Zeydra

Model Number: xvm-zgc Pilot: Zeheart Galette
Cost: 2500 Hp: 600 Transform: X Form Change: O (X-Rounder Release)

The personal unit of Zeheart Galette, a Vagan with extraordinary X-rounder capabilities. The highly agile machine was developed specifically to keep up with Zeheart’s superhuman reaction speed and senses, and had impressive firepower to match.

Ability Summary

Ranged Armament Ammo DMG Notes
Main Zeydra Gun 7 75 Projectiles become thicker with BC active
Charged Main Khronos Summon 105/157/65 Khronos appears and performs one of 3 random actions.
Sub Beam Vulcan 60 15 ~120 (15 ~ 141) Reloads faster and the maximum number of shots per barrage increases with BC active
Special Shooting Beam Buster 1(2) 29 ~ 217 (31 ~ 231) Increased ammo and damage with BC active
Special Melee X-Rounder Release 100 Timer-based power-up. Improves various attacks and unlocks the use of the Ryuusei Kick
Burst Attack Shin Ryuusei Kick _ 307(F)/282(E & S) Activates X-Rounder release when using this move
Melee Input DMG Notes
5B 5BBB 178 Standard 3-stage combo
5B(B)~8BB 175 (210) Bounce Down 
5B(B)~8B~A 213 (235) Can be canceled into Sub
5B(B)~2B 207(233) High damage
8B 8BB 134 Bounce Down
4/6B

 

4/6BBB 170 Well-rounded 3-stage combo
2B 2BB 134 2-stage launcher
CC8B CC8BBB 176 Slash-through to launcher
BC BC 168 (156) Ryuusei Kick. Directional input influences the move performance and damage.

Cancel Routes:

A: AB, AC, BC (both the activation, and Ryuusei Kick)

CSA: AB, BC (both the activation, and Ryuusei Kick)

AB, AC, BC (X-Rounder release), various melee: Ryuusei Kick

5B(after second hit): 8B

5B~8B~A: AB

Overview

Zeydra is a unit with easy to use weapons and a great melee set on top of having high mobility. Canceling into its Beam Vulcan Sub allows it to freefall easily, making it that much harder for an enemy to read. Its X-Rounder release BC also further boosts its performance in various ways, making Zeydra a very agile all-rounder. 

However, Zeydra’s weapons are all very “honest”, most of which are projectiles that travel along the same straight path. The BC powerup truly does improve Zeydra’s performance, but not to the degree where it becomes a completely different monster (for example, Susanowo with Trans-Am, or Banshee with NTD). While Zeydra does not have any real weaknesses, it could also be said that its weapons do not have any overwhelming strengths, and weapons like its Sub can make it ambiguous if you can actually score a hard knockdown on enemies. It can be said that because Zeydra is an honest unit and it can’t rely on the BC powerup to make potentially lucky comebacks, Zeydra is a unit that accurately reflects a players skill, and his/her strong understanding of the basics and fundamentals of the game.

Ability Details

Ranged Weapons

Main: Zeydra Gun

A standard Beam Rifle shot. 3-second reload per shot. You are meant to use this in conjunction with your AB. This is great also in combos and for chasing down enemies. You’re not as reliant on your Main as many other MSes, but do try to conserve ammunition carefully. The projectile size of each shot increases with BC active.

Charged Main: Khronos Summon

4.5-second charge time. Zeydra summons the Khronos to aid it in battle. Khronos is a wild card, though, who performs one of three actions:

  • A 2-hit combo that launches the enemy. The launch height is not very high, and you can follow-up after with the likes of a BR shot.
  • A launching attack that causes heavy stagger, followed by 2 shots of its Beam Cannon. Hitting this raw will cause a hard knockdown.
  • A stab that causes a weak stun on the enemy. 

While all three actions are not too different, it’s important for you to carefully watch an enemy getting hit, and react with the appropriate follow-up. There is a long rigidity after summoning Khronos, so it is recommended that you cancel out of it ASAP. Canceling into Sub allows you to freefall. 

Sub: Beam Vulcan

Fires a beam machine gun mounted on the left arm. Holding down the buttons allows you to fire up to 10 shots repeatedly (15 with BC active). The shots are beam type projectiles. 4 hits will cause the enemy to stagger, and this move takes 7 seconds to reload ordinarily, but also 4 seconds with BC active.

This move can be used to freefall when canceled into from A and CSA. Even if you are out of AB ammo you can still freefall as per normal. 

The tracking on the shots is average, but the projectile speed is very fast.This is very useful for scoring staggers even at the mid range, or chipping out a dying enemy. 

You can think of this as being your second Main. If you’re low on ammo, empty the clip so you can start reloading sooner.

Special Shooting: Beam Buster

A gerobi fired from Zeydra’s chest. With BC active your ammo count increases to two, and the damage and thickness of the gerobi are also increased. You can also cancel it directly into the Ryuusei Kick. Reloads one ammo every 10 seconds.

The startup of this move is fast and the muzzle correction is good, so there is no reason you shouldn’t try using this in the close range. The damage on this move is pretty great but the projectile speed is not very fast, so it can be hard to catch landings using this at long range.

Without the BC powerup the beam is much thinner and it’s possible that you will hit the enemy but not score a full down, so watch out for that. If BC is active and you fire this on an enemy in the close range and miss, you can cancel into the Ryuusei Kick to catch them. Overall it’s a pretty strong setup.

Special Melee: X-Rounder Release

A timer-based powerup. Zeydra glows even redder, signalling to enemies and allies alike that it is powered up. The powerup lasts for 18 seconds, after which Zeydra enters a 9-second cooldown before the powerup begins charging up, taking another 17 seconds before it can be used again. This means you’ll have at best about a 40% uptime on this powerup.

Ideally you don’t want to use this whenever it’s available. Instead, you want to use it ideally when you still have a good amount of Main and Sub ammo.

The following are the full effects of the powerup:

  • AC ammo increased from 1 to 2, fully reloads upon activation. 
  • AC damage and projectile size increased
  • Main projectile size increases
  • AB machine gun can now be fired up to 15 times repeatedly (up from 10), reload time decreased by 3 seconds
  • Mobility and melee reach improved
  • Ryuusei Kick becomes available

Melee Set

Zeydra’s melee, for a 2500 cost all-rounder, is overall very good for initiating combos or clashing with enemies, even without the BC powerup. Its chase potential and overall performance is increased with the BC powerup, in addition to the overall mobility buff. You can also cancel all melee attacks into the Ryuusei Kick at any stage.

5B: 3-stage Beam Saber Combo

A standard 3-stage combo. This has a lot of derivatives available, making this useful as a combo part. The travel distance of this move is also good. 

5B~8B: Spin Kick

A 2-stage combo. Bounce down on the final hit. You can then follow up with the following derivative if you’d like, or leave the enemy in an untechable state. 

5B~8B~A: Zeydra Gun Triple Shot

Zeydra fires three shots from its rifle. Hard knockdown on the final hit. You can cancel into Sub to freefall after the first shot is fired.

5B~2B: Zeydra Sword

A multi-hit attack with the Zeydra Sword. The cut resistance on this is poor, but the damage output is good.

8B: Launching Kick

A 2-stage combo. Forced PoV change on the second hit. Looks the same as 5B~8B, but there is no ~A derivative available on this. You can step forward after the final hit to continue your melee combo, or finish the enemy with a Main shot.

4/6B: 3-stage Slash Combo

A 3-stage combo with a forced PoV change on the last hit. The startup, priority, and wraparound are all good, making this your main melee of choice. 

2B: Cross Slash

A 2-stage attack with X-shaped slashes. This deals good damage and causes bounce down just like 8B, but has no forced PoV change and ends quickly. After the last hit you can sidestep to continue the melee combo, or side/forward step quickly to link into a Main shot.

CC8B: Slash-through

A 3-stage combo starting with a slash-through. The reach on the first hit is very good, but the priority on the first slash is below average, and there is very little cut resistance overall. However you can still use this attack for a quick sneak attack, or a follow up after hitting with a ranged attack. Following up after the last hit requires a short delay, like a fuwastep. You can also link it into the 2/4/6/8BC Ryuusei Kick.

BC (X-Rounder Release Active): Ryuusei Kick

Only usable with the X-Rounder Release (BC) active. Zeydra delivers its signature Rider Kick on its target, dealing multiple hits and finishing by kicking straight through the enemy. Kicking an enemy into the ground deals less hits and less damage, and the final kick emits a shockwave that deals damage to MSes in the surrounding area. 

The move’s performance changes depending on the directional input. 5BC is a simple direct kick, 2/8BC makes Zeydra jump diagonally backwards before kicking, and 4/6BC makes Zeydra retreat diagonally towards the input direction before kicking. While the movement on 2/4/6/8BC does not cut tracking and is not very far, it is still quick enough to allow you to dodge certain moves before attacking with the kick. However even using the move with good timing in this fashion is difficult to land like this, so don’t expect too much.

While kicking the enemy and dealing multiple hits drains boost gauge, the final movement after the kick does not. While this travels in a straight line and is hard to hit raw, this move has the grab property and has high priority. The down value on this move is low so you can even do the full combo after hitting two BRs, and in the event that you do Down the enemy Zeydra will enter a fast freefall afterwards, leaving you relatively safe. 

You can keep this move safe by sidestepping at any time, and canceling into CSA~AB to freefall. Of course you can also do the same with Main, but CSA is preferable. This is a very strong option for chasing enemies down as you can disengage and keep the pressure on if the situation looks dicey, landing and refilling your boost while the enemy deals with Khronos.

When using this move in green lock you will dash towards the direction you are facing, but if you use this move in Overheat regardless of your input only 5BC will be performed. Still, this travels you a good distance, and since you can cancel into this from your shooting attacks you can easily move around the map and buy time. However, buying time during your powerup state can be a huge waste, so think carefully before doing so. There’s no need to go so far as to seal off this option, simply use it when the time is right.

Burst Attack

Shin Ryuusei Kick

A melee combo ending with the Ryuusei Kick. Super armor on startup. Good cut resistance overall. Much like the regular Ryuusei Kick, the final strike emits a damaging shockwave that damages MSes that wander too close. 

Activating this Burst Attack, regardless of whether it hits or not, puts you in X-Rounder Release. If you use this when your BC is already active, the timer gauge refreshes to full but you do not reload AC ammo. 

Recommended Combos

Ranged Weapons
Input DMG Notes
A>>A>>A 158 Zunda
A~AB 141 8 Sub hits for a knockdown
A>>A~AB 145 3 Sub hits for a knockdown
BR~5 Ryuusei Kick (RK) 188
BR~AC 174 Over 180 damage with BC active
BR>>CC8BBB 185 BnB from A starter
Melee
5BB>5BBB 228
5BB~8BB~5RK 265
4/6BB>5BBB 223 BnB
4/6BB>8BB 242 Step forward after 4/6BB to connect. Walls might screw up your combo
4/6BBB>4/6B~5RK 210 Step right after 4/6BBB quickly to connect. Freefalls on the RK.
CC8BBB>5(B)B~2B(before last hit)~5RK 279 Whiff combo. The (B) is supposed to miss. Fuwastep left to connect.
CC8BBB~4/6RK(before last hit)>5RK(before last hit)>5RK 270 Bind the opponent and bring it across the map

Strategies

  • Zeydra operates best in the mid to long range. Using the Main, AB, and AC, aim to score downs on the opponent.
  • Zeydra has no means to score quick downs, but you can use AB to score downs that simply take a little longer.
  • Take advantage of Zeydra’s mobility both in offense and defense.
  • Make full use of Zeydra’s freefalls, A~AB or CSA~AB. Mix in sidesteps to make it difficult for enemies to catch your landings. Remember that you can do this even if you are out of AB ammo.
  • One of Zeydra’s issues is fighting without Main ammo. With no moves to score quick downs and overly “honest” weapons, it becomes very easy to burn through your Main ammo reserve. Using your A~AB freefall often only makes things worse. Use your CSA and AB to conserve Main ammo. 
  • Don’t just use your AB ammo as a cancel from your Main, you can use it independently as well.
  • CSA is also a great conservation tool, and it is also useful in many situations especially in the close range. 
  • However the charge time for CSA is very long, so get used to holding down the button when attacking with Main or Sub so you can charge it gradually. Don’t do this all the time, only when you actually want to charge CSA.
  • While the BC doesn’t really change Zeydra drastically, it still provides a straight buff with no downsides. It has a good uptime overall, so don’t worry too much about making a big play while it’s active— you’ll get to use it plenty often. 
  • You can coordinate with your partner and let him/her know when you’re activating your powerup, so you can both go on the offensive or defensive accordingly.
  • With BC active, Ryuusei Kick forms the heart of your close range offense. You can cancel into it from any shooting attack, and you can sidestep it at anytime and move into a freefall or other attacks easily. Take note of your 3 available options: continue with the kick, cancel into CSA~AB, or sidestep, and pick whichever one best suits the situation. This allows you to keep the opponent guessing as well, and this mixup game is one area where Zeydra shines.
  • The Ryuusei Kick by itself is not an attack you can just throw out wildly and hope to hit, but using it with these cancels and sidesteps makes it multidimensional and much harder to deal with. 
  • Overall Zeydra is very honest, whether with the BC active or without. Winning with this unit requires consistent, good play from the start of the match to the end. 
  • F Burst is a good fit for Zeydra because it has a good melee set to start with. Activating BC while F Burst is active gives you a big boost to your chase ability and melee offense. 
  • E Burst is the go-to option when teamed with a 3000 cost unit, as Zeydra often does. Zeydra already has good self defense, so further boosting it with E Burst is great. However you gain little in terms of offensive boosts.
  • S Burst might not seem like a great option for Zeydra who already has plenty of freefalls and cancel routes. However it does help Zeydra overcome its weakness of being poor with scoring Downs, and also it allows you to charge CSA faster. Extending your red lock range and being able to sidestep your AC gerobis is also nice.
  • Zeydra does best when paired with a strong 3000 cost front. It can also function well with a 2500 cost partner, but it does not like being paired with 2000 cost partners as it does not like taking the frontline. A 1500 cost partner is preferable to a 2000 cost but it’s still not highly recommended.