Arknights: Greythroat in-depth gameplay analysis

Hello! Throughout my hiatus last couple months, I managed to find a lot of interesting things about Greythroat that pushed my opinion of her up. Granted, she’s still just the 6th best AA Sniper for me with Archetto released, but the gap between her and the 5th place (May) went from “big gap” to “lose out mainly to utilities”. She has a lot more going on than just “discount Exu”, and to be quite honest, that title itself is already a big selling than what people give her credits for. She resembles Exu so much that it was hard for people to recommend raising Greythroat in general, on the hope that “maybe you’ll get Exu someday”, and unlike Manticore/Ethan, having 2 of the same in this case doesn’t feel as great together (unless it’s like East Armory max risk). But what else can she do that maybe separate her from Exu a little bit?

Greythroat (GT) is the 3rd 5* Marksmen Sniper of the game, and with how her kit works, she’s given the honorary title of “discount Exusiai,” who is the best AA Sniper ever, because her kit revolves around shooting fast and multiple times to 1 target, the same as Exu. With an innate critical chance and ASPD buff, a consistent DPS skill that’s a lot more than what people give it credits for, and an amazing burst to combine with the brand new Archetto that you just have (maybe), GT is definitely worth the investment, however low or high priority it’s placed on your list.

Marksmen Snipers in general have a slightly low base ATK to offset for their fast attack rate of 1s per attack (wonder why I felt déjà vu). But within the group, GT has the 6th highest ATK of them all (7th if you count Stormeye). Don’t be too excited about this fact though, since within the 5* AA Sniper, she’s only the 3rd best… out of 5 (4th out of 6 if counting Stormeye), and technically the 4th one has the lowest because she has a large permanent ATK boost after staying on the field for a while, and the 5th one is a welfare who tend to have lowered stats. That said, the difference between them aren’t huge, like 30 ATK top.

But GT has a talent to cover her on these 2 departments later on, both attack and attack rate, so don’t feel too bad.

Being a ranged unit, you can safely guess that their defensive stats aren’t great in general. Within the archetype, GT has the 5th highest HP and the 8th highest (or 6th lowest) DEF, putting her in roughly the middle of the line. At least she can survive the Arts Drone + Ballista combo in Annihilation 3 at a reasonably low level, am I right Blue Poison?

The exact same base cost as the other 5* AA Sniper, 11 base and 13 at E1.

Also the same as any baseline Marksmen Sniper, so it’s simple here too.

Prioritizes aerial enemies first.

Just in case you still don’t know why they are called AA (Anti-Air) Sniper.

They have an official name of Marksmen now though.

Available at E1: ATK SPD +6

At E2 – adds another 15% chance to deal 150% damage.

It’s one of those talents that adds effect at E2 rather than/alongside with an improvement from the E1 version. And in this case, it’s a big addition to GT’s kit, who do a massive amount of hit in a short span with both of her skills, which we will of course get into later. For most people, who usually left their Marksmen at E1, this is partially why they feels GT is not that great, or as great as they have heard.

The ATK SPD is also great, even though the amount is not that much. Coupled with one of her skill giving her multiple shots per attack over a duration, she can sneak in 1 or 2 extra attack, which is a few more of those multiple shots, all of which can proc that critical hit. It’s also the same ATK SPD Exusiai and Jessica gets at E1, so it's not that bad.

The critical damage is an Attack Multiplier, which is calculated before Defense but after Attack Boost. This means she can fare slightly better against higher DEF enemies than other AA Sniper bar Platinum, with one of her skill deals another ATK Multiplier, which stacks multiplicatively, and another one grants a great ATK Boost, and both gives a lot of hits so they have a higher chance for a proc. But at the same time, remember that you don’t/shouldn’t use Marksman Snipers for higher DEF enemies anyway, not without some buffs/debuffs.

To summarize, this talent caps off her skillsets and is the icing on the cake on why she is good (though I'm sure people already believe that). And later on, you’ll see how it will carry her second skill to be better than another 6* version of it.

Always available – Necessary Responsibility: When in the Control Center, decrease morale consume of everyone in that CC by -0.05/h

This is a standard CC skill, and I’ve already mentioned how it’s okay but not that great in previous guide that has one of these. You should still fill out that room with CC-related skill, so this is, like I said, standard.

Available at E2 – Solitude: When in dorm, self morale recovery increase by +0.7/h

Uhh… She recovers faster after working in the CC?

The next attack shoots 2 times, each dealing 125% ATK as physical damage, can store up to 2 charges, 5 SP cost, 0 initial SP

Auto Recovery, Auto activation.

M2 let GT deal 135% each and can store 3 charges.

M3 deal 140% each, 4 SP cost.

I’ll start off by saying, DON’T just leave this skill at M2, despite that breakpoint.

This skill is the reason this post exists. M3 is just way too amazing compared to SL7, and is the skill I recommend mastering over her second skill. Though the S2M3 burst still has the higher ceiling cap, so maybe an M6 for GT? Anyway, this skill is the second consistent DPS skill that I ever truly likes (and if you know me, you’ll know how I feel about the consistent DPS skill).

The main argument against this skill is that, at S1M3, this skill has the same stats as Kroos’ skill at SL7. I don’t think I need to tell you the investment’s difference between GT E2 + S1M3 and Kroos E1 lv55 + SL7. The thing is, there are 2 very subtle details that turn the whole thing around and make this S1M3 investment well worth it, or at the very least, much stronger than Kroos.

Let’s get this quick comparison out first. I already said the 2 skills has similar stats at maxed (GT S1M3 vs Kroos SL7), but Kroos also has a better crit talent compared to GT (20% chance to deal 160% multiplier vs 15% to deal 150% multiplier). GT has an ATK SPD talent but given that her skill is Auto Recovery it doesn’t have the chance to improve the skill directly.

So how would GT S1M3 outmatch Kroos? You may think it’s because GT has higher stats since she’s a 5* and has access to E2 (which she will be at if you want S1M3), but even with similar stats I will still say that GT S1M3 is better. All due to the 2 differences between the two skills: Auto Recovery and can stores charges.

Let me explain, Kroos’ attack interval is 1 per second, so she technically gains 1SP per second anyway… right? Well no. Because there is NO map that will flood enemies constantly for anyone to attack all the time. Okay maybe there is a map or two like that out there, in which case GT S1M3 still can do it very slightly better because of the storing charges effect. Because it can store charges, the SP will keep regen after gaining the first charge during the small time that the skill gained a charge and the time the operator uses that charge. Granted, using a skill also lock SP gain so the improvement is small, but over time GT get to use her skill slightly earlier than Kroos, but the average skill used over time is still the same.

I mentioned that slight “advantage” because I have to circle back to the first point, almost no map will flood enemies constantly. If GT get to use her skill even slightly earlier, she can kill the last enemy in her range earlier, and start gaining SP, maybe a few charges, while waiting for the next one. Having a few charges also means it’s going to be used all at once to the next wave, once again, help killing enemies faster, meaning she get to rest and gain charges faster, again for the next wave. The snowball advantage is not something to be underestimate, certainly not after you have witness it directly, nor do this advantage can be properly calculated with math and numbers.

The snowball effect is like doing your dishes. You threw the dishes in the sink and doesn’t clean it immediately because “I can do it later”. Then come the next one you still feel like “yea it’s still not that much”. Then another one comes, and you go “I can do it all at once instead”. Then one day you bring your girlfriend home, only to have her fainted when she gazes at the marvelous monolithic pile of precariously balanced dirty plates and bowls. Did you get a chill? Well then go do your damm dishes.

What was I talking about? Oh yea, this skill’s subtly good.

The damage is an Attack Multiplier, which means it multiplies any Attack Boost she gained from someone like Warfarin. But even better, because her E2 talent is also an Attack Multiplier, which stacks multiplicatively, turning her attack from 140% to 210% Multiplier, which completely affects any Attack Boost (unlike the next skill).

The consistent DPS skill do what the consistent DPS can. For when her next skill can’t perform well.

One of its main competitor is Blue Poison S2, who can do a 200% ATK to 2 enemies every 3rd attack she makes. GT meanwhile do 140% twice to 1 enemy every 4 seconds. It sounds like BP is just better but in my experience, both are just as good. GT can quickly kill 1 mob and utilize the gap to get a skill charge back, while BP is better when consistently fighting. In my testing, they are equal at least. Because as I said, there are always gap to let GT charge her skill up for the charge, and faster killing means more time to charge her next skill.

See the flow of enemies in the map and how strong your units are, and decide yourself which GT skill is better. I’ll say GT S1 over her S2 because of the same idea as I said in the Arch's guide, it's great for entering a map blind, because you might not be able to know when is the best time to use her S2, as well as the fact that it's harder to charge back up, details coming up next.

ATK +20%, attacks hit 3 times, 34 SP cost, 12 initial SP, 17 seconds duration

Offensive Recovery, Manual Activation

M3 gives +40% ATK, 30 SP cost, 15 initial SP, 20s duration

This is the reason why ever since GT’s inception, she has been compared to Exu, who basically can do the same thing, but better: Attacks 4 times, slightly lower ATK, but receptive to buffs, and Auto Recovery. Even worse, with the release of Archetto, this skill now has yet another counterpart. For Archetto, her S3M3 has nearly everything the same as GT S2M3: Offensive Recovery, 30 SP cost, 15 initial SP, 20s duration, attacks hit 3 times. When you account for the fact that Archetto can restore SP when idle, hit up to 2 enemies at once, range +1, and you will have no more reason to use this GT skill if you have Archetto S3M3. Except…

Perhaps, GT’s own talent can make it up? With +6 ATK SPD and 15% chance to deal 150% of her ATK, which can also multiply her +40% ATK earlier (which is also higher than Arch’s +30%), maybe it can balance it out somehow, at least in term of single target. Let’s see the result with this video. (Spoiler: it’s a pretty drastic difference)

With the release of Kroos the Keen Glint, there is now yet another competition to this skill, and like Archetto, it puts a serious competition in a different form of total damage deal for when you want to kill really high HP enemies or bosses. And it also makes use of buffs/debuffs better if Kroos is on her S2 phase 2 (details in her own post). In fact, I'll go so far as to say Kroos is better than GT because she's both easier to use and have a higher ceiling cap.

With just +6 ATK SPD from her talent, in 20s she can make 22 attacks, translating to 66 total hits. Combine with the critical effect of her talent and a higher Attack Boost than Arch’s, it let GT deals a lot more damage, especially at lower DEF level. Granted, as said, there are many other things attached to Arch S3, so a better damage output won't tell the whole story.

Also, since GT has +6 ATK SPD, she needs less than 30 seconds to recharge her skill if she’s attacking constantly, roughly 28s to be more accurate.

Fun fact: This skill and her first skill both let her deal 140% ATK per hit, and without external factor, 210% with her talent.

Similar to Exu S2. The biggest problem is the Offensive Recovery that this skill comes along with, which may be a problem for some.

You basically have to do a lot of planning head because you need a way for GT to keep attacking after using her skill. And her skill hurt low to mid armored enemies badly, so it’s basically skipping the next wave, just to recharge. Also remember, other allies can kill enemies too fast as well, so GT ran out of enemies to attack faster, and then GT would have no skill ready for the real dangerous wave.

All I’m saying is, this skill needs more careful planning than Exu S3, however strange that sounds. You are forced into 1 of 3 scenarios: have no skill ready for that particular dangerous wave, use the skill once or twice a map, or carefully planning team placement and line up so that GT can get her skill used multiple time.

It’s also why I recommend her first skill. GT S2 is strong, there is no doubt about it. But now, she has 3 competitions: Exu who's the best at this single-target multi-hit burst damage; Archetto who attacks 2 targets, has extended range, and can help her own Offensive Recovery passively; and Kroos the Keen Glint who has higher total damage, scale better with buffs, and is Auto Recovery. This skill lost the position it once held in the Marksmen family.

MAR–У: Reflection of a Mother's Love

• Stage 1:

ATK +24

HP +100

ASPD +8 when there are a ground enemy in range

Preliminary thoughts: pretty good as GT really appreciates the ATK and ASPD. Though this means my recommendation of S1 is slightly weakened, as it doesn't benefits as much. Not that her S1 is actually her best skill, there was just too much competition to her S2.

• Stage 2 (stats boosts do not stack, only replace):

ATK +29

HP +150

Talent improved: ASPD +6. When attacking, 18% chance to deal 150% damage (from 15% chance)

• Stage 3:

ATK +33

HP +150

Talent improved: ASPD +6. When attacking, 21% chance to deal 150% damage

Analysis: Fairly decent. Crit chance is relatively hard to come by and this also gives GT nearly an extra 500 burst DPS on S2 (against 0 DEF). The +ATK is also great for S2 as it can use that boost a lot. I really don't know if I should keep selling S1 anymore actually. 

GT is underrated as a Marksmen Sniper because of the existence of Exusiai (like many other Marksmen). GT had it especially bad because her main specialty is dealing a lot of hits really fast to 1 enemy, the same thing as Exu, and Kroos the Keen Glint. Yet another reason I suggested to focus on GT S1 instead of S2, however weaker it is.

• I made a joke about the snowball effect earlier, but it’s really noticeable at S1M3 compare to SL7, so don’t write it off yet if you can’t see what I said with your own GT. I know it’s a lot of investment, so you don’t have to do it ASAP, just also don’t write it off yet. I even went as far as to say it’s the best consistent DPS skill of an AA Sniper, though, it will have to compete with the fan-favorite BP S1. Platinum is another contender but waiting for her S2 can be a trouble sometime (wait why are the 5* AA Snipers the main contenders for consistent DPS).

• S2 has a much higher power when it’s active, but the downtime can feel pretty bad. It’s still technically her better skill because the dangerous part of the map tends to be in single wave and those waves are spread out far apart. The problem is mainly the SP gain and that there's a lot of competition that's slightly worse in ST DPS but better every where else. Don’t ignore this skill altogether either. However, with Kroos the Keen Glint, this skill is yet again having another competition. Because Kroos has a much easier time to get her skill up as well as an easier rotation due to Auto Recovery.

CN update: Her upcoming modules also heavily favored S2. So I guess my S1 suggestion is... wack? 

So why do I say she's underrated? Well... mostly because of S1 as well as the fact that her S2 is pretty strong, it's just hard to actually get there while other units with similar skills can consistently get their skills off. As I said in the Kroos guide, Kroos takes a while to wind up her skill, which means GT can still snatch a kill before that.

Speaking of which, Arch can help GT S2 gains SP much better, as seen in my Arch guide recently. I’ll link the video again here. Remember, that’s already with GT constantly attacking, and so any break in-between will boost the effectiveness of Arch’s talent much higher.

There is a special case for Offensive Recovery being better than Auto Recovery, and that is the permanent game mode Integrated Strategy#2: Phantom and the Crimson Solitaire. Its most prominent meta is ASPD stacking, which means faster attack leads to a faster skill charge than even Auto Recovery, and they also have +ATK or -DEF relics to improve her DPS in general. Her S1 can also be helped by Spinach/Pasta as well as the SP regen relic.

That should be it for GT, I think. I started a draft for this post before the Archetto one, but don’t worry as I knew that would happen, so I made the draft knowing the Arch post will go first. The one thing I didn’t expect was how much better GT S2 is over Arch S3 in term of damage. I expected it to be a little bit better, though.

For the people who use her, how do you find her? She certainly surprised me in a few departments as I was testing her out, which lead to this post. The existence of Exu does make it hard to really justify investing on her, but know that the investment on her is not a waste, even if you have Exu already. Also I think I might have overselling her S1 a little bit, but I still recommend it as the end result. But it’s the viewpoint of a Sniper-enthusiast, so I don’t know if it translates well to other people.

Regardless, thank you for reading, and I’ll see you next time.