Marchosias/Strategy

NOTE: This page currently under construction.

(This page is for Marchosias strategy guide. For the standard Marchosias page, click here.)

Overview

Despite being a release unit,   Marchosias is still a very useful and good character to use due to his ability of providing three sources of damage reduction, something which is remarkable for a  /  unit. Additionally, his application of   TenacityDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 1 turn (Buff) being rather large due to his skill evolution and his extended horizontal movement make him ideal as a unit to move for a team. Furthermore, Tenacity itself is a less commonly applied defensive buff to allies compared to Protection, so this is also a niche for Marchosias in itself. So despite being an old unit, Marchosias is very capable as a tank and defensive support and presents a nice low-cost option for users. Finally, the introduction of ARs has also considerably boosted his utility due to the combination of his elemental attribute and weapon type.

Highlights

Class: Tank, Defensive Support

Gameplay role: Damage Mitigator

Pros

+ Three sources of damage reduction for the team,   CurseATK Down by 0.8x ~ 0.4x for 5 turns (Debuff),   TenacityDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 1 turn (Buff) and   ProtectionDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 1 turn (Buff)

+ Relatively large/flexible application of Tenacity to allies

+ Healing provided to the team through   Blessing+300~600HP/turn for 4 turns (Buff)

+ Fairly tanky himself due to self   TenacityDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 1 turn (Buff) and Curse as mentioned before

+ Extended horizontal movement

+ Very good AR options

Cons

- Needs to move constantly

- CS is unremarkable effect-wise

- No source of self healing

Gameplay Role

Tank/Defensive Support

 
A chart which displays Marchosias' effects,   TenacityDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 1 turn (Buff),   ProtectionDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 1 turn (Buff),   CurseATK Down by 0.8x ~ 0.4x for 5 turns (Debuff), and   Blessing+300~600HP/turn for 4 turns (Buff).

  Marchosias' application of   TenacityDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 1 turn (Buff),   ProtectionDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 1 turn (Buff),   CurseATK Down by 0.8x ~ 0.4x for 5 turns (Debuff), and   Blessing+300~600HP/turn for 4 turns (Buff) is shown in the image to the right. Notably, Marchosias has very consistent procs aside from Knightly One and generally prefers staying in the front line and having his allies in the row behind him, although they can also be horizontally adjacent to him as well. It's important to note that Marchosias will not apply Blessing or Protection to himself, so he will need an external source of healing to hold out for longer battles. Likewise, the range of his Curse is limited to the row in front of him, so the biggest threat to Marchosias will be enemies who exist outside his range that can deal lots of damage.

As a defensive support, Marchosias has been blessed with extra horizontal movement which is a great niche to have. Aside from   Sitri, there are other units who have this same combination in role/ability such as   Seth (Beachside),   Tangaroa (Canaan), and effectively   Tanngrisnir, so the fact that Marchosias does the same task at a low cost makes him very appealing. As one may already be aware, extra horizontal movement is a very special ability because it allows one to regroup units in wide maps in one turn if RNG is in one's favor. As a defensive support on top of this, it makes stray high damage during that first turn also manageable. Past that, this skill allows for easier repositioning of units and makes diagonal movements completely unnecessary. Finally, having a larger reach also opens up more strategies in engaging with enemies.

Marchosias has a fairly simple play style of moving to protect his allies. However, he does have a lot of additional options past that, and this is a result of AR equipment. Due to his elemental attribute and rarity, Marchosias is able to equip fairly decent ARs which expand the realm of his gameplay and allows one to customize him depending on the quest. For this reason, it would be good to look at the options available to him which are mentioned in more detail in the section below.

Stats and Seed Usage

Unit (Effective) HP Base ATK ATK per square CS ATK per square (SALV1)
Unseeded Seeded Unseeded Seeded Unseeded Seeded Unseeded Seeded
     6663 8724 3211 4722 1445 2125 2890 4249
     7264 9274 3925 5476 1766 2464 5298 7392


Since Marchosias' most important skills are guaranteed, the usage of Skill seeds shouldn't be a huge priority. Instead, HP/Level seeds would be preferable to boost his ability as a tank. Due to his   being functionally the same as   rarity, ATK seeds will have a somewhat significant boost to his damage, but it's not a huge priority since his role in a team isn't as a damage dealer.

Team Synergy

Healers/Other Defensive Supports

  Marchosias should be used with healers to cover his lack of healing for himself or other defensive supports to provide another layer of protection. Due to the range of his skill activation, these units would also ideally be in the backline. Examples include   Chernobog (Beachside),   Kagutsuchi (Jamboree), and   Daikoku.

Units who can pull enemies in

Since Marchosias can only   CurseATK Down by 0.8x ~ 0.4x for 5 turns (Debuff) to the enemies he hits, units who can pull enemies in through their skills would be an ideal teammate for him to address this shortcoming. Snipe units such as   Surtr (Valentine) and   Arachne are some examples which are good.

Units who don't need to move

Since Marchosias will be proviing a layer of defense for the team, the rest of the team should have some form of offensive buffing/damage dealing and ideally without needing to move to do so. Examples include   Wakan Tanka (Fashionista),   Tangaroa (Canaan), and   Ose.

AR Equipment

  Marchosias has some very nice AR options which address some of his weaknesses. In particular, arguably the best AR for him is   The Way of the Sword Has Just Begun since it allows him to function like   Barguest (Valentine) and pull enemies inward to his application of   CurseATK Down by 0.8x ~ 0.4x for 5 turns (Debuff), thereby improving his and the team's survivability. Further options for improving survivability include   City of Drifters and   Valentine's Dogs!. Aside from that,   "Ogresses' Dream - A Different Time, A Different Place" gives him more value in moving by giving   Glint+10% skill activation rate for 2 turns (Buff) to allies and   Battle between Swordsmith and Swordsman allows him to remove buffs including   Guts+1HP when HP is at 0 at the end of the turn for 5 turns. Removed once activated. (Buff) on overkill along with some weapon resistances. He can also equip the   Vow of Binding to give him   BindCannot activate skills, ATK Down by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 4 turns. CS effects still apply. (Debuff) immunity which is nice for a defensive support, who is mostly responsible for keeping one's team alive, to have. Finally, while it isn't his role to deal damage,   Abyssal Confectionery gives him extra damage and   CharmCannot attack for 3 turns (Debuff) immunity, which can be useful depending on the quest and team composition.

Checks and Counters

Movement Restriction

Since   Marchosias needs to move to activate his skills, debuffs such as   FearCannot move at will, -10CP/turn for 5 turns (Debuff) will inhibit this ability to provide defense for the team. Granted, it would still be possible for him to apply   CurseATK Down by 0.8x ~ 0.4x for 5 turns (Debuff) and   ProtectionDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 1 turn (Buff), but his utility as a unit with extended horizontal movement would be gone.

Skill Locking Debuffs

Since Marchosias has no immunity to skill locking debuffs, these debuffs will shut him down easily. He can get immunity from   BindCannot activate skills, ATK Down by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 4 turns. CS effects still apply. (Debuff) however from the   Vow of Binding AR.

Defense Penetration

Enemies who can pierce debuffs can counter Marchosias' effects. Unit-wise, this includes   Eita (Set Sail) and   Tajikarao, but can also in other enemies, such as Hephaestus/Talos in the level 80 challenge quest for Virtual Summer Memory.

Teambuilding Options

This section consists of user-submitted builds that may not necessarily be viable for high level quests.

Curry God

Team Details (submitted by milk)
 
Chernobog
【Healer, Offensive Buffer】
 
Kagutsuchi
【Defensive Support, CP Battery】
 
Marchosias
【Tank, Defensive Support】
 
Nekros & Bacchus
【Debuffer, Damage Dealer】
Cost: ≥48

This is a team meant to show the synergy between   Marchosias and   Kagutsuchi, as well as show the strength of After Buff skills. In particular, Marchosias applies   TenacityDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 1 turn (Buff) and Jamboree Kagutsuchi applies   ProtectionDEF Up by 0.9x ~ 0.45x for 1 turn (Buff), which allows Jamboree Kagutsuchi to CP charge allies of choice while having two defensive buffs up. Furthermore, three of the units on the team have After Buff skills which Marchosias will regularly activate. In the case of the support   Nekros&Bacchus, he should have the   Single Bulls Club AR in order to charge his own CP along with the effects from Jamboree Kagutsuchi.   Chernobog (Beachside) rounds out the team by providing a consistent source of healing, offensive buffing, and another defensive buff through   UnctionDEF Up by 0.85x ~ 0.425x, +150~300HP every turn for 2 turns (Buff).

Gameplay examples