2. Strategies for Ranked

Below are some videos I have created to showcase certain strategies you can implement to your playstyle, with added information below each one.1. Shuriken jumpingShuriken jumping allows you to keep good pressure at a distance whilst remaining mobile, meaning you can move closer to/further away from your opponent as well as avoid attacks.Whenever you are in a game and you are not doing something (such as attacking, charging chakra) you should be harassing from afar as well as moving into position for your next move. It's recommended to use a little chakra to throw chakra shuriken too, especially with special shuriken such as Ino, Pain or Naruto.2. Mei support Attack DriveFor whatever reason, the projectiles in Mei's ground combo still carry their stuns from her normal combo (Other supports will not stun, only deal damage). This allows pretty much any character to have a very easy infinite combo, that costs no chakra and can be done immediately, assuming Attack drive is active.Note that when you have attack drive active, Support character 1 will start their combo on the second hit of your combo, and Support character two will join in on the third. Also, if your support is currently engaged (this means currently on the screen doing something such as using a jutsu, is being attacked, doing cover fire or ground combo, etc OR currently knocked out) then they will not be able to initiate a ground combo. Thus, if you do your combo too fast, your support will not be able to join in the combo, meaning that Mei will not appear to stun.To help avoid this, it's recommended to pick Mei as your second support character. If you select her as the first support character, she will finish using her stun sooner, which means you will have to cancel your combo faster and thus risk going too fast. Picking her second gives her more time to recover.With some characters, you can fit a 4th hit from your combo in before Mei finishes her attack, increasing damage output.3. Attack Drive stun extensionsThe shortened version of the dash stun animation (http://puu.sh/gr4kt.png) can be extended into the full dash stun animation when there is a support attacking your opponent with "ground combo".This results in easy infinites.4. Character stun locksYou may notice that you're sometimes left unable to move or do anything with your character, after your opponent misses a combo. Sometimes you can move but can't jump, attack, or guard.The reason for this is because the game locks your character whenever your opponent uses an attack that is long and shouldn't be able to be dodged or blocked. These sorts of attacks usually come near the end of a combo string, meaning that they also shouldn't be missing (As they typically require the previous attack to have hit a target which normally means the next attack won't miss) however should the attack miss (such as connecting at the wrong distance or whilst you are airborn) you can be pushed out of the combo, meaning the next hit will miss, but you'll still be "locked" from inputs. A good example of this is Chiyo's up combo. This can also happen after substituting out of specific parts of an attack.This has been a feature in all STORM games, but there has been no way to exploit these animations as you were locked into the attack, unable to dash/jump/ninja-move cancel out of it. However with the latest additions of Ultimate Jutsu cancels (able to directly cancel a combo into an ultimate jutsu) and counter attacks, there is a way to intentionally cause this and use it to your advantage to lock your opponent temporarily.Simply look for an attack that has a long animation (some cinematics have a "startup" animation which is what I used in the video, but it can also be done to non cinematic attacks such as EMS Sasuke's up combo, immediately after his Susano'o arm grabs the opponent and before he slams them into the ground), and as soon as you see that animation start, do an ultimate. You can also Counter attack, but due to the 25% loss in chakra and long wait before being able to attack, its uses are limited.5. Bypassing Defense Drive"Guard support" has been the bane of many players and has been coined a staple "noob tactic" by salty rushdown players who get angry when they can't just run into you and circlemash your tits off.However, for a little bit of chakra, you can easily bypass "Dash Cut".With exception of Combo ultimates, team ultimates, UJ/Ring-out substitution and Strike-Back, a support cannot perform a new action if it is currently performing something else.When a support tries to block your dash, there are three animations;1. Entry. They jump in from off-screen and stand in front of the player. This is triggered by the start of your dash animation.2. Guard. this will remain for as long as your dash lasts.And then one of the following;3a. Knockback. Once you collide with them, they will take damage and fly backwards. This will cause you to be "bumped" backwards, unable to do anything except substitute, giving the other player time to react/retreat.OR;3b. Exit. If your dash doesn't connect with them, as soon as you exit the dash for any reason, the support character will jump back out of the fight.Remember how I said they cannot stop one action to perform another? That includes their entry and exit animations; If you were to dash during the exit animation, they cannot stop their exit animation to block you, meaning you'll sail right on by.You can perform this very easily. Simply dash, then cancel your dash by guarding, and then dash again immediately. Costs a little more chakra, but no more Dash Cut.Do note that Chakra Guard, the other Defense drive action, is triggered by your opponent charging chakra, not your dashes, so this trick will not work against that.6. Air guard to easy ultimatesWhen your opponent blocks something in mid-air, it's not obvious but there's actually an animation for it. You'll notice that your opponent happens to do a little "twitch" as he's falling. If your opponent does this after blocking an attack in the air, that means he can't block.If your opponent is too low to the ground, the animation will not complete and thus they will remain blocking.I "discovered" this after getting frustrated at rushdown opponents; I'd guard their dashes in mid-air, and upon landing they were simply free to combo me.