Akihiko

Turns out bringing fists to a axe fight is a bad idea

Combo notes

• Difficult to combo in general, try to keep high during 5D otherwise he techs early

Unique responses and punishes

Move	Response/notes
j.C	Make it whiff/block when close and you can punish the landing recovery with 5A/5B/2AB/IAD j.B. Can 2B it if in range, or charge 2B to punish a delayed j.C or a j.C which is too high.
Maziodyne	If he doesn't have meter, can respond with DP/Beast, although he can OMC. Gears will result in a favourable trade most of the time, but you will get hit/shocked. Can be IK'd
Cyclone punch	Can punish normally with 2B on block if he doesn't have meter. If he has meter, roll then A chain knuckle punish midscreen (or if you were spaced on the super's startup, roll then dash 2B)
IK	No good reliable responses, just dodge it and punish normally, or IK back near the end of the move

Overview and tips

Dustloop page here

This is one of the few matchups, if not the only matchup, that most would agree is in Labrys' favour. Not only because Akihiko is lacking in a lot of areas, but also because Labrys can shut him out with her normals and projectiles, and there's very little Akihiko can do about it. With sufficient spacing and patience, winning neutral is a simple case of not making serious errors for long enough that eventually you'll land a normal or force Akihiko to block, at which point you can safely begin pressure. With decent spacing, there's nothing he can do to you given his awful DP and reversal options. A word of warning however - don't sleep on this MU, as Akihiko can output far higher damage than you from some fairly inconspicuous hits if you're not careful, so stay vigilant and don't get hasty.

If Akihiko does manage to get in on you, Labrys' poor DP means you will struggle to get out without making a somewhat risky decision. This is somewhat balanced by the fact that most of what Akihiko does can be disrespected (with grab, roll or dp), and will get you out unless properly baited. The key is not being too obvious about it, and varying how long you block for before deciding it's time to go. The safest option is usually to attempt an upback grab in any of the larger gaps.

Akihiko's 2B is very fast at 7 frames, with head invuln starting at frame 5, however it doesn't have the largest hitbox horizontally, so with good spacing you can make it hard for him to use. His 2A and 5A are 5 frames, so be careful not to make your gaps too large during stagger pressure otherwise you'll get hit. Some Akihiko players will try to go into their staces, using duck/weave to low profile your j.B attempts. If they start doing this, simply use projectiles such as orbs or spikes to get them to stop before going in. You can also do j.B low to the ground and weave won't take them low enough , although duck will.

Some final quirks that you'll notice in Akihiko players that you can exploit:

• Akihiko players tend to be impatient and will rush at you, which you can generally stop with a well placed retreating j.B/D or even 5A

• Playing patient will often end well for you if you react correctly and don't commit to anything major, forcing an Akihiko player to take a risk

• Akihiko 5D/2D/j.D will pull you in, but this also acts as a way to make IAD j.B hit full screen and destroy Caesar, so have fun with that

Main adjustments to make

• Use orb freely at full screen unless expecting an SB rush immediately, very strong here

• Safejump freely - nothing Akihiko can do to beat it

• DPs do carry risk due to high punish damage, but must be cleanly baited by Akihiko to be punished

• You can bait Akihiko DP using range and jumps (just be careful because it hits quite high), it has enough recovery for a full 2B punish, and will always work into 5D if you blocked due to short Akihiko DP range

  • If he has meter, he can either delay cyclone uppercut to punish (although not if you're at range), or thunder fists to make it safe and plus, so watch his meter before you punish

• SB spike will work ok, but in general isn't needed, and Akihiko players usually move around enough to make it whiff anyway. Can force them to stop ducking/weaving.

• SB Chain knuckle isn't needed due to no projectiles, and in general chain knuckle isn't worth the risk in this matchup. C weaving will also low profile chain knuckle.

• Akihiko doesn't have any easy clean answers to gears with another super (D maziodyne will hit, but then he will get hit too)

  • He can, as with everyone, super jump air delay j.C for a full punish in the corner, so still be careful

• j.D is great at keeping Akihiko out, so feel free to use it if you need some breathing room

• His j.C can outrange your 2B, so if he starts using it too often, just block/make it whiff and punish the landing recovery