Gaia - raid guide

Gaia has some very important mechanics to pay attention to, both to survive the fight and to deal optimal damage. When building teams, it will be important to incorporate units that fill specific roles which the mechanics require. Not to worry, there will be suggested characters and team composition guidelines provided!

Gaia’s rotation doesn’t deviate, as she can’t be slowed and will cast her main skill regardless of how much mana she has. This makes remembering the rotation and when certain mechanics will appear fairly easy to follow:

Normal > Roar > Karma Shackles > Normal > Thorn Waves > Obliterate

Karma Shackles (thorn cage):

Possibly the most important mechanic to deal with is Gaia’s Karma Shackles, as if you don’t prepare a target for it, it could easily kill one of your characters. This attack will target the unit with the highest HP on your team, regardless of where they’re positioned on the field. It will stun and deal damage over time to that unit for 8 seconds, which is calculated using the unit’s own Atk stat. Based on this, the ideal candidate to soak this attack for your team is a unit with high HP and low Atk, so that they don’t end up killing themselves.

After the 8 seconds are up, if the unit survives the attack (which they definitely should, otherwise you’re doing something wrong) your whole team acquires the Purified Soul buff, which raises their Atk by a huge 50%!

This of course makes it ideal to hold any skills that are queued up until after the buff is applied. More on this later.

Thorn Waves

The next mechanic is one that you’ll have to prepare for using your team formation rather than anything you do within the fight itself (except maybe if you wish to cleanse the stun, though it isn’t really worth it). The wave will only stun certain positions in the team formation, making it easy to put a specific unit in that slot to eat the stun for you so that important characters aren’t getting hit. It also allows you to limit the amount of units that get stunned to 1 rather than 3 if you use your formations correctly.

• The positions highlighted in pink are where the units will be stunned by the attack.
• As the Basic and Defense formations only have one slot being hit by the stun, they are the most ideal formations to use for Gaia.
• Avoid using Ranged or Assault formations, as you will end up having 3 units stunned.

As for which unit(s) you choose to have hit by the stun, it’s typically best for your tank (the same one being stunned by the shackles) to take the hit, however if you’re using the Basic formation, it may be best to position a support or sub-DPS unit there so that your main DPS isn’t losing DPS time. Just make sure you don’t have anyone important there!

Obliterate (charged orb slam)

Outside of having a unit to tank Karma Shackles, Obliterate is basically what teambuilding for Gaia is all about. First and foremost, mana control is (once again) hugely important. As her mana increases, Obliterate also increases in power and additional effects. Ideally, Gaia should never have more than 25% mana when casting this skill. Not only does this prevent the Obliterate skill from stunning your whole team for 5 seconds, (or worse, killing your team as the damage ramps up significantly the more mana Gaia has) but it will put Gaia in a Mana deficiency state after casting the skill.

This debuff stacks up to 3 times, increasing your team’s damage to Gaia by 36% after the boss’ third rotation, assuming you’ve properly managed Gaia’s mana.

There is also another important DPS tactic to note here, as previously hinted at in the Karma Shackles section. The 50% Atk buff received from Karma Shackles is timed to almost perfectly run out right after Gaia’s rotation ends, which is after Obliterate. However, it is possible to optimize your damage by waiting until just after Gaia casts Obliterate, but before the Purified Soul Atk buff runs out. This is only important prior to having full stacks of Mana Deficiency on Gaia, but every little bit helps!

The window for attack is small (approximately 2 seconds), but not too hard to hit if you know what to look for. When Gaia begins the Obliterate attack, she will charge up an orb of energy:

Then when Gaia unleashes the attack (hitting the ground with the first fist) is when the debuff is applied. At this point, you should have 2 seconds left on the Purified Soul buff, just enough time to fire off your hardest hitting attacks/ultimate:

Of course, if you failed to keep Gaia’s mana down, this won’t be relevant as the debuff won’t be gained, and your team will be stunned by the attack. After gaining the third stack of Mana Deficiency, this timing won’t be relevant anymore as the damage won’t be increased beyond 3 stacks, so using your skills anytime during Purified Soul is fine.

Burn

An interesting mechanic not tied to Gaia’s skill rotation is her weakness to Burn. It only affects your Physical damage, so placing a character with a burn on a team that mainly deals Magic damage won’t do much, if anything. However it is worth mentioning for Physical-dominant (Str and Dex) teams.

Earth’s Roar

Gaia’s second attack, Earth’s Roar, isn’t particularly important in the grand scheme of things, but it does apply 15% Physical and Magic resistances to Gaia, so unleashing attacks while the buff is up will reduce their damage. It’s 12 seconds long, so waiting for it to wear off will probably result in lower DPS overall, unless your skill comes up when the debuff is nearing its end.

As the game progresses, teambuilding for guild raids has become easier as more characters become available. This allows for more options as replacements for units you may be missing/haven’t built yet while still allowing for a decent score. Here are some top picks to deal with Gaia’s mechanics and deal great DPS.

Mana Control

Unsurprisingly, one of the most important mechanics in this fight is controlling Gaia’s mana - so here are some great options for it! (You’ll probably need at least 2 mana controllers on each team)

• Eve - A huge boon to your team, she will significantly buff your carry’s attack and feed them mana that she drains from Gaia.
• Aira - Similar to Haru, except provides damage boosts through defensive debuffs on the enemy while reducing mana generation. Also doubles as a great HP tank for Karma Shackles, making her doubly useful!
• Ayame - On top of mana control, she also provides an attack amplification for your team, and her DPS is also notable in itself.
• Haru - Has been a raid constant for some time due to her teamwide attack buff and ability to reduce the boss’ mana generation.
• Melfice (+ Bryce) - The dynamic duo works quite well in Gaia, especially since Melfice obtained the ability to drain mana on her main skill when paired with Bryce.
• Aki - A raid DPS staple since her release, she’s also a great mana controller and works spectacularly on a human-based team.
• Eileen - Another great option for mana control, she provides a decent amount of damage as a sub-DPS.

Shackles Tanks

As mentioned before, the unit you want to tank the Karma Shackles ability will have high HP (in order to take the aggro) and low attack, so that the damage doesn’t kill them.

• Daphne - Yet again appearing as a top unit, Daphne can provide teamwide Atk buffs while sharing the damage taken by your other units. DPS boost and survivability!
• Lute - A great raid option for her incredible DPS, she serves a double purpose in Gaia. Since her attack damage is based on her Defense stat, Shackles won’t do much to her and she can still pack a punch!
• Aira - Providing both mana control and a target for Shackles, Aira’s double duty makes her an amazing option to slot in your team!
• Petra - Fitting very well into the usual Undead team, Petra provides shields to help her team survive while she acts as the stun target. She also has a significant amount of self-sustain, so performs well in this role, even allowing the Undead team to fight without a dedicated healer!

Burners

While not entirely necessary in this raid (as in, the mechanic won’t cause your demise if you ignore it), bringing characters that apply Burning can raise your DPS, though the debuff applied is only useful to characters that deal physical damage.

• Naomi - While Naomi herself doesn’t deal Physical damage, she is often paired with Aki, who will greatly appreciate the damage increase! She’s also one of the top DPS options for Gaia, so honestly the burn is just an added bonus.
• Flynn - Being a Beast faction unit, she does great damage in this raid - however she’s best paired with someone else who can take advantage of the debuff, since she’s more of a sub-DPS.
• Cherrie - Used to be one of the best options for Gaia as one of very few units that burns - however she’s become less of a staple and more of a filler unit with the release of other units.
• Nini - Like Naomi, Nini’s damage is Magic, so she can’t take advantage of her own burn. However, she is still a decent option for both Physical and Magical teams, as she also provides a 35% Magic Resistance debuff and decent damage.

Main DPS

• Tasha - A new contender has entered the arena, and her ability to dish out huge DPS to Gaia is certainly incredible. She requires a heavily melee-centric team (3+ melee units) to perform well, but with units like Haru and Aira and Lute also being strong for Gaia, this is barely a noticeable limitation.
• Naomi - Once again, Naomi’s huge damage potential wins her a spot as one of the top DPS options in Gaia. Teaming her up with either Jiho or Beleth as a support to spam her main to get her stacks up allows her to unleash an ungodly nuke at the end of the match!
• Lizelotte - While she has been in slight decline in raid DPS ranking as a main carry, she is still a godsend for most players who have her, as her DPS is always sufficient, if not the best. Against Gaia all her skills are guaranteed crits, and at Origin artifact, she also provides mana control. Even if not being used as a main DPS, she can be slotted into a team as a very strong sub-DPS!
• Eve - If you are able to bump her attack enough to be the highest on the team, Eve is able to do a significant amount of damage in Gaia through the spamming of her Ultimate. Adding up stacks of her “not-quite-DoT” (since it has unlimited duration and can crit!) throughout the fight does a surprising amount of damage.
• Bryce - A common sight in raids, the pair of Undead twins together allows Bryce to spam her Ultimate with a significantly reduced cooldown. With no limitation on Ultimate use (such as seen in Rudra), this has great damage potential.

Supports

• Yuria - No real explanation needed here. Simply apply Yuria to team, and watch it deal significantly increased damage.
• Beleth - A very welcome addition to the world of Supports! Beleth provides her team with a plethora of amazing DPS buffs, great heals, and if using her on a team where she’s the one Ulting, mana too!
• Jiho - Still a great option for the Naomi-centric team (if Beleth isn’t available), she allows her team to spam their skills via the speed boosts she provides with her Ultimate.
• Garnet - The uncontended master of debuffs, Garnet’s abilities allow her team to deal significantly more damage, and provides survivability through lifesteal as well!
• Ayame - Performing a double duty in this raid, Ayame is able to provide a decent teamwide DPS increase while also controlling Gaia’s mana. Her DPS is pretty great too!
• Talia - Still a great option as a team filler due to her mana generation, she’s not as sought-after a teammate as she once was. But if you need a filler unit, she’s a great option!
• Vivi - Similar to Talia, Vivi’s usefulness has diminished slightly over time, however her teamwide speed buff still keeps her in the running as a team filling option.

The following teams are just some examples that can be used to create your own teams. They are not completely optimized meta teams, as those are usually kept within guilds to compete for rank, but they will suffice as a base. Just remember if substituting any of the units listed for the mechanics that you’ll have to provide a suitable replacement for that mechanic. Some more common substitutions will also be listed.

Human Spam Attack

Spam Beleth/Jiho’s ultimate the whole fight to make your team extra spammy and build up Naomi’s stacks, then unleash the NaomiNuke as your last ultimate of the fight and watch the numbers go up!

• Mana control: Lize/Aki (requires Lize Origin artifact)
• Shackles tank: Daphne
• Substitutions:
• Beleth > Jiho
• Lize > Eve/Ayame

Beast Boost

With Tasha’s boosts from melee units, and Beast units being mostly melee, it becomes decently easy to put together a Beast-centric team that deals significant damage, especially if you add Yuria into the mix with her faction damage bonus!

• Mana control: Haru/Aira
• Shackles tank: Lute/Aira

Twins Ultimate Spamming Party

Between Melfice’s mana drain and Bryce’s guaranteed crits, just add some more mana control and a tank, Garnet for good measure, and you’re set! If you find yourself dying without a healer, replacing Garnet is also an option, as long as you make sure to use her great debuffing prowess on one of your other teams.

• Mana control: Melfice/Ayame
• Shackles tank: Petra

Eve Doesn’t Want to Support

If you can pull it off, making Eve your main DPS is a completely viable option! It requires your teammates to have lower attack than her, which involves a lot of investment on Eve so this team is not for everyone. It is somewhat easy to use, however, since the damage is not spiky and applied over time, it makes mana control easier to handle.

• Mana control: Eve
• Shackles tank: Daphne

Another Lize Team:

If you’re lacking in some of the other main DPS options, Lize is always a great choice. She also provides Flynn with the opportunity to come out and play, as her burn will help raise Lize’s damage as well! If Lize’s artifact is Origin, the extra mana control unit can be swapped out for something else.

• Mana control: Aira/Eileen/Lize
• Shackles tank: Aira