I've wanted to make this thread for a while, but I am just now getting around to it. What matchups do you prefer to play head on versus headless in, and why? I personally prefer playing head off, but certain matchups you really shouldn't be playing head off in. On the flip side, there are certain matchups that I feel head off is flat out better in, and people should be playing her exclusively in those matchups.
This is a very general run through of the various matchups in the game and if I prefer head on, head off, if either or viable or if I'm not really sure. Feel free to chime in with your own feedback, that's what this thread is for!
I'm far from a savant in this game, but I feel like I'm one of the stronger (read: only because nobody plays headless) headless players in the game right now. If there's one thing I'm good at in this game it's probably headless Fortune. So I feel like I can contribute to this topic.
Beowulf
I'm too unfamiliar with this matchup to say decisively one way or another. Honestly, I just prefer headless because zoom and nom seem like effective neutral tools. A lot of headless Fortune's resets are very effective on Beowulf because of how big he is.
The one advantage I can think on for head on in this matchup is that you can get full combos off of throw with LK Fiber, similar to how you would on Big Band.
Obviously you have to be wary of eating damage from stray 120 Inch Pythons, but the way Beowulf's combos work you're actually not eating that much extra head damage, since the head isn't taking damage from his command grabs and that's a huge part of his comb routes.
Big Band
Headless is either good for headless or bad for Big Band depending on who you ask. Honestly, Fortune's Big Band specific loops are so damaging I think that you should just always play head on. The counterhit Big Band specific punish you get for blocking Beat Extend or SSJ is basically a dead character if you have a DHC available, so it's hard to argue using headless in my opinion.
In addition, unlike Eliza and Double, headless Fortune does not have a good big character specific combo on Big Band. You can make loop HK El Gato combos work, but the timing is awkward and you get way less damage.
Cerebella
Headless is far and wide the way to go against Cerebella in my opinion. First off, your s.MK, c.HK (1 hit) j.MP ADC j.MP setup will beat dynamo. Even if they block it, it's a great anti reversal setup. Better yet, off of nom, j.LP ADC back j.HK buffer nom actually beats every single reversal option Cerebella has.
In neutral, it's difficult for Cerebella to deal with the vectors the head controls. Zoom is good, nom is good, sneeze is good, headroll is a good reversal against a lot of her pressure….I just prefer headless overall. It's also hard for Cerebella to deal with you launching the head at her off of s.HK/Fiber. She can't really dynamo it since the head would hit her before you do.
Double
Either. I play headless in this matchup, but a lot of headless resets will lose to double mashing car, meaning you should go for burst baits to keep her from pressing buttons. One that I think is useful is headbutt, IAD j.LK, ground string, jump back j.LK ADC j.LK j.MK. If they burst you get a combo, if they don't you get another mixup. It's an obvious burst bait most players won't fall for, but it keeps them from mashing car for a second which is what you want.
Headless also has a Double specific combo that does pretty good damage. You can do loops on double off of c.HK xx LK Fiber that are better than the combos headless Fortune can do to Big Band
Eliza
An argument can be made either way. HK Fiber Upper is fantastic at keeping Eliza honest, so if you don't run a DP assist I'd stay head on. Regardless if you do or not, sandwich pressure is very effective against Eliza, headless Fortune has good Eliza specific combos, and nom is a great tool to deal with Sekmeht when snapping is not an option. Sneeze also works very well on Eliza as a reversal and pressure tool in a variety of situations.
Filia
Either. Filia is considered by some to be a bad matchup for Fortune, but in either case your s.LP is your go to anti-air and not Fiber, so giving up Fiber isn't hurting you that much. The s.HK xx LK Fiber j.MP ADC j.MP xx MK El Gato/air throw setup is SUPER good against Filia. So it just comes down to preference.
Fortune
It's a mirror match that's a 5/5 either way, so do whatever you want. Headless mirrors may be the dumbest thing in the entire game.
Fukua
The only zoning matchup that I like headless Fortune in. Zoom keeps her in check when she's landing from her fireball zoning, and you're using your run and double jump to get around her zoning rather than airdashes, so losing the better airdash doesn't matter much.
Painwheel
DO. NOT. PLAY. HEADLESS.
If Painwheel hits you while you're head off, you die. You NEED HK Fiber Upper in this matchup. End of discussion. If there's a single matchup in the game you should never play headless, it's this one.
Parasoul
Headless all the way. First off, slide is amazing and low profiles and hits Parasoul out of more or less everything she does. If you're playing this character properly and the head is BEHIND them, that means any slide is now a combo. Slide is also a great reversal. Parasoul has trouble dealing with zoom and sandwich pressure. If that wasn't enough for you, s.MK xx c.HK (1 hit) j.MP ADC j.MP is an anti reversal setup against Pillar that either stuffs it entirely or lets you land and punish it depending on the timing. You can also use your double jumps and headbutt to dance around pillar and punish her as soon as she does it. This might be headless's single best matchup in the entire game.
Peacock
Head on. In days long past, headless used to be strong against Peacock. Not anymore. I'm stubborn and STILL try to make headless work in this matchup but you really shouldn't. It's not worth it. Head on has better mobility, headless can't really deal with projectiles in any meaningful way.
Robo Fortune
Head on. Headless struggles with Robo's zoning just as much as Peacock. HK Fiber is great against Robo. IAD j.HP and IAD j.LK are great against Robo who lacks real reversal/anti-airs outside of magnet super. The matchup is in your favor with the head on, and not in your favor with the head off. Pretty easy decision.
Squiggly
Headless. Either way it's a bad matchup for Squiggly, but Squiggly can't really deal with zoom or sneeze very well. She likes to double jump, your air buttons are better than hers (a rarity) and she struggles to deal with things like air throw/j.MP burst bait 50/50s because of her lack of an air reversal. Another matchup strongly in headless's favor
Valentine
Either head on or headless is good. This is generally considered to be a matchup in Fortune's favor, so regardless of how you play it it will probably work out well for you. There's not really anything headless does that specifically head on can't do, it all comes down to preference.
This is a very general run through of the various matchups in the game and if I prefer head on, head off, if either or viable or if I'm not really sure. Feel free to chime in with your own feedback, that's what this thread is for!
I'm far from a savant in this game, but I feel like I'm one of the stronger (read: only because nobody plays headless) headless players in the game right now. If there's one thing I'm good at in this game it's probably headless Fortune. So I feel like I can contribute to this topic.
Beowulf
I'm too unfamiliar with this matchup to say decisively one way or another. Honestly, I just prefer headless because zoom and nom seem like effective neutral tools. A lot of headless Fortune's resets are very effective on Beowulf because of how big he is.
The one advantage I can think on for head on in this matchup is that you can get full combos off of throw with LK Fiber, similar to how you would on Big Band.
Obviously you have to be wary of eating damage from stray 120 Inch Pythons, but the way Beowulf's combos work you're actually not eating that much extra head damage, since the head isn't taking damage from his command grabs and that's a huge part of his comb routes.
Big Band
Headless is either good for headless or bad for Big Band depending on who you ask. Honestly, Fortune's Big Band specific loops are so damaging I think that you should just always play head on. The counterhit Big Band specific punish you get for blocking Beat Extend or SSJ is basically a dead character if you have a DHC available, so it's hard to argue using headless in my opinion.
In addition, unlike Eliza and Double, headless Fortune does not have a good big character specific combo on Big Band. You can make loop HK El Gato combos work, but the timing is awkward and you get way less damage.
Cerebella
Headless is far and wide the way to go against Cerebella in my opinion. First off, your s.MK, c.HK (1 hit) j.MP ADC j.MP setup will beat dynamo. Even if they block it, it's a great anti reversal setup. Better yet, off of nom, j.LP ADC back j.HK buffer nom actually beats every single reversal option Cerebella has.
In neutral, it's difficult for Cerebella to deal with the vectors the head controls. Zoom is good, nom is good, sneeze is good, headroll is a good reversal against a lot of her pressure….I just prefer headless overall. It's also hard for Cerebella to deal with you launching the head at her off of s.HK/Fiber. She can't really dynamo it since the head would hit her before you do.
Double
Either. I play headless in this matchup, but a lot of headless resets will lose to double mashing car, meaning you should go for burst baits to keep her from pressing buttons. One that I think is useful is headbutt, IAD j.LK, ground string, jump back j.LK ADC j.LK j.MK. If they burst you get a combo, if they don't you get another mixup. It's an obvious burst bait most players won't fall for, but it keeps them from mashing car for a second which is what you want.
Headless also has a Double specific combo that does pretty good damage. You can do loops on double off of c.HK xx LK Fiber that are better than the combos headless Fortune can do to Big Band
Eliza
An argument can be made either way. HK Fiber Upper is fantastic at keeping Eliza honest, so if you don't run a DP assist I'd stay head on. Regardless if you do or not, sandwich pressure is very effective against Eliza, headless Fortune has good Eliza specific combos, and nom is a great tool to deal with Sekmeht when snapping is not an option. Sneeze also works very well on Eliza as a reversal and pressure tool in a variety of situations.
Filia
Either. Filia is considered by some to be a bad matchup for Fortune, but in either case your s.LP is your go to anti-air and not Fiber, so giving up Fiber isn't hurting you that much. The s.HK xx LK Fiber j.MP ADC j.MP xx MK El Gato/air throw setup is SUPER good against Filia. So it just comes down to preference.
Fortune
It's a mirror match that's a 5/5 either way, so do whatever you want. Headless mirrors may be the dumbest thing in the entire game.
Fukua
The only zoning matchup that I like headless Fortune in. Zoom keeps her in check when she's landing from her fireball zoning, and you're using your run and double jump to get around her zoning rather than airdashes, so losing the better airdash doesn't matter much.
Painwheel
DO. NOT. PLAY. HEADLESS.
If Painwheel hits you while you're head off, you die. You NEED HK Fiber Upper in this matchup. End of discussion. If there's a single matchup in the game you should never play headless, it's this one.
Parasoul
Headless all the way. First off, slide is amazing and low profiles and hits Parasoul out of more or less everything she does. If you're playing this character properly and the head is BEHIND them, that means any slide is now a combo. Slide is also a great reversal. Parasoul has trouble dealing with zoom and sandwich pressure. If that wasn't enough for you, s.MK xx c.HK (1 hit) j.MP ADC j.MP is an anti reversal setup against Pillar that either stuffs it entirely or lets you land and punish it depending on the timing. You can also use your double jumps and headbutt to dance around pillar and punish her as soon as she does it. This might be headless's single best matchup in the entire game.
Peacock
Head on. In days long past, headless used to be strong against Peacock. Not anymore. I'm stubborn and STILL try to make headless work in this matchup but you really shouldn't. It's not worth it. Head on has better mobility, headless can't really deal with projectiles in any meaningful way.
Robo Fortune
Head on. Headless struggles with Robo's zoning just as much as Peacock. HK Fiber is great against Robo. IAD j.HP and IAD j.LK are great against Robo who lacks real reversal/anti-airs outside of magnet super. The matchup is in your favor with the head on, and not in your favor with the head off. Pretty easy decision.
Squiggly
Headless. Either way it's a bad matchup for Squiggly, but Squiggly can't really deal with zoom or sneeze very well. She likes to double jump, your air buttons are better than hers (a rarity) and she struggles to deal with things like air throw/j.MP burst bait 50/50s because of her lack of an air reversal. Another matchup strongly in headless's favor
Valentine
Either head on or headless is good. This is generally considered to be a matchup in Fortune's favor, so regardless of how you play it it will probably work out well for you. There's not really anything headless does that specifically head on can't do, it all comes down to preference.
Last edited:
