Should You Summon: Clawful Caper Edition

Nobunaga is overall solid, but runs into a big problem straight away. Namely, that Flame Blade is a rather oversaturated market. With the recent upgrades to Aoi via Mana Spiral and the fact that Rena is still an excellent Adventurer, Nobunaga is especially not done any favors by having Sleep instead of Stun Resistance. Thus, before you evaluate Nobunaga as an Adventurer, you really have to ask yourself this: Is she a priority for you to invest in? There’s an easily accessible 3* option, and frankly she’s better than Nobunaga in some ways. 

 

Now, on to the actual evaluation. The first thing that makes Nobunaga worth pulling for is her ability to dispel enemy buffs with her Force Strikes with a 15 or great combo count, or with her S2. In certain fights, this is an absolute must and makes Nobunaga better than her peers. If you’re going to pull for Nobunaga, this is the best reason to do so, as it seems that we may see an increasing number of bosses with self buffs that Nobunaga really shines against. For now, this is specifically good in HMS, and makes Nobunaga a superior choice to Aoi most of the time. It is not, however, enough to make her better than Rena in most situations. 

 

As for Nobunaga’s skills, Her S1 is a good enough damage skill that deals 475% damage that also applies a debuff that deals damage after a time that deals 509% after 30 seconds, similar to Bleed or Burn but not as powerful. It does hit pretty hard overall and has a low cost of 3300, which is a good upside, and hitting again will immediately trigger burning ambition. Her S2 deals damage and provides a dispel, making it a solid part of Nobunaga’s kit. Notably, while her S2 costs more than twice as much as her S1 at 7500, her S2 doesn’t quite hit as hard (904%) as her S1 if you factor in Burning Ambition (though Burning Ambition does not stack). 

 

The last part of Nobunaga’s kit is a good enough 20% STR from Flurry 15 or more. That’s a decent enough skill that should typically be in effect for most of a fight. 

 

So is it worth it to summon? Ultimately, I’m going to have to go with no. While the Dispel is cute, it frankly doesn’t stack up to Rena and Aoi’s ability to Burn, and Rena’s incredible tankiness. Unless you somehow don’t have Aoi or Rena, I can’t recommend you pull.

 

Final Verdict: No. Nobunaga enters a saturated field and doesn’t do enough to differentiate herself.

Interestingly enough, Mitsuhide also runs smack into the problem of lower rarity units being nearly as good as her. However, unlike Nobunaga, Mitsuhide is also clearly better than her competition, though that margin isn’t as wide as we might like. 

 

Like Fleur, a big part of Mitsuhide’s kit revolves around Paralysis, and like Fleur, Mitsuhide is a very powerful Adventurer with good punisher mechanics, especially with the recent release of Spirit of the Season. The comparisons to Fleur don’t stop there though, with Mitsuhide’s S1 inflicting Paralysis and dealing a good chunk of damage at a low cost of 2641 SP. Where Mitsuhide really differentiates herself is that her S2 hits like a freaking truck. At 30 or more combo count, Mitsuhide’s S2 gets a 50% damage bonus to hit for 1417%, which is frankly insane, especially since it costs relatively little at only 5280 SP. 

Mistsuhide’s passives are excellent the 30% Paralysis Punisher and 20% Flurry Strength, which allows her to deal out serious damage. She thankfully comes with Curse Res, meaning she’s guaranteed to be a fixture in HZD for the foreseeable future.

 

However, Fleur was already a fixture of HZD. She does exactly the same thing as Mitsuhide, and the difference in their DPS is less than 10%. Is that worth summoning for? In my opinion, it really isn’t. Sure, if you don’t have Fleur then Mitsuhide is a clear target, but it’s hard to recommend you pull for what amounts to a relatively minor upgrade at best. I will end with the caveat that Mitsuhide is currently the best Light Adventurer, and that she is very strong. She’s just not that much stronger than a far more easily obtainable Adventurer. 

 

Final Verdict: Maybe. Mitsuhide is the current best Light Adventurer, but she’s only a marginal upgrade over the much more easily obtainable Fleur. Summon with care. 

Ieyasu’s career has been one filled with ups and downs. For a long time, he was the clear strongest Shadow Adventurer, until Natalie sprang onto the scene and provided an alternative. Then Gleo came along, and Ieyasu was basically pushed out of the meta entirely, especially since for a long time HJP was immune to his Bleed. But now, with a nerf to HJP’s Bleed Immunity and the release of his Mana Spiral, Ieyasu is climbing back up to the top.

Still not better than Gleo, though. 

That said, Ieyasu is now mind meltingly strong. He’s a complete monster in MG, especially with Delphi around to consistently apply Poison thanks to his Mana Spiral’s buff to his S1. He’s even better at inflicting Bleed since the base chance got buffed to 100%. He gets a huge boost from any attack that would Paralyse him, which would happen often in HJP. He’s now very tanky thanks to his S2 now healing him against Bleeding enemies, and he’s even better at inflicting critical damage.

There’s just one problem. Botan is free, and she’s basically just as good. Now don’t get me wrong: Ieyasu is still amazing, and he’s definitely worth summoning for. In fact, he and Botan are both so good, we’re considering eliminating Tier 0 from our tier list because they’ve nearly caught up to Gleo power wise (still not as good, just that the gap isn’t the chasm it was a month ago). The issue is that HJP is still utterly dominated by Gleo, and that if you have to choose between Ieyasu and Botan to bring, Botan is often the better choice thanks to her defensive Co-ability giving much more leeway in the fight and during Wyrmprint selection.

However, there is a saving grace: Namely, that Botan and Ieyasu don’t share a weapon type. There is definitely room on your team to have both of them on it, especially in MG (though admittedly running them alongside one another isn’t optimal). We’re seeing more interesting comps in HJP, where Ieyasu is being run, though typically not alongside Botan due to their Bleed’s overlapping.  

So, should you summon for Ieyasu? That’s a maybe. He’s strong, he doesn’t suffer from direct competition, but once again a more easily available unit competes with him in a way that makes it so that I’m hesitant to recommend you blow large chunks of wyrmite to get him. 

Final Verdict: Maybe. Ieyasu is stronger than ever, but faces stiff competition still.

At last! A pure Light Buffer Adventurer! It doesn’t take much of a brain to figure out that Chitose is 100% worth summoning for thanks to her-um, I mean, his-25% Light Strength buff. His S2 providing a 30% Shield is just gravy, making him a top tier buffer. His being a Wand is also fantastic, as that 15% Skill damage co-ability is basically the best one around. 

Some people might think that the Defensive Stance passive that lowers his Strength by 10% and raises Defense by 20% is a bad thing, but as Chitose has no damaging Skills and is purely a buffer, I personally see this as an absolute win. It allows Chitose to more easily survive HP checks, especially with the A Game of Cat and Boar wyrmprint that is going to be best for Chitose to run. The additional Shield his passive grants is OK for avoiding screw ups, but frankly isn’t all that special and I would have preferred a Buff Time passive. Still, Chitose checks out. 

The only Adventurer who sort-of competes with Chitose is Gala Euden, but frankly they’re different enough animals that any comparisons you could make are irrelevant to this analysis. As a plus, Chitose is already seeing some use in the Quad DPS meta, though he’s not quite strong enough to take a central role. Still, fantastic for all other content and decent enough in HZD is a great place to be. 

Final Verdict: Yes. Chitose is a must-have Adventurer who you absolutely should pull for.

Both Addis and Sazanka are worth getting, but are outclassed and off meta these days. Victor is basically just a better version of Addis, while Curran is mostly superior to Sazanka. Their kits are still solid though, but until and unless they get a mana spiral they’re going to mostly be collection items. 

Final Verdict: Maybe. They’re good, but there are better Adventurers around. 

Daiokuten is the new best Light Dragon DPS in nearly all ways. He basically knocks Corsaint Phoenix off the throne she held for barely a month, because 25% Strength for a 15 Combo count is both stronger and easier to maintain than 20% Paralysis punisher. Oh, and he offers a base 55% Strength buff instead of 50%. He’s much, much stronger than Corsaint Phoenix and can be used on basically any Adventurer you have. 

Again, as there has been with everyone on this banner, there is a catch. You still need Cupids for HZD. The way I see this going is the way it has been for a few weeks now: Gala Euden and/or Dragonyule Malora run Cupid, while your dagger and blade run Daiokuten (as opposed to Corsaint Phoenix). So if you main Gala Euden or Malora for HZD, maybe you don’t need Daiokuten, and no one’s going to turn aside a well built Yachiyo, Fleur, or Mitsuhide that are running Cupid as more heals gives a bigger safety net. Still, Daiokuten is easily the best 5* on this banner and well worth pulling for. 

Final Verdict: Yes. Diaokuten sets a new standard for Dragons going forward. 

Alas, Marishiten is no longer the hands down best Shadow Dragon, that particular mantle falling to Shinobi now. Still, she’s A+ material and there are a select handful of Adventurers who prefer her, most notably Delphi. If you already have a couple of Shinobi or maybe a Chthonius she’s not quite as appealing, but Marishiten is still a solid part of any Shadow stable. 

Final Verdict: Yes. Marishiten continues to be a powerful dragon. 

About the Rates

!!This is a limited banner!! All Adventurers and Dragons on this banner are here only for a limited time! Nothing has gone into the permanent pool, and once this banner ends you will need to wait for a re-run for another try.

• Standard 4% rates.
• Again, all featured Adventurers are limited, as are all 5* dragons.
• Nobunaga, Mitsuhide, and Ieyasu share a 1.5% rate and are at .5% each. 
• Daikokuten and Marishiten share a 1.6% rate and are at .8% each. 
• Non-featured Adventurers are at .5%, while non-featured dragons are at .4%.
• The 4★ Adventurers Addis, Sazanka, and Chitose are each at 1.75%. 
• Also 2200 Eldwater, I mean Unicorn, is on the banner at 1.75% as well.

Final Verdict: Yes. But only until you get Chitose.

Chitose is far and away the best thing on this banner. Missing him would be a huge blow to your Light Roster going forward, and I can't recommend you pull for him enough since he's limited. That said, once you have Chitose, the rating drops down to a maybe. Sure, Daikokuten is pretty great, but he's not nearly as impactful as Chitose is going to be. Nobunaga is nearly entirely outclassed outside of a gimmick, and Ieyasu and Mitsuhide are only marginally better than easier to get alternatives. Thus, I'd certainly pull until I got Chitose, but then I'd take a step back and ask myself how far I was willing to go after the others. Valentines is next month, and we've got another gala in a few weeks, so maybe save something for later. 

Also, Monster Hunter. It's going to be sweet.