Astaroth/Strategy
NOTE: This page currently under construction.
(This page is for Astaroth strategy guide. For the standard Astaroth page, click here.)
For the sake of simplicity, this article will refer to Astaroth/Astarte as just Astaroth.
Overview
Astaroth is a very interesting unit whose main gimmick is to cycle between 
None and 
Magic weapon types through the activation of their CS. The ☆3 and ☆4 rarities are tailored for different roles, with the former being a fantastic support when None typed and the latter being one of the best attackers in the game as a Magic type. However, both rarities start off as the other weapon type, making it desirable to charge their CS as quick as possible. While in this charging phase, each rarity can perform the other's role to a lesser extent but still rather decently. Ultimately, as a free unit, Astaroth acts as one of the best mixed supports/attackers in the game, and the different rarities switch the balance of the two roles.
☆3 Astaroth
Astaroth has extremely potent support skills that activate when missing but begins as a Magic type unit and only changes into a None type with the activation of their CS. These skills include +500 HP, +20 CP, 
ATK UpATK Up by 1.1x ~ 2.2x for 4 turns (Buff), and 
DEF UpDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 4 turns (Buff) that are bestowed one square away from ☆3 Astaroth. This flexibility in range combined with 
ComboATK Down by 0.6x (excepting charge attacks), attack twice each turn for 2 turns (Buff) from ☆3 Astaroth's CS makes them one of the best healers/CP batteries/mixed buffers in the game. The main downside is that ☆3 Astaroth needs to charge CP to get to such a point, which can be done through their LB2 which gives CP when attacking. Thus, this rarity of Astaroth will appreciate some form of sustain/protection or external CP charging to be used at full potential.
☆4 Astaroth
On the other hand, 
Astaroth is an extremely powerful attacker but begins as a None type and only changes into a Magic type unit with their CS. As an attacker, they effectively have consistent access to three offensive buffs through the extra damage from their LB1 and 
WeaknessDEF Down by 1.2x ~ 2.4x for 1 turn (Debuff) and ATK UpATK Up by 1.1x ~ 2.2x for 4 turns (Buff) from their LB3. As such, ☆4 Astaroth is a premier attacker who will easily be compatible with most offensive buffers in the game. Moreover, as a None unit, ☆4 Astaroth has a skill which gives +50 CP after missing, meaning that it will take two turns or less to get them up to speed. Similar to the other rarity, ☆4 Astaroth will desire some team support to facilitate this early phase of battle.
Highlights
Class:
Gameplay Role:
Pros
+
Cons
-
Gameplay Role
As mentioned above, both rarities of Astaroth operate as attacker and mixed support with ☆3 Astaroth being a better mixed support while ☆4 Astaroth is a better attacker. As such, the roles of Astaroth can be neatly divided along such categories.
☆3 Astaroth
Mixed Support
Astaroth is an excellent mixed support due to their ability to grant ATK UpATK Up by 1.1x ~ 2.2x for 4 turns (Buff) and DEF UpDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 4 turns (Buff), two rather rare and long-lasting buffs, to allies in a relatively large area of effect of one square away. This makes Astaroth suitable for support of most units in the game due to aforementioned rarity of said buffs and flexibility in positioning. A possibility of concern is that the proc rates in Astaroth's LB2 and LB3 are rather low. However, this is not really much of an issue for several reasons. First, Astaroth's CS grants 
Glint+10% skill activation rate for 2 turns (Buff) and ComboATK Down by 0.6x (excepting charge attacks), attack twice each turn for 2 turns (Buff) to Astaroth. This means that an unseeded Astaroth effectively has an 84% chance of proccing either buff (100% - (40%)^2). The second reason is that the duration of both buffs is rather high, so Astaroth needs to only supply the buffs once and then wait another four turns. This effectively mitigates the effect of consistency issues which would happen with other buffs such as Limit. Lastly, the buffs are decoupled, making the chance of not receiving any buff to be quite smaller.
The other aspect of Astaroth as a mixed support is their healing/CP charging. Like above, Astaroth has the ability of healing/CP charging from one square away as opposed to directly adjacent, which is very rare among such archetypes. Furthermore, the amount which Astaroth heals/CP charges can be rather large. With Combo, Astaroth can heal up to 1000 HP and 40 CP if both effects proc. For comparison, the best CP chargers on move only charge up to +20CP at a time (although usually with an extra +8 CP from 
Acceleration+8CP/turn for 3 turns (Buff)). On the other hand, this is comparable to hitting four units with [Hoster of Feasts] which would give 800 HP and 40 CP albeit to enemies as well. As such, Astaroth may not take the title of best CP battery from units such as 
Choji or 
Licht, but Astaroth does have the advantage of a more flexible range and the aforementioned buffs to allies.
Stats and Seed Usage
| Unit | Max HP (unseeded) | Max HP (seeded) | Max ATK (unseeded) | Max ATK (seeded) | Max normal ATK per square (unseeded) | Max normal ATK per square (seeded) | Max CS ATK per square (unseeded, SALV1) | Max CS ATK per square (seeded, SALV1) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
   |
6668 | 8723 | 3203 | 4720 | 897 | 1322 | 1794 | 2643 |
   |
6236 | 8143 | 4955 | 6610 | 1388 | 1851 | 4163 | 5552 |
The above table calculates ATK per square assuming Magic type for practical purposes.
It is highly recommended to skill seed Astaroth for gameplay reasons. Astaroth has a plethora of sub-100% procs which skill seeds would help tremendously with. In particular, guaranteeing ☆4 Astaroth's +50 CP when missing is extremely desirable for consistency reasons. Afterwards, it's best to invest ATK seeds into Astaroth, since it'll give a nice boost in damage especially for the ☆3 rarity who can actually do a surprising chunk of damage with the right help. HP seeds are also nice since both units can benefit from more bulk.
Team Synergy
Combo Bestowers
Since Astaroth's skills trigger when attacking or missing, ComboATK Down by 0.6x (excepting charge attacks), attack twice each turn for 2 turns (Buff) is a highly treasured buff and teammates who can give it to Astaroth are extremely valuable for speeding up the process of charging Astaroth's CP. It's most effective on ☆4 Astaroth in order to continually retain Magic type, whereas it's impossible for ☆3 Astaroth to do such a feat with None type. There are only a limited number of such units so far so consider using 
Seth (Beachside) and 
Volos.
CP Batteries
This applies mostly to ☆3 Astaroth since their method of CP acquisition is somewhat inconsistent, but CP batteries benefit Astaroth quite a bit since their main power is locked behind their CS. This is particularly useful for charging CP after Astaroth has already activated their CS, since the ☆3 rarity has no way of self charging their CP while None typed and the ☆4 rarity would also rather be attacking as much as possible while Magic typed. Some good CP batteries include 
Chernobog (Beachside), Choji, and 
Snow.
Healers/Defensive Support
This is a problem more for ☆3 Astaroth due to their lack of self-healing and DEF UpDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 4 turns (Buff), but Astaroth would generally benefit from some form of healing/protection, especially for the first few turns to charge CS. Classic defenders like Snow, 
Aizen, and 
Surtr apply here.
Checks and Counters
CP Reduction
Both rarities of Astaroth desire to use their CS, so most forms of CP reduction greatly hinder this goal. Common ailments such as 
FearCannot move at will, -10CP/turn for 5 turns (Debuff) are very annoying for Astaroth, although thankfully they don't really need to move. For the level 80 dungeon quest in particular, Slimes are an issue due to their CP reduction when damaged. This is an issue for the ☆3 rarity in particular, since their method of CP charging depends on attacking enemies.
Buff Removal/Nullification
Since an integral part of their kit is changing their weapon, they can easily be countered by removing/nullifying such buffs. This arguably would also extend to enemies who may in the future be able to change weapons similar to Licho, but in some cases ☆3 Astaroth might welcome such a change.
Teambuilding Options
This section consists of user-submitted builds that may not necessarily be viable for high level quests.
Combo Astarte
| Team Details (submitted by milk) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chernobog 【Healer, CP Battery, Mixed Buffer】 |
Astaroth 【Damage Dealer, Mixed Buffer】 |
 Licho 【Debuffer】 |
Seth 【Mixed Buffer, Debuffer】 |
 Anyone / no one 【Flexible】 |
Anyone / no one 【Flexible】 |
| Cost: ≥58 | |||||
This is the main team that I use for dungeons and initial tries for challenge quests, and it's a favorite of mine due to the synergy between teammates. The foundation of this team is Seth (Beachside) who synergizes well with the other three members of the team through application of ComboATK Down by 0.6x (excepting charge attacks), attack twice each turn for 2 turns (Buff) and 
ProtectionDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 1 turn (Buff).
For Astaroth, Combo makes ☆4 Astaroth charge their CP fully in one turn, making their CS available by turn 2 rather than turn 3. Furthermore, Combo makes ☆4 Astaroth having None type less of a handicap; with Combo, an unseeded ☆4 Astaroth effectively has a 51% chance of giving ATK UpATK Up by 1.1x ~ 2.2x for 4 turns (Buff) and DEF UpDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 4 turns (Buff) to allies directly adjacent to them. Furthermore, this gives an expected value of 600HP and 14.4 CP to allies. Thus, ☆4 Astaroth becomes a competent mixed buffer for the benefit of the team. These same points apply if ☆4 Astaroth whiffs while being Magic. Astaroth also has a dislike buff from Seth, so their damage is boosted although this is a relatively minor effect. After CSing, ☆4 Astaroth can then continually plow through enemies with WeaknessDEF Down by 1.2x ~ 2.4x for 1 turn (Debuff) notably allowing other allies following them to hit harder.
For Licho, Combo makes triggering one of Licho's debilitating effects (
Weapon Change (Blow)Changes the unit's weapon type to Blow-ranged for 3 turns. (Buff), 
Skill LockCannot activate skills for 5 turns. (Debuff), 
CurseATK Down by 0.8x ~ 0.4x for 5 turns (Debuff)) much more consistent. Moreover, since Licho deals extra damage against enemies who have had their weapon changed or been skill locked in a way that stacks, Combo has the potential to increase Licho's damage output. If the situation permits, moving Licho also grants a Friendship buff to Astaroth which is particularly useful considering the activation rates of Astaroth's skills.
For Chernobog (Beachside), Combo gives the ability to double Chernobog's already considerable healing/CP charging while making his skills more consistent and stacking more flat damage. This is particularly useful since everyone on the team has charge skills with useful effects. Also the combination of Beachside Seth and Beachside Chernobog is particularly notable for the tankiness of having both 
UnctionDEF Up by 0.85x ~ 0.425x, +150~300HP every turn for 2 turns (Buff) and ProtectionDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 1 turn (Buff) and Chernobog's considerable healing methods. Finally, Beachside Chernobog can also increase the damage output of the team by supplying 
ArdorATK Up by 1.2x ~ 2.4x, +5CP/turn for 2 turns (Buff) to teammates and 
FreezeDEF Down by 1.1x ~ 2.2x, -200~-400HP/turn for 4 turns (Debuff) to enemies. If he has his CS charged, he can also extend 
CritATK Up by 2x ~ 4x for 1 turn (Buff) as well.
Gameplay with this team is rather simple. On the first turn, Seth should be moved to bestow Combo to Astaroth while regrouping/protecting allies if needed. By the second turn, it should be possible to form a 2x2 formation with the units positioned in a way to suit the situation. In most cases, this would be Astaroth and Licho in the front with Seth and Chernobog in the back. From here, Seth should be used to expand/contract the formation as needed and bestowing Combo to allies whenever necessary. In particular, Astaroth should aim to have Magic type as much as possible and this can easily be done by looking for opportunities for Astaroth to whiff before they turn back to None type. This also has the benefit of potentially giving allies ATK Up and DEF Up so it's a worthwhile endeavor. The main point here is that the 2x2 block formation is a nice point of return which suits the skill activation ranges of each of the units.
To give an example of why one would want to deviate from the above formation, in level 80 dungeons, Devils and Wyverns are particularly problematic enemies which Licho shuts down rather hastily. For this reason, using Seth to have Licho draw their attention away is a perfectly legitimate strategy. In a large map such as that, it's best to have Seth occupy the center square of the field for maximum positioning options.