Sean vs Chun-Li

Table of Contents

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• Overview
• Close Range
• Mid-Range
• Far Range
• Okizeme
• Gimmicks
• Super-based strategy
• Hyper Tornado
• Hadou Burst
• Shoryu Cannon

Overview

This match-up is the definition of disadvantageous. It is one of Sean's 3-7's and for very good reason. Chun's normals control the neutral and her walk-speed allows for strong tick throws and shimmies that can lead into disastrous results for Sean if she has resources. Her game plan revolves around the 3-choice mixup and various ways she can set it up via frame traps and positioning. At one spot from a distance she can do:

• Cl. HK (up close), F+ HK, B+ HP - High confirms (F+HK crouch only confirm) 
• Kara Throw 
• Cr. MK - Low confirm 

What can give Sean a chance to win in this match-up is:

• Taking advantage of her low health 
• Cornering her and keeping her there
• Staying around the mid-far range (right outside of her St. HP)
• Strategically Jumping in vs her selection of AA's 
• Whiff punishing 
• Manipulating her meter usage
• Applying pressure while she's meter-less 
• Get meter as quick as possible
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Close Range

Notable options:

• Cr. LP/Cl.LP - 2f start-up
• Cl. HK - 4f start-up
• Cr. LK - 4f start-up
• Cr. MK - 6f start-up
• F+ HK - 12f start-up/ Air-borne 1f
• B+ HP - 7f start-up
• Throw - 2f/ 3f (Cl. HK Kara)
• SGGK - Parry~Kara Throw/Cl. HK OS
• Lighting Legs 
• LK - 6f
• MK - 6f
• HK - 5f
• EX - 3f

When it comes to close range, Chun has an overwhelming advantage over Sean due to the amount of speed and range she has on her normals.

Her having a 2f Cr. LP which allows her to interrupt pressure sequences when its least expected and also initiate pressure due to it being +3 on hit and block.

Cl. HK being 4f means anything other than Sean St. LP will lose in speed and can lead into super (or SJC out of the situation). Its close range recognition is slightly larger than Sean's Cl. HK which means Sean is discouraged from occupying one of his strongest positions. Throw looping Chun on wake-up is ill-advised largely because of this normal alone. 

Cr. MK isn't a necessarily fast option for Chun, but when it is done on wake-up she low-profiles certain highs and confirms it into SA2. It can catch shimmies by surprise if not aware of it. It gets a lot of mileage in frame-traps from Cr. LP/LK's and can even frame trap into itself as it is only -2 on block. 

F+HK's main 2 traits are being considered airborne on frame 1 which allows her to dodge throws also while being able to crush lows (and confirm super in this instance as its +4 on crouch hit). It is 0 on block which means she's still able to pressure and threaten with the 3-way mix-up she has up close.

Throw is strong because Chun's reaches further than Sean's (even without the Kara) and while hers doesn't do as much damage, the range boost she gets affords her many more opportunities to land it which adds the damage up quickly and eventually Sean will end up cornered. Being 3fs means that it will beat anything Sean presses. She can even Kara back throw to side-switch when she's cornered. 

Lightning legs are another strong option that Chun has in the close range which does a size-able chunk of damage and stun while resetting the situation back to neutral. The lighter variations are much more positive on hit and block than the heavier ones but they're not punishable by standard reversals.

The most dangerous aspect of Chun in close range is SGGK which allows her to combine a down parry ~ Cl. HK Kara throw input. If nothing was pressed for her parry to catch, she will do a simple Kara throw which isn't a lot of damage done (in a preferable scenario). However, if the down parry snagged a button (a crouch tech for example) then she will immediately Cl. HK and confirm it into SA2. She can do this OS raw or she can do it promptly after frame traps making her pressure extremely effective. 

How can Sean combat SGGK? 

Buffering an EX Dragon or Super behind normals she's looking to parry. There is also the option of escaping from the situation by Jumping away or back-dashing from the OS (if not cornered already).

• EX Dragon will trade with Cl. HK, allowing any of the following follow-ups:
• Dash LP Dragon 
• Dash Cl. HK 
• Dash Cl. MP (can go into target combo)
• SA1 or Dash SA2
• SA2 or SA3 will win with certainty due to their massive invincibility windows

 (Very favorable range for Chun due to max range Cl. HK, Cr. MK and Kara throw)

It is not wise to try and slug it out with Chun in the close range (especially if she has super) without plus frames generated. If the sequences from either Sean or Chun have subsided with no gain, its time to retreat back to a safer spacing.

        What Sean can do in the close range:

• Cr. LK - The reason this normal is very important is because she has to block it low. Due to the extra block-stun she receives when crouch blocking, instead of Cr. LK being +1, it is now +3 on block (and can be +4 on meaty). Frame-traps starting from Cr. LK's are stronger in this match-up. 

• Cr. LP - +3 tick that can set-up pressure and has the benefit of being +5 on block if she crouches. 

• Cl. HK - While not as strong in this match-up stand-alone, going into it in the context of frame-traps is still really good since she can't mash through the strings otherwise. +2 on block normally but can become +4 when she crouch blocks.

• Shimmy - The concept of shimmy changes slightly in this MU. Since her throw and Cl. HK reach far, the position to stand at will be near the end of the shadow generated by her sprite. This variation of shimmy is created with both of these in mind as it will force a F+HK or a whiffed Kara throw. Be aware of Cr. MK though. 

• Kara Throw - Kara throw is use-able but its usage needs to be more thought-out considering her options to combat against it. Due to the nature of her extra block-stun, if she blocks a Cr. LK the throw needs to be delayed a bit more for it to work.

• Cr. MK - Low confirm; becomes -2 when she crouch blocks.

• St. LP - Can be used as a quick interrupt or turn steal; Can fuzzy crouch guard after jump in's which becomes +7 on block. 

• Cl. MP - 0 on block; if blocked crouching becomes +2 which allows for solid pressure between delayed target combo, Cl. HK, Kara throw and walk-up Cr. LK's. 

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Mid-Range

Her Notable Options:

• Cr. MK - 6f start-up
• B + HP - 7f start-up
• St. MP - 6f start-up
• F+ HK - 12f start-up
• Cr. MP - 8f start-up
• Cr. HK - 7f start-up
• Kikoken 
• St. HP - 8f start-up

In the mid-range, she's just as fast as Sean is in neutral with the additional benefits of having more confirms into her super than him and more priority on her normals. Consequently, Sean is forced into "going 2nd" when playing out the neutral game. 

Chun B+HP (stop sign) is possibly the most problematic of her choices in the mid-range since it is active for 9 frames with hitboxes that don't allow it to be out-prioritized by anything less than a throw or super. This button can shut down a majority (if not all) of Sean's normals in this range which heavily discourages staying at this range constantly. Its a little slower than her St. MP but this doesn't afflict Chun in the slightest as the true strength of this normal is to score counter-hits into super. By itself, it does a large amount of damage and stun (in the ball park of Sean Cl. HK) which means its really bad to get hit by this constantly. 

Cr. MK is another issue as it is relatively quick to start-up and also recovers somewhat quick as well. It serves as one of her main meter-builders along with St. MP and B+HP. Its range is a little stubby in comparison to her highs but this drawback is kind of alleviated by the fact that her walk speed can make up for the lack of range. It drops her very low to the ground while active and can also counter-hit very well making getting clipped by it dangerous when she has super. 

F+HK's main usage in the mid-range is low crushing and discouraging the dash throw. Its her slowest option here but this normal serves as a reminder to not get comfortable over-using lows vs her or dash throwing. 

St. MP is a swiss-army knife. It can be used for dash-prevention, confirm super, counter-hit, meter-build, etc. It has a worse hitbox and is more vulnerable than B+HP as a result but with the benefit of being a frame faster. Also similarly to B+HP, it will shut down Sean's normals and movement due to speed and active frames. Her confirming SA2 off this normal is the max damage she can achieve, giving more incentive to not get by this normal if it can be helped.

St. HP is Chun's furthest reaching normal. This button is the reason why Sean's Sweeps have to be around max range as it is a free St. HP every time. The button does respectable damage in its own right, but the button has a secret advantage to it. After the normal finishes its animation, Chun will inch forward anywhere from 4-8 pixels. This can cause distancing/spacing issues in neutral cause she'll be a bit closer than once thought.  

       What Sean can do in the Mid range:

• Counter-Poke 

• Far MP - At range, Far MP is a good counter-poke option. It can hit the exposed part at the top of Chun B+HP and hit St. MP. It doesn't move you forward either which is good for maintaining space.

• St. MK - Can counter-poke the normals that shift her lower sprite forward (B+HP, St. MP, St. HP) and occasionally Cr. MK.
  

• Whiff Punish

• Cr. MK - This is the main normal used for whiff punishing whether it is a whiffed Cr. MK or a whiffed B+HP. Take heed that her normals are active for a while which means Sean has to wait a bit before pressing a button or risk getting clipped.

• Cr. HK - Whiff punisher with a knock-down. Its slower than Cr. MK and has the same caveat that using Cr. MK does. 

• SA1 and SA3 - Another strong whiff punisher; Much more safer to use than Cr. MK but will test reaction abilities.  SA3 is invincible and more consistent unlike SA1 but requires time to build the bar for it. SA1 is a little slower and has the same caveat that using Cr. MK does

• Pre-emptive/Placed pokes

• Cr. MK - To halt her approach while looking for the confirm into SA1 or SA3. Its safer on block (-2) against her so there's no risk of reversal super. 

• St. MK - A decent pre-emptive option that will stuff out her options on start-up occasionally due to its hitbox placements while advancing forward. Be careful as it is forward/down parry-able and its hurt-box is massive enough to get counter hit by B+HP even from further away.
  
  
• Parry into block
  
  
• Forward Parry - At this range, it will catch her highs (since St. MP and Far HP cover more space than Cr. MK).
  
  
• When St. HP is parried, you can:
  
  
• Dash forward into Cr. MK x HP Dragon (max meter-less damage, KND & meter gain).
  
  
• LP Tackle (almost similar damage as the dash punish with more stun but less meter gain; resets back to neutral).
  
  
• Cl. HP/HK x Super (Metered punish; Cl. HP does more stun while Cl. HK does more damage. Pick which one based off if more stun or damage is needed).
  
  
• When St. MP is parried, you can:
  
  
• St. LP - The safest option as it keeps Sean safe from whatever Chun cancels into from this normal.
  
  If she cancels into super, this normal will stuff it out and allow Sean to go into DP and/or confirm a super.
  
  If she cancels it into Hazanshu, it will make the jab whiff but Sean still recovers quick enough to parry and get a stronger punish.
  
  
• Immediately Super (with SA1, there is a high chance of getting a double SA1 if she decides to super post-parry. The other 2 supers are flat out guaranteed to win which is also good for Sean.
  
  
• Blocking - Block with her Cr. MK in mind since it is the faster normal compared to B+HP. Down-parrying in neutral just to catch it is a bad idea considering her options which means its safer to parry forward then block more often than not. 

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Far Range

Her notable options:

• Hazanshu
• St. HP
• Jump Forward
  
• Dash

Chun's effective options are middling at far range in comparison to her mid and close range ones. 

St. HP is again listed here as it is her furthest reaching normal and it covers all 3 distance bearings (close- mid-far). However at this range, it won't be utilized that much considering its predictable to use here and its much safer to just walk forward St. MP instead. 

Chun won't jump or dash often which makes it a surprisingly good option to sprinkle in from time to time. 

Hazanshu is mainly a way to punish crouch block in neutral and go over-the-top of normals to hit you. Its not that fast but its rather quick enough to surprise you when its not expected. 

   What Sean can do in Far Range:

• The inter-medial point between middle and far range will be the spot Sean needs to occupy the most as it allows him to place forward parries to catch St. HP while setting up a choice between:

• Dash throw/Cl. HK/Cr. LK 
• Kara adds 14 pixels more range to throw in which Sean can be even further back.

• Whiff punish
  
• Same as the mid-range ones.

• Walk-up max range Cr. HK
• Safe on block when she has no meter. 

(Example)

Threatening with dash throw or walk-up will force a preventative response which will open up opportunities for whiff punishes. Since Sean can dash through from further out than Chun can reach, this will be the main strategy. 

Regarding dash, it is possible to dash during the recovery of her normals but it has to be done later than normal due to the amount of active frames she has on them. 

            

This is the spot in the far inter-medial range where Sean Far HP will beat B+HP & St. MP (and trade with St. HP in Sean's favor) without risk of getting counter-hit in recovery since she has to walk forward in order to do so. 

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Okizeme

Chun has quite a few strong options getting up from a knockdown:

• F+HK/Far HK
• Cl. HK
• Cr. LP 
• EX SBK
• Lighting Legs
• Kara Back Throw 
• Parry

Recklessly throwing Chun on wake-up is a terrible idea which can lead to a bunch of unfavorable situations. All of these options are quick enough to beat throw reliably with the end result either being a confirm into super, knockdown or reset to neutral. 

Cl. HK is the most common wake-up option from the bunch considering its speed and range recognition.