Overview
Devo has the most unorthodox gameplan since he is a true puppet character at it's best. Unlike other puppet characters, his puppet is always available, but it requires repositioning. He also still has threatening options after making mistakes thanks to his reversals, a large health pool and decent enough normals. He's easier to play than most puppet characters, but he's still the most difficult character in the game to play. However, once you get past his high entry point, he has a lot of tricks up his coat that you can use against less experienced opponents, while still being a solid character.
Being s.on
The basic guide to doing anything s.on is as follows. First, ask yourself "Will I be able to react if that guy makes a run for me?" If the answer is no, don't do that thing, unless you want to go for a risky mixup, but if you do, PLEASE ensure that it will at least get blocked otherwise you might already be dead. Also, consider the doll position after an attack. If a character can reliably keep you away from your doll, don't overcommit, as even if you go s.off, you will be in a bad position. You have various options of attacking, be it poking with s.5a/d.s.5a, s.5b, s.6b, or something more direct, like IAD, with differing levels of commitment. Deriving from that, the further the opponent and the less mobile they are, the less risk in being s.on. You also don't want to go on defense s.on if it's possible to get stand crushed, as you take increased stand gauge damage on block.
Pressure
Devo's mixups are very effective. Mostly unreactable, he can get a combo from almost any doll normal and has some blockstrings to catch his enemies mashing. Unfortunately, these mixups are a bit commital, making them punishable if read correctly. Almost any combo starter can function as a pressure option, if the doll is close. If the doll is further, use 5c xx 214c/236c 5c. This is safe unless GC'd, starts combos and doesn't affect ips or scaling, but it's character specific, as your opponent can be too thin for the 2nd 5c to connect. Here's a spreadsheet of whether it's possible or not:
Okizeme
Stand off
Devo has two main options involving the puppet. The first one is, after knockdown, doing 214a, trying to hit it a few frames after the opponent wakes up and pressing 2a just before it hits. Hitting 2a and 214a at the same time is a true unblockable, but only hitstun from 2a will apply, limiting your options. There are a few issues with this oki. It's very hard to hit 2a or 214x meaty, as both attacks are active for only 2 frames. 2a also triggers IPS, which means you have to make haste to confirm into a super or end your combo. It's also very risky on characters with fast wakeup time and/or good reversals (Vice, Avdol, Rubber Soul, Iggy, Devo etc.). You can also loop the oki with 214x and 2c.
Timing assistance:
Your other option is the crossup oki, which is a guaranteed meaty. After knockdown, do 236c and roll. After a successfully hit 236c you can extend the oki by jumping over the opponent and doing crossup j.c 5c, but against taller characters you have to guess whether they'll stand or crouch and do a normal jump or a shorthop accordingly. This is unscaled and doesn't trigger IPS, however you won't be able to perform all combos, as there won't be a lot of space between you and the puppet, it's easier for the opponent to fall out of your grasp. It's recommended to perform a super or end the combo not too late.
Demonstration:
Or just do 2c after doll hits , you can do Spear UB on some characters after that.
Both of these options are viable, with spear oki being easier to combo off of, while still being tricky to block, at the cost of less consistency and higher risk, while the crossup oki offers a faster, more damaging option, with the drawback being harder conversions to full combos and it being possible to block just by holding forward(!).
Mix these both up, sticking to a single one will make the opponent more able to block it.
Stand on
S.on you also have a few options. The most straightforward is just IAD into combo. Your other options include d.s.2b xx s.22c, d.s.2b into grab, meaty s.5a into grab (or combo, but don't count on it).
If you want to be fancy, you can use crossup s.j.c. It is done by jumping over the opponent and hitting them with the back of the hitbox. If you're absolutely sure they will block high use s.3b xx 214s. It's highly unsafe if blocked, but is a very easy tandem confirm.
Most highly rewarding s.on okis are unsafe, resort to s.off options whenever possible.
Neutral
Footsies
Devo's footsies are a bit tricky. He follows the trend of s.on normals being better than s.off, but his remote-onlyness makes going s.on impractical for playing full-on neutral as the main body is not protected. Your neutral will consist of hanging around your doll, moving around with your pretty good dash and pressuring your opponent, abusing your short hurtbox to duck some of the more annoying attacks. Lacking a way to be a consistent threat in neutral is one of devo's weaknesses, which blocks him from being higher in the tier list. He can mitigate that weakness with 214aa, but his meter build is probably the worst in the game. More on that later.
He has one of the fastest rolls in the game, but common sense should tell you not to abuse that as well. Rolling can be a nasty habit when using characters like Devo, Hol, and Ice because of how fast they are making it feel very fluid, and, as with Ice, roll 5c has a similar mixup potential, but it's not a low.
If you are on your own, grabbing the opponent with a tick throw will shuffle the position a bit and getting a HKD will allow you to quickly get away. Jumping and rolling are also options, albeit risky. You might get grabbed, and you'll definitely get antiaired, but you'll be able to get over to the doll.
Doll positioning
You're relying on doll placement since it plays a big part in Devo's general gameplan. You can relocate the doll by going s.on or doing s.off specials. The latter can also be used for pressure, but can be easily punished in some matchups.
Typically, the doll has to be between you and the opponent in neutral and behind them if you're pressuring. It's of course matchup dependent, as some characters allow you to get away with much more than others.
Antiairing, air-to-airing and tech chasing
You're very susceptible to high air mobility characters if you overcommit. Against such characters you should stand your ground with the doll and keep them away.
You have a couple antiairs, none of which give you a lot of guaranteed reward. Thus, you'll have to resort to tech chasing if you want to get meaningful damage.
| Move | Notes |
|---|---|
| s.2c/d.s.2c | Big hitbox, but quite slow and can be tricky to hit. Use only after a second jump, if they're s.on, and won't just jump over it, as they will get to you that way. |
| s.5b | It's rare to see your opponent jumping in on the doll, but if they do, it's good at its job. Can also be used to catch opponents trying to dance around a s.off doll with s+5b. |
| s.6a | Same as before, reaches higher and can be panic mashed near devo when the opponent jumps in at him to get a bit more time. |
| s.4b | Quicker and shorter hitbox than s.2c |
| 5c | Using this is a gamble, as it launches at a downward angle. If the opponent techs down, it's punishable on hit, but if they don't, you get to attack with what you have at your disposal thanks to the inactionable frame after landing. |
| 5a | For characters in your face, like vice. |
| 6b | Effective, big hitbox, but slow startup, moves you forward. |
| 22c | creates a field that can't be landed on, continuing your tech chase. |
| Move | Notes |
|---|---|
| j.a | Highest hitbox of s.off jumping normals, for contesting from below |
| j.b | Nicely disjointed, for contesting side to side |
| j.c | The funny, active the whole way down, for contesting from above, will usually trade with other air-to-airs |
| s.j.a | Use s.j.b, while it has bigger hitbox, it's only active for 1 frame and deals almost 2 times less damage |
| s.j.b | Your main air-to-air s.on, can be used for blockstrings |
| s.j.c | For tech chasing, has multiple hitboxes, but low priority. |
Meter
You need super bars to extend your combos and get out of tight situations, as 214aa is a get-out-of-jail-free card. With it, you can punish opponents that get a bit too comfortable stuffing you out. Tandem can also be used for that purpose, but it's highly telegraphed, so a non-committed opponent can get out, and 236aa is fully invincible until super flash. Both 623aa and the s.on version are bad.
You have amazing supers, but not meter build. Actually, devo has one of the worst meter builds in the game. While mashing in neutral, the maximum amount he can get from a single normal is 2, e.g. from chained s.5a, this is also your best tool for that situation. Your main source of meter is s.22c, unsafe on hit if not canceled into tandem. You also can build meter mid-combo with a non-ips loop, but you first need to succeed in neutral. So yeah. Not great.
That's why you can't afford to waste meter. Panic 214aa can work, but with a good read it is downright terrifying. With the press of a button, your pressure is now my ToD or oki. Also, if they block, but are s.on, it's usually possible for you to IOH s.off with j.a or j.b, getting a combo regardless. Also also, you relocate the doll.
Don't waste meter, kids.
Avoiding IPS
Devo is a character with really long combos, which greatly improves the chance of them dropping due to IPS. Here are a few tips to minimise its effect on your play.
1. Don't use 2a
This might be a bit counterintuitive, as 2a is one of your best normals, used for plinking, extending and finishing combos, however this is one of the 4 normals that trigger IPS for you, the others being 5a, d5a and d2a. As you can see, only 2a really matters and using 5c in conjunction with the double 5c table given a few paragraphs ago completely nullifies any chance of you getting IPS'd.
2. Count your hits
After 2a hits, you have at least 8 more hits until IPS kicks in, watch the video to learn more. This means within those 8 hits, you should end the combo or...
3. Use meter
Using tandem or 214aa turns off IPS, pretty self explanatory.
4. Move specific tips
When you're ending a combo, going for a KD, and you're not sure whether the 2nd hit of 2c won't connect due to IPS (yes, it's possible), you can use 5b, giving you less time for oki, but guaranteeing a knockdown if the combo's 9 hits or longer.
When using s22c to finish a combo, hold forward, IPS triggering during s22c will push the opponent away, potentially making you lose out on damage and making the move more unsafe.
Using 236c greatly increases the probability of IPS kicking in, end the combo immediately after if you ever use it after 2a, preferrably with 5b, not 2c.
