Special Move Potential Upgrades

[Kaoz]

Recently, @Hardy pointed me towards a paragraph from pair puri 1:

Q: Do you have ideas for a new serve?
A: "New * Kouhou!" Just kidding~, if I were able to come up with something just like that, I'd have no worries~! But, if something comes up during the training camp...yeah.

The obvious question of course became: what would this "New Tiger Cannon" actually be like? And unsurprisingly, we didn't come up with the exact same answer:

• Hardy took some inspiration from volleyball and Momoshiro's improved Dunk Smash from the St. Rudolph match. In his mind, for his new serve, Sengoku would toss the ball from far behind the baseline, get a running start and jump forward into the serve for even greater power.
• My idea was also inspired by Momoshiro's Dunk Smash, but I didn't make the volleyball connection at all and instead thought of Kawamura's last serve against Gin where he tossed the ball way too far forward and then only hit it with the top of the frame, resulting in a blurry spin. Of course Sengoku wouldn't be able to replicate that level of power, but I think it'd be possible for him to consistently use the frame for his serves.

Now, the purpose of this thread is to share ideas what kind of upgrades the MSers and HSers that were not chosen as representatives could've received if they had been featured more. There's over 50 characters that fulfill that condition, so I reckon you'll be able to come up with a couple.

 

[Hardy]

I actually thought of more Sengoku upgrades but I'll save them for the moment

I think Jirou, after spending so much time talking and training with Marui and practicing on his own, could had copied some of his idol's volleys with his own twist -due to him having amazing wrists that Marui actually doesn't have.

I was surprised that Shishido has a rather average Stamina, considering it was said multiple times that he trains the hardest in Hyotei -Iirc every day he had to use eight different shirts during practice- so him somehow upgrading his endurance and evolving into a more kaidou-esque playstyle didn't sound too crazy.

Speaking of Silver Pair, I liked that you gave Chotarou a Serve Return in the fan league -which he had in some videogames. He became such a one trick pony and i think Konomi never really explained what he improved in order to progress through the courts.

Wakashi could learn from other martial arts and combine them into his own style. I think Sanada's Wind for example would fit his unorthodox and surprising swing quite nicely.

Thats kinda it for Hyotei, I will think in other schools later. I would like to come up with something for Yuushi but he is a weird character for upgrades imo.

 

[Kaoz]

I think Jirou, after spending so much time talking and training with Marui and practicing on his own, could had copied some of his idol's volleys with his own twist -due to him having amazing wrists that Marui actually doesn't have.

Absolutely on board with this, Marui even teaches Jiro how to do them in one of the pair puri interviews. I think if Jiro managed to master Marui's volleys, he'd be the better singles player of the two since he could probably use them even when someone tries to stop him from approaching the net whereas Marui needs to get there first (although he's faster than Jiro). I think Marui would still be the better doubles player though since (1) he has Wonder Castle which flexible wrists don't help with, and (2) he's just more disciplined than Jiro.

I think Jiro would also benefit from learning a rising shot though. He can give himself a head-start on his own serve with his adjusted toss, but that doesn't do anything for him on the return. If he could chip and charge effectively though it'd probably help him out a lot.

I was surprised that Shishido has a rather average Stamina, considering it was said multiple times that he trains the hardest in Hyotei -Iirc every day he had to use eight different shirts during practice- so him somehow upgrading his endurance and evolving into a more kaidou-esque playstyle didn't sound too crazy.

How would that mesh with his Rising Counter in your eyes? I'm asking because with the Rising Counter, Shishido tries to overwhelm the opponent with speed, but Kaidou's playstyle is more focused on drawn-out points. Would he abandon his previous style, switch between the two or?

I would like to come up with something for Yuushi but he is a weird character for upgrades imo.

Well, that's partially because he still has over 990 moves we haven't seen yet, isn't it. I think the best upgrade for Yushi would be a multi-ball move maybe, considering he probably has pretty much all other angles covered with his regular combinations. Or maybe something with Sealed Heart, like if he could impose it on opponents that don't rely on prediction that much.

 

[Hardy]

I think Jiro would also benefit from learning a rising shot though. He can give himself a head-start on his own serve with his adjusted toss, but that doesn't do anything for him on the return. If he could chip and charge effectively though it'd probably help him out a lot.

I saw Jirou once used the Rising Shot in one of the older fan leagues and thought it fit him nicely, yeah. I tend to imagine "everyone" with Rising Shot though so I'm too biased about that, but I'm glad I'm not the only one that could see Jirou using it.

How would that mesh with his Rising Counter in your eyes? I'm asking because with the Rising Counter, Shishido tries to overwhelm the opponent with speed, but Kaidou's playstyle is more focused on drawn-out points. Would he abandon his previous style, switch between the two or?

My idea back then was that he could switch between the two, but now I'm not so fond of it. An amazing upgrade to Shishido would be learning Kamio's Sonic Bullet which would fit wonderfully with his dash and his Rising.

Well, that's partially because he still has over 990 moves we haven't seen yet, isn't it. I think the best upgrade for Yushi would be a multi-ball move maybe, considering he probably has pretty much all other angles covered with his regular combinations. Or maybe something with Sealed Heart, like if he could impose it on opponents that don't rely on prediction that much.

I felt the 1000 moves were a bit bs, so I never really considered those for an upgrade. His Sealed Heart, however, does sound better in that sense. He could even go further with his Sealed Heart and actually give erratic impressions to his opponent -although, now that I think about it, this sounds an awful lot like In.

If Kabaji were to develop some kind of memory of the things he copies he would basically become the strongest character in PoT.

Spoiler: Yamabuki

Gave up on writing my fics due to studies -and I kinda rather spend that time somewhere else nowadays- so, here we go:

Sengoku: an immediate upgrade to him would be going deeper and further with his Motion Vision. With this, he should be able to read his opponents better and exploit their weaknesses. It sounds an awful lot like Insight, true, but it wouldn't be quite the same as he would have to use things he already has and work his ass in order to get something similar to Atobe's talent at its most basic form.

Also, he could get more Cannons '-' Snake Cannon? Dragon Cannon?

Edit: also, he could go back to his luck based playstyle but go hardcore on it: spamming frame shots like the serve you mentioned, cord balls, etc...

Nitobe: could improve his "12 minutes synchronization" -which sounds like him synchronizing his movements to fit his partner, not the real Synchro- and turn it into some sort of Unilateral synchro. Basically, after the 12 minutes passed, he could go into a Synchro state with his partner, but as it's all on his own it would only affect him stamina wise. Would only work in shorter matches, but damn if it would work nicely.

Kita: for a while I got him mixed with Nitobe -thought he was the "12 minutes synchro" one, lol. In any case, taking a more protagonist role inside the court would benefit him greatly, I believe, as he seems more of a "support" doubles player that helps his partner shine -think of Rudolph's Kaneda. If this is too much of a 180 turn in his character, then learning a thing or two from Oishi, Japan's MSer doubles specialist, would be perfect for him.

Muromachi: got nothing on him cause... we got nothing on him '-' could get a proper tan so he doesn't look so dumb I guess.

Higashikata: I've recently learnt that he is super into gyms and works out a lot -to the point that he has a back strength of 300 kgs- so him using this strength in tennis to overwhelm his opponents would benefit him greatly -and he would be less Jimmi. In Crystal Drive, funnily enough, he kind of had this property and was quite good in the game due to that.

Minami: the captain and the less Jimmi of the Jimmies imo -I never really saw him being "plain" tbh. He seems to have some sort of leader abilities from what we've seen on his match against Seigaku -and well, due to the fact that he IS a real captain- and he is definetly vocal for a "plain" guy, so his improvement should be around that area. He could check on pros and learn new formations from them, and even create fake signs to deceive his opponents.

 

[Kaoz]

An amazing upgrade to Shishido would be learning Kamio's Sonic Bullet which would fit wonderfully with his dash and his Rising.

Yeah, or something similar at least. I think Sonic Bullet itself wouldn't work for Shishido in combination with his High Speed Counter since he picks it up directly from the ground whereas Sonic Bullet seems to be hit from higher up. But if he managed to apply a similar principle it'd probably be pretty strong.

Minami: the captain and the less Jimmi of the Jimmies imo -I never really saw him being "plain" tbh. He seems to have some sort of leader abilities from what we've seen on his match against Seigaku -and well, due to the fact that he IS a real captain- and he is definetly vocal for a "plain" guy, so his improvement should be around that area. He could check on pros and learn new formations from them, and even create fake signs to deceive his opponents.

Actually, with what you said for Higashikata, I think a really good upgrade for Minami would be some high-precision shots. Like a drop shot and a lob and a really good volley angle or something along those lines. E.g. if Higashikata could get to a 4 or 5 in Power, Minami does the same in Technique and they put that together, I think it'd give their pair quite the boost.

 

[meowmachine]

Upgrades for Fudomine and Hyotei:
Tachibana: Could have a flat that creates multiple balls like Abare Dama. Or he could focus on his technique and use a style that's more safe and controlled to avoid injuring his opponents. I would like to see another level of Moji no Aura.
Kamio: Could have a more powerful serve and volley style that uses his speed to keep opponents on the defense. In general either needs to work on his stamina or work on his offense to finish games faster.
Ibu: Could have an upgraded kick serve. Maybe do something similar to Fuji that allows him to analyze a shot and return it. Perhaps even allow him to extend his spot to be more of a mind game where he conditions his opponents.
Testu: Probably should be a speed/power player to differentiate him from his brother. He could develop his Moji no Aura further to improve his abilities.
Sakurai: Could have a focus on being able to quickly adapt to whoever he is teamed with. In addition, he could read his opponents to expertly discern patterns and weaknesses in the opponents' teamwork.
Mori: Could have a few special techniques that can get past two players. Not the best player at getting around the court so he waits for his partner to set him up with a strong opportunity to attack. Perhaps he has the ability to change the pace of the game very suddenly if given a chance.
Uchimura: Could be a power player with his shot being significantly weaker after bouncing. His vanguard killer tactic would still be viable. He specializes in returning volleys and smashes.

 

[Kaoz]

Testu: Probably should be a speed/power player to differentiate him from his brother. He could develop his Moji no Aura further to improve his abilities.

I think this would be nice with Tetsu having speed as secondary focus, Gin mental or technique and Kawamura stamina. The bestial aura seems to give a speed boost anyway, so it would fit in that regard as well. Only potential issue is that speed is kind of Tanishi's niche among the power players, so there'd need to be some further differentiation there if they are all supposed to have different secondary strengths, e.g. Tanishi being better in small spaces and obviously when moving back and forth, but Tetsu having the advantage when it comes to moving greater distances from side to side.