Street Fighter 5 – Nash Moves and Strategies

Charlie Nash has always been a tortured soul in the Street Fighter realm. His name changed between Charlie and Nash based on which territory you were in and while there are plenty of fans who prefer Nash to Guile, he always seems to take a backseat to the All-American hero. All of that changes with the release of Street Fighter 5. Charlie Nash is back with a standardized name (he’s Nash in all territories) and gone are the days of Nash being a Guile clone. In fact, if you thought the announcement of Nash in Street Fighter 5 meant that Guile likely wouldn’t be making an appearance, you can rest easy because the two characters play quite a bit differently.

We haven’t seen Nash since the Alpha series and some of the Vs. series games. He’s changed quite a bit since that time, losing many of the special moves that made him a Guile clone, but also seeing physical changes as well. Nash seems to be almost possessed by a mysterious power in Street Fighter 5 and his attacks and special moves reflect that. Let’s delve deeper into the new Nash.

Special Moves

Charlie retains his trademark Sonic Boom, but this time around it’s not a charge motion as most would expect. It’s a standard quarter-circle forward motion like most fireballs in the Street Fighter series. While the Sonic Boom doesn’t move as faster as Guile’s in Street Fighter 4, it’s still a solid zoning tool.

Nash also has two Flash Kick-like attacks, but neither can be considered a traditional Flash Kick. The first is the Moonsault Slash, which is a kick that looks similar to Adon’s Jaguar Kick in Street Fighter 4, and is something that returns from Charlie’s days in the Vs. series. The second is the Sonic Scythe which is almost like an upward version of the Moonsault Slash. While at first glance this looks like an anti-air, it doesn’t have the same invincibility frames as a Flash Kick and has to be timed much better to work as a proper anti-air attack. You can’t simply toss it out there anytime you see an opponent in the air.

Charlie’s final special move is the Tragedy Assault. Charlie grabs the opponent, slams them to the ground, then sends an electric shock through their body. It seems to work best as a way to end combos with a hard knockdown so Charlie can setup some of his V-Trigger shenanigans.

V-Trigger

Speaking of V-Trigger, Charlie’s standard V-Skill is the ability to absorb projectile attacks. At the moment this only works for normal projectiles as Nash still gets hit if it’s an EX special move or a charged projectile. Still, with proper timing you can essentially nullify an opponent’s zoning options by using the Bullet Clear V-Skill to absorb projectile attacks while simultaneously building Nash’s V-Trigger gauge.

It doesn’t take long for Charlie’s V-Trigger gauge to fill. Once it does, it’s best to use it as soon as you can. The V-Trigger gauge resets every round, and with how quickly Charlie can build his V-Trigger, there isn’t much benefit to holding onto it once the meter is full. The Sonic Move V-Trigger teleports Nash to one of three locations. You can teleport behind the opponent in the air or on the ground, or in front of the opponent in the air.

The Sonic Move can create some very difficult situations for opponents. You can use it to simply blow through and punish a projectile attack, or you can throw out a Sonic Boom, then use the Sonic Move just before it makes contact with the opponent. This will create a cross-up guessing game in which the opponent must guess which side Charlie will appear on so they can properly block the Sonic Boom and whatever attacks Charlie follows with. It can lead to some big damage if the opponent guesses wrong.

Critical Art

Charlie’s super move is the Judgement Saber, which can be used to punish opponent’s from a moderate distance, or you can combo into it. The damage isn’t amazing, but it’s certainly enough to get your opponent’s attention. Charlie disappears, then materializes behind the opponent, ready to unleash a fearsome vertical Sonic Hurricane-like attack through their body.

Keep your eyes peeled to Prima Games as we offer more Street Fighter 5 analysis later this week and into next week. For now, check out our breakdowns of Ryu, M. Bison and more!