GUIDE NAVIGATION: Introduction | Basic Game Systems – Part 1 | Basic Game Systems – Part 2 | Characters
Jago and Sabrewulf were the only playable characters in the E3 2013 build of Killer Instinct. Glacius was added at Evo 2013, and Thunder will be playable at PAX Prime. However, we do not have hands-on time with Thunder just yet. In this section you will find move lists for Jago, Sabrewulf, Glacius and Thunder that were complete as of Evo, as well as additional notes on the attributes and properties of many attacks and all of the information we have on Thunder at present.
Jago is your basic Shoto character. He can zone with his Endokuken projectile and anti-air with Tiger Fury. In addition, he has very strong manual combos, and his Shadow Wind Kick is projectile invincible. The normal Wind Kick is invincible to low attacks, meaning it goes right through low attacks, and he can build meter very quickly when an opponent blocks his Endokuken (four blocked Endokukens will max out your meter). He also has a very fast overhead (B+MP) that can be used as an Opener.
Command Attacks:
Double Roundhouse – F+HK
Neck Cutter – B+HP (overhead)
Special Moves:
Wind Kick – QCB+K (low invincible)
Laser Blade – QCB+P (beats Wind Kick)
Endokuken – QCF+P (projectile)
Tiger Fury – DP+P (anti-air)
Openers:
Wind Kick
Laser Blade
Linkers:
LK or MK Wind Kick
LP or MP Laser Blade
Enders:
HK Wind Kick (wall bounce)
HP Laser Blade (juggle state)
HP Endokuken (max meter gain)
HP Tiger Fury (max damage)
Manuals / Special Manuals:
Heavy > Medium > Light (Around the World)
Light > Light
Ultra Combo:
DP+PPP
SABREWULF (Character Breakdown)
Sabrewulf is a straight up brawler. He can’t do much from a distance, but once he’s close, he has great mix-up potential (Hamstring or Jumping Slash as low or overhead Openers, respectively). His Run series of attacks can be used to get in close, but it can be punished on-reaction if you start from too far away and you’re fighting an astute opponent. Sabrewulf’s dash can also cross-up an opponent, although it has a fair amount of recovery at the end of the animation.
Command Attacks:
Overpower – B+HP (hold HP to charge; unblockable at max charge)
Special Moves:
Ragged Edge – B,F+P
Eclipse – D,U+P (anti-air)
Run – B,F+K
Hamstring – LP or LK (during Run; crosses up on hit; goes under projectiles)
Jumping Slash – MP or MK (during Run; overhead)
Running Uppercut – HP or HK (during Run; juggle state)
Openers:
Ragged Edge
Hamstring
Jumping Slash
Linkers:
LP or MP Ragged Edge
Hamstring
Jumping Slash
Enders:
HP Ragged Edge (wall bounce)
HP Eclipse (juggle state)
Running Uppercut (juggle state)
Manuals / Special Manuals:
Mash any button (LP, LP, LP, LP, etc. – Rabid Bites)
Light > Medium > Heavy
Medium > Heavy
Ultra Combo
B,F+PPP
GLACIUS (Character Breakdown)
Glacius is a tried and true zoning character. All of his tools revolve around pushing the opponents away and keeping them away for as long as possible. He has relatively slow normals, which causes problems at close range, but his bevy of options to get people out helps to counteract this issue. His throw pushes an opponent almost a full screen length away, and if you throw an opponent into the corner, they are stunned long enough to start a combo. He can combo from a distance off of his Ice Lance, but his Auto-Doubles are easy to break if the opponent pays attention to the direction they move when the Auto-Double hits (away from Glacius is Light, toward Glacius is Heavy, and neutral is Medium).
Command Attacks:
Ice Lance – F+MP
Ice Pick – B+HP (anti-air)
Special Moves:
Hail – QCB+P (projectile; hold P to delay release)
Cold Shoulder – QCB+K
Puddle Punch – QCF+K (invincible start up)
Shatter- QCF+P (unblockable)
Openers:
Ice Lance
Could Shoulder
Puddle Punch
Shatter
Shadow Cold Shoulder (projectile invincible)
Shadow Puddle Punch (invincible on start up)
Linkers:
LK or MK Cold Shoulder
LK or MK Puddle Punch
LP or MP Shatter
Shadow Cold Shoulder
Shadow Puddle Punch
Enders:
HP Hail (juggle state)
HK Cold Shoulder
HK Puddle Punch (max damage)
HP Shatter (max meter gain)
Shadow Shatter
Manuals / Special Manuals:
Ice Lance (during long-range combos)
Ultra Combo
QCF+PPP
THUNDER (Character Reveal Breakdown)
Note: Information on Thunder is based on second-hand accounts from Gamescom. An update to this section will be made after PAX Prime.
Other than Glacius, Thunder has made the biggest change since his appearance in the original Killer Instinct. He’s now a grappler character who focuses on getting in close and using his powerful throws to start combos and catch opponents off-guard. He has a low-hitting special move (Ankle Slicer), as well as a command normal overhead (Horn Breaker). In addition, his Instinct mode gives his dash invincibility during the beginning of the animation, and the ability to cancel into a special move when the invincibility ends. His Shadow Triplax has one hit of armor, which makes it another great tool to get in close, and he can combo off of his throw, even using it as a Linker in some cases.
Command Attacks:
Horn Breaker – F+HP (Overhead)
Sky Fall – D+HK (in the air)
Special Moves:
Triplax – QCF+P
Call of the Earth – QCB+P
Ankle Slicer – QCB+K
Sammamish – DP+P (projectile invincible)
Openers:
Triplax
Ankle Slicer
Linkers:
LP or MP Triplax
LP or MP Ankle Slicer
Back Throw (B+LP+LK)
Enders:
HP Triplax (wall bounce)
HP Call of the Earth
HP Ankle Slicer (max meter gain)
HP Sammamish
Manuals / Special Manuals:
Unknown
Ultra Combo
QCF+PPP (unconfirmed)
Frame Data (in-progress)
Note: The fastest known attack in the game is 5 frames, which is the average speed of jabs.
Horn Breaker
Start Up: 17; Active: 2; Hit: +1; Block: -7
Back Throw
Start Up: 4; Active: 2; Hit: -20; Block: -20
Triplax
LP – Start Up: 8; Active: 2; Hit: +5; Block: -1
MP – Start Up: 10; Active: 2; Hit: +4; Block: -3
HP – Start Up: 12; Active: 2; Hit: +3; Block: -5
Call of the Earth
LP – Start Up: 10; Active: 3; Hit: -49; Block: -49
MP – Start Up: 13; Active: 3; Hit: 50; Block: -50
HP – Start Up: 17; Active: 3; Hit: -50; Block: -50
Ankle Slicer
LK – Start Up: 19; Active: 1; Hit: +5; Block: -5
MK – Start Up: 22; Active: 1; Hit: +4; Block: -6
HK – Start Up: 23; Active: 1; Hit: +2; Block: -8
Sammamish
LP – Start Up: 7; Active: 8; Hit: -26; Block: -31
MP – Start Up: 9; Active: 7; Hit: -43; Block: -32
HP – Start Up: 11; Active: 7; Hit: -56; Block: -42
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