THE SS1 TACHIBANA UKYO GUIDE (Version 3.0)

Your guide to the coolest fighting character EVER

 by Scott Fujimoto


INTRODUCTION

  This is a guide to Tachibana Ukyo, the "merciless samurai
heart-throb." He is Haohmaru's rival, and is harder to learn than
Haohmaru, mostly because of his quirky fighting style and the fact
that he is neither the most damaging, fastest, nor the longest-ranged
character in SS. However, I feel that he has the potential to be one
of the best characters in the game in the hands of a skilled player,
mainly because he has such versatility in his attacks, especially the
TG. In contrast to Charlotte, who is an excellent REACTIVE character,
Ukyo's greatest potential is in INITIATING sneaky tactics to try to
psyche-out his opponent. The more you practice with Ukyo, the better
and sneakier you get. This makes it worthwhile for one to study and
practice with him seriously. The potential he has means you will be
rewarded once you learn how to play him well.

  There is another reason to play Ukyo. Ukyo by far is the COOLEST
character in SS or any video game, period. He clearly wins on style
and character design points alone. Why? Let's look at the facts:
1) His fighting style. Ukyo is so cool, he doesn't have to look at
his opponent. Also, when standing still he doesn't fidget at all,
unlike the other characters. He blinks, but otherwise stands
perfectly still. This demonstrates Ukyo's utter confidence in his
swordfighting ability. In addition, he keeps his long sword
sheathed at all times, only drawing it when he slashes. This is
another demonstration of his skill and quickness. Sure, he could
attack even MORE swiftly if he kept his sword out at all times, but
he wouldn't look as cool, which is the important thing.
2) His moves. First of all, Ukyo is very quirky in his attacks
(more on this later). His swordfighting technique is completely
opposite from Haohmaru's boring, straightforward slashes. Also, his
attacks are all out. With his standing AB, he swings his sword in
a wide angle. With his crouching AB, he does a lunging slashing
dive. What other character is so confident that he would dare
sprawl himself out in an attack? You also have to love the way Ukyo
can slash an apple without even looking at it.
3) The Tsumabe Gaeshi. This is possibly the most beautiful and
graceful Special Move in any fighting game. The way Ukyo wields it,
unleashing the full force of his blade in a single firey sweep, is final
proof that he's the coolest character ever.
4) He's as handsome as hell, and has an attitude to match.
5) "....."   As you know from movies, the less a person says, the
cooler he must be. (OK, Earthquake also doesn't say much except
for grunting, but that's because he's stupid, not cool)
6) Ukyo's the only one to have groupies. Need I say more?

  Before we go any further, I would also like to comment on the "Ukyo
philosophy." Alone among all the SS characters, Ukyo's main goal is
NOT to win or to maintain "honor", but to look COOL. Of course if
you win too, that's great, but Ukyo would rather lose than win by
cheesy or "square" tactics. When playing him, STYLE is the
important thing to impress both Ukyo's groupies and onlookers in
the real world. When in any swordfight, Ukyo's main goal is to look
cooler than his opponent. And in this sense, he always wins.

  Finally, some comments on Ukyo's fighting technique are needed.
When comparing the nature of Ukyo's attacks to other, more normal
characters, it becomes apparent that his unique fighting philosophy
is as different from others as night is to day. To wit:
1) Normal prodding attacks. What I mean by these are quick, long-
ranged attacks one uses to prod his opponent to do something.
Ukyo's prodding attacks, however, are done while he is crouching
while almost everyone else does theirs while standing.
2) AB attacks. For most characters, like Haohmaru, the standing AB
is a long-ranged attack with a short-ranged variant, and the
crouching AB is solely a short ranged-attack. With Ukyo, it is
exactly the opposite.
3) Ground kicks. For every other character, their standing kicks do
not hit low, but their crouching kicks do. For Ukyo, it is exactly
the opposite.
4) Missile attacks. Every other character that has a missile attack
does it from the ground. Ukyo's is the only one that 1) is executed
while jumping, 2) can vary the path of the missile, 3) has the
missile coupled to another Special Attack.


GUIDE TO UKYO'S ATTACKS:

GROUND SLASHES

STAND A-SWING--"Push away" reaction.
Quick, short range and does little damage. Use to push opponents
away who are right next to you (like a Hanzo about to SPD you).
CROUCH A-SLASH--Prodding opponent.
This attack is long range and quick, so it is your best prodding
attack, when your foe isn't doing anything.
STAND/CROUCH B-SLASH--Prodding opponent or quick retaliation
strike.
Does more damage than an A-slash, but is slow enough that some
opponents can retaliate in time. Good for prodding opponents that
can't react in time. Also is your standard quick retaliation strike.
OVERHEAD B-SWING (CLOSE CROUCH B)--Crouch power retaliation
strike or limited near air defense.
When you are crouching and your opponent is open right next to you,
this is actually a better retaliation strike than your AB, because
it actually HITS for multiple times. This also looks COOL as an air
defense if a foe is jumping ON you (Ukyo casually swings overhead
to hit his opponent), but you need to time this one just right.
Also the foe needs to jump directly on you for this swing to work;
otherwise, you'll do a normal B-slash which will miss and leave you
vulnerable. Plus it does hardly any damage. Your crouch CD kick is
actually a better air defense, but I do this one because it LOOKS
COOL.
STAND AB--Far air defense or power retaliation strike.
This attack has great height range and so is good if opponents jump
in front of you. But you must do it early, as it is a moderately
slow attack. Also do this as retaliation if your opponent misses an
attack right in front of you, as it does a lot of damage (hits
twice) to opponents on the ground.
DIVING SLASH (FAR CROUCH AB)--Quick long-ranged retaliation attack
or a surprise attack.
This attack is sudden, has longer range, and does less damage than
the standing AB. However, it also has a long recovery time so make
sure you hit with it! This attack can be done whenever an opponent
is recovering from a move from far away. Against opponents who
attack high, like Charlotte's standing thrusts, you will actually dive
under their attack to hit them! This looks cool if it hits, but if it
misses, you will get creamed, so be careful!
OVERHEAD AB-SWING (CLOSE CROUCH AB)
Since you whirl your scabbard around before you swing, you either
1) Get hit first, or 2) Hit your foe with your scabbard and push
him out of the way of your swing! Don't do this move.

GROUND KICKS

SLIDE (STAND CD)--Quick long-ranged retaliation attack or a
surprise attack that hits low.
Like a diving slash, but the enemy has to block low. Initiate every
so often to see if you can catch foe by surprise (especially if
they are running toward you). Or run toward them and slide for a
cool-looking attack. You can also slide under long-ranged, thrusting
attacks, like Charlotte's thrusts. Note that if they block it low,
you can almost HEAR Ukyo say "D'oh!" before he gets creamed.
SHORT SLIDES (STAND C AND D)--Quick low attacks.
Ukyo does these slides quickly and it doesn't look like he's
attacking at first! So use these to confuse your opponent and see
how long it takes for him to block low. When he does, do a ground TG
on him!
CROUCH C SHUFFLE--"Push away" attack.
As with any character, do rapid crouching C's if a foe is right
next to you when you get up, or if opponents (especially the
ninjas) are trying to throw you. If they start crouching, try doing a
ground TG right afterwards!
CROUCH D
I actually don't use this move much.
CROUCH CD--Near air defense.
This goofy-looking attack is actually a more reliable near air
defense than the crouching B. It takes some timing, though, and
some attacks can hit you out of it.

AIR ATTACKS

AIR AB--Power air-ground strike or air-air strike.
Your AB air-ground strike actually does more damage than your
TG, so initiate this to really damage your foes. It is rather short
ranged, although it can cut through some air defenses since it's
angled down. The straight slash when you jump straight up is good
for hitting air opponents, since it's long-ranged and quick.
AIR CD--Alternate air-ground strike.
Goofy-looking attack. Use if your swing is too slow, but does
little damage for an air attack. Best if coupled with a slide
right after landing.
AIR A/B/C/D
I don't use these attacks much.

SPECIAL ATTACKS

SASAME YUKI--Dizzy attack or coup de grace move.
This is the move where Ukyo tosses and apple and slices it (and
hopefully his opponent as well).
The SY is a cool-looking attack and is Ukyo's longest-ranged
attack, but it occupies your time for a while. If your opponents
block it, they can easily jump over it and cream you. You don't
need to use this move to win games, but I use it anyway, because
the FIRST goal of Ukyo is to look COOL and he looks COOL when
he hits with this move!
The A-SY has the longest initiation time and shortest recovery time,
so use on an opponent that is getting back up. The AB-SY has the
shortest initiation time and longest recovery time, so use as a
surprise attack or as a reaction move. If you get it blocked, you
are dead meat guaranteed.
Uses of the SY: 1) Tick off the last hit points on an opponent. It
looks really cool when you whip out that apple real fast to finish
off your opponent. 2) Do the B SY if your opponent's dizzy (the AB
SY knocks down your opponent after only one hit). 3) Try using a SY
if slow-jumping foes jump at you from afar. 4) Do a SY to hit
"falling" opponents. 5) Finally, to look REALLY cool, you can hit
"rushing" attacks (Jubei's Nikkaku Ratoh, Earthquake's Chainsaw) if
you whip off the apple in time. This is actually better against
computer opponents that are more predictable, although Ukyo masters
can probably do it against anyone.
Whenever my opponent is knocked down from far away (usually from a
bird), I always do an AB SY, just for the look of it. I always recover
before he gets up. This is the type of useless show-off stuff that
Ukyo lives for.

TSUBAME GAESHI
This is the move where Ukyo does a sweeping, firey slash in the air,
releasing a fire swallow at the same time.
A-TG has the widest slash range, while AB-TG has the shortest.
However, these differences are slight. The A-TG bird flies straight up,
the AB-TG goes horizontally, dipping slightly then rising, and the
B-TG dips slightly then goes straight up.
Ukyo actually only swings below him, and it's this sword sweep that
does the most damage. His bird will hit an air opponent right in front
of him, and "motion swirls" appear above him. Both of theses do much less
damage than his sword, though.
All of your TGs have big recovery times, so if your slash gets blocked,
you are sword fodder.
As said before, the TG is the coolest-looking attack in the game,
or in ANY game. Use it when you can!

GROUND TSUBAME GAESHI--Sneak attack to hit high, or sending off a
ground missile.
This attack is essentially an air attack from a crouching position.
If your opponent is crouching next to you (usually a human opponent
afraid of your slide), then execute this really fast and you will
hit them! A cool-looking attack is to run towards someone and
execute the TG in their face, so practice your running TG a lot.
Also do an AB ground TG from far away to send off a missile along
the ground. You'll want to do a jumping up or back TG to do this,
so practice those moves! If you anticipate your opponent jumping
over the bird, do a B or A to catch them.
You can also use the ground TG against a jumping opponent. Although
it does little damage and is harder to time than your other anti-air
attacks, you may want to try this to (what else?) look cool.

AIR TSUBAME GAESHI--Wide air-ground or air-air strike.
Because your jump is so slow, this attack is vital against open
foes if your air AB won't hit before they recover (like Galford
sending his dog). This wide-area attack can also sweep away any
air defenses, which may be useful against opponents like Gen-an or
Charlotte. However, do this ONLY if you are SURE your opponent will
react, because if he just blocks, Ukyo might as well have a big
"Hit Me!" sign on his back when he lands!
It is also a great air-air attack because you can hit foes anywhere
around you. You can then jump after foes and hit them above or
behind you, which is not possible with a normal AB strike. You don't
do much damage, but you look cool so it's OK.
Apparently this attack can cross-over, meaning that if you jump
right over your opponent, your opponent will face the wrong way and
you will hit him! This seems hard to do, since Ukyo's jump range is
so short, but if you have the skill, exploit this feature!

HOPPING BACK TSUBAME GAESHI--Sneaky missile attack.
The ultimate display of an Ukyo player's skill, if he can get this
move off consistently. Ukyo does his TG in the short time he hops
back! The bird will go REALLY low and may go under your opponent
and hit him from behind (unblockable)! However, the joystick
movement is really tricky to do.
While you can do it by executing the TG motion then tapping-back
quickly, I've also found that you can get the move off by doing a
semi-circle forward, then "almost" jumping back. What I mean by
this is you move the joystick in-between back and up-back when
"jumping." Sometimes I get the hopping-back TG, but if I don't I
usually get the jumping back TG anyway which almost has the same
effect. You just don't look as cool. Waahh...

THROWS

SCABBARD SLAP
This throw is often done accidentally when I am trying to B-slash
someone close, especially after they run towards me. But it looks
cool and knocks your opponent down.
TOSS AND SLASH
Best done if you jump (and don't hit) a foe who is doing something
as you land. For instance often Hanzo and Ukyo are in the midst of
an attack when you land.
TRIP AND STAB
Often done accidentally after a series of slides. It's slide,
slide, trip, stab! Cool!


DEPENDABLE COMBOS:

Air-ground AB then diving slash (most damaging combo, so do against
a dizzy opponent when it counts)
Air-ground AB then slide (do quickly)
Air CD then slide


USING UKYO'S "HIGH-LOW" ATTACK:

The ground TG is the only attack in SS1 that both hits HIGH and is
executed from the ground (with the possible exception of Tam Tam's
air slashes). Coupled with his excellent low-hitting slides, Ukyo
can potentially hit a blocking opponent who is crouching OR
standing! This takes considerable skill and good reflexes, but if
done right makes Ukyo one of the best characters in the game due to
his versatility. Here are two strategies that uses Ukyo's unique
advantage:
Strategy 1: After an opponent is down, sit next to him and do
crouch C's a lot. When he crouches to block them, hit him with a
ground TG. A variant on this is to do standing C's. When they
crouch, do your ground TG. Nasty...
Strategy 2: Run towards your opponent and 1) Slide if he is
standing, 2) Ground TG if he is crouching, 3) SY just for the hell
of it.


WHEN UKYO'S REALLY MAD:

Ukyo's Rage Gauge is slow to fill up, but when he's maxed, his damage
is increased the most of any character! He can do Haohmaru-sized damage
now so this is the time to initiate any tricky attacks you have up
your sleeve to hit your opponent! Unfortunately, Ukyo is too cool to
stay mad for long.


CPU STRATEGIES:

Galford--pretty easy. It's "the battle of the blue guys."
1) Do the standard mixes of slashes against him (careful--he's
faster), and wait until he starts chucking missile weapons. You can
then jump and TG him at your leisure.
2) If you do a ground TG, he will teleport before the bird hits
him. Block and either 1. Do another TG, in which the bird will hit
him in the air, or 2. Jump after him and do a TG. For some reason,
he will get hit by the slash after landing.
3) When he's down, do an A SY early. Sometimes he'll be stupid and
gets hit by them. If he's smart and teleports, you can recover and
block in time. Do an AB SY after he bounces off of you.

Hanzo--harder than Galford, but still predictable.
1) Pretty much same as Galford. Air TG his various missile attacks.
You can sorta predict when he's about to throw him if you study him
carefully, and jump beforehand.
2) He jumps more than Galford. AB him if he jumps fairly close, but
farther away he'll hit you first.
3) More than Galford, he seems to react wrongly when you jump first
at him, often doing his somersault AB. TG him.
4) He'll also fall for the teleport tricks you use on Galford.

Earthquake--big, fat, bald, and ugly!!
1) When he's far away, do air TGs to keep him away. He will
sometimes jump into the bird or at least stay away and take ticking
damage. Don't do this close, because he will jump over the bird and
hit you with his massively damaging AB.
2) If he gets too close, start doing quick slashes against him, as
he has trouble blocking.
3) He will jump on you a lot, so be sure to AB him when he does so!
Crouch B or CD for when he jumps on you.
4) Buzzsaw--If he starts from afar, you can AB, air TG or SY him as
he rolls toward you. If you block, AB him if you end up blocking
close or slide if you end up blocking far. This doesn't always work
for some reason, though, and it's usually better to hit him while
he is in the Buzzsaw.
5) You can jump and AB him, as he sometimes doesn't block and takes
a lot of damage. TG him if he goes into a Buzzsaw when you jump.
6) When you knock him down, run next to him and jump away/air TG
him when he gets up. You will often hit him. DON'T do a SY, because
he'll get pushed out of the way and do his low AB on you.

Nakoruru--can be nasty! Too young to date, too.
1) If you initiate a TG from far away, she will Anna Mutsube right
into your flaming bird.
2) You can usually hit her with a standing AB after blocking her
flaming arrow or Anna Mutsube, but if she starts hitting you first
try doing quicker slashes. Slides also work.
3) She'll often get hit by a SY when getting up for some reason.
4) She "telegraphs" her Anna Mutsube by jumping up first. If you
time it right, jump up and TG her while she passes under you!

Kyoshiro--easy and fun.
1) When far, do air TGs. He will run into a lot of the flaming
birds when he jumps.
2) When he gets close, only initiate low A-slashes. He can "pole
vault" you before you recover from a B-slash.
3) RISKY! When he jumps, block his down slash and B-slash before
he lands.
4) Retaliate with diving slashes, air slashes or TGs is your main
way to win: 1. When he's in the middle of a missed AB, 2. When he's
in the middle of a CD, 3. When he throws a fan--jump and TG or AB
him, or block if close and dive slash him afterwards, 4. Flame
breath--you can TG him in the middle of the move, or block the
attack and dive slash while he recovers.
5) Don't jump after him, as he'll spear you on your way up. You can
jump before him and hit with an AB. Or do a TG if he gets close to
you.
6) When far away, he likes to do an AB followed by a CD for some
reason. Run up and hit him with a TG, SY, or diving slash.
7) Don't slide into him; he almost always seems to block it and
spears you nastily afterwards.
8) He seems to get hit by SYs when getting up for some reason.

Haohmaru--your square and graceless rival. Show him what true style
is!
1) Crouch and A-slash him to keep him away. When he does a low
slash or a slide, A-slash him as he recovers. You can try doing B-
slashes, but I'm always cautious of his nasty AB swing.
2) If he jumps at you, do an appropriate response.
3) Eventually he will tire of this and start throwing whirlwinds or
doing crescent moon slashes. When he does this, move closer to him
to anticipate these moves. If he starts advancing, play defensively
again.
4) Whirlwind: jump and AB or TG him. Sometimes you can't do a TG
against him; he'll do a crescent moon first and hit you for a ton
of damage.
5) Crescent moon: block, and SY him when he drops back down.

Ukyo--someone as cool as you are! He can be easy or very difficult.
1) You can try to air AB as his ground defenses usually are
mistimed. If he starts timing them right, do a TG.
2) Jump AB or TG him when he does his SY. Do a diving slash after
he finishes his SY if you're too late.
4) He will often mistime his TG in the air, and you can air AB him
afterwards. This is the one way to do immense damage pretty
predictably.
5) If he starts running toward you, he will probably slide or do a
diving slash. Jump and TG him on the way down while he's recovering
from his slide, or throw him immediately as you land. You don't
want to crouch, because he can then do a ground TG against you.
6) When he's down, SY early. He will often get hit because he tries
jumping up afterwards. If you mistime your SY, he will jump up and
TG you.

Gen-An--can be your most difficult opponent, actually.
1) He'll jump towards you a lot, so AB or crouch B him. Note that
he seems to block a lot of ABs, so you may have to use your
overhead slash or crouch kick, especially if he jumps ON you. Also
note that he can sometimes hit you out of your AB with his AB
(which does a lot of damage). You need to swing earlier if this
starts happening. Do NOT attempt to slash him out of the air!
2) Do crouch A and B-slashes from far away, but remember his range
is greater than yours. Be careful he doesn't hit you with an AB,
either.
3) Jumping him works if he misses his air defense AB. If he starts
timing it right, start doing TGs.
4) Right after his buzzsaw bounces off of you, do a TG. The flaming
bird will hit him as he comes down. Or to look cool, run and SY him
when he drops back down (I have trouble doing this, though). Or SY
him beforehand if you can predict his roll (right after blowing
poison).
5) If he starts crouching, crouch and do a ground TG when he gets in
range.
6) You can TG him when he blows poison. Or if he puffs it point-
blank, you can dive slash right afterward.

Wan-Fu--dangerous, but predictable. Check out that pudgy body!
1) B-slash him a lot to provoke him. He will often respond with a
crouch CD kick, and you can dive slash him then. He does this a
LOT!!
2) You can jump and TG his AB lunge, which he also does a lot.
3) After he throws his sword, wait right near it and AB or SY him
as he picks it up. Let him get his sword, though, because he's MORE
difficult when he doesn't have it!
4) When he jumps on you, just block. He'll then do a big swing or
kick against you after landing, and you can slash him while he's
recovering. DON'T try a standing AB, because he can hit you first!
You can do a crouching B if he tries jumping ON you, though.

Tam-Tam--pretty easy. He must be pretty ugly to wear a mask like
that.
1) He has trouble blocking A or B-slashes.
2) Block his jumping slash and AB or SY him when he comes down.
You can provoke him to jump by B-slashing him, but he may start
A-slashing back (he'll hit first). If so, you can do a diving AB
or a slide under his slashes. When he does jump, he always does an
AB immediately after leaving the ground, so be sure to block and
get him back afterwards.
3) You can hit through his pagunapaguna if you swing early with a
normal slash or SY. Or jump and do a TG. Or wait for him to finish
and do an AB or diving slash. You can jump up and TG his pagunadeos
too, or SY him as he spins toward you. Don't block or you'll be
picked up and molested afterwards.
4) A ground TG from far away will cause him to do a pagunadeos and
get hit by the flaming bird.
5) If he runs toward you (often after doing a skull throw), jump
over him and do a TG (jump early). Or throw-and-slash him as soon
as you hit the ground.

Charlotte--what a French babe! Defeat her, and maybe she'll go out
with you.
1) In general, jump up and do TGs when you are far away. She may
jump into your flaming birds or at least block and be annoyed. If
she is close, she will often jump or do her "knee hop" into your
TGs and take damage. Good Charlotte!
Warning: if you start getting hit by her thrusts, quit TGing.
2) She will eventually get desparate and start to Splash Fount. You
can see it coming, and jump up and TG her while she passes under
you. You can also execute a ground TG while she rushes toward you.
Neat-o. Blocking a splash font from close up deserves a standing AB
as retaliation. Slide if you block farther away.
3) Stand or crouching B-slashes will hit her a lot if you time them
just right. But her B-thrust is longer and will do more damage than
yours. Don't forget that your diving AB or slide can hit UNDER her
standing thrusts. You need good timing to pull this off, though. AB
and B-slashes also will hit her when she jumps from afar (do early).
4) A slide always seems to work as a finishing move when she's low
on life. Plus you want to knock her out, not kill her, so you can date
her afterwards.

Jubei--has a big nose and one eye. No competition in looks here...
1) He has trouble defending against air AB strikes so intiate them
a lot. If you air AB him and he blocks, he often does his own two-
slash AB afterwards. Jump and TG him while he does so.
2) You can jump and TG his Hasso Happa.
3) Your normal B-slashes are just slow enough for him to hit you
with his Nikkaku Ratoh, so do crouch A-slashes instead.
4) His air AB will sometimes hit you if you try to slash him first
when he jumps. Instead, try jumping up and hitting him out of the
air with your straight-slash AB.
5) SY his Nikkaku Ratoh. If you block it, SY him when he drops
down.

Amakusa--eerrr... This is a GUY?
1) The first round, try TGing him. He'll usually teleport out of
the way and laugh at you, so you can TG him again! Then exploit
the "jumping Amakuza" glitch.
2) The second round, crouch and A-slash him when he comes near.
Then jump and TG him if he ball swings, or AB him in the air if he
jumps (you can beat him in the air). Use the A TG, because it has
the widest range. You must do an A-slash beforehand to provoke
him; if you jump him first, he will slap you out of the air.
3) If he jumps at you, jump back and AB or TG him.
4) Block or jump over his missiles. When he jumps in the air and
starts spinning around, if you can time it right, jump up RIGHT
before he spins to the ground in an explosion. He always does a
hand slap afterwards, so as you are descending, TG him!
5) When he starts going crazy and teleports all over the place,
jump or run away from him. He'll try to teleport into your space
and throw you.

Bonus rounds
Stand right to the side of the middle figure. You can then hit both
that one and the one across from it with your standing B. Just turn
around to hit the one behind you.
The ones that pop from the ceiling are a little more tricky. If there's
just one, try jumping straight up and hitting it with your side slash.
If there's two, you will have to jump at them and hit them with your
angled slashes. Unfortunately you will lose your positioning. You can try
TGing (and will look cool if you hit more than one), but the long recovery
may mean you will miss figures that pop up after that.


UKYO POSES:

First win--Ukyo twirls his sword and sheaths it, then looks at his
opponent with contempt.
Second win--Ukyo twirls his sword and sheaths it, then says
"Gomen" and runs off as three Ukyo groupies chase him. These
groupies follow him EVERYWHERE!
Weaponless win--Ukyo gives a "thumbs up."
Draw with weapon--Ukyo shrugs his shoulders.
Weaponless draw--Ukyo puts his hand on his waist and looks away
in annoyance.
Time-out loss with weapon--Ukyo leans on his sword and hides his
face in shame.
Weaponless time-out loss--Ukyo puts a hand on his face, and bears
his chest to the sky in anguish. This is a really funny pose.
First loss--Ukyo nurses his shoulder while leaning on his scabbard.
Second loss--Ukyo falls down and doesn't get back up. :-(


UKYO NOTES:

See the SS Character Origin FAQ to learn about the real-life samurai
that Ukyo is based on, Sasaki Kojiro Genryu.

Ukyo is a practicioner of the iaijustsu, the art of the sword draw. That's
why he keeps his sword sheathed most of the time (besides to look cool).
His sword is called an iaito, and is a specialty sword crafted to look
like it's of one piece when sheathed. Note that Ukyo is the only character
to use both his sword and scabbard in his attacks!

Ukyo's girlfriend is named Odagiri Kei. Doesn't stop him from having
groupies, though. If you get the credits at the end of the game, all of
them come out to cheer when Ukyo's handsome mug flashes on the
screen.

"Ukyo" translates as "Right of Kyoto." "Tachibana" is a type of
mandarin orange.

On the character selection screen, push the A button for the "cool"
blue Ukyo, or the D button for the "hot" orange Ukyo.

Note on terminology: Ukyo's Tsumabe Gaeshi has also been called
the Swoop Swallow Slice (SSS). His Sasami Yuki has also been
called the Apple Slicer.

If you look carefully at the barrels in San Francisco, you will see that
apples fall out when they are sliced. This must be where Ukyo
replenishes his apple supply!

For those with home systems, try pausing the game when Ukyo does
his Tsumabe Gaeshi. You will see that Ukyo's sword swings only below
him, while "fire swirls" appear above him. So touching any part of Ukyo
while he is in this move will get you burned. However, Ukyo's TG only
seems to kill opponents when his sword connects with them while
they are on the ground. If he hits them in the air, or hits them with
the bird only, their lives are spared.


UKYO BACKGROUND STATS (a BIG thanks to Spiff, who translated them from
the Gamest Mook):

Name: Tachibana Ukyo
Fighting School: ShinMuSouIttouRyuu (roughly, "School of Divine
                 Inspiration")
Weapon Maker: Himself
Weapon Name: No name
Birthdate: 9-20-1764
Age: 23
Birthplace: Oumikou county, Basugi village
Bloodtype: AB
Height: 5 shaku 8 sun (about 176 cm)
Weight: 11 kamme (about 41 kg)
Hobby: Embroidery
Tresered Item: Odagiri Kei, the woman who truly understands him
Family Members: None
Favorite Thing: Solitude
Disliked Thing: True isolation
Favorite Food: Okonomiyaki (just kidding)
Psychological Complex: Cannot fit into normal society
Respected Person: ....
Greatest Skill: Embroidery
Favorite Type (of girl): Kei


Ukyo's Coolness List--do the following whenever possible to look really
cool:
1) Hitting someone with a ground TG slash. While the air one is nice,
nailing your opponent with a surprise ground attack looks really keen.
2) Running up and finishing off your opponent with an SY in their face.
3) Hitting a character rushing towards you with an SY attack.
4) Pulling off the hopping-back TG consistently.
5) Becoming proficient with the "high-low" strategy. This is what makes
Ukyo something to be feared.
6) Running away from your groupies. Remember that if you play hard to get,
women will desire you even more.

Ukyo's Uncool List--the following things should be avoided at all costs
in order to avoid looking uncool:
1) Tossing firebirds from across the screen all day. They don't do that
much damage anyway, and Ukyo's lag after the TG is too long for him to
be an effective firebird tosser. Leave that to the lame-o Ryu players.
2) Whiffing the motion for a TG. "I wanted to do an ordinary slash! Really!"
3) Falling into a pattern. Remember Ukyo's strength is that he is so
versatile and unpredictable.
4) Losing to Haohmaru.
5) Playing Haohmaru.
6) Agreeing to get married.


FINALLY, ONE COMMENT FROM UKYO:

"....."

If anyone has anything to add, ESPECIALLY sneaky Ukyo tactics or
strategies or combos, please e-mail me at Sfujimoto@delphi.com.

--Scott Fujimoto

Fan of Charlotte, Nakoruru, Tam-Tam, and Ukyo...

"Life is a stewed peach in a lot of syrup."  --Tachibana Ukyo




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