Sigurd

• Preferred IV: +SPD or +ATK / -RES

• Weapon: Divine Tyrfing

• Assist: Reposition

• Special: Blue Flame / Bonfire / Glimmer

• Passive A: Distant Counter

• Passive B: Quick Riposte

• Passive C: Spd Smoke / Hone Cavalry / Flexible

• Sacred Seal: Heavy Blade / Close Def / Atk Smoke / Attack +3 / Speed +3

Despite his low Resistance, Divine Tyrfing allows Sigurd to perform well as a mage tank and by utilizing Distant Counter, a mage duelist. When it comes to IVs, a boon in Speed allows Sigurd to better avoid follow-up attacks from his opponents. This is pivotal when facing off against mages, as Divine Tyrfing will only reduce damage taken from the initial hit. A boon in Attack also makes for a suitable option by boosting his raw damage.

Moving on to Specials, Blue Flame makes for a great choice thanks to its raw power as well as Sigurd's Enemy Phase playstyle favoring him being adjacent to his teammates. When used in tandem with the Heavy Blade Sacred Seal, Sigurd can potentially activate his Special every single round of combat. Bonfire can also be used for a somewhat weaker, albeit more consistent choice of Special thanks to Sigurd's high Defense. Glimmer makes for another solid option; although far less effective against physically bulky opponents, it shines in his matchups against ranged opponents due to them having lower physical bulk on average. It also has the benefit of not requiring Heavy Blade in order to activate every round of combat thanks to its shorter cooldown compared to Bonfire.

Quick Riposte is a phenomenal Enemy Phase skill and a core aspect of this set, as it guarantees his follow-up attack when initiated on. This is very important in securing the KO as well as activating his Special. As for C skills, Sigurd’s native Spd Smoke makes for a premium choice. By reducing the Speed of opponents around him after combat, Sigurd is able to function as a better overall tank by further boosting his ability to avoid getting doubled. A more team-synergetic option is Hone Cavalry, as it allows Sigurd to be a benefactor on a cavalry-centric team. Otherwise, the C slot can be replaced as needed to suit the team.

Last but not least, Sigurd has several options for his Sacred Seal slot. As stated previously, Heavy Blade pairs well with Bonfire by allowing Sigurd to potentially activate his Special every single round of combat. Close Def and Atk Smoke both also make for great choices in increasing Sigurd’s overall survivability. Close Def grants Sigurd a significant boost to his defensive stats when initiated on by a melee opponent as well as simultaneously boosting Bonfire’s damage while Atk Smoke pairs with Spd Smoke in further debuffing the damage output of enemies around him after combat. Outside of that, Attack +3 and Speed +3 both give Sigurd a solid boost to his key stats.

• Preferred IV: +SPD or +ATK or +DEF / -RES

• Weapon: Divine Tyrfing

• Assist: Reposition

• Special: Aether / Bonfire / Ignis

• Passive A: Close Def / Steady Stance / Fierce Stance

• Passive B: Quick Riposte / Guard / Crusader’s Ward

• Passive C: Spd Smoke / Hone Cavalry / Flexible

• Sacred Seal: Heavy Blade / Atk Smoke / Quick Riposte / Close Def

At the expense of being able to retaliate against ranged units, this set leans more towards Sigurd as a physical duelist. In addition to Attack and Speed, Defense also makes for a suitable choice of boon in order to strengthen Sigurd’s physical bulk. For his Special, Aether grants Sigurd the ability to be a self-sustaining tank through its healing aspect. However, this comes at the cost of an exceptionally long cooldown. It is recommended that one uses the Heavy Blade Sacred Seal in order to mitigate this. For a purely offensive approach, both Bonfire and Ignis pair well with Sigurd’s high Defense for consistently high damage output. 

Moving on to main skills, Sigurd’s native Close Def is a fantastic choice for this Enemy Phase-oriented playstyle, as it will reduce damage taken from all melee opponents when initiated on. Similarly, both Steady and Fierce Stance provide Sigurd with an increase to his physical resilience as well as his raw damage output respectively. Fierce Stance also has the additional benefit of making it easier for Sigurd to activate Heavy Blade.

Once again, Quick Riposte is a must have in order for Sigurd to consistently perform follow-up attacks in the Enemy Phase. Alternatively, one can move Quick Riposte to the Sacred Seal slot in favor of running Guard as his B skill. Guard will greatly reduce damage taken from opponents that rely on activating their Specials such as Ayra and Zelgius. This also applies to all armored units running Bold Fighter, as their follow-up attacks cannot be avoided if they initiate on Sigurd. If neither are available, Sigurd’s native Crusader’s Ward makes for a good budget option by increasing his overall survivability against ranged units.

Spd Smoke and Hone Cavalry remain great C slot choices both off and on a cavalry-centric team respectively. If not already being utilized in the B slot, the Quick Riposte Sacred Seal is imperative in allowing Sigurd to consistently perform follow-up attacks in the Enemy Phase. Otherwise, any of the previously listed Sacred Seals make for solid options.

• Preferred IV: +SPD or +ATK / -RES

• Weapon: Slaying Edge+ (+Spd)

• Assist: Reposition

• Special: Luna / Ignis

• Passive A: Swift Sparrow / Fury

• Passive B: Desperation / Chill Spd / Chill Def

• Passive C: Hone Cavalry / Flexible

• Sacred Seal: Heavy Blade / Quick Riposte / Attack +3 / Speed +3

Despite his personal weapon and statline leaning mostly towards the role of an Enemy Phase unit, Sigurd can perform exceedingly well at the role of offense as well. As such, Sigurd appreciates boons in key offensive stats such as Attack and Speed. For his weapon, Sigurd can trade his Divine Tyrfing for a Speed-refined Slaying Edge in order to bolster his offensive prowess. With this, Sigurd will be able to activate powerful Specials more frequently.

For the Special itself, Luna makes for a great choice by being both strong and consistent in its activation. When combined with the Heavy Blade Sacred Seal, Sigurd will be able to activate his Special every single round of combat even when utilizing Desperation. For a more powerful, albeit less consistent option, Ignis allows Sigurd to deal massive damage upon activation at the cost of a longer cooldown.

Swift Sparrow makes for a fantastic choice on almost any offense-oriented set, as it provides a strong boost to one’s Attack and Speed without the need to forego anything else. Fury makes for another solid option; not only does it improve Sigurd’s overall bulk at the cost of 2 Attack/Speed, the 6 damage recoil taken after combat makes it easier to get into the HP range of Desperation. While Desperation itself is the centerpiece of many offense-oriented builds, Sigurd’s impressive physical bulk opens the door to additional options. Both Chill Spd and Chill Def provide strong debuff support for both Sigurd and his teammates. However, these skills may not always land on their desired target.

Heavy Blade remains a top Sacred Seal when it comes to boosting Sigurd’s offensive prowess through its Special cooldown acceleration. Alternatively, Quick Riposte can be used in order to Sigurd longevity against units that are too fast for him to double. In particular, this allows Sigurd to defeat opponents such as Ayra, Lucina, and Soleil in the Enemy Phase. Otherwise, Attack +3 and Speed +3 remain good choices for providing Sigurd with a solid offensive stat boost.