Asuka R. Kreutz

	"Mature Content"
	This character or verse has mature themes and concepts, thus those of young age are ill-advised to look through these.

Guilty Gear StrivePrevious Installments

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Guilty Gear XXGuilty Gear VastedgeGuilty Gear 2: OvertureGuilty Gear Xrd

“	I've lived the past century without confessing to anyone. It's quite frankly... terrifying. I thought that if he hated me...Fredrick and I could keep our connection.	„
	~ Asuka explaining his motives

“	The blame for the Crusades rests solely on my shoulders. I put humanity on the brink of extinction. There is very little difference between a good statue and an evil bystander. For too long, I've chosen to avert my eyes. But if there are two things I truly need to erase from this world, they are the Tome of Origin... and Sol Badguy.	„
	~ Asuka

Background

That Man, also known as the Gear Maker or Asuka R. Kreutz (not to be mistaken for Asuka R♯, his clone), is a central figure and originally the primary antagonist of the Guilty Gear series. Renowned as the creator of the Gears and their commander, Justice, he is commonly believed to be the one who initiated the Crusades and serves as the object of Sol Badguy’s long-standing vengeance.

Throughout much of the series, That Man operates from the shadows, represented by his three loyal subordinates: the devoted Raven, the erratic I-No, and the enigmatic Jack-O' Valentine. Each carries out his will in different ways, maintaining his influence across events while he rarely intervenes directly. He also created a duplicate of himself, a counterpart that appears more prominently in promotional material for Guilty Gear -Strive-.

This dropdown contains the synopsis of Asuka R. Kreutz's story. Read at your own risk as you may be spoiled otherwise!

Background Born in the 20th century, That Man witnessed the Dawn of Revival firsthand. He later became a disciple of The Original, one of the five closest to him. After Chronus and others formed the Conclave, The Original returned to the Backyard to stop the Universal Will’s rampage, entrusting That Man with both the seeds of the Absolute World and his research. While the other disciples sought their own solutions, That Man chose to educate humanity and guide their evolution. Early Life and Gear Project A gifted prodigy, That Man studied Biology and contributed to the development of the Theory of Magical Science, specializing in Bioinformatics. During his college years, he met Frederick Bulsara and Aria Hale, who became his closest friends. In 2014, he joined the Ecosystem Evolution Project under Professor Vince MacDonell to conduct research in applied magic. By 2015, he had stabilized Gear cells, but fearing military misuse, he only handed over his research under strict conditions. Despite this, the military took over, forcing That Man to continue under their supervision. Attempting to resist, he placed Aria in cryo-sleep to preserve her life and secretly transformed Frederick into a Gear, hoping he would survive. However, Frederick perceived this as betrayal and vowed revenge. That Man disappeared soon after, leaving all related data classified. Creation of Justice and the Crusades Years later, after the United States revived the Gear Project, That Man returned under an alias to secretly oversee its development. He created Justice in 2073 by turning Aria into the Commander Gear. However, during activation, the Universal Will interfered through the Backyard, hijacking Justice and mutating Japan’s population. That Man was forced to destroy the island using Justice’s Gamma Ray. Justice lost her memory, gained sentience, and led the Gears to war against humanity, marking the beginning of the Crusades. As her creator, That Man was labeled a war criminal and became known by that title. During the Crusades, he worked in secret to save Aria, while another individual used his name to spread chaos. Around this time, he met Raven, who became his devoted follower, and later I-No, in 2173. He also created two Jack-O’ units—one meant to restore Justice’s humanity, the other to one day humanize I-No. Guilty Gear X In 2180, following Justice’s death at Sol’s hands, That Man discovered that her design data was being misused for human experiments. He sent Raven to eliminate the evidence. Reflecting on the devastation of the Crusades, he lamented humanity’s unending thirst for power. When a new self-aware Gear named Dizzy appeared, he instructed Raven to watch over her discreetly, realizing her existence would give Sol yet another reason to seek vengeance. Guilty Gear XX Sometime after, I-No began eliminating perceived threats to That Man’s goals. When Sol confronted her, That Man intervened, warning Sol of an approaching crisis greater than the Crusades and asking him to live as a warrior. Throughout various encounters, That Man appeared before several individuals—Baiken, Anji, Dizzy, and Slayer—offering apologies, insight, or cryptic guidance, depending on their path. After I-No’s defiance, he imprisoned her for her recklessness, but she escaped, seeking to kill Sol once again. Despite her attempts, That Man and Anji managed to halt her, freezing her in time to prevent further destruction, while That Man continued his efforts toward humanity’s evolution and redemption. Material Collection Sometime afterward, That Man performed a procedure in which he rejuvenated his body to that of a teenager's, under Raven's watchful eye, with non-human juvenile hormones. Due to the program's flaw—high probability of causing haziness and loss of memory—, That Man had to receive backup memory data to ensure nothing was lost. Raven noted a disturbance during the process, but That Man assured him that it was merely a memory (he and Frederick telling Aria of a five-hour discussion they had regarding "controversial phenomena", with That Man subtly telling them of the 'apocalypse') that just incited some nostalgia. Guilty Gear 2 In 2186, in the aftermath of a battle between Valentine's forces and the Illyrian knights, That Man seals Ky Kiske away in Illyria Castle's throne room. Raven himself appears before Sol, Sin Kiske, and Izuna when they come looking for Ky, subtly confirming That Man's involvement in the ongoing incident. That Man himself appears before Sol, Izuna, and Dr. Paradigm via opening Valentine's gateway to the Backyard. Warning that the Backyard's pressure will destroy them, That Man challenges Sol—who immediately uses his Dragon Install—to a fight. During the battle, That Man apologizes and asks Sol to focus on stopping Valentine, child of the Universal Will, from reaching the Cube. Despite Sol's attacks, That Man is unharmed but praises him for becoming a warrior, to Sol's chagrin. He then does a spell to temporarily protect them beyond the gate, and disappears. After Valentine's death, Sol is stuck in the depths of the Backyard, and That Man approaches him. He warns Sol that this isn't end of the "merciless apocalypse" and tells him to live on, opening the gate. Sol inquires if Valentine was really Aria, but That Man says they both already killed that girl. Exhausted, Sol vows to kill him. That Man says he knows, and will be waiting for him. Later on, That Man reunites with Raven, and laments that next time probably won't be this easy, yet either he or Sol shall put an end to the 'apocalypse'. Raven expresses concern that Sol may stand in their way again, and vows to protect That Man, but he tells Raven to let history write its own course, for Raven's responsibility is simply to be there at that time. Guilty Gear Xrd In October 29, 2187, after Ramlethal Valentine declares war on all the world and the Cradle is activated over Babylon, That Man agrees to meet with I-No in the Backyard. She brings a terrified Axl along, who has a coded message from the Original which only That Man can understand. Learning what the Conclave is after, he visits Dr. Paradigm in his room at Illyria Castle to fill him in on all the details, and plan their next move. During the Black Sea allied ambush on the Cradle, That Man appears and collaborates with Sol to destroy the Absolute Defense: Felion barrier around it. The airships' attack reveals Justice's body, but it begins to disappear into the Backyard again. That Man tries to prevent it, but Bedman teleports him away. After a clash, That Man is locked away by Bedman, who uses the Felion spell to prevent his escape. Unable to free himself, Raven soon comes looking for him, and That Man instructs him to awaken Jack-O' so that she, instead of Elphelt, may fuse with Justice. Weeks later, Chronus finds That Man's prison and frees him, helping him realize who the Universal Will is. He tells That Man to put an end to the history of bloodshed between humans and Gears by telling Sol everything; That Man admits to being terrified of confessing. Chronus then urges him to stop the Universal Will. That Man then reunites with Raven and Jack-O', then Raven departs to Scandiva. After making contact with Paradigm, together with Jack-O', That Man meets with Sol, Paradigm, Ky, and Leo Whitefang. He explains about the Absolute World, tells them that the Universal Will is Ariels, and reveals the truth of Sol and Aria's conversions. They all agree to an uneasy alliance to determine both Justice and Elphelt's whereabouts, and prevent Ariels from eradicating humanity. He brings Paradigm and Zappa into his old laboratory, where they are to fire the Saint Oratorio that will give Jack-O' the adequate power she needs to merge with Justice. Despite the complications that follow, Ariels is defeated and Jack-O' is able to forcibly overwrite Justice's consciousness and complete the merge, restoring Aria. Yet, in the aftermath, there is still unresolved tension between That Man and Sol. That Man thanks Sol, leaving Aria in his care, but says they must settle their score, dropping his hood. While Sin doesn't understand, Sol sees That Man's determination and accepts his challenge, finally calling That Man by his name: Asuka R. Kreutz (飛鳥＝Ｒ＝クロイツ, Asuka Āru Kuroitsu?). Sometime later, Raven and I-No no longer work for Asuka, but Asuka talks to Raven, perhaps for the last time. Raven tells Asuka that preparations are complete, and that Asuka will have half a month to carry out his plans. As they are to part ways, Raven reflects how Asuka once made it sound like he wanted him to live as a "storyteller" when peace finally came. Asuka says that he wanted to part as friends, not as master and servant. Raven tells Asuka a story from his past—not having done so previously—, and concludes that an immortal storyteller indeed might be able to truly save people. Upon Raven's request to say his usual line, Asuka thanks him and says he'll "leave the rest to [him]", parting as friends. Soon afterwards, Asuka surrenders himself to the U.S. government. Guilty Gear -Strive- Alerting the press to his surrender for transparency, Asuka is escorted to the White House by President Vernon, Erica Bartholomew, Stryper and Giovanna, wanting to take the Tome of Origin to a safe location—the Presidential Emergency Operations Center. Once there, he reveals to Vernon his intention to raise at G4 the issue of eliminating relics from the Crusades, and erase the Tome and Sol Badguy from the world. Upon ascertaining that the PEOC remains the same, from then onwards he communicates with the outside via monitor. After Vernon informs Asuka of I-No's capture, Sol arrives at the White House, secretly intending to protect the Tome from I-No. Asuka and Sol talk briefly, and Asuka—now rejecting the many names he's been called by—vows that he will no longer "push the responsibility for [his own] presence in this world" onto everyone else. Soon afterwards, G4 begins, wherein Asuka acts as moderator and starts telling the representatives of his final venture as a scientist, a "world peace experiment." However, Happy Chaos takes control of the conference room, and cuts Asuka off. Puzzled by his name and magic skills, Asuka ponders Chaos' identity. After Chaos activates the White House's Tír na nÓg mode, Asuka realizes who he is. Via magic signal intrusion, he warns Sol—who is keeping Vernon safe—that Chaos is his former teacher, the Original; in turn, Sol tells Asuka that Chaos' goal is to make I-No complete. Later on, when Goldlewis Dickinson and Chipp Zanuff warn the three about their time limit, Asuka vows to fight off his teacher as well, trying to buy Sol and Vernon time to reach the PEOC escape pod and evacuate. Asuka tries to take control of the aircraft and alter the route, but Chaos interferes. Talking via comm, Asuka overpowers Chaos, but only momentarily, as Chaos reveals himself to be I-No's other half and knocks Asuka unconscious. When Sol and Vernon arrive at the PEOC, Chaos takes Asuka's form and enters the room, only to find that Asuka deceived him with a projection, and is ejected. Asuka, Sol and Vernon then meet with the newly-arrived Ky and Jack-O', and Asuka announces that he will use the spacefaring functionality of the White House to travel to the moon and keep the Tome safe. But first he will settle his score with Sol, giving him a choice after a short bout: to let Asuka remove the Flame of Corruption, or keep it and kill Asuka. Sol chooses the former. With Sol weakened, Ky asks Asuka to explain about the "Accumulation of Good Will"; he does as asked and tells them of his desire to host a radio show. To their surprise, a disguised Chaos is still onboard, and manages to open the Tome from within Asuka, restoring I-No to godhood at his own expense. Easily defeating everyone, I-No uses Asuka to start a process that will grant her powers to humanity, likely destroying the current world. However, thanks to everyone's efforts, I-No is defeated, seemingly killed by Sol. With the crisis averted, Asuka departs for the colony on the moon. There, he does his first radio broadcast, apologetic about his lack of eloquency. He transmits "clear numbers" (numbers of different occurrences happening worldwide, without any bias towards any ideology or profits, like the number of children being used for labor around the world) in the hopes of bringing peace to Earth. In his solitude, he also creates an artificial human, Asuka R♯, wanting to perfect synthetic life like the Valentine sisters. His duplicate confronts him about his self-hatred, but later departs for Earth to gather experimental data for Asuka's new research project, the Battle-method Turing test.

Appearance

General Description: That Man's face is rarely seen, but flashbacks reveal fair skin, white hair with bangs covering his eyes, and an average build.

Facial Features: In early appearances, his features are obscured by his hair and clothing. In Revelator, he is shown with a youthful face, a light-blue left eye, a white wing covering his right eye, a red four-point star on his bangs, and, despite normal human ears, cat-like red ears atop his hair. In Strive, his left eye is gold, his right eye is covered by five red wings arranged around a golden coin engraved with a stylized Greek cross, and his cat-like ears are removed.

Clothing/Outfit: Early designs feature a largely featureless dark cloak. Beginning in Overture, his outfit updates to a predominantly white palette with black and red accents, numerous belts, a heavy cross motif, and biblical text decorations. This design carries over to Vastedge and the Xrd games. In Strive, his outfit is more subdued but retains a priestly style: a thigh-length, white hooded haori-like robe over a black cassock with a gold-on-white cross on the chest, gloves, a dark gray kimono and hakama with dark red pleats, and black trainers with white soles and dark pink accents. His playable model features a sea green chest cross, white hakama with teal green pleats, white trainers with teal green and yellow accents, and a self-created floating cloak decorated with belts, crosses, and a slowly-shifting starfield lining.

Special Features: Notable features include the evolving eye designs, the red star on his bangs, and the floating cloak in Strive. His design combines priestly aesthetics with mystical and celestial motifs.

Personality

• Mysterious and cryptic: That Man often communicates in ways that are difficult for others to interpret, using florid language or leaving conclusions open-ended. His secretive nature adds to his enigmatic reputation.

• Self-righteous and determined: He is tenacious and uncompromising, pursuing his goals with a strong sense of personal responsibility. That Man is motivated by atonement, believing he alone is to blame for past tragedies.

• Introverted and reflective: Despite his notoriety, he is quiet, modest, and perceptive, preferring to observe rather than engage in small talk. He has a tendency to feel self-loathing and regards himself as ineffectual or monstrous.

• Sentimental and caring: That Man values the well-being of those close to him, including Raven, I-No, and Sol. He is deeply afraid of losing his connections, showing a protective and emotional side beneath his calm exterior.

• Adaptable and humble: He lacks strong self-determination, often adjusting to circumstances and the influence of others. Despite his infamy, he maintains a benign and quiet demeanor, with a preference for practical interests like math.

Goals

Asuka has 2 main objectives:

• Remove the "Flame of Corruption" from Sol and convert him back into a human so that he can live out the rest of his life with Aria as an ordinary human being (Succeeded).

• Bring about world peace by observing and sharing the number of different occurrences happening worldwide, without any bias towards any ideology or profits (Ongoing).

General Information

Name: Asuka R. Kreutz

Other Names: That Man

Nicknames: The Devil

Origin: Guilty Gear (1998)

Overall Series: Guilty Gear

First Appearance

• Mentioned: Guilty Gear (1998)
• Vaguely Appeared: Guilty Gear X
• Physical Appearance: Guilty Gear 2: Overture

Company: Arc System Works

Creator: Daisuke Ishiwatari

Actor

• Japanese Voice Actor: Tomokazu Sugita (Guilty Gear 2: Overture, Guilty Gear Xrd, Guilty Gear Strive)
• English Voice Actor: Yuri Lowenthal (Guilty Gear 2: Overture), Derek Stephen Prince (Guilty Gear Strive)

Gender: Male

Sexuality: Heterosexual

Pronouns: He/Him

Handedness: Ambidextrous (Uses both of his hands for various combos and holding items)

Age: Unknown

Blood Type: Currently AB (for the 5th time)

Birthday: October 1

Time Period: 22nd Century:

• During Guilty Gear (1998): 2180 (The Sacred Holy Order of Knights secured humanity's victory in 217 and the first Guilty Gear takes place 5 years later)
• During Guilty Gear X: 2181 (This game takes place one year after Guilty Gear)
• During Guilty Gear Xrd: 2187 (Directly noted in the intro to Chapter 1 to take place during this time period)
• During Guilty Gear -Strive-: 2187 (Directly noted that this game takes place three weeks after the end of Guilty Gear Xrd)

Timeline: Main Timeline

Homeworld: Earth

Residence

• Origin: United States
• Current: Outer Space

Story Role: Fighter, Playable Fighter, False Villain, Unknown Figure, Overarching Antagonist

Legacy: Global Legacy (The Universal Will intervening and causing Justice to run amok brought forth the Crusades, and as the Gears' supposed creator, Asuka was branded as the Gear Maker and became known as the source of all evil, the Devil)

Influence: Event Influence

Language: Common Language

Ethnicity: American

Religion: N/A

Classification: The Root of the Crusades, The Creator of Justice, The Gear Maker, The Greatest Criminal in History

Species: Human

State of Being: Regular

Physiology: Humanoid Physiology

In-Universe Creator: Unknown

Occupation: Researcher

Affiliations: Sol Badguy, Aria, Jack-O' Valentine, Raven, I-No, Axl Low

Enemies: Happy Chaos, I-No, Sol Badguy (Formerly), Justice

Height: 167 cm

Weight: 57 kg

Status: Alive

Alignment: Chaotic Good (Despite being known as the man who created the Gears and instigated the Crusades, Paradigm claims he has saved Sol and co. on a number of occasions and that he does not believe Asuka is the person history made him out to be. It is later revealed that this was all done to protect the world from the Universal Will. His reasoning for making Gears was due to him being unable to stop military intervention, thus he wanted to use Gears to stop the wars, he also turned Aria into a gear to save her from her incurable disease, and turned Fredrick into a Gear so that he'd be indestructible and could live with Aria forever. Asuka wants to establish world peace across the world)

Protection Level: Global Protector (One of Asuka's objectives is to bring about world peace by observing and sharing the number of different occurrences happening worldwide, without any bias towards any ideology or profits)

Threat Level: Global Threat (That Man is referred to to a being that threatens the world)

Potential

• Type(s) of Potential: Limitless Potential
• Level of Potential: Limitless
• Description: Fused with the Tome of Origin, which contains the entirety of the Backyard within it, with magic being a limitless energy supply.
• Limitations: Nothing notable.

Archetypal Tiering: Genius/Mage/Antivillain

Codex Statistics

Grade: S

Tier: 10-B physically. 8-B with Standard Magic Attacks, Much Higher through Magic of the Backyard

Cardinality: Finite

Dimensionality: 3-D

Power Source: Magic (Mankind has succeeded in the dream of developing a natural, limitless energy supply, being the Age of Magic. This is further supported in the memoirs of Eripmavs D Yraid where a band of mages calling themselves "Apostles" taught magic to the people. Magic is described as a scientific impossibility, a power close to omnipotence, with all of its information being of an unknown origin)

Attack Potency: Average Human level physically (Asuka isn't a warrior, if he didn't have his magic, any old fart could take him down). City Block level (Potency) with Standard Magic Attacks (Fought against Dragon Install Sol Badguy, where Ky Kiske and Sol Badguy are considered the best of the best, putting them above the likes of Johnny who fought against Bedman, where in his fight with Slayer, caused a massive cavern across the entire terrain), Far Higher through Magic of the Backyard (Magic draws power directly from the Backyard, allowing a user to amplify themself to carry more energy than anything on this planet is capable of producing, however without an intermediary, this energy would destroy the planet). Can ignore durability with Magic (The Backyard is the term used to give reason to the five element configuration, in other worlds, it's "something" that conveys the information that defines the fundamental truth of this world, the magic people use are different from the alchemy that uses resources from present numbers, magic users like Sol and Sin forcefully borrow some kind of "reason" from that "something", being described as an obscure world that magic users temporarily access to gain power. Roughly put, it's a world that can rewrite the rules of the universe in any way it wants)

Durability: Average Human level physically. At least City Block level through Standard Magic (Asuka gains increased defense while he has mana activated, Far Higher through Magic of the Backyard (Magic draws power directly from the Backyard, allowing a user to amplify themself)

Striking Strength: Average Human Class physically. Far Higher through Magic of the Backyard (Magic draws power directly from the Backyard, allowing a user to amplify themself, to where even a single strike or punch from them carries more energy than anything on the planet is capable of producing)

Lifting Strength: Average Human Class physically. Far Higher through Magic of the Backyard (Magic draws power directly from the Backyard, allowing a user to amplify themself)

Travel Speed: Regular Human, Superhuman with Blast Drive (Blast Drive allows the fighter to move like the wind, running far faster then the fighter normally moves), Far Higher through Magic of the Backyard (Magic draws power directly from the Backyard, allowing a user to amplify themself. Fighters can move so fast with their Roman Cancels that they create a light afterimage of two of the same fighter doing a roman cancel)

Attack Speed: Superhuman, Far Higher through Magic of the Backyard (Magic draws power directly from the Backyard, allowing a user to amplify themself. Fighters can move so fast with their Roman Cancels that they create a light afterimage of two of the same fighter doing a roman cancel)

Reaction Speed: Superhuman, Far Higher through Magic of the Backyard (Magic draws power directly from the Backyard, allowing a user to amplify themself. Can avoid sword slashes from Johnny where it's noted that Johnny's attacks move at the speed of light)

Stamina: Below Average (In contrast with his intellectual capabilities, Asuka severly lacks in stamina, with the slightest exercise tiring him out), Limitless Magic (Makind has succeeded in the dream of developing a natural, limitless energy supply, being the Age of Magic)

Range: Standard Melee. Varies up to Multiversal with Magic (The Backyard is the term used to give reason to the five element configuration, in other worlds, it's "something" that conveys the information that defines the fundamental truth of this world, the magic people use are different from the alchemy that uses resources from present numbers, magic users like Sol and Sin forcefully borrow some kind of "reason" from that "something", being described as an obscure world that magic users temporarily access to gain power, with it being larger then the universe)

Intelligence: Genius Intelligence (That Man completed Gear Cells that contained unknown technologies that Sol said were impossible. Created an artificial, isolated space within the Backyard. Noted by Paradigm that That Man can hack into the Backyard's chord. With the help of Asuka Kreutz and Aria, aided in creating Gear Cells infused with magic. Created an artificial human that is essentially a perfect copy of himself, having the same scientific knowledge and technical skills and only differing in mindset)

Knowledge: Grandmaster level (Overpowered and defeated Happy Chaos making up the hundreds of years in experience difference)

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Powers and Techniques

Standard Fighter AbilitiesUnique Abilities

• Acrobatics (Fighters are able to perform high jumps while in combat)
• Air Dash (Fighters are able to dash while in the air to perform an air dash)
• Multiple Jumps (Fighters are able to jump twice)
• Aerial Recovery (Fighters through the use of Knockdown Evasion are able to flip out of a knockdown hit, ready to retaliate. With Recovery Direction, when using a Recovery move while pushing a directional button, the fighter can recover from a knock down in the direction they press, allowing them a chance to counterattack if used correctly)
• Charged Attack (The Charge Attack System is a system where fighters charge up their attacks for increased power, being able to charge it up t three levels)
• Counter (Fighters through the use of Dead-Angle Attack are able to strike the enemy even while the enemy is still attacking. With Counter Hit, while the opponent is trying to use a move, the fighter can counter attack by hititng them with one of their attacks, causing the opponent's time off balance to increase)
• Second Wind (Fighters can get back up and fight for a second round even after their health is depleted)
  • Healing (Fighters can restore back their health for the second round of a fight)
• Guard Break (With Dust Attacks, by pushing a Slash and Heavy Slash, the fighter can use attacks that break the crouching guard. With Power Attacks, fighters can unleash a slow move that whe hit, has a high guard crash rate)
• Auto-Pilot (With Auto Guard, if fighters are not performing an action, they will automatically guard head-on attacks)
• Aerial Recovery Nullification (With Sweep, if this attack hits the opponent, they cannot bounce back from the attack with a recovery move)
• Acausality
  • Future or Past Defiance: When it looks like I-No has killed Sol through destroying his past, That Man comes in to note that it is foolish to believe this "Now" is what's really important, if there is no present, then neither the past nor future can exist, making everyone immune to affects from the past or future of time as they exist in their own presents.
  • Time Paradox Immunity
    • Paradox Immunity: "Now" is what's really important, if there is no present, then neither the past nor future can exist, making everyone immune to paradoxes that effect the past or future.
• Magic (Mankind has succeeded in the dream of developing a natural, limitless energy supply, being the Age of Magic. This is further supported in the memoirs of Eripmavs D Yraid where a band of mages calling themselves "Apostles" taught magic to the people. Magic is described as a scientific impossibility, a power close to omnipotence, with all of its information being of an unknown origin)
  • Axiom Manipulation, Truth Manipulation & Information Manipulation (The Backyard is the term used to give reason to the five element configuration, in other worlds, it's "something" that conveys the information that defines the fundamental truth of this world, the magic people use are different from the alchemy that uses resources from present numbers, magic users like Sol and Sin forcefully borrow some kind of "reason" from that "something", being described as an obscure world that magic users temporarily access to gain power)
    • Law Manipulation (Roughly put, it's a world that can rewrite the rules of the universe in any way it wants. Noted by Asuka that magic is the power to bend the rules of nature)
    • Statistics Amplification (Magic draws power directly from the Backyard, allowing a user to amplify themself to carry more energy than anything on this planet is capable of producing, however without an intermediary, this energy would destroy the planet)
    • Dormant Power Reservoir (As Magic draws power directly from the Backyard, allowing a user to amplify themself to carry more energy than anything on this planet is capable of producing, they possess immense dormant energy that they cannot release as it would result in the destruction of the planet)
      • Non-Standard Damage (Through amplifying their energy on this scale, they can destroy physical space occupied by a barrier, creating a spontaneous microverse)
    • Biological Manipulation & Fusionism (Noted in the memoirs of Eripmavs D Yraid that through the use of magic one can fuse Gear cells to the material world, allowing them to reproduce and become at least semi-permanent)
    • Fire Manipulation, Telepathy & Teleportation (Magic has become a foundation of people's lives in Guilty Gear, for starting fires, communicating with people from afater, teleporting)
• Non-Standard Interaction
  • Soul Interaction: Fighters are able to fight and interact with ghost.
  • Higher-Dimensional Interaction: Fighters are able to interact with Bedman, who deleted his own ID and became a multi-dimensional being.
  • Transcendent Interaction: Fighters are able to interact with beings like Slayer, where it's noted by Happy Chaos that Vampires are apart of Demi-humans, who transcend genetics, physics, and even time itself with their very existence being essentially a bug in the world's programming.
  • Non-Existent Interaction: Fighters are able to interact with Raven, a being that notes he is non-existent entity.
    • Creation (Magic users can create beings like magehounds, who are not that different from a real dog, their personality depending entirely on how the user raises them)
• Lock-On (Fighters are able to enter a "Lock-on Mode", where they target a single foe)
  • Statistics Boost (Attacks in Lock-on Mode are powerful, catering to one-on-one battles)
• Finishing Blow (With Instant Kills, if either fighter wins with an Instant Kill move, he or she wins the match immediately, no matter which round the game is currently in)
  • One Hit KO
• Power Modification (If fighter's inflict even a single attack on a ghost they will take control of it and be able to use its abilities against the opponent)
• Chaos Manipulation (Fighters utilize an energy known as "Chaos Energy" to do things like perform Perfect Guarding and perform Chaos Moves, a super-powerful attack that takes a completely full Chaos Bar to use)
  • Energy Manipulation
  • Perfect Guard (Fighters are able to use perfect guard to block special moves or chaos moves without losing any life at all)
  • Statistics Boost (If a fighters Chaos Bar is full and they dash from across the screen, they will flash and be able to tackle the opponent)
• Forcefield Manipulation (Fighters can use a technique known as Faultess Defense, this allows the fighter to enter a special guard condition that creates a barrier around them preventing the opponent from shaving away strength with deadly attack, and the knock back is greater than a normal guard, giving them more time to ready an attack against the opponent)
• Energy Manipulation (With Roman Cancels, the fighter generates an energy field around themself)
  • Afterimage Creation (Fighters can move so fast with their Roman Cancels that they create a light afterimage of two of the same fighter doing a roman cancel)
  • Time Manipulation (With Red Roman Cancel, knocks back the enemy and briefly slows them down in time. With the Blue Roman Cancel, slows the enemy down in time. With Purple Roman Cancel, slows the enemy down in time)
    • Counter (With the Yellow Roman Cancel, can stop the opponent while they're attacking and slow them in time)
    • Vibration Manipulation
• Space-Time Manipulation (Through two fighters slamming into each other at strong forces, they spread space-time wide open).

• Resistance to
  • Extreme Heats (Fighters can take fire attacks from Sol, which burn around their entire body, along with take hits from Axl's different flame attacks)
  • Electricity (Fighters can block and take hits from electric attacks, such as Justice's attacks that electrocute with each hit)
  • Shadow Attacks (Fighters are able to take hits from Zato's shadow Eddie where the Shadow can instant kill someone through destroying their shadow)
  • Poison Manipulation (Fighters can eventually have poisons wear out)
  • Power Modification (Fighters are able to hit each other without any effects to their abilities, where if fighter's inflict even a single attack on a ghost they will take control of it and be able to use its abilities against the opponent)
  • Axiom Manipulation, Truth Manipulation & Information Manipulation (Fighters can face off against Gears, where Gear Cells are what That Man used to create a sphere within the Backyard which was making a physical interference with it and causing distortions within it, where the Backyard is the term used to give reason to the five element configuration, in other worlds, it's "something" that conveys the information that defines the fundamental truth of this world, the magic people use are different from the alchemy that uses resources from present numbers, magic users like Sol and Sin forcefully borrow some kind of "reason" from that "something", being described as an obscure world that magic users temporarily access to gain power)
    • Law Manipulation (As they resist the Gear Cells mere existence interfering with the Backyard, they also resist other effects uch as the Backyard being a world that can rewrite the rules of the universe in any way it wants)
  • Soul Manipulation & Information Manipulation (Fighters are able to fight against Justice, where Justice's information density is equivalent to a galaxy cluster, where the soul breaks down under the pressure of the information density, an example of this can be seen through the Backyard, when a normal life form enters the Backyard they turn to dust, the Backyard is composed of high-density information which governs all of creation, any normal creature is instantly crushed by that wealth of data)

• Superhuman Physical Characteristics
  • Superhuman Speed
  • Superhuman Reaction
  • Superhuman Energy Efficiency
• Genius Intelligence
• Bestowal (Gave Sol an effect that will hold for a while while he's in the Backyard)
• Cloning (Created an artificial human that is essentially a perfect copy of himself, having the same scientific knowledge and technical skills and only differing in mindset)
• Reality Warping
• Teleportation (Teleported away after speaking to Sol. That Man teleported in front of the Cradle)
• Intangibility (Spatial; That Man can have attacks go through him as he can exist between the real world and the Backyard)
• Transferal (That Man can act as an intermediary between Magic and the Backyard)
• Severing (Removed the gear cells from Sol, turning him back mostly human)
• Fusionism (Fused with the Tome of Origin)
• Restoration (Mana can be recovered with certian spells or the recover mana spell)
• Energy Manipulation (That Man converts energy into matter and can contain it within a pocket dimension using the Schwarzschild radial limit)
  • Energy Projection (Happy Chaos disguised as Asuka shot out a projectile to attack a guard that was about to sneak attack Sol)
• Forcefield Manipulation (That Man has a barrier set up that needs to be broken in order for Sol to beat him)
• Space-Time Manipulation (Axl traveling in the Backyard with I-No noted how his body felt heavy and his head felt weird, with I-No noting they're in a field created by That Man so they could exist in the Backyard in the flesh)
• Electricity Manipulation (The usage of magic between Asuka and Happy Chaos was causing electricity to spark)
• Paper Manipulation (Asuka can control dozens of papers)
• Chaos Manipulation (With Chaotic Option, has Asuka change to a powerful spell at random or makes it where the next spell used is not discarded afterwards)
• Text Manipulation (Can conjure attacks from his books)
  • Energy Projection (Creates a large energy projection that rams into the opponent)
  • Autopilot (With Bookmark, automatically bookmarks magic when magic is chanted for a certain period of time)
  • Creation (Can create objects from his books)
    • Curtain Fire (With Chant, can shoot out multiple cubes at once at the opponent)
    • Summoning (With Accipiter Metron, summons a meteor above the opponent)
    • Ability Optimization (With Reduce Mana Cost, temporarily reduces the depletion rate of mana)
    • Time Manipulation (With Shooting Time Stretch, accelerates the flow of time to speed up the attack of spells)
    • Gravity Manipulation (With Gravity Rod, draws in all spells around him)
    • Matter Manipulation (With High Compression, Submicron Particle Sphere, releases a powerful compressed submicron particle sphere at the opponent)
    • Elemental Manipulation (With Chant, can merge all the elements together into a sphere surrounded by squares that slowly go towards the opponent to damage them)
      • Fire Manipulation (Asuka can conjure a sphere of flames right next to himself)
      • Air Manipulation (With Chant, can throw out three wind-spell cubes at the opponent)
      • Water Manipulation (With Howling Metron, can throw out a water cube to attack the opponent)
      • Electricity Manipulation (With Delayed Howling Metron, can throw out an electrical cube to attack the opponent)
      • Earth Manipulation (With Terra Metron, causes the earth to attack from under the opponent)
• Glyph Manipulation (Creates several glyphs that shoot out a multitude of projectiles)
  • Curtain Fire
  • Charged Attack (Can create a massive glyph to shoot otu a massive charged energy blast form multiple directions)
  • Creation (Can create objects from his glyphs)
  • Technological Manipulation (Conjured a glyph that messed with everyone's technology around him).

• Resistance to
  • Fire Manipulation & Temperature Manipulation (That Man has a resistance to the Gun Flame, where not much damage will be done even if the attack is landed)

---

Equipment

Tome of Origin

The Tome of Origin as depicted in Guilty Gear Xrd.

“

The Tome of Origin. As the name would imply, everything sprang forth from its pages. This book makes anything possible. It granted magic to mankind. Crafted our future. And with it, the risk of our downfall.

„

• Description: An ancient grimoire said to contain the sealed essence of the Backyard, the metaphysical realm from which all magic originates. The Tome is one of the most powerful and dangerous artifacts in existence, capable of shaping reality and granting limitless potential to those who possess it.
• Origin: Created by the man known as The Original in the 20th century, who discovered and entered the Backyard before sealing its essence into the Tome. Believing that “no evil should touch this place,” he confined its power to prevent misuse and preserve the balance of existence.
• Appearance: A large, elaborately bound tome inscribed with intricate markings, symbolizing its divine and forbidden nature. Its pages are said to record the fundamental laws of creation itself.
• Usage: Serves as a vessel of creation and knowledge, capable of granting access to the Backyard and manipulating its laws. Its existence paved the foundation for the development of modern magic and the study of sorcery.
• Function: Acts as both the origin and limiter of magical potential in the world. It can create, alter, or destroy phenomena, depending on the user’s intent and understanding of the Backyard’s principles.
• Notable Traits: Asuka R. Kreutz (That Man) eventually fused the Tome within his body to ensure its power would never fall into the wrong hands. To protect it, he later created a counterfeit version to deceive Happy Chaos. The Tome’s influence is deeply intertwined with the birth of magic and the evolution of human civilization.

---

Notable Techniques

Standard Fighter Techniques ▾Unique Techniques ▾

Guilty Gear (1998)Guilty Gear XGuilty Gear XX ▾Guilty Gear 2 Overture

Gatling Combo System

Gatling Combos involve chaining together normal attacks, always increases or staying the same level of strength. After a Gatling Combo, the fighter can then usually cancel, or two-in-one, into a Special Move.

Charge Attack

Fighters have a special move that can be charged up for increased power, this is accomplished by charging their special in order to use an enhanced version of an attack that reaches all the way to level 3.

Instant Kill System

Instant Kill moves are moves that are a fighter's most powerful technique. Defeating an opponent with the Instant Kill will end the match immediately, regardless of the round the fighters are on.

Chaos Moves

Chaos Moves are super-powerful attacks that takes a completely full Chaos Bar to use. These moves do far more damage then a fighters standard attacks.

Dash / Back-Dash / Air Dash

Fighters can dash forward, do a back dash, and dash even in mid air, allowing for greater mobility of moving around their opponents during fights.

High Jump

A high jump is much higher then a regular jump, and a forward or backward High Jump travels all the way across the screen. A Double Jump cannot be performed during a High Jump.

Knockdown Evasion

When a fighter gets hit with an attack that knocks down, they will flip out of the hit immediately, ready to retaliate.

Double Jump

A fighter can jump once on the ground and once again in the air, allowing them to reach higher and out of reach spots from other fighters.

Throws

Fighters can grab opponents to throw them, being able to throw them either forward or backwards.

Mid-Air Turn

Through pressing the Taunt Button when in mid-air, the fighter can turn around and face the opposite direction, this technique can be useful to attack from behind.

Aerial Combos

Fighters have an Aerial Combo Launcher, which allows them to launch the opponent into the air, they can follow with a Chase Jump where they can attack the opponent with a multi-hit, mid-air Gatling Combo.

Dead-Angle Attack

When blocking an opponent's attacks, the fighter can quickly input a Special Move command to cancel their block animation and strike the enemy while they're still attacking.

Perfect Guard

Unlike normal blocking which drains a small amount of life when blocking against a special move or Chaos Move, the Perfect Guard can block without losing any life at all. Though the Perfect Guard will drain the fighter's Chaos Bar, and if they have no Chaos Energy at all, they will not be able to use Perfect Guard.

Faultess Defense

Through inputing the punch and kick simultaneously while pushgin the directional button for a guard position, the fighter enters a special guard condition that creates a barrier around them. This prevents opponents from shaving away at their strength with deadly attacks and the knock back is greater than when using normal guards, giving the fighter more time to ready an attack against their opponent. This also enables the ability to guard against attacks that cannot be guarded against during jumps. However, while performing Faultess Defense the Tension Gauge decreases, once it is fully depleted the fighter can no longer use Fautless Defense.

Roman Cancel

While hitting an opponent with an attack, pushing any of the attack buttons will forcefully stop attack actions and return the character to a normal standing pose. This allows the fighter to create their own original combo moves and hit unique attacks the opponent was not expecting.

Jump Cancel

There are certain attacks that can be cancelled mid-move into a jump, being called a Jump Cancel. When hitting an opponent with, or guarding against certain attacks, press the Directional button UP to cancel into a jump. Successful use of this can help to enhance their combo techniques.

Counter Hit

While the opponent is trying to use a move, the fighter can counter attack by hitting them with one of their attacks, because the opponent's time off balance is increased, this move allows for use of combo attacks that normally couldn't be used.

Recovery Direction

When using a recovery move by pushing a directional button, the fighter can recover from a knock down in the direction pressed, this can provide with a chance for a counterattack if used correctly.

Instant Kill Technique

As the name implies, these are the ultimate deadly attack that can do away with opponents with a single blast. Due to the sheer power of these moves, they take a long time to unleash. Unleashing an Instant Kill attack, completely depletes the Tension Gauge, thus missing this move at all makes the fighter struggle worse as they won't be able to use various actions that require the Tension Gauge.

Guard

Push the directional button opposite of the direction of the fighter's opponent to guard against attacks. There are standing and crouching guards which guard against the respective areas, with standard guard defending against high and mid-level attacks while crouch guarding defends against low attacks. Fighters can even guard during jumps to protect against attacks in the air.

Two-Level Jumps

Fighters can jump again while in the air.

Gatling Combo

A method of linking normal moves together as combo attacks. The moment a fighter hits an opponent with a normal attack, they proceed to enter commands for another normal attack to create combos. The number of moves that can be used in combos vary with each character.

Overdrive Attack

Over Drive attacks are powerful attacks that use up 50% of the Tension Gauge. The commands for the move vary with each character.

High Jump

Press the down then up directional buttons quickly to jump higher than the usual jumps, though a Two-Level jump cannot be used after a High Jump.

Forward Thrust Attack

With a Punch or Heavy Attack common to all characters, keep the right directional button pressed down while attacking to transform attacks.

Dead Angle Attack

At the instant the fighter has guarded against an opponent's attack, push two attack buttons simultaneously while pushing down on the right directional button to counterattack from the guard position. The Tension Gauge needs to be at 50% or above for this move.

Dust Attack

By pushing a Slash and Heavy Slash button, the fighter can use attacks that break crouching guards. Opponents attacked with this move will be spun around and knocked down, becoming temporarily defenseless. At this time, push up on the directional button for the fighter to pounce on the opponent and have a perfect chance to strike back with a combo attack.

Sweep

Push a Slash and Heavy Slash button while in crouch to use the Sweep move. If this attack hits the opponent, they cannot bounce back from the attack with a recovery move.

Tension Gauge

The Tension Gauge is a gauge that shows a character's hostility, which holds the key to victory. The power of this gauge increases when the fighter uses aggressive moves like moving forward, dashing, forward jumps, and attacks. As the power of this gauge increases more moves can be used.

Recovery

When knocked down after being attacked, push any 2 attack buttons simultaneously while in the air to regain balance. This moves enables the fighter to quickly ready themself against the next attack.

Throw

Push the right or left directional button near an opponent and push the Heavy Slash button to activate this special attack. It's a risky move as the fighter needs to be near an opponent, though the opponent cannot guard against this, making it an effective move to mix in with normal attacks.

Guilty Gear X2Guilty Gear XX Λ Core Plus

Psych Burst

Allows the fighter to not only knock back enemies but also increase the Tension Gauge to "MAX" b meeting certain conditions. The Pysch Burst can only be used when the Burst Gauge reaches "MAX" and it redners them invulnerable for a set tie when activated, but it cannot be activated while the fighter s hit by an Overdrive Attack or when being thrown.

Two-Level Jumps

Lets the fighter jump again while in the air.

High Jump

Press down then up on the directional buttons quickly to jump higher then a usual jump.

Forward Thrust Attack

With a Punch or Heavy Slash common to all characters, keep the right direction button pressed down while attacking to transform attacks.

Dead Angle Attack

At the instant the fighter guarded against an opponent's attack, push any two attack buttons simultaneously while pushing the right directional button to counterattack from the guard position.

The Tension Gauge must be at 50% or above for this move.

Dust Attack

By pushing the Dust button, fighters can use attacks that spin around and knock down the opponents. This causes them to become temporarily defenseless. At this time, push up on the directional button to pounce on the opponent. It's a perfect chance to strike back with a combo attack.

Sweep

Push a Dust button while in a crouch to use the Sweep move. If this attack hits the opponent, they cannot bounce back from the attack with a Recovery move.

Recovery

When knocked down after being attacked, push any two attack buttons simultaneously while in the air to regain their balance. This move enables them to quickly ready themself against the next attack.

Throw

Push the right or left directional button near an opponent and push a Heavy Slash button to actiavte this special attack.

Approach an opponent during a jump while pushing the directional button in the direction of their approach and push the heavy slash button to be able to body toss the enemy during a jump.

During a Dash or Backstep, the fighter can not use a throw move.

Gatling Combo

A method of linking normal moves together as combo attacks. The moment they hit an opponent with a normal attack, enter the commands for another normal attack to create combos. The number of moves that can be used in combos vary with each character.

Overdrive Attack

These are very powerful attacks that use up 50% of the Tension Gauge. The command for this move varies on the fighter.

Instant Kill

As the name implies, this is the ultimate deadly attack that can do away with opponents in a single blast. As these moves are very powerful, they take a long tme to unleash.

Faultless Defense

Push the punch and kick button simultaneously while pushing the directional button for a guard position to enter a special guard condition that creates a special barrier around the fighter. This prevents opponents from shaving away through a fighter's strength with deadly attacks, and the knock back is greater than when a fighter uses normal guards, giving them more time to ready an attack against the opponent. They can also guard against attacks that cannot be guarded against during jumps.

While performing the Faultless Defense, the tension gauge decreases in real time, when the Tension Gauge powr is depleted, this guard can no longer be used.

Jump Cancel

There are certain normal moves where fighters can forcibly stop hitting an opponent with an attack or stop guarding against an attack and link it to a jump. By using these attacks, the fighter can combine these with attacks to widen their repertoire of combo attacks.

Roman Cancel

While hitting your opponent with an attack, push any three of the attack buttons except Dust button to forcefully stop attack actions and return the character to a normal standing pose. With the application of the move, fighters can create their own original combo attack. In order to perform a Roman Cancel, the Tension Gauge must be at least 50% full.

Counter Hit

While the opponent is trying to use a move, the fighter can counter attack by hitting them with one of their attacks. Because the opponent's time off balance is increased, the move allows the fighter to use combo attacks that they normally couldn't use.

Recovery Direction

When the fighter uses a Recovery move, they can recover from a knock down in the direction pressed. A recovery can provide the chance to counterattack if used correctly.

Slip

Specific Normal Moves, Special Moves, and Overdrive Attacks have the special ability to put opponents into a "slip" condition. When the fighter hits an opponent with these moves, they render enemies defenseless for a set time.

Two-Level Jumps

The fighter can jump again while in mid-air.

High Jump

The fighter can jump higher than usual by quickly pressing the directional input down and up. However, Two-Level jumps cannot be used after a High Jump.

Forward Thrust Attack

Through pressing the directional button while pressing the Punch or Heavy Slash buttons, the fighter can transform attacks.

Psych Burst

The fighter becomes temporarily invincible and knocks away the opponent when the Burst Gauge is at max. This technique cannot be used while taking damage from an Overdrive Attack or while being thrown. The Tension Gauge also maxes out whenever the fighter hits an opponent with a move.

Dust Attack

A fighter launches a Dust Attack by pressing Dust while standing. It's impossible to guard against a Dust Attack by crouching. After hitting the opponent with a Dust Attack, press the directional button to chase the opponent and him them with a combo attack while in the air.

Sweep

The fighter uses the Sweep move on the opponent by pressing the Dust button while crouching. A swept opponent cannot use a Recovery move.

Recovery

The fighter can regain balance when knocked down by pressing any attack button in midair.

Throws

The fighter can throw their opponent by pressing the directional button while pressing Heavy Slash when near the opponent. The opponent can also be thrown while in midair using the same method.

Throw Escape

The fighter can escape the opponent's throw while they are on the ground or in mid air through pressing the directional button while pressing Heavy Slash. This technique cannot be used while unconscious or launching an attack.

Gatling Combos

The fighter can create a combo out of a series of Normal Moves, launching a second attack as soon as the opponent is hit with the first attack. The number of moves that can be used for this technique are different for each fighter.

Force Break

It's a unique Special Move that consumes 25% of the Tension Gauge. Commands for this technique vary for each character.

Overdrive Attacks

These are extremely powerful attacks that consume 50% of the Tension Gauge. Commands for this technique vary for each character.

Instant Kills

As the name suggests, this is the ultimate attack that can knockout the opponent in one blow. Although these moves are extremely powerful, it takes time to successfully execute them.

Faultless Defense

While simultaneously holding down any two attack buttons except Dust, press a directional button in the direction the fighter wants to defend in order to enter a special guard called "Faultless Defense". In this state, fighters life won't be consumed when guarding against opponents Special Moves, but the opponent will knock the fighter back further than usual. This technique can be used to guard an attack which normally cannot be defended in mid-air.

Jump Cancel

The fighter can override certain moves, such as hitting the opponent or being blocked by the opponent by jumping out of a move when the fighter is midway through it. This technique can create great varieties in attacks and combos.

Counter Hit

By hitting the opponent in the middle of a move, the fighter can counterattack the opponent's attacks. A counter hit staggers an opponent longer than usual, so it gives a fighter a great chance to try combos they wouldn't normally pull off.

Recovery Direction

Press any directional button while recovering to move towards that direction as the fighter recovers.

Staggering

Certain Normal Moves, Special Moves, and Overdrive Attacks can put the opponent in a "stagger" state after a hit. A "stagger" opponent is temporarily defenseless.

Instant Block

Guarding against the opponent's attack right before it hits activates the "Instant Block". This will cause the fighter to start shining white with a bright light. Unlike a normal guard, which has a period where the fighter cannot move or attack, this time frame is shorter for Instant Block. Thi technique is helpful for guarding against attacks from close range.

Slash Back

Simultaneously pressing Slash, Heavly Slash, and the directional button in the direction the fighter guards against creates a yellow effect.

If successful, the yellow effect flashes and will dramatically cut the stun time after a guard; however, the fighter becomes temporarily defenseless if it fails.

Roman Cancel

While hitting the opponent with an attack, simultaneously press any three attack buttons, except Dust, to cancel the attack move. This technique allows the fighter to create their own original combo attacks. However, it consumes 50% of the Tension Gauge.

Force Roman Cancel

Each fighter has several attack moves that are compatible with this technique, while using one of those attacks, simultaneously press any three attack buttons except Dust of a certain timing to cancel the attack move and return to a standing pose. The best timing to input the command varies for each attack move, and if the timing is missed, it fails. When it's successfully activated, the technique consumes 25% of the Tension Gauge.

Free Mode & Lock-on Mode

Free Mode

It's a normal mode where a fighter can freely move around the battlefield, in this mode fighters can unleash attacks that cover a wide-range to hit multiple foes, but the power of the attacks are rather weak.

Lock-On Mode

Lock-on Mode is an effective technique for one-on-one skirmishes or situations where a fighter would like to target a single foe. Through holding a lock-on on a target, attacks are far more powerful, catering to one-on-one battles, combined with directional input, they can use vertical or horizontal attacks on enemies to shake them up.

Aerial Dash

During a jump, press A to perform a forward dash in mid-air. The fighter uses aerial dashes to jump over units or shortening the gap during aerial combos.

Step

Use the directional input and A while locking on to use a step movement. The distance it covers may be short, but through taking advantage of its speed, one can avoid attacks from enemies or shake them up during an attack.

Blast Drive

Through usage of the left stick button, the fighter is able to run like the wind, being able to accelerated and decelerate respectively.

Drift

During a blast drive, a fighter can perform sharp turns, allowing them to keep their momentum.

Auto Guard

If a fighter is not performing an action, they will automatically guard head-on attacks. However, auto-guard does not block attacks from behind or while the fighter is performing attacks. Along with this, guarding opponent's attacks too much will cause a guard crash, making them defenseless.

Modern Cancel

A technique that skips the recover animation of attacks, allowing the fighter to immediately perform another. With Modern Cancels, the fighter cna combine attacks that normally do not combo to forcibly create a combo, or completely bypass the defenseless state of their attacks during their recovery animation.

Cyclone Blast

It's an emergency-evasion technique that releases a sphere-shaped energy when the fighter is attacked to knock enemies away. This move is effective for escaping an attack from a group of enemies, however it requires a lot of tension.

Short Dash

While in lock-on the fighter can quickly move a short distance, being able to quickly shorten the gap between themself and the opponent.

Power Attack

The fighter unleashes a powerful attack that has a slow start animation. It has a high guard crash rate.

Avoid Knockdown and Falling Techniques

When the fighter takes damage from an enemy and are knocked down as a result, press A in mid-air at an appropriate time to use "Avoid Knockdown" to quickly regain their balance.

By pressing A right before the fighter hits the ground, the fighter will be able to use "Falling Techniques" to quickly get up.

Super Backstep

Allows the fighter to travel a longer distance than a normal backstep, an important technique to quickly distance oneself from the enemy.

Homing Jump

Press A while locking on to jump toward the target. They can also use an air dash to charge toward their target.

Guilty Gear -Strive
The following is That Man's move list in Guilty Gear -Strive-:

Type	Name	Command
Normal	--	Right + Punch / Right + Kick / Right + Heavy Slash
Special	Chant	DownDown RightRight + Punch or Kick or Slash or Heavy Slash (air OK)
Special	Bookmark	DownDown LeftLeft + Punch or Kick or Slash or Heavy Slash (air OK)
Special	Recover Mana	DownDown + Punch or Kick or Slash (hold OK)
Special	Change Test Case	DownDown + Heavy Slash → Punch or Kick or Slash (air OK)
Overdrive	High Compression Submicron Particle Sphere	RightDown RightDownDown LeftLeftRight + Punch or Kick
Overdrive	Bookmark (Full Order)	RightDown RightDownDown LeftLeftRight + Slash

---

Other

Standard Tactics: Asuka wields and utilizes different forms of magic in combat, normally putting his existence between the real world and backyard for attacks to phase through him.

Weaknesses

• Standard Fighter Weaknesses: Perfect Guarding is done through the use of Chaos Energy, if the fighter has no Chaos Energy at all, they will not be able to Perfect Guard. While performing Faultess Defense, the fighters Tension Gauge decreases, when the Tension Gauge power is depleted, this guar can no longer be used.
• Unique Weaknesses: Asuka isn't a warrior, if he didn't have his magic, any old fart could take him down. In contrast with his intellectual capabilities, Asuka severly lacks in stamina, with the slightest exercise tiring him out.

Explanations

The Backyard

When studying the energy that shouldn't exist (magic), a theory arose: that being the Backyard, a superior dimension. The Backyard is described by Sol as a virtual space though is refuted as the other way around, where the main world is the one that's a virtual space. The Backyard is the term used to give reason to the five element configuration, in other worlds, it's "something" that conveys the information that defines the fundamental truth of this world. The magic people like Sol and Sin use are different from the alchemy that uses resources from present numbers, magic users like Sol and Sin forcefully borrow some kind of "reason" from that "something", being described as an obscure world that magic users temporarily access to gain power. Just as the Earth can't exist if there's no universe, this world cannot exist unless they have that "something", being larger then the universe. Roughly put, it's a world that can rewrite the rules of the universe in any way it wants. The Backyard can be explained as a book or library that has the theory of the world written on it. It's responsible for the usage of irregular magic even scientists such as Sol have never seen before, allowing people to use magic that disproves the fundamentals of magic. The Backyard was discovered by a Philosopher, being described to rule all things in the universe and from within it, one could understand any truth or even bend the world as they please. Sol notes that if Valentine could freely access the Backyard, then she can also mess with the world's fate. Asuka Kreutz notes that if someone strays too far into the Backyard, their soul breaks down under the pressure of the information's density. In Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign-, the Backyard is defined as a world separate from our own, yet somehow controlling it, what's hidden behind its gates are the eternal truths, including good & evil, creation & destruction, and of chaos the likes of which mankind has never seen. The Backyard is a space connected by people's dreams. Axl traveling in the Backyard with I-No noted how his body felt heavy and his head felt weird, with I-No noting they're in a field created by That Man so they could exist in the Backyard in the flesh. When a normal life form enters the Backyard they turn to dust, the Backyard is composed of high-density information which governs all of creation, any normal creature is instantly crushed by that wealth of data. The Backyard has no effect on any non-living matter. RoboMay explains the Backyard as composed of extremely dense information that governs the creation of all material things and by adding new information to it, one could easily deform the world itself. Noting that it is a dangerous place that could literally cause the world to break.

Trivia

• Asuka's hobbies are making buckwheat noodles in a Rube Goldberg machine, bonsai (specializing in succulents).
• Asuka values Sol & Aria.
• Asuka dislikes rare steak and seafood.
• In Strive, That Man's clothing contains multiple references to Rosicrucianism, including the phrases "Fama Fraternitatis" and "dat rosa mel apibus" (from Robert Fludd's Summum Bonum), as well as the year 1614, when the first Rosicrucian manifesto was published.
  • His initials and surname are likely a reference to Christian Rosenkreuz (alternatively spelled "Rosenkreutz"), the legendary, possibly allegorical, founder of the Rosicrucian Order.
• His real name may also allude to Ryo Asuka from the manga Devilman and anime Devilman Crybaby. Like That Man, Ryo was once friends with the protagonist and was responsible for his transformation into Devilman, paralleling That Man’s role in Frederick’s transformation into a Gear.
• In Overture, Sin Kiske and That Man share the same English voice actor, Yuri Lowenthal, who also voices Bedman in Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign-.
• That Man’s Japanese voice actor is shared with Ragna the Bloodedge, a main character from Arc System Works’ other fighting game series BlazBlue and Sol Badguy’s counterpart.
• Concept artwork shows the lining of That Man’s cloak in Overture bearing the phrase: "Heven made men for its reason. Men respect men for their own sake."
• Despite his narrative prominence, That Man was not made playable until Strive, as part of the franchise’s twenty-fifth anniversary. This delayed inclusion mirrors the approach taken with several important BlazBlue characters who were only added in the final installment of that series.
  • An example is Nine the Phantom, whose gameplay is similar to That Man’s.
• Following the after-credits cutscene in Revelator revealing Sol’s name, That Man has been permanently referred to by his real name, including in Rev 2’s After Story A.
• That Man has made a guest appearance in #COMPASS.

Codex Statistics Questions

Q: Shouldn't they scale to the higher levels of magic naturally?

A: This would not make much senses as it there are scenes that showcase the cast do not regularly produce those levels of energy, Ramlethal was going to destroy the ship they (Sol Badguy, Ky Kiske, Sin Kiske, & Elphelt Vaentine) were flying on, claiming "We're thirty-four thousand feet up. If this ship goes down, I doubt anyone will survive", Dizzy's instant kill is a massive explosion that the explosion alone scares all fighters into surrendering, Jack-O's instant kill causes an explosion so wide it can be seen from the planet, however the planet is overall fine, etcetera. It makes much more sense that they are at far lower levels normally and can reach or even ignore higher levels through tapping into the Backyard.

Battle Records

0 - 2 - 0

VictoriesLossesInconclusive

None.

• Sol Badguy - Fight
  • Conditions: Nothing notable.
  • Location: Unknown
  • Note: That Man merely fought Sol to see if he could adapt to the Backyard's tuning, thus he wasn't going all out.

• Happy Chaos - Fight Happy Chaos
  • Conditions: None
  • Location: White House

None.