10-26-2019, 12:29 PM
(This post was last modified: 10-26-2019, 12:40 PM by Gift. Edited 1 time in total.)
Disclaimer: I take no credit for this guide. All credit goes to Pom from EU.
![[Image: ltz7TSQ.jpg]](http://i.imgur.com/ltz7TSQ.jpg)
Introduction
Do you like smashing things? Do you often find yourself being that one guy in the boat that always destroys all the crates, pumpkins and barrels? Are you sick and tired of being a skinny, small, insignificant peasant? And most of all, do you enjoy utilizing a diverse set of never-ending combos? You're at the right place. From unarmed combat to complex, long combo chains, Pillar Karok has it all. It might seem overwhelming at first, but once you memorize his skillset, prepare yourself to be amazed by how fun this fat ball of muscle can be!
Before we start
In this guide, only combat tactics will be explained. This is NOT a gear guide, or a skill levelling guide. The reason being that you can get AP really fast nowadays, thus levelling skills in a particular order is not really necessary anymore. When I have time; videos, skill icons and misc descriptions will be added.
Basic Skills
In this section I will explain the very basics of the basics, which include Karok's zero, first, second and third smash.
Whale Bomb ®
Karok's zero smash. Headbutt. Do I need to tell you more? I will later.
Lion crash (L-R)
Karok's first smash. This smash can be executed by smashing after the first normal. Lion crash is an incredibly useful skill. Since Pillar karok does not have high attack speed, this smash works really well in situations where you're dealing with small, fast bosses or mobs. It also has a lifting effect. Lion crash can be used to trigger absorb and pillar counter, which will be discussed later.
Bison charge(L-L-R)
Karok's second smash. This smash can be executed by smashing after the second normal. Bison charge is where all the fun is at. Nothing feels more satisfying than charging through a cluster of mobs while simultaneously breaking every bone in their body. Bison charge is a really useful smash that can be used to deal damage while moving forward. Since the revamp, bison charge also does quite a lot of damage.
Mammoth Sweep(L-L-L-R)
Karok's third smash. This smash can be executed by smashing after the third normal. Mammoth Sweep is a buildup to some harder hitting smashes, that will be discussed later. Besides building up to bigger smashes, mammoth sweep can also be used to absorb a hit with Absorb shock.
Extended Basic Skills
In this section I will explain the extended smashes that Pillar karok has, which can be used after his basic smashes. This does not yet include the general smashes like dropkick and jumbo pounce. They will be discussed later.
Lion smash (Lion crash-R)
Karok's additional first smash. This smash can be executed by smashing after the first smash (Lion crash). Lion smash is much like its previous Lion crash. It also has a swift animation which makes it useful when fighting fast monsters.
Mammoth Crash(Mammoth Sweep-R)
Karok's additional third smash. This smash can be executed by smashing after the third smash(Mammoth Sweep). Mammoth Crash is one of Karok's hardest hitting smashes. The animation time of Mammoth Crash is quite long, and cannot always be used in every situation. Mammoth Crash has a really big hitbox, and can hit twice if you're standing close to the monster. Always try to hug the boss so that you will land both hits.
Mammoth Crush(Mammoth Crash-R)
Here is where it gets confusing. Mammoth Crush is an additional smash of Mammoth Crash. Mammoth Crush can be executed after you have performed Mammoth Crash. It does slightly less damage than Mammoth Crash, but hits quite hard nonetheless. The execution time is also slightly faster than its predecessor.
Whale Bomb 2(Whale Bomb-L(repeat))
Headbutt's additional smashes. These are swift swipes with the pillar that can be used to quickly absorb incoming hits. Damage is not really significant.
Warslam (repeatable) (Whale Bomb-R(repeat))
Headbutt's other additional smashes. These are swift stomps with the pillar that can be used to chain into other smashes or skills. Will be adressed later.
Additional Smashes
For the sake of explaining, I will refer to the following skills as additional smashes. Since pillar karok has many smashes, these can now be categorized easier.
So, you now know of Karok's basic smashes and extended basic smashes. Besides those, Pillar Karok also has additional smashes, which can be used after some of Karok's basic and/or extended basic smashes.
Jumbo pounce (press E after specific smash)
One of Pillar's additional smash is Jumbo Pounce. This skill has a short execution time, and hits quite hard. Here is a list of smashes that work with Jumbo pounce:- Lion Crash- Lion Smash - War Slam- Bison Charge- Dropkick- Mammoth Sweep- Mammoth Crush- Mammoth Crash- Pulverize- Pulverize Blitz
Dropkick (Press "kick button" after specific smash)
Another additional smash that Pillar can use is Dropkick. Dropkick is a very situational smash that cannot always be used. Just like Mammoth Crush and Crash, Dropkick has two hits. Try hugging the boss when using it. Here is a list of compatible smashes for Dropkick:- Bison Charge- Pillar Charge (When getting the animation after a certain amount of time of running) ---> Note: You do not have to activate Pillar charge to use dropkick. This is optional.- Warslam's additional hits ---> Note: Does not work for the first warslam
Pulverize/Pulverize Blitz (Rightclick after specific smashes)
The final two additional smashes that Pillar Karok can use are Pulverize and Pulverize Blitz. Pulverize is a medium-hitting skill that hits twice. Pulverize Blitz is a follow up of Pulverize. Blitz hits the target three times and does nice damage. There are some gimmicks to Pulverize which will be explained later. Here is a list of compatible smashes for Pulverize:- Lion smash- Bison Charge- Drop Kick- Mammoth Crash
Absorbing and Dodging
To survive in battles, you either need tons of graces and merc pots, or the ability to dodge/negate damage. There are four ways for Karok to dodge or negate damage.
Absorbing
Karok can "tank" incoming damage by utilizing his absorb frames. Absorb frames are animation frames that certain skills have. Absorb can be utilized by synchronizing these absorb frames to the boss attacks. Certain skills have longer frames than others. Absorb frame durations and their applications will be discussed in the tactics section.
Perfect Absorbing
Perfect Absorb is essentially the same as Absorbing. A Perfect Absorb can be executed by almost simultaneously taking damage from the boss and Absorbing. Using Perfect Absorb can be tricky, but has a really useful effect; it can "block" unblockable hits (like havan's ground punch AoE).
Getting out of the way
This speaks for itself. When your stamina is running low, it's best to simply step aside to avoid damage.
Invunerability Frames
Invunerability frames are animation frames that render it's user invunerable. When a play is invunerable, he can not be hit by attacks. There are three ways for Karok to become invunerable for a short time:
- Transform animation
- SP: Earthquake
- XE move