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Dhalsim Super Street Fighter 4 Arcade Edition Moves, Combos, Strategy Guide

Guide last updated on
March 24, 2011 at 3:21 p.m. PDT


Dhalsim Super Street Fighter 4 Character Guide


Character Overview
Guide by Nyoronoru

Dhalsim is a character that dominates at zoning to an extreme degree. He has options at every range with great anti-airs, projectiles and full-screen punishes with his teleport. Dhalsim also has a massive library of normal and special moves that add up to a good punish game and an even better keepaway game. He also has one of the best Super Combos in the game along with a superb zoning Ultra. While he doesn't do much damage all at once, he doesn't need to because his punishing methods are so good.

Dhalsim weaknesses are that he has no viable "get off me" move, and his Focus Breaker is extraordinarily slow. His dashes are very laggy and his jump is very floaty giving him few escape options. He also has the third-slowest walking speed in the game. These things make him very vulnerable to great rushdown and anti-projectile characters such as Akuma, Abel, Cammy, and Viper.

• Strengths •
+ Amazing zoning game with far-reaching normals.
+ High-priority normal anti-airs.
+ Has a great teleport for repositioning and attacking.
+ Ultra 1 is the best utility Ultra in the game.
+ Projectile is very slow and hard to avoid.
+ A normal move for every situation.

• Weaknesses •
- Characters with fast offense.
- Very slow walk speed and dashes.
- Because of his dash, his Focus Attack is almost worthless.
- Floaty jump.
- Wide hurtbox, easier to land combos on.
- No reliable method to escape corners without taking damage.

Special Moves
or
Yoga Fire
Damage
Light
50
Medium
70
Hard
80
EX
100

Properties

Dhalsim's projectile attack, and a really good one. The speed of the move is determined by the button pressed with the startup of each projectile being the same. Most Dhalsim players use the Light version as it is the hardest to avoid and gives Dhalsim the most time to attack after it is on-screen. The Light version travels the farthest distance at the slowest speed before it fizzles out, with Hard being the opposite.

Dhalsim can easily keep up or control projectile battles by using Light and EX Yoga Fires along with a combination of Yoga Tower and standing Hard Punch.

EX Version: The EX version hits twice and does a lot of chip damage for a projectile. It also doesn't fizzle out like all the other Yoga Fires and will keep traveling until it is off-screen or hits the opponent.

or
Yoga Flame
Damage
Light
110
Medium
140
Hard
170
EX
180

Properties

An attack that is reserved mostly for Dhalsim's combos. This breaks armor and knocks the opponent down. If you've successfully landed a jumping attack from Dhalsim this should be your primary combo ender.

The Light version comes out the fastest and is the most-used in terms of combos. The Medium version comes out a little slower but it is safe on block unlike the Light version. The Hard version comes out very slowly but it actually gives Dhalsim a little frame advantage if it's blocked.

EX Version: The EX version comes out just as fast as the Medium version and does more damage than the Hard version. Unless you are really shooting for a KO in your next combo it's probably best to not use meter on this move.
or Yoga Blast
Damage
Light
130
Medium
150
Hard
180
EX
140

Properties

A really slow non-invincible anti-air flame attack. Most Dhalsim players do not even acknowledge the existence of the normal versions of this move as they are incredibly slow and Dhalsim has better normal anti-airs. Light version comes out the fastest, but recovers the slowest.

EX Version: This version on the other hand comes out extremely fast and does a decent amount of damage along with having startup invincibility frames. Since it knocks the opponent down it's also good for setting up a Yoga Catastrophe.

 or   or 
Yoga Teleport
Properties

Dhalsim warps around the screen depending on which buttons you press or direction you choose with the joystick. This teleport starts up really quickly but has noticeable recovery. The list below details where you end up after each motion.
  • Punches, Forward DP: Behind the opponent.
  • Punches, Backwards DP: Half-screen away from the opponent.
  • Kicks, Forward DP: Directly in front of the opponent.
  • Kicks, Reverse DP: Full-screen away from the opponent.
You can use the teleport to either reposition yourself or attack the opponent. To perform the "Instant Air Teleport" where you teleport a little ways off the ground to begin an aerial assault, simply perform this shortcut motion:

 or 

Make sure that you hold up-forward long enough to get Dhalsim to leave the ground. This is good for punishing predictable fireball throwers and it adds extra damage to Dhalsim's combos since you can begin your combo with a jumping attack. Since you are now attacking from the air with Dhalsim your attacks must also be blocked high. Don't attack using this method predictably though, as most players will merely interrupt you with a fast attack of some kind.

Try not to activate the teleport when you are at your maximum jump height. While you can attack while descending most characters can easily punish you and in the worst case scenario they'll be right in your face as you land.

or or
Yoga Spear
Damage
Spear
70

Properties

This attack is kind of slow, but the aerial trajectory change is very fast. The angle isn't too great for approaches and it's also bait for Focus Attacks. Most Dhalsim players use this to go over projectiles such as Sagat's Low Tiger Shots.


Yoga Mummy
Damage
Mummy
90

Properties

This attack is heavily telegraphed and fodder for Focus Attacks and invincible reversals. Most Dhalsim players do not bother using it unless they are attempting a corner escape.

Still, if you do land this move against an airborne opponent you can juggle them with your Super or Ultra 1 before you land.


Yoga Tower
An attack where Dhalsim stands high on one of his legs. This will avoid quite a lot of mid and low attacks along with throws and projectiles. You can cancel the animation by moving your joystick in any direction.

This attack is a really great way to avoid chip damage from projectiles and if you bait a mid or low move with enough recovery time you can get a free throw or Super. Quick examples are Blanka Balls and Honda's Headbutts.

The lower body invincibility of this move doesn't last too long though, so it's best to exit and re-enter Yoga Tower in order to take advantage of the invulnerability.

Super and Ultra Moves

Super — Yoga Inferno
Damage
Super
300

Properties

A Super that you will definitely want to be saving for. It's a fantastic anti-air attack along with being extremely easy to land. You can cancel into this from either a Yoga Fire, a Yoga Flame and quite a few of Dhalsim's short-range normals. Due to its versatility and damage it's probably the best Super in the game.

Another good thing about Yoga Inferno is that it knocks the opponent down right in front of you, letting you set up a Yoga Catastrophe. You can also juggle into this Super if Yoga Catastrophe juggles the opponent in front of you.


Ultra 1 — Yoga Catastrophe
Damage
Ultra 1
215-300

Properties

A slow moving fireball Ultra. It does tons of chip damage, and if you activate it as the opponent is standing up from a knockdown then you can use Yoga Teleport and various high/low normals to mix up the opponent while they are forced to block. You can also use Yoga Catastrophe to reset the zoning situation if you are getting pressured up close. It will force the opponent to retreat and allow you to advance.

Dhalsim is only invincible during the cinematic of this Ultra, not after he begins firing. This means that opponents can throw you out of the startup of this Ultra. If you activate it when the opponent is too close to you, they will merely throw you and make your situation even worse.

Most characters who have anti-projectile EX moves or Ultras cannot pass through Yoga Catastrophe effectively. If you use it after you have knocked the opponent down you limiting their escape options severely. It becomes even more effective if the knockdown was an untechable one such as one from a throw.

If you manage to mix up your opponent effectively and this Ultra lands, then you can hit the opponent with another normal move or your Super as they are falling since Yoga Catastrophe juggles the opponent. You have to be pretty close for this to work though.


Ultra 2 — Yoga Shangri'la
Damage
Ultra 2
450

Properties

An aerial command grab Ultra that catches grounded opponents. This Ultra comes out really quickly, and it's great for catching people who jump in recklessly towards Dhalsim as you can catch their jump recovery with this move.

Just like Yoga Teleport, you can "Instant Air Shangri'la" by doing a motion that ends with Dhalsim jumping off the ground. This gives you the option for a fast punish.



Dhalsim's up-close defense is very poor though, so you will have to be very confident in your ability to keep the opponent off of you in order to give up the usefulness of Yoga Castatrophe.

Combos
Important Note: Not every possible combo is listed here. Instead, you'll find the most common and helpful combos that you should know. There are many variations to these as well.

Cancel into Light Yoga Flame
2 Hits
180 damage
A short-range punish combo. If you're having trouble comboing from the kick, try to shortcut the half-circle motion by ending on down-back. If that doesn't work, experiment with different motions to make sure it cancels 100% of the time.


Cancel into Medium Yoga Flame
2 Hits
210 damage
A strong close-range punish combo.


Jump

Cancel into Light Yoga Flame
3 Hits
243 Damage
Jump-in combo, usually from a teleport.


Cancel into Light Yoga Flame Cancel into Yoga Inferno
7 Hits
460 Damage
An easy combo to Super.


Yoga Catastrophe, juggle with Yoga Inferno
Link

11 Hits
605 Damage
You probably won't get the full damage from Yoga Catastrophe, but the damage you'll get will be pretty good anyway. The Light Kick only works in the corner.


Notable Normal Moves
or
Anti-Airs: Yoga Knee, Yoga Hand Slap
Yoga Knee is Dhalsim's best anti-air move. The hitbox is huge and will beat almost any jump-in attack. Also, Dhalsim's head cannot be struck during this move.

Yoga Hand Slap is another anti-air for Dhalsim that hits people higher above his head. It's also special cancelable, meaning that most players will cancel this into a Yoga Fire for chip damage.
or
Yoga Foot Taps
Two fast moves for Dhalsim that are some of his few defensive options. The Medium Kick version is special cancelable.

Yoga Overhead
An overhead attack that is best used when performing Yoga Catastrophe mixups.

Yoga Shin Kick
Quick mid-range pressure tool that will safely interrupt dashes. Comes out really fast for such a long-ranged move.

Yoga Top
One of Dhalsim's pre-emptive anti-air attacks. Great to use if someone jumps over your fireball at long range.

Yoga Punish
Dhalsim's best range move. Will temporarily go under projectiles but sometimes the trading of hits is in Dhalsim's favor. Don't be too obvious with this move, and don't use it all the time as the recovery gives opponents time to close in through jumps and dashes.
or
Yoga Low Punish
It's the same move as Dhalsim's Yoga Punish but it's a little slower and hits low. This move is mostly avoided because of how slow it is.
or
Yoga Fast Low
A really fast poke from Dhalsim. Since it is so low to the ground it's hard for the opponent to counter it with their own normal moves. The hitstun and blockstun of the move are short though.
or or or
Yoga Slide
Dhalsim has three slide attacks, with the range determined by the strength of the kick button pressed. All of the slides are unsafe unless performed at maximum distance. Most players use the Light or Medium version to tick into a grab or to avoid a jumping attack. The Hard version knocks down but is really unsafe on block.
or
Yoga Sniper
A great air-to-ground poke from Dhalsim. You can also use this as an "instant overhead" attack by jumping away and immediately activating the Hard Punch, though this is unsafe against some characters.

Any character that has an anti-air move that knocks down should make you wary of attacking recklessly with this move.
or or
Yoga Dart
This is a good attack if you anticipate a long-range jump from your opponent. Simply jump straight up and use this to stop their forward momentum.
Defense and Zoning with Dhalsim
Most of the work with Dhalsim involves putting pressure on with Yoga Fires and standing Hard Punch, and then countering the jumping attacks from your opponent. Try to memorize each normal for each zone that someone could potentially jump in. Standing Hard Kick is good for far-away approach jumps. Jumping Medium Punch is good against floaty characters. As long as you do this you should be able to zone the opponent out. Don't do a whole bunch of unnecessary moves with Dhalsim, because the opponent will take advantage of any recovery no matter how small to rush you into the corner and wipe you out.

If you are having trouble with Focus Attacks, try to teleport behind the opponent and attack them if you see them start it up repeatedly. Another solution and the most popular one is to chain two Light Yoga Toe Taps together. One more trick is to just backdash, although that won't work in the corner. A last resort is to charge up your own Focus Attack to counter theirs, but this is risky as Dhalsim's dash from a Focus Attack is the slowest in the game.

If an opponent is Focus Attacking your limbs to move in, throw out more well-spaced Yoga Fires for them to run into. If they try to Focus through the fireball it gives you a free shot at hitting them with an attack to do quite a lot of damage.

To sum it all up, act according to the situation. Patience is key and as long as you aren't getting hit with unblockable Level 3 Focus Attacks you should be able to find a way to keep the opponent out of close range. Sometimes if you have been shoved in the corner it is completely worthwhile to take a some damage just to escape.

Other Resources and Credit
You can find more information about playing Dhalsim on the Central Character Discussion Thread on the EventHubs.com forums.
Contributions to this guide by Nyoronoru and Oculus_Orbis.


Comments

Default avatar
dhalsim68 said on April 14, 2010 at 6:14 p.m.

after i decided to play with dhalsim, not only have i found that he is a monster in the right hands, but also i've improved my game in general....it made me understand sf4 much more.

One thing....i see high lv dhalsim players using a technique that is very usefull...when they use b+mp as an anti-air move, they link it to a yoga fire.

I can do this without problems at training mode, but when i try to pull this out in an actual fight it never comes out.

Is there any tip for doing this easily?? thanks

#1
Default avatar
TheParryIsPro said on May 24, 2010 at 8:43 p.m.

well i have the same mentality as the IAT's make it one smooth motion like i do it B+MP,D/B,D,D/F,F+LP...So its like doing a forward half circle but when you start press MP and when you end Press LP. I played sagat in vanilla so his kara kness and shots were like this. I hope this helps dhalsim68

#2
Default avatar
Ragnarok said on June 4, 2010 at 10:28 a.m.

'Sim is really a monster in the right hand. Although i just started using him today i can see that there's is alot of potential in him. I use B+HK for anti air follow by YF and Ultra 1 + Super for anti air is really a good way to punish oppenent who jumps in at you. But there is a problem that i face today though... whenever an opponent is near me i always use LP to poke them follow by LK and i'm lost and do not know how to continue from there. Guys any suggestion on what can do when the opponent is near you beside teleport???thanks will appreciate any suggestion given Cheers ^^

#3
Default avatar
Tommy said on June 5, 2010 at 3:46 p.m.

@ 145
I usually poke with two standing lks while holding back into a standing lmk into a f yoga fire and that backs them off.Im still new to 'sim as well played him for about a week.But he is really good.

#4
Default avatar
Drippy_Nozzle said on July 22, 2010 at 1:06 a.m.

From the combo's section in the guide above, I belive unless I am mistaken that Jumping HP, LK, Yoga Flame is not infact a combo. The Yoga Flame does not have quick enough start up, and can only cancel from bk MP/MK/HP or crouching bk MP/MK (please correct me if I am wrong).
It is possible to combo into Yoga Inferno (super) from bk LK (I haven't tried but pressumabley you can, you can definately super cancel bk cLK as its in his trials).

#5
Default avatar
IDS_dhalsim said on July 26, 2010 at 12:09 a.m.

drippy nozzle. Im 95 percent sure u cant combo b.lk to super. but u can combo lk slide to super. You can also combo crouching b.mk to lp flame.

@145
You dont want to be near your opponent no matter what... but incase they do get near you block and be ready for the tech grab. Watch their movement and predict what they are gnna do. You can lk slide to super... u can B.mk to flame to super, and you can teleport back. You want to stay away from your opponent at all times. look out for b.mp AA and B.hk. you can also look out for EX flame using lk and mk this is another decent AA but it costs some bars. i find this great against a predicted rufus jumpin, and sometimes its worth using the a bar in certain situation.

a little zoning tip: lk and mp are 2 great pokes. use these and watch out for jumpins. if ur in the right range you can whiff a mp or lk and still have enough time to AA.

#6
Default avatar
IDS_dhalsim said on July 26, 2010 at 12:16 a.m.

i just realized my post had so many grammatical errors lol. but anyway, this info is coming from a player that has played dhalsim for over a year. I figured out a lot of this stuff by watching Iyo play. Watch good sims and try to put yourself in their shoes. Imagine what you would do in a certain situation, and watch what they do, then figure out why they did that move.

#7
Default avatar
SF4junkie said on September 14, 2010 at 12:41 a.m.

Any strong foes?

Random vs Random?

PSN: OoDemonSeedoO
XBL: GotDemonSeed

#8
DougQuaidHauser's avatar
DougQuaidHauser said on November 14, 2010 at 5:24 a.m.

Just started using Dhalsim recently to add some variation as an interesting character.

Im having trouble canceling his standing light kick into yoga flame. You have to hold back to activate the short kick then forward into the yoga flame motion, just does not feel intuative and does not cancel for me?

Not being able to do this means I can not do the BnB dhalsim combo, would help my play greatly.

#9
Oculus_Orbis's avatar
Oculus_Orbis said on February 1, 2011 at 4:53 p.m.

@ DougQuaidHauser

Back + Light Kick CANNOT cancel into Yoga Flame.
You must use Back + MEDIUM Kick.

#10
Default avatar
PwnDizzle0 said on March 22, 2011 at 4:45 p.m.

Dude Dhalsiimmm iss BEAASSSTT!!!! He's my main in ssf4!!!!

#11
Default avatar
Arcade said on March 26, 2011 at 10:59 p.m.

Hi,
for the dudes that complain of air teleport don't press all 3 buttons to fast when your at the Back - Up joystick position or the forward - Up position! u will get a ground teleport!

because in SF4 first frames of jump are cancelable by ground moves! make sure u press after 4 frames;)

#12
Default avatar
NZBison said on June 24, 2011 at 12:57 a.m.

yea dhalsims the man

#13
Default avatar
pnoyphenom said on August 18, 2011 at 9:38 p.m.

anyone good players out there?? psn pnoyphenom add me up fam!!! and yeah i do agree that playin sim will make u definitely a good player over all eheheheh

#14
Default avatar
KingGorilla said on November 11, 2011 at 9:36 a.m.

@#156 nag lalaro ka ba ng MvC3 or UMvC3 add mo ako AssP0P yan pangalan ko

#15
Default avatar
pnoyphenom said on November 16, 2011 at 2:50 p.m.

@king gorilla di tol I don't play that ssf4

#16
Default avatar
pnoyphenom said on November 16, 2011 at 3:41 p.m.

@king gorilla di tol I don't play that ssf4 lang laro ko

#17


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