ILikeKirbys

Welp, my final vote for Winter Tharja has been cast. Now to wait until they announce the winner... which I'm guessing will be around Wednesday/Thursday, since they said they were releasing the Xenologue for this in "late February."

Presumably it would resemble the look on their faces when Veronica won CYL2, yeah? I voted for Tharja again today, because I still want her the most as a unit. Hoping she wins, and only partially to see the look on IntSys's faces if she takes it over Ike.

I most likely wouldn't spend Orbs on a Binding Blade banner, but I would be interested in seeing who got in on it. I honestly thought it might be Veronica at first. But yeah, knowing who the next GHB's gonna be probably would make it too easy to guess the next banner. So who do you think it'll be?

To be honest, I wouldn't be surprised if we got a Binding Blade banner in the near future. Not sure who the upcoming GHB could be in that case though... Maybe Idunn? But yeah, Thracia's a fairly safe bet, that or Genealogy Gen 2. If it is one of those, maybe Ishtar'll be the GHB?

You can't inherit the refined weapon onto another unit (you can still inherit the non-refined version tho), but if you use Merge Allies to merge that Mae into another Mae, the post-merge Mae will have the refined Blarowl.

Okay, I have Distant Counter fodder, but I'm not sure who I should give it to. I've narrowed it down to the following units: Marth [+SPD/-HP] (Mostly a support unit, but I know I'm gonna use him a lot since his omni-Drive is so useful for me, so might he be able to get some use out of this?) Love Abounds Eliwood (I don't know what to do with him, but I want to use him, and this seems like a decent option) Myrrh [+ATK/-HP, Summoner Support] (I like Fury on Myrrh, but I could see her being great with DC too) Which of these would be the best option for Distant Counter? Or should I just hold on to my spare Hector for now? Also, completely unrelated question, is +ATK/-RES Matthew a good Matthew if I'm going to use Rogue Dagger+?

I just pulled a second LA Hector! And this one's +ATK! (and also -SPD, but Wary Fighter'll negate that so really I only care about the ATK boon here) YES! It took me to 4.75% pity rate though, and after that I am done with this banner! Now to save up for that all-Falchion banner (and also possibly the banner starting on the 21st, depending on who's on that one). Now I just need to figure out what I'm gonna do with my +SPD/-ATK LA Hector...

I voted for the Normal Girl, because I don't have her (unlike Hector), I want her (unlike Azura, and to a lesser extent Ike), and I don't think I'll manage to pull her ever (unlike Ike, who's gonna be on multiple 8% banners so I have some confidence that he'll be mine eventually, though even if he isn't I only really want him to teach Warding Breath to other units). Plus I want another Armor mage, and I don't like my odds of pulling LA Lyn. I hope Tharja wins, but really as long as it isn't Azura (I just don't care for her) I'll be happy with any of the top 4. Tharja is someone I want, Hector I could use another one of for Distant Counter fodder, and Ike would be leveled to 40 and then used as Warding Breath fodder because I don't really want him. I thought you just needed to have units who've been given Blessings for that new mode?

I managed the Armor and Cavalry GHB Elite quests today. Armor was pretty simple once I trained up Eliwood a bit. I just had my Love Abounds Hector with Noontime tank and Noontime-counterkill the entire map with Hone & Goad Armor, Fortify RES 1 and the Distant DEF 3 Seal (34 SPD means that I don't think anyone could double him, but he still had Wary Fighter because I didn't think to give him Renewal for maximum healing until after this challenge). Halloween Henry was also important though. Being my one Armor March unit, he gave Hector and Eliwood (who has Goad Armor, guaranteeing that Hector won't ever get doubled on this map and also making Noontime slightly stronger) the mobility needed to retreat once Hector tanked almost everyone (I think the lance and one of the axes couldn't reach him, but he took hits from all of the mages and +10Noontime'd his health back up). Cavalry was a bit trickier, but Sigurd being a great tank made it doable. He went up at the chokepoint and (with 1 Ward Cavalry for support, which I'm not 100% sure he needed but I wanted to be on the safe side) survived the first turn, after which he retreated so he, Reinhardt, Brave Lyn and Gunnthrá could kill everyone from within the left-side hallways. Not sure how I'll deal with Flier quest, or Infantry, but I have a whole year to do those.

Well, Fortress RES is a surprise. Wonder if that means they aren't going to put it on a 4-Star any time soon... Armored Boots I want. 1 MOV is annoying, and more ways around that are always welcome. I'm going to run LAHector/Brave Lyn/Reinhardt/Ninian for the 3x bonus runs because Lynhardt+Dancer rarely fails me, then train up (and maybe promote) 4-Star Eliwood since I need a good Lance Armor.

Okay, I gave my last 4 votes to Winter's Envoy Tharja, because I would legitimately like to get her, but don't think I'll ever manage to pull her. Here's hoping she wins! Ike's probably gonna win, or maybe Hector, but I can hope! And throw all my votes to Tharja in the finals! Though really, out of the current non-Tharja top 10, getting a free Ike (either), Hector or Performing Arts Azura would be fine by me too (Vanguard Ike and PAAzura because I'd like to have them as units, Hector and Brave Ike for A Skill fodder). Still hoping for Tharja, but really I'm certain I'll be happy with whoever wins.

I DID IT! I ACTUALLY DID IT! I BEAT INFERNAL XANDER! WOOHOO! I mean, I have Reinhardt and Brave Lyn, but I ended up needing Sigurd (+SPD/-HP, with Close DEF Seal) and Gunnthra (+DEF/-SPD, with ATK +3/Ward Cavalry/ATK +1 Seal) to deal with everything without someone getting killed by Green Mage. Took several Stamina Potions, but hey, I won. And it was really damn satisfying when everything fell into place. And then I beat the Infantry quest too, with Ninian (+ATK/-HP, with SPD-refined Light Breath+, Fury 3, Wings of Mercy 3, Fortify Dragons, and DEF Ploy 1 Sacred Seal, though I don't think that mattered all too much), Fjorm (Neutral with base skills & Distant DEF 3 Seal, because she's already good as is), Marth (+HP/-DEF, with Refined Falchion, Noontime, Fury 3, Drive SPD 3 and Drive DEF 1 Sacred Seal) and Genny (+RES/-DEF, with Dazzling-refined Slow+, Recover+, Miracle, RES +3, Wrathful Staff 3, Spur DEF/RES 2, and ATK Ploy 3 Sacred Seal). Pretty much had Fjorm do a Sigurd and tank Xander, then had her and Marth form a defensive wall at the chokepoint with Genny and Ninian behind them, with Genny healing Ninian (who for some reason kept attracting Green Mage attacks that barely missed killing her) and Fjorm (Genny couldn't reach Marth, but between his built-in Renewal 3 and Noontime he didn't really need heals) and also giving them Spur DEF/RES support as Fjorm and Marth attrition'd the map out, with Ninian eventually scoring the killing blow on Xander to finish (Marth could've done it, but Ninian needed the SP more). Took a few tries while I tried to figure out how to avoid anyone getting overwhelmed (and had an odd death when I switched Marth to Close DEF once, and that somehow resulted in the healer Wings of Mercying on in to finish him off... and then that never happened outside of that one time), but I ended up not needing a Stamina Potion for this one! Now I'm gonna wait until I get Eliwood from the Tempest Trial before I consider any Armor quests, and I'm not gonna bother with Flier quests for the moment. Not sure what I'm gonna do with this spare Xander I have, or this Fire Blessing, but hey, I did it!

Hey, I got that Hector too! It's a shame, but 35 ATK is far from unusable, and 24 SPD is theoretically enough that he can be SPD-buffed out of getting-doubled-by-lots-of-units territory. I'm thinking of trying Fury + Hone Armor + Drive SPD & Spectrum Marth to give him 38 SPD, which is pretty good I think (also fixes his ATK bane, thanks to Fury). Feels odd not running Distant Counter on Hector, but eh, Berserk Armads alone makes it worth running this version of Hector regardless of boom/bane IMO. I can't wait to see how amazing CYL Hector will be. And I've been running both Hectors for training Love Hector (Goad Armor is a nice little buff), so I've mixed 'em up a couple of times too!

Well, we're gonna get Armor Eliwood from the next Tempest Trial, so really you should only need one more Armor unless Eliwood's terrible (and from what I've seen of his stats, he'll probably be alright).

I got Hector in 2 sessions! +SPD/-ATK, but still, I wasn't expecting any luck pulling him, so I'm happy. Besides, Berserk Armads's effect can make up for the bane (after he gets Bonfire or Moonbow, since I have fodder for either), and even with that his ATK is still pretty good, so I just need to figure out how to make his SPD into an amount that won't get doubled... I suppose Hone Armor + Goad Armor could work, but if I wanna run him outside of Armor Emblem then I'll need something else... Gonna save Orbs for a while, wait and see what the next banner is before I try for anyone else.

My first thought was that the ??? Grand Hero Battle might be Veronica. Doubt it would be her, but after she won CYL2, she'll probably come sooner or later, and I can't see her regular self being on a banner, so Grand Hero Battle seems like a reasonable place to do that (that or Story Chapter Reward, but they haven't done that since Fjorm, so I'm not sure if Fjorm was a one-time thing or if they might do it again). Ah, right. So these maps are like the last Warriors maps, I assume? Because I liked those maps. They were good for SP grinding. I miss them a little. Also thanks for reminding me that I'm gonna have to play Warriors again to try them out. Hopefully they aren't just clones of Camilla, Lyn and Robin. That would mildly irk me. Nah, Jill is playable normally, and only goes back to being an enemy if you make her fight Shiharam (or... something, I forgot what exactly has to happen there, it's been too long since I played PoR). And even then, you can recruit her back with Mist or Lethe, like you mentioned, so I can't see her being a Grand Hero Battle. Also, talking to Olwen with Reinhardt doesn't make Reinhardt leave the battlefield? I thought it would, since I knew that's how Eldigan's talk with Lachesis went.

Oh wow, this is something I didn't expect to see. Wasn't aware that Shadow Dragon was getting special maps. Wonder what the occasion for those is? Glad to see Arvis getting a rerun, since I missed his first run and I want him. Battling With Fjorm quests shouldn't be too hard since she's generally pretty good. I'm expecting New Power to be a focus of Felicia/Hinoka/Caeda/Raven, since they just got new personal weapons. Probably not gonna go beyond the free pull on that one. Looking forward to the Falchion banner more, since all of the units on there would be good for me (Marth could be a better boon/bane and I could use more merges for him, Chrom and Lucina are Aether fodder, and Alm is the one I don't have and thus I desire him). Curious about the ??? Grand Hero Battle and Voting Gauntlet. Kinda hoping for Ishtar for the Grand Hero Battle (which could still work if Thracia 776 gets the next banner, since IIRC Reinhardt has some connection to her, and he's from Thracia 776) and Genealogy Gen 1 vs 2 or Genealogy vs Thracia 776 for the Voting Gauntlet. Partially because that second one would mean the next non-seasonal banner would have to be Thracia. Also curious about who the next Three Heroes quests are going to give away. @Vaximillian IIRC Reinhardt is pullable because you could talk him out of fighting you with his (also pullable, and debuted at the same time) sister Olwen. Same with Eldigan and his sister Lachesis. Unless Ishtar has a similar thing, I think it's safe to assume she'll be a Grand Hero Battle, rather than on a banner.

I really hope that regular Hector can get the new Armads, preferably through Weapon Refinery upgrade. Also, Eliwood looks to be the free unit. Didn't expect that after seeing that he has the (currently) highest BST in Heroes, but I'm glad to be wrong. I might pull on this one, or I might not. Nobody has skills I need, but I still wouldn't mind getting someone. Probably gonna focus on Green, since I could get Lilina or Hector, and both would be good for me (Lilina as a Gunnthra alternative/replacement, Hector because just look at him), and Colorless, because I could get Roy or Sothe (the former is Roy, the latter is Life And Death fodder). Just gonna stay away from Blue/Red if I can, since I don't want Lyn and there's no Red focus unit.

@Humanoid Anamnesis. Regarding the banner itself...

@Sunwoo I don't see why not. Fjorm does when you recruit her as an ally by completing Chapter 1 of Book II, so VL Ike should come with an Earth Blessing too if he wins.

I HAVE ACQUIRED A MYRRH! THANK YOU DEVELOPER'S CHALLENGE ORBS! And she's +ATK/-HP, too! That's pretty good, I think! Gonna just save up my Orbs for March now... or maybe just the end-of-month Legendary banner, depending on who gets on that one.

@Sire You'll have to restart from C, but I think I read somewhere that it'll rebuild faster if you already had an S Rank before switching the Summoner Support to someone else. Okay, so I have a +RES/-DEF Genny, and I've given her Summoner Support and Wind Blessing so she can reach 46 RES when on a team with Gunnthrá and run Ploys for free debuffing. So I was thinking of running this build on her during Wind seasons: Absorb+ (Wrathful Refine) | Recover+ | Miracle | RES +3 | Quick Riposte 3 | RES Ploy 3 | ATK Ploy 3 Sacred Seal Stats w/ Summoner-S & Wind Blessing: 40 HP | 44 ATK | 27 SPD | 20 DEF | 46 RES With this setup, Genny should be able to tank mages pretty well (I tested on KageroChart, and if I recall the results correctly, she can survive +ATK Death Blow Hone Cavalry'd Reinhardt even if Moonbow activates, and with QR she can either counterkill or deal enough damage that he can be finished off on Player Phase) and regain HP with Absorb+ to act as a longer-lasting anti-magic tank. Her high RES makes Ploys pretty much guaranteed debuffs (I have yet to run into an enemy with 40+ RES in the Arena, though I think I saw a couple in Lunatic 7 Tempest Trial runs), so she gets RES Ploy to deal more damage (and thus regain more HP via Absorb+, plus it's 5 extra damage for Gunnthrá) and ATK Ploy to reduce the damage she (and her allies) take from enemy attacks (also more damage for Gunnthrá if the enemy getting Ployed isn't the same enemy being Chilling Seal'd). Quick Riposte gets around Genny's low SPD to ensure that she'll double when attacked (I think only Watersweep and Wary Fighter can prevent this, since there's no Staffbreaker at the moment, and Genny might maybe be able to keep herself above QR's threshold thanks to Absorb+ healing). Miracle is chosen for the Special since Genny will most likely be run alongside Marisa or Dorcas, who have Infantry Pulse and more HP than Genny and thus can lower Miracle's cooldown to 4 so that it will be charged after one round of combat against any foe that doubles Genny, so maybe I could have her survive a physical attack or a Special hit or something, plus IMO her healing is already good enough without Imbue. Wrathful Refine is chosen so that Genny deals regular damage and thus regains more HP with Absorb+. Recover+ is chosen to recover 32 HP, which is a pretty good amount I think. Can this build work?

@Baldrick IIRC the Golden Dagger originally belonged to Celica, who gave it to Saber as payment to bodyguard for them while they sailed across the ocean to see Mila (or something, I don't entirely recall this one). It's not locked to him either, anyone can equip it (at least, I think so, anyway). Also, since the Golden Dagger had to be upgraded to make the Beloved Zofia, I could see it being CYLica's weapon. And it has Dagger in its name, so I could see it ending up as a Dagger instead of a sword. I mean, I still expect Beloved Zofia to be Celica's weapon, since it's actually locked to her in Echoes (...It is, right? I'm not misremembering that, am I?), but I would be okay with it if they went with the Golden Dagger instead.

I voted for Vanguard Legend Ike today. Probably gonna vote for him, Micaiah and Myrrh throughout this thing, because I wouldn't mind if any of them won (but I expect Ike to win).

@Quintessence Hopefully so they can be replaced with similar quests for stuff like Refining Stones or Sacred Coins or something.