Pumped Up

Pumped Up is R. Mika's second V-Skill in Street Fighter V.

Description
Executed by pressing Medium Punch and Medium Kick simultaneously, R. Mika pumps herself up and throws her chest out with spirit in anticipation of an attack. If her opponent attacks her while in this stance, R. Mika stumbles backwards from the blow of the hit. Afterwards, the screen freezes while R. Mika delivers a powerful elbow strike that knocks the opponent backwards. Upon completion of this parry, R. Mika raises a fist up in victory before dropping back to her stance.

Tactics
Pumped Up gives R. Mika a defensive tool against characters with long-range normals or who specialize in rushdowns. parry that can deflect jumping, high, mid-profile attacks. Unfortunately, it doesn't work against low profile attacks or projectiles. R. Mika also cannot deflect EX moves or Critical Arts. It has a 3-frame startup, allowing her to anticipate and counter Light normals. A successful parry allows R. Mika to build V-Meter. Because of its speed, she can use Pumped Up to disrupt her opponent's frame traps. However, if she mistimes this move or tries to deflect the wrong type of move, she is vulnerable to a Counter Hit state.

R. Mika's second V-Skill causes a screen freeze, which prevents the opponent from blocking or recovering as she launches her counter attack. Pumped Up can be a decent anti-air attack to deflect her opponent's jump-ins, although it is somewhat risky. It results in a knockdown on hit. It sends the opponent almost a fullscreen length, thus resetting the neutral game. However, even if the opponent does block the counter strike, R. Mika is still +4 on block. However, it cannot be cancelled into her special attacks or V-Trigger.

While her first V-Skill amplifies the damage of her command grabs, it is very situational as it is mainly used after R. Mika stuns her opponent. Pumped Up gives her a way to stop or slow down her opponent's offense. With the fear of using the parry already installed, R. Mika can advance toward her opponent's and put them in a flurry of mix-ups with her plus-frame normals, regular throws, or command grabs.