Aubin is a hard-hitting Housecarl → Viking axe user who joins early in Cornia. He excels at shredding Physical Defense, enabling your carries to delete bulky targets. With simple, PP-friendly passives and a row cleave, he’s an easy plug-and-play bruiser who scales nicely into midgame.
How to Recruit Aubin
Finish the Cornia quest “Call to Action” (liberate Fort Soligie). Aubin joins immediately after the clear.
Class Overview: Housecarl → Viking
- Role: Frontline melee bruiser/debuffer
- Identity: Frequent Phys. DEF Down applications (single-target and row) + sturdy early stats
- Leader Effect: Barrier Breaker (breaks gates/barricades faster on the overworld)
- Promotion: Viking boosts offense and widens his cleave options.
Stats and Growth
- AP / PP: 1 / 1 — simple rotations; thrives on passive value
- HP: D — manage chip; pair with a protector or lifter
- Physical ATK: A — great base damage for early clears
- Physical DEF: C — serviceable frontline bulk
- Mag ATK / Mag DEF: F / E — weak to magic focus
- Accuracy / Evasion: D / D — prefers True-Strike support if needed
- Crit Rate / Guard Rate: E / D
- Initiative: B — acts relatively early for an axe unit
- Growth Type: Precise / Offensive — reliable hits + damage scaling
Skills and Abilities
- Vitalize (Valor): Restore 2 Stamina to an allied unit. Great for refueling your best squad mid-push.
- Smash (Active, 1 AP): Single target hit; inflicts Phys. DEF −20% (priority vs Armored). Bread-and-butter opener.
- Parting Blow (Passive, 1 PP): Free extra strike on a low-HP enemy,good finish tool without AP spend.
- Rolling Axe (Active, Lv10): Row multi-hit that applies Phys. DEF −15%, perfect to soften entire lines.
- Frenzied Strike (Passive, Lv15): Counterattack that also inflicts Phys. DEF −15%, lets enemies debuff themselves by hitting him.
Why he’s good: constant DEF-downs stack team damage quickly; he’s happy in any physical squad and pairs especially well with big hitters who capitalize on softened targets. (Community also rates Viking/Housecarl utility highly for secondary carry duty.)
Best Equipment and Accessories
Axe: Prioritize Phys. ATK or Accuracy/True-Strike to keep debuffs landing.
Armor: Physical armor to steady frontline trades; consider a Mag-DEF piece on caster-heavy maps.
Accessories:
- Carnelian Pendant (+1 AP): Enables Smash → Rolling Axe chains when needed.
- Lapis Pendant (+1 PP): More uptime on Parting Blow/Frenzied Strike passives.
- Accuracy trinket if you’re fighting high-evasion scouts/fliers.
(Use the highest-tier versions you’ve unlocked.)
Ideal Unit Placement & Team Synergy
Front-row or mid-row in your main physical squad. Great partners:
- Power carries (Lex, Clive, Berenice) who convert his DEF-downs into kills.
- Protectors/Healers (Josef, Virginia) to keep him trading safely.
- Debuff teams (e.g., Berengaria’s Dark Marquess) for explosive damage once defenses are stripped.
Tips and Strategy
General Tactic Template (priority):
- Smash → Condition: “Prioritize Armored / Highest Phys. DEF” (start the DEF-down chain)
- Rolling Axe → Condition: “Row with ≥2 enemies” (spread −15% DEF)
- Parting Blow → Condition: “Lowest HP” (cleanup)
- Frenzied Strike → leave passive active (free counters/DEF-downs)
Play Notes
Open with Smash to tag the tank, then Rolling Axe to blanket the row, your DPS will notice the difference.
Use Vitalize mid-map to refill your best unit’s Stamina and keep momentum without retreating.
Watch for mage waves, screen him or swap in Mag-DEF gear on caster-heavy stages.
Final Thoughts
Aubin is a plug-and-play debuff bruiser: easy to build, immediately impactful, and squad-agnostic. If your team has physical carries, he’s one of the cleanest ways to ramp their damage and speed up clears, especially early in Cornia and through midgame promotions.
–
Featured image is from RPG Fan and used under Fair Use.