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5 things you need to know about Master Roshi in Dragon Ball FighterZ
Dragon Ball FighterZ’ newest patch came with Master Roshi. He’s a bit different then your average character, so here’s everything you need to know.
When UI Goku hit the scene, we were expecting a new character within the next two months -- it had become the formula for how Arc System Works brought in new fighters. As the original master of martial arts, and teacher to many beloved characters, we could only imagine the great tools he would have to deal with intense scramble situations. After an extended wait of 5 months and a 13 second trailer, Master Roshi is finally available in Dragon Ball FighterZ.
One thing with fighting games is that you can never really know what to expect when a character is released. However, during a livestream to show off Roshi, we were shown how unique he can be in terms of fundamental gameplay and, now that he’s not, the online tech monsters are grinding. Here is everything you need to know about Master Roshi.
1. No superdash?
You are probably already looking at that title, remembering that system mechanics are what make or break a character. How will you win those scrambles? How are you going to beat zoning without working extra hard? How will you raw tag? One could argue that uperdash defines Dragon Ball FighterZ. While it won’t be so black and white anymore, Roshi has a great substitute to superdash in the "Hop" and "Reverse Kamehameha".
Learning about Roshi's hops/reverse kamehameha is crucial to understanding the character. They do a lot for his combo routes and overall movement. Roshi has 5 different hops when on the ground, and the trajectory is determined by what direction you press along with your superdash. Normal hop is a short hop across the screen, while down hop is equivalent to a super jump. Each hop is superdash immune, which means he doesn't necessarily reflect them but moves through them. The hop does have some landing recovery, but can allow you to get a full grounded combo, unlike superdash, if you’ve got quick reactions.
The reverse kamehameha is Roshi's substitute for superdash while he’s in the air. It can be performed after a jump or after using a hop from a grounded state, in case you want to change angles. Reverse Kamehameha works as an 8 way gate, where he will move in the direction you choose. There are no weird angles or curves, and it is fully linear. The kamehameha itself is still a real beam -- so if you did a kamehameha away it would act as an attack, having full beam properties as well. The payoff for hitting the correct angle is that the Kamehameha has similar properties to superdashing while in sparking, meaning it’s plus when you physically collide with your opponent. It’s quite fast as well, which makes his raw tag faster than other characters.
2. He’s got buttons. A lot of them.
So, you’ve lost superdash, and have to think a little bit more. Roshi, being the master martial artist he is, has a lot of unique normals for a ton of different situations in the game. He has j.2M, which allows him to bring opponents down for a sliding knockdown, a cross-up in his Afterimage (6H), and rising phoenix (3H) to confirm off of it -- which comes bundled with the anti-air properties of most 3H's in the game, and 6S gives him a boomerang Ki blast that you can call back for a return trip and is plus on block.
It’s a lot to take in, but we're not out of the woods yet. He has his own button exclusive to him, j.4M, where he kicks backwards without facing his opponent. This will be great for cross-ups and catching opponents off guard without Roshi facing them. He also has 2S, which looks a lot like Trunks' Cyclone Jump -- but it is ki blast invul. All of these buttons force you to respect Roshi's game plan. You can set up frame-traps, which he is great at, close off a lot of angles with his specials (including an air command grab that’s angled like GT's kamehameha) and buttons.
The turtle sage has a lot of moves in his arsenal, which allows him to really make you play his game. Roshi was, more than likely, given these buttons to cover the angles he could not superdash, or to stop getting pressured from superdash all together. An interesting design choice that is helping make him the most technical fighter yet.
3. But what are his assists?
The golden question when a character is announced, along with if they have a low 2L, is “do they have good assists?” -- and seems like Arc System Works is taking notice. With the initiative to buff assists to see more character usage, Roshi came in with some great helpers off the jump. His C assist is not that great since it doesn't track in the air -- it’s just his grounded 5LL and the biggest strength about C assists is their air tracking. So let's take a look at both his A and B assists.
Roshi's A assist is a beam. Pretty standard for most characters now, but Roshi's beam is a bit faster with a little more blockstun, considering the smaller cone on the beam. It is a single hit beam that allows for better and easier combo extension than the regular multi-hit beams. It hits the opponent sort of like Base Goku's does. If you are confident in your neutral and are looking for a quick check or easy combo beam, this is the one to go with.
Roshi's B assist stands for BLOCKSTUN. It’s an outrageous two-hitter that resembles "Bardock B", in terms of the serious hitstun it puts opponents in if it connects. You will have no problems at all confirming from it. The biggest win from Roshi's B assist, however, would be the blockstun it gives, as it single handedly brings back snap mix to characters that can low air DR. With 46 frames of blockstun, you could freestyle and still get some mix. Some would argue that it’s his best assist overall.
4. Point, Mid or Anchor?
With how rampant point characters have been, it is refreshing to see Roshi do best at Mid. Roshi can play point with no issues at all, and perform some pretty low bar TOD's with the right team around him, but the reason he is so good at mid is that his B assist will provide so much schmix for his team’s point. The amount of blockstun on his assist will give any point that's lacking strong mixups a big boost in ways to open their opponent up. His kit allows him to not be as reliant on two assists, so he’s pretty well off with just one. His faster raw tag is pretty good as a defensive option as well.
As an anchor, Roshi would do well but might get overwhelmed. He can close off many areas of the screen and has great damage due to his loops (with limit break, getting looped could be a serious problem). He has his armor point for when situations get really bad, and enough gimmicks to keep opponents on their toes.
5. Does he have any weakness?
There’s no such thing as a character without weakness. It's the reason why boss characters, after they’re unlocked, are objectively worse than when you faced them. Everything needs balance. Roshi has been buffed up because they took away his Superdash but, no matter how you spice it, it’s still a weakness. In scramble situations, it might be a bit tougher to position yourself as Roshi and you might get hit with one of the staple superdashes that makes Dragonball so great.
Roshi can’t float either, which makes his landing and trajectory a little more predictable. Players with strong neutral will not be as overwhelmed by Roshi as the players that rush in. The meta is always changing though, so who knows if those weaknesses will have solid counter-play. Roshi looks very interesting and is a breath of fresh air to many players. He is a lot of fun, and you will have to learn the matchup, but now you know everything you need to get out there and try him out!
