Kuma

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-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.

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.

Strengths

• 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.
• Mixups: All of his stances have decent mixups which can catch opponents off guard.
• Chip: Many of Kuma's attacks also deal a bunch of chip damage, which makes it easier to wear down and pressure his opponents.
• 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.

Weaknesses

• Hurtbox: His large, unorthodox frame usually grants opponents more damaging or unique combos that don't work on anyone else.
  • 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.
• 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.
  • Lows: By extension, most of his lows are unusable because while damaging, they are often both slow AND launch punishable.

Key techniques

Mashing

importance

★★★★★

value

★★★★★

dexterity

★☆☆☆☆

rhythm

★★☆☆☆

Blocking

importance

☆☆☆☆☆

value

☆☆☆☆☆

dexterity

★★★★★

rhythm

★★★★★

External links

• http://example.com