Arden

• Weapon: Slaying Edge+ (+Def/Atk) / Brave Sword+
• Assist: Swap
• Special: Bonfire / Ignis
• Passive A: Steady Breath / Atk/Def Bond / Fire Boost / Distant Counter
• Passive B: Bold Fighter / Follow-up Ring
• Passive C: Armor March / Drive Def / Flexible
• Sacred Seal: Quick Riposte / Close Def / Heavy Blade / Quickened Pulse

Arden mastered the power of pursuit with his Follow-up Ring, but the Bold Fighter/Quick Riposte Seal combo is arguably a bit stronger due to Bold Fighter’s lack of an HP threshold as well as the increased Special charge. A Slaying Edge is ideal to maximize Arden’s incredibly min-maxed stat spread by allowing him to quickly unleash powerful Ignis nukes, but on a budget his base Brave Sword can work. A +Def refine is generally best, but +Atk is worth considering if running Distant Counter due to Arden being reliant on KO’ing mages in one hit in order to not get torn apart due to his low Resistance.

Steady Breath works best with a Slaying Edge and Bonfire, as it allows Arden to activate his Special on every counterattack. Alternatively, Arden can use the Quickened Pulse Seal and Ignis to be able to activate a much stronger Special, at the cost of losing the ability to double on Enemy Phase unless using Follow-up Ring. Atk/Def Bond boosts both of Arden’s key stats, with the additional benefit of working on both phases. However, Bond skills can be a bit difficult to utilize on Player Phase due to the positioning requirement. If this is a concern, then Fire Boost can also function on both phases though it gives less stats overall than Atk/Def Bond. Finally, Distant Counter is an option if really wanting Arden to be able to handle ranged threats - he is adept at handling physical ranged threats like archers and dagger users, but he will struggle against mages unless he can KO them in a single counterattack. One way to counter this is to use the Quickened Pulse Seal along with Bonfire and a Slaying Edge in order to allow Arden to instantly activate Bonfire on his first counterattack.

Bold Fighter’s extra Special charge allows Arden to activate Bonfire even when initiating on enemies that can’t counterattack. However, this build will function just as well with his base Follow-up Ring. Using Follow-up Ring also frees up Arden’s Sacred Seal slot for something other than Quick Riposte; Close Def will increase his bulk further against melee threats and is a good choice if using Steady Breath. Otherwise, Heavy Blade allows Arden to access the increased Special charge even with Follow-up Ring, but it can be a bit dicey to reliably activate without a +Atk refined weapon and/or team support. Finally, the Quickened Pulse Seal allows Arden to use Ignis with Steady Breath if wanting a bigger initial nuke, or to have an instant Bonfire activation if using an A skill other than Steady Breath, such as Distant Counter.

• Weapon: Wo Dao+ (+Def) / Safeguard+ (+Def) / Slaying Edge+ (+Def)
• Assist: Swap
• Special: Ignis / Bonfire
• Passive A: Sturdy Stance / Atk/Def Bond / Steady Breath
• Passive B: Vengeful Fighter / Guard
• Passive C: Panic Ploy / Drive Def / Flexible
• Sacred Seal: Close Def / Quick Riposte

Arden’s incredibly low Speed can be used to his advantage if focusing entirely on Enemy Phase; since he’s almost always going to get doubled, he can utilize a Wo Dao along with Ignis and Vengeful Fighter to unleash insanely potent Ignis nukes. Wo Dao can be replaced by Safeguard for a more defensive option. For a more conservative approach, Arden can utilize a Slaying Edge, Guard, and the Quick Riposte Seal to be sturdier by not having to worry about taking high damage from powerful enemy Specials. Ignis is generally the Special of choice unless running a Slaying Edge and Steady Breath, in which case Bonfire is better due to Arden being able to activate it on every counterattack.

Sturdy Stance and Atk/Def Bond are both fantastic skills that boost Arden’s key stats. Since this build is entirely focused on Enemy Phase, he can utilize either without much trouble. Sturdy Stance will always work regardless of positioning, but Atk/Def Bond gives slightly more stats at the cost of requiring Arden to be adjacent to an ally. The extra Special charge gained from Steady Breath doesn’t stack with that of Vengeful Fighter, but both can still work decently well together if considering Vengeful Fighter as a better Quick Riposte. However, this isn’t as efficient as utilizing either Sturdy Stance or Atk/Def Bond since Arden will likely be able to activate Ignis regardless. Steady Breath works best with a Slaying Edge and Bonfire for instant Special activations.

Close Def offers a strong boost in Arden’s defenses; despite his low base Resistance, Arden has enough HP that many dragons will actually struggle to KO him, so Close Def can be useful in that regard as well. If using Guard, then the Quick Riposte Seal is a must to ensure that Arden can double.