Scuba Guides source note. This lesson is based on the older Scuba Guides and the supplied source archive. It is an independent community clarity rewrite, not an official GunZ publication; mechanics are not verified for the current Steam/remaster client.
Lesson content
In gladiator, you will get caught in a deluge of slashes when facing any decent gladiator. Here’s a few ways to get out of it.
Void Block
This is the bread and butter. You’ll want to perfect your void block and utilize the one step theory to walk out of the attacks. The idea is to use the void block and predict where you’ll get slashed at to simply walk out of a combo.
For example, If you know they’ll go past you, walk into where they are, turn around, and continue walking backwards. This will create at least 2 steps between you and your opponent, and at the very least open up the options below to you.
The reason this example works so well is because the normal reflex is to try walking away from your opponent to get out of a combo. This means that most people will simply expect you to try going away from them, and can easily overextend their distances.
Turtle
If you have the time to do get a block held up for a brief moment, this can also be a viable option. Aim for getting a recoil mid combo, and just turn the tables on the opponent. It’s one of the riskiest options to get out of a combo however.
Block Rush
Another viable option is to simply block rush out of the combo in practically any direction. This requires either very tight timing, or a decent gap in the combo to pull off however.
Dash Evade
You can utilize the natural iFrame of a forward dash to escape a combo as well. Like turtle, this is fairly risky however since you’ll be leaving yourself open for quite a bit of time, and the dashes iFrame is very short. You only want to utilize this option if you’re very comfortable with the actual timing of your iFrame.
Counter Slash
If you don’t have a massive charged, another option to get out of a combo is simply doing a ground slash instead of void blocking. This is seldomly seen, and really only good on opponents who aren’t going at high speeds or leave you with just enough of a window.. If you can get a single slash out on an opponent, it’ll automatically end their combo for better or worse.
In the optimal situations - You’ll smack them off of you, leading to an opportunity to instantly begin a counter combo, or they’ll be forced into throwing or holding a massive which will also end their combo.
In the bad situations - You’ll get smacked for trying to be cheeky, or their force massive will smack you upside the head, leading you right back into the situation you were trying to escape.
Sacrificial Slashes
You can also let them hit you once in exchange for either a boost of speed out of their combo or with a counter slash. If you choose to try utilizing their slash to throw you out of their combo, the easiest thing to do is to try jumping into them when you know an angle slash is coming at your back, and letting the flinch itself throw you out of the fight.
Massives
Finally, we have about the most sub-optimal thing you can do against an experienced gladiator that’s mid combo on you. Throw a massive and hope for the best. Most of the time, the opponent will have very natural massive evades going for them, or simply get out of the AOE range of the massive then continue their assault on you. If you choose this route, you want to throw a ground massive, as during a combo people will naturally look towards the ground, meaning that almost every player has a pre built sky massive evade going for them.