Yagami Iori FAQ For Capcom vs SNK 2 on Arcade, Dreamcast, and Playstation 2. Written by Kenny "Kenshi" Tam Contact: kennytam@foxhound.zzn.com =============== Version History =============== Version 1.0 January 8, 2002 Everything. Version 1.1 January 12, 2002 Added more Strategies Version 1.2 January 27, 2002 Added Groove info etc. ================= Table of Contents ================= I. Introduction II. Profile III. Annotations and Abbreviations IV. General Moves V. Special Moves VI. Desperation Moves VII. General Notes VIII. Strategies IX. Combos X. Miscellany XI. Notes and Credits =============== I. Introduction =============== This is my second Fighting game FAQ, this time for Yagami Iori. My first was for Kusanagi Kyo, so I figure I'd write one for his rival Iori. I have personally used Iori in ever game he was in, but being an extremely popular character, doesn't mean much. However there appeared to be a lack of FAQs for Iori so I decided to write my second FAQ in as many days (2) for Iori (that made no sense at all.) The move lists and descriptions I got from sitting next to my machine and watching the move several twenty times on training mode. The names (Japanese) I referenced from Triste's King of Fighters 1999 FAQ/Movelist for Iori. The Translations I transliterated directly from the Cantonese names, so they might be a bit off or sound funny. =========== II. Profile =========== Full Name: Yagami Iori (Eight-Gods Hearth) Age: 20 (as of KoF 2000) Birthday: March 25th, 19?? Nationality: Japan Height: 182 cm Weight: 76 kg Favorite Food: Meat Favorite Sport: Any From: The King of Fighters 1995 ================================== III. Annotations and Abbreviations ================================== UB U UF UB= Up-Back U= Up UF= Up-Forward \ | / B= Back N= Neutral F= Forward B--N--F DB= Down-Back D= Down DF= Down-Forward / | \ DB D DF LP= Light Punch MP= Medium Punch HP= Hard Punch LK= Light Kick MK= Medium Kick HK= Hard Kick P= Any Punch K= Any Kick PP= Two Punches Simultaneously KK= Two Kicks Simultaneously PPP= All Three Punches KKK= All Three Kicks QCF= Quarter Circle Forward (D, DF, F) QCB= Quarter Circle Back (D, DB, B) DPM= Dragon Punch Motion (F, D, DF) RDP= Reverse Dragon Punch (B, D, BD) HCF= Half Circle Forward (B, DB, D, DF, F) HCB= Half Circle Back (F, DF, D, DB, B) 360= Spin Joystick in Full Circle Super Jump= Tap Down, then Up or any Up direction quickly to do a further, large jump. A trail will appear behind the opponent if done correctly. Dash= Tap Forward or Back twice quickly to move quickly in that direction. Throw= When near an opponent, press either Forward or Back and Hard Punch or Hard Kick to execute a throw attack. Throw Escape= When being grabbed for a throw, Press either Forward or Back and Hard Punch or Hard Kick to escape. Evasion= Press Light Punch and Light Kick simultaneously. Depending on the groove, the character will perform an action that will evade most moves for the duration of the action. Taunt= Press Select to do a special taunt. Grooves ******* C-Groove: --------- This mode is similar to the Alpha Series as well as Capcom Groove in the original game. The character has a gauge at the bottom of the screen, which is divided into three sections, shown by a larger area as the level increases. Attacking and performing moves will increase this gauge. Depending on the Level, Different levels of Super Combos can be performed: Level 1- Super Combo Command + LP or LK Level 2- Super Combo Command + MP or MK Level 3- Super Combo Command + HP or HK The higher the level, the more powerful it usually will be. The levels are cumulative, so doing a level 2 super on with a Level 3 gauge will leave the bar with 1 level left. Dash- Tap either Forward or Back Twice quickly to do a small dash in that directly. Rolling- Press LP and LK simultaneously to perform a moving dodge, which can pass through most Special and Super moves, as well as the opponent. Counter Attack- While blocking, immediately tap Forward + MP+MK to perform a counterattack. Note that it requires 1 level of the Super Gauge to perform this move. Air Block- Press Back whilst in the air to block. Super moves cannot be air blocked. Tactical Recovery- When Knocked down, press all 3 Punch Buttons to delay your character getting up. A-Groove: --------- This mode is similar to the Custom Combo Groove, the V-ism from Street Fighter Zero 3. At the bottom of the Screen is a Custom Combo Gauge, which can be filled up by attacking. At 50% full, a Level 1 Super combo can be performed. When full, a Custom Combo can be performed. Level 1- Super Combo Command + Button Level 2- Custom Combo - HP and HK Simultaneously Dash- Tap Forward or Back Twice to do a quick small dash towards the enemy. Safe Fall- Press All Three Punch Buttons whilst Landing to recover on the ground. Rolling- Press LP and LK simultaneously to perform a rolling dodge which can pass through most Special and Super Attacks, as well as the opponent. Counter Attack- While blocking, immediately tap Forward + MP+MK to perform a counterattack. Note that it requires 1 level of the Super Gauge to perform this move. P-Groove: --------- This Groove is the most similar to the Street Fighter 3 system. It includes the Parry Command as well as a single level Super gauge which fills up when attacking. Super Combo- Super Command +Button Note that there is only one level in P-Groove, and that it will be a Level 3 combo. Parry- The Instant the opponent makes contact with a hit, Tap forward for High Attacks, and Down for low attacks. The opponent will Parry the away the opponent, leaving them open for a counterattack. The timing window has been decreased significantly though, making it harder to perform. Dash- Tap Forward or Back Twice to do a quick small dash towards the enemy. Safe Fall- Press All Three Punch Buttons whilst Landing to recover on the ground. Small Jump- Tap Up, or any Up Directional to do a small jump. S-Groove: --------- This groove is similar to the Extra mode from the King of Fighters series, as well as the original SNK-Groove from the Original Capcom vs. SNK. The Super Gauge is filled by Charging, Pressing the HP and HK simultaneously. The Character will begin charging up their powers and their gauge will start increasing. Note that the character cannot move or perform any attacks whilst doing this. When the Bar is full, the character is slightly stronger as well as being able to do a Level 1 Super Combo. Note that the bar will start decreasing once it reaches the maximum and the opportunity to perform Super combos will end when the bar is empty. When the Character takes enough damage, the Vitality Gauge will begin flashing. At this point the Character can do unlimited Level 1 Super moves, and if the Super Gauge is also full, a Level 3, MAX Super Combo. Run- Tap Forward or Back Twice to run towards the enemy. Tactical Recovery- When Knocked down, press all 3 Punch Buttons to delay your character getting up. Counter Attack- While blocking, immediately tap Forward + MP+MK to perform a counterattack. Note that it requires 1 level of the Super Gauge to perform this move. Dodge- Press LP and LK simultaneously to do a quick dodge animation. The character does not move, but has the same properties as the roll. Small Jump- Tap Up, or any Up Directional to do a small jump. N-Groove: --------- This Groove is similar to the Advance Mode from the King of Fighters. The character can perform Super combos when they have 'stock.' The super Gauge is filled by attacking. When full, the Super gauge will reset but a Counter will appear in the box next to it, indicating the character now as 'stock.' The Character can perform as many Level 1 super Combos as there are number of stock. The character can 'Power MAX' by pressing HP and HK together. It will cost a single stock unit, but the character will become more powerful. In addition, MAX level moves can be performed. Run- Tap Forward or Back Twice to run towards the enemy. Safe Fall- Press All Three Punch Buttons whilst landing to recover on the ground. Rolling- Press LP and LK simultaneously to perform a moving dodge, which can pass through most Special and Super moves, as well as the opponent. Counter Attack- While blocking, immediately tap Forward + MP+MK to perform a counterattack. Note that it requires 1 level of the Super Gauge to perform this move. Small Jump- Tap Up, or any Up Directional to do a small jump. K-Groove: --------- This groove is he most similar to that of Samurai Spirits (Showdown.) the gauge fills up as the character gets hit and receives damage or performing Just Defence. When the gauge fills up, the character will be in Rage MAX mode, which allows the character to perform MAX Super combos as well as dealing more damage. Note that the bar will start decreasing once it reaches the maximum and MAX mode will end when the bar is empty. Just Defence- Tap Back right before the enemy makes contact with their hit. If done successfully, the character will take no Guard damage as well as gain some vitality. The character will also recovery sooner and be able to counterattack. Run- Tap Forward or Back Twice to run towards the enemy. Tactical Recovery- When Knocked down, press all 3 Punch Buttons to delay your character getting up. Small Jump- Tap Up, or any Up Directional to do a small jump. ================= IV. General Moves ================= Standing- ********* Light Punch- Quick short range jab to the gut. Similar to KoF LP, animation changes to left jab up close. Combo-able and can be canceled into virtually any move. Attacks as fast as you can jam the button. Medium Punch- A left handed claw slash downwards, similar to his KoF HP. Combo-able into punch button special moves. Somewhat slow but has good recovery. An okay poke due to range and comboability, but speed makes it a problem. Hard Punch- An upwards headbutt. Changes to left uppercut up close. Combos into Yami Barai and Oni Yaki, but he will be pushed out of range for Oni Yaki if HP connects. Light Kick- A weird little kick to opponents shin from his back leg. Similar to Bruce Lee's counters but much slower and does not counter. Up close it becomes another weird ground kick to the ankles. Combos into Aoi Hana. Has poor range but comes out quickly. Medium Kick- Another weird circular kick from his front leg, moving in an inwards circle. Has long frames of animation which makes it a weird poke. It does not combo however. Hard Kick- Roundhouse kick to the midsection. It's not as godly as the KoF incarnations where you can press the HK button when you are bored. It is somewhat weaker and has less priority, but it is still extremely useful move. It can interrupt a lot of moves, as well as being a good poke, despite being a heavy attack. Becomes high split kick to the face up close, and both versions do not combo. Doing this when close to the opponent repeatedly can really piss off the opponent and deal good damage. Jumping- ******** Light Punch- A flying punch aimed downwards. It can meet with jumping opponents and start LP ground combos. Medium Punch- Looks like the flying HP from KoF, he does a hammer like attack with his forearm. Does not work well in air, but can be used to start combos. Hard Punch- Looks his jumping CD from KoF, he smashes both arms down in a fist onto the opponents head. Average Priority however. Light Kick- Extends his front leg in air. Can hit in air if timed correctly, and useful for starting combos. Has okay priority and cannot beat out a large number of moves. Medium Kick- Looks exactly like his LK version Hard Kick- The invincible flying kick from KoF is somewhat back. It still has incredible priority anywhere. If you feel bored, feel free to jump around with his HK (not against Dragon punch of course.) Most likely you will either win or at worst, trade hits. Crouching- ********** Light Punch- a forward-looking jab. Can combo into a lot of things and hit for multiple times before it gets pushed out of range. Very useful in combos. Comes out as fast as you can press the button. Medium Punch- A slower version of LP. Does not combo either. I don't know what it's use is. Hard Punch- A vicious looking uppercut slash to the opponents face. Counters air well and can combo into many moves. Light Kick- Sticks is front leg out along the ground, hitting the opponent's ankle. Comes out as fast as you can hit the button, and combos into anything. A very useful poke, combing speed, range and comboability. It allows you to hit several times before following up with a move. Medium Kick- A slightly altered LP, comes out slower and apparently does not combo. Hard Kick- Extends his entire body out to do a double legged sweep. Has incredible range and priority. It has long recovery time, so be careful. It is a good counter against whiffed or incoming moves however. ================ V. Special Moves ================ Command Moves: -------------- Ge Shiki: Yume Biki (Dream Bullet)- MP, F+MP Does MP attack then follows up with a backhand. Useful in combos; known to be his trademark combo. Ge Shiki: Goufu In Shingame (Roaring Thunder Axe God "Negative") F+MK Despite its long and cool name, it is just a slow overhead axe kick. Ge Shiki: Yuri Ori (Lily Break) - B+LK (Air) A kick that aims backwards; It is actually a cross up move. The command is B+MK, but when you jump over the opponent, it becomes F+MK. The dashing retreat trick is gone though (where you dash back and quickly tap B+MK) is gone in this version though. Throws: ------- Claw - (B or F+P or K) Iori sinks his hand into then enemy then jerks it away, tearing the oppoent off. Special Moves: -------------- 108 Shiki: Yami Bari (Dark Thrust?) - QCF+P A standard ground traveling fireball. Speed depends on button pressed, where HP travels the fastest. It is useful for distancing the opponent for to make them jump, but other than that, is limited in use. 100 Shiki: Oni Yaki (Demon Burn) - DPM+P A rising lariat attack similar to Kyo's, it is their anti-air uppercut attack. Strength of button pressed varies how high he will travel as well as number of hits if up close. Use HP if in combos or you are certain it will connect. Otherwise use LP since he is vulnerable when landing. 127 Shiki: Aoi Hana (Spade? Hollylock? Flower) - QCB+P X3 A series of forearm attacks ending with a lunging overhead smash. Similar to Fei Long's "rekka ken" chains from Street Fighter, Each command does part of the Aoi Hana. The Button pressed varies how fast and far he will travel, and it can be mixed and matched. The last hit is an overhead knockdown hit. This is Iori's pressure move, where you can vary the speed and confuse the opponent. The second hit can be cancelled. 212 Shiki: Koto Tsuki In (Kyoto Moon Negative) - HCB+K A dashing elbow attack that ends with Iori slamming his opponent's head on the ground and causing an explosion. As long as the elbow connects, he will slam the opponent for the second hit. Button pressed varies how far he will travel. Try to use it as a counter or in combos, since he is quite open when he is running towards his opponent. If it is blocked or misses, he is extremely open. Kuzu Kaze (Scum Gale) - HCB,F+P A command grab, Iori grabs the opponent and pushes him/her onto the other side, leaving a short stun duration. It does no damage and has short range however. =================================== VI. Super Moves/Desperation Attacks =================================== Ura 108 Shiki: Ya Sakazuki (Reverse Technique 108: Eight Wine Glasses) -QCB, HCF+P (chargeable) Iori holds a flame in his hand and throws it similar to a Yami Bari, exploding into a pillar or purple flame and dazing the enemy. Holding punch will delay the time before he lands the flame, and his upperhalf is invulnerable to attacks. Strength of button used varies how far it travels and how many pillars it makes. LP travels right infront of Iori. Medium punch goes half screen; it travels to 1/4 of screen, and explodes into three pillars that covers the other 1/4. Hard Punch travels full screen with four pillars of flame. It also does slight damage and different number of hits depending on button uses. It can cover his entire front and hard to avoid. It has ultimate priority over almost anything. Kin 1211 Shiki: Ya Otome (Forbidden Technique 1211: Eight Maidens) -QCF, HCB+P Iori's trademark DM. He dashes towards the enemy and claws them eight times before finishing with a fiery finish. Light Punch travels half screen and resembles the KoF versions the most. Medium punch goes full screen, and ends Iori slamming the opponent's head down and bursting fire for more hits. Hard Punch goes full screen and resembles Iori's '98 SDM; He claws the enemy down and does several large explosion point blank on opponent's chest. All versions have anti-air ability, and will travel through high moves, such as the hurricane kicks and the fireball. It can be comboed into and has quite good priority. It leave Iori open to a DM of the enemy's own if blocked or whiffed due to long recovery time. ================== VII. General Notes ================== Although he isn't as strong as his KoF incarnations, he is still a powerful character. He has excellent offense and defense, able to meet the demands of almost any situation. ================ VIII. Strategies ================ Iori can do almost anything. His game can be either defensive, full offense, or an equal balance. His variety of moves can be adapted and are quite flexible. His combos are his main "beef" as he has plenty of high damage ones, many of which can end with his Ya Otome. Versus; Gouki/Ryu/Ken ------------- Chances are the shotokans will be a common enemy. Iori's moves can match theirs as well. Keep in mind that the players may not have seen Iori or played against a decent one before, so the element of surprise maybe on your side. They rely on the DP/fireball pattern a lot, but do take some offensive to counter rolling. A good tactic is to counter their fireballs with your own, and when ready, travel right UNDER their fireball and let rip them a Ya Otome. The Koto Tsuki In can grab them right out of their hurricane kick as well. They can easily counter your Aoi Hanas however, so do them only in combos. Iori's jumping D can usually trade hits against their attacks (Capcom bias) and his standing D can snuff their fireballs if close. Kusanagi Kyo ------------ Kyo players will try to stay in close range to Iori. His Ara Gami/Douki Gami chains can beat you out in close range, so try to zone him out and pressure him with Yami Barais at HK pokes. He can RED kick over the Yami Barais however. The HK sweep can stop most of his Gami chains (his Douki Gami has a very short auto-guard), but he does recover pretty quickly. The Ya Sakazuki can beat out his Orochi Nagi (at MP or higher levels) but all his DMs can beat out your Ya Otome. Try to counter his missed DM's instead. Terry Bogard ------------ Similar to Iori, Terry is very well balanced as well. He has a ground fireball, so you cannot counter it with a Ya Otome. They have a habit of following the Power wave with a Burn Knuckle, so they can nail you if you try to counter their power wave with a Yami barai. It is a tricky battle since his defense moves are also offensive moves, so he can keep an offensive game most of the time. The rising tackle is the only move in which Terry needs to slow down for, as it is a charge based move. Nonetheless Iori needs to wait for Terry to whiff a move and counter during Terry's long recovery time. His DM's come out fast and cover a lot of range as well, so it will be a difficult battle. Rock Howard ----------- Rock is arguably one of the top tier characters. He has the offensive moves of Terry, and defensive sets of Geese. His only glaring weakness is that he does average damage and is pretty hard to master. Many Rock players like to either play keep away or go up close on the offensive. Iori can match Rock's Repukens with his own Yami Barai, but once he reaches Level 3 or can perform maximum level DMs, watch out. His Shine Knuckle is fast enough to follow up his Reppuken if you decide to do anything but block. If you think he may be trying to do that trap, get in midrange. Up close Rock can be hard to beat as well. His Counters can stop any pokes you have, as well as a fully charged Raging Storm. The Counters are pretty hard to master though, so it won't be too hard fooling them. Sagat ----- Most Sagat players I have seen revolve their game around the tiger shots. With rolling and other ways of dodging them, his ground game has weakened quite a bit. Nonetheless he still has some powerful defensive moves. A smart Sagat player will keep to ground tiger shots since Iori can Ya Otome under them. You can't counter his high tiger shots with the Yami Barai, since they miss each other. This is more of an attrition battle, where both players blast each other with projectiles. Sagat's Tiger uppercut is powerful and has the same priority as the Dragon Punch, so try not to jump in too much. Nikaido Benimaru ---------------- The king of jump, Benimaru is similar to Chun-Li in which he relies on jumping and poking quite a lot. He is a very fast character and has some very powerful moves, similar to his KoF '98 incarnation. Try to keep him grounded and meet him in the air with your jumping D. You could try doing the Oni Yaki but he might make you whiff it and counter with a super. He is a good pressuring character, since he can poke you to death with his kicks. Don't try to zone him with your Yami Barai, since he can fly across the screen easily and nail you. Geese Howard ------------ Geese is a stronger but slow version of Rock. He loses Terry's moves, but he is still a powerful contender. His Reppukens and Shinpukens can counter all your projectile attacks, as well as keep you away. His counters can stop your poking and combo efforts, as well as punish your jump-ins 6790400 different ways. The main weakness is how good the player is. The counters are actually hard to use, since it relies heavily on mind games. Try to confuse him and mix up your pokes; but don't go poking crazy since he can nail you with a raging storm or worse. Vice ---- Vice is now back to her powerful KoF '98 incarnation. She has all her grappling moves, including her air-follow ups. Vice players need to stay in between close and mid range, so your best bet is to zone them. Being a grappler, you can't really beat them up close, so your Yami Barai comes into play here. Her Ravenous is a powerful air move, in which your flying D gets countered 9/10 times. Don't launch a projectile from mid range since her De-cide and go through and hit you. Her de-cide can also be a good surprise you, so watch out. Her supers are unblockable as well. ========== IX. Combos ========== ============= X. Miscellany ============= Win Quote: ---------- "Do you know what I like best about you? Your screams!" "For you, living is a fate worse than Death!" "My blood...It commands me... It commands me to destroy you!" "You will drown in a sea of your own blood! Ha! Ha! Ha!" "Die as you have lived, scum. Sad, alone, and weak..." Special Intros: --------------- -Vs Kyo: Holds flames in their hands and has a chat. -Vs Vega/M. Bison: Stands with back to Bison. Turns and launches a Yama Barai which Bison jumps over. Iori says his opening quote (who doesn't know it!) and the fight starts. Comments: --------- -who doesn't know this guy's quotes off by heart? -Shin-ne! -This guy's end quotes shows that he is nuts. -well I suppose they are better than "Do as you like, it's not my job to kill you" from KoF '99. That quote just made no sense at all. ===================== XI. Notes and Credits ===================== -Capcom Vs SNK 2 is Trademark and Copyright of Capcom. All Characters mentioned relating to the game are as such property of Capcom. -Mr. Jeff Veasey at Http://www.Gamefaqs.com for hopefully hosting this FAQ. -W.W for eating countless Ya Otomes, and for KoF sessions back then. -L.N for the NGPC sessions back then. -N.H for just being yourself. -If, for any part, I may have borrowed or referenced information that originally stemmed from your work, PLEASE do notify me and I will immediately remove or a credit the work from this FAQ. This document Copyright 2002 by Kenny "kenshi" Tam, and may not be duplicated or reproduced (in part or in full) for profit without the explicit permission of the author. Chances are it will be rare if anyone would want to use this crappy FAQ. This document is supposed to appear on http://www.gamefaqs.com. http://www.psxcodez.com http://www.DLH.net http://www.gamespot.com