Not sure what skill to inherit or who to inherit it from? Read this! (Please read before posting)

[Zangetsu]

When it comes taking damage what's the difference between HP & DEF? I did some calculations & I didn't see the difference about the amount of damage my unit takes.

 

I have a couple of Azura that's -HP & -DEF & I'm wondering which one is better to invest in.

[Garlyle]

1 hour ago, Zangetsu said:

When it comes taking damage what's the difference between HP & DEF? I did some calculations & I didn't see the difference about the amount of damage my unit takes.

 

I have a couple of Azura that's -HP & -DEF & I'm wondering which one is better to invest in.

I would choose -Hp. If someone can double your units, a higher Def helps more than a higher Hp.

[XRay]

2 hours ago, Zangetsu said:

When it comes taking damage what's the difference between HP & DEF? I did some calculations & I didn't see the difference about the amount of damage my unit takes.

 

I have a couple of Azura that's -HP & -DEF & I'm wondering which one is better to invest in.

Depends on what you need Azura to do. I would go with -Def if you only need her to counter mages and dragons, otherwise, I would go with -HP too to better leverage Sapphire Lance's defensive boost against swords.

I would personally go with -Res since I do not use Ploys, and with Sapphire Lance, high Res is not super necessary to tank most red mages unless you are going against WE!Tharja or Celica.

Edited August 10, 2018 by XRay

[Zangetsu]

1 hour ago, Garlyle said:

I would choose -Hp. If someone can double your units, a higher Def helps more than a higher Hp.

Is there a way you can give me that in layman terms? I did the math & I feel like I'm doing something wrong here but the calculation gave me the same results when I use both -HP & -DEF

 

34 minutes ago, XRay said:

I would personally go with -Res since I do not use Ploys, and with Sapphire Lance, high Res is not super necessary to tank most red mages unless you are going against WE!Tharja or Celica.

Well that sucks, bcuz that her Boon.

 

34 minutes ago, XRay said:

Depends on what you need Azura to do. I would go with -Def if you only need her to counter mages and dragons, otherwise, I would go with -HP too to better leverage Sapphire Lance's defensive boost against swords.

But mages & dragons sounds versatile & diverse compare sword units. It's like I'm using her to combat anyone as much I'm trying give a better way to survive

 

[XRay]

5 hours ago, Zangetsu said:

Well that sucks, bcuz that her Boon.

Depends on your playstyle and resources. Azura got pretty decent offensive stats, so I rather dump her Sapphire Lance and Res for Brave Lance or Slaying Lance. Since I have almost enough Firesweep archers/healers, my Dancers'/Singers' combat performance is practically irrelevant at this point in Arena Assault, so I want to try out something other than Gem Weapon/Triangle Adept builds.

5 hours ago, Zangetsu said:

But mages & dragons sounds versatile & diverse compare sword units. It's like I'm using her to combat anyone as much I'm trying give a better way to survive

In terms of actual threatening effects, sword units are more diverse. Firesweep Ss are annoying to deal with. Slow Brave Swords cannot be countered with Swordbreaker, and even with -40% Atk, Azura's physical bulk is not exactly great at handling that. Red mages have nothing to deal with Sapphire Lance, as -40% Atk easily blunts Forblaze, Ragnarok, and Rauđrblade. Red dragons' only method to handle Sapphire Lance is Cancel Affinity. I guess there is Windsweep-Phantom Spd that mages and dragons can use, but that combo is kind of rare on them and I think I have only seen it once on a Nowi.

In my opinion, instead of trying to have Azura tank all red units, it is better for her to just focus on Res. You can go with -HP and Close Def and let her tank swords too, but I would check her teammates to see if she really needs to fill that role.

For example, if she got powerful red nukes or Firesweep archers/healers like SA!Tana or TOD!Jakob as allies, Azura's combat performance against sword units is largely irrelevant as they lack the reach to threaten the team.

Edited August 10, 2018 by XRay

[Zangetsu]

Well I'm convinced, thanks a lot @XRay & @Garlyle

[Simpsons138]

Desperation or Swordbreaker, which one for Joshua?

[XRay]

1 hour ago, Simpsons138 said:

Desperation or Swordbreaker, which one for Joshua?

Depends on what you want him to do.

For Player Phase, I prefer to Spd stack him and give him Desperation. I generally do not use Breakers for Player Phase units unless they are running a Brave build.

If you are sticking with his vanilla kit or using him as an Enemy Phase unit, I would go with Quick Riposte, but Swordbreaker is fine too if swords are a bigger threat.

Edited August 14, 2018 by XRay

[sirmola]

Due to a combination of some very good luck, some very bad luck, and the TT giving me characters i already had, my "5* fodder" pile is bigger than ever. Note that everyone here is a duplicate of some kind (or is easily avalible at 4*) All primary version of these units are at +0 with no planned merge projects:

Black Knight: Was thinking of giving Leo steady stance 3 to help with bows and his refine effect, but realy, most of my physicaly defensive characters might want it, including A!tiki, michalis, valintines eliwood, M! grima, fjorm, Nephnee (see below), and christmas chrom.

Legendary lucinia: I want to give SOMEONE Distant Guard 3, but C skills tend to be flexible so it is less obvious who to give it to. Posibilities include masked marth, new years azura, but i have a LOT of characters who could use it.

Ishtar: Same as above, except with Odd attack wave. One again, maybe masked marth, or possibly olivia, and any of half a dosen other alternatives.

WOF!Hinoka: I will almost certainly give attack/speed bond to either sharena, masked marth (activly merging), or soren. They are the three party members with adjacency based skills (Except Linde, see below). Thing is, I have no idea when i will next get a bond skill, so I need to pick one. Note that I have been using bride ninian for chill attack recently.

Tailtyu: I already have 3 blarblade + users (Bride Caeda, L'arachel, and summer corrin). I could give this copy to Linde (currently runinig refined aura), delthea, or Bride ninean or wait untill I get a new Blue tome user. (whoever gets it will get atk/res+2, because I might as well)

Bride Lyn: I am now the proud owner of a maribel, who does not need dazzle fodder. I also have another Bride lyn, for when I need to use candlelight. I guess she will wait until another staffer comes out.

Joshua: I was planning to give him to a M! grima (currently running brazen atk/def) for close def, but then I got a nephnee this morning. Shiro is also an option, or any of the wide variety of units mentioned above as steady stance 3 candidates.

Note that of all the characters mentioned above, Masked Marth and Olivia are my only relevant merge projects.

Also, as long As I am here, which Alfonse refine is best with a brazen atk/Def 6+vantage build?

[XRay]

18 hours ago, sirmola said:

Black Knight: Was thinking of giving Leo steady stance 3 to help with bows and his refine effect, but realy, most of my physicaly defensive characters might want it, including A!tiki, michalis, valintines eliwood, M! grima, fjorm, Nephnee (see below), and christmas chrom.

For Leo, I prefer Fury, Sturdy Stance, etc. so he gets a boost to his Atk too. His Atk is pretty low, so having more Atk ensures he gets more kills.

I would prioritize slow units like A!Tiki, Grima, Michalis, or WE!Chrom. LA!Eliwood, Fjorm, and Nephenee are better suited as Spd tanks in my opinion.

18 hours ago, sirmola said:

Legendary lucinia: I want to give SOMEONE Distant Guard 3, but C skills tend to be flexible so it is less obvious who to give it to. Posibilities include masked marth, new years azura, but i have a LOT of characters who could use it.

Leo's partner or whoever you usually pair him up with. If not that, then maybe a "Ward" infantry team, like Ryoma, Fjorm, and Dorcas?

18 hours ago, sirmola said:

Ishtar: Same as above, except with Odd attack wave. One again, maybe masked marth, or possibly olivia, and any of half a dosen other alternatives.

In my opinion, Waves are not very reliable, so I would prioritize Swift Sparrow instead. You can probably combo it with Moonbow too by foddering spare 3* Catias and Fredericks before hand for New Moon and Rebecca and Florina for Darting Blow 1.

If you do go with Odd Atk Wave, I would give it to a Brave unit like Cherche or Reinhardt so they can take full advantage of it when not near allies, but still be able to receive their respective Hone movement buffs from allies.

18 hours ago, sirmola said:

WOF!Hinoka: I will almost certainly give attack/speed bond to either sharena, masked marth (activly merging), or soren. They are the three party members with adjacency based skills (Except Linde, see below). Thing is, I have no idea when i will next get a bond skill, so I need to pick one. Note that I have been using bride ninian for chill attack recently.

I prefer Enemy Phase units with Distant Counter like Ryoma or Fjorm for Atk/Spd Bond. Marth!Lucina's bulk feels a bit low in my opinion, even with her Refined Falchion.

Sharena and Soren are both okay too, but giving them Atk/Spd Bond does not feel as getting as much bang for your buck since they cannot counter at both ranges.

18 hours ago, sirmola said:

Tailtyu: I already have 3 blarblade + users (Bride Caeda, L'arachel, and summer corrin). I could give this copy to Linde (currently runinig refined aura), delthea, or Bride ninean or wait untill I get a new Blue tome user. (whoever gets it will get atk/res+2, because I might as well)

I would save it for now. Linde and Delthea already hit pretty hard, and BB!Ninian is not as likely to nuke enemies when she is busy Dancing her allies.

19 hours ago, sirmola said:

Also, as long As I am here, which Alfonse refine is best with a brazen atk/Def 6+vantage build?

I prefer the special Refine to cement his role as an anti green unit. If you are running a Desperation-Brash Assault build instead, then I would go with the Atk Refinement.

[Landmaster]

Any suggestions for A Skills for Fae that don't involve foddering off 5*s? I'd love to give her Distant Counter but I've got no Hectors.

[Humanoid]

10 minutes ago, Landmaster said:

Any suggestions for A Skills for Fae that don't involve foddering off 5*s? I'd love to give her Distant Counter but I've got no Hectors.

Triangle Adept or Fury pretty much. Probably hold off on DC even if you get spare Hectors because of Lightning Breath .

[Landmaster]

4 minutes ago, Humanoid said:

Triangle Adept or Fury pretty much. Probably hold off on DC even if you get spare Hectors because of Lightning Breath .

I considered Lightning Breath but I like the boosts from Light Breath. Thanks, I'll probably go for Triangle Adept since I've got hella Roys~

[MisterIceTeaPeach]

How to build Alm without refined Falchion? (Having no dews right now)

Is fury + axe breaker a good skill combo? 

[Humanoid]

19 minutes ago, Jules said:

How to build Alm without refined Falchion? (Having no dews right now)

Is fury + axe breaker a good skill combo? 

I'd still build him with the skills you would use once it's eventually refined. If that's Fury then fair enough, but if it's going to be Death Blow, then I don't see a reason to hold off until you get the refinement, it's still a useful skill. I suppose the B-skills are more common so there's less issue with giving out temporary skills. Consider Swordbreaker too since Alm has mediocre speed and will struggle mightily against most sword threats.

[MisterIceTeaPeach]

@Humanoid

Thanks!

Yeah, deathblow works too for PP. He's definitely better PP than EP unit.

Also axe breaker was pretty much first instict because I wasn't aware of his sick refinement at this point.

I ran out of sword breakers. Gave SB3 to Lilina.

Edited August 16, 2018 by Jules

[SoulWeaver]

Here's a fun question: I've pulled two Brave Veronica so far, and have had a Takumi on standby so I could make a Razzle Dazzle Close Counter Sakura for the heck of it because I like Sakura. The problem is of course that Brave Veronica is...well, Brave Veronica. I'm trying to decide if I should use the spare Veronica to finish tricking out Combat Sakura, who I've been working on for some time now, or if I should trade Sakura for Veronica, in which case I'd also need to decide whether to go for the Merge or use the spare to give my Epic Roy Close Guard. Opinions?

[XRay]

On 8/26/2018 at 12:48 PM, SoulWeaver said:

in which case I'd also need to decide whether to go for the Merge or use the spare to give my Epic Roy Close Guard. Opinions?

I would prioritize Wrath over Close Guard. Close Guard can be emulated in most cases with Drive Def.

 

[Endriu]

I need some advice. As I managed to pull a dupe Veronica that is +atk-res I merged my neutral one into her. Now I am thinking about building her (and hopefully pulling more dupes for merges down the line). Since I have got 2 Celicas death blow 4 is tempting and would push her offense up to 57atk at currently 37spd. On the other hand death blow is very rare atm and LaD3 seems a viable option, too. It would push her atk up to 54, which is quite good, and also push her spd up to 42. I am leaning towards LaD3, the extra spd might actually be worth more than 3 extra atk points.

What do you think about aether as special? - with arena scoring in mind...

Now if I were to sacrifice Celica I might as well give her galeforce... hmm so many options...

Edited September 13, 2018 by AL_CHEMIST

[XRay]

32 minutes ago, AL_CHEMIST said:

I need some advice. As I managed to pull a dupe Veronica that is +atk-res I merged my neutral one into her. Now I am thinking about building her (and hopefully pulling more dupes for merges down the line). Since I have got 2 Celicas death blow 4 is tempting and would push her offense up to 57atk at currently 37spd. On the other hand death blow is very rare atm and LaD3 seems a viable option, too. It would push her atk up to 54, which is quite good, and also push her spd up to 42. I am leaning towards LaD3, the extra spd might actually be worth more than 3 extra atk points.

What do you think about aether as special? - with arena scoring in mind...

Now if I were to sacrifice Celica I might as well give her galeforce... hmm so many options...

Theoretically, Life and Death is best since she is essentially a Firesweep unit. I would personally go with Moonbow, but Aether is nice for burst damage output. Galeforce on a ranged unit is pretty bonkers too.

However, realistically, AOTB!Veronica is best with her vanilla skill set with Atk/Spd 2 or Atk/Spd Push. You can also try Brazen Atk/Spd, but that requires some set up. You can also swap out Close Guard for Hone type buffs, but Close Guard is pretty good itself since it cannot be Panicked.

Staff units cannot run Blow skills, Life and Death, nor Fury. Staff units cannot inherit any Specials besides Miracle and Specials exclusive to staff users, so no Aether. Ranged units also cannot use Galeforce, so no Galeforce for AOTB!Veronica either.

Edited September 13, 2018 by XRay

[Endriu]

6 minutes ago, XRay said:

Theoretically, Life and Death is best since she is essentially a Firesweep unit. I would personally go with Moonbow, but Aether is nice for damage output. Galeforce on a ranged unit is pretty bonkers too.

However, realistically AOTB!Veronica is best with her vanilla skill set with Atk/Spd 2 or Atk/Spd Push. You can also try Brazen Atk/Spd, but that requires some set up.

Staff units cannot run Blow skills, Life and Death, nor Fury. Staff units cannot inherit any Specials besides Miracle and Specials exclusive to staff users, so no Aether. Ranged units also cannot use Galeforce, so no Galeforce for AOTB!Veronica either.

Wow! Stupid me - thanks! My plans have been smashed to pieces :)

 

and yes, you are right, under these circumstances her base kit will be best

Edited September 13, 2018 by AL_CHEMIST

[Zero]

So looking through my barracks, I noticed that I have a number of units that I was thinking of foddering off and never got around to it, though I have no clue what kinds of units I should fodder off to, if anyone had a few ideas.

Leif- I was thinking maybe Steady Blow, since Drive attack is more common to get, though I was toying with merging him with my better iv one as well.

Karel- I never was much of a Karel (or Karla) fan, and he's been sitting for a while untouched. Desperation can easily be gotten through Shanna, so would Wo Dao be better on a speedy person or more attack oriented person? Also, what specials tend to mix well with it? Quicker cooldowns like moonbow?

Siegbert and Shiro- So, Attack and Defense Tactics are about the only thing I can see that might be useful in foddering since (Death Blow on the former can be gotten through klein). I never have really used tactics skills before, so honestly I have no clue what kind of unit they go well on

Legendary Ryoma- Okay, so I am not a Ryoma fan xD and he's been kicking me since I got him. I feel like Kestral stance is pretty good, Is it pretty much Swift Sparrow except it's when foe initiates? in which case probably better used for EP teams? Also, is guidance worth it since we now have a SS for it?

Libra- So not a Libra fan either, but he's got what's essentially an ax wo dao, so I guess same question as with Karel

[XRay]

11 hours ago, Zero said:

Leif- I was thinking maybe Steady Blow, since Drive attack is more common to get, though I was toying with merging him with my better iv one as well.

Drive Atk is more valuable. Player Phase nukes want skills like Fury and Swift Sparrow that boost both Atk and Spd. Buffing Def/Res does nothing for a nuke.

11 hours ago, Zero said:

Karel- I never was much of a Karel (or Karla) fan, and he's been sitting for a while untouched. Desperation can easily be gotten through Shanna, so would Wo Dao be better on a speedy person or more attack oriented person? Also, what specials tend to mix well with it? Quicker cooldowns like moonbow?

Libra- So not a Libra fan either, but he's got what's essentially an ax wo dao, so I guess same question as with Karel

Wo Weapons are used on Spd tanks or for increasing the first round performance of fast Player Phase nukes. Both type of units generally run Moonbow.

Def/Res tanks that are running Steady Breath instead of Distant Counter can also use Wo Dao effectively in conjunction with a high cooldown Special like Aether.

11 hours ago, Zero said:

Siegbert and Shiro- So, Attack and Defense Tactics are about the only thing I can see that might be useful in foddering since (Death Blow on the former can be gotten through klein). I never have really used tactics skills before, so honestly I have no clue what kind of unit they go well on

Tactics do not go well on anyone unless you know what the unit's teammates are. This applies to most C skills too, but it is more pronounced on Tactics since they only work in certain team compositions, whereas most other buffing skills work on any team, even if it is not very effective on random teams.

Atk Tactic is available from Legault and Def Tactic is available as a Sacred Seal, so I do not recommend foddering them for skills.

It is always a good idea to keep at least 1 of each unit for use in Arena Assault or for copying other people's strategy videos. In my opinion, there is no reason to send a Hero home just because you do not like them since they can still contribute a lot in Arena Assault.

I guess you can run Atk Tactic on Titania, and she can run Def Tactic on the Sacred Seal slot, as her Weapon comes with Res Tactic. She can be a good Tactic bot, but her usefulness depends on her team's composition.

11 hours ago, Zero said:

Legendary Ryoma- Okay, so I am not a Ryoma fan xD and he's been kicking me since I got him. I feel like Kestral stance is pretty good, Is it pretty much Swift Sparrow except it's when foe initiates? in which case probably better used for EP teams? Also, is guidance worth it since we now have a SS for it?

Kestrel Stance is more valuable in my opinion. Spd tanks want that skill. Atk/Spd Bond provides more stats, but Kestrel Stance does not have positioning requirements.

Guidance is a little niche, so its worth depends on your playstyle. It is worth it if you want a unit to have optimal performance by running a combat oriented Sacred Seal, so you can put Guidance on the C slot instead of in the Sacred Seal slot. However, usually, running a stat buff on the C slot is better than a movement buff.

Edited September 25, 2018 by XRay

[Ragingtide94]

On 8/10/2018 at 5:12 AM, Zangetsu said:

Is there a way you can give me that in layman terms? I did the math & I feel like I'm doing something wrong here but the calculation gave me the same results when I use both -HP & -DEF

@Zangetsu

Think of it like this 

You have 40 HP and 0 Defense

The enemy can double and has 22 atk 

22*2 = 44 vs 40, you die

If you get 4 more hp, you now have 44 hp,

22*2 = 44 vs 44 , you die

If you get 4 more defense instead of hp though, he does 4 less damage on each of his attacks

18*2 = 36 vs 40, you live 

----

If he only attacks you once, they're equivalent, but the more attacks you take the better the defensive stat is. Also, HP counts for physical and magical attacks so it has a slight edge there in increasing total bulk, but generally speaking most units prefer def or res. 

Edited September 27, 2018 by Ragingtide94

[Zangetsu]

@Ragingtide94

I don't understand the explanation, but I understand the answer.

 

I don't know how to explain it, it just makes sense to me. Urgh, I hate math

 

Either way, thanks for taking the time to explain the answer. Sorry it took long to give my thanks