As usual, Global ratings are my own opinions relative to other character or TMs available at the time this is written (effectively, rating on a curve where a 10/10 unit is the best, or tied with the best, at this exact moment -- not forever), with Japanese ratings coming from altema.jp and are based on the characters current max rarity in Japan. Japanese TM ratings are on a scale from: Unranked, A, S, SS, to SSS.

DUANE:

Rarity: 3★ to 5★

Global Party Rating: 3/10

Duane's role on this banner is to make sure we can't have nice things. You can totally skip ahead to the next character or continue reading as I cover him for the sake of completeness.

Duane is a physical ATK unit with low base ATK (96 ATK 20%) and no stand-out physical attacks but a decent range of low potency breaks giving your party some support. He sports a decent variety of equipment types (dagger, sword, axe, hammer, spear) and most armor types (light shield, heavy shield, helm, clothing, light armor, heavy armor)

Passively, Duane has 10% DEF (but with a low base DEF of 84, it doesn't really make him 'sturdier') and a 30% change to counter magical attacks.

For support, he brings Power Break (15% ATK debuff), Magic Break (15% MAG debuff), and Armor Break (15% DEF debuff) but after the last handful of banners, most of you will have access to a character already with Full Break (30% ATK/MAG/DEF/SPR debuff) and have no use for these.

Offensively, he has Death (30% chance to instant kill -- rarely, if ever, worth casting), Darkside (Lose 30% HP 150% AoE 1 Hit Dark Physical Attack -- slightly higher potency than Bladeblitz, but not worth the health loss), and Drain (ST 80% Attack w/ 30% HP Drain.)

His Limit Burst is a 160% to 255% (depending on rank) AOE dark physical attack with 100% HP drain giving him some sustain paired with mediocre damage.

Finally, his name is really stupid. Duane the Dark Knight? Intimidating.

Japanese Character Rating (altema.jp): 55/100

Global Trust Mastery Rating: Bioga Blade - 2/10

Ability - Single target dark hybrid damage (180%) and 40% chance to poison

Because of the way hybrid attacks work (effectively the ATK damage calculation the MAG damage calculation divided by 2) this is never worth using. Even on characters with high base ATK and MAG, because of the way damage is calculated (based on either ATK² or MAG²⁾ it's only worth stacking one damage type (with hybrid materia like Karl's 20% ATK/MAG giving only very marginal damage increases to hybrid attacks due to the exponential growth of damage by stacking one stat) and you can essentially think of this as a ~90% ATK or MAG attack. Why 2/10 instead of 1/10 when it's so bad? Pilfer exists.

Japanese TM Rating (altema.jp): Unranked

Why would you want Duane?: You don't. Even if you're brand new and he seems better than one of your current party members he's not worth the Sacred Crystals and experience to level up and awaken him.

Is he FUTURE-PROOF?: No. He has not received a 6* upgrade in Japan.

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GARLAND:

Rarity: 3★ to 5★

Global Party Rating: 5/10

Garland is a physical attacker with fairly high base ATK (113 ATK) that comes with Doublehand built in ( 50% ATK from equipment -- not affected by base ATK -- as long as he only has one single-handed weapon equipped and nothing in his offhand) but no standout physical attacks. He has a decent weapon selection (sword, greatsword, katana, axe, mace) and a somewhat limiting armor selection (light shield, heavy shield -- please don't use a shield -- helm, light armor, and heavy armor.) Also of note, Garland at 5★ has NO ability slots. No giving him ATK materia. No giving him barrage. You only have his kit to work with.

Passively, he has the very desirable Man-Eater ( 50% damage to humans), a 30% chance to counter, Auto-protect and the underwhelming Mediguard (Heal 50HP 0.1x mod when guarding.)

For support he has Power Break (15% ATK debuff) but you probably have better already.

Offensively, his only ATK based attack is Darkside (Lose 30% HP 150% AoE 1 Hit Dark Physical Attack) which is slightly stronger than Bladeblitz's 140% but hard to justify the HP cost.

His Limit Burst is a 250% to 345% (depending on rank) AOE Dark physical attack.

Japanese Character Rating (altema.jp): 93/100

Global Trust Mastery Rating: Equip L Sword - 6/10

Materia - Allows you to equip Greatswords

This ability is difficult to rank as it's value really depends on the player and their team. For characters with limited weapon options (CoD, Elza, etc) it can open up that character a lot to be able to equip an Excalibur or Deathbringer but this only really has value if you have a TM Greatword(s) and you have a character with limited equipment options. Depending on your play-style this can be anywhere between pretty good and useless.

Japanese TM Rating (altema.jp): A Tier

Why would you want Garland?: Either you'll want him for his future 6★ upgrade (which will be good, but not amazing on Global) or you want his TM for use with a character like Elza or CoD. Garland is unlikely to be worth the resources to awaken and level and put in your team today.

Is he FUTURE-PROOF?: Yes. Garland has received a 6★ upgrade in Japan. It will not be as strong on Global as in Japan due to being unable to stack multiple copies of Doublehand but he's still a 6★ capable unit that starts at 3★. Garland has received Ability Enhancements in Japan, but as most of them are based on skills Garland receives in his 6★ upgrade (which I won't be covering until it's announced for Global) it's best to click through to his character page on the Reddit wiki to see those ability enhancements if you're interested.

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CLOUD OF DARKNESS:

Rarity: 3★ to 6★

Global Party Rating: 9/10

Cloud of Darkness is a physical attacker/support with very high ATK (149 ATK 50%), strong physical attacks, and solid utility. She has an awful selection of weapons (rod, staff, thrown, mace) and good enough equipment choices (hat, clothing, and robe.)

Passively, Cloud of Darkness brings not just the very desirable Man-Eater ( 50% DMG to humans) but also Man-Eater ( 75% DMG to humans) giving her an innate 125% DMG to humans. She also brings 20% HP, 30% resistance to all status effects, and 50% resistance to all elements. She's sturdy, but in Arena her Achilles' heel is Raise which will one-shot her.

For support, Cloud of Darkness brings Comeback (AOE Esuna) and Omni-Veil (3 Turn AOE increase all elemental resistance by 30%) but on one or two element fights you're likely better off bringing the cheaper and stronger bar-element-ra of the appropriate element(s) on a green magic user. Tilith, if you have her, brings a strong version of Omni-Veil (40% vs 30%) for all elements except Dark. Cloud of Darkness also has Armor Break (15% DEF debuff) but you likely have better and Protectga but hopefully you have Cheer or Embolden -- either of which make Protectga obsolete.

Offensively, Cloud of Darkness brings Barrage and Call of the Void (Single target 210% dark physical damage ignore 25% DEF -- this normalizes to a 280% DMG ability.) In most situations you'll be better off using Barrage, but if, let's say hypothetically, there was a boss soon with -100% Dark Resist and you wanted to Max(well) your damage against them, Call of the Void would be equal to a 560% DMG ability before Man-Eaters. If you factored in her Man-Eaters this will do the same damage against a human target with -100% Dark resist as a 1260% DMG ability would without the passives or element. Not too shabby.

For extra utility, Cloud of Darkness also brings Aura Ball, which is an AOE 3 Turn -30% ATK and 40% chance to silence.

Finally, Cloud of Darkness' Limit Burst is is an AOE 270% to 390% (depending on rank) physical ATK with a 40% to 64% (also depending on rank) chance to blind.

Japanese Character Rating (altema.jp): 89/100

Global Trust Mastery Rating: Auto-Limit - 4/10

Materia - Increases the limit break gauge by 1 each turn.

It's like giving the character equipping this one extra red LB crystal per turn. I'm sure you have better TMs to work on.

Japanese TM Rating (altema.jp): B Tier

Why would you want Cloud of Darkness?: If you can work around her awful weapon selection, Cloud of Darkness is the best 3★ base attacker on Global presently. Even if you missed the Lunar Pestle or don't have Locke's TM weapon (Rising Sun) other weapons will be released for her "soon" and even equipped with a Kangaroo she'll still do respectable damage.

Is she FUTURE-PROOF?: Yes but Cloud of Darkness will be outclassed by future units due to her inability to chain effectively. She has received Ability Enhancements in Japan which include upgrading Barrage from a 4x 80% Random Target Attack to a 5x 100% Random Target Attack, upgrading Man-Eater from 75% to 125%, and upgrading Veil of Omnipotence to lower the MP cost from 53 to 40 and to add 50% resistance to all status effects.

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GAFFGARION:

Rarity: 4★ to 5★

Global Party Rating: 6/10

Gaffgarion is a physical attacker with fairly high ATK (113 ATK 20%) and decent AOE damage abilities but no strong single target ability. He has an below-average selection of weapons (dagger, sword, hammer, spear) and somewhat limiting selection of equipment (helm, light armor, and heavy armor.)

Passively, he has 20% HP and a 30% chance to counter physical attacks.

Offensively, he has two AOE dark physical damage abilities that have HP costs -- they are Unholy Sacrifice (Lose 40% HP 250% AoE 1 Hit Dark Physical Attack) and Darkside (Lose 30% HP 150% AoE 1 Hit Dark Physical Attack) but he also brings Bladeblitz (140% AoE 1 Hit Physical Attack) if you want to save the HP cost and/or avoid the dark element. Lastly, he also brings the once much loved Graviga (AOE -75% HP.)

For extra utility, Gaffgarion brings Weapon Bash (160% ST 1 Hit Physical Attack & 50% Paralyze) and Duskblade (140% ST 1 Hit Physical Attack & ST 30% Attack w/ 30% MP Drain) giving him some sustain and allowing him to drain MP in Arena

Finally, Gaffgarion's Limit Burst is a 240% to 335% (depending on rank) 1 hit single target physical attack with 100% HP drain giving him some sustain with decent damage.

Japanese Character Rating (altema.jp): 89/100

Global Trust Mastery Rating: Bracer - 8/10

Accessory - 15% HP / 30 ATK

Extra HP is always good (not dying is the most effective way to beat a boss -- yes I'm recycling this lackluster joke from the last time I reviewed Bracer) and 30 ATK makes this better than Hero's Ring on any physical attacker. The fact that this has flat ATK on it will allow it to benefit from Doublehand (or better.)

Japanese TM Rating (altema.jp): S Tier (but they have Doublehand stacking)

Why would you want Gaffgarion?: His TM. His TM is good, but I don't think it's good enough to be pulling for a 4★ base character to get it. Gaffgarion himself is unimpressive -- especially for a 4★ base character.

Is he FUTURE-PROOF?: Yes, in that he has a 6★ upgrade in Japan, but no in that it's lackluster. Gaffgarion has not received Ability Enhancements in Japan.

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DARK KNIGHT CECIL:

Rarity: 5★ to 6★

Global Party Rating: 8/10

Dark Knight Cecil is a physical attacker with very high ATK (155 ATK 50%) and strong AOE and single target physical attacks -- but they all come at the cost of his health. He has an great selection of weapons (dagger, sword, greatsword, katana, spear) and somewhat limiting selection of equipment (light shield, heavy shield, helm, light armor, and heavy armor.)

Passively, he has 100% dark resist, 20% DEF, 20% HP, and (like most 5★ base characters) Auto-Refresh (Recover 5% MP per turn.) Also, when Dark Knight Cecil drops below 30% HP, he gains 20% DEF/SPR and 30% ATK/MAG but these will not stack with Cheer or Focus (or better.)

Offensively, he has two AOE dark physical damage abilities that have HP costs -- they are Dark Cannon (Lose 40% HP 250% AoE 1 Hit Dark Physical Attack) and Darkside (Lose 30% HP 150% AoE 1 Hit Dark Physical Attack.) His single target ability is Soul Eater (Lose 49% HP 320% 1 Hit Dark Physical Attack.) Please note that if Dual Wield is placed on Dark Knight Cecil, all of the health costs of the above abilities trigger twice.

Finally, Dark Knight Cecil's Limit Burst is a Lose 20% HP 270% to 390% AoE 1 Hit Dark Physical Attack, which I find exceptionally annoying in explorations with Auto-LB turned watching Dark Knight Cecil slowly kill himself LB by LB.

Japanese Character Rating (altema.jp): 95/100

Global Trust Mastery Rating: Deathbringer - 8/10

Weapon - Greatsword - 120 ATK dark element Man-Eater

Objectively better than Excalibur due to Man-Eater, but it's rarity (being attached to a 5★ base character) and the overall rarity of dark element weapons to chain with hurt it a bit (but only a little bit.) In Arena this will help you chew through pesky Cecils much more easily than the RESIST spam you'll receive with an Excalibur equipped.

Japanese TM Rating (altema.jp): SS Tier

Why would you want Dark Knight Cecil?: His future Ability Enhancements make him a very strong character several months from now and his TM is great but as for today, if you get him he's probably worth using but as a mediocre 5★ base he's definitely not worth going all in on.

Is he FUTURE-PROOF?: Yes, Dark Knight Cecil has received Ability Enhancements in Japan. They include, upgrading his Skikkoku from 20% ATK 50% Dark Resist to 40% ATK 75% Dark Resist, and automatically heal himself for 9999 HP each turn. He also upgrades Soul Eater (Lose 49% HP 320% 1 Hit Dark Physical Attack) to Lose 60% HP 750% 1 Hit Dark Physical Attack 3 Turn -100% Dark Resist. Finally Dark Cannon (Lose 40% HP 250% AoE 1 Hit Dark Physical Attack) upgrades to (Lose 40% HP 350% AoE 1 Hit Dark Physical Attack & AoE 3 Turn -50% Dark Resist)

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SHOULD YOU PULL?: Do you have room for a Cloud of Darkness? Pull until you get her. Already have her (or better)? You can skip this banner. Dark Knights are underwhelming and rarely are their abilities worth the HP cost. The only good TMs on this banner are on the 4★ base and 5★ base characters (making them too rare for the investment for most.) Gumi is suggesting that this banner is to help you defeat Maxwell, and CoD will, but the rest are skippable and not worth pulling for (or even leveling) for one encounter. Dark Knight Cecil does get much stronger in the future, but if you're going to go all in for a 5★ base character there will be much better options later.