BBTag/Ruby Rose/Strategy

Team Synergy

In general, Ruby is a fairly independent character who doesn’t need a whole lot of support to run her gameplan. With that in mind, there are a few main aspects you should consider when choosing a partner for Ruby:

Matchups - Does this character help cover Ruby’s more difficult matchups, or make her good matchups even better? Ruby’s matchup spread is already pretty damn strong, so she doesn’t need a whole lot of help here, but any support is more than welcome.
Presence - Does this character strengthen Ruby’s presence in neutral, allow her to take control of the game, and enforce her own gameplan? Ruby’s neutral game is also pretty great, but she struggles to win zoning wars with her own projectiles, so assists that can help her bully her way into the opponent’s space can really help.
Mixups - Does this character help Ruby run a strong mixup game and take advantage of her ability to easily set up sandwiches? As we’ve already learned, Ruby is great at setting up sandwiches due to her strong jump cancel and teleport options, so a character that provides good lockdown is a must if you want to make the most of her pressure and mixups.
Damage - Does this character help bolster Ruby’s damage with strong conversions/combos? Ruby’s damage is alright, and damage is very important in this game, so she benefits from a partner that can really give her strong reward for winning neutral, and make her already strong presence in the game even stronger.

Considering this, Ruby’s best partners are the characters who both synergise well with her - allowing both characters to run a strong, simultaneous gameplan - and who can take advantage of her strong neutral presence, sandwich setups, and mixup ability. We’ll take a look at some partners below, but feel free to experiment with your own team and see what you can come up with!

Point

Anchor

Recommended Partners

This list shows noteworthy Ruby teams from best to solid. That being said, even characters not included can work since Ruby is a fairly independent character. So if you’re running Ruby purely as support or if you just really like the team, try it out. Some are unexplored, but most are severely lacking.

S tier - Ruby’s best teams, they provide most of everything she wants in a team and embellish her strengths or her partner’s to the most degree. Great synergy and very strong, stable gameplans.
A tier - Good teams that either lack the near-flawless synergy of the top row, or whose strengths are not quite as overwhelming. Very strong if you can manage these weaknesses.
B tier - Solid teams with some stability or synergy issues. They might struggle in some matchups but are overall decent options.

Gordeau - Classic partner, and despite Gordeau’s nerfs, it’s still one of Ruby’s strongest teams. This team specialises in strong lockdown pressure that you can convert into solid mixups and combos, and in many ways exemplifies everything a good Ruby team has: good neutral presence, simple and versatile sandwich setups, excellent pressure, strong mixups, great corner carry, and robust options for okizeme (wakeup pressure). Gordeau’s 5P and 6P are great for controlling neutral and contesting zoners, while 4P is a solid anti-air and can be used as a handy burst punish. Ruby’s assists are helpful for extending Gordeau’s combos and giving him strong, immediate neutral presence, with 6P giving him the fullscreen projectile he needs to get in, and 4P making up for his relatively slow anti-air options. The fun really starts when you get your opponent blocking, as both characters have great options for locking down the opponent and setting up their incredible pressure and mixup game: Gordeau’s 5P is a famously strong lockdown assist with tons of potential for conversions and Active Switch setups, with a fast command grab bolstering his otherwise fairly vanilla mixup game and giving him strong blockstring presence, while Ruby’s mix of Sy-Pod/Buzzsaw lockdown and strong Active Switch mixups further establishes their dominating pressure while in a sandwich. On the other hand, the main strength of this team is also its main weakness: while Gordeau provides incredible support for Ruby, and is in turn greatly enabled by her robust set of assists and conversion setups, he’s also quite lacking solo, and really needs her as a partner to get the most out of his kit. This simple weakness is easily mitigated by running Ruby as both point and anchor in this team, so your goal will usually be to start and finish the round as her, utilising their excellent dual-sided synergy while both are still alive. All in all, there isn’t much else you can say against this team. If you’re looking for a strong team that perfectly embodies the system mechanics and everything Ruby wants in a partner, Team Scythe is still the safest choice.

Yang - Sister synergy! While this team doesn’t necessarily have the explosive conversions of certain teams, or the obnoxious space control of others, it more than makes up for it with excellent fundamentals and strong mastery of the game’s mechanics. Both characters really benefit from the other’s assist, with Ruby gaining strong burst pressure, lockdown, and neutral presence with both Yang 5P and 6P, as well as a strong anti-air assist with great okizeme (wakeup pressure) potential with backdash/retreating airdash + 4P, and Yang benefitting from a fast fullscreen projectile with Ruby 6P and great burst pressure and sandwich setups for okizeme with 5P. Both characters also have great Active Switch conversions, with plenty of options for providing lockdown (in Ruby’s case, you’ll mainly be using Buzzsaw and Sy-Pod) and strong mixups on both sides. Both characters also provide great corner carry and have excellent pressure and conversions in the corner, while Ruby’s mostly meterless combos mean you’ll usually have plenty of resources for Yang to work with. Damage is pretty solid in this team, with Yang providing some of the best comeback potential in the game with Semblance and Resonance Blaze. Finally, both are flexible enough to fill either a point or support role in this team, so swapping between them will seldom put you at a disadvantage. This team might lack some options against strong zoning, but since both Ruby and Yang have options for dealing with this playstyle (Ruby’s flexibility mobility and fast projectile, Yang’s armour and air fireballs, and both fullscreen supers), it’s not a major issue. While you can run either character on point in this team, it’s usually a good idea to run Yang as your point, let her gain Semblance, and then keep her as your anchor so you can run it on top of Resonance Blaze.

Adachi - One of Ruby’s best teams in 2.0, specialising in excellent neutral presence and powerful lockdown setups. Adachi is a universally good support character this season, and he provides Ruby with a solid 6P that will track the opponent from anywhere on screen, a great anti-air 4P, and a 5P that reaches quite far and provides nice blockstun; conversely, Ruby provides Adachi with fast, safe, fullscreen presence with 6P, a strong anti-air 4P to shore up his weaknesses in that area, and a 5P that work really well with his A Maziodyne setups, propelling her forward so you can cover multiple parts of the screen simultaneously. Adachi also has his infamous B Maziodyne, which provides excellent neutral presence and lockdown from anywhere on the screen, and is an excellent Active Switch opportunity - think of it like a classic beam assist, with all the fun that entails. Your goal with this team is to establish your presence in neutral and gain respect from your pressure, then go to town with deadly mixups that will keep the opponent guessing. Both characters have great Active Switch potential during pressure, with each enabling the other’s mixups with their robust set of lockdown and mixup options. As with any good Ruby team, their corner carry and okizeme are also very strong, with plenty of options to keep the opponent in a constant vortex of pain. Both characters are quite workable solo, although Ruby’s individual strengths are generally more stable than Adachi’s, so which character you run in which order depends both on personal preference and the current matchup.

Chie - A very strong team with a devastating and easy to set up win condition. This team thrives on the synergy between the two making it really easy to set up Chie’s power charge > super TOD (“touch of death”) conversions. Both characters play well in neutral, with long-reaching 5P assists to help establish pressure, fullscreen 6P assists, and solid anti-air 4P assists. Chie’s 6P is great for setting up sandwiches and both characters have great lockdown options for Active Switch mixups. The real fun comes when you’ve got meter to burn, as this team can turn any Cross Combo scenario into a potentially fatal setup thanks to both Ruby’s 5P and 4P launching the opponent and giving Chie plenty of time to power charge and finish with super.

Rachel - A strong, high-synergy team that specialises in setplay and mixups. Rachel’s classic game of polluting the screen with projectiles and forcing the opponent to respect their presence works really well with Ruby’s versatile mixup options, while Ruby’s assists are great for helping Rachel establish presence in neutral and cover areas where she’s lacking (fast fullscreen projectile, solid anti-air) and she likewise benefits from Ruby’s lockdown options (Buzzsaw/Sy-Pod, as always) to help set up her own mixups. Rachel’s signature blend of wind mixups, along with both characters having strong okizeme, gives this team excellent vortex pressure and can keep the opponent guessing for days. Drop some items on your opponent’s space, force them to hold the pressure, and then go to town with your left/right/high/lows.

Akihiko - Another team that specialises in easy to set up, extremely damaging conversions. Ruby gives Akihiko excellent presence in neutral and shores up some issues he has with space control: while he has no issue approaching in most matchups, having a fast fullscreen projectile is great for his neutral game, and a solid anti-air is a must for him. Any lockdown setup or conversion can potentially turn into a deadly combo thanks to Ruby’s excellent Active Switch setups and Akihiko’s devastating damage output with high Cyclone levels. Ideally, run Akihiko point and let Ruby cover him until he’s ready to get the KO.

Vatista - A well-rounded team with an emphasis on space control and setplay. Vatista has amazing lockdown with 5P and great neutral presence with 6P, and her 236C special is a strong lockdown tool in its own right and a very powerful Active Switch option. Her long-range assists can extend combos very easily, while Ruby 6P is a fast projectile that bolsters Vat’s already impressive zoning game, with 4P providing a strong anti-air assist and 5P helping with combo extensions. Suffers a bit in the damage department, so you’re going to mainly be controlling neutral with strong ranged options and locking down the opponent so you can run Ruby’s mixups.

Es - A solid, well-rounded team that specialises in neutral control and okizeme, and rewards good fundamentals and game sense. Es is a universally good partner if you want strong neutral presence and reliable okizeme, with her massive 6P giving Ruby a great fullscreen pressure and zoning tool, as well as tremendous coverage in neutral and a robust approach option, and her Crest Arts (moves that create a lingering crystal effect, such as 5B and j.C) allowing for strong conversions and Active Switch setups. Es also benefits from Ruby’s 6P to cover her own full screen presence, as her projectiles are quite slow on startup and take time to get going, while the addition of a strong anti-air 4P is a blessing for her. Both characters have a tremendous range of combos that end in knockdown, and both excel at setting up strong okizeme and forcing the opponent into lockdown: for Ruby point, Es 5P gives Ruby the long-lasting move she needs to cover wakeup and establish meaty pressure into mixups, with her usual backdash + 4P setup also providing great pressure and sandwich potential; and for Es point, Es j.C is one of the best and easiest-to-use okizeme tools in the game, providing excellent coverage regardless of wakeup option, with Ruby 5P setting up very easy and consistent sandwiches. As with most good Ruby teams, the corner carry in this team is also very strong and allows for powerful pressure from almost anywhere on screen. Damage is probably this team’s biggest weakness, as Es’s damage output is pretty unimpressive without meter, and it lacks the explosive conversions of some of Ruby’s best teams. Good fundamentals and knowledge of your opponent’s habits will take you far if you run this team.

Weiss - Whiterose is a team that takes advantage of both character’s strong fundamentals and unique setups to control the pace of the match. Weiss benefits a lot from Ruby’s 6P giving her immediate fullscreen presence - especially valuable since she lacks a conventional projectile - as well as 6P giving her an opportunity to set up glyphs, particularly during Cross Combo. In return, Ruby gains a nice far-reaching lockdown and pressure tool with Weiss 5P, as well as a solid anti-air 4P. Both characters benefit from Weiss’s glyph setups: white glyphs facilitating pressure with delayed tracking projectiles, and black glyphs enabling strong mixups if Weiss is on point. Weiss is generally the better point character for this team, as Ruby gives her a lot of coverage in neutral and helps mitigate her relatively poor long-range pressure, and Ruby’s solo game is overall stronger if you choose to use her as your anchor.

Susanoo - Unga bunga energy. Susano’o is a big boy with big damage, and he wants a partner that can help him get in and stay in, and give him some kind of lockdown to keep his opponent from fleeing at the sight of him. Fortunately, Ruby’s got him covered, providing both a great fullscreen projectile and a strong anti-air (both areas where Susano’o is somewhat lacking), while her usual lockdown setups (Buzzsaw/Sy-Pod being the usual favourites) and strong mixups during sandwich situations mean he’s got plenty of opportunities to open up the opponent and go to town. Susano’o also covers Ruby with a decent fullscreen hitscan 6P, a fairly far-reaching 5P, and a useful anti-air 4P, but where he really excels is in his powerful Active Switch conversions, with both 236B (“Grand Viper”) and 214C (“God Press”) allowing for strong mixups and potential unblockable setups in the corner. It may not have the finesse of certain other teams, but the raw damage and terrifying pressure speaks for itself. Run Susano’o point to make the most of his strong rushdown game complimented by Ruby’s coverage, then save Ruby as your anchor to take advantage of her strong solo game.

Yumi - A solid Ruby-focused team with particularly noteworthy dual-sided synergy, great pressure and high-damage conversions. Yumi is the great enabler in 2.0, providing excellent lockdown and space control with all of her assists and some potentially devastating conversions off any lockdown/mixup situation. Yumi’s 5P is a great lockdown tool that gives Ruby ample time to set up her own mixups and Active Switch conversions, while 6P is an excellent delayed projectile with great screen presence and - surprise! - lockdown. 6P also has a “restand” function, freezing the opponent on hit and allowing Ruby to confirm into longer combos, run mixups on wakeup, or force sandwiches anywhere on screen. Both characters work pretty well during sandwich situations, with Ruby’s usual mixups coming into play and Yumi’s 214A “rekka” series providing built-in mixups which can be made DP safe with dash cancel. Combine that with a strong anti-air 4P and exceptional corner carry, along with great okizeme if you’ve got the opponent in the corner, and Ruby has lots to work with.

Hyde - Another team that doesn’t particularly excel in any area, but thrives on its great fundamentals and solid, stable gameplan. Ruby is a universally solid point character, and Hyde is a universally solid support, so you should have a pretty good idea of where this is going. Hyde provides great screen presence and lockdown with both 5P and 6P, further strengthening Ruby’s already great neutral game and lockdown/mixup potential, while Ruby’s usual bag of tricks helps Hyde get in and stay in, and has great potential for conversions regardless of who’s on point. While this team may not have the explosive damage or killer comeback potential of certain other teams, it’s thoroughly solid in the areas that matter, and it’s a great team if you want something that works really well with the system mechanics.

Naoto Shirogane - A solid enough team, lacking a little in stability while providing decent setplay and Naoto’s infamous instant kill mechanic. 6P gives Ruby good neutral coverage and a nice opportunity to activate Cross Combo, and Active Switch combined with Naoto’s 236B or j.236A can set up unblockables. Since Naoto is a character who requires consistent resource management, Ruby being able to perform most of her stuff meterless is useful, and she will mostly be your point while Naoto supports her and aims for her usual setups into instant kill. Okizeme is a little weaker than certain other teams, with Ruby’s assists not providing the lockdown or sandwich setups Naoto really thrives on, but she makes up for it by covering Naoto’s weaker matchups and giving Naoto a strong point character.

Mitsuru - A team that lacks dual-sided synergy, but sort of makes up for it by pairing two strong individual characters. Neither character really gets exactly what they want from the other, with Mitsuru’s assists generally lacking the immediate lockdown pressure and robust setups Ruby likes, and Ruby similarly not providing Mitsuru with the lockdown or stable conversions she needs to run her infamous mixup game. They also lack offense that really synergises without introducing large gaps, meaning you’ll have to take risks to get the most out of their options. You can more or less work around this by applying the usual Active Switch setups and then Active Switching into Mitsuru for j.B instant overhead fun, and Mitsuru’s 5P can be decent for establishing almost instant presence from almost anywhere on screen, although ultimately it’s not as strong as other teams’ pressure and offense. Still, considering Mitsuru is one of the best point characters in the game, and Ruby is flexible enough to work with almost anyone, you can definitely succeed off each character’s individual merits.

Blake - Ladybug is a team that focuses on strong neutral presence, mobility and mixups to offset its relatively low damage and lack of consistent lockdown pressure. Blake 6P is a great neutral tool that gives Ruby lots of screen presence and conversion opportunities, while 5P side switching on block allows for easy sandwich setups. Blake likes the lockdown potential enabled by Buzzsaw and Sy-Pod, and having a good anti-air assist is a huge plus, but Ruby’s lack of a true lockdown assist makes it difficult to make the most of her kit. Both characters are highly mobile and can control large portions of the screen between them, and both have strong mixup potential when the opponent is pinned down, but the relatively low damage you get means you’ll have to work hard to get consistent reward. Blake’s 4P rendering her airborne for so long also makes the usual backdash + 4P oki a little awkward, meaning you’ll mostly be relying on 6P as your go-to pressure tool. You’re kind of just playing two individually strong characters with mediocre synergy, but both characters are self-sufficient enough that you can make it work.

Tager - Honestly not a great team, as neither character really provides what the other wants and most of the synergy is directed towards Tager. Of course, Tager benefits from a fast fullscreen 6P and a reliable anti-air 4P, as is the case for most characters, and he can get some stuff going from Ruby’s usual lockdown options giving him some coverage in pressure, but he offers Ruby very little in return; in particular, he lacks a solid lockdown assist, has a very mediocre 4P, and while 6P can give Ruby some decent fullscreen presence and a lot of hitstun to convert off, the huge delay and lack of blockstun makes it very difficult for her to get much off it during pressure. Tager’s lack of mobility also makes it difficult for him to convert off most of Ruby’s options, and the two lack synergy in sandwich situations, owing to Tager’s lack of lockdown options and mixups, and Ruby’s best lockdown options requiring her to be on point most of the time. The other main issue with this team is that the thing which Tager does provide - grab setups, decent okizeme - are better provided in other, similar teams (e.g. Ruby/Waldstein). Tager mostly benefits from Ruby being an amazing solo character who doesn’t need a lot to run her gameplan, but there are better partners for him, and as a Ruby player you will get almost nothing of value. Play it if you really like the team and don’t mind these glaring weaknesses, and if you’re not interested in a different grappler partner.

Neo - As is true of Neo in general, this is a very Neo-focused team, with Ruby getting relatively little from it. Ruby doesn’t really provide Neo with the lockdown or damage she wants to effectively run her mixup game, but fullscreen presence with 5P and a reliable anti-air with 4P are pretty good for her, and she can get some stuff going with Buzzsaw/Sy-Pod conversions. Neo provides very little as a support character, with mediocre assists lacking in both lockdown and neutral presence, and she doesn’t have much Ruby can use to set up Active Switch conversions, so your aim here is to run Neo point as much as possible and then have Ruby solo carry if Neo dies.

Blitztank - A weird pseudo-meme team that actually has some decent stuff if you’re committed to it. Blitztank is a fundamentally unusual character with a somewhat gimmicky playstyle, focusing on unblockable setups with j.C and turtling with zoning and armoured punishes, while Ruby is...the opposite of that. You’re mostly going to run this as a Ruby + support team, with Blitztank offering some good projectile coverage as anchor, and actually pretty strong conversions if you can open up the opponent with Active Switch pressure. Blitztank thrives off lockdown assists that can keep his opponent pinned down, letting him run his unblockable j.C > super setup, and although Ruby doesn’t have the best options on this front, Buzzsaw and Sy-Pod can give him just enough coverage if Active Switched during pressure. A strange choice of team, but might be better than you’d think!

General Tactics

Ruby is a mid-range/rushdown character that can use her big normals to bully her way in, while converting blockstrings into high-pressure situations with good mixups and easy, versatile sandwich setups. You mainly want to use 5A, 2A, and 5B to poke at the opponent from a safe distance and set up for pressure or hit confirm into combos, or call assist to cover Ruby’s approach while she commits to a rushdown gameplan and forces her way in. A combination of 2A, j.C, IAD j.B, and 214B side switch rounds out her mixup game and gives her plenty of options during pressure. Her combos all have good corner carry and can set up for safejumps, allowing you to continue pressure with solid okizeme and oppressive sandwich mixups. Ruby’s mobility makes her difficult to pin down and allows her to approach from many different angles, or just stall while she goes for assist pressure. Use Gunblast chains to reposition yourself into a favourable position, escape pressure, stall in the air (very useful for running out the clock if the opponent has Resonance Blaze or you want to force them to approach with a life lead), and set up sandwiches.

Neutral

Your main poking/spacing tools in neutral are 5A, 2A, and 5B. 5A and 2A are good pokes because of their speed, safety on block, ability to set up blockstrings and pressure, and disjointed hitboxes. 5B is the move you’ll probably be using most at mid-range and to start combos, but be aware that it’s hard to convert if you hit with the tip, and it projects a hurtbox before it becomes disjointed, so you ideally want to use it at ranges where 5A isn’t solid or as a general all-purpose punish tool. Mixing in 2A can help keep your opponent honest, since it’s a fast low poke and is also good for setting up pressure.

If the opponent is jumping in on you, you can anti-air with 2B (slightly risky, due to its relatively short hitbox, but it’s fast and convert into a full combo or pressure very easily) or use your anti-air 4P if your partner has a good assist. You can also meet the opponent in the air with j.A, since it’s a fast disjointed hitbox that will trade favourably with a lot of air buttons and can potentially convert into a full combo with corner carry and safejump.

Meter Usage

Ruby is the least meter reliant out of the RWBY cast, as she typically only uses it to increase her combo damage. 236C is used as a combo extender,active switch tool, and roundstart option.It's usually done twice then air combo although if in Resonance Blaze then using it thrice can allow her to to some of her most damage combos E.G https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uM0rAH6c3Yo&t=208s. J.236C is a waste of meter most time. You should only use it if A it will kill the opponent,B your in Resonance Blaze to maximize her damage, or C as a active switch tool since it more plus on block than regular Buzzsaw blast. As for her supers, they're mostly combo enders with 236BC used for anti-zoning and 214BC used as a reversal. They are mostly interchangeable in combos but follow these guidelines.

Use 236BC for more damage,more corner carry, if the opponent is farther away from you and if they partner is on back recovering life.

Use214BC for when hitstun scaling is high,your partner is on back recovering life or you want to do double super setups.

Offense

Blockstrings/Mixups

Ruby likes to apply pressure using her fast, safe pokes - many of which are jump cancellable and have flexible combo routes if used as hit confirms - and then convert this pressure into strong mixups, both solo and with assists. Ruby’s blockstring structure is pretty straightforward, alternating between 5A and 2A:

5A > 2A > 5A > 2A
2A > 5A > 2A > 5A

You can start and end with either of these buttons, and you can use 5A and 2A twice in the same blockstring (if alternating) before it either resets or you have to convert into something else to extend your pressure. You usually want to alternate between the two in order to condition the opponent to block low and set up for mixups. Since only 5A is jump cancellable, you want to end with 5A whenever possible. Note that while you can chain 2A into itself twice, you can’t chain 5A in the same way: you’ll either do 5A > 5AA, or you’ll have to stagger 5A (i.e. leave a slight gap).

From here, you have multiple mixup options:

You can jump cancel 5A to set up IAD j.B crossup (this can also bait some DPs)
You can jump cancel 5A into retreating IAD to beat most DPs
You can jump cancel 5A into j.C for an instant overhead mixup (reactable, but can be used if the opponent is conditioned to expect a low or crossup)
You can stagger your normals to set up a frame trap or bait DP (particularly good if you know the opponent likes to mash or pushblock during pressure)
You can throw cancel 5A or 2A to set up a tick throw (i.e. leave a slight gap in your pressure so your opponent can be grabbed; this can be teched or punished with DP unless the opponent tried to pushblock you, in which case they can’t tech throw)
You can 214B + assist or jump cancel IAD + assist to set up a sandwich

You can also apply a high/low mixup with assist by locking down the opponent and doing either delayed airdash j.B or empty jump 2A. This is particularly useful in the corner, since the opponent can’t retreat and has to respond to your pressure in some way. If your opponent likes to pushblock during pressure, you can punish with an immediate IAD j.B, or, since pushblock puts the defending player in Throw Reject Miss state, go for an untechable throw. Layer your mixups with frame trap/tick throw even on block, and keep the pressure on!

Pressure/Sandwiches

Instant airdash (IAD) j.B is a very important tool for mixups and pressure, as it covers a lot of space, can catch opponents who you’ve conditioned to block low, and can be used as a fast crossup during if you convert from a jump-cancelled normal during blockstrings. This can be punished with DP on reaction, so make sure you don’t use it all the time - mix it up with staggered normals into frame traps or DP punishes, with tick throws, or with 214B + assist or jump cancel IAD delayed for sandwich setup.

Ruby can easily set up sandwiches during blockstrings with jump cancel IAD, 214B, or 5AAAA (the latter is risky due to pushblock, but it’s the only option that’s guaranteed to side switch in the corner). 5A or 5B > IAD j.B + assist is a great option because it allows you to convert into a combo on hit, and even if it’s blocked, you’ve got a free sandwich already set up. IAD > delayed Buzzsaw can also be a useful lockdown tool if you’ve got a very active assist for simultaneous lockdown (wait for Ruby to change direction in the air before using Buzzsaw). 214B is a safe, fast side switch that works if you’re close to the opponent - particualrly if they’re locked down with assist, since they can only DP if there’s a gap. You can also convert any normals into 214B, but your best options for lockdown/mixups are 5A, 2A, 5B, and j.C. j.C and 2C are good Active Switch options during a sandwich, since they’re high/low mixups with good AS windows, while Sy-Pod is a great bootleg lockdown tool if you’ve got an assist to cover the gaps between the initial two hits. Midscreen, you can do Gunblast > 214B + assist as another sandwich setup.

High jump Gunblast can set up some tricky sandwiches and allow Ruby to maintain solid air control. Call assist to lock down the opponent, then reposition yourself or stall in the air until you’re ready to apply pressure.

If the opponent is airborne, 2B > DP or j.AAA > DP can set up an unblockable. You can’t really convert off this solo, but it’s a good way of getting some guaranteed damage and forcing a neutral reset, and you can get a combo off it if you preemptively call assist before DP.

During Cross Combo, 4P is going to be your main combo extender, since it’s fast, stationary, has a large hitbox, and good untech time that makes conversions fairly easy. 6P is good for locking down the opponent on block, due to its good blockstun and ability to quickly apply pressure from fullscreen. The general CC combo theory for Ruby is to open with your regular BnB route, extend with assist, activate CC, extend again, and end with super > DHC.

After setting up a safejump, you can call assist to set up pressure on your opponent and use your regular mixup options (delayed airdash j.B, 2A, throw) to keep them guessing. If Ruby is currently supporting her partner, retreating airdash 4P is a solid option that covers a lot of space and forces the opponent to respect her pressure. 214B + assist is also a great option for setting up sandwich on the opponent’s wakeup. Refer to the Safejumps section for more info on how to set up safejumps with Ruby.

If Ruby is support, 6P is a great way of establishing fast neutral presence and helping her partner get in, and on hit you have just enough time to convert into a full combo if your point is close enough. 6P Active Switch + assist is also a great way to safely tag in Ruby. 4P is a very good anti-air assist, due to how fast and large it is. 5P will side switch with the opponent on wakeup and let you set up easy sandwiches if your point can lock them down as well.

Safejumps

Ruby has a variety of ways to set up safejumps from all her combo routes, and this is a very important part of her offensive structure that you need to be aware of. Note that, with the exception of the all techs midscreen safejump (see below), Ruby’s midscreen safejumps will only cover neutral and forward tech. On the other hand, her corner safejumps will cover all techs.

But first, what is a safejump? It’s pretty simple: a safejump is a jump-in air move which is safe against the opponent’s reversal on wakeup. In other words, you knock down the opponent, jump at them with an air button, and cover all possible options on wakeup. If they try to attack, your move will hit them instead, and they’ll be punished; if they block, you get to continue your pressure; if they reversal (DP or super), you’ll land in time to block it, and you can punish them. Safejumps are a vital part of okizeme in BBTag - the state of play after a character is knocked down and the other player gets to apply pressure. Learning Ruby’s safejump setups will help you maintain pressure and keep advantage against your opponent!

Ruby’s safejumps follow a simple structure. All of her safejumps are set up using Gunblast as a combo ender, though the actual version of Gunblast you’ll use depends on the combo route. You can safejump with jump or instant airdash, and generally you’ll want to use j.B as your meaty button. Neutral tech (and, in the corner, neutral and back tech) can be safeumped with jump/IAD j.B, while for back tech, you’ll want to use retreating jump/IAD jB. Calling assist with safejump is a good way to maintain pressure, particularly in the corner where you can lock down the opponent and then run mixups.

Midscreen, you can end with 214A~B~A in order to cover neutral and forward tech, but not back tech. Since this ender doesn’t cover back tech, your opponent is probably going to go for this whenever they can. At this point, you can usually maintain pressure with a long-range 6P assist and force them even further towards the corner.

In the corner, you can end with 214A > 214A to cover all tech. This is a link as opposed to a cancel route, meaning you have to time it right to connect both Gunblasts. The best way to connect both is to wait for Ruby to do her little hop after the gunshot at the end of Buzzsaw, then 214A while she’s airborne, land, and immediately 214A again.

There is also a combo route which will provide safejump against all techs midscreen, discovered by BlackJet#7093. The route is:

5BBB > j.BB > j.214A > B > j.B > 5AAA > 5BB > 236A > 214B > sj.(AB)

I’ll let BlackJet himself explain it:
“The safejump uses the super jump autocorrect + airdash micro to OS and automatically chase the opponent's tech for you, similar to Izayoi's safejump. You want to be on top of them as much as possible when they tech so that you can autocorrect as soon as possible to keep your frame advantage and safejump against the faster 5-9F stuff like Makoto DP and 214BC. In most cases, if you do 6A after gunblast cancel to pickup, instead of 5A, you micro dash, allowing for better positioning for that and usually crossing up on 214B cancel at the end. So you need to pay attention to them if you crossed over or not, since you want to do 29~2/5/8AB for the superjump airdash OS. It is usually best to always risk the crossup to always get the autocorrect, since the safejump is meant to be used in situations where the opponent ends up in midscreen anyways, not allowing for the corner all tech safejump, so side swapping is not a problem. Need to jump and IAD asap after 214B ender, kinda tight for the faster stuff but still doable, tested with Makoto DPs and supers!”

Note that you do not have to use this route if you do not want to. While it is a very strong option with optimal midscreen oki, it’s okay to just use the regular Gunblast safejump enders. The important thing is that you can get safejumps comfortably and consistently!

Last thing to note: if you can’t cancel Buzzsaw into Gunblast, it’s probably because you’re using too many j.BB/j.AA extensions in your combo. If this is the case, just omit a single j.BB/j.AA from your combo and you should be able to link Gunblast just fine.

Anti-Burst

Burst is a very useful option for escaping pressure in BBTag, so you need to know how to beat it. If you know when your opponent likes to burst, Ruby has plenty of options to punish it. The most basic option against burst is to just anticipate when your opponent will do it and convert your combo into 2B, DP, or super - since they’re all invulnerable to burst, they’ll punish it easily.

Ruby has a lot of jump cancel opportunities during combos, so if you anticipate a burst, you can jump cancel, then either air block or force the burst to whiff and punish the opponent when they land.

An obvious burst point to be aware of is 5BBB, so if you expect the opponent will burst at this point, you can easily punish it solo without using assist meter: just end at 5BB instead, then convert into j.B, air block j.B, or super if you have meter. You can also jump reset, but since Ruby’s combo routes are very flexible, you should always try to do as much damage as you can while they’re unable to burst.

If you’re having trouble structuring your combos to beat burst, you can also use a large anti-air assist (generally 4P) on reaction. The timing for this is a little more strict, and while this is a very convenient and consistent option if you have assist meter, it’s good to learn your solo burst punishes as well so you’re able to use them when you need to.