Paul
The Strongest in the Universe. Explosive damage potential. Life deficits are meaningless against Paul, especially when he's in Rage and/or in Heat.
Strong, fundamentally sound
Paul Phoenix is a strong, fundamentally sound character who is often mistaken as an overpowering damage output machine. While he is capable of eye-watering damage, his greatest strength is in his ability to shutdown aggression, due to his toolkit being both extremely compact while also being built around blowing up opponents for mashing or not being precise with their dashblocking. His df+2 is a very compact launcher with deceptively quick recovery that excels at clipping overconfident approaches, and his extensions out of df+1 that utilize his backsway (SWA) are great keepout tools against any opponent that wants to pressure after blocking a df+1. Moves like df+1,1, b+2,1, 3,2, and d+1,2 can be delayed to further complicate the gameplans of aggressive opponents, as well as f+1+4, which is a shoulder tackle that almost instantly shifts Paul 90° to the side for a knockdown and good damage. Furthermore, Phoenix Smasher (qcf+2, also colloquially known as Deathfist) and Demolition Man (d+4,2:1+2, known as Demoman) make up one of Tekken's all-time classic mixups. Deathfist is an astonishingly high damage whiff punish tool that hits mid, and becomes even more powerful in Heat. Demoman is a low string that does great damage and knocks down, while also being unreactable. Compounding this already potent mixup, he is one of the select few characters with a Heat Smash that also hits low, giving Paul an even more terrifying mixup while in Heat.
The Strongest in the Universe. Explosive damage potential. Life deficits are meaningless against Paul, especially when he's in Rage and/or in Heat.
Linear. Weak tracking, especially to SSR, demanding good reads on timing.
Stances
- Cormorant Step (CS) - qcf
- Sway (SWA) - qcb
- Deep Dive (DPD) - qcf (or qcb), df
Heat Smash
Low, i18, -14
- Gains guard breaking moves.
- Phoenix Smasher and other related moves wall splat from further away and are safer on block.
- A charged Hammer of the Gods and Crushing Wind launch on regular hit.
Strengths
The Strongest in the Universe. Explosive damage potential. Life deficits are meaningless against Paul, especially when he's in Rage and/or in Heat.
Danger, Will Robinson. Paul has several ways to abuse stage hazards, as he has an excellent combo ender in WR2 that can floor break, a qcb+1 that floor breaks upon any regular hit (a new trait usually only found in fully charged moves or as a counter-hit property), multiple wall splatting options, and consistently good oki enders to make Paul fearsome at any part of the stage.
"I'll Show You!" Great punishment suite, wall splatting at i12 standing or i13 crouching, can launch from standing at i14. When optimized, Paul really makes you wish you played it safer.
Stalwart Defense. Excellent keepout with qcb+4, qcb+2, and df+2.
Disruptive. Several panic moves in f+1+4, d+1+2, u+1, db+1+2, uf+3,4, and parry. Also retains qcb+4 and qcb+1 as CH launchers that don't give up his turn.
50/50. Incredible mixup potential in df+1 and WS1,2 and their extensions/stance transitions, as well as pressuring at the wall.
Judo. Complete throw game that allows him to play with all kinds of stage hazards, making him benefit more from punishing parries or armor moves with throws than the average character.
Deadly Heat Offense. Paul has some of the best Heat Engagers in the game. Furthermore, Heat gives him farther wallsplats, reversal and armor break, and relative safety for Deathfisting moves, as well as the ability to guard break on certain fully charged moves. His Heat Smash is a slightly safer and slower version of Demoman that can hard wall break without any extra wall hits.
Weaknesses
Linear. Weak tracking, especially to SSR, demanding good reads on timing.
Stale Cheese. Exploitable strings outside df+1, WS1,2, and the f+3 series.
Can't Close the Distance. Struggles against characters with solid midrange offense; Characters with decent enough range will have an easier time punishing or launching a non-Heat Deathfist.
Technical. Requires decent execution for optimal damage-- particularly on moves with pushback-- and movement due to motion inputs, especially for backdash-cancelling.
Inconsistent. Some combo routes are finicky to land, and wall splatting without Heat is a toss-up.
- Can't do a backflip.
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Moves to learn first
Signature and situational picks come from the guide; the fastest launcher and best unpunishable poke are derived from this character's own frame data.
- Signature↓○△□△
d4,2,1+2
Demolition Man
- Launcher←✕
i14 · 16 dmg · -6 on block
Lights Out
- Launcher↘△↗○↗✕○
mid
- LauncherWS△
i15 · 20 dmg · -14 on block
Thunder Palm
- Wall splat←□△↓□△
standing
- Wall splatWS✕△
i21 · 16 dmg · -7 on block
Shioh
- Heat engager↗△
i22 · 26 dmg · +5 on block
Moonfall
- Heat engagerqc→△
Enters Heat
- Heat engager→○
i22 · 24 dmg · -5 on block
Stone Lion
- Fastest launcherHeatqc→△
i13 · 51 dmg
- Safe on blockHeat□△
i28 · 35 dmg · -9 on block
Half-Step Phoenix Smasher
Missing generics: d+3
Watch the guide
Video guides for this character, linked to the sections that matter most. Notation on this site comes from the frame data; these show the technique.
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