing Punch, standing Kick, or Forward Kick.

Movelist:

236P and 214P: Megafist. Potemkin jumps in whichever direction you quarter-circled and punches down. Not good for a whole lot of anything. Do not use this ever, unless you want to FRC and try for a Potemkin Buster.

236S: Sliding Head. Potemkin falls over and headbutts the ground, making a shockwave. Knocks down, but only damages if Potemkin's body hits the opponent. You can use it to knock people over that are far away and move in. Never use up close; if it's blocked, you eat whatever combo your opponent wants.

[4]6H: Hammerfall, Potemkin's dash replacement. Press Punch to brake and not hit. Use the brake to advance without running into potential traps, or to stop suddenly and Potemkin Buster. Let Hammerfall hit for a knockdown, or if you have 25-50% Tension, FRC or RC it and juggle. You can also use FRC/RC to prevent a blocking opponent from punishing you and continue your pressure.

632146P: This is Potemkin's most important move; the Potemkin Buster. You want this, especially in the corner where it's useful in juggle combos. Instant Blocking gives plenty of opportunities for it. You can bait moves from waking-up opponents and do it, tick into it with one of the moves listed in General Strategy, or do it as you wake up (kinda risky, but sometimes worth it).

623H: Heat Knuckle is an anti-air throw and a big Tension-earner for Potemkin. If you land it, do 63214H to follow up with another hit. In the corner, Roman Cancel the first hit of Heat Knuckle and do 6H into another Heat Knuckle and Heat Extend for big damage! (Thanks Eric for making me a believer in the Heat Knuckle Roman Cancel.)

63214S: F.D.B. is a projectile-reflecting finger flick. The move actually has range beyond his arm, so keep that in mind when trying to flick an opponent. If it hits, your opponent will be stagged. On counter hit, the opponent will be launched. To reflect a projectile, it's got to be flicked by his hand, not the invisible range beyond it. Good follow ups are 2D for a staggering opponent (Go wake-up games!) or the ever-fun Heat Knuckle for a launch. If you've got 50% Tension you feel like using, go for Heavenly Potemkin Buster instead. F.D.B. is also fairly useful as a poke move. It's pretty safe, since it causes a lot of blockstun, so you can toss it out ALMOST randomly to fish for counter-hits. Just don't get predictable with it.

632146H: Overdrive Number One, Gigantor. Potemkin creates a blue wall in front of himself. If it hits a grounded opponent, the opponent will stagger. If it hits an airborne opponent, they'll float. Afterward, you can combo, or 4123641236P to follow up with Gigantor Bullet. Gigantor Bullet makes Potemkin rush forward with both is fists out. Lots of damage, and wall bounces for a short juggle. It's not safe if it's blocked, so if they don't take the Gigantor, don't do the Bullet! Potemkin Buster instead. Giganter Bullet is a good follow up for a counter-hit F.D.B. as well. The placing is very strict, but if done with the opponent close to the corner, you can combo into 2HS -> Heat Knuckle after the Giganter Bullet.

236236S Second Overdrive, Heavenly Potemkin Buster. Usually not safe as anti-air because you can be hit out of it. Use it after launching an opponent for the best effect. Never use it at the end of launch combos; damage scaling makes it not worth it.

Combos:

Potemkin Buster-S(c)-S(f)-Heat Knuckle-Heat Extend (corner only, except May and Axl) A basic, damaging combo from Potemkin Buster. You can do 2H in place of the two Slashes in the corner, but timing may be difficult at first. If you've got some Tension to spare in the corner, Roman Cancel the first hit of Heat Knuckle and do 6H-Heat Knuckle-Heat Extend

P-K-S-Hammerfall: An easy to do combo ending in a Hammerfall. You can charge back for the Hammerfall as you perform the gatling to help get the last hit. If you've got Tension and want to be a little more advanced, FRC or RC the Hammerfall and juggle with S(c)-S(f)-Heat Knuckle-Heat Extend.

Gigantor-Gigantor Bullet(wall-bounce)-S(f)-Heat Knuckle-Heat Extend: A powerful combo from an Overdrive. It's somewhat distance-dependant; if you're too close or too far from the wall, the opponent will bounce too low in front of you or will bounce behind you, and the Slash will miss. In the case of a low bounce, you can try to save the juggle with Punch or Kick before trying the rest, but generally a bounce behind is unsaveable because of the time it takes to turn around usually lets them land.

Sure thing. 3nodding I'm not the authority on Johnny or anything like that, but I'll tell you what I do know and hopefully, that'll help. 3nodding I assume that you know the general GG notation, but if you need any of the other notations cleared up, feel free to ask. smile

Oh, and the general layout of this is somewhat borrowed from The Feist's Potemkin write-up, which is really good, by the way. 3nodding This covers GGX2 Johnny, as I've not had the chance to hit Reload or Slash as of yet.

Normals to keep in mind

First and foremost, a note about Johnny's throw. So long as your oppoent doesn't have any Burst meter, it's a guaranteed air combo for you, so if you can toss them, tack that extra damage in there.

6P: As with everyone else, Johnny's 6P gives invincibility for his upper body until the point of impact, so as such, if you think your opponent may try a quick high or mid strike, use this to push through it and nail them. It's also one of Johnny's air combo starters, as you can jump cancel it, so if you hit it, go ahead and tack on that extra bit of damage.

6K: A quick advance into an upward kick, this move can be used when you want to close the gap between you and your opponent. It can be FRC'd, but contrary to the way it looks, it can't be jump cancelled out of if you connect. Be careful about this one, though, because while the advance is quick, if your opponent sees it coming, they might be able to grab you out of it before the kick comes, or before the FRCable frame comes up.

Standing H: As you've probably seen, Johnny has excellent reach, and his standing H makes really good use of it, even serving as a decent anti-air. Stick it out every once in a while at the start of rounds to keep your opponent on their toes, but don't make a bad habit out of it, as they'll 6P the hell out of you if they anticipate it.

Crouching H: This low slash comes out fairly quickly, and can stagger on counter hit. It also pushes Johnny back a small distance each time he does it. A good move to stick out from time to time.

Johnny's Special Moves

Glitter is Gold: 236H

Johnny's coin. First of all, the obvious uses for it. As a projectile, it's pretty good, as it comes out quickly and has nice recovery to boot, allowing you to guard or do pretty much whatever else right after you toss it. Also, it comes out at quite an angle, getting over other projectiles as it goes. As you might have guessed by this point, they're also useful for combo continuation with the right placement and timing. It also powers up your Mist Finer every time you hit with a coin, up to level 3, though Mist Finer and it's uses will be explained when that comes around. Another nice thing to keep in mind is that you can simply toss a coin to knock out the lag from some of the normals he has that would otherwise leave you open, like Johnny's 6HS. The biggest downside to this move, though, is that your coins are limited, so be careful when you use them.

Bacchus Sigh: 214P

When the mist of the Bacchus Sigh covers an opponent, Johnny's Mist Finers are unblockable until the mist dissipates, and as such, if you're fighting someone that knows what he is capable of, you'll have to rely on setups and such that will pretty much guarantee that they'll be caught by it. Be prepared, though, as any opponent that finds out what Johnny is capable of through his Mist Finers that is unlucky enough to be caught by this will play a runaway game until the mist wears off, if they can. If you can risk it, try to use this when you've knocked down an opponent in the corner, preferably from a level 2 Mist Finer, as they can't recover from the fall and will have to stand into the mist, which can't be guarded against.

Mist Finer: 236P, K or S. (P for high, K for mid and S for low) Hold whichever button to hold the pose and left and right to move while posing; press HS while holding to cancel the move.

Now, I dunno how things work elsewhere, but from my standpoint, Johnny's Mist Finer is his most important special move. Depending on which button you press when you use this move, he will slash at a different angle between high, middle, or low. What's more, as with the coin, you can use it to get rid of loads of lag on some of Johnny's normals by executing this, then canceling it. As has been stated, catching an opponent with a coin will level this move up by one level with a max level of 3. Level one Mist Finers are minimal damage without much of an effect to them aside from a knockdown, and they also require more timing since they come out somewhat slowly. Level 2 Mist Finers tend to pop your opponent airborne, even the low ones, and your opponent can't recover from the fall, either. When a level 3 Mist Finer is used, Johnny slashes nine times extremely quickly, with the general height of his slashes corresponding to the button pressed, with the exception of the mid Mist Finer. Low Mist Finer gives mostly low slashes with a couple mids thrown in, high Mist Finer gives mostly high slashes with a couple mids thrown in. The Mid Mist Finer varies the hieght of the slashes between high, mid and low.

Don't make them a staple. Cancel them from time to time to throw your opponent off, or as mentioned above, to blow lag from normals, but try to keep your opponent on their toes with these. It goes without saying that you should vary the height when you actually use them. If you can corner your opponent and pressure them a bit, they may try to air dash out of it, at which point you can nail them with a high Mist Finer.

Divine Blade/Aerial Divine Blade: 623S, then S/236S in midair, FRCable

When grounded, the Divine Blade is a two-part move that is executed first by pressing 623S, which will make Johnny leap forward quite a length, then pressing S to do the actual attack. The timing is tight, seemingly tighter than usual as FRCs go, but it can be FRC'd as Johnny takes off if you opt not to actually do the Divine Blade. It MUST be done, however, with P, K and HS, and attempting to FRC with S will result in him doing it.

When airborne, 236S will make him do the Divine Blade at pretty much whatever height you're at.

In both instances, the attack itself can be FRC'd, which can save you from some major pain, as Johnny is left open on his descent following this move. I find it best to use this sparingly, as an occasional mind game. Air dash overhead, then drop a Divine Blade on the other side, for example.

Ensenga: 41236H while in miair.

Depending on how it is used, this move could be either one of your most useful, or your least useful. One thing to keep in mind about it is that the majority of Johnny's air combos end with this move.

One thing to know about this attack is that it can be easily "tiger kneed", as in you can execute it close to the ground by inputting the 41236 motion while grounded, then going to 9 and pressing HS as you lift off. So, in short, it'd be 412369H. This move has a bit more range than people tend to think, and it can hit crouching opponents as well.

The other thing to know about this technique is that when you hit it in midair as a combo ender and if you're in close enough, it can net you two hits, the first of which will eliminate your opponent's air recovery if you RC it, though, depending on your situation, using 50% tension to do just that may not be worth it.

Johnny Special: 632146H

This, I honestly believe, is one of the (if not the) best overdrives in the game. It has great reach and can beat out so many other moves, be they normal, special, or even other overdrives. The general usage for this move will more likely than not be to use it as an anti-air, and while it may work from time to time, do NOT make a habit of it, as it can be blocked with a faultless defense. Unless you can anticipate your opponent attempting an aerial attack, don't throw this out on reaction to their being airborne. You'll d nothing but waste tension as they'll try to bait it out.

Instead, try to use this at times when peeps try to keep you pressured a bit too much. A rushdown Ky tossing a Charged Stun Edge to pin you down as you stand, for example. Provided your timing is good enough, even if he's just far enough away to form the CSE and keep up a physical attack with a standing S, if your timing is good enough, you can nail them outright with this as you wake up.

Joker Trick: 236236H

Instant Kills aren't normally used, but even as far as IK's go, this one has to be one of the worst, if not the worst. It's slow to travel and come out, blockable, and it has WAY too much lag if it misses, since Johnny will hold his arm out until the card leaves the screen, so you're in for a lot of punishment if you miss it. Avoid it, but if you MUST use it, to show off or whatever, just be sure to do it in close and hope that your opponent will just guard it and not crouch, as when it's guarded against, Johnny is near immediately able to move again.

Oh, and also, the card will fly right over the heads of the shorter characters, like Chipp, regardless of whether they are standing or crouching. neutral

EDIT: Got combo junk down for the most part in the later post, and added the notes you peeps reminded me of. Thanks again. ^_^;

Joker trick in reloaded COMMONLY misses the shorter characters like Bridget, May, Chipp and Baiken while they're simply standing, but I have landed Joker trick many a times for some odd reason, most human opponents are simply scared and try to jump over it when they can block or something...kinda sad when they do get with it, and I have seen worst instant kills but IK's are mainly last ditch effort attacks when I have no health left or something,

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED

That Johnny's 6P makes his upper half invincible for a few frames - useful

The Nut-cracker kick and be FRc'd

And I'll have to review this several more times but for now I have to go to work but thank you this is very good stuff.

Also on SLASH Johnny has this weird a** move where he dashes past the opponent and makes them stagger a bit...has a few downsides like I can't "Whats my name" Them...

but yeah I'd love to hear more about Johnny as the plot progresses.

Oh Yeah when I get the chance I'll post some of my Johnny coslay pics, they're funny as hell Anime central was fun.

Not a bad job at all, Kei my friend. Very useful info in there. Makes me wish I could write up something like that, but I lack time/enthusiasm/technical know-how to do so...

Thanks for the kind words all. And, I'll add the notes you reminded me of after this post. smile Sucks to be busy, but that's life for you. razz Anyway, now to throw some tweaks into this and a few things that I know about Johnny combo-wise. 3nodding

6P - As you already know, one of the best moves in nearly everyone's arsenal. Johnny's, however, seems to make for a great anti-air as well.

6K - Aside from being able to FRC it, it is untechable when landed as a Counter Hit.

The thing you have to keep in mind about Johnny is that if you want to play him with a pressure game as your base, you have to be careful, because he can't press an offense like that of Chipp's or Millia's.

Thanks to the range of some of his attacks, the opponent is often pushed away as he attacks. He can string together hits while grounded well enough, but if you're going to go mostly for grounded combos, also keep in mind that you should try to have, at least, a level 2 Mist Finer ready, because while Mist Finers make for great combo finishers, level 1 Mist Finers come out too slowly for it to connect unless you've dizzied your opponent. The added effect of them going into an untechable fall just sets them up for more devastation.

Lastly, the obvious. Some characters will need a bit of variation on combos because their size will either keep them from being hit by your next move, or change their overall positioning in relation to you after being hit by certain attacks.

Combos

Combo-wise, at least while grounded, Johnny doesn't have too much going for him in the form of outright chains, like Chipp, Millia or Ky, for example. His combos tend to be a bit more situational at times, but are also more often than not more rewarding as well.

Still, he does have his few chains while grounded.

P-K-S-H-Mist Finer (level 1 or 2, with K): This particular combo is probably the only one with the Mist Finer he has where which level Mist Finer you use doesn't matter much. The level two Mist Finer is still ideal for the untechable knockdown it provides, perhaps gaining you time to set the Bacchus Sigh, given the right circumstances, however, if you plan to use the level 3 Mist Finer...

P-K-S-H-Mist Finer (level 3, with S): ...then you want to use the low one, since the level 3 Mist Finer slashes multple times and changes height. With the other two Mist Finers, Johnny will slash high eventually, breaking your combo and giving them ample time to guard, but with the low level 3 Mist Finer, he'll slash mostly low with a couple mids thrown in, so your combo won't break up. Just be careful because your opponent CAN recover from a level 3 Mist Finer.

Of course, if you can anticipate a forward recovery, (and if they don't guard) an air throw or tiger kneed Ensenga works as a nice interceptor. 3nodding

P-K-S-2D-Glitter is Gold: A nice way to land a coin without fail. 3nodding

H(c)-Glitter is Gold-Mist Finer with K or S-H-Mist Finer with P: As the combo indicates, you can nail a coin after an in close H and it will combo, and if you're quick enough, you can tack on the level 2 Mist Finer before they recover, which will pop them into the air in an untechable state, where you can follow with H and the high Mist Finer.

Also, 6H can be cancelled into a tiger kneed Ensenga, though this's something that's gotta be practiced, as a slip up in timing could result in you accidentally letting loose a coin. 3nodding

Things to remember about Johnny's air arsenal

H - This is a great attack to use as a poking strike as you come in, but it should almost never be used in an air combo, as it tends to knock an enemy downward toward the ground rather quickly. Another thing to keep in mind about it is that if you land it as a counter hit, it will stagger your opponent, so make use of the time you've got right there. 3nodding

D - This attack will knock an enemy quite a distance and will wall bounce them, making their recovery that much harder so you can continue an assault, though sometimes it's nice to let them recover just so you can toss 'em right back into the wall after they recover. xd

Air combos

Johnny can get a guaranteed air combo out of any throw or a 6P. Keep that in mind and go for it. These next couple are of course assuming you're following them from a throw or 6P.

P-K-S-Ensenga: When you're quick enough, both hits of the Ensenga will connect on this combo, and in the right situation, RCing after the first hit can give you more attack opportunities.

P-K-S, double jump, P-K-D-Ensenga: 6P or throw your enemy, then nail them with P, K, then S, then after the S, use your second jump to up yourself and do the rest. 3nodding

I'll add the more situational combos, as well as a few nice setups, a bit later. 3nodding

Back with more Johnny stuffs. 3nodding Yup. Another long post. xd

First, (keeping in mind that this is XX) a couple more notes about his ground offense.

As ect noted, FRCing the first part of the grounded Divine Blade works as a nice subsitiute for his dash, but first off, obviously, it's something you don't want to make a habit of. 25% tension might be all you need to bail you out of a situation later.

While I'm at it, it's possible to pull something of a speed dash with Johnny. Doing a Faultless Defense will stop Johnny dead on the spot after a dash and get rid of the small bit of recovery you normally have to worry about. If you're quick enough, you can go from that Faultless Defense into another dash. Definitely something that should be practiced as it could come in handy in the right situation. I usually do it by holding whatever two attack buttons and QUICKLY inputting 664 repeatedly.

Anyway, another thing to be careful of when FRCing the grounded Divine Blade during takeoff to use as movement are people with good anti-air attacks (Volcanic Viper is the first thing to come to most anyone's mind.). They'll more likely than not stop whatever you've got planned cold, so it might be best sometimes to keep your guard up. Tossing the Divine Blade with 236S after FRCing the movement is a good way to stop your momentum if you must, as well.

Next, note about the level 3 Mist Finer. In GGX2 at least, (not sure about the others) the high and low level 3 Mist Finers ARE techable unless something else hits before it does, but the mid level 3 Mist Finer isn't.

Lastly, If you need to land a coin at any time and can manage to land an in close H, there's your shot....on most characters (more on that farther down). His other normals, unfortunately, won't give enough of a stun to toss a coin behind it. 6H does, but it also pushes your enemy away, meaning they get that second they need to guard against the coin.

Speaking of (c)H-Glitter is Gold stuff, here are a few combos for that particular situation. These are assuming, of course, that your Mist Finer isn't powered up to level 2 or 3 already, as your level 2 will change to 3, and it won't hit correctly.

(c)H-Glitter is Gold-Mist Finer (mid): Since your Mist Finer will be level 2, instead of it knocking your enemy away, it will pop them into the air where you can continue an offensive, since your opponent won't be able to recover. I myself usually follow with another coin, then another mid Mist Finer, but the timing is tight for that, as it has to be done AS SOON as you come out of the Mist Finer animation, or else the coin'll hit them when they hit the ground, screwing up the whole juggle scenario.

(c)H-Glitter is Gold-2D-Mist Finer (mid): Another nice combo that's a setup for a possible juggle scenario, but this time, it's a tad trickier, due to the fact that the 2D has to be done as soon as you're able to move again after tossing the coin, otherwise they'll be pushed out of your sweep's range.

NOTE: The first combo mentioned and this combo in particular will NOT work on Ky, May, Baiken, Jam, Eddie and Zappa, due to them either being too small, causing the coin to fly right over their heads, or due to their body contorting oddly when being hit by Johnny's H, causing the coin to either hit them too early, or not hit them until a moment after they've recovered from the attack. In Jam's case, the coin hits at the right time, but you can't land 2D due to her forwardmost leg being raised, even while in hitstun from the H.

Now, onto other things. 3nodding

Stuff from 6K - As ect mentioned, once you put some pressure onto an opponent, you can use this and FRC it to close the distance between the two of you and go for a throw. However, should this land as a counter hit, remember that your opponent cannot tech from the fall. Use that time to put out the Bacchus Sigh to make your Mist Finers unblockable, especially if your Mist Finer is charged to level 2 or 3 and you happen to have your opponent cornered. Toss a coin to keep 'em guarding as they stand, then let loose your Mist Finer, but once you pull this a few times, be careful about it, as your opponent may decide to hold onto their Burst meter just to escape it.

Aerial Divine Blade FRC - As with any FRC, this takes practice to get down the timing, but once you do, it can become a near invaluable part of your arsenal. After tossing this down and FRCing, provided your opponent hasn't guarded, you can then fall directly onto them with D, though beware, as some characters can't be hit by the D due to size issues and the like, unless you're willing to drop and FRC another Divine Blade to lift them higher. If you're both near a corner, and their back it to it, the D will wall bounce them, setting them up for some truly heinous things. Personally, I like to corner them and hit them with an ADB (or two, depending), then wall bounce them with D as I come down, following up as soon as I land with H-Mist Finer (high). If they aren't dizzied, chances are they'll recover, so I usually follow up with a grounded Divine Blade, which I FRC at startup, and catch them with an air throw, tossing them right back into the wall. From there, I either set the Bacchus Sigh, or, if they aren't too low to the ground, I hit them with H-Mist Finer (high).

Hitting level 3 Mist Finers effectively (sans Bacchus Sigh): These are for those times you just so happened to have landed more than one coin and want to utilize that level 3 you've got stocked up. 3nodding

(c)2D-High Mist Finer(high): The high Mist Finer has to be used, as using the low will more often than not only net you one hit, and the mid will vary its height, causing you to miss some of the attacks. Note that this will NOT work on Ky, Venom, or Anji, as their falling animations prevent the Mist Finer from hitting unless it's the low one, and to waste a level 3 for a hit or two would be a shame. :/

P-K-S-Mist Finer (low): This is one that will work on everyone, so long as the Mist Finer is low. On some characters, you can even throw in H after S and still hit it in its entirety.

Bacchus Sigh setups and landing Mist Finers afterward

Setups

6K on counter hit

An FRC'd ADB

j.D: You can catch them with the Sigh as they wall bounce, though be cautious because if they can recover, you're pulling a risk with it.

Mist Finer landing after Bacchus Sigh

The general thing to remember is that once your opponent knows exactly what that mist does, they will run away to the best of their ability if they're caught with it. Just a few things to help prevent their escape, though vary what you do, or you'll fall into your opponent's mindgame instead. 3nodding

As stated before, under any circumstances that you get that Mist onto them after a knockdown, and you feel you can spare the coins, throw one or two to keep them pinned down as they stand while you toss out your Mist Finer, but make sure that when you toss your coin(s), you're at a reasonable distance, or else you might eat a 6P for your troubles.

If you get the mist onto them while they're conered, but you need a slight moment to recover (like after an FRC'd Aerial Divine Blade) one thing that's probably going to click in their heads is "He's right on me, so that Mist Finer's gotta be coming.". A likely escape plan will be to air dash to the other side and try to wait off the mist. Free high Mist Finer right there. Just be careful of those that like to use overdrives on wake up.

Oh, and speaking of Mist Finers, lastly, if you're able to nail a low or mid level 2 Mist Finer, you have the chance to nail them with a Johnny Special, though compared to some of the other options at times, you might not want to do so.

That about wraps up what I know about Johnny. 3nodding If I forgot or missed anything, my apologies, and I hope this helps. smile