Hero Masakado T1
Written by Reika
Contents
Overview
Hero Masakado Turn 1 teams are built to abuse Masakado A's Guardian of the East passive that generates an extra Press Turn if going first. These teams typically have high battle speed and abuse Critical mechanics to decimate their enemies in the very first turn.
Due to matches against them being generally one-sided, they are sometimes affectionately referred as "T1 Cancer".
Concept
- Masakado A's Guardian of the East passive generates an additional Press Turn if going first.
- Since the passive will only trigger if you go first, high battle speeds are recommended.
- Criticals are used to extend press turns, giving your demons more actions to clean up the opponent.
- Pierce and Almighty attacks are used to ignore NDR. Some form of AOE is preferred to quickly sweep the opponent.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Very effective (and oppressive) if built right
- Extremely high damage output, can even overwhelm certain bulky teams.
- Flexible team composition, can easily adjust battle speed depending on team members. Useful for revenging.
- As most fights end very quickly, it allows you to climb the PVP ladder faster if doing last minute pot rushes.
Cons:
- Very high entry cost - Masakado A is a Banner exclusive, and most recommended demons are also Banner exclusives and/or require panels.
- Frail, will easily roll over if outsped.
- Has trouble with bulky teams. Asherah is a particularly troublesome matchup.
Team
Now lets go in-depth as to how to build this Team.
Core Demons
The only core demon is Masakado A, of whom the team is named after.
Masakado A
- One of the best support demons in the game.
- Guardian of the East provides an additional Press Turn going first. His other unique skill Kuyo Flash deals moderate Almighty AOE damage and applies Tarukaja, Rakunda, Sukukaja and Sukunda all in one go.
- This essentially swings offensive buffs entirely in your favor, allowing you to go easy on Auto-skills.
- Has innate Physical Pierce to avoid being walled by Phys NDR when out of MP.
- Panel 2 provides his entire team Null Mortal for a Turn. This protects against Ixtab defenses and can act as a safety net if you fail to end the opponent on the first turn.
Skills and Brands
- Speedster and Epitome of Swiftness can be used to raise battle speed. Going first is vital for the team.
- Auto-Taruka and Auto-Rakunda help to negate enemy autos, ensuring your Kuyo Flash will debuff them.
- Savage Glee's increase Crit rate is useful for scenarios where he needs to Auto-Attack.
- Herculean Strike L gives him a cheap AOE to spam after Kuyo Flash.
- Divine Brands are required to cast Kuyo Flash Turn 1 if not P3. Speed brands are the recommended sub-set for Battle Speed.
Supporting Demons
When picking Supporting Demons, always consider your team's Turn Order. Ideally you will want to lead with a high Crit demon so that you can cast Kuyo Flash on the half turn. Avoid having Masakado A in the number 1 spot, as he will waste the entire Press Turn casting Kuyo Flash.
Kartikeya
- One of the fastest demons in the game, Kartikeya is used to accelerate your battle speed.
- His unique aura Skanda raises your whole party's Crit rate and Accuracy, both important stats for the team. Combine this with innate Mortal Jihad (a high base crit rate skill) and high base LUK, he can reliably crit for Press Turns.
- Comes with innate Speedster in Clear.
- Unless you have a specific Metagame strat, Kartikeya is the safe pick, providing everything your team needs.
Skills and Brands:
- Phys Pierce (weak) is mandatory to avoid being walled by Tetra Shift.
- Epitome of Swiftness can be used to raise battle speed. It's a very rare transfer skill though.
- Savage Glee brings his already impressive Crit rate to near-guaranteed levels.
- Auto-Taruka and Auto-Rakunda can be used to increase your team's damage right off the bat.
- Double speed brands are recommended to further bump up battle speed. Focus on speed Primary for the Legs, Crit rate for the Arms and Speed Tertiaries for everything else.
- With P1, you can run double speed and still T1 Mortal Jihad. Unfortunately, Kartikeya is notoriously difficult to fuse, costing upwards of 8 million Mag from scratch.
Shiva A
- Shiva A is a powerful Almighty Sweeper.
- Ishvara gives him a guaranteed Crit on his first attack. This allows him to get the Crit Ball rolling.
- Third Eye is a fully unblockable Almighty attack that can also Crit for massive damage.
- Panel 2 is mandatory for him, as he is walled by Tetra Shift otherwise.
- It is recommended to make him the lead demon, as Ishvara guarantees he will crit pass for Masakado A. This will also allow him to gather enough MP to cast Third Eye in the same turn, even if he is running Spell Brands.
- You will need to do some creative branding if you plan to run him with Kartikeya. He needs to have a minimum of +3 AGI Mitama to speed tie Masakado A, with both him and Masakado A running Lead Brands in order to go before Kartikeya.
- Purple is the recommended color. Savage Glee increases the odds of Third Eye landing a crit.
- Shiva A is the luxury option, pick him if you managed to Panel him.
Skills and Brands:
- Butcher is used to increase Third Eye's damage.
- Speedster and Epitome of Swiftness can be used to raise battle speed.
- Great Aim can be used to patch up his accuracy if required.
- Spell Brands are recommended to increase his damage. Aim and Speed brands are acceptable sub-sets depending on preference.
Asura Lord
- Asura Lord is a single-target Nuker that carries a valuable aura.
- His unique aura Endless War buffs the critical rate and damage of all your teammates.
- Slaughter All is a fully unblockable Almighty Single Target attack that deal ridiculous damage, can crit, bypasses Endures and can be casted T1, either through Divine Brands or Panels.
- Purple is recommended to boost his damage further through Master Assassin.
- You will want Asura Lord in your 3rd position, as Slaughter All has a high crit rate for press turn generation.
- Asura Lord is a very solid Nuker with a very helpful Aura, pick him if you have him.
Skills and Brands:
- Speedster and Epitome of Swiftness can be used to raise battle speed.
- Great Aim can be used to patch up his accuracy if required.
- Assassin and Berserker can be used to buff Slaughter All's damage.
- Auto-Taruka and Auto-Rakunda can be used to increase your team's damage right off the bat.
- Divine is required to cast Slaughter All turn 1 without Panels. If you have Panel 2, War Brands are also acceptable to increase his damage.
- Aim and Speed brands are acceptable sub-sets depending on preference.
Cu Chulainn A
- Cu Chulainn A is a dual-element physical sweeper.
- Barbed Spear is a piercing Force-element Physical attack that deals multiple hits on all enemies.
- This gives him increased chances to crit for a half turn. On the other hand, it is also possible to lose turns from missing. As such, he is typically run in the 3rd or 4th position, depending on your risk aversion.
- Beware teams running Rama + Susano-o A, as the combo walls him.
- Cu Chulainn A is a high risk high return pick. Against teams without Force Anti-Pierce, he can deal massive amounts of damage while generating Press Turns from crits. Inversely, teams that do run Force Anti-Pierce will completely invalidate him.
Skills and Brands:
- Force Amp can be used to increase his damage.
- As Accuracy is very important for him (Barbed Spear has 12 chances to miss and lose Press Turns), Great Aim is recommended.
- Due to Barbed Spear's low MP cost, he can run War Brands for increased damage. Aim or Speed brands are acceptable sub-sets.
V☆
- V☆ is an Almighty Mage that excels at dealing spread damage.
- Whenever someone on your team does an auto-attack, V will follow up with Griffon-Bolt, dealing light Almighty damage to 4 random enemies.
- This is an incredible follow up to Kartikeya and/or Shiva A's initial attack, and Masakado A's own auto-attack after running out of MP.
- It also allows him to clean up any Endures remaining, and balance up the team by providing Magic damage.
- Shadow-Shock essentially guarantees he will never have MP issues, as it gives him a free Almighty ST attack that also triggers his own Griffon-Bolt.
- He is best run in the 4th slot, as his auto-attack is not able to crit for Press Turns.
- V☆ is the safer option compared to Cu Chulainn A. While less explosive, he does not have to worry about NDR and Accuracy.
Skills and Brands:
- Butcher and Serial Killer can used to increase Griffon-Bolt's damage.
- Speedster and Epitome of Swiftness can be used to raise battle speed.
- Auto-Taruka and Auto-Rakunda can be used to increase your team's damage right off the bat.
- Spell Brands are used to increase his damage. Speed brands are the preferred sub-set.
WIP by Reika
Susano-o A
- Susano-o A is a defense-team oriented Physical Nuker that gains Drain Phys in Teal.
- He also naturally Drains Force, allowing him to counter Force sweepers like Baal, Garuda A and Cu Chulainn A.
- His unique passive, Heavenly Valor punishes the enemy for Passing. As such, he is usually used as a dedicated Defense Team demon.
- Violent Slash is a hard-hitting single target Physical attack that grows in power the more it is cast.
- Don't let that description fool you tho: The skill has 150 Base Power initially (equal to Dragon Blade's initial strike), and can be cast T1 even without Divine Brands. This makes him a surprisingly good T1 attacker.
- On the downside, his AGI is on the high side, making him a less suitable partner if you wish to run Intimidating Stance together.
- The best combo demon for Defense Teams. If you run Drain Teams on Defense, definitely try to slot him in!
Skills and Brands:
- Phys Amp and Phys Boost can be used to increase his damage.
- Great Aim and Epitome of Aggression can be used to patch up his shaky accuracy.
- War Brands are usually used to maximize his damage potential. Aim brands are the recommended sub-set.
Guan Yu
- Guan Yu is a bulky physical sweeper that gains gains Drain Phys in Teal (notice a pattern here?).
- His signature Dragon Blade does heavy damage to a single target, and chains into an AOE physical sweep.
- His unique passive Loyal God of War heals him and refunds MP upon killing an enemy.
- Paired with his excellent STR, HP and VIT stats, he can quickly snowball off kills and extra Press Turns generated from crits. Not only does Loyal God of War keep him healthy through healing, it allows him to repeatedly spam Dragon Blade from the MP refund.
- His low AGI makes him a suitable candidate for Intimidating Stance. On the flip side, this also gives him accuracy issues.
- Running him in Teal means he loses access to the excellent Null Mortal in purple. This makes him weak to Alice, who can snipe him with Die for Me!
- Guan Yu is an excellent choice for slower Drain Teams, as well as defense teams.
Skills and Brands:
- Phys Amp and Epitome of Carnage can be used to increase his damage.
- Great Aim and Epitome of Aggression can be used to patch up his shaky accuracy.
- Life Brands are usually used to make him tankier. Higher HP also improves Loyal God of War's heal efficiency, as the base heal amount depends on your max HP.
Mother Harlot
- Mother Harlot is an Almighty Mage with Drain Phys in (you guessed it) Teal.
- She also drains Elec innately, providing your team additional coverage.
- She has a unique niche being the only relevant Drain Phys demon that relies on Magic.
- This improves your matchup versus the mirror, as you can simply ignore Drain Pierce and just spam Almighty magic.
- Babylon Goblet deals heavy AOE damage and drains 1 MP all enemies. This is very powerful in triple Drain Phys teams, as enemies out of Mana will simply try to auto-attack Rama and miss.
- The MP drain also allows her to spam the attack repeatedly, provided the opponent hasn't run out of MP.
- It also punishes greedy builds that run non-Divine brands, as it messes with their overall MP regeneration.
- Death Lust is a nice bonus when it manages to occasionally charm enemies. You should not build around this passive however, as Babylon Goblet is her main draw.
- Pick her if you feel like balancing out your team. Mother Harlot lets you add Almighty damage to your team's damage options. She is not as explosive as the other sweepers, preferring to slowly grind down her enemies via MP drains.
Skills and Brands:
- Butcher can be used to increase her damage.
- It is recommended to cover up her weakness with Resist Force, as Force is a popular attacking element.
- Life Brands are recommended to increase her overall longevity. This gives her more chances to spam Babylon Goblet.
Hecatoncheires
- Hecatoncheires is a tanky support with (wait for it) Drain Phys in Teal.
- His unique passive, Guards of Tartarus reduces all AOE damage your team receives by 15%. Combined with his good bulk, he is usually run as a support demon.
- This is especially good to soften up damage from Archangels and V☆ teams.
- Due to his high HP, he is usually left for last. As such, Recarmdra is a great skill for him as it will revive all his fallen teammates in exchange for his life.
- The AI is also smart enough to save MP for it. This makes him one of the better demons for Defense teams.
- Unfortunately, he is weak to two very common attacking elements, Light and Force. Consider covering at least one of them.
- Consider him if you prefer a more defensive approach to PVP. Hecatoncheires is one of the most accessible Drain Phys demons and a very good support.
Skills and Brands:
- Enduring Soul can provide him a layer of insurance, helping to ensure he gets to cast Recarmdra. It will also prevent Recarmdra's feedback damage from killing him.
- Life Brands are recommended to boost his bulk further. Shield brands can shore up his magic resistance, making him even tankier.
Other Drain Demons
While not as widespread as Physical, Pierce in other elements are also often employed in PVP. The demons below are common Drain techs to counter those elements.
- Drain Fire counters Uriel and Quetzalcoatl A.
- Drain Force counters Baal, Garuda A and Cu Chulainn A.
- Drain Elec counters Nero☆ and Panel 2 Izanami.
- Drain Light counters Gabriel.
- While Dark Pierce sweepers are not common, Drain Dark makes a demon immune to Alice's Die for Me!.
- Drain Ice counters Purple Rama. This is currently the least important element to cover.
Surt
- Drains Fire innately.
- Ragnarok is a very hard-hitting spell that gives you Fire coverage. Versus the mirror, it gives you the option to snipe demons otherwise protected by Drain Pierce.
- Clear is the preferred color as it gives him Intimidating Stance. Paired with Masakado, it allows the team to also function as an Intimidating Stance Teams.
Shiva A
- Drains Fire and Elec innately, and Force in Teal.
- Third Eye is an Almighty spell that hits incredibly hard, while giving you another arsenal to bypass Drain Pierce.
Quetzalcoatl A
- Drains Fire innately.
- Ce Acatl provides him a second life and acts as a safety net to speedy T1 Masakado A teams.
Yama
- Drains Fire in Teal.
- Enma's Judgement provides team wide Null Mortal. This is especially useful to protect Rama from being sniped by Alice.
Siegfried
- Drains Phys innately.
- Requires a lot of investment as he only gains Phys Pierce on his second Panel.
- When properly built however, he hits like a truck. Arms Mastery is Great Aim + Phys Amp rolled into one, and it stacks with both of them!
Seraph
- Drains Fire and Light in Teal. This combination makes him a particularly powerful counter to Archangels, as these are their main attacking elements.
- He does not provide much outside of his Drain resistances however. Only use him when making targeted attacks against Archangels.
Finalized Team
To recap, your finalized team should contain Rama and Drain demons of your choice:
Triple Phys Drain Team
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The above team has three Drain Phys demons and Evasive Rama to wall off Physical threats. Susano-o A also doubles as Force Anti-Pierce. Rama is built as a support unit, providing Luster Candy to the party. As the team's main damage source are from physical attacks, Auto-Sukunda is transferred to increase accuracy.
Balanced Drain Team with Intimidating Stance
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A Balanced team consisting of both physical and magic damage, while having three different type of Drains. The team also includes Intimidating Stance as the demons are fairly slow. Combined with Luster Candy, the team is capable of covering all buffs and debuffs.
Checks and Counters
Drain Teams have very flexible builds, as such they can be difficult to fully counter. Some players even choose to tech non-Drain demons in their team that function as counter-counters.
Almighty
Shiva A
Asura Lord
Mother Harlot
Almighty is the only element that cannot be drained. With Almighty, you can ignore Rama and go straight for the main damage demons, completely countering the concept of Drain teams. Be sure to take note of Hecatoncheires though, who will soften AOE damage significantly.
Sniping
Indrajit
Asura Lord
Mahakala
In a similar vein, powerful single target attackers can soft-counter Drain Teams by targeting elements they are not immune to. Indrajit is a very notable check, as none of the Physical Sweepers Drain Elec and his Five Elements upon kill allows him to wall Mother Harlot indefinitely. Some players try to get around this by running double Defensive Autos and Life brands on all of their demons, greatly reducing the odds of being sniped.
Mortal
Alice
Masakado
Taking out Rama instantly makes the rest of the team vulnerable to Pierce. Alice is the best candidate for this as she ignores Endures and Rama's Evasion. Some teams tech Yama and Masakado A to protect themselves against Mortal, take note when you see these demons.
