Cecil Harvey (Dissidia 012)/Strategy

General	Starter Guide		Strategy
Matchups	Resources

Dark Knight

Dark Knight is designed for ground combat and is relatively safer with stronger HP attacks in neutral situations, but has a limited effective positions. As Dark Knight, Cecil can close gaps with a dash and contest grounded options, but requires wall rush to maximise reward on hit. Prioritise ground combat and do not rely on Gravity Ball or Paladin Arts in the neutral; Long start-up, low priority, late cancel window and slow travel speed make the dark sphere projectile detrimental for space control.

Recommended stages:

• Pandemonium, Pandaemonium - Top Floor, M.S. Prima Vista

Offense (Ground)

• Shadow Bringer is unreactable on start-up, this is your primary HP threat up close. Mix up with dashes and braveries such as Valiant Blow.
• Use Valiant Blow or Shadow Bringer to catch landing lag.
• Use Dark Flame directly under opponents if possible. Works well against positional dodges. Dodging this and punishing Cecil for using it become more difficult due to tracking and long active collision.
• Dark Cannon is Ranged Low priority when going forward, but Ranged Mid when returning to Cecil. A good trait for whiff punishing from the attack's maximum range, but Cecil is completely vulnerable otherwise. Use with caution.
• After staggering with a block or comboing after an assist, Dark Flame won't stagger Cecil against LV2 Assist Change.

Defense (Ground)

• After guarding an air attack on the ground, Soul Eater can easily miss when used to retaliate. Shadow Bringer, Dark Flame or jump into Paladin Force are more reliable HP attacks.
• For assist meter generation, Valiant Blow and Shadow Bringer are decent options but use them carefully.
• Dark Flame can be used to occupy space and build assist meter. As it puts pressure on the opponent, Cecil can get away with whiffing this move.
• Shadow Lance can reflect mid and high priority projectiles when done very close to them.
• Spot dashing works as well for building assist meter, but Cecil does not have many moves to safely stall meter decay afterwards. Valiant Blow, Dark Flame and Shadow Bringer are all good moves for this. If Cecil has to take it to the air, Reverse Air Dash (Quickmove) into Nightfall can also work.

Dodge Punishment

• Ground Dash > Shadow Bringer punishes neutral and side dodges.
• Soul Eater has horizontal tracking before the initial stab, which can punish side dodges without a dash if done close to the opponent.
• Dark Flame can punish forward ground dodges and directional air dodges near Cecil

Offense (Aerial)

Generally speaking, Dark Knight Cecil's air braveries are not fit for close-range offense.

• Nightfall can hit grounded characters, but it is often telegraphed due to it's nature as a downward air-to-ground attack. If you are closing distance with a grind quickmove, keep an eye out for counter hit attempts.

Defense (Aerial)

• Descent Speed Boost basic ability is good for reaching ground faster.

Dodge Punishment (Aerial)

Dark Knight Cecil has weak tools for punishing dodges in the air and generally won't be spend much time in the air. Nightfall can hit opponents below Cecil, so using Omni Air Dash or Multi Air Slide basic abilities could theoretically work. These situations aren't very common for Cecil, however.

Paladin

Paladin can contest in various positions, but is more vulnerable to counterattacks due to relatively slow attack start-up, long animations and late cancel windows. As Paladin, Cecil can whiff punish effectively, but he often requires assist and high commitment to apply HP damage. Solo combo potential and bravery damage output goes up thanks to Searchlight and Slash, but hitting moving opponents can still be challenging due to slow start-up on attacks and inadequate tracking.

Recommended stages: Old Chaos Shrine, Order's Sanctuary, World of Darkness.

Offense (Ground)

• Slash is a gap closer and a combo starter, but it can easily whiff due to it's below average tracking.
• Use Searchlight from afar to create stage presence, encourage the opponent to move or punish very long-winded immobile attacks. You can combo on hit into Paladin Force from long range with the hit glitch.

Defense (Ground)

• Slash can be whiffed occasionally to build assist meter.

Dodge Punishment (Ground)

Punishing air dodges is difficult for Paladin Cecil overall. Even if he follows the opponent with a dash, his braveries tend to miss afterwards, missing important openings for damage.

• Paladin Force can punish ground dodges, but Cecil must be close to the opponent to do this. Use a dash to get closer and jump to have access to Paladin Force itself.
• Shadow Bringer HP is Cecil's fastest ground attack and can be used to defend after dodging. It will put him in the Dark Knight job, however.

Offense (Aerial)

• Similiar to Slash, Radiant Wings can be used as a gap closer despite it's slow startup and lackluster tracking.
• After comboing into Aerith assist, Luminous Shard is the safest but lowest damaging option against LV2 Assist Change. It won't stagger Cecil or be reflected straight back at him.

Defense (Aerial)

• Use Sacred Cross to punish (whiffed) attacks done from below or above Cecil.
• Sacred Cross is also good for retaliating after staggering with LV2 Assist Change of your own.
• When building assist meter, Luminous Shard, Sacred Cross, Searchlight and lock off Radiant Wings (facing away from opponent) can be used sparingly from a distance.

Dodge Punishment (Aerial)

• Paladin Force has good vertical tracking on startup, use it against neutral and up air dodges. While the range is somewhat short, characters trying to dodge above Cecil can get hit by this move.
• Cecil can contest straightforward attacks that come after a dodge with Sacred Cross by going under them.
• When defending, Sacred Cross can also be used as a post-dodge defensive option for it's evasive movement.