Final Fantasy Brave Exvius is constantly releasing new units. There is ongoing chatter in the community about power creep, and which units will become obsolete as time goes on. This is frustrating for many players, as they drop a large amount of in-game and real-life currency in pursuit of supposedly top-tier talent to add to their roster. Luckily, the game’s developers don’t allow our investments to go to waste and usually release ability enhancements to keep those valuable units useful for as long as possible.
Final Fantasy Brave Exvius Enhancements: The Best Get Better
Tidus (Mar. 15th, 2018)
Final Fantasy X’s protagonist, Tidus, was one of the most anticipated of the ability enhancements. While he was solid prior to his Brave Exvius enhancements, he became a top-tier chainer afterward. Tidus already had a ton of potential as a versatile unit.
In addition to the basic physical attacker passives like HP and attack increases, his Sun Crest trait gives him an innate beast, bird, and demon killer. From there he has some great support passives, like Auto-Refresh, and Tackle Slip, which gives him 30% evasion. Top Athlete gives him immunity to blind, sleep and paralysis, in addition to a 200% Limit Burst gauge fill rate.
For his active abilities, Entrust allows him to gift his Limit Bust to another character. Blitz Mania is a solid skill that boosts water resistance by 100% and gives Refresh to the entire party for three turns. His chaining move, Quick Hit, has a 4x modifier that deals 12 hits to one enemy.
His enhancements took everything that was good about him and made it even better. Sun Crest went from a 20% attack increase to a base 40% with an additional 50% when equipped with a sword. Anyone using Tidus is going to be using his Trust Master Reward (TMR), Brotherhood, so that other 50% is basically a given. Tackle Slip awarded him with a 20% magic evasion, and then a 30% chance to counter physical attacks. Get Pumped will probably still rarely be used, but when enhanced gives a 60% increase to attack, magic, spirit, and defense for four turns.
Finally, what really makes him shine is his Quick Hit boost. When enhanced, it increases to a ridiculous 7.2x modifier. This prompted many players to dust him off and put him as their lead.
Trance Terra (Oct. 20th, 2017)
While players looking at Trance Terra had differing opinions on her usefulness prior to her enhancements, afterwards, there was little debate on her title of top magic chainer. She was one of the earlier 5* mages released, and one of the first to have her own special magical abilities that were not technically Black Magic. Chaos Wave deals magical damage with a 1.8x modifier and 50% spirit ignore to all enemies.
Magical Activation could boost this further by giving herself an 80% magic boost in addition to an 80% spirit boost. It also increased Chaos Wave from five to ten hits. The downside to this was the players had to cycle between the two abilities every two turns to get her to deal maximum damage. Later, when mages like Barbariccia arrived with spells like Tornado that could be Dualcasted for massive chaining damage on turn one, Trance Terra fell out of favor.
She came back with a vengeance after her Brave Exvius enhancements, however. Mainly, Magical Activation now gives her a three-turn, 120% boost to her magic and spirit. That was just the beginning though. The move also granted her Successor – Maduin’s Power. This move let her cast two Chaos Waves in one turn and dropped next turn’s Chaos Wave cost to 0 MP. From there, Chaos Wave increased to a 4.2x modifier when used after Magical Activation. She kept some of her flexibility by also gaining access to Dual White Magic after Magical Activation, which could be useful in a pinch.
Most players will ignore her Ultima enhancements, but Inherited Power is one to remember. Initially, it only gave a 30% magic and spirit boost and silence immunity. After being enhanced, it increased her magic by a whole 80% and added 30% fire, ice, and lightning resistance. After all of this, she became am in-demand units for trials like Rumble of Malboro and Bloody Moon. Now, players are anxiously awaiting her 7* awakening.
Wilhelm (Nov. 16th, 2017)
Moving on to the first Brave Exvius original to make the list is Wilhelm. Prior to his enhancements, Wilhelm was a solid provoke tank but was mostly known for his awesome mustache. As a 5* tank, he wasn’t exactly in-demand much, as 4* tanks like Warrior of Light could cover the entire party, and easily become provoke tanks when given the esper, Golem.
However, Wilhelm’s bulkiness could not be denied after his Brave Exvius enhancements and put him leagues above any other provoke tank. Impregnable already gave him a 100% chance of being targeted. After enhancements, it also increased its damage mitigation from 30% to 40%. Enhancing Protector gave him an additional 30% HP and gave him a maximum 80% boost to his defense and spirit if equipped with a heavy shield and armor.
He also gained some more utility with General’s Command and General’s Battlecry. General’s Command gives a nice 70% increase to the party’s defense and spirit for five turns. Enhanced General’s Battlecry increases the party’s Limit Burst rate by 100% and boosts the party’s attack and magic by 50% for four turns. Fully enhanced, Command was decreased to 40 MP, and Battlecry to 45 MP. Player’s could also enhance Imperial Lance to absorb MP as well as HP from an enemy.
Single target provoke tanks are still rarely needed, so Wilhelm still only saw niche uses even after enhancements. However, with 7* arriving, and him gaining an AoE cover ability, his enhancements will definitely come in handy for those wanting to take their first ride with the mustache man.
Olive (Feb. 8th, 2018)
Speaking of niche uses, Olive arrives as the first finisher on the list. Since she was a Global exclusive unit, players were unsure what kind of enhancements she would get. Upon release, she was one of few units who did better as a Doublehand unit, especially when given her TMR, Sparky. She became even more valuable with the advent of True Doublehand, turning her into a powerhouse even before enhancements.
She is basically a one-trick pony, but her trick is a good one. Players might take a turn to set her up, using Shattering Shot to debuff an enemy’s defense by 50% and imperil lightning damage by 50%, allowing her to take advantage of her TMR. From there, it is True Shot time, which had a 2.4x modifier and 50% unmitigated physical damage. Her Limit Burst is also really good, dealing partial unmitigated damage that hits five times to random enemies with a max .89x modifier. Destructionist allows her to use it frequently, increasing her burst fill by 200%.
Against machines, she is especially deadly due to her Demolition Specialist Trait, increasing her damage by 50% against them, and giving her a 50% attack boost when wielding a gun. Finally, she has the unique Mortar Beacon move. It activates at the beginning of the battle, or every time she is revived and deals 5x physical damage two turns after it procures.
When enhanced, Mortar Beacon increases to deal a crazy 12x physical damage. Then, Heavy Arms Proficiency increases from 75% to 150% increase in equipment attack for single-wielding a one-handed weapon, and an extra 30% when equipped with a gun. In terms of active abilities, Shattering Shot gets an increased modifier (2x), defense decrease (60%), and lightning imperil (75%). When all is said and done, Olive can blow the enemy away with True Shot’s increased 3.5x modifier. She’s even better now as one of the original 7* batch units.
Fryevia (Apr. 19th, 2018)
Another great Global exclusive unit is the Ice Queen, Fryevia. Upon release, she was very overpowered as a hybrid unit, though tricky to gear. Hybrid units’ damage is based on both their attack and magic, but it is usually easier to focus more on magic. It is tricky since she can only wield swords, meaning her only good option is her TMR. Oddly enough, Fryevia also gets attack and magic bonuses for going Doublehand. However, she still does much more damage by going with a Dual Wield build.
In terms of abilities, Frost Flower Blitz is her bread-and-butter. It has an 8x modifier that deals ice hybrid damage while decreasing ice resistance by 50%. The damage from this move blows basically any character away, and since it is a hybrid ability, it means it bypasses and physical or magical immunities. This makes Fryevia useful for basically any battle.
Her one weakness was that she could only chain with herself. Well, that all changed with her enhancements. Frost Flower Blitz not only increased to a 10x modifier and 75% ice imperil, but it also changed her frames to be able to chain with the so-called “Orlandeau family.” With the arrival of Raegan, who also shares the same attack frames, it had many people changing their weapons from the long-established light elementals, to ice elementals.
Of course, there were other enhancements that helped her keep pace with newer characters as well. Duelist Pose finally became a useful trait, adding a 30% increase in attack, magic, defense, and spirit when equipped with a sword. Cold and Confident gave her more survivability. It bumped her HP by 30%, adding to the 30% MP it already gave. The trait also increased her ice resistance from 20% to 50%. Finally, Second Intention is the least important to focus on for her Brave Exvius enhancements but increased up to a 12x modifier if used after Ice Saber or Frost Flower Blitz. It is an option as a finishing move, though most would rather keep the chaining up.
Orlandeau (Dec. 21st, 2017)
The man, the myth, the legend – Orlandeau. Referred to endearingly by nicknames like “Daddylandu,” he was the first 5* unit that people really pulled hard for. This was because he was so future-proof, and with a perfect chaining partner, his damage was in an entirely new stratosphere. For months after his release, people’s companion lists were flooded with Orlandeaus, and nobody complained.
Obviously, his main ability is Divine Ruination, which deals eight hits with a 2x modifier, partially unaffected by defense. It also decreases light resistance, pairing perfectly with Cecil’s TMR, Excalibur. He also has a bit of utility; his Crush Weapon decreased enemy attack and magic by 40%, a respectable amount at his time of release. Duskblade dealt damage, but also drained MP from an enemy, giving him some sustainability.
While he wasn’t necessarily falling behind as a physical attacker before enhancements, magical dealers started getting a lot stronger, and the first choice for damage dealing in many cases. Orlandeaus Brave Exvius enhancements evened the table and made sure he kept himself populated on those friend lists.
Black Lion’s Crest initially gave a 40% boost to his attack when wielding a greatsword, and gave him immunity to blind, sleep, and paralyze. When enhanced, a regular sword or katana also gives him a 40% attack boost, and he also got a 20% HP boost. From there, Crush Weapon increased to a 45% attack and magic decrease and lasts for five turns. Divine Ruination kept par with newer units, going up to a 2.6x modifier, and lowered the required MP to 40.
Bonus Gold Brave Exvius Enhancement Unit: Agrias (Sept. 7th, 2017)
The final entry on the list is Agrias, who also comes from Ivalice in Final Fantasy Tactics. Agrias was a viable unit in the early days of FFBE when chaining and dealing insane damage was not as necessary. Her initial kit made her a valuable asset to teams, and she was one of the last 5* max units to be benched on many player’s teams.
Agrias is a Holy Knight, so she has access to White Magic spells like Cura and Protectga by level 80. She also has Full Break to debuff all stats and Lance to restore some of her HP and MP. Then Agrias can attack with either Bladeblitz or Cleansing Strike. In the game’s infancy, this type of versatility was great. But, her max level and lack of specialty made her useless as soon as 6* units made anything lower obsolete. She was later given a 6* awakening, but her added abilities were not enough to make her useful again. She got Divine Ruination like Orlandeau, but it was a nerfed version that only hit five times.
It wasn’t until Agrias’s enhancements that she shined yet again. Namely, Divine Ruination was increased to 7 hits, and given the better 2x modifier. Now, she was an excellent chaining buddy for Landu, especially in ten-man trials where friend units and duplicates are not allowed. Fully enhancing her Knighthood trait gave her a 50% attack increase when equipped with a great sword. Finally, her Full Break enhancements added a 30% imperil to all elements and increased its duration to five turns.
Agrias still doesn’t even come close to any of the other Landu family chaining members in raw stats. All the same, just acting as a chaining buddy gives her huge damage potential. For many players, she is better to use than a dupe Orlandeau. This is because she can wield more weapons, including daggers and spears. If someone only has one Excalibur and Dual Wield materia, Holy Lance is easily obtainable with star quartz, and Bowie Knives have been given out for free recently.
Last Word on Final Fantasy Brave Exvius Enhancements
Many players have their favorite units. These units get them through many tough trials. The player may have spent so many resources trying to get a specific physical chainer, or magic dealer. It is sad to see a character lose their utility in a party after being there so long. Luckily for everyone, most of those units are awarded enhancements to keep them useful for many months to come.
This article highlighted units in the game that are already good but get even better with enhancements. To see some characters who started out bad, but found redemption through enhancements, check out From Troll to Top: Units Who Shine after Enhancements.
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