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Analysis by ZeShado
Xander - Paragon Knight

Hero Stats

Max Avg Total Stats at Lvl 40
154
HP 44
ATK 32
SPD 24
DEF 37
RES 17

Stat Variations

Level 1 Stat Variation
5★
4★
3★
HP ATK SPD DEF RES
Low 19 7 4 8 3
Middle 20 8 5 9 4
High 21 9 6 10 5

Level 40 Stat Variations
5★
4★
3★
HP ATK SPD DEF RES
Low 41 29 21 34 13
Middle 44 32 24 37 17
High 47 35 28 40 20

IV Sets

Key stats worth increasing through nature if possible.
Complementary stats that matter, but not to the point of picking them over key stats for nature increase.
Relatively worthless stat that can safely be decreased through nature.
HPATKSPDDEFRES

This unit requires use of Trait Fruits to get access to IVs

Skill Sets

Very Unique Enemy Phase Build (General Use)

Build by ZeShado
Recommended
Siegfried (+Eff) A Mirror Stance 3
Alternate: Bracing Stance 3
Positional Assist B Lull Atk/Def 3
Alternate: Quick Riposte 3
Moonbow
Alternate: Glimmer
C Atk Smoke 3
Alternate: Def Smoke 3
IVs

+ATK or +DEF / -SPD

SQuick Riposte 3
Alternate: Distant Def 3

Show Explanation/Analysis

Weapon: Siegfried (+Eff)

Assist: Positional Assist

Special: Moonbow / Ruptured Sky / Glimmer / Ignis

A Passive: Mirror Stance 3 / Bracing Stance 3 / Distant Def (3 or 4) / Steady Stance (3 or 4) 

B Passive: Lull Atk/Def / Quick Riposte

C Passive: Atk Smoke / Def Smoke / Def/Res Menace / Atk/Def Menace / Atk/Res Menace

Sacred Seal: Distant Def / Quick Riposte / Atk/Def Solo / Mirror Stance

  • Siegfried’s ability to negate follow-ups, debuff the foe for Atk and Def, and counterattack regardless of the foe’s range means Xander can run a fairly decent Enemy Phase set, and even though two of the effects work in both phases, those being the follow-up negation and the debuffs, Xander won’t be able to make good use of his abilities in the Player Phase due to his stat allocation. As such, it’s recommended that he’d be run as an Enemy Phase unit.
     
  • Depending on what other skills and support Xander chooses to run, he can either use a good chunk of 2 CD Specials, such as Moonbow or Ruptured Sky, or even run Ignis if he has an ally that can accelerate his cooldown. Siegfried’s ability to negate follow-ups, combined with Quick Riposte, means Xander can always trigger a 2 CD Special in the enemy Phase, regardless of the supports. Likewise, he can always trigger Ignis if running a support unit such as Brave Lucina or New Year Velouria. So, it’ll mostly come down to preference, but given Xander’s large Def stat, you may want to consider the latter.
     
  • As Siegfried grants the ability to counterattack regardless of the foe’s range, Xander effectively has a free A Passive to work with. This can be filled with skills that increase his Def and/or Res stat as they’ll increase his overall longevity, and since his PRF also negates follow-up attacks from the foes and debuffs them for Atk and Def, he’ll be taking even less damage from foes. On another note, since Xander naturally has high Def, it might be in your best interest to increase his Res stat first and foremost seeing as the meta is filled with Res-hitting units. Thus, a skill such as Mirror Stance 3 would make a perfect fit for him.
     
  • Xander’s archetype as an Enemy Phase cavalry unit means he has little to work with when it comes to his B Passives. The only notable options at his disposal include Lull Atk/Def and Quick Riposte. Quick Riposte is something he’ll want in his base kit regardless since he has no means of doubling naturally. So, this can be run either as his B Passive or his Sacred Seal and depending on the choice, you can then take Lull Atk/Def as his B Passive.
     
  • With the recent introduction to Menace skills, Xander is able to use more types of C Passives. Def/Res Menace, as well as Atk/Def Menace, make perfect fits for his C Passive as he is not only able to increase his overall bulk, but also decrease the foe’s offensive and defensive prowess. If these skills are not available to you, you can always run Atk Smoke or Def Smoke instead to either increase his damage output or tanking abilities.
     
  • Xander’s Sacred Seal is rather flexible if you’re already running Quick Riposte as his B Passive. Xander is able to run a plethora of skills that either increase his overall bulk or his overall damage output. This includes Distant Defense, Atk/Def Solo, and Mirror Stance: three skills that allow Xander to increase his longevity. However, if his B Passive is already occupied by Lull Atk/Def or any other skill not named Quick Riposte, his best Sacred Seal option would have to be Quick Riposte.

Xander But Epic (Aether Raids Defense)

Build by ZeShado
Siegfried
Alternate: Brave Sword+
A Fort. Def/Res 3
Alternate: AR-D Def/Res 3
Positional Assist B Lunge
Escutcheon
Alternate: Moonbow
C Panic Smoke 3
Alternate: Def Smoke 3
IVs

+ATK or +DEF / -SPD

SDeflect Melee 3

Show Explanation/Analysis

Weapon: Siegfried (+Eff) / Brave Sword+

Assist: Positional Assist

Special: Escutcheon / Moonbow / Ignis

A Passive: Fort. Def/Res (2 or 3) / AR-D Def/Res 3 / Armored Blow / Bracing Blow

B Passive: Lunge

C Passive: Panic Smoke / Def Smoke

Sacred Seal: Deflect Melee

  • The goal with this set is to have Xander set up against the opposing team with some sort of Smoke skill by surviving a Player Phase. This can be accomplished fairly easily thanks to Siegfried’s debuffing potency and follow-up negation. Moreover, most foes on Aether Raids Offense tend to fall into the melee category, so having extra Def alongside his rather high Def stat means he can survive more often from retaliation. Of course, if you want to further utilize this set, you can ditch his PRF and run a Brave Sword as he’ll be able to charge up Escutcheon and take on multiple melee hits thanks to his Special and Sacred Seal.
     
  • For Xander’s Special, he’ll want to prioritize his ability to survive combat. As such, running a skill such as Escutcheon can allow Xander to take on more damage if necessary. However, because Siegfried has Dual-Phase Impact, he may not need it whatsoever. That being said, if the foe can bypass the Impact, then Escutcheon should play a role in his survivability. Likewise, if he’s running Brave Sword, he can charge up Ignis instead. This can be used as a “scare” tactic as the foe will have no choice but to prioritize Xander before the rest of his team.
     
  • Xander will want skills that can increase his overall bulk as the goal is to set up against the foe. This means skills such as Fort. Def/Res and AR-D Def/Res are his most worthwhile skills. However, because Xander will be initiating in this set, you can also run Armored Blow as well as Bracing Blow to further increase his bulk if on a budget. 
     
  • Lunge is meant to separate the foe from their allies after setting up a Smoke. As long as Xander survives, he can then force a foe to take on more hits from Xander’s allies. However, this can fail against Save teams as they can disable the movement from Lunge. So, on the possibility that Xander cannot Lunge, he can still set himself up as a Wings of Mercy bot and his allies can then deal with the opposing team that way.
     
  • Xander’s C Passive is going to be the catalyst to this set as there is no other reason to set up otherwise. This can be flexible depending on what kind of budget is needed, but for most cases, Panic Smoke is going to be doing the most work. If that isn’t available, Xander can instead run Def Smoke or any other Smoke skill that can complement his allies.
     
  • Deflect Melee is here for survivability purposes. Xander is able to negate follow-ups as is thanks to Siegfried’s refinement, but because Xander is naturally slow, any foe running Quick Riposte or Null Follow-Up means they can bypass the Impact effect. Moreover, if they do happen to be running those skills, Xander will be getting doubled. As such, Deflect Melee serves as a means of being a failsafe more than anything else as the goal is to survive and get his Smoke off on the foe.

Strengths

Siegfried

    The ability to not only negate follow-up attacks from foes as well as bolster his defensive stats means Xander will be taking less damage overall. Likewise, the innate Distant Counter Xander comes with allows Xander to further bolster his role as a defensive cavalry unit thanks to the free A Passive he has access to.

High Defense

    Starting at a base of 37, his Def stat is already rather high. However, if Siegfried is able to meet its condition, Xander will be able to bolster his Def to a base of 42 before any skills, blessing buffs, merges, etc. As such, Xander is able to become a really strong Physical tank.

Weaknesses

Low Speed

    Xander’s Spd stat can be a detriment to his performance at times where he finds himself taking two hits, whether that’s from skills that guarantee follow-up attacks or skills that negate Siegfried’s follow-up negation. Guaranteed follow-up attacks are to be feared more as they are more common amidst Aether Raids. Likewise, having a guaranteed follow-up clash with Siegfried’s follow-up negation turns the double into a Spd check, which Xander will most likely lose.

Lackluster Resistance

    Despite Siegfried’s ability to bolster Xander’s middling Res stat as well as negate follow-ups from foes, Xander will still be taking a lot of damage from magic-dealing foes as his weapon only boosts his Res stat to a base of 22 if the condition is met. This can be an issue at times as magical attacks can easily throw him out of range of skills such as Quick Riposte, which happens to be the easiest way for Xander to double.

Competition

    Xander’s niche as a defensive cavalry unit doesn’t hold up that well as there is a lack of complementary skills for that niche. Moreover, there are a bountiful number of Infantry units that can replicate his niche but perform it arguably better as they not only have access to a plethora of Infantry-exclusive skills but may have better stats to go alongside said skills. 

Weapon Skills

Weapons SP Rng. Mt.
Iron Sword
Only Inheritable by Sword Units.
50 1 6
Steel Sword
Learns by default at 3 ★
Only Inheritable by Sword Units.
100 1 8
Silver Sword
Learns by default at 4 ★
Unlocks at 3 ★
Only Inheritable by Sword Units.
200 1 11
Siegfried

Enables counterattack regardless of distance if this unit is attacked.

Unlocks at 5 ★
Non-Inheritable skill.
400 1 16
Weapon Evolution
Weapon Upgrades
Weapon Upgrades

Special Skills

Special Skills SP Turns
Rising Light

Before combat this unit initiates, foes in an area near target take damage equal to (unit's Atk minus foe's Def or Res).

Learns by default at 4 ★
Unlocks at 3 ★
Non-inheritable by Staff-wielding units.
150 4
Blazing Light

Before combat this unit initiates, foes in an area near target take damage equal to 1.5 x (unit's Atk minus foe's Def or Res).

Unlocks at 4 ★
Non-inheritable by Staff-wielding units.
300 4

Passive Skills

Passive Skills SP Slot
Armored Blow 1

If unit initiates combat, grants Def+2 during combat.

Non-inheritable by Staff-wielding units.
50
A
Armored Blow 2

If unit initiates combat, grants Def+4 during combat.

Non-inheritable by Staff-wielding units.
100
A
Armored Blow 3

If unit initiates combat, grants Def+6 during combat.

Non-inheritable by Staff-wielding units.
Unlocks at 5 ★
200
A
Spur Def 1

Grants Def+2 to adjacent allies during combat.

Inheritable by all units.
50
C
Spur Def 2

Grants Def+3 to adjacent allies during combat.

Inheritable by all units.
Unlocks at 4 ★
100
C
Spur Def 3

Grants Def+4 to adjacent allies during combat.

Inheritable by all units.
Unlocks at 5 ★
200
C

Other Info

Origin
Fire Emblem Fates

Banners Featured In

None

Official Hero Artwork