Christie (i9/i11/i14) vs.
Helena (i11/i12/i14)
Alright here it is folks! The showdown that everyone's been waiting for! The battle between arguably the two biggest pain in the asses to each other: Christie vs. Helena. The two so-called "queens of DOA" go at it here in this brutal fight to the death! Lol, well not really, but you get the idea. These two characters are very common at high levels of DOA5 play and there is a good reason for that. These two characters excel at offensive pressure, stun-manipulation, high & low-crushing, and evasion. Success depends on whoever is able to effectively get their offensive momentum going first or whoever does the better job of thwarting their opponents attempts to get their offensive pressure started. It's not an easy battle, but there can only be one winner...
Helena's General Pokes
P = i11/ -3 on block/ -3 on hit/ 10 dmg
(High P)
3P = i12/ -14 on block/ -12 on hit/ 18 dmg
(Mid P)
K = i12/ -9 on block/ +6 on hit/ 24 dmg (
High K)
4K = i14/ -15 on block/ +7 on hit/ 23 dmg
(Tracking High K)
3K = i15/ -10 on block/ +2 on hit/ 23 dmg
(Mid K)
2P = i14/ -4 on block/ +0 on hit/ 5 dmg
(Low P)
2K = i14/ -13 on block/ -11 on hit/ 10 dmg
(Low K)
66P = i14/ - 5 on block/ +3 on hit/ 20 dmg (
Mid P)
1P = i17/ -13 on block/ -11 on hit/ 15 dmg (
Tracking Low P, Transitions into BT, Strong Hi-crush)
FC 3P = i13/ -13 on block/ -8 on hit/ 20 dmg (
Mid P, Mid crush)
4P = i15/ -17 on block/ -16 on hit/ 18 dmg (
Tracking Mid P, Transitions into BT, Strong Hi-crush)
P+K = i18/ -15 on block/ +30 on hit/ 22 dmg (
Mid P,
Strong Hi-crush)
In terms of neutral poke speed Helena's around "average" to slightly "above average". Her i11 5P is pretty bad and deals only 10 damage as opposed to the 11 damage i11 jabs usually deal. However her
i12 5K is amazing and can be very dangerous. Helena's 5K string has two follow-ups in the form of 5KK & 5KKK. This is a fast High K-Mid K-High K string that can be used to lock you down and throw you on the defense thanks to the powerful delay & quick speed between kicks. The second kick being a mid makes it tough to duck under this string compared to most "KKK" strings. You'll generally have to guard it standing and try to anticipate when Helena ends the string. She is unsafe after any part of the 5K string is finished allowing for a 6T throw punish. There is an alternate string to 5KKK in the form of 3KKK that looks almost identical but starts as a mid kick. The string is essentially a fast Mid K-High K-Mid K string that opens with an i15 linear mid kick and ends with a mid kick that is -11 on block. It's tricky at times to tell if you're dealing with 5KKK or 3KKK, so on block you can wait it out and punish accordingly (look out for delays & free cancels). If you get hit by any part of the 5KKK or 3KKK string, you will be stunned and put into critical stun. If you get stunned, slow escape efficiently to limit Helena's follow-up options, which are fairly ludicrous any way. 5KKK & 3KKK are linear attacks, but the strings retrack very well and can stuff sidestep attempts easily including JAK stance.
To start Helena's offense, she will usually try to utilize some sort of hi-crush manoeuvre such as FC 3P~, 1P~, 4P~, P+K~. These are the moves that Helena will use to try and hi-crush your attacks to set-up powerful stun mix-ups. Be particularly weary of
FC 3P, a powerful i13 mid P that has the ability to crush highs very well and even some mids. A common string used is
FC 3P4P, which starts with the FC 3P poke then transitions into bokuho (BKO) stance via "Flappy Hands". FC 3P4P stuns very well and sets you up for a strong BKO mix-up. If you block, FC 3P4P, Helena will be at -4 in BKO stance, meaning that you can get a free attack against her. Helena's fastest attack out of BKO is BKO P at i11 and 10 damage. Any attack i15 or faster and dealing more than 10 damage will beat out anything she tries to attack with forcing her to either exit the stance and block or try to utilize the BKO Duck. Christie's 2P is i14 so it'll beat out anything Helena tries out of BKO including the repulsive BKO Duck. 6P is also a decent option because Helena will be forced to either try to duck all 4 potential strikes in the form of 6PPPP or exit the stance and block the string. Of course you should free cancel somewhere but the point is to keep Helena on the defensive where she doesn't like to be.
General pokes from Bokuho Stance:
BKO P = i11/ -3 on block/ -2 on hit/ 10 dmg (
High P)
BKO K = i12/ -13 on block/ +35 on hit/ 28 dmg (
High K, Unsafe)
BKO 6P = i12/ -12 on block/ +9 on hit/ 12 dmg (
Mid P)
BKO 2K = i19/ 10 on block/ +13 on hit/ 22 dmg (
Tracking Low K, Unsafe)
BKO 4P = i14/ -5 on block/ -4 on hit/ 16 dmg (
Mid P, Transitions into BT)
Launchers from Bokuho Stance:
BKO P+K = i19 (
Mid P, Transitions into BT, High launcher, Unsafe)
BKO 6K = i16 (
Mid K, Has a low follow-up that stuns and transitions into BKO, BKO 4PK also launches)
BKO H+K = i18 (
High K, Transitions into BKO, Unsafe)
BKO 3P+K = i18 (
Mid P, Unsafe)
BKO 6PPK = i12 (
Mid P x2, High K, Transitions into BKO, Unsafe)
BKO PPK = i11 (
High P x2, Mid K 2-in-1, Unsafe)
BKO H+P = i12 (
Launcher throw, Helena's highest damage throw)
If Helena's in BKO stance, chances are you've been
stunned by an attack that has transitioned into BKO. If you block a BKO entry transition, Helena will be at negative frames in a stance where she is unable to guard and is forced to either attempt a BKO duck, exit the stance and block or try to "out-strike" you. The most common negative frames for a BKO entry transition is
-4 or worse. The exception is 236P+K which is +1 on guard. If Helena is in BKO at -4 on block, your safest response is to
2P, though you can try forcing her on the defensive with 6PP~. Sidestepping is also an ok option against BKO since a lot of BKO attacks don't track. Though, any strings like BKO 4PKP, or BKO 6PPK will retrack into you. While Helena is in BKO, prioritize BKO K, BKO 6P~ & BKO 2K in terms of attacks to look out for. It's also good to be mindful of BKO PP2K and BKO 6KK. BKO can also be low thrown if you get the opportunity to do so safely.
Now onto the shatterer of dreams, the dreaded
BKO Duck. BKO~22 is the move that makes Helena's opponents chuck their controllers at the wall. This move crouches more shit then Brad Wong's laydown stances. BKO Duck essentially ducks all highs and horizontal mids, and hell, some vertical mids too! Basically any mid that doesn't hit grounded can be ducked including Christie's 7K & H+K~ for example. To beat out BKO Duck, you need to use a low, a "true mid" that hits grounded, or a low throw. Low offensive holds work great against BKO, but unfortunately Christie doesn't possess any. When in doubt, just 2P. If you can find ways to discourage Helena's BKO Duck, you can make this MU just that more easier for Christie.
Helena can be very dangerous in close if she gets on the offense with momentum, but unfortunately for her, her range sucks. Fortunately for Christie, this serves as an opportunity to halt Helena's attempts at offense through effective keepout, zoning, and essentially abusing her
shit neutral game. When fighting at mid range, use
2H+K~, H+K~, 4K~, and
6PP~ to keep Helena at bay and limit her opportunities to get an offense started. At range Helena may try to
66KPP, or
66P you. 66P is safe on block, and is quite fast but its range is a bit on the poor side. The move doesn't provide much reward on hit for Helena either. 66KPP is a Low K-Low P-Mid P string with good range despite being a little on the slow side. This string low crushes very well, then high crushes very well ending in a chargeable guard break. The string is holdable on reaction so be vigilant. Take note that Helena can also use 66K2 to transition in BKO instead of completing the highly telegraphed string. Helena may also try run up 5KK~ or 3KK~ to try and poke you while fishing for a stun. Intercept with the above mentioned pokes to thwart these attempts. 6PP~'s a good go-to intercept. Helena may also try to enter BKO with FC 3P4P to attempt to "forego" the neutral game (though it's generally risky for her to do that regularly). The string is all mid punches and follow-ups in the string are holdable on reaction on block or hit. If the string gets blocked, 2P to stuff all her options if you're unsure what she'll do.
Helena does have numerous Back-Turned stance options, but the main ones to note are
BT 4P &
BT 4K which are i12 Mid Ps and Mid Ks respectively. Most transitions on block into BT will leave Helena at negative allowing you to stuff her attempts at offense with 6PP~ or 5PP~. 6PPPP is guaranteed if it hits the opponent in the back, even on NH. If Helena enters BT'ed via a CH 4P or CH 1P for instance, you'll have to be patient on the defensive and try to note what she's trying to follow-up with. 1PPK is a Low-Low-Low string that is unsafe on block and holdable on reaction. 4PP~ is a Mid P-High P string with 4PPP as an unsafe Mid P ender or 4PPKK as an unsafe Low K ender. If you're stunned, you'll obviously have to attempt a critical hold to escape the predicament. Learning to hold the 1P & 4P strings on reaction can prove quite useful when dealing with Helena.
Also take heed of Helena's reset throws. Helena's throw game in general is average damage-wise, but her reset throws compliment her stun game. The throws to watch out for are:
214H+P i12/ +9+BT,
Transitions into BKO/ 30 dmg
BT H+P i15/ +9 +BT/ 15 dmg
BKO H+P i12/ 25 dmg+
The Christie vs. Helena MU is probably one of the most famous MU's in DOA5 thanks to the potency and popularity of both characters. Overall I'd rate the MU a
5.5-4.5 (5-5 if rounded) in
Christie's favour due to how well she can put Helena on the defensive along with "interruption" ability thanks to her i9 5P & i11 6P. The biggest nuisance in this MU for Christie is dealing with the BKO Duck, but if you can keep that in check, then this MU will generally swing in Christie's favour. That is of course as long as you're not letting your ass get stun reset all day. Make sure that Christie's the one doing all the stunning, ok? Good!
Merry Christmas!