Marvel Vs Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes (arcade)

Marrow FAQ
Ver 1.06  (Updated 5-6-2000)

Author: Adrian Au (cerebrate@spacewar.com)

Legal Stuff
-----------
Feel free to download or print this FAQ but get my permission first if
you wish to post or distribute it or any part of it. Do not use any
part of this FAQ for making profit. You got it free, everybody else
should as well. This is my work, so give me credit for it. In other
words this FAQ is copyright 2000 Adrian Au<cerebrate@spacewar.com>.

Marvel vs Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes is copyright 2000 by Capcom.
Marrow and all other characters are registered trademarks of their
respective companies of Marvel Comics and Capcom Entertainment.


=================
Table of Contents
=================

I. Revision History
II. Character Introduction
III. Controls
IV. Simple, Special & Super Moves
V. Combomania
VI. Quirks and Other Stuff
VII. Strategy
VIII. Final Words


===================
I. Revision History
===================

Ver 1.00 1-5-2000
A very sketchy FAQ, bare bones kinda stuff (no pun intended). Only
things off the top of my head. Simple Moves, Combomania and other
sections aren't necessarily complete nor correct. 

Ver 1.01 8-5-2000
Yay! First update! Just a few little entries here and there.
Information, suggestions and corrections are still greatly 
appreciated.

Ver 1.03 15-5-2000
More stuff added than the last update, hence the 1.03 label. Typos 
fixed. I've tried to prune the FAQ down to a more readable length but 
it's still grown to 23Kb.

Ver 1.05 28-5-2000
Not much changed. More typos, more simple moves and her second win
pose.

Ver 1.06 5-6-2000
Double jump combo added. Not much else.


==========================
II. Character Introduction
==========================

A new character, Marrow (that's the girl with the bone daggers) hails
from the comic book universe of Marvel. She first appeared as a
Morlock child in the X-Men comic books a couple of years ago. For 
those unacquainted with the Morlocks, they were a band of mutants, 
often with horrid disfigurements, that fled from the modern world 
into the sub-sub-basement of the New York sewers. Sarah (that's what 
she was known as back then) has since grown up hating humans and 
emerged as a brash and arrogant mutant terrorist. Recently she was 
persuaded to assist the X-Men and eventually joined them. She is 
characterised by bony knife-like protrusions, mainly on her back, 
and can pull them out to use as weapons.  
Weird is the word to describe our little calcium dysfunction. Her 
different moves are great for confusing a human opponent. All in all
she is a slightly unorthodox character and compliments almost any
team with her speed and combo ability.


=============
III. Controls
=============

You should know the buttons by now but if you don't I'll put them in
anyway.
A slight change to the six-button setup has implemented since Capcom's
last Versus game. Because there is a need to control 3 characters the
button layout is now as follows:
      _            _            _
     (_)          (_)          (_)
 Jab punch   Fierce punch    Assist1

      _            _            _
     (_)          (_)          (_)
 Short kick Roundhouse kick   Assist2

Strong punch and Forward kick have been changed. They are now executed
by a second press of Jab punch and Short kick and even then only if 
the first Jab/Short Kick hit. This means they are only ever used in 
combos. 
Since there are only two punches and two kicks I'll use the light
punch, heavy punch notation and not mention Strong punch and Forward
kick. I think it'll be less confusing for newbies and gaming veterans
shouldn't have a problem with it. The two assist buttons are used to 
control all sorts of things involving your other two partners.

Control notations:
------------------
LP: Light Punch
LK: Light Kick
HP: Heavy Punch
HK: Heavy Kick
P: Press any one punch
PP: Both punches at the same time (LP+HP)
K: Press any one kick
KK: Both kicks at the same time (LK+HK)
A1: Assist 1
A2: Assist 2
D: Down
U: Up
F: Forward
B: Back
DF: Diagonal Down/Forward
DB: Diagonal Down/Back
QCF: Quarter Circle Forward (D, DF, F)
QCB: Quarter Circle Back (D, DB, B)
HCB: Half Circle Back (F, DF, D, DB, B)
ZF: Forward Dragon Punch (F, D, DF)


=================================
IV. Simple, Special & Super Moves
=================================

Stuff to know
-------------
I shouldn't have to tell you about tech-hits, push-blocks, evasion 
rolls and such, so I won't. Any budding arcade addicts wanting to know
the basics should go to the moves list FAQs (KMegura and CJayC have 
posted excellent ones). I'm only gonna include the newer changes or 
things I feel are of particular importance to Marrow's game.

Double and Triple Jumps are small hops in mid-air that extend airtime
and have great potential for extending combos. Marrow has a Double
Jump. Just tap U again while airborne. Very useful for lining up her
Ride & Slash.

Super Jumps, like the name says, are jumps which are, well... super.
With a simple D, U movement of the joystick or KK, your character will
rocket themselves up into the air about one or two screens and come
floating back down at normal pace. Basically an ultra high jump. Very
useful for evading attacks and launching an assault.

Press any one of the assist buttons and if the corresponding partner
isn't dead they will jump out, do a single attack and jump out again.
This is what most of us call a Partner Assist. Partner assists are an
integral part of the game. They can lay cover fire as you dash in to
attack, they can be a one button anti-air defense (BBHood's Cheer &
Fire!), they can add a few hits on to any attack (ever had 4+
projectiles coming at you?) or you could use them as a human shield.
The attack they perform is decided at character selection. You'll have
to play around with them to work out the best uses of these assists.
The partner assist you choose also determines what they contribute to
the team super and partner counters. Marrows assists are listed under 
Quirks and Other Stuff.

Ever noticed when you jump over to the other side of the opponent they
turn around? Ever noticed that if they were blocking that they are 
suddenly blocking the wrong direction? Crossups take advantage of this
technicality to hit the opponent while they are (aren't) blocking. 
Crossups aren't as useful in the Versus series because of characters 
with vertical attacks (eg. Capt Commando, Ken, Iron Man), and counter 
moves (Jill & Cammy). They are now best used to connect an assist.

Tag In's are like tag team wrestling where one of your reserve
characters jump in with an attack, your current player jumps out to
recuperate and the fight continues. Press both weak attacks to switch
with your second character and both strong attacks to switch your
third character. When Marrow tags in she says 'Let me in!', dunno why.
Note that if a Tag In isn't blocked, the victim goes spiraling up and
back down giving you a chance to unload a few juggle hits or OTG hits.
What's OTG? Read on.

OTG hits, known to some people as 'On The Ground' and to others as
'Off The Ground'. It really doesn't matter because you do them while
they are ON the ground and knock the other guy OFF the ground. OTGs
are usually ducking weak attacks (Marrow's ducking LK) but some 
special moves and supers have OTG properties (like Hulk's rockwave 
thingy). Its possible to go from some OTG hits into a launcher and air
combo. This is the stuff you use to pile on the damage.

Launchers if unblocked will launch (duh!) your opponent into the air
where you can follow them with a quick tap U and attack them for more
hits with an air combo. Marrow's launcher is D+HP. Use these combined 
with OTGs to carve great chunks out of the opponents life meter.

Snapbacks enable your character to forcibly remove an enemy character
from the match (only temporarily though). It requires one level of the
super meter and is done with a QCF and an assist button. The opponent 
fly's off the screen and is replaced by another (probably 
corresponding to the assist button used). Note this is blockable and, 
quite frankly, not worth wasting one super meter on. The only reason 
I can think of for using this is to keep the same opponent in the 
game when they are low on life.

Hyper Combos, Team Hyper Combos and Delayed Hyper Combos are all
explained together under Super Moves below. What are Supers? That's 
just my name for Hyper Combos. I think it came from waaaay back, when 
I used to play Super Street Fighter II Turbo (Gees, what a name!).

Simple Moves
------------
Jab Punch: LP
  Standing- Extends her fist out. Good for fakeouts and combos.
  Crouching- Much the same except crouching.
  Jumping- Her fist sticks out slightly angled downwards.

Strong Punch: (only in combos)
  Standing- Sarah switches hands and does a slash. 
  Crouching- 
  Jumping- 

Fierce Punch: HP
  Standing- She does a big slash that reminds me of Wolverine's FP.
  Crouching- Her Launcher. A two handed slash upwards. Good recovery 
             if blocked.
  Jumping- Swings down with both hands. Not much range but this hits 
           hard!

Short Kick: LK
  Standing- A quick kick
  Crouching- Another quick kick only lower. Not much different.
  Jumping- 

Forward Kick: (only in combos)
  Standing- A quick knee to the groin. Fast but seems to have less 
            range than the short kick.
  Crouching- While crouching, she sticks her leg upwards at 45 
             degrees. This also has problems connecting due to range.
  Jumping- 

Roundhouse Kick: HK
  Standing- Does a quick somersault kick. 
  Crouching- Spins around on the spot and sweeps low with both her 
             legs. Good speed and good range. A solid move to use. 
  Jumping- Does a quick somersault ending with her leg stuck out 
           horizontally. This isn't that fast as the somersault takes 
           a bit of time.

Throws: F+HP
  Fierce Punch- Grabs the opponent with one hand and quickly grows a 
                nasty looking bone gauntlet on the other. Ka-Pow! Can
                also be done in the air.

Special Moves
-------------
Bone-erang: QCF+P
A boomerang projectile. She throws one of her bones but it doesn't 
return to you like a normal boomerang. Instead it hangs around at 
3/4 of the screen for 2 seconds and can keep hitting your foe, 
letting you creep up to attack. Most people see it coming so use it 
for block damage, zoning and general harassment. Can be done in the 
air. The LP version swings out horizontally. The HP version curves 
upwards a little when standing on the ground and curves downwards when
thrown in mid-air. I think this move was inspired by Jedah from the 
Darkstalkers universe.

Towering Spine: ZF+P
Sarah crouches over and lets rip with bone spikes out of her back. An
impressive but basic anti-air move. Watch out for the noticeable lag 
at the end. Dashers like Wolverine and Cammy can and will take 
advantage of this.

Ride & Slash: HCB+P
She says something like 'Gimmie a ride' rather loudly and does a quick
jump. Its pretty hard to connect as the jump forward goes a fixed 
short distance. If it connects with the enemy she sits on their 
shoulders and slashes their face. Looks very cool but is easy to see 
coming and even easier to block (unless its a crossup). Best done in 
the air.

Ricochet Slash: QCB+K
She leaps back and propels herself off the wall into a lunge like Vega
of SF2 (I don't care what anybody out there thinks. To me, Vega is the
clawed Spaniard and Bison is the boss). This is a quick move that can 
often hit your opponent unawares. Just don't get predictable with it.

Super Moves
-----------
I think most of you know what Supers and Team Supers are from previous
games. Each character has their own Supers. Team supers are done
pressing both assist buttons but only one or two characters will do
the super if there is only one or two levels of the super meter fully
charged. Delayed Supers is the same thing... with a slight twist.
Whilst in the middle of a Super you can cancel it into another super
from one of your partners. This can be done again to string three
supers in a row. Just do the second or third characters super during
the current one, it sorts itself out. I don't know what the use of
this is yet when you can do a Team Super. Maybe its a safer way to
switch characters. Maybe it does more damage. In all cases, they look 
pretty damn stylish.

Stinger Bones: QCF+PP
Sarah really outdoes herself and launches whole strings of razor sharp
vertebrae at her opponent. A solid way to finish a combo.

Bone Buster: QCB+PP
Dozens of knives spring out of her back and home in on your opponent.
This can be done in the air and is an ideal way to finish an air combo
but only if your fast enough to connect it. I find it easier to do it
right on top of an opponent and make crossup blocking a nightmare! 


=============
V. Combomania
=============

Now here's the fun part!
I find there are four parts to my typical combo; the jump in, ground
combos, air combos and combo finishers. The names are pretty self
explanatory but its best if I describe how they link up. 
The usual sequence is the Jump in, Ground combo, Launcher, Air combo
and finally a combo finisher. Note the combo doesn't have to end here
(This is where OTGs come in), nor does it have to follow this order.
For example, the jump in is optional. You could just as easily dash it
and start with a ground combo. Also as easily, you can skip the
launched air combo and go straight into the finisher. All parts can
work on their own. It up you to piece together your favourite combos.
My personal favourites usually involve OTGs.

Jump ins
--------
1) LP, LP
2) LP, LK
3) LK, LK
4) LP, LK, LP
5) LP, LK, LK
6) LP, LK, LP, LK
Generally any two or three weak attacks as you come down. From here, 
you can go to any of the other three parts. Strong attacks can be used
towards the end but they will push or knock the opponent down. Either 
way you can't continue the combo. 

Ground Combos
-------------
Ground combos are pretty much like your jump ins, two or three weak 
attacks with one exception, you can also do crouching attacks. From 
here, you can go to air combos or a combo finisher. Note that you must
be very close to connect all four weak hits (the last standing LK will
be very short ranged).

Air Combos
----------
1) LP, LK, LP, LK
2) LP, LK, LP
This is where the real magic happens. To link a ground combo into an
air combo you must use her launcher. If they're already airborne pull 
off one these right there and then. There really is only one air 
combo series but you can take off the last one or two hits if you 
find it hard connecting the Ride & Slash or Bone buster as a combo
finisher.

Combo Finishers
---------------
1) HP
2) HK
3) Ride & Slash (HCB+P)
4) Stinger Bones (QCF+PP)
5) Bone Buster (QCB+PP)
Combo finishers are just heavy attacks, special moves or supers that 
knock the opponent away so you can't combo further. 
The Ride & Slash and the Bone Buster are hard to connect in air combos
and almost impossible to do in ground combos. To connect them after
air combos, I like to pause for a second with a double jump and then 
crossup with them. Though not technically a combo I find it easier and
more reliable. The Ride & Slash however, will connect straight after a
launcher.

Jeffrey Ryoko Tani submitted this air combo sequence:
After the launcher, LP, LK, LP, pause, LP, LK, U, LP, LK, LP, LK, Bone
Buster.
I think this is quite a difficult combo. Most of the time I miss the
last part after the double jump but I have connected the whole thing
at least twice. The pause is very small, only long enough to start
comboing her LP again. Try doing this after a launched OTG or in a
crossup assist.

==========================
VI. Quirks and Other Stuff
==========================

Animations
----------
Opening:
Marrow takes a peek from under a manhole cover and then pops out of 
the sewers. The manhole cover flips away and rolls to a stop at the 
opponents feet, the manhole itself mysteriously disappears and Marrow 
falls into a low fighting stance not unlike Spiderman.

Win pose:
1) She stands facing away from the screen. Over her shoulder, you can 
   see an evil glint in her eye.
2) With a flick of her wrist a dagger flys out towards the players, 
   cracking the 'screen' in the process. 

Losing to time out:
Disgusted, she turns away and chucks one of her bone daggers into the
ground.

Assists & Team Supers
---------------------
Projectile Type (Alpha): Bone-erang / Bone Buster
Anti-Air Type (Beta): Towering Spine / Bone Buster
Expansion Type (Gamma): Ricochet Slash / Stinger Bones

My favourite assist would have to be her expansion one. It sweeps 
across the screen making it a sure hit on ground opponents and doesn't
linger on screen long enough to eat an opponent's super like her
other assists.

Costume Colours
---------------
LP: Green
LK: Blue
HP: Lavender
HK: Light Green
A1: Grey
A2: Purple


=============
VII. Strategy
=============

There are heaps of very different characters in MvC2 and there is no 
single tactic I can give to defeat all of them with the same degree of
success. For example, Jin is a counter player with very high priority 
moves and won't beaten with the same tactics used on a poker like 
Gambit. Marrow can be a difficult character to start with. Her main 
feature is the odd trajectories her moves have. Unfortunately, this
means she has no single move or tactic that beginners can reliably
fall back against if they ever find themselves in trouble.
Take the offensive. Although she isn't as effective at this tactic as 
characters like Spiderman or Jill, stay in the opponents face and 
don't let up. You have heaps of small and large combos at your 
disposal, use them. Poke high and low. Infinite helpers are available.
Dash or jump in for combos. Throw in a few Bone-erangs and Ricochet 
Slashes. Mix it up. Keep the opponent guessing where the next attack 
will come from. 
If everything goes as planned you'll never need to play defensive. But
everyone at some time will find a challenger better at controlling the
pace of the the match than them, so I've included a few pointers. It 
varies by your opponent and their characters but roughly 70% of all 
attacks will come from the air. If you do not wish to block these, 
counter with her launcher, a partner assist (I find Cyclops' uppercut
to be unbeatable) or even a super. Or you could simply switch to a 
more suitable character. Remember that nothing can substitute for
knowledge and experience of your opponent's strengths, weaknesses and
tactics.

Abyss Strategy
--------------
Never use assists against Abyss (projectile assists against the 2nd
form is the only exception). You can use Marrow's supers against all
Abyss' forms relatively safely but I like to save them up for a team 
super finish against the 3rd form. 

1st Form: The armoured form is a pushover. Get up close and personal
to do small combos. When he winds up for an attack, block (duh!) and
hit him again while he recovers. You can jump over to the other side 
of him and unload a few more hits as he slowly turns around. In no 
time you'll get to the...

2nd Form: The green slime form has one very, VERY itchy trigger 
finger. He utilises all manner of projectile attacks from 
flame-throwers to lasers to big bubbles of goo! Stay airborne and 
away. Continually throw Bone-erangs at him. You can try a Ricochet 
Slash or two but it can be pretty hard to get past the flame-thrower. 
Whenever he disappears into the ground he's going to launch those 
bubbles. Jump, try to stay airborne and attack the bubbles. Even if 
the bubbles trap you he can't really hit you with anything up there. 
As with the 1st form, this one is real slow to turn around so if you 
ever find yourself facing his back, combo him before he gets you in 
his sights. When you defeat him you reach the final form.

3rd Form: The big red beast. If you have been stocking up your super 
meter, this is easy. Just pile the damage onto Abyss with supers 
(I've seen Iron Man defeat this form with four Ion Cannons, nothing
else). If you haven't, this part can get quite lengthy.
Most important, you must block or you will get hammered. I know it
may be difficult but learn to anticipate Abyss' attacks. The only time
you can get solid hits on him is before he attacks. Combo him and
block the attacks. Secondly, not only can you hit his beast form but 
also that funny ball that's sometimes floating in mid air. Against 
this form it doesn't pay to turtle all day. You simply won't get the 
chance to hit him afterwards. Neither is it good to be overly 
offensive because you're gonna get slammed in all directions. That's 
about it! Congrats on finishing the game but it seems Capcom weren't 
bothered to create 52 individual endings for each character (I 
wouldn't! Would you?).


=================
VIII. Final Words
=================

Acknowledgments
---------------
Thanks to CJayC for being the legend he is. Apologies to you (you were
right about the Bone-erang). A pat on the back for Marvel and Capcom. 
Keep the games coming. 
I stand in awe of all you guys and girls out there who have ever 
written a game FAQ. I now have a better idea on how long these things 
take to get right.
Most of all, a big thank you to Lucas Chang for being so good but not 
having the guts to write his own FAQ, he made me do it. Now I'm 
famous and you're not!
Thanks to Matt McD for suggestions on assists and combos. Also, thanks
to Jeffrey Ryoko Tani for the double jump combo.
If you want your 5 minutes of fame, help me fill out or correct this 
FAQ. If I haven't already got it, I'll give the credit to you, honest!

For all you math geniuses out there
-----------------------------------
From 56 characters, with 3 assists each to chose from, there is a 
total of 168 different assists in the game. There are 27720 different 
combinations of teams with 27 combinations of assists for each team 
making a total of 748440 different combinations of teams and assists. 
768398400 different 2 player team matchups, 560162433600 if you 
include assist variations. Anyone want to hazard a guess at how many 
different team supers there are? Remember that most characters have 
the same super for at least two of their assist choices and the fact 
that team supers don't always involve 3 characters. From my 
calculations there are 299466 of them (but don't trust me, work them 
out for yourself). 

Legal Stuff
-----------
Feel free to download or print this FAQ but get my permission first if
you wish to post or distribute it or any part of it. Do not use any
part of this FAQ for making profit. You got it free, everybody else
should as well. This is my work, so give me credit for it. In other
words this FAQ is copyright 2000 Adrian Au<cerebrate@spacewar.com>.

Marvel vs Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes is copyright 2000 by Capcom.
Marrow and all other characters are registered trademarks of their
respective companies of Marvel Comics and Capcom Entertainment.

Contacting Me
-------------
Suggestions, additions and corrections are always welcome. You 
should know this by now but I can be reached at 
cerebrate@spacewar.com. Only contact me in regards to MvC2 or this 
FAQ but I will not send updates of this FAQ to any mailing list. Get 
it from www.gamefaqs.com. My latest updates will always be posted 
there. Permission has been given to <http://www.gamesdomain.com.uk>, 
<http://vgstrategies.about.com> and <www.popcultureshock.com/norimaro>
to post this FAQ.

Not bad for my first FAQ. Now get out there and slay the opposition!
