Analysis #7: Mobility

Analysis #7: Mobile Attacks in Street Fighter: The Storytelling Game

This is a simple comparative analysis of mobile attacks, by which I mean all attacks with a Movement modifier of +1 or higher, in Street Fighter: The Storytelling Game. This comparison limits itself only to the special maneuver listed in the core book, in their original forms.

Here they are in summary format:

Name	Cost	Spd	Dmg	Mv	Effects
Punch
Spinning Back Fist	-	-1	+2	+1
Spinning Knuckle	w	-1	+1 x2	+3	Dodge
Dashing Punch	w	+0	+4	+2
Dashing Uppercut	w	+0	+4	+2	KDA
Kick
Air Hurricane Kick	w, c	-1	-1	+1	Air, KB/hit, Hit-Mv-Hit
Slide Kick	-	-1	+3	+1	KD
Stepping Front Kick	w	+0	+1 x2	+1	1^st hit In-hex, KB
Double Dread Kick	w	-2	+1, +4	+1	2 Hit, KB/Hit, Hit-Mv-Hit
Grab
Siberian Bear Crusher	w	+0	+3	+1	KD, 3 hex Air, end in next hex
Athletics
Diving Hawk	w	+0	+5	+2	Air, in-hex
Flying Head Butt	w	+0	+4	+3	Air, Straight
Beast Roll	w	+0	+3	-2/+2	Air, in-hex, away-hit-to-hit
Cannon Drill	w	+2	+2	+2
Drunken Monkey Roll	-	+3	No	+2	Crouch, Dodge
Movement	-	+3	No	+3
Wall Spring	-	+2	No	+0/+2	Air, Dodge, use w/ basic
Rolling Attack	w	+0	+3	+4	Straight, bounce back 2
Flying Body Spear	w	+0	+3	+1	Air, straight
Flying Heel Stomp	w	+0	+1	+2	Air, Move-Hit-Move

Rolling Attack is the highest move attack in the game, followed by Spinning Knuckle. Rolling Attack is in the unique position of being the only maneuver in the core rulebook that has a movement that is higher than the “Movement” special maneuver. Both Rolling Attack and Spinning Knuckle have other advantages in addition to high movement scores—Rolling Attack “bounces” the character back two hexes after dealing damage, making it safer than a number of maneuvers that don’t cost Willpower. It also does decent damage, and does so at a good speed. Spinning Knuckle hits twice and dodges Projectiles, a nice effect that would be more effective if projectiles in the RPG were effective (but that’s for another analysis).

Spinning Back Fist and Slide Kick are distinguished as the only core maneuvers that have good movement (+1) at no cost in Willpower. Every other damaging maneuver with +1 or better movement costs Willpower. Slide Kick is easily the stronger of the two. It is just as fast, does more damage, and causes Knock Down. In addition, it is not technically a Crouching maneuver (this must have been an error on their part…), so it also hits aerial opponents in its current form.

Siberian Bear Crusher is unique as the only Grab in the core rules with a good (+1 or greater) Movement. And it has a respectable Speed and Damage as well! Too bad big slow wrestlers are so… slow.

Now for some maneuvers from Secrets of the Shadoloo and the Storyteller’s Screen:

Name	Cost	Spd	Dmg	Mv	Effects
Punch
Lunging Punch (screen)	-	+0	+1	+1	Crouching
Kick
Scissor Kick	w	+0	+3 x2	+3	Air
Grab
Flying Tackle (Screen)	-	-1	+0	+2	Fly back 2 hexes, KD, +2 Spd to Grab next turn
Athletics
Backflip	w	+3	No	+2	Straight, Away, cannot be hit
Flying Punch	W	-2	+2	+5	Dive, move 2 past then return to attack, vs. ½ Stamina (round down), -1 Honor
Focus
Psycho Crusher	2 c	-1	+5 / 1	+6	KD, KB to side, 1 DMG plus KB to blocking opponent

Scissor Kick and Flying Tackle—both powerful moves in their on rights. Scissor Kick hits fast, hits hard (twice!), and moves far. It might be the most damaging multiple hit maneuver in the game, assuming the opponent blocks. Double Dread Kick, its only real competitor for moving far and doing a lot of damage, is weak by comparison—it is much slower and doesn’t move as far.

Flying Punch and Psycho Crusher are the champions of high movement in the game. At +5 and +6 respectively, they let you go anywhere on the field. There’s no running away from them. Of course, Psycho Crusher is not particularly useful against blocking opponents, and Flying Punch has weird rules about how the movement must be used (move past the opponent—two hexes, then move back to them—two more hexes, for a grand total of 4 hexes of movement spent for nothing).