Make Your Move 27: Jamcon 3 reading period! Seras Victoria, Arum, Charon, The President, Yggdroid

[Katapultar]

Spoiler: Gato

What a Kat Day choice! I know you’ve been big on making Gato for a while, which I really love as a parallel to my Hotaru set from MYM23. Gato’s mechanics naturally derive from Terry and Hotaru herself - the latter makes perfect sense as a parallel set, and because Garou’s mechanics are way too cool to pass up. I actually opened my Hotaru set as a refresher to see what you did differently here - you have a much better grasp on the T.O.P sound effects and visuals from Garou than I did, and the idea of making the highest-damage T.O.P last indefinitely past 150% instead of 200% was a smart choice (especially when Gato is heavier than Hotaru). I also forgot that Hotaru took chip damage from shielding in exchange for having a more durable shield, which is also present in this set. A good way to be reminded of it! It’s also funny that Gato’s Just Defend mechanic has double the wordcount of Hotaru’s despite being almost identical. Few sets have given me déjà vu quite like this one.

Of course, Hotaru and Gato have vastly different FG movesets, so of course their MYM sets are going to be different! For one, Gato eschews the Shoto fireball for a melee-based combo/pressure tool that would be outright bad without his FG cancel mechanics. I’m a fan of EX Piercing Fang’s crumple dealing progressively higher hitstun the higher stage of T.O.P Gato is in, where risking the 150%+ mark practically gets Gato a kill confirm if he lands it. Was always interested in seeing other sets do the T.O.P mechanic after Hotaru, and this is a good example of a set taking an identical concept and executing it in ways the original didn’t.

Meanwhile, Side Special is a relatively customizable rekka with some mindgame aspects built in, Gato’s sheer options between the two reminding me of Black Polnareff’s Neutral Special. Very happy to see the Swift Fang option reference the Back Air input and give Gato an easier way to input one in 1v1 matches. The Swift Fang options in general were more appealing, with a burst movement, command grab, counter and fake-out option that can all juke out various enemy reactions and better contributes to the move’s mindgame potential. Oh, and I’m fond of EX Counterattack Fang’s invisible wall-bouncing effect, not dissimilar to one of Hotaru’s throws (or MYM22 Hugo, from whom I took the effect from).

Definitely like the dynamic of Gato’s EX Up Special being a brutal OoS option (especially in the corner) in exchange for being punishable on whiff and needing a command input to be done, which would technically make it “slower” to perform than its frame 3-ness would suggest. I imagine that attempting a →↓ while you’re shielding would cause the player to roll, unless you hold B so you move your shield around and don’t roll or spot dodge. Anyway, I like that Gato’s Down Special is a defensive parallel to Hotaru’s Down Special, and that it’s a counter that only works if the upper-half of your body is attacked! It reminds me of Kasumi Todoh from the Art of Fighting and KOF games. Also happy to see an FG charge-style input for the first time in a while. A simple Special compared to Side Special, but it synergizes well with Gato’s conditioning and making opponents more predictable so you can parry their attacks and go for more Just Defends.

The contrast between Hotaru and Gato’s supers - the former works better when you’re cornered, the latter when you have your opponent cornered - absolutely rocks, and fits their respective personalities perfectly. I also like that Gato’s T.O.P attacks/Supers are all short-ranged attacks that can be hard to land even when he can cancel into them, so it’s like they’re these big super overwhelming neutral options - he has to actually earn them. Oh, and the non-Specials splitting up cancel options between bullet points like Hotaru is convenient and a nice throwback, helping to tie together the implications of canceling. The Smashes are relatively simple and have a degree of application overlap with the Specials, but this is to be expected from an FGC martial artist like this. U-tilt might be my favourite among Gato’s standards, as its short-range/low knockback combo synergizes well with special-cancels and even being able to mix in your Down Special counter to catch out opponents.

Gato’s Aerials are more on the simple side, but refreshingly so and have their uses. N-air is quick and designed to segue into Gato’s ground game, F-air is an anti-shield option to go with Swift Fang, and B-air is interestingly a multi-hitting move much like Hotaru’s B-air was (and used to great effect with special canceling here). Wasn’t expecting Gato’s Forward Throw to pull an A.B.A and get all MYM’y with a status effect.

All and all, Gato did not disappoint, and I was happy to read a set that revisited old concepts - it was a bit like taking a trip back to MYM22/23. I’d say Gato is similar to A.B.A where his potential is constrained by having to play close to his source material, making him somewhat lower than your top entries this contest that have stronger concepts. I feel a bit bad for saying such when you were fond of Hotaru and I can’t fully return the same reception for Gato, but execution-wise I couldn’t ask for a better take on the character.

 

[SaltySuicune]

Oh hey, it's my MyMversary. Anyway; Obscure self-indulgent character from my childhood, GO!
Edit: I'm stupid and got the wrong date for my MyMversary, whoops lmao.

(Click on the picture to see the moveset)

Some people can't see the picture so follow this link if that's your case.
You ever hear animal names like "goblin shark" or "wolf spider" and take them literally? I think that's what happened here.​

 

[Katapultar]

Spoiler: Tigershark

• I’ve never heard of this franchise, but it does sound interesting from the way you describe it.
• Funny that we’ve had two movesets that involve interacting with Smash water, the other being Chapayev. I imagine that you obviously can’t dive beneath water surfaces for balance reasons, but all and all I don’t have an issue with the mechanic. It’s fun to see this kind of thing get mentioned when it’s easy to forget about swimming mechanics in Smash.
• I like the Dorsal Spikes mechanic of giving Tiger Shark a passive hitbox while he’s crouching. It’s funny, because it’s balanced out by Tiger Shark having such a wide hurtbox and the spikes not running down his entire back and tail. There is a lot of room for clarification though: the passive hitbox’s damage and knockback aren’t stated, thus we’re not given a grasp of its playstyle applications. I know Piranha Plant’s comparable passive hitbox deals some set upwards knockback, so you could just mention that if so and make it serve as a way to consistently start air combos.
• Tigershark’s Specials are decent, but they feel a bit basic and lacking in a solid hook like the Dorsal Spikes or a few of your previous sets. I think it comes down to them not having a lot of noted synergy.

• It’s a bit odd for a Jab to have i-frames in the service of being an out-of-shield combo breaker. It’s also a bit confusing when it’s stated to have “mid priority” in clashing with hitboxes, and I’m not sure whether the i-frames apply to Tigershark’s entire body or its hitboxes. If you’re wanting Jab to be a quick panic button for escaping pressure, I’d say to just make it a fast and reliable attack. As far as out-of-shield combo breakers go, you’d have to assign that to an Up Smash, Up Special or Aerial input. Up Smashes, Up Specials and Grabs are the only options that can be done out of shield without any delay - attempting to do anything else requires the user to drop their shield first, which takes 11 frames. It does mean that Jabs aren’t really the most efficient moves to use out-of-shield. I”m kind of rambling here, but it's a nice piece of Smash knowledge to know for setmaking.
• I like the dynamic of Tiger Shark’s dorsal fins having a powerful sweetspot for his Dash Attack. It sounds like something that would only hit an airborne opponent at the right time, which would thus make the hitbox well-earned. Tigershark has a bit of an anti-jump thing going with this and his Dorsal Spikes, and I think the set would be stronger if it acknowledged and made use of this.
• F-tilt has some funny cat trivia.
• Coming into N-air, I think this moveset can get a bit liberal with its intangibility frames. Moves like Terry’s Forward Tilt having i-frames is all good so the fighter doesn’t lose out against disjoints easily, but I think that N-air should have super armour rather than invincibility if it’s going to cover his entire body. I get that N-air i-frames are meant to serve as a combo breaker for such a big and wide character, but putting them on a Piranha Plant style N-air might be too effective. Maybe the super armour should just apply to early parts of the move?

A decent little set overall, but not as conceptually high as other sets you’ve done this contest, and I’d say there’s room for improvement in incorporating the Dorsal Spikes aspect into the set.

 

[Arctic Tern]

TIGERSHARK (Salty)

Tigershark is a speedy big-body heavyweight, which already appeals to me as a Bowser main and feels in line with the character from what is described of him. The shark aspect gets played with in the form of a unique water mechanic (funny how there are three sets where the character can’t drown) and its dorsal fins acting as a passive anti-footstool hitbox if it crouches. Specials are fairly basic, but I do like how SSpec serves as a mixup between a standard attack and a command grab that leads into Tigershark’s throws. The other moves are fairly simple, but they still fit with the hit and run style it’s meant to have, none of them have any “bad” aspects, and there are some standouts, such as DSmash moving him forward as an approaching option and DThrow being a pitfall throw. While I sadly have little to say compared to your last sets due to Tigershark being significantly simpler than them at its core, there’s just enough detail to it that I feel that it does match said sets in terms of quality - a nice improvement!

BYLETH (Tortoise)

This is easily one of the strangest remixes of a canon Smash character I’ve seen, not just remixing the set but the entire background lore behind them. Byleth here takes heavy inspiration from West African culture, which shows in their weapons being based on traditional weapons from said culture and the “weapon triangle” being reorganized so that the bow is the “main” weapon. The playstyle is much different as well, being a full on rushdown character instead of the mid-ranged powerhouse playstyle of canon Byleth. The Specials are the most interesting part, with DSpec altering Byleth’s moves that revolve around their club and turning it into a wall and NSpec being poisoned arrows that extend the foe’s grab hitbox if they get hit by them. USpec is also an interesting move, being a command grab where the direction the opponent is sent afterwards can be controlled, though it does irk me that the distance it takes Byleth isn’t stated.

While conceptually interesting, I do feel that the set gets a bit bland past the Specials. There are some highlights, like USmash creating a windbox and UTilt dealing downwards knockback to aerial foes, but several of them have barely any uses listed in the tips section. Byleth’s DSpec changing their down moves to hand-to-hand is neat as an idea, but all of them except DSpec itself and DThrow don’t specify how they’re changed; it’d be neat if they became faster combo starters to take advantage of the closed off space the club creates. I also have to note that several attacks have wind effects, but there’s no justification for wind powers in the background lore - it may be present in the original game or actual African folklore, but if there is it isn’t stated. Ultimately, this interpretation of Byleth leaves plenty to be desired as an actual set, but still isn’t outright bad, and in any case does provide an interesting idea of remixes of Smash characters that are more reinterpretations than true “remixes”.

Link to full comment repository here!

 

[GolisoPower]

Eat Your Heart Out, Carmilla
Seras Victoria by Arctic Tern

Starting the Treasure JamCon is Seras Victoria, a fun little set that not only gives a pretty good first entry for this mini-contest but also sort of compliments Alucard pretty well. In a way, she's like a simpler, more casual-friendly take on her master, taking what Alucard knows and adding her own twist to it. As opposed to the twin hand-cannons he has, Seras packs what pretty much amounts to a tank cannon only a vampire like her could handle. As opposed to the rapid fire, she has an aimable super-burst of damage per trigger pull. Her kit can be super-buffed using a Blood Rage status effect that's triggered on counter, buffing her damage output and movement to levels that she could kill easily. One move it gets benefit from DSpec is Side Special, a Ridley-esque ground-drag that easily builds up damage on use and setting them up for a snipe with the Harkonnen. You just know I'm going to use this a lot. And lastly is her flight with Up Special, sacrificing the multihit capability of Alucard's for an easier-to-use and harder-to-punish recovery move. Those come together in...I suppose you could say an Alucard who's been respec'd to a different role. Her normals are a unique blend of her arsenal and her vampire abilities, with shadow-arm stabs and Vladimir shots galore that play into her general character throughout the Hellsing story and allude to the treasured bond she has with her master by emulating some of his abilities to certain degrees. Overall, I enjoyed your Police Girl set, was a joy to read overall. Nice work, Tern!

 

[TortoiseNotTurtle]

Hey, Tort here from a long hiatus. This may be the last traditional moveset I ever do, but I've been working on something rather interesting for a while that takes a much less traditional approach.

This time I rework Byleth's smash moveset with a new context where I ask the question...

What if Fire Emblem Three Houses' setting was based on Sub-Saharan Africa?

 

[Katapultar]

Spoiler: Byleth

The top of the doc states the moveset is incomplete at the moment, but I’m treating it like a completed submission because it’s been posted to Smashboards.

This is a bizarre rendition, much like your Bowser set this contest but not quite the same - more of a serious Byleth remix that reimagines the character in a different culture. It’s an odd experience for sure, a character that’s both familiar and not familiar. The set kind of feels like an OC, and I do like the characterization the set establishes on the taunts right from the start. I wonder if it would be worth showing pictures of the African weapons that replace the axe and the spear?

• Down Special is… quite the move! The aerial version is very similar to Falcon Kick, with some hefty downwards knockback that may be overtuned, but the grounded version gets into some crazy MYM’ian territory. It feels weird for a Fire Emblem character to punch and kick people as a primary means of attacking (it reminds me of a… strange Chrom moveset we got in MYM16), but it feels more acceptable here since this is technically a different Byleth. The idea of a Byleth style set (different weapons for different directional inputs) where you can set one of your weapons down as a trap is great, but it feels like there should be some counterplay for opponents. The trap as-is is pretty strong, able to hit opponents multiple times throughout its life, and opponents have no way to get rid of it except to wait out its very long (30 second) timer or if Byleth chooses to take it back. It could be something as simple as letting the foe break the weapon, where its destruction leaves it on a cooldown.
• There isn’t as much meat to Side Special as there could be for a movement-based attack, but I am fond of its simple but effective interaction with Down Special - setting down your sword and moving into it with Side Special to enhance your attack and gain armour. With such a powerful option, I believe that the lag of grounded Down Special should be mentioned, so readers actually know how much time Byleth has to commit when they set down their sword.
• Neutral Special packs another interaction with Down Special, while also having an interesting grab interaction that helps to cement Byleth’s brutal efficiency as a fighter.
• I like some of the more melee-based applications of Up Special.
• That’s some very cool artwork (below Up Special)

• I can see how a number of the non-Specials are incomplete, as they’re missing their damage percents, though that surprisingly doesn’t hold it back for me much.
• A number of the non-Specials are pretty basic, like Dash Attack, but I like how U-tilt deals upwards knockback from the front and downwards knockback at the back. Also feels like F-tilt has a potentially interesting dynamic, since the initial palm thrust would technically have shorter range than the spear that follows. Palm thrust is mentioned to come out on frame 6, but the move doesn’t specify when the spear hits.
• D-tilt doesn't mention how the move changes when Byleth’s sword is in the ground, along with D-Smash. I assume this is a work in progress.
• I like U-Smash’s suction effect, even if it’s presumably minor.
• This might seem petty, but I’m not too big on throw animations that make your opponent attack for flavour-based purposes. It’s something that some really old MYM sets did. I’d prefer it if Byleth just did the animation as-is and opponents didn’t try to attack. Probably the kind of counter-based characterization you could implement through Byleth’s rolls.

A fun little set with a cool idea, overall, but one that has to yet reach its full potential.