WHITEOUT SURVIVAL ・ STRATEGY PROVEN WITH NUMBERS
Hero skill effects of the same kind add together; effects of different kinds multiply. This article sorts the three Gen 6 heroes, Wu Ming, Renee, and Wayne, by how much their skills overlap with what you already run. It then uses a battle simulator to compare them with the usual lineups and to pick joiner heroes when a Gen 6 hero leads the rally.
On day 376 of my state, the Gen 6 heroes and the Chameleon pet unlocked on the same day, and the preview for a new event (霜竜の覇者 in the Japanese client) arrived with them.
SVS has just ended and my Fire Crystal 8 upgrades are not quite finished, so the heroes now compete for the same resources. Midway through the last generation, hero promotion and exclusive-gear value packs started appearing in the shop, so leveling should be a little easier this time, assuming you spend.
Gen 6 brings Wu Ming (Infantry), Renee (Lancer), and Wayne (Marksman). Skill effects follow the in-game descriptions, with values at skill level 5.
Effects of the same kind add together; effects of different kinds multiply. So mixing different kinds grows faster than stacking one kind.
For example, four Jessie joiners (Damage Dealt +25% each) add to +100%, a 2× multiplier. Four different +25% effects multiply to 1.25⁴, about 2.4×.
The main groups that add together (skill level 5 values):
| Effect | Heroes with the same effect (skill number) |
|---|---|
| All troops Damage Dealt +25% (always on) | Jessie 1, Jasser 1, Jeronimo 1, Molly 3, Natalia 3, Wu Ming 2 (+20%) |
| All troops Lethality +25% (always on) | Flint 3, Zinman 3 |
| All troops Attack +25% | Seo-yoon 1, Patrick 2, Flint 2, Jeronimo 2, Natalia 2, Philly 1 (+15%) |
| All troops Defense +10% | Philly 1, Zinman 1 |
| All troops Health +25% | Patrick 1, Greg 3, Logan 3, Zinman 1 (+10%) |
| 40% chance of Damage Taken −50% | Hector 1, Mia 3, Molly 1, Natalia 1, Philly 3 |
| Damage Taken −20% (always on) | Bahiti 1, Jessie 2, Logan 2, Sergey 1 |
| Enemy Attack −20% | Ling Xue 1, Logan 1, Sergey 2 |
| Enemy Damage Dealt −20% | Lumak Bokan 1, Lynn 2 |
Joiners only contribute their first skill, so the heroes marked "1" are the joiner candidates.
What adds is the same effect, not the same skill. Jessie and Jasser are different heroes, but their first skills are the same effect, so they add. Conversely, a constant −20% Damage Taken (Bahiti) and a 40% chance of −50% (Hector) are different effects, so they multiply.
A hero whose one skill carries two kinds of effect adds two multipliers from a single slot. Among joiners: Norah (Infantry and Marksman Damage Taken −15% and Damage Dealt +15%), Philly (Attack +15%, Defense +10%), Zinman (Defense +10%, Health +10%), and Ahmose (Damage Taken down for Infantry, and for Lancers and Marksmen). Each value is small, though, so they do not always beat a single 25% effect. Both the number of kinds and the size of each value matter.
Skill 1: Infantry take 25% less damage from normal attacks and 30% less from skills.
Skill 2: all troops Damage Dealt +20%.
Skill 3: all troops Skill Damage +25%. Applies only to skills that deal extra damage.
Every 2 turns, Lancers place a Dream Mark on the troop type they are attacking.
On the next turn, the marked target takes Lancer extra damage of 200%, Lancer Damage Dealt +150%, and all troops Damage Dealt +75%, all at once.
Skill 1: every 4 turns, all troops make an extra attack for 100% damage.
Skill 2: every 2 Marksman attacks, 40% extra damage to enemy Lancers and 20% to enemy Marksmen.
Skill 3: all troops' normal attacks have a 25% chance to crit.
Wu Ming overlaps only in skill 2, which is the same effect as Jessie's and Jeronimo's Damage Dealt +25%. With four Jessie joiners in a rally, 2× becomes only 2.2×, a 10% gain. Skills 1 and 3 are new kinds of effect.
Renee's three skills are all new kinds, so there is no overlap. The catch is that Lancers place the mark, so with no Lancers none of the three ever works. Even with Lancers, the mark is wasted if the marked troop type is wiped out before the next turn, or if a Lancer Ambush switches the attack target.
Wayne's three skills are also new kinds with no overlap. Skills 1 and 3 work for all troops, so they still work without Marksmen. His weaknesses are that he has no defensive effect at all, and that the in-game text does not state the crit multiplier.
I used my own battle simulator to compare the usual lineups with Gen 6 swaps in four situations: rally and garrison, each with an Infantry–Lancer or Infantry–Marksman army. Strength is measured as how far the opponent's troop count can grow before the fight becomes even, shown as the difference from the usual lineup. Swapping a rally lead also changes the displayed buffs by that hero's base stats and exclusive gear, and that is included. Defense-type exclusive gear works only when defending; rally-type gear works only in rallies.
| Situation | Usual lineup | Infantry → Wu Ming | Lancer → Renee | Marksman → Wayne |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rally, Infantry–Lancer | Jeronimo, Reina, Greg | −12% | +71% | −22% |
| Rally, Infantry–Marksman | Jeronimo, Mia, Gwen | −15% | −25% | −31% |
| Garrison, Infantry–Lancer | Hector, Norah, Lynn | +20% | +5% | −12% |
| Garrison, Infantry–Marksman | Hector, Molly, Lynn | −17% | −35% | −3% |
I also searched for the best joiner heroes when Gen 6 heroes lead. The rule was that no joiner may overlap with the rally leads or with another joiner. The search swaps one joiner at a time and keeps the strongest combination.
Logan and Ling Xue (Enemy Attack −20%) were left out. They come out strong in the simulator, but comparisons with real battle reports suggest their real effect is weaker.
| Situation | Rally leads | No-overlap joiners | Strength |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rally, Infantry–Lancer | Jeronimo, Renee, Greg | Lumak Bokan, Gwen, Wu Ming, Bahiti | +22% |
| Garrison, Infantry–Lancer | Wu Ming, Renee, Lynn | Gwen, Philly, Patrick, Ahmose | +7% |
| Rally, Infantry–Marksman | Jeronimo, Mia, Gwen | Norah, Patrick, Flint, Bahiti | +20% |
| Garrison, Infantry–Marksman | Hector, Molly, Wayne | Patrick, Norah, Seo-yoon, Flint | +18% |
Strength is the difference from the current joiners (four Jessies in rallies; three Patricks and Gwen in garrisons).
In Infantry–Marksman rallies no Gen 6 lead helps, so that row keeps the usual leads and changes only the joiners. The Infantry–Marksman garrison row uses Wayne, who was roughly even with Lynn.
What this shows:
Joiner effects are computed at skill level 5. Using Wu Ming as a joiner means leveling his first skill.
I plan to raise Renee, the Lucky Wheel hero, and to build Wayne for the Arena. As people often point out, Bradley arrives as the Gen 7 Marksman, so Wayne will stay an Arena hero for me.
The Chameleon's skill lowers enemy troops' Defense, by up to 10%, for 2 hours, with a 20-hour cooldown. Leveling it also raises your troops' Attack and Defense. Debuff skills are strong, so I plan to level it as well.
This is a first-time event. I plan to cover it in a separate article.
Gen 6 is a tricky generation, but its heroes have interesting skills, so I want to settle my upgrade plan as I actually use them.
Disclaimer: the comparisons here are simulator estimates, not results confirmed in real battles. They include unconfirmed assumptions such as how skills stack and the crit multiplier.