============Tenten Guide============ First of all, this is meant to be a fairly basic guide. I mostly play online. If you're looking for competitive tips, look elsewhere. Tenten is a fairly difficult character to learn, which is why I made this guide. If you just want to learn Tenten's basics though, this guide can help you out. I've actually been working on this guide for awhile, but due to computer problems/internet problems/community service volunteer work, etc. I didn't get a chance to finish it until December 23rd. Other people have figured out very handy ways to use Tenten, and one person even finished a guide already. A lot of this information I learned from xroninbladex and ChaosDragoon from Willvolution.net's forums. I've tried to credit them for the stuff I learned from their posts. [1] indicates that the information is credited to ChaosDragoon. [2] indicates that the information is credited to xroninbladex. Benblast from Willvo has a much better guide for Tenten that you can find below. His guide came first, and he has more experience with the game than I do. His guide: http://www.willvolution.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=160546#160546 Update (1/11/2010): Now that I've had some more experience with the game offline, I'm going to update a few things. ===================================================================== --------------------------=== Contents ===-------------------------- ===================================================================== 0.) The Basics (Controls) [TB] 1.) About Tenten [TT] 2.) How to take out her weapons -Short Sword [SS] -Staff [SF] -Twin Sabers [TS] -Spear [SP] -Big Sword [BS] -Chain [CH] -Mines [MI] 3.) Tenten's Weapons [TW] 4.) Overall Strategy [OS] 5.) Combos -Without Weapons [WW] -Short Sword [WS] -Twin Sabers [WT] -Chain [WC] -Big Sword [WB] -Spear [WP] -Staff[WF] 6.) General Tips/Tricks [GT] 7.) Acknowledgements [AK] ===================================================================== -------------------------=== The Basics [TB]===---------------------- ===================================================================== Here are the basic game controls. Note that these are for single battles only. Gamecube- Forward or Backward on Directional Pad or Analog Stick-Move Double tap forward or back-Dash Up on Directional Pad or Analog Stick-Jump B-Weak Attack A-Strong Attack Y-Throw X-Super attacks R-Right sidestep L-Left sidestep Flick Cstick-Deflect kunai R+L-Paper Bomb Stance R+L A-Paper Bomb Throw R+L A+Down-Throw a paper bomb at the ground R+L B-Detonate all the paper bombs that you have on the ground. Down Y-Command Throw (not all characters have one) Back B-Interrupting Attack (can be used to interrupt certain attacks in a combo. All characters have one) Classic- Forward or Backward on Directional Pad or Left Analog Stick-Move Double tap forward or back-Dash Up on Directional Pad or Left Analog Stick-Jump B-Weak Attack A-Strong Attack Y-Throw X-Super attacks R-Right sidestep L-Left sidestep Flick Right Analog Stick-Deflect kunai R+L-Paper Bomb Stance R+L A-Paper Bomb Throw R+L A+Down-Throw a paper bomb at the ground R+L B-Detonate all the paper bombs that you have on the ground. Down Y-Command Throw (not all characters have one) Back B-Interrupting Attack (can be used to interrupt certain attacks in a combo. All characters have one) ===================================================================== ----------------------=== About Tenten [TT]===----------------------- ===================================================================== Tenten in this game has lots of cool weapons she can throw out. Unfortunately, a lot of it is all style and little substance. Several of her attack strings can be countered. She has a very poor ranged game that forces her to summon weapons if she wishes to throw them. The damage she can deal is mediocre, and even her supers don't take off a huge chunk of health. Tenten is not completely without options. On small stages, she can capitalize on her fairly fast attacks. Her back b is not too bad for countering enemy attacks. On small stages, her chain attack will also work almost all the time and allow you to pull enemies close to you. Tenten's mines are an invaluable defensive tool in her moveset that can thwart enemy rushdown attempts, lead to throw opportunities, stop throws and punish wakeups. Her shortsword also is very fast, punishing, and puts Tenten in a crouch like stance that makes a lot of attacks miss her (sort of like Yugao). Tenten's throw game is above par. She can combo into one of her most damaging set ups after a throw. She can also combo into both her supers from a throw. ===================================================================== --------------------------=== Scrolls! ===-------------------------- ===================================================================== Here I'll just explain the most effective ways to take out Tenten's weapons. Most of these require a directional input plus A. I'm unfamiliar with the Wii Mote controls. You'll have to consult another guide or something for those. Note-Some methods for taking out weapons are excluded from this list. This is because they are either very repetitive to include or totally pointless. For example, you can keep pressing A after back B, back A, or forward BB to take out weapons in the following order-Staff, Short Sword, Sabers, Spear, Big Sword, Chain. There's just no point, though, in standing around in the middle of a battle whipping out weapon scrolls. ~~~~~~~~~~~~Short Sword [SS]~~~~~~~~~~~~ To take out the short sword: 1.) Press A. 2.) Press A after pressing back A. 3.) Press A after a down B attack. 4.) Press A after a running B attack. 5.) Press A TWICE after a back B attack. 6.) Press A TWICE after a forward BB combo. In the last 4 cases, it is only safe to take out the short sword if you actually HIT your opponent with the first attack. If they block the initial strike, taking out the short sword leaves you vulnerable. Assuming you hit, methods #3-#5 are the most practical ways to take out the short sword. ~~~~~~~~~~~~Staff [SF]~~~~~~~~~~~~ To take out the staff: 1.) Back A. 2.) Press A after a back B attack. 3.) Press A after a forward BB combo. As with the short sword, for #2 you should successfully hit with the back b first. The third one is somewhat useless because the first hit of forward b can be techrolled. ~~~~~~~~~~~~Twin Sabers [TS]~~~~~~~~~~~~ To take out the twin sabers: 1.) Forward A. 2.) Press A after a BBB combo. 3.) Press A twice after pressing back A #3 is pretty impractical. #2 is best done only if you actually hit your opponent with BBB. ~~~~~~~~~~~~Spear [SP]~~~~~~~~~~~~ To take out the spear: 1.) Up A. 2.) Press A after pressing down A. 3.) Press A after a BBA combo. 4.) Press A after a forward BA combo. Basically, the spear can be taken out after planting a mine or with Up A. ~~~~~~~~~~~~Big Sword [BS]~~~~~~~~~~~~ To take out the big sword: 1.) Press A after a jump. 2.) Press A after a BBBAAA combo. 3.) Press A after Up BBA. 4.) [With shortsword] Press A after AAABB or Down BAAABB. #1 is the most practical unless your enemy just sits around trying to block everything. #2 & #4 are safe on hit, but pointless unless you really want to pull out the big sword for some reason. I'll elaborate more later, but the big sword basically sucks. There's more than one reason I abbreviate it as BS. ~~~~~~~~~~~~Chain [CH]~~~~~~~~~~~~ To take out the chain: 1.) Press A while running. 2.) Press A after an Up BBB combo 3.) [With shortsword] Press A after an AAABBB combo or Down BAAABBB combo. 4.) Press A after a Forward BBB combo. 5.) Press A after BBBYUpBBB 6.) Press A after Down Y Up BBBA. Literally all of these methods are useful. ~~~~~~~~~~~~Mines [MI]~~~~~~~~~~~~ To use mines: 1.) Down A. 2.) Press A after a BB combo. [2] 3.) Press A after pressing Forward B. [1] Planting mines also allows Tenten to discard whatever weapon she was holding [1]. ===================================================================== --------------------------=== Weapon Usage ===-------------------------- ===================================================================== ~~~~~~~~~~~~Tenten's Weapons [TW]~~~~~~~~~~~~ I'm going to try to keep this section brief so I can talk more about her actual combos further down. Short Sword: The sword puts Tenten in a crouch stance that makes many attacks miss her. It's quick. It also has excellent combos. Staff: The staff sucks. Don't do anything with it other than throwing it (B). Even throwing it is usually ineffective. Twin Sabers: They do decent damage, but give your opponent a lot of chakra with each hit. Spear: Tenten can do a rotation on the spear with A or throw it with B. Throwing it shatters the enemy's guard. The spear is not all that good, but it's somewhat ok to use to follow up a successful hit with the mines. Big Sword: This is too slow to be of much use. If you hit your enemy when they block it though, it shatters their guard. Chain: If you use it from running a, it can throw an enemy off guard. Otherwise, it's a perfect finish to several of Tenten's combos. When your enemy is grabbed by the chain, they cannot substitute. This lets you follow up with various combos. Mines: Mines are Tenten's most invaluable tool. They can be used often. They can be followed up in tons of ways. I'll go into more detail about it below. Aside from providing Tenten with otherwise impossible opportunities, mines can stop enemy substitutes, throw attempts, wakeup teleports, wakeup leg sweeps, and rushdown attempts. They're awesome. ===================================================================== ------------------=== Overall Strategy [OS]===------------------ ===================================================================== At first, Tenten should try to stay close to her enemy as much as possible. Her long-range moves are extremely poor. The hardest part about playing Tenten is simply getting into a comfortable range. Obviously you will want to sidestep, deflect kunai and block when necessary to avoid enemy attempts at zoning. If you're patient, you'll eventually get an opportunity to strike. Tenten's most effective weapons are the twin sabers, short sword, mines and chain. Use the first two offensively, and the last two defensively. Use mines to punish substitutes in particular. Tenten's throw game is also above par. From a command throw, you can combo into some of Tenten's most damaging combos. You can also combo into your supers from a throw. BBX is a somewhat unimaginative, but still very effective alternate way to combo into your super. Mix this up with your command throw to try to catch people off guard. When you're weaponless, BBA is your safest combo [2]. ===================================================================== ----------------------------=== Combos ===----------------------------- ===================================================================== ~~~~~~~~~~~~Without Weapons [WW]~~~~~~~~~~~~ When Tenten is not wielding weapons, she still has several solid options. Many of her moves in this state lead into drawing weapons and using them mid combo. Others allow her to safely chip away at small chunks of the opponent's HP. Most Important- Back B-Tenten's back b is pretty good. Learn where other characters' combos can be countered by this and apply accordingly. The back b launches an enemy far away, which gives Tenten just enough time to draw the staff or sword. You can do this by pressing A once or twice respectively after landing a successful back b. BBA [2]-Two kicks followed by Tenten planting a mine. It is Tenten's safest combo both on block and on hit. Down A-Tenten plants a mine. This is usually pretty safe. Mines have a nice tendency of hitting opponents if they do anything other than blocking them. Yes, it can even hit them sometimes if they sidestep. It's a useful move to use when your opponent is on the ground and getting up. Mines detonate if your opponent's body is on them. If you place a mine in front of your opponent, though, they take a couple seconds to explode. This gives you an opportunity to run in and throw them or run in and attack. It's a very nice and easy setup for Tenten. Since mines are so safe, they are also a good way to swiftly dispose of whatever weapons Tenten is carrying [1]. BBBA-Three kicks followed by Tenten drawing twin sabers. It's unsafe on block, but more damaging than BBA on hit. Plus it lets you use twin sabers! Down Y Up BBBA-Up BBBA is pretty unsafe most of the time. When used after Tenten's down Y throw, however, it's awesome. You need to practice this a lot because it requires a bit of timing. You have to pause for a very short amount of time after the throw if you want the Up B to connect. On very rare occasions, such as against Hiruko, the Up BBBA after the throw can miss. Also, sometimes the enemy won't be launched after the third B. In this case, the chain attack at the end won't work correctly. Down YX-Yep, Tenten can combo into her super after her command throw. Unlike other characters, you need to have a bit of timing to do this. As with the above combo, you need to pause for a short bit after the throw before you press X. Running BA-Tenten's running b is quick and punishing. If you successfully hit somebody with it, you should press A afterwards. It gives you an easy way to draw the short sword. Opponents can tech roll the running b, but you still have plenty of time to draw the sword. If your foe doesn't techroll, you can do a bit more with this. If you end up close to the enemy after a successful running BA, you can launch right into the standard shortsword combo (AAABBB). Running A-Tenten can do her chain attack by running and pressing A. Sometimes kunai or projectiles can break the chain. Other times, the chain will go over that stuff to hit the opponent. Forward A-Tenten jumps and throws down twin sabers in front of her. Not only that, but she draws twin sabers too. This move is pretty damn good. It has more range than many of Tenten's other attacks. It also can jump over several moves. It isn't totally safe, but if you land close to your opponent after the attack, you can follow it up. This move can also be used in conjunction with mines. Situational- BBBY Up BBBA [2]-The Y in the middle is a Y cancel. You need at least 25% chakra for this. This is a very useful combo since it leads into Tenten's chain. The only reason I put this in Situational is because it requires 25% chakra. If you have at least 25% chakra, this is possibly the best weaponless combo Tenten has. The chakra cost is generally worth it, but if you almost have enough chakra for a super, you might want to use BBBA instead. Down B-Without weapons, the only real purpose of this move is to draw your shortsword or bait an opponent into substituting because they think you're going to draw your shortsword. Only draw your shortsword if you actually hit them with the down b. Jump B-Tenten's stomp. It can hit characters directly below you. Actually, I kind of like it. If an opponent's combo lifts you up into the air, you can use this move to counter it sometimes. Naruto's BBBBetc. is a good example. I use this move mostly defensively. I try to anticipate if an enemy wants to air throw me and I use it then. It is also a good way to deal with characters that are normally very difficult to approach directly. Forward BA [1]-First hit can be techrolled, but the A plants a mine. So overall, this is a pretty safe move. The initial attack has more range than Tenten's normal B move. Jump X-Jump X can be sidestepped. Some characters can even use their back b to avoid the whole thing. However, without weapons this does have one major use. If you use it at close range, it can break an enemy's guard if they're blocking. Otherwise, this can sometimes be used as a sort of desperation counter. If you are in the air and your opponent is whiffing an attack, you can throw out a jump x. Iffy- BBBAAA-A very tempting combo, but unfortunately it is also very easily countered. Only use this if you hit and your opponent doesn't techroll after the third A. Forward BBBA-First hit can be techrolled. Ergo, this isn't as safe. The second hit is the same as Tenten's back b for some reason. That means it has some invincibility frames which can let you sometimes power through other attacks. This combo is actually pretty glitchy. Sometimes the first forward b doesn't bounce opponents like it should. This can make it so that you can't really do more than one more hit. On the other hand, it also sometimes makes it so that your opponent can't techroll. Also, I've randomly sometimes drawn the sword instead of the chain at the end of the combo. I experimented with it a lot and it had nothing to do with timing. It was just a weird random glitch. Overall, this is another tempting, but sadly very unsafe combo. Down Y BBBA-The timing for landing a BB after Tenten's command throw is tricky, but it's possible. Down Y BBX-See above. BBBYBBBA-You can cancel the third b in Tenten's BBB combo. This is one possible application of this, but the timing is awkward. ~~~~~~~~~~~~With Shortsword [WS]~~~~~~~~~~~~ When you're holding the shortsword, Tenten crouches to avoid more attacks. This lets you effectively punish people pretty easily. The shortsword is one of Tenten's best weapons. Most important- AAABBB-This is the standard shortsword combo. If you miss the first A, Tenten is left wide open. If your opponent blocks the first A, they can sidestep. It's not very safe, but it's a great way to punish people if they miss you. AAABBBA-This is the same combo as above, but with a twist. At the end of the combo, Tenten whips out the chain to drag in her opponent. Unfortunately, doing this also means that you lose the sword. Down BAAABBB-This is a lot safer than the standard shortsword combo. Plus, you get an extra hit in. This does require some timing though. You need to pause briefly after the down b. Down BAAABBBA-Same as above, but you lose the sword and pull out the chain. Situational- B-You can press B to throw the shortsword. It's a pretty crappy projectile that misses several characters entirely and can sometimes unexpectedly miss others. If you really need to punish somebody a distance away though, go ahead. Jump A-Tenten throws the sword from the air. Actually, this isn't that bad a move. Tenten throws the shortsword pretty quickly from the air. The range and speed is similar to aerial kunai. Unlike aerial kunai though, Tenten suffers by losing the weapon. It's probably not really worth it. Running B-This is a nice way to throw off your opponent sometimes while you're carrying the short sword. Running BAAAABBBA-See "Running BA" in the without weapons section above. Down Y-Using your throw makes you lose the sword, but it's pretty unexpected too. Overall, it's worth losing the sword since Tenten has some really nice options after a throw. You should definitely use this, albeit sparingly. Iffy- AAAYBBBA-I can never get the timing right on this, but I know it's possible. You can Y cancel the third hit of the shortsword into Tenten's basic BBBA combo. Since the timing is so difficult and you do practically the same amount of damage by just continuing the short sword combo normally, I'd just completely avoid ever using this. ~~~~~~~~~~~~With Twin Sabers [WT]~~~~~~~~~~~~ Twin sabers are good. They do decent damage and can hit your opponent whether they're in front of you or behind you. Twin Sabers do have one huge drawback though. They give your opponent a very large amount of chakra with each hit. The huge chakra gain is, pardon the pun, a double edged sword. The twin sabers can punish substitutes. It's possible that your opponent will consider substituting depending on how much chakra they gain. Most Important- AA-This is the basic twin saber combo. The first hit pierces foes both behind and in front of you. The second hit juggles them. AAB-The basic twin saber combo, but at the end of it, Tenten jumps back and throws the sabers. It's a nice alternative combo that also does a lot of guard damage if it's blocked. AA (pause) AA [1]-Since the second hit of the basic twin saber combo juggles opponents, you can actually do AA twice. It does require some timing though. Also, you have to keep a close eye on your opponent's chakra if you do decide to use this. AA (pause) AAB-Same as AA (pause) AA, but it involves Tenten throwing the sabers at the end for a tad more damage. Down BAA-This is basically the same idea as with the shortsword. Unlike the shortsword though, there are advantages to just using AA with the twin sabers instead of Down BAA. For example, AA hits opponents behind you whereas Down B does not. Like the shortsword, the followup to the down B also requires timing. An interesting thing to note is that AA with the twin sabers will sometimes completely miss tall opponents. To wit, this includes Bando, Kagura, Kakuzu, and Kisame. However, if you use down b first, the followup attack will not miss them. It's a good idea to spend some time in training mode to figure out exactly which opponents AA whiffs against. Down BAAB-Obvious. Down BAA (pause) AA-Obvious. Down BAA (pause) AAB-Obvious. Down BAA (pause) AA (pause) Down BAA-This is probably the most damaging loop you can use with the twin sabers. The timing is tight, but it's still very feasible. It's a lot easier with practice than some other combos that you would expect to be basic (example: down y BB is actually more difficult to pull off). After the second AA, you have to wait until Tenten touches the ground to do Down B. Otherwise, Tenten will throw the twin sabers instead. This is probably my favorite twin saber combo. Situational- B-The twin sabers make a surprisingly awesome projectile. They speed towards your adversary very quickly. Obviously you should rarely throw them, but once in awhile it can be a good idea. You can even zone other Tenten players with them, lol. Jump A-Mostly useless. I sometimes do it and follow up with a paper bomb just for fun though. Basically, this makes Tenten throw the twin sabers diagonally from the air. If you hit your enemy with this, you're awesome. Forward A-Tenten throws two sabers forward and draws two more. It can be techrolled, but it's a nice part of Tenten's mixup due to how much range it has. Since the twin sabers normally have pretty crappy range, this can be a nice way of throwing your enemy off guard. Down Y-This basically has the same utility as with the shortsword. You should seldomly use this, but it's still a useful way to sometimes catch your enemy off guard. ~~~~~~~~~~~~With The Chain [WC]~~~~~~~~~~~~ The chain is cool, but unreliable. It misses a lot on large stages. When it does hit, your opponent is actually completely unable to substitute from it. This lets you follow it up in several ways. The following combos lead to the chain- Without Weapons/With all Weapons: Running A Up BBBA Down Y UpBBBA Running BAAAABBBA Forward BBBA [sometimes glitchy] Back AAAAAA [useless] With Shortsword: AAABBBA Down BAAABBBA Now onto following up with the chain. You can do one of six things- 1.) Jump forward, straight up, or backwards. Then do your aerial super (jump x). If it hits them on the ground, it doesn't do much damage. If you hit them in the air though, it does a LOT of damage. After the chain, you should try to jump in such a way that you end up right in front of the enemy while they are still flying through the air. Right when that happens, press X. 2.) Throw a paper bomb. Paper bombs will bounce your opponent after they are hit by the chain. Moreover, they can hit your opponent no matter where they are after the chain drags them. If they are behind you, getting into paper bomb throwing stance actually turns Tenten around so that you can hit them with it. If they are far away from you, it's pretty easy to hit them with a paper bomb. If the chain drags them very close to you, you can hurl a paper bomb. After throwing a paper bomb, you can hit them with forward ba, up bbba, or forward bbba (only if they don't techroll the first b). It just depends how far away they are after the paper bomb hits them. If you want to waste chakra or troll your opponent, you could just keep throwing paper bombs too. 3.) You can try to follow up the chain with a combo regularly (without throwing a paper bomb). This is a little bit trickier. Your best option for this is forward ba or up bbba. 4.) You can also try to air throw your opponent [2]. This also doesn't always work. 5.) Use the free time you have to draw whatever weapon you please. 6.) You can straight up use your super on them while they are falling towards you. This is REALLY tricky, but it's definitely do-able. The potential damage you can do off of this is great. Just make sure that you can pull it off. ~~~~~~~~~~~~With Big Sword [WB]~~~~~~~~~~~~ The big sword really sucks. The only cool thing about it is that if you do actually hit your opponent while they're blocking, it breaks their guard instantly. Unfortunately, Tenten's own guard breaks easily while holding it. Most Important- B-Tenten throws the big sword. It is a surprisingly quick projectile, but the throw itself takes a second. A-Tenten swings the sword. This shatters your opponent's guard if they are dumb enough to try to block it. AA-Two swings. I think the second A is techrollable. I'm not really sure though. AAB-Two swings followed by throwing the big sword. Situational- Jump A-Tenten drops the big sword straight down. Just like the twin sabers, it's hilarious if you can actually hit your opponent with this. It actually stuns them too. Iffy- AABY?????-You can do a Y cancel after hurling the big sword, but I have no idea how to make use of this. If you want to waste your chakra, I guess you could probably throw a paper bomb after tossing the sword. The paper bomb will bounce your enemy. This gives you a free ticket to do whatever else you please. ~~~~~~~~~~~~With Spear [WP]~~~~~~~~~~~~ The reason the spear isn't that good is because it can be sidestepped, Tenten can be hit by projectiles while on top of it, and hits from the spear can be techrolled. Unless your opponent can't deal with it, don't use the spear. Most Important- A-While on top of the spear, Tenten can do a rotation attack. This can be sidestepped pretty easily. If it hits, the attack can also be techrolled. Tenten can do this up to 4 times. If you do it a 5th time, she brings out the big sword. B-While on top of the spear, Tenten can throw it. This shatters the enemy's guard if they try to block it. Down AA-Only mentioning this because it's the best way to actually take out the spear. Once you have it out, you should either throw it immediately or do one rotation and then throw it, in my opinion. Iffy- Stand still-If Tenten is on top of the spear, she can stand still to get off of it. At this point she'll assume a neutral pose with the spear. In this pose she gains new moves, but her guard breaks really easily. The neutral pose is overall pointless. A (neutral pose)-Tenten swings the spear horizontally. Weak and pointless. B (neutral pose)-Tenten jumps and throws the spear. It's slow and leaves Tenten vulnerable. Jump A (neutral pose)-Tenten jumps and throws the spear, but it works more like an anti-air attack. ~~~~~~~~~~~~With Staff [WF]~~~~~~~~~~~~ The staff is probably Tenten's worst weapon. Most Important- B-Throw the staff. It's slow, but if your opponent runs right at you, they might get hit by it. Jump A-An aerial staff throw that's also unnecessarily slow. A (right after you pull out the staff)-This lets you take out the shortsword, which is much more useful anyways. Back B-Tenten can perform her back b attack and still keep the staff afterward. Iffy- A (while Tenten is holding the staff)-Tenten spins the staff. The range on this is extremely short. Plus it leaves Tenten vulnerable. AYBBBA-Tenten can perform a y cancel after the staff A move. If you are not too close and mash B quickly enough, it's possible to combo from it. There really is no point in ever using the staff in this manner though. Unless you want to look cool, don't use this. ===================================================================== --------------------------=== Tips & Tricks ===----------------------- ===================================================================== 1.) Since Tenten has few projectiles of her own, spend a large amount of time in training mode learning how to deflect kunai. On a classic controller you flick the right analog stick. On a Gamecube controller you flick the c-stick. In both cases, you should try to flick the respective stick right when deflect-able projectiles are about to hit you. Unfortunately, deflecting kunai actually makes you lose whatever weapons you were carrying! You really have to think whether or not it's worth it every time. If you're weaponless, it's obvious that you should go ahead. Otherwise, you might consider sidestepping or blocking instead. 2.) Tenten has a high learning curve, is risky to play, and isn't very rewarding. If you want to play her well, you will want to spend a lot of time in training mode. Despite the fact that you have her unlocked at the beginning, she isn't a beginner's character. 3.) It's rather cliche to quote the Art of War, but oh well: "Know thy enemy and know thyself." Knowing Tenten's moves is actually less important in some ways than knowing the tricks that your opponent has up their sleeve. Since Tenten requires much more prediction than other characters, you should definitely spend some time acquainting yourself with what the other characters in the game can do. 4.) Be patient. A lot of people will try to zone Tenten, but they can't do it forever. Playing defensively with Tenten actually has its benefits sometimes. 5.) Know your limits and accept defeat. Some matchups are just going to be very, very hard for Tenten. Hiruko is a good example. Tenten's Up BBBA combo whiffs on the second B against him, which renders a large number of her most damaging setups totally useless. He can fire off tons and tons of non-deflectable projectiles at you [2], and has far more effective options for rushing down as well. His back B is a notorious move that totally blocks Tenten's entire aerial super as well as most other things she can do. Throwing him isn't rewarding, sidestepping him will usually get you slapped in the face with his tail, he can outplay you defensively, and he can outplay you period. It is possible to win against him by being very patient, doing your back b during his back b, and basically out-predicting him close to 100% of the time. Nonetheless, it's still really difficult. Against such odds, don't expect to win the vast majority of the time. You're probably better off choosing another character. 6.) This kind of counters point 4, but Tenten really does her best when she is up close and in the enemy's face. You should try to stay close to your opponent. On the other hand, you shouldn't be reckless (point 4). 7.) Use whatever works. If your opponent sucks at techrolling or doesn't know how to counter the spear or something, feel free to go wild. 8.) This is sort of an addendum to point 7. Feel free to try different things. Tenten has lots of different weapons and you should definitely experiment with them on your own. If you can use the big sword, staff or spear well, ignore everything I said about them in this guide and do it! If you discover cancels that lead into more devastating combos, use them! If you can always pull off air throws after using her chain, go ahead! I believe that Tenten has lots of untapped potential. I'm 100% positive that there is a lot of stuff that this guide is missing. Of all the characters in the game, I believe that Tenten benefits the most from excessive experimentation. I am still learning things about her. I think that in the future, people will find even more useful cancels, ways to use her weapons, and methods of comboing into her supers. I, for one, am willing to try out her staff, big sword, and spear a bit more to figure out how best to utilize them. 9.) If you get the opportunity to choose a stage, pick a small one. The best stages for Tenten are Tanzaku Castle 1, Leaf Forest 1, and Nine Tails Room 2. 10.) If you are playing on a big stage, sometimes it's worth it to avoid using the chain unless you know that your attacks won't launch your enemy far. You might be better off simply running after your opponent after Up BBB, AAABBB, etc. 11.) Red pants>Blue pants. Tenten's alternate costume is pig-disgusting. If you use it, you should be ashamed. ===================================================================== --------------------=== Acknowledgements [TB]===------------------- ===================================================================== Thanks to the following: -Eighting for making an awesome game. -Tenten for being so fun to play by sheer virtue of her huge moveset. -xroninbladex and ChaosDragoon for great tips on playing Tenten. -Ben for making another Tenten guide on willvolution.net. For the record, his came first. I linked to it at the beginning of this guide. -The movie Rat Race for making me laugh pretty hard today. -Wendy's for their 1$ double stacks. -Subway for their 5$ footlongs. -Wenway's for their 6$ double footstacks. -Gamefaqs and willvolution.net for being pretty good videogame communities. -My famil...nah, forget them. Note-Guide finished on December 23rd. It will be submitted whenever my internet comes back. Guide updated on January 11th.