The Street Fighter Zero 2 Dash/Alpha 2 gold Dhalsim Guide[Sega Saturn]
22/03/99
By Waleed Mahdi[
[email protected]]
Ver. 2.0
Version history
===============
Ver. 1.0
first version released
Ver 1.1
Added yoga drill info
Added super bar management
Added more throw info
Added other tidbits e.g typos etc.
Ver 2.0
More in the versus strats section.
Combo section improved.
Changed normal move terminology.
Contents.
1, Introduction
2, Colours
3, Normal Moves
4, Command moves
5, Throws
6, Alpha counters
7, Special Moves
8, Super combos
9, Combos
10, Strategy
11, Closing
1.0 Introduction
============
I first saw Dhalsim in [obviously] SF2 the world warrior, and although I
thought he was interesting, I didn't use him at all. I picked Ryu as my
main character[I didn't have much access to game anyway so when I played
it was Ryu or Ken]:(
I didn't start playing Dhalsim until Alpha 2, After playing him in SFA2
I went back to SSF2 and SSF2T just to get a better understanding of his
strengths and weaknesses, I also started to play him in the playstation
version of SFEX+A. By the way, this was my first attempt at writing a
Faq so don't expect perfection. Okay?
2.0 Colours
=======
X button: Yellow Shorts. Dhalsim's standard colour.
A button: Light brown shorts, blueish,greyish skin.
Y button: Green shorts dark brown skin.
B button: Orange shorts.
Z button: light green shorts.[original autoblock colour]
C button: light blue/grey skin pink shorts.[alternative autoblock
colour]
3.0 Normal Moves
============
A word about limbs:
Dhalsim has two versions of all his regular attacks,
one when the controller is in neutral,[down,
up,downtoward,uptoward,toward] and when the
controller is in the away position[back,downback,and
upback].This allows Dhalsim to chose exactly
what type of regular attack he wants to do.
Standing jab.
-------------
This is Dhalsim's most effective air counter, and
is best done when the opponent is within close
to medium distance. It can also stop certain
long distance jump attacks too, such as Zangief's normal
jumping fierce.
Standing short.
---------------
This move is quite fast and has decent
range, it is an effective poke and can
be done repeatedly to push your opponent
out of range.
Standing strong.
----------------
Dhalsim stretches one arm out at
medium height. Decent reach,I use this as backup
after the standing short or crouching jab.
This can also hit opponents out of the air,
but you shouldn't be using it
as an anti air, when you have standing
forward or roundhouse.
Finally, you can do to hit opponents
who have jumped incorrectly into your
yoga fire and whilst they are air-blocking,
snap'em out of the stance with this punch.
Standing forward.
-----------------
You would normally do this to stop jumpers
from far away and for yoga fire trap patterns.
Also try this occasionally at the start of
the round for a sneeky hit:)
Standing fierce.
----------------
This is Dhalsim's longest ranged move,
and has nearly full screen reach!
I generally use this after I throw a jab yoga fire
to add pressure or as a two hit combo.
This can punish fireballers who are silly
enough to counter your yoga fires with their
own projectiles. [old guile tech]
Standing roundhouse.
--------------------
Not much use except this can be used
as an alternative to the standing
medium kick for more damage, this
has slightly longer range than the
medium version.
Crouching jab.
--------------
Very good reach and speed,
useful poking move from a distance.
Crouching strong.
-----------------
Same as above but slightly slower.
Crouching fierce.
-----------------
Same as above but this is also
useful for trading with fireballers
or hitting them cleanly if
they are Bison,Charlie[do it early],
Rose or Sagat[High version].
Crouching short.
----------------
A quick slide that does not knock down,
can be used to advance to the foe.
Your yoga inferno combos from
this move as well.
Crouching forward.
------------------
You can advance with this.
Crouching roundhouse.
---------------------
Dhalsim's famous slide which you should
know by now is the perfect counter
for close fireball's
or missed attacks the range is also good.
You can also slide jumping opponents aswell
although this is blockable, try it once in a
while to give them one more thing to think
about. This move also has some pretty heavy
lag after it, so make sure that it hits.
Away standing jab.
------------------
like the neutral version but comes out slower.
Away standing short.
--------------------
a much shorter ranged version of the original,
that's all I know about it.
Away standing strong.
---------------------
a very good air counter if the opponent is very close
and right above you. More vertical range than the jab.
Away standing forward.
----------------------
So far the only thing I use this for is to
counter Dan's dankukyaku, Sakura's forward and roundhouse
shun pu kyaku, Sometimes the shotokaners version.
Away standing fierce.
---------------------
Dhalsim's double headbutt, this hits hard
and can cancel off the first hit.
Away standing roundhouse.
-------------------------
Dhalsim does a defensive knee,
it can also counter the air hurricane[usually]
and Zangief's long distance jumping fierce.
This can be used for anti air providing you
are close, and do it before the opponent sticks
out their.....whatever.
It's not really that realiable as you'll usually
trade.
Away crouching jab.
-------------------
This can combo, and is fairly fast...you can link about 2 or 3 of these
together.
Away crouching medium punch.
----------------------------
At close range this snuffs a lot of
crouching moves as long as it is done
BEFORE the opponent's.
This can also be linked into
another crouching strong or a low forward.
Away crouching fierce.
----------------------
Good damage but slow.
Away crouching light kick.
--------------------------
Can two in one from it.
Away crouching forward.
-----------------------
Most of my two in ones are based on this, decent range.
Away crouching roundhouse.
--------------------------
Same as above but the main use of this is to start off my custom combos.
Jumping jab.
------------
This can act as an overhead, when done early.
Jumping strong.
---------------
This has long range and is a decent air to air counter.
Jumping fierce.
---------------
This also acts as an overhead but your timing
has to be pretty fast to catch your opponent with
it, do it VERY early on your way up.
There is no way to tell it is coming.
[apart from being too obvious with it].
Also be careful with this because some opponents
can punish you straight after your fierce connects.
Good air to air move as well.
Jumping short.
--------------
Good air to air, very long range
best done jumping backwards or straight up.
Jumping forward.
----------------
Same as above.
Jumping roundhouse.
-------------------
This has very good range and the
straight up version is a good air
hurricane counter from a distance.
4.0 Command Moves
=============
Yoga shock.
-----------
This is Dhalsim's official overhead
attack and is quite slow due to the
fact that you have to charge it.
If you are going to use this, try to do
it when they are getting up...actually no.
DO NOT BOTHER WITH THIS MOVE AT ALL!
MOTION: Hold away and the jab button.
Head drill.
-----------
Dhalsim dives head first at the opponent
while spinning. If you anticipate a fireball try this
but you must have good timing and
positioning but won't work against
high projectiles such as the
soul spark, sonic boom, high tiger or
psycho shot. Also good for air to air.
MOTION: Jump then down+heavy punch.
Drill kick.
-----------
This comes in three versions far, medium,
and close.It is important that you do the correct
version at the correct distance, for example do not
use the far version(short) at very close
range. Even if you hit them, you can be hit
whilst you are still doing the move. Try to hit the
opponent as low to the ground as possible so
that it makes contact while you are landing.
This move could also be used to waste time or
add pressure if your opponent does not have any
super energy and is in the corner, do
the forward and roundhouse versions repeatedly,some
characters can't do a thing to stop this:)
The roundhouse version can also cross up opponents.
MOTION: Jump then down+ short, forward, or roundhouse.
Yoga escape.
------------
Can be used as an equivalent to the jab
getting up roll, but don't do it too close.
MOTION: When falling to the ground enter
Back, Downback, and down+kick.
Yoga palm.
----------
I have no idea what this is and how to use it, fake out
perhaps ?
MOTION: Forward + jab.
5.0 Throws
======
Yoga throw.
-----------
A double handed grapple where he grabs your head
and chucks you. If the opponent is not in the
corner Dhalsim will throw them a very far distance.
If you want distance with you opponent, this is
the move for it. But unfortunately, it does not have
the insane range it used to in the SF2 games.
MOTION: Forward or back+heavy punch.
Yoga smash.
-----------
Dhalsim repeatedly bashes your head in!
pressing the buttons and shaking the pad rapidly makes
him do it faster and more damage. The opponent will still
be quite close after this throw.
MOTION: Forward or back+medium punch.
6.0 Alpha Counters
==============
As a rule I generally think counters
are kinda cheesy and dishonourable ESPECIALLY
Ken's kick version (lil mo furr:) but your
opinion may differ so I'll write them anyway.
NOTE: Alpha counters now require one and
a half level of your super meter(Hurrah!).
Punch alpha counter.
If someone jumps and they hit you from the shoulder up, do it then.
MOTION: While guarding enter; Back,Downback,Down+punch.
Kick alpha counter.
If you block close a fireball, or a heavy
standing attack, like Ken's roundhouse for example.
MOTION: While guarding enter Back,Downback,Down+kick.
7.0 Special Moves
=============
Yoga fire.
----------
Dhalsim's own special projectile. This move is
quite essential for your "keep them away but make
them come to you "strategy. This is quite fast
to come out,so can suprise some opponents at close
range. The bad news is that it does not travel
the entire length of the screen, and the heavy
punch version travels the least but the light
punch version travels the farthest.
Also the heavy and medium punch versions knock
the opponent down while the light version briefly
stuns them.
MOTION: Qcf+p
Yoga flame.
-----------
Dhalsim breathes a short ranged but big ball of flame
in front of him. This is a good counter to
tons of special moves jaguar tooth, jaguar kick,hurricanes,
air hurricanes, skull divers and that
funky flying grab of Akuma's.
This also good air counter. It works best
when you can anticipate your opponent will do any of
the above, also doing the fierce version randomly
is not such a bad idea as very few opponents
can punish you if you don't connect with it.
MOTION: Hcb+p
Yoga blast.
-----------
Dhalsim's custom made anti air move. Do this
early so that your opponent jumps into it. Always
use the light kick version as you won't be
left a sitting duck if you miss the move. This move is what
all of your custom combos should include.
MOTION: Hcb+k
Yoga teleport.
--------------
When he does this move, he cannot be hit
whilst he's doing it. However he can be smacked as he is
reappearing. You can use this to escape
if your opponent has you in the corner and you are under
heavy fire. NOTE:this can be an absolute lifesaver:)
You can also play annoying games of chicken
when your opponent desparately chases
after you.Can be done in eight positions including the air.
MOTION: Fwd,Dwn,Dwnfwd+3por3k Bck,Dwn,Bckdown+3por3k.
8.0 Super Combos
============
Yoga inferno.
-------------
Although it is called yoga inferno, don't be
fooled into thinking this is the same super as in
SSF2T. Dhalsim breathes waves of flame onto his
opponent, this gets 3 hits at level 1, 8 hits at level 2,
and 13 hits at level 3. It is safe if blocked.
MOTION: Qcf,Qcf+p
Yoga strike.
------------
This is like Rose's soul throw with much
less vertical and horizontal range. If you do want to
catch your opponent with it, you have to
anticipate your opponent is going to jump. Do it fairly
early though or you can be hit out of it,
even the level 3 version :(
You can also juggle your opponent with the
level 3 version after a connected yoga flame or yoga
blast. Also, after connecting with this move you land right
to your opponent. It would be advised to either
teleport away from a possible wake up throw or high
priority super.
MOTION: Qcf,Qcf+k
Yoga tempest.
-------------
This is Dhalsim's new[ish] super for dash, it is
basically the old yoga inferno from SSF2T.
This is a good alternative to the yoga flame, it will
also get all hits even if you catch your opponent in
the air with it. It has some pretty terrible
lag time if your opponenent blocks this close up, so
watch it! This gets 3 hits at level 1,4 at level 2 and 5 hits at
level 3
MOTION: Hcb,Hcb+p
9.0 Combos
======
Dhalsim is not exactly as combo gifted as someone like Ken or Guy and
they are rarely over four hits[if you don't count the level 2 and 3
inferno or custom]. He can do some juggling though and does decent
damage especially combo number 7 and the custom.
1. Light yoga fire from nearly full screen-> standing/crouching fierce.
2. Crouching away strong-> link to crouching away forward.
3. Crouching away strong or forward-> yoga fire.
4. Jumping away fierce/drill kick-> low forward-> yoga fire.
5. Jumping away fierce/drill kick-> away standing fierce-> yoga
fire/flame.
6. Jumping away fierce/drill kick-> away standing fierce-> yoga flame-
>yoga tempest.
7. Jumping away fierce/drill kick-> away standing fierce-> yoga flame-
>yoga strike.(corner)
8. Jumping away fierce/drill kick-> away standing fierce-> yoga flame-
>level 1 yoga inferno.
9. Yoga blast-> level 3 yoga strike/tempest.
10. Jumping away fierce/drill kick->Crouching light kick->yoga
inferno.
11. (custom combo)Crouching roundhouse-> yoga fire-> yoga blastx2-5.
12. Anti-air Standing jab-> level 3 yoga strike.
13. Roundhouse drill kick-> Crouching away roundhouse-> level 3 yoga
strike.(very close)
10.0 Dhalsim's strategy
==================
Dhalsim is still played basically the same way as in SSF2T, But slight
changes to some of his
normal and special moves require a little modification in his general
strategy.
Changes from SSF2T:
His yoga fire doesn't travel the full screen distance.
He has a longer recovery time from throwing a yoga fire.
All of of his long distance normal attacks have more reach.
His yoga fire comes out quicker.
His throws have less range.[damn:(]
Slower teleport.
New standing short.
New commands for some of his special moves.
New air teleport.
And of course, the custom combos.
The above are the most noticible changes Dhalsim has recieved from SSF2T
to SFA2 and he has very few new additions in SFA2G/SFZ2'.
Changes from SFA2:
Yoga fire does less damage.
New yoga tempest.[see super combos]
Easier to stop level 1 yoga inferno and yoga strike on startup
Yoga strike does less damage.[all levels]
New juggling abilities with the yoga strike.
Overall strategy
================
I think Dhalsim is most effective when he is at some distance with his
opponent, this is because he can try to set up his opponent with the
yoga fire patterns or just use his limbs to harass to opponent, Dhalsim
should also be at a distance where he can safely counter jump in attacks
without fear of trading hits or getting hit cleanly out of whatever he's
trying to defend with.
Generally, you should try to poke them so they get pushed away and you
will be at the distance you want to be, where you can set them up with
yoga fires, kick patterns or just use your limbs to poke them some more.
Dhalsim should also always have more health than whoever he's
challenging. The simple reason for this is to keep them coming to you
when they are farther away from you. If not, they can hang back and make
you come to them which is not a good idea for Dhalsim. Especially if the
opponent is turtling, Dhalsim can't really do much to stop this and
you'll probably get a counter of some kind because you'll be desparately
attacking trying to pressure them.
Yoga fire then standing forward or roundhouse
=============================================
If you do push your opponent away, one option is to try the yoga fire
then kick pattern. This is tricky because to get this work effectively
you must be at a distance where as soon you throw your yoga fire you
will be able to standing forward or roundhouse them out of the air as
soon they jump,
The key to this is the further away you are the better this trick will
work.
You should also be at a distance where your opponent can't antipate your
yoga fire and jump in and do whatever.
However,the problem lies in the dissipation of the yoga fire when at
full screen, so you have to position yourself where when you send your
fire your opponent must block it, jump it or try to counter with an
appropiate special move.
Poking from a distance
======================
Poking your opponent when from afar may seem quite effective if you
think in terms of "I can hit him but he can't hit me". However this is
not the case as almost all characters can hit you if you're not careful.
The opponent can only take advantage of this if they know you'll stick
out a
limb, so be careful.
The main moves I use to poke my opponent are standing short, crouching
jab, standing strong, and when at the furthest distance, standing and
crouching fierce. Whilst poking with these moves I'll place a standing
forward into the sequence if I suspect that my opponent might try a
jump.
Out of all of the above I tend to use the standing short the most.
Although the crouching jab has more range, hits standing opponents plus
can hit certain fireballers, I don't use it as much. Go figure.
Handling fireballs
==================
When in a full screen fireball war that you are losing,it may be more
useful if you jump straight up over it since there is minimum threat if
you do,you lose no energy and can put you in quite an advantageous
positon. You see, because Dhalsim's jump is very floaty you do not need
worry about
any special timing and can be done with ease. But one good thing is, if
you jump the fireball and your opponent tries to follow the fireball you
can use the following setups to get them and put you in a[hopefully]
better position.
If they walk behind the fireball and try to get you as you are landing,
use a forward drill kick into crouching forward two in one yoga fire and
poke pattern to push them out.
If they try to follow the fireball by jumping you can use either the
jumping fierce, strong,forward or roundhouse while still landing.
If they follow the fireball but wait for you to land or your drill, try
the air teleport to get away.
Wake up!
========
When knocked down try to use the jab roll when at a medium to far
distance if you do it a close range, smart opponents will be able to hit
you during the roll. I've seen someone get hit during their roll and get
knock down and roll again and get knocked down and roll again and get
knocked
down, fools! they did not learn!
The point, it's not always to your advantage to use this roll. Take
caution.
Ground
------
Custom combo.
Level 2 or 3 yoga inferno.
Level 2 or 3 yoga tempest.
Yoga teleport.
Against jumpers
---------------
Yoga tempest
Yoga teleport.
Yoga strike[cross ups only]
The super bar
=============
In A2/Z2 Dhalsim's supers weren't that hot(no pun intended)...poor
range,weren't easily comboable and limited use. In A2G/Z2' The tempest
is the best thing he could have asked for, it makes great anti-air
becuase of it's range and juggles rather well too.
Dhalsim's customs are decent enough to warrant using them...Over 60%
from a level3 and more damage overall than any level of any of his
supers.
Basically, I only bother with the tempest and the customs.
Versus Matchups
===============
Adon: Try to stay at a distance where you won't get the revolver or the
regular jaguar kick over your fires. If he gets close, watch out for:
empty jump into throw[always counter his jump ins], over head, cross
ups, he's also one of the few chararcters that still has jaw dropping
customs, so be prepared. Use the away crouching strong/forward to beat
most of his pokes. Use a custom/super to punish him for a blocked/hit
jaguar kick, which BTW has more end lag than before.
Akuma: His fireball has been sped up a tad, but that won't save him from
your yoga fires as he can't match them. When he jumps he tends to do an
air fireball to protect him from anti air attacks so when he jumps from
a close distance, time a custom to pass the air fb and flame away:) He
also likes to do his cammy style jump and grab, so a yoga flame/tempest
will counter this. Another thing to keep an eye out for is the dive kick
and hop kick...they're both fast and suprising, but you can custom any
follow up he makes after them.
If he tries to IHM(how pointless) you when you are getting up, try a
custom combo as it's way easier than trying a motion for a super.
Birdie: The first round can be pretty easy, but by the second round he
WILL have super energy and you pretty much have to be extremely shy and
cautious with your moves because that super[you know the one] will beat
any anticipated poke or fire. The drill is hard for him to counter
though, and use a custom combo to counter any tick throw attempts.
Bison: Hit him with your low fierce any time you see a psycho shot[trade
or clean] to discourage him from sending them. Bison also likes to go
for that skull diver/head press nonsense, an early yoga blast should
suffice or you could just block the head press and then yoga tempest the
following skull diver. Your crouching away strong works wonders against
most of his pokes aswell.
Cammy: She has extremly good poking ability and a good air to ground
roundhouse. Try to keep her away, but watch out for the super when she
calls bison which has full screen range and is a good fireball counter.
It has long end lag when blocked, so when this happens standing fierce
her.
watch out for repeated hooligan jumps when you're getting up, get ready
to tempest.
Charlie: His short somersault shell can be fully air blocked[boo, I also
play him!] but that should'nt make the slightest bit of difference with
Dhalsim, since 1:Dhalsim rarely needs to jump. 2: if you jump in with
any thing but a drill he can hit you with other moves. Anyway, you
should keep him at a distance where you can hit him under the sonic
booms and do your yoga fire kick patterns.
Chun li: A tough match because Dhalsim can't counter her jump ins
effectively[at best the standing away strong will ususally trade hits]
so I sometimes like to do the short yoga blast when I "feel" she's going
to jump or just do the tempest. When she gets close watch out for low
forward into sen en shu[overhead],and frequent jumping shorts and low
forwards. When I see a lot of low forwards, I'll do a forward drill kick
to stop her from doing this then try to push her away. Oh, and no more
40% level 1 custom...HURRAH!
Dan: He can counter your limbs with his crouching fierce and sail your
close fires with his dankukyaku. A cross up happy dan is still a threat
imo:p
Gen: Mantis style now has an extremely fast and low jump so he can
quickly jump in on reaction if you try to yoga fire him when at anything
less than full screen range. Keep him out at all costs because he's a
real killer at close range imo. Kiryu style has a higher, yet slower
jump but he can roll under your fires even at full screen range. When he
gets close watch out for that really wide cross up of his, and use
tempest if he tries the "back and forth method". He also posseses an
extremely long ranged jumping roundhouse[kiryu] that hits twice, so
always keeps this in mind and make sure you block two hits when he jumps
in. Also, because of kiryu style's higher jump,your standing jab tends
to miss when he jumps, so go with away standing strong/tempest for anti-
air instead.
Guy: Be careful with your yoga fires, as all it's takes is one bushin
izuna drop->jumping punch super to have you playing catch up. Do your
usual poke stuff, and when he does get close, a well placed custom can
interrupt some his close up tactics such as a running in throw, an
overhead,or running in super[the new grab one].
Ken: Ken might try an air hurricane to get close, so whilst you are
doing fires, mix the yoga blast in between or if you don't do this, you
can wait till you see it coming then...tempest or slide to hit him as he
is landing from the air hk. At close range Ken players will use the roll
of various strengths of to go offensive on you. Try to reverse the roll
into throw with your own throw or a super/custom. Watch out for the
rolling behind you at close range where he'll pull a combo on you before
you change your blocking position.
Rose: This is hard. Rose can counter your limbs pretty effectively plus
throwing fires puts you in a bad position as the soul reflect can make
things look grim. You should keep the use of your limbs to a bare
minimum. So what to do? Well, you can hit her under the soul spark and
your anti
airs still work, just be patient.
Rolento: Throwing fireballs at a distance isn't too wise as the super
jump and the level 3 "take no prisoner" super will spell death for you.
You can slide/custom to pass the stinger depending on the angle of the
knife and hit him as he is landing. Watch out for the kick counter where
he switches sides and can combo you before you realise what has
happened. Devoid of any good customs this time around you'll get to see
the true Rolento!
Ryu: Stay as far as possible and jump straight up over the fireballs,
you can keep doing this till he decides to come after you, then you can
harrass him with limbs. An early low fierce can hit him out of his
fireball[the fireball will still come out, but your arm will have
retracted so you can block in time]. His fireball does less damage now
so trading with him can be to your advantage. His level 1 shinkuu
hadouken is easy to stop now so you might want low fierce him anytime
you expect this.
Sagat: You can low fierce him under the high tigers and [with timing]
drill kick the low ones. Watch out for the tiger cannon once he has
super energy he will use this against your yoga fire. Get ready to
tempest any close range jumping attempts he may have, as the jab doesn't
work so well against him. Also, because Sagat is a slightly larger
character than most, your jumping fierce overhead will work better here.
The same goes for Zangief and Birdie.
Sakura: Keep your distance, you can sometimes get her when she tries her
fireball with your crouching fierce. Stick out yoga flames when at
medium distance to keep her from doing the shun pu kyaku. She also has a
fairly hard time countering your drills.
Sodom: He has a long ranged jumping roundhouse and very difficult to
counter jumping fierce. Watch out for a standing short/forward->
butsumetsu buster as the this is one of sodom's main ways of landing
this move. If you are blocking when you see the Tenchusatsu super grab,
quickly do a custom to escape and punish him.
Zangief: If he tries to lariat through the yoga fires, low fierce him.
When he gets close, ALWAYS react to his jump ins with a tempest or a
standing jab (make sure your in range, as he will jump in but the jab
will whiff and...) As with all the grapplers, always use a custom to
escape their command throw attempts.
11.0 Closing
=======
Well that's it,thanks for reading I hope you got at least one useful
thing out of this guide. If you have any comments,suggestions,more
Dhalsim strategies etc, feel free to mail me at:
[email protected]
Acknowledgements:
Andy Lawrence for rock solid challenges at the silver dollar.
Jerome Harper for good challenges on EX and claiming Garuda is a "fair"
character....ha ha ha boy, I laugh myself to sleep every night with that
one:p
Ron for free credits at Segaworld, no wonder it closed down:)
Gamest mook EX series vol.11 for custom combo and anti air info plus
official move names.
End of Document.
14/03/99
