GungHo Collab Review & Analysis – February 2020

I will try to reply to all comments by Monday evening as I have my second of 4 all-day hospital procedure early Tuesday morning and the recovery time was around 36 hours last time. Hopefully this one provides more benefits

Introduction

The GungHo Collab is making a return appearance this coming Monday and features several new Weapon Assists for existing cards along with a new 7-star monster.

As a whole, this event is reasonable overall but I feel that it is starting to age badly. This may be the case for many other events as they may not have cards that help the Transform meta but can still help round out weak points in most Monster Boxes.

Another drawback is that the 5-star cards were added back into the event which further dilutes the overall value of this event.

This article will outline the strengths and weaknesses of the GungHo cards to give players an idea of what each card has to offer and whether or not it is worth their Magic Stones.

Video commentary

—Video coming Monday—

Overview

GungHo Collab REM Pros & Cons – February 21, 2020
Pros
Cons
  • Will return on a regular basis
    • Cards should be routinely buffed etc.
  • Valuable cards in all rarities
  • Symmetrical ranking chart
  • Massive rolling pool
    • Harder to acquire one specific card
  • Collab feels “old”
  • Does not help Transform meta
    • May be better to save your Stones
  • Top-heavy event
    • Somewhat offset but huge rolling pool
  • Re-added in 5-stars
GungHo Collab Lineup
 7 Star base
 6 Star base
 5 Star base   
GungHo Collab Rankings – February 21, 2020
S
A     
B
C     
D

Order within each tier is random and not reflective of ranking

Icons show highest evolution available which may or may not be their strongest form

Regardless of card’s ranking, you should always keep it if it is your very first time acquiring them.

Limit Breaking

Limit Breaking is the process of leveling a card beyond level 99. This will unlock more weighted stats along with the potential to receive Super Awakenings. These additional awakenings can add significant power, but only function in solo mode.

Any card that can qualify for Limit Breaking will have their level displayed in blue and feeding a Super Snow Globe will push them beyond the level 99 cap.

You can read more about Super Awakenings HERE.

Monster Exchange

The Monster Exchange System has mostly eliminated the need to roll in most events as players can simply trade in for a card of their choice. This is often done during lackluster events to avoid spending Stones on poor bottom rarity cards or to snipe a specific card if luck is not on your side.

Weapon Assists

Weapon Assists are a special evolution for select cards that will be used exclusively as inherits. This form retains the same base stats as the original form, but will also transfer over all awakenings on the Weapon Assist card and this occurs if the Awoken Assist  is present.

My approach to Collab rolling

Rolling any Rare Egg Machine is a gamble and it becomes a matter of maximizing your rate of returns in an event.

This translates into rolling when the bottom rarity has high value as those will be the most common cards. Furthermore, I may utilize the Monster Exchange system to acquire the higher rarity cards if they will significantly advance my progress. As such, I tend to look most closely at the common cards to determine if it is worth rolling in.

This is just my own personal approach and everyone has different goals/motivations so take this section with a grain of salt.

7 Star base

Lilia (New) – S

Active: For 1 turn, increase combo count by 1; Lock all orbs (11 -> 6 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 1.5x HP for Wood Att.; 8x ATK when 4 or more combos up to 20x at 10 combos; Increase combo by 1 when matching 6 or more connected Wood orbs at once; Reduce damage taken by 25% when matching 6 or more connected Wood orbs [2.25/400/1/43.75%]

Awakenings:  Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist Time Extend Wood Row Wood Row Wood Row
Super Awakenings: 45 
Typing: Attacker / Healer
Available Killers: Dragon Killer Devil killer physical killer 37
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1008 (1260)
HP 3148 (3935) / ATK 2403 (3004) / RCV 638 (798)
Weapon Assist Awakenings: Wood Row Wood Row Wood Row Auto heal Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • Combo-oriented LS
    • Hard to fully activate on 6×5
    • Does not require 6 Wood for ATK
  • Damage Reduction with 6 Wood match
  • +1 Combo with 6 Wood match
  • Evolved form grants Auto Follow Up Damage
  • Lower personal damage
  • Hard to fully activate on 6×5

Lilia is the only new card to be released in the GungHo Collab and follows the trend of the other 7-star cards: a Base, Evolved, and Weapon Assist form.

In her Base form, Lilia has the capacity to hit large ATK multipliers when hitting up to 10 combos. While this is impressive on paper, it will not occur as often as players would probably like on a 6×5 board. As a saving grace, Lilia will grant an additional combo and Damage Reduction with 6 or more Wood orbs. This is not tied to her ATK multiplier and helps her mitigate the combo loss due to more connected orbs.

While all of this is powerful, the main drawback is her Evolved form having more value due to the ability to deal 1 Auto Follow Up Damage when matching 9 or more Wood orbs.

Lilia (Dark Form)

Active: Change Water, Jammer, Poison, and Mortal Poison orbs to Wood orbs; Lock Wood orbs (5 -> 5 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 2x HP for Wood Att.; 8x ATK when 4 or more combos up to 20x at 10 combos; 1 additional damage when matching 9 or more Wood orbs [4/400/1]

Awakenings: Skill Boost Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist Time Extend  45 45
Super Awakenings: 45 
Typing: Attacker / Healer
Available Killers: Dragon Killer Devil killer physical killer 37
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1008 (1260)
HP 3148 (3935) / ATK 2403 (3004) / RCV 638 (798)
Weapon Assist Awakenings: Wood Row Wood Row Wood Row Auto heal Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • Fast orb changer/low CD
  • Follow Up Damage with match 9-Wood
  • High scaling ATK multiplier
  • Can abuse 7×6 leader swaps
  • Strong personal damage
    • Can use Devil Killers Devil killer
  • Damage may be inconsistent on 6×5
    • No built in combo count
  • Auto Follow Up Damage requires 9 Wood orbs
    • Not always possible
    • Should bring 1 FUA card

Dark Lilia will most likely be the for most players pursue as it grants Wood their first truly viable Auto Follow Up leader when matching 9 or more Wood orbs.

For the most part, this should be done via VDP which will most likely be needed against most spawns but it would still be beneficial to have one FUA on the team for lesser floors that do not require the 9 Wood orbs as Lilia’s ATK multiplier is only tied to combos.

It is nice to have a combo-oriented leader but Lilia’s scaling can be a bit shaky. With no pairing she can hit an impressive 20x ATK at 10 combos but an average board is more likely to have 7-8 combos which drops her damage down to 14-16x or 196-256x ATK with dual leaders. This may or may not be a problem, but is something to consider when team building.

On the other hand, Lilia is well suited for 7×6 swapping due to her low cooldown and wonderful scaling multiplier that can benefit from the additional 12 orbs.

Weapon Assist Wood Row Wood Row Wood Row Auto heal Imp HP

Active: For 1 turn, increase combo count by 1; Lock all orbs (11 -> 6 turn CD)

Pros
Cons
  • Passive Damage for Wood teams
  • Cloud Resist
  • Active is okay
  • Shorter CD runs risk of accidentally charging up

Lilia’s Weapon Assist is able to provide three Wood Rows Wood Row along with a Cloud Resist . This overlap of offensive and defensive awakenings help form a stronger Weapon Assist but the opportunity cost is quite high here.

This is because Lilia will be able to function as one of the stronger Wood leaders and converting your only copy into a Weapon Assist may not be the best idea. Furthermore, the lower cooldown means it runs the risk of accidentally charging up at inopportune times.


Omega – A

Active: Create 1 Fire orbs over non Light orbs (6 -> 1 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 2x all stats for Fire Att.; 5x ATK on the turn a skill is used; 2x ATK and reduce damage taken by 25% when matching 3+ Fire combos [4/400/4/43.75%]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Time Extend Time Extend Skill Lock Resist 45 45 God Killer Devil killer
Super Awakenings  
Typing: Devil / Attacker
Available Killers: God Killer Devil killer physical killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1001 (1251)
HP 3495 (4369) / ATK 3250 (4062) / RCV 5 (6)
Weapon Assist: Fire Row Fire Row Fire Row Time Extend Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • Massive ATK value
    • Synergy with offensive awakenings
  • 1 turn cooldown
    • Can act as Kuroyuri base
  • Wonderful LS multipliers
  • Too orb hungry to be practical as leader
  • Abysmal RCV
  • Dark form is universally stronger

Base Omega comes with a massive base ATK along with offensive awakenings. This enables him to function as a potent damage card who can gain VDP via Super Awakenings. Furthermore, his 1 turn base cooldown can be greatly abused to inherit anything you desire or as a Kuroyuri base.

While he does have amazing Leader Skill multipliers on paper, hitting 3+ Fire combos is too orb hungry to be truly practical as it is rare to have 9 Fire orbs present.

While it is always desirable to have a strong pool of 1-cooldown cards to use, Omega will find more value in their Dark form.

Dark Omega

Active: Reduce HP by 50%; Change top row to Fire orbs and change bottom row to Dark orbs (9 -> 9 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 6x ATK for Fire Att.; 2x HP for Dark Att.; 3x ATK and reduce damage taken by 25% when below 50% HP [4/324/1/43.75%]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist
Super Awakenings  
Typing: Devil / Attacker
Available Killers: God Killer Devil killer physical killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1009 (1261)
HP 4150 (5188) / ATK 2540 (3175) / RCV 260 (325)
Weapon Assist: Fire Row Fire Row Fire Row Time Extend Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • Massive potential when under 50% HP
    • No combo/colour requirement
    • Synergy with active skill
    • Three <50%
  • Active generates 2 Rows
  • Exceptionally vulnerable when just above 50% HP
  • Juggling HP may be troublesome for some players
    • Corrected via Zaerog Core

Dark Omega is a powerful <50% HP card who is able to unleash a massive 324x ATK when below half health. This has no combo or colour requirement and the only real challenge is getting to the correct HP and staying there. With that being said, many players have now gained access to Zaerog Core who provides a -50% HP cut and +3 seconds of Orb movement time on a 1-turn cooldown. While he does not fully benefit from the full Leader Skill, being able to adjust your HP at whim is invaluable.

While being under 50% HP may sound dangerous, his 43.75% Damage Reduction takes effect with no orb requirement so Dark Omega can be deceivingly tanky. Furthermore, many players have now begun to only use Dark Omega in content where everything can be planned out and is one of the stronger Farming options.

Being able to deal 324x ATK with no matching requirement means he will be able to easily dance through Void + Resolve spawns as both patterns can be easily formed without worry. This also means he can efficiently stack <50% awakenings to deal massive amounts of damage in content such as TA2 or A5.

Weapon Assist: Fire Row Fire Row Fire Row Time Extend Imp HP

Active: Create 1 Fire orbs over non Light orbs (6 -> 1 turn CD)

Pros
Cons
  • Passive damage Fire Row
  • Tape Resist
  • 6 -> 1 turn CD is short
    • Can accidentally charge up
    • Weak end result

Dark Omega’s Weapon Assist is able to provide both Tape Resist and three Fire Rows Fire Row and is somewhat similar to Lilia’s. While this set of awakenings is valuable, the main problem is the 6 -> 1 turn cooldown. This will cause the inherit to charge up at inopportune times on a regular basis and the resulting active only generates a single Fire orb.


Gamayla – S

Active: Delay enemies for 2 turns; Change Wood, Jammer, Poison, Mortal Poison orbs to Water orbs (16 -> 11 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 2x HP for Dragon type; 4x ATK when matching 5 Water orbs in L shape; 4x ATK and increase combo by 1 when matching 3 or more colors [4/256/1]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist 45 45
Super Awakenings TPA
Typing: Dragon / Attacker
Available Killers: Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1005 (1256)
HP 3450 (4312) / ATK 2450 (3062) / RCV 512 (640)
Weapon Assist: Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • Natural Tape Resist
  • Natural L awakening
  • Modest array of offensive awakenings
  • Dark form is stronger
  • Lackluster active
  • LS is awkward

Base Gamayla comes with a reasonable kit overall but may not provide enough of anything to truly justify using. This is further compounded by the fact that her evolved form has tremendous potential on 7×6 teams and can function as a potent VDP solution  .

With that being said, if you lack teams that work in this manner, it will be more challenging to take full advantage of her evolved form and the utility offered here may be tempting. Having natural L and Tape Resist  can help overcome various mechanics, and she may find usage on various Water teams. Furthermore, this evolution can be changed any time in the future should one be able to now take advantage of her Evolved form.

Dark Gamayla

Active: Unlock all orbs; Change all orbs to Water, Light, and Dark orbs; For 1 turn, increase combo count by 2 (14 -> 14 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 3x ATK for Dragon type; Reduce damage taken by 50% when 7 or more combos; 4x ATK and increase combo by 1 when matching Water, Light, Dark at once [1/144/1/75%]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist TPA TPA 45
Super Awakenings TPA
Typing: Dragon / Attacker
Available Killers: Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer 
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1001 (1251)
HP 5260 (6575) / ATK 2320 (2900) / RCV 35 (44)
Weapon Assist: Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • Incredible damage with 10 combos
  • Powerful VDP solution
  • Functions well on 7×6 teams
  • Natural Cloud
  • Challenging to hit 10 combos and VDP
    • Requires 7×6 or Bonus combo leaders
      • Eg. Beach Veroah

Dark Gamayla still retains her ability to function as a powerful sub on mono Water teams when they are able to tap into 10 or more combos. This is because she is built like Bradamante in the sense that she has VDP , 10 and 7 45 Combo awakenings which translates into 25x personal damage.

This can result in explosive damage but having 9 Water orbs and 10 combos is impossible on a 6×5 board without heavy skyfalls or bonus combos. As such, she only truly shines on 7×6 teams or on something like Beach Veroah who adds +6 combos with dual leaders when matching a VDP.

Dark Gamayla could have potentially stopped there as her damage output is quite spectacular but she also has access to a natural Cloud Resist This can greatly alleviate team building requirements as Cloud Resist has become somewhat mandatory in end game content.

While Gamayla is a powerful option, one thing to keep in mind is that she must hit 10 combos to truly shine.

Weapon Assist: Imp HP

Active: Delay enemies for 2 turns; Change Wood, Jammer, Poison, Mortal Poison orbs to Water orbs (16 -> 11 turn CD)

Pros
Cons
  • Tape Resist
  • Team HP & RCV
  • Longer CD
    • Less likely to accidentally charge up
  • Delay could be used to help Transform
  • ?

Gamayla’s Weapon Assist is able to provide Tape Resist along with Team HP and RCV . This combination of added bulk with protection against a sometimes lethal mechanic can be invaluable.

Furthermore, the Delay aspect may find merits on some Transforming teams. This is because if a card has a low enough cooldown, they could use the Delay turn 1 to grant two turns of stalling.


Aoi Shikigami – B

Active: For 1 turn, reduce enemies’ defense by 100%; Recover all HP; Change Light orbs to Dark orbs (16 -> 11 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 2x HP & ATK for Dark Att.; Increase orb movement time by 3 seconds; 3.5x ATK for each cross of 5 Fire, Dark orbs [4/7354.78/1]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost Skill Boost Time Extend Machine Killer Devil killer
Super Awakenings 45
Typing: Devil / Balance
Available Killers: God Killer Dragon Killer Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer Balance killer 37
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1003 (1254)
HP 4120 (5150) / ATK 2130 (2662) / RCV 495 (619)
Weapon Assist:  Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • Massive damage potential with Colour Crosses
  • 4 Skill Boosts Skill Boost
  • Devil Typing
  • Potential Yugi sub
  • Useful active in Training Arena
  • Colour Crosses are awkward
    • Inability to VDP
    • Naturally low combo count
  • Low value active outside of high DEF dungeons (eg. TA2)

Aoi Shikigami is able to provide 4 Skill Boosts Skill Boost while also having Devil typing which means he can function as a potential Yugi sub. For the most part, I am not terribly impressed with his potential for Arena-style content, but his 100% DEF Break means he can be greatly abused in Training Arena.

This is because Training Arena features spawns with gargantuan HP pools and massive levels of Defense with no other mechanics. Thus, being able to ignore the Defense aspect can be invaluable.

As a leader, Aoi Shikigami has the potential for large multipliers but forming Fire or Dark crosses is awkward and prevents the chance to VDP .


Dark Aoi Shikigami

Active: Reduce HP to 1; For 1 turn, no skyfall; Change far left column and far right column to Dark orbs (6 -> 6 turn CD)

Leader Skill: [No Skyfall]; 4x ATK and reduce damage taken by 50% when 7 or more combos; 4x ATK when matching 2 Dark combos, up to 5x at 3 Dark combos [1/400/1/75%]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist Time Extend God Killer Dragon Killer
Super Awakenings 45
Typing: Devil / Balance
Available Killers: God Killer Dragon Killer Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer Balance killer 37
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1002 (1252)
HP 5360 (6700) / ATK 2130 (2662) / RCV 120 (150)
Weapon Assist:  Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • Active generates 10 Dark orbs on 6 turn CD
  • HP set to 1
  • Valuable for farming with <50% awakenings
  • Powerful Leader Skill multipliers
  • LS has no skyfalls
  • Orb hungry
  • HP being set to 1 can be dangerous

Dark Aoi Shikigami has impressive Leader Skill multipliers as he is able to access 75% Damage Reduction quite easily. A given board will almost always have at least 7 combos and matching this will yield 75% Damage Reduction. This is equivalent to 4x HP and can enable him to survive massive amounts of punishment.

Furthermore, the 400x ATK is impressive but is Dark orb hungry. With 2 Dark combos, he is able to achieve 256x ATK and jumps to 400x with 3 Dark combos. While this is not unreasonable, it can have inconsistency issues along with the No Skyfall clause hurting more than it helps.

No Skyfall Leader Skills used to be for Damage Control which is somewhat a thing of the past as it is not a feasible strategy to use now. As a result, it is just hindering your overall damage potential and you are stuck with whatever board you are given.

On the other hand, his active skill generates an impressive 10 Dark orbs on an even more impressive 6 turn cooldown. This will have great potential for farming teams as his active will come back up relatively quick.


Weapon Assist:  Imp HP

Active: For 1 turn, reduce enemies’ defense by 100%; Recover all HP; Change Light orbs to Dark orbs (16 -> 11 turn CD)

Pros
Cons
  • Full Bind Immunity
  • >80%
    • 1.5x personal damage
  • Must remain above 80% HP to be effective

Aoi Shikigami’s Weapon Assist is able to provide Full Bind Immunity along with >80% While most things are bind immune, the additional 1.5x personal damage can be meaningful and can help damage sticks to perform better.

For example, Bakura has the capacity to deal massive amounts of damage but is also vulnerable to Binds. As such, Aoi Shikigami’s Weapon Assist can correct this problem. With that being said, it may not be the best choice overall and the window for success is quite low due to >80%.


Luluna – B

Active: For 1 turn, increase combo count by 3; Change top row to Wood orbs; For 1 turn, increase orb move time by 1 seconds (20 -> 15 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 1.5x all stats for Wood Att.; Increase orb movement time by 2 seconds; 9x ATK and increase combo by 1 when matching 6 or more connected Wood orbs at once [2.25/182.25/2.25]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost Skill Boost Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist Time Extend
Super Awakenings 45
Typing: Attacker / Healer
Available Killers: Dragon Killer Devil killer physical killer 37
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1105 (1381)
HP 4350 (5438) / ATK 2200 (2750) / RCV 690 (862)
Weapon Assist: Jammer Resist Poison resist Poison resist Wood Row Wood Row Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • Strong leadership potential
    • Can efficiently use Zela
  • Viable Wood sub
    • VDP  + SFUA
  • Three Skill Boosts Skill Boost
  • Active generates 6 Wood orbs, Bonus Movement Time, +3 combos
  • Interesting way to add combos via LS & active
    • Can swipe row for +5 combos
  • No Damage Reduction
  • Lower ATK multipliers

Base Luluna is an interesting card as she is able to provide sizable amounts of damage when forming VDP and SFUA This combination can solve Voids and Resolve but hinges on using a Zela -style board.

As a leader, they feature a modest leader skill that is on the lower end for multipliers. Fortunately, it has a built in combo mechanic and when used in conjunction with her active, players can do some interesting things. If using dual Lululna and her active, that premade Wood row will grant +5 combos plus the regular one. This means a single row swipe is 6 combos and finding more should not be difficult. This has applications when farming various content that has lower combo shields as it can be swiped away with an active. When playing through easier content, it is often preferred to have it be as mindless/easy/fast as possible.

Dark Luluna

Active: Recover all HP; Remove all awoken skill binds; For 1 turn, 3x ATK for Wood Att.; For 1 turn, increase orb move time by 1 seconds (12 -> 12 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 2x HP & ATK for Wood Att.; 9x ATK when matching 4 or more colors; Reduce awoken skill binds by 5 turns when recovering more than 20000 HP from Heal orbs [4/324/1]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist 45 Devil killer Dragon Killer 37 physical killer
Super Awakenings 45
Typing: Attacker / Healer
Available Killers: Dragon Killer Devil killer physical killer 37
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1106 (1382)
HP 3840 (4800) / ATK 2360 (2950) / RCV 750 (938)
Weapon Assist: Jammer Resist Poison resist Poison resist Wood Row Wood Row Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • Full Awoken Bind clear
  • 3x Wood damage
  • 4 Killers
  • Truly interesting Leader Skill
  • Rainbow clause can be inconsistent
    • Dilutes damage
  • Weaker sub compared to base form
  • Active is redundant with 2 leaders and LS

Dark Luluna has a truly bizarre leader skill as she is able to provide 5 turns of Awoken Skill Bind when healing over 20,000 from Heart orbs. This is pretty cool but somewhat impractical due to no RCV multiplier and being unable to tap into Enhanced Heal Orbs +heart when Awoken bound along with her active solving this problem.

As a result, Dark Luluna teams will have far more Awoken Bind clearing than is really needed with dual leaders. With that being said, her leadership potential is modest, but weaker compared to her Base form as she requires Rainbow activation which dilutes her damage and board changer options.

Furthermore, her sub potential is significantly weaker as her Base form can function as one of the stronger VDP options due to the SFUA .

Weapon Assist: Jammer Resist Poison resist Poison resist Wood Row Wood Row Imp HP
Active: For 1 turn, increase combo count by 3; Change top row to Wood orbs; For 1 turn, increase orb move time by 1 seconds (20 -> 15 turn CD)

Pros
Cons
  • Mixes Resists with Passive Damage
  • Longer base CD
    • Harder to accidentally charge up
    • Value for mono Wood teams
  • Primarily for mono Wood

Luluna’s Weapon Assist is able to provide 20% Jammer Resist Jammer Resist along with 40% Poison Poison resist and two Wood Rows Wood Row. This is a nice healthy mixture of utility and offensive capabilities and the longer cooldown tends to be advantageous in most situations.

With this in mind, pursuing this Weapon Assist is a viable way to improve your mono Wood team’s potential and can be made if you have no interest in the bonus combo aspect of her Base form.


Knight Kisaragi – A

Active: Deal 100000 fixed damage to an enemy; Change all orbs to Wood, and Light orbs (18 -> 13 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 1.3x Egg Drop rate; 10x ATK when 9 or more combos [1/100/1]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost Skill Boost Time Extend Time Extend
Super Awakenings 45
Typing: Balance
Available Killers: God Killer Dragon Killer Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer Balance killer 37
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1001 (1251)
HP 3850 (4812) / ATK 2650 (3312) / RCV 260 (325)
Weapon Assist: Skill Boost Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • 1.3x Egg Drop rate
    • Alternative to Veroah
  • Less practical compared to Veroah
    • Requires 9c for 10x

Base Knight Kisaragi provides an alternative to Veroah for bonus Egg Drop rates but has more difficulty in hitting his ATK multiplier. Veroah only requires 5 combos for 5x damage whereas Knight Kisaragi requires 9 for 10x. 9 combos is not practical for 6×5 boards and if I had the choice, I would use Veroah in nearly every situation.

With that being said, the best place to use these types of Leader Skils is when solo farming Event dungeons for tickets or Ganesha’s Treasure Trove. These dungeons do not have guaranteed drops on each floor and increasing your chance by 1.3 will save you time/stamina.

Dark Knight Kisaragi

Active: For 99 turns, Light orbs are more likely to appear by 7%; Change top row to Light orbs (12 -> 12 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 4x ATK when 4 or more combos up to 10x at 10 combos; 2x ATK and reduce damage taken by 50% when matching 2+ Light combos [1/400/1/75%]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist 45 45
Super Awakenings 45
Typing: Balance
Available Killers: God Killer Dragon Killer Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer Balance killer 37
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1007 (1259)
HP 5030 (6288) / ATK 2120 (2650) / RCV 240 (300)
Weapon Assist: Skill Boost Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • 99 turn Light skyfall buff
  • Powerful Light sub
  • Strong personal damage
  • Team RCV
  • Light alternative to Hiei
  • 1 Skill Boost Skill Boost
  • Provides no Resists

Dark Knight Kisaragi is still a powerful card within the GungHo Collab as he comes with the highly prized 99 turn Skyfall buffs for Light while also having wonderful awakenings. In fact, he trades Time Extend Time Extend for Team RCV when compared to Hiei and will function in a similar fashion on Light teams.

Not only is his active powerful, but Knight’s awakenings gear him well towards offensive prowess as he can gain triple 7 Combo 45 and VDP Generally speaking, this type of distribution tends to be the best for 6×5 teams as it will provide 8x personal damage on a regular basis along with the ability to counter Void spawns.

While Knight is still a powerful option, one potential drawback is no inclusion of any kind of Resist or supplemental damage. His offensive awakenings are strong, but we are starting to see cards with this distribution who also have a relevant Killer or Resist of some sort (eg. Gourry ). While Knight’s active does help mitigate this (it is quite valuable), it may be a sign of the times for future offensive solutions bringing more to the table.

Weapon Assist: Skill Boost Imp HP
Active: Deal 100000 fixed damage to an enemy; Change all orbs to Wood, and Light orbs (18 -> 13 turn CD)

Pros
Cons
  • Bicolour board changer
  • Skill Boost Skill Boost
  • Combo Orb is usually underutilized
  • Not the 99 turn Light Skyfall active
  • Primarily for Transform teams
    • Less collateral benefits

Knight’s Weapon Assist shares the same active skill as his Base form which creates a bicolour board of Light and Wood orbs along with 100,000 True Damage.

The True Damage aspect is largely negligible and the main value is through the single Skill Boost Skill BoostThis can help Transforming teams but my main gripe is that the additional benefit of a Combo Orb is quite lackluster.

Combo Orb is in an awkward spot due to the fact that it requires 10-12 orbs which is difficult to achieve along with not providing benefit this turn unless the Combo Orb Skyfalls into place.


Cian, the Assault of Lost Gear – C

Active: For 4 turns, recover 30% of max HP; Change all orbs to Wood, Light, and Dark orbs (18 -> 13 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 2x HP for Wood Att.; 4x ATK when matching 5 Wood orbs in L shape; 4x ATK when matching 6 or more connected orbs; 50000 additional damage when matching 6 or more orbs [4/256/1]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune  Skill Lock Resist
Super Awakenings:  
Typing: Physical / Attacker
Available Killers: Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1000 (1250)
HP 5120 (6400) / ATK 2450 (2938) / RCV 56 (70)

Pros
Cons
  • 50,000 Follow Up Damage
    • Always kills Resolve spawns
  • Tape or Cloud Resist SA
  • Awkward Leader Skill
    • Naturally low combo count
    • Outclassed by many other Wood leads
    • Difficult to VDP  + L
  • Mediocre active

Cian is another returning card who did not receive new evolutions and leaves her with this awkward form.

During her initial debut, there were fewer Auto Follow Up Damage leaders which may have given her some value, but at this point in time, we have many more options who are both stronger and easier to use.

Cian must match a Wood L which means a VDP significantly harder to do. While her Auto Follow Up Damage triggers from any 6 or more match, it is clunky and will negatively impact your combo count when an L is required.

Furthermore, her active skill still feels outdatedas it cannot be used to form a healing loop like Kuroyuri .


White Feathered Knight, Bradamante – S

Active: Change Water, Jammer, Bomb orbs to Light orbs; Lock all orbs (10 -> 5 turn CD)

Leader Skill: [Board becomes 7×6]; 4x ATK when matching 2 Light combos, up to 5x at 3 Light combos; 2x ATK and reduce damage taken by 25% when 7 or more combos [1/100/1/43.75%]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist Time Extend Time Extend
Super Awakenings:   45
Typing: Physical / Attacker
Available Killers: Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1008 (1260)
HP 5720 (7150) / ATK 2160 (2700) / RCV 12 (15)

Pros
Cons
  • 5 turn base cooldown
    • Orb generation + Lock
  • Massive damage potential on 7×6
    • VDP SA
  • Reliant on 7×6
    • Largely irrelevant due to LS or on Tifa
  • Essentially no RCV

Bradamante still retains her position as one of the strongest damage solutions for mono Light teams due to her 7 Combo 45, 10 Combos , and VDP . Together, these allow her to deal massive amounts of damage  but must be used on 7×6 boards to truly shine.

Thankfully, Tifa has still remained a dominant force in today’s meta and the larger board helps ensure Bradamante activates every turn.

Moving beyond her impressive damage potential, Bradamante also possesses a fast charging and powerful orb changer. Converting Water and Jammers to Light on a 5-turn cooldown is quite valuable but being able to lock the board after counters the Spinner mechanic.

This is because Spinners cannot change an orb that has been locked and ensures players are able to match without fear during this time. Furthermore, Spinners are starting to become a more common occurrence and being able to counter them every 5 turns with an orb changer is invaluable.

For myself, I inherit Brachydios’s Weapon Assist on Bradamante for the 4 Enhanced Light Orbs +light orb and >80% along with on-colour stat transfers. This enables her to deal even more damage and can help with team building as fewer cards need to be dedicated to damage.


GH Reeche – C

Active: Removes lock status on orbs. Change all orbs to Fire, Water & Wood & Light & Dark & Heart orbs. Ignores enemy damage and attribute damage absorb effects for 1 turn ( does not include combo shield and damage void ). (35 -> 30 turn CD)

Leader Skill: All attribute cards ATK x4, 25% all damage reduction when reaching 7 combos. All attribute cards ATK x4 when attacking with 4 of following orb types: Fire, Water, Wood, Light & Dark. Increases time limit of orb movement by 2 seconds. [1/256/1/43.75%]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune   Time Extend Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist 45 45
Super Awakenings  Skill Boost
Typing: Devil / Balance
Available Killers: God Killer Dragon Killer Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer Balance killer 37
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1099 (1264)
HP 4395 (5054) / ATK 2450 (2818) / RCV 510 (586)

Pros
Cons
  • Colour swapped Reeche 
    • Identical except no sub attribute
  • Powerful-multi purpose active
    • Negate Damage Absorb (Fujin )
    • Negate Attribute Absorb
    • Unlock orbs
    • 6-elemental board change
    • Can be charged in 10 turns ()
  • Provides 16x ATK / 25% Damage Reduction / +2s orb movement
  • Flexible leader pairings
  • Rainbow clause can be inconsistent
    • Dilutes damage
  • Active has 30 turn CD
    • Offset by Skill Charge 
    • Difficult to inherit
  • Rarely need all 4 components at once
  • Lower value if owning REM Reeche
    • REM Reeche is seldom used
  • Does not have Reeche’s Weapon Assist

GH Reeche is identical to her REM-cousin  in terms of awakenings, Active and Leader Skill; however, she lacks a sub attribute which translates into a -10% personal damage. In the grand scheme of things, this should not be an issue and being Dark tends to be more advantageous due to no natural colour weakness.

The main appeal of either Reeche is their multi component active skill which can be quickly charged up due to two Skill Charges  which can be invaluable in dungeons with multiple Absorption spawns.

Unfortunately, GungHo Reeche lacks the useful Weapon Assist her REM-cousin enjoys. Furthermore, Reeche is seldom chosen as a leader due to the inconsistencies faced with Rainbow activation along with lower Effective HP compared to current day options. Furthermore, either Reeche is rarely used nowadays in most capacities as there are stronger options available along with Rainbow teams being more restrictive overall due to the large hurdle of VDP.


Noir – A

Active: Randomly spawn 4 Dark orbs from non Dark orbs. Delay 1 turn to all enemies. Enhance all Dark orbs (13 -> 8 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 2x HP for Dark Att.; 2x ATK when 6 or more combos; 4x ATK when matching 2 Dark combos, up to 6x at 3 Dark combos [4/144/1]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Time Extend Time Extend Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist 45 45 
Super Awakenings45  
Typing: Balance
Available Killers: God Killer Dragon Killer Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer Balance killer 37
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1005 (1257)
HP 4850 (6062) / ATK 1756 (2195) / RCV 509 (636)

Pros
Cons
  • Balance typing
    • Can use any Killer latent
    • Helps with VDP
  • Strong personal damage
    • Strong VDP potential
  • Active provides damage boost via Enhanced orbs
  • LS is orb hungry
    • Lacks an RCV multiplier
  • Competes with many other high value Dark cards

Noir still retains her ability to function as a potent Damage solution for mono Dark teams. This is because she comes with triple 7 Combo 45, VDP , and Balance typing which means she can use any Killer latent. Furthermore, her active not only produces Dark orbs, but can also act as a pseudo burst due to Dark being Enhanced after.

Noir may not be flashy, but she is strong at what she does and I use her on my Phenom + Ina team as she does her job well and I do not have issues covering all the required colours.


Ralg – B

Active: Inflict Fire nuke damage equal to team Fire & Dark ATK x20 to all enemies. Removes lock status on orbs. Change top-most row into Fire orbs (7 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 3x ATK and reduce damage taken by 25% when matching 6 or more connected Fire orbs; 5x ATK on the turn a skill is used; Increase orb movement time by 2 seconds [1/225/1/43.75%]

Awakenings:  Skill Lock Resist Fire Row Fire Row Fire Row Fire Row Fire Row Fire Row
Super Awakenings:  Fire Row 
Typing: Balance / Dragon
Available Killers: God Killer Dragon Killer Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer Balance killer 37
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1056 (1320)
HP 5105 (6381) / ATK 2061 (2576) / RCV 400 (500)

Pros
Cons
  • 7 turn cooldown
  • Multi component active
    • Button damage potential
    • Fire row
    • Orb unlock
  • Strong Fire farming potential
    • Easy 225x ATK / 43.75% damage reduction
  • Relevance on Omega teams
  • Primarily a farming leader/sub
  • 20x ATK may be too low for a button
  • Niche usage overall

Ralg is an older card and their age is showing due to a lack of relevant buffs along with falling behind compared to other options. With that being said, the Dark Omega gives Ralg some value as both kits have strong synergy.

Ralg’s active is able to generate a row of Fire on a fast 7 turn cooldown while also providing Orb Unlock and reasonable Button damage due to the inclusion of Fire & Dark. With that being said, the row itself can be used to delete spawns as his 6 natural Fire rows Fire Rowadd considerable damage.

As such, Dark Omega is able to deal magical amounts of damage with a single swipe and possibly button through weaker spawns at the same time. This two-in-one active can help ease team building/active skill requirements but the true value lies in his passive damage potential through Fire rows.

Taking this into consideration, Ralg is still a niche/situational card.


Orage – C

Active: Deals damage equal to 5% of enemies’ max HP. Change middle row into Water orbs. Change 3rd column from the right into Water orbs (17 -> 10 turn CD)

Leader Skill: [No Skyfall]; 6x ATK for Water Att.; 1.5x ATK when matching 2+ Water combos; 2x ATK when matching 6 or more connected Water orbs [1/324/1]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost Skill Boost Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist   
Super Awakenings Skill Boost 
Typing: Attacker / Machine
Available Killers: Devil killer Balance killer God Killer physical killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1006 (1157)
HP 4638 (5334) / ATK 2602 (2992) / RCV 67 (77)

Pros
Cons
  • Natural Cloud Resist 
  • Active generates 10 Water orbs
    • Easy to form into many combos after full mono board change
  • 3 Skill Boosts Skill Boost
    • 4 with Super Awakening
  • LS is orb hungry for full activation
    • Requires 2 Water Combos + 6 connected Water
    • Less ideal for swipe farming
    • No defensive multiplier
  • Many double row makers exist
    • Lowers value of active
  • Not enough SB for Transform meta

Orage is like Orange without the N which is something I have said for several years now. Sadly, Orage has declined in value over time as her previous niche of Skill Boost Skill Boost + special orb generator is less unique.

4 Skill Boosts is on the higher end for the average card, but when it comes to Transforming, it is on the lower end as there is no Effective Skill Boost component. Furthermore, the special cross of Water orbs was originally more valuable due to the fact that we had no/few other options. Presently, we have had access to two Farmable double row makers.

I had once experimented with using Orage as a Ranking Dungeon solution due to four Skill Boosts and Cloud Resist but her longer cooldown hindered her ability to take a more useful inherit.


Karin Shindou – A

Active: Water & Light attribute ATK x3 for 1 turn. Change Heart, Jammer, Poison & Mortal Poison orbs to Light orbs (20 -> 14 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 4x ATK when 4 or more combos up to 8x at 8 combos; 2x ATK and reduce damage taken by 25% when matching 4 or more colors [1/256/1/43.75%]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist Time Extend Time Extend 45 45 
Super Awakenings: 45  Skill Boost
Typing: Attacker / Healer
Available Killers: Devil killer 37 Dragon Killer physical killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1007 (1259)
HP 3048 (3810) / ATK 2645 (3306) / RCV 521 (651)
Weapon Assist Awakenings: Skill Boost physical killer Imp ATK Imp ATK

Pros
Cons
  • 256x ATK / 43.75% damage reduction
  • Flexible team building
  • Synergistic awakenings
  • Weapon Assist form grants Skill Boost Skill Boost
  • Dark Karin should be made almost every time
  • Rainbow reliant
    • Damage reduction tied to rainbow
  • Lower merit as a sub due to Skill Charge  and long cooldown
  • 3,048 base HP (3,505 with Limit Break)

Base Karin was at one point a modest leader, but has quickly been replaced by stronger options as Rainbow teams already have quite a few hurdles to overcome along with low amounts of Effective Health. This becomes problematic as her Damage Reduction only triggers with Rainbow activation and would otherwise be left with only 1x HP.

Perhaps she could function as a Rainbow sub due to Skill Charge but at the same time, her base skill is quite long. Regardless, her Dark form is significantly stronger in almost every metric and should be pursued instead.

Dark Karin

Active: For 3 turns, 2x ATK for Light, Dark Att.; For 3 turns, reduce damage taken by 50% (13 -> 13 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 4x ATK and 1.5x HP for Light Att.; Increase orb movement time by 2 seconds; 4x ATK and 2x RCV when matching 5 or more connected orbs [2.25/256/4]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist Skill Boost Skill Boost 45 Dragon Killer Devil killer
Super Awakenings: 45  Skill Boost
Typing: Attacker / Healer
Available Killers: Devil killer 37 Dragon Killer physical killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1007 (1259)
HP 3048 (3810) / ATK 2645 (3306) / RCV 521 (651)
Weapon Assist Awakenings: Skill Boost physical killer Imp ATK Imp ATK

Pros
Cons
  • Strong Leader
    • Easy to activate
    • Numerous leader pairings
  • Flexible team building
  • Higher personal damage against numerous end game spawns
  • 3 Skill Boosts Skill Boost
    • Actives will be ready in time
  • No Damage Reduction in LS
    • Reliant on active
    • Vulnerable to Gravity + hit
  • Lower effective HP
  • Stronger leaders exist

Karin’s Dark form is still a powerful leader option thanks to the deep sub poo Light enjoys along with access to numerous and favourable leader pairings. For example, Dark Karin can pair with Tifa for a 7×6 board or Haohmaru for Auto Follow Up Damage. Furthermore, both pairings have essentially the same activation requirement as Dark Karin.

These pairings along with the ability to trigger her full multiplier with any match 5 can facilitate faster clears and if opting for double Dark Karin, the ability to trigger from non-Light matches. One other valuable aspect to Dark Karin is her high personal damage against numerous later spawns in the higher levels of Arena where Dragons, and especially Devils are commonly seen.

While Dark Karin is still able to clear plenty of content, she is being edged out by stronger options. This is because her Effective HP is on the lower end (Tifa has a similar bulk but more RCV and a 7×6 board) which can make it harder to survive preemptives or dangerous floors where some stalling is required. While her 50% Damage Reduction active can solve this problem, it is always better to be able to solve issues without an active being used.

One other thing that may be appealing for Dark Karin is her triple Skill Boost and potential to function as a future Faska pairing or sub. As a pairing, Dark Karin grants additional orb movement time for the 7×6 board along with excessive amounts of RCV.

Weapon Assist: Skill Boost physical killer Imp ATK Imp ATK
Active: Water & Light attribute ATK x3 for 1 turn. Change Heart, Jammer, Poison & Mortal Poison orbs to Light orbs (20 -> 14 turn CD)

Pros
Cons
  • Skill Boost Skill Boost
  • Physical Killer physical killer
  • Longer cooldown
    • Harder to accidentally charge up
    • Reasonable active if it does
  • Physical Killer is relatively niche

Karin’s Weapon Assist grants the base card an additional Skill Boost Skill Boost which has gained newfound value through Transforming cards. This is because these monsters require numerous Skill Boosts in order to trigger their active skill which will change them into a significantly stronger card.

As such, we are now starting to look for desirable collateral benefits for our Skill Boost cards. In the case of Dark Karin’s Weapon Assist, the inclusion of a Physical Killer physical killer is quite powerful across numerous game modes.

While Physical Killer is relatively niche, there are several tanky floors in Colo2 that can be made easier with this Weapon and many Ranking Dungeons/Farming builds would greatly enjoy having additional damage and a Skill Boost.


Zeta – A

Active: For 1 turn, increase combo count by 2; Change Light, Jammer, Poison, and Mortal Poison orbs to Water orbs (16 -> 10 turn CD)

Leader Skill: All attribute cards ATK x3.5, 25% all damage reduction when reaching 7 combos. All attribute cards ATK x4, 25% all damage reduction when attacking with 6+ Water orbs at the same time

Awakenings:   Time Extend Skill Lock Resist 45 Water Row Water Row Water Row Water Row
Super Awakenings:  45  
Typing: Attacker / Dragon
Available Killers: Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1057 (1322)
HP 4860 (6075) / ATK 2683 (3354) / RCV 106 (132)
Weapon Assist Awakenings: Blind Resist Blind Resist Blind Resist Water Row Water Row Healer Killer Imp ATK

Pros
Cons
  • Multi component LS
    • Reliable damage reduction
    • Damage control
    • Massive damage reduction shield
      • High effective health
  • Synergistic active skill
  • Useful Super Awakenings
  • Has Weapon Assist evo
  • Make his Dark form
  • Combos and Rows don’t mix well
  • Make his dark form

Base Zeta is an interesting leader in that he has two distinct components to his Leader Skill with at least one being available on virtually every given board. This is great because he has 25% damage reduction applies to each component and stacks if both are met.

This is important because it enables Zeta to enjoy 68.4% damage reduction which makes his effective HP high enough to tank essentially any hit in the game.

Sadly, Zeta is a row/Combo hybrid leader with both components being challenging to activate at the same time. Even assuming one has 6 water orbs, having to match a row and hit 7 Combos is not always possible. As such, your damage will heavily suffer as Zeta will be hitting like a wet noodle without both components.

As a sub or inherit, Zeta’s active skill reasonable as far as +2 Combo count actives go as it does not heavily disrupt the board, but is not as special considering many other options exist.

Regardless, his Dark form and Weapon Assist are infinitely stronger and there is no reason to keep this form as dupes of the Dark form are preferred subs.

Dark Zeta

Active: Reduce HP by 50%; Deal 200x Water damage to an enemy; Create 6 Water, Dark, Heal orbs (8 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 2x HP for Water Att.; 4x ATK when below 80% HP; 3.5x ATK and reduce damage taken by 25% when matching Water+Dark [4/196/1/43.75%]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Time Extend Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist  
Super Awakenings:  45  
Typing: Attacker / Dragon
Available Killers: Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1057 (1322)
HP 4860 (6075) / ATK 2683 (3354) / RCV 106 (132)
Weapon Assist Awakenings: Blind Resist Blind Resist Blind Resist Water Row Water Row Healer Killer Imp ATK

Pros
Cons
  • Powerful leader skill
    • Massive effective HP
    • High personal damage
    • Not combo reliant
      • Easier to VDP + FUA
  • Synergistic active
  • A team full of Zeta can solve most dungeons
  • L grants more damage and Orb Unlock
  • Team ideally has numerous Zeta dupes
  • Water + Dark can have minor orb troll
  • Must be below 50% to truly shine
    • Harder to juggle in higher content
  • Stronger leaders now exist

Dark Zeta was considered one of the strongest leaders in the game during the last GungHo event due to the fact that his ability to VDP + FUA is quite easy to achieve due to the fact that he has no combo requirement and his personal damage only cares about being below 50% HP.

While this still holds true today, newer and flashier cards have come out with higher/easier to activate leader skills along with Auto Follow Up Damage which overcomes Resolve spawns.

While Dark Zeta can still mow through content quickly, especially with dupes of himself, juggling health can become an issue in higher level content.

With that being said, he does have some sub potential, especially if you have duplicates of himself. This is because his active sets him up for both orb generation and being below 50% health. Thus, having duplicates of himself will make provide a more consistent health management and more damage overall.

Weapon Assist: Blind Resist Blind Resist Blind Resist Water Row Water Row Healer Killer Imp ATK
Active: For 1 turn, increase combo count by 2; Change Light, Jammer, Poison, and Mortal Poison orbs to Water orbs (16 -> 10 turn CD)

Pros
Cons
  • 60% Blind Resist Blind Resist
  • Two Water Rows Water Row
  • Modest length cooldown
  • Healer Killer Healer Killer
  • Only shines for Water teams
  • Healer Killer is niche

Zeta’s Weapon Assist grants the base card 60% Blind Resist Blind Resist along with 2 Water Rows Water RowIf using on non-Water teams, this average overall but for mono Water teams, the additional Passive Damage can be meaningful. On the other hand, Zeta’s Weapon Assist has now gained a Healer Killer awakening which grants the owning card 3x personal damage against Healer spawns.

This is a nice additional bonus and while this typing is relatively niche, no one will say no to free additional damage.

Furthermore, the cooldown is of modest length to help prevent accidental charging up along with the orb changer/hazard removal and +1 combo count being helpful overall.


Elena – B

Active: Removes lock status on orbs. Increase skyfall chance of Fire orbs by 15% for 4 turn. Change all orbs to Fire & Light orbs. (20 -> 14 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 4x ATK when matching 2 Fire combos, up to 8x at 3 Fire combos; 2x ATK and reduce damage taken by 25% when matching 5 or more connected orbs [1/256/1/43.75%]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost Skill Boost Time Extend Skill Lock Resist God Killer Dragon Killer Devil killer
Super Awakenings:  God Killer Dragon Killer Devil killer
Typing: Balance
Available Killers: God Killer Dragon Killer Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer Balance killer 37
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1057 (1259)
HP 4790 (5988) / ATK 1804 (2255) / RCV 503(629)
Weapon Assist Awakenings: TPA Balance killer Auto heal Imp ATK

Pros
Cons
  • Multi component active
    • Orb unlock
    • Fire & Light board
    • 4 turn skyfall
  • 3 Popular Killers
    • High effective damage
  • Leader Skill is too orb hungry
  • Stronger/more specialized Fire Killer cards exist
    • Harder to line up correct typings

Elana’s base form is an interesting card that is able to perform several roles at once, but does not excel in any one particular area.

Firstly, her active skill is multi component which can be great value assuming all 3 aspects can be taken advantage of to justify the longer cooldown. While the animation time is a bit longer, she can still be used as a possible Ranking Dungeon option as the bicolour can be quickly solved and the Skyfalls may translate into free points.

On the other hand, Elena’s Killer awakenings are useful as they cover 3 popular typings, it is rare that all 3 will take effect. This means that she will usually have only 3-9x personal damage which makes options like Tsubaki 3260 or No.6  more specialized choices. With that being said, her Super Awakenings can help bridge the gap as one will be able to choose which type they wish to be more efficient against.

Dark Elena

Active: For 99 turns, Fire orbs are more likely to appear by 7%; For 2 turns, recover 50% of max HP (10 -> 10 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 1.5x HP for Fire Att.; 4x ATK when matching 2+ Fire combos; 4x ATK and reduce damage taken by 35% when above 80% HP [2.25/256/1/57.65%]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost  Time Extend Skill Lock Resist
Super Awakenings:  God Killer Dragon Killer Devil killer
Typing: Balance
Available Killers: God Killer Dragon Killer Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer Balance killer 37
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1057 (1259)
HP 4790 (5988) / ATK 1804 (2255) / RCV 503(629)
Weapon Assist Awakenings: TPA Balance killer Auto heal Imp ATK

Pros
Cons
  • 99 turn Fire Skyfall buff
  • Challenging to remain above 80%
  • Auto heal takes effect after matching orbs
    • Does not heal in time for damage
  • Requires 2 Fire combos to activate
  • Weapon Assist does not exist for this active

Dark Elena sits in an awkward place as she is the only 99 turn Fire Skyfall card but her Weapon Assist does not use this active skill. This can be frustrating as there may be times where you would want to have this active on your team, but running Dark Elena as a sub may not always be the best option. On the other hand, she can still be inherited but a lack of awakenings being transferred is disappointing.

As a leader, she must remain above 80% HP while only enjoying a 57.65% Damage Reduction shield. This means 99% gravities will push her under along with most attacks. This means she will no longer have her damage output and despite the fact that she can auto heal, the healing takes effect after matching orbs. This means players will not be above 80% at the time of matching and thus will not deal meaningful damage. To compound this further, Elena requires 2 Fire combos which is modestly orb hungry and requires 12 for VDP.

As a sub, she offers little overall as the >80% provides only 1.5x ATK and has a small window of opportunity. While she does provide modest VDP potential, stronger and less conditional options exist.

Weapon Assist: TPA Balance killer Auto heal Imp ATK
Active: Removes lock status on orbs. Increase skyfall chance of Fire orbs by 15% for 4 turn. Change all orbs to Fire & Light orbs. (20 -> 14 turn CD)

Pros
Cons
  • Balance Killer Balance killer
  • Bicolour board + 4 turn Skyfall
    • Possible Ranking Dungeon solution
  • TPA TPA is situational
  • NIche inherit overall

Elena’s Weapon Assist is able to provide a single TPA TPA and Balance Killer Balance killer along with her Base form’s active.

I actually made this Weapon this past Friday on Fantastic for the current Ranking Dungeon and it worked out well. The board changer paired with TPA (Style Points) and additional damage can give players an edge in certain dungeons.

While this is nice, I feel it is still quite a situational Weapon Assist.


Raizer – A

Active: Inflict Wood damage equal to ATK x100 to 1 enemy in exchange for reducing HP by 50%. Affected by enemy element and defense. Change Fire, Dark, Jammer, Poison & Mortal Poison orbs to Wood orbs. (13 -> 7 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 5x ATK and reduce damage taken by 35% when above 80% HP; 10x ATK when below 79% HP; 1.5x HP & ATK for Wood Att. [2.25/225/1/57.75%]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost Skill Boost Skill Boost Time Extend Skill Lock Resist  
Super Awakenings:    
Typing: Physical / Attacker
Available Killers: Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1008 (1261)
HP 5864 (7330) / ATK 2110 (2638) / RCV 0 (0)
Weapon Assist Awakenings: Time Extend   37

Pros
Cons
  • Easy to activate damage
    • Unconditional 225x ATK
  • Damage reduction when above 80%
  • Self damaging active
  • Synergistic awakenings
  • 3 Skill Boosts Skill Boost
  • 3 <50%  = 8x personal damage
  • Dark form is superior
  • Different play style
    • Have to manage HP
    • Have to manage RCV

Base Raizer is a strange card from the GungHo Collab as his Leader Skill puts a unique twist on HP-sensitive teams.

When above 80%, Raizer will have 56.25x ATK along with a 57.75% damage reduction shield with dual leaders. This when paired with his 2.25x HP multiplier makes him somewhat invincible to the vast majority of attacks when at full health. This is great because he can sweep plenty of content when high HP and can spike up to 225x ATK when below 80%. Just note that the 225x ATK occurs with any combo which means many floors can be swept with a single match.

While the damage boost is significant, Raizer actually loses his damage reduction component when below 80% so that can create some interesting conundrums.

In order to deal meaningful damage, Raizer must be low HP but in order to survive large preemptives or attacks, he has to be at or above 80%. Thus, bringing cards that can improve RCV or board changers with Wood and Hearts will be invaluable.

This juggling concept will lead to a unique experience, but may be difficult to properly manage without strong player knowledge and planning. Furthermore, his Dark form is significantly stronger as a leader along with possessing a two turn Damage Absorption Void.

Unfortunately for Raizer, his viability outside of a leader can be problematic as his Dark form does almost everything better. With that being said, Raizer may be used in some longer Ranking Dungeons as he does not have to juggle HP like Zeus Verse .

Dark Raizer

Active: Reduce HP by 50%; Deal 60x Wood damage to all enemies; For 2 turns, bypass damage absorb shield effects (17 -> 17 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 4x ATK for Wood Att.; 1.5x HP for Dark Att.; 4x ATK and reduce damage taken by 25% when 6 or more combos [2.25/256/1/43.75%]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist 45 45 Devil killer Machine Killer
Super Awakenings:    
Typing: Physical / Attacker
Available Killers: Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 1008 (1261)
HP 5864 (7330) / ATK 2110 (2638) / RCV 0 (0)
Weapon Assist Awakenings: Time Extend   37

Pros
Cons
  • 2 turn Fujin active
    • 17 turn cooldown (Fujin is 19)
    • Wonderful in A5/AA3
  • Powerful leader & sub
    • Easy to activate Damage Reduction
    • Does not have to run full Wood/Dark
  • Effective HP varies with subs
  • Dual Fujin Actives on leaders is redundant
    • Long CD to inherit over
  • Weapon Assist does not use this active

Dark Raizer is able to lead a strong and easy to use team along with being our fastest charging card to have 2 turns of Damage Absorb Void. This active enables players to ignore the worst designed mechanics in Puzzle and Dragons for two turns. Generally speaking, 2 turns is excessive as players will often one-shot the given spawn, but in the case of a flubbed match or Arena 5/AA3, it is wonderful.

In Arena 5, there is a 50% chance to encounter a given spawn on Floor 12 and 13 with each floor having one Absorption spawn. Thus, there is a 25% chance to find back-to-back Absorption spawns and having 2 turns of negation greatly hastens clear times. With that being said, Durga (Floor 13) is not a dangerous spawn and I often use her to restall actives if necessary. Of course Arena 5 has become easier now and if gunning purely for speed, 2 turns of Void Damage Absorb is invaluable.

Beyond his unique active, Dark Raizer has the capacity to lead a reasonably powerful team as he only requires 6 combos to fully activate his 225x ATK and Damage Reduction. This paired with his 2.25x HP for Dark cards translates into a reasonable amount of Effective Health. Sadly, there are now easier to use leaders for team building who also have stronger multipliers. Furthermore, he will often be chosen as a sub due to his powerful active and reasonable damage output.

Weapon Assist: Time Extend   37
Active: Inflict Wood damage equal to ATK x100 to 1 enemy in exchange for reducing HP by 50%. Affected by enemy element and defense. Change Fire, Dark, Jammer, Poison & Mortal Poison orbs to Wood orbs. (13 -> 7 turn CD)

Pros
Cons
  • Two Team HP
  • Attacker Killer 37
  • Niche Weapon
  • Active does not use the 2-turn Fujin skill

Raizer’s  Weapon Assist will mostly be used for the two Team HP  awakenings  in order to bolster health by 10%. While the HP is nice and may enable teams to overcome certain damage thresholds, Resists Blind Resist Jammer Resist Poison resist tend to be superior in today’s meta as they can completely negate lethal mechanics.

The inclusion of an Attacker Killer is nice but at the same time, quite niche as there are not many Attacker-types in Arena-style content where the additional HP usually matters.


6 star base

Urs Laguna – D

Active: Change far right column to Fire orbs; Deal 300000 fixed damage to an enemy (16 -> 11 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 3x ATK and reduce damage taken by 35% when above 50% HP; 3.5x ATK when matching 5 Fire orbs in L shape [1/110.25/1/57.75%]

Awakenings: Skill Boost Skill Boost Time Extend Time Extend Time Extend Devil killer Dragon Killer physical killer
Super Awakenings:  Healer Killer 37
Typing: God / Attacker
Available Killers: Devil killer physical killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 905 (1176)
HP 3460 (4498) / ATK 2210 (2873) / RCV 350 (455)

Pros
Cons
  • 300,000 True Damage
  • 4 different Killers
  • 4 different Killers makes it harder to concentrate damage
  • 300,000 is not that large

Urs Laguna is a returning 6-star card within the GungHo Collab and does a few interesting things, but nothing truly magical.

Firstly, they are able to deal 300,000 True Damage to a single enemy while simultaneously creating a column of Fire. This can potentially lead to two floors being solved with a single active, but the Button amount is not exceptionally high.

In addition, they can gain 4 unique Killers but the issue is being able to line them up against key spawns. For the most part, Killer cards tend to function best when they are all the same as they can then deal massive personal damage against certain spawns. Being a generalist tends to be worse overall.

As a result, Urs Laguna fails to shine in any one particular area and will be passed over for stronger options the vast majority of the time.


Grand Starster – A

Active: Reduce binds and awoken skill binds by 5 turns; Change all orbs to Water, Heal, and Jammer orbs (13 -> 8 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 4x ATK and 2x RCV for Water Att.; 4x ATK and reduce damage taken by 25% when matching 2+ Jammer combos [1/256/4/43.75%]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune blue + orb blue + orb blue + orb 45 45
Super Awakenings:
Typing: Physical / Healer
Available Killers: Dragon Killer Machine Killer Healer Killer 37
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 903 (1173)
HP 4430 (5759) / ATK 1230 (1599) / RCV 641 (833)

Pros
Cons
  • Jammer Orb Blessing
    • Can choose to not awaken
  • Valuable active
    • Bind and Awoken Bind clear
    • Board changer
    • 8 turn cooldown
  • Merits as a sub
    • Low Team Cost
      • Levels up in Colo2
    • Passive Damage blue + orb
  • Super Awakenings provide utility
  • Jammers are not truly viable
  • Active produces Jammers
  • Lower weighted stats

Grand Starster is a truly unique card as they were the first card in North America with the Jammer Orb Blessing awakening. This awakening will passively increase the chances for Jammer skyfalls along with increasing ATK when matching Jammers by 1.5x.

While we have seen the power of Bakura and their Poison Blessing awakening, Grand Starster will not be able to function in the same capacity. This is because they only have a single Jammer Blessing along with it only providing 1.5x, not 2x personal damage with a Jammer match.

As such, it will often be preferred to not unlock this awakening in order to preserve your board.

Moving beyond this, Grand Starster can still function as a potent mono Water sub due to their fast charging active, Passive Damage, and reasonably personal damage along with useful Super Awakenings. What makes their active powerful is that it provides a useful board changer along with 5 turn Bind/Awoken Bind clearing on a fast 8-turn cooldown. This helps ensure at least one component does not go to waste.

Generally speaking, Grand Starster is a powerful option and their low Team Cost means they will quickly level up in Colosseum-style dungeons. This can help ensure players tap into their Super Awakenings and can be a natural solution for Tape Resist .


Belial – C

Active: Deal 10000 damage to all enemies. Ignore enemy element and defense. Change all orbs to Fire, Dark & Heart orbs (16 -> 11 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 6x ATK for Fire Att.; 2x HP & ATK for Physical and Devil type [4/144/1]

Awakenings: TPA TPA TPA TPA Skill Boost Skill Boost Bind Immune Bind Immune Skill Boost
Super Awakenings: TPA  
Typing: Physical / Devil
Available Killers: God Killer Machine Killer Healer Killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 958 (1246)
HP 4908 (6380) / ATK 1605 (2086) / RCV 439 (571)

Pros
Cons
  • 4 TPA
    • 5 with Super Awakening
  • 3 Skill Boosts Skill Boost
  • Multi component active
    • Tri elemental board
    • 10,000 True Damage
  • Unconditional 144x ATK
  • Limited viability
  • Niche usage overall

Belial comes with an interesting active skill as it enables one to solve several problems with a push of a button. It grants the ability to sweep any high DEF, low HP spawn like PreDRAs or Pys along with the Fire, Dark, and Heart board facilitating damage and FUA for those respective teams.

This may have merit on his own team as the unconditional 144x can be useful for farming. Furthermore, his 5 TPA TPA grants sizable burst damage when matching 4 Fire and has been used in a previous Ranking Dungeon. With that being said, it will probably be unlikely they will find a truly strong place to use moving forward.


Mercury – B

Active: Increase skyfall chance of Wood orbs by 15% for 3 turns. Delay 2 turns to all enemies. (15 -> 10 turn CD)

Leader Skill: Wood attribute cards ATK x2. 20% Fire, Water, Wood, Light & Dark damage reduction. All attribute cards ATK x2 when reaching 2 set of Wood combos. ATK x1 for each additional combo, up to ATK x3 when reaching 3 combos.

Awakenings: Time Extend Skill Boost Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist Skill Lock Resist   Dragon Killer Dragon Killer
Super Awakenings: physical killer 37 
Typing: Attacker / Healer
Available Killers: Dragon Killer Devil killer physical killer 37 
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 957 (1244)
HP 2658 (3455) / ATK 2303 (2994) / RCV 692 (900)

Pros
Cons
  • High personal damage vs Dragons
    • 2 Dragon Killers Dragon Killer
    • Can use Dragon Killer latents
  • Double >80% ATK = 2.25x damage
  • Super Awakenings grant additional damage
  • Active skill combines 2 non-synergy components
  • Lower value outside of Dragon Killing

Like most of the other 6-star cards, Mercury did not receive any meaningful changes but that does not take away from her Dragon Killing potential. Her ability to tap into her Killers and two >80% results in 20.25x personal damage against Dragon spawns when above 80% health.

Furthermore, the fun does not stop here as she can also use Dragon Killer latents to solidify her position as one of the best solutions for non-Void spawns. For the most part, this is used in Ranking Dungeons or Farming builds but will still be a boon to have when the time comes.

While there are other options available, Mercury is easy to use and her 2 Skill Boosts Skill Boost and SBR Skill Lock Resist may help alleviate some team building hurdles. Finally, if the opposing spawn has Attacker or Physical typing, Mercury will gain another 3x personal damage.


Shust – B

Active: Inflict Water damage equal to ATK x300 to 1 enemy in exchange for reducing HP to 1. Affected by enemy element and defense. Change bottom-most row into Water orbs. (20 -> 14 turn CD)

Leader Skill: All  attribute cards ATK x2 when HP is greater than 50%. ATK x5 when HP is less than 49%. All attribute cards ATK x2, 25% all damage reduction when attacking with 6+ Water orbs at the same time.

Awakenings: Water Row Water Row Water Row    Bind Immune Bind Immune
Super Awakenings:  
Typing: Dragon / Balance
Available Killers: God Killer Dragon Killer Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer Balance killer 37 
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 908 (1180)
HP 4266 (5546) / ATK 1720 (2236) / RCV 412 (536)

Pros
Cons
  • Multi component active
    • 300x ATK Button
    • HP Reset to 1
    • Forms a Water Row
  • 15 turn CD
  • Modest Dark Zeta sub
    • Valuable active
    • Cloud Resist  + FUA
  • Currently have 2 farmable 300x ATK Buttons
    • Satan also provides full board of Dark

Shust is able to function as a powerful Button inherit for farming purposes due to their 300x ATK. This will often be inherited on top of a Coop Boost Multiplayer Bonus card who will then have their ATK stat multiplied to deal massive amounts of damage. While there are other options for 300x ATK Buttons available, being on a 15 turn cooldown can help ease team building constraints.

The 15 turn cooldown is most likely attributed to HP reset to 1 as that is seen as a penalty, but this can work in your favour if relying on buttons like Vritra 3450 who want to be at 1 HP or teams who thrive at low amounts of health or who stack <50% .

The generated Water row will naturally help water-based teams but should not be a problem for other set ups who will most likely have other board changers at the ready. Another thing to consider is that using Shust after a mono colour board can result in a 4 combo set up which may be helpful for teams that rely on Rows (makes 2 Rows) or those that need two combos of a single colour.

With that being said, Shust is able to function as a modest Dark Zeta sub due to the inclusion of Cloud Resist and FUA These two awakenings are valuable when his team is mostly populated by dupe Dark Zeta as it provides awakenings he does not have access to.

With that being said, Shust is still a relatively niche card as Buttons are not helpful in Arena-style content and not everyone farms in this manner.

While Shust does have the capactity to have 4 Skill Boosts, I am not inclined to believe he will be used as a staple Transform card due to his longer cooldown which essentially creates a row of Water. Furthermore, his FUA aspect will probably go to waste as future Transform cards probably have Auto Follow Up Damage.


Artemis  – C

Active: Change top-most row into Light orbs. Change Jammer, Poison & Mortal Poison orbs to Heart orbs (11 -> 6 turn CD)

Leader Skill: ATK x3.5 when simultaneously clearing 6 connected Light orbs. ATK x2, reduce damage taken by 50% after matching Heal orbs in a cross formation.

Awakenings: Light Row Light Row Light Row Skill Boost Skill Boost Time Extend 44 44 Devil killer
Super Awakenings: Devil killer  
Typing: Attacker / God
Available Killers: Devil killer physical killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 908 (1181)
HP 4086 (5312) / ATK 2361 (3069) / RCV 82 (107)

Pros
Cons
  • Double Evolution Material Killers 44
  • Double Devil Killer Devil killer in solo
  • Some merit in Training Arena 2
  • Niche overall
  • Zeo Megazord Weapon

Artemis is unique in that she has two Evolution Material Killers 44 which grants her 9x personal damage against those spawns. Sadly, this is only applicable against Weekday dungeons, Gem Temple, Training Arena 1/2, or specific Ranking Dungeons.

Weekday Dungeons should not be a problem for even a beginner’s Box and Gem Temple farming teams most likely do not need her. As such, it will be hard to find true merit for Artemis unless we are blessed with a special Challenge Dungeon that features a durable Evolution Material spawn.

With that being said, Artemis may have some merit in Training Arena as she has 9x damage against several spawns. While the Evolution spawns in Training Arena can be negated through Guard Break or 100% DEF Breaks, having a high damage card may be useful. With that being said, many farming set ups may not need Artemis to succeed but having her around may prove useful for future Rankings or special dungeons.

With that being said, I feel a great deal of value has been lost for Artemis with the inclusion of Zeo Megazord’s Weapon Assist as it provides two Evolution Material Killers and is much easier to build into a team.


Tsukuyomi – B

Active: For 1 turn, increase orb move time by 2 seconds; For 1 turn, 2x RCV; For 1 turn, 2x ATK for Light Att. (13 -> 7 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 3x ATK and reduce damage taken by 25% when matching 5 or more connected orbs; 3x ATK when matching 3 or more colors up to 7x at 5 colors [1/441/1/43.75%]

Awakenings:  Skill Lock Resist Skill Lock Resist Skill Lock Resist   Bind Immune Bind Immune 45
Super Awakenings: 45 
Typing: Balance
Available Killers: God Killer Dragon Killer Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer Balance killer 37 
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 906 (1178)
HP 4341 (5643) / ATK 1655 (2152) / RCV 422 (549)
Weapon Assist: Time Extend Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • Reasonable leader skill
    • Easy to activate
    • Scaling component
  • Requires all 5 colours to fully activate
  • Stronger leaders exist
  • No built in orb movement
  • Low value as a sub
  • Less ideal awakenings

Tsukuyomi has is able to form a reasonable Rainbow team due to her 441x ATK and easy to activate 43.75% Damage Reduction.

Unfortunately, she is far from top tier as she is a Rainbow leader which means inconsistent damage along with not eclipsing current options. The main crux of Rainbow leaders is that they are restricted in terms of the actives they can use along with having a tougher time utilizing VDP and concentrating their damage.

Regardless, I can see Tsukuyomi being a strong introductory leader for newer accounts as she will force players to match quickly due to no additional orb movement time.

Thankfully, she can be converted into her Weapon Assist once players outgrow her introductory leader skill.

Weapon Assist Time Extend Imp HP

Active: For 1 turn, increase orb move time by 2 seconds; For 1 turn, 2x RCV; For 1 turn, 2x ATK for Light Att. (13 -> 7 turn CD)

Pros
Cons
  • Full Bind Immunity
  • Active provides three small but helpful aspects
  • Provides few awakenings
    • Almost only for Full Bind Immunity

I am pleasantly surprised with Tsukuyomi’s Weapon Assist as she is now able to provide Full Bind Immunity while also providing three small, but useful benefits.

At this point in time, we are starting to see more Time and RCV debuffs which can sometimes require intervention (eg. Colo2 back-to-back RCV Debuffer spawns or AA3 -75% RCV Debuff) as repeated debuffs from enemies results in attacks which may be lethal. Furthermore, if neither of those are needed, the small 2x burst may be helpful.

In essence, I feel this inherit can help players tackle higher level content as the utility provided from this active can save inheritance slots.


 Joker – C

Active: Recover 50% of max HP. +1 combo count for 1 turn (14 -> 9 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 3x ATK and 1.5x HP for Dark Att.; 3x ATK when 4 or more combos up to 5x at 8 combos [2.25/225/1]

Awakenings: Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist Time Extend    Bind Immune Bind Immune Time Extend
Super Awakenings:   45
Typing: Devil
Available Killers: God Killer 
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 954 (1240)
HP 5370 (6981) / ATK 1888 (2454) / RCV 118 (153)
Weapon Assist: Auto heal Auto heal Auto heal Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • Modest Leader Skill
  • Personal damage comes from L 
  • Low personal damage otherwise
  • Mediocre active

Joker is somewhat like Tsukuyomi in that he has a modest leader as he is purely combo oriented with gentle team building requirements. Unfortunately, his multipliers and personal damage are nothing special unless used for his L’s .

At this point in time, the meta is shifting towards Transforming cards along with mono-colour teams. Joker is naturally a joke for Transforming due to 1 Skill Boost Skill Boost and his L’s are awkward on mono colour teams as they often activate from 6 or more connected orbs.

As a result, his numerous L’s go to waste and while it is valuable to have a single L on your team, Joker is not the answer. Thus, Joker’s Base form will be seldom used unless we see a rise in a powerful Dark-L leader.

Weapon Assist Auto heal Auto heal Auto heal Imp HP

Active: Recover 50% of max HP. +1 combo count for 1 turn (14 -> 9 turn CD)

Pros
Cons
  • L   awakening
  • Almost only good for the L

Like Tsukuyomi, Joker has also received a Weapon Assist and his can be incredibly valuable for players who do not have an L option available. While we have gained more possible cards that have this awakening, it is possible newer accounts may be lacking this and having this as your only option can be valuable.

With that being said, I would place Joker’s Weapon Assist at the bottom of the figurative totem pole for L Weapon Assists.


5 Star base

Helen – D

Active: For 3 turns, 2x RCV; For 3 turns, 2x ATK for Wood Att. (15 -> 10 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 1.5x HP for Wood Att.; 3x ATK when 5 or more combos up to 5x at 9 combos [2.25/25/1]

Awakenings: Skill Boost Skill Boost Time Extend Wood resist Wood resist Wood resist Wood resist
Super Awakenings:  
Typing: Balance
Available Killers: God Killer Dragon Killer Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer Balance killer 37 
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 856 (1028)
HP 3935 (4722) / ATK 1723 (2068) / RCV 355 (426)

Pros
Cons
  • Funky pose
  • Does not bring anything relevant to the table
  • No Weapon Assist
  • Poor stats

Helen is the first 5-star card within the GungHo Collab and is a disappointing monster overall. This is because they do not bring anything relevant to your Monster Box due to a lack of a Weapon Assist, poor stats, awakenings, and an active that is not strong enough to inherit in most cases.


Konohanasakuya – D

Active: Recover 7000 HP; For 4 turns, recover 10% of max HP (10 -> 5 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 3x ATK and 1.5x HP for Attacker type; 1.5x ATK on the turn a skill is used [2.25/20.25/1]

Awakenings: Bind Immune Bind Immune Bind Clear awakening Bind Clear awakening Skill Boost  Skill Lock Resist
Super Awakenings: 45  
Typing: Attacker
Available Killers: Devil killer physical killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 857 (1028)
HP 2109 (2531) / ATK 2406 (2887) / RCV 494 (593)

Pros
Cons
  • Kind of cute?
  • Does not bring anything relevant to the table
  • No Weapon Assist
  • Poor stats
  • Too weak heal to justify System

Konohanasakuya continues the trend of disappointing 5-star cards as she also brings no relevant metric to your Monster Box. While it is possible to create a Healing System through their active, the 10% heal will be insignificant compared to other healing solutions.

Tenfufa – C

Active: For 2 turns, 1.5x ATK for Dark Att.; Change Water orbs to Dark orbs; Lock Dark orbs (14 -> 9 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 2x HP & ATK for Dark Att.; 20x RCV additional heal when matching orbs [4/4/1]

Awakenings: Time Extend Skill Lock Resist Skill Lock Resist 45 45 Time Extend
Super Awakenings:  
Typing: Physical
Available Killers: Machine Killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 857 (1028)
HP 5466 (6559) / ATK 1542 (1850) / RCV 5 (6)

Pros
Cons
  • Super Blind
  • Tape Resist
  • Low weighted stats
  • Most likely passed over for stronger options
  • No SB Skill Boost

Tenfufa breaks the cycle of abysmal 5-star cards as they do offer a few useful aspects while still being held back by lowe Weighted Stats and fewer awakenings.

Firstly, Tenfufa provides 100% protection against Blinds along with Tape Resist which can greatly ease team building options. Furthermore, she also has modest amounts of personal damage along with a reasonable active.

While this is helpful, she will most likely be passed over for stronger options who are able to provide more value for a given team.

Atalanta – A

Active: For 1 turn, no skyfall; Create 3 Water orbs (7 -> 2 CD)

Leader Skill: 2x HP & RCV for Attacker type; 2x ATK on the turn a skill is used 4/4/4/]

Awakenings: Skill Lock Resist Skill Lock Resist Skill Boost Time Extend 45 Balance killer
Super Awakenings: Balance killer
Typing: Attacker
Available Killers: Devil killer physical killer
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 808 (970)
HP 3223 (3868) / ATK 1898 (2278) / RCV 319 (383)
Weapon Assist: Water Row Water Row Water Row blue + orb blue + orb Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • Has a Fantastic Weapon Assist
  • Make Weapon Assist

Atalanta would have been a horribly disappointing card but they have just received a wonderful Weapon Assist which makes them a powerful Passive Damage solution for mono Water teams.

Weapon Assist Water Row Water Row Water Row blue + orb blue + orb Imp HP

Active: For 1 turn, no skyfall; Create 3 Water orbs (7 -> 2 CD)

Pros
Cons
  • Two sources of Passive Damage
  • Removes No Skyfall debuffs
  • 7 turn cooldown
    • Easier to accidentally charge up

Atalanta’s Weapon Assist is surprisingly potent for a bottom rarity card as it provides 5 different Passive Damage awakenings. These types of awakenings provide additional damage for the entire team which is one way to greatly improve your damage output without actives.

This enables players to potentially run fewer damage-oriented cards and instead opt for more defensive options. Either way, Atalanta’s Weapon Assist will be valuable for mono Water teams and the main drawback is a shorter cooldown which increases the chance of it accidentally charging up. On the bright side, the active does generate 3 Water orbs and the single turn of No Skyfalls can overwrite longer lasting debuffs.

Perhaps I am over evaluating Atalanta’s potential but with stronger Resist options becoming available, players will be able to utilize offensive Weapon Assists and few can match the offensive prowess found here.


Orpheus – C

Active: Delay enemies’ next attack by 1 turn; Change all orbs to Water, Wood, Light, and Heal orbs (15 -> 10 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 1.5x HP for Balanced type; Increase orb movement time by 2 seconds; 3.5x ATK when matching 3+ of Water, Wood, Light, and Heal at once [2.25/12.25/1]

Awakenings: Skill Boost TPA TPA TPA Multiplayer Bonus Multiplayer Bonus Skill Boost
Super Awakenings:  
Typing: Balance
Available Killers: God Killer Dragon Killer Devil killer Machine Killer Healer Killer physical killer Balance killer 37 
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 858 (1029)
HP 4136 (4963) / ATK 1514 (1817) / RCV 424 (509)
Weapon Assist: Multiplayer Bonus Time Extend Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • Double Coop Boost Multiplayer Bonus
  • Lower ATK compared to other options

Orpheus’s main role will be to function as a Button Base for coop farming due to their double Coop Boost Multiplayer Bonus awakenings. Together, these provide 2.25x stats when Orpheus is used in multiplayer.

Sadly, his base ATK is on the lower end along with newer cards having higher stats along with double Coop Boost. As such, he may be passed over for stronger options.

Weapon Assist: Multiplayer Bonus Time Extend Imp HP

Active: Delay enemies’ next attack by 1 turn; Change all orbs to Water, Wood, Light, and Heal orbs (15 -> 10 turn CD)

Pros
Cons
  • Coop Boost
    Multiplayer Bonus
  • Only used for multiplayer

Orpheus’s Weapon Assist is able to provide a single Coop Boost Multiplayer Bonus which grants 1.5x stats to the owning card. This is valuable for Coop Button farming in which players use a high ATK card with an active that deals damage based on their ATK stat.

Thus, inheriting Orpheus’s Weapon Assist on something like Brachydios would result in impressive Button damage.


Delphyne – C

Active: For 1 turn, 4x ATK for Dragon type (15 -> 10 turn CD)

Leader Skill: 3.5x ATK and 1.5x HP for Dragon type [2.25/12.25/1]

Awakenings: Skill Boost Skill Boost Skill Lock Resist Time Extend Healer Killer Healer Killer Machine Killer
Super Awakenings:  
Typing: Dragon
Available Killers: Machine Killer Healer Killer 
Weighted Stats (Limit Break): 858 (1029)
HP 4458 (5350) / ATK 2041 (2449) / RCV 12 (14)
Weapon Assist: Jammer Resist Jammer Resist Jammer Resist Imp HP

Pros
Cons
  • High personal damage vs Healers
  • Cloud Resist
  • 4x ATK for Dragons via active
  • Only strong vs Healers
  • Hard to fully utilize active

Delphyne is the final card within the GungHo Collab and in her Base form, she is able to function as a powerful counter to Healer type spawns. While this has the most applications in Ranking Dungeons or Farming builds, the inclusion of a Cloud Resist via Super Awakenings may provide her an edge over other options.

With that being said, her main function is to kill Healers and while her active can be a strong burst, it may be hard to build around.

Weapon Assist: Jammer Resist Jammer Resist Jammer Resist Imp HP

Active: For 1 turn, 4x ATK for Dragon type (15 -> 10 turn CD)

Pros
Cons
  • 60% Jammer Jammer Resist Resist
  • Base active is mediocre/poor
  • Jammers tend to be the last priority

Delphyne’s Weapon Assist is able to provide 60% protection against Jammers. For the most part, I tend to prioritize other Resists before Jammers as they tend to be the least deadly.

As such, the value this Weapon Assist brings will come down to how strong your options are for the other metrics as you will tend to pursue those first. 60% Jammer Resist is not terrible, it is just less valuable compared to Poison or Blind.

In regards to the active, the 4x Burst can be meaningful but is restricted to Dragon cards.

Do I plan to roll?

I do not plan on rolling in the GungHo Collab outside of maybe a few pulls as the 5-star cards greatly bring down the value of this event. This rolling may or may not happen but the main reason is I feel there is more value to be had in future Egg Machines. I also own a modest number of the higher rarity rolls from the previous event when they were featured in a special Godfest.

Another thing to consider is that GungHo is really pushing the Transforming meta and the GungHo Collab does not offer many tools for this overall due to their older age (newer cards tend to be catered to the current meta).

Regardless, for my dream 7-star card, I would like to magically pull Lilia as she would open up Wood teams for myself. I am not sure how much mileage I would get from her due to no/poor options for Leader swapping. On the bright side, she is new and reasonably pretty so that should be justification enough as well.

For my dream 6-star card, I would like to pull Grand Starster as he can help round out my Water box as a powerful offensive and defensive option. Finally, for my dream 5-star card, I would love to pull Atalanta as their Weapon Assist can add a tremendous amount of Passive Damage and is also miles ahead of the other options.

My Dream Rolls
7*
6*
5*

The above chart are the cards I would love to acquire from each rarity if I could choose one for my Mantastic account. This is my own personal opinion based on my Monster Box, goals and whether or not I have dupes. Icons show Base form regardless if it is their strongest iteration.

Conclusion

The GungHo Collab is still a reasonably strong event but my main gripe with this machine is that it is already starting to feel “old.” This is because GungHo is pushing the Transforming meta and few of these cards will help this along.

As such, I almost view these as side-grades or cards that can help round out a Monster Box for most given teams outside of Transforming. As such, I am less inclined to spend Stones in this event while also being secure in knowing that the GungHo Collab will return on a regular/frequent basis.

Let me know what you think about the GungHo Collab  in the comments below.

Happy Puzzling!

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35 thoughts on “GungHo Collab Review & Analysis – February 2020”

  1. Hope the procedure goes smoothly and yield the desired results and health benefit/improvements that all of us hope for you!

    Prayers up!

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  2. Personally, I can’t justify spending stones on Gungho collab, since it will come back frequently, when the new transform series / machine was just on JP news for 8th anniversary with amazing transform cards, and presumably will come to NA. Saving stones up for that.

    The pal points machine for equips was welcome though.
    It’s weird how gungho does a mix of attractive and unattractive things side by side, like throwing things randomly at a wall.

    Good luck with your medical procedure.

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    1. Yeah this time around it is on the lower end of value relatively speaking. As such, I would be more inclined to also wait for when it is relatively stronger compared to other options. And thank you for your well wishes =)

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  3. Hope for improvement in your health and recovery. I don’t have much to ask about in terms of the REM, but what are your thoughts on the Pal Egg Machine? Basically what should we be doing with all of these equips? Some are obviously useful but at what point do I start just selling or something with them? I know we can de-evolve some of them for gems, asking I guess more for the gung ho specific cards.

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    1. Thank you for your well wishes =)

      As for your question, it helps new players the most as they lack other options but they are relatively replaceable. One other thing with the PEM is you can devolve the descend weapons into their evolved forms and then convert them into Gems. I managed to get several Valkyrie Gems this way

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      1. How many of each descended weapons do you think is a good number to keep versus converting them all to gems? Like I could see myself using Valk weapon, Cuchu weapon, or even Siegfried weapon, but what are your thoughts (if all this makes sense?)

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  4. Wait, DKarin not S any more…? I still like her as she’s been helping me those limited time Arena challenges….
    I rolled quite a lot on the pal egg machines, wondering if you plan to comment on those? And for the medal exchanges, I’ve got all three from the previous events, do any of them worth getting a dupe?

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    1. About the DKarin thing, I feel like a huge part of it is that she’s not the premier Tifa pairing anymore. Just from personal experience, my go-to helper for my Tifa these days is Haohmaru bc DKarin feels much more restrictive in team building and playstyle by comparison due to the lack of autoFUA.

      The limited time Arena challenges can be completed with numerous other leads, so DKarin’s ability to clear those isn’t very unique.

      This isn’t to say you shouldn’t find her to be a strong/useful card. Mantastic uses S-ranks for cards that are unique in what they do. So DKarin isn’t irreplaceable anymore as there are other cards that fulfill her functions, but she might well be the best option for your box.

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      1. In PAD, nothing ever gets worse, it is just new things are stronger so those older cards are relatively weaker, not actually weaker. Thus, they can still clear just as much content as before and possibly more due to better sub/inherit options. They may just not be the best possible option right now

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        1. Thanks to both of you for the detailed responses! Really appreciate your time and patience!

          Depending on the luck, I’m not always able to acquie all the new good cards…So a lot of the times it’s disappointing to see a team that I’m finally used to is actually no longer part of the top tiers…

          And hope everyone stay healthy!

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      1. You know, I honestly sold most of the 5* assists because the took up monster box space. I don’t need any gems as of now so I’ve been selling them but it would be a good idea to keep one of each Zaerog equips for the killers. Otherwise, the only ones I’d keep are Eurydice Hakuryu and the tape resist one.

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      2. I feel they are mostly budget options and are of course amazing for newer accounts. Of course some are stronger compared to others and I would keep 1-2 as a general rule

        One other nice side effect of the PEM is the Descend Gems (eg. valkyrie) you can make if you reverse an evolution and I would convert most of them to Gems outside of keeping 1 copy

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        1. Also my rolls so far: Atalantax2 and Joker. honestly kinda sad but I’ll keep one Atalanta for the weapon assist, which is kinda god-tier for a 5*

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            1. Well on an update. I got another Atalanta and Delphyne. Got Shust and Starster. And then I got Karin!!! I have a lot of good light subs so I think she can definitely help me clear more content.

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                1. My team is DKarin, BZela, Goury, Everlasting and NY Yomi. Lots of VDP and 7c. Also I can pair with Hao or Tifa from another friend.

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                    1. I haven’t played around that much with pairings but I’d most likely gravitate towards Hao.

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    1. well it’s a good system in theory, but not a lot of people own Hiei so it’s most likely not possible. e.g me. I have Dark Aoi but no Hiei to use, therefore making it more of a luxury than an actual lead.

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