From: maestas@cs.arizona.edu (Mark Maestas)
Newsgroups: alt.games.sf2
Subject: Honda Strategy Guide ( LONG : 300 LINES! )
Keywords: Honda
Date: 12 Nov 92 20:39:54 GMT

0. PREFACE
   Well, this is my first strategy guide.  It appears to be more of a 'how to
counter moves' guide but I feel that you should try to incorporate the moves
into your own style of fighting.  A good style will have at least two different
ways of countering or attacking so that either one can be interchanged on
a random basis, so that you have no easily discernable pattern.  It is even
better if you can have the appearance of having a pattern so that when your
opponent thinks that he knows how to counter your pattern, you can surprise
him with your other tactic(s) and switch on and off so that he doesn't know
what to expect.  Also, when you feel comfortable with a character, try ALL
of the other attacks available to you and see how they work in different 
situations, the best time to practice is when playing with a friend with the 
intent of experimentation or against some poor player with lesser ability
(just don't get too cocky).  If you have any comments or criticisms, feel
free to e-mail me.  Flames will be ignored while reasoned critisisms will
be heard.
------------------Cut the editorial comment if you desire --------------------

E.HONDA STRATEGY GUIDE FOR SFIICE.
             _____       _   _   _____   _    _   ____     ___
            |  ___|     | | | | |  _  | | \  | | |  _ \   / _ \
            | |___      | |_| | | | | | |  \ | | | | | | | /_\ |
            |  ___|     |  _  | | | | | | \  \ | | | | | |  _  |
            | |___   _  | | | | | |_| | | | \  | | |_| | | | | |
            |_____| |_| |_| |_| |_____| |_|  \_| |____/  |_| |_|

             "Is that the best you can do?" (Hau Hau Hauhauhau)
   by Mark "Terminator" Maestas  -- maestas@cs.arizona.edu

I. INTRO----------------------------------------------------------------------
     Name: Edmond Honda    DOB: 11/03/60    Height: 6'02"    Weight:304 lbs.

     Honda is a sumo wrestler that has as much muscle as fat.  His power is 
 evident by the damage he inflicts with each blow.  His holds are crushing,
his attacks mean PAIN.  But enough of the background stuff, as I'm pretty
sure you just want to learn how to boot some head too.  Also, note that this
guide is for the SFIICE, however, some tactics are transferrable to SFII
Classic. 

II.  SPECIAL ATTACKS----------------------------------------------------------

HUNDRED HAND SLAP-- Jam (press very rapidly) on the punch buttons.  Most
  people can just use the Strong button to do this, but if you can keep it going
  with the Fierce button, by all means do so.  The reason why is that if you
  use the Jab to do this move and decide to stop, he will keep going for about
  a second.  If, however, you are using Fierce, you will stop a lot quicker.
  This can mean the difference between blocking or getting hit by a nasty combo.
 WEAKNESSES:
  Can be easily hit on the hand with most characters (and they take no 
  damage from hitting your hands). e.g. Ken/Ryu/Guile-Low or jumping Jab or 
  Strong.
 SPECIAL USES:
  Jam on the buttons while opponent is locked in a hold or gets knocked
  down next to you for extra damage.  Also jumping in with a strong punch 
  followed by the 100Hands is a good way to soften people up.  If they block
  your attack, start the hands for those little bits of damage.  Over time,
  those little hits add up to a lot.

SUMO TORPEDO-- Charge back for 2 sec., forward + punch.  The more 
  powerful the punch, the faster you will go.  This will do a lot of damage 
  if someone gets hit by it.
 WEAKNESSES:
  Try not to Torpedo too liberally.  A smart opponent will jump up and kick
  you, Dragon Punch, Flash Kick, etc.
 SPECIAL USES:
  The neat thing about this move is that if someone is jumping at you and
  you do the Torpedo right before he attacks/touches you, you will gain limited
  invulnerablility (oxymoron?).  What I mean is that 95% of the time, you will 
  hit them without taking damage.  The other 5%, you will get hit, but usually 
  give more damage than you got.  I will refer to this move a lot during the
  guide, it usually means to do a Torpedo right before they hit you.

III.  USEFUL NORMAL ATTACKS & THROWS------------------------------------------
     
     FLYING ROUNDHOUSE: A Powerful kick that stays out for a good length of 
time and has great range.  A tactic that works every now and then is what I
call a Banzai charge.  Just keep juming at your opponent to force him into a
corner.  Change when you use this kick, like low if you know he's going to 
block or try to run under you; right when you jump if you think he'll jump
up and attack you; in the middle if unsure.  It requires some insight into
your opponents tactics, but if well executed, can cause damage and be 
followed by some nice corner trap techniques.

     FLYING STRONG: Good if you're trying to knock people out of the air and
a standing Fierce just won't do.  Particularly useful against opponents
that jump in and attack you when they're coming down.  Just jump when he does
and hit Strong right away. 

     SUMO HUG:  Just crush as much as you can while jamming on the punch 
buttons.  Use the 100-hands when they land to take off that little extra bit
of damage...any damage taken off is fewer times you have to get your opponent.

     THROW:  If your opponent is pretty fast at getting out of your Sumo Hug,
use the throw instead.  This is a powerful throw that takes off a lot of health.
And you can usually start a 100-hands before your opponent gets up.  If they
weren't thrown in a corner, it's usually best to jump at them and start hiting
the buttons in the air so you start 100-hands when you land next to them.

IV.  COMBOS ---------------------------------------------------------------

     There's not much to say except to do an aerial move low in the air 
followed by a nifty ground attack.  Some examples are flying Roundhouse-low
Fierce, flying Forward-low Forward(3-hit), flying Strong-100-hands (this 
100-hands usually only connects with the first one while the rest are blocked
but you should take any damage you can get), or a combination of anything
else like I said before.  

V.  TACTICS ---------------------------------------------------------------

     RYU -- Ryu is a pretty challenging fight.  His quick recovery makes it
harder to do Flying Roundhouse over his Fireball unless you jump right when 
he does it.  There's also the tactic of not attacking (psyche) and letting
the Ryumeister whiff that DRP for a free attack.  For people that like to
double jab DRP wait for it and get him after the 2nd DRP.  Note that you
can't keep the same strategies against good players so switch between attacking
and not attacking always trying to outguess your opponents moves.  If you get
stuck in a corner it's okay to block a few fireballs.  Don't feel the need
to escape immediately, one of your hits can make up for several blocked 
fireballs.  If Ryu is within range of your standing Roundhouse, go ahead and
try to kick his leg as he fireballs or try a good ol' Firece chop.  Against
a hurricane kick, if you've go a torpedo charged go ahead and use it right 
before he's about to hit you.  If your timing is really good, just wait for
him to land and hug him or toss him.  Otherwise, a low Strong or Forward is
good right before they land because it stays out for a while.  A neat trick
to try that takes very very good timing is if he will land right behind you
then do a low Roundhouse right before he lands.  Your kick starts in front
of you and then sweeps behind you and wham!  Remember, if they get a little
anxious to do a flying combo on you, Torpedo them for the best damage.  If 
you don't have anything charged, a standing Fierce works just as well.  Also,
try not to do the standing Roundhouse too often.  Ryu can jump in and combo
you before you recover from the attack.  A Forward kick is a decent substitute
that allows you to recover in time for a Fierce chop.

     KEN -- Ken is basically like RYU except for the following.  When Ken 
fireballs he has a slower recovery time so don't try the psyche to often, go
ahead and try the flying Roundhouse or even Strong, these moves have the lowest
reach so it's easier to hit your opponents before they recover.  Don't try the
psyche move unless you think you are out of range or can block Ken's DRP. 
Remember his range and if he throws a fireball that you think he will recover
from before you can jump in and hit him, just jump straigh up to avoid it or
just block (remember it's okay to block them, just not too often).  Blocking
isn't as good as jumping straight up, but it's better than getting hit by a
DRP or other attack.  Other than this, it's pretty much the same.

     HONDA -- Hey look, a Sumo match!  Just remember your fierce chops and
flying roundhouse kicks.  You'll do fine if you keep outguessing your opponent
and don't jump at him if you think he's got a torpedo charged up.  If he 
torpedos you and you have one charged up too, wait until he's just about to
hit you and then torpedo.  The other Honda should bounce off of you and you
will hit him with a solid torpedo hit.  If you have nothing charged up,
just block, it's better than getting hit while trying to jump backwards if
you're caught off guard.  If you have enough time to jump over it, go ahead
and clobber him as he stops if you're close enough.  Generally, a Fierce can
only be jumped if you are very far away because it is very fast and it's 
hard to tell what speed the guy will try to go.  Using 100-hands vs. a torpedo
is risky and usually ends up in a trade, so only do this if you have more 
energy than he does.  You will lose energy but he is that much closer to death.

     CHUN LI -- She's fast but you've got the power.  DON'T try to punch 
through her Wind Kick because you'll lose every time.  Your hands can be hit,
her legs can't.  Just jump over it and hit her for best results.  If you are
going to meet her in the air, it's best to try a Strong because it has more
front area coverage than the other attacks.  When on the ground and she jumps
at you, a Torpedo is the best.  If not a standing Fierce can usually exchange,
or just block if it looks like a toe tap.  If she toe taps, walk right behind
her and grab her when she lands.  If she has that annoying habit of throwing
you before she lands, jump behind her and hit her in the back before she lands.
If she tries the Tornado Kick a low Strong can put her back down.  Another
tactic she migh use is to 'dance' back and forth with intermittent low
Forwards and Roundhouses.  You can try exchanging Roundhouses or do some low
Strongs mixed in with an occassional Torpedo here and there.

     BLANKA -- Another tough customer,  Blanka is fast and strong.  Firstoff,
if they get Electricity happy, a low Fierce or Torpedo will knock them out.
For Speedballs, a lot of jabs or 100-hands can usually deter this.  One neat
trick if you're fast enough is if you have a Torpedo charged up and Blanka
Speedballs, do the Torpedo right before he hits you.  He will bounce off you
without damaging you and you will give him a nasty Torpedo in return.  If
Blanka gets a little jump happy a Torpedo will knock them out of it, but
this only usually occurs with the above average and below players.  Masters
will only do this rarely or by accident.  When Blanka jumps in with a Short or
Forward kick (common tactic for the hit-Bite tick) a Fierce can exchange damage
with the worst going to Blanka.  Or just block and counter-throw for even
greater damage.  Basically, you want to try to maneuver your opponent into the 
corner little-by-little advancing when your opponent isn't charged for a 
Speedball.  Also, a good way to stop Blanka from jumping on you is to meet
him in the air with a Strong punch by hitting Strong right when you jump.
If Blanka starts hitting early in the air, wait on the ground and attack.  
This goes both ways so the best thing to do if he's on the ground and you're
in the air is to revert to the good ol' Roundhouse Kick.

     ZANGIEF -- Definitely stay out of SPD range or at least be sure he isn't
able to recover in time.  This character is the best person to use my Kamikaze
attack form against.  This is basically where you jump up or jump forward 
at random intervals but fast enough to keep the pressure on Zangief.  When
you jump you try to anticipate whether the guy will stay on the ground or
try to jump and attack you.  You use basically Roundhouse kicks because
they stay out for a considerable amount of time and do great damage.  If 
your jump takes you next to Zangief, jump up or back again to be sure you're
grabbed.  Also, if you do a Strong when you are low in the air follow it 
up with the 100-hands to whittle away at him.  If Zangief gets on the offensive,
a Fierce chop takes out most of his air attacks with an exchange as the worst
case.  

     GUILE -- He is one tough customer.  If you're lucky, you can kick him
thru his Slice-Kick.  It's a lot easier to do on Classic but harder on CE.
Basically, you must have great patience.  Stay just out of range of his low
Forward and try to hit his foot every so often, but be more careful to wait
for a Sonic Boom.  Right when you see the Boom, jump at him and Roundhouse
or Strong to 100-hands to whittle away.  An early Roundhouse will usually
counter Guile's low Fierce if he tries to knock you out of the air.  When you
kick, use the Standing Forward a lot so that Guile doesn't get a good chance
to attack you from the air.  

     DHALSIM -- Attack the limbs for victory.  The kamikaze tactic works
pretty well if you can predict when he will attack you.  A well timed 
flying Roundhouse will usually trade with a Dhalsim kick and he will always
take more damage in the exchange.  Torpedos are not a good idea at long range
but medium to short range Torpedos are good if done infrequently.  Doing
a Torpedo too much will result in a Forward slide followed by a Nuggie.
If Dhalsim tries a Drill press on you (a Drill press is when they constantly
jump up and quickly execute the Drill), just block them.  If he tries it too
long, a Torpedo can easily be slipped in for great damage.

     BALROG -- If you stay crouched , the charging Hook and Uppercuts will
miss allowing you to pick up Balrog and follow up with the 100-hands.  
The Haymaker (Turn-around Punch, etc) is best handled by just plain blocking.
If you are near the Haymaker's extreme range a Torpedo is a decent counter-
attack which is often blocked (but some damage is better than no damage).
A constant 100-hand screen is good if you can keep it up using Fierce.
Balrog's only effective counter-attack to this is a Jump up Fierce/Roundhouse
to the hands.  The other punches will give an exchange with varying degrees
of success/failure.  If you happen to be in the air, an early Roundhouse
might be able to exchange with one of Balrog's uppercuts.  Again, mid-to-
close range Torpedos can also help to whittle down your enemy.  And
don't try to do standing kicks too often or you'll find a face full of fist
as Balrog executes his Standing Fierce (This has really long range so be
aware!).

     VEGA -- Another character that requires some measure of patience.  Vega
loves his claw and will often use it at random intervals to whittle you 
away.  Use the Torpedo if he jumps at you or at close range only.  An 
alert Vega will easily jump back and kick you in the head.  Just sit and defend
until you find an opening.  Blocking doesn't hurt you, but if they seem to
get too close, try a Torpedo.  Or if they inteand to jab-throw (tick) you, 
counter-throw with a Strong throw towards the corner (which is where most
people end up at one point or another with Vega).  Follow up with 100-hands
and you should soon knock the little claw into the background.  Be very careful
if you happen to back Vega into a corner though.  If he's right next to the
wall, it's a VERY short trip from there to you.  Thus a missed Roundhouse
could make you throw-bait.  However, if Vega does a Screaming Eagle,  you can
do the Torpedo right before he goes to throw you, or if you don't have one 
charged up, you can just do a Fierce Chop.  If Vega decides to press the air
attack, you can meet him in the air with a Strong punch or if you are in the
air first, a Roundhouse will also work just as well.

     SAGAT -- To start out with, Low Tigers can be Torpedoed over.  High
ones can be jumped or ducked under.  Just beware of the speed of the Tiger
because a good Sagat player will change up his tigers often.  If you jump
over a Tiger and think that Sagat has time to recover and do a Tiger Uppercut
hit Roundhouse before he recovers.  You may often exchange with you getting
the worst most of the time, but there is also the chance that you will 
connect without taking damage.  Don't do a lot of standing Roundhouse kicks
or Sagat will Tiger Knee over them (usually followed by an Uppercut).  Sagat
can be pretty deceptive also.  If you kick too early, hoping to connect with
his head, Sagat will duck (very low) on his way to Uppercut city and hit you
after your kick has retracted or more simply, low Fierce as you are about
to land.  Be on the alert for his psyche maneuver where he does a Tiger Knee
that doesn't hit you, but lands right next to you (this is usually followed
by an Uppercut or throw).  As soon as you know he hasn't hit you, throw, grab,
or Torpedo if you so desire (Although I usually prefer a throw or a grab in 
this situation).

     BISON -- First order of business would be his Flaming Torpedo.  A simple,
tactic is a standing Jab or Strong to his face.  Also, a Fierce Torpedo will
work about 70% of the time while a Jab Torpedo almost never works.  If you
are in the air or have enough time to jump, jump back and Roundhouse to the
head, or jump over it to avoid it completely.  If you do get caught in one,
a properly timed button hit will throw him when he stops (if next to you),
and a Torpedo (if he doesn't drill through you, you will have charge) can
foil a throw attempt on his part.  100-hands is not an advisable counter to 
the Flaming Torpedo because you will get hit more often than not.  Scissor
Kicks are best blocked, or Torpedoed if you can see it coming.  Head Stomps
can be avoided by jumping back and Strong as he gets near or Roundhouse if your
kick will hit him above the boots (or below if you want to exchange).  If
jumping is not a viable option, block the Stomp and prepare to Fierce chop as 
he comes down.  If you see Bison fly all the way to one side, he is trying
to charge up for a move.  Be alert for a Scissor or Torpedo when he lands.
A Torpdeo on your part can sometimes stop the Stomp right before it hits,
and a Torpedo can always nail Bison if he jumps in at you.  If you decide to
go after him, jump at him only if he hasn't had time to charge for a move
or right before he gets up (from being knocked down).  A 100-hand press after
a Strong on the way down is a good way to get even for blocked Flaming Torp.
attacks.  Also, try very hard to predict whether Bison will try to meet
you in the air with his Roundhouse or stay on the ground and do a Low Punch
to avoid an early Roundhouse kick.  And lastly, if Bison tries the old
Standing Forward kick press (Forward kick, move in a step, Forward) a Torpedo
can be snuck in there to stop him.

     Well, that's it for now.  I hope it's enough.