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Abel: Street Fighter 4 Character Guide

Last updated on Aug. 22, 2008

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Character Overview

Abel is like a cross between Fei Long and Zangief with a bit of Alex thrown in. His EX moves are terrific and some of his normals can set up his opponent for easy juggles. Early reports have Abel listed as one of the top tier characters in the game.

Special Moves

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• Change of Direction (Quick Combo Grapple) •
Think of this move somewhat like Fei Long's Rekka Ken. If the first or second hit lands, the subsequent attacks will combo.

But if blocked, any part of this move is open to counter attack, so be very careful with it.

Pressing punch after you do the initial move will do an over head attack, and a punch again will attempt a high grab.

Pressing Kick after doing the initial motion will do a low kick, and pressing kick again will attempt a low grab.

• Hoyle Kick (Flip Kick) •
Abel does a flip and sticks his legs out, this must be blocked high. You can cancel into this from some of his normal moves to perform a combo. This move is pretty safe from counter attacks if blocked.

The Kick button pressed determines the distance and power of this attack.

• Marceaux Rolling •
This is probably most similar to Ken's roll in Alpha 2. It's pretty quick and it can be used to confuse your opponent. This goes through some moves, but you can be thrown out of it.

The Kick button used determines the distance Abel travels. Light goes the shortest distance while Hard travels a bit beyond sweep distance.

Most people think this is the best move to use to get behind (cross up) the other fighter, because it comes out so quickly.

• Tornado Slew (Head Twirl Throw) •
Abel picks the other fighter up, spins him around and slams him down.

This is a command throw like Zangief's Screw Piledriver, so Abel will still grab his opponent even if they're blocking.

• Sky Fall (Throw) •
Abel will grab an aerial opponent who's close to him and slam them into the ground. Note that Abel's feet do not leave the ground when performing this move.

This works great in combination with his Crouching Hard Punch (Elbow Launcher), easy combo, good damage.

EX Moves

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• EX-Change of Direction (Quick Punch Combo Grapple) •
The EX-Change of Direction can blow through one hit from your opponent and still let you land the resulting attacks. You still take damage if hit though. Besides that, it's much like the normal version.

• EX-Hoyle Kick (Flip Kick) •
This "tracks" based on wherever the other fighter is standing, so no matter where they are this move will attempt to land directly on them.

It comes out quickly and can go through fireballs, plus hits overhead. If your timing is good, you can also use it as an anti air attack. One of Abel's best moves.

• EX-Marceaux Rolling •
This is much faster than the regular roll, and has some frames of animation that are invincible.

• EX-Tornado Slew (Head Twirl Throw) •
The EX Torando Slew is a great move as your opponent gets up off the ground, because unless they know it's coming you'll grab them and slam them back down. Players may start trying to jump to escape this move, if they do hit them with Sky Fall or his Hoyle Kick to keep them grounded.

It's also a great move as you're getting up off the ground, because you can take one hit and still grab the other fighter. You take damage if hit though.

• EX-Sky Fall (Throw) •
This does more damage than the normal version and the animation is a bit different. Some players claim it has some frames of its animation that are invincible as well.

Super and Ultra Moves

• Mushin (Multiple Punches and Head Twirl Throw) •
You can cancel into this move from the first punch of the Change of Direction. Abel will run at his opponent and hit him with his fist multiple times and finish off with a twirl grab and slam.

• Muga (Ultra Head Twirl Throw) •
Abel runs up to his opponent, punches them, proceeds to do a series of grappling moves and finishes by slamming the other fighter into the ground. This move does a lot of damage, but there's a few frames of start up animation which means that it won't hit instantly after you execute it.

This does go through fireballs though, so you can use it against projectile-happy players.

Combos

• Crouching Medium Punch, Change of Direction (Quick Combo Grapple) •
Abel's Crouching Medium Punch can be canceled into his Rekka Ken-like move.

• Level 3 Focus Attack, dash cancel, Crouching Hard Punch, cancel into Sky Fall (Throw) •
Abel's Level 3 focus attack does a lot of damage and opens your opponent up for many combos. This is just one of several.

Normal Moves

Note this is not a complete list of all of Abel's normal moves, just the ones we think are noteworthy.

• Elbow (Launcher) •
An elbow attack that results in two hits with the second one launching your opponent up into the air where you can combo them. It's a lot like Urien's elbow in Street Fighter 3, and can be a solid anti air option if timed correctly.

You can also cancel out of this move on either hit, including into his Super or his Ultra, but the timing is tricky on the latter.

Contributions to this guide by Sanchez, Icege, UltraDavid, Humbag, FullMetalRoss and CFAY.