Faust Guides

Faust in Guilty Gear Strive

Faust is a wacky character that is larger than life. He was a doctor of worldwide renown before an unfortunate accident saw him go mad and go on a murderous spree. After the Second Holy Order Selection Tournament, Faust regained his sanity. Deeply sorrowful for the harm he had caused, he sought to kill himself but was stopped when he found out that another party had caused his madness. Enraged, he determined to find who had done this to him. He also travels everywhere, giving out medical assistance for free while searching for the cause of his madness. Faust’s madness means that even now, he isn’t always coherent, but his compassion typically shines through as he seeks to help anyone he can, even if the person is a villain. He still retains some of his bloodlust, but he mostly keeps his darker side under control.

Faust’s Playstyle

Faust is not a conventional fighter, but if we were to broadly categorize his fighting style, he could be considered a zoner. He has a lot of rangy normals which can catch the opponent sleeping. He is also equipped with a bag of tricks. Players of a certain vintage might remember the cartoon Sports Billy, a character who had a bag that contained just about anything. Faust has something similar, and from his bag of tricks, he can pull out a slew of things, including trumpets, dolls, anvils, bombs, and so on. These items help him during the fight and are random, meaning that they can confuse the opponent. 

Faust’s unique style also means that not many people use him, which also means that a lot of people aren’t necessarily familiar with the match-up, which can be advantageous to a good player. 

So, my advice to any Faust player will be first to keep the opponent while waiting for the right moment to strike and go in on the foe with devastating force. It should be noted that to successfully use Faust, you’ll need to be patient as he doesn’t do a lot of damage, meaning you have to hit the opponent a lot to claim a victory, and in a game like Guilty Gear -STRIVE- where many characters have damaging combos which could end rounds in an instance, that could be a disadvantage.

Faust’s Best Buttons

Faust is a tall, tall man meaning that he has rangy moves. We’ll be looking at some of his best buttons in this section of the guide.

f.S: This is Faust’s longest normal, and its far-reaching ability is what makes it such a good option. You can use it to poke at opponents from afar and hopefully catch them off-guard and deal some damage. 

2H: This is a low, which is great to check opponents who are approaching. The move isn’t particularly safe, but due to its long reach, you should be able to recover even if it doesn’t hit. 

2P: Another low move used to challenge approaching opponents. It doesn’t do as much damage as 2H but is also much faster, meaning it is safer to use. It is -3 on block, but due to the distance, it is rarely punished. It also recovers quickly, meaning you can still react to a jumping opponent. 

j.2K: This is another zoning that is great for stopping opponents in their tracks. In the latest patch, the move was buffed, making a low-risk normal that keeps the opponent away and recovers pretty quickly, meaning it’s safe and doesn’t cost you much. 

Special Moves

What Could This Be?: Faust’s entire gameplay is based around this special move. This is the infamous item toss move in which Faust brings out a random item and tosses it unto the field. Each item is unique in how it can be used and the advantage it gives to Faust. A quick overview of the items available for this move:

• Trumpet 

• Afro 

• Mini Faust

• Bomb 

• Donut 

• 100T Weight

• Banana 

• Hammer

Some of these items are thrown farther than others. While these items generally work in Faust’s favor, there are circumstances where they can work against him. For instance, the bomb could detonate behind Faust and cause him some damage, and the trumpet could also be used against you. Therefore, always be careful when using the item toss. It is generally better to use the item toss while pressuring opponents rather than in neutral as the tables could be turned pretty quickly. 

Mix Mix Mix: This tornado-like move is another very popular move for Faust as it deals some damage on hit. It also has great corner carry and is capable of placing your opponent in the very uncomfortable embrace of the corner, where you can then proceed to assault them with both the item toss and the tornado. 

Thrust: Thrust is an incredible special move with insane range, which when it catches opponents can reel them in for a well-placed homerun. For this move, Faust extends his scalpel to stab at the opponent, and if it is successful, you can press 4 (back), which then reels the opponent in, and you then input HS to swing at the opponent with a golf club. There are three potential outcomes: you can hit the opponent early and cause a knockdown, and it's a safe move if you aren’t sure you can time it right. Conversely, you can hit the opponent at just the right time and send them flying and if they are close to the wall, cause a wall break. Finally, you can hit poorly and just cause the opponent to fall at your feet. 

Snip Snip Snip: This is Faust’s command grab. In it, Faust does his best impression of a barber and cuts the opponent’s hair, giving them an afro in the process. It also causes a knockdown giving Faust space to continue his offense. One of the great things about the afro, apart from the amusing visual, is that it extends the opponent’s hurtbox, meaning that some moves which could have whiffed earlier will now hit them and deal some damage. 

Faust’s Overdrives

Bone-crushing Excitement: This OD sees Faust spout a four-leaf clover which he dives for, and then rams a wheelchair into the opponent’s nether regions. It’s an amusing move, but it serves more than one purpose as you can purple Roman cancel at the start of the super and gain invincibility. This allows Faust to escape a potential punish and just get back into the game. 

W-W-What Could This Be?: For this OD, Faust grabs four random items and tosses them out, creating utter chaos, which can be favorable for Faust.

W-W-W-W-W-W-W-W-W-What Could This Be?: This is one that not many people know about. While it drains all your meter, Faust goes ahead to pull out ten items from his bag of tricks, and chaos ensues. A fun overdrive, surely, but also mostly redundant as there are much better ways to optimize your meter usage, which will help you gain an advantage in the match. There are very few situations where this overdrive will be useful, except perhaps you’re having a good time with friends and just want to play with no pressure.

Faust’s Pros and Cons

Faust is a character you will not see a lot of people use due to his unique style and low damage potential. He does have a few things going for him, and in this section, we’ll have a look at both the good and bad sides of Faust.

Pros

• Faust’s normals are long-reaching, which makes them really dangerous and ensures that he is a threat from just about any point on the screen.

• His item toss gives him access to several potential weapons which he can use against the enemy and deal damage.

• Faust can use a purple Roman cancel on his OD, which grants him invincibility. This is great as it gives you a chance to escape the opponent’s pressure or do a cool overdrive. 

• His command grab increases the hurtbox of the opponent, making them easier to hit in some situations.

• His crouch moves low profile a lot of attacks which is not true for several other characters in the game.

Cons

• Faust’s slow walk speed isn’t great as it leaves him unable to do a lot 

• His defensive options are poor, leaving him susceptible to damage when pressured heavily

• His item toss could also be used against him, depending on what is produced.

How to Fight Faust

So you want to fight Faust? Well, you’ve come to the right place. Facing Faust isn’t difficult, but it does require some patience. The first thing you must note is that Faust relies heavily on his meter, meaning that until he has it, he is, at best, an average fighter. Your mission (if you choose to accept it) will mostly focus on getting in his face and challenging him. Faust does poorly under pressure and will look to get out. His large frame makes it something of a challenge to simply jump out of the corner, and you should look to keep him there as much as possible.

Faust’s combos

Faust has some combos that you might find useful. We’ll look at those in this section.