Position - Anniewhere Any

Point: Good meterless damage while also being good at building meter, with a good combo assist only making things better. Her neutral game is her weakpoint, so any help is very much appreciated. Her great support options may be wasted in this slot, however.

Mid: Pillar of Creation as a DHC makes Annie a great damage engine, while she still gets backed up by an assist to help out. Annie gets to come in on her terms and immediately play to her strengths as a close-range pressure character with this method, and even if the point character does die an untimely death, she does have decent defensive options to fight her way out of the corner.

Anchor: While Annie's solo neutral game is not great in her normal state, the meter gained from previous teammates can be burned on Star Power to make her presence and pressure very oppressive while she has bars to burn. Alternatively, you can use the bar to threaten opponents with fullscreen punishes with either of her level 1 supers, and a full combo conversion with level 2. You can also treat her like she's in the Mid position using the same tactic mentioned above.

H Destruction Pillar (623HP) - 

Anti-Air DP

Invincible DP assist with incredible space coverage and high damage. Knocks the opponent decently far away so it may be more difficult to convert from a stray hit compared to, say, Filia's Updo assist. But if you can convert, you are blessed with great corner carry that you can also incorporate in your combo routes, especially for double snap situations which is what makes this DP assist stand out among the rest. A very, very strong assist.

H North Knuckle (214HP) - 

Neutral, Lockdown

Two-hit rush punch that travels a good distance and wallsplats(!) the opponent on hit. A very scary assist for the opponent to get tagged by as they will be pushed far toward the corner. Wallsplatting is a property unique to this assist that opens up plenty of combo routes. An extremely strong multi-purpose assist; some have said that North Knuckle is Annie's version of Double's Hornet Bomber assist.

H Crescent Cut (236HP) - 

Projectile

Slow-moving projectile with a tall hitbox. The slow movement speed compared to other projectiles is a blessing, letting in-fighters chase the projectile as a shield, giving out-fighters time to setup or reposition while Crescent threatens the ground space, and just being an overall great tool in pressure and even combos.

Luminous Supergiant (6HP)* - 

Overhead, Projectile (Star Power)

Dome-hitting mixup tool. Has decent horizontal range, but the knockback may make it difficult to convert off of stray hits. One of the hardest hitting single-hit moves in the game, and ground bounces to potentially open up some unique combo routes. Absolutely goofy when Annie has Star Power activated, as the additional stars emitted from Annie's sword give the assist better range, frame advantage, and an even higher bounce if it hits the opponent.

Big Dipper (2HK)* - 

Sweep, Lockdown, Combo Tool (Star Power), Projectile (Star Power)

Shoe-hitting mixup tool. Only does the slide on whiff, hits twice if Annie contacts the opponent. Comes with all the nice properties of a sweep, hitting low and breaking armor, but also the negative of putting the opponent into an invincible knockdown state if both hits connect. You can either launch the opponent before Annie delivers the second swipe, OR utilize Star Power. While in Star Power, the stars that erupt from Annie's sword let you convert from her sweep while also becoming THE game's hardest hitting assist. From a simple 3-hit confirm Annie will deal 2450 damage (1.0 ratio), while at max scaling she deals 710. Do note that the 5-hits when in Star Power will scale heavily if used early in a combo, resulting in less damage compared to some of the single-hit assists. As for the end of a combo, while no other assist will beat Big Dipper's damage output, you will be giving the opponent a lot of meter while using up some of your own (see the note below).

*Annie's assists that shoot out stars during Star Power will use up some amount of meter when she performs her move

Big Band

Recommended Assists: 

H Brass Knuckles, L/M Beat Extend, H Take the 'A' Train

• H Brass Knuckles - Armored Neutral, Anti-zoning

  • Big neutral threat giving Annie a means to close the distance if they don't have an easy way to deal with armored assists; think of it like a second H Crescent Cut

  • Good cover even when Annie is already up close and running her strike/throw offensive game

  • Makes Annie's high corner damage even scarier

• Beat Extend - Anti-Air DP, Combo Tool

  • Annie has her own anti-air options, but DP assists are always nice

  • Easy damage/mixup routes from 6HP + Beat Extend

• H Train - Anti-Air, Combo Tool

  • If you really just want to melt someone's health bar, this is a great assist choice that will also build a decent chunk of meter in the process

  • Annie's air-to-air options are poor, so this assist can be a good deterrent to the opponent trying to out-button you in that situation

Pros:

• Annie gets top tier assist options for neutral and damage from Bang

• Band gets amazing assist support from Annie for neutral

• The damage from Annie's assists alongside her Pillar of Creation DHC...

  • 3v3 Band Annie 6HP 2 bar corner tod (like 14k 1.0 ratio I'm too lazy to check the exact numbers) - YouTube 

Cons:

• None

Synergy:

• Favorite for Annie, Favorite for Big Band

• Little Band and Big Band. Both characters support each other well and can still put up a good fight when alone. Robo Fortune and Peacock match ups will be a pain to deal with, however.

• It is impossible to make a bad trio with this shell, put in any character in any slot.

Double

Recommended Assists: 

M/L Hornet Bomber, Cilia Slide

• Hornet Bomber - DP (L), Neutral (M), Lockdown (L, M)

  • M version is a good neutral assist to help Annie approach, which is the area she needs the most help with

  • Lockdown capabilities help Annie stay in her effective range

  • M version is better for Annie, but L Bomber is a fair choice if on a trio with someone who wants the more defensive option

• Cilia Slide - Sweep, Combo Tool

  • Its speed, range, low-profile, and armor-breaking properties make it good for counter-calling the opponent's assists that may otherwise give Annie a lot of trouble (armored assists such as Brass Knuckles, Robo Fortune's beam assist)

  • Another low option to help open the opponent up

  • The knockback effect opens up combo routes and mixups

    • Annie/Clide mix - Credit to Cpt. Magemoe☆

Pros:

• Both characters get a nice, varied set of assists for neutral

• Double's low damage output is offset by Annie's through both assists, Pillar of Creation DHC, and her ability to easily tag into Annie mid-combo

• Safe DHC with Catheads

Cons:

• None

Synergy:

• Good for Annie, Good for Double

• A very strong duo combination

• Any third character will pair well with this shell

Filia

Recommended Assists: 

H Hairball, H Updo

• Hairball - Lockdown, Neutral, Anti-Armor

  • Good assist for lockdown when up-close

  • While Hairball assist in neutral can typically be easily dealt with by jumping over it, if the opponent jumps too close to Annie they have to deal with her pretty good anti-air options, and if there is a good distance then Annie gets time to throw out H Crescent Cut for a better approach

  • Hairball in combos provides excellent corner carry and lets Annie convert from midscreen throws at only stage 2 in the combo chain as opposed to stage 3 if she did a solo conversion... meaning she gets more undizzy to work with

  • Annie/Hairball (and one H Drill) Routes - Forever Unborn

• Updo - Anti-Air DP

  • It's a DP, though the air control is nice for Annie and can be an appealing pick over Hairball in certain matchups (Painwheel, Valentine)

Pros:

• Annie gets a solid neutral/lockdown assist or a nice DP

• Filia gets good neutral help from Annie's assists

• Gregor DHC easily combos from Annie's supers even at fullscreen (might require OTG for Beam > Gregor)

Cons:

• None

Synergy:

• Good for Annie, Good for Filia

• Can't imagine you'd run into any substantial problems playing this team as a duo

• Any third character will fit fine in any slot for a trio

Fukua

Recommended Assists: 

M Forever a Clone, H Platonic Drillationship

• M Clone - Neutral, Combo Tool

  • Amazing combo tool for Annie, being one of the few assists that let her convert from both hits of H North Knuckle for massive damage

    • [BETA] Annie M clone 3v3 meterless one reset kill - YouTube 

    • annie+mshadow 6.5k off throws - YouTube 

    • annie DP pickups with hbeam and M clone assists - YouTube

  • Pretty much a projectile assist, so it serves as a nice neutral tool as well

• H Drill - Lockdown, Neutral, Anti-Armor

  • Good lockdown, good neutral application

  • Good pickup from midscreen throws as it keeps you in combo stage 2 (typical Annie throw conversions take her to stage 3)

  • Annie/H Drill Routes - Forever Unborn

Pros:

• Fukua gives Annie great assists for combos with pretty good neutral usage

• Annie's assist kit is nice for helping Fukua defensively and to control space

• Fukua's low damage is backed up by Annie's hard-hitting assists, combo tag-in, and Pillar of Creation DHC

Cons:

• None

Synergy:

• Good for Annie, Favorite for Fukua

• A very strong duo

• Any character fits well for a trio

Parasoul

Recommended Assists: 

L Napalm Shot, Napalm Pillar

• L Napalm Shot - Projectile, Pressure

  • Being a projectile, it does a good job of helping Annie approach

  • The lingering napalm tear makes it harder for the opponent to escape Annie's close-range pressure

• Napalm Pillar - Anti-Air DP

  • It's a DP assist

Pros:

• Good general assist support for Annie

• Annie gives great assists to choose from, all helping Parasoul out in multiple ways

• Silent Scope into Annie's DHCs can lead to massive damage due to the unscale, and can be used as fullscreen punishes into full combos

  • Silent Scope -> Pillar of Creation DHC is a fullcreen punish into a combo

  • Silent Scope -> Meteor Strike has the sniper shot hit second (and unscaled) at mid-close range, giving Annie a crumble combo and dealing more than the above DHC

Cons:

• None

Synergy:

• Good for Annie, Good for Parasoul

• A perfectly fine duo

• Any character fits for a trio

Robo Fortune

Recommended Assists: 

H Theonite Beam, Collimating Saw (5HP)

• H Beam - Beam Projectile

  • Can't go wrong giving one of the game's best neutral assists to the character who needs help in neutral

  • annie DP pickups with hbeam and M clone assists - YouTube 

• Collimating Saw - Armored Lockdown

  • Someone else is gonna have to give me a reason as to why you would pick this over Beam

  • Fair defensive option... not that Annie really needs it

Pros:

• Beam assist for Annie

• Robo gets very strong assists to choose from, H Knuckle being dummy strong

• Annie's DHC options convert nicely from Catastrophe Cannon

• Any of Robo Fortune's ground Beams can combo into Magnetic Trap  > Pillar of Creation DHC, making it easy to get Robo to safety while punishing the opponent for making the mistake of breathing at fullscreen

Cons:

• Nope

Synergy:

• Favorite for Annie, Favorite for Robo

• Both characters support each other well with top level assists, and can safely tag mid-combo without meter (Annie with 6MP > Robo tag... and with meter you can continue the combo, Robo Fortune with Headrone Impact/Mine > Annie Tag). A good duo, but an insane shell for a trio.

• A good point or anchor character would be your best bet for a trio

Valentine

Recommended Assists: 

H Savage Bypass

• H Bypass - Combo Tool

  • Gives nice damage and mix potential to combo routes

    • Annie/Bypass Mixup and Damage Route - Forever Unborn

    • Demonstration of how quickly this can kill - Dekillsage

Pros:

• Very strong assist options for Valentine to buff her defensive, neutral, and combo game

• Fullscreen Vial Combo support for Val

• Pillar of Creation DHC for good damage

Cons:

• While Savage Bypass helps Annie a great deal in post-hit scenarios (damaging combos and tricky resets), none of Valentine's assist options address Annie's weaknesses in neutral and landing a hit in the first place

Synergy:

• Decent for Annie, Good for Valentine

• Valentine gets a nice partner in this duo, but Annie's biggest issues aren't addressed with Val's help so this could not be called a good duo

• Valentine takes the point slot, so look for anyone who fits well as a mid or anchor

Black Dahlia

Recommended Assists: 

Medici Mousetrap (2MK), L/M/H Order Up! (X Shot)

• Mousetrap - Ground Space Control, Low

  • Trap shines for Annie when the opponent is cornered, giving them something else to worry about when under the barrage of her good buttons, projectiles, and while the Trap would encourage opponents to jump out of the corner, she has great anti-air options

  • Low-hitting property along with Annie's quick overhead options makes it good for mixups

• X Shot - Projectile, Multipurpose*

  • *Slow projectile (all but shotgun and beam), combo (shotgun, ice, electric), lockdown (ice, electric, fire), long-range (beam, electric)

  • Normal bullets don't do all that for helping Annie close in on an opponent, but can serve well in pressure

Pros:

• Annie gets additions to her pressure game from Dahlia's trap assist, and may be able to take advantage of Last Call loadouts since Dahlia is usually gonna be ahead of Annie on a team

• Dahlia enjoys Annie's assists both offensively and defensively; she doesn't get Counter + Assist help, but a really good DP assist is basically just as good

• Annie's tag works perfectly with Dahlia's ability to setup tags, and Annie's high damage helps make up for Dahlia's lack of it

• Last Call and Barrel DHCs

• Dahlia/Annie Combo Routes

Cons:

• None

Synergy:

• Good for Annie, Favorite for Dahlia

• Pretty good duo, though do be wary that both characters can be pretty hefty meter spenders

• Realistically, any character can fit in any position with this shell, but since Dahlia's favored position is point and Annie is one of the best mid characters, an anchor character would be recommended