GBVS/Belial/Strategy

Belial

Overview

Starter Guide

Combos

General Tactics

Belial is a versatile character that is effective at most ranges, but excels at close range and just outside of mid range. Up close, Belial can establish pressure with c.L and 2M which are both advantageous on block, and can also go for pressure resets with Everyone’s A Little Crooked (236H > 4X). Outside of most opponent’s poking ranges, Belial can pester his opponent with either 2U of 5H to poke or whiff punish, and has a strong fireball in L Goetia (236L)

Should Belial ever end up having to play defense, Notoria (623L/H) is a fully invincible reversal, which allows him to blow through the opponent’s plus frames, provided that the move is off cooldown. In addition, Belial’s 2L is the farthest reaching 5 frame normal in the game and is a move that he always has access to, letting him disrespect a lot of pressure sequences other characters have to hold. Give Daddy Some Sugar (5U) is a parry that can interrupt certain strings and can grant Belial a hard knockdown if it hits.

Belial often finds success by scoring a knockdown and running an oppressive offense through the use of his frame traps and occasional grabs. In the corner is where Belial becomes especially scary, as any confirm into H Asmodeus (214H) will lead into a highly damaging combo.

Neutral

Long Range

Belial has one of the best projectiles in the game in L Goetia (236L). It’s very fast with relatively good recovery, which allows him to establish presence even from full screen. That being said, what truly pushes this fireball over the edge are its follow ups. The L and M versions of Everyone’s A Little Crooked travel upwards and can snipe opponents attempting to jump over Goetia. The correct version to use depends on the opponent’s position relative to the fireball; L is typically better for opponents that are still in front of the fireball when they jump and M is for when they jump over it. Keep in mind that the follow up significantly increases Belial’s recovery after his fireball, so practicing both reaction times and awareness of which version to use is vital.

Belial’s parry, Give Daddy Some Sugar (5U), can also be used in certain matchups to punish long range options and score a hard knockdown, allowing you to transition to okizeme From Japanese "起き攻め". Attacking an opponent about to wake up after they were knocked down, usually with meaty attacks or mix-ups.. Specifically, it guarantees a punish on fast, far reaching projectile type moves with a lot of recovery, such as Ferry's GespenstGuardAllStartup21Recovery30Advantage-4 and Zeta's Infinite WondersGuardAllStartup20Recovery22Advantage-7~0. Against more traditional fireballs, like Katalina's Frozen BladeGuardAllStartup16RecoveryTotal 45Advantage-9, parrying the projectile from further away will actually allow the opponent the opportunity to block, at which point Belial’s turn is over and he has to take a mixup. Also keep in mind that against forward-moving rush type moves such as Charlotta's Shining OnslaughtGuardMidStartup15Recovery8Advantage-10, the parry has a tendency to whiff completely, again putting Belial in a disadvantageous position (although not necessarily guaranteeing a punish). As stated earlier, the usefulness of Belial’s parry changes in each matchup, so try recording different moves in training mode to see which moves can be universally punished by parrying.