Should You Pull?
If you like this happy trumpeter, go for it. Otherwise, it's recommended to skip for the time being. So last week was music to our ears thanks to A6 Lunasa Prismriver’s appearance, but this time, we have the middle sister of the Prismrivers from A6 that is Merlin Prismriver, as well as the Happy Scarlet Sonata Festival that comes with some similar contents like the same Ascending Step-UP Prayer where you can start off with 60 God Crystals on Step 1 and finishes with 460 God Crystals on Step 5. In addition, this Prayer also comes with a 5★ Story Card coming back into the spotlight joined by a new 4★ Card! Does the Happy trumpet player trump the competition? Let’s jump into it and find out for ourselves as we get ever closer to Halloween!
This Attack-Class Prismriver Sister that is Merlin is what you’d expect when it comes to her role, and that is damage. She has rather high damage potential, and backs it up with the appropriate offensive buffs like Yang ATK, CRIT ATK, Spirit Power and Accuracy. As well as some Yang DEF and CRIT DEF debuffs, she sets herself up rather well with her damage output. In addition, some of those offensive buffs like the aforementioned Spirit Power, Yang ATK and CRIT ATK can even be provided to the team which is rather handy. As you may have expected after finding it out from the oldest sister that came before, A6 Merlin’s Killers are just as solid and handy: Soul, Youkai, Dream World, Vampire, Undead, Devil, Maid and Magician. Ultimately, she does her role rather well, but there are a few things to keep in mind when it comes to more than just the raw power side of things…
A6 Merlin’s Barrier Breaking is probably on the hit and miss side of things in terms of both elements and anomaly inflictions. For elements, we have a trio of elements here again and trying to balance Fire, Metal and Sun isn’t an easy feat, and it makes things a little less consistent, but at least whenever one of these three elements are effective against said enemy, there will get a 25% boost in power. Still, it’s a shame she cannot zero in as effectively on 2 elements. As for anomalies, her ways of inflicting them and potentially being able to break them could be very convenient on a specific enemy, but mostly more awkward against multiple enemies. One of her Skills inflict 4 Layers of Poison onto an enemy whereas her Solo-Targeting Spell Card inflicts 4 Layers of Paralyze (as well as 2 additional ones via 2 bullet lines), also on an enemy. However, there are some slight guaranteed ways to inflict Paralyze on multiple enemies via her All-Targeting Spell Card 1, as it has 3 lines of Paralyze inflicts on all enemies with a 100% rate. In addition, any way of anomaly breaking, whether it’s Poison on all Spell Cards, Paralyze on Spell Card 2 and Last Word, or even Burn on Last Word are all accessible at 3P. If the situation presents itself, the anomaly breaking side of things could be great but if not, prepare for some awkwardness.
Remember when A6 Merlin was able to provide Yang ATK for the team? Well…she can, but keeping it afloat isn’t as secure unless Story Cards and other allies’ support can cover for it. Being able to do this via just Grazing and Last Word Pre-ATK means those benefits will be uncommon and short-lived. For A6 Merlin herself, she does have a Spread Shot bullet line that can keep it afloat for her, but it’s not much really. With all that said, it will definitely help to keep her Yang ATK buffing in mind when it comes to going about her.
It’s another week and it means another new 4★ Story Card joins a pre-existing 5★ Story Card! Returning is the classic Lively Temple Grounds which could actually serve as a budget option for A6 Merlin’s Last Word for its 30% Normal effect. Meanwhile, Tokiko fans will approve of the new card: Book-Reading Youkai. It’s not a particularly impressive card in terms of effects, having a 30% damage reduction from Youkai and a 80% boost in Spirit Power collection rate. As usual, these cards are just a little bonus. You could say these are shoehorned into this Prayer! Now we need Raiko to do that all-important “badum-tss”!
Featured Story Card "Lively Temple Grounds"!
Featured Story Card "Book-Reading Youkai"!
Joking aside though, as we are getting ever closer to the anticipated 2.5 Anniversary for Touhou LostWord Global, some of us will be eager for what it may bring, and for good reason. With Seal Crystals being a finite resource if you haven’t spent any money on the game, it’s recommended to not give into temptation and save up your Seal Crystals for the next few weeks (even if you are tempted by another chance to get Divine Spirit Tajikarao via another Epic Friend’s Rerun), but if you have 60 God Crystals lying around, it’s never a bad deal to get 10 Fortune Dust out of it through the first Step of the Ascending Step-UP, and who knows, you might get the Festival Friend in question! That said, this Prayer should only be pursued if you are a massive fan of the Prismrivers in general, especially Merlin in this case. Again, you may want to save up your Seal Crystals for a few more weeks as we are in the “calm before the storm” phase, and it’s good to prepare for whatever will come in the best way you can! Spooky Halloween times indeed. It may be in November, but it wouldn't be a trick to say that it will be quite the treat for us!
With the spooky Prismriver Concert Season well and truly underway, best of luck to all the fans of the passionate Poltergeist with a trumpet!
Quick Overview
A6 Merlin Prismriver is an Attack-Class Friend who trumps the competition with offensive buffs and debuffs the Yang DEF and CRIT DEF of enemies, while also subjecting an enemy to Poison and Paralyze inflictions/breaks.
Powerful Poltergeist
Enemies that may lock horns with A6 Merlin may find themselves being subjected to high amounts of damage, especially at 3P. From her solid Killer range (most notably Youkai), to generally high damage potential, A6 Merlin is primed for power, as expected from an Attack-Class Friend.
Harmonious Balance of Offense, Support and Debuff
Not only can A6 Merlin be a powerhouse, but she is able to shoehorn in some handy support here and there, such as Spirit Power for the team as well as CRIT ATK, and even quick bursts of Yang ATK. In addition, she can also do her part in debuffing the Yang DEF and CRIT DEF of her competition which can not only benefit herself, but also potentially other allies, mainly Yang ones and/or ones who will hit their Killers.
Dissonance in Elements
Like how a live performance or a piece of music may have clashing instruments that get in the way of the full composition, A6 Merlin has to juggle 3 elements (Fire, Sun and Metal) that are constantly clashing with each other, whether it be in her Shots, Spell Cards or even to a lesser extent, her Last Word. While Fire is arguably the most abundant element here, A6 Merlin doesn’t find herself competing with the best Festival Fire breakers due to the Metal and Sun bullets getting in the way.
One-Track Minded Poltergeist
Another potential inconvenience with breaking is on the anomaly side of things too. While this isn’t an issue if focused on a single enemy, it could be awkward against multiple enemies. This is because 4 layers of Poison are inflicted on a single enemy with Skill 2, and 4 layers of Paralyze are inflicted on a single enemy with Spell Card 2's Pre-ATK while an additional 2 more are inflicted on its bullet lines. While some of Spell Card 1’s bullets lines can inflict Paralyze on all enemies, it’s still awkward to work around regardless, and there is the additional barrier of needing 3P to pull off Poison breaks on Spell Cards or Paralyze breaks on Spell Card 2.
May Struggle Maintaining Yang ATK Buffs
Despite the helpful Yang DEF debuffs in A6 Merlin’s kit, if for whatever reason those aren’t in play or aren’t as effective and she has to rely on Yang ATK buffs, unless she has Story Cards or other allies supporting her, she is going to struggle a lot with them in general. This is because her only ways of gaining it are given to the team by Grazing as well as with her Last Word’s Pre-ATK, and she can give herself a little boost in it with her Spread Shot Bullet lines. Regardless, these aren’t the most ideal ways of gaining it, and they don’t even last long, so definitely keep this in mind.
