6★ Vanguards#
SilverAsh the Reignfrost#
| Skill | Mastery | Story | Advanced |
|---|---|---|---|
 | S2M3 | S+ | S++ |
 | S3M3 | S+ | S+ |
 | S1M3 | None | C |
SilverAsh the Reignfrost is one of the most powerful units in the game, featuring just about everything you could ever want out of a Vanguard, and more. He generates crazy effective DP, sustains himself, has control, buffs your units, has great DPS, and even retains his OG’s stealth removal for good measure. Generally speaking, he is a very high priority unit and a very strong M6 candidate! However, unusually for a unit of his caliber, he has some unique considerations before you spend your hard earned resources on his Masteries.
More specifically, he’s a situation where a lot of players in most routine situations won’t find an appreciable difference in the outcomes of his two skills. For many meta-caliber M6 units, there’s little choice but to do both skills. However, for SilverAsh2, they are very often interchangeable. To be clear, you should still plan to do both. The flexibility on a unit as strong as this absolutely does matter! However, the nuance between them often matters more in Advanced scenarios, so for less established players, it may make much more sense to focus on the skill that matches your playstyle better, then look towards other high impact promotions before pursuing his other skill. Put another way, you’ll be able to clear almost all regular story stages with either of his skills!
That out of the way, his two main skills, S2 and S3 still behave quite differently even if the outcome in terms of clearing any given stage is often the same. While not universally true, S2 tends to be his main skill since it will usually have the better net results in terms of DP and damage. Over the course of a map, S2 will provide significantly more effective DP and it allows more controlled placement of both his damage and Freeze, since the schwing centers off the deployed unit rather than himself.
However, there’s a few things to note before investing. First, it is mainly damage that improves over Mastery. That can very much matter, and will result in a big difference, but it is dependent on your roster as to how valuable that is. The schwing damage scales on the deployed unit’s current ATK, so the damage increase over Mastery isn’t only against his own damage, which is otherwise on the low side with S2. The Mastery gains will look a lot less impressive if your roster is weaker (although in such a case, you probably have better promotion targets). The only other improvements are largely negligible outside of some pretty extreme scenarios. Second, the skill’s output depends on activating it, which on a 17 SP skill, many people may find tiring over the course of the map. While this guide rarely encourages “lazy” play, the fact his S3 is so similarly valued may mean this is still a valid tie-breaker. Finally, since the skill does not generate any actual DP, the Guard/Sniper/Caster prioritization may cause issues depending on your team comp and what you need out first.
So for many, his S3 may be the more appealing skill, and while his S2 does tend to be the favored overall, his S3 has a ton of ceiling as well, meaning it’s not a bad choice to start with it instead! It has a very high SP cost which is unusual for a Vanguard, but the skill does so much on such a high uptime that you may only need to activate it once. It generates a ton of DP, both over time and in a large initial burst, while also doing a ton of damage that can be shared, and even has some Fragile because why not? The initial burst of DP is especially notable, because if you pay attention to your team comp, it can effectively be 20-30 effective DP on only a 9 second wind-up! It has strong Masteries as well, with an above average gain for DPS thanks to some additional Fragile at S3M3, in addition to the ever important (for Vanguards) DP and initial SP improvements.
Last is his S1. It’s quite a bit more situational, but on a do-it-all meta-caliber unit like SilverAsh2, that can still be a consideration, even if it’s relatively rare. It generates 15 effective DP on only a 10 SP wind-up which is among the best Vanguard ramp-ups, has a great hands-off DP/s rate as well, and the Barrier can be useful on occasion as well. Those aspects make it the sort of skill that a lot of players won’t ever find useful, but for some more Advanced players, SilverAsh2 is a viable M9 consideration! Note that Mastery only affects the SP cost and initial SP. That’s very important for the initial wind-up, but if your only goal is lazy-AFK use (use his S3 instead), the expensive Mastery won’t change much.
Vulpisfoglia#
It’s tough to be a non-Agent Vanguard. Even non-Myrtle Flags are in a rut these days. Due to how the game is designed, it’s unlikely there will ever be a truly meta Pioneer, but Vulpisfoglia comes pretty darn close. She has strong combat prowess that’s enough to hold up versus tougher enemies, while sustaining herself early, with DP generation competitive to S2/S3 Flags. Not a bad package, albeit a still off-meta one.
Unlike many recent 6★s, Vulpisfoglia only really has one skill worth considering for Mastery which is her S3. While a lot of her value is in her Talents, S3 rounds her kit out with its combat prowess while adding even more sustain options, all features her other skills just don’t have. The damage is front loaded, but very powerful, and lets Vulpis tackle enemies few other Vanguards can touch. The gains are fairly meaningful as well with improvements across the board, albeit with no individual standout. S3M3 is particularly notable as it has an improvement to her DP, ASPD, ATK, and initial wind-up, so don’t go half-way with her investments.
As said, her other skills aren’t really worth using, although they do have decently powerful gains if you want to waifu her (just remember, she’s happily married already). S2 has similar gains to S3, but the effect is just too weak for the cost. The fact she needs both charges, which cost 20 SP each, just to Stun for 5 seconds is so bad that it almost feels like a mistake rather than the intention. Her S1 meanwhile is fairly interesting, again with powerful gains, but has nowhere near the DP generation it needs for her to be effective with it.
Muelsyse#
| Skill | Mastery | Story | Advanced |
|---|---|---|---|
 | S3M3 | A+ | A+ |
 | S2M3 | B | B |
Muelsyse operates more as a laneholder than a typical Vanguard does, which makes her considerations a bit different than most other Vanguards. Fortunately though, her DP generation is identical between skills which simplifies her evaluation despite her unusual role.
While heavy Muelsyse users will definitely want to do the full M6, S3 makes a better starting point. Both her S2 and S3 are very similar. They have identical SP costs, uptime, DP generation, and ATK gain. They also both have different effects depending on if the clone is a Melee or a Ranged clone, so the difference in the skill comes purely down to which effects (and which clones) are better.
For melee clones, S3 comes out pretty far ahead. Tanking is already not Muelsyse’s best use, but even in such situations, S3 is the better effective tanking skill so long as the enemy is stunnable. The healing on S2 isn’t especially valuable either considering the clone can be refreshed as normal with Tacticians.
For ranged clones, the gap is much closer with only a slight favor towards S3. S2 has higher peak DPS, which may not be apparent at first glance, although S3 will usually have more effective DPS due to S2’s wind-up, as well as the additional Bind. The difference instead comes down to tile-availability. The less available tiles for clones to spawn on, the more appealing S2 looks in comparison.
So given S3 is far better for melee, and slightly better for ranged, it makes sense as the starting point. More casual Mumu users won’t find S2 use cases to be worth the cost compared to just using a different option. However, the flexibility from her S2 will be something that regular Muelsyse users shouldn’t ignore.
For purely IS gameplay, be a little cautious. While certainly not a bad pick, the nature of the tickets to build your team restricts clone options which lowers her value some. Although the potential of a self-sustaining strong-DPS laneholder is still worth considering.
Ines#
Ines is the best single Vanguard in the game which is really saying something given how long Flagpipe has been at the forefront of the meta. She is really the best of all worlds across the board, mixing good DP generation, strong damage, and a huge heap of good quality utility. Of particular note are her Steal and Bind utilities, which make her incredibly valuable in both early holds and late holds, a value no other Vanguard can match.
As far as Masteries, she is a solid M6 consideration, but her S2 comes out ahead by fair margin. Both S2 and S3 have comparable DP generation during skill uptime, thanks to the ASPD Steal on S2. However, the charge time on S2 is so short that it tends to come out significantly ahead, in addition to Invisibility and Attack Range utility. Bagpipe even mitigates the potential windup problem. Mastery is particularly important on S2 as well, upping the Steal, damage, and very important SP cost.
In comparison, her S3 leans a bit more towards the gimmick-y side in general gameplay, but can be very valuable in more advanced situations. With it, she can place her Sentry immediately and for free, it’s instantly available on deployment, it can give control in hard to reach places, and it can give a rapid burst of DP. All of those can very much matter on one of the best units in the game. While the total benefit of her S2 makes it the far better skill, her S3 does enough different, that on a unit as good as Ines, makes it a very good secondary Mastery. However, extremely story centric players may not find it worth the cost, especially early, as most of those benefits will only matter in more min/maxed scenarios.
Finally, you should probably pass on her S1. It may occasionally have some use in some scenarios, but in those cases, it is really only for the passive DP generation against a static target. Mastery only affects the damage and a fairly minor amount of initial SP, so isn’t worth the high cost for those very rare circumstances. Her very short cooldown S2 will almost always be better.
Vigil#
Vigil has the extremely dubious honor of being the first completely ungraded 6★ in this Mastery guide. His summon is weak, his already mediocre DPS is reliant on that weak summon, his DP generation is low, and his main skill has a horrific initial ramp-up. There is no meta justification for spending your resources on Vigil.
Should you opt to pursue him anyway, you could go with either S1 or S3. His S3, is his better DPS skill and will probably be more generally useful. If you only do one (or rather, insist on doing at least one), S3 is the one to go with. In good conditions it can even reach some respectable DPS. However a bad cycle time, low DP generation, a reliance on his weak wolves blocking, and an absolutely horrific initial activation time seriously hinder what would already be a fairly niche skill.
His S1, meanwhile, is better for DP generation owing to a relatively forgiving cycle, and renewing a wolf does work around one of his kits’ major flaws. However, his DP generation is still pitiful compared to other commonly available Vanguards, and it’s his lowest DPS skill. It’s something you should only pursue if you’re insistent on using Vigil over better options.
Pass on his S2. While you might initially think that it would be a nice, consistent AFK DP generation skill, it doesn’t actually trigger if the wolves haven’t spent the previous activation. This makes its effective DP generation extremely unreliable.
Flametail#
Pioneers have long been one of the weakest Vanguard archetypes. They straddle the line somewhere between pure DP-generation and DPS-Guards, ultimately doing neither especially well in an already non-critical role. This makes them fairly low priority across the board, although Flametail brings some interesting potential to the equation.
Flametail is a dodge-tank, which is a curious role in this game. It has been, at times, very powerful, and sometimes even the only viable solution! It means Flametail can punch well above her weight as a Vanguard! However, as DPS and Control continue to grow at absurd levels, that value has significantly shrunk over time. These days it isn’t much more than a gimmick, although she still has very strong damage, survivability, and DP generation, on a short cooldown, making her fairly easy to use (supposing you don’t mind the occasional fail due to bad rng anyway).
Her S3 is the only skill to really consider for this purpose. It raises her dodge chance to a pretty absurd level, and the synergy with her Talent is vital to her DPS. It does have fairly weak Mastery gains, however they end up being fairly important to using her still. If she is to take on anything actually dangerous, she will badly need both the lowered SP cost, and higher ATK.
Her S2 is no longer graded since it has a very long cooldown for the effect, however it may still be worth a look if you want to maximize your Pinus. The dodge chance is nowhere near as high, but can be shared, while also giving her some Stun utility. Again, that isn’t generally worth the cost, but may be worthwhile for squirrel lovers.
Last, her S1 should be avoided. While it isn’t the generic Pioneer skill that others suffer from, it still isn’t good, and has incredibly poor Mastery gains. The dodge only triggers once on Physical only on a very poor uptime, and Mastery does almost nothing but reduce the SP cost by one. It’s a dud as both a skill and as a Mastery, so should be avoided.
Saileach#
Saileach, along with Bagpipe, is an interesting Vanguard in the history of this guide, although for entirely different reasons. For a long long time, she had the biggest gap between her Advanced grades and Story grades, and in fact was one of the original reasons why Advanced grades were even added to the guide! That’s still sort of true with her, however like with Bagpipe, the changing meta landscape (e.g. Agents) have relegated that to not much more than a trivia footnote.
The first consideration before raising her at all is Myrtle. The gap between the rarities in Standard Bearers has always been among the smallest in the game. Considering that Myrtle’s potentials are trivial to obtain, while Saileach’s are extremely expensive, and the fact the role is usually a non-critical one, the gap has always been tiny. Historically, that didn’t matter too much since Standard Bearers were useful in multiples! However, with the rise of Agents, that’s no longer true, and the situation is made even worse by the fact 4★s are now free to recruit in IS. It all greatly diminishes Saileach’s value, even before considering the cost difference! Basically, before touching Saileach, you should raise Myrtle first, then consider if you even need to raise her at all!
Of course, Standard Bearers are still a great subclass, so Saileach is still worth consideration, although nowhere near the priority she used to have. It also gives a stronger favor to her S3. The gap from her S3 to her S1 has historically been fairly small, since that Flag S1 is just so good at generating DP. But that’s a role better solved elsewhere these days, giving the favor to her more utility centered S3. The on-demand Stun, Slow, and Fragile on a short cooldown are all powerful, and it can give Saileach a punch of utility while still generating good DP. The Masteries for it are on the weaker side, although not enough so to prevent it from being her highest priority skill.
While her S1 is diminished in value, it’s still worth consideration, particularly if you hold Saileach to be in the waifu-tier. For all of the many reasons discussed elsewhere, it’s an expensive luxury option in the modern game. Myrtle’s S1 alone will be sufficient in 99% of stages, while Agents are the better choice in the remainder. Even worse, it’s actually one of the most expensive Masteries in the game in terms of material value! However, it still generates good DP in its own right if you’re dedicated to using her!
There is some nuance here to briefly note, which is that in the most min-maxed of scenarios, Saileach’s S1 is often the best choice for DP generation. However, even for Advanced players, this is one of the most fringe scenarios in the game. It requires her to be max potential and still only makes her slightly better than the other flags. Further, she now has competition from SilverAsh2. In other words, this should not factor into your decision. Instead, it’s mostly noted here to avoid confusion if you see max-risk highlights from certain events like CCBP#4.
Finally, her S2 has been graded in previous iterations of this guide, but is now ungraded. It’s still usable if you really want to maximize your Saileach usage. However, the utility it brings just rarely matters these days, so there’s very little reason to generally consider it.
Saga#
Pioneers have long been one of the weakest Vanguard archetypes. They straddle the line somewhere between pure DP-generation and DPS-Guards, ultimately doing neither especially well in an already non-critical role. This makes them fairly low priority across the board, although Saga manages to do enough DPS and DP to be functional.
Any special value Pioneers have ends up rooted in their utility, if any, and that is ultimately the deciding factor when it comes to Mastery selection with Saga. She has two viable skills and could be an M6 if you really like her, but if you only want to do one, it will depend on what you want out of her! Her S3 is the choice if you just want a generally combat capable Vanguard, while her S2 is the choice if you want some unique value out of her that’s hard to find elsewhere.
For her S3, it’s a reasonably strong combat skill that, unlike her predecessor Siege, actually produces pretty decent DP. In the bigger picture, it doesn’t do anything all too special, aside from being competent at its basic job, so there isn’t a lot else to say. That may be exactly what waifu enjoyers want though, so makes for a solid starting point if you plan to regularly use Saga.
However, her more unique value is in her S2. It does a burst of instant damage in a large cross, while feeding herself SP due to her Talent. This can be a great option against large swarms, and has even let her solo certain bosses at times. It’s perfectly viable as an every day skill too, so makes the better starting point if you want Saga to do that “something special” and don’t mind a little micro management. Make special note of the breakpoint at S2M1 which adds an extra charge. That should be done regardless of the skill you ultimately choose. Further Mastery does reduce the SP cost though, which is valuable on charge based skills like this, so don’t stop there if you plan to use the skill with any regularity.
Last, her S1 should be avoided. It is a generic Pioneer skill which are just not good. They have fairly low DP generation, so would only ever be used for AFK purposes such as in Annihilations, but in that case the extra from Mastery is completely unnecessary. If you were in a situation where it mattered, you’d be using a different skill instead, so simply, there is no value in the extra cost.
Bagpipe#
Bagpipe occupies an interesting place in the history of this guide. One of the tenets that this guide tries to impart is that active skills are a much better investment than AFK skills, to the point that AFK skills will often be intentionally undergraded to nudge people towards higher value choices! Bagpipe was the first instance of this. Her S3 is way better than her S2, and for a long time the grades reflected that to encourage people to her better skill. However, the meta landscape in the intervening years has changed quite a bit since then.
Bagpipe’s main value has always been her SP Talent, but her combat prowess has also been valuable. While not as strong as a Guard DPS skill, it was a great early extra on a team slot you were bringing anyway! This is why her S3 has long been such a highly graded skill. However, as said, things have changed quite a bit. With the rise of Agents, Bagpipe’s Talent doesn’t have the value it once did, nor is her early combat prowess all that vital anymore.
The result is a now close gap between the skills, when there used to be a huge gulf! Her S3 is still her better skill by a significant bit, but with her reduced meta role, it’s not as “damaging” to take the AFK option anymore. You’re no longer giving up as much to use that comfy, easy to use, AFK skill.
This is all to say that Bagpipe has two very good skills, both of which have strong Masteries. She is a worthy M6 consideration, although you’re only ever likely to use one of them! The skill to start with is generally a playstyle choice in the current game. This guide still strongly favors her S3, which is more impactful for those early holds, while giving her enough oomph to tackle elites too in a pinch. However, the easy to use S2 is a pretty reasonable alternative instead.
Siege#
Even at launch, Siege was never an especially good unit due to how Vanguards fit into the game itself. However, even with that low starting point, she is probably the launch 6★ that has fallen the furthest in value. Siege has always leaned closer to a Guard than a Vanguard, but as a result, she isn’t particularly good at either role. And now in the modern game she’s faced with plentiful competition that are better in every way! Unfortunately, there’s basically no reason to raise Siege these days. Even brand new players won’t find much value here.
If you wanted to promote and use her anyway, the only real option for Mastery is S2. It has a decently high DPH in an AoE, which was her main selling point in better days. It’s far from a great skill in the modern game since it has fairly poor DP generation along with her other fundamental flaws, but it’s at least usable. It also has a breakpoint at S2M1 which reduces the SP cost by one, something that matters in charge based skills like this, but even that’s fairly weak as far as breakpoints go.
The other major reason to start with her S2 is that her other skills have some pretty fundamental flaws. If you are really dedicated to using Siege, her S3 may be worth a look. It’s a DPS skill with some alright control and can be decently valuable in some niches like Vanguard-only. However, that’s quite a rare thing to need and the skill represents a launch mistake that’s never been fixed for Siege even though no other Vanguard has repeated the mistake since! It generates no DP! None at all! It’s pretty insane in hindsight, but regardless, it makes it a skill only worth considering for waifu or niche purposes.
Last, her S1 should be avoided. It is a generic Pioneer skill which are just not good. They have fairly low DP generation, so would only ever be used for AFK purposes such as in Annihilations, but in that case the extra from Mastery is completely unnecessary. If you were in a situation where it mattered, you’d be using a different skill instead, so simply, there is no value in the extra cost.
5★ Vanguards#
Matsukiri#
Vanguards have long been one of the most maligned classes in the game, and our first Strategist adds some new and much needed depth. The relative lack of early pressure has always devalued them, which has meant only Standard Bearers and Agents have really bubbled to the top. Strategists though mix things up with some interesting and new utility by buffing units before they’re even on the field!
Matsukiri himself is a solid first showing, although slightly too situational to be a general consideration¹. His effective DP generation is very strong, and he brings some solid buffs in the process, at least if you like to use Defenders or Supporters. That of course seems tuned to Hoshiguma the Breacher and Haruka in his same patch, but is solid for a variety of other players too like 5★ players or Fortress enjoyers.
If that applies to you, both skills are potential options, with the best choice being situational on the map/team and what you want out of him. S1 will generally produce effective DP better, while S2 is more unique for the people looking to get the most out of their Defenders.
Starting with his S1, the selling point here is how fast the effective DP gain comes online. The DP gain plus the cost reduction means he effectively generates 14 DP after only 10 seconds, which is among the fastest in the game for when every second and every DP matters. The “right-most” is abusable too because that includes support units which are always the right-most, making it very easy to target where needed! However, that’s all it does and Mastery only improves the initial wind-up, so how valuable you’ll find the skill will entirely depend on how much of a try-hard you are. For casual players, you’ll probably get much better use out of just using the ever-present Myrtle, even if she takes a little longer for the same effect.
Instead, consider his S2. The effective DP generation isn’t as strong since the gain is spread out over a typical skill uptime (but is still very strong), however it comes with some significant perks. His personal regen is noticeably strong, and he also gives a strong HP buff to your tanks. It’s the sort of skill where no individual aspect really blows you away, but all are strong and the net effect can be very powerful in certain team-comps and stages.
¹ Can’t have him showing up the 6★ like happened with Agents.
Surfer#
While archetypes in Arknights often don’t truly matter, Agents are one of the few that are really just natively good. They have super strong DP-generation which blends perfectly with the FRD-utility, while also bringing additional utility. From the top of the archetype to the bottom, they are all viable, including at the 5★ rarity, and in multiples.
In Surfer’s case, she is an M6 consideration, but with a strong favor towards her S1. It’s a fairly basic skill, but comes out ahead of her S2 for a number of reasons. First, her Talent favors frequent deployments. While many other Agents can often be left on the field, Surfer wants to be redeployed more frequently for maximum effect. Second, it has many stat advantages over her S2. S1 has a better uptime (20 seconds vs 10), better DPH even after the DEF steal, and better ramp-up (instant vs 7 SP) which is a huge amount of time for a FRD-style unit, a difference further exacerbated by her Module.
Her S2 has value as well, but tends to be more situational. It’s ultimately held back by its fairly low uptime which makes it hard to use, but it has a pretty good total DEF Steal, compresses her DP generation into a smaller window, and cycles faster than her S1. Those can all matter, and in a unit as good as Surfer, even fringe value like that is worth looking at. However, you will get most of her value with just a simple S1M3.
Although this guide tends to avoid direct comparisons, Surfer’s similarity to Cantabile warrants some discussion, particularly because they have identical S1s but have very different Mastery suggestions. Simply, Cantabile’s S2 is better than Surfer’s S2, but Surfer’s S1 is just as good, so the fact her S2 is worse is irrelevant. Don’t take the comparison here to mean that Surfer is somehow worse than Cantabile either. Surfer is often the preferred min/max choice due to her Talent, and a comparatively lower value S2 does not change that equation.
Chilchuck#
Agents, even the 5★ ones, are incredibly powerful and Chilchuck is no exception. His Talent is content dependent, but is very powerful when it is relevant, so it’s little surprise that Chilchuck is yet another viable M6 candidate in the archetype.
However, compared to his fellow 5★ Agents, he does have one Mastery that stands above the other. In this case, that is his S1. That may come as a surprise since this guide does not favor high Attack Recovery costs or RNG, but it does end up being the better investment. A big reason for this is that Agents have to attack to generate DP in the first place, and Chilchuck’s S1 will activate even if he’s not attacking (as opposed to Puzzle’s S2 which has to do both), so the difference between his skills doesn’t end up mattering in many situations. If he’s not attacking, he’s not generating SP with S1 OR generating DP with S2! Supposing he is attacking fairly consistently, then the generation between the skills is pretty much the same!
Given this often comparable generation, his S1 ends up being the better investment. The primary reason for this is that at S1M3 it is immediately available on deployment and he doesn’t have to attack to activate the skill. This means he basically refunds his own DP almost instantly, which gives it a dramatic headstart compared to any other Agent skill. Mastery is essential for this interaction too, so thus ends up being the starting point compared to the weaker gains and weaker use cases of his S2. Even better, he has the second best DP generation of any Vanguard in stages with attackable devices (and best vs anything that loses HP, and by a fairly large margin)!
Of course, his S2 has use too. While the need to attack anyway mitigates some of S1’s Attack Recovery drawback, there are many maps with no consistent early waves. This can let his S2 come out ahead in generation, which is why Chilchuck is a viable M6 consideration. However, the Masteries on S2 are far less essential and it’s much worse than most of the other comparable Agents skills. To the first point, the additional ASPD from Mastery only results in one extra DP, assuming he can even attack for the entire duration. The main value in Mastery is instead in the wind-up cost, which improves from 11 to 5. That’s a valuable difference, but also, if it truly matters, you’re probably not using his S2 to begin with. It’s still a good skill, but ultimately his S1 is just as good, if not better, with much more valuable Masteries.
For discussion on how his S1 works (it is not an even distribution), check out this question in the FAQ. Also note his S1 does have a breakpoint at M1, however it is not reflected in his grades. If you plan to use his S1, the breakpoint alone is not really sufficient, so it is not particularly worth grabbing without going to the full M3.
Mitm#
Mitm is fairly unique in this guide in that there is a very large gap between his day-to-day use and his advanced use. His spawning junk and short respawn of his robot results in an extremely high net stall in some scenarios which makes him uniquely powerful. However, outside of those scenarios, which are rather specific, he’s very underwhelming, as the robot’s bulk and his own damage are fairly unimpressive. Further, most of his value comes from his Talent with extra investment only being rarely required.
A majority of players should likely not invest in him at all, but for those where his advanced usage is appealing, both of his skills are Mastery targets, with the difference being entirely situational. S2 gives more bulk, while S1 gives better DP and a touch more damage for when S2’s bulk isn’t needed (or even harmful). Both have almost equal rates of appearance in record clears, so if you are considering promoting him, plan on the M6.
Fang the Fire-Sharpened#
Fang the Fire-Sharpened is a decent unit in a tough spot. She’s pretty good for a 5★ Charger, but Chargers are largely left in the dust by Agents and Flagbearers, and as a 5★ she doesn’t bring quite enough to make up that gap. Still, she is a fantastic cheap to deploy unit with good DPS and decent DP generation and so she can be a solid consideration for people who favor more off-meta approaches.
While most people shouldn’t bother, if the above applies to you, then Fang will likely be an M6 consideration as both of her skills are good but with differing use cases. Her instantly available S2 is probably the starting point as it plays best into her low cost. She can be first on the field in tight DP situations with solid bulk and attack. However, it has a long effective cycle since it can only be used once which gives room for her S1 to shine as well. S1 still has solid overall damage and gives her much more staying power on the field, and the extra DP generation on top of her Module boost can be very nice on certain maps.
Wanqing#
Wanqing continues the recent trend of 5★s that aren’t bad but tend to be just a touch worse than older options. That means for older players there isn’t much value here (stick with Elysium), but he still has value for relatively newer players who are ready to move beyond just Myrtle for their DP printing purposes. Like all Standard Bearers, both of Wanqing’s skills are strong Masteries due to the all important upgrades to wind-up and cycle time, with the only difference between them being what matters more for the stage - the utility (S2) or the DP printing (S1).
For those new players, be aware that similar to Elysium, Wanqing’s priorities tend to be the opposite of Myrtle’s. The utility on Myrtle’s S2 is quite a bit more situational and her main value is in just how cheap she is for the rapid DP which favors her S1. For Wanqing, that utility is quite a bit more generally applicable and thus his S2 makes the better starting point, while just sticking with Myrtle’s S1 for quick ramp-up purposes. However, unlike Elysium, Wanqing’s utility isn’t quite as good, so the gap between his S1 and S2 is a touch smaller.
Puzzle#
Due to a long initial wind-up and relatively bad DP gen, Puzzle is in an awkward middle ground where he is not as beneficial as other Agents, but also less powerful than a regular Fast-Redeploy. However, decent damage, a strong-by-default archetype, and good gains means Puzzle is still a Mastery consideration, albeit on the low end of priority.
Despite the drawbacks, S2 is still his primary skill because of its damage. The poison DoT can really add up, and Mastery from SL7 to M3 can result in almost 50% more damage. The improvement to his long initial wind-up is only 4 SP, but every second counts when it comes to Vanguards. While Puzzle can work decently at E1, full Mastery can make him feel quite a bit better to use. Meanwhile, S1 can be nice for AFK DP gen if there’s an appropriate target, but it’s fine to leave at M1 for that purpose. The 2 initial SP at M1 means it can activate after one attack on a full health enemy, however further Mastery only adds more damage, which is better found on his S2.
Cantabile#
While archetypes in Arknights often don’t truly matter, Agents are one of the few that are really just natively good. They have super strong DP-generation which blends perfectly with the FRD-utility, while also bringing additional utility. From the top of the archetype to the bottom, they are all viable, including at the 5★ rarity, and in multiples. In Cantabile’s case, she is a very strong M6 consideration, which is rather rare for the 5★s. Both skills are amazing, and there really isn’t an objectively “right” answer as there is with most other units. The answer can often come down to personal preference, playstyle, or the situation.
Personally, I strongly prefer her S2. Ammo skills are extremely valuable in general, but they work especially well on Agents since they can sometimes “lose” DP-generation on certain stages. The additional camouflage (which can be controlled by holding ammo) can add a huge dose of survivability too. On top of a short wind-up and an extremely fast (and reusable) cycle, it is a highly flexible skill with some very valuable Masteries to boot.
However, some players and some scenarios will find better use out of her instantly available S1. That instant availability is the main selling point, but it also has a higher DPH and higher DP-generation potential. It can be especially valuable in IS where stacking ASPD means she can sometimes even fill your DP to full in a single use!
Ultimately, the short answer though is “just do both”. Cantabile is one of the best 5★s in the game, and is very valuable even if you have Ines already. There’s very few 5★s that justify that level of investment, but Cantabile is definitely one of them.
Blacknight#
Blacknight’s main skill is her S2. It is the centerpiece of the pseudo-meta sleep stall strategy that has occasionally arisen. But even outside of that it is a strong skill with a very high uptime stall on a low DP cost unit, even if she is operating alone. She has a ton of value as an early hold unit, especially considering her rarity, and holds her value as the stage progresses. Her M3 Mastery is quite important to that end, though the M1 and M2 are somewhat mediocre alone, so be sure to go all the way with her Masteries.
In previous versions of this guide, Blacknight’s S1 was a decently graded alternative, but it has since been removed. It might be something to consider still if you are using Blacknight over other, better, options. After all, it does have better DP generation and it improves her Slumberbeast’s combat prowess. However, her value ultimately lies in her S2. Even outside of sleep stall comps, S2 is the superior skill, being able to reliably stall many dangerous enemies at all phases of a stage. This makes S1 only worth it for Blacknight diehards.
However, while she has a lot of general value, Blacknight is still a highly technical unit, even outside of stall combos. Only her summon can damage the Sleeping targets (barring some few exceptions like Blemishine or Erato), so if it takes too much damage early and needs to regenerate, it can just result in a short stall with nothing else. Timing is very important with her. That can be frustrating for some players, and the far simpler Beanstalk will often have better results in non-optimized scenarios.
Elysium#
Elysium’s Masteries can be a little confusing because at first glance it looks as if they would follow the same logic as Myrtle, yet the logic ends up being the opposite. Although S1 is the better DP generation skill, his S2 utility is miles ahead of Myrtle’s. Additionally Myrtle is often the better choice for tight DP because her base cost is cheaper. The times where DP is SO tight that you need both S1’s is very rare in Story scenarios, so Elysium’s S2 is the better choice for its utility.
However for Advanced situations such as high-risk CC, his S1 gains a lot of priority. DP management is extremely important, and with the introduction of Saileach, his S1 has become a far more important option, often being preferred over Myrtle (unless you run all three of course). Advanced players will want to prioritize Elysium’s S1M3 quite a bit higher, whereas Story players may not want to bother at all.
Finally note that Elysium lacks an important feature of Myrtle which is cost effectiveness. Being higher rarity, his Masteries cost quite a bit more, and although his S2M3 is an important Mastery, key DPS should be put ahead of it in most cases.
Texas#
Before she was a busted-tier Fast-Redeploy, Texas was a 5★ Vanguard, but even then she has had a surprising amount of meta impact. Despite being a 5★, she is probably the most valuable Pioneer Vanguard, although that is admittedly not a high bar anymore (or ever). All that is primarily due to her Talent, which just speeds up initial deployments with no conditions. However, her S2 is a factor in that as well, and one that still has some value in the modern game. The Mastery gains on it are subtle, however, and story-centric players may not find them worthwhile. However, her on demand Stun is a useful bit of utility out of the team slot already occupied for her Talent.
Her S1 should be avoided. It is a generic Pioneer skill which are just not good. They have fairly low DP generation, so would only ever be used for AFK purposes such as in Annihilations, but in that case the extra from Mastery is completely unnecessary. If you were in a situation where it mattered, you’d be using a different skill instead, so simply, there is no value in the extra cost.
4★ Vanguards#
Beanstalk#
As far as Tacticians go, Beanstalk is pretty straightforward. While neither her DP generation nor her combat ability are at the level of her melee-tile counterparts, her summon is renewable on a relatively short cycle which allows for persistent cheap blocking and stall. Both of her skills are viable for this purpose, but S1 tends to be more generally useful. It generates more DP overall and does so quicker, and instantly renewing the crab tends to be more valuable. S2 is worth considering as well and can give more blocks, but it is slower along with tile restrictions. The Mastery gains on S2 are also fairly poor, so the full M6 on Beanstalk is a luxury.
The change beginning in IS#5 which reduced 4★ Hope cost has been particularly valuable for Beanstalk. The utility of her crabs can be a great early help considering the low recruit cost of free, especially when Myrtle’s excess generation often isn’t necessary. However, while this change is a good reason to promote Beanstalk, it doesn’t make a huge Mastery difference. She does that utility role perfectly fine at E1, so the Hope to promote is better spent elsewhere. But if you do want to go for that further investment, her S1 pulls particularly far ahead in IS.
Myrtle#
Myrtle is the ultimate queen of the 4★s, having appeared all over the game since her release, from the easiest of Story stage to the highest risk Advanced CC clears. She is the only 4★ that everyone should E2 and Master. The focus of that Mastery should first be her S1. The benefits of it can be deceptive at first and seem small, and to be fair she will work at SL7 just fine most of the time. However that initial wind up makes a big difference in usability, plus 4★ Mastery is very cheap which makes it one of the most valuable in the game.
While her S1 is the primary reason to use her, Myrtle’s S2 can occasionally have some good niche value. The overall DP generation is quite a bit lower, but the extra healing can really come in handy. It’s particularly (although still only occasionally) clutch in the Roguelike when Medic tickets are elusive, especially considering how pervasive of a pick Myrtle is. Her S2 is definitely a luxury, but for the low cost, is a luxury at least worth a look.
Vigna#
Vigna has some surprising value and is one of the few low-rarity operators who has enough ATK to punch through high enemy DEF. She ends up being more useful, especially after Modules, than most of the 5★ Chargers, even before accounting for investment value. Her S2 Masteries are actually pretty valuable as well. They are a significant improvement to her damage and ability to tackle high enemy DEF. In general, the 4 and 5★ Chargers have a tough time in the game, so exercise some caution before investing in Vigna. However, she can have some pretty nice returns for the low cost if you favor off-meta or low-rarity approaches.
4★ and 5★ Ungraded Vanguards#
Kestrel#
Kestrel is a weird unit. She filled a role, an offense oriented 5★ Pioneer, that was missing for years, but she came out well after Pioneers were already dead in the meta sense. She probably still wouldn’t be well regarded if she had come out at launch though. Pioneers are just not that good and never have been, but now she also looks really awkward, way too little, way too late, with a bad mode buff¹.
To be clear, she is not worth the resources. Some people may come to think that being a freely available version of a common 4★ (Scavenger) with a mode specific buff makes Kestrel worthwhile, but that is not the case. Her mode specific buff is bad¹ and she is simply not worth the cost. You will get a better return on your resources by sticking to the cheaper options, if you do any at all.
However, she isn’t awful either, so if you like her or like niche teams, she can be viable. In such a case, her S2 is her main skill as it is with all of the non-6★ Pioneers. The uptime is on the weaker side, but she can actually dole out some pretty decent offense with it. Meanwhile, her S1 is a generic skill which only has value as an AFK skill, but it does not need Mastery for that purpose since if the difference ever matters, you’d be using a more active skill.
¹ It’s worse than just bad actually. Not only is it not a very good effect, it would only be even sort of useful in the very early going, but you need to play quite a bit to unlock her! By the time you actually get her, you already don’t need her buff!
Poncirus#
Poncirus isn’t a great Vanguard, but she’s not a bad one either, albeit not for the reason many people may think. Her infinite duration DP generating skill is no doubt what catches many people’s attention and is certainly attractive to certain types of players, but is actually pretty poor in terms of hands-off DP. The default 4★ Pioneer skill, Charge β, is similarly hands off and generates 1 DP per 3.6 seconds at SL7 compared to 1 DP per 4 seconds at S2M3 for Poncirus! Instead, she’s mainly useful as a stat stick. When fully invested she can crack 750 DEF and 3000 HP which are solid stats for a 5★ Vanguard!
Of course, that is extremely off-meta for a number of reasons (cost, fringe role, defense-oriented, better options, etc.), and thus why Ponc finds herself down in the ungraded section of this guide, but she can be useful in niches when you need a low-DP cost tank that can double duty with some DP generation. Her main skill for Mastery is of course her S2. Mastery can definitely matter if you’re attempting to use her, but the gains are still on the weaker side. She only gains 4 SP to her charge time which is largely negligible. The main value is in the additional DEF, but even that isn’t a massive amount. Ponc is a unit that can require a lot of investment to maximize, but also one where that investment can sometimes be hard to appreciate if you’re only casually using her.
As with all Pioneers, pass on her S1. You may be tempted to invest in it after reading the first paragraph in this write-up that compares the DP generation, but that’s the wrong conclusion to make here. Simply put, any place skills like this would be used (that is, DP generation only) where the difference in investment mattered, you should be using an active skill instead. Plus even for AFK play, you lose out on all of Ponc’s stats which is the whole reason to use her in the first place!
Wild Mane#
Chargers are one of the weakest Vanguard archetypes. They generate low (if any) DP and don’t have the combat capabilities to justify the squad space or resources. That’s still true for Wild Mane, but she does bring some useful value at least. It is very much a fringe niche thing, so she is still an ungraded unit that most people shouldn’t consider for promotion, but one that a few may find useful.
If you think that may be you, both skills are potential options, although favor her S2 first which is the skill more likely to have that niche value. With it and the fast base Charger attack interval, she can juggle lighter enemies for effective stall, or even hole coverage. Those are situational things, but can be useful now and then. However, be aware that Mastery is on the weaker side. Unlike many Shifter skills, she gains no additional Force over Mastery, so the main benefit is a small amount of wind-up. That can matter in min-maxed situations, but she’ll also do her niche job mostly fine without Mastery.
Her S1 could be an option too if you’re a big Pinus fan, but it lacks the niche value of her S2. The fact it’s available on deploy can be useful, and she can dole out some decent cheap DPS. That can actually be more useful than her S2 if your primary goal is to use her as much as possible. However, be aware that she gains no improvement to her ATK, resulting in a very low DPH, so the skill is only good for low-DEF enemies. That really limits its value, so it’s more of a waifu-tier skill than her S2 is.
Chiave#
Chiave is a unit who almost made it, but was just a bit behind the other options, until they all got pushed to the side by the Flagpipe meta. His S2 effect is decent enough, with a decent pop of Arts damage and a rare RES debuff that was occasionally useful in niches, and his robot-centric Talent¹ was a fun thing to make meme teams with. However, his DP generation was always on the low side, and his main features were either extremely situational or just memes. So while he isn’t a bad unit, in the modern game, there’s just too many better options to really consider general investment into Chiave. You almost certainly have better options, and even if you somehow don’t, it’s best to stick with the 4★s until something else comes along.
If that robot¹ meme appeals to you though, his S2 is the only choice for Mastery. As it is with most Pioneers, his generic S1 has no value which makes the choice easy. The only value the Pioneer Charge skill has is for AFK, for which it does not need Mastery, since in cases where Mastery would matter, you’d be using a more active skill. Further, his S2 Masteries are actually pretty good. The RES debuff doubles over Mastery, and he gains more duration and DP at S2M3. While not a recommendation, if you do like Chiave, it’s a pretty good Mastery at least.
¹ Annoyingly, not all 1★s are robots for purposes of his Talent.
Reed#
Reed got one of the biggest glow ups from her base form to alter form, simply because her original Vanguard form is really bad. Reed was an improvement over the prior Charger, Grani, but that wasn’t a high bar. She was still largely unusable even at the time, but is especially so now. While her cycle is decent, and the RES on her Talent has given her some rare niche usage, she simply didn’t do enough damage to matter, and her DP generation is still both bad and unreliable.
If you want to raise her anyway, you’ll probably want to go with her S2, although it’s oddly close which is a testament to her overall flawed kit. Swift Strike, her S1, happens to be one of the best generic skills, and the two skills have nearly identical DPS numbers. In fact, S1 can even be better in some cases of low-DEF but high-RES enemies, so the M6 isn’t unreasonable for the true simps. However, it’s not recommended to do any on her, let alone the M6, and for “most” use, her S2 will still come out ahead (barely). They are small differences, but S2 comes online faster, has a higher DPH, and generates more DP, which gives it a slight edge for general use.
Grani#
Grani is one of the OG proofs to how dedicated you were to off-meta. She is a bad unit, being a great example of many early design mistakes. But she was a popular character in the very first post-launch event, so many early… contrarians, let’s say¹ raised her anyway out of principle. That was largely a mistake though since she’s the sort of bad that’s very nearly unusable. She has a 20 second wind-up on a skill that generates no DP, as a Vanguard. That was awful even before considering the 70 SP cost to use it again or her awful Talent or sub-par stats! It was bad at the time before we had Flags, Agents, and Strategists, and is only worse now!
In any case, if I’ve yet to deter you from the investment, and you too would like to prove you have more resources than sense, the only real choice for Mastery with Grani is her S2. While it is an extremely flawed skill, it’s still far better than her S1 which is a generic DEF up skill that has quite literally no use on a 1-block Charger. But rubbing some salt into the wound, Mastery on her S2 isn’t even good. In an era when a lot of units had bizarrely strong gains, Grani gets a below average stat gain and a teeny-tiny 4 SP cost improvement. If you are somehow expecting Mastery to improve how Grani feels to use, you’ll be disappointed. Proceed with extreme caution.
¹ I would have been one of them but preferred Swire
Zima / Зима#
Compared to her fellow launch Pioneer Texas, Zima has had a bit of a rougher go of it. While her Talent similarly speeds up initial deployments, it only works for fellow Vanguards which makes it more restrictive on top of a primary skill that just isn’t as good. That skill is her S2, which just tends to be flawed all around. It buffs Vanguards, which isn’t all that useful given their current role in the game, and has a very poor uptime. But the real killer is the 15 SP initial wind-up which is an eternity for a Vanguard, and the time is made even worse by spreading the DP generation over the skill uptime! There are definitely worse units out there, and Zima has had her time in the spotlight in the past. She’s even a very important unit for Vanguard-knights! However, for the general game, the value she brings lags significantly behind even off-meta choices.
Snegurochka / Снегурочка#
While Agents are generally one of the strongest archetypes in the game, Snegurochka is a pretty big miss-design wise. Her high initial SP costs hamstring one of the biggest benefits of the archetype and her skill effects are anemic. Many people will probably desire to raise her anyway, but the flaws of her design are the sort that make it hard to even definitively recommend a skill since both are so bad.
Fortunately (/s), there is a deciding factor. Despite both skills being very underwhelming, her S2 is the skill to start with, owing to S1’s Masteries being almost entirely irrelevant to its use (if you came here for skill suggestions and are about to stop reading, S1 is probably the better skill, just the worse Mastery). Although, this isn’t to say that S2’s Masteries are good. In addition to a high base and initial SP cost, S2 only has 9 seconds of uptime, ultimately meaning that the 15 ASPD over Mastery results in a single DP difference in the absolute best case scenario. Further, since she has such a low ATK and no improvement, the DPS difference is almost entirely irrelevant. The main benefit to Mastery comes from the cycle time improvement instead, which improves by 6 SP, but it’s still so high (relative to other Agents) at S2M3 that it still feels quite bad. Even for the relatively low cost for 4★ Masteries, it’s tough to recommend.
Meanwhile, rather simply, her S1 doesn’t get an SP improvement over Mastery which is the only part that really matters, so Mastery should only really be considered by maximalists. There is technically a breakpoint at S1M1 that adds 2 initial SP, but there are relatively few scenarios where those 2 SP will actually matter, although 4★ M1s are at least dirt cheap. The only other improvement is to her damage, which is so notably poor with the 7 SP cost, that it shouldn’t be a factor in the decision. As for the skill itself, it’s actually probably the better skill since S2’s long cycle and wind-up make it very inconsistent. While 7 Attack Recovery SP is pretty horrible, it can be used to comparatively ok results, especially against stationary bulk targets or map devices. However, keep in mind that the freely available Puzzle does this significantly better, so this use only really matters in 4★ niches and IS, where she is still not a good pick.
Scavenger#
While Pioneers in general are one of the weakest Vanguard archetypes, the two 4★s, Scavenger and Courier, are largely exempt from that, although they remain ungraded for Mastery for different reasons. The thing is, they’re starter units. Most people have used at least one of them at some point in their career. And for what they are (cheap early units), they’re pretty decent too! They just have very little justification for more than a basic E1 investment. The only reason to look towards E2 and Masteries is waifu/husbando or niche reasons.
Between them, Courier does tend to be favored since his bulk is more useful than Scavenger’s anemic offense¹, but if you’re at the point of considering one for Mastery, you’re likely already aware of the distinction. In either case, the main skill for both is S2 which is their skill that actually does something. The generic “charge” skills the Pioneers have simply have no value aside from AFK use, for which they do not need Mastery. If there was a situation where the DP generation difference mattered, you’d be using someone else (i.e. Myrtle). So by default, it makes sense to favor their skill which improves their stats instead. However, both of their S2s are rather basic themselves with small Mastery gains, further reiterating that they are both best left at E1 for early use only.
¹ If you’re going as far as to max invest in Scavenger (that is, including mod3), she can actually be better. Courier’s DEF is still higher, but Scavenger’s becomes “high enough” to close the gap. However, that isn’t a level of investment you should consider if you don’t know what you’re doing. The goal of this line is to push newer players towards Courier for their early career.
Courier#
While Pioneers in general are one of the weakest Vanguard archetypes, the two 4★s, Scavenger and Courier, are largely exempt from that, although they remain ungraded for Mastery for different reasons. The thing is, they’re starter units. Most people have used at least one of them at some point in their career. And for what they are (cheap early units), they’re pretty decent too! They just have very little justification for more than a basic E1 investment. The only reason to look towards E2 and Masteries is waifu/husbando or niche reasons.
Between them, Courier does tend to be favored since his bulk is more useful than Scavenger’s anemic offense, but if you’re at the point of considering one for Mastery, you’re likely already aware of the distinction. In either case, the main skill for both is S2 which is their skill that actually does something. The generic “charge” skills the Pioneers have simply have no value aside from AFK use, for which they do not need Mastery. If there was a situation where the DP generation difference mattered, you’d be using someone else (i.e. Myrtle). So by default, it makes sense to favor their skill which improves their stats instead. However, both of their S2s are rather basic themselves with small Mastery gains, further reiterating that they are both best left at E1 for early use only.