Overview
Ragna is BBCT's rushdown protagonist and likely easiest character to play. His gameplan is rushdown distilled to its barest essentials: good normals, a few mixup tools, and strong stagger pressure. Ragna's combos are simple, low execution, and very damaging which gives him a level of consistency and ease of use most of the cast in this game would dream to have. Ragna's high damage is balanced out with his low base HP, which can make two touch situations against him very common. While this can be mitigated with his Drive, it's difficult for Ragna to combo into a large series of Drive attacks or incorporate them into his pressure to really make the lifesteal count.
That's the intended vision of Ragna. The truth is, the system mechanics of this game do not work with our protagonist in the slightest. Barrier, and by extension Barrier OS, annihilate stagger pressure and strikethrow in this game. For a character like Ragna who thrives on this gameplan, this is crushing. The next thought would be to use Ragna's other moves instead, but what Ragna has to offer outside of this idealized world is truly terrible. Specials with huge recovery, lackluster reward, and other faults give Ragna an ironically inconsistent and middling kit. If you question the authenticity of that statement, the strangeness of Ragna's moves begins as early as his C buttons and their nonsensical framedata, which you can see for yourselfGuardAllStartup12Recovery36Advantage-21.
For a completely truthful summary, Ragna is "good B buttons: the character." While not weak, he's very barebones as he is in CT.
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Health |
10,000 |
Prejump |
4F |
Backdash |
20F (1~5F Inv All) |
Combo Rate |
100% |
Heat Gain Rate |
70% |
Guard Libra Rate:How resistant this character is to Guard Libra drain. |
100% |
Fastest Abare Option:This character's fastest attacks for mashing or scrambles. Excludes universal throws. |
5A (5F, whiffs crouchers) 2A (7F) |
Reversal Attacks:Any reversal-esque moves this character has. Excludes universal options. |
Ragna the Bloodedge is a rushdown character with a unique lifesteal mechanic and great mid-range pokes.
- Fundamentals Ace: Has many excellent normals for the mid-to-close ranges. As long as Ragna's nearby, he's the king of the screen.
- Inferno Divider: An incredible DP that's also air OK, which lets Ragna blow himself out of a lot of pressure situations other characters could not.
- Simple: Easy hitconfirms, and most combos are very low execution and give a huge chunk of damage.
- Strong Oki Options: Ragna can route many combos into 3C or 22C's restand, giving him strong and safe mixup options after a combo and bypassing the game's tech systems.
- Middling Specials: The majority of Ragna's special moves are punishable and impractical compared to his other options. You're better off almost never using many of them, which can make Ragna's kit feel limited.
- High Risk: Ragna's lack of fullscreen options and lack of safety doubles over with a low base HP. Ragna can easily be swept out of a round from a few bad calls.
- Weak Mixup and Pressure: Relies on stagger pressure in a game with high pushback and Barrier OS shuts down his strike/throw gameplan, although he also lacks any decent plus frames or even 0 on blocks to even attempt it.
Unique Mechanics
Ragna's Drive allows him to heal when dealing damage with certain attacks. This offsets Ragna's low starting health, giving him the potential to have one of the highest effective health pools in the game. How much a given Soul Eater attack heals is based on its "Lifesteal" value (noted on each relevant move), and attacks with Soul Eater also deal chip damage equal to their Lifesteal value. Soul Eater will trigger on both damage on hit and chip damage, meaning Ragna will heal against normal block but not Barrier Block (which prevents chip damage).
Moves with the Soul Eater property heal 30% of the scaled attack damage on hit, and 80% on hit during Blood Kain. On block, Drives drain 15% of the unscaled attack damage while Specials and Distortion Drives drain 20%.
Note that the "Lifesteal" is simply a heal independent of how much damage an attack actually deals, and does not actually steal life from the opponent or otherwise affect damage.
Bloodguy Install. During Blood Kain, Ragna gains a damage increase, but loses health constantly, which would be inportant to look for, if not for Soul Eater's lifesteal and the BK exclusive Super, Devoured by Darkness, which deals roughly over half of anyone in the cast's hp and heals Ragna for the same amount, basically refunding BK for Ragna at any point. With proper meter management, a Ragna could even keep 100% uptime on BK once it's unleashed, due to Ragna's good meter gain.
Normal Moves
5A
Bog-standard anime game jab. Can be used for whiff + throw tactics and as an abare option after IB thanks to its quick startup.
No need to use this as an emergency anti-air as Ragna's 6A will get the job done just fine, but 5A can be used in its place if you fear the opponent baiting your anti-air.
- Jump cancellable on block
- Whiffs on crouchers
5B
The Jesus Kick, Ragna's best normal by a mile.
Hitbox does not fully extend until frame 10, but the range is excellent. Very hard to punish on block as it's entirely safe if the extended, frame 10 hitbox lands and the reach lets Ragna just throw it out again against any countermeasures.
This normal is why you play Ragna in this game, or any game for that matter.
5C
Terrible normal with arbitrarily assigned frame data, but sees use in a number of confirms or as combo filler. Marginally better at OTGing than 2B is in combos, but not to catch rolls during oki unless you think your health bar looks far too full.
The only occasion where this button should be considered in neutral is at roundstart distance, where it's Ragna's only "good" option to hit opponents at that spacing. Horrid on whiff, block, and the risk/reward for hitting 5C at a distance where you wouldn't be hitting 5B instead is nothing special.
- Jump cancellable on hit only
2A
Crouching jab, minus on block, not very good. Has decent range but that's about it.
2B
Decent low poke, one of Ragna's only lows as a matter of fact. Good for OTG hits and tech roll situations.
2C
A normal notable in later games primarily due to its short recovery, plus frame(s) on block; and in BBCSE, fatal starter property.
In this game, it's active for one third the time, takes four to five business days to recover, and is -7 on block. Still retains the same poor-for-footsies hitbox it's known to possess.
It does possess the merit of having a very long stagger on CH, however, which can open up Ragna's combo game significantly by letting him react and choose an otherwise-rare starter like 6D, or even being his only good midscreen confirm into Blood Kain! - However, because it's minus, tiny (a death sentence for this normal due to how much Ragna will be getting Barriered out of pressure range), and doesn't have a jump cancel unlike 3C, gambling on this normal as a frametrap isn't as effective as you'd hope.
- Stagger on counter hit (51)
6A
Ragna's staple anti-air. Combos easily and gets the job done. Invul and hitbox are both above-average, but it lacks much horizontal reach.
- Jump cancellable on block
- 5~16 invincible from head attribute, launches on hit.
6B
Basic command normal overhead with safety on block and good reward due to the more open gatling structure Ragna has here.
In this game, it gatlings directly into 5C and then 6C for a crouching confirm, leading to very substantial meterless damage if the opponent gets snagged by this. However, unlike in later games, it doesn't force crouch on hit, so if you do ever hit a standing opponent with it you probably just want to go for a basic 5C > 214A.
- Knocks down on air hit.
6C
Crouching confirm, occasionally used after an RC to launch otherwise. Does lead to good damage and A BBCT Air Knockdown™ (read: a poor one) but should never be integrated into neutral, pressure, or non-CH confirms against a standing opponent.
Mercifully only gatlings from C buttons on hit only, so that you're spared the experience of the only jump cancellable hit whiffing and you dying because you got barriered out of its short range.
- 2nd hit is jump cancellable on block
- Dash cancellable on connect
- 5C and 2C only gatling into 6C on hit
- 2nd hit launches, dash cancelable after frame 56 on hit or block.
3C
- Jump cancellable on block
- When used in a combo, enables use of 22C
- Knocks down on hit, unable to tech when hit on ground.
j.A
Almost entirely disjointed air punch, very abusable in neutral. Otherwise run-of-the-mill and not helpful in combos.
j.B
Crossup air normal that's quite active, otherwise worse than other air normals in combos and neutral.
j.C
Basic but strong anime jump-in. Frequent guest appearance in air combos before it gets gatlinged into j.D.
Drive Moves
5D
5D is an important combo part that'll get shoved into most places it'll fit on the ground, but as you may have noticed so far the situation on block or in neutral for this button is unpreferable at best.
Otherwise, there's not much to be said about 5D besides that it shouldn't be autopiloted into during pressure.
- Dash cancellable on connect
5D:
- 1st hit launches, 2nd hit floor bounce effect and drains HP. 34~62 dash cancelable on hit or block. Drains 30% of the attack damage on hit, 15% on block unless using Barrier.
5D BK:
- 1st hit launches, 2nd hit floor bounce effect and drains HP, 31~59 dash cancelable on hit or block. Drains 80% of the attack damage on hit, 15% on block unless using Barrier.
2D
2D is a long-ranged low poke with promising reward and would normally appear to be the only D move you want to use in neutral. Unfortunately, it's extremely unsafe with no cancels, to drive home the point to you that you should really just be pressing 5B in neutral instead.
If it does connect, it can always be picked up with an OTG normal into a standard combo. Its value as a low would be notable as a last-ditch way to open up an upbacker but 3C can be used in any place 2D can, and that normal blows a lot less, so use that.
- When used in a combo, enables use of 22C
- Arbitrarily air unblockable during Blood Kain
2D:
- Knocks down on hit, drains HP, unable to tech when hit on the ground, floor bounce on counter hit. Drains 30% of the attack damage on hit, 15% on block unless using Barrier.
2D BK:
- Knocks down on hit, drains HP, unable to tech when hit on the ground, floor bounce on counter hit. Drains 30% of the attack damage on hit, 15% on block unless using Barrier.
6D
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6D:
- 1~24 low body invincible, 16~ airborne and drains HP, special move cancelable before landing. Drains 30% of the attack damage on hit, 15% on block unless using Barrier.
6D BK:
- 1~21 low body invincible, 16~ airborne and drains HP, special move cancelable before landing. Drains 80% of the attack damage on hit, 15% on block unless using Barrier.
j.D
Excellent air combo filler in and out of Blood Kain, though it only really gets untech time during BK. Midscreen, many of your preferred combos involve shoving as many j.Ds into it as possible as it's an accessible source of lifesteal and damage compared to most alternatives.
j.D:
- Drains 30% of the attack damage on hit, 15% on block unless using Barrier.
j.D BK:
- Drains 80% of the attack damage on hit, 15% on block unless using Barrier.
Universal Mechanics
Forward Throw
5B+C
Notable for the height adjustment making Gauntlet -> Spin Kick actually give you a workable combo against most characters.
- Launches on hit.
Back Throw
4B+C
Same with forward throw in making Gauntlet function, but the height adjustment is a bit different and requires different timing.
- Launches on hit.
Air Throw
j.B+C
- Floor bounce on hit.
Counter Assault
6A+B while blocking
- Works like most other attack-type Counter Assaults
Ragna's CA is nice in that it reuses his 5B animation, hitbox and all, however it doesn't see much use due to the potency of Instant/Barrier Blocking and Ragna's DP with meter stocked in general. It still has its uses against characters who have the means to run extended gapless blockstrings that may force Guard Libra Crush on him, such as Litchi or
Carl.
- Blasts away on hit.
Special Moves
Not Over Yet
22C on downed opponent
A restanding attack that allows Ragna to either continue a combo or pressure afterwards, bypassing the knockdown system entirely. After landing 22C, dash 2A or 5B are great for catching mashing and getting Ragna back in his ideal range, the latter also working better for combos.
In spite of its strengths, compared to 3C it's certainly not Ragna's best oki option. It's easily disrespected by other reversals, which is less than ideal in certain matchups where Ragna will struggle to regain footing afterwards or face catastrophic damage. The plus side to 22C is that it's much easier to use, and the bonus 800 unscaled damage is difficult to pass up.
- Can only be used if the opponent has been knocked down at least once in the string.
- Restands and staggers on hit.
- Ignores scaling, always dealing 800 damage.
- Restands on hit
- Staggers on hit for 41F
- Only works on downed opponents, doesn't hit opponent from fall recovery
- Throw property
- Damage ignores combo scaling
- CH state for entire move
Hell's Fang (+ Follow-Up)
214A(~214D)
Ragna's generic combo ender special. Unlike later games, it's practically impossible to combo after the follow-up midscreen using a Rapid Cancel. However, its very easy to link 214A by itself into 5A on airborne opponents.
- Blood Kain
214D followup now wallbounces. There are not many combos where you want to use this.
214A:
- 34F hit stun.
214A~214D:
- Blasts away on hit. Drains 30% of the attack damage on hit, 20% on block unless using Barrier.
C Inferno Divider
623C (Air OK)
The reversal version. Very reliable at what it does and gets Ragna out of things other characters struggle with, particularly Carl's Bubble loops.
623C:
- 1~21 Invincible, launches on hit, follow up cancelable at 13F on hit.
j.623C:
- 1~19 Invincible, launches on hit, follow up cancelable at 11F on hit.
D Inferno Divider
623D (Air OK)
The combo-focused version. It's slightly slower than the C version, so there are occasional combos where 623C connects but 623D doesn't. The D version also goes very far up the screen (especially if used to end air combos, as Ragna has nothing else there) which can make following up Straight Punch harder than the C version. Being a D move it both steals life and benefits from Blood Kain.
Oddly has some invuln that no other iteration of this move has, though you should never really try to utilize it intentionally.
623D:
- 6~17 Invincible, launches on hit, follow up cancelable at 15F on hit. Drains 30% of the attack damage on hit, 20% on block unless using Barrier.
623D BK:
- 6~17 Invincible, launches on hit, follow up cancelable at 15F on hit. Drains 80% of the attack damage on hit, 20% on block unless using Barrier.
j.623D:
- 5~15 Invincible, launches on hit, follow up cancelable 13~51 on hit, counter hit vulnerable until recovery ends. Drains 30% of the attack damage on hit, 20% on block unless using Barrier.
j.623D BK:
- 5~15 Invincible, launches on hit, follow up cancelable 13~51 on hit, counter hit vulnerable until recovery ends. Drains 80% of the attack damage on hit, 20% on block unless using Barrier.
Uppercut
236C after Inferno Divider
That one in the middle. This and all other Inferno Divider followups have an incredibly lenient cancel window compared to other games, letting you adjust for height appropriately.
- Launches on hit, follow up cancelable until 43F on hit or block.
Straight Punch
236C after Uppercut
- Wallbounces on hit.
Gives a huge wallbounce for combo extensions.
- Wall bounce on hit, hit stop 24.
Ax Kick
214C after Uppercut
- Knocks down on hit.
Ragna's generic air combo ender, as he has nothing else in this game. Doesn't steal any life like later games, nor does it have any darkness VFX, since it's not a D move.
Despite the input difference, the much more lenient timing to use Ax Kick will often allow you to fudge the input and still have time to correct it. Opponents may also fall out of Ax Kick at extreme heights, so you can use this window to delay it and make sure it connects properly. The same can be said for Straight Punch.
- Slam down on hit.
Gauntlet Hades (+ Spin Kick)
214B(~214D) (Air OK)
- Ground version hits crouching opponents on frame 24.
- Air version hits crouching opponents on frame 23.
- Has a tendency to whiff on all crouchers, except for the Bad characters, at certain spacing midscreen and at close range in the corner.
Gauntlet Hades is an alternate overhead option and combo extender for Ragna. Due to its unsafety on block and no cancel options except for an equally unsafe follow-up, Gauntlet Hades as a raw mix-up is bound to be punished by a skilled player when used without RC as opposed to 6B. Another property that Gauntlet Hades has is that it actually has Foot invulnerability on the second half of its startup through its active frames, allowing it to also double as a low crush on opponents who may prefer to mash out of pressure with 2A or other lows.
Very difficult to combo out of on its own, but very reliable after a close-range 6C. The Spin Kick follow-up must be delayed so 5B combos properly afterwards.
- Blood Kain
214D followup now launches very high for easier combos and damage, but still suffers from BBCT's odd damage scaling system. Would see more use as a combo part, but surprisingly not really, as the high launch ends up consuming too much time and scaling too hard.
214B:
- 12~26 Invincible from foot attribute, floor bounce on hit, follow up cancelable 30~40, hit crouching opponent at 24F.
j.214B:
- 1~20 Invincible from foot attribute, launches on hit, follow up cancelable 24~landing, Hit crouching opponent at 23F.
214B~214D:
- Launches on hit. Drains 30% of the attack damage on hit, 20% on block unless using Barrier.
214B~214D BK:
- Launches on hit. Drains 80% of the attack damage on hit, 20% on block unless using Barrier.
Dead Spike
214D
A projectile intended for pressure thanks to its advantage on guard, but a terrible move overall. Horrible startup makes Dead Spike easy to disrespect through various means, not to mention its mediocre range and Ragna himself not moving forward or having a dash cancel which makes his position less than desirable despite the frame advantage. Garbage combo tool as well.
Can be okay in the corner where spacing matters a little less, and it's safer to use and abuse against someone holding down Barrier. No projectile attribute but still acts like one, meaning that it doesn't provide any additional pushback on hit or block. This move also staggers on counter hit, so if you manage to catch a mashing opponent you can get a full combo.
- Blood Kain
This move becomes worthless during Blood Kain, possibly to make the mode more risky. The three extra hits gives the move twice as much Guard Crash damage and some healthy lifesteal gain, but it loses it's frame advantage on block and it's stagger property on counter hit. Truth be told, you really shouldn't be looking for pressure extensions if you're in BK, because if you're in BK and they're blocking then you've already lost.
214D:
- Standing hit staggers 25F, 23F recovery on block, hit stop 6, projectile. Drains 30% of the attack damage on hit, 20% on block unless using Barrier.
214D BK:
- Standing hit staggers 25F, 23F recovery on block, hit stop 0, projectile. Drains 80% of the attack damage on hit, 20% on block unless using Barrier.
Distortion Drives
Carnage Scissors
632146D (Hold OK)
- Hold D to stop the 2nd hit from coming out.
Ragna's anti-zoning and combo ender super, would be a reversal if it had any invuln before the superflash but 623C is loaded enough in this game that it's unneeded.
Both the regular and Blood Kain versions behave the same and allow a short combo after anywhere but the corner if the scaling's light (mainly, you doing it raw); done typically with a manual 66 > 5B > 5D
, which can then end in Hell's Fang meterlessly or get dumped straight into another Carnage Scissors. Blood Kain version is more rewarding since the potential followup combo is happening in BK, but it also does 1700 more damage on its own.
632146D:
- 2nd hit wall bounce
- You may cancel the 2nd part by holding D button. (Recovery 47, SD -30)
- Start up may vary depends on distance
- Drains 30% of the attack damage on hit, 20% on block unless using Barrier.
632146D BK:
- 2nd hit wall bounce
- You may cancel the 2nd part by holding D button. (Recovery 47, SD -30)
- Start up may vary depends on distance
- Drains 80% of the attack damage on hit, 20% on block unless using Barrier.
Blood Kain
214214D
An install super that buffs Ragna's D normals and specials. The lifesteal on hit increases from 30% to 80%, and they gain more damage and far better properties as well. In exchange, his health bar ticks down 100 points every 20 frames until the timer expires. He also gains access to a unique super, Devoured by Darkness.
- HP decrease 100 points per 20 frames.
Devoured by Darkness
214214D in Blood Kain
- Entirely unblockable, but also entirely avoidable.
Only available in Blood Kain. Requires another 50 meter to use and ends BK, but deals ludicrous damage and absorbs 100% of the damage dealt in lifesteal. It's extremely slow to activate if used in pressure and has little invulnerability post-flash, every character can mash 5A to get out of neutral Devoured By Darkness.
Comboing into Blood Kain and then Devoured By Darkness is the main way you'd want to use this, but this is less accessible than you'd think or are used to. Largely, it's because of the upfront meter cost, meter gain reduction for the subsequent combo, and the fact that most Devoured By Darkness combos usually require you to be in or decently close to the corner for it to connect at all.
While it is mashable in standard pressure, doing a reset or tech trap into Devoured By Darkness can also be a difficult-to-deal-with gimmick; it cannot be throw rejected nor jumped. Like Tager's resets, they are dependent on how the opponent decides to tech and can be reversal-vulnerable, but the reward for landing a "raw" DBD is very tantalizing.
- first hit staggers (50)
- 2nd hit launches, and drains 100% of damage in HP, not affected by hit count proration
- total 70 hits
- Blood Kain mode ends in the beginning of the screen freeze.
Astral Heat
Black Onslaught
2141236C when Astral conditions are met
Knock 'em dead, champ.
Even harder to combo into than Devoured By Darkness because you can't special cancel into it, connects primarily off of either version of CH 2D by hitting OTG, or as a tight link after 6C > dash cancel.
Astral conditions in CT are peculiar compared to other games, they require the opponent to be below 20% HP before their input is valid but what percentage of health the combo started at doesn't matter as long as it's below that threshhold by the time the astral is inputted, so it's simultaneously more and less accessible than you'd think.
- Cannot be cancelled from normal attacks, but can be done with jump install.

Click [★] for character's full frame data
Essentials
• Controls •
HUD •
FAQ •
The Basics
• Movement/Canceling •
Offense •
Defense •
Gauges •
Universal Strategy •
Detailed & Advanced Information
• Damage/Combo •
Attack Attributes •
Frame Data & System Data •
Misc •
Archived Information
• Archived Fan Wiki • Tier Lists •
- Advanced Input
- Attack Attributes
- Attack Level
- Astral Heat
- Auto Heat Gain
- Burst
- Barrier Block
- Barrier Gauge
- Bonus Proration
- Clash
- Combo Rate
- Counter Assault
- Counter Hit
- Counter Hit Carry
- Danger State
- Distortion Drive
- Guard Crush
- Guard Bonus
- Hard Knockdown
- Heat Gauge Cooldown
- Instant Barrier
- Instant Block
- Negative Penalty
- Purple Throw
- P1, P2
- Rapid Cancel
- Same Move Proration (SMP)
- Starter Rating
- Super Flash Buffer
- Throw Reject Miss (TRM)
- Ukemi/Tech (Air)
- Ukemi/Roll/Emergency Tech
- Untechable State