How to One Strike [+DLC]

Have you ever considered playing One Strike but didn’t know how to approach it? If so, this guide is for you! Now updated for DLC!

BASICS

Movement
You can move your character left or right by taking a step in said direction or by dashing. Remember that you can’t perform any other action like parrying until the animation ends.

Attacking
In order to strike you have to push the [attack] button twice. First press makes your character enter an attack stance, with the second press they perform an attack. There is no time limit to how long you can stay in the attack stance, but you can’t move (step) as long as you’re in it. It’s up to you when to attack – you can simply double tap the button for fast strike or delay it to confuse your opponent.

Blocking
If you are going to raise the difficulty level above easy, you should definitely learn how to block. Your character will block attacks only during the animation for the block itself (eg. only when Kenji’s sword is unsheathed), not before or after that. This means you can land a hit even when your opponent hasn’t fully recovered from the block animation. The trick is to learn how long each character stays in the blocking stance – and strike accordingly.

Canceling
There are two „action” buttons in One Strike – [attack] and [block]. You already know that you have to double tap the [attack] button to strike – but there is another option. If you push [block] and then [attack] you can cancel the blocking stance into the attack stance. The same goes the other way around – you can cancel the attack stance into a block.

Moreover, you can cancel any stance (blocking or attacking) by pressing the [dash] button.

CHARACTER STATS BREAKDOWN

Key to the table:
attack cooldown = time before launching an attack
attack recovery = time after an attack(s) needed to perform another action

Kenji

Attack type	Dash and Strike
Range	Medium
Attack cooldown	Medium (or Long)
Attack recovery	Short

Soujirou

Attack type	Slash
Range	Long
Attack cooldown	Medium
Attack recovery	Medium

Tomoe

Attack type	Double Strike
Range	Close + Medium
Attack cooldown	Medium + Long
Attack recovery	Long

Hangoku

Attack type	Kusarigama (armed chain) Throw	Scythe Stab
Range	Half the screen	Close
Attack cooldown	Long	Medium (no attack stance)
Attack recovery	Very long	Short

Bailong

Attack type	Jump and Slash	Backward Jump and Slash
Range	Very Long	Close
Attack cooldown	Medium (no attack stance)	Long (no attack stance)
Attack recovery	Short	Short

Hinode

Attack type	Dash-jump and Strike
Range	Half the screen
Attack cooldown	Instant to Long (depending on distance)
Attack recovery	Very long

Dragon (DLC)

Attack type	Shuriken Throw	Dagger Slash
Range	All the way	Close
Attack cooldown	Medium (no attack stance)	Short (no attack stance)
Attack recovery	Medium	Short

Daiyu (DLC)

Attack type	Step Back Slashes	Close Range Slash	Step Forward Slashes
Range	Medium	Close	Half the Screen
Attack cooldown	Short (no attack stance)	Medium	Short (no attack stance)
Attack recovery	Short	Short	Short

Lotus (DLC)

Attack type	Stance Attack	Flurry of Strikes
Range	Close	Medium
Attack cooldown	Medium	Short (no attack stance)
Attack recovery	Medium	Short

GENERAL VERSUS TIPS

General tips
First of all you should always observe your opponent. You can’t do two things at he same time, so fast decision making is crucial – block or attack? There is no universal golden rule for that, even an AI can adapt to your tactics. Know the cooldowns, range, and decide for yourself.

Moving around
Each character has unique attack pattern and range. Don’t hesitate to move in and out of it just to burn the opponent’s ability to block, and then strike (dash in maybe?). Similarly, when your opponent moves a lot, you can try to close the distance and strike first.

Blocking
Do it! Unless you want to become a sitting duck ;)

VERSUS TIPS (PLAYING AS...)

Kenji
Remember that your strike has a pretty low cooldown. You can corner your opponent and mash the [attack] button. Really. If you have any higher ambitions – block, then strike. You don’t have to be close to your opponent to kill him – Kenji makes a dash before each strike.
Sometimes when your strike hits the air, your recovery time skyrockets, leaving you somewhat dizzy and exposed. In other words, missing is an easy way to lose a life...

Soujirou
Having a long sword means having long recovery times – you can’t just mash [attack] this time. It’s very important to know your range – it’s your biggest friend!

Tomoe
Her second strike has slightly longer range so you can set a trap for your opponent. Just remember that you can be hit before the second one even launches.
Unlike Kenji, Tomoe stands still during her attack. It’s a good idea to close the distance (dash in?) to make a hit with the first strike, leaving the second one as a backup in case you miss.

Hangoku
Her chain attack has the longest cooldown in the game. First you have to spin it, then release. If your opponent dodges it by moving out, you can try again, but if he gets too close – block instead. Your block is an attack too, you know. Just try to space him out, then strike.

Bailong
With his flashy strikes you can pretty easily distract your opponent. Remember that before the strike (marked in yellow), you have to spin your glaive a lot (gray trials), leaving you vulnerable. Also your dodge button (dash out) is an attack too! So many options!

Hinode
Depending on the distance to you opponent, your jump-strike will look differently. At close range Hinode will stab your opponent and jump out, at longer distance she will jump in and then do the stabbing. If you miss – you are pretty much dead because of the roll that she’ll perform.

Dragon (DLC)
Dragon’s best friend is his trusty shuriken. Only at Easy difficulty level he can throw more than one – but only one more. CPU characters seems to have even more than that, obviously. Once thrown (note: there is no attack stance, just somewhat long attack animation), it can travel all the way to the other side of the screen, meaning that your opponents have only two ways of defending themselves, blocking or rolling beneath the blades of the shuriken. The problem is that Dragon has no defense, only simple roll. Instead, hitting [block] button makes him invisible (note: not invincible). On that point no one can see him – even the player himself. You have to know your movement speed and follow Dragon in your mind only. Hitting [block] again will launch a sneak attack – a dagger slash. The same goes if you hit [attack] button without any shuriken left. You can always track how many of them you have by looking at your hero portrait. Anyway, any form of attack will cause you to loose your stealth.

Having a limited source of shurikens means one thing – if you loose them, you have to think fast or you’re dead. Only some fancy moves will save you, so try to be creative. Or just faster than your opponent. You can try to follow your shuriken and perform a slash just after the blocking animation is over. Or just bait them to think you are going to throw it – and then do it for real when they are vulnerable.

Daiyu (DLC)
Well, if you thought Dragon is cheap, then look what I’ve found! Daiyu is a character with double “hook swords” (Shuang Gao). They’re made in a way that a wielder can just hook one into another and swing them like one. That means you can do much harm from the distance, as the range doubles. On the contrary, Daiyu has no special moves – only block. No dashing this time, sorry. One special tip. You can combo your attacks, no stance inbetween. Or you can simply slash with standard attack: it has short range and starts with attack stance. But really, who cares?

Lotus (DLC)
Lotus’ greatest strength is her agility. Once she begin striking, it takes more than luck to stop her. Try to close as much as possible and strike with her second attack, overwhelming your opponent with neverending chain of fast attacks. Plus you gain ground by performing that kind of strikes. Two birds with one stone!

VERSUS TIPS (PLAYING AGAINST…)

Kenji
With his dash-and-strike routine he can be somewhat threatening. Just remember to parry and strike when he moves.

Soujirou
His biggest asset is his attack range. Try to close in as much as possible, block his attack and then strike him down.

Tomoe
When the AI is playing Tomoe, it likes to dash a lot. You can easily land a hit when she’s not ready to block at all.

Hangoku
Because of her range she can be a nightmare for new players, but can become somewhat easy to play against. Just before her attack you can hear a swoosh, basically telling you to hit [block]. Always try to move in as much as possible, then strike. If necessary – block again.

Bailong
His unique attack pattern is his strength and weakness at the same time. He moves as he strikes, so try to attack before he gets in your range. Also you can try to sneak past his swings as not every one of them is a blocking one. And don’t forget that when he backs up the last swing becomes an attack!

Hinode
Try to space her out and strike from the distance. Just like Bailong, she moves during her attack. Spot the moment and slash her when she jumps at you.

Dragon (DLC)
Having to throw your only real weapon is easy to perform, but can have grave consequences. Once Dragon have nothing to throw he has to get really close. He can become invisible, but not invincible. Just roll or block his throw, then sweep him one attack at a time, moving a bit closer so he will have to retreat or die trying.

Daiyu (DLC)
That one is tough. Short frames of vulnerability between Daiyu’s chained attacks leaves you with only few options. Bait her to move closer, try to block one sequence of her attacks… or strike with something that has even more range! <evil laugh>

Lotus (DLC)
OK, so there’s the deal: either you stop her BEFORE she gets to you, or you’re dead. Or you can call for Fortune's blessing. You decide.

SECRET AREA

Oni

Attack type	Mace to the Face	Charged Mace to the Face
Range	Very Long	Very Long
Attack cooldown	Long (no attack stance)	Very Long (no attack stance)
Attack recovery	Medium	Long

Playing as Oni
It is said that his charging attack can smash through any block. You know what to do ;)

Playing against Oni
Wait for him to charge an attack, then dash in and finish the demon!

[KusoLP]

Hangoku and ninja are very fun, my mains in tournaments

[Freakasaurus Rex]

hey does anyone know where a database for Frame Data based on this game (I was hoping to know exactly how many start up and recovery frames each character's block and attacks have), if people havent yet collected accurate frame data for the game, do you think people would appreciate me personally testing and posting frame data here on steam?

[Inc4nuS]

Yeah!!! This is amazing! Thanks for the caring!

[ЗА ПОБЕДУ]

Praise the lord

[HitPoint]

OK guys, IT IS DONE! The DLC update is finally here :P Sorry for the wait!

[Inc4nuS]

Hahahaha! You did an amazing job with the How To. Loved it! Do you know about the discord server for One Strike? https://discord.gg/TuCzPkp

[ЗА ПОБЕДУ]

:))

[HitPoint]

Wow, a dev comment :D So much fame Sure thing ;) First I have to get some more spare time (by the end of this month I think), then I will definitely play One Strike some more :) Everyone hop onto the Hype Train xD

[Inc4nuS]

Oh my god! This is amazing! Thank you for posting this here! I loved it! Would you do it for the DLC?

[ЗА ПОБЕДУ]

I always found Hinode to be the one my friends gravitated too because he could leap across the screen and kill you if you didn't block fast enough. Kenji is defo a beginner character but is still very good. The DLC Characters i think have quite bad AI but i haven't actually played them yet.
The AI is a very mixed bag when it comes to the characters.