Ky Kiske FAQ
For Guilty Gear X on Arcade, Dreamcast, and Playstation 2.
Written by Kenny "Kenshi" Tam
Contact: kennytam@foxhound.zzn.com

===============
Version History
===============

Version 1.0
January 27, 2002
Everything

Version 1.1
February 2, 2002
Added more stuff.

=================
Table of Contents
=================
I.    Introduction
II.   Profile
III.  Annotations and Abbreviations
IV.   General Moves
V.    Special Moves
VI.   Overdrive and Instant Kill Moves
VII.  General Notes
VIII. Strategies
IX.   Combos    
X.    Miscellany
XI.   Notes and Credits

===============
I. Introduction
===============

This is an FAQ for Ky Kiske.  I've some FAQs for other games, but I 
think I will write one for Guilty Gear X.  Guilty Gear X deserves 
more recognition!!
This FAQ assumes you know the basics of the game, such as Dust 
Attacks, Roman Cancels etc.  In other words I can't be bothered to 
list them.
The move lists and descriptions I got from sitting next to my machine 
and watching the move several twenty times on training mode.  

===========
II. Profile
===========

Full Name: Ky Kiske
Birthday: November 20, 2???
Nationality: France
Height: 178 cm
Weight: 58 kg
Likes: Everybody's smiling faces.
Dislikes: Sol
Hobby: Collecting Tea Cups.
Weapon: Thunderbrand.

==================================
III. Annotations and Abbreviations
==================================

  UB  U  UF       UB= Up-Back       U= Up         UF= Up-Forward
   \  |  /        B= Back           N= Neutral    F= Forward
   B--N--F        DB= Down-Back     D= Down       DF= Down-Forward
   /  |  \             
  DB  D  DF
	

P = Punch         S = Slash  
K = Kick          HS= Heavy Slash    

QCF= Quarter Circle Forward  (D, DF, F)
QCB= Quarter Circle Back     (D, DB, B)
DPM= Dragon Punch Motion     (F, D, DF)
RDP= Reverse Dragon Punch    (B, D, BD)
HCF= Half Circle Forward     (B, DB, D, DF, F)
HCB= Half Circle Back        (F, DF, D, DB, B)

Double Jump= Tap Up During a Jump.  The character will boost 
themselves again in the air to go higher.  A direction can be 
specified, such as Up-Forward or Up-Back.

High Jump= Tap Down, then U.  The character will launch themselves 
into a large jump.  They cannot perform the Double Jump though.  A 
direction can be specified, such as jumping towards the opponent by 
pressing Up-Forward.

Forward Thrust Attack= Forward +Attack button.  Certain characters 
may do special or different attacks when performing this.

Dead Angle Attack= During Guard, Tap Forward + 2 Attack buttons.  
Assuming you guarded the attack, immediately do this and the 
character will counter with an attack.  You need a tension gauge of 
above 50% however.  

Dust Attack= Press Slash and Hard Slash at the same time.  The 
character will so an attack that if hit, will launch the enemy into 
the air.  Press Up to leap up after to continue attacking the 
opponent.

Sweep= Press Slash and Hard Slash whilst crouching.  The character 
will do an attack that hits low and knocks down the opponent.

Recovery= After being knocked down, press two attack buttons to flip 
out and recover.

Throw= Press Forward or Back and Heavy slash when near opponent to 
perform a throw attack.

Faultless Defense= Press Punch and Kick whilst blocking to negate 
block damage.  However it expends some of the tension gauge every 
time you perform this move and requires the buttons to be tapped 
every time the move hits.  

Roman Cancel= Push Three attack buttons during an attack to stop 
further animation.  Used for creating custom combos otherwise 
impossible.  Requires more 50% of Tension gauge to perform.

Overdrive Attack= With Overdrive gauge at either 50% or full, do the 
specific command for the character to unleash a powerful attack.

Instant Kill Tecnhnique= Press all 4 attack buttons.  The character 
will go into Instant Kill mode, where the tension gauge turns red and 
starts deceasing.  During that time, the character can unleash an 
Instant Kill Attack.  If the character misses or the bar runs out, 
the tension gauge cannot be used.  It requires a full tension gauge 
to perform as well.

=================
IV. General Moves
=================

Standing-
*********

Punch- Ky extends his arm slightly.  Comes out fast but barely 
reaches further than his sword in normal pose.  Good for close combo 
starting though.  Does miniscule damage.  Combos well though.

Kick- Kicks to the shins of the opponent.  Not as fast as punch, and 
has less range.  Does little damage but can combo too.

Slash- Does a far reaching Hiratsuki (sword thrust) towards the 
opponent.  Has quite good range with good speed.  Useful for poking 
and snuffing moves.  Up closes it becomes a Katatake (downwards 
slash), which comes out fast, used in combos.   

Hard Slash- An arcing Karatake (downwards slash.)  Has great range 
and coverage as well as speed.  Good for anti air as well as hitting 
opponents.  Comes out fast and only delay is the traveling of the 
sword in an arc.

Jumping-
********

Punch- Jumping version of his ground punch.  I actually have trouble 
connecting with this move, probably kept for air combo purposes.  

Kick- A standard looking jump kick.  Good for combo starting, as well 
as random air poking.

Slash- Does a really cool looking sideways slash.  It arcs slightly 
upwards at the end of the move, and comes out pretty fast.   It has 
good cover and pretty safe to use in air unless you jump into an 
overdrive move or something.

Hard Slash- Does a flying Katatake, similar to the Ryu Tsui Sen move 
from Rurouni Kenshin.  Ky does a massive chop downwards onto the 
opponents head.  Leaves an arcing trail which can hit the opponent 
too.  Pretty fast and good priority.

Crouching-
**********

Punch- Standard looking punch outwards.  Comes out fast but has poor 
range.  Used for combo starting.

Kick- Slides his leg out to the ankles of the opponent.  Looks pretty 
much standard but comes out slowly.  

Slash- Hacks across the opponents shins. It is a two slash move, 
meaning Ky swings the sword twice.  It can only hit once though, but 
has good range and makes an okay poke.

Hard Slash- Does a rising Sakakaze (upwards slash.)  It does not arc 
though, but can still hit opponents jumping in.  Comes out fast, but 
there is a slight delay at the end of the move.  Does two hits up 
close.  

================
V. Special Moves
================

Ky is basically modeled after Ryu.  He has projectiles as well as an 
uppercut.    

Command Moves:
--------------

Elbow - (F+P)
Ky does an extended elbow.  Slower than the Punch, with same range.  

Side Kick- (F+K)
Ky slides (steps) towards the enemy and does a side kick to the mid 
section.  Good for annoying and pressuring the enemy, but it is 
pretty vulnerable.  

Turn Slash- (F+HS)
Ky does a turning slash towards the legs of the enemy.  Does two hits 
up close.  Slower than the standard HS, but it can combo as well.  
Mainly used as combo filler.

Dust Attack- (S+HS)
Ky Swings his sword upwards.  Some what fast for a dust attack.  Have 
range of punch.

Sweep Attack- (D+S+HS)
Ky sticks his leg out, tripping the opponent.  Somewhat slow.

Throws:
-------

Leaping Slash - (F+HS)
Ky grabs the stunned opponent, does a small flip and slashes down 
onto the opponent, 

Special Moves:
--------------

Stun Edge - (QCF+S)
Ky whips his sword sideways, launching a crescent of electricity 
towards the opponent.  Looks similar to Sagat's Tiger shots.  Comes 
out pretty fast, and mainly used for zoning the opponent.  It is 
extremely eay to avoid in this game though, so try to launch it from 
far away or within combos.  

Aerial Stun Edge - (in Air, QCF+S or HS)
Ky does an Aerial Version of the Stun Edge.  The slash is aimed 
steeply downward though, so don't expect to hit anyone from full 
screen away.  The Heavy slash version is more horizontally angled, 
and may miss the opponent totally.  At full screen, it can usually 
hit average height characters (Axl, Sol etc) right in the head.  
Typically used for air encounters.  Both are good for surprises or 
making the opponent whiff their anti-air counters.  Ky gets boosted 
slightly upwards and is vulnerable when landing, since he cannot be 
controlled.

Stun Edge Charge Attack - (QCF+HS)
Ky charges up and does a large version of the stun edge.  This 
version is much longer (about 2 character lengths) but travels 
slightly slower and has a slight delay before it.  I think it cancels 
out other projectiles as well.  Ky can actually run after this 
version and hit the opponent the same time the projectile does.  
 
Vapor Thrust - (DPM+S or HS)
Ky does an overhead arcing slash of electricity whilst leaping 
upwards.  Basically his uppercut type move, where the Heavy slash 
travels further up.  It can hit grounded opponents though, but misses 
some crouching opponents.  Can be used in combos.  Moves pretty fast, 
but has long recovery time when landing.  HS can go double jump 
height, so it is recommended it is used in combos or absolutely sure 
you can connect.  This move can be done in midair.  Useful if the 
opponent manages to jump that high, which I have no idea on how.

Stun Dipper - (QCF+K)
Ky doe a sliding kick and ends with a slash to the opponent.  He will 
do the slash regardless if the first part hit at all.  Comes out 
pretty fast and must be blocked low.  Useful for surprise attacks or 
in combos.  However it is vulnerable if blocked or missed.  It can 
slide under some attacks though.

Crescent Slash - (QCB+K)
Ky does an inverted backwards flip (!) and raises slashes the 
opponent with his sword.  The streak of lightning reaches to the top 
of the screen.  Moves quite fast and performs move as he is 
recovering from the flip.  The main vulnerability is from the flip 
itself.  

======================================
VI. Overdrive and Instant Kill Attacks
======================================

Ride the Lightning - 
"Ride-oh the Lightningu!"                               -(HCB, F+HS)

Dashes towards his lightning in a huge circle of electricity.  
Multiple orbs of lightning encircle the larger one.  Does 5 hits up 
close, and less from further away.  The diameter of the globe is 
about character height, but it is pretty much invincible to almost 
anything Non-Dizzy (final boss.) Comes out fast and can travel full 
screen, but the opponent can see it from a mile away as well as block 
it easily.  It moves pretty fast though, but it is better used as a 
counter or within combos

Rising Force - (Instant Kill)
"Kusou!...Honkio Mezemasho!"                           -(QCF, QCF+HS)

Ky stabs the enemy with a gigantic bolt of lightning.  Similar to his 
slash move, but encompasses with a very large beam of lightning.  Has 
long horizontal range and comes out instantly.  Useful but pretty 
lame really when compared to the others.  Can be a good counter, but 
you would have to either get into destroy mode and perform the motion 
really quickly, or be in destroy mode in advance.  Has high priority 
though, which most of the other destroy moves does not have.  What a 
boring move.


==================
VII. General Notes
==================

Quite a boring character.  He is a keep away character with a few 
offensive moves.  He can deal some good damage as an offensive 
character, but he ain't no Sol Badguy or Millia.  He has some 
problems keeping up with the pace of the game, since his moves are 
pretty easy to avoid.  

================
VIII. Strategies
================

Try to play keep away, but balance it out with a few combos.  He 
can't beat out Millia and the sort in offense, so don't push it too 
much.  

Versus;

Sol Badguy
----------

Ah the rival battles.  Sol can kick your butt in terms of offense, so 
don't push your luck too much.  His range is slightly less than Ky's, 
but his moves are fast, hard hitting and varied.  You really have to 
stick to keep away in this game, or he will simply overpower and out 
speed Ky.   Keep to projectiles from far away, mainly the HS version 
of the projectile since it is harder to avoid.  Do remember Ky has a 
start up delay in it.  Sol's overdrive is pretty close ranged, but 
the other one makes him much faster and stronger.  Arg.

May
---

Despite how cute and cheerful May is, she is damn hard to beat at 
times.  Most players like to call Dolphins out as well as fly all 
over the place.  She is much faster than Ky and can dodge those Stun 
Edges like nothing.  She has powerful Overdrive attacks to.  You 
really need to be careful in this match.  The only weakness of May is 
that she is somewhat weak and has slightly less range.  Try to go up 
against her and overpower her.  Her instant kill has to be done right 
next to the opponent though.  Watch out for her Whale overdrive, 
since it can probably beat out anything and has huge coverage of the 
screen.

Millia Rage
-----------

I am sure many of you know how frustrating it is to battle Millia.  
She is pretty overpowered in a sense.  Fast, powerful, great special 
moves, incredible combos.  Arg. Prepare for a cheap and hellish 
fight.  Do the Stun edges only if you are full screen away, and use 
your standing slash to keep her away as well as poke when up close.  
Be mindful of recovery times since he is pretty damn fast and can 
beat your butt if you even breathe wrong.  Her Disc Overdrive is easy 
to avoid, but the one air overdrive is had to avoid and can catch 
many people off guard.  Feel free to cry and weep in this battle.

Axl Low
-------

Axl has along reach, but nothing you cannot handle.  It is a keep 
away battle where Ky has the slight upperhand.  Axl does have that 
weird move where he flies high and lands on you.  I frankly have to 
idea how that move works, but it is pretty fast and hard to time with 
a Vapor Thrust.  It is possible to be cheap with the air Stun Egdes 
though.  Most of Axl's moves are two part, so he may nail you when 
you try to counter him.  His overdrives are pretty defensive but 
turns offensive in the end.  (or was it Billy Kane?)

Zato-One
--------

A tricky match.  Zato-One is quite a hard but powerful character to 
use.  His shadow Eddie can double team you at times as well as have 
some powerful moves.  The best bet is to confuse him up close, and 
play in a really weird style.  He will have a hard time keeping up.  
Zato can basically hit you from anywhere, but is limited for how long 
he can continually use his Eddie.  He does have some powerful moves 
up close, but they also have some delay.  Poke him to death and use 
Ky's combos.  His Overdrives are pretty easy to spot.  Be warned that 
he has an autoguard in his dashing move, so he can go through and 
smash you.  

Potemkin
--------

A large big guy.  He is a large target, so fire away from FULL 
SCREEN.  He can reach very far with his attacks, so either keep away 
or go up close and just poke him to death.  He does have a really 
powerful Overdrive that needs to be done up close though.  

Chipp Zanuff
------------

Chipp is the fastest character in the game, as well as the most 
mobile (he has a teleport as well as triple jump.)  However he also 
takes the most damage by far.  His special moves are pretty fast 
though, as well as cheap.  Try to keep away from your stun edges 
unless you are confident you can keep him away.  Up close he can 
probably beat you, so try to take advantage of how much damage Chipp 
does and smash him to death.  More of a war of attrition.  His supers 
come out quickly though, so watch out for those.  They are pretty 
darn powerful.

Baiken
------

Toned down from the first game, but nonetheless still very powerful 
in the right hand.  She is a counter character who can counter with 
some very nasty stuff.  Try to keep to projectile and keep her away.  
If you must go up close, vary your attacks so the other player cannot 
predict your moves and whiff them.  Her dashing move has an 
autoguard, so she might be able to run through a stun edge and do 
some heavy damage.  She has an overdrive counter too.  

Faust
-----

This guy is hard.  His scalpel can reach full screen and does huge 
damage.  He might be slow and have weird moves, but they have 
incredible range, priority, and damage.  Try heading in close and 
outspeeding him.  His overdrives are weird in the sense that they can 
damage Faust and heal the opponent.  

Anji Mito
---------

Hmm this Neikki Basara look alike is actually quite powerful.  His 
butterfly move, despite how slow it is, can be quite tricky to avoid.  
His special moves are pretty powerful and high priority, and his 
giant fan move is pretty invincible.  He has incredible recovery 
time, so he can counter your counter against his moves.  You could 
try sticking to Charged Stun Edges from far away.  Up close it is 
hard to win at all.  

Johnny
------

How is this guy not cool?  He is a very powerful character.  He isn't 
very mobile, but his moves are damn powerful.  His game revolves 
around hitting you with coins and then smacking you with a multi-hit 
Mist finer.  His HS is godlike and easily abuseable.  Up close he can 
take you to school with his Mist finer.  It is near impossible to 
approach him even, since his Mist finer comes out instantly and has 
little recovery.  If he does go close, back away or he will try to 
pin you down and hit you with coins and his mist.   His Overdrive is 
damn incredible too.  The only way I can figure is to go full screen 
and projectile him to death.  

Jam Kuradoberi (Cranberry)
--------------------------

She may look as sweet as her name, but you sure don't want any of 
her.  Cranberry Jam appears to have been replaced with "Can of whoop 
ass."  If she gets close you are basically dead.  She can combo 
anything, and she can power up her special moves so they are even 
more powerful.  If you feel like crying in this battle, feel free.  
She does have short range though, but since can easily compensate for 
it with her speed and combos.

Venom
-----

Hard to use properly, but extremely powerful if mastered.  His double 
Morbid is  good move and has quite food priority.  His Snooker balls 
are quite tricky, since he can save them for later to use.  The 
deadliest bit is his overdrive, mainly the Dark Angel.  It does a lot 
of block damage and he can follow it up with anything almost.  He 
also has a projectile, so it is hard to exploit the Stun edge.  Try 
to confuse him and be cheap with random pokes.  He can win air 
battles though with his stinger and double morbid (at times.)

Testament
---------

Testament players like to summon beats from behind you.  Jump in 
close to avoid them, since he always some delay in all moves.  He 
does have a counter though, but if you stick to him and pressure him 
a lot, he should fold.

Dizzy
-----

As difficult as the final boss maybe to beat, she is actually hard to 
use.  Nonetheless she is still extremely powerful.  She has very 
strong normal moves, and can combo into quite a lot of stuff.  Her 
overdrives, as you can tell, are deadly.  Keep away and stay 
defensive once she has a full tension gauge.  The motions for her 
overdrives are quite hard to pull off though.  

==========
IX. Combos
==========

Coming soon . . . 

=============
X. Miscellany
=============

Story
-----

Deadly serious, honest in work, truthful with others and devout in 
his morals. A firm believer in justice, eternally trying to help 
those weaker than himself. At the same time, he possesses a fragile 
mind that quickly erupts when he encounters anyone who breaks his 
rules or disrupts his order. In other words, he has a hard time 
dealing with freedom, a fact he has yet to realize.

A charismatic and talented swordsman, Ky was appointed as the leader 
of the Sacred Order of Holy Knights when he was only 16. Since the 
Crusades, he has worked in the police force to keep his vigil over 
mankind. Justice's final words at the Tournament made Ky realize that 
the "justice" he believed in only served human purposes. Ky, who 
believed all his life that Gears were inherently evil, could neither 
agree nor disagree with Justice's message. It was then that he 
received word of a Gear that had no intention of harming humans. To 
determine the true meaning of justice, he decided to embark on a new 
journey.

Win Quote:
----------

"It is because you held back that I can't enjoy the victory!"- vs Sol

"That look you are giving me.  Its as if I haven't won" -vs Sol

"uhhh..maybe you shouldn't kick so high.. I don't know where to 
look."- vs Jam

"What are you trying to pull with that fake badge? You cannot fool my 
men." - Vs Ky

Special Intros:
---------------

Versus Sol: Chats.  Sol has his back to Ky, whilst Ky charges up his 
sword.  Sol throws his sword inthe

Stage:
------

Inside a castle, with a row of knights looking on.  In the background 
are a set of stairs leading to an other room.  This stage is shared 
with Sol Badguy

Ky's theme is "Holy Orders: Be Just or Be Dead" in the Home Console 
Versions.  It is named "Holy Orders 2: Be Just or Be Dead" In the 
arcade versions.

Comments:
---------

-what a dork.  Even his win quotes are dorky.

=====================
XI. Notes and Credits
=====================

-Guilty Gear X is Trademark and Copyright property of Arc System 
Works Co., Ltd. and Sammy Entertainment Inc. 2000, 2001.

-Story information from Official Guilty Gear X site 
http://www.guiltygearx.com

-Mr. Jeff Veasey at Http://www.Gamefaqs.com for hopefully hosting 
this FAQ.

-W.W for our Guilty Gear X matches and your button mashing Sol.

-N.H for I would be your knight anytime.

-If, for any part, I may have borrowed or referenced information that 
originally stemmed from your work, PLEASE do notify me and I will 
immediately remove or a credit the work from this FAQ.

This document Copyright 2002 by Kenny "kenshi" Tam, and may not be 
duplicated or reproduced (in part or in full) for profit without the 
explicit permission of the author.  Chances are it will be rare if 
anyone would want to use this crappy FAQ.

This document is supposed to appear on 
http://www.gamefaqs.com.
http://www.psxcodez.com
http://www.DLH.net
http://www.gamespot.com