Abdul
Alessi
Alessi will try to rush you down with Tandems, heavy attack hops and sneaky Sethan dashing low moves. Being stuck in mid/close range against Alessi it's no fun. Your best options up close are 2a, 2b, 4c and get a sneaky 214+a to lock him down so you can WALK away or get some breathing space. If you get the chance to zone him with glass, stand/normal bullets, do it, but be wary of tandem attacks. As usual, try to snipe his jumping with a slow bullet or Sethan hand if you like to gamble. Another important thing to remember in this matchup is that 236a/b can whiff from close-mid range on Alessi unless he is dashing.
Black Polnareff
Fighting at close quarters with Black Polnareff is risky but doable, but if he manages to counter some of your attacks you have to bail, but keep in mind that 4c can NOT be countered by any character except Shadow DIO, so use that to your advantage. This match will depend on how good is your opponent, some people will be very easy to punish with your repertory of moves, and some will rush you really hard. Try to run, gun, then plan on what to do.
Chaka
Fairly infuriating matchup for Hol for a variety of reasons, but the key here is generally being very cautious not to mash or get predictable. Ideally, you'll want to try and hold a life lead as much as possible and keep him coming to you, otherwise he can just stall you out for force you into unsafe situations to get in. His air normals are great, but it's possible to use this to your advantage if you learn to read your opponent. Slow bullet is especially useful as an anti air here, but in this matchup specifically, Chaka seems to be prone to landing in the "sweet spot" of the glass in the 4A 623B anti air combo where you can essentially loop him until he techs forward or back. Both of these options are great damage in this matchup, so make sure to utilize them as best you can.
While on the ground, stick to your safe and non committal combo strings. If Chaka has meter, especially try to abstain from finishing with 214B because Chaka can utilize his iframes to hit you with either a super or a full bnb. At full screen, feel free to otherwise throw out some 236A/C to sometimes catch him in a dash, but be careful again at midscreen for his sweep. If he has meter, he can still punish 236C even if the sweep whiffs. If you predict the opponent is going to this however, you can just block and slap them with 5C 236B if they end up close or just do another basic combo string. In short, be smart and play patient while keeping commitment to a minimum.
Devo
Another rush character, but now you have to get away from the doll instead of Devo. Glass is your best friend in this matchup, do it to hit a jumping Devo, zone the doll movement or make Devo roll to get closer and separate him from the doll. Always think twice with your special/super moves, because if Devo doll is in the floor, you will probably eat a well timed super. 4C is your best friend in this matchup, and it also combos into 236AC
DIO
Roll freely in this matchup, if DIO decides to grab you then just do a recovery and 236+AA super him (sometimes even 214+AA if the DIO grabs you while you are cornered). Glass is good, but a well timed super knives or teleport might get you in trouble. if its a DIO that loves to teleport into your face, try to bait him into teleporting and then hit him with a well times slow bullet. Play safe and try to punish his teleports with a grab, 4c, or a slow bullet super.
Hol Horse
The definitive war of attrition. In this matchup, your best bet is doing all that you can to hold a life lead and only opening up with pokes, but with the added fun of your opponent doing the exact same thing and potentially punishing too much deviation from pokes and the occasional 236B/C with a ToD. Keep an eye out for mistakes and don't forget about chip damage because this is one matchup where it can actually make a big difference down the line. Otherwise your grab can come in handy here as a quick finisher that catches rolls (which Hol does a lot of) if your opponent is low enough on health. Have fun!
Hol & Boingo
Placeholder but obligatory disdain for Hoingo.
Iggy
Old Joseph
Just zone him and punish everything he does with whatever you want. The only thing you have to do is be aware of his super grabs and Hermit Purple grabs, because if they're good it will end in a long combo.
Jotaro
If you get caught by Jotaro you will live a life of pain. If he manages to get a single hit on you, it might become a devastating combo that will take at least 1/4th (in the best case) of your life. Always walk/run away from him while trying to hit him with a bullet or any other move.
Kakyoin
Equally or more anoying as Jotaro. He will most of the times start the match with a heavy stand attack, so either block or super it if you feel lucky. Whenever he stays at max range, he will spam Emerald splash and s.663c, so try to jump or low bullet. Whenever he jumps with his stand on, he will move really fast and high in the air, so dont try to slow bullet him and maybe snipe him with a glass shot. If he manages to get close, he will do mixups into a net that will trap you, and if you try to roll he might just grab you and do it all again. So try your hardest to stop this from happening.
Khan
Just zone him and slow bullet any air move he does. Nothing really can happen here unless you're new to the game.
Mariah
Zoner vs Zoner? Maybe. If her magnetism is really high you might be the one getting zoned, specially because you can't cut the power line cables and the knives become faster. Try to not touch the outlets and just zone her. If she gets close, you might struggle a little because its kind of hard to grab her with her spammable 2a.
Midler
There are two important moves you have to be very careful with. Grabs and Cars. Her grab has a really long range and its really anoying in the okizeme, so try to keep your distance. The cars have a really big hitbox that will knock you down of the air, so try to play on the ground. You can slow bullet her jump attacks or counter her harpoons with a well timed 236+bc super, but it can be risky. Also, always be aware of "Dinner time", it can get you with your guard down if you're zoning.
New Kakyoin
Easier than Kakyoin, a skinny Khan with sunglasses and red hair. Though it should be noted that 20-Meter Emerald Splash (s.on 236AA) can punish some of your moves like S Bullet and 623a/b/c more easily then you think.
Petshop
Hell. Theoretically you should be able to outzone some of his moves and shot him out of the air, but dont get confident because good Petshops will try to rush you down. Try to guard cancel whenever he tries to get close and punish his charge attack with a super. If you REALLY, i mean REALLY lucky, try to guess when he's going to teleport behind you and do a 214+aa super. Hanged man will catch him and you'll be able to combo it into another Hanged man super.
Polnareff
He can jingle your dingles all day. The best way to play this matchup is to punish him for things he's about to do. I know it doesn't make much sense, but basically you have to make some hard ass reads against him and make him scared. One thing you have that can help prevent him from fucking your day up with shooting star is A glass when timed right will stop chariot from lurking over you. Slow bullet super also can hit chariot when hes on the wall. Really you gotta zone and commit to some ballsy reads.
Shadow Dio
This matchup is something that can end very quickly for either side. S.Dio players tend to be rather jump happy which opens them up to potentially getting hit by your ToD, but keep in mind that his j.S can punish this if you get too careless and predictable. Keep your distance and be careful with rolling unless you want to get grabbed and crossed up into oblivion. Best to keep your distance and either chip him down or nail him with 236. If you can bait his book, you can punish with 236aa for some big damage too.
Rubber Soul
Rubber can be dangerous up close, but if you bait his 236aa and leave him meterless, he becomes a lot more limited. Since he lacks an active stand, he's vulnerable to chip and to being zoned out. Stick to your bullets and play a patient game, and mind that he's one of the only characters that Hol can actually safely grab so utilize the fact that you can grab him or tech out of his fairly brutal grab. Otherwise you can also punish his jump ins with the 4A 623B for some pretty big damage. All in all, keep away and don't let him catch you mashing if he gets in. He also can't punish your grab, which means that it's also a lot safer to try and tech his grabs so make sure to take advantage of it.
Vanilla Ice
From the top down, this matchup looks horrific but actually isn't as bad as a lot of Hol's other matchups with S tier characters as long as you have your fundamentals solid. However, this still isn't easy as you have to be extremely cautious against Ice since the vast majority of your damage against him is going to have to come from safe sources. You'll be denied a lot of your oki due to Ice's bizarre hitboxes and extremely quick wakeup time, not to mention going for a knockdown against him is seldom worth it due to how much easier it is for him to snuff out anything careless with 2c. However, your saving graces in this matchup include things such as Ice being unable to punish your grab if he doesn't have meter, and him generally lacking ranged tools. Additionally, if Ice attempts to use ball to approach, you can catch it in 214aa if you're fast enough. In summary, utilize your chip damage and don't throw out too many buttons. Avoid moves like 2c and 5c especially and just stick to your pokes up close, and try to whittle him down over time. It's grueling, but definitely winnable.
Vanilla ice can be troublesome for Hol if he gets in, so as usual, try your best to keep him out. If its an Ice that loves to use 236a/b/c you get a free super if he whiffs but keep in mind that 236AA is the least reliable as Ice can escape sometimes, which is why its best to go for 214AA or 421AA. (Note: there is a Ice version of the Hol TOD which is way easier to perform on him. https://twitter.com/tex_western/status/1020212258222329857 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50KxhVAShRQ
