Doll Info :: SAF

Overview

SAF joins the list of Dolls with interesting Skill ideas that fall apart upon contact with an enemy. Already struggling with a statline that fails to stand out from the crowd outside of her impressive Rate of Fire, SAF’s Skill is her best bet for relevance.  

SAF’s Skill tries to combine a few different things. Direct damage Grenade and knockback, as well as the manipulation of enemy positions. In theory, the ability to move enemies around the field to either position them for later AoE Damage or to take advantage of other Skills is a good idea, but SAF struggles to follow through. First, unlike other Grenades, both from ARs and SMGs, SAF throws her grenade a short distance in front of her, and only directly in front of her. This can make positioning the grenade tricky as enemies can run under the grenade, or stop too far back to be affected. This can mean SAF needs to place herself in harm's way to get the most out of her Skill. 

Second, the knockback effect is less reliable than it sounds. According to the description, the knockback doesn’t affect enemies while they are attacking, which already places severe limitations on usage, by requiring the Skill to fit into that window. Once an enemy stops moving, landing the knockback is not easy, as enemies who are elite, attacking, or using Skills (Hydras, Uhlans, Doppelsolders, Swap Dragoons, and some others) and Bosses cannot be knocked back. Even the limitation of an attacking Enemy puts SAF in an awkward spot, as landing her Skill in the timeframe between enemy attacks, and in such a way as to actually move all the enemies you may wish to move, is a finicky operation. Finally, the primary value from knockback in GFL is pushing enemies back, forcing them to walk again, not moving them vertically. 

Overall, SAF’s usefulness is limited due to the restrictions on her Skill, and her own statline. She can be of some use thanks to her strong Damage boosting Tiles, but other SMGs are likely to be preferable picks in general use.