Tekken glossary
The words used on our move lists and punisher tables, explained in a sentence or two.
- Frame
- The game's unit of time. Tekken runs at 60 frames per second, so one frame is about 16.7 milliseconds.
- Startup
- Notation:
i10, i12~14 - How many frames a move takes before it can hit. "i10" means it hits on frame 10; "i12~14" means it is active from frame 12 to 14. Lower is faster.
- Frame advantage
- Notation:
+5, -12 - Who recovers first after a move connects or is blocked. "+5" means the attacker can act 5 frames earlier; "-12" means the defender acts 12 frames earlier.
- Punish / punisher
- Hitting back after blocking an unsafe move. If a move is -12 on block, any of your moves with startup 12 or faster is guaranteed to hit.
- Launch punisher
- A punisher that sends the opponent into the air, so you can follow up with a combo. Usually needs a bigger punish window (about -15 or worse).
- Safe / unsafe
- A move is safe if the opponent cannot punish it on block, usually -9 or better. Anything -10 or worse can be punished by a fast jab.
- Hit level
- Notation:
h, m, l, sm - Where a move hits: high (h) can be ducked, mid (m) must be blocked standing, low (l) must be blocked crouching. Capital letters mean the hit knocks down or cannot be blocked normally.
- Counter hit
- Hitting an opponent while they are in the middle of their own attack. Many moves do more damage or give a combo on counter hit.
- Frame suffixes
- Notation:
+31a (+21), +5d, +2c - Letters after a frame number describe the opponent's state: "a" airborne (often a combo), "d" knocked down, "c" left crouching. A number in brackets is the advantage if they recover as fast as possible.
- String
- Notation:
1,2 - A series of attacks done by pressing buttons in sequence. Some strings combo once the first hit lands; others can be interrupted between hits.
- While standing
- Notation:
ws - Moves done while rising from a crouch. They are the usual punishers after blocking a low, because you are already crouching.
- Full crouch
- Notation:
FC - The fully crouched state. FC moves are done from it, for example a crouching jab after blocking a low.
- Crush
- Notation:
js, cs, pc - A move that avoids some attacks during part of its animation: jumping state (js) goes over lows, crouching state (cs) goes under highs, power crush (pc) absorbs hits and keeps going.
- Heat
- Notation:
H. - A Tekken 8 resource that powers up a character for a short time. Heat engagers are moves that start Heat on hit; a Heat smash is a strong attack that spends it.
- Rage art
- A powerful cinematic attack available when your health is low. It also absorbs hits while it starts.
- Homing / tracking
- How well a move follows a sidestepping opponent. Homing moves track both sides; others may miss if the opponent steps the right way.
- Tornado
- A combo move that spins an airborne opponent, letting the combo continue. Each combo can use it once.
- Throw
- Notation:
th - A grab that cannot be blocked but can be broken by pressing the matching button in time. Throws are left out of our punisher tables.
- Whiff punish
- Hitting an opponent whose attack missed. Recovery frames matter here, not block frames.
- Okizeme (oki)
- Pressure on an opponent who is getting up from the floor, guessing how and when they will rise.