Quick reference
Controls
A B C
D _ E
A = Light slash
B = Medium slash
C = Hard slash
D = Kick
E = Evade/special
A+D = Use item
B+C = Throw
3C = Down attack (on grounded opponent)
Evades
Do = None
Shin = E small hop, 2E lie down, 1E/3E roll back/forward (cancellable into specials/supers)
Zan = E dodge into background, 6E suprise exchange (near opponent)
Ten = E dodge into background, 6E suprise exchange (near opponent)
Rei = E small hop, 6E small hop forward, 2E lie down, 1E/3E roll back/forward (cancellable into specials/supers)
Ken = E backwards dodge, 4/6E small hop, 2E lie down
Tech Roll System
When falling to the ground...
E = Short roll; vulerable to attacks, but not to throws (you can just jump out).
4E = Long roll; vulerable to throws/command throws, but not to attacks (you can just block).
Grooves
Do (SS1) = A+B auto-guard slash, no evasion, no super, and your sword guage increases to almost the length of your lifebar when raged. Unfortunately the sword guage has no effect on throw (or command throw) damage.
Shin (SS2) = When you enter rage, your character will go into an invincible "I'm pissed" animation that is cancellable at any time by specials/supers, dashing, or E button evades. If you play in Arcade mode, this animation will avoid the pounce -> command throw bugs that some characters have (Iroha, Gaira, Mizuki). If your super hits, it breaks the opponent's weapon, which gets flipped back on screen after about 15 seconds. You can access your EX move with this groove, but you have to use a special input that varies by character and are usually a little weird (pretzels are normal compared to some of these). You can only use it once per an entire fight. The sword guage in this groove is the overall longest in the game, other than Do during rage or Rei during rage explosion.
Zan (SS3) = A+B to manually charge your rage guage, though it still increases when you are hit at the same rate it would in other grooves. The speed at which your character rages affects how fast it increases when you hold A+B, for example Enja goes from 0 to full in 3 seconds. When your life reaches the orange area, you get infinite rage. It also starts empty after each round. Press E in air to air guard momentarily; you cannot attack then air guard or vice versa, only attack or only air guard.
Ten (SS4) = A+B for a dial-a-combo slash. A+B, AABBCCC will give you some meter (dependent on how fast your character rages), A+B, BBC will knock them into the air and can be canceled into special moves (doesn't give you meter). Many characters can do A+B, AABBC(C) into specials, so be sure to experiment. A+B+C is rage explosion, which stops the timer, extends your sword guage a little, and you can use supers and Issen (A+B+C). The less life you have, the more guage (time) you will get during rage explosion, and the more damage the Issen will do. Using an Issen or hitting with a super ends rage explosion mode.
Rei (SS5) = A+B to charge enlightenment, D+E to activate in a match point round when your life is in the blue area. A+B+C here to Issen, it will do more depending on how much total enlightenment you charged (not how much blue bar you had when you activated). The Issen has much more damage potential than Ten's. The minimum damage Issen here does about as much as the max damage Issen in Ten groove (35~40%), and the max is like 65~70%. You can A+B+C anytime to rage explosion. There are a few differences between rage explosion this groove and Ten. In Rei you don't get Issen, but your sword guage is longer and you always get the maximum amount of time.
Ken (SS6) = Capcom-style meter building (gain meter by attacking). Your characters raging speed does not affect how much meter you get. Using a super will empty the rage guage regardless if it hits or not, but you stay raged until you use it. When you successfully use the E button to dodge something, there is a screen freeze and you have a big advantage, allowing a lot of stuff to be easily punished. A successful evade also makes the green portion fo your lifebar to increase. When your life reaches green area, EX supers are available with 236+B+C. When you use this once, the additional green bar gained goes back to normal (16%). The green portion comes back shortly after 236+B+C is used. A+B is a deflecting guard that uses meter. It eliminates block damage from specials/supers, and pushes the opponent away. From my testing it doesn't give any less/more frame advantage than blocking.
Counter-Hits
Counter-hits are of course when your attack interrupts another attack. But in this game, if you hit a special move in it's recovery (excluding throw whiffs and some other moves), it also counts as a CH. This is important because there are some very damaging things possible only on CH, such as Haohmaru 2Cxx632146+A+B. I think if the special move is done with a kick it won't count as CH, like Kazuki's 236+D or Charlotte's 236+D.
Console Stuff
To unlock shit, beat arcade mode with different characters. You will get new shit for every few characters. First you get survival/gallery, then I think purple nak, then you start getting the bonus characters starting with EX Galford. I haven't gotten anything else yet.
Arcade/Original mode turns the Iroha/Gaira throw glitch on/off. In Arcade mode, if Gaira or Iroha land a down attack, they can immediately do super (Iroha) or giant swing (Gaira) guaranteed. Gaira's in an infinite, since down attack is guaranteed again after giant swing. In Original mode, the throws will just whiff like they're supposed to.
Character stats for health and rage buildup/duration, courtesy of Tora Kouhi at SvC.com.
Defense Power:
Haohmaru: 100
Nakoruru: 91
Rimururu: 90
Hanzo: 92
Galford: 94
Ukyo: 87
Genjuro: 100
Kyoshiro: 99
Basara: 82
Shizumaru: 90
Gaira: 103
Jubei: 99
Charlotte: 100
Tam Tam: 95
Kazuki: 92
Sogetsu: 95
Rasetsumaru: 96
Rera: 85
Enja: 103
Suija: 92
Yoshitora: 98
Yunfei: 93
Mina: 80
Kusaregedo: 105
Andrew: 98
Sugoroku: 99
Ochamaro: 100
Iroha: 90
Wanfu: 100
Gen An: 91
Earthquake: 100
Cham Cham: 90
Sieger: 102
Nicotine: 83
Sankuro: 99
Yumeji: 85
Amakusa: 89
Zankuro: 102
Gaoh: 95
Mizuki: 95
Rage Buildup (higher means that your rage builds up faster)
Haohmaru: 150
Nakoruru: 113
Rimururu: 210
Hanzo: 66
Galford: 180
Ukyo: 68
Genjuro: 210
Kyoshiro: 195
Basara: 150
Shizumaru: 128
Gaira: 225
Jubei: 98
Charlotte: 195
Tam Tam: 180
Kazuki: 225
Sogetsu: 98
Rasetsumaru: 195
Rera: 98
Enja: 600
Suija: 75
Yoshitora: 135
Yunfei: 60
Mina: 135
Kusaregedo: 113
Andrew: 135
Sugoroku: 300
Ochamaro: 113
Iroha: 180
Wanfu: 225
Gen An: 180
Earthquake: 195
Cham Cham: 225
Sieger: 105
Nicotine: 60
Sankuro: 195
Yumeji: 90
Amakusa: 210
Zankuro: 113
Gaoh: 98
Mizuki: 150
Rage Duration (seconds)
Haohmaru: 10
Nakoruru: 7
Rimururu: 7
Hanzo: 16
Galford: 10
Ukyo: 16
Genjuro: 8
Kyoshiro: 10
Basara: 16
Shizumaru: 8
Gaira: 9
Jubei: 15
Charlotte: 12
Tam Tam: 12
Kazuki: 6
Sogetsu: 9
Rasetsumaru: 8
Rera: 10
Enja: 8
Suija: 18
Yoshitora: 11
Yunfei: 25
Mina: 8
Kusaregedo: 9
Andrew: 11
Sugoroku: 6
Ochamaro: 13
Iroha: 9
Wanfu: 6
Gen An: 14
Earthquake: 7
Cham Cham: 6
Sieger: 14
Nicotine: 10
Sankuro: 8
Yumeji: 15
Amakusa: 6
Zankuro: 8
Gaoh: 9
Mizuki: 10
