Arknights: Should You Pull? Abyss Corrosion: Specter the Unchained

:Note:

• New operators [Irene], [Windflit] will permanently join the [Standard Headhunting] pool after the banner ends
• New operator [Specter the Unchained] is a limited operator, and won’t join any [Standard Headhunting].

Maybe. This is one of the most subjective banners we’ve ever had in Arknights.

If you want to pull for the limited unit, Specter the Unchained, then go ahead. However, be aware that on release, Specter the Unchained is extremely underwhelming (to the point of being considered a sidegrade to her 5* version). She comes into her own with her modules, but those are not available yet and will cost a LOT of resources to activate. If that doesn’t bother you, however, then Splatter can pull her weight. Eventually.

If you want to pull for Irene, then go ahead. Irene is pretty good, with a decent blend of DPS and crowd-control. She also has the appeal of being an NPC-turned-playable from the Under Tides event and of bringing a brand-new status ailment, Levitate, to the game. She’s unlikely to be a gamechanger for most players, but like Specter the Unchained, she can pull her weight on the team (and with less investment, even).

If you want to pull for Windflit, don’t unless you’re a completionist or a husbando-hunter. Windflit is bafflingly undertuned and has very little to offer.

You should not pull on this banner just because Specter the Unchained is limited. Be aware of what these Operators do and whether you really want them before you make your final decision.

Substitute/ Dollkeeper Specialist

+ Usual archetype strengths: Cheap DP cost, fast ASPD, difficult to kill because of the way the substitute works

+ Her substitute inflicts AoE Arts damage over time and a Slow effect on nearby enemies (E0 Talent)

+ Buffs HP of all Abyssal Hunter Operators (E2 Talent)

+ S2 greatly increases Specter's DPS and prevents her HP from falling below 1 (much like regular Specter), but automatically defeats Specter when the Skill ends, switching her to her substitute

+ S3 turns Specter into a Centurion Guard temporarily (attacks multiple blocked enemies, ATK and max HP increased); does bonus damage when attacking enemies with higher HP% than Specter herself, but causes Specter to lose HP when attacking enemies with lower HP% than Specter

= Usual archetype dilemma: Specter has Block-2 but the substitute has Block-0, which can result in leaks if Specter switches to her substitute at a bad time

- Usual archetype weaknesses: Skills consume HP (S3) or defeat her outright (S2); Skills end when switching to the substitute and SP is only gained while Specter is on the field

- VERY underwhelming without a max-level Module upgrade (substitute damage and Slow are very low, S2 uptime is terrible due to the substitute not gaining SP, overall DPS is not impressive compared to many other 6*s)

- Skill uptime is not very good (especially compared to regular Specter)

- Cannot helidrop with S2 the way regular Specter can

Dualstrike/ Swordmaster Guard

+ Good DPS and good CC via the Levitate ailment, which changes the target into an aerial enemy and prevents them from moving, attacking, or using skills

+ Chance to ignore part of enemy’s DEF (E1 Talent); guaranteed to proc against aerial enemies

+ E2 Talent is an ASPD buff that doubles when there are [Sea Monster] enemies on the field

+ S1 damages the target, inflicts Levitate, then damages them again (triggering E1 Talent)

+ S2 damages multiple ground enemies and Levitates targets who have less than 3 weight

+ S3 does AoE damage and Levitates all targets, then inflicts multiple random attacks over its area (triggering E1 Talent)

= Usual archetype dilemma: Irene’s attacks hit twice, but she has lower ATK to compensate; this makes her strong against low-DEF enemies but is a drawback against high-DEF enemies

= Although her attacks hit twice, they still only charge 1 SP for her [Attacking Enemy] Skills

- Even with her Talent, her [Attacking Enemy] Skills can take a while to charge

- Levitate duration is halved against heavier enemies

Artificer Supporter

+ A ground-deployed Supporter who deals Physical damage and has Block-2 

+ Can deploy Batteries to temporarily buff the ATK of a Caster or Supporter ally

+ S1 does AoE damage around Windflit and grants SP to allies who have a Battery

+ S2 increases the ATK buff from all Batteries and creates a new Battery when the duration is up

- Low ATK

- The ATK buff from the Batteries is very unimpressive (even with S2 active)

- S1 cannot recover Batteries

- The SP recovery from S1 is very low because of the charge time on the Skill and how it only triggers when Windflit attacks

- S2 has atrocious uptime

Specter the Unchained (aka Specter Alter, Spalter, or Splatter) is a tiny, dangerous bit closer to recovering her memories of who she really is. As a Dollkeeper Specialist, she mercurially swaps between forms on the battlefield. First she swings a giant, nautilus-themed buzzsaw, splattering corpses and dodging death like the Specter we all know and love. Then, at the drop of a hat, she pivots completely, with her substitute singing an eerie AEgir elegy that slowly sends enemies sinking straight to the bottom of the sea.

Irene was only a little girl when Skalter first visited her hometown back in the Under Tides event, but now she’s grown up and become a fully-trained Inquisitor. Armed with an Inquisitor’s trademark rapier and flintlock, Irene flings enemies high into the air with the Levitate effect, turning them into “flying” enemies so she can shoot right through their defenses with a barrage of bullets.

Windflit is a new addition to the Rhodes Island Engineering Department, and he’s been sending the other engineers into hysterics with his “unorthodox” creative process (wherein most things explode first and function later, if at all). It’s perhaps worrisome, then, that Windflit is bringing his creations to the battlefield and hooking them up to other Caster and Supporter Operators… but don’t worry, these creations won’t make your Operators explode. They’ll just pump up the user’s ATK stat so your enemies explode instead.