UE5 Frame-Accurate Brawler Combat System

I'm looking for an experienced Unreal Engine 5 gameplay programmer to build the core melee combat system for an original 3D action brawler, in the spirit of classic PS2-era brawlers like Urban Reign: close-range fights, strikes and grapples, reversals, and juggles.

This first milestone covers two playable characters with different fighting styles, using free placeholder assets on the UE5 Manny skeleton:
- Character A, all-rounder street fighter: punch strings, clinch and throws
- Character B, rushdown "tricking" fighter: fast kicks, flips, cancels into evades

Tech requirements
- UE 5.8, C++ (Blueprints only for asset wiring)
- UE5 Manny skeleton; placeholder animations from Paragon, Mixamo and Quaternius (retargeting included)
- Data-driven moves (DataAssets): startup, active and recovery frames, damage, hit zone, hit type, hitstun, blockstun, hitstop, cancel windows, combo routes
- Combat runs on a fixed 60 Hz frame counter, and all timing is in frames. The design must be able to move into a deterministic rollback simulation later.

Features to deliver
1. Light, Heavy and Grapple buttons with buffered combo strings and cancel windows
2. Guard with a guard meter and guard break
3. Strike and grapple reversals (timing-based counters)
4. Hitstop, knockback, launchers, juggles with scaling and a limit, knockdown and get-up
5. Crumple stun (once per combo) and OTG hits on a downed opponent (once per knockdown)
6. Body-part damage (head, body, legs) with gameplay effects
7. Grapples with paired animations and follow-ups
8. Lock-on facing, with movement relative to the target
9. Local 2-player play plus a simple AI opponent
10. Rounds and KO
11. Debug HUD showing frame data, combo count, juggle count, body-part damage and hitbox drawing
12. A test arena (free Megascans assets are fine)

Deliverables
- Source code and project files that compile cleanly (Development Editor, Win64)
- A playable test map
- A 30–60 second gameplay video showing every feature above
- A setup document explaining how to add a new move or character, plus a list of every third-party asset and its license

Requirements
- Strong UE5 C++ gameplay programming experience. Combat or fighting-game experience is required.
- Understands frame data, hitstop, cancels and juggle systems
- Understanding of rollback netcode is a big plus
- No generative AI. Code, animation and assets must be human-made or properly licensed free assets. This is a strict client requirement.
- NDA required before project details are shared

Timeline:2–3 days
Budget:5$/hr, paid by milestone:
- M1: core combat, strings, guard, hitstop
- M2: reversals, launch, juggle, knockdown, crumple, OTG, grapples
- M3: polish, AI, HUD, video and docs

When you apply, please answer:
1. Which combat or fighting games have you worked on, and what was your part? Include links or videos.
2. How would you structure frame data and combo routing in UE5?
3. How would you implement hitstop and juggle scaling?
4. Can you confirm no generative AI will be used?
5. What's your availability, and what's your estimate for each milestone?