Mai tips and tricks

[Coldsnap]

This is just to start off a generic Mai thread... a list of some random stuff I find useful with Mai

I am by no means a Mai master, so feel free to improve on any of this stuff.

Anti- air options

st.fierce I use as a default anti-air, but you must pick up the jump early and distance correctly. This has a similar angle to Athena's st.strong, but does more damage. Priority is ok, but will not beat crossups and deep jump-ins.

Flame Pillar
Charge down then up+k. Effective as anti air only if you pick up on the jump VERY early. Use lk version because the startup on the others is horrible. Use this only if you are sure the move will hit as the move has massive recovery time. Works well against far away Honda headbuts and Blanka balls (unless close enough to still have RC invincibility!) and Vegas dive attacks.

Roll cancelled flame attack (qcb+p)
This is probably her anti-air for obvious reasons. Dont abuse this as it easily rolled through and has alot of recovery if the opponent blocks it close.

j.rh is also a good all purpose anit-air, air-to-air. High priority, I think its one of the best j.rh in the game next to Rock and Sagat. Good for a suprise small jumping attack too to get that last hit.



j.short is her crossup. Good as a set-up to throwing mindgames.

Mai's throw is damn good as well.

Pokes
cr.rh!!

cr.fierce is good too, for guard damage, bufferabilty, priority. Easy as hell to combo supers after this.

cr.forward is a quick little slide, has some recovery though, so be careful.

st.rh has huge startup and little range... use as a meaty.

st.jab is good! Good range, high priority. Can sometimes anti-air.

cr.short for ghetto style.

cr.jab is ok, same with cr.strong.

Combos
Easiest combo is j.rh, cr.fierce, fierce flame attack. Does four hits, nice damage. Not safe for guard damage though as the last attack has long recovery, throw out a fan instead.


Generally speaking, I use Mai as a battery, throwing fans ALOT (you can buffer these after a cr.rh, usually safe) and random flame attacks to build meter. She is not a ruchdown machine a la Kyo, her pokes dont have alot of speed or range, so just annoy the hell out of the opponent with fans, cr and j.rh, mix it up with throws and you should be on your way.

A cheesy tactic is when cornered, to use her triangle jump (jump back onto the wall, then jump forward) and use a qcb+p at the peak of the jump (you should be off the screen at this point). You end up on the other side of the screen. Just watch out for the super attempt. This will usually beat a tiger uppercut btw, done this many times. This tactic sets up a little game in itself. You can omit the qcb+p and go straight into a combo or throw.

[GalzPanic]

One thing I started to do with low jumping Mai is, low jump roundhouse straight into qcb+fierce. The timing for the 3hit combo is pretty liberal. Anyway it's pretty cool if you do it off a jumpin short or such. Then you can get them to start fearing empty low jump into low short combo.

[TRANCEADICT]

i love this one..
d lk,c lk,qcf hk-4 hit's
jump in hk re-jump hk qcbhp super.-6-7 hit's...
as for her strat's well all you need is sj hk...
hp for anti air!and qcb lp,that's just to fake ure opp..
if he uppercut's or something you wont get hit,but you'll
hit youre opp....also duhk is another dope anti air..
just dont use it to much or you'll get raped!!
i think K is her best groove just cuz of jd..
what do you guy's suggest..??

[Gwai Lo ½]

Originally posted by TRANCEADICT
i love this one..
d lk,c lk,qcf hk-4 hit's
jump in hk re-jump hk qcbhp super.-6-7 hit's...
as for her strat's well all you need is sj hk...
hp for anti air!and qcb lp,that's just to fake ure opp..
if he uppercut's or something you wont get hit,but you'll
hit youre opp....also duhk is another dope anti air..
just dont use it to much or you'll get raped!!
i think K is her best groove just cuz of jd..
what do you guy's suggest..??

Although I have no clue what half the stuff you wrote is referring to... a-groove is by far her best groove.

[TRANCEADICT]

that's youre opinion..but i think K groove is the best..>_0

[Legendary Gokou]

Mai is a rushdown character IMO ..... thats why she has all that speed. She can really limit the opponents game. All I have to say, is use j lk when close ..... cr lk, jump over with lk, repeat. Very simple tactic, mix up with a straight, empty jump.

[TRANCEADICT]

i think sj hk is way beter than sj lk becouse not only will it
sometimes buff youre opp but it's less like'ly you'll get hit..
as for c lk well that shit is weaker than a scrub tactic...
her c hp now that is way beter than her c lk,it has reach
and it's is easy to follow up with her bab combo..

[Gwai Lo ½]

Um, are you saying you dont use c.lk?

[Legendary Gokou]

i use j rh when I need the range or the hit. Easy to combo off of, but I use j lk a little more for the cross up, if I know that it will. j rh beats a lot of things, with small jump its deadly.

cr lk, i don't see how this can not be useful, aside for the range. True, it does crappy damage, but you can link 3 cr lk's into her Bee super. Easy to pull off when you get the motion down. You can even link her super off of just one. Sometimes I'll use 2, jump over with j lk, cross up, cr fierce into qcb fierce. Mix things up, don't just go with the same things over again. Opponents who avoid the cross up by rolling, try to bait the roll, then punish. Not much you can do to punish RC's ....

Also, if I know the opponent is itching to get an attack in, I'll try to knockdown with cr rh. Distance yourself so your just about BARELY in sweep range, then do qcb fierce. If your opponent tries to attack, it'll pretty much beat out anything, and it pushes back just enough for it to be safe since you distanced yourself before you did it.

[TRANCEADICT]

yes i do use sj lk..but i like to use hk beter,you should try it
anyway's i still think k groove is beter than A groove well
for mai atleast!!

[Legendary Gokou]

How do you figure K groove is the best for her? She has no wake up game when she gets knocked down unless she's raged. Might as well pick N or C.

[MegaZangief]

Originally posted by Legendary Gokou
How do you figure K groove is the best for her? She has no wake up game when she gets knocked down unless she's raged. Might as well pick N or C.

just like any other character in K groove would, just defend that shit :)

[Legendary Gokou]

Originally posted by MegaZangief


just like any other character in K groove would, just defend that shit :)

Just defend is fine, but its not enough for the damage that she takes. Might as well pick P groove. Personally, I think she thrives in N groove. But if one thing is for certain, you aren't using her to her fullest capabilities without her low jump. Low jump RH into Lvl 3 Bee Super is just way too good. Her run is good for pressure if you want to bridge the spacing a bit.

[Gwai Lo ½]

playing in n or c she still does not have any wake up options. The same could be said for these grooves what you said for k, to wake up she needs a super. Waking up with a level 2/3 cannot be done consistently, people will know you want to because you have no other options and will bait it out of you. Of course, them trying to bait it out of you often leads to you waking up and being on equal grounds (not in block stun from meaty attacks).

and if you just use c.rh that's not very smart, poke strings over pokes.. they take off more guard meter. Using s.lk and c.lk can lead you into a c.rh -> fan. if the lk's dont move you too far they are in block stun until the fan hits. (meaning they cant super through it) but if you are too far (at c.rh max range) they can super through the fan. They can also punish if they jd the c.rh and block the fan. Im not sure if they can punish if they jd the sweep from full range, most people will wait for the fan though, giving you some sort of mind game advantage.

her a-groove combo is very easy to do. I've been told you get more damage if you dont mash but you can mash buttons just the same and still do a complete a-combo. Her a-combo begins low unlike her supers so you will have more chance of landing it.

Mai is also VERY good at running away. Anyway, im not a mai expert but those are my thoughts. I've seen her played really effectively as a turtling character.

[Legendary Gokou]

Originally posted by Gwai Lo ½
playing in n or c she still does not have any wake up options. The same could be said for these grooves what you said for k, to wake up she needs a super. Waking up with a level 2/3 cannot be done consistently, people will know you want to because you have no other options and will bait it out of you. Of course, them trying to bait it out of you often leads to you waking up and being on equal grounds (not in block stun from meaty attacks).

and if you just use c.rh that's not very smart, poke strings over pokes.. they take off more guard meter. Using s.lk and c.lk can lead you into a c.rh -> fan. if the lk's dont move you too far they are in block stun until the fan hits. (meaning they cant super through it) but if you are too far (at c.rh max range) they can super through the fan. They can also punish if they jd the c.rh and block the fan. Im not sure if they can punish if they jd the sweep from full range, most people will wait for the fan though, giving you some sort of mind game advantage.

her a-groove combo is very easy to do. I've been told you get more damage if you dont mash but you can mash buttons just the same and still do a complete a-combo. Her a-combo begins low unlike her supers so you will have more chance of landing it.

Mai is also VERY good at running away. Anyway, im not a mai expert but those are my thoughts. I've seen her played really effectively as a turtling character.

I can't remember exactly, but can't you cancel her cr RH into a SJ even if its blocked? I don't really throw a lot of fans, I remember doing it a few times and being super'd right after, couldn't block. It seems most supers can reach her before she recovers from the fan. The push away from the cr RH and the fan isn't far enough. Of course, not many know you can punish with the super ....

I guess I don't like K groove because of the lack of a surprise. They see you raged, and they are more cautious.

[prez]

[i]

Mai is also VERY good at running away. Anyway, im not a mai expert but those are my thoughts. I've seen her played really effectively as a turtling character. [/B]
Hmmmmmmmmmm wonder who's mai you talking bout:cool:

[Gwai Lo ½]

Originally posted by prez

Hmmmmmmmmmm wonder who's mai you talking bout:cool:

Word, this the best mai player around right here :D

[TRANCEADICT]

you know how many times i've heard "im the best mai player"
but who gives a fuck!!!ok on to the topic so what's new
with her..??has anyone found any interesting combos lately...?

[Gwai Lo ½]

Originally posted by TRANCEADICT
you know how many times i've heard "im the best mai player"
but who gives a fuck!!!ok on to the topic so what's new
with her..??has anyone found any interesting combos lately...?

I'm not saying IM the best mai player, im saying HE's the best :D

[jreinert13]

the fuck...cancel C.Roundhouse into Super jump???? Where did you get this idea? Dear god that would be cheap

[TRANCEADICT]

you could also do this...
jump in hk,re-jump hp qcb super!!!

[FatalFuryD]

Haven't seen Mai's stuff too interesting lately.

basics..
C.hp(connect)xx hcf+k(otherwise pretty much useless) does corpse hop.
s.mk goes over low fireballs and low attacks.
s.hp is antiair.
d,u+p is safer than midair qcb+p.
b/b = c.lkx3, qcf+p

[forestsavior]

Bear in mind, of course, that the wall bounce in the charge version of Musasabi no Mai can 'whiff' if the opponent moves so that the screen scrolls away from the 'wall' Mai was leaping to. Just a tidbit for moderate-skill idiots like myself. :)

I don't use the charge MnM that much for that reason, so I'm not sure how bad the recovery is on a faulty wall bounce, or how much backward momentum Mai retains after missing the wall, so I can't comment on the move's potential to turn from a screw-up into a bait/escape/whatever. Maybe one of the other fine fellows in this thread can do just that.

[vasAZNion13]

best mai move is fan throw, reason is...
ONLY TO WATCH HER TAKE A FAN OUT OF HER TOP!

when i use mai, i only poke, trip, fan throw on their wake up....nothing much else besides simple combos and stuff every other character can do...

the only thing i think that's really special about mai is the two things located somewhere between her head and her waist:p

[Orochi Bulldog]

Originally posted by TRANCEADICT
you know how many times i've heard "im the best mai player"
but who gives a fuck!!!ok on to the topic so what's new
with her..??has anyone found any interesting combos lately...?


c lk stlp cmp qcb p in real close:eek: good for jump in wiffs

[NinjMai]

Originally posted by forestsavior
Bear in mind, of course, that the wall bounce in the charge version of Musasabi no Mai can 'whiff' if the opponent moves so that the screen scrolls away from the 'wall' Mai was leaping to. Just a tidbit for moderate-skill idiots like myself. :)

I don't use the charge MnM that much for that reason, so I'm not sure how bad the recovery is on a faulty wall bounce, or how much backward momentum Mai retains after missing the wall, so I can't comment on the move's potential to turn from a screw-up into a bait/escape/whatever. Maybe one of the other fine fellows in this thread can do just that.

The recovery time is not too hot for Mai. I use that move a bit, and I usually end up paying for it. If she could control what wall she went to, it would increase the usefulness of her charged MnM. I always do her air one simply because it can give breathing room. I only use the charged one if I know that I'm far enough from a wall so that she can dodge fireballs or play mindgames with any opponents.

[Pained Auron]

well i really only use mai in a groove. pretty easy a groove combo, and dows some good damage. i basically play mai as a turtler. like most people said, s.hp is a good anti air. if they try to cross you up, do a jumping hp. that is my anti air for crossups. as far as combos go, i stick to the simple shit. j.rh, c.hp, qcb p. that's really the only combo i use, since i am usually running away with mai. that's all i can think of for now. i'll post more when i can think of them. 2:30 am and tired as fuck from evo

[The Game mario316]

i dunno depending on some characters its not that hard to rush down with Mai. Jumping to cr. short short are good pokes and cant get uppercutted unless timed right.

I play her both ways anyways

[Binarystar]

What are her good and bad match ups if any? Thanks:)

[TRANCEADICT]

i dont really know about bad matchups it all the depends in ure opp but i usally have trouble with cammy...blanka...
other than that im ok..

[The Game mario316]

the only bad matchups i can see bad for her is a rush down shoto and cammy.

[TRANCEADICT]

just press down hp..it'll buff camy's atacks sometime's!!

[The Game mario316]

Originally posted by TRANCEADICT
just press down hp..it'll buff camy's atacks sometime's!!

d+hp leaves u open unless u follow it up.

[Coldsnap]

Actually Mai vs Shotos is not too bad.

If Mai has meter, she can alpha counter to escape the string, and then resume her runaway strats.

Shotos find it hard to punish Mai's runaway wall dives, the best they can offer is a correctly timed air hurricane, or maybe a shinkyuhadoken... but these are risky and leave them open for punishment.

Anyway, Mai can easily jump or roll through a mis-timed fireball, and since they cant beat her st.hp with jumping attacks, Shoto's options are limited. Unless youre facing an RC Ken, Shotos will find it hard to get in close.

A good offensive strat when facing shotos is to bait anti-air attempts. Mai's jump is quite quick, and can be deceiving. Otherwise just throw fans and grind em down.

Cammy: I agree, this is a tough match for Mai. RC spiral arrows kill her fan throwing, not to mention st'hk which outranges Mai's cr.hk... actually a good option is to do the the old dash, cr.rh. Other than that, maybe some RCd qcb+lp... dunno. Tough one.

[The Game mario316]

shotos can rush mai down pretty bad. If she rolls through a normal fireball chances are she might get thrown. Escaping it is not a problem, its the fact of what a shoto follows up with.

And they can kinda stop it with a timed DP.

[TRANCEADICT]

yeah dhp and follow up qcbmp.. but depending
on how far ure opp is then fuck him up!!either way
its a dope hit!!!

also for anti-air i use duhp she does that flame move.
i dont really recomended but if ure opp jumps allot
then use that!it can also go through supers if timed!!

[Legendary Gokou]

qcb+punch for anti air, yeah. I use it for the knockdown. Have to be careful though, its more of a forward angle, while her standing fierce aims a little more upward. Know which one to use.

Mai is a good offensive character, but don't forget that her moves implement a defensive strategy. She can go over ground attacks with her standing forward ...... with her crouching forward she can go over high's and if timed correctly SOME mid's. Very important ....

I use her crouching forward as a poke from max range. I don't see a lot of players use it but I see it as useful.

Her BnB is standing jab, crouching fierce xx ryuu enbuu. You can tell by the crouching fierce if your opponent will block, if so just throw a fan instead of ryuu enbuu. Its very easy to combo on reaction and tell the difference.

[NinjMai]

Also don't forget about her Hissatsu Shinobi Bachi. The elbow lunge is a good way of making some distance from any person who likes to jump at you. It's not a very effective anti-air. Just more of an evasion tactic.

Just thought to add that.

-NinjMai

[FatalFuryD]

I was trying to do c.lkx3, s.lk xx qcb,hcf +hk combo, but the second kick didn't come out and did qcb+lk, qcd+lk, qcf+lk which made out to be a c.lkx2 into super combo. I think it may be easier to do than c.lkx3 into super

[NinjMai]

This is just a curious question to any other Mai players out there, but what groove do you all generally use for Mai?

Personally, I use her in P because the parry does add a degree of aid to her bad defense. It also makes her considerably threatening to know that she can parry, then do her maximum CHSB.

-NinjMai

[Pained Auron]

i use a mai

[Gwai Lo ½]

Originally posted by NinjMai

Personally, I use her in P because the parry does add a degree of aid to her bad defense.

Mai is a great defensive character...:confused:

[FatalFuryD]

I think Mai is much better with short jump grooves than grooves w/o short jump: her tigerknee sucks ass, and her short jump owns. It's hard to explain. But it feels like you can hit her shortjump attacks earlier than other characters to land and combo.

[-* Ran Phan *-]

I've always used Mai in K-groove. Her Hissatsu Shinbo Bachi (being the most efficient super) can save you in that groove. She is a great rushdown character but because her jumps have a lot of priority in some cases she doesn't really need roll canceling. She can thrive in N and C groove but from the way I play I've always been more comfortable with K groove for some odd reason. ::shrugs::

[Legendary Gokou]

I like her in P too. Buffs her decent defense skills to really good. cr lk x 3 into flame super is really good in P groove, mashable. :) Short jumps are good, with low jump rh.

A is probably her best.

K is good too with run and rage. Its a matter of what you can work with.

[NinjMai]

Originally posted by Gwai Lo ½


Mai is a great defensive character...:confused:

It's me probably, but I have a bad defense. Also, Mai has not so great stamina.

I learned a long time ago that the best defense is a good offense...oh well.

I guess it depends on the style of a person.

[Akelexre]

Originally posted by NinjMai
This is just a curious question to any other Mai players out there, but what groove do you all generally use for Mai?

Personally, I use her in P because the parry does add a degree of aid to her bad defense. It also makes her considerably threatening to know that she can parry, then do her maximum CHSB.

-NinjMai

I use her in K (she's the ratio 2 at the end of a team including ken and chun-li).

I like her with running. I need mobility with Mai; she doesn't have the strength or stamina to stand there and slug it out with most people and her air priority is too good not to use that shit [not great, but good; short jump jab and roundhouse, reg. jump roundhouse, mix in air just defend, air throw, and her various aerial specials, your opponent's head should be spinning] = you should be moving your ass with her. K allows me to do that and enraged helps add to my rushdown game.

Can't use her in any dashing grove though...just feels, well, *wrong*; when I go with P groove I plug in Chun as the ratio 2.....I actually prefer her in running groves too but for some reason I can tolerate her with dashing but not Mai. Go figure. *shrug*

[NinjMai]

I used to play in N because Morrigan was a strong character in that groove, but I always ran too far into someone and got the price paid. Run helps, but because of CvS1, I'm so accustomed to dashing with Mai that anything otherwise feels too awkward.

Yeah. In P, I try to stay close to, or on top of the person. I seem to have a problem against Chun-Li using P-Mai because I'll parry, but Chun-Li will be ready to do something else. That and I can't capitalize all the time after the parry. Still wroking on that...

-NinjMai

[MakA]

shotos can rush mai down pretty bad. If she rolls through a normal fireball chances are she might get thrown. Escaping it is not a problem, its the fact of what a shoto follows up with.

And they can kinda stop it with a timed DP.

I would like to say that mai's roll is top tier only to be beaten by iori's, if your not too far from the shoto then roll the fireball... if your too far then hit the fire ball with your fan or if your really good and looking for the fire ball you can use the fire twril and hit them (at a decent mid range, where most shotos use their fireball offensively)

using her in c groove you can run away alot easier... roll ,jump back .....

in c groove you have a complete air game....
-j.hp has good priority
- you have an air throw
-you have air block
-you have jump off wall (which can be used with air dive for a great escape)
-you have air super (can reall give her lots of offense with a jumpin game if your fast enough)


mix that in with some good poke strings , walkin throws, and empty jumps and your opponent will need to be careful. Its pretty easy to build meter to a level 2 , I wiff fans from afar, c.mp, j.hp, jump air dive away

[CMX]

why would you roll if a shoto throws a fireball? block it and see what they do or if your far enough throw a jab fan. you want to play footsies against shotos until they jump at you thats when your beastly s.fierce AA comes in, that shit owns. if they want to cross you up s.forward and your safe. or if your charged do her d, u.k flame move, it has invincibility start up but shitty recovery if blocked or whiff.

[FSgamer]

About shoto fireballs:

-if you're expecting a fireball you can try using far s.LP, it has good range and it comes out fast enough to stop the fireball during start-up (again, not something you can do on reaction, only use this if you're expecting the fireball). If you're within range for a c.LK, that's a good option too. If you have meter for a lvl 3 super you can do c.LK > far s.LK xx lvl 3 dash super.

-if you're in a groove with low jumps (such as N or K, Mai's two best grooves) you can low jump over the fireball on reaction and catch their recovery with low j.HK (good option for when you're outside of c.LK or far s.LP range);

-I don't see much advantage in using her fan throw against a shoto fireball. It doesn't cause any damage (since you're just trading projectiles), and it doesn't give you any positional advantage. If they use RC fireballs you might even end up getting hit. RC Ryu En Bu is a decent move depending on the distance;

-as for rolling through the fireball, it's a decent option if you time it properly but I think the two first options I mentioned above are safer.

[MakA]

I think her roll is a pretty good option.. its really fast an short... im not sure about the frame data but I feel its prtty safe ... espically when you have a full super guage