LogFAQs > #916543202

Some general thoughts on Sonic: IMO Sonic is tough to place (in terms of respect) because he's inherently swingy, much more so than most characters. He's got what I'll call "weapon triangle" issues and also terrain issues.

Weapon issues:
- Sonic is amazing against gunners. I would take Sonic over a literal army of GTA dudes with guns; they'll never hit him.
- Sonic is okay against blunt melee (e.g. SF Ryu). Because of his raw speed he hits a lot harder than most opponents. But he's also less durable than most opponents without rings (which he basically never gets in Mercs).
- Sonic is terrible against edged weapon melee such as swords. You just hold out your sword and Sonic is either going to impale himself on it, or dodge (at which point you just turn to face him with your sword again). That's how it is when your signature attack is hurling your whole body into the enemy. Like, I would probably take Lloyd > Sonic 1v1, even though the army of GTA gunners >> Lloyd.

So he's really situational. Against the right enemies he performs like a legit 6. Against his counters (which are many) he struggles to break 3.

Then there's terrain: Sonic wants space to make his speed matter. A big field, a big bridge. He really doesn't want small spaces where he has to make a lot of turns and he's susceptible to being nailed by AoE. He also really doesn't want arenas susceptible to ring-out (Bubbly Clouds).

So it's just weird to price a guy who can solo certain teams of 3-4/days but is close to dead weight in the wrong situation. I don't know if you can fix it without fundamentally changing his combat. I get that's the point of loading him with niche powers/items from different games, but then he feels less like Sonic and more like an awkward Mercs construct.
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