Hey guys, welcome to the latest New Unit Analysis! Today we'll be having a look at Faris. The earth representative of the latest 6* batch.

We'll be comparing her to a mix of units before taking a look at her role in the current metagame and her future options.

Disclaimer: As always, I try to keep these as objective as possible, but they're ultimately my opinion and yours may differ. Please read them with an open mind and a view to make your own decisions. :>

Flora Goddess Faris vs. Arius, Mariudeth, Duel-SGX, Elza

Faris' stats:

Lord: HP 5962 ATK 1964 DEF 1779 REC 2100

Max imp bonuses: HP 750 ATK 300 DEF 300 REC 300

LS: Increases BB gauge fill rate (BB gauge fill rate 50%)

Hit count: 13 (drop check count 2/hit)

BB: 30 hit single target Earth damage and intrinsic increased HC drop rate (18BC to fill, Self-HC drop rate 30%, damage modifier 480%)

SBB: 20 hit multiple target Earth damage, intrinsic increased HC drop rate and boosts critical hit rate of all allies for 3 turns (43BC to fill, Self-HC drop rate 85%, crit rate 45%, damage modifier 450%)

• Pretty nice stats on the whole, HP doesn't quite break 6k which is a shame but is close enough that it doesn't really matter, ATK is decent but not spectacular, DEF is nice as well and REC is through the roof. She doesn't particularly wow in any of the 'important' stats, but she doesn't really disappoint either. Her imp bonuses are average all round. Her Leader Skill is Ares Excelsior which is obviously great for BB-spam teams. Her normal attack has a great drop check count, but her single target BB holds her back from being a top tier arena unit. That doesn't mean it's bad outside the arena though. It's quick filling and does decent damage with a high drop check count. Her SBB gives her a pretty powerful crit buff as well as some pseudo-healing capability which makes her a viable option as the crit buffer of your squad.

• Our first unit up for comparison today is Arius. Compared to Selena's rabid fan, Faris has better REC ( 160) but loses in every other stat: HP (-60), ATK (-25) and DEF (-115). Obviously none of these differences are particularly large so you can probably think of the two as roughly equal, but Arius does beat her statistically at least on paper. Comparing their SBBs, both units are pseudohealers which is why they're up for comparison with eachother. Arius heals directly with a burst heal, but Faris heals via boosting her own HC drop rate to near 100% (she hits 95%). As a pure pseudo-healer, Arius is probably stronger but it depends a bit on the amount of opponents you're facing. If you're up against one or two, Arius wins, but once you approach 3 or more targets it probalby starts to swing in Faris' favour. Arius however does not have to worry about random allocation of HCs and he doesn't clash with other sources of HC drop rate buffs like Faris does (she already hits 95% with her SBB, any more is mostly wasted). However Faris isn't a pure pseudo-healer, she provides a little bit of healing support while also providing a very powerful offensive buff in the form of her crit rate buff. At 45%, it's the equal second-strongest available crit rate buff available (behind Duel-SGX) until Orna's 6* form and crit buffs are very powerful indeed. Offensively Faris is far superior to Arius with her crit buff and better damage modifier ( 450% vs. 400%). Overall, if you truly need pseudo-healing I'd probably stick with Arius, but if you want a unit that doubles as a crit buff bestower but don't quite want to give up the insurance of having some healing on board, Faris is the girl for you.

• Next up is Mariudeth. Compared to the axe-wielder with super strength, again Faris has better REC ( 555), but loses in the other stats: HP (-110), ATK (-390) and DEF (-25). While defensively, Faris is pretty comparable to Mariudeth (particularly after imps), offensively she loses pretty badly and her having better Imp distribution doesn't quite fix it. Mariudeth probably beats her statistically overall due to his offensive prowess. And indeed that's a trend that continues when you compare their BBs/SBBs. Mariudeth is all about damage, outclassing Faris handily in SBB damage modifier ( 580% vs. Faris' 450%). Funnily enough Faris actually wins in BB damage modifier ( 480% vs. Mariudeth's 450%) but she still ends up doing less damage against single targets due to her inferior base ATK. Faris however has better BC generation (30/20 drop checks vs. 18/15 for Mariudeth) and has the ability to act as a pseudo-healer with her intrinsically high HC drop rate. Their crit buffs are identical in potency, though perhaps notably, Mariudeth has his available in slightly weaker form on his BB while Faris does not. Overall, if you're building a squad for damage, Mariudeth will serve better as a crit buffer compared to Faris because he does a LOT of it. Faris however is someone to consider in more defensive teams, and may be a better fit on BB-spam teams if Mariudeth's BC generation isn't quite cutting it (though if it is, Mariudeth's powerful offensive presence may sway you into taking him over Faris on those teams too). The bottom line is that both units are very acceptable crit buff bestowing units.

• Thirdly today is Duel-SGX. Compared to the mechanical crab, Faris has better HP ( 285), ATK ( 370) and REC ( 580), but lower DEF (-55). Duel-SGX is rather an old unit nowadays, so his stats are a bit dated and it shows here with Faris trouncing him thoroughly. Stats hardly ever make or break the unit though and SGX is still extremely relevant. Comparing their SBBs, Duel-SGX still trounces absolutely everyone in terms of crit buff potency and Faris is no exception. At 60%, Duel-SGX has the distinction of being the only unit able to take everyone else instantly up to the crit cap (70%) without requiring a sphere which is obviously a tremendous feat. In addition the dark attribute buff has always been very useful, ensuring at least neutral damage at all times and being absolutely optimal for use against Light units. He also equals Faris in BC generation capability with his 20 drop checks so he's still very much an excellent unit. Faris on the other hand, can actually do damage which is something SGX is a bit lacking in with his terrible base ATK and weak damage modifier (only 350%). SGX does get fully filled by Tilith from 0 though, which is important when considering a Tilith-based crit-squad for certain fights. With the introduction of Amanohabaken, a readily craftable crit boosting AND damage boosting sphere, Faris' crit buff looks a lot better on squads that focus on ending things within 2 turns and her superior damage probably makes her a better option than SGX against non-Light type units, however SGX definitely has his advantages, freeing up sphere slots, being absolutely optimal against Light type enemies for damage and having the a sub 40BC SBB fill rate for Tilith led squads.

• Finally we have Elza. Compared to Ms. Sister Complex, fellow sister Faris has better HP ( 60) and REC ( 135) but loses in ATK (-120) and DEF (-105). With a negligible REC difference and a negligible bulk difference between these 2 units, it's really who has the higher ATK and that's Elza so she probably wins overall but definitely not by a large margin. These two units both have the Ares' Excelsior leader skill and have SBBs that give powerful offensive buffs. Comparing their SBBs, Faris has a very slightly better fill rate (43BC vs. Elza's 45BC) but this is offset entirely and then some by Elza's fantastic drop check count (30 vs. Faris' 20). Elza also does more damage because of her better base ATK and has a better offensive element. Faris has her crit buff and intrinsically high HC drop rate while Elza has her spark buff. On paper it looks like they're fairly evenly matched and I guess that's a fair call. However, the thing that differentiates them to me is that Elza is undisputably the best spark buffer in the entire game bar none, so she's actually best in slot and a shoe-in on basically any team. While Faris is far from a bad crit buffer, it's difficult to say she's the best of the bunch since there are quite a few alternative options who may or may not perform better in certain situations. Of course if you're missing a crit buffer, Faris is definitely someone you'll want to include on your team, but Elza will pretty much ALWAYS be a top contender for a spot on your squad which is something Faris can't quite claim.

• A very good unit. She's not must-have, best-in-slot or anything, but she joins the ranks of very viable crit buffers, giving you another option available for bestowing an incredibly important offensive buff.

Faris: Indepth Look

• Solid stats. While they're not actually that impressive for a recently released 6* unit (as is evident in the comparisons where she rarely wins a statistical comparison), they're still obviously really competitive. She won't turn any heads, but she'll perform just fine.

• Her Imp bonuses are dead on average, so no real comments to make there.

• Her Leader skill is the Ares' Excelsior Leader Skill which pretty much automatically makes her a very viable BB-spam leader. Somewhat notably, she rounds out the 6 Ares Excelsior leaders currently available, one for each element.

• In this role she has to compete directly with the likes of Bordebegia, Felneus, Uda, Duelmex and Elza. Felneus and Uda still hold fast in terms of pure BB-spam power but Elza and Faris are both great choices since they're very strong units outside the leader position and have strong BC generation with their SBBs.

• Zelnite is also a factor to consider since he not only provides a Leader skill with similar BB-spam power, he also provides a multitude of other buffs as well with his LS. His HC drop rate buff in particular (which Faris actually has trouble taking advantage of with her SBB since he pushes her over 100% HC drop rate) makes him difficult to compete with in the BB-spam leader role.

• Then there's Phee/Zellha/Kuda etc. etc. all of whom have variations for BB-spam teams so there are a lot of options for BB-spam, Faris is just one of them.

• Her normal attack is actually really nice at 26 total drop checks, but having a single target BB hinders her Arena prowess a bit. Still workable but there are definitely better options. If you want a solid Earth arena unit, head Dilma's way, for instance.

• Her BB isn't going to make her a boss killing menace with a good but not AMAZING damage modifier of 450%, but it fills quickly and has good single target BC generation capabilities so it isn't bad at all.

• Her SBB gives her utility as a crit buffer. After SGX, she equals a few other units as the second most powerful crit buffer currently in the game at 45%.

• Crit buffs are very important so this is an important niche. They are amongst the most powerful buffs in the game, because crits MULTIPLY your ATK damage modifiers and the most powerful damage augmenting leader skills all involve crit. Crit damage is vital for dealing mass amounts of damage in Brave Frontier.

• Even for non-crit teams, crit is still a buff you should be trying to fit into your repetoire since even without a crit leader, it's one of the three 'vital' offensive buffs available on BBs/SBBs, the others being elemental weakness and spark damage.

• Without any spheres, Faris will take a unit to at least 55% chance to crit if no crit resistance or intrinsic crit buffs are in play. That's a pretty reliable percentage considering the crit rate cap is 70%, however if you're relying on crits to grab a OHKO, not sitting at 70% understandably might not sit well with you.

• With the advent of the Amanohabaken, this becomes less of an issue. We now have a sphere that can be crafted en masse, that will allow a 45% crit buff to hit the cap (if no crit resistance) while also providing a pretty decent damage boost ( 75% ATK). If your fight isn't likely to last more than 2 turns, then a 40-45% crit buff is often functionally as good as a higher one.

• She competes with Duel-SGX, Aisha and Mariudeth and in the future Kuda most directly for this role and each has their pros and cons (though I guess Aisha is unfortunately probably inferior to all of them). SGX for his dark buff, his ability to free a sphere slot and his Tilith synergy, Mariudeth for his sheer power and Kuda for his dual buffs (he also has the best drop check profile of the bunch).

• Faris brings her pseudo-healing flavour to the bunch so depending on your teams focus, you'll probably choose one of these units as your crit buffer.

• Bordebegia, Garnan, Rashil and Maxwell give weaker crit buffs that probably aren't reliable for crit teams. Meltia actually gives a very strong crit buff and is a very good alternative if you have no one else. Her 6* will be released in JPBF soon so it will be interesting to see just how competitive she becomes.

• In the future Orna will be heavy competition with her stats, stronger crit buff and ability to bestow two elements

• As mentioned in the analysis, Faris is somewhat of a pseudo-healer as well through her intrinsically high HC drop rate buff. She doesn't augment anyone else's drop rate, just hers. I wouldn't depend on her for reliable pseudohealing, to be honest, I'd mainly be using Faris for her crit buff with pseudo-healing as a neat bonus on the side.

• Faris' pseudo-heal does not synergise well with other HC drop rate buffs since her drop rate already sits at 95% on SBB, anything past 100% is absolutely wasted.

• Overall, a solid crit buffing option, not best-in-slot for all occasions but certainly a good unit.

Typing Discussion

• As always, the most important thing to note here is that if typing is the only thing holding you back from using a unit, you should definitely just go ahead and use them. Please don't discard units because their typing isn't 'optimal'.

• Anima first, lots of REC to spare, could use with some more HP. Easy.

• Breaker next, will help some with those OHKO teams, if you're using her for her more defensive effects you might want to run Lord instead though.

• Lord third for the most part though.

• Guardian next, the extra DEF really isn't all that significant and cutting ATK always hurts.

• Finally Oracle. Too much REC.

That's it guys! Hope you enjoyed the read. :>

As always, I welcome your comments/criticims/encouragements. If you found this useful, please drop an upvote on your way out, I'd really appreciate the support. <3

Until next time!

Links to previous Analyses