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|fastestAttack = {{clr|A|5A}} (7F), Ground Throw (6F) | |fastestAttack = {{clr|A|5A}} (7F), Ground Throw (6F) | ||
|reversal = {{clr|B|236236B}} | |reversal = {{clr|B|236236B}} | ||
|unique_mechanic1_name= Drive: Voltic Battler | |||
|unique_mechanic1= | |||
Tager's {{clr|D|D}} attacks, {{clr|D|5D}}, {{clr|D|2D}}, {{clr|D|j.D}} and {{clr|D|41236D}}, all apply magnetism on hit or block. Magnetism lets Tager pull them opponents towards him during certain other attacks for as long as they remain magnetized. How said moves pull the opponent closer to Tager and the intensity of said pull depends on the move. | |||
The moves that can use magnetism are: | |||
*{{clr|D|5D}} | |||
*{{clr|D|2D}} | |||
*{{clr|D|j.D}} | |||
*{{clr|A|6A}} | |||
*{{clr|A|360A}} | |||
*{{clr|B|360B}} | |||
*{{clr|C|623C}} | |||
*{{clr|C|720C}} | |||
Tager lacks a quick and reliable way to set up magnetism, as all of his {{clr|D|D}} normals are slow and Spark Bolt is not always available. He's also ''missing'' moves that would become staples of his kit in the future, such as {{clr|D|4D}} and Gadget Finger. | |||
}} | }} | ||
Revision as of 07:30, 29 November 2022
Please feel free to make edits, but include edit summaries and sources where applicable.
Iron Tager is one of BlazBlue's most creative ideas; a grappler who pulls you in towards him so he can lose the round faster.
Tager in BBCT is an amalgamate of ArcSys' classic issues when balancing grapplers. He's way too slow, he can't dash, his normals suck, he's absolutely massive and easy to hit (which makes his already bad normals look even worse), and he has a combo and oki game so bad it makes 3S Twelve look like an HnK character. He does have decent damage potential with his grabs, but his strike game is nonexistent, and that prevents Tager from succeeding at basically anything.
What's worse is that the system mechanics of BBCT absolutely hate Tager. Bursting to get people off of him is a non-option due to it practically assuring he will die immediately afterwards thanks to his massive, easily comboable frame, even if it doesn't then he'll have to navigate neutral again in Negative Penalty without any barrier. Other mechanics like Guard Libra punish Tager for attempting to play patiently, which is a necessity for any grappler. This means he'll be playing victim to all of the kusoge elements this game has, infamously giving him hopeless matchups against numerous characters. Perhaps most notably is Nu-13, a traditional grappler VS zoner matchup made all the worse by the sheer power gap between the two, and the system mechanics preventing Tager from having the faintest hope of closing the distance.
Taking a single round against someone while playing Tager is the equivalent to winning ten matches. Well, unless they're playing Hakumen.
Iron Tager Iron Tager loses the round.
- Can Still Win: As long as you have better footsies, better pressure, better reads, better neutral, better defense, better patience, better confirms, better punishes, better "combos", and generally outplay your opponent in every conceivable way consistently throughout the entire match, you can take a single round as Tager.
- The Worst Oki: Near complete inability to maintain his offense, an issue that can almost assuredly make any grappler terrible. Every combo he has will put the opponent in an awkward spacing at best, or much more commonly, fullscreen away from Tager with no way for him to even meaty them.
- Slow as Molasses: Cannot dash or airdash, nor double jump.
- Counterintuitive Drive: Absolutely needs magnetism for his tools to have any use. Magnetism is not only gated behind only three normals, but 2/3 of those normals are terrible. Also frequently results in Tager pulling opposing normals directly into his face.
- Terrible Normals: Almost all normals lack any utility at all. What's worse is that they also don't have any kind of hitstun compensation for their slow speed, which makes leads to the next issue.
- Zero Combos: Borderline impossible for Tager to get a combo off of any hit. Requires magnetism or Spark Bolt for any of his meaningful routes, and yet said routes are still underwhelming.
- Pushback Woes: BBCT as a whole has high pushback, and Barrier to boot. Tager has to constantly fight with proximity to connect with his short-range grabs or end BnBs, and his pressure tends to end just as quickly as it began.
- No Anti-Airs: Tager does not have a single reliable anti-air. His 2C has no invulnerability and his 623C is far too slow to come out, leaving his 2A as his only option. This is just a jab, and it's not enough to deal with the aerial abuse Tager will receive.
- Gigantic: Tager is not only huge, but wide. Roundstart is incredibly disadvantaged due to a frightening amount of normals hitting him faster than he can move, and notoriously can get grabbed by another Tager.
- Life of a Grappler: Has the worst matchups in BBCT, losing every single one besides Hakumen's. Every top tier makes Tager's pitiful life all the more hellish, and he'll be shoved into every grinder imaginable.
Tager's D attacks, 5D, 2D, j.D and 41236D, all apply magnetism on hit or block. Magnetism lets Tager pull them opponents towards him during certain other attacks for as long as they remain magnetized. How said moves pull the opponent closer to Tager and the intensity of said pull depends on the move.
The moves that can use magnetism are:
- 5D
- 2D
- j.D
- 6A
- 360A
- 360B
- 623C
- 720C
Normal Moves
5A
Tager's best move, the first move on the list and we've already peaked.
Plus on block with great range, it's an excellent tool for challenging opposing pressure or desperately trying to maintain your own. 5A's combo options are pitiful, to the point where saying it's a low risk/zero reward button is not an understatement in any way. But at the very least, you can't complain when this is a reliable hope against offense that isn't a top tier.
5B
A very mediocre low kick.
Seemingly important in Tager's pressure game as a low mixup from his throw, but not much else. Using 5B is a point of no return for Tager's blockstrings and combos if it hits a grounded, standing opponent. It's too slow combo into 5C or 6A or even true blockstring into them, forcing Tager to spend his Spark Bolt if he gets the hit for a combo. It doesn't gatling into the vastly superior 2B either, leaving this button much to be desired.
For its startup and how huge Tager is, you'd hope this would go further every time you press it.
5C
5C is too slow to get anything done for Tager.
At 16f startup, this normal never combos against standing opponents from any normals prior (without a counterhit), and is inconsistent even then. The range is very underwhelming as well, with most characters being able to dash and use their 5B in the time it takes for this to come out. They'll typically cover the same if not more range as well.
If used in pressure, 5C will always leave a gap to reversal through. The pushback is also severe, which will usually entail the end of Tager's pressure if he hasn't applied magnetism or the opponent has bothered to barrier him.
2A
Slow, but really good. It's plus, anti-airs, and more importantly can actually lead to combos!
While 2A doesn't cover as much horizontal range as its standing cousin, it does just about everything else. The best part about this button is that it gives Tager one of his only real combos without magnetism that gives him a knockdown: 2A, 2B, 3C. It's very simple and underwhelming, but Tager gets nothing else on a standing character.
2B
Short-ranged monkey kick. Very safe, but not very fast to start up.
There's not much to be said about 2B. It does gatling into 5B for two lows in quick succession, but it's not very helpful as a whole. Tager's pressure struggles to stay in a range where this normal would count.
2C
An "anti-air" that completely lacks invincibility. Horrible button outside of combos.
2C has great vertical range, but terrible horizontal range. Using it in combos leads to high damage routes, but without magnetism or a grounded 6A hit (both of which are hard to get), it's rarely possible to use. Don't ever bother trying to use this as an anti-air, even with a crouching hurtbox Tager is still so gigantic he'll get hit by every jump-in headed his way for a full combo. Tager can also expect a swift death if this button ever misses.
- Launches on hit
6A
6A is a strange vacuum normal that's also too slow to get anything done for Tager.
Failing to naturally combo off of 5C without a crouching or counter hit, applications for 6A in combos are underwhelming. Should Tager find a way to manage it, a combo into 2C, 3C or 623C possible from there and can lead to solid reward. Tager will vacuum opponents towards him on hit or block and has a slight attraction effect during the startup if magnetism is currently applied, but the startup still doesn't make this a desirable normal to just throw out.
Unlike later games, 6A does not ground slide on an aerial hit, nor does it have armor against Head and Body attribute.
- Guard point (Up to 8000 damage. Can't block bursts)
- Vacuum effect on hit or guard
- vacuum effect while attacking when magnetized
6B
Generic overhead that can chain into itself indefinitely.
6B is a simple mixup tool for Tager. It's slightly faster than 6C at the cost of less reward, with both sporting good range. It's not the most interesting or noteworthy normal, outside of it being able to infinitely chain into itself on hit. This still isn't very useful, but it can catch a few players off-guard in the two seconds you can make them block.
- Recovery 27F on hit
- can rapid fire cancel on hit
6C
6C is an important combo piece for Tager, whatever combos he can get any way.
Although it hits overhead, it's far too slow to be used as a traditional overhead mixup outside of when players are clearly looking out for 6B. Instead, 6C sees most of its use in combos, with a stellar launch and hitstun giving Tager multiple ways to follow up should his feeble combo game let him land it. This will nearly always carry enough hitstun to combo into 5D, giving Tager a way to end a combo with magnetism which is a royalty for him.
- Floor bounce on hit
3C
An abysmal sweep that's hard to land for zero followup.
Horrible frame data on this button as a whole, 17 frames of startup means this button can only be combo'd into from a 6A or 2B. 5C also works, but only point blank due to how much pushback that normal carries on hit, and either way ends with Tager getting very subpar oki.
3C cannot be special cancelled into anything, so if it gets blocked Tager is doomed. It's also worthless in combos for this same reason; a mediocre ender for his grounded routes granting very below-average oki thanks to the recovery and nothing more.
- Knocks down on hit
j.A
A very solid air jab considering its speed, but nothing overall noteworthy. Tager rarely wants to jump due to his horrible prejump frames.
As you may have come to expect from Tager, j.A does not combo into a single other air normal besides itself. This should never be used in combos.
j.B
Another great air normal, this time better suited for jump-ins with its downwards hitbox and long active frames.
j.B can struggle to see use thanks to Tager's very floaty jumps, but it's important if he ever finds himself in the air regardless. Sadly, like most of Tager's air normals, it doesn't lead to much on hit. It only combos into j.C, and Tager's combo will be over from there.
j.C
j.C isn't really an attack as much as it is a pseudo-airdash.
While it does have a hitbox, a surprisingly strong one at that, the real meat of j.C lies in its forward movement. Tager can use this to propel himself forward in the air somewhat akin to an airdash, although not quite. The quick recovery also means it's not too much of a danger to put out, but Tager's prejump and low gravity means jumping at all is a danger for him. Should j.C hit, Tager gets absolutely nothing as the hitstun isn't long enough for Tager to successfully land a j.D, nor do anything else.
- 13~ moves forward
j.2C
Another silly air normal, this time an anti-anti-air that's not too useful.
j.2C halts Tager's air momentum before dropping him straight down. While hanging in the air helps him bait out anti-airs and punish them, he still struggles to get very high reward on hit due to his poor combo game, making this a lot more risk than it's likely worth.
The hitbox is active all the way until Tager hits the ground and then some, but an odd bug exists where j.2C comes out nearly instantly if performed as low as possible to the ground. This was seemingly left in the game for potential tech reasons, and has use in the occasional combo.
- Slam down, untechable
- [ ] holds the data of hitting opponent during landing 4F ~ after landing 1F
Drive Moves
5D
An impressively long-range poke, but perhaps what's more impressive is how terrible it is.
5D is one of Tager's only ways to apply magnetism, and it's extremely slow. Not just in startup, but also recovery. Tager is left very vulnerable for an extensive period of time on whiff with a total duration over a full second. The recovery is so bad, Tager visually appears to be moving in slow motion. 5D also grants nothing on hit besides magnetism and a bit of damage. It blasts anyone hit by it all the way to the other side of the screen, and it's extremely hard to confirm off of even with Spark Bolt.
It'll be used any way at the end of combos, such as after 6C, but only thanks to the magnetism. It's too great a risk otherwise.
- Slide effect, wall bounce on counter hit
- guard recovery 31F
- magnetized on hit or guard
- vacuum effect while attacking when magnetized
2D
2D is an advancing normal for Tager, but it's once again far too slow to be useful.
Most often seen at the end of combos, or as a very dangerous approach from a Tager who feels he has nothing to lose. A simple way to route into 2D is after using Atomic Collider, but usually if 2D could connect, then 6C would as well, and that normal will result in better damage than this should Tager already have magnetism applied.
- Guard recovery 32F
- magnetized on hit or guard
- vacuum effect while attacking when magnetized
j.D
A much faster and more practical way of getting magnetism than the other two normals.
j.D is not risk free thanks to its long startup and recovery, and also leads to nearly no reward on hit besides the magnetism, but it can carry its weight given Tager is allowed to remain mobile during the startup. There's a bit of landing recovery at the end, so take caution whiffing this.
6C combos that don't have magnetism already applied can end with this to apply magnetism without launching the opponent fullscreen.
- Magnetized on hit or block
- vacuum effect while attacking when magnetized
Universal Mechanics
Forward Throw
5B+C
A throw. An okay option for Tager thanks to its surprising each, speed, and ease of input. The reward on hit is quite high, even higher than his command grabs, but Tager will need magnetism in order to make the most of it.
- Floor bounce on 2nd hit
Back Throw
4B+C
A back throw. Same as his forward throw, really.
- Floor bounce on 2nd hit
Air Throw
j.B+C
Given how often characters love to harass Tager in the air, this is a good choice to try and quickly get them off of him. It's not very useful as a whole thanks to Tager's slow prejump.
- Slam down on 2nd hit
Counter Assault
6A+B while blocking
Spend meter to get to play the game again.
Unlike most Counter Assaults, Tager's is blessed with a knockdown, which makes it way more worthwhile than others. Given Tager will be spending an extensive amount of time blocking, he'll commonly need this to escape pressure. Having a good one is quite the boon.
- Knocks down on hit
Specials
A Gigantic Tager Driver
360A
The first of Tager's staple command grabs. This version is more of a reversal grab compared to the B version.
Tager reaches his hand out further than in the B version which gives this grab a bit of an extra boost in range, but it's at the cost of damage. The real catch is the invincibility Tager gains as early as frame 3, so use of this is mostly as a reversal. Occasionally it can be used in place of 360B when Tager isn't range, but it's advised to use that instead if Tager has the choice.
With magnetism applied, Tager will pull in the opponent towards him during the startup, which can be delayed by holding down A. The button must be manually released to activate the hitbox, or else the opponent just gets pulled towards Tager and will likely punish him.
Naturally for a command grab, the recovery is quite terrible. Whiffing this will typically result in Tager getting counterhit.
360A reaches far enough to grab another Tager at roundstart.
Buffered behind 2B to prevent any movement.
- knocks down, untechable
- vacuum effect while attacking when magnetized (on jumping opponents)
- while holding the button startup becomes slower (slowest 11+20F), after releasing startup is 2F
B Gigantic Tager Driver
360B
The second of Tager's staple command grabs. This is Tager's go-to mixup, dealing a very high amount of damage.
360B has awful range and can't be held down to vacuum magnetized opponents in for nearly as long as the A version, nor is there any invincibility. Instead, the startup is significantly faster and the damage is much higher. The opponent is also placed much closer to Tager on hit, allowing for basic followups to gain even more damage.
Still benefits from magnetism as you'd expect, and Tager will automatically activate the hitbox if he drags his enemy within proximity.
- Knocks down, untechable
- vacuum effect while attacking when magnetized (on grounded opponents)
- while holding the button active time becomes longer (longest 2+6F), after releasing only active for 2F
Atomic Collider
623C
Anti-air grab. Barely functions, does a lot of damage when it decides to.
Being an anti-air grab, it only hits airborne opponents. Having invincibility on your anti-airs is a privilege only awarded to good characters, so naturally Tager has none at all on this. His extended arm is a massive hurtbox just waiting to be struck by whoever he's trying to grab. Tager can hold down C to vacuum magnetized opponents towards him, rather generously letting them strike that hurtbox even more easily. Just like 360A, the hitbox does not come out automatically unless Tager's been holding the button down for a long time. A manual release is required to grab someone.
This gets delegated to combos only, and usually at the end of them. Sometimes used in Tager's resets as well, for when you feel like gimmicks are the only thing that can make the one hit you'll get in the entire match worth it.
- Floor bounce on hit, untechable
- vacuum effect while attacking when magnetized (on jumping opponents), while holding the button startup becomes slower (slowest 17+43F), after releasing startup is 2F
A Sledgehammer
236A
You know Green Hand? If you took that and made it way worse, you'd have A Sledgehammer.
A Sledgehammer is yet another move in Tager's arsenal that's way too slow to be helpful. No normals combo into it without a crouching hit thanks to its sluggish speed and range. Given its projectile armor and forward movement, it seems intended to help Tager navigate neutral against zoners, but any experience in those matchups will reveal the uselessness of this move there. Tager is much better off charging up Spark Bolt than risking this approach.
Can be cancelled into Additional Attack during the recovery frames, even on whiff. This is helpful if Tager can combo into it, since it deals superior damage to 3C.
- Guard point guards pp to 2400 damage. Can't block bursts)
- 25~31 can cancel to follow up
B Sledgehammer
236B
An even slower version of Sledgehammer. Meant to blow through zoning spam, but is only okay at doing that.
Goes farther and is friendlier in combos, such as after either of Tager's regular throws, but that's about it. Shares many of the same properties and issues with the other variant despite the increase in range and frame advantage.
Can also be cancelled into Additional Attack during the recovery frames, once again on whiff as well.
- Guard point guards pp to 2400 damage. Can't block bursts)
- staggers (32F)
- 44~48 can cancel to follow up
Additional Attack
Sledgehammer > 236A
An overhead followup to the two Sledgehammers. A very standard move, and not a great mixup due to its speed and predictability.
Groundbounces on hit that launches the opponent away from Tager for no oki. Can be followed up, but just barely.
- Floor bounce
Voltec Charge
421B
An armored stance that charges up Tager's Spark Bolt. A surprisingly helpful move.
This is what really should be done against zoners, since Spark Bolt will not only blow through their projectiles, but it'll also grant magnetism and a combo for Tager on hit. Holding down B will extend both the armor and the charge, and the amount of charge gained at the end depends on how long Tager was charging. The charge is only gained at the very end however, so greedy charges that get punished won't give Tager any extra gauge for his Spark Bolt.
- 10F startup when guarding attacks, Electricity Gauge start to increase at 22F
- guard point is active while holding the button (at most 90F)
- after releasing button, guard point disappears in 2F and gauge increases in 7F then move stops in 24F
- gauge increases by 60 at least, increase by 4 per frame, on the 22F or 7F after button release, gauge increases all at once.
Spark Bolt
41236D
The mother lode. A lightning fast projectile that magnetizes and wallbounces, Tager's going to need it a lot for just about everything.
Without a crouching or counterhit, this is the only way Tager is going to get a combo the majority of the time. Spark Bolt comes out very quickly and blows through every other projectile it comes across, making it an excellent counterzoning option with huge rewards. This is Tager's best move on paper, but the downside is its scarcity.
Spark Bolt can only be used once Tager's Electric Gauge is full, starting at zero at the beginning of the each round. Since Tager depends on it so much for everything, it's safe to say he's much stronger with it and much weaker without it, so always keep track of the Electric Gauge and when the threat of this is available. It's undeniably strong once Tager gets a hold of it, but it should be used wisely.
- Wall bounce, magnetized on hit or guard
- projectile property
- goes through projectiles
- Can only be used when Electricity Gauge is full
- Electricity Gauge has a total of 1200 points, increases by 1 each frame
Distortion Drives
Magna Tech Wheel
236236B
A big damage super, pulls the opponent in if they're currently magnetized.
- vacuum on hits 1~19, hitstop 0
- 20th hit causes floor bounce, untechable, hitstop is 28
- While magnetized causes vacuum while active
- 77~110 can cancel to follow up
Terra Break
236236B after Magna Tech Wheel
Followup from Magna Tech Wheel for even bigger damage.
- Wall bounce on hit
Genesic Emerald Tager Buster
720C
Biggest damage, invincible and quick grab super. Tager's comeback machine, often his saving grace while on the defensive.
- knocks down, untechable
- can charge while button is held, active for only 2F after releasing the button
Click [★] for character's full frame data
Essentials
• Controls •
HUD •
FAQ •
The Basics
• Movement/Canceling •
Mechanics •
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