Yoda: Force Guide
Overview:
Yoda is a weak character. He is only deadly in the correct hands. He has a bit less health than normal, and his saber is weaker than normal. His force powers are push and pull. His dash is average, though effective on low health enemies. Yoda is not for the feint of heart, for he requires a lot of precision.
Yoda has a slower pace than normal, so he will seem slow to a new player. He doesn't catch up well in a chase. His sprint dash takes roughly ¼ health from an enemy. His downward air attack does the same. His dash is a unique one, because you pretty much blow right by your target. If a character is against a wall or in a corner, you can kill them in one whole dash, because the wall stops you from skyrocketing past them. If you're doing a no force dash fight against someone, he is very effective. A few runs by and the enemy is usually dead. The enemy tends to click their attack at the wrong time when against Yoda dashing at them. A good tip with Yoda's dash is this: If you miss or they block you, let the full dash happen and then do a forward roll on top of that. Generally you get out of any range they would have to push or choke you.
Do not try to do a head on saber fight unless more experienced, because you will lose. Saber vs. saber combat knocks over Yoda easily, so try and stay away from it. There are specific times, if you keep moving, that you can win. But avoid going face to face. Also know that his single click does a lot of damage but cannot stun. His only stun is his backhand.
Yoda can survive very easily if he uses his force powers correctly. Let me be the first to tell you, that pull is not very effective on Yoda. Unlike the other pullers, when Yoda double pulls, the enemy isn't stunned. If the enemy isn't stunned then Yoda cannot kill them. Due to his saber being weaker, in order to kill a character with a full combo they MUST be fully stunned. There are only 2 instances where I pull with Yoda. The first is saving someone, pulling an enemy away so they can run or whatever. The second is if a character is low health. I would say at about ¼ or 1/3 health this works. You pull them towards you but you must jump and time an air attack when they pass you. This only works as a single pull and an air attack. If you miss the air attack get in a defensive position, because they won't be stunned after one pull and will get right up. This requires practice and timing. I rarely use Yoda's full combo anymore, I substitute a single backhand and a single click (double backhand if it's the higher health characters). This guarantees stun and kill.
The force power I would recommend most to use on Yoda is push. Most of the time, push stuns an enemy. Everyone knows that wall pushes or if they're jumping will not stun them, so don't go charging in these cases because you will die. The most effective way of using push on Yoda is if you are closer to your target. If you are too far away and push, you cannot catch up to them and do your saber combo in enough time to fully kill. In this event, you usually die. When you are closer to your target, you can dash up to them (DO NOT USE FULL DASH) and stop the dash just as you are getting to them with the backward key. Then begin your saber combos until they die. It is usually a very close call and timing is required.
There are stronger characters that Yoda has to fight against that I will give some tips on. The characters that have a bit more health (Vader, Grievous, and Dooku) need to be attacked in two parts. Using this technique relies on the enemy being predictable (95% of the time they are). If you push a Vader, Grievous or Dooku, you run in as described above (DO NOT DASH) and begin a saber combo. They will not be fully dead (at full health beginning) at the end of the combo. As they begin to get up, this is when you need to move. The enemy will 95% of the time begin swinging because they think they have you. Before this though, you will have rolled away just in time to turn around and push them once more. You will have enough power regained from during the saber fight to sprint toward them. If they are really low health (Mainly Dooku), dash through them (they die). If they are at about half health (mainly Vader and Grievous), sprint close to them and finish them with normal saber combo.
Sometimes it may take more than two pushes to finish someone off. This will make it so the enemy complains about it in chat. Just respond by saying "You're complaining about Yoda? That's funny".
A great tool for Yoda is his size. This must be used to your advantage. Keep Yoda away from open spaces, those mean his death. Block seldom works on a saber attack against Yoda, so the best defense is staying away. His size makes it so you can hide in littler space than other characters. If the enemy is not stunned or blocks your push, you will want to jump and get out of there. His size makes it so they cannot see you, and most people don't use Q targeting in Heroes. I know this because I always hear "I didn't see you," or "Where did you go?" while playing as Yoda. His size makes it so certain ledges he can hide behind, or certain roofs his head doesn't stick up. Speaking of roofs:
Many enemies get frustrated when I play Yoda if I am on a roof. Not any roof mind you, a specific roof, one with a dome add-on. Yoda can sit on the corner of those undetected. Or he can sit on the top of the dome and due to size, usually avoids a saber attack. This is the perfect place for a trap. An enemy will jump up onto the roof just below the dome thinking it is an easy kill. From above you push them (aim at the roof) and they will just fall over in their tracks. The game is built so if you are the right angle the push just makes the enemy fall over. This is ideal for Yoda because you are closer and can begin the saber attack right away. There are those that will try to jump on top of the dome, avoid this fight by pushing them away.
This brings me to another point. When playing as Yoda, you have to be picky about your fights. If you don't control the situation, you die. He does not have the health, or the saber power to be heroic. You need to make sure you have the advantage, if you do not, get out of there. Yes this will warrant fewer kills, but once you get the hang of him, they will stack back up again. So use your size and stealth to your advantage. Spending time on roofs is best for Yoda. As I already stated, block seldom works on Yoda, and getting out of a saber fight with him is difficult. Try to stay above your enemy and hidden. The dome roof add-ons are perfect for this.
One final tip before I finish with Yoda vs. specific types of characters.
Yoda's jump attack takes a chunk out of their health, but the enemy is rarely fully stunned by the time you land. I use Yoda's jump attack for the single mid air pull as described before, for someone with low health I want to surprise, and with an enemy just above half health. The trick to his jump attack is pushing first. If you push and are not close enough to get to them with your saber combo, you can jump and slice as you reach their head, try to be just in front of them. The key to winning this fight is once you land, backswing quickly. If they are full health this sometimes works, unless they get up and blocked. I found it most effective when they are in between half and full. Since you are relying on the enemy being predictable, you will find that this attack doesn't always work. The majority of the time, the enemy will move towards you to attack and if you backswing as they move forward, they will fall down. At this point, finish with saber.
Yoda vs. Pushers:
The trick to these fights, are to stay above the enemy. Try to refrain from a block fight, because if they get close enough, their saber will go through your block. If you have enough distance the block fight is fine, but they tend to move quicker than you. The only villain pusher is Maul, and Yoda rarely blocks his saber. Use your stealth techniques until you get the advantage.
I often get pushed into a corner or wall as Yoda (because I hug walls/roofs). The game makes it so that if you are wall pushed, you have a faster recovery time. Many people know this and push twice or three times. When you are pushed multiple times as Yoda, he doesn't just fall over mid air like some characters do. You can actually jump up and away and escape the fight. I'm always brave at these moments, because they come in with their saber. Maul cannot stop in mid combo, and if you jump up to a roof, they are still swinging where you were standing. Push straight down and finish him with the saber technique.
Yoda vs. Chokers:
You would be surprised how many people neglect to finish Yoda off while choking. Yoda's choke recover time seems slightly faster than normal, and I tend to be able to roll away from it a lot. The enemy rarely chokes you until they are on top of you, because they think Yoda is easy to kill. So if you are being choked, as soon as it drops for them to saber attack, roll away. Otherwise, when fighting a choker, stick to your roofs and hiding. You can also dash through them. As stated in my previous chapter, choke automatically stops a dash when someone begins to swing from their sprint. As Yoda it is different. His swing still hits the enemy when he is under them. When he is directly under them, they cannot choke. So if you are dashing a choker, do not click until you are right under them. Then keep the combo going and roll forward to get out of range.
Yoda vs. Gunners:
This is tough as Yoda. You can't double pull because they'll just fly away (but if they are close you can backslash them). You have to use push techniques. This is more difficult because the Fetts cling to roofs too, generally roofs that are higher than you. I sometimes just pull them to get them off their roof and hope they run away while on the ground (then you can push). Surprise is very easy as Yoda though, so try sneaking up on the Fetts and beginning your combo. If they are not paying very close attention, they will not move until just before they die, and by then you encompass a swing radius, and they get hit when they flee. Just use stealth as much as possible.
Yoda: Non-Force Guide
Yoda is a weak, but fast character with a very damaging saber combo, good block, great dash attack, and is the hardest character to hit, but has only one move that causes any knockdown or stun.
Yoda is probably the strangest Jedi to play as. His size is very helpful in avoiding certain attacks such as the emperor's charge attack. This size factor also makes him one of the hardest heroes to knock down. Attacks such as the emperor's dash will go right over him completely and will never even touch Yoda. This size factor can allow Yoda to get in close and hit people while only getting hit with glancing blows which have little chance of knocking him down. Because of this, you will find that in duels, you will frequently get a tie rather than outright winning a duel.
Yoda's saber combo is also very unique. I (Sneek) will not go in depth into it because there is only one part of the combo that is worth using, and that is the first swing. Yoda's first swing with his saber combo is more powerful than any first swing in the game, provided all three hits connect. Because of this, the rest of his combo is useless. Never use it. This one hit is a very effective tactic in a duel, because you can approach with your block up, click once, and your opponent has one fourth of his health remaining, which is very easy to take off with one dash.
The dash is a very quick move which can be run out of, and has the unusual quality of allowing stamina regeneration during the dash. The dash includes two swings, and then if you click multiple times, yoda will do a pivot flip after the two swings. However, in a duel, this pivot will make you very vulnerable. You should stick to single clicking for yoda's dash, so that you only do the two swings, which have no pivot time after them, you can immediately run after you attack and get away. Yoda's dash has a very wide range, wider than his saber, so keep this in mind. The weakness with yoda's dash attack, is that it has no chance of knocking down, and during the attack, you are very vulnerable to null or backswing. Always be mindful that you are not running into these, because if you run into a null or backswing in a duel, it is over, you lose. So it is advised that you try and trick your opponent and not just run straight at him predictably.
Yoda's air attack is somewhat like Obi/Anakin, and Mundi's. It is a stab that doesn't do a whole lot of damage. The only applications I've found with Yoda's air attack, are hitting people in the air (obviously) and doing a jet jump (sprinting and jumping) and then immediately clicking to do a fast air stab.
The last thing worth mentioning for Yoda is his backswing. Yoda's backswing is vitally important to him, because this is the only attack he has which can knockdown. Some uses with backswing include running at your opponent and backswinging, or blocking, and walking up and backswinging. Backswing is even better defensively, if someone is running at you, throw out a backswing and they will probably fall. Don't be fooled by fake sprints though.
As to Yoda's abilities during a full map non force fight, I (Mawk) feel he is pretty effective.
One thing you MUST think about with Yoda, is how long it can take to kill an opponent. In full map you will most likely be taking a few runs at your enemy before they die. So you have to learn the art of stalking. You need to be very good at escaping when needed, because Yoda will not always win a head on saber fight. With good tactics and practice you can do very well with him.
The first thing I will mention in regards to Yoda in non force, is you will need to learn sprint jumps, or jet jumps as Sneek calls it. These quick jumps help you move from building to building, without using much energy. It makes it so if you are on the same level or jumping to a level just a bit higher than you, you won't have to expend all that energy from jumping a couple times for a further distance. Since most of the buildings on mos eisley are roughly on the same level, this tactic is very effective, especially for Yoda.
If you leap from building to building, be sure to check your minimap. Someone could be hiding behind a dome and the second you land they will come out and saber you. If you see a dot show up when you jump, you'll still have enough energy to BACK OUT of the jump. So be sure to always conserve energy for a quick escape.
You must think of Yoda as an assassin in non force. He is NOT a tank. His attacks need to be quick and deadly if you want to survive.
His dash is pretty good in full map. One good thing is you won't always be going head on against an opponent and you can sneak a dash in and get away. If you do go head on against someone, don't just blindly dash them, you can easily be nulled. I find myself sometimes waiting for the enemy to come to me and as they get to me (generally jumping up/across to where I am) I do a quick dash and damage them. Then you can sprint around a corner and get up on another roof as they follow you. If you repeat this a couple times you can pretty much kill them without taking damage. This is generally against the people who aren't really good at non force. Follow Sneek's advice with doing a single click dash, this does just as much damage as hitting them with it and continuing the dash past them. The continuation usually misses and you can wind up being vulnerable. So single click them as you dash and it will just do the first part of it.
His aerial attack is actually quite damaging. It isn't as effective in duels as Sneek mentioned, mainly because you're going face to face and you can't hide much. But in full map if you land an air attack you can do some decent damage. There are key moments to do this. The first moment to do an air attack would be when someone is leaping at you. They can be leaping up to you, or can be leaping across from you, or even leaping down. Yoda has plenty of energy to jump and his height makes it so you have smaller jumps. You can time your jumps even with the enemies and strike them in mid-air. This will do enough damage for if they come after you a combo, or a couple dashes can finish them off.
Another time to do an aerial attack is when the enemy is below you and does not see you. They can be busy looking at one of your teammates elsewhere or whatever. Calculate your jump so you will land on their head and end up slightly in front of them. This is fairly easy to do. As you land on their head click once, do not click more than once or timing will be thrown off. This will hack them a bit of damage. They will be surprised and start swinging. If you time this right you can land and instantly begin a backslash. Since they will be moving forward to swing at you they can be stunned with your backhand. Finish them with a single click of your combo to do the most damage. This will defeat anyone if executed properly, due to the damage of the aerial, the backhand, and the combo. The only problem you should have is against a Grievous with the damage reduction on. At that point I'd just wait it out til you see that green orb around them go away.
Yoda's combo as Sneek mentioned, is deadliest in it's first click ONLY. You will waste your time and leave yourself open to attacks if you do the full combo. You can of course do the full combo if you've stunned someone with a backswing, but look out for other enemies. The first click does a 3 part hit that not many realize, it takes about 7/8 of health on a normal health character, and about 3/4 on a higher health character.
The best way to execute his combo is by approaching someone from behind, clicking once, and getting out of there with roll or jump. If they are full health you can finish them off with a well placed dash or aerial attack. If they were already lower health you will have an easy kill. If you DO attempt to take someone head on, do not just click click click, because you will die while taking them with you, and a 1/1 kill/death ratio isn't that great. If they come at you head on, try to keep your saber on them and click once and try to escape. This generally works and try to get away before being stunned. I've also found that rolling is generally the best way to get Yoda away, you can then sprint out of there. His jump doens't seem to get the height you want, and against taller villains he can be snagged back down with their saber.
Overall you want to always be changing directions with Yoda. Go in and do some damage and get out of there. Even if it's sprinting around the bottom of a building and coming up behind the person you just damaged. You have to move quick and precise with him. Stalk your opponents by knowing where they are, and make sure you continue relentlessly attacking the person you've damaged. No point damaging someone and starting over with someone else, because usually it takes a few runs.
Be patient, quick, and escape when you need to. Don't stick around for a fight with Yoda. He's like a flying creature that swoops in, bites a piece of you, flys away, and comes back again. Keep that in mind when you fight non force with him.
