Butterfly Step in GunZ: The Duel (Remaster Tutorial)
What the Butterfly Does
The butterfly is the foundational K-Style technique: a repeating jump → dash → slash → block loop performed with the sword. Done correctly, you stay mobile in the air while your block is active for a moment of every cycle — which means you are hard to hit, hard to melee, and always in position to counter. Duels between experienced players are essentially butterfly conversations.
Both long-running references agree on the input: StrategyWiki lists it as jump → dash → slash → block (and notes the dash can be omitted), the GunZ Fandom wiki as jump → dash → slash → block. The mechanism is the guard cancel — pressing block at any point of a slash ends the slash animation instantly.
Input Timing Table
Every variant is the same guard cancel repeated faster. Learn them top to bottom; each row assumes the one above is automatic.
| Variant | Input sequence | Slashes per jump | What it is for | Why it fails |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Butterfly (BF) | Jump → dash → slash → block, re-jump on landing | 1 | Mobile block, closing distance, “circle of death” around an opponent | Block pressed together with the slash (nothing cancels) or too late (full slash plays, you hang in the air) |
| Butterfly without dash | Jump → slash → block | 1 | Stationary drill; building the rhythm | Rushing the re-jump: wait for the landing |
| Double butterfly (DBF, “dan step”) | Jump → slash → block → dash → slash → block | 2 | Cornering a player; more slashes in the same air time; slightly slower cycle than a full-speed BF per the Fandom note | Dash skipped after the first block, so the second slash has no movement and whiffs |
| Triple butterfly (TBF) | Jump → slash → block → slash → block → slash → block | 3 | Hitstun lock; works with any sword because block delay is constant | Trying it on a slow sword with wheel switches; bind block to a mouse button and alternate the two buttons |
| Quick-slash butterfly | Jump → dash → slash → switch to gun → switch to sword → block | 1 | Same speed as BF, adds a switch sound and a longer cooldown | Second switch too slow; the gun stays out and you cannot block |
Common Mistakes, Per Two Decades of Tutorials
- Mashing — the loop is a rhythm, not a speed test; each input must register in order
- Blocking too early — the block tap comes after the slash starts, not with it
- Ignoring landings — the re-jump on touching ground is what makes it continuous
- Wrong weapon — daggers cannot block, so there is no dagger butterfly; the loop needs a sword or kodachi
Drills
- Empty room, flat ground: 5 minutes of stationary loops (jump → slash → block) until the cycle sounds even
- Add the dash and movement: butterfly along a wall line, then around a pillar
- Add a target: have a friend feed you slow shotgun shots — the goal is trading while cycling
- Only then add the double butterfly, and only once the single one never drops a block
Bind block somewhere instant first — see the keybinds guide — and if your camera drifts during loops, fix sensitivity with the sens converter before blaming your hands.
Why It Still Matters in the Remaster
Masangsoft’s remaster preserves classic movement on purpose — it is the pitch on the Steam page, and no patch note since launch has touched sword timing (the dated record is on the best weapons page). Every technique above transfers, and butterfly fluency is still the dividing line between “playing GunZ” and “playing K-Style GunZ.” The rest of the technique family is on the K-Style hub.
Questions Players Ask
How do I butterfly in GunZ? Sword out: jump, dash, slash, then tap block while the slash animation is still playing, and jump again as you land. The block is the cancel; if the whole slash plays out, you pressed it too late.
What is a butterfly jump? The same technique — “butterfly jump” and “butterfly step” both name the jump → slash → block loop. There is no separate jump variant.
Does the butterfly work in GunZ: The Duel on Steam? Yes. The remaster keeps the original cancel timings, and returning private-server players are using it in rooms from day one.
Why does my butterfly stop after one loop? Almost always the re-jump: you are pressing jump before you touch the ground, so it does nothing. Watch the landing, then jump.