Sarah Sessions(PSN/XBL)

[DestructionBomb]

Sarah's booty bump is + on block, but should only be used during step back transition. The kick GB is a better version despite the pushback it has.

For Sarah you want to enable certain amount of frame traps and land hits on CH since she doesn't have natural NH stun openers. 2H+K doesn't count since she gets nothing guaranteed after it, but it can condition the opponent to block more (or attack) in this case. A blocking opponent can also be a good thing for you because it leaves themselves open for i7-i12 throws (which you can't break these throws in DOA). If you do 6P and if it lands on block, you "stop". 6P in itself is disadvantage despite being safe, it's no longer your turn. -5 for you is +5 for the opponent. Same with Flamingo attacks that leave her negative. If you land these attacks your best bet is to perform the backflip backstep from Flamingo due to having invulnerability when it's active. Which is why it's better to use attacks that lead to Flamingo that is plus.

A strong way to start an offense could be these. You should get use to these commands on first gauge:

>

> (still leaves you plus if they are still blocking to continue offense and puts you at Flamingo. If they are attacking within that isn't an i11, they'll get hit on CH and 3PK also tracks if they sidestep. Disadvantage is that these are highs but a pressured opponent may not duck either way). - If they try to duck, you enable P > 6P to catch them on NH for a free stun.

>

>

> (If 2P lands on CH, 6P may whiff on range depending on character).

>

> (you tap H after P to prevent from coming out, bypass for a free cancel, leaves you plus on block. If they hit a button in between they'll get launched).

> (this is a slower approach so be careful on this one, but if they choose to continue blocking because they expected something else, you are plus again).

> /6T (if you know your opponent is blocking far too much and not attacking, you get a free forward throw. If they decide to attack again, then return in CH).

The reason why you see so many jabs is because it's the fastest move in her arsenal that leaves her plus, fastest recovery, combo extenders etc etc. People can't exactly react to jabs. They expect them or predict that a jab is coming but never on reaction. Her jab is the number one go-to move in this game because it puts them at -1 and forces people to block and guess more.


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I don't play this character, but I can already see the approach just by hitting training mode with her. Execution doesn't seem too difficult either.

 

[yohmok]

@Lulu: You and I are on the same boat; I love that butt attack, but usually as a finishing move, although I don't using the Stepping mechanic as much.

I do like the + move after the Step for a guard break though. Since it knocks the opponent pretty far if they guard, would using it with the opponent against the wall be better? Also, what would be some good follow-ups after a guard break?

@DestructionBomb: Golly, for someone that doesn't use Sarah, you sure have a lot of knowledge on her frame advantages and attacks! A lot of what you've mentioned certainly doesn't seem execution heavy, and I think I just have to get used to the after the from the > sequence. That's definitely something I'd never discover on my own and never regarded Sarah's standing jab giving her so much frame advantage/sets up for a frame trap. I hope to implement all of the techniques to up my game some day. Much appreciated with all of the information so far!

 

[DestructionBomb]

@Lulu: You and I are on the same boat; I love that butt attack, but usually as a finishing move, although I don't using the Stepping mechanic as much.

I do like the + move after the Step for a guard break though. Since it knocks the opponent pretty far if they guard, would using it with the opponent against the wall be better? Also, what would be some good follow-ups after a guard break?

@DestructionBomb: Golly, for someone that doesn't use Sarah, you sure have a lot of knowledge on her frame advantages and attacks! A lot of what you've mentioned certainly doesn't seem execution heavy, and I think I just have to get used to the after the from the > sequence. That's definitely something I'd never discover on my own and never regarded Sarah's standing jab giving her so much frame advantage/sets up for a frame trap. I hope to implement all of the techniques to up my game some day. Much appreciated with all of the information so far!

Nice definitely, the is necessity for Pai and almost for Akira. There are some combos from Sarah that uses P in combo extenders for output. Cases such as LAUNCH > > > , into . (this is not the best combo but just an example of using H/Free to cancel in between jabs so that PPP doesn't come out).

The dark shaded arrow is the held input. For this case, a held forward jab input. [6]P. Pai (as well as the other 3) have this input where it extends the reach of the jab combo. If Pai tried to do regular naturally from a 46H+K combo, the 3rd jab would whiff every single time into 33PK, so you would do the held forward jab input to prevent the whiff from happening.

A good way to practice (which is what I did back in DOA5 vanilla/original) is to have the CPU set to block and do every time without stopping. Then you reach out with the held forward input (). Remember that this is not the mid punch. is different from . Even better since the move is plus so this is beneficial for your approach plan either way ahaha. You can do it!

 

[yohmok]

@DestructionBomb: Holy moly, that's some incredible information and would probably take me a while to get down! Mind blown. Either way, that is such great information. I've already started utilizing the sequences mentioned by you earlier, against the AI. I especially love the > and have been practicing the ~ > to fish for counter hits or just stay in the frame advantage.

Quick question: could I follow up (either hit or not) with , or am I negative? I would imagine that I need to condition the opponent to block low so that the would open them up since it hits mid. Just wondering if this is a good idea. Thanks for all the help so far!

 

[Lulu]

Quick question: could I follow up (either hit or not) with , or am I negative? I would imagine that I need to condition the opponent to block low so that the would open them up since it hits mid. Just wondering if this is a good idea. Thanks for all the help so far!

I believe you are negative but safe... and if they decided to capitalise on your disadvantage then next time just cancel , into her forward slide (,) and then cancel that into her Back Slide (,,)

Now I don't know the numbers on this but if its not too negative then Sarah can Sabaki Mid & Hi Punches during her Backslide...

I used to use , alot... its a damn good string....
It Stuns On Normal Hit.
Its safe.
If they get cute and try to duck under the Punch then you can just kick'em in the face with instead.
It cancels into her forward slide and from there theres a whole bunch of other stuff you can try.

Oh and I believe its a threshold launcher... but I believe it works best if use after at the end of the stun threshold.

 

[DestructionBomb]

@DestructionBombQuick question: could I follow up (either hit or not) with , or am I negative? I would imagine that I need to condition the opponent to block low so that the would open them up since it hits mid. Just wondering if this is a good idea. Thanks for all the help so far!

I believe you are negative but safe.

Ah no no, from Sarah is neutral on hit actually,. Neutral = +0. So essentially her (which is 13 frames) remains as i13. Down punch on block is negative but it's not very often for players blocking low punches in DOA which is pretty interesting heh lol. So it goes like this:

on NH (Normal hit) = +0 = so stays as 13 frames. No advantage nor disadvantage was added.

on CH (Counter hit) = +11 = becomes 11 frames faster, so it becomes i2. 11 frames for advantage. Which means that no character in the game will beat Sarah in the trade unless they block if she follows up with 6KP. This however, has to land on CH.

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Basically, if the down punch lands on Counter Hit, the follow 6KP is a good move. But if it lands on Normal Hit (which they are blocking standing still and you 2P) you are at neutral. You are not at disadvantage, but you do not have the speed to compensate any trades in case they attack again. Think of advantage like weights. If you are at disadvantage, you are adding weights to your next move. If you have advantage, you are removing weights from your body so that your next move becomes even faster on startup. If you are at neutral, you are still the same weight. But because you are at neutral here there is a 50/50 risk of an opponent attacking after your down punch that might be faster than your . It's a gamble, but there is also likelyhood of an opponent that will stay guarding (smart players likely) because they know 2P is neutral and that it's also risky to challenge Sarah in this case.

Then again 13 frames is pretty fast to be quite honest, but it's still a gamble against 80% of the cast kinda.

 

[Lulu]

Ah no no, from Sarah is neutral on hit actually. Neutral = +0. So essentially her (which is 16 frames) remains as i16. So it goes like this:

on NH (Normal hit) = +0 = so stays as 16 frames. No advantage nor disadvantage was added.

on CH (Counter hit) = +11 = becomes 11 frames faster, so it becomes i5. 11 frames for advantage. Which means that no character in the game will beat Sarah in the trade unless they block if she follows up with 6KP. This however, has to land on CH.

Well yeah but I don't think thats what I was talking about... all I'm saying is is safe...
Which it is... right ?

 

[DestructionBomb]

Well yeah but I don't think thats what I was talking about... all I'm saying is is safe...
Which it is... right ?

6KP is safe yeah (-3). I thought you meant that her 2P was negative. Sorry.

 

[Lulu]

6KP is safe yeah (-3). I thought you meant that her 2P was negative. Whoops.

What is her on Normal Hit anyway ? Its 0 right ? Thats pretty good for her.

Jacky's is -1 and the AI has no problem checking me with an i12 to make sure I don't get away with it.

 

[DestructionBomb]

What is her on Normal Hit anyway ? Its 0 right ? Thats pretty good for her.

Jacky's is -1 and the AI has no problem checking me with an i12 to make sure I don't get away with it.

Ah, Jacky's 2P is neutral too. Akira is the only VF character in DOA with a +1 low jab on NH.

 

[Lulu]

Ah no, Jacky's 2P is neutral too. Akira is the only VF character in DOA with a +1 low jab on NH.

It is ?

LoL... then I just suck !!!

I must b confusing Jacky with soneone else... maybe ?

 

[yohmok]

@Lulu & @DestructionBomb: You guys are super awesome for that wealth of knowledge! Thank you for that!

So, if I initiate with a and it's neutral (+0), then any move that's faster than the , string (i.e. a punch that's < i13) would ultimately beat the string out unless the is on counter hit, correct? Would I be foolish to assume that after hits (not counter hit), I could follow up with Sarah's + (throw) since it's a i7 move?

I want to say that I understand the whole frame advantage / disadvantage concept since similar things exist in Street Fighter, but I will admit that I'm not one to memorize the frame data and recite them in the heat of battle.

 

[DestructionBomb]

@Lulu & @DestructionBomb: You guys are super awesome for that wealth of knowledge! Thank you for that!

So, if I initiate with a and it's neutral (+0), then any move that's faster than the , string (i.e. a punch that's < i13) would ultimately beat the string out unless the is on counter hit, correct? Would I be foolish to assume that after hits (not counter hit), I could follow up with Sarah's + (throw) since it's a i7 move?

I want to say that I understand the whole frame advantage / disadvantage concept since similar things exist in Street Fighter, but I will admit that I'm not one to memorize the frame data and recite them in the heat of battle.

You got it. You could do > into the throw, but only if you know for sure they are blocking or won't attack you before the throw connects. Throws are not invulnerable to strikes, if anything...if you commence a throw and they attack you in this case you'll receive 150% more damage to your health which is very dangerous.

Actually when you get the time @yohmok , frame data is really simple to learn in DOA (I know you know what frame data is but figured we should embed it so that it becomes extremely fun eventually). When you are having troubles in real matches, you'll find moves that opponents like to do and you can test it out in training mode on why the move has been causing you troubles etc. Heck, you may even find stuff not mentioned in the forums because you digged into the game enough to know. When you get the time hop in training mode and turn on the options called "Move Details" (left) - Fight Info > Move Details > Left. The ones you want to look at is "Frame" which is top left of the box, and "Advantage" which is top right of the box.

- On "Frame", a simple easy explanation is that the higher the number, the slower it is. The lower the number, the faster it is. An i21 move is much slower than a i12 move. So when you hop on training mode you can test which moves you'd like to do and how fast they are, which can speed up your learning process much quicker. Moves you'd avoid doing, or when is a good time to use this move etc. (Don't worry about the numbers next to 6. They are not important for the moment.)

- On "Advantage", a simple easy explanation is that + Any number = Good. - Any number = bad. The game gets pretty consistent when you land moves on block, so the best place to start in training mode for trying out moves is landing them on block first before you reach out for any combos or loop holes for stun (combo damage potential is important too, but combos become null if you can't land them on an opponent who's blocking correctly and then counterattacking after). If you are at -1, it's better to do a i10 jab than a i18. (i10 jab now becomes 1 frame slower, which is i11. i18 becomes i19 etc.) Useful to use against opponent characters on what they like to use. You can even get free guaranteed throws if you block unsafe moves and then throw them after. If a move say, is -9 and more negative, you can get a free guaranteed i7 throw etc. If it's really unsafe (like -15) you can go for the i10 throw etc.

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You don't have to learn everything when it comes to frame data. I just use it as a reference to be honest. Like, if I know a move is -12. It's unsafe. Without even thinking that it's unsafe. I go for the throw immediately without even thinking about numbers. If I see a simple negative, it's not their turn in that situation. If it's negative with double digits, it's unsafe and free throw.

 

[Lulu]

One of thw things I'm bad at with Sarah is that I never used her Throws enough.

 

[DestructionBomb]

One of thw things I'm bad at with Sarah is that I never used her Throws enough.

Sarah's throws are pretty average. Nothing spectacular, but nothing bad either. Those average throws become pretty important against unsafe moves regardless of the damage output.

 

[Lulu]

Yep... thats my problem... I was relentless on using Strikes.

 

[yohmok]

@DestructionBomb: Thanks for that explanation; that is some very important stuff you've given me. I actually have been dabbling with the Move Details portion of Free Training to figure out how quickly different strikes come out and played with some math in my head. Suffice it to say, it's been a real endurance to understand the frame advantages / disadvantages. I really love how you've broken down the technicalities to help me understand, with also real examples of some moves that Sarah is usually at a frame advantage with. I suppose next steps is figuring a game plan and then flowing with that, which still needs massive amounts of work. I don't want to just stick to poking and counter-poking, then throwing.

@Lulu: I was on the same boat with just strikes with Sarah and no throws. I didn't realize her throws were that quick and simply glanced over them with no regard to implementing them. But now, we're both more the wiser! Can't say how much I appreciate learning from you both! Maybe I can soon put up some decent fights with various people.

I know I sound like a total novice (which I am), but I get rattled when seeing people that are very high ranks. It's stupid, but it's also nerve-wracking...

 

[DestructionBomb]

@DestructionBomb: Thanks for that explanation; that is some very important stuff you've given me. I actually have been dabbling with the Move Details portion of Free Training to figure out how quickly different strikes come out and played with some math in my head. Suffice it to say, it's been a real endurance to understand the frame advantages / disadvantages. I really love how you've broken down the technicalities to help me understand, with also real examples of some moves that Sarah is usually at a frame advantage with. I suppose next steps is figuring a game plan and then flowing with that, which still needs massive amounts of work. I don't want to just stick to poking and counter-poking, then throwing.

@Lulu: I was on the same boat with just strikes with Sarah and no throws. I didn't realize her throws were that quick and simply glanced over them with no regard to implementing them. But now, we're both more the wiser! Can't say how much I appreciate learning from you both! Maybe I can soon put up some decent fights with various people.

I know I sound like a total novice (which I am), but I get rattled when seeing people that are very high ranks. It's stupid, but it's also nerve-wracking...

Yeah you got it! - keep digging into it! eventually it's going to click for you watch. Once you see the numbers you'll click in the mind on which one is safe and one isn't.

Anything higher worse than -7 is considered unsafe (which means free throws). Anything around -6 and less is considered safe with some advantage for the opponent.

 

[Lulu]

If only DoA had that Evade Throw Escape Option Select like in Virtua Fighter...

Actually you know... its better that DoA doesn't work that way.

 

[Blue2557]

@yohmok Sarah was always my favourite character and I would show you some combos or tricks If I could (I don't have acces to PS4 sadly)