The Apprentice is a joke. Some very basic strategies that will help:
He has no regard for his Force meter and rips through it, and once it's gone he stands around saying, "Damn." Jump on him.
95% of his strategy is 8-way-running. Seriously, guard and just watch him. He will circle you, and circle you, and circle you, and circle you. Once a blue moon he'll throw out an attack. Answer: DO NOT USE VERTICAL ATTACKS ON HIM -- it will wiff, and he'll get a free hit. If he's within range, tap AA for free damage. You can do this at least 3 times per round before he starts defending.
Throw, throw, throw (unless you're Yoda). I've killed him exclusively with throws.
He will throw out an attack at about the same time you do ANY input, so DO NOT use delay attacks or change stances. ONLY use relatively immediate attacks against him (Don't even think about unblockables.)
IF, and only IF, he's on the ground AND he's not rolling to the right/left, then you can bring in a Vertical, delayed attack, or stance change (still wouldn't recommend unblockables.)
He likes to block ... a lot ... which begs for a Critical Finish.
Whatever he learns at the end of Round 1, he forgets by the start of Round 2. So, if you notice a certain combo works on him two or three times before he starts defending ... you should be able to hit him with it again two or three times in the next round. In other words, you can basically predict round-for-round, what he will eat, and when he will start guarding.
Note: These are GENERAL guidelines meant to apply to the broadest range of characters. There are plenty of exceptions to what I've written BUT that's character specifc information. If you want a character-specific strategy against the Apprentice, just ask and name the character and I'll be happy to answer.
Also, C&Ped from another post, block the apprentice for three entire matches and just WATCH what he does. Once you know his patterns, he's much easier to deal with. Some common things that he does to look out for:
1. Two horizontal swipes and a downward vertical slash. He likes it because it's fast, and there's a slight delay for the third vertical hit. Wait for the combo to finish before retaliating otherwise you'll bite the last attack.
2. Low sweep, and then he rises and impales with the light saber. The impale frequently misses.
3. A horizontal swipe, and he slams the ground and sends Force "fire" your way. The fire has to be blocked low. This is easily the most difficult move of his to deal with.
4. He jabs with the lightsaber off, jabs with the lightsaber on, and then kicks. Again, there's a slight delay between the second and third hit. Wait for the kick or you'll eat it. (There's a longer version with 3 punches preceeding this combo.)
5. He'll jump up in the air and throw lightning down. Relax. That lightning can be blocked.
6. A sommersault kick with a lightsaber slash. It's a little harder to guard impact because he's in motion before the attack actually strikes.
7. An uppercut, then he slams the ground with a big blue ball of Force. It looks like he's vulnerable after the uppercut, but he's not. Wait for the big-blue explosion on the ground. (this goes through his Force guage like nothing else.)
8. When he's STANDING UP from a crouch, he'll do a flip-kick and then throw his lightsaber.
9. A quick force grab that does nothing but just stagger you (he usually does two or three in a row). More irritating than effective.
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Truffaut: Do dreams have a bearing on your work?
Hitchcock: Daydreams, probably.
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