Samurai Shodown/Yoshitora Tokugawa

Yoshitora Tokugawa 徳川 慶寅, Tokugawa Yoshitora

Damage Taken: 100% Rage Factor: 0.22 Rage Duration: 11 seconds Jump: 43 frames (Fast) Forward Walk Speed: 0.3 (Average) Back Walk Speed: 0.25 (Above Average) Dash Speed: 1.25 (Average) Back Dash: 27 frames Weapon Pickup / Drop: 40 / 69 frames

Introduction

The truest definition of a “Jack of all trades, master of none” -type character, Yoshitora comes loaded with specials for just about every situation and must make use of all the tools in his kit to be played to his full potential.

While every move in Yoshi’s arsenal has some use, there are a few stand-out examples: Yuugao (623D) is finally a real command grab, which nicely complements Yoshitora’s close range game. j.C is a powerful jump-in with an awkward hitbox making it very difficult to anti-air for some characters. Sadly, it can no longer cross up as well. Lastly, if you manage to use all your specials (or your SSM), you get access to Yoshitora’s seventh and final sword - Yuuchouka (632146AB) for the rest of the round you unlocked it in. A towering, full-screen projectile that is basically next to impossible to win against.

Yoshitora can be played in a variety of ways. He doesn’t really have any glaring weaknesses except the fact he loses a huge part of his moveset when getting disarmed. His multi-hit attacks are also quite easy to JD, so you need to be careful when on the offensive.

Playstyle

Yoshitora Tokugawa is a hyper-aggressive can opener who bullies opponents with huge damage, high-risk-high-reward mix-ups, powerful jump normals and an amazing between-round resource projectile.

Strengths

Weaknesses

Huge damage: Yoshitora is among the highest-damaging characters in the game. A simple deep jump combo from his j.C can do upwards of 45% with no rage and 70% with a WFT ender. His various mix-up options such as Tree Peonies and max rage Pink Blossoms also net him very high damage. Fantastic pressure: Yoshi's iconic j.C - which becomes active extremely quickly and can hit deep against standing opponents from max height- makes any defensive poking a risky proposition. After he's scared opponents into blocking, Yoshi becomes a veritable can opener that can mix up opponents with a variety of highly damaging mid-screen and close range 50/50 options. He also has great running normals for putting on the pressure, converting damage from cancels and catching escapes. Additionally, his air-to-airs are great for stuffing air pokes and catching opponents above him and give him plenty of air reset opportunities that lead to mix-ups and blocking pressure. Seven swords: Yoshitora's Fluttering Butterfly Blossom is an incredibly powerful and dangerous full-screen fireball special that is unlocked by landing each of his special moves in sequence. The "sword credits" carry over between rounds and there is no UI indicator for the progress, meaning opponents needs to count the landed swords or face a nasty surprise later in the game. Good when disarmed: Unarmed 66A has a great hitbox and can be used in tandem with Yoshi's strong unarmed 50/50 to get him out of dangerous situations.

Risky: Yoshi's gap closing specials such as Pink Blossoms and Camelias and his strongest overhead Tree Peonies are all very unsafe if you guess wrong, meaning Yoshi can lose a lot of life very quickly if he's impatient. Bad long-ranged normals: Yoshi's mid-to-far-ranged pokes are all quite lacking in comparison to other characters, and he generally cannot play any neutral game of value from afar. Relies on j.C: j.C is the strongest element of Yoshi's neutral and he struggles greatly against characters that can ground AA it or against players that can just defend and stance break it on reaction. 7th Sword Unlock Has Downsides: While his 7th sword is very strong, it can be bypassed and punished from far away with range explosion into issen.

Gameplan

Yoshitora is a Swiss army knife of a character with just about everything you could ask for -- strong combos and punishment, good defensive tools and no shortage of ways to call your opponent out on their obvious tendencies. The only issue is that all of his tools tend to serve far more specific purposes than those of most other characters, which demands that players have a good understanding of what each of his moves are, and what they are used for. Compounding that, none of said tools are very safe, so he relies quite heavily on making much harder reads than most other characters have to.
All that being said, if you make the right read and know which tool is best for the occasion, you can scare people into submission, giving you a chance to run his surprisingly scary mixup game.

Unless, of course, you manage to unlock Yuuchouka. In which case, show 'em the true power of the Shogun.

Neutral

Yoshitora unfortunately lacks the safe long-range poking he once had due to B Nadeshiko (236S) now being significantly less safe on block, so he needs to think more carefully about how to find his way into the mid-range where he can more easily threaten people with his pokes and mixups. He mostly wants to do this by using his fairly strong movement tools -- in particular, his fast jump arc and big, annoying jC can give plenty of characters a hard time stopping him from approaching. Another way in outside of jC would be Tsubaki (421S). The M/H versions are risky callouts, but good for if your opponent likes to throw out slower buttons in neutral. The light version is pretty good in most circumstances, with a frame 1 guard point that lasts most of the way through the move, it's an almost free way in in neutral, and you can land, then grab or command grab on someone trying to guard the attack.

Once you find yourself closer to your opponent, you can start to run your suspiciously Ukyo-esque mixups. Kara Botan (5BC~j236S) gives you access to a strong, hard to see overhead, which is only bolstered by strong lows of varying levels of safety (2D, 2C, A Nadeshiko) and a very strong grab game thanks to powerful grab combos, and a very threatening command grab in Yuugao (623D).

If he finds himself on the defensive, he has no shortage of tools to keep people off him -- he can use 2B, Shiraryuri (623S), or even a TK Botan (2369S) to shut down aerial approaches, and Heavy Shiraryuri (623C) is fully invincible. C Nadeshiko is also a possibility, but it's a bit riskier, as you need to call them out right as they start jumping. To get out of pressure, you have the universal options, plus your invincible DP, and Tsubaki, with the light version being safest, while the medium and heavy versions come with a risky attack attached.

Finding opportunities to deflect is especially good for Yoshitora, as he arguably has one of the best deflect games out of the entire cast. While most characters are able to get some kind of strong punish, or even a Super Special Move from a deflect, Yoshitora benefits heavily from this as landing his SSM grants him access to Yuuchouka for the rest of the round, allowing him to very easily close it out. On top of that, Yuuchouka itself is also guaranteed from a deflect, and landing it in full does just as much (if not more) damage than a SSM.

Okizeme

Yoshitora's okizeme can be whatever you want it to be. While a knockdown is an excellent opportunity for him to apply his high/low/throw mixups, he also has the tools to play a more reactive game based around calling out the opponent's tendencies after waking up.
If you want to take advantage of his mixup game in the corner, you can go far by copying Ukyo's playbook -- harass the opponent with 2D to condition them into blocking low, mix up with kara Botan for your overhead and either run up normal throw or command throw depending on what you want. Bear in mind, however, that as Ukyo-esque as your mixup may be, it is not Ukyo's mixup. Kara Botan, while an excellent hard-to-see overhead, is slightly slower than Tsubame Gaeshi, so you will need to be ready to hard call out the opponent's attempts to jump out of your mixup, which you are certainly not lacking in options for. Yoshitora has a powerful unreactable mixup on wakeup between kara Botan (Cancel BC into 236S), and 2C, both of which do respectable damage, and knock down, but both of them give up your turn on block, with Botan being downright punishable by a good chunk of the cast. This is the most reliable way to get Botan's flower, though. With a bit of practice, you can space yourself so the mixup will hit a forward roll, or standard rise. Additionally, 66A is quick, safe, and can cross up on a roll, though this might take some practice to get the spacing. In general, Yoshitora's okizeme works best if you know where your opponent is going to wake up, so conditioning them to stop rolling is a good thing.

Unlocking Yuuchouka

As powerful as Yoshitora's seventh sword may be, it is not without its limitations. Outside of it needing to be unlocked by landing all of your other special moves or your SSM, if you unlock it, it will only be available for the round you unlock it in -- you'll be back to zero as soon as the round is over. However, there are a few subtleties to Yuuchouka's unlock requirements that gives his kit a whole extra layer of strategic depth.

Unlocking with SSM

The easiest and quickest way to unlock Yuuchouka. The most consistent ways you'll be getting SSM to land is more or less the ways everyone has -- deflect or spot dodging a throw. Because SSM does so much damage, and Yuuchouka does even more, the main strategy here is to use Yuuchouka to close out the round. Because you'll only have Yuuchouka for the round you land SSM in (on top of only getting one SSM per match), it's a good idea to save this strategy for the second or third round where it will win you the match.

Unlocking with special moves

Here's where things get interesting. While Yuuchouka is only available for the round it's unlocked in, Yoshitora's flowers (i.e. the special moves he's already landed) carry over between rounds. For example, if you land four of Yoshitora's special moves in the first round, you will only need to land the remaining two in the second round to unlock Yuuchouka. This gives you room to think about saving certain moves for the second round to score yourself an early unlock and get the opponent scared of your big new toy. On top of that, post-round special move hits count towards the unlock. While very niche, this is a very nice option to have for landing your more difficult to use special moves. Think getting the kill with n.5B and then buffering a cancel into Tsubaki.

Normal Moves

Far Slashes

5A

5A	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 30 Mid 7 2 20 28 -9 -5 5 No Yes Yes No A light poke with nice range. Will hit crouching opponents, but also has a high enough hitbox that it can occasionally anti-air.
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5B

5B

Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 100(30/30/40) Mid 13 1 (3) 1 (5) 2 21 45 -2 -12 10 Yes Yes Yes No Yoshitora swings three times with his swords. Kind of hard to use as a poke due to its somewhat low speed and range, but a valuable tool nonetheless. Special cancel on the third hit. Since version 2.10, it now has extended hitbox horizontally on the second hit.

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5C

5C

Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 260(50/50/50/50/60) Mid 26 27 43 96 -6 -24 25 (5*5) No No Disarm No Five hit sword wave. Good range, but extremely slow. Only usable as a punish or with a godlike read, but be wary of doing so against Hanzo or Galford, as they can teleport out of it and punish you for free. This move is also very susceptible to Rage Explosion punishes, so be mindful of that, too. This move is also punishable on hit if the first hit catches someone jumping, because the rest of the move will play out, but they'll air reset and the rest will whiff. However, it's also one of the longer ranged 5C's, and due to how the Guard Crush system works, you can get massive damage off of it.

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2A

2A	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 30 Low 9 6 10 24 -3 -5 5 No Yes No No Basically a crouching version of 5A. This hits low, so it's useful for harassing people. No longer deflectable as it got fixed.
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2B

2B

Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 90(40/50) Mid 6 1 (4) 2 22 34 -8, -3 -12 10 Yes Yes Yes No Yoshitora swings at the opponent's shins before swinging upwards. The first hit, despite not hitting low, is special cancelable and has pretty okay range. The second hit is actually really good for anti-air. Good punish tool due to being 6 frames with good range, but hit confirming is impossible due to the very short gap between the first and second hits. To cancel into a special and have it work, you need to buffer the special immediately after inputting 2B.

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2C

2C	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 150(60/90) Low, Low 9, 19 4 (6) 4 22 44 KND -10 25 (14,11) No No No No A two-hit sweep. Comes out fairly quickly, but unfortunately lacks the cancel window it had in VSp. Still, a useful low for when you need a knockdown.
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Near Slashes

n.5A

n.5A	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 30 Mid 5 4 8 17 +1 -2 5 Yes No No No Quick elbow jab. Very small disadvantage on block makes this move useful for tick throws.
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n.5B

n.5B	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 80(60/20) Mid 8 2 (7) 6 15 37 ±0 -12 10 Yes Yes Yes No Two quick slashes. Yoshitora's main close range punish button. The second hit can hit behind you. Special cancel on the second hit.
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n.5C

n.5C

Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 200(30/30/30/110) Mid 15 1 (4) 1 (4) 1 (17) 4 43 89 +1 -28 25 Yes Yes Yes No Yoshitora swings three times before following up with one more big downward swing. While it's pretty slow on startup, this is your big boy punish button. On most characters you can combo this after a back throw, as well as a forward throw in the corner. Special cancel on the third hit.

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n.2A

n.2A	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 30 Mid 6 3 8 16 +2 -1 5 Yes No No No Much the same as n.5A, but crouching. Still good for tick throws, but a special cancel window also makes it useful for quick punishes at close range. Thankfully lacks the deadzone with 2A that it used to have, so it's much safer to mash.
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Kicks

5D

5D

Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 50 Mid 8 6 10 23 -3 -6 5 Yes - No Yes A quick side kick with decent range given the button it's on. Slight disadvantage on block makes this useful for poking at closer ranges, and while the special cancel doesn't grant any combos, it does give you an opportunity to see how your opponent reacts and respond accordingly.

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6D

6D	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 30 Low 13 6 18 36 KND -14 5 Yes - No Yes Sliding low kick that knocks down on hit. Pretty unsafe on block, but has a special cancel window that may make your opponent think twice about trying to punish, especially if you're willing to represent Tsubaki or even a deflect.
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2D

2D	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 20 Low 6 4 8 17 +1 -2 5 No - No Yes Quick kick at the opponent's toes. Small disadvantage on block makes this useful for harassing people and conditioning them to block at close range.
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3D

3D

Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 70 Low 11 7 25 42 KND -15 5 No - No Yes La-Z Boi Kick. While it lacks the horizontal range it had in VSp, it's still a great button to throw out thanks to its generous active window. Combined with its higher angle and its ability to low profile some hitboxes, this is actually pretty good to use as anti-air every once in a while, especially since it now knocks down on air hit.

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Dash Normals

66A

66A	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 30 Mid 6 6 12 23 -5 -8 5 Yes No No No Dashing n.5A. Slightly more disadvantageous on block, but has a special cancel -- cancelling to 623A will combo.
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66B

66B	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 80(60/20) Mid 7 2 (6) 7 19 40 -5 -35 10 Yes Yes Yes No Similar to n.5B, but with the key difference that it only cancels on the first hit. Still very important for run-in punishes. Though you can recoil cancel on block, this button has heavy recoil, so don't be too hasty.
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66C

66C	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 140 Mid 10 4 39 52 KND -20 20 No No Yes No Big upward sword swing. Decently fast and has good range, so useful for a run-in punish if you're not confident you can get something better. Hits high enough that you can smack people out of the air, too. Super unsafe on block, though.
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66D

66D	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 70 Low 14 5 23 41 KND (+97) -12 5 No No No Yes Much like 6D, but without the special cancel and much worse on block. You can still catch people off-guard with this in the neutral, but be careful about committing to it.
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Air Normals

j.A

j.A	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 30 High 5 10 - - - - 5 - - - No Stumpy upward angled elbow. Really only made to hit people above him, but Yoshitora doesn't really want to be meeting people in the air anyway.
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j.B

j.B	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 100(50/50) High 9 2 (5) 4 - - - - 10 (5,5) - - - No Two-hit sword swing. The first hit really isn't anything special, but the second hit is notable in that it's very easy to cross up with it. Generally Yoshitora's most rewarding cross-up button.
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j.C

j.C

Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 180(40/40/40/60) High 18 14 - - - - 4.5*4,6.5 - - - No The Hundred Dollar Jump-In. Yoshitora swings downwards in a wide arc four times, throwing out hitboxes that most characters will have a hard time challenging. This button can also cross up, but doesn't lead to big reward as consistently as jB. Crossing up is more difficult than ever, but it's still just as hard to punish. Due to the Stance Break changes in 2.1, it's possible to SB it if it's low enough, but if you throw it out early enough, the SB will whiff, and you'll punish with the other hits.

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j.D

j.D	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 30 High 6 9 - - - - 5 - - - Yes Yoshitora sticks out his foot. Decent range and angle for jumping in, and low blockstun can make this useful for tick throwing.
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Unarmed Normals

u.5S

u.5S	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 50 Mid 5 4 18 26 -1 -6 5 - - - Only n.5A but 20pts more damage and worse on block. Please try to get your swords back.
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u.2S

u.2S	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 50 Mid 6 3 18 26 ±0 -5 5 - - - Only n.2A but 20pts more damage and worse on block. Please try to get your swords back.
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ju.S

ju.S	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 50 Mid 5 10 - - - - 5 - - - Only Exactly the same as j.A but with slightly more damage.
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u.66S

u.66S	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 50 Mid 5 7 19 30 KD -10 5 - - - Only 66A but it does 20pts more damage and is worse on block. But it also knocks down on hit. Use it to try and get your swords back.
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Universal Mechanics

Guard Break

Guard Break (Throw) 4/5/6C+D Forward Throw Back Throw	Version Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed Neutral / Forward 0 Throw 3 1 71 74 +20 N/A - No No No Yes Universal throw. Can be followed up with an attack. Back 0 Throw 5 1 69 74 +25 N/A - No No No Yes Universal throw. Can be followed up with an attack.
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Surprise Attack

Surprise Attack (Overhead) 5B+C Armed Armed Unarmed Unarmed	Version Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed Armed 70 High 20 5 19 43 +2 -11 10 - - - No Universal overhead. Mostly used to kara cancel into Botan. Unarmed 60 High 21 7 16 43 +3 -10 10 - - - Only Universal overhead. Please try to get your swords back.
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Dodge

Dodge 5A+B	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed - - 1 16 22 38 - - - - - - Yes Universal dodge.

Stance Break

Stance Break A+B during Just Defense	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 0 Mid 5 10 38 52 KD -24 - No - - Yes Universal Stance Break.
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Counter / Blade Catch

Counter / Blade Catch 236A+B Counter Counter Blade Catch Blade Catch

Version Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed Armed 0 N/A 2 12 33 46 +35~+59 - - - - - No Universal counter. Allows you to follow up with a guaranteed attack of your own. The follow up depends on the strength of the attack you counter. If you counter a heavy slash, your opponent will be disarmed. Disarmed 0 N/A 2 11 10 22 KD - - - - - Only Universal counter. While disarmed, your counter will disarm and knock away your opponent regardless of slash level used. While they're down, please try to get your swords back.

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Rage Explosion

Rage Explosion 5A+B+C	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 0 Unblockable 21 3 35 58 0 - - - - - No Unblockable pushback attack.
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Lightning Blade

Lightning Blade (Issen) 5A+B+C during Rage Explosion	Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 300~709 Mid 9 8 65 81 KD -44 - No No No No Has projectile invulnerability and anti-airs. Damage scales up beased on reamaining health. Full invuln 1~16F
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Special Moves

Pink Blossoms

Pink Blossoms 236S 撫子 (Nadeshiko) 撫子 (Nadeshiko)

Version Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed A 90 Low 17 4 32 52 KD(+90) -14~-12 15 No No No No Low advancing sword slash. Mostly used in combos from slightly further ranges, but can be useful as a low to complement kara Botan if you're feeling lucky. B 100 Mid 21 5 24 49 KD -13 25 No No No No Mid hitting version. Slower on start-up than A or C. Quite unsafe on block, so far less useful for approaching than in VSp. Mostly only useful as a whiff punisher if your opponent is being obvious. C 110 Mid 11 4 29 43 KD N/A - No No No No This will not hit opponents while standing, but it does work extremely well as anti-air, covering the area directly above Yoshitora's head as well as to the front. Knocks down on air hit, too. After version update it doesn't hit Earthquake standing any more. Only the first active frame is disjointed. Rage 264 ((70+70+80)x1.2) Low,High 17,27,37 2 (8) 2 (8) 2 27 65 KD(+112) -33,-13 5,15,12 No No No No The Rage version combines all three verions and does a grip of damage. Very worth keeping Rage for. In version 1.70 its command changes to 236A at rage instead of 236C.

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White Lilies

White Lilies 623S 白百合 (Shirayuri) 623A 623B 623C

Version Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed A 120 Mid 12 9 38 58 KND(+89) -31 10 - - - No Fastest version of Yoshitora's DP. It only has above knee invulnerability for the first 10 frames and is completely vulnerable on frame 11 right before it becomes active. It can be used to duck under and avoid high jump-ins that have a low amount of active frames, but it will not work against deep jump-ins unless performed early enough to stuff them out. B 140 Mid 14 11 37 61 KND(+88) -32 12 - - - No Similar to the A version, but slightly slower and more damaging, with air invincibility on start up. Can be used similarly to 623A for anti-air. C 160 Mid 17 11 38 65 KND(+88) -33 15 - - - No Slowest and most damaging version of the move. Harder to use as anti-air because of its startup, but startup has full invincibility 1~16F, which can make it useful as both a reversal and a gutsy recoil cancel.

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Tree Peonies

Tree Peonies j.236S 牡丹 (Botan) 牡丹 (Botan)

Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 110 High 12 4 - - KND(+72) -40 22 - - - No Yoshitora swings in a downward arc with one of his swords. The fairly wide hitbox can make this move useful as air-to-air occasionally, but this is mostly used as a quick overhead by kara cancelling from 5BC (5BC~236S). All versions have the same properties. The quick speed from 5BC and the knockdown make this an exceptionally strong mixup tool. Yoshitora bounces away on block, which can make the punish awkward for some characters. You can also tiger knee (2369S) it as an anti-air if you really want it's flower, or just feel like being stylish.

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Camellias

Camellias 421S 椿 (Tsubaki) 椿 (Tsubaki)

Version Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed A - - 3 22 14 38 - - - - - - No Yoshitora hops forward about a half screen's distance with his back towards his opponent. During the hop, Yoshitora has full guard point 3~24F. The hop is also considered airborne, meaning he cannot be thrown and will dodge most low attacks. Fairly good tool in neutral, as you'll be safe in a button vs Tsubaki situation. Generally difficult to punish outside of moves with massive amounts of active frames (think Kyoshiro's fire breath), and safer than the B/C versions, but also can't get you the flower. Good trick is to do this, then land into grab or command grab. Airborne and Guardpoint 3~24F B/C 130 Mid 31 10 37 77 KND -25 18 - - - No Yoshitora starts with the guard point hop before taking a step forward and slashing with one of his swords. This is primarily used as a hard callout for obvious buttons in the neutral, although it can also serve as a recoil cancel every now and then if you expect your opponent to challenge with a stronger button. Bear in mind that opponents will most likely be able to recover in time to block the slash if they performed a move that doesn't recoil on block, which will generally lead to you getting punished really hard. Use with caution. Airborne and Guardpoint 3~24F

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Morning Glory

Morning Glory 214S 朝顔 (Asagao) 朝顔 (Asagao)

Version Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed A 120 Mid 20 80 31 130 KND(+112) -18 4*7 - - - No Yoshitora takes a huge step forward, swinging his sword twice before stabbing several times, finishing with a final swing. This attack will "catch" opponents on hit, locking them into the full animation, meaning it cannot be Rage Exploded on hit. This version starts up the fastest, but does the least damage. While it is still unsafe, this is the only version of the move that will connect with all hits on block, meaning you can potentially use it to chip people out, although they can interrupt it if they have an invincible move. Not really worth much for that, though, since this move is really only used in punishes, although the huge range on the forward step may give this some utility as a long range whiff punisher. Do be aware that, due to the sheer amount of hits this move does, it will give your opponent a lot of meter; think about whether or not you want to end a combo with this if your opponent is not already in Rage. B 140 Mid 23 108 31 161 KND(+112) -43 4*11 - - - No Much the same as the A version, but slightly slower on startup and slightly more damage. C 180 Mid 23 136 31 189 KND(+112) -71 4*15 - - - No The big time waster. While sporting the slowest startup, this is Yoshitora's best damage for big punishes. Because it distributes its damage over 28 hits (and roughly five whole seconds), this move can make the clock work for you or against you depending on the life standings. If you can't afford to chew up that much time for your punish, use 623C instead, as it's much faster and only deals 20 points less damage.

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Moonflower

Moonflower 623D 夕顔 (Yuugao) 夕顔 (Yuugao)

Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 150 (40,40,70) - 5 1 49 54 KND(+74) - - - - - No GREAT GOOGLY MOOGLY IT'S A COMMAND GRAB Yoshitora's already quite fearsome mixup is bolstered by this. While it does sideswap, it's a far safer whiff and gives you one extra flower towards Yuuchouka. Not necessarily something you'll be relying on, but it can definitely catch people off guard and help to condition more aggressive responses for you to take advantage of.

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Fluttering Butterfly Blossom

Fluttering Butterfly Blossom 632146AB 遊蝶華 (Yuuchouka) 遊蝶華 (Yuuchouka)

Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 797 Mid 28 10 74 111 KND -4 4*9 - - - No The Big Boy Sword. Unlocked by landing all of Yoshitora's special moves or his Super Special Move, this is an incredibly powerful move, though by no means something he has to rely on. Swinging his final sword (reaching about a half screen's length), he unleashes a massive projectile that travels full screen, reaches up to the top of the screen, and deals incredible damage every step of the way (for reference, compare this move's 797 damage with his SSM's 670). If you have this, you can throw it out with some level of impunity depending on the matchup, but given that it is still a huge commitment, it's better to not be stupid with it. This move is guaranteed off of any deflect, which makes Yoshitora's deflect game absolutely terrifying, especially when you consider that his SSM is also guaranteed off of deflect. Bear in mind that if you throw this from a distance, your opponent can Rage Explode and immediately Issen for a guaranteed punish. Hanzo and Galford are also able to teleport out for a guaranteed punish if they are hit by the initial sword swing. Yashamaru can also high profile it with double jump. The projectile component of this move becomes active on frame 43

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Supers

Weapon Flipping Technique

Hollyhocks 236B+C 葵 (Aoi) 葵 (Aoi)

Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 408 Low 1+7 3 45 55 KND -33 - - - - No Yoshitora sweeps the opponent off their feet, chasing them into the air with several rising sword slashes before punching them back down to earth, all with a seal of the Shogunate to prove that your defeat was decreed by the heavens themselves. This WFT is, in fact, a low, although you'd likely get more mileage out of comboing into it instead of using it as a mixup. It can pretty easily combo from most of Yoshitora's main punish tools, but its short range means you won't be scoring tons of whiff punishes with the move by itself.

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Super Special Move

Profusion of Flowers 641236C+D 百花繚乱 (Hyakka Ryouran) 百花繚乱 (Hyakka Ryouran)

Damage Guard Startup Active Recovery Total Hit Adv Block Adv Guard Dmg Cancel Recoil Deflectable Unarmed 670 Mid 10+20 20 55 105 KND -42 - - - - No Yoshitora's SSM certainly lives up to his name. He begins with a running tackle, and if he hits the opponent, he'll proceed to bombard them with every sword he has in a very stylish combo before he takes a final swing with his seventh sword, all while proclaiming to the opponent how awesome he is. This SSM is threatening beyond just the impressive damage afforded to all SSMs -- landing Yoshitora's SSM unlocks Yuuchouka, giving him an opportunity to close out a round already close to over. The fact that the tackle can travel fullscreen before hitting the opponent gives it some utility as a punish for moves that put the opponent far away on block, like Ukyo's Tsubame Gaeshi or Yashamaru's Wintry Gust. Full invuln 1~41F

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Combos

Midscreen

• 66B(1) / 2B(1) / n.5B(2)...
  Dash in / Fastest close range / Most damage.
  • xx 623C
    Most damage.
  • xx WFT
    WFT combo.
  • xx 236A
    If you need Nadeshiko, or more damage when you have rage and don't wanna get a WFT.
  • xx 214A
    If you need Asagao.

• 5B(3) xx 236A / WFT
  Decent range, WFT will whiff if it's not at the closest range.

• (5A / 2A / 66A) xx 623A / WFT
  Hard to confirm but faster than mediums so.

• 5CD...
  • 5B xx 236A
    Your primary combo from a far 5B. Does more damage than DP combo with rage.
  • 66B...
    Dash in for more combos.
    • xx 623C
      Most damage.
    • xx WFT
      WFT combo.
    • xx 236A
      If you need Nadeshiko, or more damage when you have rage and don't wanna get a WFT.
    • xx 214A
      If you need Asagao.

• 4CD...
  • n.5C(3)...
    • xx 214C / 623C
      214C does only a bit more damage than DP and give your opponent a ton of rage, and it's a total time scam as well.
    • xx WFT
      WFT combo.
    • xx 236B / 236A
      If you need Nadeshiko, the A version does more damage with rage if you don't wanna get a WFT.

• cross-up j.B...
  • 2C
    Ridiculous move that's safe on block, can't be delflected, does 25% guard damage, and good for set up for stuff after. (USE IT IF YOU ARE NOT CONFIDENT ON YOUR JUMP IN BEING DEEP)
  • 5B xx 236A
    If you are far for range.
  • 66B(1) / 2B(1) / n.5B(2)...
    Most reliable / Fastest / Most damage.
    • xx 623C
      Most damage.
    • xx WFT
      WFT combo.
    • xx 236A
      If you need Nadeshiko, or more damage when you have rage and don't wanna get a WFT.
    • xx 214A
      If you need Asagao.
  • n.5C(3)...
    His close heavy is faster now so it works.
    • xx 214C / 623C
      214C does only a bit more damage than DP and give your opponent a ton of rage, and it's a total time scam as well.
    • xx WFT
      WFT combo.
    • xx 236B / 236A
      If you need Nadeshiko, the A version does more damage with rage if you don't wanna get a WFT.

• deep j.C...
  Same as cross-up j.B.

Corner

• 5CD...
  • n.5C(3)...
    • xx 214C / 623C
      214C does only a bit more damage than DP and give your opponent a ton of rage, and it's a total time scam as well.
    • xx WFT
      WFT combo.
    • xx 236B / 236A
      If you need Nadeshiko, the A version does more damage with rage if you don't wanna get a WFT.
  • n.5B(2)...
    • xx 623C
      Most damage.
    • xx WFT
      WFT combo.
    • xx 236A
      If you need Nadeshiko, or more damage when you have rage and don't wanna get a WFT.
    • xx 214A
      If you need Asagao.

UOH Meaty

• UOH hit meaty...
  Usually setup on wakeup, can be spaced in neutral but nearly impossible.
  • xx 5A xx 623A / WFT
    Hard to confirm.
  • xx 2B(1)...
    1 frame link.
    • xx 623C
      Most damage.
    • xx WFT
      WFT combo.
    • xx 236A
      If you need Nadeshiko, or more damage when you have rage and don't wanna get a WFT.
    • xx 214A
      If you need Asagao.

Guard Crush

• 5C / n.5C...
  Cancel second hit after GC...
  • 421A...
    The second hit wouldn't come out...
    • SSM
      SSM follow up. (Be careful with opponent bursting to avoid it)
    • Don't cancel if you don't want Issen or SSM, it's far more deadly to combo, see below.

• 5C...
  Combo from last hit (5th)...
  • 421C
    A good way to get Tsubaki.
  • 632146AB
    It would KILL for sure!
  • Lighting Blade
    Universal Issen combo, combo from last hit.
  • Anything works as long as it's in range.

• n.5C...
  Combo from last hit (4th)...
  • 421C
    A good way to get Tsubaki.
  • 632146AB
    It would KILL for sure!
  • Lighting Blade
    Universal Issen combo, combo from last hit.
  • Anything works as long as it's in range.

Videos

• Yoshitora Guide - Move Overview and Combo Guide (by cupui)
• Yoshitora tutorial and combos (ver 1.11) by LegendaryWolf Shirou
• Gorro vs Hellaplus at Kit 2021

Colors

External Links

• Twitter hashtag: #SS_YO