Rainbow Mika SFV - GDH Guide

Rainbow Mika (Mika Nanakawa) Reference Guide
September 29, 2015

DISCLAIMER:
I OWN NOTHING IN RELATION TO CAPCOM OR THE STREET FIGHTER SERIES. NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENTS ARE INTENDED.
Minor note: Due to the fact that Street Fighter V is still in production and is being beta-tested by many different players, guide will be subject to change overtime.

=R. Mika Frame Data=
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1OOgUKjbyFgdWbqk6fgmzvefLaC1LIwrKP7kJBL_dBXw/edit#gid=0


=Summary=
R. Mika is a character that would make a return into Street Fighter V as one of the most requested characters among the vast majority of players and is a welcome edition to the Street Fighter V series. The character has not been present in any other fighting game ever since her initial appearance in SFA3 as a unique grappling character. This time around, R. Mika is one of the first true grappling characters in the game that offers a relatively set of tools at her disposal. The main intent behind her game play is to approach the opponent with well-placed normal moves and set the opponent up for mix ups and powerful command grabs. R. Mika has very neat mobility options due to how her both her normal moves, command move and special moves function. R. Mika is also noteworthy for dishing out a lot of damage at once, as well as having very great block punishment (which is true to any grappling character). The character also has quite a few ways of dealing with long range options and projectiles at further distances, that is if the player is careful. Take advantage of these aspects of R. Mika and make the opponent taste the rainbow! In retrospect, R. Mika is a very fun character for players who like the idea of big damage and command grab set ups and close range mix ups.

= V-Skill =
Mic Performance [MP+MK]
Upon pressing the V-Skill notations, R. Mika will pull out a microphone and begin conducting a speech, as if she was really was participating in a wrestling match. The longer the player holds down on MP+MK, the longer she will speak on the microphone. What this does is that it will increase the damage on the next throw she does, based on how long the longer she speaks when the player holds down on MP+MK. Yes, she can potentially OHKO the opponent though it would require the player to hold down on the V-Skill notation for a long time for that to happen.
Frankly, this is NEVER going to happen in a real match as it is considered exceedingly impractical. However, the V-Skill can still be very useful for threatening opponents with the next throw. During the speech, R. Mika has armored properties that will allow her to take one hit. When she does take the hit, the armor property disappears. When R. Mika completes the speech or if the player chooses to stop the Mic Performance, R. Mika will throw the microphone on to the floor in front of her. The microphone itself can also be used as a projectile (it has projectile properties) and may stuff many attacks. R. Mika will also even take advantage of the armored properties of the V-Skill to negate projectiles. In a lot of ways, the V-Skill can be used defensively. This is one of the more unique V-Skills that allow R. Mika to be a huge threat, even at further distances. Players would be encouraged to use this in moderation through out the match. Another noteworthy aspect of the V-Skill
is that builds V-Trigger meter very quickly. While the V-Skill is relatively useful for gaining damage buffs and for taking a defensive approach, it is important to beware of cross-ups and multi-hit moves. It may also be possible to use this from up close on the opponents wake-up in case they grow too fond of the idea of wake-up reversals. Discretion will be advised while trying to bait out things like dragon punches for example. Be on the look out other opponents throw attempts as well if they are close. To be clear about the V-Skill, R. Mika will recieve throw damage buffs based on the amount of time that passes by when she performs her speech. These damage buffs will apply to ALL THROWING MOVES! This includes regular throws as well.

= V-Trigger =
Press HP+HK will the V-Trigger meter is full. When R. Mika activates her V-Trigger, she will be
able to summon her wrestling partner to assist her during the match. Keep in mind that the player can actually choose the timing
of when Nadeshiko shows up to whack the opponent with her own moves. This would also would also lead to more combo potential.
R. Mika can even use Nadeshiko to zone around or set the opponent up for nasty mix ups. Nadeshiko can generally instigate a lot of awkward or bad situations, even against opponents who have an advantage. The V-Trigger in general is very useful for combo continuity and for conducting unique mix ups and command grab set ups. It should be noted that R. Mika can call on her buddy once after activating V-Trigger. Another thing is that the R. Mika player can delay the timing on when Nadeshiko actually shows up which can lead to some very interesting situations.

Nadeshiko (Above) [HP+HK]: R. Mika's partner will appear from above to flop onto the opponent where ever they may be. This does NOT hit overhead. It is also important to keep in mind that Nadeshiko (Above) WILL hit opponents that are on the ground for extra damage.
Nadeshiko (Front) [Forward+HP+HK]: Nadeshiko appears from the front to conduct a drop kick. This puts a grounded opponent into a juggle state.
Nadeshiko (Behind) [Back+HP+HK]: Nadeshiko does a drop kick from behind the opponent and the opponent would be forced to block the other direction. On hit,
the opponent is placed into a juggle state.
Remember. If you tap the V-Trigger inputs (HP+HK), Nadeshiko will immediately assist R. Mika with her attacks. If the player holds HP+HK, Nadeshiko will come out a few seconds after the V-Trigger is activated.


= V-Reversal =
Peach Gator [While blocking --> Forward+All Punches]: After blocking a move on the ground, R. Mika will kick the opponent in their stomach area. She then grabs a hold of their head and the flop onto the floor while slamming the opponents head down. R. Mika makes use of the famous Stunner, which is pretty exciting. Unfortunately, it is not possible to KO the opponent.


= Throws =
NOTE: R. Mika actually has three throws! Two of them are generic. Another throw she has is meant for crouching opponents. R. Mika will perform a unique throwing attack if the player choose to conduct a throw on a crouching opponent.

Daydream Headlock: Forward Throw. R. Mika headlocks the opponent and the slams them onto the ground.

Dream Driver: R. Mika will lift the opponent up out from their crouching position, holding them upside down. She then slams the opponent hard on the ground. Painful looking to say the least. This animation will take place if the opponent was crouching.

Sell Down: Back Throw. R. Mika will wrap her beautiful legs around the opponents head and flip them backwards. Leaves a pretty decent gap between herself and the opponent.


= Normal Moves =
- st.LP: Very quick standing normal move. R. Mika slaps the opponent silly. Cancels to special moves and chains into itself easily. Decent poking tool. This normal leaves enough frame advantage on hit to combo into other stronger normal moves (based on the games current build).
- cr.LP: Does a chopping motion with her outer arm. Chain cancels. Cancels to special moves.
- j.LP: A very quick air-to-air move. Sense this move comes up quick on start up, R. Mika can beat out whatever the opponent is doing in the air if she is careful.
- st.LK: R. Mika uses her outer leg to kick the opponents ankle. Can be good tick throw set up. Cancels into special moves. This move will also lead into a nice target combo.
- cr.LK: A very nice low hit confirm. R. Mika leans away from the opponent and performs a back kick. This move will chain easily.
- j.LK: Performs a forward knee strike while in mid air. This move will cross up very easily. After landing the cross up, it may be easy to conduct a combo with other light normals as soon as you land on the ground. Otherwise, if the opponent is blocking, keep your block strings tight and go for tick throws if you must.
- st.MP: R. Mika chops outward with her hand. This is a very good poke which leaves enough frame advantage on hit to link into other normal moves (you can link a standing MP into a MP or her Passion Rope Throw for example. Very safe on block. Cancels into special moves.
- cr.MP: This normal is one R. Mika's anti-air moves. R. Mika performs a hopping headbutt motion. It will still hit grounded opponents. Causes air-reset against midair opponents.
- j.MP: Leaning elbow attack. The R. Mika player may use this every once in a while, probably a quick jump-in tool.
- st.MK: This is a very good normal. R. Mika does a hopping sobat kick. Has low invincibility which will prevent opposing players for using low pokes and/or hit confirms. It is possible to combo after this move on counter hit. The player can also tilt the control stick a bit to move R. Mika around a little during this normal as well, which can be potentially annoying on the opponents part... and very good for the player. Very safe on block. Probably one of R. Mika's best normal moves.
- cr.MK: R. Mika leans back and performs a kick towards the opponent. This can also be a very good poke but the kick and angled towards the opponents mid section. This move can be used for late anti-airs if R. Mika is positioned correctly.
- j.MK: R. Mika performs a sobat kick in mid air. This is a very good air-to-air as she sticks her leg forwards which covers quite a bit of distance. Can be a descentjump-in tool as well.
- st.HP: R. Mika does a uppercut sledge hammer motion. Cancels to special moves. Has enough frame advantage on hit to link into other normal moves. Might be useful
for knocking opponents out of the air. Leaves enough frame advantage on hit to link into another normal.
- cr.HP: Does a nasty shoulder check motion while rolling a forward a very short distance. This is actually safe on block but it is also minus on block and she
is very close to the opponent after she recovers from the rolling animation.
- j.HP: This is a very good air-to-ground jump move. R. Mika performs a nasty sledge-hammer motion with both of her fists.
- st.HK: Crush Counter... Players... are going to be using this QUITE a bit. There is a lot to say about this move. First of all, this move is safe on block and can be delayed. It is possible to combo after this move as well. Despite the slow start up, the move has quite a bit of utility as R. Mika lunges forward with a painful looking drop kick motion. This move will also disregard projectiles when it is well into its active frames. It is also important to note that if R. Mika lands this move on counter hit, she can actually combo into command grabs.
- cr.HK: A low forward sliding motion that will knock the opponent down. R. Mika has low profile against high hit-detection moves and even projectiles. This move is not safe on block when used at point blank against the defending opponent but it can be safe when R. Mika spaces herself properly so that the opponent is completely unable to punish on any consistent basis. Use this move with some discretion.
- j.HK: Very good jump-in. R. Mika performs a drop-kick motion while falling from her jump-in.


= Summary about R. Mika's normal moves =
R. Mika is a considered a grappling character in SFV. It is to be expected that R. Mika's normal moves are strong. In fact, based on how her normal moves are arranged, it is safe to say that R. Mika's normal moves are nothing to joke about. R. Mika has really good buttons to address multiple situations. Reportedly, R. Mika's go-to anti-airs are st.LP, cr.MP, cr.MK(late), st.HP and even st. HK. Time these anti-airs very carefully and punish the opponent hard for jumping wildly. It is important to keep in mind that R. Mika can put some intense pressure on the opponent up close with her normals. She can resort to tick throws by making use of quite a bit of her light and even her medium normals (like st.MP). st.MP and st.MK are very good for retain corner pressure. The player may use cr.LK into cr.LP to hit confirm into combo and to conduct tick throw set ups. As expected, her normals are pretty great, especially if you are counter-poking. She has two noteworthy normal moves that will provide low invincibility which are st.MK and st.HK. This may also be true for cr.MP as well but that might be far too situation and
when she performs the headbutts, she only leaps slight off of the ground. R. Mika has a number of ways of discouraging low pokes and low hit confirms from the opponent. Many combos that stem from her normal moves are relatively easy and may lead to high damage, but of course the R. Mika player needs to be careful in the neutral. While many of R. Mika's normal moves are solid, there are also other characters that may beat her in the neutral. Characters such as Vega for example may come to mind. In case the R. Mika player is fighting a smart opponent, they need to carefully plan out how they can get close to the opponent to instigate some good offense while being able to play footsies. R. Mika can be a pretty huge threat in the neutral but she really shines in corner pressure because of her command grab/tick throw set ups and because a lot of her normals also discourage jumping as well. The opponent would have to be very careful if they do get cornered by R. Mika. Then there are moves such as st. HK which will quickly draw R. Mika closer to the opponent. It is even safe on block and R. Mika can combo after the fact (if R. Mika scores a counter hit with st. HK... keep in mind that this is a Crush Counter... if she hits the opponent on counter hit with this move, R. Mika is free to have her way with her helpess opponent, being able to show them how strong and sexy she really is when it comes to professional wrestling. Basically, the opponent is going to lose A LOT of health). R. Mika can also draw herself forward a bit with her MK (forward+MK) and cr. HK. Crouching HK causes R. Mika to slide forward which can be safe on block when spaced correctly. On a general consensus, R. Mika's normal moves are solid and extremely useful.


= Target Combo =
standing LK~standing MP: R. Mika will perform her standing light kick into her standing medium punch. This has quite a few uses, such as block punishment, combo tool and for visually confirming hits when you are starting an offense from up close and personal. The last hit of the target combo will cancel into special moves. Always keep this target combo in mind. Very useful!


= Command Moves =
Dive Bomb [While Jumping FORWARD + Down+MP]: R. Mika will stop herself in midair and perform a slamming motion straight down to the ground, changing the trajectory of her jump.


Lady Mika [Forward+HP]: R. Mika performs a uppercut motion with her outer arm while seemingly flexing her bicep. This move will hit mid and while launch opponents into the air. R. Mika can juggle the opponent afterward but the window is somewhat small. If this move is used on counter hit, the juggle window is extended and the opponent is launched a bit higher which would allow for R. Mika to perform more elaborate juggle combos. It is a lot easier to finish juggle combos after Forward+HP in the corner. Otherwise, it is best to follow up with a regular normal move, forward dash into cr.HK or EX Wingless Airplace (qcf+K).

Passion Press [Forward+MP]: R. Mika thrusts her hands forward to hurt the opponent. There are two follow ups that R. Mika can do when she lands this move. It is
relatively easy to link into this move from regular normals such as st.MP.

Passion Rope Throw Forward [Forward+MP~ MP]: This is the follow up after Passion Press. R. Mika will perform a forward Irish Whip toss. She will spin the opponent around once after taking them by the arm. She then quickly tosses the opponent opponent forward a long distance away and they will fall forward to the ground. If R. Mika does nothing, then she gets a lot of space. Keep in mind that there are ways to combo out of this move. If R. Mika throws the opponent towards the corner, the opponent will suffer a wall splat and R. Mika will have an easy time following up with extra moves (such as Lady Mika - Forward+HP). If there is no corner, the opponent just trips and falls over, leaving some huge space between themselves and R. Mika. When the latter happens, R. Mika can simply dash up and perform cr. HK or follow up with EX Shooting Peach but the player needs to be very quick. Otherwise, if the player does not have a corner and if they want to go for a mix up of a sort, they can use Wingless Airplane to draw themselves closer (the reason for this will be explained later within the special moves description section).

Passion Rope Throw Backward [Forward+MP~ Back+MP]: R. Mika conducts an Irish Whip but this time she tosses the opponent backwards instead of forward. The same concepts still apply as forward version.


= Special Moves =
Shooting Peach [QCF+P] = R. Mika performs a butt slam attack, launching herself towards the opponent a short distance. She will lunge at her opponent with her well-shaped buttocks to destroy anything and all things in her way. The distance traveled is influenced by the button that is pressed. The light version can hop over opponents when she is extremely close to a crouching opponent, though this could situational. Another thing about this move is that it can be used as a secondary method of moving towards the opponent. When R. Mika lands on the ground, she recovers very quickly, making her very hard to whiff punish on any consistent basis. The player can use this move to bait an unsafe move from the opponent or just to simply make R. Mika travel forward. With this move, she is still effectively closing the gap between herself and the opponent. She is very safe if she lands on the ground successfully without hitting anything. The light punch version of Shooting Peach travels the shortest distance and is the safest version of the said move (possibly outside of the EX version which will be explained in a bit). The MP version causes R. Mika to lunge herself forward with her butt but a slightly longer distance while the HP version causes her to travel the further while also being unsafe on block.

*** EX Shooting Peach [QCF+Two Punches] = R. Mika performs two elbow rush attacks and then a her butt slam animation. If the first two punches on blocked, R. Mika stops altogether. Appears to be safe on block but it is still wise to use discretion when utilizing this move. There is armored properties on start up. It would be okay to utilize this as a wake-up reversal due to the fact that it is rather difficult for the opponent to deal with. This is also a very good combo
finisher in many situations.

Wingless Airplane [QCF+K]= This is purely an anti-air command grab. R. Mika will flip into the air. When she connects with an opponent in midair, she will grapple the opponent and then she somersaults them to the ground, landing on their face with her beautiful butt. This move will never connect with opponents who are on the ground. However, it is possible to finish a lot of juggle combo off with this move. It is generally a very good anti-air when R. Mika is positioned properly. Another thing that needs to be noted about Wingless Airplane is that R. Mika can also use this move as a secondary mobility option. When this move is used, R. Mika will continue flying up into the air until she lands successfully on the ground. When she does land, she has little to no recovery but keep in mind that during the moves animation in midair, she is vulnerable to anti-airs. R. Mika can also use this to draw herself quickly towards the opponent after Passion Rope Throw, if there is no corner available for her to perform better combos. In this case, R. Mika can get some very good okizeme.

*** EX Wingless Airplane [QCF+Two Kicks]: R. Mika will perform her Wingless Airplane a lot quicker and in a higher arc, making it a bit easier to finish some juggle combo. This move does a bit more damage than the regular version. The general animation is almost the same except R. Mika performs a few flips in a very quick fashion. As a standalone move, EX Wingless Airplane will definitely make opponents think before they jump. This can be used for getting out of the corner if the one is in a tight situation.

Rainbow Typhoon [HCB+P]: R. Mika performs the infamous Giant Swing. She will takes the opponent by the legs, spins them around a few times and sends them flying helplessly in the air away from her. Due to the absence of frame data, it is assumed that this throw comes out at 4 frames on its start up but this may depend on the button that is pressed. NOTE: There are has been some reports on the strength of the punch button influencing the start up frames to a degree.

*** EX Rainbow Typhoon [HCB+Two Punches]: The start up of this version does not seem to change. There is also no invincibility on its start up either. However, the throw does quite a bit more damage. R. Mika will spin the opponent around for a slightly longer period of time before throwing them away. When the opponent collides at the end point of the stage, Nadeshiko will appear from behind the opponent and then slam their head onto the ground to finish the throw, doing a lot of damage. Nadeshiko will then pose for a moment and disappear from the screen while R. Mika recovers and continues the fight.

Brimstone [HCB+K]: R. Mika grapples the opponent, flips herself over the opponent and then she lift them overhead. R. Mika will slam the opponent hard on the ground, leaving the opponent trying to figure out what just happened to them. Unlike the Rainbow Typhoon, the opponent is left a bit closer to R. Mika, though this throw reportedly does a bit less damage than the Rainbow Typhoon.

*** EX Brimstone [HCB+K]: When R. Mika finishes the throw, her partner Nadeshiko will leap and belly flop the opponent for extra damage. Does a lot more damage than the regular version but does not seem to influence the start up.


= Critical Art =
Peach Assault [QCB x2 + All Punches]: One of THE most lovely Critical Arts in the game (both in terms of animation and in gameplay). During the super freeze sequence, R. Mika will place her hand on her hip and smack her butt to taunt the opponent. She then poses at the opponent with a cheeky smile and points at them thus ending the super freeze sequence. Immediately after the super freeze start up animation, R. Mika will charge towards her opponent a short distance. Now here is the cool part about this Critical Art: This move is grappling move... but it can also be comboed into. Just like a KOF-styled command grab. It would
only be avoided by jumping away from R. Mika. This is probably one of the best Critical Arts in the game, besides a few others (so far... because this game is currently in production and is being beta-tested periodically by other players on consoles and within different arcade facilities). When R. Mika grapples the opponent, she bearhugs them and the flips them backwards to hurl the opponent towards her partner. Nadeshiko catches the opponent and headlocks them, throwing high up into the air. R. Mika then shouts while rushing towards the mid air opponent and Nadeshiko follows suit from the other side. They then use their buttocks to crush the opponents head and slam them on the ground in the most painful way possible. R. Mika then recovers to her fighting stance while Nadeshiko leaves the scene again. Obviously, this Critical Art is very useful


=Consensus of Special Moves=
Many of R. Mika's special move cause her travel forward in some way. This is something worth taking note of because her whiff recovery is rather quick as she lands on the ground from both Shooting Peach and Wingless Airplane (the player STILL needs to be careful, however because she does become very vulnerable during the start up and active frames of these moves). R. Mika also has two powerful command grabs which suit two different purposes. If the player wants continued close ranged offense, they would probably go for Brimstone (HCB+K). If the player wants more damage and more space, they would perform the Rainbow Typhoon move (HCB+P). Another thing that is worth mentioning is the fact that all of her metered options are very strong and will almost always lead to a lot of crazy damage. Based on how R. Mika's game play and move list are arranged, making a comeback from a bad situation with R. Mika is definitely plausible because of the nature behind her normal moves and special moves. She does a lot of damage, even if she does not have any meter available (which is often true for grappling characters anyway).
In many ways, R. Mika offers quite a bit of versatility because she has the tools that would allow her to get closer to the opponent, along with several escape options and anti-airs. Wingless Airplane is definitely a good anti-air if the players reaction is good and if the opposing playing has poor positioning. In order to maintain a degree of consistency when playing R. Mika, it is best to acknowledge all of her normal moves and special moves as she is indeed a solid character to play.


PROS:
+ Devastating damage output along with a particularly nasty mix-up game from up close and personal.
+ Awesome normal moves for standalone poking/counter-poking and combo utilities on the ground
+ Lethal block punishment
+ Has multiple methods of moving around. Not quite as elaborate as Chun-Li persay but they are still very useful in certain situations

CONS:
- May have issues getting in on opponents with better ranged options
- Dealing with overly aggressive opponents on wake-up is going to take a lot of premeditation
- Somewhat floaty jump (reportedly)
- Cannot threaten opponents from further distances without Nadeshiko (though she still can discourage far range strategies with her V-Skill)


=Noteworthy Combos=
st.MP, qcf+P (Shooting Peach)

st.MP [link] st.MP, qcf+P (Shooting Peach)

Target Combo ---> st.LK~st.MP, qcf+P (Shooting Peach)

st.HP, qcf+P (Shooting Peach)

st.MP [link] st. HP, qcf+P (Shooting Peach)

st.HP [link] st.MP, qcf+P (Shooting Peach)

cr.LK, cr.LK, st.LP, qcf+P (Shooting Peach)

j.HP, f+HP, qcf+K (Wingless Airplane)

st. MK (Counter Hit), st.MP, qcf+P (Shooting Peach)

[Corner] st.MP, [link] f+MP~MP (Passion Rope Throw Forward), (wall splat), f+HP, qcf+K (Wingless Airplane)

st. HK [link] st. MP, qcf+P (Shooting Peach)

st. HK [link] st. MP, qcf+Two Punches (EX Shooting Peach)

st. HK [link] st. MP - V-Trigger - [link] st.HP, qcf+P (Shooting Peach)

st. HK [link] st.MP - V-Trigger - Nadeshiko(Back), qcf+K (Wingless Airplane)

Crush Counter st.HK (against mid air opponents), qcf+P (Shooting Peach)

Crush Counter st. HK (once again, mid air opponents), qcf+P (Shooting Peach)

Nadeshiko V-Trigger offers very nice combo extensions, zoning, mix up and even defensive options, offering quite a bit of versatility. Keep in mind that some of those combos are subject to change, depending on the incoming patches and changes made over the periods of SFV.