Labrys

It's you! Time to be on the other end of your own tricks...

Combo notes

• None, weirdly. Lots of other characters report issues with Labrys but none for us.

Unique responses and punishes

Move	Response/notes
DP	DP back - just be aware of the ability to hold DP and/or super afterwards On block - md 2B > 5D punish if you were close, 2AB > 214A/AB if you were far. Be careful of super cancels.
Beast	Roll and punish with 2B for a fatal (can also be done on block if no OMC), or 5A if you can't reach before she lands If you hit it, you can OMC IK (immediately against C, with slight delay against D, before superflash)
Gears	Roll/jump over midscreen In corner, super jump > late airdash > j.214B D beast will also work if no OMC available IK
Brutal impact	Beast (any version after superflash) Gears (C after superflash) Roll (after superflash) DP (hold) IK (after superflash)
5B > 5C	Can be swept on reaction
Note	Gears, beast and Brutal impact can all be IK'd on reaction
Crossup attempts	Upback grab beats most of these, just be aware stuff like 5A means you need to input it later as you'll be stuck in blockstun

Overview and tips

Dustloop page here - although you should already be familiar with this...

Mirrors are always daunting, and this is no exception - of course the matchup is even, but that doesn't stop Labrys being extremely scary to fight, especially when your defensive options are weak. Keep cool and remember that this matchup is mostly decided in neutral. Also the key is to try and read your opponent's next move based on how they play. Do they love jumping at you and rushing you down? Get ready with 2Bs or set up j.Ds early to force them to block. Do they like to take their time and set up orbs? Run in and destroy Ariadne, or set up your own/send out an SB spike to lock them down and destroy Ariadne.

You are also an expert in their character, so try and put yourself in their shoes at times and figure out what their best move is, then move to counter it. It's tough, as you're effectively playing two characters at once, but you'll effectively be reading the future, so try it out.

As stated before, neutral is even, but do remember what your options are. j.A and 2B will beat j.B. Dashing in close will beat attempts to set up orbs or j.D. Labrys doesn't really have a way of dealing with projectile setups at full screen, so if given space, do set these up, but be aware your opponent may do the same (at which point you may wish to use the dash cancel to close the gap).

Pressure is scary for the defender, as Labrys can counter DP with DP if she's still using normals. Do be aware that both sides have the option of holding DP, and using beast if they hit the opponent's DP super armour, making for some odd interations. Generally though, low commital pressure and resets can be used to strong advantage, and getting out can be tricky. You know the drill, however you also know what is and isn't real, including the fact that 5B > 5C can be swept on reaction...

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

• You know what bad habits look like - including being too obvious with j.B, which is slower than most of the rest of the cast's air options, so you can 2B it on reaction!

• Gears can be dealt with using air delays or your own supers (or IK) - make sure you're ready with an answer

• Labrys players do tend to momentum burst more than normal, be ready to bait these if possible

Main adjustments to make

Feel free to use orb, just remember that the opponent can do the same in return, so remember that the dash cancel exists

The samejump works on Labrys, and she has no answers that can't be responded to on reaction, just remember that you'll hit on DP rather than whiff.

DP usage is risk, and there's lots of layers of mindgames, but it remains a poor defensive option until the attacking Labrys enters specials

The oki works just fine, and you can even DP back if they try to DP the sweep

Chain knuckle is in general not great here, unless as a specific spike/orb callout, but even then is usually too slow to punish

Gears can work, but Labrys does have multiple answers (see below), and will be expecting it

j.D is great for making space against an airborne Labrys, just make sure you have enough space or you may get j.B'd