Jamie is one of the fresh names in Street Fighter 6 who comes with a unique resource meter: The Drink Level. This tricky mid-range fighter gets a buff every time he sips from the Ki-inducing drink in his flask, enhancing his power and technique.

But as his archetype suggests, playing Jamie is going to be tricky for most players, especially because some of his moves’ effects change with each buff. This guide, therefore, helps Street Fighter 6 fans get their heads around Jamie’s unpredictable moveset, master his combos, and learn how to farm wins with him like a pro.

RELATED: How to Play Cammy in Street Fighter 6

Jamie’s Drink Level Explained

The Drink Level is Jamie’s individual resource that buffs his Special and Unique Moves while giving him new abilities. Whenever he drinks his Ki-unleashing potion, Jamie’s moveset becomes stronger and gets extended. But he can also perform his Super Art Level 2 to max out his Drink Level for a short period.

Strategies for Jamie

As a tricky mind-range fighter, Jamie must prioritize seizure and control. The ideal strategy for him is locking the opponent in a corner, manipulating their counters, and bullying them with high and low mix-ups.

• Combine swigs with combos. Drink while fighting. Instead of spamming The Devil Inside, go with Freeflow Kick or Full Moon Kick to increase Jamie’s Drink Level. These two combos allow him to sneakily get the required buffs while engaging in physical combat.
• Check with Cancelable Moves. Set up combos with pokes. Jamie’s crouching medium punch and heavy punch are standard cancelable strikes that create seamless sequences with his Specials and Super Arts.
• Capitalize on Feints. On Drink Level 4, Jamie feints with Ransui Haze. Throughout this move’s active frames, he can either refrain from attacking to fall back or press a button midway for a counterattack. Bewilder the enemy by changing the effects, making Jamie’s moves unpredictable.

RELATED: How to Play Dhalsim in Street Fighter 6

Jamie’s Move List

Common moves excluded, Jamie’s moveset has 23 commands. Of these, eight are activated by his Drink Gauge, leaving him with only 15 basic moves to start with.

Best Combos for Jamie

Considering his Drink Guage reliability, Jamie must follow the charge, push, follow-up order for his combos. For the highest damage, therefore, he will need to drink, break the enemy’s stance, and land chained attacks.

Beginner: Freeflow Kick Combo

Combining two crouching light punches with Freeflow Kicks results in a risk-free swig combo. This is the ideal move against pushy opponents who don’t leave Jamie enough room to drink. The only downside to this move is that it’s punishable and has an on-block frame disadvantage.

Intermediate: Freeflow Strike Combo

Light punch, light kick, medium punch into Freeflow Strikes is an ideal pushback combination. With this move, players get to push the opponent far enough so that Jamie has enough ground and frame advantage to swig at least once.

Advanced: Swagger Hermit & Getsuga Saiho Combo

Executing the Swagger Hermit Punch into Getsuga Saiho combo can be challenging due to its specific requirements. Firstly, Jamie needs to have reached Drink Level 4. Additionally, the Swagger Hermit Punch must result in a wall-slam instead of pushback. However, once all requirements are met, this potent combination can cause substantial damage with little effort.

RELATED: How to Play Marisa in Street Fighter 6

Tips for Winning with Jamie

Without his Drink Levels, Jamie is susceptible to punishments. Therefore, players must prioritize getting his buffs before engaging in heavy combat. Before that, however, there are advised to poke and check the enemy, looking for gaps to drink.

Use Super Art 2 as a Comeback Move

Jamie’s second Super Art, The Devil's Song, is a Drink Level booster that gives him 4 swigs. Utilize this move when the opponent is preventing drinking or interrupts it with projectiles. However, note that The Devil’s Song is a temporary effect and inflicts 5% less damage than actual swig buffs.

Dodge Projectiles with Luminous Dive Kick

While Jamie has no anti-fireball move, his Luminous Dive Kick is a reliable counter for projectiles. The only catch is that it activates on Drink Level 1 and is on-block punishable.

Drink to Refill the Drive Gauge

On Drink Level 4, every swig refills Jamie’s Drive Gauge faster. This allows for more Overdrive moves while reducing the cost of Drive Rush cancels.

RELATED: How to Play Lily in Street Fighter 6

Pros and Cons of Playing as Jamie

Although Jamie may not rank highly in Street Fighter 6’s tier list, he is a skilled mid-range trickster with unpredictable damage and challenging chained attacks. It's unlikely that he will surpass the top characters, but he can certainly hold his own in battle. Despite all that, Jamie's gameplay presents some notable obstacles, including vulnerability against long-range attackers and limited damage output unless Drink Levels are sufficient.

Pros

• Heavy damage when buffed.
• Reliable pokes and checks.

Cons

• Susceptible to long-range moves.
• Too weak without the Drink buffs.

How to Counter Jamie

To counter Jamie, players will need to stop him from drinking. There are two ways to accomplish this: (1) Utilize long-range characters such as JP and Dhalsim to pelt him with projectiles, or (2) engage in close combat and use grappling techniques with characters such as Manon to interrupt his swigs.

Street Fighter 6 is available now for PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.