MMM - Temperate Temptress Turns Away Tempering Tincture, Tianshui Thaumaturge Typically Turbulent (Summer 2020 Part 2)

Yu’s kit kicks off with a thankfully intriguing start. Summer Incarnation Spirit follows the same trend as Kiara’s Mermaid Meat, giving a strong and particularly solid Gut buff, on top of a slightly gimmicky side effect. On top of the Guts, she also gets a 3-turn NP gain buff, one that improves based on the map terrain. Or rather, duplicates of it get stacked on top. If you’re on a Water trait map, you get one, if you’re on a Sun trait map, you also get one, for a maximum of +60% NP gain at skill level 10.

NP gain boosts are always appreciated. It helps balance out Yu’s otherwise unnoteworthy NP gain into something more useful, while becoming more effective on (usually) Summer event maps. You can hope future story will feature a lot of Sun and Water, though. Atlantis did, at least.

Those benefits are placed on a 8-turn base cooldown. While pretty good for a Guts with a 5-turn duration, it is a little longer than you’d want for a NP gain buff. Regardless, a 1-turn downtime Guts is a solid emergency contingency for unfortunate deaths.

Next on the lineup is Princess of the Overlord. You don’t need a degree in Chinese History to know who the skill is referring to. And hey, it’s a NP gauge charger. Targetable, too!

Unfortunately, it’s in the group of pathetically weak gauge chargers, only providing 20% at max skill level, though anything is better than nothing. The cooldown is also a low 7 turns base, to compensate. The bonus effect to this skill is providing a Taunt on Yu. No, not you, the Servant - Paisen. I can’t say it isn’t fitting, but having a Taunt when your only defensive option is a Guts isn’t fantastic. At the very least, it’ll pull the trick of automatically ending the turn when her Guts procs, unless that’s been patched out since I last tried.

That aside, gauge charger good, Taunt situationally good but probably not going to come into play often.

Last but not least, we have Dance of the Day. While this kill has its icon be a Quick card booster, the real value in this thing is the hefty 50% critical damage buff for the team over 3 turns at skill level 10. Not only does this power up Yu’s critical damage immensely, but lets her allies (even if they’re supports) also rack out some hefty crits. I can tell you, Skadi can pop out some nasty crits after her own NP’s active, then again with this skill aiding her.

But naturally, Yu is also happy to have that 20% Quick card booster in her back pocket, enhancing all aspects of her primary card type. Unfortunately, it’s literally her sole steroid for her NP, but having a high attack stat and free NP5 doesn’t make it much of an issue. All that on a reasonably-short 7 turn base cooldown. I like it.

And hey, it’s an SSR Summer Servant, so we need our gimmick skill! Rose Sleep is a targeted buff removal paired with a new debuff - Sleep. Functioning pretty similarly to the same debuff in most RPG’s, it functions as a Stun that wears off when the target is attacked (I’m not certain if DoTs or things like Summer Camilla’s HP drain fall under this, but anything that involves selecting a card does). Unlike every Stun or Charm in the game (in player hands, at least), this debuff lasts 2 turns. Meaning provided you don’t hit the target, it’ll disable both the turn you use the skill and the turn after.

On top of that, this skill also applies a hefty 50% def down debuff at skill level 10 to the target, which only applies to the attack which wakes up the target.

So, with explanations out the way, time to explain why this skill is ass, especially on Abbie Summer specifically.

The best part about Stuns is that they let you lock down a target for a turn, either reducing their freedom to wreck your shit, or if they have a full NP bar, it essentially acts like a super NP drain, delaying their NP for a turn. Especially for Challenge Quests with a singular boss, taking out a turn they can use attacks with annoying side effects or use skills to further their gimmicks is particularly powerful (For example, in the Tota Challenge Quest a while back). Abbie’s Sleep debuff, however, cannot work that way. If you’re facing a single foe, this function is literally impossible to perform, as FGO doesn’t let you pass a turn without attacking (technically, if you have 3 non-damaging NP’s ready or do some self-stun skill witchcraft you can, but that is so convoluted it’s pretty much meaningless). So you pop it on the boss, bop them the same player turn, then they wake up and attack on the enemy turn. Whoopsie.

So, putting single-target Challenge Quests aside, what about ones with multiple bosses? Well...it might help? The fundamental issue I find with the whole skill is it reaps benefits focused on locking down one target then singling out another, but Abbie Summer is an AOE servant. If at any point she could pop her NP and inflict damage, but her desire to keep Sleep active is stopping her, she’s essentially self-destructing. And Abbie Summer isn’t exactly golden support material. She has some useful tools, but bringing her just for Sleep is like bringing BB Summer just for her card lock. It can be really cool to pull off, but practically speaking just using a different, dedicated support is better.

So, putting all the negatives aside, this is STILL a buff removal skill and a big 1-time def down on a reasonable cooldown, so it’s not a bad skill to have around. It’s just Abbie Summer isn’t really geared to abuse Sleep as a debuff. Maybe we’ll get a new Servant down the line who will? Who am I kidding?

At this point, we could probably say Mass Hysteria is Abbie’s personal skill. Pretty much identical to her vanilla form, this version only has a minor boost to the proc chance of Mass Hysteria’s stun effect.

For those not in the loop, this skill applies the Terror debuff to all foes for 3 turns. At the end of each of those 3 turns, the game will make a straight RNG roll versus the chance displayed on the skill (so, 55% at skill level 10). If it succeeds, an enemy with the Terror debuff will lose it and be stunned for a turn. However, keep in mind both the initial application of Terror and the Stun when it is applied are subject to debuff resistance. So you can get unlucky and just see “GUARD” pop up at the end of a turn on a Terror-subject target. Them’s the breaks.

All the uncertainty aside, this skill is probably one of my favourite unconventional skills in the game. The odds of actually stunning your targets are still pretty high due to compound probability (over 3 turns, assuming the targets have no debuff resistance, the odds of NOT stunning one of them is 9%, and there’s roughly a 75% chance of stunning all three enemies), and even if you don’t like the uncertainty of the Stun, you also get an AOE def debuff for your trouble.

Only issue is, being an AOE Stun skill, DW have slapped it with the nasty 9-turn base cooldown I’m sure we all hate. Not the end of the world, but you can’t expect you put the Stun version of the Sword of Damocles over the enemy every turn.

You know what I said about debuff resistance screwing up Mass Hysteria? Abbie’s Summer form apparently isn’t pleased about that. Guiding One is the fan-favourite 50% gauge charger, also coming packed with bonus goodies tailored specifically for her. To be precise, the 30% debuff success rate boost over 3 turns, essentially meaning the application rate for Rose Sleep and Mass Hysteria’s initial debuffs, and the Stun on Mass Hysteria will be 130% instead of 100% while active. That bypasses most Magic Resistance in the game, and makes it pretty hard for the super-high passive Debuff Resistance gods like Quetzalcoatl to screw you over.

This skill also comes packed with a targeted Buster Resist down, just further signalling to use it on Abbie’s NP turn.

I’m really not sure what else to say here. 50% gauge chargers are great, especially for AOE, and the extra effects here play into Abbie’s own kit pretty well. Though at this point, the number of single-target debuffs she has for an AOE NP is starting to annoy me. But with that in mind…

Moving on to skills, we start with Midnight of Summerside. The skill where Inferno literally burns the midnight oil. Befitting the flavour of the skill, this provides Inferno Summer with a decent-HP sum Guts (sadly not 5 turns, but 3, unlike other Servants this summer) an immensely powerful 100% critical damage buff at skill level 10 for 3 turns, and the Staying Up buff(?) to herself.

Staying Up is just a timer buff that triggers at the end of the 3 turns, applying Stun to her to a turn as if it were a buff. Meaning neither the initial application nor the trigger can be resisted or prevented (outside of eating a Buff Prevention from the enemy). So you’re eating that Stun no matter what.

Drawbacks aside, such a huge critical buff is hard to pass up on, turning Inferno into a Super-Lancelot. Naturally, the Guts buff is also a neat safety net, though the Stun at the end could frankly be more perilous than the risk of dying before it triggers.

These benefits are provided on a 8-turn base cooldown, which is frankly fair for what it provides. That crit buff really is vicious, especially in the hands of a Servant who doesn’t have a passively awful star weight like a Caster or Berserker.

Okita, Inferno gazes upon your ability to soak stars by dying of Tuberculosis and finds it lacking. VR Shinkage Ryu is essentially an altered Arts-edition slap to Okita’s second skill, also providing Star Focus (though only for Arts cards, and half as strong), with an extra Arts card boost on top.

Arts is Inferno’s primary card type in this form, and I don’t even think I have to name the Servant introduced this Anniversary to say that focusing on Arts is good. While the strength and duration of both these buffs may be a little lacking, it’s compensated for by their 6 turn base cooldown, allowing you to pop it again much sooner than most skills, especially when maxed out. Add in a Tamamo or two and...well, you get the picture.

This also combines effectively with her first skill, allowing Inferno Summer to really abuse the intense critical boost at her disposal. And though it’s not directly a boost to NP gain, getting guaranteed crits to your Arts cards essentially means you double your NP gain on those cards, making this invaluable for patching Inferno’s otherwise-meh NP gain.

First Okita, now Saberlot. Inferno Summer is really going for the throats of the competition by fighting them in their own territory, huh? Survival (Countryside) is what I dub a “super star-bomb”, dropping both immense stars on the turn it’s used, and providing extra stars each turn for 3 turns. Oh, and there’s a 1-time debuff immunity packed in just for safety.

What makes this skill pretty neat aside the obvious direct crit benefits, is it lets Inferno Summer pop her cooldowns turn 1 with little remorse. This skill provides 25 stars at skill level 10, more than enough to provide 100% crit on both her Arts cards, her second skill can guarantee those stars land on her Arts cards and boost their damage, then her first skill actually makes the crits worthwhile. And unlike a lot of Servants who incentivize a turn-1 skill unload, Inferno Summer doesn’t waste any side-effects on her skills by doing so. The Guts on Midnight of Summerside is just a safety net, as is the debuff immunity on this skill.

Then again, that is basically the same thing as saying “Inferno Summer has no utility, support, or decent defensive tools in her kit she can waste”, but being focused on Arts crit has historically worked out for 4* Arts Sabers, so I can’t blame her.

This skill is simply good, even if it’s burdened with a slightly hefty 8-turn base cooldown, providing consistent star production that most Arts teams tend to lack, even if you run 2030’s on your supports.

Revving up our focus on skills, we start with Summer Night Black Widow. As malicious as it sounds, this skill isn’t exactly fatal in its effects, being a straightforward single-target debuff including a 1-turn NP Seal and Defence Down for 3 turns.

As I like to say, NP Seal is essentially NP gauge drain plus, not only preventing the enemy from triggering a NP, but also preventing increases to their gauge, which can block NP charging skills or the passive gauge increase at the end of the turn. The only real drawback to it is that it has to go through enemy Debuff Resistance, which can present an issue when Murasaki Summer has no passive Buff Success chance increase in her kit, but that issue may resolve itself. Regardless, it’s a good stall tool.

Conversely, the def down is just a straight offensive steroid, and one that doesn’t suffer too much from being a debuff rather than buff, since it’s single target. Odds are, you’re dropping this on the thing that needs to die to win the quest, rather than a disposable mook. Maybe you could ask for more, such as the slightly hefty 8-turn base cooldown being lower, but there’s nothing too bad about stall focus as an Arts Servant, or more damage.

Moving on, we have Strange Hobbies (Summer), or “resolving itself”, as I put it. This skill mirrors Murasaki Summer’s previous skill in a way, also being a single target debuff, but providing a powerful debuff res down before doing its own effects. And seriously, 100% debuff resistance down is pretty crazy - that makes even the most unlikely Stuns / Charms like D’Eon’s or Tesla’s hit even through most Magic Resistance. Though you can still have the debuff resistance debuff get resisted, it increases the odds of being able to bypass higher Magic Resistance targets, which is always good.

Turning to the meat and potatoes, this skill then applies both Skill Seal and Arts Resistance Down on the same target for a turn. Skill Seal is frankly an incredibly niche debuff, as there aren’t many cases where you would prefer a target to attack and risk murdering your lineup over using skills, and important skills (like CQ gimmicks and gauge break skill uses) aren’t prevented by Skill Seal. That’s the rule, however there are naturally exceptions. In some cases bosses will use Skills before they use their NP, often damage-increasing or Sure Hit / Invincible Pierce skills, and in fights versus Archers or Assassins with gauge charger skills, denying the chance of them randomly using it and surprise NP-ing you can be useful (though you can also use 「KING CRIMSON」, otherwise known as exiting the app to also prevent that happening. But hey, some people are gameplay purists).

Lastly and most simply, Arts Resist Down is yet another debuff offensive steroid for Murasaki Summer to benefit from. Everything I said for her prior defense down pretty much applies here, though this one only has a 1-turn duration, unfortunately. The skill’s also on a kinder 7-turn base cooldown, meaning it can come back up pretty often.

Finishing things off on the skill front, we have Literary Maiden (Summer). By harnessing the literal power of the book girl fetish, Murasaki Summer can gain 60% NP gauge over 3 turns at skill level 10, as well as dumping a sizable star bomb on herself.

...and that’s it. While it isn’t the most interesting skill to discuss, it does have some handy perks for her focus as an Arts ST Servant. Naturally, immediate gauge chargers are always better, but gauge-over-time tends to make consistent NP looping easier once you get going, providing a notable buffer to re-filling your gauge after each NP. I’ll get onto that more when discussing Murasaki Summer’s NP itself, but the point being is that it’s useful.

The star bomb, meanwhile, proves a pretty handy tool for Murasaki Summer in ways you wouldn’t expect. As a Rider, she pretty much soaks up all stars provided she’s battling with Caster supports, which lets her more or less abuse these stars for herself without a Star Focus buff. Add in her general focus on looping as an Arts Servant, and these stars allow her to have pretty much guaranteed Arts crits on the turn her Arts cards show up, enabling a fairly easy double loop. This may not always align with when you want her to get the NP gauge charging, too, but it is a handy perk. At a base 7-turn cooldown this skill is also surprisingly quick to get back up (for a gauge charger that goes over 50% total), which further plays into the potential of using this for consistent looping.