Character Exploration Thread - Day 79: Axel Stone (Streets of Rage)

[GolisoPower]

To my understanding, Warframe has a lot of emphasis on mobility after devs discovered an exploit playtesters were using to move faster, would it be safe to assume this exploit turned mechanic would be in Smash?

I genuinely did not know this. But yeah, this would definitely be a given for a Warframe moveset.

 

[SharkLord]

ahemtoday let's move over, hopefully on time this time.

 

[ahemtoday]

You got it, boss!

Spoiler

Gengar84 x15 (20 Total)
GolisoPower x35 (40 Total)
Eldrake x5 (10 Total)
amageish x10 (15 Total)
Rie Sonomura x5 (10 Total)
Cutie Gwen x5 (10 Total)
cashregister9 x5 (10 Total)

 

[SharkLord]

Ah, it seems we have a new schedule. Seems we're waiting on amageish to post the current noms list, though.

 

[Perkilator]

Noms:
Sakura Shinguji x5

 

[amageish]

Sorry, I didn't want to risk posting the list before noms came in on the day, as things are very, uh, tie-ready right now.

Here's the list though! I guess we shall begin chatting about Astral Chain?

Spoiler: The Noms List

50+ noms
Astral Chain rep - x110
Illidan Stormrage - x90
Zoe - x85
Aether/Lumine/The-Traveler (Genshin Impact MC) - x80
Hat Kid - x80
Ryza - x80
Gordon Freeman - x75
Filia (Skullgirls) - x70
Laharl - x70
Hearthstone Innkeeper - x65
Octoling - x65
Black Mage - x60
Axel Stone - x60
Heavy - x60
Sakura Shinguji - x60
Saber - x55
Chibi-Robo - x55
Ichiban - x55
Shovel Knight - x55

26-50 noms
Fulgore - x50
Bubsy - x50
Isaac (Golden Sun) - x50
Estelle Bright - x45
Endo Mamoru - x45
Madeleine - x40
2B - x40
Wilfre - x30
Wadanohara* - x30
Zero Escape Rep - x30
Sly Cooper - x28
Trauma Center Content - x27

11-25 noms
Rivals of Aether rep - x25
Chun-Li - x25
Klonoa - x25
Meowth - x25
Rintarou Okabe - x25
Master Hand - x20
Mega Man X - x20
Morrigan - x20
Geolyte (Meteos) - x15
Brian - x15
Ori - x15


5-10 noms
Ryu Hayabusa - x10
Crypto - x10
Daitoryo - x10
Gunvolt - x10
Darkest Dungeon Content - x10
Frogger - x5
Jonesy - x5
Ezio - x5
9-volt - x5
Nathan Drake - x5
Spyro the Dragon - x3
Tracer - x3
Chell - x3

 

[GolisoPower]

Noms:
Rintarou Okabe x10
Geolyte x10
Doom Slayer x10
Saber x10

 

[Rie Sonomura]

First off, music. We ABSOLUTELY NEED SAVIOR THIS IS NOT UP FOR DEBATE.

nominations:
Ori x5
Octoling x5

 

[Cutie Gwen]

The weapons in AC change constantly iirc, what would be the most realistic way to handle weapons? I can imagine Smash absolutely going in on a puppet fighter theming, how would you control this? Would you be able to change the Legion's form midcombat? What would happen if hit the Legion? The tethering mechanic is important in the source game but would it still work in a 2D plane and if so, how?

 

[GolisoPower]

The weapons in AC change constantly iirc, what would be the most realistic way to handle weapons? I can imagine Smash absolutely going in on a puppet fighter theming, how would you control this? Would you be able to change the Legion's form midcombat? What would happen if hit the Legion? The tethering mechanic is important in the source game but would it still work in a 2D plane and if so, how?

I'd imagine the X-Baton transforming based on the power of a move. Like, Neutral Attack/Neutral Aerial would be the X-Blaster, tilts would be the X-Baton, and X-Gladius would be reserved for Smash attacks.

As for Legion swapping, that's a tough one. It's be difficult to have a swap system without causing the game to crap itself, as explained when Sakurai was trying to make Rex. I could also see the Legion meter being its health bar instead of a limited summon.

As for controlling the big guy, I'd imagine Neutral B being just changing control from Officer Howard to the Legion, giving you an entirely different set of Specials to work with.

Tethering, meanwhile, is kinda difficult to pin down. You're right, it's really important, but I could actually see it being a Legion Special where it yanks the chain and reels Officer Howard towards it. And the Chain Bind could easily be a grab animation, tbh.

 

[Rie Sonomura]

Would they be called Akira, Officer Howard, or Legionis?

inb4 we get the villain before the hero and it’s Jena Anderson. Kazuya’s been both hero and villain so he’s in a bit of a gray area

 

[GolisoPower]

Would they be called Akira, Officer Howard, or Legionis?

inb4 we get the villain before the hero and it’s Jena Anderson. Kazuya’s been both hero and villain so he’s in a bit of a gray area

I'd call them Officer Howard since Akira's always the gender you don't pick for the game. Legionis sounds badass, though, now you've got me torn.

 

[amageish]

While I get there would be technical issues to overcome, Astral Chain could provide a great new opportunity to try a new variation on the puppet fighter archetype. Definitely a lot of possiblities with how they'd work. I could see sticking to one legion, or maybe just having different legion pop up for different sets of moves if possible - there's a legion for Smash attacks, for specials, etc.

Would they be called Akira, Officer Howard, or Legionis?

inb4 we get the villain before the hero and it’s Jena Anderson. Kazuya’s been both hero and villain so he’s in a bit of a gray area

It'd be kind of cool/funny if they had a unique thing where, when playing with multiple players, the first person who selects the AC protagonist is named "Officer Howard" and the second one is named "Akira"...

 

[Eldrake]

Noms: x10 to Ryu Hayabusa.

As someone who haven't played Astral Chain, I can't really talk confidently about what it'd bring, but it seems that everyone agrees that the player character would be a puppet fighter, which could be cool.

So I can only contribute with a question; what would their stage be?

 

[GolisoPower]

So I can only contribute with a question; what would their stage be?

This is a great question. There are three candidates that come off the top of my head:

District-09: The quarantine zone of the game and home to the Hermits, a hacker organization in the game. District-09 is a very plot-important part of the game for good reasons I won't spoil.

Neuron HQ: The hub world of the game. Neuron HQ is home to a very quirky cast of characters ranging from the chipper Marie Wentz to the sisterly operator Olive Espinosa.

Astral Plane: The home of the Chimeras and another plot important area, one you visit VERY often.

 

[amageish]

So I can only contribute with a question; what would their stage be?

I think you could easily do a travelling stage for AC, simply named "The Ark" after the city it takes place in. You move around a lot in the game and I think going broad may be the best choice here...

 

[Schnee117]

The Legion is something you can activate and deactivate at will, I could see them working kinda like Stands did in Heritage for the Future where a button summons them and they can attack alongside you whilst also having moves that summon them whilst attacking, you could also take the Persona 4 Arena approach which is essentially just the latter but they don't stick around which is an approach to take if for whatever reason there's technical problems.

The chain can also be used to limit a foe's movement but you'd need some way of directing the Legion's movement, maybe you wouldn't be able to use right stick tilts for Smash Attacks when Legion is out whilst doing them whilst it isn't active is a way to do both a Smash Attack and Summon them.

Howard also has an install state that's unlocked rather late into the game where they fuse with their Legion. This requires a bar that you fill by attacking enemies and can take a while to fill, though doing sync attacks fills it quicker. This state lasts for 20 seconds but can last a bit longer if you deal damage, which also heals you slightly, on the other hand dodging and taking hits decreases Fusion time. You also get a new moveset to use with claw strikes, a shockwave, a lunge, shooting energy from the claws and a new dodge at the expense of everything else you can do in regular gameplay.

This could either be used in a Final Smash if they opt for a Puppet Fighter or it can be used as a part of the regular moveset if they don't take the Puppet Fighter approach, having both might be too much for Smash.

In true Clover/Platinum fashion, there's an abundance of moves and ideas to draw from that you could make quite a few almost completely different movesets

 

[Perkilator]

Wasn't there something you needed to to that replaced the jump button? I could see that as an up special.

 

[SharkLord]

Would they be called Akira, Officer Howard, or Legionis?

inb4 we get the villain before the hero and it’s Jena Anderson. Kazuya’s been both hero and villain so he’s in a bit of a gray area

Each alt uses one of the eight randomly generated names (Four for the male, four for the female)

Speaking seriously, I'd say Legionis. Fits in with other avatars without canonical names, like Pokemon Trainer and Villager.

 

[Schnee117]

For music beyond Savior (which wasn't even linked beforehand):

Dark Hero - Female version
Task Force Neuron
Legion Assault
Jena Anderson
Noah Prime
The Answer
Emergency
Ark Mall (Combat Phase)
Hermit Training
Invaders from Another World
Astral Plane
Jena -Rebellion and Salvation-
Holy Order of the Digital Hermit
Madness
Astral Plane (Combat Phase)

 

[Gengar84]

I beat Astral Chain and I thought it was a ton of fun. The obvious choice for a playable character would be Akira Howard but how would everyone feel if we got Jena Anderson instead if Akira wasn’t able to work for similar reasons to Rex? I would love either but I’m probably one of the few people who actually prefers Jena. I just think her design is awesome and would make for a really cool moveset in her own way.

x20 Fulgore

 

[Dan Quixote]

First of all, someone sell me on Astral Chain because it looks cool and I've been thinking about buying it for over a year now.

Okay as for the real question, I got two of them. Simpler one first; what would be the officer's alternate costumes? The character designs in AC can get pretty colorful from what I've seen, so referencing those would probably look nice. And would the Legion itself also change colors with every costume?

The other question is that I've seen plenty of content on how the Legion would fight on behalf of the officer as a sort of puppet fighter mechanic, but how would Howard themselves fight? Is there any cool abilities they can use alone or is it going to be an Ice Climbers situation?

(5 noms to Black Mage too)

 

[Gengar84]

First of all, someone sell me on Astral Chain because it looks cool and I've been thinking about buying it for over a year now.

Okay as for the real question, I got two of them. Simpler one first; what would be the officer's alternate costumes? The character designs in AC can get pretty colorful from what I've seen, so referencing those would probably look nice. And would the Legion itself also change colors with every costume?

The other question is that I've seen plenty of content on how the Legion would fight on behalf of the officer as a sort of puppet fighter mechanic, but how would Howard themselves fight? Is there any cool abilities they can use alone or is it going to be an Ice Climbers situation?

(5 noms to Black Mage too)

Akira can fight on his/her own using a baton that can transform into different weapons. It can become a greatsword for heavy attacks, a gun for ranged attacks, and a baton for light melee attacks. They can also summon various Legions that they can control from an energy chain. There are cool combo attacks you can do with them like wrapping the chain around an enemy to freeze it in place or using the chain to launch yourself into an enemy or for platforming.

As far as outfits go, there is one particular alternate costume I would love to see for Akira Howard but it is a bit of a story spoiler.

Spoiler

The Raven armor you get towards the end of the game is awesome but it does have some story spoiler implications but Sakurai doesn't tend to care much about that.

 

[SharkLord]

Quick note: The MC isn't actually Akira. Akira is the twin that you didn't choose, and never actually gets all five Legions. Chances are they'll be called Officer Howard or Legionis instead to avoid confusion.

 

[Gengar84]

Quick note: The MC isn't actually Akira. Akira is the twin that you didn't choose, and never actually gets all five Legions. Chances are they'll be called Officer Howard or Legionis instead to avoid confusion.

I always thought that was kind of dumb to be honest. Both the male and female protagonists are called Akira at some point so I see that as their canon names. I think they just never mention the name of the player character. I see it kind of like Tidus in Final Fantasy X. It feels wrong to just call them “Officer Howard” when they have an actual name. Besides, Smash could just use the non-player character if it matters that much.

 

[Eldrake]

Quick note: The MC isn't actually Akira. Akira is the twin that you didn't choose, and never actually gets all five Legions. Chances are they'll be called Officer Howard or Legionis instead to avoid confusion.

Oh wow, yeah I can see that being a potentially confusing mixup for us folks who haven't played Astral Chain,, especially those of us who has seen the player character being called just Akira and assumed that's the "canon" name.

 

[Adrianette Bromide]

Oh wow, yeah I can see that being a potentially confusing mixup for us folks who haven't played Astral Chain,, especially those of us who has seen the player character being called just Akira and assumed that's the "canon" name.

That's something that could be cleared up in a Sakurai Presents. Not that everybody will remember but it is what it is.

 

[Gengar84]

Oh wow, yeah I can see that being a potentially confusing mixup for us folks who haven't played Astral Chain,, especially those of us who has seen the player character being called just Akira and assumed that's the "canon" name.

Lol yeah, I actually beat the game and I still call the main character Akira but I can understand why others would want to refer to them as “Officer”. It is a very unique situation. In my mind, male and female characters are both named Akira and they just don’t say the name of the player character.

 

[airConditioner]

Wasn't there something you needed to to that replaced the jump button? I could see that as an up special.

Are you talking about the chain jump? Astral Chain is pretty grounded but Chain Jumps are used as a way to get around across pits pretty quickly as well as how your player recovers from falling into pits.

 

[amageish]

Important Mechanical Suggestion: You know the New Donk City Stage has a mechanic where you can pick up different band members as you continue to play on the stage? Can we have that for an AC stage, but with collecting cats? In reference to AC having collectable... cats.

 

[Perkilator]

Are you talking about the chain jump? Astral Chain is pretty grounded but Chain Jumps are used as a way to get around across pits pretty quickly as well as how your player recovers from falling into pits.

Yeah, chain jump! That’d make a great recovery.

 

[airConditioner]

Stats​

Both Officer Howards stand at 5 feet 7 inches in their base game, though the male Legionis stands slightly taller at 171 cm compared to the female’s 169 cm. This will make them as tall as other 5’7” characters Robin and Shulk. They will have a shared weight stat of 103, making them the same weight as Ryu and Ken. This will mean that they are middle-heavyweights. Officer Howard will have a speed value of 0.884, putting them between Wario and Snake’s speeds and making them a slower character. Their air speed value will be 1.134, same as Ike, R.O.B. and Bowser Jr. to represent their more grounded gameplay in Astral Chain.

Gimmick: Legion​

One of the key gameplay elements of Astral Chain is the focus on controlling two characters at once for combat. This is achieved via Officer Howard’s Legion, of which there are 5 types. When the Legion is deployed, it will move to where the player directs it to, so long as it is within the limits of the Astral Chain. It will then attack any enemies nearby. The 5 types of Legion are Sword, Arrow, Arm, Beast, and Axe. Each type has specific purposes, of which the skilled use of is necessary to make it pass through hordes of enemies. The Sword Legion focuses on balanced attack, the Arrow Legion long distance damage, Arm trapping, Beast evasiveness, and Axe defense. However, though useful the Legion is, it will automatically go away if the Limiter Gauge is decreased. The player can call the Legion back any time to prevent the Limiter Gauge from dropping too quickly, however. Aside from being used as the player’s other attack option, the Legion also powers up attacks, known as Sync Attacks, which are indicated with a flash of blue light. These trigger after calling in the Legion at the right moment, combos, and key story moments. Similarly to Joker, Officer Howard’s appearance will change when the Legion is out for any attack. Their hair will turn blue and marks will appear on their face. Thus, the Legion is a powerful tool that sets Officer Howard apart from many other characters within the same genre.

In Smash, Legions will have the same purpose - attacking from a distance and serving to control the crowd. Officer Howard will be able to summon, call back, and move their Legion freely so long as their Limiter Gauge is filled enough. This Limiter Gauge will be on the side of Officer Howard’s damage display, and will change color as it depletes. When it is full, the Limiter Gauge will appear blue. Once it reaches ⅔, it will turn yellow, and then red at ⅓. The player can summon the Legion at any point during the yellow and blue phases. This Limiter Gauge will deplete automatically as long as the Legion is out (save for any special circumstances, which will be noted) and if the Legion is attacked. The Limiter Gauge will deplete in 8 seconds, for balance purposes. If it is completely emptied, it will take around 12 seconds to fill back up to its maximum. The Legion can move at the player’s leisure, as long as it is within the limits of the Astral Chain. By holding down the special button, the player can move the Legion to a distance of about a third of Final Destination. Any normal attacks that involve the Legion will recall the Legion towards Officer Howard.

Playstyle: Controlling the Crowd​

As a police officer, especially one tasked with dealing with extradimensional threats, Officer Howard must be able to effectively maintain control over their surroundings. This holds true in both the gameplay of Astral Chain and Smash. As such, much of their moveset will focus on making use of their Legion and the X-Baton weapon in order to create situations that force the opponent into a controllable state, such as zoning and trapping.

Normal Attacks
​

Attack	Name	Description	%
Neutral Attack	Baton Strike	Based on the default attack animation, Officer Howard swings the X-Baton to strike the opponent. A quick attack.	3
Rapid Jab	Baton Combo	Holding or rapidly tapping the attack button will cause Officer Howard to rapidly swing at the opponent with their X-Baton in Baton mode based on the Chain Bind to Sync Attack combo with the Sword Legion.	0.4 per hit
Forward Tilt	Assault Attack (Baton)	Officer Howard will jump a small distance forward while kicking and swing the baton at the same time. Based on the ↓↑ command input for the Baton.	6.8
Down Tilt	Blaster	Officer Howard aims their X-Baton in a downward direction and shoots 3 blasts. Does good damage against shields.	2 per hit
Up Tilt	Somersault	Does a somersault that launches upwards. Based on the somersault attack performed next to stunned enemies.	8%
Dash Attack	Assault Attack (Gladius)	Officer Howard will run forward, brandishing the Gladius. Does a decent amount of knockback. Based on the ↓↑ command input for the Gladius.	12%
Forward Smash	Gladius	Officer Howard uses the Gladius mode of the X-Baton to deal a powerful strike. They make a quick leap and then slash downwards. Based on the final strike of the Gladius combo.	17.3
Up Smash	Beast Tornado	Officer Howard will call the Beast Legion, which spins around in place above the officer. This will deal light damage initially, however, a large Tornado a bit smaller than Palutena’s Up Smash will then engulf the pair, dealing heavy knockback. Does not decrease the Legion Limiter Gauge.	2 (Beast) 18 (Tornado)
Down Smash	Axe Sweep	Officer Howard will call the Axe Legion, which spins its Axe across the ground. Based on the 360 command input for the Axe Legion. Does not decrease the Legion Limiter Gauge.	21
Neutral Aerial	Spin Attack (Blaster)	Officer Howard will do a flip and use their X-Baton in Blaster mode. They will shoot a round of energy shots, similar to Joker’s spinning gunshots.	1.2 per hit
Forward Aerial	Midair Combo (Baton)	A downward slash with the Baton. If the player continues to mash the attack button, the attack will chain into 4 more strikes (one per button press), finishing with a swing of the Baton. Difficult to land the final 4 hits, as the combo is not true.	9 (initial hit) 4 (subsequent hits)
Back Aerial	Delay Attack (Baton)	A quick strike of the Baton. Does considerable knockback. Based on the Delay input of ZR (delay) ZR	8.4
Up Aerial	Charge Attack (Blaster)	Officer Howard fires a charged energy shot upwards. Based on the Charge input for the Blaster.	7.2
Down Aerial	Gladius Swing	Officer Howard swings the Gladius in an arc downwards. If the sweetspot is hit (near the beginning of the swing, at the hilt), it will cause a meteor spike)	11.1 (14.3 sweetspot)

Grabs, Throws, and Get-Up Attacks
​

Attack	Name	Description	%
Grab	Chain Bind	Officer Howard sends the Sword Legion outwards, where it will loop around the enemy. If successful, the enemy is trapped in a chain bind. The Legion will disappear. Does not decrease the Legion Limiter Gauge.	-
Pummel	Baton	Officer Howard hits the opponent with the end of the baton.	1.2
Forward Throw	Charge Attack (Baton)	Officer Howard swipes once with the Baton, throws it, catches it, and then does a more powerful strike with the Baton.	9.5
Back Throw	Perfect Call Sync Attack (Arrow Legion)	Officer Howard throws the opponent backwards a short distance, then calls the Arrow Legion at the right moment to fire a powerful charged shot backwards. A kill throw. Based on a Sync Attack after calling the Arrow Legion right before an enemy’s attack.	13.6
Up Throw	Sword Assault	Officer Howard summons the Sword Legion, which does an uppercut with both of its arms. Based on the ↓↑ input for the Sword Legion.	7.9
Down Throw	Perfect Call Sync Attack (Arm Legion)	Officer Howard calls the Arm Legion at the right moment, where it slams a fist into the opponent, driving them into the ground. Buries. Based on a Sync Attack after calling the Arm Legion right before an enemy’s attack.	5
Ledge Attack	-	Officer Howard swipes the X-Baton at the opponent’s feet at the ledge.	6
Floor Attack	-	Officer Howard fires a few short blasts in both directions from the Blaster.	6

Special Attacks
​

Attack	Name	Description	%
Neutral Special	Summon Legion / Send Legion / Dismiss Legion	Lightly tapping the special button will call the Legion. The Limiter Gauge will begin to decrease. If the Legion is called in the air, it will fall along with Officer Howard. It can be moved as it is falling. Holding the button while moving the move button will move the Legion. The Legion is free to move on the ground while holding the button, though it cannot exceed the distance of the Astral Chain. Lightly tapping the special button again will dismiss the Legion. The Limiter Gauge will stop decreasing and begin to recharge.	-
Side Special	Legion Action	The current active Legion will perform its Legion Action. Every action will call it towards Officer Howard. Using this move without a Legion active will summon it to use the action and dismiss it right after. See the Legion section for actions.	varies
Up Special	Chain Jump	Officer Howard will send the Sword Legion out (regardless of which Legion is active or selected) and throw it a set distance. After it is thrown, it will pull Officer Howard towards it, Officer Howard dealing light damage as they fly towards their Legion. If used offstage, it will become a Tether Recovery.	8.4
Down Special	Legion Skill	The current active Legion will perform a set skill. Each action will decrease the Limiter Gauge by one bar, unless stated otherwise. Using this move without a Legion active will summon it to use the skill and dismiss it right after. See the Legion section for specific skills.	varies
Shield Special	Legion Switch	Officer Howard will switch Legions. Legions can be switched while active. Functions similarly to Monado Arts, where the player can either continuously tap the button for the Legion they want, or hold to choose Legion. The order will be Sword -> Arrow -> Arm -> Beast -> Axe. The selection menu will have that order clockwise. The currently selected Legion will have its icon displayed in the damage display. This selected Legion will be the one to be sent out if no Legion is currently active.	-

The Legion​

When the Legion is summoned with the special button, it will begin attacking enemies. It will do this automatically without input from the player. The Legion will stay in one place until it is moved with the special button or until it is dismissed either automatically or with the special button. As mentioned before, the Legion can be attacked, which will decrease the time it is allowed to stay out. The Legion will not be able to jump and if it is called in midair, it will descend a little slower than Officer Howard will. The Legion will not be able to attack as it is being moved.

​

Attack	Name	Description	%
Idle Attack	Sword Legion	The Sword Legion will do a series of three slashes. First with the right arm, then the left, then the right again.	2 per hit
Idle Attack	Arrow Legion	The Arrow Legion will fire shots at the enemy. These shots do light damage and no knockback.	.7 per hit
Idle Attack	Arm Legion	The Arm Legion will punch the enemy twice, then slam both fists into the ground.	3 (first two), 4.2 (third hit)
Idle Attack	Beast Legion	Swipes forward with its front claw.	6.1
Idle Attack	Axe Legion	The Axe Legion will swing its axe downwards.	7.5
Legion Action	Slash	The Sword Legion will slash upwards very quickly. The Legion will be dismissed after this move.	9.7
Legion Action	Precise Shooting	The Arrow Legion will fire a shot that can be aimed. The player can shoot as many as they like until the Limiter Gauge runs out. Increases the rate at which the Limiter Gauge decreases.	4.3 per shot
Legion Action	Fight as One	Officer Howard will wear the Arm Legion as armor, and be able to attack using it. Inputting side special again or dismissing the Legion will cancel the move. Officer Howard will only be able to do slow punches with a tap of the attack button or a fast barrage with mashing. Increases the rate at which the Limiter Gauge decreases.	8.7 (tap) 10.2 (held)
Legion Action	Riding the Beast Legion	Officer Howard will ride the Beast Legion, which will quickly dash in the direction the player is facing. It will not dash off platforms, unless it is midair. Can be used for horizontal recovery. The Legion will be dismissed after this move.	between 0.3% and 7.3 %
Legion Action	Energy Field	The Axe Legion will put up an energy field that surrounds both Legion and player. The field will negate all damage done to both, though it can be broken quite easily. This increases the rate at which the Limiter Gauge decreases.	-
Legion Skill	Round Sword	The Sword Legion will summon three small blades around itself that deal minor damage. Lasts about 3 seconds or until the Legion is dismissed, whichever comes first.	0.6 per hit
Legion Skill	Air Shot	The Arrow Legion will fire a rain of shots down along the Astral Chain.	4.2 per arrow
Legion Skill	Gravity Storm	The Arm Legion fires a gravity bomb that travels a short distance. Functions similar to the black hole bomb item. The gravity bomb will last a little less long than the item.​	-
Legion Skill	Howl	The Beast Legion will roar, stunning any enemies in a short radius for a short amount of time. The stun can be mashed out of.	-
Legion Skill	Crash Bomb	The Axe Legion places down a large pillar, which will explode if it is touched, similar to Snake’s C4 though much more visible.	22.1 (explosion)

(gifs from MELOO on youtube)

Final Smash

​

Attack	Name	Description	%
Final Smash	Legion Sync Attack Finish	Link to video. File 11 and final boss spoilers. (footage from NicoDCruz Game Collection on Youtube)​ A cutscene final smash. Officer Howard begins by riding the Beast Legion a short distance with the Gladius equipped. Anyone hit by this hitbox will be sent into the cutscene, based on the final combo against the true final boss of the game, though sped up to decrease time taken. It begins with Officer Howard dragging the opponent on the ground with the Gladius while the Beast Legion dashes forward, then the opponent is launched into the air, where Officer Howard summons and wears the Arm Legion to do a rapid flurry of punches. As the opponent is suspended in the air, the Arrow Legion fires a charged shot at the opponent. Officer Howard calls the Axe Legion to jump up and bring the enemy downwards with a slash. As the opponent is on the ground, Officer Howard and the Sword Legion perform a Chain Bind. This part will deviate from the cutscene and FILE 10 SPOILER Officer Howard will tear out the Legatus core and implant it into their heart, fusing officer and Legion and performing a final attack which ends the cutscene and launches the enemy.	49.8

Summary​

Overall, Officer Howard will be a character with variable range and high mobility. Although not too fast of a character, it is made up for with various movement options from the Legions, such as through Chain Jumps and Legion Skills. By mimicking the gameplay of Astral Chain, we are able to create a character who built upon the puppeteer archetype as well as expand upon zoning and trapping. This represents Officer Howard's playstyle in their base game as well as their occupation. The freedom of use for Legions allows the player to have vary strong stage control that is limited only by the length of the Astral Chain (which is already quite long.) However, despite their strengths, Officer Howard suffers a few weakness, namely their weight making them easy to combo as well as some attacks being difficult to land. As such, Officer Howard must have effective control over their Legion, movement options, and attacks to overcome their weaknesses.

Thanks for reading! (fun fact, my switch died as i was referencing the moves to write descriptions for)

Here's a moveset I made for the Astral Chain protagonist as part of our Smash Infinite thread (which you should definitely check out and join possibly), it's a bit unrefined as it was written at 1 in the morning in one sitting but it's how I would like to see them play.

 

[Idon]

The weapons in AC change constantly iirc, what would be the most realistic way to handle weapons? I can imagine Smash absolutely going in on a puppet fighter theming, how would you control this? Would you be able to change the Legion's form midcombat? What would happen if hit the Legion? The tethering mechanic is important in the source game but would it still work in a 2D plane and if so, how?

For the weapons, it'll be either be like Bayonetta where they just use one weapon to the fullest or Byleth where they spread the moveset around the 3 forms. I don't think there'll be weapon swapping as doing that would heavily alter their moveset, which involves a lot of work, especially concerning balance.

For the legion, I imagine it may work like a version of Luma that runs on meter or Peach's toad where they're naturally ingrained into the moveset. Either that or perhaps a variation on Joker's Arsene. I honestly highly doubt the likelihood of Astral Chain being able to swap for similar reasons to the X-baton not being full "swaps." Only this time even less likely considering there's the hardware issue of "8 of this thing on-screen at once."

Hitting the legion would most likely damage a "legion" meter as that's easily a core mechanic of the game that can be carried over.

Lasso'ing is probably just gonna be a tether grab if I'm being honest.

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Also, I made a moveset of my own so check that out if you want another interpretation,
I pretty quickly gave up on "including everything" that they could do so I just went simple: Baton form only, Sword Legion only.
It's similar in concept to Joker's Arsene but instead of focusing on simultaneous attacks, the Legion acts as a consecutive attack. Beyond that, their specials are also focused on all the aspects of what the Legion can do.

Spoiler: Miscellaneous Features

Introduction: Exit Gate
A portal from the astral plain opens up and the sword legion flies in from it. It then yanks the astral chain, pulling out Ofc. Howard, who readies to fight while putting away the sword legion.

Stance: Police Training
Does his default battle stance from the game.

Down Taunt: Legionis
Calls Legion and spirals the chain around himself in a stylish pose yelling "LEGION!"

Up Taunt: Respect
Salutes the enemy yelling before resuming battle stance.

16 Taunt 3
holds his Legatus up to his face, activating it briefly and making his eyes and hair go blue, exclaiming "YOU'RE UNDER ARREST"

1st Victory: Awakening
Leaps into frame with the Sword Legion and slashes downward in an X shape

2nd Victory: Legion Capture
Sends out Legion who who is flung around in a circle by their astral chain before settling behind Officer Howard.

3rd Victory: Case Accepted
Turns around and walks to the camera swiping by a "CASE ACCEPTED" hologram.

Victory Fanfare: Savior
Plays the first few notes of "Savior"

Spoiler: Defensive Moves

Shield: Axe Defense
Holds their legatus up.
N/A
With Legion active, the Sword Legion crosses its arms as the shield becomes a permanent full shield similar to Yoshi's egg and can only be broken and not shield poked.

Parry: Interception
Does a stylish pose that shows off the legatus

Sleeping: Vacation Day
Sits on the floor leaning on his knee while mumbling "5 more minutes..." During this time, a hologram will pop up saying that someone is calling them. If they manage to wake up in time, they'll act shocked, deny the call, and resume fighting.

Backroll: Backflip
Does a backflip backwards

Forward Roll: Cartwheel
Does a side roll forwards

Spot Dodge: Lean back
Does a little lean back

08 Dodge Air: Air Spin
Twists his body to dodge out of the way of attacks:

Get-up attack: AED defibrillator
Unleashes a shockwave from the AED, shocking Ofc. Howard back to life and pushing away any enemy close.

Tech: Legion Assist
Unique to Ofc. Howard, when they have their legion out, they are not only capable of teching in back, forward, and neutral, they can also tech upwards by launching themselves off their Sword legion

Spoiler: Specials

Neutral Special: Call Legion
Ofc. Howard holds up his Legatus and calls the Legion forth, modifying his entire moveset temporarily. It'll only last ~10 seconds before disippating and having to recharge for another 30 seconds. However, it can be turned on and off at will with almost zero lag. However, any turn off will burn the entire gauge and always force a recharge. A new spin on the "power boost" modes of Cloud and Joker. Moments of power must be chosen carefully and deliberately instead of just being hit and given the power.

While in this form, tendrils of blue will streak across Ofc. Howard's face, their eyes will glow blue, and so does their hair. On top of that, their X-baton gains a blocky digital appearance. He'll have blue light trails instead of white ones and any hit with the baton will have an "electric" effect which is purely superflous. Using the Raven costumes will instead make the effects red colored.

Also it has a single frame of invulnerability, which when activated, calls the legion out to immediately counter

Side Special: Send Legion
A multi-part special move that begins with Ofc. Howard sending out their legion a set distance along the same vein of Luma. However, instead of mimicking attacks, it will simply do a followup attack depending on which input is done next, similar to Marth's Dancing Blade.

Side Special; Up followup: Upperslash
Pressing Up and B will make the sword legion do an uppercut with his 2 blade arms, launching the enemy into the air.

Side Special; forward followup: Chain Jump
Pressing forward will have the sword legion yank the chain, pulling Howard forward while he does a flying knee. This also serves well as a recovery option and strikes anyone between the legion and Howard.

Side Special; backward followup: Triple Sword
Pressing back has the legion summon 3 swords that travel the length of the chain

Side Special; downward followup: Round Swords
Pressing down will summon a set of flying blades that hover around the legion which then dissipate when the legion does a spinning attack launching enemies up and away.

Regardless of the action, the Legion then returns to Howard.

Down Special: Slash Stance
A risky maneuver that instantly uses all of the legion gauge. Using it enters into a special stance wherein an additional attack button will make a vertical slice downwards. It doesn't do much damage or knockback, however if the opponent is doing any kind of attack while getting hit, they will automatically get shield broken. This attack is canceleable with shield, but it takes a while to deactivate, making it a risky all-or-nothing attack either way. pressing left or right will do a little repositional hop, but it has no invincibility, making it purely for spacing.

Up Special: Chain Recover
Throws legion into the air who flies up and then yanks Ofc. Howard towards themselves. As this move is vital in general smash gameplay, it is usable without any legion meter, however doing so, will cause 15% damage, punishing desperate recoveries and said feature is also accurate to the games.

Spoiler: Normals

Jab Combo: Baton Rush
Does a 3 hit combo consisting of an inwards baton swing, an outwards baton swing, and then a stab upwards.

With Legion active, an additional jab finisher is added wherein the legion does an uppercut slash that launches the opponent upwards.

Forward Tilt: Assault Attack
Launches themselves in a flying kick at the enemy.

With Legion active, it will do a kick side by side with Ofc. Howard.
N/A

Down Tilt: Disarming Sweep
Does a low sweep which sets the enemy up for a combo.
With legion active, a second input throws out the legion who spins across the floor in the z-axis, elongating the range of the sweep.

Up Tilt: Evasive Anti-air Combination
Does a high kick while balancing themselves with their hand before following up with an aerial dropkick. A bit of a difficult angle, but does a ton of damage and knockback.

With Legion active, the sword legion swings their arm blade up after the drop kick, following up with a powerful double upwards slash.

Dash Attack: Sliding Rush
Football slides into the enemy, going so fast as to create sparks across the ground.

With Legion active, the legion flies above and flies forward along spinning with its blades outstretched, increasing the vertical hitbox of the move as to not just hit the feet.

Spoiler: Smashes

Forward Smash: Charge Attack
Throws the X-baton up and catches it backhanded before rushing forward and doing a horizontal slash forwards.
Howard rushes towards the opponent at lightning speed so while the startup is high, the range and speed of the attack is unparalleled.
Due to how fast he rushes forward, he is completely invulnerable mid-slash and has little endlag after so punishes must be made before he catches the X-baton.

With legion active, the first part of the attack only stuns, while a new second part has been to the smash which involves him holding the baton normally and stabbing forward with Legion stabbing simultaneously. This version is much more powerful, combos from the first part, and launches at a lower angle making recoveries hard and kills early.

Down Smash: Gladiator Kick
Does a spinning axe kick that causes a shock wave on the ground, spiking opponenets hanging on ledge.
N/A
With Legion, the legion stabs the ground, causing an explosion and giving the move some AOE damage and hitting behind

Up Smash: Shine Kick
Does a flip kick. If hit with the front side of the attack, it will launch the opponent straight up. If hit at the apex, it will instead launch the enemy behind.

With legion active, the legion does a flip kick along with Ofc. Howard increasing the power of the attack.
N/A

Spoiler: Aerials

Neutral Aerial: Circular Kick
Does a spinning horizontal kick that hits front and then backwards. Slower than the average nair, but more powerful for it.

With Legion active, the legion stands upside down back to back with Ofc. Howard, completing the circle and making the attack hit both sides at once, twice.
N/A

Forward Aerial: Baton Barrage
Three part forward air which starts with a diagonal right to left down swing, diagonal left to right down swing, finished with a horizontal right to left swing, knocking opponents away.

With Legion active, he fills in the gaps between the attacks with his own attacks, making it truly a 6 hit aerial attack

Back Aerial: Hammer Kick
Ofc. Howard raises his foot over his head in a circular manner and slams his heel over the enemy, spiking them. It's quite a slow move, but that's where the legion comes in

With legion active, the legion does a vertical spin hitting the opponent twice locking them into position for the kick.

Down Aerial: Skull Smasher
Ofc. Howard raises the baton up and then rushes to the ground slamming it to the floor.
N/A
With Legion, the legion mirrors the action increasing its damage.

Up Aerial: Baton uppercut
Ofc. Howard backhands the X-Baton and does a short range upper slash with decent killing power.
N/A
With legion active, he repeats the action from the opposite direction increasing the power even further.

Spoiler: Throws

Grab: Judge
Reaches out with his off-baton hand.
N/A
With Legion active, the grab is enhanced into a tether where the Sword Legion rushes out and grabs the enemy, pulling them in, and binding them to the floor with the astral chains.

Pummel: Jury
Hits the opponent with the back of the baton like Link and the Master Sword
N/A
With Legion active, they are full baton swings mixed with the legion doing swings as well.

Up Throw: Executioner
Howard does a diagonal flip kick, knocking the opponent into the air.

With Legion active, the kick launches a set distance into the Legion who then does a bicycle kick, launching the opponent at an aggressive angle downwards horizontally, making it extremely difficult for most characters to recover, while also killing earlier if facing the right direction.

Forward Throw: Convict
Howard slashes away while jumping back.

With legion active, he will followup by throwing the legion forward via the chain which stabs the target.

Back Throw: Pardon
Leaps past and does a circular horizontal kick to the back of the enemy's head.

With legion active, the legion ducks under the kick and does a horizontal slash in the opposite direction.

Down Throw: Retrial
Ofc. Howard slams the opponent with the X-baton downwards, bouncing them up.

If Legion is active, the legion leaps over and slams the opponent again, bouncing them a second time.

Spoiler: Final Smash; WARNING SPOILERS

When Close: Prime Execution
The Sword Legion lets out a loud roar shockwave. Anyone hit is transported to the Astral Plain wherein Ofc. Howard does a complex combination attack featuring all the Legions that were not included. First Howard rides on the Beast Legion, impaling them on the Gladius X-Baton. Then he flips them up and calls forth the ARMS Legion which juggles the opponent in a flurry of punches. Afterwards, while the opponent is still in the air, Howard summons the Arrow Legion wherein they simultaneously shoot a light arrow at them. Then, the Axe Legion is summoned who slams the opponent back on the floor. Finally, he summons the original Sword legion who wraps the opponent up in the astral chain, finishing with a simultaneous stab, which inexplicably causes a giant explosion knocking them away

When Far: Legionic Fusion
If no one is near, Ofc. Howard instead rips out the legion core of the legatus and slams it into his chest, the core dissolving into his heart. This activates his fusion with the legion and transforms him into a giant beast that rushes forward in a flash of light slamming the first person or people with an uppercut claw slash that knocks them to the center of the stage wherein they are assaulted by a barrage of claw slashes, kicks, and energy blasts. When finished, the fusion claws them downwards, bouncing them off the floor of the stage, and into the sky above.

 

[amageish]

We have a major outbreak in sector 66; deploying Officer Noms List to help calm the situation!

Spoiler: The Noms List

50+ noms
Filia (Skullgirls) - x70
Laharl - x70
Octoling - x70
Fulgore - x70
Hearthstone Innkeeper - x65
Saber - x65
Sakura Shinguji - x65
Black Mage - x65
Axel Stone - x60
Heavy - x60
Chibi-Robo - x55
Ichiban - x55
Shovel Knight - x55
Madeleine - x55

26-50 noms
Bubsy - x50
Isaac (Golden Sun) - x50
Estelle Bright - x45
Endo Mamoru - x45
2B - x40
Rintarou Okabe - x35
Wilfre - x30
Wadanohara* - x30
Zero Escape Rep - x30
Sly Cooper - x28
Trauma Center Content - x27

11-25 noms
Rivals of Aether rep - x25
Chun-Li - x25
Klonoa - x25
Meowth - x25
Geolyte (Meteos) - x25
Ryu Hayabusa - x20
Master Hand - x20
Mega Man X - x20
Morrigan - x20
Ori - x20
Brian - x15


5-10 noms
Crypto - x10
Daitoryo - x10
Gunvolt - x10
Darkest Dungeon Content - x10
Doomguy - x10
Frogger - x5
Jonesy - x5
Ezio - x5
9-volt - x5
Nathan Drake - x5
Spyro the Dragon - x3
Tracer - x3
Chell - x3

Noms:
Rintarou Okabe x10
Geolyte x10
Aether/Lumine x10
Saber x10

Aether/Lumine are already locked into the schedule! Would you like to put your noms into someone else?

 

[Idon]

Have we brought up SMT yet? I'd love to talk about that stuff.

 

[GolisoPower]

Aether/Lumine are already locked into the schedule! Would you like to put your noms into someone else?

Done and done!

 

[Jocario Zero]

I beat Astral Chain and I thought it was a ton of fun. The obvious choice for a playable character would be Akira Howard but how would everyone feel if we got Jena Anderson instead if Akira wasn’t able to work for similar reasons to Rex? I would love either but I’m probably one of the few people who actually prefers Jena. I just think her design is awesome and would make for a really cool moveset in her own way.

x20 Fulgore

I definitely understand where you’re coming from, but I feel that having Jena as the sole rep for Astral Chain would be unfitting for a game that is all about doing combos and team attacks with your character and their partner. As a second character after we got Officer Howard? That's a different story and I wouldn't mind that all.

Anyway, to get to a possible moveset. Since Pyra and Mythra a lot of people feel that Office Howard could be too complicated to realize (which is understandable). But I feel if you simplify a few things, it could work more easily. What I mean is: Do something like Zelda with the phantom, Duckhunt with the gunmen or Bayonetta with her smash attacks: Focus on only one legion, have it appear in some attacks to do their thing in a "fixed way" and then let it disappear immediately.

For example:

B: Sword Legion appears, does the slash attack with Officer Howard and then disappears.

Side B: Sword Legion dashes forward with multiple attacks and disappears (imagine Zeldas phantom, but it does something similar to Sephiroths octoslash).

Up B: The chain jump. Sword legion appears, pulls Officer Howard upwards.

Down B: A counter. Officer Howard and the legion tie up the opponent in their chain, making them unable to move for a very brief time.

Maybe even have the legion appear for smash attacks.
I think something like that could still work while staying true to Astral Chains combat.

 

[Gengar84]

I definitely understand where you’re coming from, but I feel that having Jena as the sole rep for Astral Chain would be unfitting for a game that is all about doing combos and team attacks with your character and their partner. As a second character after we got Officer Howard? That's a different story and I wouldn't mind that all.

Anyway, to get to a possible moveset. Since Pyra and Mythra a lot of people feel that Office Howard could be too complicated to realize (which is understandable). But I feel if you simplify a few things, it could work more easily. What I mean is: Do something like Zelda with the phantom, Duckhunt with the gunmen or Bayonetta with her smash attacks: Focus on only one legion, have it appear in some attacks to do their thing in a "fixed way" and then let it disappear immediately.

For example:

B: Sword Legion appears, does the slash attack with Officer Howard and then disappears.

Side B: Sword Legion dashes forward with multiple attacks and disappears (imagine Zeldas phantom, but it does something similar to Sephiroths octoslash).

Up B: The chain jump. Sword legion appears, pulls Officer Howard upwards.

Down B: A counter. Officer Howard and the legion tie up the opponent in their chain, making them unable to move for a very brief time.

Maybe even have the legion appear for smash attacks.
I think something like that could still work while staying true to Astral Chains combat.

That totally makes sense and I agree it would feel weird to have the antagonist before the main character. How would everyone feel if we got Officer Howard along with a Jena Anderson boss but Jena appears as a playable fighter in the following game?

 

[SharkLord]

Regarding the moveset, I feel like the X-Baton and Legions would switch between moves automatically, like Byleth's weapons. Way to much to cram in a stance swap.

Personally, I feel like Astral Chain's less like controlling two characters and more like one and a half, if that makes sense. You can't control the Legion's basic attacks, and the Sync Attacks had them moving together. I think the Legions would be much like Arsense, but with the ability to follow up attacks with a Sync Attack at the cost of it being laggy and leaving you vulnerable.

Have we brought up SMT yet? I'd love to talk about that stuff.

Not yet; If you want you're free to start nominating it. You have five noms by default; By posting stuff related to a game's content (Movesets, stage concepts, etc.), you can gain more for the next character.

 

[Gengar84]

How about a classic mode? I’m not sure what has or hasn’t been done yet but a route against duo characters, avatars, or sci-fi characters like Xenoblade and Metroid could be cool.