In an attempt to gather fellow Kan-Ra players and help each other level up, I thought a matchup thread could help. Anyone with questions, or knowledge regarding matchups please feel free to share.
Please keep in mind with S3 around the corner, anything is subject to change. Plus, this is a WIP. Please feel free to suggest any changes that need to be made.
EDIT: The “Punish List” has been removed from the characters that had one, due to the fact that I feel there should be all on a separate thread for easy accessibility.
- General Info
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Always have a couple of scarabs out. This alone keeps Kan-Ra fairly safe against most advances toward him.
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In conjunction with scarabs, Kan needs to have his sand trap out, either from s.HK, cr.HK, j.HK, qcf+K or qcf+KK. With this out, he can use scorpion attacks (df+LK/MK), antlion attack (df+HK), or tornado (qcf+P while standing in Sand Trap). This gives Kan-Ra a lockdown tool, 2 anti-air attacks, and a projectile. S3 Change: Holding the P attack while doing qcf+P will allow Kan-Ra to “charge” the tornado, making it bigger, and if held long enough it becomes unblockable. Don’t expect much for damage. This is more for setup purposes.
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Don’t randomly throw out Scarabs or Sand Traps. Placement is key in victory.
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Ranged attacks: st.MP, cr.MP, b+MP, st.MK, st.HP, b+HP, cr.HP. Cr.MP hits the furthest. st.MP is good as a ground hit confirm if scarabs hit grounded opponent. s.MP does hit high, so watch out for characters with low profile moves, or simple ducking.
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S3 Change: Shadow Spike now works like Glacius’ Shadow Shatter. It tracks the opponent and hits them in the location where they’re standing. This doesn’t always work, however, as certain launchers, and jumping can prevent the opponent from getting hit. If Kan-Ra is combo broken or hit while Shadow Spike is out, it will downgrade to a regular Sand Trap w/o the Scorpion stinger.
- Pre-Round Strategies
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As soon as the match starts there are 2 options an opponent usually chooses.
- They dash back:
* This is the best thing that can happen because they give you time to put your stuff on the screen for free - They dash in
* Now you are in trouble. With no swarm and no trap and bad close normals Kan-Ra is just screwed.
- They dash back:
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So what do you usually do?
The first thing I do is dash back once or twice and see what option they pick. If they dash in I usually go for a jf.+LK to air to air them because most of the time they will jump in. You can also bait a jump by dashing in, but that is dangerous. Mix this up with a jump b+MK ~ Swarm when you anticipate that they don’t jump.
- Vs Jago:
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Always have an answer for Wind Kicks, be it blocking and punishing, or having Jago get hit with something other than scarabs. Be careful, as Jago can throw out a Tiger Fury, or cancel into Instinct and mess up your punish timing.
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j.HP spammers can get beat out if you’re patient. As they cross over you, use a well-timed db+HP will not only make you a low profile, but you will beat out j.HP with no problem. Your best option, however, is Sacrifice, provided the Sand Trap is well within distance.
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Playing the fireball game can work out in your favor if you already have a swarm out, unless Jago activated Instinct. If that’s not the case, chances are the fireball will hit the swarm, but you can easily counter with qcf+K, and have enough time to throw out another swarm, and pester Jago with sand trap attacks (df+K).
- Vs Sabrewulf:
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As soon as the announcer says “Ready”, most Sabrewulf players will quickly get in your face and try to meet you in the air if you jump. Make sure that if you do jump and if Sabrewulf tries to meet you in the air, have a quick move like j.LK ready to stuff whatever he throws out. I generally use j.LK and cancel into air scarab if successfully land.
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If you’re jumping back to create space, and he’s near, your longest attack is j.MK. You can hit confirm that, and cancel into scarab whether j.MK hits or not. If it doesn’t connect, make sure that scarab is placed well enough so that Sabrewulf’s only option through it is to waste time and hit the scarab to advance, giving you time to throw out more scarabs, or to waste meter and use Shadow Jumping Slash (b,f+KK). Jumping Shadow Slash is 0f on block, so be mindful of what you can and can’t do.
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Sabrewulf players will try to make good use of his new Dive Attack given to him in S3. Keep an eye out on the distance between Kan-Ra, Sabrewulf, any Scarabs between the two, and try to work in some long range attacks to prevent a gap closure.
- Vs Glacius:
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First things first, stay out of range of Glacius’ Shatter (qcf+P). Even though Glacius is considered to be the definitive range character in KI, Kan-Ra can still give him problems from afar. Most Glacius players will try to hit you with Shadow Glacius if you’re jumping away to create space, so move wisely.
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Hail (qcb+P) can sometimes work they way our scarabs work— as an interrupter. If you’re doing damage to Glacius and that hail is still “rolling” towards you, just stop and either block, or jump. You do not want this to hit, and allow Glacius to convert this into a high damaging combo. It’s even more of a threat since S3, because he can throw out multiple hails and release them at any interval. Hail plus LK Cold Shoulder makes this matchup very hard. Kan-Ra’s Whirlwind eats up Hail like [insert favorite food]!!! A quick cr.HK into qcf+P will remedy the zoning attempt.
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If you so decide to go toe-to-toe with Glacius (which should be rare), watch his instinct meter. Glacius players love to pop instinct and use Shadow Cold Shoulder (qcb+PP) because it goes through almost everything. With this in mind, always have a means of baiting this situation while you’re applying pressure or mix ups, so that when Glacius does use this tactic, you’re either blocking this move and punishing accordingly, or completely aerial so that Shadow Cold Shoulder passes you. If the latter occurs, pay attention to the distance created and punish with the right move, be it st.MP into qcf+K, command grab, or another tool.
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Speaking of Cold Shoulder, the frame data for Cold Shoulder has changed, so Glacius can’t overly abuse it without relying on either popping Instinct, or having Hail out before doing Cold Shoulder.
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Ice Lance (f+MP) will always pose a threat if you whiff a move within its range. Don’t allow this to happen under any circumstances.
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Puddle (KKK) will always bypass setups such as the 'ole st.MP ~ qcb+LP trick. If the Glacius player is quick, he’ll just use Puddle Punch (qcf+K) instead, which will turn into a combo. Puddle also completely dodges any version of Sand Spike (qcf+K), its Sand Trap command normals (df+K), and Kan-Ra’s Whirl projectile (qcf+P while standing on sand trap) so keep that in mind, especially when attempting to pin Glacius with attacks from afar.
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Glacius’ Instinct gained some new additions with the Puddle Punch crossup tactics. Just be sure to watch the puddle. If it has spikes coming out, he’s attempting the crossup attack. If not, he’ll Puddle Punch in front of you.
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[Testing] - Clutch seems to beat out both Normal and Shadow Cold Shoulder with and without instinct. VS the shadow version, if clutch is done before the shadow activation, clutch beats it out.
Vs Thunder:
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Thunder likes to j.HP those scarabs. If close enough and on landing, Thunder might throw out a dp and mixup from there. Just make sure that you have another scarab out so that at least Thunder will land on one and you can juggle a bit from it.
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Thunder with either Instinct activated, or Call of the Sky (PPP), instantly becomes a threat, because whatever you have out on the field, chances are that Thunder can avoid them by dashing. He can’t dash through physical attacks though, so use those ranged moves wisely. You’ll see some Thunder players use an unsafe move, and cancel with a dash to either bait a whiff and punish, or setup for Call of the Earth (qcb+P).
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While Thunder can’t dp into dp like previous versions, you do have to keep in mind of his followup options after dp (LK: knee, MK: dropkick, HK: Alex stomp).
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He can dash through physical attacks while in instinct. (Test)
Vs Sadira:
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Be very aware of Sadira’s jumping patterns. She has several options, but certain ones can only be done depending on where she’s going/landing. Usually these are the options she has:
- Connect with web shot
- Cross up (usually with heavy)
- Empty jump (into low or throw)
- Jump in (attack with overhead)
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The last option (Jump in) can somewhat be tricky, because depending on what Sadira is doing, she can always cancel that attack, and rely on qcb+P. If she’s using her new j.d+HK attack, this can also allow her to mix things up a bit when fighting you. Ultimately, Sadira has mainly air to ground mixups, and very little ground mixups. If you cover more air (vice ground) than she does, you’ll slow down her momentum.
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Curses from Scorpion attacks and grabs don’t slow her down too much, because she was built for the skies, so to speak… It can give Kan-Ra more time to put more items on the field (e.g. - scarabs, sandtrap, etc), or just simply use his MP or HP version of clutch.
Vs Orchid:
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Be glad that she doesn’t have a “projectile” until she pops instinct.
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For the most part, you have an answer for almost everything she does. Scarabs can keep her occupied while she tries to close in. Having at least two of them can prevent her from trying to jump in, or use qcf+K to slide under them. Pay attention to your layout of scarabs and sand trap.
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Air throw is breakable. Remember that!!!
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Be mindful of her cats in Instinct. Even though you may find yourself landing a really strong combo, you may have to end it sooner than desired. Best option imo would be to use clutch ender and work mixups from there.
Vs Spinal:
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At the beginning of the match, Spinal’s real tool is his teleport. He can wait for Kan-Ra to do anything with a long recovery, capitalize on that “mistake”, and combo for damage and skulls. As a Kan-Ra player (or any player for that matter), the less skulls Spinal has, the higher your chance is of winning.
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Shadow Spike is going to be very important in this matchup. Since Spinal can teleport, you are going to need something to cover you, and Shadow Spike can do just that. There is a chance that Spinal will teleport, and grab in enough time to bypass the stinger, so always be ready for a throw break.
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Spinal with skulls will be a bit difficult. You’re mainly going to look out for the qcf+LP/HP fireball into a low or overhead mixup, with a possibility of a grab just to rebuild skulls and for positioning purposes.
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With the most recent Spinal changes, giving him the ability to obtain skulls for the cost of meter, it is even more dangerous for Spinal to land a Hard Knockdown on Kan-Ra. Try to play both zoning and setup game as best as possible. Having a Scarab behind you won’t hurt either. Sometimes you may find that j.HK works against those “teleport happy” Spinal players.
Vs Shadow Jago (Shago):
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You’re going to have to endure this uphill battle. Shago can out zone you, and without sacrifice or precise timing, he can almost spam j.HP whenever.
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If j.HP spamming occurs, you have three main options. The first one, which is usually the best, is to block. The second option is to use Sacrifice. Keep in mind of your health though. The third option, which can be risky, is to use a well-timed db+HP. This move can actually serve as a good close ranged anti-air, and push Shago back a distance, so Kan-Ra can get back to playing mid to long range. There’s actually a fourth option with the S3 changes, and that’s Shadow Spike. Kan may want to huddle around this special sand puddle, due to the fact that not only does it do horizontal strikes with the stinger, but the stinger can do anti-air attacks as well.
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The range game is not too good vs Shago. You’re simply going to have to block, and time a spike between blocking, or waste meter and use Shadow Spike. If Shago is on the ground and you’re far away, you will have to throw out as much as you can, so that his projectiles don’t overwhelm you from afar.
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Patience is key against Shago. You’ll find that you can punish most of what he dishes out, provided he doesn’t have meter.
Vs Fulgore:
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Fulgore is almost like a combination of Jago and Spinal, with better tools. Teleport saves Fulgore from alot of shenanigans Kan can whip up. Plus, he can use Shadow Teleport as a reliable means to punish.
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This is a horrible MU. He has every tool needed to just kill Ra. Make sure you spend a lot of time practicing combo breaks vs him and hope that he is not counter break happy.
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If you get caught in his vortex, try to block his projectile and shadow counter his mixup. This will work 1 or 2 times.
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Get a shadow trap on the field asap and use it to protect yourself. It might save you from teleports. You can also put a swarm on the field and move forward a bit, so it protects your back.
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If he decides to do a raw teleport, just whirl into the direction where he was, when he started the teleport. It will beat all his options, trade with it (DP) or make his attacks whiff, but be careful, he might just fake a teleport.
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You WILL lose out on the zoning game vs Fulgore. He has regular projectiles, to which he can shoot up to 3. He also has Eye Laser with a slower startup, but has an insane amount of range similar to S1. Lastly, there’s Devastation Beam. There’s really not much to say about Devastation Beam…
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Speaking of beams, Fulgore’s laser attacks used in a blockstring can hit low.
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While Kan is in the air, lots of Fulgore players pop Instinct, and DP.
Vs TJ Combo:
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TJ Combo literally can roll or TK through everything you through out. Basic cat-n-mouse game works, but eventually he can anticipate your next move and hit you with a high damaging combo. Cursing him is a must.
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Work out a way in where TJ Combo will roll through a projectile, and get hit with a physical attack, somewhat like Dhalsim’s strategy in CvS2. Just make sure you don’t attack while he’s doing something like TK where you will trade in his favor.
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Don’t get caught up in Combo’s fake dash shenanigans. Some TJ Combo players heavily rely on this tactic for whiff punishing.
Vs Maya:
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“Kick into dagger” seems to be what most Maya players do. There are some who take advantage of her other assets, such as her air diving grab. Up close, fighting Maya seems like a matter of taking turns between her and Kan-Ra, similar to say Tekken or Virtua Fighter. You don’t really have much meterless options up close, so of course you’re going to want to play the range game.
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Speaking of air diving grab, remember that you can crouch to avoid it.
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Try to avoid or beat her daggers with swarms and HK. You can low profile her daggers with cr.MK. As soon as a dagger is on the ground you have to protect it with good positioning, swarms and your shadow spike. A Maya without daggers is easy. When she pops instinct, it will get very hard to avoid her daggers. Be mobile and beat her daggers with
swarms. Try to waste as much time as possible until her instinct is over.
Vs Kan-Ra (Mirror Match):
Vs Riptor:
- Riptor has tools that allow her to stay in close without a real fear of Scarabs, be it air or ground. Her fire mortars can also help her utilize setups that she didn’t have in S2. Watch the range that Riptor uses them
Vs Omen:
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The problem with fighting Omen is that not only is he all over the place with his fireballs, and air dashing, he out damages you in every way. On top of that, he can lock out your meter so you can’t rely on Shadow Sand Spike. You cannot allow Omen to lock you out.
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Air scarabs can force Omen to not heavily rely on air dashing into j.MK. Your setups are going to have to force him to either take a Sand Spike before landing, or Air Clutch. Those benefit you more in this matchup, because he’ll be too preoccupied dealing with Scarabs.
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Omen’s fireballs are indeed random. Just watch what each one is doing before making any drastic decisions. If Omen has meter, he can couple this tactic with Shadow Orda Shield or Shadow Rashakuken and become a rushdown beast to deal with.
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Shadow Form can become a nightmare up close during rushdown, or as a means to counter okizeme (wake up) options. Note that if the Omen you’re facing favors this move, many of Kan-Ra’s setups will not work in this MU (like the basic st.MP to LP Clutch setup, even with Scarab above Omen’s head). This also prevents certain unsafe moves from being punishable, so you’ll literally have to play this game by reacting to what you see rather than sheer frame data.
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Demonic Despair has NO invincible start up frames, but with a good setup, you won’t be able to jump out of it after the flash, so keep an eye out when Omen has three stocks of meter. You can use Sacrifice to escape though.
Vs Aganos:
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First order of business vs Aganos is to eliminate the chunks and keep him from getting them. The long range game isn’t going to work for most of the match, nor will the close up game, so mid range is where it’s at.
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st.HK and st.HP work great at destroying armor chunks. st.HP into Sand Spike helps against this match up.
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Shadow Spike works wonders in this match up, as long as Aganos doesn’t CB or hit you.
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If trying the range game, Aganos is going to wait until you do something so he can use Ruin, or Natural Disaster against you.
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Please don’t range him out when he has Instinct, Aganos will just throw Peacemaker at Kan-Ra continuously if he so desires.
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HP version of Payload Assault will definitely rip through Scarabs, so if you choose to work Scarabs in your fight, mid-range setups are the best thing to go for.
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Up close, smartly use Sacrifice, if there’s no walls put up. If there are walls, you’re going to have to try to damage your way out. Best attempt would be to throw, or pop Instinct, and do a jump attack into Scarab (or Shadow Scarab). I personally use j.MK if I can create space, but if not j.HP works. By the time the last hit in j.HP connects, you can cancel into Scarab and work towards another approach.
Vs Hisako:
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Hisako players like to use their teleport to completely avoid your zoning attempts. You have several options if you anticipate this. One approach is to jump straight up, and use j.HK to avoid and counter any follow up attack she does. The second option is to time a qcf+LP so that when she teleports behind you, Kan-Ra does his LP Clutch. Both options have their pros and cons, but this all depends on how well the opponent knows how to deal with Kan-Ra.
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If you’re in the air, and she does her Possession(?) move to suck you in, extend your airtime with either air Scarab or air Shadow Scarab, so that you won’t get caught by the move. If you’re in range, most of Kan’s jump attacks (except j.LP, j.LK, and j.HK) will hit her out of the move. Using j.HK can work, but depending on how close you are, Hisako can still catch you with that move.
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Do not let Hisako close in on you!!! This pretty much applies to any of the characters, especially Hisako. The mixups and resets alone pose more of a threat and can quickly end a match. IF you so happen to be caught, remember a well-timed Sacrifice can save you. Another thing to point out are her ORZ rekkas. Ensure your defense is solid against Hisako up close, and will be able to punish her after the last rekka.
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When Hisako is in the air, she likes to triangle jump, and use air ORZ often to avoid your Scarabs. Be mindful of this to avoid any easy jump in punishes.
Vs ARIA:
- ARIA has a ton of frame traps, so the name of the game is block with patience and time your attacks.
Vs Cinder:
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First, you have to understand that Cinder is a VERY mobile character, especially in the air. So when trying to throw out scarabs, and other traps, he’s more than likely going to find a way around it with b,f+K variations, and work for a cross up or an overhead.
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As for the range game, Cinder can’t do too much outside of throwing Pyro Bombs, so if you have scarabs out, and he’s trying to remove them from long distance, get some damage with either Sand Spike or Shadow Sand Spike.
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Don’t be so hasty to rush in on Cinder. Fire Flash can beat out alot of what you can do. Just bait it out, and punish properly.
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If Cinder is rushing you down, just pay attention to the movements. Worse case scenario, a well timed Sacrifice will save you, but don’t rely on that so much, especially if you’re taking potential damage.
Vs Rash:
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Rash’s zipline literally destroys any scarab you have on the field, including Shadow Scarabs if they’re not spaced right!!! This also builds his meter, so be cautious of “feeding” Rash, but it allows you to retaliate with Sand Spike.
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Rash is going to want to chase you. Just play patient, and wait for Wrecking Ball. You have a chance to punish it before he can use his followup attack.
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Much like Cinder’s Fire Flash, and Glacius’ Instinct into Shadow Cold Shoulder, Rash players like to use Shadow Boot on wake up.
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Dealing with a grounded version of Wrecking Ball can be quite cumbersome. Luckily, Kan-Ra has five decent options.
- If you anticipate the move, you can utilize a well-timed st.HK to beat the armor, and deal damage.
- Depending on distance, and if you want to take a sacrificial hit to increase said distance, b+HP can be a “unique” option. Because Wrecking Ball has a ton of pushback, trading hits with b+HP will increase that distance, virtually knocking Kan-Ra as far as the stage will let him. The same effect occurs when using db+HP.
- After blocking the Wrecking Ball, you have some options:
- If you have meter, Shadow Whirl stops most aerial followups.
- If you don’t have meter, quick jumping into j.LK can be used as a quick “get-away” move.
- db+HP works after blocking also.
- Of course there’s Sacrifice. However, be careful how it’s used. If used before or during Wrecking Ball, there’s a chance that Kan-Ra will reappear where he was last at, opening himself up for combos (this is even after bypassing armor). Sometimes it can work, and Kan will gain distance. If done after blocking Wrecking Ball, you’ll be punishing, and gain distance between yourself and Rash.
- The last option avoids any real chance of hitting or getting hit. Simply jump, and use j.HK to increase Kan-Ra’s vertical, and “jumping” over Wrecking Ball.
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AA clutch is very good if they ball in from far.
Vs Kim Wu:
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Don’t be so hasty to use air Scarabs, because if she’s in range, expect to eat a Dragon Kick.
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Shadow Dragon Kick is her get out of a crossup/overhead card.
Vs Arbiter:
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Carbine shot eats through Scarabs.
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Try to force Arbiter to run out of shots if possible.
Vs Tusk:
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Tusk is going to want to come to you. Play that to your advantage. Just don’t let Tusk get in.
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If Tusk does close in on you, make sure you’re near a Shadow Sandtrap. Stinger attacks from Shadow Sandtrap interrupt his rushdown while you’re blocking, so be ready to land a manual from the stinger if you can. Even better, you can use that as a means to escape with a super jump.
Vs Mira:
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Mira can become overly aggressive if you give her momentum. Wait for an opportunity to punish because chances are, she’ll do something unsafe.
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Your options become very limited when facing her due to Mist Form.
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Don’t be so quick to try and close out on some damage when you see her health really low. Chances are, she’s using that to bait you into something else which will allow her to regain most if not all of her life back.
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Sand Spike works wonders against Blood Seekers if she doesn’t use it right away after a Knock Down (which is really when she should use them). If she tries to setup with a bat in the corner, Clutch!
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Watch what you do from a distance, because Shadow Blood Seekers can easily catch you, and give Mira time to close the gap and combo.
Vs Gargos:
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Gargos can easily be rushed down. The only real threats outside of Instinct are his command grabs, because he can catch you in the air, and MUs from there can get crazy.
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Even though Gargos can take a bunch of hits during Instinct, and those hits slow him down even further, he still can attack through them, as well as end the Instinct which serves as a free CB.
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The moment Izzik and Dretch are summoned, you’ll want to take them out A.S.A.P. Not doing so will make the match really hectic for you, especially in the corner.
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Portal Punches can easily be Combo Broken if you know what you’re looking at. Here’s a quick rundown:
- LP: Punches from the ground (not a true low hit)
- MP: Punches from the side
- HP: Punches at a downward angle (not a true overhead)
- Shadow: Mashable, but easily used as a Counter Breaker setup
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This MU is definitely in Kan-Ra’s favor, until Gargos throws out both minions and is sitting on regained meter.
Vs Eyedol:
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Kan-Ra has a better chance at doing damage vs the Warrior stance. When Eyedol switches to Mage stance, things get more difficult, due to Eyedol’s ranged attacks. Imagine Fulgore’s vanilla laser beam’s range, but worse.
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If Eyedol pops Instinct, just run away and let it wear out. There’s too much going on and ambiguous setups can occur often when Instinct is on… Regardless of your blocking ability. At best, doing an “unpredictable” Shadow Whirl into a combo can somewhat be beneficial, but depending on what Eyedol is doing, you can get easily hit out of whatever you’re doing.
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Mage stance Eyedol can teleport if he has pips. Keep that in mind, and build some sort of anti teleport setup. Warrior stance has that hop-to-throw ability. Since the hop looks different from his dash, just look out for that and counter accordingly. I’m not sure if the hop portion can be canceled out yet.
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j.HP got nerfed. Enjoy.
Vs Kilgore:
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Ranged normals have bad frames on block; obviously, because he’s a ranged character, and never really needs/wants to be up close. He may have to due to the next point.
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Ranged normals also do 0 chip damage. You heard right, no more SamSho Mina-style tactics of “chip and run”.
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The bullet from dp CAN be broken (as in Combo Broken). Just remember the strengths of each dp.