Should you Pull? SAO: Alicization Rising Steel - A Bond Between Sisters

Alice and Edyis show off their sisterly love in the new Scout Banner A Bond Between Sisters.  Alice gets her 5th incarnation with [Embraced in Sunbeams], putting her ahead of Asuna for most 4* character versions in the game. Eydis makes her second appearance with [Waiting For You in the Skies].

Alice [Embraced in Sunbeams]

Alice [EiS] is an earth element sword proficiency character with a CAE skillset and an ST magic Incarnate Skill.  She bursts onto the scene with the highest MATK stat in the game, beating out the old champion Stacia Asuna [UaWS].  Her MATK is also higher than the highest ATK stat in the game, held by her Alice[OK] version. She pays for this dominance with the second lowest ATK and CRIT stats of any 4* characters.  To round things out, she has above average MP and the rest of her stats are average.

Skills

Alice [EiS] is a charger, attacker, and buffer.  Her A and C skills are standard and vanilla, and both are magic attacks.  The charge is (medium) and gives 20%, and the A is (extra strong). Her Incarnate Skill is a single target magic attack.  With her MATK being the highest in the game, and all of her attacks being magic, Alice [EiS] has the highest potential single target Charge, Assault, and Incarnate damage of any character.

Her E skill is a little more interesting, buffing MATK and Physical Res of a single ally by 20% for three turns.  This is the first time we’ve seen a single target buff with dual effects, and the longest duration at base level. Being able to provide the buff  to her own game-leading MATK stat is a huge bonus for her attacking potential, as she doesn’t need to rely on a support. The Phys Def side of the buff seems much more situationally useful.  An offensive buff being single target is more acceptable, as a team will usually only have a single “main attacker” and only 1 character can use the Incarnate, which is the attack that benefits from a buff the most.  On the defensive side of things, however, tanks are generally more rare, and heavy-hitting AoE attacks from bosses are common, making AoE buffs far more effective.

Alice [EiS] will be only the second 4* Earth Element character, the only element having less being fire.

PvP (Ordinal)

Alice [EiS] has average speed and no AoE abilities, rendering her unremarkable in PvP.

Weaknesses

Her greatest weakness is her CRIT stat being the second lowest among 4*s.  As a potential attacker option, this hurts her overall ability to produce. Her low ATK stat means nothing, as all her skills are magic attacks.

Overall

Her best-in-game MATK stat, and ability to charge and buff her own Incarnate Attack place Alice [EiS] as the best single target Boss killing character in the game.  Along with being in an under-represented element and not having much for weaknesses, there isn’t much not to like here. Alice [EiS] appears on paper to be the strongest Best-In-Role character we’ve seen since Alice[OK].  It remains to be seen if it translates to actual play.

Stat and skill descriptions can be seen here:

Eydis [Waiting For You in the Skies]

Eydis [WFYitS] is a Dark element sword proficiency character with an ABA skillset and an AoE Magic Incarnate attack. She has the second highest HP in the game, behind Alice [DoH] by a decent margin.  Her MATK and MADEF are above average and balanced by a below average ATK and MP. The remaining stats are average.

Skills

Eydis[WFYitS] is a breaker and attacker with some debuff/buff utility baked into her skills.  Her first A is an (extra strong) single target magic attack with a self-buff that increases her evasion by 15% for one turn.  If the duration of the taunt lasts 2 turns when it is upgraded, then it will synergize well with the taunt of her second A Skill.  However, the percentage is too low to be reliable. The debuff from the Break magic attack lowers the enemy Magic Resistance by 20% for one turn while providing the standard 4* 50% break.  This gives her good support potential for magic attackers, including herself.

As an AoE magic attack, her second A skill broadens her attacking kit.  With her high MATK, Eydis [WFYits] captures the title of strongest AoE magic Assault Skill in the game.  However, her overall AoE damage potential still falls short of the physical versions held by Eldrie [RGK], Kirito[SL] and Alice[OK].  Her AoE Incarnate skill is also bolstered by her good MATK stat.

PvP (Ordinal)

Although Eydis [WFYitS] has an AoE attack, her SPD is average, reducing a potential impact on PvP.  If she manages to survive long enough to take her turn, she could wreak some havoc on the popular PvP characters Alice[CM] and Ronie [BJ].

Weaknesses

Her biggest weakness is her MP stat, which is the lowest of all gacha 4* characters.  This could have implications in the harder Cathedral modes where MP can become an issue, though it doesn’t seem the difference is large enough to create much of a handicap.  Her ATK stat being low means nothing since her attacks are magic. Otherwise, her being average in most areas prevents her from being the “best” at any one area.

Overall

Eydis [WFYitS] is a very good all-around attacker with both Single Target an AoE options and a supporting MATK stat that is above average.  The added utility of her break and magic resistance debuff is a great bonus. Although not the “best” at any given role, she will be a useful addition to Dark teams, and may find use off-element as a Breaker/debuffer.

Stat and skill descriptions can be seen here:

Odds of pulling either Alice [EiS] or Eydis [WFYitS] are .75%, so if you pull a 4* (3% odds), there is a 50% chance it will be one of the new characters, 25% chance for each specific new character..

• You like either of the sisters and want to bond them to your team.

• You want a chance at adding a character in the under-represented Earth element

• You lack a good magic Attacker.

• You lack a good ST attacker (for the case of Alice[EiS])

• Both characters seem good, with Alice[EiS] being a Best-In-Role

• The rate-up is split, so if you are targeting a specific new character, there is a lower chance of getting her.

• You already have Kirito[AED] or another strong ST Attacker (for the case of Alice[EiS])

• You already have a stronger AoE or multiple Dark element characters (for the case of Eydis[WFYitS]