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Soul Scouting: Forma Building Guide - April 2022: Valentia

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For this iteration of Hall of Forms, we have quite the line-up of Shadows of Valentia characters. Our options include a Sword Flier, a Grail refresher, a Lance Armor, and a demote Green Bow Cav. Players have the chance to build up and possibly add the following units to their roster permanently by spending a Forma Soul:

We will briefly display optimal inheritance options for each unit and the advantages/disadvantages of spending your Forma Soul on them. As Forma Souls take a considerable amount of resources to acquire, it is important to get the most out of your Forma units before purchasing.

General Considerations

Forma Unit Rules

  • Any Forma unit you purchase will come with their base skills already. Therefore, there is little need to inherit these base skills during Hall of Forms unless you need to save refinery costs (especially PRF weapons needing Divine Dew) or simply don’t care for hyper-optimal inheritance.
  • Formas are acquired completely neutral with no Assets and Flaws. If you desire a certain Asset/Flaw combination, you will have to utilize Trait Fruits. Since you cannot merge Forma units into existing copies, this may pose an issue on resource spending if you already have the same unit with an ideal Asset.

Skill Considerations

  • When rolling skills from the current Forma skill pool, unique PRF skills are often prioritized over inheritables. It's a good idea to take PRF skills first to improve your chances of finding good inheritable alternatives; Hall of Forms will pretty much constantly hound you to take the PRF skills if you don't take them otherwise.
  • Due to their extreme rarity and superior SP value over most other Special skills, Ruptured Sky (typically available only on Byleth and their variations) and Blue Flame (available only on Owain) will vastly be preferred as a final Special choice. For bow-using units, this extends to the bow-exclusive Deadeye, and for dagger-using units, this extends to the dagger-exclusive Lethality.
    • Don't worry about not getting them too much, though! These skills are often not necessarily optimal; certain units may prefer running Specials from the low rarity pool like Sol, Glimmer, or Galeforce to achieve their goals. 
  • For the same reason as above, high-tier Assist skills like Rally+'s and Harsh Command+ are preferred on a potential purchased Forma to increase the unit's Arena scoring slightly as well as their overall value.
    • These, too, are also not necessarily optimal as positional Assists like Reposition are vastly preferred in most situations, and those can easily be inherited from lower rarity units like Norne or Barst.
    • Inheriting rally skills or Harsh Command+ too early in your Hall of Forms run can also inhibit your unit's ability to support other Forma allies and escape enemy range as well, increasing the likelihood of wasted Torches (the stamina currency for Hall of Forms) and thus wasted opportunities to get better skills.
  • Though optimal C Passive skills exist on a case-to-case basis, Joint Drives are essentially the most universal there is as they boost the stats of the unit as well as surrounding allies. Go for these (especially Joint Drive Atk) if available and there aren't better C slot options for your unit in particular. Likewise, Time's Pulse has fantastic overall value on infantry units due to the importance of frequent Special triggers in combat.

Valentian Catria

Quadtria

Galeforce

Heavy Hitter

Summary:

Valentian Catria is a pretty cool unit all things considered. Her PRF, Astra Blade, provides an unconditional 50% boost to her damage output, which is funny considering that’s just Glimmer, but even so it can make her damage output significantly high if the foe doesn’t have an absurd amount of Def present. Being a Sword Flier means she also has access to an assortment of skills that can make her even more menacing. Rein, Catch, Trace, Tempest, Flow, you name it. I can’t really say the same about her weapon options, but the ones she has access to do well enough, and worst-case scenario you can simply keep Astra Blade. I would say that compared to everyone else in this batch, she’s one of the better options, but each unit in this line-up has its own fair share of benefits. So, I highly recommend reading up on each of them before coming to a decision. Even so, if you do want to spend a Forma Soul on Valentian Catria, consider the following skills and recommended builds before you decide to pursue building her up.

Recommended Skills:

Weapons: Astra Blade / Ninja Katana+ / Unbound Blade+

Assist: Any Rally+ / Harsh Command+

Special: Galeforce / Blue Flame / Ruptured Sky / Glimmer / Luna

A-Passive: Atk/Spd Catch 4 / Swift Sparrow 3 / Surge Sparrow / Sturdy Impact / Heavy Blade 4

B-Passive: A/D Near Trace / S/D Near Trace / Flow Guard / Flow Refresh / Dive-Bomb

C-Passive: Odd Tempest / Even Tempest / Atk/Spd Rein / Atk/Def Rein / Spd/Def Rein / Atk/Spd Menace

Valentian Catria can keep Astra Blade if you want, however, given that she comes with her base kit when you use a Forma Soul on her, there’s no reason not to get an inheritable weapon outside of clearing the maps. Ninja Katana+ can work well since her Atk and Spd stats are good. This can pair well with skills such as Dive-Bomb if you want to have to attack four times before the foe can counter and it can help secure kills more often. Unbound Blade+ is also an option if you want to Galeforce with her as she’ll be able to secure Heavy Blade checks much more consistently since the foe will have any visible buffs to Atk and Def disabled and be inflicted with -5 Atk/Def.

Depending on the role you find her situated in, she can either stack her Atk and Spd with skills such as Catch and Swift Sparrow, Sturdy Impact if you want her to have a bit more survivability in the Player Phase or Heavy Blade for Galeforce checks. All of these skills are generally dependent on the weapon she runs, but for the most part, stacking Atk and Spd will work regardless of the weapon she has equipped.

She can also run an assortment of skills in her B Slot such as Trace, Flow, and Dive-Bomb. Trace works wonders for Hit and Run strategies as well as Galeforce, especially when paired with a Tempest skill, as she’ll be able to store her movement for after the next combat and retreat with more movement. Meanwhile, Flow can secure her own follow-up in the Player Phase and when paired with Sturdy Impact essentially acts as Null Follow-Up (to an extent). There’s also Dive-Bomb, and while it’s not as meta-prevalent as the other two, it can still hold its own weight in Arena modes.

And, of course, we have our C Slot which is rather simplistic all things considered. She’ll mainly want to run a Rein skill since it’s consistent stats during combat, but it’s not her only option. Odd Tempest and Even Tempest work great for Hit and Run since she can get in the frontlines much more easily and escape when given the chance. There’s also Atk/Spd Menace which while does have its issues can come in handy if the goal is to take out only a singular foe per turn with her. It will also help if she plans to run Ninja Katana+ since she’ll be losing out on quite a bit of Atk.

Soiree Rinea

Ranged Tank Support

Offensive "Healer"

Speed Tank Support

Summary:

Soiree Rinea being a refresher limits her capabilities as a unit as she loses out on BST simply for having Dance. This means that she has fewer overall stats to work with, which can be a problem, especially for supportive purposes. Her HP isn’t too high, but she can make due if she stacks HP skills. Meanwhile, her Res is workable but may fail at times when she’s making Res checks with skills such as Sabotage. Of course, being that she is a grail unit, she’ll be able to bolster her stats much more easily. However, the biggest issue will simply come down to the fact that she doesn’t need much outside of Wings of Mercy and a Drive/Spur in her C Slot. You can build her for combative purposes, but it’s not recommended as she’s only able to take one action per turn, unlike her Melee counterparts who can Galeforce and Dance. Even so, there are some skills available to her that aren’t readily available she can absolutely benefit from. So, if you do want to spend a Forma Soul on Soiree Rinea, consider the following skills and recommended builds before you decide to pursue building her up.

Recommended Skills:

Weapons: Silver Goblet+ / Dancer’s Score+ / Love Bouquet+ / Sealife Tome+

Assist: Dance

Special: Miracle / Ruptured Sky / Blue Flame

A-Passive: Atk/Spd Bond 4 / HP +5 / Fort. Def/Res 3

B-Passive: Wings of Mercy / Even Pulse Tie / Sabotage Atk

C-Passive: Cross Spur Atk / Inf. Hexblade / Breath of Life / Joint Drive Atk / Joint Dist. Guard / Infantry Breath

Soiree Rinea has a fair amount of tome options when it comes to supportive purposes. She can always keep her innate Silver Goblet+ and stack Distant Guard skills so that allies can take more hits from Ranged foes. Meanwhile, she can run a fun, but not too effective, triple Breath of Life set with Dancer’s Score+. For consistent buffs during combat, she can run Love Bouquet+ and Sealife Tome+. The former provides more stats in general, but only to Atk and Res while the latter only provides one point of Atk and Spd to allies. The former is much more preferred if you want to focus your efforts on tanking while the latter can stack with other skills that provide Atk and Spd for more offensive pressure.

Meanwhile with her A Slot options, she doesn’t have much to work with comparatively. She can either stack stats with HP +5 or Fort. Def/Res or run a Bond skill with Wings of Mercy if you do want her to deal some damage. Otherwise, there’s not much else for her to make use of.

The same can be said about her B Slot options. However, there’s a bit more variety depending on the route you want to take. Wings of Mercy is a staple for any refresher, so it’s never a bad idea to take it. Of course, you can also take Even Pulse Tie if you decide to stack up her HP stat or even run a Sabotage skill if you plan to stack her Res stat.

Thankfully, Soiree Rinea has a lot more options when it comes to her C Slot, albeit many of the skills are Drives and Spurs. Cross Spur Atk and Joint Drive Atk are solid options if you simply want to provide additional offensive pressure to allies. Meanwhile, there’s Joint Dist. Guard which pairs well with her innate Silver Goblet+ and Distant Guard in the C Slot. For something more untraditional, she can take Inf. Hexblade or Infantry Breath. The former can pair well with Sealife Tome+ since both provide additional Atk and Spd and allows the affected Infantry ally to gain adaptive damage. Meanwhile, Infantry Breath provides the Breath effect to adjacent Infantry allies, although with Breath seals being a thing, it may not be worth it in comparison to Inf. Hexblade. That being said, you can also go with Breath of Life and stack it with Dancer’s Score+ and her C Slot. It’s not optimal, but it sure is fun.

Valentine Rudolf

Far Save Tank

Near Save Tank

Near Save Tank But Again (ft. Damage Reduction)

Summary:

Valentine Rudolf is arguably going to provide the most bang for your buck out of the four in this line-up. While he may be powercrept to hell and back by other Lance Armors, he can still hold his own weight with Thorn Lance and other inheritables. It’s also worth noting that he may be scheduled for a refine in the future since he has a PRF, and you never know what that may entail. Even so, everything that a modern-day Armor would want is readily available in Hall of Forms. Fighter skills? Check. Save skills? Check. The only caveat will be getting the actual skills since it’s completely randomized. However, if you do happen to get a solid Fighter or Save skill, it may be worth using a Forma Soul on him, especially if you are in need of a solid Save unit. As such, if you do want to spend a Forma Soul on Valentine Rudolf, consider the following skills and recommended builds before you decide to pursue building him up.

Recommended Skills:

Weapons: Thorn Lance / Courtly Candle+ / Stout Lance+

Assist: Any Rally+ / Harsh Command+

Special: Bonfire / Ignis / Pavise / Aegis / Sacred Cowl / Escutcheon / Sol /  Blue Flame / Ruptured Sky

A-Passive: Atk/Def Unity / Close Def 4 / Distant Stance / Distant Def 4 / Sturdy Stance 3 / Atk/Def Ideal 4

B-Passive: Crafty Fighter / Slick Fighter / Hardy Fighter / Vengeful Fighter / Special Fighter

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

Valentine Rudolf may not have too many notable inheritable Lance options, but he doesn’t really need many since the ones he has access to are more than enough. Thorn Lance works well enough, especially with Hardy Fighter sets, since it has innate Slaying and debuffs the foe for Atk and Def allowing him to not only tank more but secure charges for the next combat. However, he can run Courtly Candle+ or Stout Lance+ since it provides flat Damage Reduction and resolves the issue of foes that can bypass his follow-up negation with guaranteed follow-up attacks.

Although, unlike his weapon options, Valentine Rudolf has a plethora of options when it comes to his A Slot. If you plan to run him as a Near Save unit, you can stack up his Atk and Def with skills such as Atk/Def Unity, Sturdy Stance, and Atk/Def Ideal. You can also go with Close Def if you want to patch up his Res stat and make him capable of taking on Dragons. For Far Save purposes, you can either give him Distant Stance of Distant Def. The former allows him to counter and potentially take down foes while the latter allows him to survive more hits.

Valentine Rudolf also has a lot of B Slot options, but it mainly boils down to Fighter skills. Crafty Fighter and Slick Fighter are really solid options, the former inflicting Guard on the foe and the latter negating any debuffs he may have. There’s also Hardy Fighter, which is really solid for general tanking. Pair it up with Far Save and he can make for a really decent Ranged tank. There’s also Vengeful Fighter and his innate Special Fighter, although I wouldn’t recommend either since the former has a more strict HP threshold and the latter can be replicated with Steady Breath and Crafty Fighter with the benefit of having a guaranteed follow-up attack.

Of course, for Valentine Rudolf to be super effective, he’ll need a Save skill, whether that’d be Near Save or Far Save. Both types of Saves work well for him. That being said, Near Save will more than likely perform better for him since his Def stat is much higher than his Res stat, and since Near Save prioritizes foes with one range, he’ll mostly be targetted for his Def stat. Although, Dragons do exist so he can also run a Save skill that increases his Res stat. It’s also worth noting that Ranged threats are much more prevalent, especially in modes such as Summoner Duels, so there is quite a bit of value to taking Far Save. Even so, it may be worth ditching his PRF entirely since making an Atk check based on his visible stat may be difficult, depending on which game mode you deploy him in. Outside of that, it’s highly recommended that he runs Hardy Fighter if running Far Save so that he can survive more Ranged hits, especially from Mages.

Python

Quadthon (Am I Allowed To Make the Same Joke Again?)

I LOVE CHIP DAMAGE!!!!!

Tanky Boy

Summary:

Python is an interesting pick in this batch due to the fact that he is a demote Bow Cav that has access to an assortment of weaponry and skills. There’s no shortage of weapons and skill for him to run, but much of his performance will be riding on his merge and Dragonflower count since, outside of his Spd, his stats aren’t too high. It does help that he is a demote unit in the normal summoning pool, so there’s a solid chance that many people have copies lying around in their barracks which can be used for merges. This, in turn, can help out Python’s overall performance, especially if he ends up running low MT weapons such as Ninja Yumi+. I would say that Python is worth going for if you plan to invest merges and Dragonflowers onto him since a singular copy isn’t going to be doing all too much in the long-run. So, if you do want to spend a Forma Soul on Python, consider the following skills and recommended builds before you decide to pursue building him up.

Recommended Skills:

Weapons: Spendthrift Bow+ / Ninja Yumi+ / Springy Bow+ / Plegian Bow+ / Monstrous Bow+ / Firesweep Bow+ / Candlewax Bow+ / Instant Bow+

Assist: Any Rally+ / Harsh Command+

Special: Deadeye / Blue Flame / Ruptured Sky

A-Passive: Atk/Spd Catch 4 / Atk/Def Catch 4 / Atk/Spd Solo 4 / Swift Sparrow 3 / Close Foil / Fury 4 / Heavy Blade 4

B-Passive: A/S Far Trace / A/D Far Trace / Lull Atk/Spd / Lull Spd/Def / Lull Atk/Def / Windsweep / Lancebreaker / Poison Strike

C-Passive: Rouse Atk/Spd 4 / Atk/Spd Menace / Atk/Def Menace / Joint Drive Atk / Joint Drive Spd / Fatal Smoke

As previously mentioned, Python has a lot of options when it comes to his weaponry and skills. The “optimal” one, however, will boil down to the play-style you prefer. For a heavier Player Phase presence, he can run Ninja Yumi+, for brave hits and potential quads, Springy Bow+, for bypassing Atk and Spd penalties, Firesweep Bow+, for preventing counterattacks outright, Candlewax Bow+, for a tried-and-true budget approach with Desperation, and Instant Bow+, for negating follow-up attacks. You also have Enemy Phase-oriented Bows such as Spendthrift Bow+ and Plegian Bow+, the former providing Atk and inflict Atk penalties on foes and the latter doubling the effect of penalties on foes during combat. There’s also Monstrous Bow+, which has innate Panic Smoke, and can pair well with other Smoke skills if you want to run something more supportive.

For his A Slot, Python will mainly want skills that increase his overall Atk and Spd or Def. Catch can provide the most stats out of any other skill consistently since it simply requires foes to have all their health present and have an active penalty. You can either run the Atk/Spd or Atk/Def variant depending on whether or not you want him to take a hit or not. You can also run other skills that synergize with specific Bows whether that’s Close Foil with Spendthrift Bow+, Solo with Plegian Bow+, or Fury with Candlewax Bow+.

As for Python’s B Slot, he can either run a Trace, Lull, or other miscellaneous skill that synergizes with specific Bows. Trace can allow him to get in and out of danger so long as he doesn’t extend his movement too much. Meanwhile, Lulls provide more consistent stats since they can remove visible buffs on foes unlike Traces. Other than that, he can run Windsweep with Ninja Yumi+ since he’ll be attacking twice as is, so preventing a counterattack could go a long way. There’s also Lancebreaker and Poison Strike which can pair well with Firesweep Bow+, but that’s mainly just as a means to counter Brave Hector.

And finally, there are the C Slot skills. Similarly to the A Slot skills, he’ll want skills that increase his overall Atk and Spd. Rouse Atk/Spd is the most consistent skill of the bunch since it simply relies on him being solo. There are Menace skills, but they rely on proximity and only target one foe that can then be protected by a Save unit. There are also Joint Drives that simply rely on Python being within two spaces of an ally, and they can pair well with Enemy Phase strategies. Other than that, he can run Fatal Smoke or whichever Smoke skill you prefer if paired with Monstrous Bow+ so that he can inflict a bunch of statuses on foes.

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