User blog:Seieireppa/Matt's GER combat tips

Now that the demo's been out for a few days, I thought I'd compile my tips on playstyle and setup, mostly having to do with Predator Style.

Before we begin, here's my setup:

Laoyang/Gboro blast gun/Tear Stone

Mizuchi/Sechshorn/Sechshorn/Sturm/Jaw Piercer

One-Strike Strengthen (OSS): Melee/OSS: Melee/OSS: Bullet/OSS: Bullet/Resistance Up (depends)

Battle Opening

 * Jump and land a Jaw Piercer to activate whatever elemental resistance CU you have.  It should depend on what boss you're facing, obviously, so Spark for Vajra, Freeze for Gboro, etc.  This is the most basic element of setup and you'll want to keep your burst up constantly to maintain the resistance and minimize damage.
 * Jaw Piercer also has the advantages of covering a good distance (with the exact distance depending on your equipped weapon), passing through the enemy, and giving you around 60% burst, so use it liberally to close distance and position yourself on the opposite side of an enemy's attack.

Basic Tactics/Tips

 * For a really nice one-two devour, land a Quick or Combo devour with Sechshorn, then dash cancel the cooldown into a Sturm.  This gives you OSS for both melee and bullet (with the above setup) in addition to the Aragami bullets for passing and a large burst refill.
 * Mizuchi has a slightly longer charge time than First Style (the standard Charge devour) but its range is immense in both width and length.  You can reach things farther away than you'd think, such as a Yaksha who decides to camp over the lava in the Infernal Subway and spam shots at your team.  Keep devouring with Mizuchi for as long as necessary/until said camping lets up.
 * Jaw Piercer and Sturm are both great for quick movement.  Jaw Piercer comes out more slowly but covers distance more quickly and does not cost stamina, but Sturm of course comes out more quickly while costing stamina.  If you're using SB, dash into a jump and an aerial dash, then hold R and mash triangle in order to chain your air dash into a Jaw Piercer.  Otherwise, dash into a Sturm.
 * Sechshorn is great for escaping the range of Aragami attacks. Quick devour with Sechshorn before, say, a Vajra's lightning dome or either of a Chi-You's AOE attacks and you'll safely escape their radius.
 * Generally, you shouldn't use First Style or Second Style.  They aren't specialized enough and don't offer the additional functionality of Mizuchi or Sturm/Sechshorn.
 * Sturm is tricky to use, because the horizontal hitbox is extremely narrow.  Only use it if you're directly facing the Aragami so as to ensure contact.
 * Additionally, Sturm halts upon contact with an Aragami (but will pass right through corpses).  Use Jaw Piercer if you want to pass through.
 * Similarly, Sechshorn will only perform the reverse step if it devours a living Aragami.  It can be used as a stationary Quick devour on a corpse.
 * Raven can be used to sustain (near-)infinite aerial combos.  However, the effectiveness of this tactic is maximized with SB and VS, which have naturally long aerial combos already.

Unique Skills of Note

 * Poison Pick Kai: Toxic Power II (Venom Immunity and Venom 5)
 * Wild Sword Laoyang Kai: Bind Man II (Combo Master, Hold 5)
 * Bone Breaker Kai: Oregano II (Hold 10, Charge Speed Up)
 * Ice Sawblade: Fighting Spirit II (Stamina 10, Prepared)
 * Botulinum Warhammer: Death Flower II (Venom 10, Venom Immunity)
 * Blitz Hammer: Hammer User II (HP 10, Stamina 10)
 * Pf • Drage(?) Kai: Dedicated Defense II (Defense 10, Guard Exposure Down 10)
 * Crocodile Jaw Hammer Kai: Oracle Rise II (Frugal 10, Oracle 5)