Arknights: Should You Pull? Joint Operation 8

The “Joint Operation 8” Banner released alongside the “Contingency Contract: Fake Waves” event works a little differently from other banners:

• The listed operators will be the only units available for their respective rarity
• Operator Feature Banners do not add Operators to the Distinction shop

No.

These 6★ Operators are not bad (especially Suzuran and Goldenglow), but a Joint Operation banner isn’t a good place to be pulling for them. If you need one of these units, it would be to fill a specific niche in your squad (Suzuran gives support, Eunectes is a bosskiller, Fartooth snipes dangerous targets at long range, and Goldenglow provides Arts DPS). Unfortunately, the mechanics of Joint Operation banners make it easy to pull units on the banner, but hard to pull a specific unit. As such, you’re unlikely to get the unit that fills the niche you need. Better to save for the upcoming limited banners instead.

Like with normal banners, a 5★ or higher Operator is guaranteed in the first 10 rolls. Should you pull for that? Definitely not. Kazemaru is the only 5★ Operator on this banner who is likely worth your resources, and your chances of pulling her are rather low. While the other available units can be good, they are widely outshone by other options.

Slower/ Decel Binder Supporter

+ Incredibly potent support unit; one of the best sources of Fragile in Arknights so far (S3)

+ Talent charges [Per Second] SP for other Supporter allies

+ E2 Talent inflicts Fragile (take increased damage) on enemies who are in her attack range and inflicted with Slow

+ S2 is a great multi-target Slowing ability and also does decent DPS

+ S3 covers a huge range, Slows all enemies within it (triggering E2 Talent), increases the strength of her Fragile debuff, AND constantly heals all allies within range

- Her strength is amplifying the DPS of her allies, but she can’t do this until E2 (Fragile is on her E2 Talent and her S3), so she needs a LOT of investment

- S1 triggers automatically and S2 has a relatively long charge time (though her own Talent shortens it)

Duelist Defender

+ VERY high base HP, ATK, and DEF

+ Talent increases her damage when her HP is over half and increases her defenses with the Shelter buff when her HP is under half

+ S2 is the longest-lasting Stun currently available in Arknights (up to 18 seconds at M3!) and also boasts a massive ATK boost

+ S3 is the perfect package: it grants a titanic ATK and DEF buff, regenerates HP, increases Eunectes’ Block by +2, and has one of the funnier animations in the game to boot

= S3 self-Stuns when its duration ends, which is a double-edged sword

- Archetype weaknesses: Block-1, high DP cost, can only recover SP while blocking at least one enemy

- Skills have fairly long charge time, considering she only gains SP while blocking

Deadeye/ Long-Range Sniper

+ Usual archetype strengths: Huge attack range, high base ATK

+ Low SP costs and good Skill uptime

+ E1 Talent increases her ATK when she hasn’t taken damage recently, which is usually an easy condition to meet (though not on poison mist stages)

+ E2 Talent reduces her aggro while she has a Skill active, helping to maintain E1 Talent for Skill durations

+ S2 lets her attack enemies anywhere on the field (but if they’re outside of her range, they have to be Blocked for her to target them) and dramatically increases her ASPD

+ S3 turns her attack range into an infinite straight line and increases her ATK; damage will also be increased if she hits an enemy outside of her base attack range

= Infinite range can be helpful against some enemies (i.e., ones that explode on death) but is often less useful than other Sniper gimmicks

- Usual archetype weaknesses: Very slow ASPD, does not prioritize aerial enemies

- Because of her archetype, she prioritizes low-DEF enemies; she may “waste” her infinite range by targeting undesirable low-DEF enemies over more important targets (especially if low-DEF enemies walk into her normal attack range during S2)

- S2 loses a lot of value against enemies that cannot be Blocked or do too much damage to be Blocked for long

- S2 does not increase her ATK or damage, just her ASPD, so its output suffers against high-DEF targets

- She has to be placed VERY far back to get the bonus damage from S3, considering how long her base attack range already is; this is not always possible on some maps

Mech-Accord Caster

+ The first Caster who rivals Eyjafjalla in damage (and may surpass her in utility, depending on the situation)

+ E1 Talent gives her drones a chance to explode while her Skills are active, dealing terrific AoE damage

+ E2 Talent gives her flat RES reduction, helping to make up for her low base ATK

+ S2 is a permanent Skill, meaning her Talent always has a chance to trigger after it activates

+ S3 gives her two extra drones and infinite range, as well as an ATK buff and the usual chance to activate her Talent, making it very powerful and very versatile

= Goldenglow herself does not attack during S3, but having three drones for the duration tends to make up for this

- Low base ATK

- Her drones reassess their targeting after they explode, which can result in the drones losing their “damage increases the longer you attack the same target” buff (especially with S3’s infinite range)

Bard Supporter

+ Usual archetype strengths: Trait passively heals allies within her attack range, including Summons and Enmity Units that cannot typically be healed by other units; very low DP cost

+ S1 puts enemies to Sleep (cannot act but also cannot take damage); good for stalling or for Sleep strategies

= Talent (chance to refund part of her SP cost when a Skill finishes) can greatly reduce her Skill charge time, but it is inconsistent

= S2 is a strong AoE ATK buff, but as an Inspire buff, it competes with other Bard Supporters like Skadi the Corrupting Heart or Heidi

- Usual archetype weaknesses: Has no damage potential whatsoever; limited attack range makes it difficult to deploy her on some maps

- Skills have high SP costs if her Talent doesn’t trigger, especially S1

AoE/ Artilleryman Sniper

+ Usual archetype strengths: Huge attack range, attacks deal splash damage

+ Increases the Physical damage dealt to all blocked enemies on the field from all Operators (Talent)

+ S2 debuffs enemy ASPD, which is especially effective against enemies who already attack slowly (i.e., Colossi)

- Usual archetype weaknesses: High DP cost, slow ASPD, reduced effectiveness against single targets or high-DEF targets, needs to be promoted to E2 for maximum attack range

- Notably lower DPS than fellow 5★ AoE Sniper Meteorite; inferior version of 6★ W, whom many Doctors pulled for heavily (because she is a limited Operator)

- Particularly fast enemies can run right past his slow-to-detonate S2 shots and avoid the damage/ debuff

Ranged Guard

+ Talent increases the ASPD of nearby allies

+ A melee Physical attacker who can do Arts damage to multiple targets with his Skills, which can be useful in some situations

+ S1 is a relatively rare melee Slow option and is multi-target

- S2 requires enemies to be blocked to be dealt bonus damage, but heavy blocking strategies are not common in the current meta, especially for high-level content

- Faces stiff competition from other members of his archetype, i.e., Lappland and Arene

Fortress Defender

+ A ground-deployed unit with long-range AoE Physical attacks

+ Gains Block-3 at E1

+ E1 Talent increases her ATK when she has ground tiles on all four sides of her deployment position

+ S2 increases her ATK and ASPD and reduces her Block count to 0 so she won’t stop doing ranged attacks for the duration

= Block-0 on S2 can be convenient, since you probably don’t want her Blocking anyway, but it can also allow for leaks if you’re careless

- Slow ASPD reduces overall DPS (somewhat mitigated by S2)

- High DP cost

- Stops performing ranged AoE attacks while Blocking enemies (she just punches her Blocked target like a Normal Defender instead)

- Short duration on S2

Blast Caster

+ Usual archetype strengths: High base ATK, attacks deal “true AoE” in his attack range

+ Talent increases his SP regen when he hasn’t attacked for several seconds (automatically triggers with the self-Stun on S1)

+ Decent ATK buffs on both S1 and S2

+ S2 applies Silence on all targets hit and can be manually deactivated

= “Long, straight line” attack range can be very advantageous or kind of inconvenient

= Silence is very effective when it works, but a lot of enemies are immune

= S1 self-Stuns Corroserum when the duration ends; this can be annoying, but it also guarantees his Talent triggers, speeding up his next use of S1

- Usual archetype weaknesses: Slow ASPD, high DP cost

- Kit is very underwhelming when Silence is not relevant

Substitute/ Dollkeeper Specialist

+ Usual archetype strengths: Cheap DP cost, fast ASPD, difficult to kill because of the way the substitute works

+ Her substitute does AoE Arts damage around itself when summoned (Talent)

+ S1 has decent damage and a very low SP cost (even for an [Attacking Enemy] Skill), allowing it to be used soon after deployment OR after Kazemaru tags in for her substitute

+ S2 summons the substitute to a nearby ground tile (triggering her Talent) and gives Kazemaru and her substitute a large ATK buff for the duration

= Usual archetype dilemma: Kazemaru has Block-2 but the substitute has Block-0, which can result in leaks if Kazemaru switches to her substitute at a bad time

- Usual archetype weaknesses: Skills consume HP, Skills end when switching to the substitute and SP is only gained while Kazemaru is on the field

Suzuran is the ultimate damage amplifier for her allies. She Slows enemies to keep them in attack range for a longer period of time, and while they’re Slowed she afflicts them with the Fragile debuff, increasing the amount of damage her allies deal. The combination is simple but effective, especially during her S3, which increases Suzuran’s range as well as the effect of her Fragile debuff.

The problem with a “damage amplifier” unit is that they need someone else to provide damage for them to amplify. If the rest of your team doesn’t have decent damage to bring to the table, Suzuran can’t do much to help them. Furthermore, Suzuran’s big selling point is the combination of Slow and Fragile, but she can’t actually cause Fragile until she’s promoted to E2. That’s a long time to wait for an Operator to do their job.

I recommend pulling for Suzuran, but not on this banner.

Eunectes is a strange unit. What possible use could there be for a Defender who only has Block-1? However, if you take a look at her Skills, you’ll soon see where her value lies. An 18-second-long Stun on her S2? Virtual immortality, colossal DPS, and a mech-piloting parrot during her S3?! Sign me up!

Considering how strong Eunectes’ Skills are, it might be surprising that she’s not more widely used. The problem is not that Eunectes isn’t strong; it’s that her strength can be hard to leverage. Her DP cost is massive, she only has Block-1, and without her Module she can only charge SP while she’s Blocking an enemy. Her Module makes her much more usable, but even with it, she takes a while to charge up her powerful Skills. Since she can’t be helidropped and is also limited to Block-1, Eunectes is trickier to use than a lot of other bosskilling Operators.

I don’t recommend pulling for Eunectes, although she can be fun to use.

Fartooth is a very showy Operator who looks terrific in showcase videos. In contrast, her practical usage can be a bit disappointing. Her S2 is clunky and hard to use: the “infinite range” only triggers if the enemy is being Blocked, the Skill does not buff her ATK, and if an enemy walks into Fartooth’s actual attack range she will waste the Skill duration attacking them instead.

Her S3 is much stronger and more useful, but it’s also extremely map-dependent… and keep in mind that Fartooth’s shots are not AoE. If a Slug walks in front of the boss, Fartooth will shoot the Slug instead of the boss, wasting Skill duration and possibly giving the boss enough time to move out of her line of fire.

I don’t recommend pulling for Fartooth, but she may be worth leveling if you pull her.

Goldenglow is the first Caster to provide serious competition for Eyjafjalla, although you’d never think it from looking at her low base ATK stat. Goldenglow is a Mech-Accord Caster, and her crystal drones have a chance to explode while her Skills are active. These explosions—or, more accurately, the massive damage multipliers on these explosions—are where the majority of Goldenglow’s damage comes from.

Her S2 gives her terrific sustained DPS, being an infinite-duration Skill with unlimited potential for drone explosions. Her S3 is renowned for giving her infinite range, allowing her to zap enemies from any position. With the flat RES ignore on her E2 Talent and the enormous damage modifier on her crystal explosions, Goldenglow doesn’t need high ATK to chew through an entire map of enemies.

I recommend pulling for Goldenglow, but not on this banner.

Sora, the original Bard Supporter, used to be renowned for her S2, which grants a percentage of her ATK to allies within her range as an Inspire buff. However, with the release of limited and welfare Bard Supporters who have more powerful Inspire abilities, Sora’s S2 has fallen off in popularity—not a good look for an idol singer who depends on popular opinion.

Luckily, Sora’s S1 has actually become more useful as time has passed. Sora’s S1—which puts all enemies over a wide range to Sleep—was originally just a stalling technique, since Sleeping enemies cannot be attacked by most Operators. But now that there are Operators and strategies focused around keeping enemies asleep for prolonged periods, Sora’s S1 can be a useful addition.

I don’t recommend pulling for Sora.

Sesa is one of those units who looks fine in a vacuum. The problem is that he’s part of a relatively weak archetype that still has multiple Operators who are stronger than he is. Fellow 5★ Meteorite has higher DPS thanks to her crit chance Talent, and her S1 expands the radius of her splash damage, which makes her better at the whole “AoE” thing. Meanwhile, 6★ AoE Sniper W is hugely popular and also a limited unit, meaning lots of Doctors pulled on her when given the chance. As a 6★, she is of course stronger than Sesa, which means any Doctor who successfully pulled W probably doesn’t have much reason to pull for Sesa now.

If AoE Snipers as an archetype were more widely used, there would be a compelling argument for raising the debuffing Sesa in addition to Meteorite and/or W. However, since AoE Snipers are a niche group in the first place, it’s hard to justify raising Sesa if you already have one of his competitors.

I don’t recommend pulling for Sesa.

Ayerscarpe can be quite the asset, between his multi-target Arts damage and the ASPD buff he brings to the table. However, this usually isn’t enough to stand out in comparison to other units in his archetype. There are a lot of extremely strong Lord Guards, and Ayerscarpe’s narrow utility and awkward S2 have trouble standing out from the crowd. The S2 is his real issue: successfully Blocking enemies in high-level content can be very difficult, and its effects aren’t really worth the effort to make it work. In a vacuum, Ayerscarpe can perform admirably, but in practice, there are usually better Operators to bring to the field.

I don’t recommend pulling for Ayerscarpe.

Ashlock pioneered the Fortress Defender archetype—a Defender who can attack from long range with ground-targeted AoE explosives. Unfortunately, she was very quickly powercrept by the release of 6★ Fortress Defender Horn, who is much more powerful than Ashlock, even considering their difference in rarity. Even aside from Horn, there are other archetypes (i.e., Lord Guards) that can provide ranged damage from a ground tile, leaving Ashlock with little to recommend her over other popular options.

I don’t recommend pulling for Ashlock.

Putting Silence on a Blast Caster’s range is a nifty idea, but sadly Corroserum tends to be less than the sum of his parts. There are plenty of other Casters who can replace his mediocre Arts damage output, and he doesn’t have enough S2 uptime to compete with the Queen of Silencing, Lappland. His one advantage is his long, straight-line, true-AoE attacks, which are difficult to replicate below 6★ rarity. Unfortunately, this attack range is rarely necessary enough to justify Corroserum’s 5★ build costs on its own.

I don’t recommend pulling for Corroserum.

Dollkeepers like Kazemaru can be tricky to use, largely because of their shifting Block count. If you’re careful, however, then Kazemaru is a good Physical unit with random bursts of AoE Arts damage and terrific survivability. She can conjure her doll in an adjacent square with her S2 even while she’s still alive, resulting in increased DPS and extended range. She is also excellent for soaking ranged damage because her doll makes her very difficult to kill and her shifting Block count doesn’t stop ranged enemies from targeting her.

I don’t recommend pulling for Kazemaru, but she’s worth raising if you get her.