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MultiVersus has more than a few characters who may have moves that remind you of other characters from other games. Sure, many of them are from the venerable Smash Bros. series, but then there is Arya who has just a touch of Mortal Kombat's Shang Tsung. That's right, people. We're shape-shifting up in here!
But worry not, Arya isn't just her face-stealing gimmick, she also has access to potent pokes, terrific teleporting tactics, and dashing dodge strikes. This is a character with a versatile toolkit and a half-dozen tricks up her sleeve. Which is tricky in itself, as she doesn't really have sleeves!
Ability Overview
Arya is the most assassiny of all the assassin characters. Her hybrid classification is well-earned, as she can knock opponents out anywhere on the screen. However, she also has a whole host of passive abilities that make her even more potent. As an example, Arya deals more damage to an enemy's back. Which, you know, is very in line with her class.
She also gets the disorient buff whenever she dodges an opponent's attack. Additionally, when she takes out a foe, she spawns a pie that will heal allies and slow enemies. Lastly, she becomes enraged if her ally is kayoed. All this adds up to being a character that can be pretty deadly in 2v2, as back attacks are far from infrequent. That isn't even mentioning all of the other passive abilities that benefit the team, like the pie or the enraged.
Grounded Attacks
|
Name |
Command |
Image |
Additional Properties |
Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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Needle Strike |
Attack |
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Chargeable |
This is Arya's chargeable neutral attack. It is decently rangy, especially when charged. This attack will be replaced with one of your opponents' if you have stolen their face. |
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Sharp Edges |
Forward + Attack |
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This is a solid combo with decent range that, crucially, combos directly into Arya's Upward Slash. |
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Upward Slash |
Up + Attack |
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Chargeable |
This is a very good anti-air attack. It leads directly to her Dagger Slash. The two moves work beautifully together. However, when dealing with pure ground-to-air exchanges, we often prefer to go with Arya's Rolling Slash instead. It is worth noting that this move doesn't just hit above Arya's head. It actually hits a reasonable distance in front of her as well. This does make it a decent catchall option. |
|
Rolling Slash |
Down + Attack |
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Acts As A Dodge Roll |
This is sneakily one of Arya's best moves. While it may not be particularly flashy, Rolling Slash sees Arya quickly dodge toward her opponent, becoming momentarily invincible, and following up with a slashing attack. This move is absolutely fantastic for dealing with characters attacking you from above. It is also an incredible tool when fighting aggressive opponents, as you can use this move to beat out most attacks. |
|
Face Stealer |
Special |
|
Steals Face, Stuns |
Face Stealer is how Arya chooses who she will transform into. She can do this with her partner, as well. Once Arya has taken a face, using this move will create a small shockwave around Arya. Any opponent hit by this will be stunned for about two seconds. Long enough to hit them with a fully charged attack. So, you will be able to get an optimal combo. This shockwave is deadly, but it is slow. Grabbing your enemy's face can be tricky, as this move is not speedy. However, it does make for quite the spectacle. |
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Knife-Thrower |
Forward + Special |
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Projectile, Reduce Ally's Cooldown, Armor Breaking (only the cooldown version) |
Knife-Thrower is actually two separate moves. The first is where she throws her knife and can then zip to said knife. If there are enemies in between her and the knife she will clip them, naturally. If the knife clings to an ally then it will reduce their cooldown. When this attack is on cooldown, Arya will perform a spiraling attack that breaks armor. This is one of Arya's harder-hitting moves and is a great tool for punishing your opponent's whiffed attacks |
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Dagger Slash |
Up + Special |
|
Dagger Slash sees Arya swipe her sword above her head. If this attack lands, you will teleport to your opponent, making it extremely easy to perform a follow-up attack. Since you can jump cancel Arya's Upward Slash attack, the Dagger Slash gives Arya one of the easier air combos to perform in the game. Hit the Upward Slash attack, follow with the Dagger Slash, sending your opponent even higher and teleporting you to them, then perform a final Upward Slash. Potent. |
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|
Blade Sharpener |
Down + Special |
|
Disorient |
This is a buff for Arya and her teammate. Using this will cause Arya to teleport to her partner and grants the entire team the disorient buff. Disorient will cause the next melee attack you use to break armor. You can actually still use this attack when it is on cooldown, but you don't get the teleport and the buff doesn't last as long. |
Aerial Attacks
|
Name |
Command |
Image |
Additional Properties |
Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Knife Flourish |
Attack |
|
This is a downward attack that combos. It has a nice hitbox, and can combo into grounded normals. While we would generally prefer to use Stinger when attacking from the air, Knife Flourish does hit more horizontally, which means that it is the better option when your enemy isn't directly below you. It is important to note that this move will be replaced if you have stolen someone's face. |
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|
Aerial Slash |
Forward + Attack |
|
Chargeable |
This is a chargeable attack that is pretty quick and packs a punch. There isn't much to it, but it is a decent way of smacking an enemy off the side of the screen while edge guarding. |
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Whirling Stab |
Up + Attack |
|
Whirling Stab is a fantastic upward slashing attack. It hits twice and packs a wallop. However, there is no jump canceling it or anything along those lines. So, unless you have stuck your enemy with a knife, you won't be able to follow up after hitting with it. Aerial Slash is a great way to finish off your opponent if you have hit them to the top of the screen with your Dagger Slash special. |
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Stinger |
Down + Attack |
|
Chargeable |
This is a fantastic move with an amazing hitbox. Arya's Stinger attack is her spike. It is extremely potent and is what you should use whenever you have an enemy clinging to the side of the platform. Stinger will also bounce grounded enemies, which will give you an opportunity to follow-up with your Upward Slash and Dagger Slash. |
|
Face Stealer |
Special |
|
Steals Face, Stuns |
This is the same attack as her grounded version, but performed in the air. |
|
Knife-Thrower |
Forward + Special |
|
Projectile, Reduce Ally's Cooldown, Armor Breaking (only the cooldown version) |
This is the same attack as her grounded version, but performed in the air. If the knife isn't on cool down, this is a fantastic way to get back to the main platform if you have been batted away. |
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Dagger Slash |
Up + Special |
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This is the same attack as her grounded version, but performed in the air. |
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Blade-Sharpener |
Down + Special |
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Disorient |
This is the same attack as her grounded version, but performed in the air. Of course, it is an excellent tool to use if you are being bullied in the air, as it will help you zoom straight to your partner. Though, that won't help you in singles... |
Battle Strategy
While Arya has the most passive abilities in the game, her gameplay is actually pretty straightforward. She is rewarded greatly for dodging, so that is one of the core tenets of playing Arya. Thankfully, her Rolling Slash is a dodge roll. This is an attack you will get a lot of mileage out of. However, it really is only good for skirmishing, and beating out air-to-ground attacks. It doesn't directly lead to a ton of damage.
What you are going to fish for is your Sharp Edges combo. But, after the first strike of Sharp Edges, you are going to hit them with your Upward Slash, then follow that with your Dagger Slash. Now, your dagger slash will take you into the air with your opponent. From here you can spike them back down to the ground with Stinger, or, if they are hurt, you can maybe even take them out at the top of the screen with a Whirling Stab. This is a great combo, and it is very easy to do. There is no jump canceling or anything like that, you also have plenty of time to input the attacks.
Now, about the dagger. If you manage to stick your opponent with the Knife-Thrower special, you may feel the urge to immediately zip to them and start comboing them. This isn't a bad strategy if they are severely hurt, or in a vulnerable position, but otherwise, you are far better off trying to get a combo in and knocking them away THEN following up and zipping to them. This will allow you to continue combos when you would otherwise be unable to do so.
Another thing worth noting, is if your dagger is in an enemy, you can follow up for cheesy kills if they decide to take to the air. Use your Dagger Slash and then follow it up with the Whirling Stab to knock 'em out at the top of the screen. This type of thing is why you want to constantly stick people with your dagger, it leads to scenarios where you can get low percentage kills.
One last note about Arya: she has a great spike (her Stinger), a great up attack (both her Whirling Stab and her Dagger Slash), and her Knife-Thrower special (when her knife is in cooldown) is an excellent special for knocking opponents out to the side. All of these tools mean that Arya is very good at edge guarding. Heck, she can also throw her knife at an opponent trying to recover, zip to it, and take them out that way (which would also earn you style points.
The main thing you have to remember is that Arya is fierce, but she is also light and takes increased damage. So, make sure to make good use of those dodges; the last thing you want to do with Arya is square up and go shot for shot.
Team Play Strategy
Arya is one of those characters who helps herself and inadvertently helps her partner. By killing an opponent, she drops a pie which will heal her partner. When using Blade-Sharpener to get some distance from her opponents and reset, she grants her partner the enraged buff. The only thing Arya can really do to actively assist her partner is to stick them with her Knife-Thrower attack, which will reduce their cooldown. However, unless her partner is someone like Velma, who can really use any cooldown reduction she can get, Arya is probably better using the knife to get cheeky kills with.
At the end of the day, where teamplay really factors into Arya's gameplay is that it gives her more access to more backs. If opponents are facing away from her, fighting her partner, it gives her the perfect opportunity to get some extra damage from her unique backstab passive ability. It turns out that partnership with Arya isn't so much about the destination, it is about the backs you stab along the way.
Arya's Progression Unlocks
|
Mastery Level |
Image |
Reward |
Description |
|---|---|---|---|
|
One |
|
Default |
Default. |
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Two |
|
Perk: Snowball Effect |
Your team deals seven percent increased damage against the fighter with the highest damage. |
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Three |
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Currency: Toasts x Five |
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Four |
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Perk: Fancy Footwork |
Your team receives a five percent increased dodge distance. |
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Five |
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Currency: Gold x 100 |
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Six |
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Perk: Equip Ally Perks |
Unlock the ability to use an ally's perks in team games. |
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Seven |
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Perk: Leg Day Champ |
Your team receives ten percent increased jump height. |
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Eight |
|
Signature Perk: Betrayal |
Hitting an ally with Arya's dagger has a longer cooldown, but the ally is given an enraged buff. If Arya dashes to a dagger on an ally, she enrages herself. |
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Nine |
|
Perk: Perk Training |
Unlocks the ability to train ANY perk in the game. |
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Ten |
|
Signature Perk: Trophy |
When Arya knocks out an enemy, she automatically obtains their face. |
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Eleven |
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Perk: Second Wind |
Your team refreshes air special attacks after ringing out an enemy. |
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Twelve |
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Perk: Percussive Punch Power |
Your team deals five percent increased damage with attacks that knockback enemies horizontally. |
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Thirteen |
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Perk: Armor Crush |
Your team's fully charged attacks break armor. |
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Fourteen |
|
Profile Icon: Arya |
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Fifteen |
|
Badge: Arya Wins |
Arya's Signature Perk Overview
Arya's Signature Perks are interesting, but they aren't necessarily as game-changing as some other characters' Signature Perks are. Her Betrayal perk is nice, and will keep your team enraged more often. However, we do prefer using Arya's Dagger to go for cheesy kills, so this isn't the one we tend to fall back on. Trophy, on the other hand, just gives you someone's face for knocking them out. That isn't necessarily huge, but it does reward you for doing the thing you are going to do anyway, so it is a nice little perk.