In this tutorial article and video, we are going to break down one of the most stressful matchups for Balrog in Super Turbo: Rog versus Claw.
As you watch the footage, I want you to keep one thing in mind the whole time:
this matchup is built on reaction time and decision making under half a second.
Everything I’m doing in the footage is based on reacting to what the Claw player does and choosing the best answer as fast as possible.
SECTION 1 – REACTION TIME IS THE CORE OF THE MATCHUP
In this matchup, your reactions are everything.
Most of the time, I’m reacting and deciding my move within about half a second.
In some extreme situations, you only have about a quarter of a second to choose.
Now, to be fair, many of the reactions you’ll see in this video give you between half a second and a full second. That’s actually generous in a game as fast as ST. It sounds tight, but it’s absolutely achievable with practice.
If you want to play Balrog at a good level in Super Turbo, you need to train your reactions to that range. There is no way around it. This game is fast, brutally honest, and it rewards players who can see something and answer immediately.”
SECTION 2 – THE GOLDEN RULE: DO NOT GET KNOCKED DOWN
Here’s the main rule of this matchup, and it’s non-negotiable:
Do not get knocked down. Not even once.
If Claw knocks you down and the player is any good, you’re going straight into the blender.
When I say ‘the blender’, I’m talking about his meaty wake-up wall dive game, ambiguous dives, left–right mixups, timing traps that force you to guess on wakeup. This is where most Rog players die.
And here’s the problem:
Rog has no real reversal without super.
If you don’t have super meter, you basically cannot reversal your way out of a proper Claw blender. Your best option once you’re in that situation is to guess block and hope you read the side right.
So the ideal scenario in this matchup is simple:
You never get knocked down.
All of your ground game, spacing, and defense should be built around avoiding that one event.
SECTION 3 – THE THREE “NO KNOCKDOWN” MATCHUPS FOR ROG
For Balrog there are three matchups where getting knocked down is basically game over 99% of the time:
- T. Hawk
- Zangief
- Claw (Vega)
Hawk and Gief destroy you with command grabs and huge damage loops. Claw is slightly less lethal in pure damage, because each wall dive doesn’t hit as hard as an SPD.
But don’t get comfortable:
A good Claw player with solid blender setups can still kill you off a single knockdown through repeated mixups and chip. The danger is different, but it’s very real.
SECTION 4 – ROG’S BEST NORMALS IN THIS MATCHUP
Let’s talk about the buttons you need to rely on.
1. Crouching Forward (cr.MK)
This is one of your key tools specifically to deal with Claw’s slide.
From the right distance, cr.MK will stuff or whiff punish his slide clean.
Your goal is to stand at a range where:
- If he slides, you hit his hurtbox without eating the slide;
- If he walks forward or pokes, you are ready to react with rushes or other buttons.
- You need to learn that exact spacing. It’s matchup-critical.
2. Safe Jump with Jumping Fierce (j.HP)
Learn to safe jump with j.Fierce.
It’s a tighter and more difficult safe jump compared to some of your other options, but it’s much better in this matchup. It lets you keep pressure while respecting Claw’s options, and if timed correctly, you can force him to block or get hit while staying safe from reversals.
This will not come for free. You need to practice it until it’s automatic.
SECTION 5 – DEALING WITH JUMP-INS (WHY I DON’T RELY ON CROUCHING FIERCE)
When Claw jumps in close, a lot of players like to use crouching Fierce as anti-air.
I don’t. I think there’s a better approach.
I prefer to use:
Low Rush, or Upper Rush when he jumps in close.
Here’s why: if he crosses over you and lands behind you, Rog will auto-correct. That means you do the rush, then Rog turns around and you still get your pressure with frame advantage after he lands.
You’ll see this several times in the footage. Claw jumps, I rush underneath and hit him as he lands, and Balrog automatically spins around to face him. I’m not just escaping the jump; I’m turning it into offense.”
SECTION 6 – DEALING WITH WALL DIVES: THE THREE PILLARS
Now we get to the heart of the matchup: wall dives.
There are three main tools you need to deal with them:
- Jump back + Strong punch (j.MP)
- Headbutts (Fierce or Jab) for specific ranges
- The ultimate weapon: Upper Rush + auto-correct Headbutt + Super
- Let’s go through each.
6.1 Jump Back Strong
This is your universal, low-commitment answer.
When you have the space, jumping backwards with j.MP can beat or at least disrupt many wall dive angles. It’s especially good when:
- Claw is starting his wall dive from far;
- You’re not sure if he’ll go for cross-up or front;
- You don’t have charge for something stronger.
It’s not perfect, but it’s safe and reliable. Use it to cover space and reset positioning.
6.2 Headbutts – Fierce or Jab
Next, you have Headbutt, one of Rog’s classic anti-airs.
Both Fierce and Jab Headbutts have their uses depending on distance and angle. These are better when Claw dives at a height and position where:
- You have down charge ready;
- You don’t have the time or spacing to set up an Upper Rush;
- He’s trying to land almost on top of you.
Important detail:
A smart Claw player will try to design his dive to steal your back charge before you even wake up, especially on knockdown. In those cases, you won’t have back charge for a rush, but you might still have down charge for a Headbutt.
So there are wakeup situations where Headbutt is your best bet. But keep this in mind: a tight wall dive can still beat Headbutt. There are situations where Claw’s timing and angle will simply win. That’s the harsh reality of this matchup.”
6.3 The Ultimate Weapon: Upper Rush + Auto-Correct + Super
Now we get to what I call the ultimate weapon in this matchup.
This is 100% essential if you want any chance against a good Claw:
Upper Rush, mixed with auto-correct Headbutt and auto-correct Super.
If you learn this properly:
- Mid-level Claw players will have no chance against you.
- You will consistently beat advanced Claws.
- And you will at least have a fighting chance against Top-level Claws.
The Claw players in the video are strong. They know how to put you in the blender, and they capitalize on knockdowns well. So if this strategy works here, it will be extremely powerful against most of the player base. I’ve also used it successfully against Top-level Claws.
Keep in mind that this knowledge does not guarantee you will be destroying someone like MAO easily. It just makes it so you have a beter chance of winning. At high levels, if both people know the matchup well, the best player is the one that can play mind games and punish with more efficiency.
Some important tips:
- If you have space between you and Claw and you see the wall dive start, Upper Rush is usually perfect.
- If he goes for a short dive that lands in front, he gets hit by the uppercut part of your rush.
- If he tries to go over you, you can auto-correct and still catch him.
There will be situations, especially on wakeup, where a good Claw intentionally aims the dive to remove your back charge before you get up. In those cases, you can’t rely on Upper Rush; you must switch to Headbutt.
So your choice between:
- Jump back Strong
- Headbutt
- Upper Rush / auto-correct
This depends on space, timing, and how much reaction time the situation gives you.”
SECTION 7 – WHY THIS ISN’T AUTO-WIN: DECISION MAKING & AUTOCORRECT
Here’s the brutal reality:
Just because you know all these options doesn’t mean you’re going to win.
You need to:
- Quickly decide which option fits a specific dive.
- Become an auto-correct monster.
Learning the right timing for good auto-correct Upper Rush into Headbutt is crucial in this matchup. But more than that, you need to learn how to:
Auto-correct Super from an Upper Rush.
That is your lifeline against tight wall dive loops. It’s often the only realistic way to blow up a Claw who’s looping perfectly timed dives over and over again.
In the footage, you’ll see me doing all of this several times, not once or twice. That’s the point. It’s about consistency, not just knowing the tech.
SECTION 8 – WHY THIS MATCH SHOWS WHAT YOU NEED
I chose this ranked Fightcade match specifically because it doesn’t show ‘one cool moment’. It shows:
- Me using these techniques constantly
- Me making these reads and reactions over and over
The level of awareness you actually need to survive this matchup at advanced to high level
This didn’t happen overnight. It took me a long time to reach this level of matchup awareness against Claw. And I still have a lot to improve.
But I can say with confidence:
If you learn these techniques and apply them consistently, your game against Claw will jump to a completely different level.”
SECTION 9 – THE BALROG / GUITAR ANALOGY
“Let me leave you with one analogy that fits Balrog perfectly:
Playing Rog is like playing guitar.
Guitar is one of the easiest instruments for beginners. You can pick it up, learn a few chords, and you already sound decent. But actually playing it right, with real technique, timing, and expression, is very hard.
Balrog is the same.
At low and mid levels, Rog is one of the easiest and most abusive characters in the game. You mash rushes, hit big damage, and people crumble.
At high levels, that stops working. To be strong with Rog, you need to be:
- A sniper
- A reaction monster
- A technical monster.
If you want to take this character higher, you have to commit on all fronts:
- Technical execution – safe jumps, auto-corrects, tight inputs.
- Reactive defense – half-second decisions against wall dives and jumps.
- Matchup knowledge – knowing exactly when to use each tool you’ve seen in this video.
Do that, and this matchup stops being a nightmare and becomes a test of your discipline and precision.”
Final Thoughts
If this breakdown helped you understand the Rog vs Claw matchup,
hit like, drop a comment if you want me to cover other matchups,
and lab this stuff until your reactions and auto-corrects are second nature.