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Choosing Your Fliers: Melee Fliers

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Choosing Your Fliers: Melee Fliers
Table of Contents

Flier Guides

Sword Units

Sword Units

Offensive

While many flier units can be flexible and run different builds, offensive units are generally those who prefer to operate in Player Phase and have high Attack and/or Speed.

Ranking: 4.5/5

One of the most potent offensive units for fliers, Elincia boasts an offensive spread of 34/36 alongside the legendary Amiti, a sword which functions like a Brave Sword, but with 11 Might and only a 2 Speed penalty.

Ranking: 5/5

Besting Elincia with 34/39 Atk/Spd as well as 4 more Defense, Legendary Ryoma is blisteringly-fast and comes with a Wo Dao effect B skill, increasing his damage potential. Unfortunately, his legendary weapon, Raijinto, does not go very well with his stats, as he shines during Player Phase with a Firesweep Sword or Slaying Edge.

Generalist

Generalist units are units who are very flexible, they have the option of operating in either Player Phase or Enemy Phase. They may be considered jack-of-all-trades, or they could simply be able to run different builds that capitalize on specific phases.

Ranking: 3/5

Palla has a very balanced stat spread, with 42/31/31/28/26.  She is also one of the easiest fliers to find, coming in at 3 stars, and is therefore great unit to build merges of. She can function reasonably well offensively and defensively, though will pale in comparison to units who are specialized for either role.

Ranking: 4/5

With a 33/35 offensive spread and a Defense stat of 31, New Year Camilla proves to be a slightly upgraded version of Palla as a generalist, but is much more difficult to obtain, being a 5 star seasonal. Regardless, her weapon and default Ward Fliers can support her allies very well with an in-combat +6/+6 Def/Res.

Defensive

Defensive units operate best in Enemy Phase. They typically have high defensive stats and are bulky enough to withstand a hit. Defensive units may rely on Special procs or defensive skills (such as Steady Stance, Close Defense, or Quick Riposte) to activate in order to be fully effective.

Ranking: 3.5/5

Caeda is a difficult unit to lock into a single archetype. Her immensely high Resistance and Speed stats ensure that she will never take much damage from dragons, and her prf, the Wing Sword, helps in counteracting her low Attack by striking with 1.5x damage against armored and cavalry units while also building her Special activation with built-in Flashing Blade. She’s also very easy to obtain at 3 stars, and while her Defense stat is somewhat low at 24, her Speed generally means that she won’t take more than 1 hit.

Ranking: 4.5/5

With a fantastic stat spread of 32/36/36, Laegjarn is a highly flexible unit, but shines best when she can use her superior Defense for brawling during the Enemy Phase. She does not require Quick Riposte to double attack her opponent however, and can make use of B skills such as Chill Def or Guard to further swing combat in her favor. While her prf is situational at best, the extra Speed boost works very well on her and makes her the most formidable melee tank that red fliers have to offer.

Lance Units

Lance Units

Offensive

While many flier units can be flexible and run different builds, offensive units are generally those who prefer to operate in Player Phase and have high Attack and/or Speed.

Ranking: 4.5/5

Perhaps one of the most popular blue lance fliers, Cordelia’s offensive spread of 35/35 contributes very well to Firesweep Lance, Brave Lance, and even Slaying Lance sets, however, her defensive stats leave a little to be desired. She boasts a very accessible availability at 3-4 stars, and can easily fill the role of a Player Phase blue unit with her powerful Galeforce/Heavy Blade set.

Ranking: 4.5/5

Emulating Cordelia’s archetype Shigure is at 33/37, and is another great candidate for a Firesweep Lance set, though his native Harmonic Lance is also very strong on him. His 4-5 star availability means that it shouldn’t be too difficult to obtain him, though finding a good IV may be tricky.

Ranking: 4/5

Finally, we have Sumia with an offensive spread of 30/39. She is blazing fast and if built properly she can almost always double attack her opponent, but is beginning to lack in firepower somewhat when compared to her peers, particularly when you consider her 5 star only availability.

Ranking: 3/5

Paling somewhat in comparison to our other fliers is Shanna, with 30/35 offenses. However, Shanna is much easier to find at 3-4 stars, and her higher Resistance of 29 means that she can generally take on dragon units when she needs to.

Generalist

Generalist units are units who are very flexible, they have the option of operating in either Player Phase or Enemy Phase. They may be considered jack-of-all-trades, or they could simply be able to run different builds that capitalize on specific phases.

Ranking: 4.5/5

Coming in at 34/36, Tana can be played offensively, but is also flexible enough to be played defensively as well, thanks to her personal weapon, Vidofnir. She’s an incredibly powerful lance unit, which is offset due to the fact that she is a 5 star only hero.

Ranking: 3.5/5

Catria’s stats are remarkably balanced for brawling, with 31/34 offensive spread and 29 Defense. With this, she will happily trade blows with other units and makes a good vanguard for any team, however her bulk isn’t so good that she is capable of staying on the front lines for too long.

Ranking: 2.5/5

While Est has fallen out of favor, particularly with Cordelia’s availability, she’s still capable of running a decent Brave Lance build with her impressive 35 attack. Interestingly enough, she also has remarkably high Resistance with 32, making her very well situated for taking on dragons. However, her Speed stat of 30 prevents her from making too much of a splash offensively.

Ranking: 3.5/5

One of the better GHB units, Valter boasts an Attack/Speed/Defense of 32/31/34, with an additional +2/+2 to Attack and Speed, as well as a cooldown reduction from his Cursed Lance. This alone makes him incredibly versatile and very deadly on the field, however, his lance does damage to him after every turn, making his reign of terror difficult for him to sustain.

Defensive

Defensive units operate best in Enemy Phase. They typically have high defensive stats and are bulky enough to withstand a hit. Defensive units may rely on Special procs or defensive skills (such as Steady Stance, Close Defense, or Quick Riposte) to activate in order to be fully effective.

Ranking: 2.5/5

Subaki has one of the most unique stat spreads among blue fliers with 35 Speed and 35 Defense. Offsetting this is the fact that he only has 25 Attack, which makes him very reliant on Defense-based specials, such as Bonfire or Ignis. However, he is an incredible tank unit because it is so difficult to double him and it’s difficult to do significant damage in 1 attack, though he is weak to mages and dragons.

Ranking: 3/5

Something of the defensive inverse of Subaki and a mirror image to the red Caeda, Clair sports an obscenely low Attack of 26, but makes up for it in the spades with her Speed (36), Resistance (33), and her legendary Rhomphaia, which allows her to hit armor and cavalry for effective damage in addition to giving her the Flashing Blade skill. She does very well against magical attacks and dragons, but has difficulty sustaining herself in physical engagements.

Florina: 1.5/5

It’s difficult to wholeheartedly recommend Florina, as she trades a poor Attack, Speed, and Defense stat for a high Resistance of 34. With no legendary weapon to help her out, she’s unfortunately stuck as being the worst blue flier in the game.

Utility

These units have have weapons, skills, or other unique options available to them which allows them to provide valuable support for their team. Their optimal playstyles generally revolve around having their team to support them or supporting a team themselves.

Ranking: 3.5/5

Hinoka’s 35/32 stats helps her to compete with other Player Phase fliers, but she isn’t quite as optimal in that regard as units like Cordelia and Tana. However her legendary weapon, Hinoka’s Spear, allows her to help her flier friends obtain amazing movement abilities, and if played correctly, she can position herself for her allies to give her great buffs. In addition, she’s also the only non-limited flier to have Hone Fliers, making her incredibly valuable for anyone who wants to run a flier team.

Axe Units

Axe Units

Offensive

While many flier units can be flexible and run different builds, offensive units are generally those who prefer to operate in Player Phase and have high Attack and/or Speed.

Ranking: 4.5/5

Breaking the mold of low Speed axe fliers is Innes, with a fantastic 33/37 offensive stat spread. Innes also has a respectable 30 Defense, making him pretty versatile when it comes to build options and more than capable of taking a hit.

Ranking: 5/5

With her legendary Brave Axe and Death Blow 4, Cherche's offensive power only gets stronger. She boasts easy 3-4 star accessibility for finding optimal IVs and merges, making her a good candidate for an Arena core unit. Cherche trades low Speed and low Resistance for both Attack and Defense, making her very good at running Brave Player Phase sets, incorporating her native Hammer for anti-armor sets, or running defensive Enemy Phase sets with Slaying Axe.

Generalist

Generalist units are units who are very flexible, they have the option of operating in either Player Phase or Enemy Phase. They may be considered jack-of-all-trades, or they could simply be able to run different builds that capitalize on specific phases.

Ranking: 3/5

Gerome is almost identical to his mother in stats, with higher Defense and Resistance, but without access to IVs or her legendary axe. Due to this, they can play very similar roles in a team as either Player Phase Brave units or Enemy Phase Slaying Units, though Cherche will generally fare better in most engagements.

Ranking: 4/5

With a fantastic legendary weapon and a well-balance statline of 31/33/32/22, Minerva excels in taking fights on either phase and comes equipped with the rare Ward Fliers skill, making her a boon in more defensive-oriented teams.

Ranking: 2/5

Unfortunately, Narcian possesses a cringingly-balanced statline of 29/29/32/26. He isn’t exactly drastically lacking anywhere, but he doesn’t excel at anything either. Like Florina, it’s difficult to fully recommend using him, but his default kit makes him a great anti-lance unit.

Defensive

Defensive units operate best in Enemy Phase. They typically have high defensive stats and are bulky enough to withstand a hit. Defensive units may rely on Special procs or defensive skills (such as Steady Stance, Close Defense, or Quick Riposte) to activate in order to be fully effective.

Ranking: 3.5/5

Unlike his sister, Michalis’ Speed is too low to be extremely useful in Player Phase, and his Attack isn’t quite high enough to want to equip a Brave Axe. It’s just as well, because he’s a fantastic free Enemy Phase unit, with the same Hauteclere as Minerva and high Defense to keep himself up throughout many battles.

Ranking: 3/5

Beruka sports an insanely high Defense of 37, but trades most of her other stats for it, with a low Speed and Resistance, and a moderately low Attack of 29. Still, she’s a flying fortress and her Ignis procs should not be underestimated.

Utility

These units have have weapons, skills, or other unique options available to them which allows them to provide valuable support for their team. Their optimal playstyles generally revolve around having their team to support them or supporting a team themselves.

Ranking: 3.5/5

While her stats definitely lean toward being a generalist unit, Camilla’s axe refine (cleverly named Camilla’s Axe) allows her to further buff her allies within 2 spaces while they are in combat. When combined with Goad Fliers, she can offer invisible buffs of +7/+7 to Attack and Speed, making her an excellent partner for any offensive unit. Furthermore, she gains +4/+4 Attack and Speed on her own when a flying ally is nearby, which allows her to readily adapt to most blue and some green threats on her own.

Flier Guides