Blocking

“I want you. To hit me. As *hard* as you can.”

—Cell to Vegeta

Blocking
Users	Universal
Alternate Names	Guarding Defending
Ki Cost	0-1 (Guard Cancel)
Type	Physical Universal Mechanic

Blocking is a Universal mechanic essential to Dragon Ball FighterZ. It is simply the act of guarding against an enemy attack. To block, simply hold the direction opposite of the foe (backwards). If the foe attempts to hit the player while they are blocking, the attack will do minimal damage, be unable to knock out the foe regardless, and will result in the defender being unable to perform many actions while blocking. (Can be done in the air)

Types Of Blocking

There are five types of attacks that interact differently with how the foe is blocking. Overhead attacks will hit an opponent that is blocking while crouched. Low hitting attacks will hit an opponent who is blocking while standing. Middling attacks will be blocked either way. Throws cannot be blocked, and are beaten out by using an attack. Counter moves are activated when an enemy attempts to attack the user while the move is active. Trying to confuse the opponent and cause them to block incorrectly is a key part of offense in this game.

Blockstrings

A series of attacks with no gaps that a defender could successfully perform an attack through is known as a blockstring. When blocking an attack, the defender cannot attack unless there is a gap long enough for them to do so. However, they will continue to block automatically as long as there is not. While defending, the defender cannot attack, call an assist, jump, use a Vanish Attack, tag out, perform a Super Dash, perform a Dragon Rush, or use Sparking Blast. This does not mean they will switch between crouching and standing however. That action must be done manually. A good way to test if a blockstring is real, and unable to be countered through is to go into training mode and set the training dummy to "guard first only". This will cause the dummy to only block the first time they are attacked. If a blockstring has holes, the enemy will get hit, meaning there was an opportunity for the foe to counter.

Guard Cancel

As a character will continue to guard as long as there is no gap in a blockstring, while defending, there is one way to tag out to a different character. It is known as a Guard Cancel. Pressing forward and the desired partner's tag button will cause one meter of ki to be used, and a switch to be performed. This can only be done if a meter of ki is available.

Trivia

• The minimal amount of damage done to a foe that is blocking is recoverable, and is known as chip damage. In Dragon Ball FighterZ, the amount of chip damage dealt to a blocking opponent is extremely low compared to other games of the same genre. In this game, it is impossible to knock out a character with this tiny amount of damage, while it is in other games. A few attacks deal a noticeable amount more chip damage than any others in the game, even if it isn't a lot by the fighting game genre's standards. These moves include Destructo Disc (Android 18), Destructo Disc (Krillin), and Energy Cutter, as well as Super Spirit Bomb. (Goku)