Byakuren Hijiri/RicePigeon's version

Gameplay


Byakuren is technically a four-button character, but plays like a standard three-button character, using the extra buttons for shortcut;, when used combined with or  acts as a shortcut for the character's   and   dash commands.

One of Byakuren's defining features, taken straight from Hopeless Masquerade, is that in order to use specials, Byakuren must first declare them. Byakuren can only have one special declared at any time; attempting to declare another special will override the special currently declared. Once declared, Byakuren's declared special will be given a number of charges, which indicate how many times the special can be used before the special must be declared again. Certain specials will grant Byakuren certain effects upon declaration. For example;
 * Declaring Virudahka's Sword will allow that special's charges to carry over into Byakuren's next declared special, essentially granting Byakuren an extra charge.
 * Declaring Hanuman's Dance gives Byakuren a small amount of power.
 * Declaring Virupaska's Eye will nullify enemy projectiles, just like as if the move was used normally.

The tradeoff is that, while Byakuren is limited to being able to use only one special at a time, Byakuren has a special for almost all situations, allowing Byakuren to play either offensively or defensively depending on the situation. Additionally, Byakuren's normals have great utility to compensate for the general lack of flexibility in its specials. Aerial +, for example, is a two hit attack that hits High on the 1st hit and Low on the second hit, forcing the opponent to change their block direction. + is another two hit attack that is great for giving Byakuren an offensive approach due to its great range and forward velocity, and excellent in combos.