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Every great team of heroes has a powerful tank character. They’re the ones who you send into the heat of the battle to take the hits for your team, and deal massive damage while they’re at it.
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InFire Emblem Engage, you’ll be able to summon the power of the Emblem heroes. Out of the twelve you have at your disposal, none will be quite as powerful as Ike, the Emblem of Radiance. But even with all of that power, you’ll need to employ the right strategy if you want him to get out of it alive. This guide will walk you through his best abilities and the best characters to pair him with.
Bond Effects And Abilities
Like any good tank, Ike comes equipped with powerful defense buffs. HisLaguz Friendbond effect makes it so you may take less damage and get into the middle of the enemy groups and take the hits for your comrades. HisResolveeffect grants Def/Res +5 when your HP is 75% or less, adding even more defense against back-to-back enemy attacks. All of this extra defense does get balanced out with lower Avo (avoid) and Dodge. But even though Ike is not great at avoiding attacks, he can stand his ground and take a beating.
In addition to the high defensive skills, Ike has anAttack Powerbond effect that buffs your damage when using an axe. HisWrathskill applies a 1:1 critical buff for every point of HP you lose during combat, so while he’s sitting there taking hits, you know his next attack is only growing in lethality. All these combined effects make his regular attacks incredibly powerful, but scale to a god-like level when he uses his Emblem attack,Great Aether.
When using Great Aether, Ike will spend a round absorbing the hits of all the surrounding enemies. During this time, he will get yet another boost to defense and resistance, but be unable to counter for a turn. When his next turn starts, he will convert a large portion of that damage received into an attack that hits all enemies surrounding him in a two-space radius. Additionally, he’ll heal 30% of the damage you deal, helping you recover from all the hits you absorbed. This powerful move will often kill multiple enemies at once. Even when it doesn’t, it drains their health significantly and sets up your other characters for an easy kill.
As if he wasn’t powerful enough already, Ike also has an Engage weapon for every occasion. TheHammersmashes enemies with high damage and is especially lethal to armored foes.Urvanis a powerful axe that grants +3 Res (resistance) and scales in power with his Attack Power bond effect. After reaching bond level 15, you’ll gain access to his ultimate weapon,Ragnell. This sword can attack up close or at range, and gives you another +5 Def. When all of those Def stats add up, even the strongest enemies will feel like they are chipping away at a mountain when attacking you.
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Best Pairings
Due to his bond effects, you’ll want to pair Ike with a fellow axe user to get the most out of him.Diamantis a great option as he is already really powerful with high health and defense stats. But the best pairing is with a flying axe wielder likeRosadosince you will get an additional type bonus that grants another +5 Res.
Rosado can also move more spaces each round and can avoid terrain that restricts ground movement. Having this higher mobility means you can quickly get this unit to the front lines and in the middle of all the enemies, take their hits, and then wipe them out or severely wound them the next round. This is a quick way to make a massive dent in the enemy forces right when the battle starts and can help keep your other troops in tip-top shape for much longer.
