Should You Pull?
If you like kappas, otherwise, feel free to save up. When Lr Aya Shameimaru came back in November, we thought she would be followed up by her fellow Pseudo Shikigami on the blue side, but it really was a case of “expect the unexpected” because a certain Witch of Scarlet Dreams in a swimsuit decided to turn up the heat, and here we are, Lr Nitori Kawashiro (Pseudo Shikigami: Myoudouki Giken) is now the one who kicks off December as part of the Blue Shikigami Contract Ultra Festival Prayer! This also comes with two Story Cards, one old and one new, but let’s get into it all…
Lr Nitori’s kit is rather well rounded, she is self-sufficient with buffs like Yin ATK, CRIT ATK, Accuracy and a strong Killer range that includes Youkai, Parallel Presence, Tengu, Oni, Engineer, Machine, Aquatic, Merchant, Collector and Treasure. She also has some anomaly inflictions to herself and to enemies, especially with Freeze anomalies, and this is supported by her 2.00 Spirit Power gain on Skill 3, especially on the infliction side of things as right off the bat, 5 Freeze anomaly breaks can be pulled off on Spell Card 1 on all enemies. It’s also worth noting that the aforementioned buffs can also be granted to the team, such as 4 Stages of Accuracy on both Skill 2 and Spell Card 2 Pre-ATK, and Yin ATK and CRIT ATK buffs given to the team by other means. She even has ways to increase her Barrier count to help keep her anomaly buffs intact in the longer run.
Other details to take into account that could go either way include the Focus DOWN debuffing on specific enemies on her Solo-Targeting attacks on her Shots and Spell Card 2. This one could go either way due to the way All-Targeting attacks could be distributed for optimal reasons, but might have a niche use. Her elements used, being Metal, Water and Wood appear a decent amount, although there being 3 elements means there could be a bit of a clash between them from here to there. However, these aren’t as bad as Skill 3’s 7 Turn cooldown, since it might only be used one time in a battle which could be a pain. Also, despite being an Attack-Class Friend, Lr Nitori’s max damage capacity (or kappacity) is actually not super high. Maybe this is partly to do with not having an Ability effect that increases damage with bullet line elements that is resisted/effective on specific enemies, especially compared to Lr Aya, who actually has a higher damage output cap despite a less polished kit. This kind of issue for Lr Nitori will be felt only against enemies with absurdly high HP, like on Sun EX, but maybe this won’t be a big issue all the time.
Another Friend, another new 4★ Story Card, paired with a returning 5★ one! Returning is the appropriate Ofuda + Yin ATK combination entailing A Curious Festival! However, added to the fray is Late-Night Lesson! This card boosts Spirit Power by 1.25 as well as boosts the Spirit Power collection rate by 50%! Lots of Spirit Power-themed effects, but isn’t overly crucial to pick up, especially since it doesn’t hold a candle to the classic 2-7-1’s The Witch of Scarlet Dreams.
Featured Story Card "A Curious Festival"!
Featured Story Card "Late-Night Lesson"!
So is it worth going all in on this Prayer? Well…considering some may still be recovering from Genic Genesis, or they were until the Witch of Scarlet Dreams in a swimsuit, this might not be super worth going out of your way for, unless you like Nitori and is okay with the Pseudo Shikigami Shenanigans. This can be seen as a free week of saving up Seal Crystals for another week, but if you do decide to pick her up, she can definitely help out. She sort of lies in a similar boat to Lr Aya, but coming off of Cz1 Marisa (whose Prayer is still up during this one) doesn’t bode too well here. That said, Lr Nitori is still not a bad Friend overall and for some, might be worth the Divine Paper Dolls which are becoming slightly more common now.
And with that said, best of luck to those who want to add a Pseudo Shikigami kappa in blue to their Friend list!
Quick Overview
Lr Nitori Kawashiro is a Technical-Class Friend who has constructed a strong and self-sufficient kit including support via Yin ATK, CRIT ATK and Accuracy, Freeze anomaly breaking, Freeze/Paralyze buffs for herself and a strong handful of Killers.
Well Rounded Kappa Kit
When first looking at Lr Nitori, she has what you need in a cohesive kit, from self-sufficiency, to strong team support, to a great Killer range. Self-sufficiency includes her strong Yin ATK and CRIT ATK buffs just from Skills alone (either by conventional means or anomaly buffs on herself), support in the form of more of the above buffs as well as Accuracy (4 Stages from Skill 2 and Spell Card 2 Pre-ATK), and of course, a great handful of Killers including Youkai and Parallel Presence to name a few.
Pseudo Ice Breaker
Having access to 2.00 Spirit Power from Skill 3 off the jump, Skill 1 inflicting 3 layers of Freeze to all enemies and Spell Card 1’s Pre-ATK inflicting another 2 layers of it, resulting to at least 5 potential Freeze anomalies inflicted, primed to be broken at 3P turns out rather well for Lr Nitori, and shows she has what it takes for Freeze anomaly breaking and inflicting.
Unfocused Foes
A lot of bullet lines in Lr Nitori’s kit have Focus DOWN debuffs, but they aren’t for Lr Nitori herself, but rather for specific targets, of course being present on any Solo-Targeting attacks. Maybe it’s possible to make good use out of this when it comes to how Lr Nitori or an ally goes about an All-Targeting attack and how the damage is distributed between enemies for optimal purposes, but it’s hard to make use of it all the time.
Cucumbersome Elemental Kappacity
Usually, 2 elements commonly appearing in a Friend’s kit is adequate for one, since having a secondary element to fall back on for consistent breaks there can be helpful. In Lr Nitori’s case, while it’s not the end of the world, there is a mix of Metal, Wood and Water there. Her Focus Shot, Spell Card 1 and Last Word are Metal-Focused, her Spread Shot and Spell Card 2 are Wood-Focused, and Water serves as a lesser element in all of the above.
Skill 3’s 7 Turn Maintenance
It looks like Lr Nitori and Goki will have a tedious time when it comes to waiting for Skill 3 to finish cooling down after usage. The effects are great, but sadly the cooldown duration isn’t, as 7 Turns is a long time that might not even last that long in a good chunk of battles.
Surprisingly Low Max Damage Kappacity
At first, it looks like nothing can go wrong with this version of Nitori Kawashiro, she has anomalies, breaks, support, self-sufficiency, Killers, and…damage? Ironically, this Attack-Class Friend has a lower max damage ceiling compared to some other units, like her fellow Pseudo Shikigami, Lr Aya. It’s possible this won’t be too detrimental in the grand scheme of things, but maybe it could be an issue against enemies with absurdly high HP, similar to what we have seen in Sun EX.
