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Hoshidan Summer Xander

Analysis by MackerelPye
Hoshidan Summer Xander - Dancing Knight

5

Obtainable as a 5 only

Hero Stats

Max Avg Total Stats at Lvl 40
140
HP 38
ATK 35
SPD 17
DEF 34
RES 16

Stat Variations

Level 1 Stat Variation
5★
HP ATK SPD DEF RES
Low 15 6 3 5 2
Middle 16 7 4 6 3
High 17 8 5 7 4

Level 40 Stat Variations
5★
HP ATK SPD DEF RES
Low 34 32 13 31 12
Middle 38 35 17 34 16
High 41 38 20 37 19

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

Boons

  • +ATK: Attack is one of Xander’s two defining stats, and increasing it with a boon allows him to deal notable damage. It also works particularly well with effective damage weapons like the Dusk Uchiwa.

  • +DEF: Xander has good physical bulk, and a +DEF boon will increase his bulk further. It also increases his damage output from Bonfire and Ignis.

Neutral

  • HP: While a +HP boon would increase both physical and magical bulk for Xander, he is much better off with a +DEF boon or even a +RES boon due to his poor Speed causing him to almost always get doubled.

  • RES: Xander has poor Resistance, but a -RES bane is a poor choice due to it being a superbane (-4 to the stat). Also, his low Speed results in him constantly getting doubled, and this will increase the impact that a -RES bane will have on his survival.

Banes

  • -SPD: Xander has horrible Speed, and taking a bane will have no impact on his combat performance.

    • A -SPD bane is a superbane (-4 to the stat), which has the additional consequence of lowering Xander’s BST from 140 to 139, resulting in him scoring less in Arena. If this is a concern, then either a -ATK or -DEF bane is the only choice.

Skill Sets

I Shall Dance! (Defensive Support)

Build by
Recommended
Barb Shuriken+ (+Def)
Alternate: Dusk Uchiwa+ (+Def)
A Close Counter
Dance B Quick Riposte 3
Alternate: Guard 3
Ignis
Alternate: Bonfire
C Odd Def Wave 3
IVsSClose Def 3

Show Explanation/Analysis
  • Preferred IV: +ATK or +DEF / -HP
  • Weapon: Barb Shuriken+ (+Def) / Dusk Uchiwa+ (+Def)
  • Assist: Dance
  • Special: Ignis / Bonfire
  • Passive A: Close Counter
  • Passive B: Quick Riposte / Guard
  • Passive C: Odd Def Wave / Flexible
  • Sacred Seal: Close Def / Quick Riposte

Xander comes with a great base kit that is entirely functional with no changes aside from adding a Special and a Sacred Seal. However, switching his weapon for a Barb Shuriken allows him to utilize a higher cooldown Special for more damage. Thanks to Xander’s awful Speed, he is highly likely to get doubled by nearly any enemy; he can use this to his advantage by focusing on his physical bulk and utilizing Ignis for a huge damage nuke. Dusk Uchiwa is acceptable for budget purposes and/or if facing large numbers of cavalry enemies; make sure to use Bonfire instead of Ignis for Xander’s Special if not using Barb Shuriken.

Xander’s base Close Counter is great because it allows him to utilize his strong physical bulk against more than just archers and dagger users. He can pair this with the Close Def Seal to further emphasize his defensive capabilities.

Quick Riposte is vital to allow Xander to double, as his awful Speed prevents him from ever being able to double enemies without it. Utilizing it as his B skill is great since it’s in his base kit, but it may be worth considering Guard as an alternative option in order to help Xander handle enemies with powerful Specials. However, keep in mind that using Guard means that he is reliant on the Quick Riposte Seal to be able to double, and this results in him having lower bulk due to not being able to use the Close Def Seal.

Odd Def Wave is part of Xander’s base kit and is an excellent buff both for himself as well as his allies. It synergizes particularly well with the his playstyle due to simultaneously increasing his physical bulk as well as boosting his Ignis damage. However, it can be replaced as needed to suit the team.

Crown Prince of Dance (Support)

Build by
Smoke Dagger+ (+Def)
Alternate: Dusk Uchiwa+ (+Def)
A Close Counter
Dance B Wings of Mercy 3
Bonfire
Alternate: Moonbow
C Odd Def Wave 3
IVsSClose Def 3

Show Explanation/Analysis
  • Preferred IV: +ATK or +DEF / -SPD
  • Weapon: Smoke Dagger+ (+Def) / Dusk Uchiwa+ (+Def)
  • Assist: Dance
  • Special: Bonfire / Moonbow
  • Passive A: Close Counter / Flexible
  • Passive B: Wings of Mercy / Firestorm Dance / Flexible
  • Passive C: Odd Def Wave / Flexible
  • Sacred Seal: Close Def / Flexible

As far as support goes, Xander can’t really go wrong as long as he has his Dance Assist equipped. The main perk of dagger units is that they can inflict severe debuffs on the enemy team; Smoke Dagger is particularly good for this since it allows the user to debuff all four stats at once. However, Xander’s base Dusk Uchiwa works just fine, particularly when dealing with cavalry threats. He can handle most physical cavalry threats quite well thanks to his physical bulk, and can even handle magical cavalry threats with good positioning.

Choice of Special is mostly up to preference since Xander shouldn’t see much combat with a support setup. Bonfire is a good compromise between cooldown and damage output, since Xander is very likely to get doubled by an enemy and be unable to defeat them due to lacking Quick Riposte. Moonbow is a bit more consistent, albeit lower damage option.

All of Xander’s skills are flexible and can be changed to suit the team. Close Counter gives him a bit more flexibility since he can engage a physical melee enemy on Enemy Phase in order to activate Smoke Dagger, but it may be worth considering a stat-boosting skill such as Fierce Stance or Death Blow if utilizing Dusk Uchiwa.

Wings of Mercy is a fantastic skill for any Refresher due to the increased mobility. Another good option is Firestorm Dance, or any of the other B skills that allow Xander to buff his ally while Dancing for them. Other good skills include any of the Breakers (such as Swordbreaker), his base Quick Riposte, and any of the Chill debuffs (such as Chill Def).

Close Def is a good seal to pair with Close Counter to help ensure that Xander doesn’t get KO’d when tanking physical threats on Enemy Phase. Otherwise, any combination of buffs between his C skill and Seal will work (including utilizing his base Odd Def Wave).

Introduction

Xander is a bit of an oddity amongst the dagger units. He is easily the slowest of them; with 17 base Speed, Xander is one of the slowest units in the entire game. He even has a Speed superbane that can potentially reduce his Speed to 13. Fortunately, this is actually beneficial since it allows him to take advantage of a higher damage Special like Ignis as well as have more points in his other stats, which is a serious consideration for a ranged dancer due to their low BST.

Xander has strong Attack and Defense that he can use for both offensive and defensive capabilities, but his ability to Dance is easily his strongest feature. His strong support capabilities along with his potential ability to assist in combat make him a great unit to bring along any team.

Strengths

Refresher

Without even looking at Xander’s stats, weapon, or kit, he will always be an effective support unit purely on the basis that he can provide Refresher support to his team.

Strong Attack and Defense

Xander’s Attack and Defense stats allow him to function as a great physical tank despite his abysmal BST due to being a ranged Refresher.

Low Speed

Xander’s low Speed can be used to his benefit, as getting constantly doubled means that he can easily charge up Specials like Ignis.

Weaknesses

Limited Unit

As a seasonal unit, Xander is rather difficult to obtain merges and optimal IVs for in the long-term.

Awful Magical Bulk

While Xander has 54 magical bulk at neutral, this number is a bit misleading as his low Speed results in him constantly getting doubled; his base 16 Resistance is not enough to handle getting doubled by magic damage.

Low Speed

While Xander’s low Speed allows him to easily charge his Special, it also results in him taking significantly more damage than he would if he could avoid getting doubled.

Weapon Skills

Weapons SP Rng. Mt.
Iron Dagger

After combat, inflicts Def/Res-3 on foe through its next action.

Dagger users only.
50 2 3
Steel Dagger

After combat, inflicts Def/Res-3 on foe through its next action.

Dagger users only.
100 2 5
Dusk Uchiwa

Effective against cavalry foes. Disables unit's and foe's skills that change attack priority. After combat, if unit attacked, inflicts Def/Res-5 on target and foes within 2 spaces of target through their next actions.

Dagger users only.
200 2 8
Dusk Uchiwa+

Effective against cavalry foes. Disables unit's and foe's skills that change attack priority. After combat, if unit attacked, inflicts Def/Res-7 on target and foes within 2 spaces of target through their next actions.

Learns by default at 5 ★
Dagger users only.
300 2 12
Available Rearmed Weapons
Arcane Void
Weapon Evolution
Weapon Upgrades
Weapon Upgrades

Support Skills

Support Skills Rng. SP
Dance

Grants another action to target ally. (Cannot target an ally with Sing or Dance.)

Learns by default at 5 ★
1 150

Passive Skills

Passive Skills SP Slot
Close Counter

Enables unit to counterattack regardless of distance to attacker.

Ranged Weapon Users Only
Unlocks at 5 ★
300
A
Quick Riposte 1

Unit automatically makes a follow-up attack if attacked at HP ≥ 90%.

Inheritable by all units.
60
B
Quick Riposte 2

Unit automatically makes a follow-up attack if attacked at HP ≥ 80%.

Inheritable by all units.
120
B
Quick Riposte 3

Unit automatically makes a follow-up attack if attacked at HP ≥ 70%.

Inheritable by all units.
Unlocks at 5 ★
240
B
Odd Def Wave 1

At start of odd-numbered turns, grants Def+2 to unit and adjacent allies for 1 turn.
(Bonus granted to unit even if no allies are adjacent.)

Inheritable by all units.
60
C
Odd Def Wave 2

At start of odd-numbered turns, grants Def+4 to unit and adjacent allies for 1 turn.
(Bonus granted to unit even if no allies are adjacent.)

Inheritable by all units.
120
C
Odd Def Wave 3

At start of odd-numbered turns, grants Def+6 to unit and adjacent allies for 1 turn.
(Bonus granted to unit even if no allies are adjacent.)

Inheritable by all units.
240
C

Other Info

Origin
Fire Emblem Fates

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