========================================= Usernamehere's Early Goku Character Guide ========================================= joebatard@hotmail.com Hi and welcome to my Goku (Early) guide for Dragonball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3. I'll be providing information on the character, his moves and a few Potara setups. Table of contents: 1. Version History 2. About this game -Quick History -Basic Controls 3. Info on Goku -Time Frame -Costumes -Overview 4. Ki Moves -Blast 1 -Blast 2 -Small Ki barrage moves 5. Combat -Offense -Combos -Defense 6. Potara Setups 7. Notes Legend: []= Square O = Circle /\= Triangle X = I think this one's obvious...hehe If two buttons are linked by a cross (+), it means you must press both at the same time. =================== 1. Version history =================== 1.0 - December 7, 2007 -Newly created. 1.1 - December 10, 2007 -Fixed small formatting errors -added more info to Goku's time frame history 1.2 - December 11, 2007 -fixed another formatting error -added Potara setups 1.3 - December 13, 2007 -fixed a couple of errors 1.4 - December 27, 2007 -added more information to Goku's time frame history 1.5 - January 3, 2008 -added extra information to the Kamehameha B2 attack -cleaned up some mistakes 1.51 - January 9, 2008 -modified some information in Goku's time frame history -cleaned up some mistakes =================== 2. About this game =================== -------------- Quick History -------------- Dragonball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3 is a fighting game based on the Dragonball universe. The game provides about 100 different characters which also adds up to over 150 if you include their transformations. You also get a nice variety of levels to fight in, some of which even have evening and night variants. The battles happen in a 3D space with free movement. You can fly around anywhere you want in the designated area. You can fire small Ki blasts and bigger Ki attacks or you can get close and unleash combos which can go from attacking with different melee techniques or knocking them all over the arena. Like the game's title says, this game is the third one in the Budokai Tenkaichi series. This is surprising if we consider how the first game had a rocky start. It was plagued with bugs and the fighting engine was easy to abuse and some moves were too easy to defend against. Also, characters with melee stun resistance could not be stunned even when hit by the likes of SSJ4 Gogeta. Luckily, a sequel was planned, made and eventually released. The second game enjoyed unparalleled success among the Dragonball fans. The fighting engine had been heavily tweaked so the game was much more enjoyable. Attacks that didn't work before were now viable tactics and there were no bugs that anyone could easily notice. We also saw a return of In-game transformations like in Budokai 3 except they were fed by B1 balls instead of your Ki and the new penalty was sometimes a slower charging speed instead of a Ki drain. In short, the second game was obviously well planned and the only thing I regret was that the first game almost felt like an unofficial 50$ beta test. We now reach the third (and current) game. In this, they moved the melee damage closer to the first game's values, which isn't completely bad. Back in the prequel, even a decent combo could deal damage beyond most ultimate blasts, almost making them pointless. An expert combo could undoubtedly destroy virtually any character unless they have melee stun resistance. This is another thing they tweaked. The prequel made the melee stun resistance very weak because some characters were only one transformation away from being able to break through that defense. It is now tweaked so that only extremely powerful characters (the equivalent of SSJ3 and above) can now penetrate that defense. Also, the overall melee mechanics were changed. For example, we can't cancel out melee attacks anymore. This is probably to increase the focus on doing small melee hits to build up our momentum, which makes canceling too much trouble anyway when stronger strikes come out almost instantly. To replace this, they added a timing-based strike which ignores blocking, delivers greater damage and avoids attacks. However, picking up the timing takes a lot of practice because it is almost a split-INSTANT where you must release the button in time. And many more. In the end, this game still resembles the prequel in how things work (not that bad since the second game was a great effort at the time) but the tweaks still make this game feel unique. --------------- Basic controls --------------- [] = Rush and melee attacks X = Dashing O = Blocking /\ = Ki rush attacks L1 = Locking on (according to the manual) L2 = Charge KI R1 = Fly up R2 = Fly down R3 = Transform and free look (the latter is when locked off) ======================== 3. Info on Goku (Early) ======================== ----------- Time Frame ----------- This particular incarnation is Goku after he died against Raditz up to his recovery before he fights Frieza. He was first seen when he fought against Nappa where he had no choice but to reveal his new abilities. When he first died, he traveled to King Kai's planetoid in heaven so he could gain the power to stand against Vegeta and Nappa. One of those new abilities was the Kaioken. It allowed Goku to multiply his power to boost his overall performance. However, it places great strain on Goku so he can't use it for too long. The next attack he learned was the Spirit Bomb. It's a Ki attack of incredible power but Goku must borrow power from living things and nature itself, which takes a lot of time. Goku eventually returned but by that time, Yamcha, Tien, Chaotzu and Piccolo had fallen in battle. Only Krillin and Gohan remained and even they were barely hanging. Goku then took over the fight from there. Though he defeated Nappa, Vegeta gave Goku some trouble and eventually defeated him when he transformed into a Great Ape. It took the combined effort of Krillin, Gohan and a sneak attack from Yajirobe to take down Vegeta. Afterwards, Krillin, Gohan and Bulma left for Namek so they could revive their friends with the namekian set of Dragonballs. Goku eventually recovered from his wounds and went after his remaining friends. He trained in the ship on the way there, especially after King Kai warned him about Frieza. Upon landing, he quickly went to rescue Krillin and his son, Gohan who were being severely beaten by the Ginyu Force. Goku easily disposed of Recoome and took care of Burter, scaring Jeice into running away. Ginyu then took on Goku, eventually hurting himself on purpose to steal Goku's body. He was impressed by the potential Goku was displaying with the Kaioken and he wanted that power for himself. However, Ginyu was unused to his new body and was eventually defeated after Goku threw himself in the path of Ginyu's attack when he wanted to steal Vegeta's body. Since Vegeta had beaten Goku's body severely, Goku was placed into a regeneration tank. That was the last instance where Early Goku actually appeared. Early Goku also appeared in a couple of movies. He fought another Saiyan by the name of Turles. Turles was physically similar to Goku and wanted to gain power by planting a special tree that requires an entire planet to itself. Goku also fought a character by the name of Dr. Wheelo. Dr. Wheelo was basically a gigantic brain inside a mechanical body. Similarly to Captain Ginyu, Dr. Wheelo wanted to take Goku's body for himself. --------- Costumes --------- Here are the Costumes Goku uses: -Gi with undershirt and the Roshi symbol (he wore this right when DBZ started) -Gi with undershirt and the King Kai symbol (he wore this when he came back to life the first time) -Gi with undershirt and the Go symbol (he wore this on Namek) -Gi without undershirt and the Roshi symbol (he wore this against Raditz) --------- Overview --------- Life : 40,000 Starting Ki : 2 bars B1 stock max : 6 stock DP cost : 5 points This is the only adult Goku that doesn't have transformations so your only method of increasing your overall power is to use the Kaioken technique. You will get a power increase on a similar scale to the Super Saiyan transformations but it's only temporary and you can't charge your KI. Also, Early Goku is more of a technical fighter. He has different /\ strikes to use in his melee chain which makes him hard to predict when trying to block his attacks. He's also one of the few characters whose jumping charged KI blast can ignore the enemy's guard. His high B1 stock limit also allows you to use many Blast 1 techniques in a row. This can be especially handy with Solar flare to keep your opponent constantly off-balance or to stack two Kaiokens to increase your battle power further. His Kamehameha, being a chargeable move, takes some forethought to use but it's not impossible to create an opportunity. The payoff is pretty nice for the effort, too. His Kaioken attack Blast 2, in my opinion, is his most practical attack. It's a rushing Blast 2, which means he will fly towards the opponent to execute a preprogrammed attack. This particular rush, however, is a short but quick burst of speed. At close range, it's practically impossible to avoid with human reflexes. It's a great move to take advantage of openings in your opponent's defenses. Also, his Spirit bomb technique, while not particularly powerful for an ultimate attack, can ignore the enemy's guard. The best time to use this would be at the end of a combo where the last hit is preventing the opponent from controlling his character for a moment. ============ 4. Ki Moves ============ -------- Blast 1: -------- -Solar Flare / L2+O / 2 stock cost This B1 is used to temporarily blind the opponent and disable his lock-on. It needs to be done while being face to face and within relatively close range. You can use this to get behind the opponent easier or to escape and hide. You can also use it to interrupt the opponent's charged melee strike. It has a great advantage in that it has a great priority over other attacks because it's a cutscene move instead of live. -Kaioken / L2+Up+O / 3 stock cost This increases all of your 4 basic stats and noticeably increases the power of the Kaioken attack. It also charges your Ki to 5 bars. However, your Ki slowly drains during the Kaioken and you cannot recharge your Ki at all. Once it runs out, you will need to either re-initiate the Kaioken or manually charge KI. One way to extend the duration of the Kaioken is to first charge up to Max Power since your Ki won't drain until Max Power runs out. Also, your attacks will be even more powerful. However, make sure you have 4 balls to spend. Something I have noticed is that, assuming you have enough B1 balls, you can stack up to 4 Kaiokens for an extra boost. Realistically, you can reach 2 Kaiokens without using Potara items. -------- Blast 2: -------- -Kamehameha / L2+/\ / 3 bar cost (Chargeable Beam) Goku's trademark attack. This fires a beam of Ki at the opponent for varying damage depending on how long you charge it. If you overcharge, the attack won't do optimal damage. You get a chime when you reach the optimal charge. Make sure you stun the opponent somehow if you plan on charging up the move. Preferably with a Heavy Finish strike. You can also sort of counter-attack with this move. A change from the prequel is that you become more or less immune to physical attacks while you're charging the move. For example, you can start the move when the opponent is coming at you with a strong dash melee attack. When he comes to hit you, he will get parried and will be wide open for a fully charged blast during the recovery time. (the following damage values go from uncharged to charged. K followed by a number stand for Kaioken x#) Base damage : 7020-11280 Kaioken : 7920-12600 Kaioken x2 : 8760-14040 Kaioken x3 : 9660-15420 Kaioken x4 : 10500-16740 Max Power : 8460-13500 Max Power K1 : 9540-15240 Max Power K2 : 10560-16860 Max Power K3 : 11580-18480 Max Power K4 : 12600-20160 As you can see, if you can possibly find a way to set THAT up, you will do ridiculous damage. -Kaioken Attack / L2+Up+/\ / 3 bar cost (Straight Rush. Press Up+[] for damage boost) One of Early Goku's newly learned attacks. Goku will fly very quickly towards the opponent and slam into them repeatedly. Make sure to input the Boost combination while Goku is preparing the move. (K followed by a number stand for Kaioken x#) Base damage : 8000 Kaioken : 11700 Kaioken x : 13000 Kaioken x3 : 14300 Kaioken x4 : 15620 Max Power : 9610 Max Power K1 : 14060 Max Power K2 : 15620 Max Power K3 : 17160 Max Power K4 : 18740 Here we also get some ridiculous damage except without the manual charging. You'll have a much easier time landing this...if you ever figure out how to stack 4 Kaiokens at once... Keep in mind that some maps may increase the damage slightly if the opponents impacts an obstacle (or the ground) while flying back. Spirit Bomb / L2+down / 4 ball cost (Max Power attack, Press Down+[] for damage boost, Unblockable) Goku's ultimate technique. Unlike the show however, you don't need to gather energy for a long time so it's much better. It's a ball of energy that can't be blocked so it's a great way to end a combo. As a fun bonus, it also vaporizes the opponent if you KO them. Just don't forget to input the Boost combination. (K followed by a number stand for Kaioken x#) Base Damage : 14010 Kaioken : 15770 Kaioken x2 : 17520 Kaioken x3 : 19270 Kaioken x4 : 21010 A Ki ball attack that needs no charging but the full potential of the attack seems pretty disappointing. Even though the base damage has a 4k advantage over his regular moves, it drops to a mere 1k-2k after 4 Kaiokens. ----------------------- Small Ki barrage moves ----------------------- Goku's barrage blasts aren't the most powerful but Goku has a nice variety. Simply taping /\ will throw out several Ki blasts. He throws about 5-6 before stopping. Holding L1 while doing this will fire a shorter but quicker burst. Holding /\ will fire a stronger blast that moves like a curveball. Holding L1 while doing this will fire a Ki disc that can't be blocked. Note: You can also do the L1 moves during a jump. You simply press /\ while jumping instead of holding L1. ========== 4. Combat ========== -------- Offense -------- For regular combo hits, you press [] repeatedly. It is a 5 hit chain. The first 4 hits are only one strike which makes it easy to time your /\ moves. After that, you have two choices. You can press [] again with either up or down to send the opponent flying, followed by [] again to knock the opponent away even more. If you want to chase, you have to do press L2+X to chase manually. The second thing you can do is step-in and do a small transition move which you can aim vertically and go on into the second melee chain. It is a 6 hit chain. The third hit count as two hits so learn recognize it so you don't do a different move. You also have Melee smashes. You hold [] (with an optional direction) to charge up a strike and send the opponent flying. You can then alternate between chasing with X or teleport smashing them with /\. You can finish the sequence by pressing O, forcing them into the ground. Or a Blast 2, your choice. Also, if you release [] the very instant your character starts flashing, you will execute a perfect smash. This makes your character teleport and deliver an unblockable smash similar to the ones in Max Power mode. Those are very difficult to do because doing melee chains changes the timing. Here are Goku's /\ moves: Heavy Finish Kiai Cannon Flying Kick Heavy Finish Heavy Finish is a strong gut punch to stun the opponent. The longer you hold down /\, the longer you'll stun the opponent. You can keep pressing /\/\[] to send the opponent flying after the initial hit. Kiai Cannon is a sort of little Ki wave. You can use it to push the opponent away when you charge it up. If you press [][][] after the first hit, you'll do a small teleporting sequence. Flying Kick strikes the opponent's face multiple times. It can sometimes cancel other melee attacks since it comes out fast but it doesn't have any follow-up combo. If you hold up or down with /\, you will either send the opponent flying at a curved angle (called the Lift Strike) or you'll do a leg sweep (called the Ground Slash). The Lift Strike follow-up will chase the opponent with X followed with either /\ for a gut stun, X again for a grab or a regular melee chain. You can finish the chain with /\ for a downward smash that also disables the opponent's lock-on. The Ground Slash has two possible follow-ups. In the first one, you press /\/\[]. This will start a teleporting sequence where you knock the opponent around a bit. In the second one, you press Down+/\ then []. This does the Flying Kick followed by a melee smash. You can then press X to chase them and knock them around like you would similar to when you hold [] to smash then chase with X. Note : when coming out of a step-in, you can do Heavy Finish, Lift Strike or Ground Slash by doing their usual button combination like in a melee chain. Note 2: If the opponent defends in the wrong direction, you will do a guard break, which lowers their KI. If it lowers under 0, they will be forced to stand there while their Ki recharges to a set amount. Tougher characters don't need to recover as long as more fragile ones. Note 3: If you are in Max Power, you can end many of those sequences with one more /\ press to execute a weaker version of your Blast2 attacks. ------- Combos ------- While there are combos that are better than others, you can pretty much mix up the /\ moves like you want. Here are two of my personal combos: --- [][][]/\[][]/\[][][][]/\(hold)[][]/\(hold)[][][] This goes into Flying Kick, followed by an uncharged Kiai Cannon, into a fully charged Heavy Finish and then concluded with a fully charged Kiai Cannon into the teleporting sequence. It should do at least 6400 damage. Instead of the teleporting sequence, you can also do Kaioken attack which will bump up the damage to 14000. Even more if you use the Spirit Bomb. --- L2+O[]/\(hold)L2+/\(hold until chime) You must do this from the front when you have an opening. This will start Solar Flare, followed by one hit and into a Gut Stun. When your stance has reset, quickly start the Kamehameha and charge it until you hear the chime. It should do at least 8500 if you don't have the time to charge it completely. If you can charge it completely, it will do a bit over 12500 damage. --- Generally, you should always finish your combos with the Lift Strike, Ground Slash or Kiai Cannon because they leave proper opening into your opponent's guard to land a decisive blow. They also go into sequences that deal good damage by themselves. Other attacks will simply send your opponent flying in such a way that you can't take advantage of. This will also happen if you repeat the same attack twice in a row. -------- Defense -------- -Directional defense: Holding O and alternating between left and right will deflect small barrage KI blasts. However, keep in mind that you are wide open while doing this so make sure the opponent doesn't have enough Ki for a Blast 2 attack. Holding up or down can block attacks from above or below. This will bounce back the attacker, leaving them open for some attacks. In this case, you could counter-attack with Goku's Kaioken Attack since the close range will make the attack land almost instantly. -Manual counters: Goku can also use something called the Sonic Sway. You press O and /\ at the same time while being hit with weak melee attacks. This will force the opponent to attack Goku while he dodges everything which ends with the opponent being knocked away. This also drains the opponent's Ki and the best part is that the technique costs nothing to use. Either holding O and /\ or pressing O during a melee chain will go into auto-counter. If the opponent tried to start a melee chain on you, you will automatically counter with the Kiai Cannon strike. A good follow-up to this is the Kaioken Attack while they're unable to move. -Timing counters: Pressing O at the proper moment for melee smashes, /\ strikes and Blast2 attacks will dodge them automatically. In the case of melee strikes, you can manually choose the direction so you can end up directly behind the opponent. Normal charged Ki blasts will be deflected back at the opponent. As a bonus, your B1 gauge increases slightly. If the opponent is manually teleporting during his melee chain, you can also press O during his teleport to do one of your own and get behind him easily. You can also stop melee chains and /\ strikes before they even start by pressing Down and [] at the same time. This will "parry" the attack and will start the sequence where you and the opponent teleport behind each other's backs repeatedly. ================= 6. Potara Setups ================= Here are a few suggestions on how you can improve Goku's abilities with the Potara items. Just keep in mind that the setups assume you maxed Goku's ability limit. Easy B1 use: -Lover of Justice (-1 B1 cost but your Ki charging is a bit slower) -Dragon Spirit (Increases the B1 bar recovery) -Dragon Beat (Gain a B1 ball everytime you teleport dodge a B2 attack) This should make it a lot easier to stack up the Kaiokens for that extra edge in power. You can even spam Solar Flare to constantly gain the upper hand. Better Max Power: -Style of the Strong (this makes Max Power last longer and improves your Ultimate attack) -Super Up 3 (this makes your B2 and ultimate attacks stronger) This will make your Spirit Bomb attack a lot better and give you more time to combo around in Max Power. Wall breaker: -King Kai's Training (2 more health bars) -Draconic Aura (can stun brickwalls more easily) With this, Goku will be able to go toe-to-toe with even Giant Ape Baby Vegeta. He can take as much damage as most Giants and he can stun them, making his better speed a great asset against them. More effective B2 usage: -Ki Power Up 3 (increases your Ki charging speed) -Quick Charge (makes chargeable B2 attacks charge faster) -Super Up 3 (increases damage with B2 and ultimate attacks) This lets you fire more B2 attacks while making them do more damage. Quick Charge will let you reach the Kamehameha's full power twice as fast so a good stun will hurt. Enhanced overall defense: -Light Body (small Ki blasts can't stun you) -Guard Master (can't be guard crushed) -Perfect Guard (take no damage when blocking) -Quick Return (if your Ki gets forcibly lowered beyond no KI, you can recover faster) -Exquisite Skill (recover faster when stunned) Basically, this rounds up your defense. Light Body is surprisingly useful for a 1 space potara. Tactics that usually involve spamming KI blasts are almost entirely negated. Clashing Expert: -Dragon Power (this makes it easier to win clashes) -Attack Up 2 & Defense Down 1 (increases melee and small Ki damage with a small drop in defense) -Super Up 3 (increase in B2 damage) Dragon Power will make it easier to win clashes and the other two increase your damage at whatever outcome you choose from the clash. There's a small defense drop but it's not much to worry about. Especially since you'll be defending by attacking. Vanishing attack spam: -Vanishing Rush (lets you do 2 more vanishing attacks) -Sparking Plus (makes Max Power last longer) After you smash your opponent, you can keep pressing /\ to knock him around without using any Ki at all. you'll get even more of those when you go into Max Power and you'll even get more time to do it. Melee monster: -Master Strike (all melee damage increases. throws and B2/UB attack weaken) -Attack Up 3 & Super Down 1 (obvious enough) -Quick Fast Attack (melee combos are stronger while smashes weaken) -Combo Master (melee combos are stronger) -Light Body (small Ki attacks don't stun you) -Serious! (when you lose life bars, your melee damage increases) This build has one purpose. It is to go up close and do combo after combo. You will deal incredible damage on enemies if you are remotely good at doing combos. The only downside is that your B2 and UB attacks become very weak. But that's not what this build is for. ========= 7. Notes ========= Credit to JR Merideth for correcting me on one of Goku's costumes. Everything related to Dragonball belongs to their respective owners. This guide belongs to me. If you copy it, make sure you say where you got your information from. You shouldn't see this guide anywhere else but GameFAQS and Gamespot. I'm not making money at all on this guide. With that said, thank you very much for reading this guide.