Edit (1/24/25): Tiny edit. Just recommended [Caged Reverie] over [Thousand-Mile Echo] for most battles. It’s rare you need 4 NRG in one go, but the aura can save you and also increase your damage output. It’s really nice when you can time this on a turn where he’ll get the CD removed by the wand + cup engraving!
Edit (1/18/25): Updated the notes explaining [Campfire Night Talks] to reflect the fact that Reorganized Cube and/or Empress Tarot cleanses the [Sleep] debuff from allies immediately, making the skill more useful both as a buff and as a sleep grenade for the enemy.
Edit (1/18/25): Changed the recommended skill to equip in the final slot (for most content) to [Inner Light], as the extra NRG is just going to, in my opinion, be more useful in most cases than the aura provided by [Caged Reverie].
Hey guys! With Taair officially announced as the next banner character, I figured I’d get this guide out! He is absolutely busted (as I believe the kids say these days), and will be a great asset to any team/account. I suggest that, unless you have someone you are saving up for, you aim to get Taair.
He has also been added to my Shard Farming Priority Guide, so you can take a look at that for info related to shard farming.
Notes
Taair is an exceptional support character who can act as a buffer and, to a lesser degree, a healer for your team. His main claim to fame is his ability to provide multiple [▲ SPD II] to multiple characters on the team simultaneously, but it certainly isn’t the only reason he’s considered a top-tier support.
Taair’s trait, [Historian], is multifaceted and can be a bit complicated at first glance. He possesses stacks of a unique buff called [Knowledge], which enable him (whenever he possesses 2 stacks) to cast some special [Historical Skills]. These stacks are acquired by having Taair land on [Scrolls] that he generates randomly, one per turn, on empty tiles within 3 tiles of himself. When landing on one, he gains 1 stack of [Knowledge], a random [Level 2 buff], and 3 extra tiles of movement. His trait also gives him extra range on his support skills, and generates a small heal effect at the end of his support skills on those affected.
Taair has a choice of three different [Historical Skills], all of which are [Instant] skills and each of which consumes 2 stacks of [Knowledge] on use: (1) [Historical Truth], which inflicts [▼ Move II] and [Vulnerable II] on a single enemy within 5 tiles; (2) [Learn from the Past], which dispels 2 debuffs and provides a small heal in a 2-tile range of a target; and (3) [Hero’s Epic], which provides a single ally with [▲ DMG II] and [DMG Reduction II], as well as a decent heal. These skills are all nice bonuses, but none of them is likely to be necessary for winning a battle, so grab [Scrolls] when you can, but don’t put Taair in danger just to hoard stacks of [Knowledge].
For his basic attack, the choice isn’t overly important, but I’m opting for [Dispelling Strike], as Taair’s heals aren’t overly powerful anyway, and removing a buff or two from an enemy at the start of the turn (since Taair is the fastest character in the game!) can be useful in certain scenarios, such as removing defensive buffs from enemies so your DPS’s can eliminate them more easily.
Both of Taair’s reactions have potential to be useful. For most situations, you’ll want to bring [Pacifism], for its buff dispelling effect (removes 2 buffs from the attacking enemy before they attack) and its 20% DMG reduction, but the DoT resistance and, more importantly, control effect resistance and [Bound Immunity] provided by [Heart of Forbearance] can be incredibly useful in niche situations, so I recommend picking that skill up, just in case.
The first skill you’ll want to always bring with you is [Seed of Wisdom], which dispels 1 debuff from all characters within 2 tiles of the target, as well as provides them with [▲ SPD II] and [Meditation] for 2 turns. That means that, for 2 turns, the affected allies get +100 SPD and and extra NRG at the start of each turn! This is an incredible buff, and can easily make it so your entire team can go before the enemy team, allowing you to wreak havoc on them before they even get a chance to fight back. Another nice part of this is that the skill’s CD is only 2 turns, meaning that as soon as its effect expires, you can re-cast it!
For Taair’s next skill, bring [Caged Reverie], which provides a powerful [Aura] effect when activated: “Increases DMG and Piercing DMG by 15% for all allies within 3 tiles, allows them to share the DMG taken, and grants them immunity to [Attribute Debuff]. At the end of the action, recovers 15% of HP. This effect cannot be immunized or dispelled.” Since it’s an aura, the DMG buffs stack with other normal DMG buffs on the affected allies, and the DMG-sharing can also prevent squishier characters from dying, or being knocked into an [Injured] state, thus reducing their DMG output. Just be careful that an already weakened character isn’t being expected to share DMG to the point of being killed! The biggest downside to this skill is its long CD: 7 turns. So make sure you use it at a time where you’ll be able to make the most of it, as on most maps, you’ll only get the chance to activate it once.
For his final skill slot, I recommend [Inner Light]. The fact that it’s in [Instant] skill, and provides NRG in a 3-tile AoE to multiple allies, including himself, is very useful in most content. Additionally, if the wand + cup resonance activates, he can cast this skill a second time immediately. This can absolutely turn the tide of battle in certain scenarios, and will enable your other characters to more consistently activate their strongest skills.
An alternate skill that you want to bring with Taair is [Thousand-Mile Echo], which provides the target ally with 4 NRG, [▲ ATK II], [▲ Move II], and [▲ SPD II] for 2 turns. This can pretty much single-handedly set up another character to cause some serious harm to the enemy in a number of difference situations, especially given how many effects it bestows simultaneously. This actually functions similarly to Homa’s [Hovering Support] skill, but instead of [Jump] and [Baloor], Taair provides SPD and 4 NRG. Just bear in mind that this one isn’t an [Instant] skill.
As another alternative for his final skill slot, you can bring [Campfire Night Talks], which inflicts [Sleep] and [Tipsy] on Taair and any characters within 2 tiles of him, as well as healing Taair and removing 3 debuffs from himself. Essentially, this turns Taair into a canister of sleeping gas—throw him into a group of enemies and put them all to sleep, and then pick them off while they’re sleeping, or otherwise buy yourself a turn to reposition or regroup your characters. Note that if you’re using Reorganized Cube and/or Empress tarot, they clear the [Sleep] debuff from your allies automatically, meaning they can get the [Tipsy] buff with none of the downsides.
For a weapon, the Reorganized Cube is a solid choice, given that it provides the extra debuff removal and some extra healing. For a trinket, you have a couple of options: for most content, I suggest bringing a Disaster Bottle, as the extra debuffs can be very helpful. For content with [⦸ Active Skills], you should consider bringing a Fancy Hat, though, as it will keep him from being unable to function, and also ensure that he’s able to remove that debuff from his allies. An Old Scrolls of Auguste can be considered if you’re using him in more of a healing capacity, rather than for his SPD buffs, or if you are fine-tuning a certain character’s SPD stat. For a tarot, I strongly suggest Empress, as it provides him with just that much more debuff removal, though Priestess also works well on him. World is an option if you really need to reduce the CD of a specific skill, but he should be taking actions on most turns, particularly if he’s paired with Cocoa and her [Happiness] buff. For engravings, I recommend wand + cup for extra skill usage. When rolling for stats, aim for M.ATK.
