User blog:Linathan/Squad Spotlight: My Colosseum Squad Analysis

Some of you who found my YouTube channel (surprised for those who found it!) might have noticed a video I posted of me having "Fun with Colosseum" and I thought of a great idea of posting my squad analysis on it. I have gotten a few messages on Line and Skype asking about the choices I made in my Colosseum setup. You asked, I deliver!

It's been a while since I did a Squad Spotlight, so while we wait for the SMT Unit Spotlight posts, let's do something different and talk about my Colosseum setup!

To see how my Colosseum teams performed, click here! https://youtu.be/pbNo-2Chm2U

I will note that this team isn't complete as I still need to reconfigure Elgifs and Spheres in the future.

Squad Setups
First= Second= Enhancements= Admittedly, this Colosseum setup is nowhere in reach of any ordinary F2P, which is more the reason why there are so many specific things about the setup. It's not meant to be easy to make, it's not meant to show-off, and it's not meant to spark arguments about which is the best squad. It's simply for those wondering about my Colosseum setup mainly because it has been highly requested.
 * Battle Formation: Power Strike
 * Support: Brave Rising
 * Battle Formation: Chain Formation
 * Support: Brave Rising

The offensive squad consists of Terry lead and four Azurai. Terry lead is mainly for providing one of the most annoying effects in the game, including reducing damage to 1 and providing the 140% Atk and Def buffs for the first two turns. Thanks to Terry, the squad has high probabilities of tanking through the most dangerous attacks from Mifune and Azurai. Indeed, this relies on a proc rate, but because everything in Arena relies on RNG, the important objective is to be able to have some sort of survivability aspect in Colosseum.

The four Azurai are there mainly because Azurai is extremely strong and tanky. He's one of the only units in those categories who carries both Angel Idol conditions: first being the < 20% HP proc and second being the probable resistance against one KO. If I have tons of units that can live potential KOs, I feel a lot more secure in terms of tanking through heavy hits. The probable resistance also gives me a second chance against units like Mifune or Ravenna. Because of the high amount of HP Azurai carries, he can sometimes live Azurai's SBB without getting one-shotted on the first hit.

The defensive squad consists of Juno-Seto lead, Selena, and three Azurai. Juno-Seto lead is arguably the best defensive squad lead in the game, possibly tied to Terry. Her KO resistance allows another chance of living, especially since Azurai has a maximum of three chances of living. I decided not to use Terry as the lead because I still run into the risk of getting one-shotted by Mifune. Though, in turn, Terry does carry the 1-damage proc as a 20% chance, similarly to how Juno-Seto has a 20% chance of proccing Angel Idol. However, my goal in terms of defending myself on the first turn is to be able to counter effectively. If I can't maximize my chances of getting my BB gauges filled (which is easy with Juno-Seto lead), I won't be able to counter effectively. Easy as that.

Selena is also in the defensive squad instead of a fourth Azurai because of her ability to tank through enemy Azurai a lot easier. Selena has a huge HP pool and with Barrier Mirror and Lexida's total stat bonuses, Selena can live through enough hits to proc her Angel Idol upon being hit by Azurai.

Dealing with Mifune
Mifune is one of the biggest counters to the squad and is known for being easily obtainable and common in most Colosseum setups. It is only a matter of luck that Angel Idol procs to live a single hit from Mifune. The only way for this squad to effectively counter Mifune is to beef up on defenses to tank through Mifune's attacks or to proc Angel Idol either via Azurai's Extra Skill or Juno-Seto's Leader Skill.

However, because Mifune is very glassy, he can be handled very easily. One BB can effectively kill Mifune unless Juno-Seto's Angel Idol procs on her Leader Skill.

Another note is that Mifune may be accompanied with a Mizerka or Gaston lead, both of which can proc normal attack AoE. The damage output is a lot lower compared to Mifune and Azurai leads so thankfully, these leads were the least of my worries.

Dealing with other Azurai
Tankiness is the most important thing in terms of surviving Azurai's attacks. As most might know by now, Azurai's first hit is strong enough to one-shot units if units aren't tanky enough. Selena was the perfect counter to this, mainly thanks to her being Water element to alleviate some of the damage taken enough to proc her Angel Idol buff. I also gave her the Barrier Mirror to up her HP by a ton.

Dealing with Lv999s
This can get extremely edgy. It's given the fact that most Lv999 players in the game also have Sky Orb to beef up their units as well. Most of these teams consist of the similar setup I have, but with even tankier stats thanks to Heaven's Edge and Sky Orb. Not to mention, there's Holia to beef up the entire squad with her Extra Skill. On average, units have around 40000-50000 HP. The average Mifune can't even one-shot with a single SBB.

Not to mention, there is the Lv900 Elgif which fully heals the designated unit every turn. These Elgifs are commonly seen on Terry leads along with Sacred Staff to almost guarantee a resistance against a potential KO. Even worse, Terry leads would be placed in the middle slot to utilize the Kaiser Shield formation, making Terry impenetrable and near-invincible.

To deal with this, I had to hope that my army of Azurai got BB gauges filled. Even after multiple uses of BB, Terry would have a chance of living on due to his BS Leader Skill procs. However, my Lv999 opponents can utilize this as well since they have an army of Azurai. This is more the reason why Selena is slotted in. With Juno-Seto's mitigation and Barrier buffs, Selena can live and survive with her Extra Skill proc. Her damage output isn't as high as Azurai's, but she manages very well. If I get lucky, I can win in the 2nd round instead of 1st round. This is primarily thanks to Juno-Seto's Leader Skill utility that helps Azurai to generate some gauges.

Future Squad Strategizing
To better plan for future seasons of Colosseum, I do hope to acquire Sacred Staff, Sky Orb, and Heaven's Edge (Lv521 and counting!) soon. I also plan on slotting Holia in for more survivability in the squad. Upon obtaining the Sacred Staff, I plan on equipping it to Terry and switching my defense formation to Kaiser Shield to give him more bulk.

Conclusion
That's some heavy work. Can't wait to rank in future seasons of Colosseum!

To see how my Colosseum teams performed, click here! https://youtu.be/pbNo-2Chm2U

Check out my list of analyses in [http://bravefrontierglobal.wikia.com/wiki/User_blog:Linathan/Spotlights:_Table_of_Contents! Spotlights: Table of Contents!]

Check out my other Unit Spotlights:
 * Doombringer Azurai
 * Algor Halcyon Selena
 * Empyrean Juno-Seto
 * Terry Bogard