Vanilla Ice

## Introduction

V**anilla Ice** (ヴァニラ・アイス *Vanira Aisu*) is an antagonist featured in *Stardust Crusaders*. He is the last Vampire created by DIO and one of the penultimate Stand Users the Joestar Group faces upon infiltrating DIO's Mansion. After the group is split up, he is sent to take out the team consisting of Avdol, Polnareff, and Iggy. Vanilla Ice is a Stand User controlling his void-based ability, *Cream*, to battle.

His playstyle is very similar to Jotaro's, except instead of just focusing on rushdown, Vanilla Ice can abuse his quick roll, strong priority, and fast movement to bait the opponent into insanely high damage combos. While he needs to be more patient with his opponent, he still has a lot of good tools at his disposal, for closing the distance and mixing the opponent up, and his Stand On mode featuring some of the most powerful normals in the game.

Finally, Vanilla Ice's okizeme is probably the best in the game as he can freely combo into his sweep most of the time. His Cream! overhead attack which can be paired together with a low hit, gives him setups into 50/50s or straight up unblockables, which later result in a full combo. He is truly a nightmare to deal with once he manages to get you in his grasp.

### **Pros & Cons**

+ Incredible normals, with fast recovery and great priority
+ High damage combos, with touch of death potential
+ One of the fastest and shortest rolls in the game
+ Strongest Tandem attack in the game
+ Fast, nigh unstoppable meter build by whiffing normals
+ Unblockable okizeme that leads to a full combo
+ Can perform Air Dashes in Stand On, that can be used to IAD
+ Oppressive midrange game, with good dashing lows and instant overheads that both lead to combos and oki

- Low Stand Gauge, meaning he can be Stand Crashed easily
- Has some difficult links and combo routes
- Bad Guard Cancel in Stand Off, underwhelming in Stand On
- His specials/supers can be punished easily when used improperly
- His combos aren't as flashy and become quite repetitive

## Movelist

### **Normals**

#### Stand OFF:

5A - Fast jab. Whiffs on crouching opponents. It has a second hit that comes out as a chain, which is what nets you crazy damage in tandems.
5B - Low kick. Hits low. Pretty much useless.
5C - Cream comes out and hits the opponent up to 3 times. Decent priority and whiffs fast. Whiffs on many crouching opponents.
2A - Fast crouching jab. Combo starter.
2B - Cream headbutts the opponent. Launches on hit.
2C - Cream sweeps at the opponent's legs. Cancelable, a good ender into oki.
j.A - Unremarkable jumping jab.
j.B - Long air kick.
j.C - Cream swipes downwards. OK jump-in, can be used as an instant overhead.
665A - Dashing 5A. Combo tool.
665B - Dashing kick. Never used.
665C - Dashing 5C. Easy combo starter, but not very practical.
663A - Strong combo starter, easy to use and non commital.
663B - Non launching 2B. Useless.
663C - Dashing 2C that doesn't knock down. Useless.
6A - Kick to the shins, hits low. Useless.
6B - Long kick, moves forward a great deal. Confirm and whiff punish tool.
6C - Long reaching punch. Not an overhead despite what it looks like. Combo tool.
n.j.B - Jumping version of 5B, only when neutral jumping. More reliable as an instant overhead than j.C

#### Stand ON:

s.5A - Cream jabs with his fingers. Chains into itself twice and into other normals. Whiffs on some crouching opponents.
s.5B - Upwards swipe. Combo tool, whiffs on most crouching opponents.
s.5C - Upwards swipe. Incredible anti-air with ridicolous priority. Whiffs on most crouching opponents.
s.2A - Finger jab. Combo tool.
s.2B - Upwards swipe. Great priority, chains incredibly quickly into s.2C, allowing for safe nigh unstoppable meter build.
s.2C - Amazing poke, meter builder and combo starter. Really hard to stop because of its unparalleled speed and priority.
s.j.A - Another jab. Useful to spam airdashes almost indefinetely.
s.j.B - Jumping version of his B buttons.
s.j.C - Jumping version of s.5C. Can be used as an instant overhead.
s.665A - Dashing s.5A. Never used.
s.665B - Dashing s.5B. Never used.
s.665C - Dashing s.5C. Never used.
s.663A - Dashing s.2A. Never used.
s.663B - Dashing s.2B. Not as useful compared to it because it's harder to space.
s.663C - Dashing s.2C. Safe on block, recovers slower, but ok to move in if you really want to use it.
s.6A - Low kick. OK for tick throw setups, otherwise only used in combos.
s.6B - Overhead. Quite slow.
s.6C - Godlike hitbox, long reach, starts combos, whiffs way too fast for how good it is. One of the more spammable buttons in the game.
s.j.6B - Downward jab.
s.j.6C - Looks like 5C, go to button for IAD overheads.
s.j.4C - Jumping s.6C. Can be used to instand overhead and to poke while airdashing.

### **Special Moves**

#### *Dark Space -* **236+A/B/C**

*Can be followed up by pressing a Direction + Attack* *(Stand ON only)*

Cream forms an ball of void and moves towards the opponent. This move has decent hitbox and launches into an untechable knockdown. The Stand ON version can be followed up, allowing for a short but damaging combo in the corner. Both versions are incredibly unsafe if blocked, but Ice has absolutely no grounded recovery after landing, for either of them. The Stand ON version also needs to be blocked in the same direction it originally came from even if it crosses up. The version changes the angle in Stand Off,angle and speed in Stand ON.

#### *Cream! -* **214+A/B/C**

Cream leaps forward and strikes the opponent from above. This move hits overhead, and you can combo into and after it, as well as use it for unblockable low overhead/oki. In Stand ON it is unsafe if pushblocked.

#### *Rising Devastation (Stand ON only)* - **421+A/B/C**

Cream drops underground then explodes up into the air. The button determines the location where Cream emerges from. Causes and untechable launch/knowckdown. Fully invincible the whole way through, but it is quite slow and leaves you wide open at the end, though it has no grounded recovery.

#### *Blow Away (Stand ON only)* - **Charge 2, 8+A/B/C**

Cream leaps up then slams into the ground. Hits overhead. This move is nearly useless.

#### *Quick Stand Activation Attack -* **236+S**

Activates stand mode using Vanilla's s.6B, putting him into Stand ON.

### **Supers**

#### *Tandem Combo* - **214+S**

Activates Vanilla's tandem combo, allowing you to input moves for Cream leaving you free to attack your opponent. Easely the best tandem in the game, for reasons that will be explained in the combo section.

#### *I'll kick you to death!* - **236+AA (Can be charged)**

Vanilla Ice rushes forward with a punch, and if he connects, follows up automatically with a barrage of kicks. The following knockdown is untechable, and it automatically switches you to Stand On to Off and viceversa. Plays a second hit if its blocked or whiffs. It can be held, and if held long enough it will be unblockable. Can be used for its invincibility and range, but it is unsafe on block, otherwise a consistent combo ender.

#### *Madness Sorrow* - **214+AA**

Vanilla uses Cream to disappear, then emerges from the background in several locations in void ball form. The button combination used determines which of the three patterns he uses. This super is pretty useless as the entire move can be avoided by rolling. Still has no grounded recovery.

#### *Circle Locust* - **623+AA** *(Stand ON only)*

Cream swipes upward with his arm, and, if he connects, he hits the opponent five more times with his void ball form. It starts up and whiffs really fast, it can work as an anti-air, and the hitbox actually goes lower than it looks. Can be used to complete Dark Space juggles.

## Combos

**Note:**

* *Ice's Tandem attack is very lenient and has a variety of inputs you can use to perform the combo. The easiest is (A>B>C) repeatedly but there are other combinations that can be preformed for relatively the same output of damage. Even if you do not properly input ABC reps, it will combo anyway. The more advanced inputs allows Ice to go for Touch of Death combos from a single 2A/663A.*
* *Unless you are in the corner you will want to follow up Ice's Tandem Attack by rolling behind your opponent and repeatedly hitting them with 5A (2A if they are crouched at the time). 665A or walking may be necessary to keep your opponent pinned. '**Alternatively you can use 6B to get the same effect.'** If used in the corner you will need to do a 665A, 663A or walk in to keep them from falling out if Cream gets too far away from the wall.*
* *When comboing into tandem from farther away than usual, you can easely use a 6B right after the tandem superflash ends to essentially link from the normal you canceled into tandem with BEFORE the tandem itself can reach (ex.: 6C xx 214S (tandem inputs), 6B, (tandem hits), etc...), making some conversions possible.*
* These starters/enders are easy to mix and match. It's easy to spot Vanilla Ice's repetitiveness in them, as all you will be doing is combo into tandem, and many times your starter will be identical or similar in structure to your ender. He has options, but there isn't much space for creativity when it comes to these BnBs, and if the opponent is crouching your possible routes are even more limited.

#### Tandem Combos

2A, 2A, 6B/6C xx 214S (ABC xN) - Basic combo starter into tandem;

663A/665A*,* 2A, 2A, 6B/6C xx 214S (ABC xN) - Starts Ice's basic combo with either dashing 2A or dashing 5A;

663A*,*2A, 2A, 6C, 214C, 663A, 2A, 2A, 6B/6C*xx* 214S (ABC xN) - Very tight timing between 6C and 214C. It is one of Ice's optimal combos, *but it is also one of his hardest.*

663A*,*2A, 2A, 6C, 214C, 663A, 2A, S+6A > s.6B > s.6C, S+6C*xx* 214S (ABC xN) - Extended starter. Even better damage on top of the tandem.

s.2B, s.2C, S+6B/6C xx 214S (ABC xN) - Great Stand ON option for your tandems, but can be tricky at first due to the transition into Stand OFF. This is one of the combos where you may need to add a 6B after the tandem depending on range.

s.2B, s.2C, S+2C - Easy knockdown if you are too far away or (somehow) have no meter.

665C (3hits) xx 214S (ABC xN) - Not a bad option to close distance, but don't rely on it too much if you are looking for a combo. *Note: Because the 665C pushes your opponent away you may need to dash or do a dashing 5A(or 2A) to get close enough to roll behind them. Alternatively you can do a 6B to get a similar effect.*

665C (3hits), 2A, 6B xx 214S (ABC xN) - Alternative combo to the previous one if you are in 2A range after 665C.

#### Tandem Follow Ups

...(Tandem ends), 2A, 2A (walk cancel) 2C - Easy peasy. Knockdown that leads to oki. For the walk cancel, you can hold 3 while you do the 2As then go to 6, then to 3 again and press C.

...(Tandem ends), 2A, 2A, S+6A > s.5B > s.5C xx 236AA - Extra damage and slightly less consistent knockdown if you want to spend the meter.

...(Tandem ends), 665A/663A, 2A, S+6A > s.6B > s.6C, S+6C xx 236AA - More advanced due to links from Stand Off to On and viceversa.

...(Tandem ends), 2A, 2A, 6C, 214C, 663A, 2A, 2A, 6C xx 236AA OR (walk cancel) 2C - You can end with both 2C or a 6C canceled into super. Same concept as previous enders.

...(Tandem ends), 2A, 2A, 6C, 214C, 663A, 2A, S+6A > s.6B > s.6C, S+6C xx236AA OR 2C - As the previous combo, but with an extended link.

On characters with fast wakeup speeds you will want to go for 2C enders for oki because the 236AA knockdown is too short to allow consistent unblockables, sometimes for them to happen at all.

Dark Space Corner Combo (stand on) - Not practical, but if you happen to hit your opponent with Dark Space this is a corner option that can arise.

s.236C > 3C, 236C > 3C,  s.623AA

## General Strategy

Ice's main strategy is based around his high damage combos and his extremely strong okizeme to rush your opponent down, but also using his incredibly good normals to zone your opponent out.
The main goal in neutral is to land Ice's 2As. If a player gets hit with one 2A they have the potential to lose most of their heath from one decently long Tandem Combo.
For a newer player you will be aiming to land his 2A, 2A, 6B link as it is the easiest start to Ice's Tandems.
The 2A, 2A, 6C, 214C, 2A, 2A, 6C combo is a little longer but the timing for the 6C into 214C is very tight and requires a decent amount of execution to link together.

Meter Building

Being at 1+ super meter is important to fuel your Tandems.
s.2B > s.2C is the chain to build meter, them being two extremely strong normals to poke at your opponents health.
s.6C is the other strong normal that you can just spam with little to no commitment, and it also works beautifully as anti-air thanks to its hitbox and position, since Ice is so tall while Cream is activated.

Knockdown

Ice's main tool to land a knock down is his 2C, it can also be linked from 2A. The 2A, 2A, 2C string can be used as a tandem follow up to land a knock down to then follow up with Ice's strong Okizeme.
Another option for a hard knockdown is Ice's Stand OFF 236A. The Stand off version of Dark Space is good to counter play aggressive characters or players, but it can be punished if blocked.

Okizeme
Once you knock your opponent down Ice becomes incredibly strong.
Cream! (214+A/B/C) has to potential to set up an unblockable or a 50/50. After activating the move, 663A will give you a low that will leave your opponent guessing on whether to block high or low. If preformed correctly it can be incredibly hard to read.
If you confirm the hit you can then link it into your normal combo leading into another Tandem.

Dashing

Ice has a very quick dash when his stand is off. 663A is very good to try and hit your opponent. If you confirm the first hit you can link it into a full tandem.
If your opponent is in the air often or jumping you can use 66C to swipe them out of the air. If hit on the ground can also lead to a tandem after the 3rd hit of the move.

Rolling
Ice has one of the fastest rolls with some of the least active frames in the game. While punishable by a normal grab, rolling behind an opponent's laggy move can result in a near death experience.

Air Dash/Instant Air Dash

Ice is one of the characters that gets access to an air dash while his Stand is ON. It is preformed by pressing 66 or 44 during a jump. its relatively quick and can be used to approach OR retreat from your opponent. Its sole existence is enough to put the fear of god in your opponent, at the thought of the deadly mixup that is dashing low/instant overhead off of an IAD that both lead to full combos and possibly a ToD.

Another way to perform his IAD is to press 6 or 4 while going Stand OFF. This will cancel the Stand OFF animation and install the dash. When you go and perform the IAD, jump, turn Stand ON, and press 6/4, depending on which direction you installed.

ALTERNATIVE:

An alternate way to do Ice's IAD is 6S to install the forward motion in stand mode, then 9, 5S, 6C. You pretty much have to press S while whatever you're using is in neutral. Doing so, you installed a forward movement in stand mode and if you jump and do 5S, 6 you'll dash instantly.

### **Habits to Avoid**

Now while his strategy may seem simple there are a few things you need to stay away from when learning Vanilla Ice.

Spamming Dark Space
Every new Ice player makes this mistake and believe it to be a strong strategy since new players will get mixed up and hit over and over again. The ending of the move is incredibly laggy most of the time and while most characters can't punish the end of this move with a combo you can still take a good chuck of damage and sometimes a super.
Another thing to note is that some projectiles will stuff this move completely making it unusable in some match ups....
Now there are a few scenarios where Dark Space is an ok move to throw out. Some characters have trouble against the move and sometimes its a good follow up to guarentee a stand crash. And if hit in the corner it can combo into it self and follow into his 623+AA.

Jumping

Ice's jump arc is not very good while is stand is off. His normal jump is incredibly high compared to other characters and can be seen from a mile away. While still useful for some mix ups ecessive jumping can get you punished.
While his Stand is ON Ice has a very floaty double jump, but can utilize his air dash to approach or retreat quickly. Note that if Ice gets hit in the air while his Stand is ON he can get stuck in very long block stun until you hit the ground.