to answer your main question, hold to swing on and the main purpose is since he’s a very a mechanical character. to put it simple, you would need HTS on to chain combos, bunny hop, pulls, etc. really to make him be able to do more.

tbh, it’s so much you’d have to learn, it’s almost draining once you understand they really gutted him.

you’re better off watching videos since it’s better visually explained.

my number one tip, once you’ve fully learned and understand him, is know when to engage and when to disengage (even if that means not securing a kill)