After some discussion with fellow bladers, I got thinking. How strong is defense in the GT format? And what’s the best defense type? I will be covering my thoughts and opinions in this thread, backing them up with tests. Feel free to add your own opinions and tests here.
Each test will be done with:
Drift Testing:
Master Diabolos2 00Expand Drift (soft launched, first) vs Judgement Pegasus Blitz Quick’ Goku (hard launched, sliding shoot, second)
Judgement Win Rate: 70% (7 KOs)
Master Win Rate: 30% (2 KOs, 1 OS)
Master’s few wins were due to some mess ups in my launch of Judgement, minus the second KO, which was a valid one. Master Drift is not a valid answer to Judgement in my eyes.
Tact Fafnir 00Expand Drift Sen (soft launched, first) vs Judgement Pegasus Blitz Quick’ Goku (hard launched, sliding shoot, second)
Judgement Win Rate: 70% (6 KOs, 1 OS)
Tact Win Rate: 30% (2 KOs, 1 OS)
Tact’s wins felt valid and not by user error, I think Tact Drift edges out Master Drift as a Judgement answer, but I don’t recommend it.
Dread Diabolos 00Expand Drift (soft launched, first) vs Judgement Pegasus Blitz Quick’ Goku (hard launched, sliding shoot, second)
Judgement Win Rate: 30% (3 KOs)
Dread Win Rate: 70% (4 KOs, 2 OSes, 1 Burst)
Dread is something I’ve been toying with myself, and I love it. It’s just as bulky as Tact, while not being limiting with what GT weight it has. It can tank Judgement’s hits really well, and often return them. It doesn’t self burst like you’d think it would either. It does need to be a pretty perfect launch or else it enters the Drift spiral of death, and becomes an easy target for Judgement. Definitely the best Judgement answer on Drift. I will return in another thread to test Dread’s opposite spin performance.
Keep’ Testing:
Master Diabolos2 00Expand Keep’ (soft-mid launched, first) vs Judgement Pegasus Blitz Quick’ Goku (hard launched, sliding shoot, second)
Tact Fafnir 00Expand Keep’ Sen (soft-mid launched, first) vs Judgement Pegasus Blitz Quick’ Goku (hard launched, sliding shoot, second)
[b]Dread Diabolos 00Expand Keep’ (soft-mid launched, first) vs Judgement Pegasus Blitz Quick’ Goku (hard launched, sliding shoot, second)[/b]
Testing stopped during Master Keep’ due to launcher breakage. Will finish those tests soon.
So far, Dread is my favorite anti-Judgement defensive option. Worth noting here that my Judgement was very used, and was the really cool looking pink and white one from the random layer collection.
Each test will be done with:
- A B-33 Stadium
- A single person (me)
- Two DB launchers equipped with power gears
- Tips being cleared of any dust/dirt every round
Drift Testing:
Master Diabolos2 00Expand Drift (soft launched, first) vs Judgement Pegasus Blitz Quick’ Goku (hard launched, sliding shoot, second)
Results (Click to View)
Master Win Rate: 30% (2 KOs, 1 OS)
Master’s few wins were due to some mess ups in my launch of Judgement, minus the second KO, which was a valid one. Master Drift is not a valid answer to Judgement in my eyes.
Tact Fafnir 00Expand Drift Sen (soft launched, first) vs Judgement Pegasus Blitz Quick’ Goku (hard launched, sliding shoot, second)
Results (Click to View)
Tact Win Rate: 30% (2 KOs, 1 OS)
Tact’s wins felt valid and not by user error, I think Tact Drift edges out Master Drift as a Judgement answer, but I don’t recommend it.
Dread Diabolos 00Expand Drift (soft launched, first) vs Judgement Pegasus Blitz Quick’ Goku (hard launched, sliding shoot, second)
Results (Click to View)
Dread Win Rate: 70% (4 KOs, 2 OSes, 1 Burst)
Dread is something I’ve been toying with myself, and I love it. It’s just as bulky as Tact, while not being limiting with what GT weight it has. It can tank Judgement’s hits really well, and often return them. It doesn’t self burst like you’d think it would either. It does need to be a pretty perfect launch or else it enters the Drift spiral of death, and becomes an easy target for Judgement. Definitely the best Judgement answer on Drift. I will return in another thread to test Dread’s opposite spin performance.
Keep’ Testing:
Master Diabolos2 00Expand Keep’ (soft-mid launched, first) vs Judgement Pegasus Blitz Quick’ Goku (hard launched, sliding shoot, second)
Tact Fafnir 00Expand Keep’ Sen (soft-mid launched, first) vs Judgement Pegasus Blitz Quick’ Goku (hard launched, sliding shoot, second)
[b]Dread Diabolos 00Expand Keep’ (soft-mid launched, first) vs Judgement Pegasus Blitz Quick’ Goku (hard launched, sliding shoot, second)[/b]
Testing stopped during Master Keep’ due to launcher breakage. Will finish those tests soon.
So far, Dread is my favorite anti-Judgement defensive option. Worth noting here that my Judgement was very used, and was the really cool looking pink and white one from the random layer collection.