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Raiden instant lasers

Posted: 22 Nov 2016, 12:07
by Porcupine
Now that I've learned how to gather accurate frame data without the need of any external devices, welcome to the second of hopefully many topics containing frame data.

Normal CW laser has a 14-frame startup. Frame 1 is the first visible frame of animation (the lasers also happen to light up), frame 14 is the appearance of the beam. The CW key press registers on frame 0 and the energy gauge will light up in white or green (it is random, as it flickers) on that frame. Normal CW can uniquely be canceled into a dash before it fires. Canceling on the 14th, 15th, or 16th frame lets Raiden both shoot and dash away.

Crouching CW has a 14-frame startup. If you walk diagonally before shooting, it will fire diagonally, though the angling is usually too extreme to be useful. A single frame of walking gives the full angle. To fire at a lesser angle, walk in straight directions just before or after walking diagonally. The imaginary walking trick can help to aim this. Note that stationary crouching CW can be better since it recovers immediately with Raiden.

Standing LTCW has an 11-frame startup. Standing RTCW has an 18-frame startup.

Stationary RW has a 9-frame startup. Frame 1 is the first visible frame of animation where he is starting to raise his launcher, frame 9 is the appearance of the rocket. The RW key press registers on frame 0 and the energy gauge will light up in white or green on that frame. Note that RW is actually pressed 2 frames before that, because unlike CW it takes 3 frames to register any LW or RW press. In general, if LW or RW is tapped for 2 frames or less, nothing will happen.

Instant Laser is performed by doing a stationary standing RW, then pressing CW on exactly the 8th frame. The beam shoots on the next frame so the instant laser has a 9-frame startup. Raiden can also cancel into a walk, dash, or jump, without shooting anything, on the 8th frame. Canceling into a walk or dash is easy as you can just hold it down. Raiden can also do an instant LW by pressing LW on exactly the 6th frame.

The normal instant laser works because of a glitch in Raiden's stationary standing RW. He recovers 2 frames earlier than a typical 9-frame attack, allowing him to do other actions on frame 8 and creating instant shots as a side effect. The drawbacks of the instant laser are that it cannot be canceled into a dash, and cannot be half-canceled. Instant RTCW is popular since it can't be canceled into a dash anyway. Instant LTCW is possible but rarely seen.

True Instant Laser is an unrelated technique. First do a walking LW, then let go of the direction on the exact frame after the LW input registers. This will cause Raiden to go into a LW animation which is different from normal. Nothing will fire. If you press RW or CW during the weird LW animation, Raiden will do another weird animation. At this point you can do a silly dance by alternating LW and RW, the timing is lenient. (This is the same as Grys-Vok's arm wiggle dance except his can be started without a frame-perfect input. The Raiden dance can also be started by doing walking RW and letting go of the direction 1 frame later).

During the weird LW animation, if you press a direction and/or rotate, then press RW or CW, the shot will come out instantly. The direction can be simultaneous with the attack, so the true instant laser can execute in as little as 3 frames! Furthermore, it can be aimed by pressing diagonal or straight directions. The mechanism is more intuitive than crouching CW, as pressing diagonal for a single frame gives a small angle. The walking direction prior to the LW input adds in as well.

The true instant laser cannot be canceled into a dash, is difficult to half-cancel, and does not work with turbo lasers. True instant LW can be performed by doing walking RW, letting go of the direction 1 frame later, then pressing a direction and LW. In fact the walk-and-stop glitch can be done by all VRs to cancel away their walking attacks, and most can afterwards do dances and instant walking attacks (but not aim them) using the same methods here.

Λ-Laser results when you do a perfect 3-frame true instant laser. The beams come out in a Λ shape and aim slightly to the right by default, instead of straight forward. This can be adjusted in much the same way the straight true instant laser is aimed. The Λ shape is not helpful, so a 4-frame straight instant laser may be preferred.

X-Laser is performed by doing a walking RW, letting go of the direction on the exact frame after the RW input registers, then pressing LW, then pressing a direction and/or rotate, then pressing CW. Performed perfectly, the X-laser can execute in 6 frames, and the beams will come out in an X shape. The LW input can be delayed, but CW cannot be even a single frame late, otherwise the X shape is lost and you get a straight instant laser.

Besides the drawbacks of the true instant laser, the X-laser has additional weaknesses. The angle of the X never changes and it typically aims at various directions to Raiden's right side. The default firing direction, which results from only using straight directions or rotation, is to the right. The aim can be adjusted slightly by pressing diagonal for a single frame at the end. The walking direction prior to the RW input wears off unless the X-laser is executed in 6 frames, in which case a little remains.

Here is the perfect X-laser. RW key press registers on frame 0. Press LW and let go of the direction on frame 1. Hold LW until it registers on frame 3. Press CW and a direction on frame 5. The beam appears on frame 6. A direction must be held on frame 6 to fire, but only frame 5 aims the beam. You can optionally tap a direction during frame 2 and frame 3. Though difficult, doing so allows the X-laser to be aimed freely, even to the left!

Don't forget that RW needs to be held for 3 frames to register. The walk-and-stop glitch also requires you to be free to move and press walk on the frame before the attack registers, so in some sense the true instant lasers are 1 frame slower than described. Performing the LW to CW input quick enough to get the X-laser or Λ-laser is tough. It helps to map a separate CW button and have a clicky LW trigger.

V-Laser can appear when CW or RTCW is fired during the freeze after a dash attack. The beams shoot instantly and in a V shape aimed slightly to the right. RTCW creates a more angled V. There is no way to adjust the aim. Instant attacks during dash freezes can happen with all VRs and are 0-frame attacks, appearing on the same frame the key press registers. It was originally thought they happen when firing on the first frame of the freeze, but this isn't always the case. The frame to fire instantly can be any time during the freeze, and varies with both the choice of dash attack and the attack used during the freeze.

Re: Raiden instant lasers

Posted: 05 Sep 2017, 19:00
by Porcupine
I figured out more details about aiming Raiden's fancy lasers. Crouching CW is based on his walking direction, that is why just one frame of diagonal walking grants the full angle, and the aim can be refined via the imaginary walking trick.

The true instant laser, Λ-laser, and X-laser are based on Raiden's animation direction, so pressing diagonal for one frame starts with the minimum angle, and the aim cannot be adjusted invisibly. The aim displaces quickly with only a few frames of diagonal input and reverts quickly while neutral. Raiden must walk 2~3 frames before pressing RW to influence the aim of the X-laser (depending whether diagonal is pressed with CW at the end). This yields a total execution time of 10~11 frames. Walking a bit longer further aims the Λ-laser but has no added effect on the X-laser.

If any gap is introduced between the X-laser's RW and LW inputs, the walk direction prior to RW wears off. As this gap widens the X shape gets slightly more extreme and aims slightly further right. After several frames this effect begins to reverse. When the gap is huge, the X-laser aims in the same direction as the Λ-laser, and is between the X and Λ shapes.

Although aimed primarily with diagonals, walking backwards or backward-diagonally shifts the Λ-laser and X-laser a bit to the right, compared to forward directions. Walking left and right aims the Λ-laser slightly left and right, respectively. A sideways X-laser changes into a Λ-laser so don't do it. Walking straight forward long enough aims the Λ-laser slightly left but has no effect on the X-laser.

If the final direction input with CW is entered a frame late, or crouch is used as the final direction, the true instant laser, Λ-laser, and X-laser aim closer to the default. If Raiden was initially straight, a final diagonal input aims slightly in that direction, while a final rotate/crouch/jump input has the default aim. If Raiden was initially walking diagonally, a final diagonal input in the same direction or a rotate/jump input aims further in that direction. Other directions may either increase the aim or be closer to the default but it isn't what might be expected, as it goes by their effect on Raiden's animation and not his walk direction.

Re: Raiden instant lasers

Posted: 06 Mar 2019, 13:00
by Porcupine
Though some details are only written here, my other thread has more frame data for Raiden. When aiming crouching CW it has a slower 18-frame startup. Although it appears identical to the standing version, walking CW is likewise a different attack and has a slower 18-frame startup, recovering in 39 frames. If not canceled into a dash, standing CW recovers in 43 frames.

Instant Laser standing RW to standing CW recovers in 40 frames. Attack techniques in this negative recovery family from other VRs generally seem to have unpredictable recovery times.

Λ-Laser and X-laser recover in 42 frames. Attack techniques in this family also seem to have unpredictable recovery times. Fei-Yen performing instant RW recovers in its normal 1 frame but instant LW recovers in 7 frames with no explanation. Fei-Yen instant CW recovers in 15 frames without explanation, furthermore when fired at a delayed time after the walk stop glitch it recovers correspondingly faster, up to 0 frames.

True Instant Laser when input at a delayed time after the empty LW recovers correspondingly faster, but only up to 40 frames.

V-Laser and other instant attacks during dash attack freezes have partially predictable recovery times. The startup animation of any standing attack fired during any dash attack freeze is lengthened by 4 frames. If this attack becomes instant, it recovers after the startup animation plus the normal recovery, plus these additional 4 frames. If not canceled into a dash, the normal V-laser recovers in 14+43+4=61 frames. RTCW recovers in 18+46+4=68 frames.

Crouch attacks fire normally during dash attack freezes. When they become instant the standing version comes out instead, followed by the animation for that crouch attack. If there is still enough ammo the crouch attack may fire, depending on the attack. Grys-Vok crLTCW will fire 6 missiles but Fei-Yen crLTLW can't fire a second time. Either way recovers after the startup animation plus the normal recovery.

If there isn't enough ammo then the crouch attack animation will glitch. Some crouch attacks are naturally glitched like Raiden crCW and Fei-Yen crLTLW (below full ammo). These make the empty gauge sound after firing then instantly recover into a walk. As instant attacks they are unchanged. For all other instant crouch attacks the frame data changes. The empty gauge sound occurs at an unpredictable time after which the VR goes into a standing animation, which is instant on some attacks like Fei-Yen crLW. Raiden crRTCW normally has a 21-frame startup and recovers in 51 frames, while the V-laser version recovers in only 40 total frames.

The angle of the V seems purely dependent on how far into the freeze the V-laser input works, so it's influenced by the dash attack used. The frame to fire instantly is always the same for the standing and crouching version of the same attack, for example RTCW and crRTCW. I've yet to find any other pattern. The normal and turbo V-laser generally don't work on the same frame.