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Ally to Jolyne Cujoh and a fellow female inmate of Green Dolphin Street Prison inJoJo’s Bizarre Adventure,Part 6 Stand userErmes Costello comes with the ability to cause explosive damage from applying stickers to her limbs for extra hits and changed move properties.
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Armed with the highest health inAll-Star Battle R, Ermes Costelloexcels at maintaining pressurethrough safe on block combos in User Mode and high damage when her Stand Kiss has the stickers applied to all her limbs. While Ermes suffers from not having any projectile techniques and evendeals damage to herself, she is a capable fighter with being able to feint cancel through a special move.
Ermes relies on buffing herself with her Stand Kiss' stickers and feint canceling to make her attacks safe or extend combos. As a short ranged rushdown character, she is powerful in user mode due to the safety granted from her feint cancel special move, which also gives her some mobility in the lighter button variations. Without access to the best Heart Heat Attack and Great Heat Attack (level 1 and level 2 supers),it is vital to play Ermes aggressivelythrough her normals and potential for high damage from her stickers, regardless of whether she’s in User Mode or Stand-On Mode.
“I Know What You’re After”
Ermes’Heart Heat Attack"I know what you’re after"is ultimately justrisky. Not only does she receive recoverable damage whether you pull off the super or not, but it also leaves Hermes in Stand-On mode regardless of which mode you were in previously. The super puts Ermes into a counter stance after she puts a sticker on her face. Damage can be increased depending on which sticker buff you used from the special move “Here’s where ya stick it!”
You do not want to throw out Ermes' Heart Heat Attack without heavy practice and a solid game plan. The switch to Stand-On mode is not a problem, if you’re prepared, but thedamage you take caused by activating the super can catch up to you. Try to save the move as a last resort or way to turn the tables after you have a good read on how the enemy will behave based on the pressure you’re giving. you’re able to get punished pretty badly from a grab response added to the damage that you will already take just from activating.
“Here’s Where Ya Stick It”
Your go-to special move for damage previously mentioned is “Here’s where ya stick it,“performed with 22 (or double down) light, medium, or heavy. The applied stickers grant a second hit to Hermes' respective limbs. The light version applies to her arms, medium to her legs, and the heavy version applies to both arms and legs. What’s great is thateach version of this move can be special-canceledafterwards, so you won’t be left open to a counter if you take the risk of spacing yourself near the opponent.
The downside of this special is that Hermes loses her stickers once she is knocked down, so it’s easy for the enemy to respond to your buffing yourself.Beware: Hermes worst self-damage attribute even more than her Heart Heat Attack is that she loses health when she is knocked down and loses a sticker.
“It’s Quite Useful”
“It’s quite useful” from 214 (or back quarter circle) serves as yourfeint cancelwith the heavy version. This version has Ermes take out her broom and quickly put it away, which lets you make your heavy normals in User Mode safe on block. That safety will be useful for applying more damage at a lower risk from using a heavy normal. The light and medium version of this move allow you to travel a decent distance, so you can get a lot of use out of it when going up against projectiles or zoning enemies to decrease the space between you two.
“USHAAAA!”
“USHAAAA!” is a punching special move from 236 (or quarter circle forward) wherenone of the variations provide a hard knockdown. Use it for combo extensions and know that the light version can’t be used for combos without using a Flash Cancel.
“Uryaaaaa!”
“Uryaaaaa!” from 623 (or dragon punch forward input) is Ermes' anti-air where she summons Kiss to throw an uppercut. The light version is great for the fact that Ermes stays in place, whereas the medium and heavy version has her move forward. The medium and heavy versions have invulnerability on startup,but they can’t be Flash Canceledout of.
“Peel It Off And It Merges Back Into One!”
“Peel it off and it merges back into one!” from 421 or (or dragon punch backwards input) is Ermes hit-grab by her Kiss Stand lunging forward.You get a hard knockdown from the grab. This move is better in User Mode for how you can sneakily use it from mid-range, once you are used to the small distance that Kiss lunges forward from. Try and master the heavy version’s range, so you can take advantage of the hard knockdown and either go for a combo in rush-down range or apply stickers to Ermes to prepare yourself for doing more damage through that reset.
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Stand-On Mode
While most of Ermes' specials in Stand-On Mode are nearly identical, she gets the benefit of an obvious increase in range due to her stand, as well as combo potential from herStand-Rush compatible move “Uryaaaaaaaaaaa!“Like in User Mode, you may also utilize her normal forward grab to give you a chance to apply stickers. To balance out your gameplay due to the identical special move techniques, try using Ermes' Stand-On Mode to use your best combos with the added damage from her stickers. Relying on using her mobility and a quicker rush-down approach is also advised to better take advantage of the increased range that taking Ermes' Stand Kiss out affords.
Use crouching medium for some of Ermes' best range in her kit for a normal. Her crouching heavy also hits low and medium, as her and Kiss slide forward and kick together. While this crouching heavy doesn’t actually go as far as in User Mode, know that you can lead it into combos when you have (leg) stickers applied.
“Uryaaaaaaaaaaa!”
“Uryaaaaaaaaaaa!” from 236 (or quarter circle forward) allows Kiss to perform aStand-Rush compatible barrage. The heavy version is great for damage when both your stickers are applied, but remember that the final hit of the heavy special can’t be Stand-Rush compatible or even Flash Canceled. You also knock the opponent away on hit with a hard knockdown, allowing another opportunity to apply stickers.
Get really comfortable with this special move so that you may put on pressure with the Stand-Rush into her more viable User Mode. Using this special for combos can allow you options for better controlling the fight once you are back into User Mode with your feint cancels.Due to the poor viability of Ermes' supers, you will likely want to save your Heart Heat gauge anyway for the Stand-Rush (which takes 0.5 bars of meter) to put you back into a more strategic position.
“On His Face! Just Above The Middle!”
“On his face! Just above the middle!” is the other new special you receive in Stand-On mode that hits with an overhead from 623 (or dragon punch forward input). If you may condition the opponent with your reliable low hitting moves in both Stand-On Mode and User Mode, this can be a great special to confirm a hit. The overhead kick causes the enemy to go into the crumple (or slowly falling) state on hit, and your different variations of the move cause Ermes and Kiss to move forward more in proportion to the strength of which button is used.
“It’s quite useful” from 214 (or back quarter circle) loses the feint cancel in Stand-On Modein favor of traveling a further distance with the heavy version of the special. You can base your usage of this move in Stand-On Mode on the heavy version, just like how Ermes' gameplay revolves around the feint cancel in User Mode. With the mobility and range granted from fighting with your Stand, move across the field the furthest to maintain your pressure or just to breathe from having to dodge projectiles
“Peel it off and it merges back into one!” from 421 or (or dragon punch backwards input) works the exact same in Stand-On Mode besides the fact that you have increased range. Feel free to rely on the hit-grab some more with you Stand out, but the drawback is much better; the enemy can see the lunge distance coming this time. It is not as sneaky.
“Eat This! And This! And This!”
Ermes’s Great Heat Attack (or level 2 super) “Eat this! And this! And this!” is one of the main reasons why you should go for a completely rush-down gameplay style using your meter as your see fit for Stand-Rush, Quick Stand-On, or Flash Cancel mechanics.This super is difficult to hit without a guaranteed lead in from a combo.Ermes lunges forward slightly to place a sticker on the opponents' forehead, but the movement is easily dodgeable with how slow and telegraphed she moves with the startup. Save this super for absolutely making sure it hits so you aren’t left so vulnerable.
While tricky to play due to her buff or install mechanic with stickers, Ermes Costello still can provide high damage with her high health bar. Mastering her will require a solid game plan for your defense overall, especially from projectile play. Being knocked down and losing both health and stickers, as well as having a hard time landing her supers, may be reasons she is often categorized in theC tier listfor JoJo’s All-Star Battle R.
