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The Top Perks to Choose as a Kickboxing Fighter in UFC 4

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As an aspiring kickboxer looking to make your mark in the UFC, one of the most important decisions you’ll face is which fighter perks to focus on upgrading. With so many options available, it can be tough to decide where to allocate your skill points for maximum effectiveness inside the Octagon. In this article, I’ll break down the perks that provide the biggest benefits for a kickboxing style based on my experience competing as a striker in UFC 4.

Striking Perk – Heavy Hands

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No surprise here – the Heavy Hands perk has to be at the top of your priority list. This increases your punch power rating, allowing your kicks and punches to do more damage. From my experience in standalone fights, I noticed a significant improvement in my KO percentage after upgrading this perk. With kickboxing being so reliant on powerful strikes, Heavy Hands is an absolute must for any striker build. One-punch KO power keeps your opponents wary and opens up follow-up strikes. Aim to get this perk to at least level 3 if possible.

Striking Perk – Fighter IQ

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Another core striking perk is Fighter IQ, which buffs your evasive attributes like head movement, block, and strike defense. As a kickboxer, you’ll be right in the pocket trading blows, so avoiding damage is crucial. The extra defense Fighter IQ provides bought me valuable seconds to defend against incoming strikes and find my opening to counterattack. With smarter defense, you can afford to be more aggressive offensively without fear of being clipped. I’ve lost count of the number of times Fighter IQ kept my chin safe long enough to turn the tide of a fight. It’s an underrated but impactful perk for longevity in the cage.

Striking Perk – Snap Kick

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While your main weapons as a kickboxer are hands, you’ll also want devastating leg kicks in your arsenal. That’s where the Snap Kick perk shines by boosting your kicking power and speed attributes. Few things freeze an opponent in their tracks like a well-timed snap kick to the body or head. I remember one fight where a perfectly placed head kick courtesy of Snap Kick level 3 ended the night early for my opponent. The faster wind-up and harder impact paid immediate dividends. Make Snap Kick one of your priority striker perks so you can chop down tree trunk legs and punish any openings up top with lightening-quick kicks.

Attribute Perk – Cardio King

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As the fight wears on, conditioning can make or break you. Few things are more demoralizing than gassing out and being easy pickings for your opponent in the later rounds. The Cardio King attribute perk directly enhances your stamina attributes, slowing how quickly fatigue sets in during an intense kickboxing exchange. From my fights, I noticed a significant difference in my ability to keep up a pressure-filled pace with Cardio King at higher levels. No need to pace yourself as much if your tank never runs empty. Consider Cardio King an essential perk, especially for a high-output kickboxing strategy that relies on volume over time.

Attribute Perk – Tough as Nails

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Let’s be real – you’re going to take damage no matter how defensively skilled you are. That’s where durability comes in handy, and the Tough as Nails attribute perk substantially buffs your health and chin attributes. As a fighter, I definitely felt the benefits of a stronger chin when eating shots I otherwise would have folded under. Tough as Nails allowed me to weather stormy exchanges unscathed and turn momentum in the later rounds thanks to my iron resolve. It’s not always about avoiding damage – sometimes you have to be tough enough to walk through fire to find your opportunity. Maximizing health and durability is a must for any brawler who likes to stand and trade toe-to-toe.

Grappling Perk – Sprawl Ace

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While kicking and punching are your bread and butter, you’ll still need some grappling prowess to avoid being taken down and held down by wrestlers. That’s where a properly leveled Sprawl Ace perk offers peace of mind. A strong sprawl is kickboxing kryptonite for any shot-takers looking to ground and pound. Sprawl Ace substantially improves your takedown defense to make you nearly impossible to level chang e without a fight. Knowing one shot won’t immediately lead to being humped has given me confidence to stand in the pocket and let my hands fly without fear of an easy takedown. At the very least, put a point or two into Sprawl Ace as insurance against wrestlers.

Misc. Perk – Juggernaut

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For those endless five-round kickboxing wars of attrition, you’ll also need some strength and durability. Insert the Juggernaut miscellaneous perk to up your competitors by several notches. I can’t tell you how many times Juggernaut’s beefy strength attribute allowed me to muscle out of bad positions in the clinch against the fence or simply walk through shots that would have hurtled regular mortals to the canvas. Extra strength means you can off-balance and control opponents in the clinch, too, where under-hook positions become miniature battles of wills. Who doesn’t want to feel like a kinetic ball of destruction in the cage? Juggernaut lends that type of vibe for any brawlers serious about attrition fights.

In Summary:

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In closing, focus your perk progression as a kickboxer on maximizing your striking power and attributes, cardio, durability, takedown defense, and select areas of strength. Spread your points evenly among the Heavy Hands, Fighter IQ, Snap Kick, Cardio King, Tough as Nails, Sprawl Ace, and Juggernaut perks for a well-rounded kickboxing base with few weaknesses. Feel free to experiment with other perks, but I truly believe these seven provide the biggest bang for your buck for a stand-up focused style. Apply these perks, and you’ll soon be a nightmare for any fighter to face across the Octagon using your punches and kicks.

Now get out there and start climbing the ranks! Let me know if you have any other UFC 4 kickboxing questions. I’d be happy to share more of my experiences and strategy tips from my time spent developing striker builds inside the game. With the right perks and fundamentals down, the sky’s the limit for aspiring knockout artists. Good luck in your career – I look forward to possibly facing you inside the virtual Octagon someday!

Top Kickboxing Perks in UFC 4

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Perk Description Recommended Divisions
Punch Care Increases hand health recovery during rounds All
Kicks Improves the damage and speed of kicks Featherweight, Welterweight, Middleweight
Block Breaker Increased chance to stun opponents blocking leg kicks Featherweight, Lightweight, Welterweight
Cardio Reduces stamina drain for high activity gameplay All
Head Movement Increases evasiveness from punches and kicks Featherweight, Lightweight, Welterweight

FAQ

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  1. What are the best perks for improving take-downs and grappling abilities?

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    The perks that basically help with take-downs and grappling would be accuracy perks like “Grappling Specialist” or “Submission Aggression”. Those perks really amp up your ability to get opponents to the ground and keep em’ there. “Back Mount” is also kind of a no-brainer since it makes transitioning to back attacks super quick from full mount.

  2. What perks are good for improving striking power and hit chance?

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    For straight up brawling, you’ll want perks like “Striking Specialist” or “Head Hunter” to boost your power and accuracy. “Swarm” is a fun one too cause it lets you throw combos like a machine. “Boxing IQ” sorts of levels up your evasive head movement so you can avoid shots while dishing em’ out. Anyway you slice it though, accuracy perks are clutch for landing those fast punches and kicks.

  3. Which perks help the most with takedown defense?

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    Takedown defense perks that are probably the most useful are “Sprawl Specialist”, “Wrestling Evasion” and maybe even “Takedown Reversal”. The first two buff your ability to stuff shots, while “Takedown Reversal” lets you flip the script and take YOUR opponent down if they fail on a shot. Pretty hilarious when it works! Does anyone know if “Stamina Regeneration” affects takedown defense too? Maybe someone like John Jones could weigh in on this one.

  4. Do certain perks help more for brawling or grappling style fighters?

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    That’s a good question. I’d say perks that boost your power and accuracy like “Head Hunter” and “Striking Specialist” are definitely better suited for brawlers who want to trade in the pocket. On the flipside, perks that aid transitions and submissions like “Back Mount” and “Submission Aggression” work wonders for grappling style fighters. However, it’s not unheard of for a well-rounded fighter to take aspects of both approaches too. Ultimately you gotta experiment to see what fighting mentality fits your skills best, if that makes any sense!

  5. How important are perk builds versus overall attributes and skills?

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    That’s a tricky one because in the UFC games perks, attributes and skill levels all factor in together. While a well-planned perk build can truly maximize your strengths, it’s only part of the equation. Your overall physical stats like health, stamina and key attributes for your style are just as crucial. For example, a grappler with great perks but poor grappling stats won’t have much success taking the fight to the mat. Similarly, a striker needs power and accuracy ratings to really make their perks shine. So in summary – attributes, skills AND perks are all super important!

  6. Which perks are most important to focus on first when building a fighter?

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    When first putting together a perk setup, I’d recommend concentrating on general effectiveness perks rather than super specialized ones. Things like “Toughness”, “Chin”, “Conditioning” – they basically strengthen your overall abilities without dictating one approach over another. Once you get the basics down, then branch out into perks catered closer to your style. Also the earlier perks tend to provide broader benefits than the high level ones. So in short, I’d start by maxing general defense/health perks before worrying too much about bespoke grappling or striking perks.

  7. Should perks be selected based on a fighter’s real martial arts style?

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    That’s an interesting question! While basing perks on a real fighter’s background makes sense conceptually, the game mechanics don’t always neatly mirror real life styles. Like a lifelong boxer in the game may still want to invest in some grappling perks just in case. At the same time, reproducing a real fighter’s complete skillset is near impossible with the UFC’s system. So my advice would be to definitely DRAW INSPIRATION from their actual style but not feel locked into only perks that directly mirror it. You’ve still gotta build the best virtual fighter regardless of their real pedigree, if you catch my drift!