Overview
Byte and Barq are one of the few duo characters in ARMS! The two of them are a beach-patrol team who watch over and protect Buster Beach while avoiding the salty sea all at the same time. Byte and Barq are also unique characters because of the fact that Barq is an AI controlled teammate that's on the field with you.
In terms of general stats Byte himself is on the larger end of the mid-sized fighters, while barq is quite small being the secondary character. They’re pretty speedy though despite their size and have somewhat small but reasonably sized arms. The big thing about them though is that you pretty much have three arms at the ready thanks to Barq being able to punch as well! All in all, Byte and Barq are one of the most technical characters to play as, but once you start to get the hang of the ins and outs of using Barq and his AI properly there are a lot of options at your disposal!
Here is a list of Byte and Barq’s main strengths and weaknesses:
Strengths
- Pretty fast despite his size
- Has good and unique mix up options
- An extra ARM/Toaster at all times
- Can charge Barq’s Toaster
- Can cover more of the opponents possible options
- Can use Barq as a shield
- Has deflect by landing on Barq’s head
- Barq can save you from many situations
- Some elevation differences make it so it’s difficult for the enemy to hit Barq
Weaknesses
- Larger size
- Not the biggest ARM girth
- Barq only takes one hit to knock down and stays down for 5 seconds
- When Barq is knocked down Byte has no special skills
- Charging Barq takes a tad longer than charging your arms
- Barq can get stuck on poles occasionally
- It can be hard to jump on Barq when he is at a higher elevation
- Some curve arms go through barq instead of stopping, so watch out!
Walk speed:
Byte’s walk speed is actually fairly fast even though he’s a larger fighter. He has the same overall speed as an average medium sized fighter
Charge Speed:
Byte’s charge speed is 33 frames, while Barq’s is 56
Throw type and damage:
Throws opponents upward, damage is 150 +5 per heavy arm
Arm girth:
Byte’s arm girth is at level 2 out of 5. So one level below the average medium fighter, but one above Min Min’s without dragon arm, and equal to Ribbon Girl’s arms. Barq’s on the other hand is fairly small, I’d assume it’s a level 1 out of 5 if anything, but it gets the job done!
Defaults
Cracker, Seekie, Bubb
Basics of BnB
Besides Byte’s love for his canine companion, he himself has no real unique skills to discuss. Luckily Barq is the best friend you can have in the ring because having Barq there opens up quite a few more options than what you will find with some of the other fighters! He is AI controlled and although Barq does move on his own he usually is going to be diagonally in front of you or standing directly in front of you as an extra shield when Byte is guarding.
Barq’s main skills are that he automatically punches, Byte can jump off his head to deflect incoming arms and also launch himself high into their air, and Barq can perform a charged toaster punch alongside Byte.
Byte’s Skills
- Has the best boy Barq as his partner
Barq’s Skills
Built-in Toaster:
Barq’s built-in toaster deals 30 damage while uncharged, and 60 damage when charged
Auto punch:
After Byte Punches, Barq will usually automatically follow up with an uncharged toaster punch 1 second after
After Barq’s first auto punch returns to him, Barq will wait 5 seconds and then automatically punch again if you don’t punch yourself in the meantime.
Barq will only auto punch if he is not busy with other actions like jumping, being jumped on, guarding in front of you, or charging!
Byte can jump on Barq’s head to deflects arms, do short hops repeatedly, or a high jump:
Byte can jump towards Barq and Barq will automatically move underneath Byte to catch him. (Works best when you jump dash towards barq, rather than only jumping his direction)
Every time you land on Barq’s head he will send out a deflect wave to repel incoming arms
As you launch off barq your arms will be temporarily charged. (The short hops give off a short charge time, while the high jump charges them for a decent amount of time)
Perform a charged toaster punch alongside byte:
If you hold down dash you can charge Barq’s Toaster punch
Barq’s charged toaster comes out very quickly after your initial punch, or grab!
If you air dash and continue to hold dash as you land Barq’s punch will be instantly charged as you reach the ground
Default ARMS
As far as Defaults go Byte and Barq have a pretty solid build! The Cracker, Seekie, and Bubb allow for Byte and Barq to be prepared in most matchups fairly well. The only thing you’re really missing is a curve arm, but the Seekie can weave in and around arms pretty well and still hit its target with ease.
Cracker:
The cracker is a light, fire based, multi-shot arm. It is quite fast and has two shots the swirl around as it extends.
Uncharged Damage: 80 + 40
Charged damage: 130
The Cracker is a very versatile arm because it is one of the faster arms in the game so it’s able to keep up with the speedier enemies, while the fire attribute helps knock down even the heaviest of fighters in one hit!
Seekie:
The Seekie is a medium, electric based, missile arm. It has ridiculously good homing as it automatically will go towards the enemy.
Uncharged Damage: 80
Charged Damage: 80, 40 for explosion
The Seekie is a solid medium arm that excels for a couple of reasons. It’s homing is really good, it has a rather large shock explosion on charge, and it can curve and weave around fairly well before locking onto the enemy! It’s especially useful against heavy enemies that can’t dodge as well, though any fighter who goes up against the Seekie is going to have to think about it quite a bit more than some of the other arms.
Bubb:
The Bubb is a medium, glove type arm that has no elemental attributes. Instead, when you charge it, it becomes bigger in size making it easier to land hits
Uncharged Damage: 100
Charged Damage: 110
The Bubb glove is a useful arm because it has some nice speed with some decent curving even, plus it has a size increase when charged up. The size increase can be useful for making it easier to land hits, but also for blocking incoming arms!
Default ARMS Combinations and their general use
Seekie and Cracker:
Overall good setup, especially useful against heavy enemies with armor
The seekie lets you keep your distance from the enemy, and then if they do manage to get in close the speed of the Cracker makes it easy to deal with them still.
Cracker and Bubb:
A nice build for when the enemies arms come flying a bit too rapidly!
The cracker speed and fire is once again useful, while the bubb’s medium weight and extra size make it a good arm to counter incoming attacks and barrel through any light arms.
Bubb and Seekie:
A nice defensive build for situations where you need to counter or go through the enemy's light or medium arms
The Seekie tends to be out for a while, but that’s where the bubb comes in! It and the seekie are both medium arms so unless they have a heavy you should be able to counter or go through any incoming attacks on the way to their target.
For instance, you can use the bubb to knock down an arm and set up the seekie’s flight path so it should have an easier time on it’s way over
Character overview
Byte and Barq are very versatile characters to play as. Whether you will be playing aggressively or not though will come down to your personal arms selection, and how you enjoy playing. For this, I will be discussing how I’ve played them and how I’ve seen them played, but nothing is set in stone so try whatever fits you best!
Mix Ups and Mind Games
No matter how you play though Byte and Barq excel at mix-ups and mind games. Barq’s third arm opens up a lot of possibilities that let you do everything from covering wakeup options, sneaking a hit in from an alternate angle to saving you from rushes and grabs! The nice thing about it though is that it mostly all works independently of you. You just have to be aware of Barq’s AI patterns and using his charged toaster effectively.
As well as Barq’s punch though, his ability to let Byte use him like a trampoline is perfect for switching things up even more. If you time things right you can jump over and use the deflect that comes from landing on Barq as a last-second counter to their incoming attacks and easily punish it before it returns. Then swap between short hops or high jumps off Barq so they won’t know exactly when you will launch or what you will do. Plus the height from above lets you attack from an angle that isn’t as easily blocked by some arms sets.
Basic Playstyle
There’s more to the mix-ups and mind games, but let's move onto the general playstyle that Byte and Barq seem to compliment quite well! I’ve found that Byte and Barq work best when played at a mid-range spacing. This is a nice spot to hang around because it’s close enough to land hits with ease, but also far enough to where you can react and properly set up Barq’s next moves. Whether it be jumping on him to deflect an incoming arm, or charging his toaster up while you dash away to get a slightly different angle.
Defensive:
Now I will focus on the playstyle I and many other Byte and Barq players personally use, which is a more mid-ranged defensive pressure style. Some good arms sets for this are setups that can travel across the field fairly quick while still being able to deal with closing in if need be. At the same time though it should be able to go through or around incoming attacks. Probably more so of a light + medium/heavy combo, like tribolt + kablammer, popper + ice dragon, or the default combo of cracker + seekie. Though a double medium arm combo could work as well with something that's faster mixed with a more defensive medium arm like toaster + funchuk.
These kinds of arms allow you to not only set up combos, but they also let you punish attacks and mistakes fairly well, while also keeping you safe. Especially if you make good use of Barq. Byte is on the larger side, so usually if you can find a way to block or go through incoming attacks, that helps out a lot! Especially when you can easily and quickly follow it up with a proper light/fast arm. Or even vice versa, using the lighter arm to setup your slower defensive arm.
Thanks to this setup having a lighter/faster arm in the mix, this lets you push forward to put on pressure when you need to as well! Especially against enemies that need to charge like Min Min or Max Brass. You can always choose between either staying back and keeping up the pressure, or also getting up in their face with something more intense. Even while doing things like charging Barq so they have less escape options, or jumping over to Barq to deflect their wakeup punch and other tricks like that. You can then send out your defensive arm to deal with any punches they might throw your way, and then follow up with the faster arm to make the hit!
Aggressive:
Though usually you still will want to keep mid-spacing for Barq setups, that doesn’t mean you always have to use a more defensive arms set. There is a lot you can do with a more aggressive arms set. I’ve had success with a lot of curved arms mixed with a light or medium, but have seen some fairly aggressive play with a curved and heavy loadout even. Some good combinations for this kind of playstyle are things like chilla + scorpion, slapamander + gusher, or even the default set of cracker + bubb.
It’s still important to know when to back off and when to push forward though with Barq, as he can be a lot easier to hit when you’re closer. He even can be hit by you if your using an explosive arm. That’s not to say he’s completely useless up close though. Up close is where you can do other techniques like landing Barq confirms with ease!
Byte’s extra size though makes you a bit easier to hit still, so when you’re up close and putting pressure on you’ll want to be sure you keep your rhythm and predict their next moves wisely as your an easier target than other fighters and you don’t have the super armor that heavies do. That’s the main reason as to why you’ll want to swap between mid-ranged, and closing in depending on the situation. Rather than constantly being up close and personal.
Working with Barq’s AI
Barq is going to be your biggest asset in the ring so it’s best to practice and study his patterns and try to work them into your attacks and defense. In this section, I will be covering the different ways his AI functions, and how to best use him in tandem with what you want to accomplish.
Auto Punch:
The first action I will cover is Barq’s auto punch so lets review the punches patterns. First and foremost Barq will automatically follow up with a punch around 1 second after Byte sends out his first arm. Then after that punch returns to him, Barq will wait 5 seconds and then send out a second auto punch. If Byte punches again during the 5 second wait time, Barq will follow up with a punch 1 second after like normal and reset his countdown to 5 seconds again. Barq will also follow up grabs 1 second after just like a punch.
So the benefits of this auto punch are that once you get the timing figured out you can set him up to do things like punch when you get knocked down, punch when your stunned or being grabbed, knocking enemies out of their rush, or even just getting that final hit for the KO on occasion! I will say actually timing his auto punches mid-battle is a bit difficult, but with enough practice, I can see it being done. At the very least, whether it’s planned or not, this is how a lot of Barq’s most hype moments can occur!
Charged Punch:
To charge Barq’s Toaster all you need to do is hold down dash until the siren on his head starts flashing and he gets excited! He will hold his charged state for the same amount of time that your arms stay charged, so the longer you hold dash the longer your’s and Barq’s arms will stay charged. Also air dashing and holding dash will make it so yours and Barq’s arms are instantly charged on landing! With the charged punch though Barq will almost instantly follow up with the punch, making it a good one-two setup, amongst other things.
As you can see in the video, Barq’s charged punch alone allows for some interesting and technical setups. In that video alone there is the basic one-two punch, the grab with Barq punch (in case they stop guarding), the side punch while barq covers center, and finally the three hit combo at the end. This is just the beginning for attacks even, but you can also use the charged Barq punch for defense as well. Like if you need him to try to knock down an incoming arm, have him punch as you dash away, or even just to keep the enemy from getting too close. It’s also possible to charge him up and then dash away a bit so that you can line him up with a different angle of attack than yours.
There are a lot of possibilities with the charged punch, so try it out and see what you can come up with! In the advanced techniques section, I will show a lot of these moves in action so be sure to check that area out for more setups and punishes.
Barq Jumps:
Jumping off Barq is probably the easiest thing to execute for working with Barq, but there are still a few things to keep in mind. So let's start with the basics. All you need to do to land on Barq’s head is simply to jump towards him. Also jumping then air dashing towards him works as well, and even better sometimes. Once you do either though he will automatically move underneath you and now you’re jumping off his head! Though you have to keep in mind that sometimes he may be caught doing something else like jumping up to another elevation, or punching. Sometimes if the slope your on is too steep you won't be able to land on Barq since he is too high, so take the environment into account as well.
Once you jump on your pup like a trampoline you do have multiple options at your disposal.
If you do nothing, you will repeatedly short hop on Barq’s head, and for sure have deflect coming out every time you land.
If you hit or hold jump at the right time you will launch Byte into the air for a high jump! You can also do so repeatedly just like with short hops if wanted by continuing to hold down the jump button (Otherwise Barq will move away)
If you hold dash as you land and launch off Barq you can do a nicer and more distanced dismount than just jumping or jump dashing off.
If you air dash at the peak of the high jump, you will have enough time to do a second air dash on the way down
Jumping off Barq can provide some really nice advantages when used right. The fact that it even has deflect built in makes it knock down an incoming punch so you can save yourself, barq, and even counter the hit in the meantime! Then when in the air the height advantage and speed of the launch can make it really difficult for you to get hit and is a good way to send out your arms from above. That makes it especially useful for getting over shield and heavy arms if you’re not using any curved arms. It’s important to master both grounded Barq usage and Barq Jump airborne mix ups so that you’re more able to adapt against the enemy's arms! Overall though jumping off Barq is another great option for mixing things up on your enemy!
Other Barq Tricks:
Barq moves in front of you when shielding, so this is a good way to block any ground punches/grabs that might come your way and allow you to counter them easily
As you first launch off Barq you have a short window of time where the game counts you as being grounded. This allows you to mix things up with arms that function differently depending on whether you’re on the ground or jumping like Funchuk, Brrchuk, Scorpion, etc.
Barq gets revived when you use rush! Once the rush is over he hops off your head and is ready to fight, even if he was knocked out when activating rush.
Whenever an enemy tries to take down Barq that leaves an opening for you to land a hit! So if they do go for the good boy, be sure to punish them accordingly.
Good Custom arm sets
Tribolt + Kablammer:
Tribolt + Kablammer is my personal arms set of choice for Byte and Barq! I think it excels because it covers a lot of matchups really well, while also working with Barq’s AI. Not against every arms combination/enemy of course, but a very respectable amount of them for sure.
Tribolt + Kablammer work well as an arms combination for the fact that the tribolt sets up kablammer hits perfectly. Usually with heavy arms the issue is that they are harder to land but pack a punch. The stun ability on the tribolt though, partnered with the speed of it helps hold enemies in place as the kablammer makes its way over knocking down whatever is in its path before making it’s hit.
This combination also fits the playstyle of mid ranged defensive pressure that Byte and Barq support so well. The multi-hit of an uncharged tribolt allows parts of it to pass by incoming arms, while the weight of the kablammer means it can knockdown or counter anything that's in its way. Then launching off and maneuvering around barq allows you to sneak in the charged tribolt from angles that would usually get blocked, setting up the kablammer to deal with the rest on its way over to explode.
Ice Dragon + Funchuk:
Ice Dragon + funchuk is another good choice for Byte and Barq users You can easily use the funchuk to set up the ice dragon hit, while also using it’s more shield-like form to block incoming attacks while the dragon is out. The ice effect also works pretty well along with Byte and Barq’s mind-games, as you have slightly more options than just punch or grab while they are frozen.
Funchuk and Ice Dragon work also work well together though because it allows you to bait the enemy into different positions. So you can lead them to the left or right with a funchuk attack, and have the dragon there and waiting already! If it’s a charged funchuk hit you could even just land it and have your dragon already extending to land a quick one-two, and if not the funchuk will usually return to your side so you can defend yourself when the dragon is out for an extra second.
Boomerang + Hydra:
Boomerang and Hydra are a very nice combination of arms because of the fact that one is a curved wind arm and the other is a fire-based vertical shot. The Hydra requires a bit more of a solid aim, but covers jumping enemies quite well, while the curved aspect of the boomerang can catch opponents off guard from the sides when they dash into it.
This works great with the Hydra because it makes it harder for them to jump up and out of the way, making them more likely to dash to the sides. If you’re ready and prepared though you can have the boomerang prepared to catch them as they dash away from the Hydra and into the boomerang. Another good aspect of these two is that when you land a charged boomerang hit it lifts the enemy into the air, which is perfect for following up with an easy hydra shot for even more damage!
This combination for Byte and Barq is nice because it is one of the speedier, more offensive pressure based builds. This allows you to not have to worry about having arms out for as long as a defensive based build, which lets you maneuver around with ease. Barq will still be of use in his normal efforts, even sometimes being able to land a hit when the enemy is being lifted by the wind!
Chilla + Scorpion:
This is a combination I have been trying out a bit, and have actually found it to work out quite well! While playing a grounded game the freeze effect of the chilla holds the enemy still as the scorpion walks over for the sting. A lot of the times people won’t notice the scorpion if you send them both out quickly, which leads to you not only getting a two-hit combo but the slow poison damage as well.
Even without that one-two setup though, the Chilla is a respectable glove arm and when you’re in the air the scorpion acts as a relatively quick curved arm. This works really well with jumping off Barq as it allows you to put on a lot of pressure from above, or even mixing things up by throwing the scorpion as soon as you launch off Barq. As when you first launch off Barq, you have a short window where it counts you as being grounded so the scorpion will walk over instead of being its curved jump form.
Freezing opponents mixed with Barq being there allows for you to have more options while they’re frozen. You can send out a charged Barq grab, jump above for a harder to counter angle, or even space out a charged Barq punch so he attacks from another angle along with you!
Advanced Techniques/Good Boy Moves
Doggo Detention (Barq Charged Grab):
The Barq charged grab is perfect for forcing people who guard a lot into dropping their guard, only to be knocked down by Barq’s charged toaster! It is possible to dodge, but is still useful a lot of the time. Especially against heavies like Master Mummy or Max Brass!
Barq Chain (Barq 3 hit combo):
With proper timing, you can perform a 3 hit combo with Barq! This can be done more easily with a charged Barq punch, but an uncharged Barq punch can land this combo on occasions as well. This is a bit easier to execute with wind or explosive arms as well, but in general, it can still be done!
Barq confirms:
You can use Barq’s hit’s to combo into other setups like a three-hit combo, a rush, or a grab! This works best when you’re up close to the enemy, but if you anticipate it properly it can be done from a distance.
Ruff Rush Counter:
If you know or suspect the opponent will be coming at you with a rush it’s a good idea to charge up barq and try to have him hit after they deflect your incoming attack. You can even space out your first and second hit so Barq’s hit will be in between the two. This way you have multiple hits spaced out so not all can be deflected by rush activating.
Mid Lane Cover:
Barq punches straight ahead where the enemy is, so you can use Barq’s punch to cover the middle area, while you cover left or right, or even both if you can risk it! It’s another way to make sure your enemy doesn’t have as many options as usual
Guard Dog (Barq Shield):
When you are guarding Barq will stand in front of you blocking the enemy as best as he can. This makes it useful for various things like blocking ground grabs. If you see them trying to jump so they can grab over Barq, just be ready to counter them with an attack!
Punch Delay:
Barq’s auto punch doesn’t just happen wherever Barq is at. He only punches once he’s in his position by your side, so you can use this to delay his auto attack if you know it’s coming and use that knowledge to set up a Barq confirm among other things!
Scrapyard/height differences:
One thing to keep in mind as well is that Barq does move independently of Byte. This means he can be at different elevations than Byte depending on the stage. Like on Scrapyard, he can be on the lower section while Byte is up top and if you stand close enough to the ledge Barq will function like normal since he is still in position next to Byte. This makes it almost impossible for the enemy to knockdown Barq as the camera is focused on you and that's where the punches are going. So Barq is free to punch away without worry!
Final Thoughts
That’s the end of the guide! As you can see Byte and Barq have a lot going for them that can easily be overlooked at first glance. They’re not the most used fighters in the game and I’m not sure if they ever will be, but they’re fun, unique and can definitely hold their own perfectly fine in a fight. No matter what level they’re being played at.
This guide itself covers a decent amount of the Barq techs you can do, but there are still more out there that will help during your fights. Some that Barq will just happen to do on his own creating some moments of intense hype, and others that you may even discover that haven’t been done before. New combinations of arms can lead to many different combos, so I’m sure there are other possibilities and advanced techniques/combos out there still!
Remember that Byte and Barq are amazing for mind games and mixing things up as they have more possible outcomes than most other fighters! You just have to be sure to use Barq whenever you feel comfortable doing so as he is your greatest asset in a fight. If needed get a feel for how he attacks, and reacting with him. Then, with enough practice you’ll be an unstoppable duo of mind games and mix ups!
If you discover any more cool Barq Techs and hype moments be sure to let the Arms Punch Club or myself know so this guide can cover even more of what makes Byte and Barq so crazy! Thanks to all the other Byte and Barq players for supporting such a fun character and Thank you for reading this! I hope this helps teach you the basics of how to play Byte and Barq, and I look forward to seeing how you put your own spin on playing them!
Tuturoopa (@Tuturoopa)