Welcome to our Sword Art Online: Variant Showdown Tier List! Sword Art Online: Variant Showdown is an action game published by Bandai-Namco where you form a team using characters from Sword Art Online, are plonked into an arena and are told to beat everything that moves to death while dodging their attacks.
Ironically, you’ll spend most of your time fighting as a lone player since the main online component mostly handles just your account and inventory, and score records. While the most important thing in the game is learning to dodge and using skill to defeat the enemy, having a good team setup helps a lot and can shave some time spent grinding missions out.
The tier list is separated into SSR, SR and R, because let’s face it, the SSRs are just stronger. Not only do they come with a higher maximum level, but they also start with one too, going from 60-75 as opposed to SR’s 50-65 and R’s 40-55. While EXP Chips are a dime a dozen, the Memories and Records needed to limit break a character past their current max level are relatively rare.
While you can increase an R and SR’s star levels a bit more easily using the gacha, and their raw stats can beat out an unstarred SSR, the SSRs often have stronger or easier-to-maintain buff abilities which ensure you’ll use them, not to mention you can get SSRs and their dupes from events too.
A quirk one should know about the meta is the heavy preference for physical damage and healing as opposed to direct tankiness or magic power. There is currently only 1 character that power up the INT stat which magical attacks need, and most either buff STR, or various cooldowns, and make the Burst or Rush Gauge build faster. Healing, both for the team and for individual members, is also preferred for survivability over direct tankiness since many passive skills activate based on a percentage of HP remaining on the character.
That percentage will stay down with a heavily damaged tank, while a healer can recover that buff after it’s lost even if their overall longevity in the field might be similar. This tier list then looks for STR boosts, high STR stats, the ability to heal, and lastly, focused buff sets that power up a single stat heavily as opposed to scattered ones that buff many different stats a little bit. Hopefully, the devs add more INT buffers to the roster soon!
SSR Tier
SSR-X
Yuuki [The Absolute Sword]
Wind, Fighter, Quick STR Booster, Skill Cooldown Reset, Wind Buffer
Yuuki is a weird one since she boosts someone from another banner rather than her own banner mate. Yuuki boosts STR by 20% for 10 seconds when you cancel one of her skills by using a normal attack or switching. Switching boosts her movement speed by 5% and wind elemental skills by 10% for 20 seconds each. A Just Switch also resets her skill cooldowns, allowing her to either spam Skills or skill cancels if you have good timing. A good choice all around, especially in a Wind team.
Asuna [Heartfelt Sword]
Wind, Fighter, STR Booster, Awakening Gauge Builder
The first unit built for Awakening Gauge boosts, Heartfelt Sword Asuna is a good choice all around especially for the current meta as of her release. She raises the Awakening Gauge by 5% every time she kills an enemy while boosting the Gauge’s accumulation itself by 5% just by being alive. Her Switches are also simple yet effective, with a 15% and 25% boost to STR for normal Switches and Just Switches respectively, for 30 seconds. She also has a stat spread heavily biased toward STR, allowing her to make the most out of STR boosts and hit incredibly hard.
Eugeo [Blue Rose Knight]
Water, Fighter, STR Buffer, Water Buffer
A Water-element damage dealer who rewards well-timed switch combos with wonderful, tasty fried spam. Blue Rose Knight Eugeo’s switch skill increases his own STR stat by 20% for 30 whole seconds, and performing a Just Switch immediately resets his skill cooldowns, allowing him to make use of that 20% extra damage with ruthless abandon should you be blessed with good timing sense.
On top of this, his passives make enemies less resistant to Water element attacks and strengthen his own blows against frozen enemies. You will likely rely a lot on his Disaster Frost attack since it’s an 1100 damage physical attack boosted by his STR buffs, though his other skills tend to be magic attacks, with Waxing Moon not hitting anywhere near as hard at 500 water magic damage, and his Awakening Skill Blue Rose Frost dealing 2500 non-elemental magic damage, while still inflicting freeze.
Silica [Dragon Tamer]
Wind, Ranger, Squad Healer
Silica is one of the most important SSR you can get for one simple reason: She can heal the whole team by 20% of their max HP every time she switches out. This allows you to last longer later on when fights start getting dicey and lets you take on enemies who you should probably have no right beating otherwise.
She also raises the STR of the whole team by 15% for 15 seconds on a normal Switch, and 25% on a Just Switch. Stat-wise, she has a balanced spread between STR and INT, with her INT stat being relatively pointless damage-wise thanks to all her attacks dealing physical damage. That being said, you’re not bringing her for damage but for support.
Kirito [The Black Swordsman]
Fire, Fighter, STR Self Booster
Generally considered one of the top damage dealers in the game especially when paired with Master Macer Lisbeth, The Black Swordsman Kirito comes with a passive 20% STR boost when he’s at full HP along with the ability to inflict Burn on enemies.
He can also heal himself for 15 seconds after doing a Timely Switch, allowing him to keep the 20% STR boost. This paired with his rapid and rather hard-hitting attacks kept him on top of the Tier List, though Eugeo joined him on that top spot. That being said, you have to stay sharp to keep that 20% STR bonus!
Lisbeth [Master Macer]
Fire, Fighter, Fire Buffer, Burst Damage
Master Macer Lisbeth is usually paired with The Black Swordsman Kirito for a fire-based team since they play off each other quite well. She can power Fire element characters by 5% for 30 seconds every time she switches, and gives the one who jumps in Fire element attacks.
Moreover, she can cut her own skill cooldown by 10% with normal Switches, and the whole party’s cooldowns by the same amount with Just Switches. She can also inflict Stun with her slowest but most powerful skill, Tri-Swing, which hits for 1100 physical Fire element power but has a cooldown of 15 seconds.
SSR-S
Silica [Inspiration for Victory]
Fire, Tank
Inspiration for Victory Silica is a support tank, with very poor DPS herself thanks to both her low Power numbers and low STR and INT stats, with everything going into DEF and HP. That being said, she’s good when she’s not the one doing the actual DPS.
She can be used as a cheerleader for boss fights: If you hit something 40 times with her, the whole party gets their STR boosted by 25% and their Rush Gauge Accumulation by 30%, with no timer listed. It’s a fairly fat buff for little effort. Her Switches also shave both her own and the team’s Switch Cooldown by 10% depending on whether it’s a normal switch or a Just Switch.
Alice [Osmanthus Knight]
Fire, Mage, STR Booster, Magical Attacks
Alice has a rougher time compared to Eugeo because of her stat distribution mixed with her skillset: While she has the same Switch skills as Eugeo, the 20% STR boost on switch is rendered less effective thanks to her heavy focus on magic damage and lower STR stat rather than Eugeo’s focus on bludgeoning people to death with Disaster Frost.
That being said, she has a 10% passive buff for Rush Gauge Accumulation, so you can use her to build up the Rush multiplier then switch to Eugeo or another mainline damage dealer to take advantage of that wonderful S-Rush triple damage. Not to mention Just Switches still make immediately cools her skills down for spamming fun.
Asuna [The Flash]
Water, Defender, Rush Gauge Buffer
The master of Rush Gauge feeding, The Flash Asuna’s switch skills both improve Rush Gauge Accumulation by 10% for normal Switches and 20% for Just Switches respectively for 20 seconds. She can also buff the whole team’s STR by 5% and add another 20% to Rush Gauge Accumulation as long as she’s at full HP, so pairing her with Dragon tamer Silica or giving her healing Ability Cards is usually a good plan.
Her attacks are fairly lackluster with poor Power numbers, and while her main Rush Gauge accumulation skill is slow with a 16-second cooldown, the ton of Rush Gauge buffs make that skill worth a lot. Pull her out to fill the Rush Gauge, then call in your main damage dealer to take advantage of the fat 3x damage multiplier at S Rush.
SSR-A
Sinon [Goddess of the Underworld]
Wind, Ranger, Crit Focus
On first reading, Sinon looks weak with poor HP, STR, and INT all around, and lacking an Awakening skill. Take one look at her picture though, and you’ll notice that giant gun she’s carrying! Sinon has a ranged basic and charged attack, allowing her to keep away from bosses and their nasty strikes.
Despite being a Wind element character, she has attacks that can inflict Burn, and her Just Switch allows all of her attacks to inflict Burn too while powering her next shot up by 5%. Her STR goes up by 10% every time she sets something on fire, and she raises her Crit rate by 10% on normal Switches. That being said, you have better options for buffers, so you might want to use her solely if you like playing keep-away while others power her up.
Kirito [A New Start]
Water, Fighter, Starter, Buff Stacker
Typically overshadowed by the fire-element Master Macer Lisbeth- The Black Swordsman Kirito combo, A New Start Kirito is a free SSR unit given to you as your first playable character. As such, they’re not very impressive compared to the other SSRs, but they’re designed to be easy to use.
Their Switch increases their strength by 5% up to 3 times total for 20 seconds and Just Switch for 10% STR 3 times for 15 seconds, and both reduce Switch Cooldowns by 5% each for a total of 10%. Other characters often have stronger buffs that can be popped instantly rather than needing stacks. A good pick if only to practice your Switch timing.
SSR-B
Asuna [Loving Water Sprite]
Water, Mage, Quick INT Buffer
The first INT buffer in the game, Loving Water Sprite Asuna still needs a couple of friends like herself to be more effective. Her Switches can boost Water element skills by 10% for 15 seconds, and the INT of both herself and her incoming teammate by 10% for 30 seconds. Her Just Switches cut the whole team’s Switch Cooldowns by 10%.
These buffs are pretty small compared to the high percentages SSR STR buffers give out. Her own high INT stat benefits greatly from it though, and perhaps with more characters like her to build an INT-based skill-nuker team, she may become more viable in the future.
Asuna [Will to Fight]
Water, Tank, Berserker
Will to Fight Asuna is a hardy tank, with the ability to increase her own DEF by 20% for 30 seconds when Switching, and 25 seconds of self-healing on Just Switches. She also heals herself to 10% HP if she gets knocked below that, and her STR goes up by a max of +15% based on how much HP she has left.
Being a tank, none of her attacks are particularly special damage-wise, so she might benefit from debuffing ability cards to supplement that, or support cards so she can more easily keep her other teammates alive, or herself alive without raising her HP too much. She’s the first likely SSR you can get to 5 stars since you get her free from login rewards, so she makes a good early game crutch as her stats will be far higher than the rest of your roster, at least for a while.
Leafa [Speed Junkie]
Wind, Fighter, Wide Buffer
A fairly scattered self-buffer, Speed Junkie Leafa gives herself a wide barrage of buffs every time she does a Just Switch. She gets 10 seconds of +5% Rush Gauge accumulation, an extra 20% STR, and the Just Switch attack itself hits 15% harder. On top of this, normal Switches decrease Leafa’s Skill cooldowns by 10% and increase her STR by 10% for 10 seconds.
As for her attacks, she has a rather quick 1000 physical Wind damage attack skill with a cooldown of 8 seconds, with maximum Rush accumulation. While she loses out to the SSR Eugeo and SSR red Kirito, her job is mostly to fill the Rush Gauge up as fast as possible using her high Rush low cooldown skills. Unfortunately, you’re usually looking for a more focused set of buffs, so she winds up lower in the list, at least among other SSRs.
SR Tier
SR-S
Sinon [Sniper’s Valor]
Fire, Support, Selfish Survivability
A self-healer with a gun, a match made in heaven. Sniper’s Valor Sinon is a healing tank with a small passive, raising the party’s STR and DEF by 5% as long as her HP is above 50%. She can heal herself by 20% on normal Switches, and on Just Switches she heals for 30% HP and gives herself a 30% DEF buff. Considering she shoots from a distance, hopefully away from enemy attacks, she’ll last quite long, though her team buffs are fairly tiny.
Silica [Secret Determination]
Water, Fighter, Quick STR Buffer
It seems Silica works great as a support most of the time she appears. Secret Determination Silica can boost the whole team’s STR by 20% for 15 seconds on normal switches, and 30% for 30 seconds on Just Switches. She also boosts Burst Gauge accumulation by 5% just by being around, and she cuts 5% off the charge time for Charge Attacks every time an enemy is killed.
Burst gauge Accumulation allows her to disable bosses more quickly, but doesn’t do much for non-boss fights. She can inflict sleep with her 1st skill which has a 6-second cooldown, though again, like most SRs and Rs, her Power numbers are poor. Again, use her as a cheerleader.
Asuna [Together Forevermore]
Fire, Ranger, Healer
A reliable SR healer who may be useful if you lack SSR Healers, Together Forevermore Asuna can heal both herself and the teammate she’s replacing by 20% using Normal Switches, and 30% with Just Switches. Normal Switches also give 15 seconds of auto-healing. As with most SR units, her damage ability isn’t too good, though her first skill is a highly spammable Stun with a 5-second cooldown. One of the better SR choices overall.
SR-A
Eugeo [Snow Field’s Breeze]
Wind, Mage, Wide Buffer
Take the SSR Eugeo, then make them a budget team support instead of buffing himself like crazy, and you get Snow Field’s Breeze Eugeo. He can give the whole team +10% STR for 15 seconds on a normal switch, and with a Just Switch, he shaves 7% off everyone’s Switch cooldowns. Anyone he calls in during a normal switch also gets a 5% cut from their skill cooldowns, and his mere presence gives the whole team a 5% STR boost with no strings attached.
The downside? His damage-dealing ability is very poor compared to his Water Fighter SSR version, and he lacks an Awakening finisher move, which is a common weakness of any character that isn’t an SSR. While his buffs are scattered enough to be a problem, at least the one that matters the most, the team STR boost, can be done very easily with a simple normal Switch.
Silica [Muse of Victory]
Fire, Ranger, Rush Gauge Buffer
One of the better SR support units, Muse of Victory Silica has some rather hefty buffs for Rush gauge Accumulation, namely 10% for the whole party just by being alive, and another 20% for 20 seconds whenever she does a normal switch.
She also buffs the whole team’s STR by 5% every time the Rush gauge is at B or better, which should be the case all the time if you know how to fight. Ironically, her buff during Just Switches is less important for her, with a 7% Switch Cooldown for the team. She can also inflict Poison with her spammable first skill, which has a 6-second cooldown but a poor Power number of 400.
Her attacks sadly have weak Rush-building ability, so you’ll likely use her as a cheerleader. Send her in for the buffs, then swap her out immediately to take advantage of said buffs and build up the Rush Gauge.
Lisbeth [Trusting Swing]
Wind, Ranger, Rush Gauge Buffer
If you want to use an SR Lisbeth, use Trusting Swing Lisbeth. Her buffs are very focused on the Rush gauge, with both her normal and Just Switch abilities giving 20% and 30% Rush gauge Accumulation boosts respectively, for 20 seconds. On top of this, she reduces enemy DEF by 10% when the Rush grade is B or better. Again, SR units tend not to be impressive damage dealers, so you’ll likely use her as a cheerleader.
Leafa [Triumphant]
Fire, Fighter, Self-Healer
Triumphant Leafa is immediately high up with the SR units simply because she can heal on a Switch by 20%, and by 30% on a Just Switch along with a 5% cut to Skill Cooldowns. While her stats are still bad since she’s not an SSR, she also has Power numbers on the top end of SR levels.
One of her skills has 800 power but comes with a 12-second cooldown. Healers are quite rare in this game, even if all they heal is themselves, so she might be worth using if you need more longevity for your squad.
Kirito [Rising Hero]
Wind, Ranger, General Gauge Buffer
Just like all the other Kiritos, Rising Hero Kirito is pretty good at building gauges thanks to his fast normal strikes. Rising Hero Kirito can easily get his 20% Burst Gauge Accumulation buff by landing 30 hits, making him disable bosses more quickly.
His Timely Switch is what you’re gunning for so you can take advantage of his normal attack since it grants 20 seconds of 30% increased Rush gauge Accumulation. As for his normal Switch, it gives a 10% Switch power boost for 15 seconds. If you plan to use him, send him in to build your gauges quickly.
Kirito [Top Player]
Fire, Tank, STR Buffer, Fire Unit Buffer
Essentially a miniature version of Master Macer Lisbeth, Top Player Kirito has very similar skills and roughly the same role as a buffer for Fire element units. Normal Switches reduce enemy Elemental Fire resistance by 10% for 20 seconds, and Just Switches increase the Party’s STR by 25% for 20 seconds.
Normal Switches can also give the next guy coming in fire element attacks, and boost fire skill power by 5% for 20 seconds. Great with Fire element teams, though his ability to change someone else’s element to Fire lets him be useful on off-element teams too.
SR-B
Lisbeth [Don’t Look Back]
Water, Supporter, STR Buffer, Switch Cooldown Buffer
Considering Silica’s SR versions exist, there isn’t much reason to use Don’t Look Back Lisbeth. Like them, this Lisbeth is meant to be used as a cheerleader since most of her Switch skills and passives involve buffing people while her attacks do less damage than SSRs.
That being said, her buffs and passives are smaller when compared to either of the SR Silicas. 5% Switch Cooldown cut for the team on normal switches along with a 10% STR boost for the next guy, a Water elemental boost of 15% for 15 seconds on Just Switches, and a 5% STR boost for everyone as long as she’s alive. Overall, not too bad, but you’re better off using the SR Silicas if you’re using SR units at all for cheerleading.
Sinon [Lock-On Target]
Water, Ranger, Charge Speed Buffer
Lock-On target Sinon is meant to be used with other characters who rely on charge attacks. Her normal Switches shave 10% charge time for 30 seconds and Just Switches cut Switch Cooldowns for everybody by 7%.
She also has a pair of passives, a 5% Power boost and if her HP is bigger than 50%, another 5% charge speed boost. Her skills have low Power counts and don’t generate much for the Rush gauge, but they have short 8-second cooldowns and her first skill can inflict Sleep.
SR-C
Leafa [Dignified Stance]
Water, Mage, Wide Buffer
Dignified Stance Leafa is a fairly scatterbrained buffer whose passives don’t match too well with her Switch buffs, though not in a way that makes her completely unusable. Her passives come out after hitting enemies 30 times, with the team’s STR and Switch power going up by 5%.
Oddly enough though, her Switch cuts Charge time by 10% for 30 seconds and Just Switches cut team Switch cooldowns by 7%. Neither work too well for getting multihit attacks, though the permanent nature of the passives means you’ll get them eventually as long as the fight lasts long enough, so it’s a small nitpick. Again, you’re better off with SSRs because of the Stater Scout and the low stats SRs suffer from.
Asuna [Incandescent Duel]
Wind, Fighter, Fast Mover, Switch Speed Buffer
Incandescent Duel Asuna is mostly focused on dealing damage and boosting Switch Cooldowns. Her Switch and Just Switch reduce Switch Cooldowns by 5% and 7% respectively, with any Switch boosting the entire team’s Switch power by 5% for 15 seconds. She also has an STR and Movement Speed boost of 5% active as long as she’s alive.
She still has trouble dealing damage compared to SSRs, so you’ll probably use Together Forevermore Asuna instead since that one can heal those SSRs you got from the Starter Scout.
R Tier
R-A
Leafa [Wind Dancer]
Wind, Mage, Healer, Rush Gauge Buffer
A healer who requires Just Switches to heal teammates, Leafa’s Just Switches heal herself and the one she just tagged out for 20% on a Just Switch. If it’s a normal Switch, she heals herself for the same amount.
She also has a passive Rush Gauge Accumulation of 10% if her HP is 30% or higher, easy enough to keep since she’s able to heal herself rather easily. Her INT skew and the fact all her skills are slow 700 power magical attacks work well for her, considering she’s an R. If you really want to use R units for some reason, use her.
Asuna [Dialed Up A Notch]
Wind, Supporter, Healer, STR Buffer
If all Rs have low stats, you might as well pick the ones with good support buffs and healing skills, and Asuna has both if you’re good at timing your Switches. She can heal 20% HP on normal Switches, and heal HP and buff strength by 30% on Just Switches. 30% is a pretty big boost, and paired with healing makes her one of the best R cheerleaders.
She cuts Switch cooldown by a measly 3% while her HP is above 30%, which is weak but still welcome. As usual with R characters, her stats are bad, and hers are spread thin over all her stat types. She has a 4-second cooldown attack skill with 400 power, which you might as well spam while you’re waiting for your actual damage dealer to jump in.
Sinon [Target-Seeker]
Water, Fighter, STR Buffer, Self-Healer
A better choice than her R Wind version, Target-Seeker Sinon can keep herself alive pretty handily using her Switch skills, with which she can recover 20% HP on a Normal Switch and 30% on a Just Switch. She also has small but leniently easy-to-keep buffs.
As long as her HP is 30% or higher, she cuts 5% off the whole party’s Switch cooldowns and increases STR by 10%. One of the better R choices in the game simply for her ability to keep herself alive, perhaps long enough to finish respawn timers on your dead party mates should you bungle a fight.
Kirito [To A New World]
Water, Fighter, STR Buffer
To a New World Kirito is one of the more viable R picks thanks to their STR boosts. They are one of the easiest characters to understand: Switches and Just Switches boost his STR by 15% and 25% respectively for 15 seconds, and he boosts his STR by a further 10% when the enemy is suffering from Burst effects.
His first skill, while fairly weak at 400 Power, also has a lightning-fast 4-second cooldown. Their stat line is also highly skewed towards STR, though, with the total statline of an R unit, this isn’t saying much. If you’re gonna use an R unit as a damage dealer, you might as well use this one.
Kirito [Victor’s Confidence]
Wind, Tank, Rush Gauge Booster
Both R Kiritos work well considering their rarity ratings. This one, Victor’s Confidence Kirito, has Switch skills that pair well with his high attack speed. Both his Switches help him build the Rush Gauge, with a 20% and 30% accumulation boost for his normal and Just Switches respectively.
His passives also give him +5% STR when the Rush grade is B and beyond, and 10% when the enemy is suffering from Burst effects. While his stats are predictably pitiful as an R unit, this focused mix of abilities paired with Kirito’s generally fast attacks mix pretty effectively compared to some other characters even in the higher tiers.
Asuna [Victory In Sight]
Water, Fighter, STR Buffer
Victory In Sight Asuna has absolutely nothing beyond STR Buffs, which in a way is a good thing because of the meta’s heavy emphasis on damage dealing. She buffs her team’s STR by 10% for 20 seconds on a normal switch, then her own STR by 30% for 30 seconds on a Just Switch. When the enemy is suffering from Burst effects, she gets another 10% STR, and 5% STR after landing 10 hits. Just keep stacking all that STR if you’re using her.
R-B
Lisbeth [Engage Counterattack]
Wind, Tank, Skill Cooldown Reset, Passive STR Buffer
Skill Cooldown Resets on an R character? That’s serious stuff! Engage Counterattack Lisbeth can reset skill cooldowns when doing Just Switches, a rarity not just with R characters but in the whole roster itself. She can also boost Rush Gauge Accumulation by 20% for 20 seconds after a normal Switch, which pairs decently with her passive, a 10% STR boost when the Rush grade is C or better.
Too bad her combat skills are rather bad at raising the Rush Gauge, and her tank stat line doesn’t mesh too well with her STR buffs.
Lisbeth [I’ve Got This]
Fire, Fighter, STR Buffer
Lisbeth certainly has got this, at least if you know how to get Just Switches consistently. Her Just Switches have a 30% STR bonus attached to them, and she can get a further 10% STR boost from landing 10 hits on the enemy.
Her normal Switch is less impressive: A Switch cooldown cut of 5%. Unfortunately, despite being a Fighter, she has a stat spread more akin to a tank with a skew toward Defense. You might be better off with other Rs if you plan to use them, but a good Just Switcher can simply use I’ve Got This Lisbeth as a cheerleader.
Leafa [Vanguard Strike]
Fire, Fighter, Quick STR Buff
Vanguard Strike Leafa is a pretty good R choice if all you want is an easy, instant STR boost. Her normal Switches give you a cool 20% STR buff. She also gets a 7% Skill Cooldown cut During Just Switches and an added 10% STR Boost if the enemy suffers from a Burst. While her overall stats are still bad, that 20% STR boost mixed with her stat skew toward STR makes her one of the better R units.
Silica [Peak Energy]
Water, Tank, DEF Buffer, Rush Gauge Booster
Even between her fellow Rs, Peak Energy Silica is overshadowed by another Rush Gauge booster, Victor’s Confidence Kirito. Her Switch skills increase DEF by 20% for 30 seconds on a normal Switch, and Rush Gauge Accumulation by 30% for 20 seconds on a Just Switch.
She also boosts the Rush gauge by 10% after hitting the enemy 10 times. This is all well and good, but unlike Victor’s Confidence Kirito, her attacks have relatively poor Rush building ability and you need to be better at switching to get that 30% Rush boost. If you have both, bring Victor’s Confidence Kirito instead.
R-C
Eugeo [To Move Forward]
Fire, Mage, Switch Cooldown Booster
An R unit that is hard to use, and therefore not a good choice for newbies or at all for that matter. To Move Forward Eugeo has fairly weak Switch skills, shaving a tiny 3% of the whole party’s Switch Cooldown on normal Switches and a more useful 7% Skill Cooldown cut with Just Switches.
The STR boost of 10% from slapping the enemy 10 times is welcome and easily done, but his 5% skill power boost for 10 seconds after using Skill Cancelling might be harder to get much out of. You’ll need to be good at Switching and Skill Cancels to make the most out of him, otherwise, just bring him for the 10% STR boost.
R-D
Alice [En Garde!]
Water, Tank, DEF Booster
DEF boosts are fairly rare in the game, but for good reason: Healers exist and you should do your best not to get hit anyway. En Garde! Alice gives a hefty 20% DEF Buff on normal switches and a Just Switch nets you 30% Rush Gauge accumulation for 20 seconds. Slapping the enemy 10 times adds another 10% to your Rush Gauge boost.
Her attacks are nothing special especially since she’s not just an R unit, but also a tank, though she can inflict the Pain debuff with her second skill. The DEF buff is appreciated, but you’re usually better off bringing a healer if you have trouble dodging.
Sinon [Bullseye Master]
Wind, Fighter, Switch Cooldown Buffer
A fairly wimpy switch cooldown reducer with a fairly difficult STR buff to get. Bullseye master Sinon’s normal and Just Switch give out 3% and 5% Switch Cooldown cuts respectively, and she also has an additional 5% crit rate with Switch attacks just for staying alive. She can give the team a 10% STR boost, but only if the enemy is suffering from Burst. Overall, there are far better options available.
Silica [Gung-Ho Girl]
Wind, Supporter, Switch Cooldown Booster
Whatever Silica is, it ain’t Gung-Ho. Gung-Ho characters typically do everything themselves and can rack up criminal body counts alone, but this Silica relies on her teammates to rack up kills instead. Especially since her Switch skills cut the team’s Skill Cooldowns by 5% on Just Switches and Switch Cooldowns by 3% on normal Switches. She also boosts STR by 5% simply by being alive.
Her very disparate set of buffs ensures that you don’t really feel any of them even after they activate. You’ll barely notice her presence on your team at this rate, so pick someone else.
This ends our Sword Art Online: Variant Showdown tier list. We hope this helps you pick a squad. If you have anything to share, don’t hesitate to leave a comment below!