Team Value

Resource

Going in-depth into Beowulf’s Hype resource here would be too long-winded for this primer (just click on his image above to see his wiki page that goes into it), but the short of it is that Beowulf’s Hype gives him more damage and some of, if not THE best setplay in the game. Hype is extremely important for Beowulf, and as a result he requires the most enabling out of not only the resource characters, but the entire cast.

Beowulf Hype Routes with assists

Position - Point, Mid, Fake Anchor

Point: Shines when he has an assist to help with neutral and another combo assist to build Hype and maximize his damage or stay in on the opponent once he's in close-range. Some assists accomplish more than one of these tasks. It is easy to snowball games if things go right. Beowulf's high meter building combos give him great value as a point character.

Mid: While Beowulf largely used to be thought of as a "point only" character, over the years people have looked more into his support value. He does have pretty decent assists, one of the best Alpha Counters in the game with H Chair assist, a safe DHC with Airwulf, and in some situations Gigantic Arm can be used as a combo DHC. These are pretty good qualities to have in a mid character. Additionally, in this position you can have the point character play neutral and switch into Beowulf at an advantageous position via hard knockdown into tag or through a DHC, letting him skip to the fun and strong parts of his game plan backed by assists.

Fake Anchor: The same deal as playing Beowulf mid, but you're making more of a conscious effort to switch Beowulf in before the rest of your team dies. He does not play the position of a real anchor very well due to his lacking neutral. One of Japan’s top players Penpen ran a Beo team in this manner.

H Hurting Hurl (236HP) - 

Projectile DP

Travels through the air in an arc and lands fullscreen. Very good Alpha Counter option since even if it gets blocked, Beowulf is +1!

M Hurting Hurl (236MP) - 

Projectile Overhead

Similar to H Chair, but not invulnerable and it travels much less far in a higher arc. Hits twice: mid on the way up, and overhead on the way down. Great for pressure and mixups.

L Hurting Hurl (236LP) - 

Projectile Sweep

It being a sweep means that it hits low and breaks armor, while on hit it pops the opponent up making it great for combos. Since it's a projectile, it can only be challenged by opposing projectiles once it becomes active, which sucks against zoners, but is great against anyone else.

The weakness of chair assists is that after use, the chair has its own cooldown period before it can be used again. This means that if you try calling Beowulf again while the chair is darkened, he just comes out and taunts. Make every call count, especially if you're using H Chair assist and need to keep that DP assist handy.

Nosebleed Seat/Grendel Flex (2HP) - 

Launcher (chair-on), Armored Space-Control, Pressure (chairless)

If Beowulf has chair, you get a launcher with a decent hitbox. Kinda sucks. Without the chair, you get an ARMORED 2-hit launcher with a Gigantic (arm) hitbox. Nice for defending the space in front of you, and is a great option for the resource-building characters with how long the opponent is in hitstun. Extremely strong assist if you get access to it.

Geatish Leg Sweep/Gigan Arm Sweep (2HK) - 

Sweep (chair-on), Armored Sweep (chairless)

With the chair, you get a sweep. Meh. Without the chair, you get an ARMORED sweep with very long range that’s good for closing in on the opponent and as a counter-call to opposing armored assists. Note that unlike sweeps like L Hurting or Cilia Slide, you cannot get any sort of combo afterward.

Annie

Recommended Assists: 

H North Knuckle, H Destruction Pillar, H Crescent Cut

• H Knuckle - Neutral/Lockdown

  • Range and lockdown make it a great neutral assist to help Beo close in on the opponent

  • At the right spacings, Beo can convert into a combo from H Knuckle by spending a bar on Gigantic Arm

  • Taunt combo in the corner, and just overall a good damage assist

• H Pillar - Anti-Air DP

  • It's a good DP, though the knockback may make it difficult to convert in some situations if you can't reach with Blitzer in time or don't have meter to convert with your Gigantic Arm super

  • Taunt combos in the corner

• H Cut - Projectile

  • Extremely good neutral assist against opponents who can't easily erase the projectile (AKA... not the zoners)

  • No Taunt combos, but H Cut can protect Beo while he builds Hype in neutral with 5LP or Taunt

Pros:

• Annie gives Beo great neutral assists

• Beo's assist support for Annie isn't anything amazing, but it works just fine

• Beowulf's high damage combined with Annie's absurd DHC damage will have you melting opponents

• Beowulf is a good battery to fuel Annie's good assortment of supers

Cons:

• Hype support for Beo isn't the best

Synergy:

• Good for Beowulf, Good for Annie

• Both characters support each other well and don't conflict on anything, making for a serviceable duo.

• Anyone aside from the "point-only" characters will fit nicely in a trio

Black Dahlia

Recommended Assists: 

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

• Mousetrap - Ground Space Control, Low

  • Gives taunt combos and chairless jHP conversions

  • Not much help for Beowulf's neutral, but nice for pressure and mix especially in the corner

• X Shot - Projectile, Multipurpose*

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

  • Gives taunt combos and chairless jHP conversions

  • Normal bullets don't do much for Beo's neutral, special bullets can help for any number of neutral, combo, or pressure situations

Pros:

• Beowulf gets help with combo conversions and pressure from Dahlia's assists

• Dahlia has no issue working with Beowulf's assists, Grendel Flex is especially nice if you can get Beowulf chairless

• If Dahlia 2MK (mousetrap) is out and positioned properly, Beowulf can tag-in and continue the combo - Credit to Xyned

• Last Call and Barrel DHCs 

• Dahlia/Beowulf DHCs + extras

Cons:

• Dahlia's assists aren't great for helping Beo in neutral outside of special bullets

• Both suffer against zoners and don't really do much to help each other in that regard (outside of Dahlia's special bullets which require setup)

Synergy:

• Good for Beowulf, Decent for Dahlia

• Not recommended as a duo as neither are amazing anchors, and they struggle against zoners

• Look for a better anchor character for a trio

Cerebella

Recommended Assists: 

Excellebella, H Lock 'n' Load, Diamond Drop

• Excellebella - Anti-Air, Combo Tool

  • Mimics Big Band's H Train assist in letting Beowulf get a taunt combo without 5HK stagger, but has lower damage, grab range, and does not allow for a taunt from chairless jHP

  • Top 3 Hype building and damage assist for Beo

• H Lock 'n' Load - Armored Neutral, Pressure

  • Helps Beowulf approach and can shield him from projectiles

  • Gives a taunt off of stagger in the corner

• Diamond Drop - Command Grab, Combo Tool

  • Gives a taunt from 5HK stagger, and gives more damage than Excellebella in exchange for needing to stagger

  • It's a command grab, so can be used for mixups if you can really scare your opponent into sitting pretty

Pros:

• Beo gets either neutral or taunt support from Cerebella's assists

• Diamond Dynamo into Airwulf DHC is safe

Cons:

• Both share a number of bad matchups, and Beo isn't doing a lot to help Bella in that aspect

• Bella's assist options for Hype gain don't help Beowulf's approach all that well, while her better neutral assists aren't great for Hype gain

Synergy:

• Good for Beowulf, Decent for Cerebella

• While this duo can work, it has some real matchup struggles and its flaws come to light when Beowulf is second or is the last one standing. With Bella's assists, you'll have to choose between approach tools or resource-building tools for Beo.

• Easy to fit in a third character, preferably someone with a good neutral assist

Eliza

Recommended Assists: 

Butcher's Blade, H Osiris Spiral, Throne of Isis, Carpenter's Axe

• Butcher's Blade - Armored Lockdown, Space-Control, Anti-Armor

  • Best option for helping Beowulf's general approach, good for eating projectiles

  • Keeps the opponent locked in place for a long time and works wonders for counter-calling opposing assists

• Osiris Spiral - Space-Control, Lockdown

  • Pick over Butcher's if on a trio with a character who wants Spiral more, or if you don't want to deal with the negatives of Sekhmet assists

• Throne of Isis - Projectile, Anti-Zoning

  • Decent for fighting zoners as Throne passes through projectiles (but does not negate them)

• Carpenter's Axe - Armored Overhead

  • If you just want mix and damage, as Butcher's and Spiral will otherwise kill your damage

Pros:

• Eliza's assists help Beo with neutral and pressure

• Good Hype building support

  • Every assist listed lets Beowulf taunt from stagger and get a combo off of chairless j.HP 

  • Butcher's and Osiris also let you taunt from chairless 2HP, so you don't need stagger available

• Easy to tag into Eliza mid-combo and continue if you need to tag out for whatever reason

• Beowulf can convert off of Lady of Slaughter with Airwulf

Cons:

• Beowulf's support for approaching and controlling the mid-range aren't all that great for Eliza, especially with Beowulf's special conditions on his assists (cooldown, chairless requirements)

• Eliza's DHCs add good damage, but have no utility beyond that with her level 1 DHC essentially ending the momentum you built up

Synergy:

• Good for Beowulf, Decent for Eliza

• Pretty mediocre duo as while Eliza is a good anchor, if Beowulf gets snapped then things get weird. The best plan would be for Eliza to land a hit into sliding knockdown to tag Beowulf in, but she needs to land that hit with a partner who does nothing for her.

• Not inflexible, but you'll likely want a good mid character for a trio

Ms. Fortune

Recommended Assists: 

Wheel of Fortune (head-on 5HK), H Fiber Upper, Dash

• Wheel of Fortune - Lockdown

  • Lets Beowulf get a taunt from stagger, and even combo conversions from chairless j.HP, but the damage is comparably lower than other assists with the same function for higher undizzy used

  • Three hits of lockdown to help Beowulf stay in and mix

  • Requires that Fortune be head-on or you get an assist not worth ever calling, which may be an issue if you play Fortune on point and get snapped out

• Fiber Upper - Anti-Air DP, Meter Build

  • Beowulf's DP requires the chair so it's one shot, nice to have a backup

  • Difficult for Beowulf to combo after, and he does not appreciate the opponent being sent away from him without a knockdown

• Dash assist - Alpha Counter options

  • Lets you Alpha Counter into Fortune and have her choose any option, including a 5 frame jab, a fast DP, super, jump, or just block. You get to steal your turn out of some pressure strings or get punishes that no other Alpha Counter will safely allow.

Pros:

• Fortune deals well with Beowulf's worst matchups; viable to have her start point, get a sliding knockdown, then tag in Beowulf at an advantage

• Airwulf gives Fortune a safe DHC

Cons:

• Both characters fight for the point position, and even if Beowulf plays as the fake anchor, he still gets mediocre assist support from Fortune once he's on point

• Beowulf's assist are just alright for Fortune, and the conditions that come with his better assists only hurt

Synergy:

• Poor for Beowulf, Decent for Fortune

• Pretty bad duo; Fortune does nothing to address Beo's weaknesses or add on to his strengths so he basically plays like a solo character. Fortune gets... a functional assist.

• Pretty much stuck to looking for an anchor character, may be able to get away with a good mid and running anchor Fortune. A character who likes spending meter would be especially great, as both Beowulf and Fortune are great meter builders.

Painwheel

Recommended Assists: 

M Gae Bolga Stinger (M Nails)

• M Nail - Projectile

  • Standard fireball, so it'll provide some cover as you try to move in and shield Beo from a projectile

• L Buer and L Nails let Beowulf get a taunt off of stagger, but these assists are otherwise pretty niche and not something to recommend

Pros:

• The function of Beowulf's assists are nice for Painwheel, offensively and defensively

• Beo is a good battery to fuel Hatred Install

• Hatred Install DHC is great for adding damage and safety, Painwheel gets a safe DHC with Airwulf

• Beo can combo into Painwheel's tag easily

Cons:

• Painwheel's assists are ultimately not great for Beo's neutral or resource building

• The cooldown of Beowulf's chair assists makes it harder to play the match at Painwheel's pace

Synergy:

• Decent for Beowulf, Decent for Painwheel

• Fairly poor as a duo since neither character wants to be the true anchor, and their support for each other is just "alright".

• Not the most flexible shell, you'll really want an anchor character for a trio

Peacock

Recommended Assists: 

George's Day Out (L George), Screwball Cannonball (5HP), Shadow of Impending Doom (level 3)

• L George - Persistent Projectile

  • A lingering ground threat that the opponent is forced to block, shoot, or jump over if you hide behind it, or can cover your approach and act as a combo breaker if you get ahead of the bomb. If you have a second partner, you can still call them while George is out.

• Cannonball - Projectile, Pressure

  • Allows for taunt off of stagger

  • Decent aid in neutral as a fast projectile

  • Good use for pressure as it has 2 hits

• Level 3 Item Drop - Gimmick Overhead, Combo Tool, Toxicity

  • Gives you a taunt off of stagger and is just overall toxic if that's the route you wanna go

Pros:

• Beo gets a safe DHC through Lonesome Lenny

• Beo's assists are nice for protecting Peacock

• Safe DHC with M Bang > Lenny super > Airwulf DHC

• Beowulf's Gigantic Arm combos after Argus Agony, and at the right spacings you can continue the combo, giving Peacock another way to capitalize on connecting with projectiles from fullscreen

• Peacock can play point and bring in Beowulf on his terms very easily to deal with his worst matchups

Cons:

• Hype building support isn't particularly good for Beo

• Peacock's assists aren't amazing for helping Beo approach zoners and characters who can easily deal with Cannonball or L George

Synergy:

• Good for Beowulf, Good for Peacock

• Not a strong duo; the support is nice for Peacock, but pretty so-so for Beowulf while he also fares poorly as an anchor

• Two fake anchors, so look for a real anchor for a trio

Squigly

Recommended Assists: 

Drag 'n' Bite, Cremation (2HP), Center Stage

• Drag 'n' Bite - Lockdown, Neutral, Combo Tool

  • Choice for better neutral usage

• Cremation - Low, Lockdown

  • Choice mixup and catching upbackers

• Center Stage - Screen Manipulation

  • May secretly be good for Beo, but is ultimately gimmicky... but sometimes gimmicks work well

Pros:

• Beo gets great Hype building support, both Drag 'n' Bite and Cremation give a taunt off of stagger, and chairless j.HP conversions

• Squigly gets good defensive coverage and charge combo help from Beo's assists

• Squigly gets a safe DHC with Airwulf, Squigly Battle Opera gives Beo a safe DHC and can be a combo extender

• Good synergy with using DHCs for damage; Squigly Battle Opera lets Beowulf combo after Gigantic Arm DHC in more situations

• Beowulf's meter gain is good, addressing Squigly's hunger for meter

Cons:

• None

Synergy:

• Good for Beowulf, Good for Squigly

• While they complement each other well synergy-wise as a duo, they also dislike fighting as the anchor. However, Beowulf can build the meter for Squigly to stand a better chance.

• For a trio, best to look for a good anchor, or someone who builds a lot of meter if Squigly ends up as the anchor.