Cyberbots/Jackal

RF-027 Jackal

Introduction

Strong overall character with oppressive normals and weapon attacks. Can rush down and zone effectively. Has strong combo options. Jump normals into j.214A gives him interesting movements options. Easier character to pick up.

Pros:

• 5L is one of the best normals in the game, is an extremely good pressure tool, anti-air, tick-throw enabler, and combo starter.
• Weapon attack comes out fast and can be charge canceled very early, giving him a strong fireball zoning game that builds lots of meter.
• Super comes out very fast and is easy to combo into (also safe on block).
• 214A can be an oppressive tool coming down from the air, and can be used to generate safe chip damage and pressure.
• Fast ground movement and 5 jumps.

Cons:

• None of his main combos end in a knockdown.
• Some of his special moves are bad enough that you never want them to come out, and can be frustrating when you get them by accident.
• Giga Crush isn't great, and is very punishable on block.

Normals

5L - Active on frame 6. Massive anti-air hitbox and good forward reach. Can be charge canceled. This can be spammed, but be careful not to accidentally get his Whip Sting special move, which is garbage. Can be chained into 5L, which can then be chained into 5H. the 5L>5L chain is a staple in Jackal pressure.

2L - Active on frame 4. Can combo into super, which can be a good option after a crossup 214H.

5H - Active on frame 15. Can be used as a kind of frame trap after hitting with a weapon attack in mid range. It is recommended that you always charge cancel it if possible.

2H - Active on frame 13, hitbox fully extends on frame 15. Does not hit low. Is a better option than 5H for following up after weapon attacks. Can combo into the 236L, but this won't activate the capture state. Good candidate for charge canceling.

j.L - Active on frame 7. Has a good hitbox, with no hurtbox on the tip of his foot. Can combo into 214A, but depends on the spacing.

j.H - Active on frame 13. Long reach with little hurtbox when it fully extends around frame 15. good poke in the air.

j.2H - Active on frame 9. Stomp hits 6 times. Can special cancel the first few hits, but there isn't often a good opportunity to do this. Will almost never get all 6 hits due to how it bounces Jackal.

Dashing L - 4 hit dash attack, the first hit can be good to remove mines. First two hits are cancelable. Canceling this into 214 can create a crossup situation (won't combo). Can be used to get in and close distance quickly.

Dashing H - Active on frame 11. Up to two hits on hit, but 4 hits on block. Only the first hit is cancelable. Travels forward regardless of which direction was held when pressing boost. Can be charge canceled and used to get in fast, but it's generally better to use dash L.

Throws

Normal throw range - 46

L throw - Mash throw that does a lot of damage. The L throw is recommended over the H throw as 5L is a much better normal to get if the throw doesn't come out. Does not OTG. Jackals dash is very short, so it is easy to dash up and throw without having to jump or boost cancel your dash.

H throw - standard toss throw. Use this one to OTG.

Arm Ripper - Standard arm ripper, range is 40.

Weapon

Assault Satellite (bit).

5W - Active on frame 11. Consumes 80% of the Weapon Gauge on use. Fire's the bit horizontally at head height. Very fast recovery, even faster if you charge cancel it after the bit fires the laser. You can combo into 5L or 2L after the bit hits up close and H or 2H at mid-range. Fires upward at a 45 degree angle if you hold 6. When charge canceling the bits you have time to see if you are going to immediately be in danger or not, when you are going to be safe for a second, hold your charge instead of just releasing it to safely build meter. It can be very difficult to stop Jackal from farming meter this way.

2W - Active on frame 11. Consumes 80% of the Weapon Gauge. Basically the same as 5W but the laser is lower. It hits low enough that it can be used as an OTG after knockdowns.

j.W - Active on frame 11. Consumes 80% of the Weapon Gauge. Fires a bit horizontally in midair. Will fire upwards at a 45 degree angle if you hold any upward direction while inputting W. Will fire at a downward at a 45 degree angle if you hold an down direction. Can be used multiple times in the air if the Weapon Gauge recovers in time.

Specials

236 L or H - Heat Grapple. Active on frame 14. The L version hits horizontally while the H version attacks upward at a 45 degree angle. No hitbox close to Jackal. There is 1 frame of capture, and then becomes a strike move. If you combo into this it won't capture and do its full damage. Not a great move, don't use this too much.

214 L or H - Dizzy Boomerang. Active on frame 9 on the ground and frame 8 in the air. The H version is plus enough on hit that you can link a 5L or 2L. You can combo into the j.214H from j.L. Interestingly, j.214A (H recommended) can work as an OTG on larger characters. example

2 (Charge) 8L or H - Jackal Stamp. Tracking overhead that stomps on the opponent. Active on frame 16, but it usually hits later than that. H does more damage and more hits than L. Can be used as an OTG for 2 extra hits. Very punishable on block.

Mash L or H repeatedly - Heat Wave. L version is active on frame 21, H version is active on frame 24. L does 3 hits, H has 4 hits. Slow startup makes it difficult and impractical to combo into this move, and it is horrible punishable on block. You pretty much never want to get this move, be careful when pressuring with 5L or mashing throw not to go too fast and get this. The command is executed by pressing and releasing the button 5 times. The first input can be done by releasing the button, but the fifth input must be done by pressing AND releasing the button.

632W - Laser Screen (low). Active on frame 31. Consumes 100% of the Weapon Gauge. The laser starts at head height, creates a solid beam across the whole screen, and then moves down. Once the move is out you can move around while being protected by the laser. Does chip damage. Can be annoying as a meaty.

236W - Laser Screen (high). Active on frame 38. Consumes 100% of the Weapon Gauge. This move is similar to the low version but hits slightly above your head. Probably not the best way to use your Weapon Gauge.

Super

LH - Giga Crush. Active on frame 8. Invincible until the first active frame, but immediately stops. Very punishable if blocked, so be careful when you use it.

236236L or H - Assault Bits. Active 3 frames after the super flash making it easily comboable, for example off of 2L late cancel or a stray Weapon hit. Very fast with long range (about 80% of a screen), will sometimes whiff when standing too close to the opponent. Does not knockdown on hit, so be ready to act if you are close to the opponent when it is going off. Does a good amount of damage. Jackal also builds a ton of meter by playing neutral with charge canceled Weapon attacks, so he will often have the chance to use this.

Combos

Basic BnB combos, courtesy of Totu_Q.

L>L>214L the timing on the cancel is a little strict, not necessarily better than just doing the full chain into H, but something to be aware of.

2L>236236A You actually have enough time to hitconfirm this since you can late cancel 2L. The super won't connect if you are too close. This is a must learn combo for Jackal players.

623W > dash L (2 hit) > 214L A way to follow-up from stray Laser Screen hits.

623W > (2L) > 236236A Another option from Laser Screen.

1BL (1 hit) > 236236A Backwards boost from up close into super. This can be a strong option to use as a guard cancel.

Extra Resources

Japanese Jackal Wiki Much of the information on this page was taken from this wiki, written by Savaki.