Unicorn Overlord is the newest game from Vanillaware, a company known for its fantastic 2D artwork. The company established its cult popularity with titles like Odin Sphere and 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim, and Unicorn Overlord is set to put a tactical RPG spin on their usual fare, following the displaced Prince Alain as he builds an army to reclaim his throne.

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Unicorn Overlord's gameplay is similar to games like Ogre Battle in which armies are made up of units, formed with groups of characters all with different classes and abilities. A good formation and tactical setup can make all the difference between resounding victory and total defeat. Here are a few tips for creating strong teams in Unicorn Overlord.

5 Balance Unit Count And Unit Size

A Strong Army Needs Both Size And Strength

At the beginning of the game, the player's army is very limited, with only three units of two characters each at Alain's disposal. The player can use honors to either expand unit size to add more characters to a single unit or add more units to use overall. The costs of doing both slowly increase over the course of the game as the army grows, and both have their benefits: having more units allows the player to field more characters in battle while expanding unit size increases the power of the unit itself.

While it may be enticing to field a few powerful units or swarm the field with a multitude of two-man units, it is much better to balance the number of units Alain has with their size. With some of the larger maps in the game, having a large number of units is vital, and with the growing power of the enemy armies, each unit needs to fairly large to measure up.

4 Have Units Specialize Against Certain Foes

Don't Spread Out Your Characters' Strengths

Even with a unit holding the maximum of five fighters, it is fairly difficult to account for the variety of units Alain will encounter in his fight against Zenoira. There are a multitude of different types of units, each with their particular strengths and weaknesses. Attempting to account for all of them within a single unit would not only be difficult, but would be more likely to make the unit fairly ineffective offensively as well.

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Instead, it would be better to build units with the aim of tackling one or two unit types in mind. Many units have at least one attack that is effective against another unit type, as well as many classes that are specifically effective against other units (such as soldiers being effective against cavalry). Teaming up characters with the same effectiveness can make them especially effective in combat, especially since enemy units often bundle characters of the same class together.

3 Maintain Diversity In Units

Fill Your Units With Characters That Have A Variety Of Roles

While it's important not to spread out a particular unit's strengths, it is also important to avoid making a unit too uniform. It can be tempting to make an all-cavalry team or an all-flying team, but such teams would be incredibly vulnerable to attacks effective against them, leading to easy wipeouts depending on what kinds of enemies are present on the map.

Instead, it's better to try to make a unit built out of a variety of characters each serving different roles. Having a balance between attackers, defenders, and supporters is what makes a strong unit, and sometimes characters with two very different classes can pair very well together. For example, an Elven Fencer can protect a flying character from ranged attacks, essentially covering for their weakness. There are a lot of unique interactions between various classes and their abilities, and experimenting with different line-ups is the best way to understand them.

2 Keep Valor Skills In Mind

Valor Skills Increase A Unit's Versatility

Every class has a unique valor skill tied to it, which can be used with Valor Points to change the flow of battle. Valor skills can heal, revive allies, damage enemies, destroy barricades, and much more. Valor Skills are a vital mechanic, and can genuinely mean the difference between victory or defeat.

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Naturally, the Valor Skills a unit can use depends on the characters it is composed of. Due to the variety and versatility of different Valor Skills, it might be worth it to include a character just for their Valor Skill alone. Pay attention to Valor Skills when deciding which characters to build units out of.

1 Pick A Leader Carefully

Leaders Can Change How Useful A Unit Can Be

The most important part of a unit is its leader. The leader is the head of the team, and decides how much stamina a particular unit has, as well as its base mobility. Units with cavalry leaders can move much faster than units with infantry leaders, even if the infantry-led unit contains cavalry in it. Units with flying leaders are able to fly over mountains and rivers, at the cost of having less stamina.

When a character is chosen as a leader, they can provide leader effects that can affect either their own units or the flow of battle in general. Some effects, such as those of wizards and clerics, can allow them to assist other units in battle, while others can provide a variety of beneficial effects. These leader effects range from being fairly helpful to incredibly vital, so make sure to pay close attention when picking a leader for each unit.

Unicorn Overlord

Vanillaware's Unicorn Overlord is a tactical RPG set in Fevrith, a continent consumed by war. The story follows Alain, an exiled prince who must put together an army capable of liberating his kingdom.

Platform(s)

PS5 , PS4 , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S , Switch

Developer(s)

Vanillaware

Publisher(s)

Sega , Atlus

Genre(s)

Tactical , RPG

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