Jin Kazama - Before the Crouch Dash
By  INeedPractice
PandoraX1@hotmail.com
7/21/01
Version 1.0


Index:
Legal Disclaimer
Tekken Disclaimer
How Not To Use This FAQ
Why I Didn't Include A Movelist
Why And For Whom This FAQ Is Written
My Favorite Non-Crouch-Dash Moves
Offense Theory
Deffense Theory
The Best Defense Is A Good Offense
Juggling
Okizeme
Predictability
Tenstrings
A Word From Our Sponsors
Thanks


Legal Disclaimer:

All references to Tekken Tag Tournament, Jin Kazama, or related material 
are copyright Namco. Don't mess with them, or they'll mess with you. This 
FAQ may be redistributed provided one receives no monetary or sexual 
compensation in return, and provided that this document is taken in full, 
all errors included. Finally, I'd like to add (for the benefit of companies 
or corporations who seek to steal the hard work of Tekken players everywhere), 
that even if I can't make you go to bed with a guilty conscience YOU WILL LOSE 
PROFIT BY CHEATING TEKKEN PLAYERS. It's that simple, and that ought to be more 
than enough of a reason not to mess around with people's work. Tekken is an art 
form, and practitioners of that art form deserve to be treated with the same 
respect you'd give to a Leonardo Da Vinci. Bottom line, respect other people, 
it's the only way to go.


Tekken Disclaimer:

I'm not that good at Tekken. I probably never will be at the level of a 
championship player, much less able to compete at tournaments. For those 
of you who have read Catlord's infamous Psychology Manual, realize that 
not even the "nut-job" will be memorizing this FAQ. It's just a set of 
assumptions about Tekken strategy that I'm not rich enough (I don't own 
a playstation two...yet) to actually test out. However, if you find any 
errors in this document, or have any suggestions, please feel free to 
email me at the address above.


How Not to Use this FAQ:

Do not use this FAQ as a bible. Do not use this FAQ exclusively to win rounds. 
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not employ this FAQ word for word. Tekken is an art 
form because everyone brings their own brand of style to the game. All that is 
contained herein are suggestions and little tricks. Don't make my style your 
style, because as I noted above, I'm not that good. If you can find a way to 
incorporate some of the underlying ideas, I'd really be happy.


Why I Didn't Include A Movelist:

Basically two reasons. First, I'm lazy as hell. Second, Tekkenzaibatsu.com has 
all the movelists you will ever need, as well as an FAQ section that contains 
Catlord's Movelists and Combo Lists. That's basically where I've learned everything 
I know, and it couldn't hurt to check out that site if you want to know how to do 
all those cool looking moves. I'm going to proceed for the rest of this FAQ as 
though you are already familiar with Tekken button conventions, and relatively 
familiar with Jin Kazama's movelist. Besides, there are a billion other Jin FAQ's 
out there, you might want to check into them if crouch dash strategy is your thing.


Why And For Whom This FAQ Is Written:

A). Novices players who are new to Jin. I am painfully aware of the difficulty in 
mastering the crouch dash that new players often go through. It's agonizing not to 
be able to find that stupid d/f position on many joysticks, and it's horrific to 
watch an opponent pummel you because you're too busy trying to crouch dash to 
actually involve yourself in the rest of the game. I have great sympathy for these 
players, having been one myself for two years. Don't worry, you don't really need 
the crouch dash to win with Jin.

B). People who play on machines where the d/f is impossible to find or has been 
broken by a button-smacking Eddy Gordo who yanked the damn controller to hard 
in every conceivable direction. Achem. In any case, there may be times and places 
where even intermediate Tekken players find themselves incapable of crouch dashing 
their opponents to death. Masters I don't include here, simply because I've never 
seen a master who would need to read this FAQ. The ideas in here may be additionally 
useful if you find yourself on a side where you are uncomfortable crouch dashing. 
I know, for myself, I crouch dash more easily from the right side of the screen 
moving left. When I find myself on the left side moving right, I'm less eager to 
attempt my crouch dashes.

C). Advanced (but below Master) level players who wish to hide their skill level. 
Yes, as well all know very well, an immense part of Tekken is psychological warfare. 
Now, I'm not really for the smack-talking variety (unless it's someone I know well 
or play regularly), but there are passive forms of psychological warfare you can 
employ. Not crouch dashing makes your opponent assume things, especially if they 
are a novice, intermediate, or even advanced players. People who don't crouch dash 
with Jin obviously aren't good, they reason, because look at all of Jin's useful 
moves out of the crouch dash - Wind God Fist, Thunder God Fist, Axe Kicks, Hell 
Sweep, etc. In fact, these moves are a tiny part of the enormous arsenal at your 
disposal when you choose to play with Jin. If your opponents thinks you are worse 
than you really are, you'll have an enormous leg up on them.

D). There are, in fact, advantages in not crouch dashing that aren't psychological. 
First, Jin has an excellent sidestep that is painfully underused by "wave-dashers" 
(people who continually crouch dash). Second, it becomes too easy to rely on the 
crouch dash and automatically use it for most of the match. Unfortunately, that 
makes the user extremely predictable - a death sentence in a good Tekken match. 
Third, it is impossible to block in the middle of a crouch dash. Low attacks, 
correctly timed, will destroy a crouch dash before whatever move the user makes 
even begins to initiate. Fourth, and finally, if the opponent ducks, there are 
only two moves that will connect - Axe Kicks or a Thunder God Fist. The Thunder 
God Fist comes out slowly enough for someone to get up and block or counter it, 
and the Axe Kicks can either be blocked or interrupted, and don't do that much 
damage. Ducking can be the bane of Jin-Crouch-Dasher's, cause the Wind God Fist, 
Electric Wind God Fist, and Stonehead Throw can all be ducked under. The Hell 
Sweeps simply get blocked for major time delay against Jin, so there's no need 
to worry about that. A really bright Crouch Dasher will throw in a f,f+2 Demon 
Paw, but like the Thunder God Fist, you can see this move coming a mile away. 
Don't fall for it - the crouch dash is by no means the end-all-be-all of Jin 
Kazama's fighting style.


My Favorite Non-Crouch-Dash Moves:

A). Stonehead Throw (f,f+1+2) - when in doubt, and close to the opponent, throw. 
Jin is not considered a throwing character, most of the time, but the ability to 
move a little bit forward and then initiate a throw can overwhelmingly turn the 
tide of a match that isn't going in your favor. Now, crouch dash enthusiasts will 
tell you that you can initiate this move from the end of the dash, but they won't 
remind you that if the opponent ducks, it's major counter time. Additionally (this 
will be discussed later in Offense Theory) a sidestep with this move tacked on can 
give you a nifty side-throw, providing the sidestep is time appropriately.

B). Demon Paw (f,f+2) - Oh my goodness! What a move! Stops running opponents dead in 
their tracks (often literally), and puts them in good range for any of your running 
moves. Remember, your opponent has to advance to attack you, and your timing with 
this move can often bring them up short because of the deadly speed and power of this 
attack. Also a great move to use in Okizeme (discussed later). Best part about it, 
this move hits mid, so all those duckers eat it hard. Ahhhh, ain't that a shame?

C). White Heron Strings (1+4,2,4_d+4) - The premier attack height psychology move 
doesn't even come out of a crouch dash. This beauty ends juggles, allows virtually 
guaranteed follow-ups, and confuses the pants off of most opponents who are forced 
to guess the ending to the string. The regular 4 ending hits mit, destroying duckers, 
while the d+4 ending sweeps the feet out from anyone who's silly enough to stay 
standing. All in all, a gorgeous move. A precautionary note, however - it is very 
important to chicken (explained in other FAQs) the 2 AND the 4. To the painful 
dismay of many players, the second to last move in this string is actually 
easily reversible by itself, so it's best not to wait till the end of the string 
to input your chicken. Personally, I suggest chickening the 2 and using a d+4 
(though its important not to be predictable, but it's a pain in the butt to chicken 
both the 2 and the 4).

D). Laser Cannon Juggler (b,f+2,1,2_d+2) - Brilliant interrupt move, great for 
starting juggles and causing awfully large amounts of pain. Extra-special because 
you can delay any of the hits. All in all, one of the best juggles Jin has is 
b,f+2,1,d+2, b,f+2, 1, 2. The timing is a bit hard to master, but oh! does it look 
good. Also, you can start this move right after blocking, using the B from the block 
as b,f movement. I highly recommend this move after sidesteps, because if you nail 
the juggle, the opponent enters a new world of pain.

E). Steel Pedal (b+4) - Woohoo! We love this move! Hits recently grounded opponents 
who haven't stopped squirming yet, and interrupts silly people who run at you. Also 
very nice for catching people as they tag in. If you get the crumple stun, just do 
the move again for a guaranteed follow up and watch as your opponent goes 
head-over-heels! Just grand for Okizeme.

F). Shining Fists (1,1,2) - The bread-and-butter of your interrupt game ought to 
be this move. Two blindingly fast jabs that hit high followed by a mid hitting 
(even though it doesn't look like it) right handed smack. People in the middle of 
"Big-Fancy-Moves" are often surprised when Jin whips out these three little punches 
and punishes them for their arrogance. This move does more damage than people 
realize, and has virtually no recovery time. Also, you can delay the last punch 
and wait for your opponent to do something stupid (like, say, moving) so you can 
tack on a major counter.

G). Flip (4~3) - It's a bird! It's a plane! It's Jin Kazama's foot landing on the 
lay-down-Lei, phoenix-shmeonix-Ling or button-smashing-Eddy-Gordo! Awesome range, 
surprising damage, and the ability to catch people off guard (especially when they 
are in stances in which they can't block) makes this move a must for the Jin who 
faces annoying players. Don't forget to use it in okizeme!


Offense Theory:

Time for the fun stuff! Offense with Jin contains three major pieces - 
Interrupting/Major Counters, Chickening, and attack height psychology. 
Interrupting is not difficult, only a matter of knowing how long between 
the time you input the move and when the moves comes out. Moves like 
1, d+1, 1,1,2  etc. are all very good for stopping your opponent from 
doing whatever the heck it was they were thinking of doing. In a sense, 
interrupting is almost a defensive theory, in that it doesn't allow the 
other person to make their attack hit you, but I've filed it under offense 
because it does damage - and, essentially, winning the round stops the other 
person from doing whatever the heck it was they were thinking of doing. 
Major counters are lovely, when you land them. Moves such as the Demon Paw 
and the Laser Cannon do ungodly amount of damage when you connect with them 
as major counters. Chickening (inputting f+1+3 when you hit either 1 or 3, 
and f+2+4 when you hit either 2 or 4) is the solvent to counter-happy opponents. 
Chickening is final, there's no reversing reversed reservsals (though, you can 
raspberry your opponent). It's always good to be on the right side of a chicken, 
besides, it looks cool. Chicken high and mid level attack so as not to embarass 
yourself, and you will live long(er) and prosper (or at least spend fewer quarters). 
Attack height psychology is essentially training your opponent to block low attacks, 
more low attacks, and the some more low attacks, and then hitting them mid. It can 
be a slow, laborious process, but if it wins rounds, what the heck? Attack psychology 
can be further utilized when side stepping. VERY IMPORTANT - when Jin sidesteps just 
about everyone assumes he's going to be doing a SS+2. Yes, that's a great move, yes, 
it hits mid and juggles, and yes, you ought to use it. But if you find it's being 
blocked, when not SS, f,f+1+2? Oooops. They blocked mid. You headbutted them. Ouch. 
Wonder how they're going to block next time? Mmmmmh, they might be more prone to 
trying to interrupt your sidestep, at which point go for the SS+2. Ah, now we've 
got the juggle! Wasn't that easy? Attack psychology, done correctly, not only mixes 
up low and mid hits, but also forces the opponent to commit themselves to a strategy. 
An opponent who is forced into making strategy changes very rapidly and very often 
is likely to become frantic and easier to beat. Keep a cool head, and the round is yours.


Defense Theory:

Jin's defense also comes in three main parts - Low parry/Ducking, Reversals, 
and Sidestepping. Since we've already established that your using this FAQ, 
low parrying really isn't an option because you'd have to hit the d/f. Besides, 
d/f is an incredibly dangerous thing to do because if they hit you mid, you're 
gone. Ducking is often a good strategy against opponents with lots of high 
attacks. Baek, Hwaorang, and even Heihachi can often be foiled by ducking their 
attacks. Interestingly enough, ducking Heihachi's crouch dash is relatively safe 
now, because the Wind God Fist has been changed to Special Mid, meaning you can 
block it low. Eeeeeh. Jin's WS+2 is a lovely juggle starter, and ought to be used 
in your interrupting offense. Reversals are a grand strategy for an intermediate 
or advanced player, assuming you're not playing against someone who knows how to 
chicken. In the same vein as the reversal, though, Jin's b+1+2 Electric Guard 
momentarily stuns people who try to hit him. This is a really great defense again 
people who run at you, as it will block even a slide standing! I've never actually 
tried using it against an unblockable, so I don't really suggest trying - the price 
of failure is just plain too high. Finally, sidestepping is the most useful defense 
mechanism against rabid opponents. Many people's strings and canned combos are 
linear, meaning that they will continue to move in a straight line even if you move 
out of the way. Great for side/back throws, juggles, etc. The SS+2 ought to be mixed 
up with the SS, f,f+1+2 because it forces the opponent to choose between ducking 
(in which case they'll get juggled) or trying to break a throw. I played a master 
who used Baek/Hwaorang, and I beat him only because he kept going into his stances 
and side stepping. I met his sidesteps with my own, and simply juggled him to death. 
Er, of course, next round, he picked Lei and Eddy and murdered me, but it was fun 
while it lasted!


The Best Defense Is A Good Offense:

It is impossible to win Tekken rounds without touching your opponent. You have to 
even force them to block, just once, before all 60 seconds runs out, or you will 
inevitably lose. Why? Tekken is a game of offense! No damage, no victory, or people 
would turtle all rounds and never attack at all. The Defense Theory section began 
to sound like an Offense Theory simply because defense is used for one purpose in 
the game - to put yourself on the offense! It's sorta like football that way... 
time of possession is everything.


Juggling:

Do it! I'm not going to include a list of juggles here, they can all be found at 
Tekkenzaibatsu.com or the FAQ pages therein. In this same vein, it is critical 
to follow up after every attack. Tick damage can be the difference between a win 
and a loss, and every hit is a psychological blow to the opponent. Remember, low 
kicking a downed opponent is good manners in Tekken! It shows you respect the other 
person's prowess enough to give them everything you've got and take every advantage 
you can. It's quite a compliment to each other when two good players go at it that 
viciously.


Okizeme:

Just like juggling, Okizeme is keeping opponents grounded. White Herons, Demon Paws, 
and Steel Pedals are all critical tools in keeping the opponent on the floor as long 
as possible. If they twitch, b+4. If they roll, f,f+2. If they they do anything near 
you, White Heron. It's just that easy. For the same reason it's not cheap to air 
juggle someone, it's not cheap to ground juggle them either. They have plenty of 
options, including tech-rolling, rising low and mid kicks, cross chop blocks, etc. 
Don't let them whine to you about this. All's fair in Love and Tekken. If you saw 
someone hit you with a juggle starter like a Wind God Fist and then not follow up, 
you'd have little respect for that person's skills, right? Same with ground juggling, 
if you can and you don't, you're either a fool or far too arrogant for your own good. 
On the rare (and I mean extremely rare) occassion when someone is actually nice enough 
to let you tag out, it's still hard not to think of it as a slap in the face.


Predictability:

Don't be predictable! Do crazy stuff! Mess around! As soon as you clue your opponent 
in to what you'll be doing for the rest of the match, you'll find them major countering 
your rear-end straight into the Great-Quarter-Eating-Void. Even be careful when your 
using attack height psychology to train someone to block a particular way. There's no 
guarantee that they'll fall for it more than once. You need to have pre-planned ideas 
for crazy stuff to pull out, cause mashing at buttons is the surest way to turn a good 
match into a painful waste. The more moves in your repetoire, the better off you are. 
The paradox and the irony of Tekken is that you need tightly controlled chaos if you 
want to play on the upper levels. Amusing, absolutely. An excuse for doing two different 
moves fifty times in a row, not a chance.


Tenstrings:

Jin has some of the best mix-ups built into his tenstrings. My personal favorite is 
the b+2,4,4,4,4... strings because I get to mash at the 4 button for a little while. 
Also, that string has three different endings, one low, one mid, and one high. Good 
stuff! In Master play, people rarely use tenstrings (or so I'm told, I've never actually 
gotten to that level myself), or at least rarely use the entirety of a tenstring. 
Personally, I find that if you can hit the trip in the b+2,4,4,4 you might as well tack 
on a White Heron immediately for some sweet damage. If you're a novice and you can master 
the tenstrings, more power to you. Beat the crud out of your friends. Jin's tenstrings 
are especially nice because they rarely involve directionals, and never involve d/f 
(which is basically the reason I included them in here).


A Word From Our Sponsers:

Well, since I didn't really have any sponsors, I decided to do my little shtick about 
the Tekken Community in general. I'd just like to say that I think the most important 
thing, in Tekken and in life, is respect. Respect yourself, respect your opponent, 
respect the machine, and you will go very far. Respect doesn't have to be as overt 
as flattering the other person, but it does mean that you treat someone who's trying 
hard with the courtesy every human being deserves. Yes, I hate button mashers too, 
and I'd give them an exception from being respected, except that they are people too. 
Instead of getting mad at them, why not teach them to play properly? Heck, you might 
even get a good challenge out of them, eventually. Life's too short to fight about 
things like video games, so play for enjoyment and be kind to the person you're 
fighting, even if you're ruthless to their characters. One of the best things you can 
have in this world is cameraderie, and arcades are great places to enjoy those 
friendships. Alright, I'm done preaching.


Thanks:

I need to give enormous thank-you's to people I have never, and likely will never meet. 
Among them are Catlord, whose generous contribution to the Tekken Community got me 
firmly hooked on Tekken - I love psychology! I need also to thank TekkenZaibatsu.com 
for their efforts in keeping alive the site which taught me virtually every juggle I 
know, and which provides the forum for me to read everybody else's FAQs. In that line, 
I'm obligated to thank Reverend C, who's incredibly detailed and descriptive FAQ's made 
me an infinitely better Nina and Heihachi player. Damnit, Reverend, when are you going 
to write a Ling FAQ!?! Finally, I need to thank Mon Capitain, the poor bugger who stands 
there and gives me moral support while I lose to everyone in sight while attempting to 
practice.