The new enhancement systems that came with the Season 2 update left many with mixed impressions as there was so much new content added in a single update. Elemental enhancement, Hero Awakening, Core Memory, and Signature Force provided multiple ways for players to progress their accounts further and gave players more options to test when they reach an end game level.

However, these new enhancement systems drew some criticism due to the high level resources required to utilize these new features. Now that it’s been almost a month since the release of Season 2, more players are starting to unlock these new end game enhancements and we are seeing many different team compositions being built that is creating new trends and shifting the Season 1 meta in PVP.

Here are five key trends that have started to create more diversity in the competitive PVP scene.

Signature Force and nation heavy teams are becoming meta

The addition of Nation recruitment and Signature Force has shifted top-level players into focusing on building team compositions of a single nation due to the massive stat boost and added elemental damage. The Signature Force level 1 upgrade alone has had a huge impact on the current meta due to it providing pure damage that ignores defense. In addition, it’s added after an attack which essentially renders Tranquil useless.

Having an entire team that benefits from this added raw damage has influenced many to focus on teams composed of an entire nation to compete in high level PVP. A common team composition in the current meta is a “Frosty” team of all units under North Von Frosty. This includes a frontline of Shufraken, Iris, and Ramge with a backline of fatecore Valentina and fatecore Brook. Although slow, if your units are strong enough to survive an initial attack from an enemy team, you will decimate your opponent with FC Brook’s single target snipe capability and Ramge’s AOE and Self-Harm synergy with Shufraken’s Fear of the Abyss.

These nation heavy teams are sure to become more diverse and meta defining as more Signature Force nations are unlocked. 

FC, Bathory, FC Annie, FC Rera no longer the top backline offense

The commonly used trio of fatecore Annie, fatecore Rera, and Bathory as the main backline offense was the meta at the end of Season 1. While still used in many teams today, they have been dethroned as the top backline with the introduction of Signature Force and the new Season 2 hero Dorka. The key to the Annie/Bath/Rera combo was the ability to provide massive burst damage, nullify an enemy’s damage dealer with Rera’s mark, and be able to survive an aoe nuke from an enemy team due to Bathory’s Tranquil mark. However, as more players are starting to Awaken units and upgrade teams with Signature Force, tranquil has become less a necessity in PVP and units are much stronger now with larger HP pools making it more difficult to go full Burst AOE damage. 

New meta offenses are now utilizing Dorka and fatecore Brooke (as he was recently upgraded) or a combination of Dorka, fatecore Annie, and fatecore Deva with Signature Force level 1. The last upgrade to FC Deva giving her additional critical hit damage in addition to the added Signature Force elemental damage has made her one of the best Burst damage dealers in the game. Also, she was a free reward in an earlier Exos event so many players should have her as well.  

Fatecore Iris is still a popular pick for frontline support

The Summer Festa fatecore Iris is still commonly used in today’s meta due to the same reasons that made her meta defining at the end of Season 1. Her passive is still very strong against First Guardians and her ability to boost mana allows you to be flexible in deciding who and how you want to attack teams. In addition, she is a strong pick for a “Frosty” team as mentioned above   

Garff and Shufraken remain popular picks for frontline tanks, upgraded Fatecore Tantalo is now making an appearance

The fated generals Garff and Shufraken are still the top frontline defense units in the game. Garff becoming easier to provide the Command mark to the team after awakening with a full flame set has increased his value significantly. In addition, having the Protect passive with his massive HP pool after awakening allows your protect damage dealer to survive longer without needing Tranquil.

In contrast, Shufraken provides the extra damage needed to wipe teams with Fear of the Abyss acting as a final hit. Awakening him with a full frost set will allow him to easily mark an enemy team with Fear of the Abyss. Combine his mark damage with Signature Force elemental damage and he can easily clear a team dependent on Tranquil.

Lastly, the new upgrade to the gold Banga Fatecore Tantalo has given him significant value as a tank as he now applies Heart Strike, nullifies critical damage, and provides damage immunity for one turn. This helps significantly against speedy Rera/Deva teams that depend on nuking first turn. He also adds versatility in tag matches against First Guardian teams with the Banga Heart Strike passive.

Awakening heroes with a full red/flame set is required for competitive PVP

If you haven’t read the basics to Awakening guide on our Inven Global site, you can read about it here for a better understanding of how the system works.  Although Awakening can be completed with any fated gear as long as it is level 60, utilizing guard stone sets provides the maximum benefit needed to improve performance. In addition, utilizing a full guard stone set provides more benefit than mixing sets.

Due to the new added elemental damage from Signature Force upgrades, it is almost always the best choice to awaken a hero with a full flame set. The set bonus alone provides damage reduction, add that to the HP increase from Awakening, and your unit will have the tankiness necessary to survive a hit from a full nation team utilizing Signature Force.   

I hope these five current trends are able to help you climb the arena ladder coming into the next season. These are not only seen in arena, but Squadron battles as well, so build your teams accordingly as more tanky teams benefit more in Squadron battles. If you want to stay current with weekly trends I highly recommend watching the battles in the top 16 tournament. Although they are auto battles, they do give a glimpse into the types of teams being used in the current meta. Good luck on the climb and please frequent the Inven Global site for weekly Exos news!