0123456789012345678901234567890123456789012345678901234567890123456789012345678 ************************* *-----------------------* *--ARALE CHARACTER FAQ--* *--VER. 0.7-------------* *-----------------------* ************************* Copyright 2007 by Kristian Inola aka. "Summonmaster" ================= =VERSION HISTORY= ================= v 0.7 (10/01/2007) - CHARACTER BY CHARACTER section added under the PLAYING AGAINST ARALE section (incomplete) - MUCH more detail and strategy in the PLAYING AS ARALE section - Random important points scattered throughout Arale's normal attacks v. 0.6 (07/26/2007) - TACTICS section added - Additional paragraphs/sentences for Arale's normal attacks - Lambo 3 under recommended supports v. 0.5 (04/13/2007) - Everything you currently see under this line! _______________________________________________________________________________ * * * *TABLE OF CONTENTS* * * * INTRODUCTION HOW TO GET ARALE NORMAL ATTACKS - B - >+B - ^+B - air B - Y - >+Y - ^+Y - air Y - d+B (Forced Switch) - d+Y (Guard Break) SPECIAL ATTACKS - 4 Koma - 5 Koma - 6 Koma - 7 Koma MISCELLANEOUS - Arale in Help Koma Form - Arale in Support Koma Form - Boosts - Guard - Passive Effects - Win Pose - Lose Pose - Ultimate Action RECOMMENDED SUPPORTS - Franky 2 - Kon 3 - Lambo 3 - Poo (aka. Unchi-kun) 3 PLAYING AS ARALE - Distance Manipulation - Air Dash - Beam Extension - Run Away! PLAYING AGAINST ARALE CHARACTER BY CHARACTER - Edajima - Gon - Kazuki - Killua - Lenalee - Muhyo - Nami - Raoh - Sasuke - Taikoubou - Tsuna - Yugi TACTICS - Dual Mouth Beam - Instant Parade RO ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS _______________________________________________________________________________ * * * *INTRODUCTION* * * * Arale Norimaki is the lovable robot child created by Dr. Norimaki Senbee in the classic Toriyama Akira manga series, Dr. Slump. Her superhuman strength and her still-developing experience in the normal world have proved to be rather bothersome for the doctor. Paired along with Senbee's fantastic inventions, Arale tends to bring destruction wherever she goes, rampaging with a terrifying combination of child-like innocence and insane strength, within the small town of Penguin Village. However, at the end of the day, she's just a little girl, albeit a very scary little girl. Arale is quite a unique character in Jump Ultimate Stars, returning once again to the roster of playable battle characters from JUS' predecessor, Jump Superstars. Her poo themed attacks are sure to give the opponents both a laugh and a sense of caution. Arale excels at chipping and mid to long range combat. While many people would rather prefer to inquire "who that guy with the triangle sword is" over "who that little girl that throws poo is", with a sufficient amount of practice, Arale can become a force to be reckoned with. Hopefully, you'll come away with more skill than just being able to spam >+Y, as well as a fresh point of view, after reading onwards. _______________________________________________________________________________ * * * *HOW TO GET ARALE* * * * In case you did not look at Genroh's faq already (which you probably should have before this point at the bare minimum): _____________________________________________________________________________ |-> J-Blackhole (2nd last area) | | -> Dr. Slump World | | -> Mission 1 | | -> Objective 5 (KO 3 opponents with attacks of an opposing Nature) | | [Knowledge-based attacks in this case, since the opponents are | | all laughter-based, eg. use Killua's attacks to KO three times]. | |_____________________________________________________________________________| Your reward for all that effort will be the Help Koma for Arale, which you have to pay gems to evolve into her useful battle and support koma forms (Access the menu with Y, then select J Power[2nd option]). To find your just obtained koma, you'll have to check that the icon on the left that indicates the series is that of a pink poo (the Dr. Slump series). Arale is the girl with glasses and has three paths on her chart to choose how you want to evolve her at first: The top most branch are Arale's supports: ____________________________________________________________________________ |2 Koma -> Pay 20 red gems, 30 yellow gems, and 5 white gems. | |3 Koma -> Anytime after obtaining Arale's 2 Koma, pay 20 red gems, 80 yellow| | gems, and 15 white gems on the top most path. | L____________________________________________________________________________| ****************************************************************************** The middle branch, more importantly, is the path for Arale's battle komas: _____________________________________________________________________________ |4 Koma -> Pay 100 red gems, 300 yellow gems, 20 white gems. | |5 Koma -> Anytime after unlocking Arale's 4 Koma, pay 150 red gems, | | 250 yellow gems, and 20 white gems. | |6 Koma (Laughter) -> Anytime after unlocking Arale's 5 Koma, | | pay 100 red gems, 500 yellow gems, and 30 white gems. | |6 Koma (Power) -> Anytime after unlocking Arale's 6 Koma (Laughter) AND | | buying the evolution path on Obocchaman's evolution chart | | for 200 yellow gems, and 100 blue gems (bottom branch), | | pay 200 red gems, 400 yellow gems, and 60 blue gems on | | Arale's evolution chart. | |7 Koma -> Anytime after unlocking Arale's 6 Koma (Laughter) AND buying the | | evolution path on Norimaki Senbee's evolution chart for 100 yellow | | gems, and 10 purple gems (bottom branch), pay 100 red gems, | | 600 yellow gems, and 200 white gems on Arale's evolution chart. | L_____________________________________________________________________________| ****************************************************************************** The bottom branch just unlocks a quick question, a JUMP stage and a music track, nine of which pertain to Arale herself. _______________________________________________________________________________ * * * *NORMAL ATTACKS* * * * ___ | B | -> Arale turns around and smacks you with her bum. |___| - Rather short range. An abysmal B attack. The range sucks, and it's sort of slow. You'll have to really be in your opponent's face to get it to connect. Of course, there's no better option for starting a chain at close range obviously. This always chains to >+B, making it one of the few true chain options Arale has. If you somehow manage to hit with this successfully, always go for a >+B afterwards. That, or ^+B if you want to set them up for a support combo with a lower chance of being broken out by a support. Interesting to note though, that this attack cancels a good amount of normal hits and clashes with them. I'm not quite sure if this due to a certain degree of autoguard on the move to make up for the range, but keep this in mind. If this happens instead of you landing the hit (more often that not, actually), the be quick on your fingers to follow up with >+B. _____ | >+B | -> Arale pokes you twice with a stick. |_____| - All right. A very nice poking attack, literally. This adds psychological pressure after a successful >+Y chip (it doesn't chain from it, the double poke motion is just frustrating). This should be your primary poking attack due to the range, speed, and minimal startup/recovery time. Careful! Nothing chains after this unless you uses a support! _____ | ^+B | -> Arale detaches her head at an upwards angle. |_____| - Good for linking into other attacks. Mostly used to link into ^+Y, which puts you in the air for more options. You may use this quite a bit as a combo linker from B whenever you're in range to do so, but just note that you won't be able to link to ^+Y if you stick a B attack before this. You could use this to hit opponents at a 45 degree angle in the air from you, since she takes her head off pretty far from her body. Bad recovery time from this, and most people will be able to hit you if you whiff this, or even on block in some cases. You'll want to be weary of what you do after this attack since many options afterwards are unsafe, barring a Parade special. _______ | air B | -> Arale does a downwards spike with her hands. |_______| - The best way to use it is as a mix up along with air Y. Although only when you are in close obviously, since it is short range after all. This knocks the opponent down so watch out for the invincibility time granted when they wake up from it. Use the time before that to position yourself for the >+Y range, or to execute a fast fall at the least. If this is blocked, add a delay before doing another air B which many people don't expect most of the time, and mix that up between just fast falling. However, if this whiffs, then go for an air Y or a fast fall. Don't go for an air Y afterwards unless the opponent rolls away from you everytime. The poo will have no effect if the opponent gets up in place due to invincibility time, and will disappear before they return to normal. To note, being a spike, this is obviously an instant ringout on stages with gaps or pits like the Yu-Gi-Oh and Naruto stages, as the opponent will not have the opportunity to recover from the quick forceful hit. It isn't as decisive as Lenalee's air Y spike, so just keep an eye on the opponent to see if they actually do get rung out from it. In addition, this move should be used to manipulate your air time. If you don't have triple jump or air dash, know that it would be too unsafe for air Y, have jumped over a beam attempt, and other situations, then use this to keep you in the air just a little bit longer. ___ | Y | -> Arale pokes you...with poo on a stick. |___| - Adds a little more range and damage to the >+B attack, sort of. Obviously this comes out a lot slower. It doesn't chain to or from anything really. Not from >+B, due to the startup time of Y. Not to >+Y due to the startup time of that. Not to ^+Y due to the startup time of that. Of course, the opponent probably doesn't know this, so you have a bit of leniency to throw this out after a >+B once in a while to keep them guessing. This is an unsafe move to throw out unless you plan to cover it with a parade from Arale 7 afterwards, or supports. A good thing to note is that it cancels some attacks should you get it to work. _____ | >+Y | -> Arale flings two pieces of poo forwards in an arc-like motion. |_____| - ***THIS IS ARALE'S KEY MOVE!*** If you play a round without using this move you are either incredibly skilled, or incredibly foolish. The twin poos drain SP from the opponent (but don't give it back to you), and are an incredibly annoying source of mid to long range pressure. Unless your opponent uses a beam extension strategy, or has a quick or long dash, this move is safe to use from afar. Even so, the beam will be cancelled prematurely if the poo hits. If you don't have anything to do from afar, you should always toss out a >+Y for both offensive (long range attack) and defensive purposes (to gauge the enemy distance). Although if you overdo it, the opponent may be able to gauge your distance as well, so be careful. As well, the poo ricochets off of walls! This quickly leads to a natural guard break, since the opponent will have a hard time deciding when to jump out, since there is so much poo on the screen at once! Note also that the poo, when it makes contact with the ground, lingers for just a little while, which is one reason why, opponents usually have a hard time gauging when to escape the barrage. There is a fatal flaw to this move though. There is noticeable lag, or startup time to the move, and at lag at the end of the move. This move's main purpose is to keep the opponent away from you, but when they eventually close the gap, you will be punished. Therefore, you should know when to start and when to stop flinging poo. _____ | ^+Y | -> Arale launches herself into the air. |_____| - Great to chain into air Y. Since you will probably have nothing else to do in the air, other than be vulnerable, you will have to follow this up with an air Y some of the time, an air B some of the time, nothing some of the time (to cross up), or a fast fall. Of course, you will most likely try to chain this from ^+B upon hit, as doing this move by itself can be slightly risky, especially if it misses. The mixup available from this option is very deadly though. The opponent will have to guess correctly what you do afterwards, because getting hit by an air Y after this just leads to even more damage. If this is push blocked, then you are at a disadvantage since the recovery time is large, and you'll want to fast fall as soon as possible to minimize the lag from landing the short distance to the ground. _______ | air Y | -> Arale flings two piles of poo downwards at roughly a fourty-five |_______| degree angle. - Usually sets up the opponent to keep blocking, and best case, for big damage. This is good for keeping you in the air a little bit longer for instances when opponents have fired beams. It also has the SP draining property of the >+Y attack. These poo ricochet off of walls as well! This is the best outcome after an air Y, since upon successfully hitting multiple times, you can fast fall and restart a combo for massive damage. Although a glaring downside of this is that the opponent can dash right under you when they see the startup before the poo is flung. Thus, you are left completely open to attack once they most likely get behind you. Its also not as though you can throw the move out anywhere in the air since the poo come out at a certain trajectory. Thus you should try to use air Y to fling the poo so that it ricochets off of walls as much as possible. Try to do it just out of the range an opponent can you hit you in the air from an attack like an ^+B or ^+Y in most cases. Note that the poo disappears after a certain distance in the air, so you can't throw it from high above and hope it reaches the ground. However, it still does linger on the ground for a bit if it hits the ground, which is why this move is bothersome for the opponent. You'll want to be good at elevation manipulation when using this move, since it will help against frequent jumpers, as well as those who can't see this move coming from the ground. Just make sure to alternate this with an air B every once in a while to keep your opponents always guessing. _____ | d+B | -> Arale runs forward pretty far and fast. |_____| - Arale's forced switch move. It has very good range and is rather unexpected. Then again, not many people bother with the forced switch moves since they usually take as long as guard break moves to come out. As well, the opponent can just switch back if you don't properly combo from one, rendering the whole point to be useless. While far from a bad move, you would probably rather guard break given the time it takes to come out. However, this move is ideal to use when the opponent knows they can hit you out of a >+Y attempt, or can dash away from one. In other words, you can use this in the range where a B or >+Y attack would be risky, something like mid-range. This move is absolutely awesome for when you are near an edge and want to get back towards the center of the playfield very quickly. You have some degree of autoguard while she runs, and you can cross up the opponent with this move. In addition, this is an excellent move for when you want to manipulate distance with Arale, which you should always be doing throughout an entire match. She runs really fast and attacks, and can go through several things, so it's really a dash with benefits once it comes out. When you want to get in close, then you can use d+B for a chance at switching characters and giving you a window of opportunity to attack after the switch. This gives you a chance to cross up your opponent as well if they block, and the range is right. The very best example of this is how it can run through every attack of Dr. Mashirito's, projectile wise! Another extreme case would be the ability to run against and through beams with a short duration, if you time it correctly. _____ | d+Y | -> Arale shoots electricity horizontally forward, with Gatchan as well. |_____| - This is actually quite a decent guard break. It doesn't come out as sluggishly as some other guard breaks, and it has a nice hitbox covering jump-ins, and a short distance in front of Arale. Of course, a general strategy with guardbreaking is to do it when something like a support (or in Arale's case, >+Y poo, keeps them blocking). This is a wonderful way to add a lot of pressure after wall-ricocheted poo hits them, guarded or not. Opponents will either try to jump and run away or keep blocking, so this is excellent to mix in. You might as well do this when you get up from a knockdown and the opponent is hovering over your body, since this even actually hits a little behind you and may fling the opponent forward if you're lucky. From experience, many people will either attempt to dash in, or guard again after a successful guard break. Thus, follow up your guard breaks immediately with an N'Cha Cannon, and your opponent will dash into the face of full beam damage. If they just guard, then your opponent will have it broken again if they don't twitch block against the beam. When they start running away after your guard break hits, fling a >+Y to keep them away and help you plan your next move. When they can evade all that after your guard break hits, then use a parade if you are using Arale 7, since it will hit 95% of the time if used immediately after a guard break, unless the positioning is wrong. _______________________________________________________________________________ * * * *SPECIAL ATTACKS* * * * ________ | 4 Koma | |________| X: N'Cha Cannon --------------- Just a very plain old beam-style attack. Nothing noteworthy, except that this is the obviously the weakest version out of Arale's 4 beams (yes, all the X attacks are just Arale's mouth beam). You'll usually use this after an arbitrary number of >+Y attempts in a row when the opponent's guard is close to breaking. ^+X: Car Toss ------------- This is good for pushing your opponent to a point where his or her guard will soon be broken. In other words, it seems to take a chunk off of a blocking opponent's threshold. Comes out slowly though. It also explodes for a very brief moment so dashing opponents may get damaged anyways. An excellent thing to toss into the fray of a 2 vs. 2 or FFA. ________ | 5 Koma | |________| X: N'Cha Cannon --------------- More damage than the 4 Koma version of the beam. You'll usually use this after an arbitrary number of >+Y attempts in a row when the opponent's guard is close to breaking. ^+X: Poo Toss ------------- The giant pink poo that Arale tosses causes Support Seal, as well as draining 2 SP. However, the poo does no actual damage. The poo covers a large arc, but there is some obvious startup time. A neat thing about this though is that like normal poo, it will linger on-screen for just a little bit more time than most other things, so you could use that to your advantage. In addition, this giant poo also ricochets of off walls o.O! An opportune time to use this would be after an arbitrary amount of >+Y throws. Again, a wonderful way to add to the chaos of 2 vs. 2 or FFA. ________ | 6 Koma | |________| X: N'Cha Cannon --------------- More damage than all previous versions of the beam. Now quite thick and yellow, you'll usually use this after an arbitrary number of >+Y attempts in a row when the opponent's guard is close to breaking. ^+X: Earth Rate --------------- It seems to take a chunk off of a blocking opponent's threshold, but not very much. As well, it hits both sides around Arale. I would only ever recommend this in an 2 vs. 2 or FFA, and even then, only when it is safe because of the start up time. Quite inferior to other similar moves such as PCT Nami's ^+X or Allen 4/5's ^+X. Good for laugh value though or showing off, as cracking the earth is a colossal feat in itself. ________ | 7 Koma | |________| X: N'Cha Cannon --------------- The same as all of her other X specials, but the beam is very strong now, with Obocchaman firing a beam from his mouth, as well as Gatchan shooting electricity to help you too. This does large damage and you'll usually use this after an arbitrary number of >+Y attempts in a row when the opponent's guard is close to breaking. Of course, you can also throw this out randomly in a 2 vs. 2 or FFA situation as with any other beam and you're likely to hit someone for very good damage. ^+X: Everyone in Penguin Village Parade --------------------------------------- This comes out almost instantaneously which is the strongest point of this move. It's pretty weak in comparison to almost any other damage dealing special of any character, but the point is to use this as a halting attack. This move is guaranteed to come out when you use it during the invincibility frames after getting up without rolling from a knockdown (Press ^ when you are down). A very nice way to give yourself some time to get away from edges and back to center of the screen. It also just gives you some time to plan your next moves in general. Tends to break an opponent's guard if they do not twitch block from start to finish, and sometimes knocks them far away on a successful hit. A good way to use this move is to force opponents down a pit, as an edgeguard! The fatal flaw of this move is the horrendous recovery time. If it whiffs or your opponents successfully twitch blocks it, starting relatively close to you, you will get punished. _______________________________________________________________________________ * * * *MISCELLANEOUS* * * * _________________________ | Arale in Help Koma Form | |_________________________| Arale makes whoever her help koma is linked to, invulnerable to the Judgment status effect (Countdown timer starting from 10 to KO). This is pretty much useless since only certain Deathnote supports, and Kenshiro 6's ^+X attack cause Judgement, both of which aren't too frequently used. As well, judgment can be cancelled by inflicting another negative status (eg. grabbing certain items) within the 10 seconds, or switching to DIO, if he is in your deck, who is invulnerable to judgment as well. ____________________________ | Arale in Support Koma Form | |____________________________| Arale 2 - Poo Toss Exactly like her 5 Koma's Poo Toss, causing support seal and no damage upon hit. Now that you can use this and another attack to augment it, this may actually be a good surprise if you summon her from afar and dash in to bait the opponent. Wonderful for 2 vs. 2 or FFA, especially since the giant poo sticks on screen for a tad longer than other supports. There are better supports to use though. Especially since there is a bit more startup time in the support form of the move. Arale 3 - N'Cha Beam: Arale fires a mouth beam that is laughter-based, very similar to her X attacks. Just another beam support that would appeal to those who use beam extension as a strategy. Being laughter-based, it's obviously ideal to use against Power type characters. Thus, makes it one of the most effective beams in the game. ________ | Boosts | |________| Boosts merely give a +8 bonus to J-Soul when certain characters are adjacent to others in your deck. Arale boosts: Goku (DBZ) Arale is boosted by: Norimaki Senbee (Dr. Slump), Obocchaman (Dr. Slump), Goku (DBZ) _______ | Guard | |_______| Arale uses her fingers to plug her ears, which apparently blocks the damage done to her. Obviously does not block guard breaks :P __________ | Win Pose | |__________| Arale put on her cat ear hood and smiles cheerfully. ___________ | Lose Pose | |___________| Something explodes and Arale is burnt, sighing out a puff of air. _________________ | Passive Effects | |_________________| Arale is naturally immune to the Judgment Status effect, so it would be a waste to link a help koma that grants immunity to judgment. That said, even though Obocchaman provides a +8 boost for Arale, it's a waste to junction him. It's a nice little bonus to have, but as outlined in the Arale in Help Koma Form section, you won't be worrying about Judgment anytime soon anyways. Arale is takes more damage from lightning attacks! Pairing this with the fact that she is weak to Knowledge based attacks (except for her 6 Koma Power), this makes Arale's mortal enemy list to be: Perfect Climatact Nami (Nami 6), Killua, and Sasuke! Switch to an auxilliary character if you come across them, unless you like taking a minimum of 2.25 times more damage or love a challenge. You will also have to watch out for: Edajima's forced switch, Mashirito's ^+B, Arale's guard break, Piccolo's guard break, and Hamuu 3, as those appear to be lightning attacks. _________________ | Ultimate Action | |_________________| Pressing Select causes Arale to crouch and poke a pink poo with a stick a little distance in front of her. The pink poo actually gives the opponent sp when it hits, and the actual poking motion of the stick doesn't register as a hit! The opponent must be hit by the poo itself, for the effect to happen. This move actually has some application, which is not too bad for a UA. Aside from the tiny sp gain, it gives you something to do in the risky range where neither B or >+Y are safe to throw out. This has a decent range in front of you although you have to watch out for opponents who are too close to you. Since the poking stick doesn't count as a hit, and only the poo does, the move will entirely miss if the opponent is in point blank range. You can keep pressing select to have the poo hit up to three times, and in addition, it turns the opponent around if you position it so the poo appears behind them. Despite all this, it's nowhere near as useful as other UAs, and actually quite dangerous since you can't follow up with anything immediately afterwards, so I advise against frequent usage. _______________________________________________________________________________ * * * *RECOMMENDED SUPPORTS* * * * --- NOTE: Don't even mention the Big 3 (Seiya 3, Trunks 3, Sena 3), because it is already obvious that they either combo to or from anything, or setup for many combos. Don't be a noob :P! NOTE 2: These supports are suggested especially for those who want to try something new, so with similar reasoning as the above, Shishi-Oh 2, Gotenks 3, Ohara 3, Nishino 3, Rouji 2, Aya 2, Shun 3 and various other over-played, but not big 3 calibur supports won't be mentioned. --- __________ | Franky 2 | -> After several seconds pass by, Franky overturns a table. The |__________| table and what's on it goes flying across a large arc. - Augments Arale's ability to apply pressure from afar. A support that is best used when you are already on the offensive when throwing poo with >+Y. Most opponents will have no clue what Franky 2 does and will just keep blocking. As a result, the opponent's guard will break as a result of all the debris covering the screen and you'll be free to punish them with an X beam. This is great for free for alls, although it will probably draw attention to you very quickly. Franky 2 will cover a lot of the screen you can see as well as part of the screen you cannot. Combining this with >+Y poo is highly pressuring. _______ | Kon 3 | -> Kon flings arcing microphones consistently after certain intervals |_______| of time. - Augments Arale's ability to apply pressure, HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! The rate at which Kon throws microphones will feel rather sporadic in the action of a real battle, so it might as well be random. This actually screws up the opponent's timing when expecting just continuous >+Y attacks, since a microphone will come out once in a while. If the opponent chooses to go on the offense, they'll probably get hit by a microphone from which you can launch your own offense. If they go on the defensive, then you might as well chase them since Kon won't go away for a long time. This is THE best support to use with Arale, since unlike many other combos which can lead to a natural guard break, it is very hard to stop this one, even with a support! If the poo hits, it changes the direction the opponent faces. If they even get hit on block, it is incredibly hard to escape since the microphones fill in the holes in between Arale's repeated >+Y attacks. The most obvious point too, being that all of the hits come from a distance and you can't do much but stay away once this starts, or deliver hits so powerful that Kon is destroyed. _________ | Lambo 3 | -> Lambo appears in a puff of smoke and counters with an explosion |_________| of lightning if he is struck. - Covers the vulnerable timeframes or Arale's attack strings. Since Arale is actually very vulnerable up close due to her limited chaining options, Lambo 3 is great to cover the holes in timing where your opponent can easily attack and stop your chain with one of their own. Of course this works the most effectively against aggressive opponents, or after multiple attack chains in close. Recommended over other counter supports due to the blast radius and ability to cause the shock status effect. If Lambo is not to your liking, then be aware of other supports' strengths and weaknesses, such as Jaguar 3 covering a large frontal area and going off automatically after a period of time, etc. Naturally, if the opponent turtles after being inflicted with shock, you'll have a window of opportunity to apply pressure with a successful poo fling. Thus, repeating the cycle, or leading to a guard crush at least, until the opponent moves safely out of range. _______ | Poo 3 | -> A poo instantly appears and follows the user's position |_______| horizontally across the height it is summoned. - Adds to Arale's chipping game...big time! I think I can safely say that I have never seen anyone other than myself ever using this support, and hopefully that will change after you read this. The poo is the ultimate chipper and shield, both features in one! Maybe not the ultimate, but pretty good at both. It comes out instantaneously and is a non-cheap way to usually break a combo. For chipping, you have to exploit the fact that it will follow you left and right, staying on the level that you called it. Thus, if the poo hits even once, you can use that time to jump over the opponent and cross them up, leaving them stuck between the poo on one side, and your attacks from the other side. If they block, you'll soon guard break them with the amount of times they are being hit. For shielding, the poo will either block or stop a bunch of frontal attacks. An example is that if anyone tries to Luffy X punch spam you, then the poo remarkably halts them in their tracks and negates the attack upon contact. The poo sort of has an autoguard of its own, and while not as much of a beam shielder like Aya 2 or Rukawa 2, it's quite handy. A weakness of the poo though is again in the fact that it will follow you. Characters like Sakura and Train will laugh at you since that won't stop their attacks from mid/long range. It is also tiny unlike Kurita 3 for example, so it won't hit it the opponent takes extra caution to stay a safe distance away from you. _______________________________________________________________________________ * * * *PLAYING AS ARALE* * * * You'll obviously use >+Y as much as humanly possible, for many reasons. One, to gauge distance, two, to apply pressure and chip from afar, three, to act as a barrier, etc. Of course the master Arale player also makes use of the other options that she has, because while >+Y keeps the hits coming, attacks like her N'Cha Beam are the damage dealers. Arale is primarily a poking character, which evident from all of her attacks. Thus, making frequent use of ^+Y into air Y, and knowing when to stop and start with >+B are viable tactics. Your main goal will be to hit the opponent so much that they have no choice to block which can be pretty easy given the duration of time poo stays on the screen and the supports you can use to help out. A common strategy is to throw out a number of >+Y attacks and then use X when you can reasonably estimate an opponent will dash in to attack, the opponent's guard will break, or they stop blocking to try and escape. 7 Koma's ^+X appears to be the most useful, serving as coverage for when opponents dare to get close. Every other koma's ^+X has large startup time and impractical results. They are best for surprise attacks from afar (4 and 5 Koma) or something best for FFA (6 Koma). The strategy for X applies to all her Koma, seeing as it is the same all throughout. A strategy to consider too that most people do not think about is to frequently use her d+B. It may crossup, it gets you farther away from ringout range when you are at the edge of the stage, and has a degree of autoguard. As well, it doesn't take that long to come out. Here are some key words and strategies that one should focus on or mix up, whenever one uses Arale: Distance Manipulation (*****) --------------------- (*****) Without this, you're dead, simply put. Since Arale's close range melee game sucks on the whole, you will always need to keep distance manipulation within your mindset throughout the battle. This does not necessarily mean just her >+Y spam, but this includes her entire moveset! >+Y: Know the arc range like the back of your hand. This will be constantly adjusted as well, depending on the height and body frame of the opposing character, and not just their position relative to where you stand. For example, you have a higher chance of hitting Edajima from a slightly larger range of distances due to his height and body size. Similarly, you have a lower chance of accurately hitting Don Patch, or Muhyo unless you are standing at exactly the right distance. B: Abysmal, pitiful, terrible, etc. This is far too risky unless you need that extra 15 points of damage, especially since you have to do this point blank. It is possible to be slightly farther away than that, but missing this is fatal. Stick with other ranges to manipulate distance. Rule of Thumb: avoid close combat with Arale unless a hit is guaranteed. d+B: It might be hard, but you'll have to be able to exactly know when this dash attack stops, since the end of a whiffed dash is a prime opportunity to eat a combo, as almost nothing of Arale's combos safely from it when it misses, save a Parade. This is one of the primary methods of distance manipulation as well, because you are nigh invulnerable during the short time she runs, and don't have to worry about taking damage unlike during >+Y where you could get smacked with a beam/warp dasher. d+Y: Unless the opponent blocks a lot and doesn't grow to react accordingly, the time spent stationary sort of negates the decent range of this move. Just make sure to keep in mind that you don't have to be all that close whenever you perform it. UA: This is very weird and unique so you may want to consider it once you've mastered the ranges of the moves above. If the outer edge of the poo (away from Arale) hits the opponent, it'll push them back a bit, giving you time to run back and position yourself. If the inner edge of the poo (close to Arale) hits them, it'll turn the around and bring them closer. The time required to turn around gives you a good window to attempt ^+Y -> air Y. Think of this as a move that will determine your next choice of either a melee assault, or a poo barrage. A great Arale will be able to weave in and out of the opponent's range seamlessly, knowing when to go in for a combo to damage, and knowing when to play keep away to bait the opponent. Air Dash -------- An Arale with air dash has just levelled up their playing game. Almost to the point that this is a compulsory help koma for her. Notice how air dashing ties into distance manipulation heavily. People will always attack you after a blocked, but not pushed or whiffed ^+Y after a while. Assuming the opponent has not reacted yet, if air Y looks like it won't have time to come out, then you can safely air dash in either direction, to plan out your next move. Paired with a triple jump help koma, you can air dash twice. Twice in one direction for a very hasty retreat, or both times in opposite directions for confusion and offensive purposes. Thus, you can confound your opponent in many ways. Beam Extension -------------- A fairly simple and effective strategy assuming that you can burn the sp. This will incorporate frequent use of Arale's beam and a beam support of your choice. The concept here is that the beams will break through your opponent's guards since they hit so many times and damage them. In addition, the potential for RO is much higher since the pushback from beam extensions are rather far. Very simple. Either use Arale's beam first (7 Koma highly recommended as it is the strongest, largest, and most time consuming beam), then use the beam support with timing such that it starts to hit when Arale's beam is ending, or vice versa. Note that you can mix and match beams. Arale's beams will do massive damage to power types since it is a laughter element. You can double up on the damage by using a support like Gotenks 2. You could also cover other types by choosing something like Kaiba 3 for Knowledge + Laughter to beat Laughter types whom you won't have type advantage with, or Goku 3 for Power + Laughter to beat the Knowledge characters coming after you. In addition to damage, you might also want to consider size, number of hits, range, and status effects. For size, Kaiba 3 is a rather large beam, and combined with Arale 7's large beam, it will completely raze the level of the playfield that you are on. For number of hits, Spin 2 hits quite a lot with her eye lasers, but the startup time is very noticeable, with the upside of penetrating guards. For range, Vegeta 3 covers you from above, shooting diagonally downwards, again with startup time. For status effects, Hitsugaya 3 is the most notorious one, as it causes freeze. Popular among beam extensionists, ROs are highly feasible since the freeze part will almost be guaranteed. Run Away! --------- A tactic frowned upon by 99% (maybe not, but MANY people), those who employ it with Arale will be highly pleased. In all neutrality, this is for completion's sake only. Running isn't really fighting, but whatever playstyle fits you, I'm not one to judge. I think you can see towards which move this is going. Arale's d+B. If you pull it off, provided you have room in front of you, then an added dash afterwards will have covered a bunch of ground compared to where you first started off. Arale has a nice dash distance, since it's not particularly short. Unfortunately, Arale can't warp dash so you can't pass through enemies unless you use the d+B. _______________________________________________________________________________ * * * *PLAYING AGAINST ARALE* * * * First of all, you'll have to know her range. If you stay outside of her >+Y range, then you'll have time to think. Short characters like Muhyo or Don Patch have the large advantage of being able to stay under the arc of her >+Y, rendering her open at closer ranges. It helps to have an air dash against her, or a fast character since it will take a very long time to get behind her, depending on the stage, and by that time, she can adjust her tactics accordingly. As well, targeting-type supports like Robin 2, Byakuya 3, and Aya 3 will most likely hit her when a player takes to repeated >+Y attempts, giving you plenty of time to follow up as well. If you really want to murder her, then just use Killua, Sasuke, or PCT Nami (Nami 6), since Arale is almost always a Laughter type (Knowledge-based attacks deal extra damage to Laughter types), AND Arale is weak against lightning based attacks, (these characters specials and normals are all lightning!). CHARACTER BY CHARACTER ********************** Everyone should have some sort of countermeasure against Arale, so don't fret, since even the most disadvantaged characters will have at least one trick up their sleeve: Edajima ------- Pitiful match up! Edajima is one of the largest characters in the game, being most vulnerable to >+Y assaults, no matter where Arale decides to fling from. What compounds this is Edajima's innate ability to stay in place when hit. Laughter advantage over power paired with this, will have you dying from a simple >+Y barrage. It's not like he can dash away quickly anyways or very far to avoid it. If you see ^+Y, then punish with ^+B, then maybe X. ^+Y is too risky since you'll take the full brunt of air Y poo and take more damage. Don't outrange her with your tap screen glowing fists, you'll just eat >+Y. Your best chance is sadly, surprise ^+Xs. Gon --- This should be fun, as Gon can fish in Arale with ^+Y, and air Y, negating her distance adavantage effortlessly. These attacks will usually hit too if Arale is in the middle of a >+Y where she is most vulnerable. Just watch out that you will not trade hits and get hit by the poo anyways, which will give Arale a free combo on you. Y is used to get in close. Don't attempt >+Y. Turning invisible can give you a chance to sneak up in close while using Guard Up will reduce the damage from an Arale + Kon assault by half. This is a double edged sword due to knockback at 150 dmg. Gives more sp to Arale due to all the hitting, and she can end it with a beam. Arale's ^+Y is stopped with ^+B, B. Or a simple Y can cross it up and damage, leaving Arale at a disadvantage if she doesn't have air dash. Kazuki ------ Very good chances here! Kazuki's jousts will ignore Arale's poo unless it somehow smacks him straight on the head. It also go through many of Arale's other attacks, so you can >+Y, ^+Y, air Y all you want without almost no retribution ever. Arale's melee options are too slow to hit you in between jousts and air Bs Only possible thing to watch out for would be push block, which still shouldn't concern you too much. Killua ------ No contest; you really should haven't trouble unless the Arale player knows what they are doing, where they will be more of a hindrance than a threat. Poke with >+B if she is not flinging poo. Use >+Y to close the distance instantly, only ever having to be careful of >+Ying into a beam or stopping short. A standard Y, X combo will punish her hard. Arale's ^+Y is halted with a ^+Y (towards), X combo. There is a reason why Killua is a mortal enemy of Arale, as stated earlier. Lenalee ------- Since Lenalee is air and RO-centric, you'll have to be incredibly careful that all your aerial maneuvering is not stopped short by random poo flings. You have a chance at going for the KO too due to the Knowledge advantage over Arale. Your speed should be your greatest weapon, as you are set if you can get close to Arale quickly and either rinse and repeat, or go for the RO. Muhyo ----- Promising Arale killer. Knowledge vs. Laughter to start off. Height advantage is up next, and he'll easily be able to run under poo arcs. To top it off, he can play his own game of keep away evenly or better, with the potential range of his attacks. Muhyo won't have to worry about the lag, since Arale has a bunch of lag herself. Punish Arale's ^+Y with a ^+B, ^+Y combo. Nami ---- You can steal all the sp you want, but Arale probably won't use it much anyways. You can cyclone her away, but she's fine with the range you put her in. Thus, Nami 4 and 5 Koma's greatest strength should be her speed in this matchup. Every attack of hers is faster than Arale's so stay close and keep the pressure level high constantly. You'll chip her down fast. PCT Nami clocks in on Arale's mortal enemy list. Rather than speed, you'll be focusing on massive damage. Poke her out of >+Y with your >+Bs. X will do massive damage and create even more openings with the shock status effect. ^+B, ^+Y and maybe an early ^+X will demoralize ^+Y attempts from Arale. Of course, the precursor to all this is air Y to help you easily get close. Raoh ---- Despite his dominance over many other characters, Raoh has a bad matchup against Arale. He's a big target and is easily the victim of a >+Y assault, however sloppy Arale is in throwing them. He has a hard time escaping from poo due to his build, and the Power disadvantage doesn't help. You might want to beam Arale and dive in from above with air Y if you ever get the chance to. inching forward with >+B attempts helps too. On the plus side, any ^+Ys on Arale's part can and should be swiftly punished with ^+Y. Sasuke ------ Another character on Arale's mortal enemy list due to the lightning and knowledge attack bonuses for him. Specials will inflict massive damage on Arale, any of the four (three) of them. Use Chidoris to get in close to her, or try poking her with the tip/upper edge of your sword at mid range. You won't have to land too many hits before she dies. Taikoubou --------- This matchup really depends on who is better. While it may seem that all of Taikoubou's attacks will outspeed and overpower Arale, a single stray poo fling can equalize things. Both characters aren't too hot in-close, so whoever is ready to attack first will get the damage in. If you can keep her at outer- midrange constantly, you will have the advantage. The definitive battle of ranges. Tsuna ----- Huge disadvantage. Don't even try to out-projectile her with your inferior ^+Y. You can get close with multiple >+Bs, but if you try >+Y, she can just run back and fling poo at you giving her a free combo. You'll have to take advantage of clashing hits such as air B and >+Y autoguard in-close. Chip her yourself, since Laughter vs. Laughter won't win you any favours. Yugi ---- Disadvantage! You can keep Arale away with Yugi's brick walling attacks, but that's exactly where Arale plays best. While you summon all your card monsters, she can fling poo at you while you are vulnerable, out-distancing you! Only 5 and 6 Koma's ^+X specials are good to note, since they should catch her in vulnerable frames. Since her poo will go through almost everything of yours, you may want to invest in air B and air Y to force either knockdown, movement, or block. If you ever get in close, rely on the damage output. Just don't try to outrange her. _______________________________________________________________________________ * * * *TACTICS* * * * Some of these tactics are simply just for fun, some are practical, some you should ingrain into your memory. Many are hopefully things you wouldn't normally think of. Try them all! Dual Mouth Beam --------------- Arale (4/5/6/7) + Gotenks (2) Gotenks (4) + Arale (3) Both children fire a beam from their mouths! Primarily for visual and thematic purposes, but also a great way to help out those who prefer a beam extension strategy. Note the laughter nature. Instant Parade RO ----------------- This is very situational, but whenever you are in this situation, use it! If you notice on almost every stage how the colours change on the floor towards the edges of the stage to mark boundaries, or more precisely, the edges of the stage which most people are able to edgeguard from, those will be the reference points. If Arale is standing anywhere within that boundary or a little bit further in the ring, then a guard break into the 7 Koma's Parade ^+X Special will instantly ensure a ring out, even if the opponent is standing behind you when the guard break comes out. The little girl on the bike hits right after the opponent can recover, thus making sure that they cannot recover. Note that obviously you will have to face the outside of the ring for the lightning and parade to ring out. Notice how you will need to get the guard break to work, which is the only condition to ensure the RO. Thus, getting straight up from a knockdown is one method of setup. ______________________________________________________________________________ * * * *ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS* * * * Confuseded and japongt - for taking up Arale amongst the many other characters available in the game ^^ Everyone that has helped me playtest - Including but not limited to: Empty, CTS15, Justblaze, Kuri, Raikiri, Smurf, son1c, Pichu, Yamcha, etc. Genroh - from whose faq I took special attack names, and evolution info from. You - for reading through :) This faq is copyright 2007 by Kristian Inola aka. "Summonmaster". -----------------------------------END----------------------------------------