Archangels

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WIP by Reika

Overview

Archangels is a term for a team consisting of (at least one) of the three Archangels Uriel, Gabriel and/or Raphael, with a total of three Herald or Divine demons in the party to unlock their passives.

Concept

  • The three Archangels each have a passive that will trigger at the start of your turn if you have at least three Herald and/or Divine demons alive.
    • Uriel has God's Fire, which deals piercing fire damage to three random enemies and buffs your whole party's attack.
    • Raphael has God's Blessing, which heals your team and buffs their defense.
    • Gabriel has God's Word, which deals piercing light damage to all enemies while buffing your whole party's EV/AC.
  • This lets your deal massive damage and buff up at the start of your turn, without using any press turn icons. Additionally, as it is a chain attack hitting into Anti-Pierce will not consume press turns.
  • On top of this, all three Archangels have powerful piercing spells of their own:
  • Combined with the initial damage and buffs offered by their passives, they can easily nuke an entire team down Turn 1, making them a very formidable Turn-1-Kill team comp.

Pros and Cons

Pros:

  • Very powerful team, capable of ending battles in a single turn.
  • As most fights end very quickly, it allows you to climb the PVP ladder faster if doing last minute pot rushes.
  • Magic is very reliable as it doesn't miss, and the Archangels have Pierce on all of their spells. Even when faced with Anti-Pierce, their passives hitting into NDR will not lose them press turns, allowing them to keep the momentum going.
  • Has a very high damage ceiling, depending on how much you are willing to invest in the team.
  • Thematically pleasing.

Cons:

  • Pretty high entry cost - all three Archangels are Banner exclusives.
  • Very reliant on going first. Being outsped is a death sentence.
  • Pass a certain point in PVP, a lot of defense teams are designed to hate on Archangels.

Team

Now lets go in-depth as to how to build this Team.

Core Demons

Although there is no hard rule on which of the Archangels you must use for the strat, it is generally agreed that Uriel and Gabriel are the two core demons for this team:

  • They both deal piercing AOE damage to every enemy (Uriel through Sunrise, Gabriel through God's Word).
  • Uriel's attack buff is very much appreciated for a glass cannon team.
  • Gabriel has the option of running Red for Mahamadyne, giving her an active AOE. Bear in mind that it will not pierce though.

Uriel

Uriel.jpg Uriel

  • A very powerful Fire Mage
  • Purple is his best color, as all your relevant skills are of the Fire element and will greatly benefit from Fire Enhancement.
  • In terms of Team order, you will want him to go before your other Heralds, so that they can benefit from the attack buff granted by God's Fire. There are two ways of doing this, either through lead brands or Mitama.
    • Lead brands will bump you up 1 slot in turn order. They are farmed from Brands of Sin Vanity stages.
    • You can also use Mitama infusion to bump up his AGI. As all the Heralds are pretty close in AGI and you can infuse a max of +20 AGI, you can easily manipulate the turn order to your liking.
    • In the event two demons have the same AGI, turn order for the two is determined via their position on the team roster. As such, it is better to speed tie demons, so you can freely switch them up as you wish.
  • Sunrise should be maxed with Kasane for T1 potential and additional damage.
  • He has the best panels among all Archangels. P2 chains a Rakunda (defense down) debuff on your opponent after God's Fire procs. This greatly increases your team's damage, and should be a priority to panel if you get the choice.
Skills and Brands
  • Fire Amp and Fire Boost are good choices to further boost his damage
  • Speedster and [[Epitome of Swiftness] can be used to raise battle speed. Going first is vital for the team.
  • Divine Brands are required to cast Sunrise on Turn 1. Speed brands are the recommended sub-set to raise battle speed.

Gabriel

Gabriel.jpg Gabriel

  • A light specialist.
  • She can run either Red or Purple, depending on your preference:
    • Red grants her access to discounted Mahamadyne. This is useful to sweep teams without Light NDR, like certain Intimidating Stance teams. However, be careful as it does not pierce.
    • Purple gives her Elec Enhancement. As she wants to focus on Light damage, the increased Elec damage portion of the passive is largely wasted. It will however let her nuke slightly harder against demons with uncovered Light weakness, for example Hecate and Lilith.
  • Ascension should be maxed with Kasane for T1 potential and additional damage.
Skills and Brands
  • Light Amp, Light Enhancement and Fire Boost are good choices to further boost her damage
  • Speedster and [[Epitome of Swiftness] can be used to raise battle speed.
  • Maxed Ascension has a MP cost of 5. As such, she can run Spell brands for more damage and still be able to cast it T1. Speed brands are the recommended sub-set to raise battle speed.
    • If you picked Red, you will need to run Divines in order to cast Mahamadyne turn 1. This can impact her damage.

Third Herald

In order to unlock their passives, a minimum of three Herald / Divine demons are required. As such, one of the following demons is used to fulfill the requirements.

Raphael

Raphael.jpg Raphael

  • Third of the Archangel trio. As his passive does not deal damage, he is not treated as a core demon.
  • He does however complement the team very well, being a powerful Force mage. Tailwind is useful for cleaning up any demons that survive your initial onslaught and it also breaks Endures. It should also be maxed with Kasane for reduced MP cost and more damage.
  • Purple is the recommended color, as Force Enhancement lets him nuke even harder.
  • Force Amp and Force Boost are good choices to further boost his damage.
  • Speedster and [[Epitome of Swiftness] can be used to raise battle speed.
  • Maxed Tailwind has a MP cost of 5. As such, he can run Spell brands for more damage and still be able to cast it T1. Speed brands are the recommended sub-set to raise battle speed.
  • Compared to the other options, Raphael is a lot faster, letting the team hit higher battle speeds. On the flip side, Tailwind's random targeting nature might backfire at times due to bad RNG, and it can be stopped by certain Anti-Pierce combinations such as Rama + Susano-o A.

Mastema

Mastema.jpg Mastema

  • Mastema's signature skill Trial of Hate is a powerful AOE light attack that also applies a random debuff.
    • This attack does not pierce by default though. Light Pierce (weak) is mandatory as NDR Light is common.
    • With Panel 3, he will apply two random debuffs instead.
  • He gains access to Light Amp in purple, and P1 further increases his light damage.
  • As he is one of the easier 4x4 fusions in the game, he is one of the more achievable P3 demons.
  • He needs to run Divine Brands in order to cast Trial of Hate T1. Speed brands are the recommended sub-set to raise battle speed.
  • Pick Mastema if you want another AOE sweeper to go with your other AOEs.

Metatron

Metatron.jpg Metatron

  • Metatron's Fire of Sinai is similar to Raphael's Tailwind, a random-targeting skill. However, it does 5 hits instead of 4, and is almighty element instead of Force.
    • This makes it a lot safer for him to spam, as Almighty can only be stopped by Five Elements (which you should not be seeing if you are going first!)
    • As with Tailwind, this is a very useful spell for cleaning up and breaking Endures.
  • Red gains access to discounted Mahamadyne, giving you the option of casting either an AOE or Fire of Sinai for clean-up.
    • Mahamadyne will not pierce though, so bear that in mind.
  • Metatron has the highest Base Magic among the options, and has access to Infinite Chakra by default, allowing him to run Spell Brands and still be able to spam either Mahamadyne or Fire of Sinai turn 1.
    • While not easy to achieve, Panel 3 increases all damage dealt by a significant margin.
  • Pick Metatron if you are okay with sacrificing a bit of battle speed for more reliable firepower.

The other Herald / Divine demons don't provide enough advantages to be considered. Please keep your Seraphs on Democalypse duty.

Fourth demon

While you could run 4 Heralds, aesthetics aside there is little reason to do so. Your last team slot is better suited for another demon that compliments the team better, namely for improving battle speed.

Masakado A

Masakado A.jpg Masakado A

  • Arguably one of the most meta-defining demons. Guardian of the East provides your team an additional Press Turn going first, giving you even more turns to delete them Turn 1.


  • Metatron's Fire of Sinai is similar to Raphael's Tailwind, a random-targeting skill. However, it does 5 hits instead of 4, and is almighty element instead of Force.
    • This makes it a lot safer for him to spam, as Almighty can only be stopped by Five Elements (which you should not be seeing if you are going first!)
    • As with Tailwind, this is a very useful spell for cleaning up and breaking Endures.
  • Red gains access to discounted Mahamadyne, giving you the option of casting either an AOE or Fire of Sinai for clean-up.
    • Mahamadyne will not pierce though, so bear that in mind.
  • Metatron has the highest Base Magic among the options, and has access to Infinite Chakra by default, allowing him to run Spell Brands and still be able to spam either Mahamadyne or Fire of Sinai turn 1.
    • While not easy to achieve, Panel 3 increases all damage dealt by a significant margin.
  • Pick Metatron if you are okay with sacrificing a bit of battle speed for more reliable firepower.
Gacha Exclusives

The best choices are, sadly, Gacha-Exclusive:

Yoshitsune
Asura
Guan Yu
  • Really good STR, fairly low AGI, but Dragon Blade is the best Skill for this team though!
    • Good ST, which then inflicts good AoE Damage! Loyal God of War also regenerates MP on Kill (and gives AC%!), which makes him be able to use it multiple times.
  • Archetype does not matter here.
  • Consider transferring Phys Boost and Good Aim (if you struggle with Acc) or Serial Killer (Butcher if you have it) or Berserker.
Masakado
  • Highest STR in Game, low AGI, good AoE Skill with inherent Vorpal Blade, really good ST Skill Occult Flash.
  • Purple Archetype is best, as it gives Phys Amp.
  • As he does not have a way to regen MP as the other three do, we need Mana Aid on him for perfect auto-battling. Other Transfer should be Phys Boost.



Other good Gacha Choices include:

Siegfried
Matador
  • High STR, really high AGI
  • As no AoE Skill is inherent, Red Archetype is recommended for 5MP Hades Blast.
  • Transfers should be Phys Amp and Phys Boost. You shouldnt have Acc problems with his amount of AGI and decent luck.
Huang Di
Shiva A
  • Unique skill Third Eye is a Mag Atk-based skill that can critical and benefits from Red Zone the same way as physical attacks.
  • Very high MAG, high AGI, decent LUK
  • Archetype doesn't matter. Comes with Mana Aid when summoned as Purple and Great Aim when summoned as Yellow.
  • Because Third Eye costs 8 MP (or 7 at max level), Mana Aid is highly recommended, even for manual play.
Non-Gacha Demons

Now, there are multiple other Demons that fit well in to this team:

Hanuman
Pallas Athena
Wu Kong
Shiva
  • Really high STR, good AGI, decent Luck, inherent Vorpal Blade and Serial Killer
  • Archetype doesnt matter.
  • Pralaya can't critical, but it can be useful in PvP against Alilat and Rama, or against enemies with extremely high evasion.
  • Mana Aid or Panel 3 completion is needed for perfect auto-battling; other transfer Phys Boost/Phys Amp or Butcher.
Seth
  • Really high STR, decent AGI, really high Luck, one of the best ST Nukes in game with Ouas
  • Archetype doesnt matter - Preferably Teal to not fuck up AI.
  • If Clear, use Titanomachia and Divine brands. Otherwise transfer Herculean Strike and use War.
  • Transfer Phys Boost/Phys Amp.
Rakshasa
  • Really high STR, high AGI, decent luck.
  • In wave-less fights (PvP and Aura Gate), Rakshasa's auto-Might effect will let you get in an extra action if it acts before Hell Biker.
  • Archetype doesnt matter.
  • Transfer Herculean Strike and Phys Boost/Phys Amp.
Yatagarasu
  • Decent STR, Really high AGI, inherent Hades Blast, inherent Speedster, inherent Auto-Sukunda
  • Low VIT and HP, but evasion makes up for it somewhat.
  • Clear Archetype gets Phys Boost. Red Archetype gets Mortal Jihad at 5 MP. Purple Archetype gets Evade and is sometimes used in PvP.
  • At level 50, Yatagarasu will have an AGI stat that's two points higher than Hell Biker, making him go first. This is fine for manual play - just Pass on the first action - but for auto-battling you should correct this with Mitama Infusion or Lead Brands. (If two demons have exactly the same AGI, turn order is determined by their placement in the party select screen.)
  • Probably the best overall 4* physical attacker, its speed can make it as useful as many of the natural 5* demons.
Kartikeya
  • Decent STR, tied for highest AGI in game
  • Excellent passive skills: Great Aim, Speedster, and unique skill Skanda
  • Inherent Mortal Jihad is a decent ST attack
  • Will have 27 more AGI than Hell Biker at level 50, which requires manual play or Lead Brands on Hell Biker
  • Transfer Herculean Strike and Phys Boost/Phys Amp
  • Incredibly expensive to fuse. Fusing the necessary ingredients and then performing the Multi-Fusion to create it will require about eight million Magnetite.

Alternative to Zaou-Gongen

If you don't have ZG or don't want to use him, you can also use Hell Biker with 3 Phys Pierce Demons. In this case ZGs Unique Ability would be wasted and you can use a better Attacker instead.

The rest of this Guide is still valid, but theres a lot less Demons to choose from in this case.

Our List boils down to:

This strategy can also be used without phys pierce in some areas which don't have phys resistances like Kiwami/Mara.

Brands

  • Generally you want to use War Brands on all Attackers as to maximise the damage.
    • If using a 6MP Skill without Mana Aid, use Divine.
  • Second Set for Attackers is generally Aim, unless your Terts are really good and/or you got Panel upgrades for Acc (such as Yoshi Panel 1)
  • You want to Aim for 15% to 25% Acc minimum, depending on Demon (AGI and Luck Stat) and Content you want to do (S10 needs more Acc than D10 for example)
    • Acc is crucial in Hell Gongen Teams, as a miss can potentially ruin your whole run by killing your team outright or messing up your rotation.
    • If you can hit that Acc without Aim Set, you can also go for Speed Set, if needed.
  • As mentioned above, Hell Biker needs Divine Set (if maxed Red Zone and no Mana Aid), second Set doesnt matter, can be Speed if you want/need.
    • If using Mana Aid, go for War.
  • On everything else, go for as much PAtk% as possible.

Perfect RArm/LArm/Legs would look like:

  • PAtk% Primary
  • PAtk+ Secondary
  • Acc% Tert
  • Speed% Tert
  • Last slot does not really matter, "perfect" would be HP%, but you want every upgrade to go to Acc ideally.

Perfect Head/Body:

  • PAtk+ Secondary
  • PAtk% Tert
  • Acc% Tert
  • Speed% Tert (Same as above, you want all upgrades to go to Acc ideally)

Alterations for Kiwami

  • To easily do Kiwamis, you can change out Phys Boost on most Attackers in a Hell Gongen team with Charge.
  • To pull this off, a Yoshitsune is ideal, as his Hassou Tobi is ideal for finishing off the Boss in the end.
    • Asura could work too, its untested for now.
  • A good Debuff for Hell Biker is recommended, see his section.
  • Be sure to outspeed the boss (Check Kiwami for Battlespeed information).
  • For most, you do not even need Zaou-Gongen, as there is no NDR Phys.


  • Any Kiwami can be cheesed this way except for Orcus, Garuda and Lakshmi.
    • Most are very brand-dependant though, as they are still hard encounters.

Steps:

  • Start clearing Wave 1, but leave one demon alive with low HP. Leave 2 uses of Red Zone.
  • Cast Red Zone, so everyone gains Might.
  • Use Charge on all your attackers.
  • Pass until everyone is at full MP.
  • Kill the last demon using HB.
  • As you go first, debuff the enemy team with HB, then clear the adds with your non-Yoshi(or Asura) Attackers. Pass with Yoshi (or Asura).
  • When its HBs turn again, use Red Zone again.
  • When only the boss is alive, use Hassou Tobi for huge Damage on the Boss.


  • If the Boss is not dead, you can either pray one of your attackers survives so he can finish it off or you need better brands.


  • Example Video
    • With better brands, it is possible to T1 her. This is true for most Kiwamis.

PvP

Because Hell Gongen teams are very good at doing damage quickly, they seem like an obvious choice for a PvP Offense team. Unfortunately their raw power means that (almost) every defense team you will face will have a way not to get immediately shredded by Phys Pierce attackers. Usually this means Alilat for Repel Pierce or Rama for Drain Pierce, but teams with Orcus, double Intimidating Stance, extremely high Phys Evasion, or extremely high Battle Speed can also avoid automatically losing to Hell Gongen offenses.

On the other hand, an extremely fast Hell Gongen team can work tolerably well in PvP defense, because many offense teams expect to go first against most opponents and aren't prepared to endure a round of Hell Gongen attacks before they get to act. A Hell Gongen defense team should have at least 30,000 Battle Speed and usually includes Yatagarasu, Fenrir, and/or Kartikeya in its two flexible slots.

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