Paul kicking P. Jack's ankle.
A Low Attack (下段攻撃 gedan kōgeki) is a move in the Tekken series focused on attacking the lower body (such as kicking the legs or ankles) and/or breaking the guard of your enemies. Low attacks can only be avoided by crouch guarding (d or d/b) or by jumping to avoid the move entirely. If timed correctly, a universal low parry can be done by pressing d/f.
Low attacks can be an integral tool in gameplay. Opponents with a strong defense can be "low poked" to lower their health when high or mid attacks are ineffective. These attacks can be paired with Throws in order to bypass an otherwise strong defense and deal damage.
There are a few notable downsides to low attacks. The first is that they come with the risk of being low parried. While this mechanic was much more limited in Tekken 3, it was made universal since Tekken Tag Tournament and originally gave the opponent a massive frame advantage after a successful parry. Parrying in Tekken 6 was particularly deadly as it staggered an opponent and left them open to a full combo, but this was nerfed in Bloodline Rebellion and simply left them in a Bound state instead. This change would be maintained in Tekken Tag Tournament 2 and Tekken 7. but would be changed to automatically trigger a Tornado in Tekken 8. As with many other Attack Reversals, the universal low parry cannot be used against knees, weapons, or tails.
The second downside to low attacks is that they can be crushed, as with High Attacks. This is in the same vein as jumping to avoid a low, as certain moves have built-in properties which cause the character to jump over the low attack. This can leave the player vulnerable to Counter Hits or punishers. Certain stances, such as Crane and Chaos Judgement, also have a built-in protection against low attacks and will automatically counter a low with a low-crushing attack.
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