Winter Marth

Weapon: Tanngrisnir (+Eff)

Assist: Positional Assist

Special: Fire Emblem

Passive A: Atk/Spd Boosting A Slot

Passive B: Savvy Fighter / Special Spiral 4 / Seal Def 4 / Mystic Boost 4 / Dull Ranged

Passive C: A/R Far Save / A/D Far Save

Sacred Seal: Atk/Spd Form 

• Tanngrisnir’s refine sets the stage for Marth and Elice’s dominance, specifically in Enemy Phase.
  • Granting +8/11/8/8, +1 Special charge per attack, and a Spd-based Vantage + reverse Desperation effect against ranged enemies when they initiate (meaning the duo can counterattack and perform their follow-up attack before the enemy can counterattack), the duo can 2HKO a wide cast of ranged enemies before they can even attack.
• As Tanngrisnir only functions against ranged enemies, Far Save, which allows the duo to step in and replace allies within two spaces when they are attacked by ranged enemies, is an even better choice for them than it usually already is for Armored units.
• Assuming no Special-slowing effect is on the enemy, the +1 Special charge from Tanngrisnir allows the duo to activate Fire Emblem, their personal 2-cooldown Special that boosts damage by 30% of their Spd and grants +4 to all stats to the whole team after combat, on their follow-up counterattack.
• In order to maximize follow-up control, consistently activate Tanngrisnir’s Spd-based Vantage effect, and boost damage from Fire Emblem, Spd investment is necessary. As such, Atk/Spd Boosting A slots and the Atk/Spd Form Sacred Seal work wonders, with the latter granting +1, +3, +5, or +7 Atk/Spd if the duo is within two spaces of zero, one, two, or three allies respectively. As the duo is an Armored unit, their limited mobility and access to Far Save to have “pseudo-mobility” encourage them to use skills that increase their offenses based on closeness to allies.
  • Particularly noteworthy Atk/Spd Boosting A slots include:
    • Atk/Spd Unity: +5 Atk/Spd during combat and reversal of visible Atk/Spd debuffs; best choice for consistency
    • Atk/Spd Ideal: +7 Atk/Spd if either the duo’s HP = 100% or the duo has a Bonus, and +9 Atk/Spd if both conditions are fulfilled; easy to achieve both conditions
• Savvy Fighter is by far the strongest B slot option, as it neutralizes enemy follow-up prevention effects that would normally prevent the duo from performing a follow-up attack. If Null Follow-Up support is present (such as that from Legendary Byleth (M) through his Professorial Text), other B slot choices include:
  • Special Spiral 4: Grants +5 damage and neutralization of non-Special, percentage-based damage reduction when Fire Emblem is activated; grants -2 Special cooldown after combat if Special was activated, guaranteeing that the duo activates Fire Emblem every combat even if a Special-slowing effect is present, which is worth considering even if it renders the +1 Special charge part of Tanngrisnir obsolete
  • Seal Def 4: Inflicts -4 Def on the enemy during combat, plus an additional Def penalty = 7 - the enemy’s visible Def penalty if they do not have an effect that neutralizes visible Def penalties; great for additional raw damage
  • Mystic Boost 4: Inflicts -5 Atk on the enemy, heals 10 HP after combat, neutralizes adaptive damage (effects that target the lower of the duo’s Def and Res), and neutralizes Dazzling Staff (counterattack prevention for Staves); can be nice for survivability if the duo fails to 2HKO in addition to ensuring Staff units cannot shut them down

Dull Ranged: Neutralizes ranged enemies’ buffs, which can aid in a range of ways, from increased damage by neutralizing Def buffs to increased Spd control by neutralizing Spd buffs to increased bulk by neutralizing Atk buffs