For those not in the know, Unicorn Overlord is a recently released SRPG (strategy-role-playing-game) that launched on most consoles. I nabbed myself the super-duper collector’s edition (which came with an entire really fun board game as an add-on), and I just recently completed the adventure. It’s a super good game, but this article isn’t a review (honestly, it’s just great simple fun, so I’m not sure I’d even have enough to say to justify an entire review article).
What this article is is a look at my ten favorite characters that join your army. Unicorn Overlord is bursting at the seams with characters, so it was tricky to narrow my favorites down to just ten. Let’s take a look!
(All of these screenshots are the stats pages from my own playthrough, to better capture how I utilized these units.)
10) Amalia
So, Amalia is actually the only character that I never used who still nabbed a place on this list. That’s because this behemoth of a woman is just such a joy to recruit, and it ended up being the final quest I tackled during my adventure. She’ll only join someone who proves themselves to her, so you’ve got to battle your way through an entire coliseum tournament just to challenge her, and that you get hit with the reveal of her magic-powered hidden personality and a surprise two-phase battle! It’s good fun, and a worthy reward to be able to deck baddies in the face with this all-powerful goliath.
9) Melisandre
Whether it’s Hana from Fire Emblem Fates or Lapis from Fire Emblem Engage, I’m a sucker for squishy, glass-cannon swordsmaster-types in SRPGs. Even amongst some stiff competition across the archetype, Melisandre still manages to make an impression. She excels in evasion (a common trait in this unit archetype), but she’s also got the built-in capacity to counter enemies whenever she dodges a strike from them. Add in her exceptional crit-rate, and Melisandre can mow down enemies with ease even in the face of her lower attack stat. I also like her story role of falling hard for Alain despite being his enemy to start.
8) Yunifi
I love me some good archer units, and Yunifi is one of the best I’ve ever come across in an SRPG (even rising to near-Takumi levels of crazy). She’s actually pretty similar to Melisandre, in that she’s got really good evasion and can counter enemies whenever she dodges a hit. However, she adds onto that the versatility of being an archer, which allows her to pick off annoying enemy back row units, and also just delete any fliers from the game. In the story she’s got some neat quirks from being the only human raised by the animalistic Bestrals, such as sniffing out prey from miles away and growling when she’s agitated. It’s pretty endearing, and definitely makes her stand out enough to nail this spot on the list.
7) Virginia
She’s a bit of an all-rounder, but I’ve still got a soft spot for Virginia’s combat prowess. There’s not exactly any area that Virginia can’t make things work. She’s tanky enough to stand in the front lines, can block enemy attacks from hitting your squishy allies, and can counter. Her sword swings deal bonus damage against armored and flying enemies, ensuring she’s never outmatched in any given circumstance. Other units are better at pieces of her kit, but she’s a great total package. In the story, she has a major role through the second country, and is continuously enjoyable and amusing with her noble upbringing coming into conflict with her latent razor-thin temper and predilection towards hitting first and asking questions later.
6) Berengaria
I actually like Berengaria for almost the exact same set of reasons as Virginia, but she gets a few extra bonus points for looking a little bit cooler to me! Just like Virginia, Berengaria can serve as almost any role that your team might need her for. She tanks hits, she blocks, and she counterattacks. Her super cool spiked shield-whip-thing can hit entire rows of enemies at once, and her mere presence debuffs all foes at the start of battle (legitimately, that’s her passive ability). But she’s also just got that latent cool factor that plays both into her battle prowess and the story as a whole. She’s a major character in the second country with some touching scenes with your fellow army members, and a memorable end to her arc.
5) Fran
SRPGs have never, historically, had a very good time balancing flying units. Even with that in mind, Unicorn Overlord is an exception. Flying units are nuts in this game, and Fran is my favorite of the bunch. True, she’s also the first flier that you get, but her utility throughout the entire game cannot be understated. She has doubled evasion against all ground units, as well as bonus damage against those units. She can attack front and back row foes thanks to her flying, and she soars over traps, spikes, and natural environmental barriers while on the battlefield. Best of all, she’s got a skill that doubles the movement speed of all allies for 30 seconds (which, if that doesn’t sound too busted, I assure you it is). Story-wise she is, admittedly, a little plain, but she’s still got a commendable can-do attitude as a valued member of the Rose Knights.
4) Yahna
The first true magic caster you get in the game, and with the overwhelming stats and spells to easily carry your army through to the final boss. After all, she is a decades old super-sorceress, so it shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise! Honestly, compared to some of the other characters on this list, Yahna is fairly simplistic. She’s got sky-high magic attack, and she devastates all foes with incomprehensibly powerful spells. And…that’s it! That’s all you need, really, and she’ll annihilate the enemy no matter what team you add her to. She’s super cool in the story too, being older far beyond her appearance (she de-aged her appearance in order to hide from enemies from the coup that overthrew the nation), and quests involving her are always a treat.
3) Ochlys
Ochlys has all the perks of a flying unit that Fran enjoys, while also being able to carry with her more than just beatdown potential. This makes her combat contribution a little more nuanced, which is very appreciated. While Fran is best at ferrying units to a destination quickly, Ochlys is able to utilize some of the tactics that make characters like Virginia and Berengaria so good. She can guard and counter, she can cast buffs, and she can attack enemies with special moves that strip their buffs and give them to herself. She’s even got an absurd move that multiplies her attack dependent upon however many buffs she’s stacked on herself. Her story contribution is light (she’s an optional side-quest unit), but her bond of camaraderie with her ward (the cleric Sharon) is still charmingly wholesome.
2) Alain
Just…look at those stats. There is not a single thing that this man (who happens to be your player avatar) cannot do. And, I mean, I’m not complaining. I would much rather have an overpowered main character in an SRPG like this (along the lines of Robin from Fire Emblem Awakening) than a weak one (sorry Corrin, you’re no Ryoma). Alain is a beast, and he’ll utterly destroy anything that so much as glances in his direction with ease. It’s little surprise that almost everyone uses Alain in their multiplayer arena teams, myself included. He’s so good that you’d be handicapping yourself by avoiding him.
He’s pretty great in the story too. While bland on the surface, I actually think he has a pretty decent arc about setting out to save his home country and honor his mother, and then having to reconcile with the responsibility of inadvertently becoming a savior the world over. His humble and down-to-earth nature feels earned, and not like some other self-insert main characters you’ll see. He’s just a chill dude! A chill dude who is really good at defeating enemies!
1) Rosalinde
Virginia and Berengaria may have been all-rounders, but Rosalinde is truly the complete package when it comes to having a unit that can do anything and everything you’d ever need her to. Because, at the end of the day, those other units are locked to being physical tanks/attackers. Rosalinde, on the other hand, can deal both physical and magical damage to an enemy depending on the circumstance you need to account for. On top of this, she can fire multi-target magic shots, has a gigantic blast move that hits all foes, summons fairies that buff herself and allies, and can even heal! All that in one unit!
She’s got story relevance in spades too. She is, after all, the central character for the third country you visit, joining your army immediately and being present throughout the region’s cutscenes and quests. She’s got fiery spirit and a quick wit, and her teasing matches with Alain are a constant treat. She’s also got a great bond with her sister, Eltolinde, and I really liked how their story played out through the region. Also, bonus points for being voiced by the incredibly talented Cristina Vee. Unicorn Overlord‘s entire cast does a great job, just in general.
But hey, that’s just my opinion!
The Contrarian Corner 