Niles

• Preferred IV's: +SPD / -DEF
• Weapon: Slaying Bow+ (+Spd)
• Assist: Reposition / Swap / Reciprocal Aid
• Special: Iceberg
• Passive A: Fury
• Passive B: Quick Riposte
• Passive C: Def Ploy / Threaten Def
• Sacred Seal: Distant Def / Atk Ploy

This relatively low-cost build capitalizes on Niles’ innate ability to check many common magical threats, including partially buffed blade mages. The key to this is his Speed – since it can reach 42 with a boon, Fury, and a refined bow, even +Spd mages struggle to perform follow-up attacks and are destroyed by Iceberg when they initiate on him due to Quick Riposte. Notably, Niles also survives combat initiations from fully buffed Reinhardt, Olwen, and Cecilia. Being an archer, the effective damage he is granted against flying units also is also worthwhile despite his relatively low attack.

Def Ploy was chosen because it helps Niles net a few crucial KOs while active, and almost seems as if it was made for him. With Fury Niles reaches 37 Resistance, even when he possesses a neutral IV. Barring some high Resistance mages like Deirdre when she has a Resistance boon, this threshold is enough to activate Def Ploy against most units. This effectively brings Niles’ base Attack up to 30 – 45 with his Slaying Bow and Fury – and also provides support to melee allies who possess a -Attack bane and/or struggle to ORKO without help. Threaten Def is a passable budget option with a smaller range but similar effect.

Iceberg greatly boosts Niles’ damage output due to his high Resistance. Combined with Slaying Bow’s -1 Cooldown effect and Quick Riposte, Niles is able to proc an Iceberg against even the speediest mages that initiate against him, obliterating them on his follow-up attack. In a pinch, he is also able to initiate against an enemy with less than 37 Speed that can counterattack and hit them hard with his special, allowing him to even threaten certain Distant Counter units like Ike and neutral Speed Ryoma.

Swap or Reposition allow Niles to move an ally out of the way and tank a magical hit for them, while Reciprocal Aid gives him the ability to either provide an ally with an HP transfusion or heal himself up if he’s fallen below Quick Riposte’s HP requirement. Distant Def boosts his Resistance to 40 on Enemy Phase, synergizing with Quick Riposte and adding to his magical bulk. This seal strengthens his ability to bait mages tremendously and only serves to contribute to his excellent magical bulk, though if the ability to apply multiple long-range debuffs is more appealing, Atk Ploy can be used instead.

• Preferred IV's: +RES / -DEF
• Weapon: Guard Bow+ (+Res) / Clarrise’s Bow+ (+Res)
• Assist: Reposition / Swap
• Special: Iceberg
• Passive A: Distant Def / Atk/Res Bond
• Passive B: Quick Riposte
• Passive C: Def Ploy / Spd Ploy / Atk Ploy / Res Ploy
• Sacred Seal: Distant Def

This build has the distinction of taking only 15 damage from a +Atk fully buffed Death Blow Quickened Pulse Moonbow Reinhardt and surviving +Atk fully buffed Life and Death Nino, KOing Nino in return.

With a refined bow and +RES IV, Niles reaches 40 Resistance. Combined with Guard Bow’s effect and the Distant Def skill and seal, he has 58 Resistance upon enemy initiation. Unless he is baiting a fully buffed Blade mage or a mage who has access to +6 buffs, most magic users will be unable to even deal chip damage to Niles unless their special is charged. Even then, because of Iceberg’s relatively low cooldown, they will struggle to power through his sky-high Resistance before they are hit hard and KO’d.

An alternative option for Niles’ A skill is Atk / Res Bond. In return for sacrificing one point of Resistance when a ranged foe initiates, Niles is granted +5 Attack when he is adjacent to an ally during combat. When combined with Spur Res, Atk, or Spd, this grants Niles even more magical bulk or higher damage output.

Quick Riposte ensures Niles is able to perform a follow-up attack on enemy phase despite his middling Speed. As for C skills, very few units in the game will be able to avoid a proc of Def, Spd, Atk, or Res Ploy when Niles is running this set, and those who will (like +Res Fury or Fortress Res Deirdre) have a lower-than-average Defense stat that makes them easy targets for Niles to KO upon baiting. As for which one to choose, Def Ploy is generally preferable because it allows Niles to net more KOs after one round of combat if it activates, but Spd, Atk, or Res Ploy could also prove to be useful based on a team's composition.

A potential alternative to this set is to run Clarisse’s bow, which allows Niles to tank a magical hit on enemy phase and then debuff any of the opposing team that is nearby. If this debuff set is run instead, then Def / Res Ploy should be used. This is because Clarrise’s Bow has a built-in Atk / Spd Smoke 2 effect (which inflicts -5 Attack and Speed on foes within two spaces of the unit that attacked), so Atk / Spd Ploy would be redundant.