Strategy

Long Range

Unless you’re at long range with a full V-Gauge, you won’t actually have an immediate threat available as Vega. Your main threat is indirect, tied to Vega’s mobility options and his ability to immediately get into mid range and close range, where he is a powerhouse. Getting around the stage is made rather easy for Vega thanks to having the fastest walk speed, a Wall Jump, and a long-distance forward dash. What you should do at long range depends on a variety of factors ranging from character matchup to life lead to stage positioning.

If you’re ahead on stamina, you can easily play a keep-away game with Vega, exploiting his Wall Jump and Flying Barcelona Wall Jump to fluster the opponent while keeping them guessing on what he’ll do next. If your foe is taking an aggressive approach, you can make Vega fly across the screen by using , then hold to fly across to the other side, crossing them up. The closer Vega is to a corner, the better this strategy becomes since there’s less travel time to the wall, and consequently, less time for your adversary to think about how to deal with Vega’s flight across the sky. Try not to be too predictable with this tactic, especially since Vega telegraphs his Wall Jump with an audible howl as he flies to the wall.

You can opt to attack your opponent with Flying Barcelona Attack on Vega’s way down if you think your enemy isn’t expecting it. You have plenty of options during Vega’s flight: you can either hold and control his descent to cross up the opponent and then hit as he’s about to land on them for a cross-up attack, or you can fake it by holding briefly before pulling to stay in front, hitting before landing. These shenanigans can be tough to deal with, especially against players who aren’t used to them. However, experienced players will usually have the correct answer to your attack, either by meeting Vega in the air with an anti-air (such as Ryu’s jumping ), or simply using a vertical anti-air strike (like Cammy’s ). Your hurtbox when extending Flying Barcelona Attack extends vertically a large amount, making it easy for opponents to beat cleanly, considering that your Flying Barcelona Attack hitbox is much smaller than your hurtbox.

With a full V-Gauge, the match dynamic changes drastically. You can punish any high-recovery attack, including projectiles, from full screen. Even if you react too slowly and have your Bloody Kiss blocked, you’re safe at -2 thanks to the blockstun of the follow-up flying combination attack Vega performs after he connects with his rose. Against projectiles, you can use the jumping variant of Bloody Kiss by inputting immediately followed by , but you need to be extremely quick (easier against higher-recovery projectiles, like Ken’s). It’s much easier the closer Vega is to the enemy, so take his distance into account at all times. Unfortunately, you can’t follow up with a Bloody Rain juggle after Air Bloody Kiss, but you do deal 200 points of damage instantly.

Otherwise, with a stock of EX Gauge, you can roll through projectiles with EX Crimson Terror and its projectile-invulnerable property. Even though it’s usually too slow to counter fireballs on reaction, it’s only -2 on block, so if Vega tumbles through one and forces the opponent to block, he’s at least within a preferred range to mount an offense. Without the use of meter, Vega can handily avoid projectiles completely by using his Matador Turn. Starting from Frame 7, he’s invulnerable to projectiles, making it useful for avoiding chip damage from projectiles. Additionally, you can avoid certain high-recovery attacks if you can anticipate and react to them. For instance, if Rashid starts running at Vega, you can go for a Matador Turn to evade his Spinning Mixer and Eagle Spike.

Against other up-close combatants and grapplers, your long-range strategy will normally be just meeting the opponent in the middle of the stage without sacrificing too much ground. Vega usually outclasses most characters in the footsies game, so be aggressive if you’re at a stamina disadvantage. It’s also advised that you stay in claw mode at long range since Vega will transition into mid range most of the time, where he’ll need his claw more than he’ll need his quick close-range attacks.

Mid Range

With the aid of his weapon, playing footsies at mid range is one of Vega’s primary strengths. You’ll want to be in claw mode for the increased range on most of Vega’s attacks (with the exception of standing , where it has a slightly better range when Vega’s claw is holstered). Your most effective moves for winning the mid-range war are Buster Claw, standing , standing (both in hand and claw mode), crouching , Matador Turn/Matador Turn Attack, Mercury Shard, and MP Aurora Spin Edge. You have a huge arsenal of footsie tools, so learning which ones to use, how to use them, and when to use them is crucial to your success with Vega.

From mid range to long range, Vega has a long-range attack using Buster Claw. It’s a far-reaching stab, but it suffers from a high amount of frame disadvantage on block and a lengthy recovery period on whiff. Like a projectile, you don’t want to be predictable with it, and you never want to miss with it. Even with its drawbacks, it’s not a bad move to use since it’s a threat your opponent needs to worry about from just past half-screen. Along with the crouching slide, Vega is usually in control at this range because his foe isn’t exactly free to just walk into him. Against Ken and Ryu, Buster Claw is even more effective because of its ability to interrupt and Crush Counter the startup of their Hadoken as they lunge forward before firing their projectile.

Around max Buster Claw distance, your opponent not only has to respect walking into a mid-hitting claw attack, but they also have to worry about a low-hitting slide. The danger for your adversary of playing a footsies game with Vega is that they aren’t crouch-guarding and protecting their feet as they walk in and out of range. If you notice this habit from your challenger, don’t be afraid to check their reactions with a slide, especially from max distance. The best case scenario with a blocked max-range slide is -5, which may be difficult to punish for most characters because of the range that Vega ends up at. This scenario is rare since you need to connect it with the last active frame, so expect to be around -6 to -7 in a realistic situation. Take this into account and assess whether you can go for this risk, particularly against astute opponents who know their proper punish combos. Unlike , crouching is much less susceptible to jump-ins because of your low-profiling properties—Vega will usually just slide under forward jumps to safety.

Vega has effective tools for the entire span of mid to close range. One to focus on from beyond most characters’ crouching range is Vega’s standing . Standing MP is a backhanded swipe that sports a reach comparable to the distance of Vega’s dash. This is an incredible tool for deterring counter-pokes, as well as keeping your opponents in check from dashing or walking at Vega. It’s not special-cancelable, but with a full V-Gauge, you can whiff-punish practically any attack with a sequence of standing (followed by your Bloody Rain Critical Art if you have sufficient EX Gauge). This V-Trigger cancel is one of your strongest threats from mid range, so always keep track of your own V-Gauge. For reference, if you’ve lost about half of your stamina, you should have access to at least one Bloody Kiss. If you gain additional V-Gauge through Crush Counters (such as off of a counter-hit Buster Claw or standing anti-air), you’ll want to make sure you exploit these mid-range V-Trigger cancel combos as often as possible. Otherwise, you should consider getting Vega into close range to do damage until you have enough V-Gauge.

Transitioning into close range with Vega isn’t too difficult since he has the fastest walk speed, along with a lengthy dash. On top of the overwhelming mid-range pokes, your foe will have to respect Vega’s dash-in engagements. If you feel like you’ve given the opponent pause, you can go for a dash followed by a four-frame crouching poke, and then go into your close-range strategy. Alternatively, you can check your opponent’s standing guard with (Mercury Shard). Its reach extends slightly past Vega’s standing range and is more difficult to punish if you can connect with it from max distance. However, at -4, most characters will be able to punish you with a light-strength attack into at least a two-hit combo, so take this into account before committing to it. It complements Vega’s crouching and standing well, especially if the enemy is low on stamina and you need to deal the last 54 points of damage (Mercury Shard does 60, but with scaling health below the 50 percent stamina threshold, it will deal 54 in this case).

If you’re ever in hand mode while not having Vega’s claw permanently broken, you can re-equip his claw from a decent range using a standing attack from around crouching distance. Standing is generally safe (at -1), so as long as you can get your standing out in time, you can switch back into Vega’s more powerful footsie stance.

Jumping in isn’t usually a tactic you want to resort to when you have such an effective mid-range toolset, but if you need to make a comeback and you can make the appropriate read, forward jumping is normally your best jump-in attack. In previous SF games, Vega’s jumping was the more dominating jumping attack, but in SFV, its hurtbox has been enlarged and its hitbox reduced. Jumping has a slightly more vertical hitbox, so it will hit opponents a bit earlier on Vega’s descent than jumping will. On a clean jump-in attack, you can follow up with Combo 10 or Combo 11.

For an elusive attack just inside of mid range, you can use MP Aurora Spin Edge to both chip at the enemy’s stamina bar and create some distance. You can use it standalone if Vega is just outside of close range, or by canceling from standing . As long as you can get it to swing, it won’t be losing to many attacks since it boasts an extended hitbox way past its hurtbox as Vega performs an evasive backdash. At -6 on guard, it’s only punishable with extremely fast gap-closing attacks (like Chun-Li’s Critical Art).

Vega’s Matador Turn Attack is a seemingly useful mid-range attack because it can avoid mid-section hits and projectiles while following up with a retaliatory slash. However, it’s not one you’ll commonly use because of its severe disadvantage on block (at -13). It’s also vulnerable to crouching low hits that interrupt Vega, rewarding a counter-hit to your enemy. Crush Counter sweeps are especially devastating, so use Matador Turn Attack only if you’re sure you can get away with it. Otherwise, it’s best reserved for use in your target combos where you can ensure a hit, building V-Gauge.

With Vega’s oppressive mid-range game, you might induce jump-ins from the enemy. You’ll need to be prepared for these with your standing anti-air, your five-frame air throw, or an air-to-air jumping . Standing covers the area in front of Vega’s head and a bit above, with an impressive vertical hitbox extending above the hurtbox above his leg, so you’ll beat most jump-ins cleanly if timed correctly. On counter-hit, you can proceed into a juggle with one of the variants of Combo 18.

Close Range

Compared to Vega’s up-close capabilities in prior SF games, his close-range game in SFV is vastly superior. Although he lacks a kara-throw (which was the basis of his offense in SFIV), Vega’s up-close offense is incredibly strong, considering his strengths from mid range.

Ideally, you’ll want to have Vega’s claw unequipped (in “hand” stance) when he’s face-to-face with the opponent because of his faster punch attacks. However, you still have access to the same superb kick attacks in either stance. Vega’s crouching is unlike any other crouching in SFV; it starts at a lengthy seven frames, but it’s a low-hitting kick attack that gives you +6 advantage on hit and +2 advantage on guard. On hit, you can easily hit-check into a combo; the combo in question depends on what stance Vega’s in. If Vega has his claw equipped, use Combo 2. In hand stance, you can use a variant of Combo 3.

A point-blank crouching tactic is particularly powerful. For instance, off of a knockdown from either an EX Flying Barcelona Attack or EX Crimson Terror combo, you can dash in for a meaty crouching for even more hit and blockstun advantage (if timed correctly during your opponent’s wakeup) while checking their low guard. You can take this even further and on block (during hand stance), putting them in a 50/50 type situation with a buffered (Grand Izuna Drop). With a sequence of crouching , buffered /, you leave a four-frame window for your adversary to get out of this sticky situation. They’ll have to use an invincible reversal or a three-frame jab (throws will beat four-frame attacks), or escape by either jumping or backdashing. It’s an absurdly effective strategy, and once you’ve conditioned your enemy into looking for it, you can start using crouching to keep them grounded after your initial crouching .

If you’re getting into point-blank range from the neutral game (e.g., from a dash-in at mid range), you can take a stab at the opponent with a four-frame crouching (claw and hand mode crouching share the same startup). With Vega’s above-average dash distance and its reasonably quick speed, you can get into range for jab pressure easily if you sense any kind of hesitation in the enemy’s defense. A blocked crouching puts you at +2 advantage, more than enough to go for a forward step into throw (or command throw, in hand mode), considering how fast Vega’s walk speed is. Alternatively, you can go for a two-level counter-hit hit-confirm sequence using Combo 14 (see its description for tips for confirming this combo).

Another line of play you can take after getting Vega into point-blank range is to bully the opponent with your three-frame standing . Vega can be in either stance for this since it’s a kick attack, and it can be difficult for your foe to deal with because of your +2 advantage on guard. For instance, if Vega’s in claw mode, dash in and stagger repeated standing attacks to check your adversary’s button-pushing habits. If you can react to a counter-hit fast enough, you can link into a crouching with your claw attack for a two-hit combo. Or, if Vega is flush with his foe, you can transition back into mid range with a safe sequence of standing , crouching MP Aurora Spin Edge. For a low hit-check, you can use a four-frame crouching linked into crouching , proceeding into Combo 1 on hit.

For a high-damage counter-hit frame trap, you can use standing in claw stance in a variety of ways. Coming from a jumping heavy attack or knockdown advantage situation, you can set up a frame-trapping standing sequence, that converts into a combo on hit (see Combo 15a). If standing is blocked, you’re left in hand stance with -2 advantage, which is acceptable in most cases. Off of a normal, non-counter-hit standing , you can instead continue with Combo 8b. Keep track of Vega’s stance when using these Switching Claw sequences so you can follow up with the optimal attack. If Vega’s transitioning into claw stance, you’ll have access to a faster long-range attack with standing , so you might consider reverting back to a mid-range strategy. This is especially true if you have a full V-Gauge, since Vega’s claw attacks pose much more of a threat with your ability to cancel into Bloody Kiss from either standing or standing .

Otherwise, staying in hand stance provides you with better tempo when Vega is in the opponent’s face. You can chain crouching attacks (which leave you at +2 on guard), and you retain the threat of Grand Izuna Drop. Vega can be a complicated character to master at this range, so try to acclimate yourself with his various tools. Understanding when to transition from close to mid range through intelligent use of chained jabs, Switching Claw cancels, and your crouching setups is vital to your success with Vega.

From max standing distance, you can use your target combo of standing to put opponents in an awkward blockstun. The idea behind the second is to adjust the cancel timing (in which you have a 24-frame window once the initial standing connects) in order to throw off their punish timings. A player’s natural instinct after guarding a heavy attack is to take back offensive tempo by forcing their aggressor into blocking a light attack (since most blocked heavy attacks are left at a negative advantage). You can take advantage of this by hitting a late input after they block your standing . Although they can never leave blockstun (regardless of how late you input the second HP), you’ll mess with their defensive rhythm, buying you safety (unless they’re ready for this tactic, of course). Mix up your timings of the second , or alternately, you can opt to not follow it up at all (leaving you safe at -2). Use this technique sparingly: it’s most effective from max range since the target combo advances Vega closer, making it easier for the opponent to punish him. Additionally, you can’t cancel into the final phase of the target combo on block.

Thanks to Vega’s lower-than-average jump distance, you can take your offense into the air from around close range to mid range using forward jump cross-up . This can be difficult for your opponent to deal with since Vega’s mid-range and close-range ground game is so dominating. While they’re worried about being poked with standing and crouching , you can go for a cross-up jumping to transition Vega into throw range. This is particularly effective in hand stance since you’ll have access to Grand Izuna Drop. An example sequence at close range is to start with a three-frame standing , link into crouching , and if you’ve confirmed that your adversary is guarding, go for a forward jump cross-up into for a high-damage Grand Izuna Drop.

Defensively, Vega lacks an invincible reversal tool to get the enemy off him if he’s knocked down or in guardstun. This is exceptionally true if his back is near a corner, since his best move for relieving pressure is his V-Reversal. You’ll want to use Backflip and Short Backflip to get away from aggression when Vega is mid-stage, but if he’s cornered, you have to weather the storm until you can create enough distance to deflect the opponent’s offense with his claw attacks. Alternatively, you can try for a far-reaching Wall Jump by jumping against the wall, and at the peak of Vega’s jump, tap to jump over the aggressor. Fortunately, Vega has access to a three-frame mid-section attack: standing . You can use a reversal standing to either interrupt throws or certain frame traps (provided you’re not at too much of a negative advantage). If you can make a hard read or you’ve blocked enough to feel out a possible throw attempt, you can use EX Aurora Spin Edge to punish and blow through normal and command throws. However, it’s susceptible to normal attacks and you’ll be interrupted, rewarding your foe with a counter-hit if you guess incorrectly. To defend against close-range jumping attacks (where your standing will lose), you can meet the opponent in the air with a four-frame jumping or a five-frame air throw.

Bloody Kiss and Miscellaneous Setup Tips

With a two-bar V-Gauge and three separate versions of Bloody Kiss, Vega becomes a huge problem for the enemy at any distance. Each one is designed for a specific purpose.

(Bloody Kiss – Torero) is primarily used to extend combos or to punish a whiff either by canceling into it from Vega’s long-range claw attacks or on its own. If you don’t have EX Gauge to follow it up with your Critical Art, you can instead use the massive knockdown advantage to set up a cross-up or meaty crouching . For instance, after connecting with Bloody Kiss – Torero, you can go for a sequence of a forward dash into a forward jump into a cross-up jumping , an empty crouching attack linked into Combo 1, or a frontal jumping , all depending on how the enemy recovers from their knockdown.

is designed as a simple anti-air V-Trigger. Vega can easily deflect most jumping attacks from a wide range, which affords you substantial knockdown advantage. You can go for essentially the same setup as previously described with Bloody Kiss – Torero, but you’ll omit the dash-in.

Off of an EX Crimson Terror combo (see the Combos section at the end of this chapter for details), you’re at an extreme advantage. If you follow up EX Crimson Terror with a forward dash and the enemy quick-rises in place, you’re at +20, allowing for basically any kind of frame trap or jumping attack setup. This holds true with combos ending in EX Flying Barcelona Attack, as well (if you opt not to juggle with EX Aurora Spin Edge).

After a successful Bloody Rain mid-stage, you can use the familiar dash-in, followed by a forward jump setup to continue your aggression into close range.