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• 1. Sword - A fast startup, full screen projectile attack.
  
• 2. Sword - This is not a typo. Just emphasis on how good sword is.
  
• 3. Speed - A fast dive, kickback and kick
  
• 4. Specials - Good at dodging attacks and they cost no meter.

• 1. Minimum Kick Height Restriction - this causes Fencer to move in big steps. This weakness is more pronounced offline in local play (playing on the same machine with no lag). Online, it is harder to take advantage of this weakness, especially when there is heavy lag, because it is harder to observe when Fencer jumps.
  
• 2. Hitbox Overlaps with Hurtbox - this causes Fencer to tie or lose most kick to kick clashes.
  
• 3. Kick Factor (no speed bonus) - this does not help Fencer get past a defensive opponent.

Since the sword is very strong, its positioning is very important. The best position is out of Fencers control and on the ground either:
• 1. Positioned behind Fencer. You can use the camera wall to prevent Fencer from getting to his sword by not moving forward.
  
• 2. Positioned close to your start or behind your start. This will allow you to defend the sword.

Separate Fencer from his sword and play defensively to take advantage of Fencer's weaknesses.

This is the beginning of the match. The sword is on the floor in the center of the stage. Depending on your character, you can try to defend it or not.
• If you can defend it, goto Phase 2.
  
• If not, goto Phase 1.

• 1. If you kick Fencer, he will drop the sword where he was kicked.
  
• 2. If the round ends, he will drop the sword where he stopped play.
  
• 3. If he throws the sword:
  
  • a. ... and hits you, it will land straight down from where it makes contact with you. If Fencer is close enough, he will pick it up again.
    
  • b. ... and misses, it will bounce against the far walls of the stage. The higher it hits, the further away from the back walls it will be.

When you play on Fencer's side, even if you kick him, there is a chance the sword will be right next to him in the next round. If he hits you with sword while you are on his side, the same thing could happen.

Fighting away from Fencer's side of the stage is more beneficial. If he throws the sword and it hits you, it will land on your side of the stage. As long as Fencer is not close to where it lands, the next round will start with the sword in a better position. If you kick fencer, the sword will also drop on your side of the stage.


A smart Fencer won't come to your side. If both characters refuse to advance, the match will eventually end by timeout. Fencer can use his sword to defend the line, however if he throws it at the wrong time or misses, then you'll have successfully separated Fencer from his sword. If you both go for the center line, you can be confident that you will win any kick to kick clashes. Don't forget that the round ends 1 full second AFTER 0 is displayed on the clock.

The highest priority is to separate Fencer from his sword, and not to win the round. Try to bait them into throwing the sword on your side. Even if it hits you, having the sword in a good position is worth giving up a round.


Good Fencers will try to hit you with sword in close positions, so that they will pick up the sword for next round. Try to avoid such situations by doing a kickback away from Fencer when he gets close. Fencer can also hit you with a "parry" like sword throw, if your angle crosses in front of him. If you can recognize your attack can get reacted to with a stab and grab, it's best to not kick and just have him throw his sword at your landing.

Prevent him from retrieving his sword by not advancing onto his side of the stage.
• 1. If Fencer comes to your side, fight like normal.
  
• 2. If Fencer waits, this is the same standoff scenario where you play for the line and time out win
  
• 3. If Fencer builds meter, he can use his KickFactor to pull the camera and retrieve his sword. It will take Fencer some time to build KickFactor, so try to punish his meter building kicks or build meter of your own.

Now that you've got the sword in a good position, the goal is to not let Fencer pass you. This requires a defensive and passive style of play.
• 1. You want to kick Fencer when he is either Kicking or Tumbling (both his forward movement options).
  
• 2. Do not try to punish Fencer landing from a neutral jump. He can dodge your attack with an Air Tumble.
  
• 3. Do not try to do high attacks or threaten him with high neutral jumps. He can dodge your attacks and slip under you with ground tumble.

Fencer can not make fast small movements. When he tries to advance and moves too far forward, respond by kicking his feet.

Eventually you want to position yourself close to him where you can react to his movement. You want to be far enough away from Fencer to be able to punish a ground tumble, but hopefully close enough to punish a quick kickback kick. At that point, you can just wait for him to do something.

• 1. If Fencer rolls toward you, just punish him.
  
• 2. If Fencer jumps up, you can respond with a kickback and wait for him to kick or tumble before attempting to kick him. If he does neither, on his descent you can kick to take your space back.
  
• 3. If Fencer does a kickback, you can react by jumping up and kicking into the space he was previously in. Timed right, this will cover both his kick and tumble option.
  
• 4. If Fencer has KickFactor, be aware that Fencer controls the camera, so the camera wall behind you may force you forward when Fencer does a kickback. Other than that, you don't have to adjust your strategy at all. You are already focused on not letting him pass you.
  
• 5. If Fencer does nothing but wait, play for line and timeout win.

Keys to the Matchup

How good a character is against Fencer is dependent on 3 things:
• 1. Ability to win line and timeout play.
  
• 2. Ability to play defensive and not let Fencer pass them.
  
• 3. Ability to avoid sword.

• Shoals has trouble stopping Fencer from passing her and ground tumble is a great Fencer option.
  
• Mr N's large hurtbox and steep angle make him an easier target for good "stab and grab" sword kills.

• Kenny is short enough to dodge medium or far sword throws by just standing still. His ground bullet is good for defending the sword, and his air bullet gives him extra sword evasion by delaying his landing. He can still roll bad character stances though.
  
• Redacted has Feral Stance to dodge sword and it allows her to build meter without advancing. Her outretched foot can also get around some of "stab and grab" setups.

• Shoals - It is better for Shoals if the sword is behind Fencer. She can use the camera wall to prevent Fencer from retrieving his sword. Her KickFactor can be good at battling ground tumble. However, she will have a hard time with Fencer's fast dive, ground roll, and Kick Factor.
  
• Baz - It is better for Baz if the sword is behind Fencer. He can build meter while not advancing and keeping the Fencer from his sword. He has an issue stopping Fencer from winning rounds with KickFactor though. The matchup usually boils down to Baz with meter trying to get more kills before Fencer can build enough meter for multiple KF wins.

Fencer can feel overpowered to players who do not know the matchup. However, players that know the matchup will give Fencer a bunch of trouble. Besides being defensive and patient, understanding how to play for line, and denying sword are the keys to beating Fencer.