Silverwing Eagle – Prydwen Pre-Release Review
Good morning and happy 3rd anniversary! This one must’ve come as a surprise for… well, literally everyone I think? There have been speculations floating around about the possibility for “alters” (alternative versions of existing characters), but we thought it’d be someone like Sonetto who’s been a part of the story for a long while or maybe 37 who was integral to the 1.X series of chapters. Instead, we have been graced with a 5-star version of the community’s forgotten daughter: Eagle.
The translations are from @/yatagarasu_meru on Twitter, I doubt they bear any introduction (it’s Merui).
The usual disclaimers apply: we don’t have modifiers just yet, nor specific details regarding some parts of their kit, so we can’t say for sure if Silverwing Eagle is good. ALWAYS take preliminary kit reviews with a grain of salt, no matter from what source it is (even ours).
For the purpose of the review I’ll refer to her as SPEagle or Eagle Alter.
Additionally to note is that this is a 5-star unit, so her power level will likely be curbed in some way (unless Bluepoch is changing the way they design lower rarity units).
Afflatus: Plant
Role: Sub Carry
Archetype: Neg Status, Ultimate, Mono-Plant.
Insight: Environmental Scout
Precognition | N/A
- After attacking, cast “Lorentz Tracking Method” on the primary target.
- Upon entering combat, increase ATK.
- Upon entering combat, gain Moxie. When any ally attacks, if their Afflatus is Plant, increases that attack’s Ultimate Might, Critical Rate and Critical DMG based on the number of [Neg Status] effects on the target.
- “Lorentz Tracking Method”: 1-target attack. Deals Reality DMG. This attack counts as a Follow-Up Attack and is treated as an Ultimate. Gain Moxie. Increase the Moxie of the Plant ally with the lowest Moxie.
Incantation 1: Chaos Bullet
1-target attack. Deals Reality DMG. After attacking, inflict [Weakness Exposed].
- [Weakness Exposed]: At the end of the round, the carrier takes [Steady State Genesis DMG] equal to a percentage of the caster’s Max HP.
- [Steady State Genesis DMG]: A type of Genesis DMG unaffected by [Stats Up] effects.
- Prydwen Note: This type of Genesis DMG is also dealt by Lorentz Butterfly Skill 1, if you need a frame of reference.
Incantation 2: ???
Mass attack. Deals Reality DMG to 2 enemies. After attacking, inflicts [Nasty Wound] on all targets.
- [Nasty Wound]: Healing Taken -50%.
Ultimate: ???
1-target attack. Deals Reality DMG. Based on the number of [Neg Status] effects on the target, this deals additional Reality DMG. If this attack breaks the target’s Afflatus Resistance, cast “Lorentz Tracking Method”.
- Prydwen Note: Afflatus Resistance was sort of introduced in Witness Rounds but also in the upcoming UTTU versions. Yes this works similar to Break Effect from HSR, but it’s not a one-to-one.
Review
Eagle has grown up so now instead of pointing a finger gun at her opponents she’ll blast them with 10.000 volts of Lorentz-style “fuck you” and I love it.
I understand people’s cautiousness when it comes to “alters” as they tend to get in the way of new characters releasing. Just look at Arknights Y7.
On the other hand, if they are done right, they can be really meaningful additions to any character’s narrative by showing their progression throughout a personal arc. With this game’s focus on storytelling, I think SPs are a great opportunity to bring beloved characters like Sonetto, Matilda, APPLe, Mesmer Jr, X and Lorelei back into the main fold and giving them access to more than they had previously (such as an Insight 3 or 6-star power budget).
But when it comes to a review, you are probably here with the intention of getting a rough idea of how good SPEagle is going to be.
It is important to note that SPEagle is a 5-star, and thus has a lower power budget than unit of a higher rarity. It’s happened in the past that 5-stars become viable for some time such as with Buddy Fairchild, Bkornblume, Yenisei and Lorelei, but overall most 5-stars are hanging on the low-end of the character roster.
This can always be subject to change! From a production stand-point, it makes sense for the dev team to want their first SP to be positively received so that they can make more of them in the future. Based on that alone, I suspect that SPEagle will be good, maybe even set a new precedent among 5-stars, but not beat anyone part of the current meta.
Predicted Tier: A+ (or A)
I’m giving this prediction beforehand so that I can talk about her kit more freely, because there genuinely is a lot of good stuff here. However, it is important to keep in mind that because of her rarity, her numbers will likely not match up with characters in S and especially S+ tier. If they do, that’ll be a surprise.
So, what IS there to say about SPEagle? A lot, actually!
First of all, having a guaranteed FUA after every attack is pretty strong! Plant has a wide selection of very AP-positive characters like Druvis III, Kakania, Hissabeth and Argus that will make casting with SPEagle not too bothersome. In addition, this FUA grants Moxie to herself and another Plant ally with low Moxie. From the preview there also doesn’t seem to be a limit to how often she can trigger this per round, so multiple casts might result in multiple Moxie triggers. Even if it ends up being a single trigger per round, I think it’ll be viable in combination with her Ultimate.
In addition, she grants +Ultimate Might, Crit Rate and Crit DMG to ANY attack from Plant allies, passively (so, AFK). This is a really solid selection of offensive buffs that I hope will have the modifiers to be viable. Though for Plant, I feel like I’d prefer +Incantation Might, I don’t think characters like Marcus, Noire and Argus mind having extra Ult Might, especially because it comes with a Crit Rate buff (something that Plant is notorious for not having much of).
Her basic Incantations are pretty tame.
Skill 1 echoes Lorentz Butterfly’s “The Primer’s Flutter” which makes sense as SPEagle is her intern. I’m a bit sad that [Weakness Exposed] isn’t an upgraded version of her 4-star version’s [Sense Weakness] which was one of the better low-rarity debuffs as it inflicted -20% Reality and Crit DEF. I think having that easily inflictable by SPEagle would’ve made her even better, but beggars can’t be choosers I suppose.
Skill 2 is… mostly there for the gimmick? Which is ironic because the same can be said about her 4-star version’s second skill. It does have the benefit of inflicting [Nasty Wound] on command, which is a really rare [Neg Status] that can absolutely be used to gimmick your way through certain stages (such as the Ezra Theodore bossfights in Reveries). If SPEagle is going to be good, she’ll have an extra niche for inflicting this debuff, as the only one other reliable source of this is Eternity to my knowledge.
Her Ultimate is where it’s at, this was true for her 4-star version, this was true for her Mane’s Bulletin Summer buff (who remembers that madness, she was so good), and it holds true for her SP. It will likely do big damage, especially in teams with a lot of [Neg Status] effects. If it breaks the target’s Afflatus Resistance, she’ll also cast a “Lorentz Tracking Method” right after, which might trigger twice in conjunction with her Insight 1.
One minor issue I foresee is that she seems kind of pitched towards Noire, who is one of the worst 6-stars in the game at the time of writing this, because of the focus on [Neg Status] effects (maybe a hint for Noire Euphoria). However, there are also different synergies that I have a preference for.
One is Hissabeth! She absolutely wouldn’t mind having more Moxie, and is capable of inflicting several [Neg Status] effects on her own. Not only that, past her initial ramp she becomes generally AP-positive which will help SPEagle cast more.
Another beneficiary I can see is Anjo Nala, tied to our little Lorentz intern. Not only does the [Plant Contract] give both Crit DMG, additional Moxie and Ultimate Might, but SPEagle’s personal Moxie generation can help Anjo Nala cycle her Ultimate really quickly. It just so happens that Anjo’s Ultimate is also capable of inflicting a lot of different [Neg Status] effects (plus her personal [Titillated] and [Captivated] statuses).
Personally, I suspect that Anjo will be a very good partner even if she isn’t of the the same Afflatus.
I’ll definitely be trying out: SPEagle / Hissabeth / Anjo Nala / Sustain (that is, if I ever get my hands on Hissabeth, and otherwise Argus will do).
