Mega Man Zero 4 - Pegasolta Eclair Combo Showcase

In this combo showcase for Pegasolta Eclair, I’ll be demonstrating how you can effectively fight the haughty flying horse using only Z-Saber combos. Up until this point, I had only ever fought Pegasolta by peppering him with charged attacks. Here, my goal was to properly learn his attack pattern and see what counters I could devise. I’ll discuss a few general points, then I’ll detail his attacks.

First is a bit of my usual hypocrisy. Even though I don’t use it out of some misguided sense of duty, I highly encourage anyone attempting this to create and equip Spike Type W. Although I haven’t actually tested it myself, I can say with total confidence that using it will make everything you see here considerably less frustrating. Precise ground positioning is crucial to safely comboing Pegasolta, and being subjected to the whims of the wind does not a fun time make.

Second, this battle does a splendid job of highlighting the failings of Ice Blade. Relative to Z3’s Throw Blade, the skill gleaned from Fenri is sorely lacking. The ice wave projectile spawns after the slash, unlike Throw Blade, so it’s impossible to hit bosses with both. Even if that weren’t the case, both components of the skill were given combo values of 3 in Z4, so Ice Blade’s offensive potential is driven into the ground. It could’ve been a stellar option to brutally shred Pegasolta’s health anytime he dives, but alas. The wave also doesn’t slice bosses in half. Lame.

Pegasolta’s general behavior is to hover left and right in accordance with Zero’s current position, flying up into the air anytime Zero jumps close to him. Note that you don’t necessarily need to attack to trigger the flight reaction. Evidently, Pegasolta is of the paranoid ilk—not that it’s unjustified when fighting Zero, mind you. Concerning positioning, you want to stick to the middle platform. Doing so grants the most flexibility in reacting to attacks, and assuming that Pegasolta’s at his usual floating height, you never have to worry about contact damage when pursuing aerial attacks; his legs don’t have a hitbox to speak of. Outside of specific scenarios, fighting on the raised platforms only presents more risks.

Now for the attack breakdown.

-Thunder Guillotine: The best combo chance available. After Pegasolta finishes charging electricity around himself, you can land a full rolling slash while dash jumping toward him. Then, by standing behind Pegasolta on the edge of the platform, you can get a 5-hit combo comprising the rising triple slash, Sky Chaser, and the final hit of the rolling slash—32 damage if all the listed components land, wind permitting, of course. A backup for stubborn players subjected to strong gales is to use a ground rolling slash instead. After half health, you can discern between this and Thunder Blast by observing Pegasolta’s pose as he floats off screen.

-V Gallop: Ice Blade into Sky Chaser or a rising triple slash are your two best options here. Both require good positioning to pull off. The angle of Pegasolta’s dive determines whether to dash away from or underneath the dive, but most of the time, dashing under is the preferred choice. Contact damage is the glaring risk for the triple slash counter; for Ice Blade, the noted deficiencies need to be kept in mind. Stand too close, and you won’t stun Pegasolta with the ice wave, dealing a meager 5 damage with the slash instead. Following Ice Blade with Sky Chaser might not be possible if the winds aren’t in your favor; spike boots do naught while airborne. In this instance, supplant Sky Chaser with a rolling slash.

-Lightning Assault: Pegasolta’s leisurely zig-zagging flight is the least desirable attack selection. Aside from slowing the battle to a crawl, your options for substantial offense are limited. It’s risky, but intercepting Pegasolta from the front is preferable. After having selected his path, Pegasolta can either fly parallel to the raised platforms or float over Zero’s head. If he goes down, a very well-timed Ice Blade can be comboed into Sky Chaser, but once again, you’re at the mercy of the wind. If he goes up, landing a normal air slash, then using a ground spin can net you a safe 10 damage.

-Thunder Ceptor: The ideal counter to this attack depends on whether both spears land on the platforms or not. If one or both sail off into the bottomless pit, then you should have enough time to hit an air slash and Sky Chaser without Pegasolta’s skittish AI reacting to your moves. If both spears do contact the ground, you can opt for a rolling slash just as the spears create a connection and send the electric current between themselves—a nifty maneuver combining offense and defense.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Aerial Rolling Slash Finish
00:24 - Sky Chaser Finish
01:03 - Ground Rolling Slash Finish
01:32 - Ice Blade Finish
02:07 - Thunder Stab Spark Finish

Thanks for watching! Any questions or comments you may have are welcome as usual.