Kuma: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 06:42, 2 October 2024

Kuma

Heat	Shortens charge time of hold attacks Enhances ROLL stance Allows use of Wind Bear Fist
Heat Smash	Mid, i13, +10
Heat Engagers	1+2 b+1 b+1+2 WR.1+2 HBS.d+1+2
Stances	HBS (Hunting) – 3+4 ROLL (Bear Roll) – FC.1+2 SIT (Bear Sit) – d+3+4
Fastest
Launch	i15 – df+2,1 (standing) i15 – WS.2 (crouching)
CH launch	i10 – 1,1,1 (high)
Wall splat	i12 – f+2,1 (high)
Archetypal moves
Mid check	df+4
Hopkick	uf+3
Stature kick	db+3
Generic moves
Remapped	(none)
Missing	(none)
External links
Lore	Kuma
Twitter	#T8_Kuma
Discord	Big Bear Family🐾

This page is for Tekken 8. For Tekken 7, see Kuma (Tekken 7).

Kuma (and Panda, often just referred to as bears) is an oddball character specializing in ranged poking and whiff punishment.

Cursed with often terrible frame data on his moves and the worst overall mobility in the game between his huge size, lack of specialized movement tools and a generally bad backdash/sidestep, Kuma has to navigate the mid range carefully and deliberately, lest he gets run over by enemy pressure.

To offset this, the bears come equipped with some of the absolute best whiff punishment tools in the entire game. Kuma Musou (df+2,1) is an i15 whiff-confirmable launcher that hits all the way from range 3 for close to 45% damage without Heat on open ground. Demon Bear Breath (1+2) is an i13 mid stolen from Heihachi, which boasts similarly impressive range and heat engages. Kuma also has an array of ranged mids and low pokes to gradually chip away at the opponent from outside their effective range, and a decent selection of tracking keepout moves such as b,f+2, uf+1 or b+1+2, all of which deal considerable chip damage when blocked.

Holding down or pressing 3+4 after select moves transitions Kuma into the Hunting Bear Stance (HBS for short), a naturally high-crushing, mixup-focused stance. HBS allows some additional light pressure with the threat of an enormously plus on hit, fast low in HBS.2. This can be mixed up with HBS's good selection of safe, or even plus on block Mids.

Kuma's Heat allows him to become even deadlier in the neutral game, as he gains access to Wind Bear Fist, a plus on block launcher similar to the iconic Mishima Wind God Fist, which cannot be crouched under. His Heat Smash is also top class. It's incredibly fast at i13, has huge range, hits mid and does above average damage for a Heat Smash, further reinforcing his identity as the more "neutral" focused of the two bears.

Strengths

Massive range and damage
Possesses an i10 CH launch to keep opponents on their toes
Unapologetically strong in Heat, dealing loads of chip damage with nearly uncontestable pressure
Wonky hurtbox makes him much harder to hit with lows and gives him surprising evasion with HBS and moves like WR1+2
Can be tricky to play against with a plethora of strings

Weaknesses

Wonky hurtbox makes him more susceptible to unique, higher damage combos for nearly the entire cast, as well as making evading moves harder
Somewhat hinges on players not knowing Kuma's strings very well
Several launch punishable moves, including most of his lows and some of his key moves
His strong lows are also slow

Key techniques

Mashing

importance

★★★★★

value

★★★★★

dexterity

★☆☆☆☆

rhythm

★★☆☆☆

Blocking

importance

☆☆☆☆☆

value

☆☆☆☆☆

dexterity

★★★★★

rhythm

★★★★★

External links

Kuma/Panda Combo Guide | TEKKEN 8 by RyzingSol

@@ Line 48: / Line 48: @@
 To offset this, the bears come equipped with some of the absolute best whiff punishment tools in the entire game. ''Kuma Musou'' (df+2,1) is an i15 ''whiff-confirmable'' launcher that hits all the way from range 3 for close to 45% damage without ''Heat'' on open ground. ''Demon Bear Breath''  (1+2) is an i13 mid stolen from Heihachi, which boasts similarly impressive range and heat engages. Kuma also has an array of ranged mids and low pokes to gradually chip away at the opponent from outside their effective range, and a decent selection of tracking keepout moves such as ''b,f+2'', ''uf+1'' or ''b+1+2'', all of which deal considerable chip damage when blocked.
-Holding down or pressing 3+4 after select moves transitions Kuma into the ''Hunting Bear Stance'' (HBS for short), a naturally high-crushing, [[mixup]]-focussed stance. ''HBS'' allows some additional light pressure with the threat of an enormously plus on hit, fast low in ''HBS.2''. This can be mixed up with ''HBS'''s good selection of safe, or even plus on block Mids.
+Holding down or pressing 3+4 after select moves transitions Kuma into the ''Hunting Bear Stance'' (HBS for short), a naturally high-crushing, [[mixup]]-focused stance. ''HBS'' allows some additional light pressure with the threat of an enormously plus on hit, fast low in ''HBS.2''. This can be mixed up with ''HBS'''s good selection of safe, or even plus on block Mids.
 Kuma's Heat allows him to become even deadlier in the neutral game, as he gains access to ''Wind Bear Fist'', a plus on block launcher similar to the iconic Mishima ''Wind God Fist'', which ''cannot'' be crouched under.
-His ''Heat Smash'' is also top class. It's incredibly fast at i13, has huge range, hits mid and does above average damage for a ''Heat Smash'', further reinforcing his identity as the more "neutral" focussed of the two bears.
+His ''Heat Smash'' is also top class. It's incredibly fast at i13, has huge range, hits mid and does above average damage for a ''Heat Smash'', further reinforcing his identity as the more "neutral" focused of the two bears.
 {{BlueRed
@@ Line 57: / Line 57: @@
 |blue=
-* '''Range''': Kuma's large frame grants him immense range on many of his attacks, making him both excellent at keeping out the opponent and punishing them if they overextend.
+* Massive range and damage
-* '''Mixups''': All of his stances have decent mixups which can catch opponents off guard.
+* Possesses an i10 CH launch to keep opponents on their toes
-* '''Chip''': Many of Kuma's attacks also deal a bunch of chip damage, which makes it easier to wear down and pressure his opponents.
+* Unapologetically strong in Heat, dealing loads of chip damage with nearly uncontestable pressure
-* '''Heat''': Kuma becomes a much deadlier character when Heat is activated, making his roll a true 50/50 and having a much safer launch in WBF. The charge times on chargeable moves severly decreases, and his Heat Smash is a one-time use i13 punisher with massive range that can hit moves like Paul's heat Deathfist and Bryan's 3+4 on block.
+* Wonky hurtbox makes him much harder to hit with lows and gives him surprising evasion with HBS and moves like WR1+2
+* Can be tricky to play against with a plethora of strings
 |red=
-* '''Hurtbox''': His large, unorthodox frame usually grants opponents more damaging or unique combos that don't work on anyone else.
+* Wonky hurtbox makes him more susceptible to unique, higher damage combos for nearly the entire cast, as well as making evading moves harder
-** '''Movement''': While his stubby legs can cause lows to whiff, they don't allow Kuma to go that far with his backdash (which makes him ''lean forward'') or his sidesteps, which are easily one of, if not the worst in the game because of his size.
+* Somewhat hinges on players not knowing Kuma's strings very well
-* '''Risk-taking''': Several of Kuma's moves, even his best ones like his G-Clef, df+2,1, and db+2, are all launch punishable by nearly the entire cast. A knowledgeable opponent is extremely difficult to fight because of this.
+* Several launch punishable moves, including most of his lows and some of his key moves
-** '''Lows''': By extension, most of his lows are unusable because while damaging, they are often both slow AND launch punishable.
+* His strong lows are also slow
 }}