Lethal League

Lethal League

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HOW TO BE AN IMPROVER
By Bitnix and 3 collaborators
This guide attempts to improve your fundamentals as a Lethal League player; exploring the concepts of positioning, opponent awareness and coverage. It'll also make you an Edgy Prestige :D:
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HOW TO GET STARTED
1. MAKE SURE U CAN FIND PEOPLE IN QM
2. MAKE SURE U ACTUALLY LIKE PLAYING PEOPLE
3. IF 2 IS IMPOSSIBLE GO PLAY BOTS AND EVENTUALLY QUIT THE GAME
4. TRY UR BESTEST TO HAVE GOOD PING TO WHOEVER U LIKED PLAYING, YELLOW PING (<200) OR BETTER IS P. GOOD, BUT NOT LIKE I KNOW :D: ;_;
5. OK NOW THAT UVE ACTUALLY GOT SOMEONE TO VS I CAN START SAYING STUFF THING STUFF


;_;
Also for frame data and a grasp on LL's hitboxes check out Smellyhobo101's compact image set along with spreadsheet
http://imgur.com/a/FkLXk#5
UNDERSTANDING ANGLES
This is a game about hitting a ball. Obviously angles are a big factor in winning and losing :D:. Everyone has different angles, some may be similar or in fact the same as others but the angles a characters has is the base tool set you have to work with and understand.
YinYin's guide http://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=308796397 is a great start to understanding the base initial angles and the options each character has at their disposal.

What you need to learn in this game immediately is the initial options presented to you from the opponent's hit, whether it be a neutral or smash or special. Panic smash swinging/yolo jump bunting will only get you so far. Make sure you learn the base angles from each character well enough to at least know where it will be in 2 bounces before moving on.
HOW NEUTRAL IS UR BEST FRIEND
The cornerstone of my playstyle: neutrals and charging as a defensive tool

There are many, many moments where despite your depth of understanding of angles, timing and the game itself, that you are forced into situations where you are threatened to be hit on both sides of your hurtbox due to the opponents options. Be this via a neutral or special, it may feel as if your forced into 50/50 as you pick a side to cover.




THIS IS DEAD WRONG










The new world of charging is here for you :D:
The reason why this works is because the initial frames of swing are active for 13 frames and the ending frames of the charge are active for another 13-14 frames. Its not the more active frames that means the most (though it certainly helps), its the ability to release at a later stage vs recovering and attempting a second swing/bunt. During this entire affair you are allowed to turn your character in the direction you wish (except for frames 9-13).

5:30 PM - Antifate: nothing forces a charge
5:30 PM - Bitnix: o ye true
5:31 PM - Bitnix: losing a stock doesnt force a charge
5:31 PM - Bitnix: u just lost the stock

However, you will also have to realize when to stop charging if you misjudge the ball speed and respond with a new swing/bunt. Cancelling your charge early is better than dying due to whiffed charge recovery frames.
POSITIONING
Ok assuming you understand your angles, you should be realizing that there are angle intercepts and beyond that, safezones. Positioning can be categorized into three things:
Immediate angle interception
Safezoning
Response to opponent positioning (will be covered in the next section)

So the bareback basics of good positioning is the immediate coverage of all 3 options of neutral or smash.

Usually these convenient coverage situations occur on ground but there are cases where aerial neutrals can be completely covered (disregarding special).












Assuming you've come to understand your angles, you may have realized that switch and latch have grounded neutrals that bypass a simple "one swing covers all policy", whilst technically untrue (covered in NEUTRAL IS UR BEST FRIEND) the obvious implication is there.
"They both have divergent enough angles out of neutral to not be covered in a convenient way"
There are exceptions to this observation












However this is where safezoning and more advanced positioning comes into effect. An important but ignored mindset is realizing "you cannot cover everything immediately" and will have to learn to deal with the aftermath of uncaught angles. What you aim for in safezoning is the coverage of immediately dangerous options and allowing yourself time to read/react to the uncovered option. Whether you managed to regain ball control or not, the important thing is that you did not lose a stock to the uncovered option.

The existence of specials and parries means you both have to respect the options your opponent may have (so not attempting to directly steal the ball) but also be aware of their ability to special. This will be further explored in "CHARACTER SPECIALS VS U"

In tandem, your positioning will be heavily based on where your opponent is, so understanding and reacting to both their position and their options is key.
OPPONENT POSITIONING
Props to Shffl | N64 for this segment
The main opponent positioning you want to worry about in relation to this guide is picking your neutral angle based on your opponent's movement/preferences. If they position to cover only one or two angles, send it at the third angle because they're unlikely to be able to cover it as easily. A common example of this is hitting a grounded neutral as, say, Switch. The opponent can cover both down and straight by standing and swinging in front of him. In this case the optimal choice is to choose up to either retain ball control, or send a delayed angle into them.

Another thing to note with opponent positioning is your return options. If they hit the ball towards you and follow it, bunting is likely pretty unsafe. If they're on the other side of the stage, you can bunt for ball control. Similarly, if they're far from you you can send it at an angle that will take a while to get to them (eg. Dice up angle) and then follow it so you can act immediately on their response.

Opponent proximity:
This arises due to two different goals, pressure or clashing. Whilst bunt punishing has been covered already, the alternative of serve pressuring (where the opponent is attempting to prevent you from serving) is both real and a wake-up call on the solidity and predictability of your serve. Just be aware of when the opponent can swing, and when you can swing without losing the stock. If unsure, just give the opponent ball control and back out until it becomes more manageable.

Clashing: If the opponent sends it an an angle that gets past you on the immediate intercept (so the ball is bouncing around 'free') and then the opponent moves close to you, you should be worried about being clashed. The best way to deal with this is to do your best to create any distance from the opponent (while avoiding dying to the ball) before returning it. If you're really worried, you can airsmash, which is unclashable.
PUNISHING
Props to Shffl | N64 for this segment
Ok, we're going to talk a little bit about risk/reward. If both players adopt this style of safe-coverage, then it's easy to get into stalemates where you're both returning from a spot that covers everything and not much is getting accomplished.










It's perfectly fine to take risks and assume your opponent is capable of taking risks (because they will). The main two risks I'll talk about are bunting and smashing.

Bunting is great for ball control and meter building. You can reposition the ball to a more advantageous position and release it at reduced hitlag. Just know that if you bunt too close to the opponent, they can often get there first. And then hit it first. And then parry you.
Likewise, if they bunt too close to you, you can steal their ball and kill them for it. Understanding the risks and rewards of bunts is good.

Smashing is the poor man's neutral coverage. Smash hitbox is huge (technically it's two hitboxes, and they're both quite large).




If you really have no idea where the ball is, smash can work to re-establish temporary control. Your reward is you're probably still alive. Your risk is now the opponent knows exactly where the ball will go (specials aside), and gets a free setup. Keep that in mind, and be thinking of your next response.

Does this mean anything else to us? Sure does! Not only are you making risk/reward decisions based on where you and the ball and opponent are, your opponent is making these decisions too. Say you're raptor and you're in this position, notice the somewhat low ballspeed




Yeah the opponent can return it from where they're standing, but you can make it tough. Send it up, it will take the longest to get to the opponent, and then run at them. If they respond with bunt, you're in prime position to punish it. If they swing you can be in front of them for easier return options. Or you can intercept your own angle with an airsmash and special it wherever you want! Try to create situations where you can punish their response on reaction.


CHARACTER SPECIALS VS U
~Alright this isn't an explanation on how to use specials, it's how to respond to them.

Raptor:
The most diverse special, with its incredibly varying timing mix-ups and several angle AND bunt choices, covering raptor's special may seem difficult if not impossible, especially considering how you should be positioning to catch his immediate angle selection (non-special). My advice for Raptor is to cover what you deem to be the most dangerous, both options before and after special. It is fortunate that raptor's angles are wide and somewhat simple to respond to after the initial release. The following are of Raptor's two timings on special, short and long respectively.
Whilst it is possible to cover raptors entire special (both short and long versions) with a well timed neutral or smash (except latch and switch's, which aren't active for long enough ;_;) it is both hard to do and not going to be an option most of the time as raptor can easily special before you get to him, or even parry if you do.

Switch:
Infamous for never being seen, switch's special comes in 2.5 forms:
-Rawflip-
Always set to 22 frames of hitlag, switch's base special of a second jump input can be used as both a timing mixup and a crossup. Depending on where it is your positioning will have to change.






simple to cover, just stand away from switch and cover both in one swing






the same rules apply to low switch near a wall, u can catch both intercepts but if you aren't in a confident position opt to catch one and let the other go past you and eventually return.






Do not stand under Switch, this is impossibly hard to cover even with neutral swing; pick either side and opt to cover the immediate angle that will hit you and allow the alternative to loop back and respond to that.
-Crouchflip-
Mainly used as a quick mixup RESPOND OR DIE tool, crouchflip is usually utilized in conjunction with low straights or loopy angles that will hit you, but are "extended" via switchflip's 22 frames of hitlag to make you whiff. The same can also be done with standard switchflip, but crouchflip is slightly more discreet.
-Smashflip-
Technically within the same coverage of standard rawflip, the reason smashflip is different is because it uses the smash hitlag (bunted or not) and can be activated towards the end of smash, making it the least react-able of his specials. Switch's smash itself also factors into your coverage as he can opt not to special and surprise you with a more vertical angle, fortunately switch's smash is for the most part loopy and can be safezoned so you can concentrate on his flip angles.

Candyman:
Candyman emphasizes ball control at low speed (<100). This is due to the capped speed of candyball (128) in conjunction with its hitlag. However this does not make him irrelevant past 100 speed, his special is still very dangerous, just the effectiveness of chaining is decreased. Positioning against Candyman is difficult due to the various options he has and from where he generates threats, but for the initial hit from where he can choose to special or not special you either opt to hard read/react or tap charge to cover around 6 different possibilities:

Against grounded Candyman it is generally a good idea to stay in front of him to catch all intercepts (if possible) or about 2 character lengths behind him to tap charge respond to his special. Ground down candy angle is a somewhat threat, but is more used to convert into an aerial. Be wary of miss spacing as a frequent cause of lost stocks is a candy up special that goes under you as you attempt to cover it, and a follow up chain into a straight towards you as you whiff.






Playing against aerial Candyman is much more difficult due to the expanse of options and angles he can choose from. Whilst the intercepts to receive all three do not change it is unlikely that you can always position fast enough to receive it that way. From this point you have to consider his most threatening option and adjust to what he does end up choosing. This however is inconsistent and in most cases the best but not guaranteed option is to smash, or be grounded charging and hopefully have enough charge frames to release at the right time.

Sonata:
Whilst the special itself doesn't seem very threatening, its the versatility of both it and sonata that create a frenetic and "1 step ahead situation". The key here is to be aware of sonatas initial options and appropriately position to catch those (YOU DON'T HAVE TO CATCH EVERYTHING IMMEDIATELY) and responding if she does opt to special. Due to its properties of having 3 phases unless it hits a wall, catching the special is a matter of reaction and understanding the diagonal angle it produces. Just beware of the angle she may pick upon hitting the wall eg.








Latch:
Latch special is a reset with more control. However due to his fairly slow movement you can opt to mirror his movements and immediately catch upon release (downbunting him when he's grounded is a confirmed kill).






However this isn't always possible and you will have to position so that you can cover his most threatening angles, however his angles are fairly loopy besides ground down so you can either neutral charge or double swing to catch the aftermath.

Dice:
Responding to dice special is somewhat similar to responding to sonata special, however where sonata utilizes various angle choices to boggle you, dice relies on timing mixups and heavily extended ball control via use of his special. His normal angles are the least threatening among the roster but in tandem with his special creates various timing mixups that in most cases you will have to charge for. If he manages to get a floor/wall special angle live then treat it like candy aerial down angle, you also have much more time to position and react to it since it goes up and then down. Dice roof special release is his normal down angle, so just be aware of how it will bounce.
ENDING NOTES
THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO HELPED ME WITH THIS GUIDE
SHFFL | N64 - WROTE BITS I WAS TOO LAZY TO WRITE
BUTTERS - MADE PRETTY GIFS AND THEN MADE ♥♥♥♥.TY GIFS
MAFFEW - DREW LINE AND CIRCLE DOODLES ON THE SCREENSHOTS
AUSTRALIA - FOR HAVING A NON -EXISTENT QM ;_;

HOPE U LEARNT SOMETHING, BUT WHAT WOULD I KNOW IM JUST SOME LAGGY AUSTRALIAN

a whole entire gay boy(Morph): "brb borrowing bitnix's noose"
100% Butter: "God I hate Bitnix so much"
MaffeW: "not many people have as many bucks as you do fitnix"
Shffl | N64: "Shut up Bitnix"
Mecha Soul: "lmbo"
K9999: "What a surprise, Bitnix won again"
CloudyNinja: "That's Garbage"
Kanubai: "I think I'm done with LL"
Saxxy: "my australing friend is pulling an allnighter for a LL tourney, if thats not dedication idk what is"
Yours Truly: "brbnoose"
CORPSE JUGGLING
Corpse juggling is tech that is used... it's not used.
Don't learn corpse juggling, it's completely useless.
This is the third sentence to complete this section required because Bitnix said so.
-ButterNubs wrote this section
26 Comments
Reblas 2 Dec, 2018 @ 2:38pm 
this is really interesting, overall that technique used in the "HOW NEUTRAL IS UR BEST FRIEND" section. Do you think it's possible in blaze?
Grimgrents 27 Mar, 2018 @ 1:44pm 
:D:
Fresh 5 Jan, 2018 @ 5:45am 
hi this is saxxy and this is my favorite guide on the citadel
Lupodes 28 Nov, 2016 @ 6:40am 
add me to play Lethal league ^^
New to the game
Zoibator 5 Jul, 2016 @ 6:53pm 
Amazing guide!
Beerus 1 Jul, 2016 @ 3:07pm 
damn dude
Awelotta 29 Jun, 2016 @ 8:04pm 
very good guide!
Unseenvision 18 Jun, 2016 @ 9:04pm 
Terrible guide he cheats because he lives where there are Kangaroos
Bitnix  [author] 31 Mar, 2016 @ 1:36pm 
yes pull you will become the greatest player and win some major tournament or something idk :D:
Pull 31 Mar, 2016 @ 10:31am 
If I actually read this will I become good