Ed is the latest character to join the Street Fighter 6 roster, and he’s no slouch. With multiple special moves and unique attacks in his arsenal, he is a fierce foe to fight against. This article will cover how to deal with some of Ed’s strategies that players adopt. This article is essential to read if you want to return to the online ranks and defeat every Ed in your path.
Disclaimer: There will be notations I will use in this guide to describe specific attacks. If you find yourself confused at any of these points, use the guide below as a guidance:
Defeating Ed in Street Fighter 6 – Dealing With Charged and OD Psycho Flicker
Psycho Flicker is a quick flicker jab covered in Psycho Power. This special attack can hit straight or at an upward angle. If the button is held or the Ed player does the OD version, it will grant different rewards. Charging Psycho Flicker will allow them to grab you through your 1-hit meterless projectiles and evaporate your 2-hit meterless projectiles. Doing the OD version will beat meterless fireballs and drag you toward them, even if you blocked it. The charged version can also pull you toward Ed as well. Both versions are pretty decent tools for dealing with zoning, yet, there is a catch.
If you use EX fireballs to zone, the charged and OD versions of Psycho Flicker will lose. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean you should only throw out EX fireballs. If you only use EX fireballs, then the Ed player won’t be tempted to use the charged and OD version of Psycho Flicker. All they have to do is not use it anymore. But you still want them to do it because it gives you an opening for free damage and knockdowns.
So, use your meterless fireballs sparingly. Showing the Ed player that you are willing to use meterless fireballs sometimes in the match will make them want to use the OD and charged version of Psycho Flicker sometimes as well, thus giving you potential openings.
But What If I Don’t Have a Fireball?
It is important to note that there are still ways to deal with these versions, even if you don’t have a fireball. You can consider using jump-ins against it if the Ed players uses it a lot. If the Ed player pulls you toward him after you blocked the charged or OD Flicker, he is plus on block. Don’t be afraid to challenge Ed’s attack after blocking this with an OD Dragon Punch or perfect parry.
As stated before, if you block the charged Flicker, Ed gets to drag you toward him. This allows him to start his strike/throw mix on you, putting you in an uncomfortable guessing game. To deal with this, you can normal parry the charged Flicker. As a result, it will pull you less closer to him to where he can’t throw you.
Dealing With Psycho Knuckle
Psycho Knuckle is a forward-moving punch that allows for follow-up attacks if it hits. If the opponent blocks it in the corner, he is plus on block and can continue pressure. If Ed charges his Psycho Knuckle entirely, midscreen or in the corner, he is also plus on block. It’s a strong attack in Ed’s arsenal with a few counterplays against it, so let’s look.
A weakness and a strength of Psycho Knuckle is that it only has 1 hit of projectile invulnerability. This means that while it can go through projectiles that only do 1 hit, it will lose to projectiles that do 2 or more hits. Check your character’s move list to see if you have any projectiles that do 2 or more hits, as it will be a useful tool for this matchup.
If Ed does a half-charged Psycho Knuckle, it is -2 on block midscreen. This means that you can take your turn after this with a quick attack. Go to training mode, then record Ed to do 2LP after doing a half-charged Psycho Knuckle midscreen. Afterward, find attacks that your character can use that are quick enough to counter-hit Ed after blocking Psycho Knuckle before the 2LP comes out. Once you find that attack, be prepared to use it in matches.
Using Drive Impact upon seeing Psycho Knuckle is also not a bad idea. It can feel gratifying to react to it and land significant damage into potential knockdowns. However, note that he can Kill-Rush out of Psycho Knuckle charging to rush at you. It’s essential to consider waiting for him to do Kill Rush sometimes so that you can hit him out of it.
Dealing With Psycho Spark
Psycho Spark is a close-range punch that generates a ball of Psycho Power. Not only is it good for close-range combos, but it also cancels out incoming projectiles midscreen. While canceling a projectile, he can follow up with Psycho Shoot that shoots back another fireball toward the opponent. Here are some ways to deal with this special move.
Many Ed players use Psycho Spark to throw fireballs. This basically means that the fireball has a highly long startup because the Psycho Spark has to happen before the fireball. Some people like to jump in on him once they see the Psycho Spark because they think he will fireball afterward. However, he can bait you by not throwing out the fireball and anti-airing you afterward. A better way to beat this move is by whiff-punishing it. Psycho Spark has a lot of recovery on it, and if the Ed player misses and you are nearby, punish it. Try to react before the spark comes out, then go for your normal attack that can whiff punish it.
Are You Ready to Defeat Ed in Street Fighter 6?
Like everybody else in the game, defeating Ed in Street Fighter 6 is about learning how to deal with his special moves and unique attacks. Once you figure out what situations they will use those tools in, you will be ready to beat them either reactively or pre-emptively. Stay tuned for more guides and tips on Street Fighter 6!
Here is our Street Fighter 6 Guide Compendium if you need any more help with the game:
